Elder Moses (Putilov)

Should you exercise mercy toward another, you will receive mercy for it.

Should you pray, even a little, from the heart for salvation, you will be saved.

Should you accuse and condemn yourself before God for the sins on your conscience, you will be justified for doing so.

Should you be sorrowful over your sins, or be moved, or shed a tear, or sigh, your sighing will not be hidden from Him. St. Simeon tells us, “Nothing is hidden from Thee, my God, my Creator, my Redeemer, neither a teardrop, nor a part of a drop.” St. John Chrysostom states, “If you only lament over your sins, He will take it as a reason for your salvation.”

Each day examine yourself: What have you sown for the age to come: wheat or weeds? Having tested yourself, arrange to become better the next day, and spend the rest of your life in that manner. In the event that you spent today badly, did not honestly pray to God, did not feel even once contrition in your heart, did not become humble in thought, gave no alms and did no act of charity, but instead did not refrain from anger, from words, from food and drink, or if you sank your mind in unclean thoughts, honestly examine all of this, condemn yourself for it, and firmly resolve that tomorrow you will be more careful to do good and to avoid evil.

Venerable St. Hilarion (Ponomarev)

Do not be ashamed to reveal your scabs to your spiritual director. Be prepared as well to accept from him disgrace for your sins, so that by being disgraced, you might avoid eternal shame.

Let us love the Church and be devoted to it.It is our joy and comfort both in sorrows and in joys.

If you feel that hatred has overwhelmed you, remain silent.Say nothing until, by ceaseless prayer and self-recrimination, you have calmed your heart.

It is better for your soul that you confess yourself as guilty in everything and as being the least of all, than to run to self-justification, something that comes from pride. God opposes the proud, and renders grace unto the humble.

Venerable Elder St. Amvrossy

If we abandon our own desires and opinions, and endeavor to fulfill God’s wishes and understanding, we will save ourselves, no matter what our position, no matter what our circumstance. But if we cling to our own desires and opinions, neither position nor circumstance will be of help. Even in Paradise, Eve transgressed God’s commandment, and life with the Savior Himself brought the unfortunate Judas no good. As we read in the Holy Gospels, we require patience and an inclination to pious living.

It is useless to accuse those around us and those who live with us of somehow interfering with or being an impediment to our salvation and spiritual perfection… Spiritual or emotional dissatisfaction comes from within ourselves, from inexperience and from poorly conceived opinions we do not want to abandon, but which bring on doubt, embarrassment, and misunderstanding. All of this tires and burdens us, and brings us to a sorry state. We would do well to comprehend the Holy Fathers’ simple advice: If we will humble ourselves, we will find tranquility anywhere, without having to mentally wander about many other places, where we might have the same, or even worse, experiences.

One who wants to be saved must remember, must never forget, the Apostolic commandment: “Carry one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the Law of Christ.” This commandment is of great significance; one we must first and foremost strive to obey.

Many desire good spiritual life in its simplest form, but only a very few actually fulfill their good intentions. These are people who steadfastly obey the words of divine Scripture that we must enter the Kingdom of Heaven by way of many sorrows, and who, calling upon God’s help, strive to endure without complaint the sorrows, ills, and discomforts they encounter, always keeping in mind the words of the Lord Himself that whosoever wishes to enter into life, must obey the commandments.

The Lord’s most important commandments are “Judge not, and ye shall not be judged; condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned; forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.”. Moreover, those desirous of salvation should always keep in mind the words of St. Peter Damascene, that creation takes place between fear and hope.

The work of our salvation demands that wherever a person may live, he must fulfill God’s commandments and submit to His will.. Only thereby does one acquire spiritual peace, by no other way. As it is says in the psalm “Great peace have they which love thy law; and nothing shall offend them.” And yet you continue to seek after internal peace and spiritual calm by way of external circumstance. You still seem to think that you are not living in the right place, that you have not settled down among the right kind of people, that you have not ordered your affairs correctly and that others apparently have not behaved properly. In Divine Scripture it states “His [i.e. God’s] dominion is in every place.” and that for God the most precious thing in the whole world is the salvation of a single Christian soul.

As in all things to the good, God is prepared to help man acquire humility. Yet man himself must take care of himself. The Holy Fathers say “render up blood and receive spirit.” This means, struggle even to the point of giving up your blood, and you will receive a spiritual gift. While you seek after and ask for spiritual gifts, you are unwilling to shed your blood. That is, you want everything, but do not want to be bothered or disturbed by anyone. But can one ever acquire humility living a life of tranquility? Humility consists of seeing oneself as the worst of all, not only of people, but even of dumb beasts, even the evil spirits themselves. And then, when people disturb you, you are aware that you cannot stand it, and that you become angry with people; involuntarily, you then will consider yourself to be a bad person… If in the process you regret being bad, and reproach yourself as incorrigible, if you truly repent of this before God and your spiritual father, then you will already be on the path to humility. But were no one to bother you, were you live in tranquility, how could you become conscious of your badness? If they are trying to demean you, they want to humble you. You yourself are asking God for humility. Why then should you lament over people?

One who has an evil heart should not despair, for with God’s help, one can correct his heart. He must only remain vigilant and miss no opportunity to help his neighbors. He must open himself up before his elder, and must be as charitable as possible. This, of course cannot be accomplished all at once, but the Lord is very patient. He brings a person’s life to an end only when He sees him ready to depart into eternity or when he sees no hope for his correction.

In teaching that in one’s spiritual life one must not disregard even the most seemingly insignificant matter, the Elder sometimes repeated, “Moscow was consumed by the flames of a tiny candle.”

