Иоанн Карпафский

Brief information about St. John of Karpafa Oh St. Our father John of Carpathia, who he was, at what time he flourished, where he carried out his asceticism, and [all] other things concerning him, nothing is known. Only blessed (ιερός 1) Photius writes about him (in the 201st reading): “He (that is, Diadochos) in many ways follows John of Carpathia, who gives the following table of contents to his work: “a comforting word to the monks who came from India,” and sets out his word in one hundred chapters.” In them St. the father fatherly calls on the readers to be steadfast (εγκαρτέρηση) in enduring sorrows and to have patience in the temptations that come along (υπομένουν). Our Reverend Father John of Carpathus to the monks who were in India and wrote to him. One Hundred Comforting Chapters Presenting spring flowers to earthly kings, some of the petitioners were not only not rejected, but sometimes were awarded special gifts. So, at your request, bringing hundreds of good words borrowed from nowhere to you who live in Heaven, may I be favorably received and may I be honored with the gift of prayers from you. 1. Since the King of all is ever-present, having neither beginning nor end to His Kingdom, the most heartfelt diligence befits those who have decided to work for His sake and for the sake of the virtues pleasing to Him. For the honors of real life, no matter how brilliant they are, are cut short along with real life, but those that God shares with the worthy remain forever, since they are given along with immortality. 2. Blessed David, creating a song to God on behalf of all creation, remembering the Angels and all the heavenly powers, even descended to the earth and did not miss any beasts, livestock, birds, or reptiles, honoring such a song on their behalf as worship of the One who created them, and as if wishing that every creature had its due contribution to this. How can a monk, compared to sapphire gold, ever allow himself to weaken in psalmody or be lazy about it! 3. Just as fire embraced a bush, but did not scorch it, so the heat of the body does not disturb and does not defile either the flesh or the mind in those who have received the gift of dispassion, even if they wear a very heavy and hot body: for the voice of the Lord strikes out a flame (Ps. 28:7) of nature and the will of God, and His word is divided by those united by nature. 4. The moon, now increasing and now decreasing, depicts the state of a person, now acting well, now sinning, and again, through repentance, entering the path of virtue. The mind of the one who sinned did not perish, as some of us think, just as the moon’s body was not diminished, but its light. Thus, through repentance, a person again regains his characteristic lightness, just as the moon, after diminishing, is again clothed in ordinary light. He who believes in Christ, even if he dies, will live (John 11:25). And you will know that I, the Lord, said it and did it (Ezek.37:14). 5. When a swarm of enemy imaginations mentally rises up against you, and you, having succumbed to them, are defeated, know that you were temporarily separated from Divine grace, which is why, by righteous judgment, you were handed over into the hands of your fall. Strive so that grace never, even for a moment, leaves you for your negligence. When, having become above slipping, you are able to overcome the wall of passionate thoughts and the nasty excuses of enemy malice crowding one after another, do not turn out to be ungrateful, not recognizing in this the gift given to you from above; but confess, saying with the apostle: not I, but the grace of God, which is with me (1 Cor. 15:10), brought about this victory in me, placed me above the unclean thoughts that rose up against me, and delivered me from the unrighteous man, that is, from the devil and from the old man (Ps. 17:49). Why, lifted by the wings of the Spirit, and having renounced, as it were, the body, I was able to soar above the demons hunting for me, who usually ensnare the human mind in the net of voluptuousness, from which the one who begged for deliverance cries out: He who brought me out of the land of Egypt, that is, from the soul-destroying world, with a secret hand fighting for me, struck down Amalek and gave me hope that the Lord would also destroy other indecent passions of the nations from our faces (Exodus 17:14–16). This our God will give wisdom and power: for some have received wisdom, but not also the power of the Spirit to overcome their enemies. This one will lift up your head above your enemies and give you wings like a dove, and you will fly and rest with God (Ps. 54:7). The Lord will lay down your arms with a bronze bow, showing you firm, quick and strong to resist the opponent, and throwing under your feet all those who rise up against you (Ps. 17:35-40). Give thanks therefore to the Lord for preserving your purity, that He did not shut you in the hands of the lusts of your flesh and blood and the unclean and corrupting spirits working through them, but He protected you like a wall with His right hand. Build an altar to Him, as Moses did after Amalek fled (Ex. 17:15), and sing to Him: therefore I will confess to You and praise You, O Lord. And I will sing to Your name, magnifying Your powers (Ps. 17:50, 51), because You have delivered my belly from aphids and snatched me away from the snares and snares of convenient, varied and skillful malice. 6. Unclean passions kindle in us, renew them, elevate and multiply evil demons, and reflections on the Divine Word, especially those that occur with an outpouring of tears, kill them and destroy them, even if they were inveterate, and little by little, as if they were not existing, they make harmful sinful actions, mental and physical: just don’t be lazy with prayer and hope, unrelenting and unrelenting, bow down to the Lord. 7. Why does Christ perform praise from the lips of the faithful, infants in malice? Of course, in order to crush through psalmody the enemy and avenger who tyrannizes without measure, the enemy of virtues, the evil avenger, the devil. For, it is said, by the greatness of Your glory You have brought down those who rebelled against You (Ex. 15:7) and the adversaries who fight against us. 8. He who, like a freak (έκτρωμα) was deformed by sin (αμαρτία), now, from the flesh (σαρκικά), will eat (κατατρώγει) only half. The other half (in the form of punishments (ποινές)) - in the next century. For everyone knows the fruits of his own path. 9 . A monk must always adhere to the kindest fasting, not be seduced by passions and cultivate great silence. 10. The haters of our souls, demons, inspire some to give us some insignificant praise, and then they encourage us to rejoice about it. If after this, weakened by conceit, we give room to vanity, then our enemies will have little and no difficulty in completely taking us captive. 11. Accept him who reviles you better than him who praises you, who, according to Scripture, is no different from him who curses (Prov. 27:14). 12. When, zealously going through the feat of fasting, through weakness you weaken yourself in it, then, having broken your heart, turn with thanksgiving to the Provider and Judge of all. If you always show yourself humbly before the Lord in this way, you will never exalt yourself before any person. 13. The enemy, knowing that prayer is the most victorious weapon for us and the most destructive for him, and trying in every possible way to tear us away from it, sometimes puts in us the desire to study the Hellenic scriptures, from which we have fallen behind. But let us not obey his suggestions, so as not to deviate from the laws and orders of our spiritual work, and not to gather thorns and thistles instead of figs and bunches of vines. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the sight of God (1 Cor. 3:19). 14. “I proclaim great joy,” says the Angel, “to all people (Luke 2:10), and not to just a few. And one more thing: let the whole earth worship You and sing to You (Ps. 65:4), and not part of the earth. Singing is not characteristic of those who tearfully pray to receive something, but of those who rejoice over receiving what they want. If this is so, then we will not despair, but, rejoicing, we will spend our real life, borrowing from what has been said the incentive for such joy and complacency. However, let us dissolve this joy through the fear of God, as it is said elsewhere: rejoice in the Lord with trembling (Ps. 2:11). So the women who were with Mary fled from the Sepulcher with fear and great joy (Matthew 28:8). Maybe someday we too will rush to the grave with fear and joy in our minds. And it will be wonderful if there is no fear, because no one is without sin, be it Moses or Peter the Apostle. However, in such people, Divine love, having conquered, casts out fear at the hour of departure. 15. That a passionate person, having believed with all his heart and with all humility, receives the gift of dispassion, you have evidence in Scripture. Today,” says the Lord to the prudent thief, “you will be with Me in Paradise (Luke 23:43); to the bleeding woman: your faith has saved you; walk in the world of the most blissful dispassion (Mark 5:34). There are many other similar passages, such as: according to your faith, be it done to you (Matthew 9:29). 16. When, having a strict attitude towards passions, we are more strongly chilled by demons with shameful thoughts, then let us most of all be confirmed in faith in the Lord, and let us most strongly restore within ourselves the hope of the promised eternal blessings, which our enemies try to deprive us of and from which they alienate us out of envy. For if these blessings were not extremely great, then the demons would not burn with such envy towards us and would not shoot at us so often with bad thoughts, hoping to at least thereby satisfy their malice and thinking of driving us into despair with this repeated and unbearable cold. 17. Some define that the truest knowledge is action [according to the truth recognized]. So, try more by deeds to show both faith and knowledge; for those who pride themselves on knowledge alone will hear: they show that they know God, but by works they deny Him (Titus 1:16). 18. For the most part, during festivals and holy meetings, especially when someone intends to begin the Mystical meal, demons try to defile the ascetic with shameful dreams and the flow of semen. But even with this they do not have time to crush or weaken someone who has learned to endure everything patiently and courageously. And let not those who bend in an arc [like snakes] boast about us, as if they were straight. 19. Enemies take revenge for constancy and jealousy by strangling the soul with various and untold temptations. But take heart! With these great and countless sorrows a crown is woven for you. Moreover, in weakness... the power of Christ is perfected (2 Cor. 12:9), and in the saddest conditions the grace of the Spirit is accustomed to flourish, as the word of the prophet assures: the light has shone, he says, in darkness for the upright (Ps. 112:4); of course, if only we hold fast the boldness and hope in which we boast until the end (Heb. 3:6). 20. Nothing upsets a usually good mood more than laughter, jokes and idle talk. And again, nothing renews a worn-out soul so much and prepares one for rapprochement with God as the fear of God, good attention, constant study in the words of God, arming oneself with prayer and seeking fruitful vigil. 21. And it is convenient and at the same time beneficial for the soul to firmly endure any sorrow, whether it is caused by people or demons, knowing that we are deservedly subject to every burden and, at the same time, not reproaching anyone but ourselves for this. He who reproaches another for his sorrows evades the right and proper judgment. 22. It happens that a person moves from the right standing, although he is diligent, speaking out of his rank due to increased temptations, with which, as Scripture says, all his wisdom and all his art were swallowed up (Ps. 106:27). This is allowed so that we do not rely on ourselves (2Kop.1:9), and so that Israel does not become proud... saying: “my hand has saved me” (Judges 7:2). But hope that you will again be restored to your former beautiful state, when by the command of God the evil one, who makes you see and hear everything passionately and incites you to sin, falls away from you and is driven away; having made the mind white as if with a thick cloud, it makes the flesh feel an indescribable burden and burden; and the innate thought, which in itself is simple and not evil, like newborn babies, makes it multi-component and very skillful in every sin, corrupting it and perverting it by inclining here and there. 23. A great something is a person who grows within and is exalted for his virtues. And yet, this great one fears sin, like an elephant fears a mouse, so that, while preaching to others, he himself would not remain unworthy (1 Cor. 9:27). 24. Not only before the end of the world will the devil utter words against the Almighty, as Daniel says (Dan.7:25); but even now it happens that through our thoughts he sends grave blasphemies to Heaven itself, and dishonors the Most High Himself, and His creatures and the Holy Mysteries of Christ. We, who stand firmly on the rock of knowledge, should not be afraid of this and marvel at the audacity of this wicked man, but arming ourselves with faith and the warmest prayer and having been granted aid from above, boldly answer the enemy. 25. With threat and abuse, the enemy boldly attacks the soul that has just left the body, being a bitter and terrible accuser of its falls. But then one can also see how a God-loving and faithful soul, although many times previously wounded by sins, is not afraid of his attacks and threats, and even more so is strong in the Lord, inspired by joy, inspired by courage, seeing the Heavenly Powers accompanying her, and, like a wall, the light of faith enclosing her, and with great boldness cries out against the evil devil: what is it for you and for us, alien to God? What is it to you and to us, cast down from Heaven and wicked servant? You have no power over us; Christ, the Son of God, has power over us and over everything; We have sinned to Him, and we will give an answer to Him, having as a guarantee of His mercy towards us and salvation in Him, His Honest Cross. You run further from us, you damned one. Nothing to you and the servants of Christ. From such bold words of the soul the devil will finally give a backbone, tearing him apart with a cry, powerless to resist the name of Christ; the soul, being higher than him and hovering above the enemy, smothers him, like the so-called quick-flying crow. After this, she is transported in joy by the Divine Angels to a place determined for her according to her condition. 26. That even a small temptation sometimes, if allowed, poses an obstacle to the success of a zealot, may Eheniis (chanos), the smallest fish, who with one touch stops a ship loaded with tons of things and does not allow it to move forward, assure you of this; Remember also the one who says about himself: I am Paul, - I wanted to come to you, both once and twice, but Satan prevented me (1 Thess. 2:18). However, do not be dismayed by this, but rather strive against this with patience and you will receive grace. 27. When a man rich in virtues, through laziness, deviates from what he deserves, then the sons of the evil east from Amalek rise up against him, especially Midian (Judges 6), the fornicating power with their camels, that is, passionate memories, which are innumerable, and corrupt all the fruits of the earth, that is, the fruits of the kindest actions and customs; as a result of which Israel finally becomes poor, falls into cowardice and is forced to cry out to the Lord. Then a good thought is sent to him from above, imitating Gideon in great faith and humility [for he said: my thousand are the worst in Manasseh (Judges 6:15)]; and he takes up arms against such a multitude of attackers with three hundred weak men, and with the help of grace gloriously erects trophies of victory over his enemies. 28. You will not be able to step on the asp and the basilisk and trample the lion and the serpent (Ps. 90:13), unless, having begged God with long prayer, you do not receive Angels as your supporters, so that they, lifting you in their arms, will make you superior to all material-loving wisdom. 