"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
THE CORRECT PRACTICE of the Jesus Prayer proceeds naturally from correct notions about God, about the most holy name of the Lord Jesus, and about man's relationship to God.
God is an infinitely great and all-perfect being. God is the Creator and Renewer of men, Sovereign Master over men, angels, demons and all created things, both visible and invisible. Such a notion of God teaches us that we ought to stand prayerfully before Him in deepest reverence and in great fear and dread, directing toward Him all our attention, concentrating in our attention all the powers of the reason, heart, and soul, and rejecting distractions and vain imaginings, whereby we diminish alertness and reverence, and violate the correct manner of standing before God, as required by His majesty (John 4:23-24; Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:29-30; Luke 10:27). St. Isaac the Syrian put it marvelously: "When you turn to God in prayer, be in your thoughts as an ant, as a serpent of the earth, like a worm, like a stuttering child. Do not speak to Him something philosophical or high-sounding, but approach Him with a child's attitude" (Homily 49). Those who have acquired genuine prayer experience an ineffable poverty of the spirit when they stand before the Lord, glorify and praise Him, confess to Him, or present to Him their entreaties. They feel as if they had turned into nothing, as if they did not exist. That is natural. For when he who is in prayer experiences the fullness of the divine presence, of Life Itself, of Life abundant and unfathomable, then his own life strikes him as a tiny drop in comparison to the boundless ocean. That is what the righteous and long-suffering Job felt as he attained the height of spiritual perfection. He felt himself to be dust and ashes; he felt that he was melting and vanishing as does snow when struck by the sun's burning rays (Job 42:6).
Beginning on the evening of Palm Sunday and continuing through the evening of Holy Tuesday, the Orthodox Church observes a special service known as the Service of the Bridegroom. Each evening service is the Matins or Orthros service of the following day (e.g. the service held on Sunday evening is the Orthros service for Holy Monday). The name of the service is from the figure of the Bridegroom in the parable of the Ten Virgins found in Matthew 25:1-13.
The first part of Holy Week presents us with an array of themes based chiefly on the last days of Jesus' earthly life. The story of the Passion, as told and recorded by the Evangelists, is preceded by a series of incidents located in Jerusalem and a collection of parables, sayings and discourses centered on Jesus' divine sonship, the kingdom of God, the Parousia (Second Coming of Christ), and Jesus' castigation of the hypocrisy and dark motives of the religious leaders. The observances of the first three days of Great Week are rooted in these incidents and sayings. The three days constitute a single liturgical unit. They have the same cycle and system of daily prayer. The Scripture lessons, hymns, commemorations, and ceremonials that make up the festal elements in the respective services of the cycle highlight significant aspects of salvation history, by calling to mind the events that anticipated the Passion and by proclaiming the inevitability and significance of the Parousia.
The Orthros of each of these days is called the Service of the Bridegroom (Akolouthia tou Nimfiou). The name comes from the central figure in the well-known parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The title Bridegroom suggests the intimacy of love. It is not without significance that the kingdom of God is compared to a bridal feast and a bridal chamber. The Christ of the Passion is the divine Bridegroom of the Church. The imagery connotes the final union of the Lover and the beloved. The title Bridegroom also suggests the Parousia. In the patristic tradition, the aforementioned parable is related to the Second Coming; and is associated with the need for spiritual vigilance and preparedness, by which we are enabled to keep the divine commandments and receive the blessings of the age to come. The troparion "Behold the Bridegroom comes in the middle of the night…", which is sung at the beginning of the Orthros of Great Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, relates the worshiping community to that essential expectation: watching and waiting for the Lord, who will come again to judge the living and the dead. Holy Monday
On Great Monday we commemorate Joseph the Patriarch, the beloved son of Jacob. A major figure of the Old Testament, St. Joseph's story is told in the final section of the Book of Genesis (chs. 37-50). Because of his exceptional qualities and remarkable life, our patristic and liturgical tradition portrays St. Joseph as tipos Christou, i.e., as a prototype, prefigurement or image of Christ. The story of Joseph illustrates the mystery of God's providence, promise and redemption. Innocent, chaste and righteous, his life bears witness to the power of God's love and promise. The lesson to be learned from Joseph's life, as it bears upon the ultimate redemption wrought by the death and resurrection of Christ, is summed up in the words he addressed to his brothers who had previously betrayed him, “’Fear not ... As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.’ Thus he reassured them and comforted them” (Genesis 50:19-21). The commemoration of the noble, blessed and saintly Joseph reminds us that in the great events of the Old Testament, the Church recognizes the realities of the New Testament.
Also, on Great and Holy Monday the Church commemorates the event of the cursing of the fig tree (Matthew 21:18-20). In the Gospel narrative this event is said to have occurred on the morrow of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:18 and Mark 11:12). For this reason it found its way into the liturgy of Great Monday. The episode is also quite relevant to Great Week. Together with the event of the cleansing of the Temple this episode is another manifestation of Jesus' divine power and authority and a revelation as well of God's judgment upon the faithlessness of the Jewish religious classes. The fig tree is symbolic of Israel become barren by her failure to recognize and receive Christ and His teachings. The cursing of the fig tree is a parable in action, a symbolic gesture. Its meaning should not be lost on any one in any generation. Christ's judgment on the faithless, unbelieving, unrepentant and unloving will be certain and decisive on the Last Day. This episode makes it clear that nominal Christianity is not only inadequate, it is also despicable and unworthy of God's kingdom. Genuine Christian faith is dynamic and fruitful. It permeates one's whole being and causes a change. Living, true and unadulterated faith makes the Christian conscious of the fact that he is already a citizen of heaven. Therefore, his way of thinking, feeling, acting and being must reflect this reality. Those who belong to Christ ought to live and walk in the Spirit; and the Spirit will bear fruit in them: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-25). Holy Tuesday
On Great Tuesday the Church calls to remembrance two parables, which are related to the Second Coming. The one is the parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-3); the other the parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). These parables point to the inevitability of the Parousia and deal with such subjects as spiritual vigilance, stewardship, accountability and judgment.
From these parables we learn at least two basic things. First, Judgment Day will be like the situation in which the bridesmaids (or virgins) of the parable found themselves: some ready for it, some not ready. The time one decides for God is now and not at some undefined point in the future. If "time and tide waits for no man," certainly the Parousia is no exception. The tragedy of the closed door is that individuals close it, not God. The exclusion from the marriage feast, the kingdom, is of our own making. Second, we are reminded that watchfulness and readiness do not mean a wearisome, spiritless performance of formal and empty obligations. Most certainly it does not mean inactivity and slothfulness. Watchfulness signifies inner stability, soberness, tranquility and joy. It means spiritual alertness, attentiveness and vigilance. Watchfulness is the deep personal resolve to find and do the will of God, embrace every commandment and every virtue, and guard the intellect and heart from evil thoughts and actions. Watchfulness is the intense love of God.
On Great Wednesday the Church invites the faithful to focus their attention on two figures: the sinful woman who anointed the head of Jesus shortly before the passion (Matthew 26:6-13), and Judas, the disciple who betrayed the Lord. The former acknowledged Jesus as Lord, while the latter severed himself from the Master. The one was set free, while the other became a slave. The one inherited the kingdom, while the other fell into perdition. These two people bring before us concerns and issues related to freedom, sin, hell and repentance.
The repentance of the sinful harlot is contrasted with the tragic fall of the chosen disciple. The Triodion make is clear that Judas perished, not simply because he betrayed his Master, but because, having fallen into the sin of betrayal, he then refused to believe in the possibility of forgiveness. If we deplore the actions of Judas, we do so not with vindictive self-righteousness but conscious always of our own guilt. In general, all the passages in the Triodion that seem to be directed against the Jews should be understood in this same way. When the Triodion denounces those who rejected Christ and delivered Him to death, we recognize that these words apply not only to others, but to ourselves: for have we not betrayed the Savior many times in our hearts and crucified Him anew?
I have transgressed more than the harlot, O loving Lord, yet never have I offered You my flowing tears. But in silence I fall down before You and with love I kiss Your most pure feet, beseeching You as Master to grant me remission of sins; and I cry to You, O Savior: Deliver me from the filth of my works.
While the sinful woman brought oil of myrrh, the disciple came to an agreement with the transgressors. She rejoiced to pour out what was very precious, he made haste to sell the One who is above all price. She acknowledged Christ as Lord, he severed himself from the Master. She was set free, but Judas became the slave of the enemy. Grievous was his lack of love. Great was her repentance. Grant such repentance also unto me, O Savior who has suffered for our sake, and save us.
Icon of the Bridegroom
"The Bridegroom" Icon portrays Christ during His Passion, particularly during the period when our Lord was mocked and tortured by the soldiers who crowned Him with thorns, dressed Him in purple and placed a reed in His Hands, jeering Him as the "King of the Jews."
Christ is shown bearing the wounds of his mocking and torture. He is dressed in a purple cloak with His hands bound together, and holding a reed as a staff.
"About the year 626, the Persians, Avars, and Slavs came with a great host and besieged the imperial city of Constantinople while the Emperor Heraclius and the main body of the Byzantine army were absent in the East. Enemy ships filled the sea, especially the Golden Horn, and on land the adversaries were ready for attack with foot-soldiers, horses, and engines of war. Though the citizens courageously withstood them, yet they were few in number and would be unable to repulse the attack of such a great host. Hence, they could not count on any other means of salvation, except the protection of the Theotokos. And truly, suddenly a violent tempest broke up all the ships and submerged them, and the bodies of the invaders were cast out near the Blachernae quarter of the city where the famous Church of the Theotokos stood. Taking courage from this, the people went forth from the city and repulsed the remaining forces, who fled out of fear. In 673, the city was miraculously delivered yet again, this time from an invasion of the Arabs. Then in 717-718, led by the Saracen general Maslamah, the Arab fleet laid siege once more to the city. The numerical superiority of the enemy was so overwhelming that the fall of the Imperial City seemed imminent. But then the Mother of God, together with a multitude of the angelic hosts, appeared suddenly over the city walls. The enemy forces, struck with terror and thrown into a panic at this apparition, fled in disarray. Soon after this, the Arab fleet was utterly destroyed by a terrible storm in the Aegean Sea on the eve of the Annunciation, March 24, 718. Thenceforth, a special "feast of victory and of thanksgiving" was dedicated to celebrate and commemorate these benefactions. In this magnificent service, the Akathist Hymn is prominent and holds the place of honour. It appears that even before the occasion of the enemy assaults mentioned above, the Akathist Hymn was already in use as the prescribed Service for the Feast of the Annunciation, together with the kontakion, "When the bodiless one learned the secret command," which has the Annunciation as its theme. It was only on the occasion of the great miracle wrought for the Christian populace of the Imperial City on the eve of the Annunciation in 718 that the hymn "To thee, the Champion Leader" was composed, most likely by Saint Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople.
Historians have ascribed the Akathist Hymn to Patriarch Sergius of Constantinople (638), to Saint George the Confessor, Bishop of Pisidia (818), or even to Saint Photius the Great (891), all of whom lived either at the time of or after the above-mentioned sieges. However, it appears most likely from its language, content, and style that the true composer of the Akathist Hymn is Saint Romanus the Melodist (6th century)."
Selected Quotes of the Fathers on Patience "Trials are of two kinds. Either affliction will test our souls as gold is tried in a furnace, and make trial of us through patience, or the very prosperity of our lives will oftentimes, for many, be itself an occasion of trial and temptation. For it is equally difficult to keep the soul upright and undefeated in the midst of afflictions, as to keep oneself from insolence and pride in prosperity.” St. Basil the Great – “I Will Pull Down My Barns” (The Sunday Sermons of the Great Fathers)
"Show patience, and there will be peace.” St. Anatoly of Optina – “A Collection of Letters to Nuns”
"When patience greatly increases in our soul, it is a sign that we have secretly received the grace of consolation. The power of patience is stronger than the joyful thoughts that descend into the heart.” St. Isaac the Syrian – “Ascetical Homilies” (Homily Forty-Eight)
"...It is patience that both commends us to God, and saves us for God. It is that same patience which tempers anger, bridles the tongue, governs the mind, guards peace, rules discipline, breaks the onslaught of lust, suppresses the violence of pride, extinguishes the fire of dissension, restrains the power of the wealthy, renews the endurance of the poor in bearing their lot, guards the blessed integrity of virgins, the difficult chastity of widows, and the indivisible love of husbands and wives. It makes men humble in prosperity, brave in adversity, meek in the face of injuries and insults. It teaches us to pardon our offenders quickly; if you yourself should offend, it teaches you to ask pardon often and with perseverance. It vanquishes temptations, sustains persecutions, endures sufferings and martyrdoms to the end. It is this patience which strongly fortifies the foundations of our faith. It is this patience which sublimely promotes the growth of hope. It directs our action, so that we can keep to the way of Christ while we make progress because of his forbearance. It ensures our perseverance as sons of God while we imitate the patience of the Father.” St. Cyprian of Carthage – “The Good of Patience”
“...In proportion to your humility you are given patience in your woes; and in proportion to your patience the burden of your afflictions is made lighter and you will find consolation; in proportion to your consolation, your love of God increases; and in proportion to your love, your joy in the Holy Spirit is magnified. Once men have truly become His sons, our tenderly compassionate Father does not take away their temptations from them when it is His pleasure to 'make for them a way to escape' (1 Cor. 10:13), but instead He gives His sons patience in their trials. All these good things are given into the hand of their patience for the perfecting of their souls.” St. Isaac the Syrian - "Ascetical Homilies" (Homily Forty-Two)
“Ask with tears, seek with obedience, knock with patience. For thus he who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” St. John Climacus – "The Ladder of Divine Ascent" (Step 28)
“Do not be surprised that you fall every day; do not give up, but stand your ground courageously. And assuredly, the angel who guards you will honour your patience.” St. John Climacus - "The Ladder of Divine Ascent" (Step 5)
"Do not be cast down over the struggle- the Lord loves a brave warrior. The Lord loves the soul that is valiant" St. Siloan the Athonite
"...And so let us be glad and bear with patience everything the world throws at us, secure in the knowledge that it is then that we are most in the mind of God." St. Basil the Great - "Gateway to Paradise"
"Hope also requires a life corresponding to the hope." St. John of Kronstadt - My Life in Christ
"Tribulations worketh patience, and patience probation, and probation hope, " (Rom. 5:3,4). And even as the violence of the wind, when it rushes upon strong trees, and sways them in all directions, does not root them up, but renders them still firmer and stronger by these attacks; so the soul that is holy, and lives in a religious state, is not supplanted by the inroads of trial and tribulation, but stimulated thereby to more patience; even as the blessed Job, whom they made more illustrious and honourable." St. John Chrysostom - "Concerning the Statutes"
"Prayer breathes hope..." St. John of Kronstadt - My Life in Christ
"When you pray, bring to mind the ploughman who sows in hope. He Who causes to return twofold the seed that the ploughman sows with hope, Who has esteemed the seeking of His kingdom and His righteousness to be greater than temporal things, He himself will reward your entreaty according to His promise." St. Isaac the Syrian - "Ascetical Homilies" (Homily Twenty-Five)
"We truly love Godand keep His commandments if we restrain ourselves from our pleasures. For he who still abandons himself to unlawful desires certainly does not love God, since he contradicts Him in his own intentions.... Therefore, he loves God truly, whose mind is not conquered by consent to evil delight. For the more one takes pleasure in lower things, the more he is separated from heavenly love." SAINT GREGORY, POPE OF ROME
Catechesis 66 of St. Theodore the Studite: That This Pascha Is a Type of the Future and Eternal Pascha; and About Endurance and Courage Given on the Fourth Wednesday of the Great Fast
"Brethren and fathers, Lent is already galloping past and the soul rejoices at the imminence of Pascha, because by it it finds rest and is relieved of many toils. Why did this thought sound for me in advance? Because it is as if our whole life directs its reason contemplating the eternal Pascha. For this present Pascha, even though it is great and revered, is nevertheless, as our fathers explain, only a type of that Pascha to come. For this Pascha is for one day and it passes, while that Pascha has no successor. From it "pain, grief and sighing have fled away"; there everlasting joy, gladness and rejoicing; there the sound of those who feast, a choir of those who keep festival and contemplation of eternal light; where there is the blessed breakfast of Christ and the new drink of which Christ spoke, "I shall not drink of the fruit of this vine, until I drink it with you new in the kingdom of my Father". Of this He spoke to his disciples when He was about to ascend to heaven, "I am going to prepare a place for you and, if I go, I will prepare a place for you. I am coming again and I will take you to myself, so that where I am you maybe also. And where I am going you know, and the way you know." And a little further on, "On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you." And elsewhere, "Father, I wish that where I am they may be with Me also, so that they may see My glory, which You gave Me, because You loved from before the foundation of the world." But because this concerns not only the Apostles, but also ourselves, He also said, "I do not ask this only for them, but also for those who through their word believe in Me, so that all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me and I am in You, that they may also be one in Us." What could be more comforting than these words? What could be more appealing? What soul can they not soften? What heart not prick with compunction, even should someone say that the human heart is a nature of stone? With thoughts like these the saints bore all that they bore, considering afflictions as joys, constraints as freedoms, struggles as delights, harsh training as relaxation, deaths as lives.
I beseech you, my brother, should not we also, since we have the same aim and seek the same Pascha, bravely and courageously bear our present condition, not falling, not succumbing to despondency, but rather roused with greater fervor watching for the wicked serpent who works to deceive us by the passions, transforming himself into an angel of light, and altering things from what they are; show dark as light, bitter as sweet. This was how he ensnared our forefather, bewitching his sight and depicting as beautiful what was not, and as a result through food casting him out of Paradise. But let us, who have learned by experience what a deceiver he is, not leave the paradise of God’s commandments, nor, when he indicates to us that the fruit is beautiful, let the eye of soul or body be directed there, otherwise we are being caught in the snare. But let us flee by every means from looking. What is the fruit which seems beautiful? The love of the flesh, the evil lust of every one of the destructive passions. If we avoid experiencing them, my brothers, we shall be saved and easter to age on age, with all the Saints in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and might with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen.
If you do not see what someone eats, can you tell if he or she is fasting?
Yes. Fasting makes us contrite and still, we become lowly and we react to offence and anger slowly. Fasting has nothing to do with food but with what one fills the belly of the heart and mind. St John Chrysostomos tells us that those who fast from food but bite their brothers aren’t fasting at all. What is more pleasing to God, one who eats but expresses affection and suffers others, allowing others to see Christ, or one whose belly is empty of food but from it churns out offences created by the most evil of fasters, Satan?
This is Great Lent. Everyone should be so filled with the joy of the Resurrection that it is difficult not to be pleasing and happy with others even if they should lose control occasionally and speak or act in an offensive way. The hymns and prayers given us by the Church at this time (if you listen to them) contain a double portion of grace, grace that you should be experiencing. Yes, experiencing, not simply aware of!! Grumbling, attacking others, foul dispositions, etc. have no part in fasting or Great Lent. They have no part in Christ. He never acted in that way to anyone. Do not forget, it wasn’t simply because He is God but that He lived on earth as a man, and was tempted as a man, like you and I. Consider your attitude while enjoying something very pleasurable how agreeable, generous and patient you are with others. Know what I mean? Isn’t it harder to get angry and isn’t it easier to be agreeable when you are having a good time? If you don’t feel this way during Lent, you are not participating in the fast because patience, kindness, gentleness, longsuffering, good cheer and affection are characteristics freely given by the fast itself and expressed by one who truly fasts.
Fire cannot last long in water, nor can a shameful thought in a heart that loves God. For every man who loves God suffers gladly, and voluntary suffering is by nature the enemy of sensual pleasure.
-The table of a man who continually perseveres in prayer is sweeter than the scent of musk and the fragrance of perfumes, and the lover of God yearns for this as for a priceless treasure.
Take for yourself the remedy of life from the table of those who fast, keep vigil, and labor in the Lord, and so raise up the dead man in your soul. For the Beloved reclines in their midst bestowing sanctification and he transforms the bitterness of their hardship into his ineffable sweetness. His spiritual and heavenly ministers overshadow both them and their holy foods. I know one of the brethren who has seen this with his own eyes.
-There can be no knowledge of the mysteries of God on a full stomach.
-Fasting, vigils…are God’s holy pathway and the foundation of every virtue.
-Fasting is the champion of every virtue, the beginning of the struggle, the crown of the abstinent, the beauty of virginity and sanctity, the resplendence of chastity, the commencement of path of Christianity, the mother of prayer, the well-spring of sobriety and prudence, the teacher of stillness, and the precursor of all good works.
- When a man begins to fast, he straightway yearns in his mind to enter into converse with God.
Psalmody in a crowded congregation is accompanied by captivity and wandering of the thoughts; but in solitude, this does not happen. However, those in solitude are liable to be assailed by despondency, whereas in congregation the brethren help each other by their zeal. At all times, but most of all while chanting, let us be still and undistracted. For through distractions, the demons aim to ruin our prayer. —St. John of the Ladder
Let us examine during psalmody what kind of sweetness comes to us from the demon of fornication and, on the other hand, what kind of sweetness come to us from the words of the Spirit and from the grace and power contained in them. —St. John of the Ladder (15:49)
Sometimes singing in moderation successfully relieves the temper. But sometimes, if untimely and immoderate, it lends itslef to the lure of pleasure. Let us then appoint definite times for this, and so make good use of it. —St. John of the Ladder (8:17)
Lovers of God are moved to spiritual joy, to divine love, and to tears both by worldly and by religious songs; but lovers of pleasure are moved to the opposite. —St. John of the Ladder (15:61)
The value of prayer can be inferred from the way the demons attack us during services in church. —St. John of the Ladder (28:61)
When the day is over, the vendor sits down and counts his profits; but the worker of virtue does so when the psalmody is over. —St. John of the Ladder (20:18)
And even if you do not understand the meaning of the words, for the time being teach your mouth to say them, for the tongue is sanctified by the words alone whenever it says them with good will. —St. John Chrysostomos, On Psalm 41:2, (PG 55:158)
Virtually all know the words of this psalm and they continue to sing it at every age, without knowing, however, the sense of what has been said. This is not a small charge, to sing something every day, putting forth words from the mouth, without searching out the meaning of the thoughts residing in the words. —St. John Chrysostomos, On Psalm 140, (PG 55:426-7)
We should offer up doxologies to God with fear and a contrite heart, in order that they may be accepted like fragrant incense. —St. John Chrysostomos
Nothing elevates the soul, nothing gives it wings as a liturgical hymn does. —St. John Chrysostomos
Nothing so arouses the soul, gives it wing, sets it free from the earth, releases it from the prison of the body, teaches it to love wisdom and to despise all the things of this life, as concordant melody and sacred song composed in rhythm. —St. John Chrysostom (On Psalm 41)
Even though the meaning of the words [of psalmody] be unknown to you, teach your mouth to utter them meanwhile. For the tongue is made holy by the words when they are uttered with a ready and eager mind... ....No one in such chanting [with a ready and eager mind] will be blamed if he be weakened by old age, or young, or have a rough voice, or is altogether ignorant of rhthym. What is here sought for is a sober soul, an alert mind, a contrite heart, sound reason, and a clear conscience. If having these you have entered into God's sacred choir, you may stand beside David himself. There is no need of zithers, nor of taut strings, nor of a plectrum, nor skill, nor any instruments. But if you will, you can make yourself into a zither, mortifying the limbs of the flesh, and forming full harmony between body and soul. For when the flesh does not lust against the spirit, but yields to its commands, and perseveres along the path that is noble and admirable, you thus produce a spiritual melody. —St. John Chrysostom (PG 58,158, Commentary on Psalm 41)
A holy hymn gives birth to piety of soul, creates a good conscience, and is accepted by God in the treasuries of the heavens. —St. John Chrysostomos (id.ordin.1.1(1.438A)) PG 55:157
Just as swine run to a place where there is mire and bees dwell where there are fragrances and incense, likewise demons gather where there are carnal songs and the grace of the Holy Spirit settles where there are spiritual melodies, sanctifying both mouth and soul. —St. John Chrysostomos
In all places and at all seasons you may sing with the mind. For whether you walk in the market place, or begin a journey, or sit down with your friends you may rouse up your mind or call out silently. So also Moses called out, and God heard him. If you are an artisan, you may sing sitting and working in your shop. If you are a soldier, or if you sit in judgment, you may do the very same. One may also sing without voice, the mind resounding inwardly. For we sing, not to men, but to God, who can hear our hearts and enter into the silences of our minds. When pleasure predominates during psalmody, then through this pleasure we are brought down to passions of the flesh. —St. Basil the Great
