181. Молитвенное правило определи себе посильное и держись его всегда. О наблюдении за порядком в церкви и на послушании

Most venerable Mother of the Treasurer Magdalene in the Lord! I received two of your letters dated April 24 and May 1, but until now I could not answer you because I was sick with influenza, and now, by the grace of God, I am recovering. In your second letter, you wrote that you have typed out a lot of prayer rules, but you don’t have time to fulfill them, partly because you have no time - you are busy with treasury affairs, and partly because you are weak. – You shouldn’t type in a lot of rules, but you should do everything to the best of your ability. And God does not demand anything from us beyond our strength. Determine a feasible rule for yourself and always stick to it. Even if the rule is short, just try to follow it with attention. Otherwise, sometimes you’ll pray for a long time, and another time you’ll oversleep. With a feasible rule, you won’t be embarrassed. You write: it’s hard to make comments to sisters in church. But if this matter has been entrusted to you by the Mother Superior, then you should make comments with self-reproach. And if it’s not assigned, then you shouldn’t get involved in this matter yourself. In other monasteries, deans are appointed to monitor order in the church. Let them watch, and you take care of yourself. You say that even during obediences the sisters behave freely. “Don’t ask to look after them yourself, but explain this to the Mother Superior.” And, perhaps, you can modestly suggest that she send some trustworthy old nun to watch these obediences. If Mother Superior listens to you, that’s good, but if she doesn’t listen, so be it. Pray more earnestly: “Lord, have mercy on us, and weigh our destinies!” In your first letter you wrote that you were pleasing people before the Mother Superior. – You shouldn’t be a people-pleaser. If Mother Superior, out of weakness, began to reproach any sister, it would be better to remain silent or say: “I don’t know what to tell you to this,” if you did not notice anything bad in the sister. One should speak what is necessary and not for the sake of people-pleasing. Also, to be silent you need to know the time. In general, one must be careful in all matters. In case of malfunctions, one must repent, humble oneself and reproach oneself. Asking for peace and God's blessing on you, I remain with sincere goodwill. P.S. In any case, reasoning is required. There is a time to remain silent and a time to speak useful and saving words. May the Lord make you wise! You might be interested in: