Philokalia Ministries

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Steps Ten and Eleven on Slander and Talkativeness

We are all aware of the nature of slander. To slander someone is to speak evil of them behind their backs; it is to criticize them and to malign them to others. For St. John, it is spiritually dangerous for two reasons. First, it is hypocritical. Very often when we slander others we practice the worst kind of deceit. The person whom we are slandering knows nothing of our dislike or disagreement. We say nothing to them. Yet, when they are not around, we speak of them negatively to others. This is...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Steps Nine and Ten On Remembrance of Wrongs and Slander

REMEMBRANCE OF WRONGS is the offspring of anger and its culmination. It holds on to another's sins. Climacus describes it as a poison of the soul. The seriousness of this cannot be underestimated for, he states, "a malicious hesychast is like a lurking snake carrying about its own deadly poison." It is deadly to the soul because it makes a mockery of its prayer and stifles true love. In order to rid ourselves of this vice, we must purge ourselves of anger. Our greatest weapon in this task is the...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Eight On Placidity and Meekness

CALMING THE STORM: ADDRESSING OUR ANGER AND BITTERNESS TOWARD OTHERS. It is only through attaining the virtue of mourning spoken of in the previous step that placidity and meekness may be achieved. For it is mourning which destroys all anger and any desire to be spoken well of in this life. Placidity, or freedom from anger, begins when one keeps silent even when the heart is moved and provoked. Slowly the virtue develops as one learns to control and silence his thoughts during an angry encounter...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Seven On Mourning

JOYFUL SORROW: TEARS OF REPENTANCE THAT LEAD US INTO THE EMBRACE OF LOVE In this step John discusses the source of tears and what they do for the soul. Not only are they a gift of God which purifies our hearts and drains away our passions, but true tears produce joy within the heart. Mourning gives way to the consolation of being forgiven by and reconciled with God. At the heart of our mourning, then, is love for God. We weep because we long for God and the love that He alone can provide. Accord...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Six On the Remembrance of Death

THE MOST ESSENTIAL OF ALL WORKS - THE REMEMBRANCE OF DEATH AND ITS FRUITS IN THE SPIRITUAL LIFE This brief step considers a rather simple but essential practice of the desert fathers; to remember not only that one will die, but what death brings - judgment. Such a thought spurs one on to repentance and conversion, prevents laziness, makes dishonor and indignity sweet, banishes worries and anxieties, and deters sin. This alone is enough to make John call it the "most essential of all works." Reme...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Five On Penitence Conclusion

THE REPUGNANT NATURE OF SIN AS REFLECTED IN THE PENANCE OF THE MONKS OF THE "PRISON" John then speaks of the value of penitence and the humility needed to embrace such a path. The causes of moral lapses are considered and the need for courage and perseverance in the face of recurring failures. John exhorts the penitent to trust in the mercy and grace of God but also warns against presumption. Humility is key and true repentance will keep one from judging or even recognizing another's faults. Joh...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Five On Penitence

ON PENITENCE AND THE AVOIDANCE OF PRESUMPTION John begins this step with a somewhat moderate and encouraging tone by describing repentance as a "renewal of one's baptism and a contract with God for a fresh start in life." With repentance there is always hope and never despair. As penitents we stand before our God guilty, but never disgraced. Indeed, we inflict punishments on ourselves out of love for God, in an attempt to reconcile ourselves to him and to receive the peace that comes through his...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Four On Obedience Conclusion

Signs of obedience in the monk; Obedience and how it is to be fostered in community life - silence, watchfulness, humility, constancy, and faith; Things that help or hinder the growth of obedience. Again Climacus addresses the choice of one's director and how a monk must cherish this relationship above all; Applying John's teaching to contemporary life and relationships.

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Four On Obedience Continued

FOSTERING OBEDIENCE, THE DEVIL'S ASSAULTS ON THE OBEDIENT, THE VALUE OF A SPIRITUAL FATHER Climacus then turns his thoughts to how this virtue is fostered and developed. One must begin by being watchful of every thought, seeking purity of heart through true contrition. A monk should willingly accept rebukes and criticism, freely exposing his thoughts to his director. If one is truly obedient this will be reflected in his speech and his unwillingness to cling to his own opinions. The truly obedie...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Four On Obedience

What must be done from the start: Choosing a spiritual father and submitting one's self and one's thoughts to him completely. Climacus gives an example of how the wisdom and sternness of a spiritual father brought true humility to a monk through the public confession of his sins. Although himself shocked by the severity of the test and the humiliation experienced, Climacus recognizes the spiritual healing it brought to the young monk and the power of his example for the rest of the community. Cl...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Three and Four

On Exile:detachment from relations and absolute value of commitment to Christ; the necessity of humility and avoiding corrupting influence of demons and those of bad character; Dreams and the dangers of deception through literal interpretation. On Obedience: renunciation of self-will and self-direction

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step Two and Three

Applying St. John's Teaching to Daily Life in the World Detachment: John does not hide the difficulty of the struggle ahead for those who have entered the religious life, and provides little hope for an easier way to progress in virtue. To give oneself up to God requires a stripping of oneself of all possible attachments, concerns, anxieties, possessions, and even certain loves and friendships. In short, one must strip oneself of anything and everything and live solely for God. Only in doing thi...

