St. John of Kronstadt · 14 of 49

Part I · Part 14

When you are praying, watch over yourself so that not only your outward man prays, but your inward one also. Though you be sinful beyond measure, still pray. Do not heed the Devil's provocation, craftiness, and despair, but overcome and conquer his wiles. Remember the abyss of the Saviour's mercy and love to mankind. The Devil will represent the Lord's face to you as terrible and unmerciful, rejecting your prayer and repentance; but remember the Saviour's own words, full of every hope and boldness for us: "Him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out;" and "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden"--with sins and iniquities, and the wiles and calumnies of the Devil--"and I will give you rest."

Man! the Creator's omnipotence, wisdom, and mercy, which were poured out upon the visible and invisible world, are ready to be bestowed, in all their infinity, upon you also, if you endeavour to be a true child of the Heavenly Father, if you fulfil His commandments to love God and your neighbour. Give yourself up, then, untiringly, and with all your might, to good works and deeds.

Every person that does any evil, that gratifies any passion, is sufficiently punished by the evil he has committed, by the passion he serves, but chiefly by the fact that he withdraws himself from God, and God withdraws Himself from him: it would therefore be insane and most inhuman to nourish anger against such a man; it would be the same as to drown a sinking man, or to push into the fire a person who is already being devoured by the flame. To such a man, as to one in danger of perishing, we must show double love, and pray fervently to God for him; not judging him, not rejoicing at his misfortune.

Sin, instead of any arguments which it has not on its side, acts of violence, by wounding, by stinging us inwardly, by pouring into us the burning poison of sin. Blessed is he who despises all earthly things, and who is wounded by the love of God, by heavenly love. But how few such men there are amongst the fallen sons of Adam! Who is not wounded and struck by the shafts of the passions, of gain and honours? And, vice versa, in whom are there the shafts of true love for God and his neighbour? The shafts of the passions and of sensual things have driven out the shafts of God's love, and do not leave room for them. For some persons these two elements are daily fighting against each other, and alternately thrust out each other, whilst in others there is not even a struggle; the earthly shafts reign wholly in some, stifling the heavenly ones: such, for instance, is the case with those who are greedy of gain, who are sensual, greedy of honours, drunkards, deceivers, murderers, fornicators, adulterers, etc. O, when will our hearts be wholly inflamed with love for the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, for the Life-giving God the Trinity, Who has commanded us to keep His commandments?

Why do we trouble and torment ourselves at not receiving some treasure which we had expected, or at losing it? Because that which we expected or which we have lost was the idol of our heart, because our heart has withdrawn itself from the Lord, the Source of living waters, Who Alone can fill and give peace to it. Let us cling to God with our whole heart, and no earthly loss, no non-fulfilment of the expectation of any earthly good--such as, for instance, money, marks of distinction, and others, which are outward and perishable things--will grieve us. Let us learn to live an inward life. Let us turn our thoughts to the highest blessings, to the heavenly recompense which is alone desirable, true, and makes those who obtain it truly happy.

We are generally delighted at fine, bright, warm weather, and like to talk about it; but in the heavenly abodes of the angels and saints the brightness, healthfulness, and freshness are incomparably greater. Why, then, do we not care to speak of the inmates of those dwellings, of that life, of that brightness, of that blessedness? Joyful, life-giving, and bright is the sun, but the light of God's countenance, which the angels and the souls of the righteous rejoice in, is still more joyful, life-giving, and bright. "Make us to be numbered with Thy saints in glory everlasting. O Lord, save Thy people and bless Thine heritage: govern them, and lift them up for ever."

Fervent, tearful prayer not only cleanses from sins, but also cures bodily infirmities and maladies; it renews the whole of a man's being, and makes him, so to say, born again (I speak from experience). O what a priceless gift prayer is! Glory to Thee, the Only-Begotten Son of God, Who hast obtained for us through Thy mediation the endless pardon of our sins! Glory to the All-Holy Spirit, Who "maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered"--who gives us ardent prayer with groanings and tears, Who warms our cold souls and gives contrition and sorrow for sins, cleansing, sanctifying, pacifying, strengthening, and renewing us! Glory to Thee, Holy Trinity, Which has no beginning, Life-giving, eternally glorified by all reasonable creatures!

It is impossible to bestow more upon you than God has bestowed upon you, for He has given you Himself, or His flesh and blood, united with His Godhead; He has made you His child, when you were the child of wrath and accursed; He has given you everything necessary, and outward blessings in abundance, and if He has not given you more outward blessings it is because they would have been harmful for you, for your soul and body. If, even now. you are often much harmed by these outward blessings, by attaching yourself to them, and suffer misfortunes and injuries from the passions, by falling away from the love of God and your neighbour and the aspiration for higher things and descending to the lower ones, then what would it have been if you had still more of these blessings? You would have sunk into sensuality.

Through the prayer of faith we can obtain from the All-merciful and All-bestowing God all spiritual and indispensable earthly blessings besides, if only the prayer is fervent and the desire to obtain these blessings sincere. And what prayers the Church puts into our mouths! Such, that by means of them we can easily incline the Lord to be merciful to us and to bestow upon us every good gift. The enemy, knowing God's goodness and the power of prayer, endeavours by every means to deter us from it, or during the prayer tries to distract our minds, to hinder us by various passions and attachments to earthly things, or by hurry, disturbance, etc.

When the heart is occupied with worldly things, especially superfluous ones, it forsakes the Lord--the Source of life and peace--and is therefore deprived of life and tranquillity, of light and strength; but when it repents of its care for vain things, and wholly turns from corruptible things to the incorruptible God, then the fountain of living water again begins to flow into it, and peace, tranquillity, light, strength, and boldness before God and man once more dwell within it. We must live wisely.

You do not want to pray for the man whom you hate and despise; but you must do so against your wish, and have recourse to the great Physician, because you yourself are spiritually sick of the malady of malice and pride; your enemy or the one whom you despise is also sick; pray that the meek Lord may teach you meekness and patience, that He may teach and strengthen you to love your enemies, and not only your well-wishers; that He may teach you to pray sincerely for the evilly-disposed as well as for the well-disposed.

Someone, when, during prayer, he became languid and feeble in mind and body, and longed to sleep, roused himself by the following inward question: With Whom art thou conversing, my soul? And after this, by vividly representing the Lord before him, he began to pray with great feeling and tears; his blunted attention was sharpened, his mind and heart were enlightened, and he himself wholly revived. This shows what it is to represent the Lord God vividly to ourselves, and to walk in His presence! If--he went on to say--my soul, thou darest not converse languidly and carelessly with men above thyself in station, in order not to offend them, then how darest thou converse languidly and carelessly with the Lord?

Lord, how shall I glorify Thee? How shall I praise Thee for Thy power, for the miracles of healing by means of Thy Holy Mysteries, manifested upon me and many of Thy servants, to whom I, an unworthy one, have administered these Thy holy, heavenly, life-giving Mysteries after the sacrament of penitence. They confess before me Thy power, Thy goodness, loudly proclaiming to all that Thou hast stretched out Thy wonderworking hand over them and raised them up from the bed of sickness, from their death-bed, when no one expected that they would live; and then, after the communion of Thy life-giving Body and Blood, they soon revived, were healed, and felt upon them at the very same hour and day Thy life-giving Hand. And I, Lord, the witness of Thy deeds, have not hitherto praised Thee in the hearing of all for the strengthening of the faith of Thy servants, and even do not know how and when to praise Thee, for every day I am occupied with some kind of work. Create Thyself a name, Lord, as Thou hast done; glorify Thyself, Thy name, Thy Mysteries.

Deny yourself sensual delights in the hope that, instead of them, you will obtain higher spiritual, heavenly delights. Do good to all in the hope that, in accordance with God's justice, "with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again"; that the good you have done to your neighbour shall be sooner or later returned into your bosom, just as the evil you have done him shall sooner or later be returned into your bosom. Remember that we are one body. "We being many are one bread."Remember that God is just to the highest degree, to an iota.

Where would there be opportunities for struggling for great deeds if we were not occasioned injury by our neighbours, if they did not offend us? Where would there be opportunities for patiently bearing offences, for meekness and humility? You see, then, that we must be tried by many and various evils in order to prove our virtue and be eventually crowned.

Do not be irritated either with those who sin or those who offend; do not have a passion for noticing every sin in your neighbour, and for judging him, as we are in the habit of doing. Everyone shall give an answer to God for himself. Everyone has a conscience; everyone hears God's Word, and knows God's Will either from books or from conversation with other people. Especially do not look with evil intention upon the sins of your elders, which do not regard you; "to his own master he standeth or falleth." Correct your own sins, amend your own heart.

Why does the Lord allow there to be poor? For your good, so that you may be cleansed from your sins and expiate them, "for alms doth deliver from death, and shall purge away all sin"; so that you may win suppliants who will pray for you in the persons of those upon whom you bestow your charity, so that the Lord may be merciful to you. " Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy."

Why does the Lord allow people to be poor? For the same reason, amongst others, that He does not make you righteous all at once according to your wish. God might have made all men well off, even rich; but then a great forgetfulness of God would have arisen, and pride, envy, etc., would have increased. And you would have thought too highly of yourself had the Lord made you soon righteous. But as sin humbles you, showing you your great infirmity, impurity, and constant need of God and His grace, so likewise the poor man is humbled by poverty and his need of other people. If the poor were to be enriched, many of them would forget God and their benefactors, would ruin their souls in the luxury of this world. So destructive are riches, and so do they blind the spiritual vision! They make the heart gross and ungrateful!

Thoughts in the street, during a walk, at the sight of the rising moon. I gratify you in everything, says the Lord: I have created you after Mine own image and likeness; I have made the sun, the moon, and the stars shine for you; I have created the earth with all its fruits for you; I have diffused the air for you to breathe; I have given you fire to light and warm you, and to cook your food; I have given you various kinds of sweet food and drink; I have taught you how to make many and various tissues for your clothing, and have given you materials for this purpose; I have given you gold, silver, copper, and other metals in the bosom of the earth, for money and other objects; I have gathered you together in well-organised communities; I have given you a sovereign after Mine own heart, Mine anointed, My likeness upon earth; lastly, I have given you Mine only Begotten Son—have given Him to die for you; have given Him, by His own will, to you for food and drink. I have founded the Church upon earth under His supremacy; what have you done and what are you doing for Me? How do you recompense Me for all My goodness? By forgetting Me, by ingratitude towards Me, by denying Me, by despising My laws! "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you?

Thy name, Lord, is Almighty, because Thou holdest not only heaven and earth, but also all mankind, the life of every man, the hearts of all in Thy Hand; and not only the life of every man, but also of every beast, bird, fish, insect, worm, reptile, and of every infusoria invisible to the eye. Glory to Thine infinite Omnipotence, Lord! Glory to Thine All-merciful, Most-wise, and All-powerful Providence! Lord of heaven and earth! Almighty Sovereign! Thou likewise holdest in Thy Hand all hell, with Satan and his innumerable hordes; and it is only by Thy permission, for our instruction and punishment, that Satan and his angels can lay their snares for us. As soon as we pray to Thee our Saviour, as soon as we unfeignedly repent before Thee of our sins, Thou, having taught us, sendest away our enemies from us, saying: " You have done enough evil to My servants; they belong to Me again." Thus, Lord, if Thine unceasing benefits and mercies to us do not teach us, what remains to be done? It only remains for Thee to teach us by chastisement, by bitterness, by oppression, by fire, and by our own wickedness—we sensual men, who love space, freedom, vain carnal freshness; who are slothful, negligent, and evil by nature.

The world is in a state of slumber, of sinful sleep. It sleeps. God rouses it by wars, by deadly epidemics, fires, destructive storms, earthquakes, inundations, bad harvests.

"We sing the angelic hymn to Thee, O Mighty One! Holy, holy, holy art Thou, O God! Through the Mother of God have mercy upon us." You thus praise God together with the angels. You are one assembly, one church, one family of God's with them by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore you ought also to live like the angels, in constant watchfulness over yourself and the souls of the spiritual children entrusted to your care. You must unceasingly praise and thank the Lord; you must be always striving after holiness; you must live in abstinence and fasting, in all humble-mindedness, obedience, and patience. May it be thus with you, by the Lord's grace!

What shall I bring to Thee, Lord, for all Thy mercies which Thou continually bestowest so bountifully upon me? My faith alone, for I have no works that shall justify me; I have done no good thing before Thee. But even my faith is also Thy gift. Receive Thine own of Thine own offered Thee, for everything is Thine, and we are all Thine. Thou art our most perfect Prototype. "Of Thine unspeakable glory I an image am, and though I bear offences' scars, compassionate Thy creature, Lord, and cleanse me in Thy tenderness, and the desired Fatherland give Thou to me, a citizen of Paradise me making once again." Take from us carnal passions, " so that we, trampling upon all carnal lusts, may follow a spiritual manner of life, both thinking and doing always such things as shall well please Thee."

Lord! as it is natural to the Prototype to attach, to assimilate to Itself Its images, to abide and to live in them, so, likewise, it ought to be natural to those who are created after Thine image to yearn with all their love, with all their ardour, after their Prototype, and to attach themselves to It. But our greedy, sensual flesh, gross and inert, withdraws us from Thee. Fasting and abstinence are necessary for us whilst we crave after sensual gratifications. Strengthen us in abstinence.

When Christ is in our heart, we are contented with everything: what has been discomfort to us becomes the greatest comfort, what was bitter to us becomes sweet, poverty becomes wealth, our hunger is satisfied, and our sorrow turns into joy! But when Christ is not in the heart, then the man is not contented with anything, he does not find happiness in anything: neither in health nor in comfort, nor in ranks and honours, nor in amusements, nor in rich palaces, nor in a luxuriously served table covered with all kinds of viands and drinks, nor in rich attire—in nothing. Ah! how necessary for the man is Christ, the Life-giver and Saviour of our souls! How necessary it is for Christ's sake—in order that He should dwell within us—for us to hunger and thirst, to sleep less, to dress more simply, and to bear everything with a quiet, peaceful, patient, meek spirit. The wicked fowler of our souls—the Devil, seeks at every moment to ensnare our souls; trying how he can wound us by some sin, by some passion; how he can implant some sinful habit or passion more firmly within us, so as to make the salvation of our soul as difficult as possible, so as to produce in us a coldness towards God, towards holy things, towards the Church, towards eternity, and towards mankind.

The Lord has created me, has brought me from nonentity into being, and after I had fallen, has restored me through His sufferings and death; He has cleansed me, a sinner, has made me His son by adoption; He has promised me the inheritance of eternal bliss; He has enlightened me through the light of His Gospel; He punishes and forgives me like a father; He lights me with the sun; He gives me daily food and drink; and above all He gives me His sweetest and life-giving food—His Body and Blood; He has diffused air for me to breathe, and above all He has poured upon me His Holy Spirit. He clothes me in beauteous garments; above all, He inwardly clothes me with Himself, as it is said: "For as many of you as have been baptised into Christ have put on Christ." He gives me rest in a spacious and clean dwelling, and promises me an eternal, resplendent abode in the heavens; He endows me with health: above all, He gives me spiritual health in abundance, through prayer and especially through the Holy Sacraments and other means. What shall I render to Him for all this? What can I do for Him in return? I cannot do anything, except to be faithful to Him with all my might, through fulfilling His Commandments and by offering a firm and unchanging resistance to sin and the Devil.

