"The word accidie means, etymologically, ‘lack of care’, i.e. about one’s salvation. With few exceptions, all humanity is now living in the state of accidie. People have become indifferent about their salvation. They do rot seek divine life. They confine themselves to forms of life which appertain to the flesh, to everyday needs, to the passions of this world, to mundane activities. God, though, created us out of nothing, in the image of the Absolute and after His likeness. If this revelation is true, then the absence of concern for salvation is nothing else than the death of the human person.
Despair is the loss of consciousness that God wants to give us eternal life. The world is living in despair. People have condemned themselves to death. We must struggle resolutely against despondency."
+ Archimandrite Sophrony Sakharov, Words of Life
In a recent parish retreat, the theme of spiritual despondency was raised, highlighting what Fr Stephen Freeman has discussed as "the most common spiritual malady". What is interesting is that despondency is not mere 'laziness', but rather apathy...or as the speaker of the retreat defined "a lack of care for salvation".
Acedia is caused either by despair or by pride, and both cause the Christian to trust in princes and chariots of our own choosing (or our ideologies or our fallen passions) instead of the constant remembrance of God. The speaker then emphasized the importance of not 'relaxing' but remaining ever watchful.
Perhaps this lesson of watchfulness is but one of the many lessons that are revealed in St Silouan's humbling admonition to "keep thy mind in hell, and despair not!"
May we prepare and enter into Lent heeding the One Who calls to us...calls to Adam saying "where are you?"
Je Nai Nan.
"It is a mistake to believe, as some people do, that “birth in spirit” can happen at once, as with St. Paul on the way to Damascus. St. Paul was not spiritually born on the way to Damascus (he had been a righteous and zealously believing Jew before then) — but it was as though a bandage fell off his eyes, and the whole power of his faith was turned to serving Him Whom he had persecuted ‘in God’s name.’ No doubt St. Paul had been inwardly prepared for that which happened on the way to Damascus by the whole of his preceding life; and to the end of his days he disciplined himself, saying, “I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection” (1Cor. 9,27) and, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended : but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3,13-14). “Let us therefore,” he adds, “as many as be perfect, be thus minded.”
This is an indication of the way toward ‘birth from above’ which St. Paul himself thought he had not yet attained. It is an example to all Christians. That is why men ‘born in Christ’ differ from others, not by apparent, but by the true humility. They do not regard themselves as having ‘attained’ anything; they see their deficiency in everything; they do not notice other people’s failings, but on the contrary, are always struck by their good qualities.
Unfortunately, many people who sincerely seek the Lord are deluded by the thought that they have been ‘born of the Spirit.’ A man may experience spiritual joy, feel the warmth of prayer, find his Lord and Saviour and decide in his mind that this is ‘second birth.’ And indeed not infrequently he changes his conduct: gives up telling deliberate lies, drinking and smoking, begins to say his prayers, to read the Gospel daily — and in all sincerity numbers himself among the ‘saved’ and ‘the risen in Christ.’ In doing so he imperceptibly grows placid and satisfied with himself and his conduct, and then begins to look around and see who is ‘saved’ and who is ‘not saved.’ He goes to hear only such preachers who confirm his belief and, by specially selected texts from the Gospel, he is lulled to sleep in his spiritual complacency, thus barring the way to poverty in spirit, i.e. to true regeneration in Christ. The result is the type of the ‘proud evangelical saint.’ This is New Testament Pharisaism: “I am not like other men...” (in the parable of the publican and the Pharisee).
This false “birth” which deludes a good many of the ‘righteous’ opens the broad way to spiritual self-satisfaction and prevents a true ‘birth in Christ,’ i.e. the acceptance of the narrow and thorny way of spiritual poverty. But that was the way trodden by all the righteous, beginning with the Apostles, and they bequeathed it to us, their brethren. The nearer a man is to a mountain, the bigger it seems to him and the smaller he himself becomes in his own eyes. The nearer to the Lord, the smaller and more sinful he feels, and sincerely says, “I believe, Lord, and I acknowledge that Thou art of a truth the Christ, the Son of the living God, Which came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief....” If one has that feeling, it is difficult to grow proud and regard oneself as ‘saved’ and another man as ‘not saved.’