29. When one of those who strive hard is defeated, let him not lose heart and let him not relax in disposition, but under the influence of the words of Isaiah, straightening up, let him be in good spirits, singing the following song: you strong, submit, O wicked demons! If you strengthen yourself again, you will be conquered again; and if you plan a council, the Lord will destroy, for God is with us (Is. 8:9, 10), God, who raises up the overthrown and makes our enemies torn with sorrow and vexation, as long as we repent quickly. 30. It is impossible for one who learns through temptation to escape sorrow, but after this, such great joy is rewarded with sweet tears and Divine thoughts, for the fact that pain and contrition have been cultivated in their hearts. 31. If neither the willing Isaac nor the flowing Esau received the desired blessing (Rom. 9:16), since God has mercy, blesses and anoints with the Spirit not the one whom we desired, but the one whom He Himself, before creation, predestined to serve Himself; then we will not be embarrassed or envious at all when we see some brothers, pitiful and last, succeeding in virtue. You have, of course, heard what the Lord says in the parable: give him a place (Luke 14:9), so that the one who is taller than you may lie down here. Let us marvel even more at this Judge, who wisely and ineffably judged that he, the least and the last, should take precedence and lead, and we should be the last, although we take precedence over him in deeds and years. Whatever measure the Lord has given to each person, let us conform to that. If we live by the Spirit, then we must walk by the Spirit, as it is written (Gal. 5:25). 32. Do not agree in any way when someone who is in your obedience says to you: give me the power for some time for virtue to try this or that thing, and to do it this way and that way. For the one who speaks so clearly wants to fulfill his will, but rejects the covenants of the kindest obedience. 33. Carnal and spiritual passions, as you will see, will be destroyed by time and God’s wave, even if there are many of them; the mercy of Christ will never be stopped. For the mercy of the Lord from this age to the age to come is on those who fear Him (Ps. 103:17). 34. The royal treasuries will be filled with gold, and the minds of true monks will be filled with knowledge. 35. It sometimes happens that a teacher is dishonored and subjected to temptation for those who have received spiritual benefit from him. For, he says, we are in dishonor - we are dishonored as a dirty trick of the flesh - we are weak, but you are strong; you are in the glory... of Christ (1 Cor. 4:10). 36. The source and support of corruption through the flesh is passionate thought. But the one who has become sober after a fall drives it out of his soul through repentance. For, they say, it would be better if you wept, so that the evil and indecent thought that set you up to do such a thing would be removed from among you (1 Cor. 5:2). Thus, crying resists the spirit of corruption. 37. Who will announce to the one oppressed by dishonor and powerlessness towards virtues that he will see Jesus not only in the future, but also here, with power and much glory coming to him through dispassion? So, like Sarah, his soul, which grew old in barrenness and, according to the promise, finally gave birth to a son of righteousness, will say: the Lord made me laugh (Gen. 21:6), that is, he gave great joy, which remained in sorrow for so many years due to many passions, or, in another translation: God created youth for me, and my youth was renewed like an eagle (Ps. 102:5). For having previously grown old in countless sins and passions, now I have been born again and have become young and tender, having previously been coarsened by matter, and now I easily look at worldly things, having accepted the simplicity and indifference inherent in me by nature, after, by the grace of God, my mind became sound, and my flesh became, like that of Naaman the Syrian, like the flesh of babies, through my washing in the Jordan of knowledge; Now I am equal, by the grace of God I have been delivered from the wisdom of the serpent, and from the horde of evil thoughts, highly skilled in evil and multi-material (immersed in sensuality). 38. Suppose that the Lord Himself says to you: “At one time I took away from you such and such a gift, in which you were satisfied with your mind and found peace; and gave you instead of them another gift equivalent to them, such and such. But you, thinking about what was taken away and not paying attention to what was given instead, groan, get sick and are hurt by sadness; but you make Me glad by accepting sorrow from Me (2 Cor. 2:2), for I cause sorrow to benefit, rather to save than to destroy, caring for him who is honored as a son to Me.” 39. Impose on yourself the commandment not to eat fish, and watch how the enemy then begins to tirelessly drive you to lust after fish. And just as you yourself will begin to frantically rush to taste what you should not even desire, and you will experience approximately what happened to Adam; for he, too, having heard: “You must not eat from this tree,” rushed to this one forbidden thing with all his lust. 40. God saves some with rationality, and others with simplicity and kindness; for you must know that God will not reject someone who is kind. 41. Those who put more effort into prayer are exposed to more terrible and fierce temptations. 42. If you have been chosen to put on dispassion, do not indulge in carelessness, but try to achieve it as much as you have. That is why we sigh, wanting to put on our heavenly dwelling; so that what is mortal may be swallowed up into life (2 Cor. 5:2-4), not only physically with the end of the world, but also here spiritually, as a deposit. For death is swallowed up in victory (1 Cor. 15:54). And all the Egyptians who, chasing after us, insult us, will be killed by the waves from Heaven of the power sent to us. 43. If you have forgotten the one who said: I am afraid, lest, when preaching to others, you yourself remain unworthy (1 Cor. 9:27), and: whoever thinks that he stands, beware lest he fall (1 Cor. 10:12), also: watch over yourself (a word to the spiritual), lest you too fall into temptation (Gal. 6:1), if you have forgotten about the deviation from the right path and the iniquities of Solomon after such grace, if you have consigned to oblivion the unexpected renunciation of the great Peter, then rely on your reason, magnify your way of life, boast about the duration of your great asceticism, and give place to pride. But, O brother, do not at all become lazy (lounging on your back) and do not indulge in carelessness, but rather be afraid while there is breath in your nostrils, although you have reached the number of years of Moses, and pray, saying: Lord, do not reject me in my old age, when my strength becomes impoverished, do not forsake me, O God, my Savior! My song is always about You (Ps. 71:9-16). 44. The Lord says to you, as to Matthew: follow Me (Matthew 9:9). If now, diligently flowing after your much-desired Master along the path of life, you stumble with your foot on the stone of passion and suddenly fall into sin, or, encountering shady places, you often and reluctantly slip and fall, then how many times will you fall and cause excruciating pain to your body, the same number of times, having stood up, again flow after your Lord with the same zeal until you reach Him. Thus, in holy thought, I appeared to You to see Your power and Your glory saving me... in Your name I will lift up my hands, and consider myself filled with fat and oil, and my lips will rejoice, singing a song to You (Ps. 63:3, 5, 6). My great dignity is that I have received the name of a Christian, as the Lord tells me through the mouth of Isaiah: It is great for You to be called My servant (Is. 49:6). 45. Where it is said that your Heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11), and where he will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Luke 11:13), with which sayings it is suggested that not only the remission of sins, but also the alms of heavenly gifts are granted to God’s prayer books, strengthened in their quest by the thought that the Lord has promised such things not to the righteous, but to sinners good things: if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Luke 11:13). So, ask persistently and with undoubted disposition, although you are imperfect in a virtuous life, weak and unworthy of anything, and you will receive great things. 