Instead of a preface
About the bottom of letters to Schema-Archimandrite Panteleimon, confessor of the Monastery of the Holy Transfiguration (Boston), junior disciple of Elder Joseph the Hesychast, written on November 28, 2005.
| Elder Joseph the Hesychast |
“Father, hello! So the Nativity Fast has begun. I waited for him with joy, despite the fact that this was a time of even greater temptations, which were not slow to appear. But the Lord did not forsake me with mercy and, through the prayers of His saint, gave me, along with the temptations that I have already written about recently, great consolation. I am writing this letter on Monday morning. On the weekend I went to see my parents, they live in a rural area, about 250 kilometers from my city. On Saturday evening, getting up to pray, I felt such tenderness that I could not even read one prayer. My soul suddenly rejoiced, sang and cried out of love for Elder Joseph the Hesychast, so much so that I mentally kissed his hands and feet with many tears. And for a long time there was such grace that it is difficult to remember when it was still like this, and when I later came closer to the icons, I completely lost myself, I only remember that I cried for a long time and barely calmed down...
And now I remember how, telling me about Elder Joseph, you said: “Father Joseph, accompanying me to America, promised to send “parcels.” He, of course, spoke about spiritual messages, since he was very poor financially.” And now it’s as if I received such a package the day before yesterday, and I’m afraid, because I’m a sinful person. I ask for your holy prayers, I bow and remember you every day with all the brethren.”
Not much time has passed since the Nativity Fast, many different events have happened, and now Great Lent has arrived. And my first week again passed with an amazing feeling of consolation by the elder, not so acute and perhaps not with such a clear presence as last time, but extremely useful and effective in a practical sense.
During a trip to the monastery of St. Anthony, to another disciple of the elder, schema-abbot Ephraim, bowing and kissing the head of elder Joseph (she is now in this monastery), I also asked for admonition in prayer. Upon arrival, immersed in the world and its eternal concerns, my determination and zeal weakened somewhat, but in the monastery shop I bought the elder’s letters, translated into English, intending to read them over time. Lent begins, I catch a cold, and for ten days I find myself in “bed” mode, alone with the elder’s letters! Reading them, it seemed to me that they were filled with such sweetness, and I wanted to convey this amazing feeling of grace emanating from these letters to someone else. I translated several letters for my confessor and I hope that they will be of interest to others who are looking for practical and faithful recommendations for the Jesus Prayer.
I. Rosa
“Learn the truth of words from the way of life”
The Great Elder Joseph the Hesychast was canonized as a locally revered saint on Mount Athos. The blessed death of the elder followed on August 15/28, 1959. The bright image of this ascetic is revealed in the memoirs of his students, who themselves had already become elders, as well as in his spiritual instructions and advice.
Elder Joseph the Hesychast
Memoirs of the disciples of Elder Joseph the Hesychast
Archimandrite Ephraim of Philofey
Archimandrite Ephraim of Philofey told how he, as a 19-year-old youth, came to the Holy Mountain and became a novice of the great elder Joseph the Hesychast:
“At sunset we finally moored at the pier of St. Anna. Dead silence, not a single person there. The elder (Joseph the Hesychast) did not know that I should sail. There were no telephone numbers to report this back then. Suddenly I see one priest with a bag and a stick going downstairs. This was Father Arseny (Elder Joseph’s spiritual brother and secret keeper). As soon as I saw him, I ran up, bowed to the ground and reverently kissed his hand. “Bless me, father.” - “Aren’t you Giannakis from Volos?” - “Yes, older. But how do you know me?” – “Elder Joseph knows this from the honest Forerunner. He appeared to him tonight and said: “I brought you one lamb. Place her in your fence."
Father Ephraim recalled Elder Joseph the Hesychast: “He was a short man, neither fat nor thin, with large, peaceful blue eyes. His once brown hair turned gray as he was already 50 years old. Despite the fact that he did not use a comb or cut his nails, his presence exuded a certain grace, something majestic and glorious, as if it were a king. Since he never washed, some visitors expected a bad smell and were surprised that, on the contrary, a subtle fragrance emanated from him. This was something supernatural, since he always worked hard and sweated a lot...
His appearance was very handsome. As soon as you saw him, your nerves immediately calmed down. As he was on the outside, so was he on the inside. His face was pleasant, very pleasant. And in church he said “Lord, have mercy!” mellifluous. And how he read the Apostle! Miracle! He had a very beautiful voice. And if we were out of tune in singing at the Liturgy, he set the tone for us. He didn't lose it. When from time to time he called us to gather or say something, I thought to myself: “Will this voice ever be silent?”...