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Step One and Two

Ladder of Divine Ascent; St. John Climacus; Renunciation; Detachment

Ladder of Divine Ascent - Introduction and Step One

Ladder of Divine Ascent and St. John Climacus, History and background; structure and emphases of the work; What does the Ladder mean for those living in the world; Step One - On the Renunciation of the World

Philokalic Spirituality in a Post-Modern Culture

A study on the anthropology of Saint Gregory Palamas. The theology of the person, as this is revealed in the hesychast ascetic tradition, is the most significant counter-argument to post-modern individualism and relativism. The ascetics of introversion and of conscious tranquility (hesychia) is not a psychological proposition but the authentic and only way of transforming the “repulsive mask” into a person.

Nous Part Ten - Theoretic Nous and Deified Nous

Theosis and Deification - "Mind that sees God"; cannot reached blessed state unless passing through practical stage of asceticism and purification; fixed and faultless movement between nous of man and Nous of God; joy that comes through theosis; seeing God's virtues in self.

Nous Part Nine - Nous in Temptation and Battle

Stages of Temptation; Inventiveness of the Demons and their strategies; Examining one's falls, their causes and committing them to memory; knowing one's weak spots; Ignorance and Captivity; Cures; Spiritual work and the beauty achieved through humility, silence and prayer.

Nous Part Eight - Prayer, Asceticism, Dispassion

Prayer; Body and its place in purifying the nous through asceticism; necessity of asceticism; impassioned nous and dispassionate nous; contemporary questions about connection between liturgy, worship and the ascetical life; group questions about disciplining the body as a means of purifying the nous and rigor and consistency needed in such discipline.

Nous Part Seven - Prayer That Transcends the Passions and Conceptual Thoughts

Prayer and the Apophatic tradition; imageless and without conceptual thoughts or the use of imagination; perceived and real differences from Western Spirituality; purification of the Nous essential for salvation; signs of such true prayer; virtue alone does not lead to God; how prayer binds us to God

Nous Part Six - Prayer and the Cultivation of the Soul, Fathers Understand of Demons

Prayer and the Purification of the Nous; Critique of Centering Prayer; The Fathers Understanding of Demons; Demons in the Desert; Snares of the Demons; Struggling Against the Demons, Indirect Warfare, Asceticism and Modernity

Nous Part Five - Memories, Imagination, Prayer

Cultural Collapse and Schizoid nature of modern society; purification of memories and imagination; Remembrance of Death and Perception of Religious and Spiritual Reality; Prayer as essential to identity as human beings and our life

Nous Part Four - Purification of Memories and Recollections

Healing of the Nous through purification of the memories and recollections; Analogy of Psychoanalysis - projecting memories onto screen of Nous to be healed through mortifications and asceticism, detachment; why the thoughts that arise through the memory are the most irksome and challenging to address in the spiritual life; a healing that takes years. . .

Nous Part Three - Purifying the Nous and Asceticism in Modern Culture

Importance of Holy Spirit in teaching Nous how to heal the soul; Holy Desire necessary for pursuing purity of Nous, Striving for perfection; Asceticism and Modern Culture; How to communicate the value of asceticism.

Nous Part Two - Vigilant Gate Keeper

Nature of Struggle with attacks on Nous; Obedience and Remembrance of God; Hating Sin; Unceasing Prayer; Watchfulness and Prayer Linked together; Beginnings of Watchfulness - Temperance in Food and Drink, the Rejection of Different Thoughts, Peace of Heart; Purifying Fire of Holy Communion; Revealing of False Self

The Nous - Part One

Definition of the Nous; Man as Triune Image of God - nous, word, spirit; Three powers of the soul; Creative factor of every aspect of civilization; difference in object from other methods of meditation; Fall of Nous of Man before and after Christ; Nous as vigilant gate keep of soul

Nepsis, Wakefulness, Attentiveness

How to Read the Fathers, What is Nepsis: Being present to where we are; Aliveness to God; the Mind as a sentry; Mindfulness; Attentiveness and Prayer must be combined; All the sense must be guarded as well as thoughts from demonic intrusions and temptations; the Relentlessness of the Demons; Necessity of Interrogating thoughts and questioning their origin; The never ending work of nepsis; Hatred for sin and swiftness in casting out sinful thoughts.

Intro. to History of Philokalia and Characteristics of Philokalic Spirituality

Ressourcement, Kollyvades, primary features of movement; Three basic themes of Philokalia; Relevance of Philokalic spirituality for contemporary Christians.

Invitation to Philokalia Study Group