Ivan Gavaisky

The life of the heart is love, whilst malice and enmity against our brother is death. The Lord keeps us on the earth in order that love for God and our neighbour may wholly penetrate our heart. This is what He expects from us all. This is, indeed, the purpose of the world’s standing.

–From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, page 249.

From Jordanville Monastery, New York.

O Lord, save Thy people, and bless Thine inheritance! Grant victory unto Orthodox Christians over their enemies! And by the power of Thy Cross, do Thou preserve Thy commonwealth!

Give yourself up entirely to God’s providence, to the Lord’s Will, and do not grieve at losing anything material, nor in general at the loss of visible things; do not rejoice at gain, but let your only and constant joy be to win the Lord Himself. Trust entirely in Him: He knows how to lead you safely through this present life, and to bring you to Himself–into His eternal Kingdom. From want of trust in God’s providence many and great afflictions proceed: despondency, murmurings, envy, avarice, love of money or the passion for amassing money and property in general, so that it may last for many years, in order to eat, drink, sleep and enjoy; from want of trust in God’s providence proceed in particular afflictions such as arise, for instance: from some loss of income through our own oversight, from the loss of objects, specially valuable and necessary, as well as immoderate joy at recovering some objects, or at receiving some large income or gain, or some profitable place or employment. We, as Christians, as “fellow citizens with the Saints and of the household of God,” [Ephesians 2:19] ought to commit all our life, together with all its sorrows, sicknesses, griefs, joys, scarcities and abundance unto Christ our God.

–From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, page 228.

The kingdom of life and the kingdom of death go side by side. I say go, because they are spiritual. The Chief of the first–that is, of the kingdom of life–is Jesus Christ, and those who are with Christ are undoubtedly in the kingdom of life; the chief of the second–that is, of the kingdom of death–is the prince of the powers of the air–the Devil, with the spirits of evil subject to him, of which there are so many that their number far exceeds the number of all men dwelling upon earth. These children of death, the subjects of the prince of the air, are in constant stubborn warfare with the children of life–that is, with faithful Christians–and strive by every crafty means to win them over to their side, through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, because sin and crime are their elements, and through sins, if we do not repent of them, we pass over to their side; whilst those to whom sins form as though an everyday requirement, who drink in iniquity like water, are not disturbed by the spirits of evil, because they already belong to them as long as they live carelessly in regard to their souls. But as soon as they turn to God, acknowledging their sins, both voluntary and involuntary, the war bursts forth, and the hordes of Satan rise up and carry on an unceasing fight. You see by this how necessary it is to seek Christ, as the Chief of the kingdom of life, and the Conqueror of hell and death.

–From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, pages 209-210.

It is the midpoint of Great Lent. Despite my fasting, I have not yet conquered, or even gained any ground against the passions; rather, they have steadily advances against me, routing me in certain passes and making surprise ambushes on several of my troops. This is because I have not properly prepared myself spiritually for this great endeavor, which is what a fast is. We are at war, and I am a terrible tactician. However, I came across some good rules on how to act this fasting season from the article The Orthodox Christian in the Information Age by Fr. Gregory Naumenko of the Protection of the Mother of God Church in Rochester, New York. Fr. Gregory, after analyzing the negative effect that modern mass media has on our souls, set forth several rules to follow to counteract their pernicious effect during the (in this case, Nativity) fasting season. Here are those rules (adapted for Great Lent):

1. On all days abstain from all non-fasting foods (all meat, fish, egg and milk products, plus olive oil on weekdays).

2. No parties, no nights on the town, no concerts or the like.

3. The only music to be listened to is appropriate recorded Church singing. No other music until Pascha, not even “classical.” (The only exception to this might be if practicing a musical instrument or vocals are part of your studies.)

4. Absolutely no television, radio, movies, video/computer games for these twelve days. For weather information use the free telephone weather-info-line listed in your directory under “weather.”

5. The computer is to be used only if it is part of your job, your studies, or necessary for personal correspondence. No frivolous uses.

6. Attend all the services that you possibly can that are available at your parish church during this time period. Even if it entails asking for time off from work or from school, try to make it to all the services. Arrive before the beginning of the services, and stay until the very end. Make an attempt to understand and participate in the services.

7. With the blessing of your spiritual father (usually your parish priest), prepare properly and partake of Holy Confession and Communion at every Divine Liturgy at your parish church leading up to and including Pascha.

8. Every day: get up early enough to meaningfully say all of the morning prayers printed in the prayer book. Say the Jesus prayer repetitively at every opportunity during the day: O Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me a sinner. Be certain to say prayers before and after meals. Say your evening prayers immediately after the evening meal. Do not wait to say your evening prayers until you are so tired that you cannot even think.

9. Each day, following your morning prayers, read at least a little bit (5-10 minutes’ worth) of the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament (a little of the Gospel and a little of the Epistles of the Apostles).

10. Each day, find a regular time to read a measured amount (10-15 minutes’ worth) of the writings of the holy Fathers (My Life in Christ by St. John of Kronstadt is a good place to start).

