Once again we are presented with the fathers’ writing on asceticism. This evening we were given the essentials, the starting point for the pursuit of the spiritual life; fasting and vigils. We are told that without these practices we enter into the spiritual battle unarmed and no virtue will be gained. We fail to imitate Christ who, before taking up his public ministry, fasted and prayed in the desert for 40 days; precisely to show us what is necessary in the battle against the Enemy who tempted Him at the end of His fasting period. We may feel humiliated and weakened in body but on a spiritual level we come to know the strength and the virtue of Christ himself. Fasting from food and sleep reveals our basic desire for God and an acknowledgment that strength and grace come from Him alone. In all of this we have to have bravery and show great resolve and willingness to continue patiently in doing what is good, ever calling upon God to help and defend us. When we fail, we should not be indifferent or despair or abandon the attempt. Rather, we should increase our zeal and look to the instructions and guidance of the expert; first and foremost Christ himself and then all of the saints throughout the centuries who have conformed themselves to Him.
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Text of chat during the group:
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis I, Part III and Hypothesis II, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXV: On Humility, Part III
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis I, Part II
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXV: On Humility, Part II
The Evergetinos: Book Two - Hypothesis I, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIV: On Meekness, Part IV and XXV: On Humility, Part I
The Evergetinos - Conclusion of Volume One
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIV: On Meekness, Part III
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLVI, Part I
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIV: On Meekness, Part II
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLV, Part VIII
Searching the Depths of the Unconscious: The Desert Fathers and Psychoanalysis
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIII: On Pride, Part V and Chapter XXIV: On Meekness, Part I
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLV, Part VII
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIII: On Pride, Part IV
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLV, Part VI
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIII: On Pride, Part III
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLV, Part V
The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXIII: On Pride, Part II
The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XLV, Part IV
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