virtues Archives - Saint Sophia

The Eleventh Day of Christmas: The Good of Our Soul

01/04/2023

Published by Pemptousia Partnership on November 25, 2017 By Saint Isaac the Syrian It takes a great struggle, because the passions are very powerful. But by God’s grace those who are courageous and fight with all their strength will be victorious. Bodily effort and study of the holy Scriptures preserve the purity of the mind. And then it needs a lot of prayer, so that divine grace will shelter those who are struggling. If we’re to acquire the

Thoughts on basic kindness, on morals and virtues.

11/03/2021

Thoughts on basic kindness By Michael Haldas, July 21, 2016 “One of the New Testament commands is that Christians display kindness toward other believers (Romans 12:10) …Such kindness is a response to God’s wonderful kindness to us….as we bless others in this way, we will find ourselves receiving similar blessings of kindness (Luke 6:38).” (Foundation Study Bible, Romans 15:25-26) “We need to have our lives and relationships reflect the admonition of St. Paul who wrote

he Purpose and Method of Christian Life (Part IX). Virtues (Part V): Humility

09/06/2017

Balance, we have already noted, can only be attained through discretion and discernment. Yet, there is another key virtue that the monk must seek if he is going to walk the royal road according to the Conferences. This is the fifth and final virtue on our list, namely, humility, which, according to Abba Moses, is the foundational virtue lying beneath a Christian’s ability to practice discernment and discretion and thus, by extension, to live a

The Purpose and Method of Christian Life (Part VIII). Virtues (Part IV): Balance

08/30/2017

According to the fathers of the Conferences, the result of developing discretion and discernment is the manifestation of the fourth virtue on our list, namely, balance. This balance is described by Abba Moses as the “royal road,” upon which a monk is not made proud by virtue nor drawn down so as to give in to vice.33 Christian life, Abba Moses assumes, invites one both to laxity and to possible over-corrections in the pursuit of

PASSIONS AND VIRTUES: The Prayer of St. Ephrem (Part IV)

03/05/2015

Agape In terms of our love for one another, all four forms of love are good. But our love towards our fellow human beings is rooted in our love for God. Love for man in Christianity is not humanitarianism, which sees man as the supreme good and goal of life. Our love towards one another can often be distorted and sinful. Philia, eros, and storge, while in themselves good, can be perverted and exaggerated. This

PASSIONS AND VIRTUES: The Prayer of St. Ephrem (Part I)

03/02/2015

Let us set out with joy upon the season of the Fast, and prepare ourselves for spiritual combat. Let us purify our soul and cleanse our flesh; and as we fast from food, let us abstain also from every passion. Rejoicing in the virtue of the Spirit, may we persevere with love, and so be counted worthy to see the solemn Passion of Christ our God, and with great spiritual gladness to behold His holy

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The Eleventh Day of Christmas: The Good of Our Soul

Thoughts on basic kindness, on morals and virtues.

he Purpose and Method of Christian Life (Part IX). Virtues (Part V): Humility

The Purpose and Method of Christian Life (Part VIII). Virtues (Part IV): Balance

PASSIONS AND VIRTUES: The Prayer of St. Ephrem (Part IV)

PASSIONS AND VIRTUES: The Prayer of St. Ephrem (Part I)

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