St. Isaac the Syrian - Purification of the Heart

God’s pleasure lies in our being pure in the purity of our first creation. We make him sad when we alter the image in which we were created, for the soul was created in the pure image of God. We have exhanged this purity for its opposite, for when the soul was first created it was able to look upon God in intimacy, but we have now strayed away from him and have worshiped the lusts of the world and the flesh.
St. Isaac the Syrian

St. Nikolai Velimirovich The Prologue from Ohrid

For every man, peace of soul is precious. With those who have attained peace of soul, the body can be in constant motion; in work, in pain, but their souls, affixed to God, always remain in unwavering peace. St. Seraphim of Sarov teaches: "It is necessary to concern oneself with all means in order to preserve peace of soul and not to be disturbed by the insults of others. That is why it is necessary, at all costs, to restrain yourself from anger with the help of vigilance over one's self, preserving the mind and heart from indecent movements. For preserving peace of soul, it is also necessary to avoid judging others. By not judging and by silence, peace of the soul is preserved. When a man is in such a state of mind, he receives divine revelations. In order for man to be preserved from judging others, he must be vigilant over himself; he must not receive from anyone non-spiritual thoughts and he should be dead toward everything worldly. We must tirelessly guard the heart from indecent thoughts and influences. `With closest custody, guard your heart for in it are the sources of life.'

SAINT ISAAC THE SYRIAN ON SIN, HELL AND REPENTANCE

"As for me I say that those who are tormented in hell are tormented by the invasion of love.

What is there more bitter and violent than the pains of love? Those who feel they have sinned against love bear in themselves a damnation much heavier than the most dreaded punishments. The suffering with which sinning against love afflicts the heart is more keenly felt than any other torment. It is absurd to assume that the sinners in hell are deprived of God's love. Love is offered impartially. But by its very power it acts in two ways. It torments sinners, as happens here on earth when we are tormented by the presence of a friend to whom we have been unfaithful. And it gives joy to those who have been faithful. That is what the torment of hell is in my opinion: remorse. But love inebriates the souls of the sons and daughters of heaven by its delectability.  "If zeal had been appropriate for putting humanity right, why did God the Word clothe himself in the body, using gentleness and humility in order to bring the world back to His Father?

"Sin is the fruit of free will. There was a time when sin did not exist, and there will be a time when it will not exist.  "God's recompense to sinners is that, instead of a just recompense, God rewards them with resurrection.  "O wonder! The Creator clothed in a human being enters the house of tax collectors and prostitutes. Thus the entire universe, through the beauty of the sight of him, was drawn by his love to the single confession of God, the Lord of all.

“Will God, if I ask, forgive me these things by which I am pained and by whose memory I am tormented, things by which, though I abhor them, I go on backsliding? Yet after they have taken place the pain they give me is even greater than that of a scorpion's sting. Though I abhor them, I am still in the middle of them, and when I repent of them with suffering I wretchedly return to them again.”  "This is how many God-fearing people think, people who foster virtue and are pricked with the suffering of compunction, who mourn over their sin; yet human prosperity compels them to bear with the backsliding which results from it. They live between sin and repentance all the time. 

Let us not be in doubt, O fellow humanity, concerning the hope of our salvation, seeing that the One who bore sufferings for our sakes is very concerned about our salvation; God's mercifulness is far more extensive than we can conceive, God's grace is greater than what we ask for.
"Repentance is given us as grace after grace, for repentance is a second regeneration by God. That of which we have received an earnest by baptism, we receive as a gift by means of repentance. Repentance is the door of mercy, opened to those who seek it. By this door we enter into the mercy of God, and apart from this entrance we shall not find mercy.

"Blessed is God who uses corporeal objects continually to draw us close in a symbolic way to a knowledge of God's invisible nature. 

O name of Jesus, key to all gifts, open up for me the great door to your treasure-house, that I may enter and praise you with the praise that comes from the heart."

St. John Chrysostomos - The Triumph of the Church

Fresco from Gracanica Monastery depicting Christ's words: “On this stone (i.e. on Peter’s confession of faith) I will build my Church, and the powers of Hades will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).

The Triumph of the Church, by St. John Chrysostom
"How does one prove that Christ is God? We should not try to answer this question by using the argument of the creation of heaven and earth, because the unbeliever will not accept it. If we tell him that He raised the dead, healed the blind, expelled demons, he still will not agree. If we tell him that He promised us resurrection from the dead, the kingdom of heaven, and ineffable goods, not only he will not agree, but also he will laugh at us.

How then shall we lead him to the faith, especially when he is not spiritually developed? Surely, we shall do this by resting on truths which are acceptable both to us and to him without any dispute or shadow of doubt.

We shall start from the fact that Christ planted the Church in the world. What is the point then that we absolutely agree upon? It is the fact that Christ planted the Church. It is by this means that we shall reveal the power and prove the divinity of Christ. We shall see that it is impossible to regard the dissemination of Christianity in the whole wide world in such a short period of time as a human work. And indeed, when Christian ethics invites people who have bad habits and are slaves to sin to a higher life. And yet, the Lord managed to liberate from such things not only us, but the entire human species.

Christ’s superbly wondrous achievement is the Church. He achieved this without using arms, without spending money, without mobilizing armies, without causing wars. He achieved it by starting only with twelve disciples, who were insignificant, uneducated, poor, naked, unarmed… It was with such human resource that He succeeded in persuading the nations to think correctly, not only in the present life, but also in the life which is to come. He managed to nullify the ancestral laws, to uproot ancient customs, and to plant new ones. He managed to detach man from an easy way of life and to lead him to a difficult one. He managed all these things, although all fought against Him, and He had to endure a degrading crucifixion and an ignominious death!

This superbly wondrous achievement is not human. Surely, such things do not occur to human beings. What occurs is the exact opposite. In other words, as long as they are alive and prosper their work progresses. When, however, they die, what they created is destroyed along with them. This is endured not only by the rich or the leading ones, but also by the chief governors. This is so, because their laws are abolished, their memory is obliterated, and their names are forgotten, while their intimate associates are pushed aside. These things occur to those who originally governed the nations by a mere nod, and led to war grand armies; to those who condemned to death and recalled the exiled. To the Lord, however, it was the exact opposite that occurred.

It is superbly wondrous because it was achieved by the Crucified Christ. Before the crucifixion the state of his work looked pitiful. Judas betrayed Him. Peter denied Him. The rest of the Disciples fled in order to save their lives, while many believers abandoned Him. He was left alone among enemies. And yet, after the slaughter and the death, so that you may learn that the Crucified Christ was not a mere man, all things became brighter, jollier, and glorious. Peter, the head Apostle, who before the crucifixion did not bear the threat of a maidservant, but after so many heavenly teachings and his participation in the divine mysteries said that he does not know the Lord, the same one after the crucifixion preached Him to the ends of the world. Innumerable martyrs were sacrificed, because they preferred to be put to death than to deny Christ, as the head Apostle had denied Him after being intimidated by a young maiden.

The amazing submission of the world to the Crucified Christ and His Apostles: Now, all the lands, all the cities, the deserted and the inhabited places, confess the Crucified Lord. On Him faith is placed by kings and generals, archons and consuls, slaves and freemen, unlettered and educated, the barbarians and the various nations of humanity. Even that small and insignificant tomb that received the blood stained and tortured body of the Lord is more valued than a thousand royal palaces and more venerable even to kings. What is even a greater paradox is the fact that what happened to the Lord also happened to His disciples. Because, those who were despised and imprisoned, those who were atrociously tortured and underwent innumerable martyrdoms, the very same ones, after their death, were more honored than the kings. Where do we see this? In Rome, the emperors, the consuls and the generals put aside all things and run to venerate the tombs of Peter the fisherman and Paul the tent maker. In Constantinople, those who bear diadems on their heads, wish to be buried next not close to the tombs of the Apostles but at the entrance of their temples. And so the kings become the doormen of the fishermen! Indeed, they are not ashamed for this, but boast about it, not only themselves but also their descendants.

Christ’s prophesy about the Church and its speedy fulfillment. When Christ’s disciples were only twelve and the Church was not in any one’s thought, when the Jewish synagogue was still flourishing and the impious idolatry dominated almost the entire world, the Lord had prophesied: “On this stone (i.e. on Peter’s confession of faith) I will build my Church, and the powers of Hades will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Do you realize the truth of this prophesy? Do you see its fulfillment? Think how important a fact is the spreading of the Church almost to the entire earth in a very brief span of time. Think how the life of so many nations changed and led to the faith so many peoples, how it abolished ancestral customs, how it liberated from age-long habits, how it scattered like dust the domination of pleasure and the power of sin, how it extinguished like smoke the foul smell of the sacrifices, the idolatrous ceremonies, the abominable feasts, the idols, the pagan altars and temples, how it erected sacred altars everywhere, in our land and in the lands of the Persians, the Scythians, the Africans and the Indians. What I say? Even in the British Isles, which are beyond the Mediterranean, in the ocean, the Church was spread and erected altars.

The superbly wondrous liberation and change that the Church induced in the world: The work of liberation of so many peoples from age-long shameful habits, as well as the change in the manner of life from an easier to a more difficult one, is indeed wondrous, or rather superbly wondrous. It is a proof of divine operation (energy), even if no one had opposed it, even if peace had prevailed and many had assisted. Because this spreading of the Church did not only come into collision with ancient habit, but also with pleasure, the happy manner of life. In other words, it had two powerful opponents, which tyrannized humanity: habit and pleasure. Whatsoever people had received, from centuries ago, from their fathers, their grandfathers and their ancient ancestors, even what they had received from the philosophers and the rhetoricians, all these things they agreed to despise, an attitude extremely difficult. Besides, they had to accept a new manner of life, which was indeed much more difficult; because she removed them from luxury and attached them to fasting. She removed them from avarice and led them to lack of property. She removed them from profanity and led them to chastity. She removed them from aggressiveness and led them to gentleness. She removed them from envy and led them to friendship. She removed them from an easygoing and pleasurable life and led them to a life of difficulties, hardships, and full of sorrows. Indeed she led to this life those who had been accustomed to the life of luxuries. Surely, those who became Christians were not people who lived in some other worlds and did not have sinful habits, but were those who had rotted in them and had become more flexible than clay. It was them that she called to follow the hard and ragged road. And it persuaded them to follow it!

The superbly wondrous work of the Twelve Apostles in the spreading of the Church. How many were persuaded? Not two, not ten, not twenty, not a hundred, but an innumerable crowd. And how many did she use to persuade them? She used two men, uneducated, uncultured, unknown, poor, without property, without bodily strength, without glory, without illustrious ancestry, without rhetorical eloquence. She used twelve men who were fishermen, tent makers, whose mother tongue was foreign; because, they did not speak the same tongue with the idolaters. They spoke Hebrew, which was different from all other languages. It was with them that the Church was built up and spread to the ends of the world. This is not the only wondrous fact, but there is also the fact that these few, these poor, these uneducated and despised men, who set out to change humanity, did not pursue their work without disturbance. They were confronted with innumerable wars from every side. They were opposed by every nation and in every city. But why do I speak of nations and cities? War was raised against them even on every house. Their teaching separated on many occasions the child from the father, the daughter in law from the mother in law, the brother from the brother, the servant from the master, the citizen from the ruler, the man from the woman, and the woman from the man. In every family not all believed simultaneously,, and so the Christians suffered daily harassments, ceaseless enmities, a myriad of deaths. All fought them as common opponents and enemies. They were pursued by kings, governors, citizens, freemen, slaves, crowds, cities. They did not pursue only them, but –how terrible– even the neophyte catechumens, i.e. those who just believed.

The victory of the Apostles and the Church is due to the power of the Crucified but also Risen Lord. It caused horror and wrath to the idolaters the thought of abandoning their pagan altars, of despising their bloody sacrifices, which all their fathers and ancestors practiced, and of believing in the Lord; of believing in Him who took flesh from the Virgin Mary, and stood trial before Pilate, and suffered numberless tribulations and degradations, underwent a dishonorable death, was buried and rose again. It is indeed a paradox, that, while the sufferings of the Lord were indisputable, -inasmuch as many had seen the lashings, the biting, the spitting, the slapping, the cross, the mocking, the entombment– it was not the same with the resurrection. The Lord, after his resurrection, manifested Himself only to the disciples. In spite of this fact, they spoke about the resurrection and persuaded the peoples and built up the Church. How did they do it? They did it with the power of the Lord, who sent them to preach his Gospel to the nations. It was He who opened to them the way. It was He who facilitated their difficult task. Had they not been assisted by the divine power, the spreading of Christianity would not have even begun.

The persecutions against the Church did not inhibit its expansion. The reason was that while the tyrants were forearmed against the Church, while the soldiers interposed their arms, while the mobs raged like a wild fire, while the bad habit was lined up in opposition, while orators, sophists, the rich people, ordinary citizens and leaders were aroused in enmity, the word of God, being stronger than the flame, turned the thistles into ashes, cleansed the fields and sowed the word of the preaching. Some of the believers were thrown into the prisons, others were exiled, others had their property confiscated, others were assassinated, and others were torn to pieces. In spite of the fact that Christians were treated as common criminals, suffering patiently every kind of punishment, humiliation and persecution, more and more people joined the Church. Indeed, the new believers not only were not discouraged by the tortures which they saw the older believers undergoing, but became more eager! They run by themselves, without constraint, showing gratitude to their torturers. They became more fervent in the faith, seeing the torrents of the blood of the believers.

The expansion of the Church in spite of the persecutions proves the incomparable and unconquerable power of Christ. Did you see the incomparable power of Him who achieved all these wonders? How is it possible that people who are undergoing such horrid martyrdoms feel no sorrow? And yet, they rejoiced, and were elated! This is what St. Luke the Evangelist adduces as an example, when he says about the Apostles that “they left from the council rejoicing, because they were proved worthy to be ill-treated for the sake of Christ” (Acts 5:41). While no one can build even a wall with stones and plaster when is persecuted, the Apostles built up the Church throughout the world while sufferings persecutions, imprisonments, exiles and deaths as martyrs. They did not build her up with stones, but with souls –which is much more difficult; since it is not the same to build a wall as to persuade perverted souls to change their manner of life, to abandon their demonic madness and to follow the life of virtue. They achieved this, because they had with them the unconquerable power of the Lord, who had prophesied; “I will build up my Church, and the powers of Hell will not prevail against her” (Matthew 16:18).

Consider how many tyrants fought the Church and how many persecutions they raised against it… Augustus, Tiberius, Gaius, Nero, Vespasian, Titus and their successors right down to Constantine, were all idolaters. All of them –some more moderately, and some more harshly– fought the Church. Even if some of them did not raise persecutions, nevertheless, their attachment to idolatry motivated those who wanted to flatter them to oppose the Church. In spite of all this, the evil schemes and attacks of the idolaters were dissolved as cobwebs, scattered like dust, vanished like smoke. Besides, what were planned against the Church became the occasion of great benefits for the Christians. The reason was that such plans created choruses of martyrs, who constitute the treasure, the pillars, and towers of the Church.

The wondrous fulfillment of what Christ prophesied about the Church reveals most clearly his true Godhead. Do you see the wondrous fulfillment of this prophesy? Indeed, “the powers of Hell cannot prevail against her.” Looking at what came to pass, believe what is to come. No one in the future will be able to prevail against the Church. If they did not manage to crush her when she numbered but a few members, when her teaching seemed novel and strange, when so many terrible wars and so many persecutions were raised against her from everywhere, much more they will not manage to injure her today, when she has spread in the whole world, and increased her dominion among all nations, abolishing their pagan altars and idols, their festivals and celebrations, the smoke and the smell of their abominable sacrifices. How did the Apostles achieve such a great, such an important task, after so many obstacles? Surely, it was by the divine and unconquerable power of Him, who prophesied about the creation and triumph of His Church. No one can deny this, unless he is mindless and completely unable to think."

St. John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople

St. Nilus the Ascetic on Prayer

Christ praying in Gethsemane

"Prayer is the ascent of the mind towards God. It is a spiritual labour that befits the human mind more than any other preoccupation.

Prayer is born from meekness and the lack of anger that brings to the soul joy and pleasure; it protects man from sorrow and depression.

Just as bread is food for the body and virtue is food for the soul, so the food for the mind (nous) is spiritual prayer.

Just as vision is superior to all the other senses, so is prayer more divine and sacred than all virtues.

He who loves God, always converses with Him like son to father and is averse to every impassioned thought.

Since prayer is an association of the mind with God, then in what state must the mind possibly be, in order to be able, without turning elsewhere, to approach its Lord and converse with Him without the mediation of something else?

If Moses in his attempt to approach the burning bush was hindered until he had removed the sandals from his feet, then shouldn't you who desires to see God and converse with Him, remove and cast out of you every sinful thought?

The entire war between us and the unclean demons does not occur for any other reason but for spiritual prayer, because prayer is extremely hostile and obtrusive to them, whereas for us it is a cause for our salvation, enjoyable and pleasant.

What do demons seek to arouse inside us? Gluttony, prostitution, avarice, anger, resentfulness and all the other passions that fatten the mind so that it will be unable to pray properly; because when irrational passions prevail, they do not allow the mind to move logically.

Do not think that you have acquired virtue if you have not previously struggled for it, even unto blood. Because, according to the apostle Paul (Eph 6:11) we must resist sin to the death, with a fighting spirit and an irreproachable manner.

A bound person cannot run. Nor can the mind, which works like a slave for a certain passion, be able to offer a true prayer, because it is dragged around and wanders here and there on account of impassioned thoughts and cannot remain undisturbed.

You will not be able to pray clearly if you are preoccupied with material things and are agitated by incessant cares, because prayer implies riddance of every care.

If you wish to pray, you are in need of God, Who grants true prayer to whoever persists tirelessly in the struggle of prayer. Invoke Him therefore by saying: "Blessed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come" (Matt 6:9); in other words, may the Holy Spirit and Your only begotten Son come, because this is what Christ taught us, when telling us that we must adore and worship God the Father "with the power of the Spirit, Who reveals the Truth" (John 4:24).

First of all, pray to acquire tears, in order to soften with mourning the savageness of your soul. You will then easily confess with honesty before the Lord all the sins that you have committed and you shall receive forgiveness from Him.

Use your tears to succeed in every request of yours. For the Lord is greatly pleased when you pray with tears.

If during your prayer you shed fountains of tears, do not pride yourself that you are above many others. This is not your accomplishment; it is assistance for your prayer from the Lord, so that you will be able to thus confess your sins willingly and appease Him.

When you believe that you do not need tears in your prayer for your sins, consider how far you have drifted away from God, when "you should constantly be near Him" and then you will weep more fervently.

Indeed, if you have an awareness of your condition, you will mourn gladly, deploring yourself and saying like the prophet Isaiah "How is it that while I am unclean and full of passions, I dare to appear before the Almighty Lord? (Isaiah 6:5).

If you wish to pray in praiseworthy way, deny yourself at every moment; and if you suffer many hardships, reflect on the relief you will find when you take refuge in prayer.

If you long to pray as you should, do not sorrow any person. Otherwise your prayer is futile.

Whatever you do against your brother who has wronged you, will all become obstacles during your prayer.

"Leave your offering" says Christ, "in front of the altar and go first and be reconciled with your brother and then come to pray without any agitation" (Matt 5:24), because resentfulness dulls the logic of man who prays and darkens his prayers.

Those who pray but accumulate sorrows and grudges inside them are likened to people who draw water from the well and empty it into a leaking container.

Do not be fond of chattering and human glory. Otherwise, the demons will conspire against you, not behind your back, but in front of your very eyes and they will rejoice with you during prayer time, as they will easily distract you and entice you with uncanny thoughts.

If you wish to pray clearly, do not give in to any carnal demands and you will not have any cloud overshadowing you during prayer.

Do not avoid poverty and sorrow, because they make prayer seem lighter.

Be careful! Are you truly standing before God during the time of prayer, or are you perhaps conquered by human praise and you seek it, by saying many and lengthy prayers?

Do not pray like the Pharisee but rather like the tax collector, so that you too may be vindicated by the Lord.

The praiseworthiness of prayer does not lie in its quantity but its quality. This becomes apparent in the parable of the Tax Collector and the Pharisee and the words of Christ: "When you pray, do not ramble like the idolaters; for they think that with their chatter they will be hearkened" (Matt 6:7).

Do not pray only with external gestures; instead exhort your mind to be aware of the task of prayer with immense fear.

Whether praying alone or together with your brothers, struggle to pray, not out of habit but with awareness.

Awareness of prayer means the gathering of the mind (Nous) with piety, with devout concentration, with secret sighs and the soul's pain that accompanies the confession of our sins.

You should remain standing and endure the exertion, praying with intensity and perseverance and scorn the cares and the thoughts that come to you. For they agitate and upset you, in order to paralyze your strength and intensity.

If you are patient, you will always pray with joy.

Strive to keep your mind deaf and mute during the hour of prayer. Only thus will you be able to pray.

Chanting quells the passions and pacifies the disorderly movements of your body. Therefore chant with awareness and seemliness and you will thus resemble an eaglet soaring high.

If you have not yet received the gift of prayer or chanting, ask for it persistently and you shall receive it.

The devil greatly envies the person who prays, and he uses every possible trick with the intent to hinder his purpose. Thus, when demons see that you are willing to pray sincerely, they will intentionally remind you of certain supposedly necessary things. Soon after, however, they make you forget them, then they force you to look for them. And because you do not remember them, you become worried and sad. When you resume your prayer, they again remind you of the things you were looking for, so that your mind turns back to those things again, and eventually lose that fruitful prayer.

During prayer, your memory will bring you either fantasies of past things or recent cares or the face of the one who had grieved you. Therefore, guard your memory well, so that it does not present you with its own cares. And continuously urge yourself to remain aware in Whose presence it is standing, because it is very natural for the mind to be easily carried away by memory during the time of prayer.

The attention paid by the mind that seeks prayer will find prayer, because prayer follows attention more than anything else. Let us therefore ensure that we willingly strive to acquire attention.

At times, by remaining standing during prayer, you can immediately concentrate and pray well; at other times, you may strive very hard, but not achieve your purpose. This occurs, so that you may ask for prayer with greater zeal; and after acquiring it, to have it as your inalienable achievement.

Know that the holy angels prompt us to pray and stand alongside us and rejoice and pray for us. If we therefore become negligent and accept the thoughts that the demons subject us to, we greatly dismay the angels, because, while they strive so much for our sake, we do not want to beseech God - not even for our own sake; instead, by ignoring their services and abandoning their Lord and God, we converse with unclean demons.

A true prayer is said by the one who always offers his first thought as a sacrifice to God.

Do not pray for your desires to be realized, because they certainly do not agree with the will of God; but rather, as you were taught, say in your prayer: "Let Your Will be done" (Matt 6:10), and for every single thing, you should likewise ask God that His Will be done, because He wants whatever is best and beneficial for your soul.

I have often asked God through prayer for something I thought to be good. And I insisted illogically on asking for it, thus violating the divine will. I would not let God provide whatever He knew would be to my benefit. And so, having received what I had asked for, I afterwards felt very sorry that I had not asked that His Will be done, because things did not turn out as I had thought they would.

What is benevolent, if not God? Let us therefore entrust all our needs with Him and everything will go well, as the benevolent One definitely also bestows beneficial gifts.

In your prayer, ask only for the justice and the Kingdom of God - in other words, virtue and divine knowledge - and all the rest will then be added to you.

Entrust the needs of your body to God, and that will reveal to Him that you also entrust the needs of your spirit.

Strive in your prayer to never seek any evil to befall anyone, so that you do not destroy whatever you have built by making your prayer abhorrent.

Let the debtor of the ten thousand talents in the Gospel be an example to you. If you do not forgive the person who has harmed you, neither will you attain the absolution of your sins; because the Gospel says of the debtor of the ten thousand talents who did not forgive his debtor, that "he was delivered to his torturers" (Matt 18:24-35).

It is appropriate that you do not pray only for yourself, but also for every fellow-man, so that in this way, you will be emulating the angelic manner of praying.

Do not be sorrowed if you do not immediately receive from God that which you asked for, because He desires to benefit you even more, through your patient perseverance in prayer. What is there indeed more superior to associating with God and conversing with Him?

In wishing to teach His disciples that they must always pray and not be discouraged, the Lord narrated an appropriate parable (Luke 18:1-8). In this parable a certain unfair judge said the following about a widow who was persistently demanding to be vindicated: "Even if I neither fear God nor feel any shame before people, however, because this woman continuously bothers me and demands to be vindicated, I shall do so". And the Lord then concluded: "So also shall God soon fulfill the wish of those who beseech Him day and night". That is therefore why you should not be discouraged or worried because you did not receive it, because you will receive it later. Be happy and persist, enduring the toil of holy prayer.

Overlook the needs of the body when you pray, so that you do not lose the greater gain of your prayer from the sting of a mosquito or the buzzing of a fly.

If you have diligence in prayer, be prepared for attacks by demons and endure their blows with bravery, because they shall charge at you like wild beasts, to torment you.

He who suffers sorrowful things, will also attain joyful ones. He who perseveres during unpleasant things, will also enjoy pleasant ones.

Do not imagine any form for God when you pray, or allow any shape to imprint itself in your mind; only approach in an incorporeal manner the incorporeal God.

Do not desire to see with your bodily eyes the angels or powers or Christ, in case you might lose your mind completely and thus accept a wolf instead of a shepherd and worship the demon enemies.

Guard yourself from the traps of the demons. For it happens that as you pray in peace and quiet, they may suddenly present you with a strange form, in order to lead you to pride, as you might suppose that it where the divine is. But the divine is incorporeal and without form.

Take care to have plenty of humility and bravery, and no demonic influence will touch your soul. The angels will invisibly drive away the entire influence of the demons.

When the cunning demon uses numerous means and cannot hinder the prayer of the righteous, he withdraws for a while. But then he revenges him later, by pushing him to anger, in order to disperse the exceptional inner state that was created through prayer, or by arousing him with carnal desires in order to pollute his soul.

When you pray the way you should, expect temptations. Stand therefore courageously, to preserve the fruit of your prayer. Because from the very beginning that is what you committed yourself to - working the prayer and guarding its fruits. (Gen 2:15). Having worked therefore, do not leave unguarded what you earned, otherwise you will not have benefited at all from your prayer.

If you pray in a God pleasing way, you will meet such trials, that you will think it is only fair that you become angry. However, no anger against your neighbour is justified. If you study the situation carefully, you will find that it is also possible to resolve the case without anger. Resort therefore to every means, so that you do not become angered.

By co-suffering with our ailment, the Holy Spirit comes to us even though we are unclean because of passions and sins. And if He finds the mind praying sincerely only to Him, He will prevail over him, scatter all the legions of evil thoughts and reflections that surround him and exhorts him towards the love of spiritual prayer.

Do you have a passion for praying? Make yourself dead to this earth. Always have Heaven as your homeland - not with words, but with an angelic life and divine knowledge. Forsake all things, so that you may inherit everything.

If you are a true theologian, you will pray truly. And if you pray truly, you are a true theologian.

Blessed is the mind that during prayer does not form any shape whatsoever inside it. Blessed is the mind that prays without being distracted and continuously acquires an increased desire for God. Blessed is the mind which during the time of prayer becomes incorporeal and free from everything. Blessed is the mind which during the time of prayer remains uninfluenced by anything.

If during prayer you feel greater joy than any other joy, then you have indeed found the true prayer."

Elder Paisios, Fasting and Discernment

Elder Paisios of the Holy Mountain 

A short story of Elder Paisios, Fasting and Discernment

Two visitors, who appeared to be hard pious people, continued to look with disapproval on the Elder who was [boiling milk] being careful not to let it overflow or burn. Eventually one of them couldn’t stand it anymore and said to the Elder:

“Elder Paisios, we are in the first days of Lent, we have a strict fast, and you are boiling milk to drink?”

The Elder was silent. He did not respond. He took off the pot because the milk was boiling. Next, he went to the cell, brought six small, old, porcelain cups, arranged them in a row and carefully filled them. He waited a while for them to cool, while all were looking on in amazement, silently.

The two pious people saw all this with disgust, because they were thinking that because there were six people visiting and six cups, the monk therefore would dare to offer them milk during these days of strict fasting.

Elder Paisios took the filled cups one by one and placed them on a wooden tray, carried them seven meters away and left them on the ground, at the edge of a bush.

He placed them all there in a row, and then came and sat beside us and began to make a slow, strange whistling with his mouth, gazing towards the bushes.

A few minutes hadn’t passed before a viper appeared cautiously and later five baby snakes—her children.

I held my breath.

The snakes came, and passed all of us slithering, slowly reaching the cups, and gently began to drink their morning milk...

St. Theodore and the Great Miracle of the Kollyva

In 361, Julian the Apostate was doing his utmost to restore pagan customs. Knowing that the Christians were accustomed to sanctify the first week of Lent by fasting and prayer, the wily tyrant told the Prefect of Constantinople to have all of the food set out for sale in the markets sprinkled with the blood of animals sacrificed to the gods, so that no one in the city would escape the contagion of idolatry. However, the Lord did not abandon His chosen people, but sent His servant Theodore to outwit the tyrant. Appearing in a vision to Patriarch Eudoxius (360-364), the holy Martyr informed him of what was happening and told him to instruct the Christians not to buy food from the markets but instead to eat kolyva made from grains of boiled wheat. Thus, thanks to the intervention of the holy Martyr Theodore, the Christian people were preserved from the stain of idolatry. The Church has commemorated this miracle ever since on the first Saturday of Great Lent, in order to remind the faithful that fasting and temperance have the power to cleanse all the stains of sin.

Saint Theodore the Tryon wrought many other miracles for those who had recourse to him with faith, and who persevered in prayer in his church. One day, shining in glory on his white horse, he appeared to a poor widow and restored her only son who had been captured by Saracens. He often brought the tempest-tossed to safety, thieves to light and runaways back to their masters. In all his miracles, this Roman legionary showed that he had become the heavenly protector of the Christian people.

