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The General Epistles of Saints James, Peter, John, and Jude, Part 3: James 3-5
Talk by Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen)
December 12, 2023

Topics include:
(1) Controlling the tongue: Orthodox Christianity is an ascetic religion. We must curb our tongue and control it, and let the Word of God turn us around as a rudder.
(2) Meekness in authentic wisdom: not being "Mr. Know It All" or thinking we are qualified to give advice to everyone. Put aside jealousy, intriguing, criticizing, judging, and ridiculing one another, and instead pursue peace. It's one thing to say someone's actions seem misguided, and another thing completely to insult them. 
(3) The ascetic life is about the war with passions, those habitual/automatic reactions to our desires that become ingrained within us so that we don't realize they are leading us down the wrong path. Note that passion does not mean "zeal", in the colloquial sense, but an uncontrolled or uncontrollable habit. James calls us adulterers because being trapped by the world and our passions is adultery against God. We are called to renounce the world (that is our passion) and learn dispassion (self-control). 
(4) On the rich: some live in luxury and self-indulgence while Christ gave himself for the life of the world, resisting not evil. Let us be patient and enduring in our sufferings, trusting in the Lord, and waiting for His coming. Let us not grumble or fight evil with evil. 
(5) On Holy Unction, healing, anointing with oil. On bringing others back from delusion (e.g., from thinking they can ignore God).