11. Be extra loving to other people around you, treating them kindly, as you would like them to treat you. If anyone wrongs you in any way, be quick to forgive and forget completely and forever.

12. If at all possible, be extra charitable to the needy and worthy causes, giving not of your surplus but of your substance.

Fr. Gregory says that if we follow these twelve guidelines during the Fast (and during every fasting period), “it will utterly change your life for the better.” Pray for sinful John, that he may be able to keep these excellent counsels and keep the spirit as well as the letter of the law of fasting.

The Lord is everything to me: He is the strength of my heart and the light of my intellect. He inclines my heart to everything good; He strengthens it; He also gives me good thoughts; He is my rest and my joy; He is my faith, hope and love; He is my food and drink, my raiment, my dwelling place. As a mother is everything to her infant–its mind, will, sight, hearing, taste, smelling and feeling, as well as its food and drink, its clothing, hands and feet–so, likewise, the Lord is everything to me, when I yield myself wholly unto Him. But, alas! when I fall away from the Lord, then the Devil enters into me, and if I did not turn my heart’s gaze toward the Lord, did I not, amidst the enemy’s oppression, call upon the Lord for help, then the Devil would have been, as he sometimes is, very evil to me: malice, despondency, perfect feebleness towards everything good, despair, hatred, envy, avarice, blasphemous, wicked and impure thoughts, contempt for everything–in sure, he would have been, and sometimes is, my intellect, my will, sight, hearing, taste, smell, feeling, my hands and feet. Therefore, put your trust in the Lord. He is that which is, infinite in holiness, omnipotence, grace, mercy, bountifulness, and wisdom.

From My Life In Christ by St. John of Kronstadt, pages 204-205.

It may not come to a surprise to you, but I am a sinner. I do not have the humility to whole-heartedly call myself the chief of sinners, but I’m probably close. At the same time, however, I feel, when I sin, a great alienation from my surroundings. Sin is precisely that: an alienation from Creation, from God our ever-loving Father. But when I think of alienation, I think in this case of an alienation from my fellow man, my fellow sinner. I feel divided from them: when they sin, they seem to not think anything of it, but when I sin, I cannot help but think of God, of my Lord. I feel so poignantly my separation from Him, my separation from everything that makes me feel alive. Life in Christ is replaced with a blank feeling, a dull, ephemeral pleasure that vanishes with the morning sun. The difference between the two is, pardon my strong language, like the difference between chocolate and a dog’s excrement. Once one has tasted of the goodness of the Lord, nothing quite compares in this wretched world. The saddest part about this is, that there are so many who live, who simply do not get it. May God have mercy of me, the sinner, but I feel that way about my fellow man. I do not want to judge him. He is simply ignorant about what is above and below him. But it kind of breaks my heart to see so many around me enslaved by their passions. And I, most enslaved, am in the worst position to help them with my prayers, my good works and deeds.

Pray for me, this wretch and sinner, and all those who have not tasted of the goodness of God. Pray that their eyes may be opened, and do not judge them, for God loves them more than we can ever love them. Say nothing. Just pray.

Do not fear bodily privations, but fear spiritual privations. Do not fear, do not be faint-hearted, do not be irritated when you are deprived of money, food, drink, enjoyments, clothes, dwelling, even of your body itself; but fear when the enemy deprives your soul of faith, of trust, and love for God and your neighbour; when he sows hatred, enmity, attachment to earthly things, pride, and other sins in your heart. “Fear not them [men] which will kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul.” [Matthew 10:28]

From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, page 188.

It is the same to the Lord to give flesh to any creature He likes, either to an animal or a plan, as it would to be to me to make a garment or clothing and put it on myself: “Thou hast clothed me with skin and flesh, and hast fenced me with bones and sinews.” [Job 10:11] And what an infinite multitude and variety of material the Lord has, out of which He, the Creator, creates various clothing, of various shapes for His creatures (animals, birds, fishes, reptiles, insects)! And us He will eventually clothe with light, like unto of the sun in his kingdom! “Upon thy right hand did stand the queen in a vesture of gold.” [Psalm 45:10] “Then shall the righteous shine forth, as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” [Matthew 13:43] And now we are clothed with the earth, water, air, warmth–such is our present clothing. And how wisely and conveniently all these elements are made and brought into union in our being! It is not heavy, and it is comely. O, Most-wise and Almighty Artist! How beautiful, suitable, and animate is everything that Thou hast created! At Thy Will even the dust is animate, the dust moves!

From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, page 176.

We are accustomed to the works of God, and therefore value them but little; we do not, for instance, value even man as we ought to–that greatest work and miracle of God’s omnipotence and grace. Look upon every man, whether he is one of your household, or a stranger to you, as something perpetually new in God’s world, as upon the greatest miracle of God’s omnipotence and grace, and do not let the fact of your being accustomed to him serve as a reason for you to neglect him. Esteem and love him, as your own self, constantly, and unchangeably.

From My Life in Christ, by St. John of Kronstadt, page 167.