In this lucid and accessible talk, Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen) takes us to the heart of Orthodox spirituality. His approach here is emphatically practical, rather than theoretical or technical. In the first part, he lays down three basic spiritual principles that serve to sum up the Orthodox hesychast tradition as articulated in the "Philokalia". In the second part, … [Read more...] about The Three Principles of Orthodox Spirituality: The Path to Prayer
prayer
How to Establish a Prayer Rule
Establishing and maintaining a prayer rule does not have to be an onerous experience, one that is more likely to fail than succeed, writes St. Theophan the Recluse. We need a prayer rule because we need discipline, but that discipline has to be doable, one that delivers the fruits of prayer and not one that drives us to frustration, or worse, despair, because we don't have the … [Read more...] about How to Establish a Prayer Rule
Getting Serious For 40 Days: An introduction to the Great Canon of St. Andrew
The Canon of St. Andrew, the nine ode prayer of repentance written by St. Andrew of Crete in the early 700's, is the customary way Orthodox Christians around the world enter the penitential season of Lent. St. Andrew wrote the prayer with the deepest humility, a virtue necessary for entering into the presence of God in ways that foster salvation, and the man who prays it … [Read more...] about Getting Serious For 40 Days: An introduction to the Great Canon of St. Andrew
Tips on Prayer from St. Theophan the Recluse
Source: Russian Faith By St. Theophan the Recluse How to Enter a Prayerful State of Mind Being the soul’s breath, prayer is most important in the life of a Christian. The presence of prayer in one’s life means that the person is spiritually alive; without a prayer he is dead. Standing in front of icons and bowing is not yet prayer itself—those are … [Read more...] about Tips on Prayer from St. Theophan the Recluse
On Suicide
Orthodoxy not uncommonly calls on us to maintain a sort of binocular vision, affirming two seemingly opposing views. Nowhere is this more evident than in the case of suicide, where we are asked both to love the perpetrator and refrain from judgment, while at the same time condemning the act as itself profoundly abhorrent. Our therapeutic mindset finds the former easy, and the … [Read more...] about On Suicide