The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian - Homily Sixty-six Part III
Posted in Prayer, Renunciation, Love, St. Isaac the Syrian, faith, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian on Dec 19th, 2019 Comments
Posted in Prayer, Renunciation, Love, St. Isaac the Syrian, faith, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian on Dec 19th, 2019 Comments
Posted in Asceticism, Demons, Renunciation, St. Isaac the Syrian, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian, hope, repentance, joy on Oct 17th, 2019 Comments
Tonight‘s reading of homily 64 was something of a labor of love. Following Isaac’s train of thought was more difficult simply because language fails and more often than not the capacity to grasp the reality spoken of is limited for so many of us. Isaac began to speak of the ineffable hope and joy that belongs to one who has embraced the path of repentance and the renunciation of the things of this world. He begins to describe for us the fulfillment of all desires the frees one from anxiety about this world and the future. To turn from the passions, to be completely focused upon Christ, to see the world through the lens of his promises fills the heart with an indescribable joy. The ascetical life, the battle with demons, the inevitable reality of death, leave no trace of fear within the soul.
Posted in Asceticism, Asceticism and Modernity, Renunciation, Detachment, purity of heart, Cross, mortification, St. Isaac the Syrian, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian on Mar 1st, 2018 Comments
Posted in Deification, Renunciation, compunction, purity of heart, St. Isaac the Syrian, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian, repentance on Aug 24th, 2017 Comments
Last night we reflected upon Homily 16 of St. Issac the Syrian. It is a beautiful exhortation to let go of our attachment to the world and the things of the world, to let go of the security and false hope they promise. Isaac encourages us to cling only to Christ who is our salvation and source of healing. The path to healing and joy is repentance. The sacrifice we may make in renouncing the world pale in comparison to both the immediate and ultimate end such renunciation promises - purity of heart and deification. Even the deep sorrow of compunction and the tears shed over our sins, carry within them the joy of renewed intimacy with God.
Posted in Renunciation, Detachment, chastity, poverty, simplicity, St. Isaac the Syrian, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian, mercy on Feb 9th, 2017 Comments
We began Homily 4 where St Isaac introduces us to the importance of Renunciation and the fruit it produces in the soul. We are to wean ourselves from the things of the world in our search for the divine.
Fleeing the ease of this age and freely embracing the suffering and humiliations we begin to understand and live in accord with the standard of the Cross. The mercy we show toward others is to be the mercy of Christ - nothing less.
Posted in Nous, Asceticism, Asceticism and Modernity, Renunciation, simplicity, Flesh, desire for God, trials, St. Isaac the Syrian, faith, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian on Oct 13th, 2016 Comments
St. Isaac begins by encouraging us to become drunk with faith in God; to be so immersed in our relationship with Him that we are constantly under the influence of His grace. Only in this way will the malady of the senses and the passions that arise out of them be healed. It is this understanding of Christian Asceticism that must be regained. Instead of seeking distraction and entertainment in our lives, we must seek solitude and silence; to purify the heart in order to be drawn into the Mystery and Wonder of God.
Posted in Virtue, Renunciation, poverty, desire for God, St. Isaac the Syrian, faith, Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian, silence on Oct 6th, 2016 Comments
After a brief introduction to St. Isaac and his times, we began reading and reflecting upon his first homily on "Renunciation and Monasticism." In the Syriac, the first six homilies form a unit with one title "On the Discipline of Virtue" - hence the opening sentence of this homily - "The fear of God is the beginning of virtue, and it is said to be the offspring of faith."
This first homily seems to sow the seeds of many of the principal themes that will be developed throughout the book.
Virtue is sown in silence. As Christians we must seek to collect our thoughts and prevent them from wandering into distraction. Faith frees us from the preoccupation with the self and heals us of the malady of isolation; it allows us to transcend the self in order to see God and neighbor and so love them. It is allows us to see that every moment is freighted with destiny because every moment is an opportunity to love.
Posted in Renunciation, acedia, simplicity, St. John Cassian, Conferences of St. John Cassian, anchorites, mortification on Aug 18th, 2016 Comments
We now enter into the final Conference with Cassian and Germanus as they speak with Abba Abraham. The name proves apropos given the fact that his task will be to reinculcate in his two charges the spirit that motivated the great Patriarch to heed God's command "Leave your country, your family and your father's house for the land I will show you." Cassian and Germanus were longing for home; hoping their relatives would provide them with the means to support themselves in a life of solitude, prayer and study. Pridefully they also believe that they will be able to convert these same relatives if they are more present to them. Abba Abraham works swiftly to dismantle the obvious self deception implicit in their plan and rather bluntly accuses them of slothfulness.
Posted in Renunciation, St. John Cassian, Conferences of St. John Cassian, grace, free will, discretion, Flesh, Spirit on May 29th, 2014 Comments
Cassian begins with a rather dense discussion of the nature of the desires of the flesh and the spirit. While rather challenging to follow, the payoff in regards to clarity is great. The struggles between the flesh and the spirit create a kind of equilibrium for the will that prevent us from falling into excess. The desires of the flesh are limited by spiritual fervor and the ascetic disciplines and the desires of the spirit are balanced by the limits of human nature. We are prevented from simply doing "what we want to do" and the internal struggle that is an ever present reality leads us to discretion and obedience. Discussion ensued about how we often seek to anesthetize ourselves to this struggle and inner dis-ease and characterize it as frustrating or something to be limited. Rather it has been given to us by God as something which is beneficial and keeps us on the path of humble self discipline and reliance on the grace of God.
Posted in Asceticism, Holy Desire, Renunciation, obedience, St. John Cassian, Conferences of St. John Cassian, grace, free will on May 15th, 2014 Comments
We continue to follow Cassian as he discusses the relationship between grace and free will. God is not only the beginning and end of all things but his grace is the source of our growth in virtue and our rising out of vice when we have fallen. Our free will is used to embrace that grace in obedience or to turn away from it. Discussion then ensued about the importance and centrality of desire in the spiritual life. Christianity in its essence is relational and we create an illusion when we make the ascetical life about the performance of a muscular will as opposed growing in the freedom to embrace the grace that God offers us in love.