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The Philokalia

02/28/2019

Virtually every spiritual tradition has an authoritative scripture or scriptures that serve as a foundational text for its beliefs, practices, and spirituality. For Christians, that collection of texts is the Holy Bible. But the fracturing of the Christian Church in the fifth century (following the Council of Chalcedon in 451), the eleventh century (the break between what came to be known as the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches), and the sixteenth century (the Protestant

My Rage and Spirituality from Below (Part IV)

02/27/2019

By contrast, spirituality from above reacts to the rage that boils up in us by repressing or crushing it: “Rage is not supposed to happen. As a Christian I’ve got to be friendly and balanced at all times. So I have to control my rage.” Spirituality from below would mean questioning my rage, questioning what God wants to tell me with it. Perhaps my rage is pointing to some deep injury. Perhaps in my rage

Spirituality from Below (Part III)

02/20/2019

For the monks humility is the courage to face the truth, the courage to accept their own earthliness, their humanity. The monks test one another in humility, so as to find out whether someone really is a man of God. “A monk was highly praised to Anthony by the brothers. Then Anthony took him and put him to the test, to see if he could endure insults. When it became clear that the man couldn’t

Spirituality from Below (Part II)

02/13/2019

The following remark has been attributed to Anthony: “If you see that a young man is striving for heaven with his own will, grasp his feet and drag him down; for it will do him no good.” It makes no sense for young people to meditate too early on, to take the path to mysticism too soon. First they have to come to terms with their own reality. They have to take a good look

Spirituality from Below (Part I)

02/06/2019

The spirituality bequeathed to us by the moralizing theology of modern times works from the top down. It presents high ideals that we are supposed to translate into reality. Typical ideals include selflessness, self-control, continuous amiability, selfless love, freedom from anger, and mastery of sexual desire. Spirituality from above surely has some positive meaning for young people, since it challenges them and tests their powers. It prompts them to grow up and out of themselves

The Eighth Day of Christmas. Feast of Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia

01/01/2019

Saint Basil the Great (329-379) The Archbishop of Caesarea, Saint Basil is revered—together with Saints John Chrysostom and Gregory Nazianzos—as one of the “Three Holy Hierarchs” of the Church. Together with that same Nazianzos and Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Saint Basil is revered as one the “Cappadocian Fathers,” whose homiletical and mystical writings helped establish what is now considered the heart of Orthodox theology and spirituality. As Saint Benedict is honored for founding monasticism in

Stillness and Silence: The Practical Dimensions of Silence

02/15/2018

Abba Gregory Nazianzus, the theologian, said, “These three things God requires of all the baptized: right faith in the heart, truth on the tongue, temperance in the body.”42 The desert elders taught that there must be a direct flow from purity of heart to speech and action. When words have their origin in the silence of purity of heart they will be congruent with the monk’s behavior. The common vocation of all Christians is to

Transforming Our Pain

10/16/2017

Spirituality is always eventually about what you do with your pain. It seems our culture has lost its own spiritual foundation and center, and as a result we no longer know what to do with universal pain. If we do not transform our pain, we will always transmit it–to our partner, our spouse, our children, our friends, our coworkers, our “enemies.” Usually we project it outward and blame someone else for causing our pain. In

Feast Day of Saint Symeon the New Theologian. Union of Christ’s Body

10/12/2017

Symeon the New Theologian (949-1022), a saint and mystic revered to this day by Eastern Christians, wrote some words that point beautifully to this “force field” that we call the Body of Christ. It is a living organism created by those who live in love, much more than any mere religious organization. Symeon describes this cosmic embodiment created by God’s grace and our response, naming the divine union that all the Bible is forever inviting

Consciousness and Contemplation

07/24/2017

Today’s meditation is longer than usual, but I want you to have all of this together in one place. Many people think of their consciousness as the same as their brain. It’s really not. Scientists still struggle to define consciousness and where it arises. The early Alexandrian and Desert mothers and fathers of the church knew consciousness was not the same as the thinking mind. They used the Greek word nous to describe consciousness as

Archive

The Philokalia

My Rage and Spirituality from Below (Part IV)

Spirituality from Below (Part III)

Spirituality from Below (Part II)

Spirituality from Below (Part I)

The Eighth Day of Christmas. Feast of Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia

Stillness and Silence: The Practical Dimensions of Silence

Transforming Our Pain

Feast Day of Saint Symeon the New Theologian. Union of Christ’s Body

Consciousness and Contemplation

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