The Power of Prayer ( video )

Η Κατακριση - Γεροντα Εφραιμ της Αριζονας ( video )

Δευτέρα Παρουσία του Χριστού - Γεροντα Εφραίμ της Αριζονας ( video)

Γιατί ή λύπη ( Αββά Ησαΐα )

Γιατί ή λύπη, οταν είναι όπως τή θέλει ό Θεός, είναι χαρά, καθώς βλέπεις τον εαυτό σου να στέκεται στο θέλημα του Θεού- ενώ ό λογισμός πού σου λέει: «Πού θά ξεφύγεις; Δέν έχεις μετάνοια» προέρχεται από τον εχθρό με σκοπό να κάνει τον άνθρωπο να αφήσει την εγκράτεια.

Αντίθετα, ή λύπη ή σύμφωνη με το θέλημα του Θεού δέν έρχεται επιθετικά στον άνθρωπο, άλλα του λέει: «Μη φοβάσαι. Προσπάθησε πάλι».

Ξέρει δηλαδή ότι ό άνθρωπος είναι αδύνατος και τον ενδυναμώνει.

Αββά Ησαΐα

Doing good out of love for Christ ( Elder Paisios )

Is it right to do good so we can get to Paradise where we will be protected and comfortable? But what is our motivation for this? Is it not a bit self-centered? Here we have to be careful. We know its not good to wast our life with evil deeds. But when we do good for the sake of obtaining Paradise, what are we saying?

Elder Paisios tells us he is not concerned whether he will go to Paradise. He says:

...I am not concerned with where I am going. I have set myself aside. Not that I want to be separated from Christ and so am not concerned whether I'll go to Paradise; but rather it is not my goal to do good just to get to Paradise. So I say, "Even if you set me aside, Lord, I will still be satisfied; I am not worthy of Paradise." Our aim must be to do good out of the love of God and to be satisfied with His judgment, trusting in His love where He will place us. The motivation for our good acts must be the love of Christ and not for some self-centered benefit for ourselves.

There are many today in this environment of heroism and self-gratification who seek a spiritual life for some benefit. They want peace, they want less stress, they want eternal life, they want a spiritual experience, and so forth. It all about what they want.

Elder Paisios says:

Let us not do good expecting to receive wages like a hireling; let us do good out of love for Christ. We must guard against the calculating human spirit of selfishness, of self-interest and self-love. We must keep in mind that Christ sees us, He is observing us, and we must be ever vigilant not to grieve Him. Otherwise, our faith and our love become worn out and frayed.

The spiritual disciplines we undertake as taught by the Church may in fact lead us to a healthier life but this is not our purpose. It's a side effect. We do not fast and pray for physical benefits. We do it to become closer to the one we love, Jesus Christ.

Why do we do good deeds? Because we love Jesus Christ and want to follow Him, doing His will as obedient servants of His. It is our love of God that brings us into union with Him.



Elder Paisios

Why do we have trials and temptations ( Elder Paisios )

Why are we so often called on to endure difficulty? It seems like life is filled with obstacles. We have desires for this or that and often find that what we want is not possible. Also, even when we don’t seem to have any desire, something we take for granted, like our good health or a close friend, is taken away from us. Why is this the nature of our worldly life?

Elder Paisios says,
Sometimes God allows for a relative or a fellow worker to cause us problems in order to exercise our patience and humbleness; however, instead of being grateful for the chance God gives us, we react and refuse to be cured. It is like refusing to pay the doctor who is giving us a shot when we are ill.
Apparently, God is always working to help us to grow in the virtues. He wants us to be humble and to have great patience. When we object to the roadblocks that are put in our path in life we are rejecting the medicine God is providing for our growth.

The Elder says,
God does not want us, His children, to be pestered. He gives us temptations and hardships, in order to become perfect. Temptations will cease to exist in our life, when we reach the level of perfection.
Christians ought to love afflictions and not try to get rid of them; afflictions are necessary means leading to our perfection.