“Older, smells of lilies and roses.” - “It comes from prayer. Do not you understand? Fragrance is the Name of Christ"
I sat at the Elder’s kaliva and pulled a rosary, and he told me about prayer, about the fathers he looked after when they were old. And in this place, near his kaliva, the world smelled like a lily and a rose, although there was only dry land around and nothing grew except a low holm oak. One day I began to sniff the air, and the Elder asked me: “What are you doing?” - “Older, smells of lilies and roses.” - “What a fool! Come closer to the door.” I walked up to the door to the Elder’s cell and inhaled the aroma. I entered: the whole cell was so fragrant that even my beard and clothes began to exude the aroma. The elder told me: “This is from prayer. Do not you understand? Fragrance is the Name of Christ.” He must have prayed a lot that night. Not only the person, but also the place where he stands smells fragrant from the Jesus Prayer. I felt how the aroma of his prayer irrigated everything that surrounded him, affecting not only our internal, but also our external senses. Often Father Charalampius, when he entered the Elder’s cell during their nightly meetings, felt a fragrance.”
Father Ephraim also recalled how Elder Joseph the Hesychast prepared food: “When he cooked, tears flowed from his eyes all the time. And since he constantly said the Jesus Prayer, the grace of the Name of God sanctified what he was preparing and made this food very tasty... Where God’s work is done, food and water become sweet like honey. One day I asked the Elder: “How does this happen? Why does this happen?” – “This is from God, from the Jesus Prayer. Prayer is performed and the food is blessed.”
Brotherhood of Joseph the Hesychast
Before his death, Elder Joseph the Hesychast said about his disciples: “Do you see these nuns? They will conquer the Holy Mountain! Father Ephraim said about this: “That’s what happened. The community of Father Joseph the Younger restored the Vatopedi monastery, Father Haralampiy became abbot in the monastery of St. Dionysius, I became the monastery of Philotheus, and my spiritual children revived the monasteries of Xiropotamus, Karakal and Konstamonit. And Father Ephraim of Katunaksky especially fell in love with the Simonopetra monastery and helped this monastery a lot. The elder foresaw our future.”
Elder Arseny the Caveman and the Hesychast
Elder Arseny the Caveman and the Hesychast , an inseparable companion and companion of the great elder Joseph the Hesychast, recalled:
“In general, when a novice has faith in the blessing of the elder, he can move mountains. Often, having taken on a load that exceeded my strength, I fell to my knees. But when I was baptized and invoked the blessing of Elder Joseph, the load began to reduce its weight, as if someone was pushing me, and I took off like a bird, constantly praying.”
According to the testimony of Father Arseny, Elder Joseph had an unusually powerful prayer. The power of his prayers was legendary. Elder Arseny said that when one day they received sour beans, the Elder “made a warm prayer with tears” and the next day he gave these beans to everyone who labored next to him, they ate it obediently, and it seemed to them as sweet as sugar.
The elder began to pray: “I ask you, my Mother of God, give me some water.” Suddenly the rock became covered with drops of water
Another time, Elder Joseph took pity on Father Arseny, who was fetching water from afar on a hot day, since they had no source of water nearby. The elder began to pray to the Mother of God: “I ask you, my Mother of God, give me some water, because it is very difficult for Father Arseny.” Suddenly the rock became covered with drops of water. When the ascetics placed a basin and collected water, there was a sufficient amount of it.
Father Arseny recalled one miraculous case of the Most Holy Theotokos’ care for them, when she and Elder Joseph the Hesychast, tired and exhausted, in the winter cold, had difficulty reaching the temple: “Upon entering the temple, we felt the fragrance of two fresh apples attached to Her icon . The elder was bolder and told me: “Father Arseny, we will eat these apples and offer a rosary for the one who brought them as a gift. He left them for us because we are in need.” They were so sweet that we said they were like apples of heaven. As soon as we ate them, our minds opened and we looked at each other. “What month is it today, Father Arseny?” And it was somewhere at the end of February. “Where do such fresh apples come from at this time of year?” We immediately fell prostrate before the icon and with tears thanked the Mother of God for this heavenly gift, in which Her tender maternal love was manifested. In those days there weren’t even refrigerators, so there is no doubt that this was a heavenly gift from the Virgin Mary.”
Hieroschemamonk Ephraim of Katunak testified:
“I could not get enough of the grace that Elder Joseph the Hesychast gave.
Many times in church, in the altar, I felt the presence of God. He notifies you. Many times with Elder Joseph I did not know whether I was serving or the Elder? The whole church was immersed in a certain spiritual sweetness, like in honey: The elder served, and I felt the presence of grace...