Orthodox Christian Celebration of the Feast of Saint Theodore The Tyron
The feast and commemoration of Saint Theodore the Tyron is celebrated with the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom which is conducted on the morning of the feast and preceded by a Matins (Orthros) service. A Great Vespers may be conducted on the evening before the day of the Feast. The commemoration of the appearance of Saint Theodore and the miracle of the kolyva is celebrated on the first Saturday of Great Lent each year with a Divine Liturgy and a Memorial Service. This day is the last of three Saturday of Souls observed each year at the beginning of the Lenten season. The faithful bring kolyva and lists of names of friends and family members who have reposed in the faith. The names are read by the priest during the Memorial Service. 

St. Nicodemos of the Holy Mountain - Preparation for the Reception of the Precious Gifts

"My brother sinner, this is the preparation you must undergo before you repent and go to confession. Know firstly that repentance, according to St. John of Damaskos, is a returning from the devil to God, which comes about through pain and ascesis. So you also, my beloved, if you wish to repent properly, must depart from the devil and from diabolical works and return to God and to the life proper to God. You must forsake sin, which is against nature, and return to virtue, which is according to nature. You must hate wickedness so much, that you say along with David: “Unrighteousness have I hated and abhorred” (Ps. 118:163), and instead, you must love the good and the commandments of the Lord so much, that you also say along with David: “But Thy law have I loved” (ibid.), and again: “Therefore have I loved Thy commandments more than gold and topaz” (Ps. 118:127). In brief, the Holy Spirit informs you through the wise Sirach what in fact true repentance is, saying: “Turn to the Lord and forsake your sins… Return to the Most High, and turn away from iniquity, and hate abominations intensely” (Sir. 17:25-26)...And just as hunters are not satisfied with merely finding a beast in the forest, but attempt through every means to also kill it, likewise, my brother sinner, you should also not be satisfied with merely examining your conscience and with finding your sins, for this profits you little, but struggle by every means to kill your sins through the grief in your heart, namely, through contrition and affliction. And in order to acquire contrition, consider how much you have wronged God through your sins. In order to also acquire affliction, consider how much you have wronged yourself through your sins." Excerpt from the Exomologetarion

St. John Chrysostomos - Educate Yourselves and Your Children

If artists who make statues and paint portraits of kings are held in high esteem, will not God bless ten thousand times more those who reveal and beautify His royal image? – for man is the image of God.
When we teach our children to be good, to be gentle, to be forgiving – all attributes of God, to be generous, to love their neighbor, to regard this present age as nothing, we install virtue in their souls, and reveal the image of God within them. This, then, is our task: to educate both ourselves and our children in godliness; otherwise what answer will we have before Christ’s judgement seat? … Let us be greatly concerned for our wives and our children, and for ourselves as well. The good God Himself will bring this work to perfection, so that all of us may be counted worthy of the blessings He has promised.

St. John Chrysostomos

The Fast Begins

Dear Abrahams

Great Lent begins today with a feast.  This is a rare occurrence and thereby a reminder for us of the festal nature of Great Lent.  What is so festive about fasting, we may ask?   To answer that question all we need consider is the contest.   We are in the midst of the Winter Olympics.  What medal is acquired without effort and who among the contestants, while putting forth the effort for the trophy, is not filled and rewarded beforehand with the joy of anticipation of winning?   On the other hand, although knowing they may not win, who among them can possibly be filled with despondency, a reality that tries to defeat them from within?   Subsequently, if they win or lose, while competing and putting forth the effort they are rewarded in a way they would not have been, had they not entered the competition. 

Great Lent is a time when we willingly deny our weaknesses and appetite for carnal things so that we may hunger and thirst for trophy that is Christ.  It is a contest, and our endurance, the effort.  And like contestants in any endeavor, we too can be filled with the joy of anticipation.  But unlike any other contest, all can win.  If contestants in a sport can anticipate the joy of victory even with a great possibility of defeat, what excuse have we?  We should be ashamed to grumble!  We cannot be defeated by any other contestant no matter how much greater he or she may be!  And no event can be too difficult for us.  Our own weaknesses and frailties need not impair us.  Even the Devil himself cannot defeat us!  All we need to do is harness our hearts and wills to Christ and we win!   The Psalmist says, O taste and see the Lord is good.  One who has tasted, cannot help but anticipate and savor Christ throughout his life, whether enduring the fast or enjoying the communion of prayer, until the Prize is acquired.   And the Prize?  Joy all along the way and at the finish, the Creator Himself, the treasure house of joy. 

So let us compete and endure with great fervor this lent, rejoicing in the blessing that it begins with the feast of the Lord, His Presentation into the Temple and like it, our presentation into His Temple at the end of the Great Fast!  Let's remind ourselves throughout lent by heeding the words of Savior Who told us that miraculous things come from prayer and fasting, by

- setting aside more time for spiritual reading,

- more use of personal prayer,

- more often talking directly to our Savior as Father and Friend (as St. Isaac the Syrian advises),

and listening to the words of St. John of Kronstadt when he says to: refresh your soul from worldly vanities by friendly and loving interaction, to be mutually comforted by your common faith. For ‘I see not yours, but you,’ [St. Matthew vii.11.] says the Apostle.”

The Spiritual Counsel of Father John of Kronstadt

It is remarkable that however much we trouble about our health, however much care we take of ourselves, whatever wholesome and pleasant food and drink we take, however much we walk in the fresh air, still, notwithstanding all this, in the end we sicken and corrupt; whilst the saints, who despise the flesh, and mortify it by continual abstinence and fasting, by lying on the bare earth, by watchful­ness, labors, unceasing prayer, make both their souls and bodies immortal. Our well-fed bodies decay and after death emit an offensive odor, whilst theirs remain fragrant and flourishing both in life and after death. It is a remarkable thing: we, by building up our body, destroy it, whilst they, by destroying theirs, built it up-by caring only for the fragrance of their souls before God, they obtain fragrance of the body also.

St. Theognistos - On the Soul's Departure

61. Inexpressible is the soul's delight when in full assurance of salvation it leaves the body, stripping it off as though it were a garment. Because it is now attaining what it hopes for, it puts off the body painlessly, going in peace to meet the radiant and joyful angel that comes down for it, and travelling with him unimpeded through the air, totally unharmed by the evil spirits. Rising with joy, courage and thanksgiving, it comes in adoration before the Creator, and is allotted its place among those akin to it and equal to it in virtue, until the universal resurrection.

62. I shall tell you something strange, but do not be surprised by it. Should you fail to attain dispassion because of the predispositions dominating you, but at the time of your death be in the depths of humility, you will be exalted above the clouds no less than the man who is dispassionate. For even if the treasure of those who are dispassionate consists of every virtue, the precious stone of humility is more valuable than them all: it brings about not only propitiation with the Creator, but also entry with the elect into the bridal chamber of His kingdom.

St. John of Kronstadt - 8 Excerpts from "My Life in Christ"

1. “When some inward disturbance or weakness of the heart prevents your pronouncing the words of the prayers during Divine service, then consider such disturbance and weakness as an illusion of the enemy, of the demon; throw aside the despondency, the faint-heartedness, and timidity, and speak concerning the name of the Lord without hurrying, calmly and intentionally louder; you will thus overcome your disturbance and weakness, and will obtain courage and strength. Everything is possible unto those who believe and trust. We must struggle and conquer.”

2. “When your heart is touched by thoughts of fornication, or impurity, evil, or blasphemy, or when thoughts of malice, envy, avarice, covetousness, gluttony, darken, wound, and oppress you, then say to yourself, with firm, heartfelt conviction, that all this is an imagination of the Devil, and all such ideas and thoughts shall immediately vanish. Blessed is he that ’speaketh the truth from his heart’. [Psalm xv. 2,3.] Tortured will be he who imagines or thinks of evil and sin in his heart! ‘Tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil.’ [Romans ii.9.] Despise the carnal delight of sin, for it is a provocation of the perishable flesh. When a thought of doubt in the truth comes to you, say, that this thought is an illusion, whilst the truth remains-eternal truth.”

3. “When you are in the temple, remember that you are in the living presence of the Lord God, that you stand before His face, before His eyes, in the living presence of the Mother of God, of the holy angels, and of the first-born of the Church that is, our forefathers, the prophets, Apostles, hierarchs, martyrs, reverend Fathers, the righteous, and all the saints. Always have the remembrance and consciousness of this when you are in the temple, and stand with devotion, taking part willingly and with all your heart in the Divine service.”

4. “We have icons in our houses, and venerate them, in order to show, amongst other things, that the eyes of God and of all the heavenly dwellers are constantly fixes upon us, and see not, only all our acts, but also our words, thoughts and desires.”

5. “A Priest, like an angel of the Almighty Lord, ought to be above all passions and spiritual disturbances, above all worldly or vain attachments and fears, occasioned by demons; he ought to be entirely in God, to love and fear Him alone. The fear of man means that he does not yet entirely cleave to God.” “How indifferent a priest should be to earthly things, in order that when celebrating such services, such high and most heavenly sacraments, he may not be ensnared by the enemy, but may always burn with pure love for God and his fellow men, who are lost through sins and are saved by the grace of Christ in the Holy Spirit! But how greatly we are wont to sin! How strong are our earthly attachments! Even when celebrating the sacraments, we sometimes, through being accustomed to them, do not completely lay aside worldly cares and attachments, and therefore the enemy disturbs, darkens and perverts our mind, binds our heart, and takes us prisoners. And deservedly! Do not dream. A priest should be an angel by the elevation of his thoughts, by the purity of his soul and body, by the ardor of his love for God, the Creator of all things and the Savior, and for men, his brethren.”

6. “When entering the temple of God to pray, we should know and remember that we are the children of the Heavenly Father, and have come into His house; therefore we must stand there with son-like feelings of sincere love and gratitude in fervent prayer. Our spirit should cry, ‘Abba, Father!’ [Romans viii. 15.]“

7. “When you see a beautiful girl or woman or a handsome youth, immediately lift your thoughts to the supreme, most holy Beauty, the Author of every earthly and heavenly beauty, that is, to God; glorify Him for having created such beauty out of mere earth; marvel at the beauty of God’s image in man, which shines forth even in  our perverted state; imagine what our image will be when we shall shine forth in the kingdom of our Father, if we become worthy of it; picture to yourself what must be the beauty of God’s saints, of the holy angels, of the Mother of God Herself, adorned with the Divine glory; imagine the unspeakable goodness of God’s countenance, which we shall behold, Carnal desire is sweet, but it is sinful, corruptive, and repugnant to God. Do not attach yourself with your heart to any girlish or female beauty, but to the Lord God alone, Who has created every beauty for His own sake, and say: ‘It is good for me to hold me fast by God,’ [Psalm 1xxiii.28.] to God alone, and not to fleeting carnal beauty.”

8. “When you go to visit any of your relations or friends, do not go to their houses in order to eat and drink well, but go there in order to take part in friendly and sincere conversation with them, to refresh your soul from worldly vanities by friendly and loving interaction, to be mutually comforted by your common faith. For ‘I see not yours, but you,’ [St. Matthew vii.11.] says the Apostle.”

Excerpts taken from “My Life in Christ” by St. John of Kronstadt

GREAT WEEK EXPLANATION

Great Monday Evening

The Bridegroom Service reminds us that we must be prepared to receive Christ. The parable of the five wise virgins and five foolish virgins tells us that our lives must be filled with faith, hope, and good works. We must also be ever-watchful for Christ's Second Coming.

Great Tuesday Evening

The Bridegroom Service emphasizes to us Jesus' love for those who repent of their sins and forgive others. As a model of love and repentance, we are reminded of the sinful woman who anointed Christ with costly oil as if preparing His Body for burial. The penitential Hymn of Saint Cassiane is sung this evening.

Great Wednesday Evening

This service celebrates the Holy Mystery of Anointing wherein we confess our sins and are reconciled to God. To seal our reconciliation, we are anointed with Holy Oil for the healing of our soul and body. Seven special prayers and Epistle are read this evening.

Great Thursday Morning, during the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil, we commemorate our Saviour’s establishment of Holy Communion during the Mystical Supper wherein He proclaims that the bread and wine become His Body and Blood given to us for eternal life. We are also reminded of the betrayal by Judas Iscariot and Christ's vigil in the Garden of Gethsemane.  

Great Thursday Evening retells the entire story of Christ's Passion through the reading of the twelve Gospel lessons. After the fifth Gospel reading, the Crucifixion is re-enacted when the priest carries the flower-adorned Crucifix in procession through the church and places It in the center of the church for veneration.

Great FRIDAY AFTERNOON commemorates the supreme sacrifice of Christ on the Cross. The priest unnails Christ from the Crucifix, wraps His Body in white linen, and places It on the altar symbolizing His burial by Joseph of Arimathea. The shroud showing Christ's Body is carried in procession and laid in a flower-adorned tomb.

The Friday Evening service includes the Hymn of the Lamentations which are chanted to reflect our sorrow, to proclaim Christ's descent to Hades, and to herald His expected Resurrection. Christ's' burial shroud is taken in procession around the church and laid on the altar.

Saturday Morning commemorates the Blessed Sabbath as a day of waiting and strict fasting. The Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil is celebrated as we anticipate Christ's victory over death in Hades and His Glorious Resurrection.

Saturday Evening, at 11:30 p.m., we sing the Paschal Matins service. As midnight approaches, in a darkened church, we begin the Resurrection service. At the appointed moment, the priest comes forth from the altar with a candle symbolizing the Light of Christ and proclaims "Christ is Risen!" The Paschal Liturgy and Homily of Saint John Chrysostomos invites us to share in His Resurrection through Holy Communion.

SERVICES PREPARATIONS - Feasts, fasts, etc.

PREPARATIONS - Feasts, fasts, etc.
NATIVITY
Agape meals
1. Eve of Nativity following Vespers/Liturgy of St Basil - Fasting Agape brunch
2. After midnight Liturgy of Nativity - Agape to break the fast
3. 1:00 pm (2009) on the Feast Day

Christopsomo
When you cut the Christopsomo (Hree-STO-pso-mo) at the Nativity Agape, you should, in the same way that we do Vasilopitta on the New Year, mark it with the blade of a knife in a Cross form, before you cut it and eat it.

Before you eat the bread, you should dip it in honey and then in chopped garlic (finely chopped). You should have just two small bowls on the table, and everyone dips only a small corner, lightly, in each. This represents the sweetness and bitterness of life, prefiguring the bitterness of the Crucifixion after the Nativity and anticipating the joy of Pascha.

In Greek Macedonia, there was a custom called "Myed," which is honey in Makedonski. The mother of the house, on Christmas eve, makes the sign of the Cross on the forehead of her children, after dipping her finger in honey, and says: "In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, may your life be sweet." Because my mother was not Orthodox, and thus could not do so, my father or grandfather or grandmother did it for us. It was a nice custom that you should revive for the children..

The Greeks have lost almost all of these customs, so they get drunk on Nativity Eve (Western Christmas for the majority of them), eat Lamb at huge picnics on Clean Monday, celebrate Mardi Gras (a wholesale adoption from the West), and then eat lamb again on Great Friday and get drunk for the Pascha weekend. The Russians at least go to Church before they get drunk, after having beaten up the village Jews on Great Friday of course. It really inspires one to be Orthodox in this corrupt age, huh?


GREAT LENT Suggestions from 2008
- Fr John suggested more decorations for 2009
- PX suggested avgolemmono be served every year


PALMS
Order palms from HyV at the beginning of Great Lent

CARNATIONS
2009 140 carnations were ordered from Nancy at Kabloom, who gave us the best price of 2 for $1 (all HyV's wanted 75 cents each). She also gave us a dozen roses free (to be used for rose petals in kovouklion)
2010 Order well ahead from HyV

ROSES
Rose petals needed to spread on Eiptaphion (Great Friday evening). Crown should remain on the Cross (Great Thursday).

ICONS
Bridegroom Services - Icon of Extreme Humility
Great Wednesday (Holy Anointing): Icon of the Mystical Supper
Great Thursday (12 Gospels): Icon of the Crucifixion

LOAVES
Loaves are need for Great Saturday morning.

AKATHISTOS TO ST JOHN OF SHANGHAI AND SAN FRANCISCO

Composition of Antonios Markou

Kontakion.
Tone 8. To thee, O Guardian Leader.

Let us, the Faithful, honor the revered John,
the Hierarch of Shanghai and San Francisco,
Whom the Lord hath honored with incorruption;
for he is the splendour of the Church
and the most fragrant flower of Russia.
Let us cry to him: Rejoice, O Father beloved of God.

Thou didst truly prove to be a man of spiritual desires, O John our Father (3x, with the refrain “Holy Hierarch John, intercede for us”), and by thy truly heavenly way of life thou wast vouchsafed spiritual gifts; therewith thou dost hasten to aid those who cry to thee such things as these:

Rejoice, Divine adornment of Hierarchs;
Rejoice, honor and diadem of holy Fools.
Rejoice, fervent preacher of the sufferings of the Lord;
Rejoice, eager emulator of the Forefathers in faith.
Rejoice, extinguisher of the fire of error;
Rejoice, vessel of heavenly light.
Rejoice, seal of the words of the Lord;
Rejoice, fall of the audacity of Belial.
Rejoice, light-filled sun of the Church of Christ;
Rejoice, unshakeable support of the flock of God.
Rejoice, thou who didst manifest the fragrance of heavenly myrrh;
Rejoice, lamp of a life equal to that of the Angels upon earth.
Rejoice, O John our Father.
Thou wast revealed through thine intense asceticism as a Divine citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, O Father; for from thy youth thou didst despise the delights of the world and didst prefer to follow the Savior of all; to Him thou dost cry with fervor, attending on Him faithfully:
Alleluia.

Thou didst prove to be an efficacious instructor in the knowledge that alone is true, O John our Father, and in the last times an incorrupt wonderworker; wherefore, do thou illumine with heavenly light, as one gifted with Grace from the Lord, the souls of those who cry:

Rejoice, firm pillar of the Faith;
Rejoice, radiant habitation of the Truth.
Rejoice, thou who wast foolish and weak for the sake of Christ;
Rejoice, thou who didst suffer dishonor for His sake, as Paul saith.
Rejoice, thou through whom evil is driven away;
Rejoice, thou through whom Divine Grace is bestowed.
Rejoice, thou who wast a fool for love of the Lord;
Rejoice, thou who didst preach the Gospel while in the flesh.
Rejoice, deliverer from soul-destroying affliction;
Rejoice, bestower of God-given joy.
Rejoice, thou who didst despise the prosperity of thy family;
Rejoice, thou who didst teach the law of the Savior.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Entirely desiring the glory of the Master, thou didst make thyself a spectacle in the world, humbling thyself, O Divine John; for taking up the Cross of folly and with it destroying proud thoughts, thou didst richly receive the gift of working miracles, whereby thou dost hasten to benefit those who chant unto the Lord:
Alleluia.

By thy words, O Father, thou didst attract the assembly of the pious and didst guide it unto the saving pastures, in Asia and the West, for thou wast above all a lover of godly deeds; wherefore, thou hearest from us such things as these:

Rejoice, thou who wast mighty in asceticism;
Rejoice, thou who wast supreme in wisdom.
Rejoice, willing sacrifice for the sake of Christ;
Rejoice, severe blow against the Devil.
Rejoice, piercing herald of the love of God;
Rejoice, two-edged sword against the deceit of the enemy.
Rejoice, nightingale of help welling forth from God;
Rejoice, brilliance of heavenly manifestation.
Rejoice, thou who didst mortify the uprisings of the flesh;
Rejoice, thou who didst behold the mansions of Heaven.
Rejoice, thou who dost gather the faithful for celebration;
Rejoice, thou who dost gladden the assembly of the Orthodox.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Thou didst desire the life that hath no ending, O blessed John; wherefore, from thy youth thou didst spurn the pleasures of the world as fleeting and passing, and didst choose the monastic life and its glory, for the benefit of thy soul, crying to the Lord:
Alleluia.

Thou didst shine upon the firmament of the Church, actively proclaiming, “I am a fool for Christ’s sake,” O Divine John; for imitating the poverty of Christ, thou didst scorn all earthly things, seeking after heavenly blessedness; therefore, blessing thee the true shepherd, we say from the depth of our hearts with gladness:

Rejoice, straightest rule of abstinence;
Rejoice, fragrant meadow of dispassion.
Rejoice, mirror of the love of Christ;
Rejoice, scythe of the deception of Satan.
Rejoice, newly-revealed star of our Holy Faith;
Rejoice, powerful destroyer of vain wisdom.
Rejoice, word of the Church of Christ;
Rejoice, fount of consolation for the poor.
Rejoice, most holy servant of Jesus;
Rejoice, builder of a Church of the Theotokos.
Rejoice, for thou wast conspicuous in sacred struggles;
Rejoice, for thou didst triumph over the might of the adversary.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Thou didst shine upon the world, O all-blessed John, as a vessel of Divine light; wherefore, thou didst receive the gift of working miracles, and Christ God bestowed Thy Relics upon the Church as a fountain of healings; to Him, then, do we chant:
Alleluia.

Through thy way of life, O Father, thou didst prove, as an Hierarch, to be truly an imitator of the Great and Only High Priest; for thou didst follow His ways and didst shepherd His people in a God-loving manner, settling them in the pastures of salvation; wherefore, honoring thee with faith we sing:

Rejoice, thou who wast firm and invincible in contests;
Rejoice, thou who wast eager in ascetical labors.
Rejoice, trumpet of piety;
Rejoice, herald of the Truth.
Rejoice, thou who art the fragrance of Christ;
Rejoice, thou who drivest away every stench of evil.
Rejoice, unerring instructor in the laws of the Spirit;
Rejoice, true diminisher of the vanities of the world.
Rejoice, firm tower of the Church;
Rejoice, mighty downfall of ignorance.
Rejoice, thou through whom the Church danceth for joy;
Rejoice, thou to whom she hath recourse, crying.
Rejoice, O John our Father.
Thou wast seen to be a preacher of Grace and a source of miracles through thy way of life, O John, scion and boast of Russia; wherefore, we now honor thee with all the Saints, with whom thou dost rejoice in Heaven; to the Lord Who glorified Thee do we cry aloud:
Alleluia.

Through thine abstinence thou didst prove to be a lyre of the Spirit; and receiving the flame of Divine love, thou didst accomplish the course of martyrdom through thy manner of life, offering a saving witness to all; hence, marvelling at thy struggles, we cry:

Rejoice, thou who didst ignore thy corruptible body;
Rejoice, thou who didst consciously shed thy blood.
Rejoice, thou who didst ascend to the height of holiness;
Rejoice, thou who wast filled with Divine gifts.
Rejoice, teacher of a holy life;
Rejoice, peer of Hierarchs and Ascetics.
Rejoice, thou who wast one in zeal with John the Forerunner;
Rejoice, thou who wast equal to him in honor and glory.
Rejoice, thou who didst show thyself stronger than toils;
Rejoice, thou who didst prove to be above pleasures.
Rejoice, thou who didst hasten to thy suppliant in Athens.
Rejoice, thou who didst chase away the threat of her illness.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Wishing, O Father, to attain to the future good things, in thy life thou wast well-pleasing to the Word, through thy good deeds and loving soul; and after thy departure from the world, thou dost compassionately benefit the lines of those who fall down before thy coffin and cry unto the Lord:
Alleluia.

* * *

Thou wast victorious over Belial, O renowned Father, and over the world and the mind of the flesh; for by thine ascetical struggles, as in the desert, thou didst put to shame him who of old caused us to stumble; wherefore, beseeching thee to intercede with the Lord, we chant unto thee, as is meet, such things as these:

Rejoice, thou who art proclaimed through thy miracles;
Rejoice, thou who art manifested as the protector of thy people;
Rejoice, Icon of unbreakable endurance;
Rejoice, mystical flower of heavenly bloom.
Rejoice, most inspired Hierarch of the Lord;
Rejoice, most valiant destroyer of the enemy.
Rejoice, thou who pluckest out the thorns of the passions;
Rejoice, thou who waterest the fields of souls.
Rejoice, thou who drivest away swarms of demons;
Rejoice, thou who preservest multitudes of men.
Rejoice, conspicuous example of incorruption;
Rejoice, sweet-fruited model of piety.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Wondrous is the manner of thy life, O Father, whereby thou didst put to shame the ancient foe and show thyself to be a luminescent star of the Church, proclaimed through thy miracles; wherefore, preserve from all harm us who cry unto the Lord:
Alleluia.

Wholly sanctified didst thou prove to be, who didst cause thy body to waste away through thine intense struggles and extreme humility; wherefore, thou didst work extraordinary wonders, bestowing strength on us who chant:

Rejoice, healing of many who are sick;
Rejoice, sacrifice offered to Him Who was sacrificed.
Rejoice, Divinely wise guide of the pious;
Rejoice, thou who wast deified by heavenly light.
Rejoice, Divine election of Christ;
Rejoice, vessel of immaterial light.
Rejoice, brilliance of the Church of Christ;
Rejoice, helper of Church-loving people.
Rejoice, most sacred scion of Russia;
Rejoice, God-given guardian of California.
Rejoice, thou who once didst feed orphans in Shanghai;
Rejoice, helmsman of the city of San Francisco.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Thy discourse inflicted wounds on Belial and gave support to the faithful, O John; for thou wast truly a stranger to the good things in the world and a sojourner upon the earth; wherefore, we Orthodox all honor thine example and cry out:
Alleluia.

Thou didst prove to be a fragrant flower of Russia and an Apostle preaching the Word to the world, O Hierarch John; for applying His commandments first to thyself, thou didst subsequently proclaim them to others by thine example; wherefore, honoring thee, the Church crieth out with one accord:

Rejoice, vessel of the Grace of the Spirit;
Rejoice, storehouse of His holiness.
Rejoice, treasury of Divine love;
Rejoice, abode of the poverty of the Word.
Rejoice, lamp of Divine purification;
Rejoice, guide of the resurrection of souls.
Rejoice, glory and succour of the Orthodox faithful;
Rejoice, shelter and strength of the pious on earth.
Rejoice, thou who didst imitate the fasting of Elias;
Rejoice, thou who didst hereby receive the Grace of Heaven.
Rejoice, honored receptacle of the Holy Spirit;
Rejoice, treasured bounty of miracles.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Thou didst proclaim the words of salvation to thy flock, O John, by putting them into practice through thy holy life; after thy departure, thou didst leave thine incorrupt body as an ever-flowing well-spring of miracles to us who cry unto the Lord:
Alleluia.

Thou wast shown to be a repository of the Grace of the Spirit and a container of His light, O Father, through thine intense struggles; wherefore, thou didst receive the gift of alleviating the pangs of the flesh for those who have recourse with faith to thy shrine and who cry with hope:

Rejoice, great illuminator of Russia;
Rejoice, acclamation of all Orthodoxy.
Rejoice, remover of the appetites of the flesh;
Rejoice, destroyer of the opinions of error.
Rejoice, thou who didst proclaim the Name of Christ in deed;
Rejoice, thou who didst prove to be the tabernacle of His Grace.
Rejoice, Divine monument of love;
Rejoice, treasury of traditional piety.
Rejoice, thou who didst separate thyself from earthly thoughts;
Rejoice, thou who wast filled with heavenly gifts.
Rejoice, thou who beholdest of the radiance of Christ;
Rejoice, thou who purgest the wickedness of Satan.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

The Church on earth doth hymn thine ever-abiding memory in triumph and glory, O Father, together with the Jerusalem on high; the faithful draw nigh to the Church of the All-Pure Virgin and bending the knee piously before thy shrine, they cry unto the Lord:
Alleluia.
The Grace dwelling in thine incorrupt Relics burneth the might of Belial, O Saint; it sanctifieth those who approach it with faith and venerate it; wherefore, as is meet, we call to thee, the favorite of the Lord:

Rejoice, standard of severe asceticism;
Rejoice, beacon of Divine wisdom.
Rejoice, bouquet of new cultivation;
Rejoice, city of the heavenly homeland.
Rejoice, thou who dost assuage the pains of the flesh;
Rejoice, thou who dost correct the lives of sinners.
Rejoice, thou who didst receive the gift of working miracles;
Rejoice, thou who didst put to flight the swarms of unclean spirits.
Rejoice, animate Icon of meekness;
Rejoice, thou who wast replete with feigned foolishness.
Rejoice, seal of Orthodox dogmas;
Rejoice, downfall of modernist errors.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

Rejoicing, thou dost enjoy the endless life in Heaven with every soul that hath pleased the Lord and all the orders of the Bodiless. Deliver from all sorrow and wrath us who have recourse to thy Relics with love and chant unto the Lord:
Alleluia.

We, the faithful, sing of the everlasting glory of our Father John; he was shown to be a wonderworker in the last times and he bequeathed his incorrupt body to his suppliants; wherefore, he is now blessed by us in this wise:

Rejoice, ever-shining star of the noetic firmament;
Rejoice, sublime correction of our grievous fall.
Rejoice, lamp of the angelic life;
Rejoice, bowl of heavenly myrrh.
Rejoice, thou who wast rich in the effulgence of the Saints;
Rejoice, thou who didst emulate the condition of the Martyrs.
Rejoice, most pure stream of mystical waters;
Rejoice, most fragrant bloom of the heavenly Kingdom.
Rejoice, straightest rule of asceticism;
Rejoice, fragrant meadow of abstinence.
Rejoice, participant in my rejoicing;
Rejoice, helper of her that was ailing.
Rejoice, O John our Father.

O honored Hierarch of Shanghai and the city of San Francisco (3x, with the refrain “Holy Hierarch John, intercede for us”), forget not us who honor thee, but hasten thou as a good father, and incline Christ the Lord unto thine intercession, that He may grant forgiveness of sins to us who chant unto Him:
Alleluia.

Verses

O honored Hierarch John, we beseech thee,
enlighten the life of our Father Cyprian.

Strengthen him that he may be a God-loving Shepherd
to us lowly ones who are subject to him.