Письмо 2

I sincerely regret the inadequacy of your monastery and yours; but I, for my part, am unable to help him. It is God’s work to live and to die, to bring misery and to enrich, to humble and exalt, to send sorrows and consolation. Without relying on my weak mind, starting with a word of consolation, I ask God for His all-powerful help, to write me useful and saving advice for the benefit of your souls. According to the advice of the holy fathers, first of all, we must have undoubted faith that everything that happens to us happens according to the will of God; and the will of God is to save us. Salvation is acquired through humility and many sorrows; without these latter it is impossible to reconcile. Moreover, we must remember, as we are weak, that we may have angered God in some way and transgressed His commandments; but we are unable to bring proper repentance and satisfaction for sins, then the merciful Lord, healing our infirmities, sends us sorrows, so that through their astringency the rust of our sins may be cleansed; and feeling them, they would not deviate towards passions; and so, even if not, our heart would gradually die to the world. Looking at one’s own weakness and, in a small way, impatience, one must also think about one’s neighbors, and that they are also being fought and raised by the enemy to unpeace and confusion. Therefore, place all the blame on the enemy, and surrender yourself to the will of God; and when you find any troubles and embarrassments, condemn yourself and say, not out of the corner of your tongue, that “I am worthy of greater sorrows than this”; and show God your submission to patience. I know that it is difficult to endure; but you also need to believe that he will not allow you to be tempted more than you can, but will create an excess with temptation (1 Cor. 10:13). It seems that we talked a lot about this with you, and I offered you from St. fathers that sorrows are necessary for those who want to be saved; about which Saint Isaac has written a lot, of whom I will speak one word to you: “patience is the mother of consolation, but cowardice is the mother of torment.” From this it is clear: when we put our neck under the yoke of the Lord, although it is difficult, we are forced to bear and count ourselves worthy of being afflicted; then the same sorrows are easier for us; and when we don’t even want to hear about the trumpet sounding to us about battle, then even minor sorrow becomes unbearable for us. May God enlighten you and strengthen you with these lines of mine. I do not justify your opponents, but I would like them to be more comfortable and peaceful; but if this does not exist, and it is difficult to restore, then what can we do? Run to Jesus and ask Him for help and wisdom on how to overcome the turbulence of these turmoil; but always try in thought to have yourself last of all; then a solution will come from God to your perplexities, or God will send you into thought what to do, or in a book you will find benefit and resolution to the matter, or you will be instructed by man. God always looks upon the humble, and gives them grace, and does not avert those who cry out to Him. What they are slandering you about is sheer injustice. I am sure that you did not want this dignity either; and therefore be peaceful in soul, and even rejoice, remembering how much Christ, the King of glory, suffered and endured for our salvation, He is innocent; We almost refuse to suffer for Christ, and we are sinners too! And be sure that the sorrows sent are a sign of God’s mercy to us; For this reason, they should be received with thanksgiving. You do what you should according to your position, treat N in everything, then if something absurd is brought up against you to the main authorities, and for this you are punished in some way, or removed from your position; surrender everything to the will of God, and do not be embarrassed. Your conscience is clear: this is enough for you; and that the Nets will rejoice or laugh, this should not be taken into account, giving every case to the will of God. But may nothing like this happen, but may the Lord pacify the hearts of those at war, seeing our weakness, and comfort you in your sorrow. I wish you comfort in your sorrows; and if I wrote something that was unreasonable, then may your love cover me with an apology and condescension for my unreasonableness. April 22, 1830 You might be interested in: