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Welcome back everybody to our study of the ladder of divine ascent by Saint John Klimakus, and we are picking up with the final sayings of the step on holy silence and stillness. And we are on page 232, number 77, about midway down the page. And then we'll be moving into our section on prayer. Bob, did you have a question or did your hand just go? Just made a note about the next book we're doing. Okay. Please correct it. It's in here. This article homilies of Saint Isaac Syrian, that is correct, isn't it? Okay. Very good. Okay. So, number 77 on page 232. Devote the greater part of the night to prayer, and only what is left to the recital of the Psalter. And during the day, again, prepare yourself according to your strength. So, we've talked about this many times in the past, about praying at night, and how constant this is as part of the Father's teaching, that breaking the night for prayer, keeping vigil, is a very important part of this spiritual life, that there is a kind of humbling of the mind and the body that takes place at that time. The world itself becomes quiet around us. And so, there's this kind of stillness with which one can enter into prayer without distraction. And we've often laughed about Saint John Chrysostom saying, "Well, teach your children this as well, that you wake them up in the middle of the night and have them say a prayer and then put them back to bed." But then you go ahead and say your night vigils as well. And so, there was from very early on within the life of the Church, there was this sense of that praying at night was very important. We know our Lord Himself at times prayed all night long. And so, this lack of distraction, this attentiveness to God and stillness that takes place at that time is very important. And so, John says to vote the greater part of the night to this quiet prayer of silence. And the rest of the time can be used in the reciting of the Psalms in order to keep oneself focused and awake. But the larger portion is to be given over to stilling the mind and the heart, especially through the Jesus prayer until the prayer itself almost begins to be silent. And there's simply a stillness that reigns within us as we stand before God. And again, this isn't the common parlance of Christians these days in the sense of keeping vigil. And certainly, you know, people have responsibilities in regards to their daily work, family. But there are ways, I think, in which we can take advantage of this. Often people have trouble sleeping or wake up in the middle of the night and they will get online or pick up their phone or turn on the television instead of using that time for prayer. Certainly, those who have children, infants, are awake in multiple times throughout the course of the night. And so, as one is tending to one's child, one can be praying to the Lord at those times as well. And it's not limited, certainly, to getting up in the middle of the night. One can get up early and offer the first fruits of the day to God as well. Before we turn our minds to anything in regards to our daily work, that we would turn our minds in our hearts to God, asking Him to bless and guide us that we might do all things in accord with His will. And so, part of this is offering all that we have in our God and that we begin to see our life as prayer, not again as praying as something that is episodic, but really something that nourishes us and that is akin to our breathing. And so, to break the night, to break our sleep, it should not seem all that unusual to us if we love prayer and we've tasted the sweetness of it over the course of time. There is going to be an urge within us to rise during the night to pray, knowing that this is a very special time. You know, there is a kind of restraint that one uses in the practice of it, just as the monks will talk about when we get back to the every katinos on fasting, that one has to be aware of one's limitations, not everybody fast in the same way eats the same amount that we have to avoid extremes. And so, the same is true with vigils, that this is not something that is taken up lightly, that we do it in a measured way that's in accord with our station in life, and that we might seek to perfect that practice over the course of decades in our life. But nonetheless, that we grow to see it as something important and something that is valuable. Jeff writes, "I find that the three o'clock hour is the hour I most regularly awake to spiritual battle, fear, attacks, dreams. There have been many nights I awake during that hour feeling an overwhelming need to pray and sing hymns of increasingly seeing the value of praying at some time during that hour." That's very good, you know, I think to, you know, often we will be awakened by dreams, sometimes dreams that are disturbing. And to turn the mind in the heart to God at that point, to know his peace, is often something also that clears the mind and the heart. Things will rise from the depths of our unconscious during the night and manifest themselves in dreams that are often confusing or disturbing. And so, if we awaken from one of those to allow, you know, to turn our minds in our hearts to God, as simple as crying out the name of Jesus in order that it might hand those things over to him and be able to find that peace again to go back to sleep. Sometimes late at night or early morning can be a time of demonic provocation when we are sort of semi-conscious and so to be vigilant during these times, you know, to be praying, especially before we go to bed, and first thing in the morning is important as well. Okay, we'll get back into this as well when we get into the step on prayer. But here, we read it in the context of stillness and the life of a hezekist who's embraced the life of silence. And so, one who loves prayer or whose life is focused on prayer is going to seek to use every time of the day possible, to give themselves enough rest, but nonetheless prefer the nourishment that comes through prayer. And again, remember what the fathers say that, you know, one hour of prayer is like three hours of sleep in terms of its restorative power to the mind and to the body, and there is truth to this. You know, I think we're often weighed down by our anxieties, the stresses of day-to-day life, and when we enter into the peace of Christ, there's something that relieves us of that burden. And it's pretty well known that when we suffer from depression, often sleep and long hours of sleep is a way of coping with that reality. And sometimes entering into this prayer and acting in an encounter and tutored away, you know, not to avoid the anxiety or the depression so much by going into sleep, but rather turning towards He who is reality, who can offer us this peace and alleviate the burdens that we are so often weigh us down. Number 78, reading enlightens the mind considerably and helps it concentrate for those who, I'm sorry, those are the Holy Spirit's words, and they attune those who attend to them. Let what you read lead you to action for you are a doer. Put these words into practice makes further readings to prayer fluids. So when we read the scriptures and when we internalize the words that we read and we understand that these are not static words written on a piece of paper, but the living word of God, then it should move us to action. And John puts it in an interesting way here. You're a doer. That the word that you hear is something that is to drive us to action in the way that we love others and our pursuit of virtue of seeking to overcome our sins. That whenever we hear the word, either in our own reading or liturgy, that it should be something living for us and the words that we hear should be like John the Baptist standing before us calling us to repent with as much force as he did in the Jordan. You seek to be enlightened by the words of salvation through your labors and not merely from books. So the more we internalize this living word of God, then the written word becomes more and more superfluous for us, you know, whether even if it's the scriptures or the writings of the saints, the more that we are open to the guidance of the spirit of truth. The more that we internalize this word, the less that we require the reading that he speaks up here that enlightens us that we are enlightened within. So, until you receive spiritual power, do not study works of an allegorical nature because they are dark words, and they dark and the weak. So, if you notice the footnote there, it acknowledges that this is somewhat confusing, but to when a person early on begins to look for deeper meanings or alternative meanings of the scriptures. And, you know, maybe a more literal approach to it. Sometimes they can get wrapped up in their own analysis of a text. And so john warns those who are young, those who are new to the spiritual life to simply take the Lord at his word to look to the fathers as they guide us as well, in our study of the scriptures, those who are not only well versed in the scriptures, but who have lived the life for the scriptures. And so sometimes we can get caught up in this deeper kind of analysis of the text looking for multiple meanings, and there's nothing wrong with that, but it can be destructive and dark in the path for someone who's new to the spiritual life. Often one cup of wine is sufficient to reveal its flavor. And one word of the hezekus makes known to those who can taste it his whole interstate and activity. So an interesting thing that one, who is a hezekist, one who's entered into that deep silence where God speaks that word that is equal to himself, often then one word from that hezekus that one who lives in this stillness is enough, not only to nourish those who come to seek his counsel but reveal something of the depth of the person that they illuminate who it is, and the Satanliness of the individual before them. That one word can be filled with far more meaning than perhaps the most eloquent sermon. And so often those who would come to see the desert fathers, especially those who lived very deep into the desert. One of the things that they would say to them is, Father speak a word, speak a word, and so often it was a very simple thought, much like we would find in the sayings of the desert fathers or the writings in the Philicalia, one simple line for them to meditate upon, and that would be sufficient, certainly for the day, but sometimes for far, far, far longer period of time. We live in an age of many words, and we need to slow ourselves down in order to be more discriminating and discerning of what what is nourishing and what has value. Number 80, have the eye of your soul fixed firm against conceit or self opinion for nothing is so painfully destruct. The eye of the soul. And again, this is one of the key aspects of the father's anthropology, the noose, the eye, the heart, the eye of the soul that when we have been purified of the passions and every impediment of sin has been removed. And then we are to be ever watchful of that which can again darken that I darken our vision. And what does it most of all is conceit and self opinion to have a high image of ourselves or our judgment. Today again, the people put a lot of store and, you know, arguing about the faith and debating about it, and putting their opinion forward in such a ways to be convincing. And, you know, certainly we are to bear witness to the faith defend the faith, but I think what we pick up from the fathers is what is most important is living it. And internalizing the word that we hear, and that it becomes important for us to internalize it before we say a single word. Knowing that we can easily fall into exactly what he says here conceit and self opinion, that it can be so ever destructive to a person's vision of Christianity, their understanding of the faith of who Christ is, you know, a word said indiscriminately or with anger can really destroy I think a person's capacity to be to approach the faith with the kind of generosity spirit. Number 81, when you leave yourself be sparing with your tongue, because it can scatter in a moment, the fruits of many labors. So, similarly, you know, to speak little, and to train ourselves to do that, not necessarily to launch forth our opinion. Every time something is said that is remotely controversial, or seems to be critical of the faith. We do not need to insert ourselves into every discussion, because every discussion is not worth are immersing ourselves in that might agitate our own mind and heart, or lead us into sin in some way or lead us into anger. And so to be guarded about every single word that we speak becomes very important, not in an erotic way, but that we, I think, are cautious that our words really arise from that place of love of generous generosity of respect for the other. And if it isn't, then it is better for us to remain silent, then the risk to sin against love to sin against charity. And so to make up for whatever is lacking, you know, and I think in a person's understanding, or what is lacking in our poor words, and so we may only be able to say one simple thing, and then allow him to strengthen whatever it is said with grace so long as it said with love. And so to be more confident about that, you know, something said, a simple word in love, smile, tender touch, help, at the time a person needs it. These are the things that bear the greatest fruit. And to be honest with you, and you know, a very good writer, pretty close to our time he's died I think in the, I don't know, early 2000s Henry now talks about this, you know, the people that have the most of the greatest impact upon us. And those of whom we have the greatest memories are those who have assisted us in those times of great need, you know, and perhaps said very little but we're always there whenever we're suffering or wherever we need it, a helping hand offer, you know, this tender support and encouragement and the faith or just in life in general. And he's ever so good, I think in just discussing tenderness as a virtue. And we aren't very tender with each other anymore. In fact, we're pretty, we can be pretty rough and a cervic, you know. All right. Number 82. Try to be free of curiosity for can defile stillness as nothing else can. This often gives rise to objection immediately somebody puts up their hand well isn't curiosity a good thing. And it is, in the sense of it can lead us to explore that which has value. The kind of curiosity that john is talking about and what we would perhaps understand in our own day is how we will flip from one thing to another, simply to satisfy this desire we have to be to engage something or to know what's going on, or the newest thing. And the way I think most people in our day experience it is through the internet, you know, you connect from one link to another or what let one video run into another, and they can go on for for ages. And this is the kind of curiosity that john warns about, because very quickly it can scatter the mind fragment the mind and make us lose our focus on God altogether. Cut up in this curiosity for the next thing. Just listen to one more thing, or that sounds interesting this link to this other article, even if it's about good things, it's still it can wrap us up and draw us along and make us spend time waste time. Beyond things and I think it's what's adaptive about it is that so often it is benign on the surface, or that it seems to offer us something that's very good interesting, or we'll learn something. But if we're using our time in this way again we can become dissipated in the process, and so not be doing what we should be doing, you know, in terms of our daily obedience our daily task, or again lose lose sight of God. Anthony writes this curiosity is a misdirected arrows. I think so, you know, it can be a love again for what is new, a love for information for information sake. And I mean this is what people are constantly talking about we live in information age isn't it wonderful. We have it our fingertips, you know anything that we want to know we can even talk to our phone Siri what's the weather outside, or you know, and so, you know, it can be beautiful, or since my phone actually when I said Siri, my phone actually picked it up and started to tell me the weather. So you see what I mean, it's, it's very seductive. It's funny Ambrose said it triggered his two twice. And so we do have all of this information at our fingertips, and yet it can be an enormous distraction. You know, certainly it can be overtly sinful for people because there's so much out there that is really pretty bad and pretty vile. But I think the greater challenge for those who are religious to is that there can be a lot of things that we look for our religious nature to do, or what people are saying about liturgy or the church or what's the most recent thing the pope said. I think this is that just as the 24 hour news cycle is one of the worst things in the world for people, because it actates. I think knowing every word that comes out of the mouth of the pope is not necessarily a good thing. You know, there was an age, you know, the ultra mountainous, you know, there was a saying about them that, you know, a infallible statement in the daily news from the pope, you know, would be the kind of preference. And, you know, I think people like look for things to pick apart to to criticize and to engage in conversation about, and it is incredibly destructive. You know, monks stay up with the news. But they aren't watching the news daily. They might, you know, have a newspaper or something like that, or they might hear something a couple of weeks after it happened. We have the sense that we need to know everything that as it's unfolding. I was reading a little thing today said how absurd it is that we would watch something like a news trial. I think the person used the example of the OJ Simpson trial so as an older book, but, you know, what nonsense that is to be immersed out of curiosity into the playing out of a trial, and every person as he's, you know, going through examination. And, you know, how, what would that, what does that do to the mind. And I think it does, I think it dulls our sensibilities, and we lose sight. We lose this capacity to have real wonder over what deserves wonder. We can no longer see the grace and the presence of God in that which is around us, or others, because we're so glued to things that we are seeing online or on television. And, you know, what is more beautiful and we've moved into this new house and it's been an interesting thing, because all of a sudden you see all these animals, all over the place, you know, you wake up in the morning there's, you know, a bunch of rabbits run around the yard and multiple doves and, you know, it's a beautiful thing. And, you know, when you're in the city, you can lose sight of that. And, but again, you can, you also lose that sensibility of wonder that Isaac will talk about so much. And, you know, being able to see the presence and the glory of God, and what he's created, and especially what he's given us. And when we allow curiosity to draw us down that path and it lead us to become enamored with, again, with information. So, I find in the heart that I think blocks out our vision of that which is greater. You know, it's like eating junk food all the time, and you, I think you lose your taste for that which is really nourishing. Okay. So, 83. Hold on for a second. I'm having a rough night with technology. I leaned on my car keys and I set off my car alarm. Okay. Oh boy. Maybe we could have ran out at some of these outs. All right, 83. Offer to those who visit you. What is necessary both for the body and for the spirit. If they are wiser than we are, let us show our philosophy by silence. And if they are brethren following the same way of life, let us open the door of speech to them and to measure. Yet it is better to regard all as superior to us. So, we want to be measured again in how much we speak and what kind of conversation that we enter into. And so someone is wiser than us, then it is better for us to remain silent. We show our philosophy, our vision of life, our true wisdom by our capacity to listen. To be docile, to be teachable by someone who has greater experience than us. And if it is someone who shares our vision of life, our way of life, our desire for Christ, then we have a greater freedom to speak with them. But even here, John says we do that with a kind of measure in a measured way that to, you know, to have to talk about. The things of the kingdom for four hours straight is not necessarily the best thing. You know, what is one hearing or what is one focused on? Or do we get sort of enamored of hearing our own voice or enraptured more with what the other is saying. Again, when we are talking about the things of God, what is needed is this capacity again to listen to be silent. And sometimes in our speech, we muddy the waters. Some of the greatest homilies I've heard are also the shortest homilies. And in fact, Fulton Sheen said it's much harder to give like a two minute sermon or three minute sermon than to talk for an hour about something, some aspect of the faith. Because it requires really that one is internalized it and can distill it in such a way that it comes forward and is able to reach to the depths of another person's religiosity and take root there. And, and so sometimes, you know, are unmeasured talking about something is more reflection of our lack of having internalized it. We're really understanding what it is that we are talking about. And yet he says it is better to regard all a superior to us. So, to have a kind of docility, teachability that we tend to listen more to what the others saying, and I think that's good counsel across the board, you know, that we are often thinking about what we are going to say, while the other person is talking, rather than suspending judgment, and listening listening wholeheartedly to what the other person is saying, whatever it is, in order to be able to understand what they are experiencing. And, again, I think this is what we have to regain, and to suspend judgment can be the most difficult thing for us to do. The moment somebody says a certain word, it can trigger something in us all that person is a liberal nut. So, and we're thinking about what we're going to say in response to them. And, again, it's conceded, and it lacks a kind of charity towards towards the other. And certainly this docility that we, there's something that this person perhaps has to say that God has led them to us to say, and we don't want to miss that moment, because we're focused more on ourselves. Number 84. See, I want to forbid those who are still children all bodily work at the time of vigil. But he who carried sand all night in his cloak restrained me. So, John is saying here that there was part of him that wants to tell people, you know, when you're given over to this silent prayer and praying at night. And don't take up labors, whether it's spiritual reading or physical work. And yet he's reminded, he says, and if you look at the footnote he's speaking specifically of St. He's made sand around at night. And so, again, engaged his body in such a way as to maintain his focus, that John understands that, you know, sometimes our physical fatigue, or our struggle for attentiveness requires that we do something. Using a chalk key or rosary told on to, or to stand while prayer or sometimes to pray the Psalms, you know, all these things can be important to keep ourselves attentive. And so not everybody's going to be able to simply sit in that silence for hours without falling asleep. And certainly the Communist was, you know, one of the great ascetics, and so if he had to do this, then certainly we're going to have to. I missed a couple comments here to Kathy, how can you break its whole Internet accessor, etc. Well, I think it is by engaging in some of these practices and allowing oneself to taste the sweetness of it, you know, to taste the sweetness of silence. So to take regular retreats, and I think, you know, weekly is what I'm talking about, even if it's a few hours, where we break away from everything, and go to a chapel, or go to a prayer corner and do spiritual reading and, you know, stay away from the computer. And honestly, they have two hermit days, where, you know, that they're during Lent in particular, where they gather for mountains and liturgy in the morning, but the rest of the days and silence, and they, you know, you get your bread on your own. The fast days typically to, and so you have a piece of bread or something or fruit, but the whole days and silence. And, and they do that regularly. I don't think twice a week. I think it's once a week, have a hermit day. And I think for ourselves, we can imitate that, embrace that model, even if it can't be a full day, because of the realities of our life, it could be a few hours, where we turn off the computer, we go to a silent place where we aren't going to be interrupted by others. And so to foster this love of silence, and in order that we can sort of taste the sweetness of that time with with Christ, and then the hold of the Internet, and the hold of other things that engage us on so many different levels begins to weaken. We overcome our love for the Internet, or curiosity, by a greater love, our love for Christ. So if we just tell ourselves, I'm not going to use the Internet, I'm just going to cut this off, or I'm going to get off Facebook. I've heard I've said that a thousand times and other people said that a thousand times to me. But what leads us to the moderation of our use is the greater love for our desire to connect with Christ to pray. And the more that we enter into that and John will go into this about not only the quality of the time, but the quantity of time and prayer is important. And so to stretch ourselves in the time that we spend in prayer. The place used to be, I've mentioned we had a first Friday vigil. So the first Friday of the month, we would have a three hour vigil. And by the third hour, physically, and internally, you're humble, because the third hour per year, 15, but also by that time, all the thoughts that you were struggling with during that first hour, the scatteredness from the busyness of your day. And that full first hour struggling with those, the second hour, things begin to settle down a little bit but that third hour, things become very still. And so if we can make these many retreats that they can help break us loose from that which has a hold, hold on us. And we see more and more time opening up for us that God reveals to us to do for that opportunity for prayer and to spend time with him in silence. We often aren't aware of it because we are misusing it, or we're letting it pass us by. All right, number 85. What is said in the dogma of the holy uncreated and adorable Trinity, contrast with the doctrine of the providential incarnation of the one person of this all him Trinity. This plural in the Trinity is single in him, and what there is single, the here is plural. And in the same way some undertakings are suitable for those in stillness. Now there's for those and obedience. So the incarnation itself, the revelation of the Trinity, but also the revelation of Christ himself, who takes our flesh upon himself becomes obedient to the father. And that's the love of the kingdom and how he lives his life before us. This reality, this revelation reveals to us that there are some that are called to in this life enter into that reality of the Trinity enter into the life of that fullness of love. Through entering into the silence, some are called to that and bear witness to that others bear witness to what is revealed to us in Christ by the imitation of his unconditional love and his obedience, even unto death. And so John is using what is what is at the really heart of our faith and what has been revealed to us to say some are called to bear witness to this greater reality in the stillness and the silence of their life. Some bear witness to the love that is revealed to us in Christ through their living the common life living and obedience, setting aside their will for the sake of love. The divine apostle says, who has known the mind of the Lord. And I will say, who has known the mind of the man who is a hasochist and body and spirit. So isn't that interesting, you know, who knows the mind of one who's embraced this life, we're in all has been still and is nourished in that silence upon the love of God and seeks nothing else but that reality. You know that this is akin to entering into the mind of God that because that person is living so fully in that reality living the angelic life, if you will. So, so wrapped in the worship and the love of God that it's very difficult for us to understand what might be going on internally for that person. We see aspects of it in their countenance, and we see it even in their silence. But until we have entered into it ourselves, we will not know it. There's nothing that can be said about it that will teach us it has to be experienced and John will say the same thing about prayer itself. Even by after writing a whole step on prayer at the very end of it and he says, none of this tree can look learn from books, the way that you learn what prayer is is from praying. And so you learn the sweetness of stillness by allowing yourself to enter into it. Number 87, the power of a king consists in his wealth and the number of his subjects, the power of a hezekus in abundance and riches of richness of prayer. So we see, you know, we see what he loves where his treasure is found, and it's found in prayer. My mind is not working. What's the full phrase here? Somebody help me out. There is your heart, right? Or where your heart is that there's your treasure. I think I would backwards tonight. Sorry about that folks, but you get the idea that we reveal what we treasure or what is dear to our heart by where we direct our attention. The treasure is there will be your heart also. Thank you, Rebecca. Right on the money. Right. And so a person who treasures stillness but treasures God, and treasures that love above all is going to want to pray constantly. It's going to be a law or discipline. It's going to be desire that takes them there. Okay, any final comments about step number 27 before we move on to the step on prayer. Step 28 on holy and blessed prayer, the mother of virtues, and on the attitude of mind and body in prayer. So again, John is in all the steps begins with a little definition, but not so little. And it's quite full of meaning here. So this will be section again that we want to go back over and over again. Prayer by reason of its nature is the converse and union of man with God. And by reason of its action upholds the world and brings about reconciliation with God. Isn't that extraordinary that John is saying, you know, there's nothing here about discipline or, but rather about union converse. But the most striking thing is that by this action, John is telling us that the world is upheld, but this union with the Lord. This deep love of the Lord that draws the mind in the heart of the Christian is something that holds the world and keeps it from falling into destruction and darkness. It's almost reminiscent of, you know, that question, if there's about 10, you know, good or holy men in the city, we know, will you preserve it. And so as long as there are prayers, you know, the church, the world itself is upheld, and there's this possibility for reconciliation with God. And it's a humbling thing to think about because we are often, you know, in this mode of fixing or building, achieving, even on a religious level. And to think that what the world often sees as a waste of time is something that holds the world together and opens the door to reconciliation with God that hearts that are fully given over to him in this way. You know, become this conduit of grace for everyone around them. And I think that's why, you know, Saint Sarah from the Sarah offices, you know, the one who knows the peace of Christ, you know, will save thousands. And again, it's a curious statement, because it's not saying, you know, one who builds the biggest churches or as the most programs or raises the most money. It's the one who knows the peace of Christ will save thousands. You know, that, because this opens them up to this kind of wonder that turns them to the love that has been revealed to us in Christ. It is the mother and also the daughter of tears. And it gives birth to tears. So we see with a great clarity when we're immersed in prayer the depth of God's love, and how often we do not reciprocate that love, how often we do not return it. And that is born tears, but also the daughter of tears that, you know, that it goes along with our praying. The prayer goes birth to it, but the tears then produce greater prayer as well. The propitiation of sins. So our prayer are open, you know, are turning toward God is something that is cleansing of the heart. If it opens us up to experience the grace and the mercy of God, this is going to be the most powerful thing for us. And this is again why we should love liturgy, you know, that we are engaged in this prayer. And this privileged kind of prayer where we are Christ gives himself to us, body, blood, and soul and divinity so our prayer and preparation for that our prayer after that and during it should be the most important thing for us in this world that we should go from Eucharist to Eucharist, and in it, in it through it we are cleansed a bridge over temptations. So the moment that we see any kind of provocation whether it's arising out of our own mind and imagination memory, or if it's being put set before us that the moment that we turn to prayer. It is overcome it's still. There are two of the father's bar seneufius and john in their conversation they talk about it prayer making it these temptations dissipate like smoke. And, and so whether it's a bridge or what they call it immediately it disperses the provocation the thoughts that go along with temptation, a wall against afflictions. And so not in the sense that we don't experience affliction, but that it prevents us from being overcome by them. And if it does prevent afflictions, it prevents the afflictions that we often will bring upon ourselves that we come under God's protection. And so the more we pray, then we aren't negligent of our thoughts or what we expose ourselves to. We also adore afflictions but also avoid the ones that we, the process that we build for ourselves, the crushing of conflicts. Again, this is a profound thing because, you know, union between Christians, and I've often thought this. It's not because we're going to come to some agreement theologically between East and West. So again there's constant conversation, new books coming out about this all the time. I don't think it's going to come about through that. I think it comes about again through saints, and through those who are taking up their crosses. So again, this means suspending judgment, remaining silent, and turning to the Lord first in order to be the healer of conflict. And I don't know if I've ever heard any, I've heard only maybe a handful, you know, of priests and hierarchs talk about, you know, seeking union through the ascetic life, through prayer, and through fasting, you know, and not just saying it in an offhanded way, but with a constancy, saying, this is how we are to live our life that we overcome self will, we overcome that pride that divides us only by giving ourselves over to Christ, and the union and community that he alone can create of angels. So in prayer, we are imitating those who are constantly before the throne of God, and interceding on our behalf. We hear Christ himself tell us, you know, tell us this when he speaks about not leading the innocent ones, and to sin, because I tell you their angels are constantly before the throne of God. So, you know, they have this immediate intercession on their behalf. And so, you know, we are to be engaged in this kind of work of the angels, this angelic work, constantly interceding, not, not, and not only praying for ourselves but for others. Of all the bodily bodyless spirits. So we are nourished. We seek our nourishment in this, in the same way that again the angels seek it. Saints seek it, that first and foremost, we pray we hunger for the Lord who offers himself to us as the bread of life. So it's a reflection of our hope in the promises of Christ. So when we pray, we are not praying for, you know, immediate resolution of what it is that we are suffering we're praying with this confidence that all things will work for the good of those who love the Lord. And that he will, he will bring us where we need to be unending activity. So again, you know, people often look at prayer life. And the internal life, our struggle with the passions as being a waste of time, whereas John describes it here as this kind of unending activity, but it's within the heart. We're really engaged in our relationship with the Lord, and engaged in that again which serves not only for the building up of our own lives in Christ, but for others as well, a source of virtue. You know, all of our virtues don't come simply through hard work or discipline, but by the grace of God. And so if we want to grow in a particular virtue or overcome a vice, we pray, and we pray constantly. A means of attaining graces. Again, you know, this is the door, the window for us, through which we are able to receive what God desires to give us. But if we ignore him, and we turn to other things, we shouldn't be surprised then if we find ourselves struggling. So often what is taking place within us we do not see. And I've mentioned here a couple of times, the notion that what we see of the saints is the least of them. So the holiness that we see, the virtue that we see, even the miracles that they might perform is the least part of them. That what God does in them by his grace and through prayer is more than we can begin to imagine, the action of the Holy Spirit within the heart of an individual. And it's not only something that we aren't aware of, but they aren't aware of either. You know, that there's part of the God that protects us from any pride in revealing to us, you know, all that is going on within or our particular state in the spiritual life. It is food for the soul, so again, nourishment for us enlightenment of the mind. So, you know, again, this, our intellect, our reason is something that is limited. And no matter how profound our understanding of church teaching might be, or the writings of the fathers, it's never going to be what God reveals to us by his grace. That is man made manifest through the gift of faith, where we comprehend that which is beyond reason where we begin to experience and see God as he is in himself. This is what prayer opens the door for for us in faith to comprehend God and his love as it is in its fullness. Again, it could be this dark obscure knowing but it's far greater than anything that again we could read in a book or that we can think about with our own mind and articulate. It doesn't mean that those things don't matter, but they can only take us so far within a spiritual life and the more that we progress the more we see how how small of a distance it can take us in comparison to something like prayer. It's against despair. And so, again, you know, we're often going to struggle with despondency, but we're also going to struggle simply on an emotional level. Living in the world in a fallen world, where we know our own weaknesses, we also know the weaknesses of others, the cruelty of others, the cruelty of life, the sufferings that we bear physically. And emotionally we can be