When chanters chant with the tongue and also with the mind, they greatly benefit not only themselves but also those who want to hear them. To recite the psalms with melody is not done from a desire for pleasing sound, but it is a manifestation of harmony among the thoughts of the soul. And melodious reading is a sign of the well-ordered and tranquil condition of the mind. —St. Athansius the Great (PG XXVII, 40)
Bis orat qui cantat. He who chants prays twice. —ancient proverb
The book of psalms uproots the passions with a certain melodic enjoyment and a delight that instills pure thoughts. —St. Basil the Great
What state can be more blessed than to imitate on earth the choirs of angels? to begin the day with prayer, and honor our Maker with hymns and songs? As the day brightens, to betake ourselves, with prayer attending on it throughout, to our labors, and to season our work with hymns, as food with salt? The consolation from hymns produces a state of soul that is cheerful and free of sorrow. —St. Basil the Great (1st Letter)
For prayer and psalmody, as for many other things, every time is suitable; so that we praise God with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, while we move our hands in work, chanting with our tongue if this is possible and conducive to the edification of the faith, but if not, then in the heart. —St. Basil the Great (Longer Rules, 37)
When, indeed, the Holy Spirit saw that the human race was guided only with difficulty toward virtue, and that, because of our inclination toward pleasure, we were neglectful of an upright life, what did He do? The delight of melody He mingled with the doctrines so that by the pleasantness and softness of the sound heard we might receive without perceiving it the benefit of the words, just as wise physicians who, when giving the fastidious rather bitter drugs to drink, frequently smear the cup with honey. Therefore, He devised for us these harmonious melodies of the psalms, that they who are children in age, or even those who are youthful in disposition, might to all appearances chant, but in reality, become trained in soul. —St. Basil the Great
Psalmody—bringing about choral singing, a bond, as it were, toward unity, and joining people into a hamonious union of one choir—produces also the greatest of blessings: love. —St. Basil the Great
A psalm is a city of refuge from the demons; a means of inducing help from the angels, a weapon in fears by night, a rest from the toils of the day, a safeguard for infants, an adornment for those at the height of their vigor, a consolation for the elders, a most fitting ornament for women. It peoples the solitudes; it rids the market places of excesses; it is the elementary exposition of beginners, the improvement of those advancing, the solid support of the perfect, the voice of the Church. It brightens feast day; it creates a sorrow which is in accordance with God. For, a psalm calls forth a tear even from a heart of stone. A psalm is the work of angels, a heavenly institution, the spiritual incense. —St. Basil the Great
Not if someone utters the words the psalm with his mouth, does that one sing to the Lord; but, all who send up the psalmody from a clean heart, and who are holy, maintaining righteousness toward God, these are able to sing to God, harmoniously guided by the spiritual rhythms. —St. Basil the Great (PG)
O the wise invention of the teacher who contrives that in our singing we learn what is profitable, and that thereby doctrine is somehow more deeply impressed upon our souls! What is learned under duress tends not to be retained, but what suavely ingratieates itself somehow adibes within our souls more steadfastely. —St. Basil the Great On Psalm 1 (PG XXIX, 213)
While your tongue sings, let your mind search out the meaning of the words, so that you might sing in spirit and sing also in understanding. —St. Basil the Great On Psalm 27 (PG XXIX, 304)
A religious hymn is a great blessing for everyone. It constitutes praise to the Most High, honor for His holy people, worldwide harmony, an eloquent proof of the Church's unity. It expresses the voice of the Church, its confession. It brings about a complete spiritual uplifting and absolute peace and joy in redeemed hearts, with the triumphal hymn and song of happiness. It drives away hardness of heart. It chases away disturbance. It dissolves and dissipates despondency... The voice sings the soul's joy, while the spirit delves into the mysteries of the faith. —St. Ambrose of Milan (Enarr. In Psalmum 1,9. P.L. 14,968)
The virtue of silence, especially in church, is very great... Is anything more unbecoming than the divine words should be so drowned by talking, as not to be heard, believed, or made known, that the mysteries should be indistinctly heard through the sound of voices, that prayer should be hindered when offered for the salvation of all? —St. Ambrose of Milan (Concerning Virgins, 3:11)
The Apostle admonishes women to be silent in church, yet they do well to join in a psalm; this is gratifying for all ages and fitting for both sexes. Old men ignore the stiffness of age to sing [a psalm], and melancholy veterans echo it in the joy of their hearts; young men sing one without the bane of lust, as do adolescents without threat from their insecure age or the temptation of sensual pleasure; even young women sing psalms with no loss of wifely decency, and girls sing a hymn to God with sweet and supple voice while maintaining decorum and suffering no lapse of modesty. Youth is eager to understand [a psalm], and the child who refuses to learn other things takes pleasure in contemplating it; it is a kind of play, productive of more learning that that which is dispensed with stern discipline. —St. Ambrose, On Psalm 1 (PL 14:924-5)
A psalm consoles the sad, restrains the joyful, tempers the angry, refreshes the poor and chides the rich man to know himself. To absolutely all who take it, the psalm offers an appropriate medicine; nor does it despise the sinner, but presses upon him the wholesome remedy of penitential tears. —St. Niceta of Remesiana (d. after 414) (De utilatate hymnorum 5)
When you worship God with hymns, you should be worshipping Him with your entire being: your voice should sing; your heart should also sing; and your life should also sing. Everything should sing! —Blessed Augustine (Enarrat. In Ps. CXLIII, 2. PL 37.1938)
Oh, that blessed alleluia of heaven that the angels chant where God dwells! There, the harmony of those who hymn God with words and deeds is perfect! So let us take care to chant the alleluia with perseverance now, so that we will be counted worthy of chanting it with stillness then. —Blessed Augustine (Sermo 256: PL 38.1193)
When it happens to me that the song moves me more than the thing which is sung, I confess that I have sinned blamefully and then prefer not to hear the singer. —Blessed Augustine (Confessions, PL 32:800)
Sing to God, not with the voice, but with the heart; not, after the fashion of thespians, in smearing the throat with a sweet drug, so that theatrical melodies and songs are heard in the church, but in fear, in work, and in knowledge of the Scriptures. And although a man be cacophonous, if he have good works, he is a sweet singer before God. —St. Jerome PL 26,562 (Commentary on Ephesians 5:19)
Let the servant of God sing in such a manner that the words of the text rather than the voice of the singer cause delight. —St. Jerome
Q: Many times, when I chant, I feel myself being puffed up. When this happens, how should I confront the thoughts? A: When the heart becomes puffed up during psalmody, remember that it is written: Let not them who embitter Him be exalted in themselves.У (Ps. 65:7) Embittering Him is when we sing without understanding (Ps. 47.7) and without the fear of God. If you examine yourself to see if your thoughts are wandering during psalmody, you will definitely find that they have been wandering and you are angering God. —Sts. Barsanuphius and John
Our psalmody should be angelic, not unspiritual and secular. For to psalmodize with clamour and a loud voice is a sign of inner turbulence. —St. Gregory of Sinai (Philokalia, Vol. IV p. 278-279)
Many times, as I offer praise, I am found committing sin; for with my tongue I pronounce songs of praise, yet in my soul I think unseemly things; but do Thou correct them both through repentance, O Christ God, and save me. —Aposticha of the Lauds, Third Tone, Monday morning
When we are weighed down by deep despondency, we should for a while sing psalms out loud, raising our voice with joyful expectation until the thick mist is dissolved by the warmth of song. —St. Diadochos of Photiki (Philokalia, Vol. I p. 278)
Chanting is the work of the Bodiless Powers, who stand beside God and praise Him unceasingly. —Antiochos (author of the Pandects)
It is a great accomplishment to pray without distraction, but it is even greater to chant without distraction. —Evagrios the Solitary (Philokalia I)
Pray gently and calmly, sing with understanding and rhythm; then you will soar like a young eagle high in the heavens. Psalmody calms the passions and curbs the uncontrolled impulses in the body. —Evagrios the Solitary (Philokalia I, p.65, on Prayer 82)
When you approach a king, you stand before him bodily, entreat him orally, and fix your eyes upon him, thus drawing to yourself his royal favour. Act in the same manner, whether in church or in the solitude of your cell. When in God's name you gather together with the brethren, present yourself bodily to God and offer Him psalms chanted orally; and likewise keep your intellect attentive to the words and to God Himself, aware of who it is that your intellect addresses and entreats. For when the mind devotes itself to prayer actively and with purity, the heart is granted inexpressible peace and a joy which cannot be taken away. —Theoliptos, Metropolitan of Philadelphia (Philokalia, Vol. IV p. 183)
We should offer our prayers to God with fear and trembling, tears and sighs, and our voices when we chant should be sober, contrite, measured, and humble. —St. Palladios (in the Evergetinos)
Recite the words of psalmody as your very own, that you may utter the words of your supplication with insight and with discriminating compunction, like a man who truly understands his work. —St. Isaac the Syrian (Homily 54) (33,3 in Greek)
Quality in psalmody and prayer consists in praying with the spirit and the nous. One prays with the spirit only when, as he prays and chants, he is attentive to the content of the holy writings, and thus raises his heart to divine thoughts. —Nikitas Stithatos
Just as the angels stand with great fear and chant their hymns to the Creator, likewise should we stand in psalmody. —St. Ephraim the Syrian
When you stand in church, be careful not to look here and there or curiously examine how each one of the brethren stands or sings. Rather, pay attention only to yourself and to the chanting and to your sins. —St. Symeon the New Theologian
Wherever there are spiritual melodies, there does the grace of the Spirit come, sanctifying the mouth and the soul. —St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain
Sing to God in love and humility of spirit, for the Lord rejoiceth therein. —St. Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938)
Byzantine music is the only music that has sacredness and sanctity, and for this reason a Christian can pray with it. The feeling caused by chanting—if you are in a position to comprehend it—is called compunction. The words find their strongest expression in Byzantine music, because it is their natural raiment. —Photios Kontoglou (+1965)
Many listeners are not in a position to appreciate ecclesiastical music, which is commonly called Byzantine, because they are accustomed to hearing only worldly, European music. They should bear in mind that each of these two kinds of music—ecclesiastical and worldly—were formed by different feelings and different dispositions of soul. Worldly music expresses sensual desires and feelings. Even if these feelings are very refined (romantic, sentimental, idealistic), they do not cease from being sensual. Nevertheless, such people believe that these feelings are spiritual. However, spiritual feelings are expressed only by ecclesiastical music. Only ecclesiastical music can express the secret movements of the heart, which are completely different than what worldly music expresses. For this reason the two kinds of music are totally different, just as shown by the words: "sing" and "chant." —Photios Kontoglou (+1965)
"Now [in 1911] theatrical tunes and melodies have even penetrated into the Church, forcing out ancient chant. Meanwhile, the latter is more highly artistic, but people don't understand this." —St. Barsanuphius of Optina (p. 452)
"When you have children, teach them music. But, of course, real music—angelic, not dances and songs. Music assists the development of the perception of spiritual life. The soul becomes refined. It begins to understand spiritual music as well." —St. Barsanuphius of Optina (p. 110)
If one were to put all of the world's most precious things on one side of a scale, and the Divine Liturgy on the other, the scales would tip completely in favor of the Liturgy. —St. John of Kronstadt
There is nothing upon earth holier, higher, grander, more solemn, more life-giving than the Liturgy. The temple, at this particular time, becomes an earthly heaven; those who officiate represent Christ Himself, the angels, the cherubim, seraphim and apostles. —St. John of Kronstadt
"The holy Fathers relate that when the thief of the Gospel, too, came to the gates of the Kingdom, the Archangel with the flaming sword wanted to chase him away, but he showed him the Cross. Immediately the fire-bearing Archangel himself withdrew and permitted the thief to enter. Understand here not the wooden cross. But which? The Cross in which the chief Apostle Paul boasts and concerning which he writes, 'I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus (Gal. 6:17)." St. Anatoly of Optina, Collection of Letters to Nuns
"Did you see how baptism is a cross? Learn that even Christ called baptism the cross when He used the name of baptism interchangeably [with that of the cross]. He called your baptism a cross. 'I call my baptism a cross,' he says. Where does He say this? 'I have a baptism to be baptized with, of which you do not know.' And how is it clear that He is speaking of the cross? The sons of Zebedee came up to Him - rather, the mother of the sons of Zebedee, saying 'Command that these my two sons may sit, one at thy right and and one at thy left hand, in thy kingdom.' A mother's request, even if it was an inconsiderate one! How then did Christ answer? 'Can you drink of the cup of which I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?' You see that He called the cross a baptism." St. John Chrysostom, Baptismal Instructions
"Glory, O Lord, to the power of Thy Cross, which never fails! When the enemy oppresses me with a sinful thought or feeling, and I, lacking freedom in my heart, make the sign of the Cross several times with faith, suddenly my sin falls away from me, the compulsion vanishes, and I find myself free… For the faithful the Cross is a mighty power which delivers from all evils, from the malice of the invisible foe." St. John of Kronstadt
"Many indeed are the wondrous happenings of that time: God hanging from a Cross, the sun made dark, and again flaming out; for it was fitting that creation should mourn with its Creator. The Temple veil rent, blood and water flowing from His side: the one as from a man, the other as from What was above man; the earth was shaken, the rocks shattered because of the Rock; the dead risen to bear witness of the final and universal resurrection of the dead. The happenings at the Sepulchre, and after the Sepulchre, who can fittingly recount them? Yet not one of them can be compared to the miracle of my salvation. A few drops of Blood renew the whole world, and do for all men what the rennet does for milk: joining us and binding us together." St. Gregory the Theologian
"The Most High planted in the middle of Paradise The thrice blessed wood, the gift of life for us, In order that, in approaching it, Adam might find eternal and immortal life, But he did not strive earnestly to know this life, And he failed to attain it, and revealed death. However, the robber, seeing how the plant in Eden Had been beautifully transplanted in Golgotha, Recognized the life in it and said to himself: `This is what my father lost formerly In Paradise.'" St Romanos the Melodist - On the Adoration at the Cross
"What does it mean to take up your cross? I means the willing acceptance, at the hand of Providence, of every means of healing, bitter though it may be, that is offered. Do great catastrophies fall on you? Be obedient to God's will, as Noah was. Is sacrifice demanded of you? Give yourself into God's hands with the same faith as Abram had when he went to sacrifice his son. Is your property ruined? Do your children die suddenly? Suffer it all with patience, cleaving to God in your heart, as Job did. Do your friends forsake you, and you find yourself surrounded by enemies? Bear it all without grumbling, and with faith that God's help is at hand, as the apostles did." St. Nikolai Velimirovich, Homilies, Vol. 1