If it were not for Thy salvation, Lord, if it were not for Thy beneficence, we should have burned in the furnace of our own passions, Satan would have finally corrupted and tormented us, and we should not have found any comfort or joy in life. "If the Lord were not with us, we none could have withstood the enemy's attacks " "For they that overcome are thereby exalted."

But now we are comforted by Thy mercy, by Thy grace, which Thou hast won for us by Thy sufferings, by Thy Blood, by Thy death for us. Glory to Thee for this, Lover of men! But how will it be with those Christians who do not wish to know Thee, Thy Commandments, Thy teaching? Woe unto them!

What would it be, my Lord and God, Jesus Christ, if the light of Thy Godhead were to shine forth from Thy most pure Mysteries, when they rest upon the Holy Altar, or on the holy disk during the Liturgy, or in the tabernacle, or in the pyx, when the priest carries them upon his breast going to or coming from a sick person? Before such a light, all those who saw it would prostrate themselves to earth in fear, for even the angels cover their faces from fear of Thine inaccessible glory! But meanwhile, how indifferently some people behave towards these most heavenly Mysteries! How carelessly some persons celebrate the terrible service of the Holy Mysteries!

I must always remember my relation to God, on one side, as that of a creature to the Creator, as that of a work of art to the Artist, of a potter's vessel to the Potter; on the other side, as that of an image to its Prototype, that of a child to its Father, of one saved to the Saviour, of one loaded with benefits to the Benefactor, of one who is under the law to the Law-Giver, of one who has entered into the Testament to the Giver of the Testament, of one who is betrothed to the Bridegroom, or of a bride to the Bridegroom, of a member, of a citizen of the great city to its Chief, of one looking for the ages to come to the Father of those ages, of an accused to the Judge.

In everything and at every time strive to please God and think of the salvation of your soul from sin and from the Devil, and of its adoption by God. On rising from your bed, make the sign of the Cross and say: " In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost," and also: " Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin and teach me to do Thy Will." While washing, either at home or at the baths, say: " Purge me with hyssop, Lord, and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow." When putting on your linen, think of the cleanliness of the heart, and ask the Lord for a clean heart: "Create in me a clean heart, O God!" If you have made new clothes and are putting them on, think of the renewal of the spirit and say: "Renew a right spirit within me"; laying aside old clothes, and disdaining them, think with still greater disdain of laying aside the old man, the sinful, passionate, carnal man; tasting the sweetness of bread, think of the true Bread, which gives eternal life to the soul—the Body and Blood of Christ—and hunger after this bread—that is long to communicate of it oftener; drinking water, tea, sweet-tasted mead or any other drink, think of the true drink that quenches the thirst of the soul inflamed by passions—of the most-pure and life-giving Blood of the Saviour; resting during the day, think of the eternal rest, prepared for those who wrestle and struggle against sin, against the subcelestial spirits of evil, against human injustice or rudeness and ignorance; lying down to sleep at night, think of the sleep of death, which sooner or later will unfailingly come to all of us, of that dark, eternal, terrible night, into which all impenitent sinners will be cast; meeting the day, think of the nightless day, eternal, most bright—brighter than the sunniest earthly day—the day of the kingdom of Heaven, at which all those will rejoice who have striven to please God, or who have repented before God from their whole life during this temporary life; when you are going anywhere, think of the righteousness of spiritually walking before God and say: "Order my steps in Thy word and let not any iniquity have dominion over me;" when doing anything, strive to do it with the thought of God, the Creator, who has made everything by His infinite wisdom, grace, and omnipotence, and has created you after His image and likeness; when you receive or have any money or treasure, think, that our inexhaustible Treasury, from which we derive all the treasures of our soul and body, the ever-flowing Source of every blessing is—God, thank Him with all your soul and do not shut up your treasures within yourself, lest you shut the entrance of your heart to the priceless and living treasure—God, but distribute part of your property amongst those who are in want to the needy, to your poor brethren, who are left in this life so that you may prove upon them your love, your gratitude to God and be rewarded for this by God in eternity; when you see the white glitter of silver, do not be allured by it, but think that your soul should be white and should shine with Christ's virtues; when you see the glitter of gold, do not be allured by it, but remember that your soul ought to be purified as gold is, by fire, and that the Lord desires to make you yourself shine like the sun, in the eternal, bright kingdom of His Father, that you will see the Sun of Righteousness—God, the Trinity, the Most-Holy Virgin, the Mother of God, and all the heavenly powers and Saints, filled with ineffable light and shining with the light poured upon them.

