Abba Moses asked Abba Sylvanus, Can a person lay a new foundation every day? The old man replied, If you work hard, you can lay a new foundation every moment. Abba Pimen said, To throw yourself before God, not to measure your progress, to leave behind all self-will; these are the instruments for the work of the soul. The desire to rule is the mother of heresies.
Interpretation
One can continuously improve oneself and seek spiritual growth through dedication and humility.
This quote emphasizes the idea that personal transformation is not a one-time event but a continual process that can be realized at any moment if one is dedicated and humble. By prioritizing spiritual growth over personal ambition and self-will, individuals can align themselves with a higher purpose, recognizing that the journey involves ongoing effort and surrender to a greater power.
In practice
This quote can be used as a reflection point in a meditation group discussing personal growth.
No one has ever been accused for not providing ornaments, but for those who neglect their neighbour a hell awaits with an inextinguishable fire and torment in the company of the demons. Do not, therefore, adorn the church and ignore your afflicted brother, for he is the most precious temple of all.
It is simply impossible to lead, without the aid of prayer, a virtuous life.
When we teach our children to be good, to be gentle, to be forgiving (all these are attributes of God), to be generous, to love their follow men, to regard this present age as nothing, we instill virtue in their souls, and reveal the image of God within them.
I hear no one boast, that he hath a knowledge of the Scriptures, but that he owneth a Bible written in golden characters. And tell me then, what profiteth this? The Holy Scriptures were not given to us that we should enclose them in books, but that we should engrave them upon our hearts.
Prayer should be the means by which I, at all times, receive all that I need, and, for this reason, be my daily refuge, my daily consolation, my daily joy, my source of rich and inexhaustible joy in life.
Feeding the hungry is a greater work than raising the dead
I like to remember things my own way. How I remembered them, not necessarily the way they happened.
The rise of capitalist practice and morality brought with it a radical revision of how the commons are treated, and also of how they are conceived.
When a golden girl can win Prayer from out the lips of sin, When the barren almond bears, And a little child gives away its tears, Then shall all the house be still And peace come to Canterville.
It is the business of the very few to be independent; it is a privilege of the strong.
Usually, if we hate, it is the shadow of the person that we hate, rather than the substance. We may hate a person because he reminds us of someone we feared and disliked when younger; or because we see in him some gross caricature of what we find repugnant in ourself; or because he symbolizes an attitude that seems to threaten us.
Life is a comedy for those who think and a tragedy for those who feel.
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