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

Pride is the forerunner of every fall.

One who is capable of seeing himself is better than one who has been made worthy to see angels.

Do not the angels differ from us in this respect, that they do not want so many things as we do? Therefore the less we need, the more we are on our way to them; the more we need, the more we sink down to this perishable life.

Self-knowledge is a true idea of one's spiritual growth, and an unbroken remembrance of one's slightest sins.

He who has tasted the things on high easily despises what is below. But he who has not tasted the things above finds joy in possessions.

Where a fall has overtaken us, there pride has already pitched its tent; because a fall is an indication of pride.

Arrogance cannot bear to see itself scorned and humility held in honor.

It is no small struggle to be freed from self-esteem. Such freedom is to be attained by the inner practice of the virtues and by more frequent prayer; and the sign that you have attained it is that you no longer harbor rancor against anybody who abuses or has abused you.

We must resist and avoid like deadly poison the desire to possess earthly goods.

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

A lover of riches is never satisfied, no matter how many possessions he accumulates, but the more he acquires daily, the more his appetite increases; and a person forcibly pulled away from a stream of pure water before he has quenched his thirst feels even more thirsty. In a similar way, once one has experienced the taste of God, one can never be satisfied or have enough of it, but however much one is enriched by this wealth one still feels oneself to be poor. Christians do not set great store by their own lives, but regard themselves rather as rightly set at nought by God and as everyone’s servants.

Nothing so abets our secret destruction as conceit and self-satisfaction, or so cuts us off from God and provokes our chastisement at the hands of other men as grumbling, or so disposes us to sin as a disorderly life and talkativeness.

I prefer a defeat accompanied by humility to a victory accompanied by pride.

How destructive to the heart is even momentary attachment for anything earthly.

Pride is known by its deeds as a tree is known by its fruits.

Go, sell all that belongs to you and give it to the poor and taking up the cross, deny yourself; in this way you will be able to pray without distraction.

Arrogance cannot bear to see itself scorned and humility held in honor.

The more you love money, the more securely you close the Kingdom of God.

Filters
Search By Keyword
Topics (Love, Anger, Confession, etc.)
See more See less
Parish

Mailing Address

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

Email, Phone, and Fax

[email protected]
440-526-5192 (Phone)