Lord! what shall I bring Thee? How shall I thank Thee for Thy continual great mercies to me and the rest of Thy people? For I am at every moment vivified by Thy Holy Spirit. Each moment I breathe the air Thou hast diffused—the soft, pleasant, healthful, strengthening air—I am lighted by Thy life-giving and joyful light, both spiritual and material; I am nourished and my thirst is quenched by the sweetest life-giving spiritual food and drink, by the Sacrament of Thy Body and Blood, and with the sweetness of material food and drink besides. Thou clothest me with the brightest, most splendid royal garment—with Thyself—according to the Scripture—"As many of you as have been baptised into Christ have put on Christ" —and with earthly garments also. Thou cleansest me from my transgressions, healing and cleansing me also from my evil, sinful passions. Thou takest away my spiritual corruption, through the power of Thy immeasurable holiness, wisdom, and might. Thou fillest me with Thy Holy Spirit, the Spirit of holiness and grace. Thou givest righteousness, peace and joy, expansion, power, boldness, courage, and strength to my soul. Thou bestowest precious health upon my body. Thou teachest "my hands to war and my fingers to fight" against the invisible enemies of my salvation and blessedness; against the enemies of holiness and of the power of Thy glory; against the subcelestial spirits of evil. Thou crownest me with success in my works accomplished in Thy name. For all this I thank, glorify, and bless Thy most gracious, fatherly, almighty power, God, our Saviour, our Benefactor. May the rest of Thy people know Thee as Thou hast revealed Thyself unto me, Lover of men. May they know Thee, Thy grace, Thy providence, Thy wisdom and power, and glorify Thee, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, now and ever, and to ages of ages. Amen.

"The unspeakable bliss of them that behold the infinite goodness of Thy countenance." Earthly bliss all passes away by itself, and also through vicissitudes of human life; whilst joys of heavenly bliss will never end—will be infinite. Is it not worth while, therefore, to despise all the enjoyments of this transitory world, and of this still more fleeting life, in order to strive with the whole heart after spiritual and unchangeable joys.

It is madness for a Christian to be envious. In Christ we have all received infinitely great blessings; are all made godly; are all made inheritors of the unspeakable and eternal blessings of the kingdom of heaven. And we are also promised a sufficiency of earthly blessings, upon the condition of seeking the righteousness of God and the Kingdom of God. "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." We are commended to be contented with what we have, and not to be covetous. "Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have." And it is added, "For He" (the Lord) "hath said, 'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.'" Is it not, therefore, madness, after this, to envy your neighbour anything—for instance, his honours, his wealth, his luxurious table, beautiful clothing, his fine house, etc.? Is not all this mere dross in comparison to that which has been given us in the image and likeness of God, according to which we were created, in our redemption by the Son of God from our sins, from the curse and from death, in the bestowal upon us again of the blessing of our Heavenly Father, and in the eternal heavenly joys united with it? Therefore let us strive to acquire mutual love, goodwill, and contentedness with what we have; friendship, hospitality, love for the poor, for the stranger, "and to attain to the summit of virtues," humility, meekness, gentleness, and holiness. Let us respect the image of God in each other, the members of Christ, our God, His Body, God's sons by adoption, the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, the dwellers with, and companions of, the angels in praising God. "That they may be one," as our God, worshipped in the Holy Trinity, is Himself one, and has created our hearts "as one" for unity—that is, simple, single.