Batiushka [affectionate term for Father] said regarding condemnation and criticism of other’s faults and sins: “You need to pay such close attention to your own internal life, that you not focus on what is happening around you. Then you will not condemn.”

Pointing out that man has nothing of which to be proud, the Elder added “Actually, what does man have to crow about? A ragged, wretched beggar cries out for alms: ‘Have Mercy! Have Mercy!’ But as to whether he will be shown mercy, who knows?”

Ambrose, Elder of Optina

Why do men sin? Either because they do not know what they should do, or, if they do know, they forget; and if they forget, they are slothful and despondent... This is why we pray to the Queen of Heaven: O all-holy Theotokos, my Mistress ... drive from me, thy servant despondency, forgetfulness, negligence, and all vile and wicked and evil thoughts... Why is man bad? Because he forgets that God is above him.

Anatoly the Older, Elder of Optina

Recite the Jesus Prayer unceasingly, and no one will interfere with you. Even when there are many people around you, you will not notice them.

One should pray to God so that between God and the soul of the one who prays there is nothing and nobody, only God and the soul: and that the one who prays senses neither heaven nor earth, nor anything else beside God.

Stand in church like an angel: do not indulge in talking, do not look around you Church is an earthly heaven. When you leave the Church, recite, Virgin Theotokos rejoice . . . and speak to no one: then you shall be like unto a vessel so full that it overfloweth upon the way.

Anatoly the Younger, Elder of Optina

If you say in your heart, "Even though I am only a piece of dirt, still the Lord cares for me. Let the will of God be accomplished in me" you rely upon the Lord with the firm intention to submit without complaint to submit to the will of God, whatever it might be--the clouds will part before you, the sun will emerge and shine upon you and warm you and you will know the true joy of the Lord.

Anthony, Elder of Optina

Of course, it would be easier to get to paradise with a full stomach, all snuggled up in a soft feather-bed, but what is required is to carry one's cross along the way, for the kingdom of God is not attained by enduring one or two troubles, but many!

Barsanuphius, Elder of Optina

Sometimes on a day on which you intend to receive Communion, you may experience a feeling of heaviness, but you should not pay any attention to this, nor should you become despondent, since on such a day the devil will particularly attack a man.

The six psalms (Matins) are a spiritual symphony, life for the world, which embraces the whole soul and imparts to it the most sublime light.

Hilarion, Elder of Optina

Reprimand without feeding thine own self-love, considering whether thou wouldst be able to bear what thou demandest of another . . . It is of greater benefit for the soul to acknowledge itself to be guilty of everything and the last of all, than to resort to self-justification, which hat its origin in pride: God opposeth the prideful, but giveth grace unto the humble

For us the church is heaven on earth, where God Himself is invisibly present and watcheth over those whose stand before Him there. For this reason, one must stand in church in an orderly manner, with great reverence. Let us love the church, and let us be zealous therein, for it is a delight and consolation for us amid both sorrows and joys.

Joseph, Elder of Optina

[Seclusion] is a dangerous path. The passions grow in seclusion. It is better to be among the people. Out away from where people walk, the grass grows high; but where they walk, the path is bare. Sometimes people go in for solitude out of intolerance. But it is good for us when we are jostled. The tree that the wind blows most against has the deepest and strongest roots: but that tree which grows undisturbed is more likely blown over.

How may one acquire complete dispassion? By complete humility.

The example of God's long suffering must curb our impatience, which gives us no rest. Nothing so calms us and reconciles us to the doings of others as silence, prayer and love. To each, this or that manifestation of the behavior of one's neighbor seems to be a great thing that accuses him of something.

Leo, Elder of Optina

One of his disciples asked the Elder, "Batiushka! how have you acquired the spiritual gifts we see in you?" The Elder Leo answered, "Live simply, and God will not forsake you and will show you His mercy."

Macarius, Elder of Optina

One of his disciples asked the Elder, "When ye shall have the security of humility in your hearts, remembering your own wickedness, then ye shall find the help of God in your works. According to the measure of our acquisition of humility shall we obtain eternity here on earth, shall we acquire the kingdom of God within ourselves, of which we are informed by the Savior Himself, Who says: "The kingdom of God is within you."

Moses, Elder of Optina

If you suffer with one who is suffering you will be reckoned among the martyrs.

If you forgive one who offends you, you will receive not only the forgiveness of your sins, but will become child of your heavenly Father.

If you confess your sins before God, you will receive forgiveness and reward. If you pray for salvation with your heart -if only a little- you will be saved.

Nectarius, Elder of Optina

One must not demand of a fly that it do the work of a bee. Every man should give according to his won measure. Everyone cannot do the same thing.

In times to come the world will be girded about with iron and paper. The days of Noah were a prefiguration of our days. The ark is the Church; only those who are on it will be saved. We must pray. By prayer, by the word of God is every defilement washed away.

God not only permits, but demands of a man that he grow in knowledge. However, it is necessary to live and learn so that not only does knowledge not ruin morality, but that morality ruin not knowledge.

Nikon, Elder of Optina

It is dangerous to live on charity. It is too easy to fall into the habit of begging. It is one thing to ask for others, another for oneself.

The Lord is the Creator of both physicians and medicines. One must not reject medical treatment."

If you wish to be delivered from grief, do not become attached in heart to anything or anyone."

The Lord Jesus Christ, while praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, is to a certain degree a model for every spiritual father in regard to his spiritual children, for he also takes their sins upon himself. What a great thing this is, and what a thing it is to experience!

The Lord helps us amid sorrows and temptations. He does not free us from them, but imparts to us the power to bear them easily, even to ignore them.

Complete freedom from cares lies in complete obedience, in faith in one's spiritual father.

One must look upon blasphemers as upon sick people whom we ask not to cough or spit.