7. Humility

Fear of God. Feeling it during prayer. The fear of disappearing and turning into nothing, which is born of especially pure prayer, when the presence and majesty of God are especially strongly felt. Deep knowledge of one's insignificance. A change in one's outlook on one's neighbors, and they, without any compulsion, seem to the humble one to be superior to him in all respects. Innocence from a living faith. Hatred of human praise. Constant blame and self-reproach. Rightness and directness. Impartiality. Deadness to everything. Tender emotion. Knowledge of the mystery hidden in the cross of Christ. The desire to crucify oneself to the world and passions, the desire for this crucifixion. Rejection and oblivion of flattering customs and words, modest by compulsion or intent, or the skill of pretending. Perception of spiritual poverty. Rejection of earthly wisdom as useless for heaven. Contempt for all that is lofty in men, but an abomination in the sight of God (Luke 16:15). Abandonment of self-justification. Silence before those who offend, which the Gospel teaches. Putting aside all one's own speculations and accepting the mind of the Gospel. Humility, or spiritual reasoning. Conscious obedience to the Church in everything.

8. Love

The change from the fear of God to the love of God during prayer. Faithfulness to the Lord, proved by the constant rejection of every sinful thought and feeling. The ineffable, sweet attraction of the whole person to love the Lord Jesus Christ and the worshipped Holy Trinity. Seeing the images of God and Christ in one's neighbors; the preference for all neighbors and their reverent reverence for the Lord stemming from this spiritual vision. Love for neighbors is brotherly, pure, equal, impartial, joyful, ardent equally for friends and enemies. Rapture into prayer and love of the mind, heart and whole body. An indescribable delight in spiritual joy. Spiritual ecstasy. Inactivity of the bodily senses during prayer. Silence of the mind. Enlightenment of the mind and heart. The power of prayer that conquers sin. The Peace of Christ. Retreat from all passions. The absorption of all understandings by the surpassing mind of Christ. The weakness of sinful thoughts that cannot be depicted in the mind. Sweetness and abundance of consolation in sorrows. Vision of human structures. The depth of humility and the most humiliating opinion of oneself... The end is endless!

Thoughts of the Holy Fathers on Passions, Virtues and Repentance

According to the "Otechnik" compiled by St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov)

All passions, if freedom is allowed to them, act, grow, strengthen in the soul, and finally envelop it, take possession of it, and separate it from God. These are the heavy burdens that fell upon Adam after he ate of the tree. These passions were killed on the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ. These are the old skins into which new wine is not poured (Matt. 9:17). These are the swaddling clothes with which Lazarus was bound (John 11:44). These are demons sent by Christ into a herd of swine (Matt. 8:31-32). This is the old man, whom the Apostle commands the Christian to cast off (1 Corinthians 15:49). These are thistles and thorns, which the earth began to spew out of Adam after he was cast out of paradise (Gen. 3:18).

