Homily 16. Regarding the permission of the vow of fasting

It is good and very pleasing to God, and salvific for us, if with good will we complete the vows that lie upon us, which we have given to God. In this case, we ourselves fulfill by our very deeds what the Prophet Jonah said: "And with a voice of praise and confession I will devour Thee, as I promise, I will repay Thee for my salvation to the Lord" (Jonah 2:10). If we are exhausted from old age, or because of frequent illnesses, and cannot remain without food all day on Wednesdays and Fridays, then let us wait until the evening time, and then let us allow fasting with light and simple food, and then not to the point of overeating, but in order to alleviate only bodily infirmity. This is what the great Apostle Paul teaches us, who writes to Timothy, saying: "Child Timothy, thou shalt not drink water, but have taken little wine, for thy sake, and for thy frequent infirmities" (1 Timothy 5:23). Know also that fasting is lawful for us to mortify the carnal passions and lusts that defile the inner man, as the prophet said: "And when they are cold, they put on sackcloth, and humble my soul with fasting" (Psalm 34:13). When the flesh is exhausted by old age, or from illnesses, then it is necessary to strengthen it with light food, so that it may be able to serve the soul in its spiritual functions, promoting prayer by prostrations, standing and performing the necessary services. And we should also diligently observe this, in order to fast spiritually, abstaining from all spiritual passions, which are: envy, jealousy, covetousness, deceit, cunning, lies, hypocrisy, the love of Jew money and abominable covetousness, and the cause of all evil is pride. Complete abstinence from these soul-destroying passions is true fasting and pleasing to God; and abstinence in food alone not only does not benefit us, but also serves as a reason for great condemnation, likening us to demons, as it is said in the stichera: "Fasting from fasting, O my soul, and not having purified your passions, rejoice in vain by not eating: for if you are not guilty, you will be corrected, as you will be hated by God and you will be like an evil demon, who eats nothing." May the Lord deliver us from their hypocrisy.

Homily 17. The Inducement to Repentance

Fire, and the worm that gnaws constantly, and the unceasing weeping, and darkness, and gloom, and the terrible gnashing of teeth, await us, O soul, after departing from here, in the underworld and gloomy abysses of the earth, if we live lawlessly. Let us be afraid, let us weep, let us abandon our evil deeds, let us show the deeds of true repentance, while there is still time. For the present age is a time of work, and the future is a time of recompense, as Paul says, true wisdom, the mouth of Christ. Listen to Him and always cleanse yourself with warm tears. Do not expect fiery purgatory after death: this is the insane design of the wicked, invented by them to console themselves, in view of their awareness of their evil deeds.

Homily 18. An epistle to a certain friend of his, sitting in prison, who asked him how to get rid of the temptation of Satan, from the foul tortures that occur in dreams, from fornicatory sensations and thoughts, and from faint-heartedness

I was amazed at your request that, being possessed by such sorrow, you earnestly ask me for spiritual healing from the temptations inflicted on you through demonic envy. I, being devoid of all virtue, and incapable of such treatment, how and how can I help you, especially since I myself require such treatment? However, according to your faith, as far as God enlightens my foolish thought, I will remind you of what I myself know. Bestial kindling and the consequent nightly defilement arise either from excessive natural warmth, or from immeasurable satiety with delicious foods, or from the former frequent satisfaction of this passion and habit for it; it also happens from pride, when we condemn our neighbors, and it also happens from the constant evil action of demons against us, kindling bestial lust in our hearts. The first two causes of this abominable defilement are extinguished and completely destroyed by abstaining from excess food and sleep, as the one who teaches us: "And when they are out," that is, demons and prodigal thoughts, "I am cold, and put on sackcloth, and fasted my soul" (Psalm 34:13). By sackcloth understand weeping and tenderness and rejection of bodily rest. The same one again teaches us, saying: "Return to the passion, when we have lost thorns" (Psalm 31:4). By thorns understand the kindled arrow of fornication, and by the return to passion —

And why is that? "For my frogs," he says, "are filled with reproach," that is, fornication, "and there is no healing in my flesh" (Psalm 37:7, 8). But enough has been said about this. And since you say, "I am faint-hearted," console yourself with the words of the same righteous man who says: "Behold, I departed fleeing, and dwelt in the wilderness" (Psalm 54:8). And how he helped himself there, when he was troubled by faint-heartedness and storm, listen attentively: "I hope for God," he says, "Who saves me from faint-heartedness and from the storm" of all mental disturbances raised by demons. Imitate this righteous man, according to your strength, arming yourself with faith and shameless hope in the Savior's love for mankind, and you will receive help from Him in every way, for "the Lord is near," he says, "to all those who call upon Him in truth: He will do the will of those who fear Him, and will hear their prayer, and I will save them" (Psalm 144:18, 19). And what do you say: "I can't dig" and so on; then I will tell you this: do not cease to dig, but not the earth, which grows grass, but your heart and conscience, eradicating from them the worldly evil thoughts and indecent morals, thoughts and customs that vegetate there because of a long-term bad habit. Do not be ashamed to ask the Saviour with commendable intransigence for forgiveness of your former sins, and so that you may reform yourself in the future and lead a good and God-pleasing life. The Saviour loves such unrelenting supplicants and annoyers, for He Himself said: "Seek, and ye shall find, pound, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matt. 7:7). Prosperity for a monk consists in walking with all his soul, with all his heart's desire, always on the path of the Savior's commandments and the decrees of the fathers.

Homily 19. Against those who indulge in the insanely abominable foul sins of Sodomy, which bring down to perdition and eternal punishment

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but understanding is good to all who do" (Psalm 110:10), says the divine psalmist. What is the case for one who is led by the fear of the Lord, this is taught by the same psalmist in another psalm, saying: "Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, in His commandments he has exalted the earth" (Psalm 111:1), that is, to love them, to diligently direct his life according to them, and will constantly learn from them, as the same one again says: "If they love Thy law, Lord, all day long there is my teaching"; and again: "If Thy words are sweet to my throat, more than honey to my lips" (Psalm 118:97, 103). But if reason is good for all who do the fear of the Lord, that is, for those who fulfill His holy commandments by deed, then for those who violate them there is no good reason, but there is extreme madness and eternal perdition, as the same prophet says: "Far from sinners you will save, for you have not sought Your justifications" (Psalm 118:155); also: "Thou hast despised all those who depart from Thy justifications, for their thoughts are unrighteous" (Psalm 118:118). But if those who depart from God's justifications are humiliated by Him, then it is obvious that they will go to eternal destruction.