Elder Paisios

Ένας ερημίτης του Αγίου Όρους

 

Μιλήστε μου για το μέλλον.
Τι μπορεί να περιμένει η ανθρωπότητα από δω και πέρα, και ειδικότερα η Ελλάδα και οι Έλληνες;
Έχουμε ανάγκη από ανθρώπους σαν και εσάς να μας μιλάνε και να τους ακούμε με μεγάλη προσοχή.
Η εποχή των λόγων έχει παρέλθη.
Όχι εγώ ο μηδαμινός, αλλά ούτε άνθρωποι αξιόλογοι δεν μπορούν πλέον να πούνε κάτι που να βοηθήσει τον κόσμο.
Γιατί η ανθρωπότητα έχει αλλάξει πολύ.
Η διείσδυση της τεχνολογίας στο μυαλό του ανθρώπου έχει κάνει τέτοια ζημιά που δεν ακούει κανείς.
Λόγω του τεραστίου όγκου της πληροφορίας που διαχέεται όλοι νομίζουμε ότι τα ξέρουμε όλα.
Το μόνο που απομένει να κάνουμε είναι ΕΡΓΑ.
Ο Χριστός είπε: «(Ματθ. 5:16) ούτω λαμψάτω το φως υμών έμπροσθέν των ανθρώπων, όπως ίδωσιν υμών τα καλά έργα και δοξάσωσι τον Πατέρα υμών τον εν τοις ουρανοίς.» Δεν είπε «όπως ακούσωσιν υμών τα καλά λόγια».
Νομίζω ότι ο καθένας μας οφείλει να βελτιώσει τον εαυτό του, και τότε το παράδειγμά του θα λάμψει και στους γύρω του.
Τότε μπορεί να έρθει και κάποιος και να του πεί: «Αδελφέ, πως το κατάφερες αυτό;» Μόνο τότε μπορείς να πείς κάτι. Αλλιώς χάνεις τα λόγια σου.
Η κατάσταση στην Ελλάδα σήμερα δεν είναι κάτι που έγινε τώρα και κατά λάθος.
Είναι απλά το σημείο καμπής στο οποίο ξύπνησαν αρκετοί και είπαν: «Α, εκεί μας οδηγούσαν τόσα χρόνια;» Δυστυχώς όμως όχι όλοι.
Πολλοί συνεχίζουν τον υπό μανδραγόρα ύπνο τους: τηλεόραση, ποδόσφαιρο, με μία λέξη ΔΙΑΣΚΕΔΑΣΗ, δηλ. σκορπισμός του νού.
Όσο έχουν ένα κομμάτι ψωμί, έναν καναπέ και μια οθόνη, δεν αντιδρούν.
Αν τους τα πάρουν, ξυπνούν για να διεκδικήσουν, όχι την ελευθερία τους, αλλά το αντικείμενο που τους διατηρεί στην ύπνωσή τους, στον κόσμο τους. Οι παγκόσμιοι επί-κυρίαρχοι δεν κοιμούνται όμως. Αυτοί πλάθουν τις συνειδήσεις των ανθρώπων που τους ακούνε.
Έχουν μια ατζέντα για όλον τον κόσμο.
Εκατοντάδες χρόνια τώρα. Η ατζέντα για την Ελλάδα ξεκινά το 1821, ίσως και παλαιότερα.
Όσο θα τους αφήνουμε αυτοί θα προχωρούν.
Σκοπός τους είναι η τελεία σκλαβιά: η σκλαβιά του Νού.
Όποιος αποφασίσει να ελευθερωθεί πλήρως, δηλ. να ελευθερωθεί από τα πάθη του, και με το παράδειγμά του να ξυπνήσει-ελευθερώσει και άλλους, δεν τους φοβάται.
Το πολύ-πολύ να τον βοηθήσουν να μεταβεί εκεί που επιθυμεί: στην αιωνιότητα. Αν όμως γίνουν πολλοί οι ελεύθεροι, φτάσουν την critical mass, όπως λένε, τότε δεν θα μπορέσουν να μας κάνουν τίποτα.
Γιατί είναι λίγοι και είμαστε πολλοί.
Καλή Λευτεριά!

http://www.diakonima.gr

Ενα σκαμπίλι ( Γεροντας Παϊσιος )

Υπάρχουν άνθρωποι που έχουν κάποιον εγωϊσμό και ο Θεός τους δίνει ένα σκαμπίλι να πάνε παρακάτω.

Άλλοι έχουν λίγο παραπάνω εγωϊσμό και ο Θεός τους δίνει ένα σκαμπίλι και πάνε ακόμα παρακάτω.

Αυτούς όμως που έχουν εωσφορική υπερηφάνεια, ο Θεός τους αφήνει.
Μπορεί να φαίνεται ότι κάνουν προκοπή αλλά τι προκοπή είναι αυτή; Μαύρη προκοπή.

Και μετά δεν πέφτουν απλώς κάτω, αλλά πέφτουν κατ' ευθείαν στο βάραθρο. Ο Θεός να φυλάει!


Γεροντας Παϊσιος

Humility ( St. Simeon the New Theologian )

He, who grieves sorely in his heart when dishonored or offended by others, ought to know from this that he bears within himself the ancient serpent. If he will bear the offense in silence, or will answer the one offending him with deep humility, then he has thereby weakened and crushed this serpent.


St. Simeon the New Theologian

God is......( St. Seraphim of Sarov )

God is fire, warming and igniting the heart and inward parts. So, if we feel coldness in our hearts, which is from the devil (for the devil is cold), then let us call the Lord: He, in coming, will warm our heart with perfect love, not only towards Himself, but to our neighbors as well. And the coldness of the despiser of good will run from the face of His warmth.


Where there is God, there is no evil. Everything coming from God is peaceful, healthy and leads a person to the judgment of his own imperfections and humility.


God shows us His love for man not only in those instances when we do good, but also when we affront Him with our sins and anger Him. With what longsuffering he bears our lawlessness! "Do not call God a rightful Judge," says St. Isaac, "for His rightful judgment is not seen in your deeds. True, David called Him a righteous judge and rightly, but the Son of God has shown us that God is good and merciful even more. Where is His righteous judgment? We were sinners, but Christ died for us" (St. Isaac the Syrian, Word 90).



St. Seraphim of Sarov

Η ασθένεια και η θλίψη ( Γεροντας Εφραιμ Φιλοθεϊτης )

Η ασθένεια και η θλίψη είναι το κατ' εξοχήν φάρμακο της πρόνοιας του Θεού να φέρει τον άνθρωπο κοντά Του και να αυξήσει την αρετή του. Ο Ιώβ ήταν ο καλύτερος άνθρωπος πάνω στη γη, αλλά ο Θεός ήθελε να τον κάνει ακόμα καλύτερο. Και από τότε που δοκιμάστηκε, από τότε και δοξάστηκε.

Ήταν καλός άνθρωπος και ευσεβής κ.λ.π. αλλά χωρίς δοκιμασία δεν ήταν ονομαστός ο Ιώβ. Αφ' ης στιγμής όμως δοκιμάστηκε και πολέμησε και αγωνίστηκε και στεφανώθηκε και πλούτισε, από κει και ύστερα άρχισε η δόξα του, και απλώθηκε μέχρι σήμερα. Το παράδειγμα του, είναι φωτεινότατο και ενισχύει κάθε άνθρωπο που δοκιμάζεται.

Αν αυτός δοκιμάστηκε που ήταν ένας άγιος, πολύ περισσότερο εμείς που είμαστε αμαρτωλοί. Και το αποτέλεσμα ήταν να τον κάμει άγιον και να του δώσει πάλι χρόνια ζωής και να τον ευλογήσει διπλά και τριπλά απ' ότι έχασε, και έτσι να γίνει ένα φωτεινό παράδειγμα ανά τους αιώνες για κάθε πονεμένο άνθρωπο να προσαρμόζεται και ν' ακουμπάει σ' αυτό το παράδειγμα και να ξεκουράζεται και αυτός και να λέει: Ως έδοξε τω Κυρίω, ούτω και εγένετο.

Είη το όνομα του Κυρίου ευλογημένο. Σκύβει το κεφάλι και λέει: ο Θεός έδωσε, ο Θεός πήρε. Και το παιδί ακόμα να μου πάρει, ο θεός δεν μου το δώσε; Το πήρε. Που είναι το παιδί μου; Στον ουρανό; Εκεί τι γίνεται; Αναπαύεται εκεί...