46. Let an unbeliever or a man of little faith think how an ant takes wings, and how a certain worm becomes feathered, and many other wondrous phenomena take place among creatures; so that, at least in this way, putting aside the illness of unbelief and hopelessness, we can finally inspire and sprout, like a tree, glorious knowledge. For I am, says the Lord, who sprouts dry wood and gives life to dry bones (Ezek.17:24; Ezek.37:4, 9). 47. Let us not at all desire to waste away in worries for the sake of bodily needs, but let us believe God with all our souls, as a certain good man once said: trust the Lord, and He will trust you, and, as blessed Peter the Apostle writes: be prudent and watchful in prayer (1 Pet. 4:7) - casting all your worries on God, for He cares for you (1 Pet. 5:7). If you still doubt and do not believe that He cares about you in order to nourish you, look at the spider and judge how different a person is from a spider, a spider, I say, which is weaker and more powerless than anything. But he has neither acquisitions, nor does he go about everywhere, does not judge and is not angry, and has no storerooms; he spends his life in complete meekness and chastity and extreme silence; he is not curious about what concerns his neighbors; far surpassed Pythagoras himself, whom the Greeks admire most of all philosophers for his feat of abstinence of language. Pythagoras did not speak to everyone, but from time to time he used to speak secretly with his friends, and sometimes he also addressed bulls and eagles, doing something worthy of laughter and meaningless; He did not drink wine at all and drank only water. The spider surpassed such Pythagorean abstinence of language by its perfect speechlessness; His abstinence from drinking wine means that he abstains from drinking water. In such a silent state the weak and humble spider remains, not liking to go out and wander here and there, nor to indulge endlessly in labor and fatigue; and he who lives on high and looks upon the humble (Ps. 112:5, 6) (and there is nothing more humble than a spider), extending even to him his industry, sends him a certain food every day, in the vicinity of his tabernacle, allowing him to fall into his net for the consumption of small insects. 48. Perhaps one of those enslaved to guttural madness will say: I eat a lot, and how much I spend afterwards, I cannot help but get involved in many everyday troubles and transactions. But let this one also look at the great whales that graze in the Atlantic Ocean, how abundantly they are fed by God and never experience hunger, although each of these animals eats so much fish that even the most populous city cannot consume in a day. “Everyone is waiting for food from You, so that You will give them in due time,” sings the holy prophet (Ps. 103:27). Why does someone eat a lot or a little - God feeds both. Hearing this, you, who have a wide and spacious belly, place yourself entirely on God and faith, shaking off all worldly cares and a busy mind, and do not be unfaithful, but faithful. 49. If we truly desire to please God and are most blessed to be loved by Him, let us present to God our mind naked, carrying nothing from this age with us or within us, neither art, nor knowledge, nor sophistical wisdom, even if we have studied all the wisdom of the world. For God turns away from those who approach with a self-important disposition, are fed with vanity and are arrogant. Some interpreters have kindly called vain conceit self-feeding and arrogance. 50. How can we overcome previously ingrained sin? You need self-coercion (or violence to the desires of your will). For it is said: a laboring man labors... and is delivered from his destruction (Proverbs 16:26); he always leads his thoughts to holiness in a covetous way. Violence to destroy by violence is not prohibited by laws (i.e., the violence of sin by the violence of good aspirations). When we bring self-compulsion to any good endeavor (i.e., we force ourselves into action to produce a good endeavor), then we wait for other power that will come to us from on high, sitting in Jerusalem (Luke 24:49), that is, in unceasing prayer and in other virtues, until this sovereign power comes to us, acting not as our weak efforts, but such that cannot be expressed by bodily with our lips, powerfully conquering and overcoming both the sinful disposition and the malice of demons, conquering the inclination of our souls to evil, conquering all indecent bodily movements. And there came, he says, suddenly a sound from heaven, as if from a rushing strong breath [of the wind] (Acts 2:2), in order to forcibly drive out from us the evil that always forcibly draws us to evil. 51. The enemy sits in ambush, like a lion in his den (Ps. 9:29, 30), hiding for us the snares and traps of unclean and wicked thoughts. But if we don’t sleep, we can set up even larger and more dangerous networks, snares and ambushes for him. For prayer and psalm, vigil and humility, service to others and mercy, thanksgiving and listening to Divine words - this is an ambush for the enemy: and a net, and a pit, and whips, and a snare, and strangulation. 52. Filled with many years, the Divine David, thanking God who chose him, says at the end of his confession of the blessings of God: now Thy servant has found his heart to pray to Thee with this prayer. This is said to let us understand that a great feat is required and a lot of time is required in prayer in order to achieve the beginnings of a serene dispensation of the heart, this other certain heaven of the heart, where Christ dwells, as the Apostle says: Or do you not know yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you (2 Cor. 13:5). 53. If Christ became for us wisdom from God, righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30), then it is clear that he also became rest. For he says: Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). It is good to say that He became the Sabbath for man, that is, rest. For the human race can find peace only in Christ alone. 54. Just as there is a cup of fall and a cup of wrath, so there is also a cup of weakness, which, having received from us, the Lord at the appropriate time gives into the hands of our enemies, so that it is not us, but the demons, who become weak and fall. 55. Just as in external affairs there are money changers, weavers, bird catchers, warriors, builders; So understand about internal affairs that there are gamblers, poisoners, sea robbers, trappers, fornicators, murderers and the like; those who must be immediately driven out by pious contradiction and prayer, especially the prodigal defilers, so that they do not desecrate the holy place and make the man of God vile. 56. The Lord bows down not only in word to grant salvation, as was the case with the thief who cried out to Him from the cross, but also in thought. Thus, the bleeding woman said within herself (i.e., she thought with faith): if only I touch His garment, I will be healed {I will be saved} (Matthew 9:21); and Abraham's servant speaking in his mind to God about Rebekah (Gen. 24:15). 57. The sin committed almost immediately drives the repentant to God, as soon as he takes in the stench, burden and fury of sin. Whoever does not want to bow to repentance, he does not drive him to God, but keeps him to himself and binds him with insoluble bonds, making destructive wishes the strongest and most cruel. 58. Guard yourself from the spells of Jezebel (2 Kings 9:22), of which the worst are the thoughts of arrogance and vain glory. You can get rid of them by the grace of God if you humiliate and impoverish your soul, and cast yourself before the Lord, calling on Him to help you and confessing that the deliverance you seek is a heavenly gift. This is why it is said: a person cannot take upon himself anything unless it is given to him from heaven (John 3:27). 59. It sometimes happens that during the establishment of the brethren, a vainglorious thought breaks through to say something at the wrong time; angelic thoughts inspire you to drive away this chattering, timeless thought. So, if you do not drive him away with kind silence, but allow him to pass out, being pompous and arrogant, then you will have to suffer the bad consequences of this, being righteously betrayed either to greater sin, or to some external sorrows, or serious troubles on the part of the brethren, or torment in the next century: for we will give an account of the idle and vain word uttered due to the untrained tongue; why should you carefully guard your tongue? 