St. Symeon the New Theologian Orthodox Church

- St. John Climacus

Homily - On How We Must Become Like Children in Order to be Sons of God

"Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. " (Matthew 18:3)

"Thus speaks the Lord and His word is holy and true. What kind of advantage do children have over adults? They have three advantages: in faith, in obedience and in forgiveness. The child asks the parent about everything and whatever the parent replies, the child believes its parent. The child is obedient to its parent and easily subordinates its will to the will of the parent. The child is forgiving even though he provokes easily, but the child forgives quickly. Our Lord requires these three from ail men i.e., Faith, Obedience and Forgiveness. He seeks that men believe in Him unconditionally, as a child believes in its parent. To be unconditionally obedient to Him as a child is to its parent and to be forgiving in relation to one anther, not to remember evil and not to render evil for evil.
Faith, Obedience and Forgiveness are the three main characteristics of a child's soul. In addition to that, comes purity and joy. A child is not greedy; a child is not lustful; and a child is not vain glorious. The child has an eye unspoiled by vices and a joy unspoiled by worries. 0 brethren, who can make us over again into children? No one, except the one Christ. He can make us over into children and help us to be born again and, that by His example, by His teaching and by the power of His Holy Spirit.
0 Lord Jesus, perfect in obedience and meekness, Eternal Child of the Heavenly Father help us to become as infants by faith in Thee, by obedience towards Thee and by forgiveness towards one another. "

- St. Nikolai, from the Prologue

An Approach to Prayer

"There was a time when I read with great faithfulness all the prayers which the Church offers us in the morning, in the evening and on other occasions. But I could not always identify with them. They were prayers which were strange to me. I had not grown to that measure of faith or to that measure of love for my neighbor. There were passages in the prayers which I could say sincerely; but there were passages which I could not say; partly because they went against my experience, my feeling, partly because I had not grown to that measure of faith and spiritual experience.
My spiritual father gave me advice on that. He said to me, 'For a year I forbid you to use any of the prayers of the books of prayer. Before you go to bed, make the sign of the Cross and then lie down and say, "Lord, at the prayers of those who love me, save me," and begin to ask yourself who are those who love you — who love you so much, so deeply, so truly, that you don't need even to pray, because their prayers are your shield and you way?'
I tried it. One name after the other came. And every time a name floated up, I stopped one moment and said. 'How wonderful! He loves me, she loves me! Oh God, bless him, bless her, for the love she can give me as a present.' "

- Metropolitan Anthony Bloom of London

Repentance

Repentance is given to man as grace after grace, for repentance is a second regeneration by God. That of which we have received in earnest by Baptism, we receive as a gift by means of repentance. Repentance is the door of mercy, opened to those who seek it. By way of this door we enter into the mercy of God, and apart from this entrance we shall not find mercy. 'For all have sinned,' according to divine Scripture, 'being justified freely by His grace.' Repentance is the second grace and is begotten in the heart by faith and fear. Fear is the paternal rod which guides our way until we reach the spiritual paradise of good things. When we have attained thereto, it leaves us and turns back. "

- St. Isaac of Syria