Abba Isaiah was asked: "What does repentance consist of?" He answered: The Holy Spirit teaches us to turn away from sin and no longer fall into it. This is what repentance consists of. Those who bring true repentance are no longer engaged in condemning their neighbors, they are engaged in lamenting their sins. Whoever condemns sinners expels repentance from himself. Whoever justifies himself alienates himself from repentance. Love humility: it will cover you from your sins. Humility consists in the fact that a person should recognize himself as a sinner before God, who has not done a single good deed before God. I beseech every person who wants to bring repentance to God to refuse to drink wine in large quantities. Wine revives extinguished passions in the soul and expels the fear of God from it. Do not argue with one another about anything, do not speak ill of anyone, do not judge anyone, do not condemn or humiliate anyone either in word or in heart, do not murmur at anyone, do not suspect anyone of any evil. Do not show contempt to anyone because of his bodily defect. If someone glorifies you and you accept praise with delight, then there is no fear of God in you. If they say something unjust about you, and you are troubled, then there is no fear of God in you. If, in conversation with the brethren, you seek that your word may prevail over the words of others, then there is no fear of God in you. If your word is ignored, and you are offended by it, then there is no fear of God in you. Do not be curious and do not inquire about the vain affairs of the world. Do not consult about your thoughts with everyone: consult about them only with your fathers. Otherwise, you will incur sorrow and confusion for yourself. Do not reveal your thoughts before everyone, lest it be a cause of stumbling for your neighbor. Guard yourself from lying: it drives out the fear of God from a person. From the love of human glory lies are born. Whoever behaves deceitfully in relation to his brother will not be able to avoid sorrow of the heart. Do not seek friendship with the glorious of this world, lest the glory of God be extinguished in your heart. Do not be carried away by the sweet remembrance of the sins you have committed, lest the sense of these sins be renewed in you. Remember the Kingdom of Heaven, and little by little this remembrance will draw you to it. Remember also Gehenna, and hate the works that draw you into it. Every morning, rising from sleep, bring to mind that you must give an account to God of all your deeds, and you will not sin before Him: His fear will dwell in you. Consider your sins daily, pray for them, and God will forgive them. He who expects to die near will not fall into many sins. On the contrary, he who hopes to live a long life is entangled in many sins. Live as if every day you experience were the last in your life, and you will not sin before God.

Application

According to the "Otechnik" compiled by St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov)

All passions, if freedom is allowed to them, act, grow, strengthen in the soul, and finally envelop it, take possession of it, and separate it from God. These are the heavy burdens that fell upon Adam after he ate of the tree. These passions were killed on the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ. These are the old skins into which new wine is not poured (Matt. 9:17). These are the swaddling clothes with which Lazarus was bound (John 11:44). These are demons sent by Christ into a herd of swine (Matt. 8:31-32). This is the old man, whom the Apostle commands the Christian to cast off (1 Corinthians 15:49). These are thistles and thorns, which the earth began to spew out of Adam after he was cast out of paradise (Gen. 3:18).

Abba Isaiah was asked: "What does repentance consist of?" He answered: The Holy Spirit teaches us to turn away from sin and no longer fall into it. This is what repentance consists of. Those who bring true repentance are no longer engaged in condemning their neighbors, they are engaged in lamenting their sins. Whoever condemns sinners expels repentance from himself. Whoever justifies himself alienates himself from repentance. Love humility: it will cover you from your sins. Humility consists in the fact that a person should recognize himself as a sinner before God, who has not done a single good deed before God. I beseech every person who wants to bring repentance to God to refuse to drink wine in large quantities. Wine revives extinguished passions in the soul and expels the fear of God from it. Do not argue with one another about anything, do not speak ill of anyone, do not judge anyone, do not condemn or humiliate anyone either in word or in heart, do not murmur at anyone, do not suspect anyone of any evil. Do not show contempt to anyone because of his bodily defect. If someone glorifies you and you accept praise with delight, then there is no fear of God in you. If they say something unjust about you, and you are troubled, then there is no fear of God in you. If, in conversation with the brethren, you seek that your word may prevail over the words of others, then there is no fear of God in you. If your word is ignored, and you are offended by it, then there is no fear of God in you. Do not be curious and do not inquire about the vain affairs of the world. Do not consult about your thoughts with everyone: consult about them only with your fathers. Otherwise, you will incur sorrow and confusion for yourself. Do not reveal your thoughts before everyone, lest it be a cause of stumbling for your neighbor. Guard yourself from lying: it drives out the fear of God from a person. From the love of human glory lies are born. Whoever behaves deceitfully in relation to his brother will not be able to avoid sorrow of the heart. Do not seek friendship with the glorious of this world, lest the glory of God be extinguished in your heart. Do not be carried away by the sweet remembrance of the sins you have committed, lest the sense of these sins be renewed in you. Remember the Kingdom of Heaven, and little by little this remembrance will draw you to it. Remember also Gehenna, and hate the works that draw you into it. Every morning, rising from sleep, bring to mind that you must give an account to God of all your deeds, and you will not sin before Him: His fear will dwell in you. Consider your sins daily, pray for them, and God will forgive them. He who expects to die near will not fall into many sins. On the contrary, he who hopes to live a long life is entangled in many sins. Live as if every day you experience were the last in your life, and you will not sin before God.

