Philokalia Ministries is the fruit of 30 years spent at the feet of the Fathers of the Church. Led by Father David Abernethy, a member of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri since 1987, Philokalia (Philo: Love of the Kalia: Beautiful) Ministries exists to re-form hearts and minds according to the mold of the Desert Fathers through the ascetic life, the example of the early Saints, the way of stillness, prayer, and purity of heart, the practice of the Jesus Prayer, and spiritual reading. Those who are involved in Philokalia Ministries - the podcasts, videos, social media posts, spiritual direction and online groups - are exposed to writings that make up the ancient, shared spiritual heritage of East and West: The Ladder of Divine Ascent, Saint Augustine, the Philokalia, the Conferences of Saint John Cassian (a favorite of Saint Philip Neri, the founder of the Oratory), the Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian, and the Evergetinos. In addition to these, more recent authors and writings, which draw deeply from the well of the desert, are read and discussed: Lorenzo Scupoli, Saint Theophan the Recluse, anonymous writings from Mount Athos, the Cloud of Unknowing, Saint John of the Cross, Thomas a Kempis, and many more. Philokalia Ministries is offered to all, free of charge. However, there are real and immediate needs associated with it. You can support Philokalia Ministries with one-time, or recurring monthly donations, which are most appreciated. Your support truly makes this ministry possible. May Almighty God, who created you and fashioned you in His own Divine Image, restore you through His grace and make of you a true icon of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
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Philokalia Ministries is the fruit of 30 years spent at the feet of the Fathers of the Church. Led by Father David Abernethy, a member of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri since 1987, Philokalia (Philo: Love of the Kalia: Beautiful) Ministries exists to re-form hearts and minds according to the mold of the Desert Fathers through the ascetic life, the example of the early Saints, the way of stillness, prayer, and purity of heart, the practice of the Jesus Prayer, and spiritual reading. Those who are involved in Philokalia Ministries - the podcasts, videos, social media posts, spiritual direction and online groups - are exposed to writings that make up the ancient, shared spiritual heritage of East and West: The Ladder of Divine Ascent, Saint Augustine, the Philokalia, the Conferences of Saint John Cassian (a favorite of Saint Philip Neri, the founder of the Oratory), the Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian, and the Evergetinos. In addition to these, more recent authors and writings, which draw deeply from the well of the desert, are read and discussed: Lorenzo Scupoli, Saint Theophan the Recluse, anonymous writings from Mount Athos, the Cloud of Unknowing, Saint John of the Cross, Thomas a Kempis, and many more. Philokalia Ministries is offered to all, free of charge. However, there are real and immediate needs associated with it. You can support Philokalia Ministries with one-time, or recurring monthly donations, which are most appreciated. Your support truly makes this ministry possible. May Almighty God, who created you and fashioned you in His own Divine Image, restore you through His grace and make of you a true icon of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian - Homily IV, Part VIII
Philokalia Ministries
1 hour 5 minutes
2 months ago
The Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian - Homily IV, Part VIII
St. Isaac’s words fall like a plough upon the heart. He does not speak of religion as ornament, nor of spiritual life as a gentle addition to human comforts. His vision pierces through to the marrow: the Kingdom of God is hidden within, yet it is veiled from us by attachments, by the clamor of outward concerns, by the fog of our restless desires. To find God we do not roam heaven and earth, chasing visions or “phantasms.” We are told simply to purify the soul, to drive away cares foreign to our nature, to cultivate humility and chastity of heart. In that stillness, the mysteries of God shine forth.
Renunciation, for St. Isaac, is not a dour rejection of creation but a necessary loosening of chains. The soul addicted to “ease,” to possessions, to the endless commerce of sights and sounds, is like wet wood; it cannot ignite with the fire of divine love. Only when stripped, when made poor and simple, can it burn. Poverty, humility, stillness; these are not negations but preparations, making space for the light that transforms. It is a paradox: what seems like loss is the doorway into inexhaustible gain.
Isaac teaches us that prayer and reading are not separate paths but one movement of the soul. Reading feeds prayer; prayer clarifies the mind and makes reading luminous. When a man stands in prayer, Scripture rises up within him like fresh springs. It silences distractions, fills the heart with recollection of God, and sometimes overwhelms prayer itself with the sweetness of divine astonishment. Such moments are not learned from books, not borrowed secondhand, they must be tasted. Without the labor of vigilance, no one will know them. Without knocking with persistence, the door remains closed.
Yet the fruit of such striving is nothing less than transfiguration. The soul that bows before the Cross in vigil and compunction finds fountains of sweetness rising from within; unexpected, uncaused by effort alone. Joy surges, the body itself trembles with divine consolation, and prayer ceases to be labor and becomes gift. This is the hidden fire of the Kingdom, the mystery known only to those who hunger and thirst for God above all else.
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Text of chat during the group:
00:06:25 susan: what page?
00:11:46 Fr. Miron Kerul-Kmec Jr.: No I don’t. I stole it from you
00:37:47 Ryan Ngeve: Father this seems to imply that external converse has a great effect on the internal internal self. How does this relates to the role of the thought as the source of all temptation
00:38:09 Jonathan Grobler: After decades of severe addiction to digital entertainment, silence has become an exceptionally difficult thing to achieve.
It is truly a difficult thing to break away from.
00:44:22 Thomas: Will intellectually accepting something eventually lead to belief of that thing in the heart
00:44:40 John Burmeister: Reacted to "After decades of sev..." with 👍
00:50:37 Rachel: I find it hard to come across a confessor that understands I'm trying to expose my thoughts. Roman rite frequently requests obvious sins only. How would I check my thoughts on my own to God? I think I'd just be thinking about thinking and will lack simplicity.
00:57:18 susan: yoke mercy to prayer...be kind to yourself trust Jesus will shepherd and guide forgive yourself trust into the heart of Jesus
01:03:41 Rick Visser: Question: what is "say your rule of prayer..." In the first line of this para.
01:05:33 Rick Visser: A transcendent "to do" list
01:05:42 Erick Chastain: What kind of reading of scripture has the effects he talks about here?
01:08:16 Maureen Cunningham: What version of the Bible do you think is the closest. I find the Orthodox read much different then other version to include the Eastern version
01:08:28 Rachel: Do you have a suggestion for the best Bible translation?
01:15:44 Rick Visser: How about D B Hart's New Testament?
01:15:57 Jessica Imanaka: Reacted to "How about D B Hart's..." with 👍
01:15:59 Ben: Ignatius finally released the full Old & New T
Philokalia Ministries
Philokalia Ministries is the fruit of 30 years spent at the feet of the Fathers of the Church. Led by Father David Abernethy, a member of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri since 1987, Philokalia (Philo: Love of the Kalia: Beautiful) Ministries exists to re-form hearts and minds according to the mold of the Desert Fathers through the ascetic life, the example of the early Saints, the way of stillness, prayer, and purity of heart, the practice of the Jesus Prayer, and spiritual reading. Those who are involved in Philokalia Ministries - the podcasts, videos, social media posts, spiritual direction and online groups - are exposed to writings that make up the ancient, shared spiritual heritage of East and West: The Ladder of Divine Ascent, Saint Augustine, the Philokalia, the Conferences of Saint John Cassian (a favorite of Saint Philip Neri, the founder of the Oratory), the Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian, and the Evergetinos. In addition to these, more recent authors and writings, which draw deeply from the well of the desert, are read and discussed: Lorenzo Scupoli, Saint Theophan the Recluse, anonymous writings from Mount Athos, the Cloud of Unknowing, Saint John of the Cross, Thomas a Kempis, and many more. Philokalia Ministries is offered to all, free of charge. However, there are real and immediate needs associated with it. You can support Philokalia Ministries with one-time, or recurring monthly donations, which are most appreciated. Your support truly makes this ministry possible. May Almighty God, who created you and fashioned you in His own Divine Image, restore you through His grace and make of you a true icon of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