60. Those who are tempted by sensual pleasures, anger, love of glory and other passions are said to be the sun during the day and the moon at night (Ps. 121:6). So, pray that the Divine dew-emitting cloud will overshadow you in order to avoid the enemy’s burning sensation. 61. Do not at all give bold access to lovers of drunkenness and slaves of disorderly meals, nor to those who want to speak shameless speeches. At least they were gray-haired, and at least they led a monastic life for a long time, so that their rottenness does not cover you too, and you are not counted among the unclean and uncircumcised in heart. 62. First, Peter is given the keys, and then he is allowed to fall into renunciation of Christ the Lord, so that by such a fall he may become wiser about himself. So you too, if, having received the key of understanding, you fall into various temptations, do not marvel at this, but glorify the only wise Lord, who through his falls curbs the conceit that follows Divine knowledge: for temptations are a bridle, according to God’s providence, that can curb human arrogance. 63. If the Lord often takes away goods from us, such as Job’s wealth; for the Lord gave it, and the Lord has taken it away (Job 1:21), then, of course, the evil that the Eternal has brought upon us will also be taken from our hands; for, as the wise man says, good {good} and evil {bad}... are from the Lord (Sir.11:14). And He who brings evil upon us, He also gives us eternal joy with eternal glory. Just as I was vigilant, says the Lord, to destroy you and do evil to you, so I will build and destroy no more, plant and will not pluck up again. Let the popular proverb fall silent, which says: once it has become bad, it will no longer be good. For he who changes our affairs for the worse, of course, can again unexpectedly change them into a brighter state. 64. He who attacks demons more powerfully and victoriously with abstinence or prayer, or some other virtue, will himself receive the deepest wounds from them, to the point that he even becomes hopeless, suspecting whether the condemnation of mental death lies on his soul, and is forced to cry out: who will deliver me from this body of death (Rom. 7:24); because the enemy forces me to obey his laws against my will. 65. It was not simply written before, as some said to each other: Arise, let us go to the people living with hope {hope, carefree}, and abiding in peace (Judges 18:9, 10); and again: Come, let us go up to Judea, and having agreed with them with an evil tongue, we will turn them to ourselves from the truth (Is. 7: 5, 6). Thus, as a rule, evil demons sharpen the swords of temptation against those who have chosen silent abiding throughout their lives. And those who are more reverent and fearful of God are attacked with great fury, drawing them into sin regarding the very deeds of piety, with unspeakable abuses; in order to at least in this way turn them away from faith in Christ, from prayer and trust, defeating them. But we, Lord, speaking with David (Ps. 79:19), will not depart from You, until You have mercy on us, and those who consume us are removed from us; We will not retreat from You until you command those who tempt us to depart, and we are quickened by patience and firm dispassion. For temptation is human life and often, at a certain time, we are allowed by the Master of Labor Himself to fall under the feet of strangers, but it is characteristic of a great and valiant soul not to despair of regrettable accidents. 66. If the demon is so strong that he can, even when a person does not want, bend him and pull him to his will, due to his appearance from his true rank by nature; then how much more powerful is the Angel, having received a command from God at a certain time, to transfer all the dispositions of a person to the best? And if the all-cool north is so strong that the softest nature of water turns into stone hardness, then what the warmest south cannot do. If the air, extremely chilled, subjugates everything and fulfills it with its coldness: for before the cold... who can resist? (Ps. 147:6). How can warmth not offer everything according to its properties? For who can resist the face of warmth? Let us believe that the cold and black coal of our mind will someday, or rather, become hot and luminous from the touch of the Divine fire. 67. There is also in the present century, with faithful testimony and signs, a state of dispassion manifested in our innermost Joseph, in which our mind, having come out of Egypt, lags behind passionate desires and secretive, shameful slavery, and hears a language that it did not know, not the language of demons, unclean and corrupting common sense, but the holy language of Angels, transforming the mind from the corporeal into an incorporeal language, enlightening for the recipient. his soul. 68. I heard some brothers, seriously ill in body and unable to fast, turn to me with the question: “How can we get rid of the devil and passions without fasting?” Such people must be answered that not only by abstaining from food, but also by crying out to God from the heart, you can destroy and drive away evil movements and those who excite them. For it is said: they cried out to the Lord in their sorrow, and He delivered them from their need (Ps. 107:6); and it is also written: Out of the belly of the grave I cried, and You heard my voice; but my life will arise from corruption (Jonah 2:3, 7). Why, until lawlessness passes, that is, the chill of sin, I will cry out to the Most High God (Ps. 56:2, 3), so that by giving me the greatest blessing, He will destroy the very pretext of sin with His power and blot out the idols of a passionate mind and show our infirmities full of idols to those without idols. So, if you have not received the gift of abstinence, then know that the Lord, for the sake of your prayer and hope, wants to hear you when you call on Him. Having now learned such a judgment from the Lord about you, do not worry about your powerlessness to achieve the feat of fasting, but rather strive to get rid of the enemy through prayer and complacent patience. When thoughts of weakness and suffering drive you into one city of fasting, flee to another (Matthew 10:23), that is, to a city of prayer and thanksgiving. 69. Pharaoh said, praying: may God take this death away from me, and he was heard; also the demons, who asked the Lord not to command them to go into the abyss, received what they asked. Isn’t it all the more likely that a Christian person who prays for deliverance from mental death will be heard? 70. For a certain time, enlightened and calmed by Divine grace, but as it diminishes, he falls into a soaring of mind and inappropriate desires, and grumbles for this, or gives himself up to useless despondency, and not earnestly with courageous prayer to again restore in himself that saving mood, is like a poor man who, having received alms from the royal chamber, is indignant that he was not brought inside to recline at the royal table. 71. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed (John 20:29), just as blessed are those who, due to the diminishing effect of grace, not finding consolation in themselves, but, on the contrary, encountering alternation of sorrows and deep darkness, do not fall into despair, but strengthened by faith, valiantly endure in the confidence that they see the Invisible. 72. Humility, given by the grace of God in due time, after many exploits, struggles and tears from above to those who seek it, is incomparably stronger and higher than the humility that occurs among those who have fallen away from virtue. Those who have been granted it are truly perfect men. 73. When the devil left the Lord, then the angels came and served Him (Matthew 4:11). And just as it is not written that during the temptation of the Lord Angels were present, so when we are tempted at any time, the Angels retreat not far, then, after the tempting ones are removed, they come to us and serve us, giving Divine thoughts, confirmation, enlightenment, contrition, consolation, patience, delight and everything that saves, strengthens and rebuilds the soul that has labored in the struggle. Nathanael was told: from now on you will see heaven open, and the Angels of God ascending and descending to the Son of Man (John 1:51), that is, from now on the service and help of Angels will be richly poured out on the human race. 74. Remember this bishop, at whose right hand the devil stood, to resist him (Zech. 3:1), that is, every right thought, word and deed, so that you will not be amazed when something like this happens. 