The Journey towards Love

[TER]

Imagine that the world is a circle, that God is the center, and that the radii are the different ways human beings live. When those who wish to come closer to God walk towards the center of the circle, they come closer to one another at the same time as to God. The closer they come to God, the closer they come to one another. And the closer they come to one another, the closer they come to God.

- St. Dorotheus of Gaza

 

[TER]

“But I say to you,” the Lord says, “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who persecute you.” Why did he command these things? So that he might free you from hatred, sadness, anger and grudges, and might grant you the greatest possession of all, perfect love, which is impossible to possess except by the one who loves all equally in imitation of God.

– St. Maximus the Confessor

 

[jmdrake]

 

[Eagles' Wings]

It can happen that when we are at prayer some brothers come to see us. Then we have to choose either to interrupt our prayer or to sadden our brother by refusing to answer him. But love is greater than prayer. Prayer is one virtue among others, whereas love contains them all.

- St. John Climacus

This made me smile. How many times have I said, "Lord, please help me to love this child, as he/she interrupts my time with You." I am amazed at how much love our teens and young adults need. May we never forsake them, nor our wonderful Father God.

 

[TER]

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, "You know that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:42-45)

 

[TER]

When your soul becomes insensitive, brother, it is useful to read the Holy Scriptures and the heart-touching words of the Holy and God-bearing Fathers, to remember God’s Last Judgment, the departure of the soul from the body, and the terrible powers that can greet it, and with whose cooperation the soul committed evil acts in this brief and tormented life. It is also useful to remember how we shall appear before the terrible and righteous judgment seat of Christ, and not only for our deeds, but for words and thoughts shall we give an answer before God, before all His angels, and in general before all creation.

Remember just as often also that sentence which the terrible and righteous Judge shall pronounce against those who stand at His left side: Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt. 25:41). It is good also to remember the great sorrows of mankind in order that the cruel and insensitive soul might be thereby if only involuntarily softened, and come to a recognition of its sinfulness.

You are failing in brotherly love because you accept suspicious thoughts against your neighbor, and trust your own heart; this happens to you also because you do not want to endure anything that goes against your will. Thus; before anything else you should, with God’s help, under no circumstances believe your own opinions, and strive with all your might to humble yourself before your brothers, and with all your soul cut off your will before them. If one of them injures you, or causes you sorrow in any way, then you should pray for him, according to the words of the Fathers, as for one who has given you great benefit and has healed your love of pleasure. Through this your irritability will decrease, for in the words of the Holy Fathers, love is the reigns on irritability. And before all, pray to God to give you attentiveness and understanding, so that you might know what is that good, perfect and acceptable will of God (Rom. 12:2); also pray for the strength to be ready for every good work. For to Him belongs all glory, honor and worship unto the ages of ages. Amen.

- St. Dorotheos

 

[TER]

What is a merciful heart? It is a heart on fire for the whole of creation, for humanity, for the birds, for the animals, for demons, and for every created thing. At the recollection and at the sight of them such a person’s eyes overflow with tears owing to the vehemence of the compassion which grips his heart; as a result of his deep mercy his heart shrinks and cannot bear to hear or look on any injury or the slightest suffering of anything in creation. This is why he constantly offers up prayer full of tears, even for the irrational animals and for enemies of truth, even for those who harm him, so that they may be protected and find mercy.

- St Isaac the Syrian

 

[TER]

He who loves himself, cannot love God. But he who doesn’t love himself because of he overwhelming richness of the love of God, loves God, for such a person never seeks his own glory, but that of God. Because he who loves himself seeks his own glory, but he who loves God, loves the glory of Him who made him. since it is proper to the sensitive soul to always seek first the glory of God in all the commandments which he is carrying out, and secondly, to enjoy himself in his humility.

- St. Diadochos

 

[TER]

Couples should have a purified love for one another… To live harmoniously couples need from the very start to set their love as the foundation of their life, a true genuine love, one that is found in spiritual nobility, in sacrifice, not in fake, worldly and carnal love. If there is love there is sacrifice, one will always arrive at the standpoint of the other, understand the other, have compassion for the other. And when we take our neighbor into our suffering heart, then we take Christ Himself into our heart, and He fills us with His ineffable exultation.

- Elder Paisios the Athonite

 

[TER]

God gave people the word “love” so that they could call their relationship to Him by this name. When people misuse this word to refer to their relationship with earthly things, it loses its meaning.

- St. Nicholas of Serbia

 

[TER]

Do you think that the man-loving God has given you much so that you could use it only for your own benefit? No, but so that your abundance might supply the lack of others.

- St. John Chrysostom

 

[TER]

Patience is necessary, like salt in food. For there is no other road for us to gain, get rich and reign. This is the road that our Christ traced out. And all we who love Him ought to follow Him for the sake of His love. Even though the wormwood is bitter to us, it nevertheless cleanses the blood and makes our body healthy. Without temptations, pure souls are not known, virtue does not show, patience is not discernible. Without temptations, it is impossible for the soul to become healthy. They are the cleansing fire which makes the soul pure and bright.

- Elder Joseph the Hesychast

 

[TER]

To Love means to look at a person and see in this person a treasure, something infinitely precious, something that's worth giving one's own life. Not giving it grudgingly but rejoicing in the fact that we can give, all our heart, all our intention, all our strength in the service of this person. And also conquer in us everything that is contrary to love which can hurt, which can diminish life of the person we want to love.

...Let us therefore think of the people who are around us..and ask ourselves...what can we offer them that will enhance their life, make it deep, make it great, bring joy into it...and then we will have fulfilled the law of love. The Lord says to us 'forget yourself, love the other, may your life be his joy, his strength, his inspiration.' Amen.

- Metropolitan Anthony Bloom

 

[TER]

It is a fearful thing to hate whom God has loved. To look upon another – his weaknesses, his sins, his faults, his defects – is to look upon one who is suffering. He is suffering from negative passions, from the same sinful human corruption from which you yourself suffer. This is very important: do not look upon him with the judgmental eyes of comparison, noting the sins you assume you’d never commit. Rather, see him as a fellow sufferer, a fellow human being who is in need of the very healing of which you are in need. Help him, love him, pray for him, do unto him as you would have him do unto you.

- St Tikhon of Zadonsk

 

[TER]

Never confuse the person, formed in the image of God, with the evil that is in him, because evil is but a chance misfortune, illness, a devilish reverie. But the very essence of the person is the image of God, and this remains in him despite every disfigurement.

- St. John of Kronstadt

 

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If you find that you have no love but desire to have it, do the works of love and the Lord will see your desire and effort and put love in your heart.

- St. Ambrose of Optina

 

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Long-suffering and readiness to forgive curb anger; love and compassion wither it.

- St. Thalassios the Libyan

 

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Do you know what a great gift it is that God gave us the right to speak to Him every hour and moment, wherever we are? He always listens to us. This is the greatest honor we have. For this reason we must love God.

- Elder Porphyrios

 

[TER]

In order to abide in the love of God it is essential for anger and ‘hate’ to attain their maximum intensity but be directed against the sin that lives in me, against the evil active in me – in me, not in my brother.

- Saint Silouan the Athonite

 

[TER]

You do not just suddenly leap into heaven, but you enter it with humility. The worst of all sins is when we are overwhelmed by our pride and our own opinion about everything.

- St. Macarius of Optina