Hieroschemamonk Ephraim Katunaksky
I confess that I have never loved or feared a single person as much as this Elder, who became and remained for me throughout my life an object of imitation, both during his life and after his death. He became my lifeline, and the memory of him alone protected me from mistakes and encouraged me to further advance throughout my life...
He saw all of me in me. He explained to me in detail everything that would happen to me for the rest of my life. Now that I see this coming true, I understand what a man of God means, what a saint means...
In this vain world, children inherit parental property in equal shares, which depend on the number of children. In the spiritual it is different. You will receive spiritual strength in proportion to your faith in the elder and obedience to him. So it was with Elder Joseph the Hesychast. He talked to us. He spoke to us on his own level. And we understood it our way. We understood as much as we had strength. We have not comprehended more than that.”
Athonite elders Ephraim Katunaksky and Ephraim Philotheus
When the monks of the monastic brotherhood asked Elder Ephraim about the supernatural messages that he received by the grace of God, he answered like this: “Indeed, the properties of grace exceed nature, but I received this from Elder Joseph.”
Smiling, the Elder said: “Tonight I will send you a small package...”
Schemamonk Joseph of Vatopedi said: “One afternoon, after lunch, when I bowed to the Elder, preparing, as usual, to go to my cell, he squeezed my hand and, smiling, said: “Tonight I will send you a small parcel. Be careful not to lose her.” I did not understand what he meant and left. After resting, I, as always, began my vigil and prepared to begin prayer, holding my mind as far as possible according to the advice of the Elder. I don’t know where I started, but I remember that as soon as I started to pray and said the name of Christ several times, my heart was filled with love for God. Suddenly it multiplied so much that I no longer prayed, but was amazed and amazed at the excess of this love. I wanted to hug and kiss all people and all creation, but at the same time I experienced such humility that I felt like the lowest of all creatures... And at that moment I clearly felt that this was the grace of the Holy Spirit and this was the Kingdom of Heaven about which our Lord says that it is within us (see: Luke 17:21), and repeated: “Let it always be so, Lord, and I don’t need anything else.” This went on for quite a long time, and then little by little I returned to my previous state. Having come to my senses, I impatiently waited for the right time to go to the Elder and ask him what this phenomenon was and how it happened.
Schemamonk Joseph of Vatopedi
It was approximately August 20, the full moon, when I ran to the Elder and found him outside his cell, walking around his small courtyard. As soon as he saw me, he began to smile and, before I bowed, he said: “Do you see how sweet Christ is? Now have you found out in practice what you persistently asked for? So work hard to make this grace yours and so that negligence does not steal it from you.”
When a spiritual person feels the need of some soul, whose condition is revealed to him, and says: “Go pray - and you will receive what I send you and what you need,” when he knows what exactly he is sending and whether this gift has been accepted, - this exceeds the boundaries of the natural and belongs to phenomena “above nature.”
Father Joseph of Vatopedi testified: “We, living next to the Elder, could never comprehend the full height, depth and breadth of his thoughts, although he belittled himself in order to seem the same as us, and almost achieved in his humility that seem even smaller than us. He only revealed his high spirituality when something of selfishness or negligence manifested itself in our behavior. In a tone that did not allow for objection, the Elder first pointed out to us the danger posed by our inattention, and then, with mathematical precision, he determined our internal state and named the reason or passion that led us to the mistake...
When I asked about the purpose of this penance, the Elder replied: “Together with repentance, it is necessary to suffer active suffering.”
During the period of my life with our ever-memorable Elder, I made a certain mistake out of ignorance, and he imposed a penance on me - to walk a tiring and long path. When I asked him what the purpose of this penance was, he sadly answered me: “Together with repentance, it is necessary to suffer active suffering in order to make amends, otherwise, according to the Providence of God, an involuntary punishment will fall upon us, and, perhaps, it will be much heavier and more painful, so we prevent it with free double repentance, and this is how balance is established.
The elder always revealed to us in detail the meaning of the spiritual law and the so-called reward, through which the truth of God is realized according to His boundless love for mankind. The interconnection and interweaving of events convince us that there is nothing accidental in our lives, and that means that all daily temptations occur according to Divine economy in order to cause us suffering, which makes it possible to actively prove our repentance.”
Instructions and advice from Elder Joseph the Hesychast
Elder Joseph the Hesychast
God is first of all a Person
“God is not just some kind of formality, He is first of all a Person, talk to Him, love Him!”
If you want your prayer to be heard
“If you pray and want your little prayer to be heard, then know that your little sins are recorded, and they distort your little goodness.”
“If you say that your sin is small, that’s okay, then your little prayer doesn’t reach God, that’s okay.”