75. A monk must know what weakness is, as in the words: have mercy on me, Lord, for I am weak (Ps. 6:3), and what is a departure from God - this is the disease of the devil and his angels. 76. Just as iron becomes inviolable when it is penetrated by fire, so frequent prayers make the mind more powerful for battle with the enemy, which is why demons with all their might and laziness try to relax us into patiently remaining in prayer, knowing that it is hostile to them and helps the mind in battle. 77. David accepted the zeal (with which they went) who came out with him from Ziklag against the foreigners, although they, exhausted, remained on the stream Bozhar (two hundred out of six hundred) (1 Samuel 30:9, 10). Why, having returned from the victory over the barbarians and having heard others say that they should not give part of the spoils to these who were sitting exhausted by the stream, and seeing that they were ashamed, not having anything to say, the most gracious David defended them, saying: they were planted with things to take care of them; and he allocated to them a portion equal to that which he gave to the warriors who fought courageously and complacently (1 Samuel 30:21–25). Consider now that if in any brother, who at first showed ardent zeal [for the feats of fasting, vigil, etc.] and then weakened a little in them, assume that his things (inner good dispositions) are preserved - faith, repentance, humility, crying, patience, hope, generosity, etc.; then this one, who sits close to them and patiently abides in them in hope for Christ Jesus the Lord, although weak in obvious deeds, will receive, as befits, some eternal gift. 78. Levites and priests are those who have completely dedicated themselves to God, both in activity and contemplation; and the beasts of the Levites (Numbers 3) are those who, although they are powerless to steadily walk the path of virtues, nevertheless enjoy virtue, desire it incessantly and are jealous of it as much as possible, although they do not always succeed in doing so because of the evil that takes away their strength. But in due time, they too, one can hope, will receive the gift of dispassion, due to God’s love for mankind alone. For it is said: You have heard the desire of the poor, O Lord (Ps. 9:38). 79. The blows that the enemy inflicts on us, openly and indirectly, we often notice and see; But the torments and annoyances that he suffers from us, when we either succeed in virtue, or repent of sins, or endure insults, or are complacent in misfortunes, or remain in prayer, or any other deeds of piety, from which he is torn, tormented, weeping and seated - we, according to God’s vision, do not see all this, so as not to become arrogant. For it is right before God, as the apostle says, to repay those who insult you with sorrow (2 Thess. 1:6). 80. If an old stump on the ground or on a stone sprouts from the moisture of water, like something newly planted, then it is also possible for us, when we are quickened by the power of the Holy Spirit, to sprout incorruption, which we have received by nature, and to bear fruit, as a newly planted thing produces, although we have fallen into the old man. 81. To a soul that despairs because of the abundance of temptations and multitude of sins, and says: hope is lost, we are killed, it is said by God who does not despair of our salvation: You will live, and you will know that I am the Lord (Ezek. 37:6). To the soul, perplexed, how and by the power of what virtues it can be born again in Christ, it is said: The Holy Spirit will come upon you (Luke 1:35). Where the Holy Spirit is present, do not look for the law of nature and the usual sequence of causes and actions. For the worshiped Holy Spirit is omnipotent and will work in you by His power what cannot come true by nature, so that you will be amazed. In addition, He will now show your mind, which was previously conquered, as a conqueror. For the Comforter descending on us from above is above all and will place you above all natural movements and demonic passions. 82. Strive to preserve unharmed the luminosity of your sovereign mind. If you begin to look at everything passionately, it means that the Lord has darkened you and placed a veil on your face, and the light of your eyes is not with you (Ps. 37:11). However, if you already have this, do not know fatigue and do not weaken, praying with Saint David: send Your light and Your truth to me, darkened by despondency, the salvation of my face and my God (Ps. 43:3, 5); send forth Your Spirit, and they will be created, and you will renew the face of the earth (Ps. 103:30). 83. Blessed is he who eats insatiably and drinks prayers and psalms here day and night, and strengthens himself with the glorious reading of Scripture; for such communion will bring inexhaustible joy to the soul in the next century. 84. Try your best not to fall; for it is not fitting for a strong fighter to fall; If you happen to fall, quickly get up and stand again in a good deed. Even if the first thing happened to you a thousand times after the retreat of grace, let the second thing happen to you a thousand times (i.e., rebellion). And so on until the end of your life. For it is written that if a righteous man falls seven times, he will also rise up seven times (Proverbs 24:16). As long as you hold the weapon of the holy schema (that is, the determination to serve God), with tears and begging of God, you will still be considered among those standing, even if you have often fallen. While you are with the monks, like a courageous warrior, you receive wounds in the front, for which you will be praised for the fact that, even though you were wounded, you did not yield, did not succumb and did not retreat. If you retreat from the monks, you will receive wounds from behind, like a fugitive and a coward, confused and leaving the ranks. 85. It is worse to despair than to sin. Judas the traitor was cowardly and unskilled in warfare, which is why he fell into despair, and the enemy ran up and threw a noose on him. Peter, this hard stone, having undergone a terrible fall, as skillful in battle, did not lose heart and did not despair in his extreme sorrow, but, jumping up, poured out the hottest tears from a contrite and humble heart, and our adversary, seeing this, as if he had been scorched in the face by a very strong flame, immediately jumped back and ran away, emitting fierce screams. 86. A monk must wage an irreconcilable battle against the following three passions to the end: against gluttony, against vanity and against the love of money, which is idolatry. 87. A certain king of Israel defeated the people of the troglodytes and other barbarians with them with psalms and songs and spiritual songs sung on the organs of David and with his words (2 Chronicles 12:3; 20:22). You also have barbarian troglodytes, demons, who press into your feelings and members and torment your flesh with kindling, and incite you to passionately look, listen and smell, speak obscene speech, have eyes full of fornication, and be confused both inside and outside, in Babylonian style. Take care to completely destroy these troglodytes who are evil in you with great faith, and psalms, and songs, and spiritual hymns. 88. Just as the Lord wants man to be saved through man, so the devil strengthens himself so that man through man will be destroyed. Why should one not cleave to a husband who is contemptuous, malicious and talkative, so as not to go to hell with him? For even with the righteous, whoever draws close to him barely obtains salvation. If anyone begins to communicate with the evil one without fear, then, like infection and leprosy, he will meet shipwreck. And who will regret approaching the dragon with a cheerful face? Flee those who are untrained in the tongue, sowers of discord and troublemakers within and without. 89. Whoever wants to be called wise and reasonable, and a friend of God, let him diligently strive to present his soul to the Lord as he received it from Him, pure, unwounded and completely immaculate. For this he will be crowned in Heaven and blessed by the Angels. 90. One kind word made a once indecent robber pure and holy and brought him into heaven. And one unkind word blocked Moses from entering the Promised Land. Let us not consider the pain of tongues to be a minor disease: for those who slander and are vain enter into the Kingdom of Heaven for themselves. A person with an evil tongue, although he may still have some success here, will have none there, but evil will catch him in corruption {destruction} (Ps. 139:12). A certain wise man said well that it is better to fall from a height to the ground than from the tongue. Therefore, we must obey Saint James, who writes: let every person be ready to listen, not quick to speak (James 1:19). 91. So that we do not soar and become distracted, seduced by vanity, it is good to listen to the prophet who says: go, My people, enter into your chambers, into the church of your heart, hidden from every sensory impression, into that ugly abode, illuminated by dispassion and the overshadowing of holy grace, close your doors from everything visible, hide for a small moment - for and all human life is small, and after this he adds: until the wrath of the Lord passes away (Is. 26:20), as someone else said: until iniquity passes away (Ps. 56:2). For lawlessness, and, consequently, demons, passions, and sins are the wrath of God, as Isaiah says to God: Behold, You are angry because we have sinned (Is. 64:5). A person avoids this anger by constantly listening to his heart in prayer, and diligently struggling to be inside, in his inner impregnable church. For draw, says someone, wisdom into your inner being (Prov.8:12; Sir.45:31, 51:18); because all the glory of the King's Daughter is within (Ps. 45:14), says another, adding: It was hard for me until I entered into the sanctuary of God (Ps. 72:16, 17), and into the mountain of wealth (Ps. 67:17), into a ready dwelling (Ps. 32:14), which You have made, O Lord, into the holy place that Your hands have prepared ( Ps.77:54). 92. He who wishes to truly renounce the world, let him imitate the blessed prophet Elisha, who did not take a single thing from his possessions with him, out of the great love for God that inflamed him like a flame. All that Hero has, let him distribute to those in need, and thus lifting the Cross of the Lord, let him flow freely into free death - the culprit of the eternal Kingdom. 93. When you feel that Ammorite is growing within you like an oak tree, pray diligently to the Lord that He will dry up its fruit from above (i.e. sin committed by deed) and its roots from below (unclean thoughts). And may the Lord drive away the Amorites from before you! 94. You should not be surprised when you see those who laugh at our silence, because they themselves cannot remain silent; It is better to reflect the bad impression from them by singing, but without rancor, restoring within yourself your obedience to God, and crying out in singing: only obey God, my soul (Ps. 61:6); for instead of loving me, they lied to me, and I prayed (Ps. 109:4) for the healing of both myself and them. 95. If there is no strong wind blowing at sea, there will be no waves; and if a demon does not attack us, neither soul nor body will be agitated by passions. 96. If you are always warmed by prayer and Divine grace, then, as the Divine Scripture says, you are clothed in the weapon of light. Your robe is warm, your enemies are clothed, as in a double garment, in shame and trembling from the cold. 97. Keeping in mind your sins, do not be lazy to hit your breasts, so that with such blows you can break and soften your hardened heart, like masons break metal-bearing soil; and you will find a vein of gold in it, and you will rejoice over the hidden treasure. 98. Let the fire of desire for the highest blessings and holy thoughts of God about the words of the Spirit burn unceasingly on the altar of your soul. 99. If you always try, having shod your feet with the readiness to preach the gospel of peace (Eph. 6:15), then you will certainly build both your own house and your neighbor’s house well. If you begin to be cowardly [when faced with troubles], then you will be spat upon invisibly, and by law you will inherit the name... of the bootless one (Deut. 25:9, 10). 100. If, according to John, God is love, then he who loves in God abides and God in him. Whoever hates his neighbor by breaking the union of love has obviously received hatred instead of love. He who hates what is his own is far removed from God, if God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him (1 John 4:16). To him be glory and power forever. Amen. Like the saints of our father John of Carpathia, an ascetic and very comforting Word to the monks from India who turned [to him], completing the number of one hundred chapters Never think of considering a layman happier than a monk, who has a wife and children and is amused by the fact that he does good to many, and generously gives alms, and does not at all suffer temptations from demons - [do not think so,] recognizing yourself below him in pleasing God, and do not condemn yourself as perishing. After all, I’m not saying that you live impeccably while remaining a monk. But if you happen to be very sinful, then the sorrow of your soul and suffering are more precious before God than the outstanding virtue of a layman. Your great sadness, despondency, sighing, languor, tears, torment of conscience, bewilderment of thought, self-condemnation in thought, the cry and weeping of the mind, the sobbing of the heart, contrition, distress, embarrassment, humiliation - all this and the like, which often happens to people thrown into the iron furnace of temptations, is more valuable and incomparably more favorable than the well-being of a layman. So, take heed lest you be subjected to the censure of the divine Scripture, which speaks on your behalf: “What benefit have we gained by going as prayer-books before the Lord (Mal. 3:14) and always abiding in His house?” It is obvious that every slave, being close to the householder, sometimes receives blows from the whip and strangulation, reprimands and reproaches, and those outside [his house] are always far from the blows as strangers or neglected. “So what benefit,” says [the faint-hearted one], “have we received, being subjected to sorrows in soul and body, we who always pray and sing, while those, without praying, without being awake, rejoice, have fun, are happy and lead their lives complacently?” And so the houses of strangers are built, we consider strangers blessed, as the prophet says and adds, saying that the servants of God who have knowledge said this (Mal. 3:15, 16). But, however, you should know that they do not tolerate anything strange when, oppressed and distressed in various ways, they endure the will of their Master through many temptations. For they heard Him say in the Gospel: “Truly I say to you, you, my neighbors, will mourn and lament, but the world will rejoice” (John 16:20), but a little more - and I will visit you through the Comforter, I will cast out your despondency, I will make you glad (ἀνακτήσομαι) with hope (λογισμοῖς) for heavenly life and peace and sweet tears, which you were deprived of for several days, being tempted; and I will give you the breast of My grace, like a mother to a weeping child, and I will strengthen you, who are weak in battle, with power from above, and I will delight you who are sorrowful, as Jeremiah says in Lamentations about your inner Jerusalem (Lamentations 1:20), so that “I will see you, and your heart will rejoice from the secret visit, and your sorrow will turn into joy, and no one can take away your joy” ( John 16:20, 22). So, let us not close our eyes, let us not be blind, considering a layman happier than ourselves; but, understanding the difference between legitimate sons and illegitimate ones (Heb. 12:8), let us rather love the apparent poverty (ἀθλιότητα) and the strong toil of the monks, the end of which leads to eternal life and to the “unfading crown of glory” of the Lord (1 Pet. 5:4). Let us therefore love the narrow path (ταλαιπωρίαν) of the ascetics, [these] imaginary sinners - not to say the righteous - [let us love] “to cast ourselves in the house of God,” that is, in the host of those who continually serve Christ, and not “to live in the villages of sinners” (Ps. 83:11) or to move