Σε κάθε δοκιμασία πίσω κρύβεται το θέλημα του Θεού και η ωφέλεια την οποία φυσικά ίσως εκείνο τον καιρό να μην μπορεί να την δει, αλλά με τον χρόνο θα την γνωρίζει την ωφέλεια. Έχουμε τέτοια παραδείγματα πάρα πολλά.

Όπως και με τους Αγίους Ανδρόνικο και Αθανασία. Αυτοί ήταν αντρόγυνο και ήταν χρυσοχόος ο Ανδρόνικος με πολύ πλούτο κ.λ.π. Το ένα μέρος του κέρδους έτρεφε την οικογένειά του.

Το ένας μέρος του κέρδους το έδινε στους φτωχούς και το ένα μέρος του άλλου κέρδους το ένα τρίτο το έδινε άτοκα στους ανθρώπους που δεν είχανε χρήματα. Είχαν δύο χαριτωμένα κοριτσάκια. Και μια μέρα από μία αρρώστια πέθαναν και τα δύο. Πηγαίνουν και τα θάβουν και οι δύο.

Η Αθανασία η καημένη πάνω στον τάφο έκλαιγε έκλαιγε, έκλαιγε. Ε ο Ανδρόνικος έκλαιγε και αυτός. Είδε και απόειδε, τράβηξε για το σπίτι. Έμεινε η καημένη η Αθανασία και έκλαιγε πάνω στον τάφο: «Τα παιδιά μου» και «τα παιδιά μου», και κόντευε να βασιλέψει ο ήλιος και να κλείσει το νεκροταφείο. Για μια στιγμή επάνω στη θλίψη της και στη στεναχώρια της, βλέπει και έρχεται ένα μοναχός και της λέει:

«Κυρά μου γιατί κλαις;»

«Πως να μην κλαίω πάτερ;» (Αυτή νόμιζε πως ήταν ο παπάς του νεκροταφείου). «Έθαψα τα παιδιά μου, τους δυο αγγέλους μου, τους έβαλα μέσα στον τάφο και έμεινα εγώ και ο άντρας μου εντελώς μόνοι. Δεν έχουμε δροσιά καθόλου».

Της λέει: «Τα παιδιά σου είναι στον παράδεισο με τους αγγέλους. Είναι στην ευτυχία και στη χαρά του Θεού και συ κλαις παιδί μου; Κρίμα είσαι και χριστιανή».

«Ώστε ζουν τα παιδιά μου; Είναι άγγελοι;»

«Βεβαίως είναι άγγελοι τα παιδιά σου».

Ήτανε ο Άγιος της εκκλησίας εκεί. Τελικά έγιναν μοναχοί ο Ανδρόνικος και η Αθανασία και αγίασαν....

Γεροντας Εφραιμ Φιλοθεϊτης ( Αριζονα )

The Way Of A Christian ( Saint Herman of Alaska )

Without exalting myself to the rank of teacher, nonetheless, fulfilling my duty and obligation as an obedient servant for the benefit of my neighbor, I will speak my mind, founded on the commandments of Holy Scripture, to those who thirst and seek for their eternal heavenly homeland.

A true Christian is made by faith and love of Christ. Our sins do not in the least hinder our Christianity, according to the word of the Savior Himself. He said: I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance; there is more joy in heaven over one who repents than over ninety and nine just ones. Likewise concerning the sinful woman who touched His feet, He said to the Pharisee Simon: to one who has love, a great debt is forgiven, but from one who has no love, even a small debt will be demanded. From these judgements a Christian should bring himself to hope and joy, and not in the least accept the torment of despair. Here one needs the shield of faith.

Sin, to one who loves God, is nothing other than an arrow from the enemy in battle. The true Christian is a warrior fighting his way through the regiments of the unseen enemy to his heavenly homeland. According to the word of the Apostle, our homeland is in heaven; and about the warrior he says: we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph.6: 12)].

