Homily 75 continues to be St. Isaac‘s most exceptional and powerful reflection. He speaks about the oft neglected practice of night vigils. This, he tells us, is the most powerful form of prayer, more powerful than praying during the daytime. Isaac tells us that this is not because there is something magical about praying at night. He is not fostering a kind of superstition here. He is quite simply telling us the praying at night offers a person the opportunity to come before God without any distraction or impediment; humbling the mind and body by disciplining oneself through fasting not only from food but also from sleep. Unencumbered, the soul searches for God with an urgent longing. Having nothing weighing it down, it swiftly runs to the Beloved and seeks to remain in His embrace unceasingly. It is for this reason that the devil envies vigils above other all other forms of prayer. For, Isaac tells us, even when it is practiced poorly and in an undisciplined fashion, God produces great fruit in the soul.
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLIV, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXII: On Vainglory
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLIII, Part II and Hypothesis XLIV, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXI: On Unmanly and Puerile Cowardice, Part I
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLII, Part IV and Hypothesis XLIII, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XX: On Bodily Vigil, Part II
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLII, Part III
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XX: On Bodily Vigil, Part I
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLII, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XIX: On Sleep, Prayer, and Psalmody with the Brotherhood
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLII, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XVIII: On Insensibility
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLI, Part III
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XVI: On Avarice, Part II and Chapter XVII, On Non-Possessiveness, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XV: On Chastity, Part XI and Chapter XVI: On Avarice, Part I
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLI, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XV: On Chastity, Part X
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XL, Part VII and Hypothesis XLI, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XV: On Chastity, Part IX
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XV: On Chastity, Part VIII
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