“Have love for everyone and see that you do not upset or harm anyone in any way, for during prayer your brother’s grief will become an obstacle.”
“In all prayers, let the mind follow and understand what you are praying for and what you are saying. For if you do not understand what you are saying, then how will you agree with God so that He will grant you what you ask for?”
“Everyone who prays and does not repent, either his prayer will cease, or, while praying, he will fall into delusion.”
Learn the truth of words from a way of life
“Truth is an expensive thing, and not everyone can find it in words. Every person lives as well as speaks. Learn the truth of words from the way you live.”
Bell of Righteousness
“Righteousness does not have a bell so that you can ring it to know about it. The bell of righteousness is tolerance, long-suffering, endurance. All this is the adornment of a monk and every Christian.”
“Submit your passions and you will see how many will reverently relate not only to your words, but also to the movement of your eyes.”
Grace of God
“Do not consider yourself a man if you have not received grace. And without grace, we humans were born into the world in vain.”
“Do not consider yourself a man if you have not received grace. And without grace, we humans were born into the world in vain.”
“The grace of God does not depend on years, but on the way of life and the mercy of the Lord.”
“Immediately, as soon as a person truly repents, grace approaches him and increases with zeal. Experience requires many years of feat.”
“Grace is always completely peaceful, humble, silent, purifying, enlightening, joyful and devoid of any dreams. There is no room for any doubt at the blessed moment of the arrival of grace that this is truly Divine grace, for it does not cause any fear or mistrust in those who receive it.”
“If the grace of God does not enlighten a person, no matter how many words you say, there will be no benefit... But if grace acts immediately along with the words, then at that very second a change occurs in accordance with the person’s desire. From that moment his life changes. But this happens to those who have not damaged their hearing or hardened their conscience.”
Grace is accompanied by peace of mind, and delights are accompanied by anxiety.
“We know that someone who has tasted wine and experienced its sweetness, if they give him vinegar, immediately recognizes it and turns away. Understand the same about Divine grace: whoever has known and tasted its fruit, so that his mind and thought are enlightened by grace, will clearly discern the one who comes as a thief and the fruit of delusion who bears it.”
Elder Joseph explained that grace is accompanied by peace of mind, and charm is always accompanied by anxiety: “Then a person is inflated, like fur, with dark and unclean air, so that even his hair stands on end, and he becomes confused and restless.”
The arrow of conscience shows how we spend our lives
Every evening at the vigil the Elder performed an examination of his conscience. This is what he taught his spiritual children. He told his disciples about this like this: “Here I sit and prayerfully test myself and check: what did I do wrong? What passion is still strong in me? What should I pay attention to? Yeah, due to negligence. Yeah, because I don’t watch my language. For this, for that. And I immediately take a fighting position to correct myself. And the next day I see what I got. And conscience, like an arrow, shows this. Just as the needle of a thermometer shows the temperature, how many degrees it is, whether it’s hot or cold, so the needle of conscience shows how we spend our lives.”
Be kind and everyone will be kind to you
“Don’t be angry with your brothers. Bear their mistakes so that they can bear yours. Love to be loved and endure to be tolerated. Be kind, and everyone will be kind to you.”
“He who is afraid to know himself remains far from knowledge and loves nothing more than to see the mistakes of others and judge them. He does not see other people's talents, but only their shortcomings. He doesn’t see any shortcomings in himself, but only his talents.”
“I have never seen correction accomplished with the help of anger, but always with the help of love. Take an example from yourself: when do you become meek? From insults? Or thanks to love?
The thought of condemnation comes to you
“The thought of condemnation comes to you - don’t sit and argue whether this is true or not. Topic closed. If someone tells you something bad about your neighbor, it means condemnation, it means danger.”
“The warfare of the flesh flares up not so much from food, drink, wine and sleep, but from condemnation.”
The elder said: “Carnal warfare flares up not so much from food, drink, wine and sleep, but from condemnation.” And when the disciples asked: “Why, elder?”, the Elder answered: “So that we know that we are of the same nature. We realized that the same devil is at war with us and that we are all worthy of equal condemnation.”
“If anyone does not judge his neighbor, then this is a testimony, and property, and evidence, and identification of a saved person. He who does not judge will not be judged.”
“Have compassion for those who do not have. Do not condemn him for what he does not have, for being a sinner, evil, crafty, talkative, a thief, a fornicator and a liar. If you acquire this knowledge, you will never be able to judge anyone, even if you see him mortally sinning. For you immediately say: “He, my Christ, does not have Your grace, therefore he sins. If you leave me too, I will do even worse.” He is a beggar. How do you demand that he be rich? Give him wealth so he can have it. He is blind. Give him eyes so he can see.”