The vain desires of this world separate us from our homeland; love of them and habit clothe our soul as if in a hideous garment. This is called by the Apostles the outward man. We, traveling on the journey of this life and calling on God to help us, ought to be divesting ourselves of this hideous garment and clothing ourselves in new desires, in a new love of the age to come, and thereby to receive knowledge of how near or how far we are from our heavenly homeland. But it is not possible to do this quickly; rather one must follow the example of sick people, who, wishing the desired health, do not leave off seeking means to cure themselves. 


Saint Herman of Alaska
(From a Letter of June 20, 1820)

Inner Attention ( Saint Nektarios of Aegina )

ATTENTION is the first teacher of truth and consequently absolutely necessary. Attention rouses the soul to study itself and its longings, to learn their true character and repulse those that are unholy. Attention is the guardian angel of the intellect, always counseling it this : be attentive. Attention awakens the soul, rouses it from sleep... Attention examines every thought, every desire, every memory. Thoughts, desires, and memories are engendered by various causes, and often appear masked and with splendid garb, in order to deceive the inattentive intellect and enter into the soul and dominate it. Only attention can reveal their hidden form. Often their dissimulation is so perfect that the discernment of their true nature is very difficult and requires the greatest attention. One must remember the saving words of the Lord: "Be wakeful and pray that ye enter not into temptation." He who is wakeful does not enter into temptation, because he is vigilant and attentive.



Saint Nektarios of Aegina

Power of prayer ( St. John of Kronstadt )

Addressing his listeners, St. John continued his speech.

"I will tell all of you, beloved fathers, that prayer must be our constant companion. And I always keep up within me a constant prayerful frame of mind: I thank, praise and glorify God the Benefactor in all places of His dominion. Prayer — it is the life of my soul; without prayer I cannot exist. To keep up within myself a constant prayerful frame of mind and intercourse with God’s grace, I try to serve as often as possible, daily if possible, and to partake of Christ’s Holy Body and Blood, each time drawing from this most holy source rich and powerful strength for the different pastoral labors. During my prayerful appeals to God I use the prayers laid down in the service book. This book represents such wealth, from which a man can draw everything required for his multifarious needs and prayerful sighs to God. Here the Holy Church, like a loving mother, has painstakingly gathered all that is essential for us in different occasions in life. At times which are free from church services and pastoral activities, I read the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, especially the holy Gospels — these most precious and good tidings for us about our salvation. When reading, I try to delve into each verse, into each phrase, even into separate words and expressions. And then, with such an attentive regard to the Holy Book, such a wealth of ideas arises, as it were, a wealth of basic material for sermons, that no preacher could ever exhaust this depth of God. And when I have to deliver a sermon, for example, on the daily reading of Holy Writ, then at times I do not know which thought to choose, which one to prefer, so edifying are they. And how marvelously is the soul of man revealed in the Scriptures; it seems there isn’t a single state of the soul which would not find itself an answer here. But if reading of the Holy Scriptures is cursory and insufficiently thoughtful, their boundless wealth slips away.

"So as not to fall behind current events, I read contemporary periodicals by choice during my spare minutes."

One of those present addressed St. John with this question:

"You, Batiushka, with your constant travels all over Russia and at home, have to almost constantly serve with new people; when mistakes are often made, and confusion occurs among your co-servers, it appears as if you do not notice them; see, within a minute you are again in deep and concentrated prayer. Tell us, please, how you came to achieve this."

"Only by habit," replied St. John, "by the habit of always praying. Whenever any state of mind in a man becomes a habit with him, he is very quick to pass into that state. And the same way I, having formed the habit of being in a constant prayerful frame of mind, am able very quickly to concentrate on prayer."

His interlocutor continued:

"Tell us, Batiushka, what set of prayers do you say before celebrating the Liturgy during your multifarious labors, demanding from you both time and great effort?"

