Quotes

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

Anger

Silence of lips is better and more wonderful than any edifying conversation. Strive to acquire humility and submissiveness. Never insist that anything should be according to your will, for this gives birth to anger. Do not judge or humiliate anyone, for this gives birth to anger. Do not judge or humiliate anyone, for this exhausts the heart and blinds the mind, and thereon leads to negligence and makes the heart unfeeling.

St. Barsanuphius the Great, St. John the Prophet

Anger

It is necessary most of all for one who is fasting to curb anger, to accustom himself to meekness and condescension, to have a contrite heart, to repulse impure thoughts and desires, to examine his conscience, to put his mind to the test and to verify what good has been done by us in this or any other week, and which deficiency we have corrected in ourselves in the present week. This is true fasting.

St. John Chrysostom

Anger

Through anger the brightness of the Holy Spirit is shut out from the soul.

St. Gregory the Great

Poor

Do not shun poverty and afflictions, these wings of buoyant prayer.

St. Nilus of Sinai

Anger

The first step toward freedom from anger is to keep the lips silent when the heart is stirred; the next, to keep thoughts silent when the soul is upset; the last, to be totally calm when unclean winds are blowing.

St. John Climacus

Poor

A man who has embraced poverty offers up prayer that is pure, while a man who loves possessions prays to material images.

St. John Climacus

Anger

Truly, arrogance knows that it is guilty; therefore it places anger at the gate, to act as its sentry.

St. Nikolai Velimirovic

Anger

Empty your mind of these two things: the belief that you are deserving of great things, or the thought that any man is beneath you. If you do this anger will never be permitted to rise up within you.

St. Basil the Great

Anger

Anger is by nature designed for waging war with the demons and for struggling with every kind of sinful pleasure. Therefore angels, arousing spiritual pleasure in us and giving us to taste its blessedness, incline us to direct our anger against the demons. But the demons, enticing us towards worldly lusts, make us use anger to fight with men, which is against nature, so that the mind, thus stupefied and darkened, should become a traitor to virtues.

St. Evagrius the Solitary

Anger

If you want to pray properly, do not let yourself be upset or you will run in vain.

St. Nilus of Sinai

Anger

Do not befoul your intellect by clinging to thoughts filled with anger and sensual desire. Otherwise you will lose your capacity for pure prayer and fall victim to the demon of listlessness.

St. Maximus the Confessor

Poor

The feeding of the needy is the purchase money of the heavenly kingdom and the free dispenser of things temporal is made the heir of things eternal.

St. Leo the Great

Anger

Do not let the sun go down on the anger of your brother (Eph. 4:26); that is, let no one be angry and enraged against his brother until the setting of the sun.

Elder Ephraim of Mt. Athos

Anger

He who is not indifferent to fame and pleasure, as well as to love of riches that exists because of them and increases them, cannot cut off occasions for anger. And he who does not cut these off cannot attain perfect love.

St. Maximus the Confessor

Poor

I had wasted much of my time and devoted almost all of my youth in acquiring knowledge which now appears as just foolishness before God. Then one day I awoke suddenly, as if from some deep sleep, and saw the intense light of divine truth, and realized the absolute worthlessness of all the wisdom taught by the leaders of this world. I wept many tears for the wretchedness of my life and prayed for some guidance to lead my life to faith. The first thing I did to reform my previous way of life was to mix with the poor...

St. Basil the Great

Anger

How then shall we escape the disasters that anger brings? By training the force of our feelings not to rush ahead of the power of reason.

St. Basil the Great

Anger

He who has put a stop to anger has also destroyed remembrance of wrongs; because childbirth continues only while the father is alive.

St. John Climacus

Anger

Apt silence bridles anger.

Ilias the Presbyter

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St. Barsanuphius the Great, St. John the Prophet

Through anger the brightness of the Holy Spirit is shut out from the soul.

Do not shun poverty and afflictions, these wings of buoyant prayer.

The first step toward freedom from anger is to keep the lips silent when the heart is stirred; the next, to keep thoughts silent when the soul is upset; the last, to be totally calm when unclean winds are blowing.

A man who has embraced poverty offers up prayer that is pure, while a man who loves possessions prays to material images.

Truly, arrogance knows that it is guilty; therefore it places anger at the gate, to act as its sentry.

Empty your mind of these two things: the belief that you are deserving of great things, or the thought that any man is beneath you. If you do this anger will never be permitted to rise up within you.

If you want to pray properly, do not let yourself be upset or you will run in vain.

Do not befoul your intellect by clinging to thoughts filled with anger and sensual desire. Otherwise you will lose your capacity for pure prayer and fall victim to the demon of listlessness.

The feeding of the needy is the purchase money of the heavenly kingdom and the free dispenser of things temporal is made the heir of things eternal.

Do not let the sun go down on the anger of your brother (Eph. 4:26); that is, let no one be angry and enraged against his brother until the setting of the sun.

He who is not indifferent to fame and pleasure, as well as to love of riches that exists because of them and increases them, cannot cut off occasions for anger. And he who does not cut these off cannot attain perfect love.

How then shall we escape the disasters that anger brings? By training the force of our feelings not to rush ahead of the power of reason.

He who has put a stop to anger has also destroyed remembrance of wrongs; because childbirth continues only while the father is alive.

Apt silence bridles anger.

"A servant of the Lord is he who in body stands before men, but in mind knocks at Heaven with prayer."

St. John Climacus, Ladder of Divine Ascent, Step 4

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