• Vespers: Saturdays 5PM
  • Divine Liturgy: Sundays 9:30AM
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Quotes

A collection of scriptural meditations from Saints and Fathers of the Church.

The Holy Fathers recommend 'moderate' fasting; one ought not to allow the body to be weakened too much, for then the soul, too, is harmed. Nor ought one to undertake fasting too suddenly; everything demands practice, and each one should look to his own nature and occupation. To choose among different kinds of food is to be condemned; all food is God-given, but it is advisable to avoid such kinds as add to the body's weight and appetite; strong spices, meat, spirituous drinks and such foods as are solely for the palate's enjoyment. For the rest, one may eat what is cheap and most easily available, they say. But by 'moderate' they mean one meal a day, and that one light enough not to fill the stomach to satiety.

The greatest weapons of someone striving to lead a life of inward stillness are self-control, love, prayer, and spiritual reading.

Struggle until death to fulfill the commandments: purified through them, you will enter into life.

One should not ponder divine matters on a full stomach, say the ascetics. For the well-fed, even the most superficial secrets of the Trinity lie hidden.

A wise man is one who pays attention to himself and is quick to separate himself from all defilement.

Make the body serve the commandments, keeping it so far as possible free from sickness and sensual pleasure.

Spiritual freedom is release from the passions; without Christ’s mercy you cannot attain it.

Long-suffering and readiness to forgive curb anger; love and compassion wither it.

Listlessness is an apathy of soul; and a soul becomes apathetic when sick with self-indulgence.

Just as desire and rage multiply our sins, so self-control and humility erase them.

Blessed stillness gives birth to blessed children: self-control, love and pure prayer.

Love and self-control purify the soul.

The person who listens to Christ fills himself with light; and if he imitates Christ, he reclaims himself.

True joy is the joy of consolation, the joy that wells up in the knowledge of one's own weakness and the Lord's mercy, and that does not need the bared teeth of laughter to express itself.

Fear of the Lord conquers desire, and distress that accords with God's will repulses sensual pleasure.

Concern for one's soul means hardship and humility, for through these God forgives us all our sins.

Strive to love every man equally, and you will simultaneously expel all the passions.

The soul's health consists in dispassion and spiritual knowledge; no slave to sensual pleasure can attain it.

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Archangel Michael Orthodox Church
5025 E. Mill Rd
Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147

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440-526-5192 (Phone)