"In this case I perform the usual rule of prayers laid down by the Church for those preparing to partake of Holy Communion; but in case it is totally impossible to perform this rule, either as a result of insufficient time or for other reasons, I reduce the number of prayers, but the prayers before Holy Communion I always read without fail. In this I am guided by the consideration that God needs from us and finds pleasing, not numerous prayers, but attentive supplication, offered from the whole heart. For this reason it is better to read a small number of prayers with complete attention and heartfelt, deep emotion, than many hurriedly and absent-mindedly. But I am especially strongly elevated and put into a prayerful frame of mind before celebrating Divine Liturgy by the reading of the canons at Matins. I always read the canons at Matins myself. What wealth is contained here, what deep meaning, what marvelous examples of burning faith in God, patience in afflictions, and faithfulness to duty amid the most savage tortures is here offered to us daily by the Church. Through the reading of canons the soul is little by little imbued with the high feelings and emotions of these saints which are glorified by the Church; it lives among Church recollections and through that becomes accustomed to Church life. And I, one might say, was brought up in Church life upon this reading, which is why I advise others also, who sincerely wish to obtain spiritual wealth, to pay serious attention to the reading of the canons out of the Octoechos, Menaion, or Triodion... So, dear fathers and brothers, I have bared my soul before you; I have, so to speak, revealed the countenance of my soul, so that you would see by which method I attained what you see in me. My life — is a lengthy, stubborn and constant battle with myself, a battle which I am waging at present being constantly fortified by God’s grace. And each one of you can achieve the same results, if he will keep a constant vigil over himself with the aim of battling with his ‘old man’ and the spirits of wickedness, so as to be, with the aid of God’s grace, a candle, burning not under a bushel, but on a candlestick..."



St. John of Kronstadt

The Saints Stand By Us

When we refer to the life of a saint, we tend to extol their actions and promote them mostly on the basis of the wonderful things they performed. From very ancient times, it was thought that this elevation and emphasis, sometimes even exaggeration, in the narrative of the life of a saint was a way of rendering honour to them.

This practice may be considered beneficial in terms of uplifting the minds of the faithful, but it does create a sense of distance between the saint and other Christians: the impression is given that the saint was a person with distinct abilities, someone who, by their very nature, had the ability to distinguish themselves in martyrdom or virtue. But in this way, Christians are unwittingly discouraged from engaging in spiritual struggles, since they believe that they themselves are in no position to avoid the traps and temptations which continuously arise.

 
Let’s take the case of the five martyrs whom we honour on December 13, Efstratios, Afxentios, Evyenios, Mardarios and Orestis, (martyred at the end of the 3rd century). We have there a different approach, however. This concerns a miracle mentioned by the Protopapas of Nafplio, Nikolaos Malaxos (16th century) and preserved by Saint Nikodimos the Athonite. The event took place in a dependency of the New Monastery on Chios, on the day of their feast.

On that that day, the weather was so appalling that the fathers from the monastery were unable to get down to the dependency, and people from the outside couldn’t get there either. After the priest had started Mattins, he saw five men whom he didn’t know coming into the church. The features were similar to those of the saints being honoured, as represented in their icons. Two went to the right choir, two to the left and the youngest, who looked like the martyr Orestis, conducted the chanting, as canonarch. So the Mattins service continued until the moment when the canonarch came to read the narrative of their martyrdom.

At one point in the narrative, the governor of Sebastia, Agricola, ordered a red-hot bed to be brought, on which they laid Orestis. The Life says that Orestis “quailed” (εδειλίασεν). The young canonarch, however, didn’t read what was written, but changed the verb and said “smiled”. He was at once sharply rebuked by the eldest of the five, the one who looked like Saint Efstratios, who told him to read the text exactly as it was written. The young canonarch, who was clearly Saint Orestis, and was ashamed of his want of courage, read the Life again, but again said “smiled”. The eldest, obviously Saint Efstratios, again told him off and said: “Read what’s written as you experienced it: because you didn’t smile when you saw the bed, your courage failed you”.

In the end, the five saints disappeared and, when the priest had recovered, he completed the Divine Liturgy and wondrous event to his fellow citizens.

It’s clear, then, that the saints are people, just like the rest of us, with their own strengths and weaknesses. There’s not something distinctive or special in their nature that helps them to conduct their struggle successfully. If we wanted to single out something, it would be their great love for God, which helped them overcome their individual fears and weaknesses.

- See more at: http://pemptousia.com/2014/01/the-saints-stand-by-us/#sthash.dTrpZwhJ.dpuf