confronted with this great temptation to despair, to wonder where are you God. And I think prayer allows us to see that he's right there in the midst of it, that he's taken it all on himself that we aren't in isolation we aren't alone. And I think what leads us into despair so often is this experience of being alone, of being isolated, or feeling unlocked. And a person who's immersed in prayer is going to have this powerful weapon against prayer. You know, to describe it as an axe is a pretty powerful term, it's something that can cut out, you know, what often takes hold of us in such a powerful way. A demonstration of hope. So, even in the face of the darkness of the world, I have people every day say to me, I think our world is falling apart. You know, it's we're on the edge of disaster. And a person who praise is this, you know, it gives this demonstration of hope that our destiny is in the hands of God our life is in the hands of God. So, however dark the world might become around us, or, you know, no matter how disordered it might seem to us, you know, what we find in Christ is this, this hope that would endorse Trevor lasting life is not that. And to focus upon that is mistaken for us as a mistake for us. The prayer allows us to be focused upon what gives us rojo that what endures is not all that that is ugly and dark and wicked, but that which is good. It's not a cure for sorrow. And it's a hard thing I think sorrow by its very nature makes us turn in on ourselves. You know, and people sorrow is real, you know, oftentimes it is great loss that people have experienced pain from the past, you know, of deep wounds. And there's something about prayer, though, that allows even the healing of memory. And imagination, you know, of all the things that we feel have indeed shaped our experience of ourselves, and our experience of life that have set our path. We often feel that it really has limited at us, in terms of our capacity to love and give ourselves in love or work, or be happy to be free. And yet to pray, as John tells us here is is a cure for this. You know, again, it's not to allow those things those realities, those things that have really happened to our life to be what defines our identity. What defines who we are is the love revealed to us in Christ that we are sons and daughters of God. So no matter how we've been treated or what our life has been, even in our own estimation that we again have been made heirs of the kingdom that we have access to the treasure house of God's grace, and of his everlasting love. The more we pray the more we see that with greater clarity. The wealth of monks, and we'll stop with this one since say 30. So, you know, often the monks are seen as the poorest of individuals, you know, often having nothing living in hot or cave. And so they are truly poor in the eyes of this world, you know, and might not be known by anyone. You know, St. Paul, the hermit, you know, the first hermit, you know, he really was driven into the desert because of a threat to his life, but ends up staying there in the desert and embracing this aesthetic life. So only at the end of his life that Anthony goes out, St. Anthony goes out searching for him and finds him only a small while before he died. So he lives in this obscurity all of his life. And yet is the, you know, one of the most wealthy of individuals in terms of the life of grace and life of prayer. And Anthony, the great sees and understands this, that there is one in the desert, who is, you know, lived this life in a greater measure than you have. And so John is preparing us, you know, so beautifully here, even in these, in this first paragraph for what he's going to unfold about prayer, here as we go along. Anthony writes, if chronological time is a creature prayer brings us to Cairo's time, it's like the Shekina or table light is uncreated, thus things in chronological past can be healed. That's beautifully said so that we are drawn into the glory of God. And we are drawn beyond the chronological time as we experience it, as well as the wounds that we experienced and that are afflicted on us in the midst of it. And so we experience even now the eternal life in Christ, and prayer draws us into that. That's why I can be a cure for the deepest of sorrows. So again, it's, it does fill one with wonder because all of a sudden you think the prayer is not a discipline, you know, on some level I should not have to force myself. I know that I need to, because of the weakness of my will. But there is something so beautiful that's held out to us here, an experience of union communion with God, that if we can take hold of the wonder, the desire that it elicits within us if we can take something of this weakness of it, then it's going to transform our lives and the lives of those around us. And it will bring about, I think, a magnificent simplicity. You know, if we let go of the worries, the anxieties, the fears, the darkness, then, and we live in the joy of Christ, then we begin to let go of the things that just weigh us down. Material goods, as well as the weight of our past and of memories, and when we are minds are filled with Christ. So, this is going to be a beautiful step, and one paragraph, half of a paragraph has been magnificent. So, I look forward to picking up with you next week. So, when we close, as always, with our Father, named the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit, Amen, our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us to stay our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen, the Lord be with you. May I want to God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen. Go on, peace. Thanks for God. Thank you all.