+ Archbishop John Shahovskoy
"The Holy Eucharist teaches us unceasing remembrance of God and we learn to live in God’s presence. The living presence of the King of Heaven lifts the mind and heart in worship and praise, and in this the members of the liturgical assembly represent the angelic ranks. We reflect the presence of the Cherubim and the Seraphim because we aim to glorify God even as they do, according to the vision of the Prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 6). The Cherubim and the Seraphim constantly and earnestly gaze upon the Glory of the Lord as they offer ‘unstilled songs of praise’; likewise the faithful, ‘again and again’, give thanks for His glory and intercede for the salvation of the whole world. Such worship cannot fail to establish Christ as the centre of our life. As we learn the mindfulness of dwelling in the presence of God, we conquer our forgetfulness of God. We strive to be in unceasing contact with God’s creative Spirit, and this teaches us how to overcome the deadliest of the passions - the despondency (the Greek word is acedia, which literally means ‘a lack of care for salvation’)that would slay us spiritually."
+ Fr Zacharias of Essex
"...the true Church embraces in her bosom those God-bearing souls who know God and His love unto death, and who fulfil His commandment. When accused, they do not defend themselves; being reviled, they bless; being persecuted, they suffer it. They return good for evil in imitation of Christ ‘the author and finisher of our faith.’ We, the faithful, are given the blessing to live alongside these Saints of God, and to communicate with them and be saved from error through their prayers."
+ Fr Zacharias of Essex
"Christ has saved us through the Cross of shame, so when we suffer shame for His sake He considers this as gratitude, and in return He transmits to us His grace which regenerates our life.
This is exactly what happens in confession. Those who confess sincerely and take upon themselves the shame for their sins are regenerated. But those who shrug their shoulders and say, ‘Nothing special, the usual things...’, they do not bear any shame, their heart remains unmoved, and they hardly receive any benefit. But those who, with shame and a contrite heart, strip their souls naked before God and before another mortal ‘of like passions’ with them - that shame of theirs really finds the heart, humbles it and brings it to the surface. This then opens the heart to receive the grace of regeneration, of consolation. We see this in the life of many that come to us: the greater the shame they bear with contrition, accusing themselves before God, the greater the grace they receive to amend their lives and make a new beginning."
+ Fr Zacharias of Essex
"I think that throughout the Scriptures, in both the Old and the New Testaments, we are called to return to God and to convert our hearts. And this conversion is not, as some might think, something that happens once and is secured forever. It is a dynamic conversion, it is something which has to be sustained. We are saved neither by intellectual faith nor by a conversion experience that takes place only once, nor by works. We are sustained by a living sensation of God in our hearts, in our bodies. That is why the Old Testament asks, ‘What is man?’ And the answer is given in the Proverbs: ‘Man is a heart with a divine and spiritual sensation,’ that is to say, a man who bears in his heart the traces of God’s energy, of God’s presence, of the effects of grace.
We mustn’t be afraid to use terms which the Protestants use. They say they are evangelical - we are more evangelical, because they emphasise only one particular aspect of conversion. There is a wholeness of life in our Church and an unbroken tradition since the time of Christ that no other Church can claim to have retained. I learn the truth of this from Anglican priests who visit our monastery. They often say to us, ‘You Orthodox are the only ones who have kept an unbroken tradition.’ And then I realise that we do indeed have this tradition but we take it for granted. In fact it is true: if you examine the history of the Church, its theology, its liturgical life, the spirit of asceticism in the Church - there is an unbroken tradition throughout the centuries. But we must always try to speak humbly to them and recognise every good element they have in their life, trying to point out gently that there are other things which they lack. But we must speak in such a way as to make them feel respected and honoured, which will inspire them to listen to what we have to say."
+ Fr Zacharias of Essex