among the laity, even if they performed great [feats] of righteousness. For to you, monk, your Heavenly Father, who especially loves you and oppresses and depresses you with various temptations, says to you: “Be sure, poor monk, that, as I said through the prophet, I will be your leader (Hos. 5:2), and I will meet you on the way of Egypt, tempting you with sorrows, and I will limit your paths, worthy of reproach, with an obstacle (Hos. 12:13) of My providence, striking you with unexpected misfortunes and preventing you from decisively putting into action what you desire with an unreasonable heart; and I will barricade the sea of ​​your passions with the gates ( Job 38:8 ) of My mercy (οἰκτιρμῶν); I will be for you like a panther (Hos. 13:7), eating you with thoughts of reproach, condemnation and repentance in the awareness of your errors. - (All these sorrows are the greatest mercy of God.) - But I will be for you not only a panther, but also a thorn (Hos. 5:12), stinging you with thoughts of contrition, heartache, and the sorrow from your house will not cease (Hos. 5:13), - obviously because the soul and body are beautifully and usefully visited (ξενομένων lit. “trimmed”) with truly sweet and honey-flowing punishments of God. The end of punishments, labors, embarrassment, shame, fears and despairs that usually happen to people who decide to strive - the end of all these gloomy [phenomena] is heavenly joy, inexplicable pleasure, unspeakable glory and unceasing joy. “For because of this,” He says, “I oppressed you in order to feed you with the manna of knowledge, I exhausted you with hunger (Deut. 8: 3, 16), in order to benefit you later and bring you into the heavenly kingdom.” For then, like bulls untied from their bonds, you, humble monks, will leap up, [detached] from the passions of the flesh and from the temptations of your enemies, and then you will trample on the wicked demons who are now trampling [you], and they will be dust under your feet (Mal. 3:20, 21 [4:2, 3 glories]).” For if you are pious and humble in mind, do not exalt yourself with vain arrogance, are not rash, but are contrite in heart, consider yourself an unworthy servant (Luke 17:10) and are humble in spirit - if, being such, you are humble in wisdom, then your sin, monk, is preferable to the righteousness of the world and your impurities are necessary than the great cleansing of everyday [people]. After all, what is it that you are grieving for? Of course, [this is] a vice, but an accidental one (ἐπισυμβάς); and look how a man who had stained his hands with resin cleansed himself with a little oil. So you can be much more cleansed by the grace of God. After all, just as it is not difficult for you to wash your clothes, so it is much more easy for the Lord to wash you from every blemish, even if temptation naturally and involuntarily occurs every day. For at the time when you say: “I have sinned against the Lord,” the answer is given: “Your sins are forgiven (Matt. 9:2). I am the one who blots out [them] and will not be remembered (Is. 43:25). For as far as the east is from the west, so have I removed your iniquities from you, and as a father has mercy on his sons, so I have mercy on you (Ps. 102:12, 13).” Only you do not lag behind and do not retreat from the One who chose you for psalmody and prayer, but cleave to Him throughout your entire life, either with pure boldness, or with pious unashamedness and firm confession to Him. And He Himself cleanses you with His own wave. For what God purifies with His will, even the great Apostle Peter himself will not be able to recognize as unclean or condemn. For it was said to him: “What God has cleansed, you do not consider unclean” (Acts 10:15). After all, didn’t God justify us with His love for mankind? Who will judge us? (Rom.8:34) For when we call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our conscience is easily cleansed, and [then] there is no difference between us and the prophets and other saints. “For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to receive [salvation] through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that, whether we are awake in virtues, or sleep due to some circumstances, as is natural in some weaknesses, we might live together with Christ” (1 Thess. 5:9, 10), looking at Hero with great groaning and incessant weeping and breathing through Him. So, let us “put on the armor of faith” and take “the helmet of the hope of salvation” (1 Thess. 5:8), so that the arrows of despair or hopelessness do not find access to us. But you say again: “I get angry every time I see that the laity are not in the least exposed to temptation, and I get very irritated.” So know, beloved, that Satan has no need to tempt those who tempt themselves and are always drawn towards earthly things by worldly affairs. Know also that rewards and crowns are in store for those who are tempted, of course, not for those who do not think about God, and not for those laypeople who lie prostrate and snore. “But I,” says [the faint-hearted], “suffer too many temptations, for my loins are full of inflammation (Ps. 37:8), as the prophet says, and [only] distress and oppression, and there is no healing for the flesh and no care for the bones (Ps. 37:4; Proverbs 3:8).” But there is a great Physician of the afflicted nearby, who bore our infirmities and healed us with His suffering (Isa. 53:4, 5; Matt. 8:17) and heals; He stands before us now, administering life-saving medicines. “For I,” He says, “have struck with abandonment, and I will heal (Deut. 32:39). So, do not be afraid; for when the fury of My anger is over, I will heal again (Is. 7:4). After all, just as a woman will not lose the feeling of pity for the children of her womb, so I will not forget you, says the Lord (Is. 49:15). - For if the love of a bird is poured out on her chicks, and she visits them hourly, turns her voice to them and puts food into their mouths, then My mercies are poured out much more on My creatures, and My goodness (σπλάγχνα) is poured out much more on you: I visit you secretly, talk with you mentally and put food into your open mind, like a small swallow. After all, I bring you the food of fear of the Strongest, the food of heavenly desires, the food of sighs for consolation, the food of contrition, the food of sweet singing, the food of deeper knowledge, the food of some divine mysteries. If I, your Lord and Father, am lying when I tell you this, then you reprove Me, and I will tolerate,” this is what the Lord always talks to us about in his mind. I understand that I overstepped my bounds by writing a lot. But you made me do it. We spread this word to strengthen those who were in danger of falling from cowardice. Since, as you wrote to me, among you living in India, contrary to expectation, some of the brethren were found, very burdened with temptations and refusing both the life and life of monks, saying that it was suffocating and presented an abyss of dangers, and they clearly considered the laity happy and condemned the day on which they took on the [monastic] form (σχῆμα), - therefore, for my part, I was forced to make the present word longer and to spread it in smoother terms, so that both the uninitiated and the unlearned may understand what is being said. That is why I wrote a lot so that in the future the monks would no longer consider the layman happy, but only themselves, since they, without any doubt, are stronger than the kings who wear diadems on their heads, and brighter and more glorious than them, as they always sit down before God. I, who wrote this, beg your love to constantly remember me in prayers, so that I, the poor one, may be worthy of the grace of the Lord and end this life in the best and most beneficial outcome. “May the Father of generous gifts and God of all comfort” (2 Cop. 1:3) give you “everlasting comfort and good hope” (2 Thess. 2:16) in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. The text is provided only in Russian, see the source for the original. – Editorial of the ABC of Faith The publication, however, without any apparent motivation, uses either Ancient Greek or Modern Greek; the use of diacritics and the spelling of some words may differ. So, for example, you should not be surprised that somewhere it is written “της” (Modern Greek), and somewhere “τῆς” (Ancient Greek). – Editorial of the ABC of Faith.