Preparation for Confession

In the sacrament of holy repentance we are given the opportunity to lay aside the heavy burden of sin, to tear the chains of sin, to see the "tabernacle fallen and broken" of our soul renewed and radiant. How often should we resort to this saving sacrament? As often as possible, at least in each of the four fasts. Usually, people who are inexperienced in the spiritual life do not see the multitude of their sins, do not feel their gravity, do not feel their aversion to them. They say: "I have not done anything special", "I have only minor sins, like everyone else", "I did not steal, I did not kill" – this is how many people often begin confession. But our holy fathers and teachers, who left us prayers of repentance, considered themselves the first of sinners, and with sincere conviction cried out to Christ: "No one has sinned on earth from eternity, as I have sinned, the accursed and the prodigal!" And vice versa: people immersed in the darkness of sin do not see anything in their hearts, and if they do, they are not terrified, since they have nothing to compare with, for Christ is hidden from them with a veil of sins. Therefore, in order to overcome our spiritual laziness and insensibility, the Holy Church has laid down preparatory days for the sacrament of repentance – retreat. The period of retreat can last from three days to a week, unless there is special advice or instructions from the spiritual father. During this time, one should observe fasting, guard oneself from sinful deeds, thoughts and feelings, and generally lead a life of abstinence, repentance, dissolved in deeds of love and Christian charity. During the period of retreat, one should attend church services as often as possible, be more diligent in prayer at home than usual, devote leisure time to reading the works of the Holy Fathers, the lives of saints, self-absorption and self-examination. In understanding the moral state of one's soul, one must try to distinguish the basic sins from their derivatives, the roots from the leaves and fruits. One should also beware of falling into petty suspicion of every movement of the heart, of losing the sense of what is important and unimportant, of getting entangled in trifles. The penitent must bring to confession not only a list of sins, but, most importantly, a feeling of repentance; Not a detailed story about his life, but a broken heart. To know one's sins does not mean to repent of them. But what is to be done if our heart, parched by the flames of sin, is not watered with the life-giving waters of tears? What if spiritual weakness and "infirmity of the flesh" are so great that we are incapable of sincere repentance? But this cannot be a reason to postpone confession in anticipation of a feeling of repentance. The Lord accepts confession - sincere and conscientious - even if it is not accompanied by a strong sense of repentance. Only this sin - petrified insensibility - must be confessed courageously and frankly, without hypocrisy. God can touch the heart during confession itself - soften it, refine spiritual vision, awaken a feeling of repentance. The condition that we must certainly observe in order for our repentance to be accepted by the Lord effectively is the forgiveness of the sins of our neighbors and reconciliation with all. Repentance cannot be accomplished without verbal confession of sins. Sins can be absolved only in the church sacrament of repentance, performed by a priest. Confession is a feat, self-compulsion. During confession, you do not need to wait for questions from the priest, but make an effort yourself. Sins must be named precisely, without obscuring the ugliness of sin with general expressions. It is very difficult, when confessing, to avoid the temptation of self-justification, to abandon attempts to explain to the confessor "mitigating circumstances," from references to third parties who allegedly led us into sin. All these are signs of self-love, lack of deep repentance, and continued stagnation in sin. Confession is not a conversation about one's shortcomings, doubts, it is not a simple informing of the spiritual father about oneself, although spiritual conversation is also very important and should take place in the life of a Christian, but confession is something else, it is a sacrament, and not just a pious custom. Confession is a fervent repentance of the heart, a thirst for purification, it is a second baptism. In repentance we die to sin and are resurrected to righteousness, holiness. Having repented, we must be confirmed inwardly in our determination not to return to the confessed sin. A sign of perfect repentance is a feeling of lightness, purity, inexplicable joy, when sin seems as difficult and impossible as this joy was just far away.