Quote by St. Mark the Ascetic ~ Love Toward Enemies

When you have been insulted, cursed, or persecuted by someone, do not think of what has happened to you, but of what will come from it, and you will see that your insulter has become the cause of many benefits to you, not only in this age, but in that which is to come.


(St. Mark the Ascetic, Homilies, 1.114)


Do not desire to hear about the misfortunes of those who oppose you. For those who listen to such speech later reap the fruits of their evil intention.

(St. Mark the Ascetic, Homilies, 2.173)


Source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quotes by St. Maximus the Confessor ~ on Rancor

Rancor
       
       If you are remembering evil against someone, then pray for him; and as you remove through  
       prayer the pain of the remembrance of the evil he has done, you will stop the advance of the
       passion. And when you have attained brotherly love and love for mankind, you will completely
       cast this passion out of your soul. Then when someone else does evil to you, be affectionate and
       humble toward him, and treat him kindly, and you will deliver him from this passion.
(St. Maximus the Confessor, Chapters on Love, 3.90)    


        A soul that is nurtured by hatred toward man can not be at peace with God, Who has said: If you
        forgive not men their sins, neither shall your Father forgive your sins (Matt. 6:15). If a man does
        not want to be reconciled, you must at least guard yourself from hating, praying with a pure
        heart for him, and speaking no evil of him.
       
(St. Maximus the Confessor, Chapters on Love, 4.35)



Source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. John of the Ladder ~ on praise

When people begin to praise us, let us hurry to remember the multitude of ours transgressions, and we will see that we are truly unworthy of that which they say and do in our honor.


(St. John of the Ladder, Ladder, 22.42)


source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. Maximus the Confessor ~ Pray for your enemies

Inasmuch as you pray with all your soul for the one who has slandered you, so much will God reveal the truth to them who have believed the slander.

(St. Maximus the Confessor, Chapters on Love, 4.89)


Source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. Mark the Ascetic ~ Christ's forgiveness of the world

The forgiveness of insults is a sign of true love, free from hypocrisy. For thus the Lord also loved this world.


(St. Mark the Ascetic, Homilies, 2.48)


source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote St. Peter of Cetinje ~ reconciled to our enemies

We all have to die, beloved brethren, and it will be hard for us if, while we are in this world, we do not love each other, if we are not reconciled to our enemies, whom we have offended, and if one has grieved another, if we do not forgive him. Then we will not have eternal blessedness in that world, and the heavenly Father will not forgive our sins.


(St. Peter of Cetinje, Letter to Radulovichs, 1805)


Source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Why would a Buddhist or Hindu become Eastern Orthodox? ~ By Fr.Michael

Why would a Buddhist or Hindu become Eastern Orthodox?

October 10, 2012 By Fr.Michael

Do Orthodox Christians believe in the exclusive deity of Jesus Christ, or are other paths and gods accepted?

Orthodox Christians respect wisdom found in pre-Christian religions when they reflect truth, beauty and goodness. One of the saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church wrote these words:

“All the prophets have from the beginning cried out to my soul, imploring her to make herself a virgin and prepare her­self to receive the Divine Son into her immaculate womb;
Imploring her to become a ladder, down which God will descend into the world, and up which man will ascend to God;
Imploring her to drain the red sea of sanguinary passions within herself, so that man the slave can cross over to the promised land, the land of freedom.

 

The wise man of China admonishes my soul to be peaceful and still, and to wait for Tao to act within her. Glory be the memory of Lao-tse, the teacher and prophet of his people!

 

The wise man of India teaches my soul not to be afraid of suffering, but through the arduous and relentless drilling in purification and prayer to elevate herself to the One on high, who will come out to greet her and manifest to her His face and His power. Glorious be the memory of Krishna, the teacher and prophet of his people!

 

The royal son of India teaches my soul to empty herself completely of every seed and crop of the world, to abandon all the serpentine allurements of frail and shadowy matter, and then—in vacuity, tranquility, purity and bliss—to await nirvana. Blessed be the memory of Buddha, the royal son and inexorable teacher of his people!” – (Chapter XLVIII; Prayers by the Lake; St Nikolai Velimirovich)

We reject however all spiritual, or magical practices that are occult, dark, ‘paranormal’, attempt to control, manipulate, predict events (IE. mediumism) or out-of-body experiences, astral spheres, or “mystical” states. Involvement in these practices can be dangerous and open one to negative and even destructive spiritual entities.
Along with other Christian traditions we believe Jesus Christ – as Scripture tells us – “was in the beginning with God…”, “that all things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made…”, “In Him was life and the life was the light of [all] men…” (John 1: 1-4), and, “in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2:9).
When we look at other religious traditions and see truth, beauty and goodness, we understand that a “seed” of this Truth – although not the fullness thereof – was given to that culture and time as grace by God, even before the incarnation of Jesus Christ in the world. Having said this, our faith is defined by and could be said to be encapsulated in the Nicene Creed, which will help you understand more clearly what we believe.

What would attract a Hindu or someone influenced by yoga to eastern Orthodox Christianity?

There is not much in common on the surface between Hindu metaphysics and Eastern Orthodox Faith. But in Hindu traditions knowledge is not primarily about the development or dissemination of metaphysical doctrine or theology. This is one of the problems western Christians have communicating with seekers from Eastern faith traditions. Eastern religion is never theoretical or doctrinal. It’s about the struggle for liberation from death and suffering through spiritual experience. This “experiential/therapeutic/transformational” ethos is the first connection Eastern Orthodoxy has with Hinduism, because Orthodoxy is essentially therapeutic and transformative in nature.
The second thing we agree with Hindus about is the state of ignorance humanity finds itself in. The goal of the Christian life according to the Church Fathers is to move from the “sub-natural” or “fallen state” in which we find ourselves (subject to death), to the “natural” or the “according to nature state” after the Image (of God), and ultimately to the “supra-natural” or “beyond nature” state, after the Likeness (Theosis). According to the teaching of the holy Fathers, the stages of the spiritual life are purification, illumination and deification. This paradigm, and the methodologies of spiritual formation and growth, is unique to Eastern Orthodox practice among Christian traditions. While we don’t agree with Hindus on what “illumination” is we agree on the basic diagnosis of the fallen human condition. “We agree on the sickness (of the human condition). Where we disagree is on the cure”.
Eastern Orthodoxy has a very rich monastic tradition within which one can find the hesychasm (contemplative) tradition. There it is taught that true “spiritual knowledge” presupposes a “purified” and “awakened” nous (Greek), which is the “Inner ‘I’”, or “mind” of the soul. For Eastern Orthodox, the true theologian isn’t one who simply knows doctrine on an intellectual or academic level, but one “who knows God, or the inner essences or principles of created things by means of direct apprehension or spiritual perception.”¹ As a well-known Orthodox theologian explains, “When the nous is illuminated, it means that it is receiving the energy of God which illuminates it…”² This idea resonates with eastern seekers struggling to experience – through non-Christian ascesis and/or through occult methods – spiritual illumination. Most eastern spiritual seekers are not aware that the opportunity for authentic spiritual experience exists within a Christian context.
As part of their spiritual ascesis, Hindu practice emphasizes cessation of desire, which is necessary to quench the passions. Holy Tradition teachesapatheia, or detachment as a means of combating the fallen passions. The word hesychia in Holy Tradition – the root of the word for hesychasm – means “stillness”. Buddhism, especially, teaches “mindfulness”. Holy Tradition emphasizes “watchfulness” (nepsis), so we do not fall into temptation. Hindus understand it is not wise to live for the present life, but to struggle for the future one. Orthodox life is an ascetic life. Americans who become Hindu are often fervent spiritual seekers, used to struggling with foreign languages (Sanskrit, Bengalis, etc.) and cultures and pushing themselves outside of their “comfort zones”. Converts to the Eastern Orthodox Church can relate! Some Hindu sects even have complex forms of “liturgy”, including chant, prostration and veneration of icons! Hinduism places high value on the lives of (their) ascetics, teachers (gurus) and “saints”.
The key difference in spiritual experience is that what the eastern seeker recognizes as “spiritual illumination”, achieved through deep contemplation (Moksha, Samadhi), Holy Tradition merely sees as a form of “self contemplation”, even at very deep levels. Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov), who was experienced in yoga (which means ‘union’) before becoming a hesychast – monk and disciple of St. Silouan of the holy mountain (which is what Mount Athos in northern Greece is called), wrote from personal experience: “All contemplation arrived at by this means (Yoga, etc.) is self-contemplation, not contemplation of God. In these circumstances we open up for ourselves created beauty, not First Being. And in all this there is no salvation for man.”³

Why would a Buddhist be interested in Orthodox Christianity?

There are many “points of contact,” between Buddhism and Christianity, as was pointed out historically by the Lutheran missionary Karl Ludvig Reichelt. On a superficial level, Mahayana Buddhists daily “take refuge” in the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings of the Buddha), and the Sangha (the Buddhist monastic community). Orthodox Christians, on the other hand, take refuge in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; but we also depend upon the Christ (Jesus, the Word of God), His Dharma (teachings), and the Sangha (the Church).
Buddhist ascetical communities have much in common with the life-style of the early Desert Fathers and Mothers of the Church, a fact which was beautifully drawn out by the Japanese scholar and artist Yushi Nomura in his book, Desert Wisdom: Sayings from the Desert Fathers. Nomura used Zen-style illustrations and brief quotes from the Fathers to demonstrate the similarities. Both seek to extinguish the passions and to tame the flesh. Both seek tranquility (in Greek, hesychia). Both advocate radical simplicity of lifestyle and a total acceptance of what the day might bring.
On a deeper level, the Buddha said that the world is subject to suffering; so do we (we call it “evil,” which leads to death). He said that this was due to desire; so do we (we call this “sin,” that leads to fear and disappointment–the “passions”). He said that therefore, we must accept the transitory nature of life; so do we (we call this repentance and humility). He said, finally, that we do not truly exist; so do we (we say that only Christ is “He Who Is,” Who exists truly; we are creatures who have fallen into death).
The Buddha said that we cannot see God or understand divine nature, the Absolute; we agree, but we believe that God revealed himself in the flesh, in Christ. Christ is above-thought, the “name above all names.” But He rose from death and could be seen and touched and heard. This is proof of the Resurrection, which ends the cycle of birth and rebirth. Enlightenment is to realize that (the early Church called baptism, “enlightenment”).
The Buddha said that everything is illusion; we do not say that. We believe that Christ restores everything so that everything can exist truly. God made it, God God loves it, God keeps it. In that sense we are not-Buddhists.
The Buddha said that we must cease to be, in order to be free; we believe, rather, that we must be born again in Christ–effectively dying to our old life and being born into a different dimension. Perhaps we should call it Nibbana: stopping all passions, existing in a new way which cannot be grasped or imagined. We, who are enlightened in Baptism, can say that our “Buddha-nature” has been realized in Christ: it is Christ-nature. (Excerpted from Fr Brenden Pelphrey; Coexisting with Buddhism).
An ex-Chinese Buddhist and now a monk on Mount Athos wrote:

“In Buddhism…you are very, very much alone. There is no God. Your entire struggle is with yourself. You are alone with yourself, with your ego. You are totally alone in this path. Great loneliness…. But here you have an assistant, a divine companion and a fellow-traveler in God. You are not alone. You have someone who loves you, who cares about you. He cares even if you don’t understand Him. You speak with Him. You tell Him how you feel, what you would have hoped for – there is a relationship. You are not alone in the difficult struggles of life and spiritual perfection.” (Excerpted from Mystagogy; translated by John Sanidopolous)
The above is taken from: http://www.stbarnabasoc.org/for-visitors/for-non-christian-seekers-and-inquirers

source:

http://www.wenorthodox.com/2012/10/why-would-a-buddhist-or-hindu-become-eastern-orthodox/
 

Quote by St. Mark the Ascetic ~ Those who hurt us

How to Deal with Those Who Hurt Us

Whoever prays for those who hurt him lays the demons low; but he who opposes his affronter is bound to the demons.
(St. Mark the Ascetic, Homilies, 1.45)


Whoever does not fight the one who despises him, neither in word not in thought, has received true knowledge and demonstrates a firm trust in God.

(St. Mark the Ascetic, Homilies, 2.119)

source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by Priest-confessor Sergei Pravdolubov ~ Judging others

If you have the sinful habit of judging your neighbor, then whenever you judge someone make three prostrations that day with this prayer: "Save, O Lord, and have mercy on him (whom I have judged) and by his prayers, have mercy on me, a sinner." Do this every time you judge someone. If you do this, God will see your sincerity and will deliver you from this sinful habit forever. And if you never judge anyone, then God will never judge you. In this way you will even receive salvation.



(Priest-confessor Sergei Pravdolubov)


Source:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by Saint Symeon the New Theologian ~ Attachment

John tells us that we should neither love the world nor the things of the world. (1 John 2:15-16)} But what is "the world"? What are the "things that are in the world"? Listen! It is not gold, sliver, or horses, or mules. All these things that serve our physical needs we ourselves possess {even though we are monks}. It is not meat, nor bread, nor wine, for we ourselves partake of these things and eat them in moderation. It is not houses, nor baths, nor fields, nor vineyards, nor suburban properties, for great and small monasteries consist of these. So what is the world? It is sin, brethren, and attachment to things and passions…


Saint Symeon the New Theologian
949A>D>-1022A>D>

Quote by St. Nicholas of Japan ~ on Holy Tradition of The Church

   Sometimes Japanese protestants come to me and ask me to clarify some place in the Holy Scriptures. "You have your own missionary teachers," I tell them, "Go ask them. What do they say?" "We have asked them. They say: understand as you know how. But I need to know the real thought of God, not my own personal opinion." ... It's not like that with us. Everything is clear, trustworthy and simple, since we accept Holy Tradition in addition to the Holy Scriptures. And Holy Tradition is a living, unbroken voice of our Church from the time of Christ and His Apostles until now, and which will exist until the end of the world. In it all the meaning of the Holy Scriptures are preserved.

(St. Nicholas of Japan, Diary, January 15, 1897)


from:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. Vincent of Lerina ~ Tradition of the Church

If someone wants to be protected from tricks and remain healthy in the faith, he must confine his faith first to the authority of the Holy Scriptures, and secondly to the Tradition of the Church. But someone may ask, is not the canon of Scripture sufficient for everything, and why should we add thereto the authority of Tradition? This is because not everyone understands the Scriptures in the same way, but one explains them this way and another that way, so that it is possible to get therefrom as many thoughts as there are heads. Therefore it is necessary to be guided by the understanding of the Church ... What is tradition? It is that which has been understood by everyone, everywhere and at all times ... that which you have received, and not that which you have thought up ... So then, our job is not to lead religion where we wish it to go, but to follow it where it leads, and not to give that which is our own to our heirs, but to guard that which has been given to us.


(St. Vincent of Lerina, Notes of a Pilgrim)


from:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. John of the Ladder ~ Fear

Whoever has become a servant of the Lord fears only his Master. But whoever is without the fear of God is often afraid of his own shadow. Fearfulness is the daughter of unbelief. A proud soul is the slave of fear; hoping in itself, in comes to such a state that it is startled by a small noise, and is afraid of the dark.

(St. John of the Ladder, The Ladder, 21.11,1,4)


from:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by St. John Chrysostom ~ Boldness

Sin makes man a coward; but a life in the Truth of Christ makes Him bold.

(St. John Chrysostom, On the Statues, VIII.2)


from:
http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm

Quote by Ephraim the Syrian ~ Prayer befor reading HS

When you begin to read or listen to the Holy Scriptures, pray to God thus: "Lord Jesus Christ, open the ears and eyes of my heart so that I may hear Thy words and understand them, and may fulfill Thy will." Always pray to God like this, that He might illumine your mind and open to you the power of His words. Many, having trusted in their own reason, have turned away into deception.
(St. Ephraim the Syrian)

from:

http://orthodox.cn/patristics/300sayings_en.htm