Measure and reasoning
“And in everything have moderation and judgment.”
“More than anything else, we need spiritual discernment and must ask God for it by the sweat of our brow.”
“For many things do not succeed for some time due to obstacles, since their time has not come: some because people interfere, since, as the saints say, people can interfere with the will of the Lord for many years, and others because they do not the will of the Lord for them to be fulfilled.”
“...more than anything else, we need spiritual reasoning and must ask God for it by the sweat of our brow.”
To a young man asking about prayer Elder Joseph the Hesychast
My beloved brother in Christ, I pray that all is well with you. Today I received your letter and I want to answer all your questions. The teaching you need requires neither time nor effort to think about and answer. Mental prayer for me is something I have been doing for over 35 years.
When I came to the Holy Mountain, I immediately rushed in search of those who could help me in mastering prayer, and now, looking back at these past years, I see that then there were a lot of those who lived by prayer, virtuous people, elders of the past.
We chose one of them to be our elder and also received guidance from the others. Now, starting to master mental prayer, you must constantly force yourself to pray without stopping. To begin with, very quickly, so that the mind does not have time for dreams and thoughts. Concentrate all your attention on the words: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” When a prayer is spoken with the tongue for a long enough time, the mind begins to get used to it and sometimes already says it itself. Over time, the prayer becomes sweet, as if you had honey in your mouth, and you want to say it constantly. And if you stop, you feel great discomfort.
When the mind gets used to prayer and is filled with it, then, if everything has been done correctly before, the mind itself sends prayer to the heart. Since the mind supplies the soul with food, its task is to send this food (both good and evil, what the mind finds) to the heart, which is the center of mental and spiritual activity of a person, the “throne for the mind.”
Therefore, when someone, while saying a prayer, keeps his mind from daydreaming and imagining anything and concentrates his attention only on the words of the prayer, then with breathing and the utmost motivation of himself, he brings the mind down to the heart and, remaining there as in a cage, rhythmically pronounces the words of the prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me!”
At first, he says the prayer several times in one breath, later, when the mind gets used to staying in the heart, he says the prayer with each breath: “Lord Jesus Christ” - on the inhale, “have mercy on me” - on the exhale. And so he forces himself until grace itself covers the soul and acts on its own. This is what “theory” is all about. Prayer happens everywhere; sitting, lying down, walking, standing. “Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in everything,” says the Apostle (1 Thess. 5:17–18).
It is not enough to pray just before going to bed. Prayer is a battle. When you get tired, sit down, then get up again so that sleep does not consume you. This is praxis (practice). You show your will to God, because it depends only on Him when and what to give you. God is the beginning and the end of everything. His grace is the driving force that brings everything into being. When love appears, you understand how to follow, how to truly fulfill the commandments. You get up at night and pray, you see a sick person and have compassion for him, you see a widow, an orphan and give to them, and the Lord loves you, and you love Him. He loves first and pours out His grace, and we return it to Him, which is “Thine from Thine.” Therefore, if you seek to find Him through prayer, do not allow one breath to come without it. Just be careful and don't accept any fantasies. God has no form, image, color. He is absolutely perfect and indescribable. It acts like an elusive peaceful breeze in the mind.
Repentance comes when you realize how much you grieve God, who is so kind, sweet, merciful and full of love, who was crucified and suffered for each of us. When you reflect on this and other things related to the Lord's suffering, it brings a feeling of repentance.
So, if you can, repeat the prayer without stopping for two or three months, and you will gain the skill, then grace will cover and restore you. Repeat quietly, when the mind gets used to it, stop saying the prayer with your tongue and let your mind do it. When he stops, again support the prayer with your lips. Verbal prayer is necessary at first, then throughout your life the mind will create prayer on its own, without any effort. When you come to the Holy Mountain, visit us. We will talk to you about other things, there will be little time for prayer, and besides, when visiting monasteries, your mind will be distracted by what you see and hear.
I'm sure you will find prayer. Without any doubt. Just knock persistently on the door of divine mercy, and Christ will, of course, open to you. It's impossible not to be. The more you love Him, the more you receive. His gift, whether it be great or small, depends on your love, whether it is great or small.
Essays
A large number of letters from Joseph the Hesychast to his relatives and spiritual children, devoted to various issues of spiritual life, have been preserved. A selection of these letters was published by Elder Ephraim of the Philotheus Monastery under the title “Expression of Monastic Experience” [4].
The elder also penned the work “The Ten-Voice Spirit-Moved Trumpet”
[5], where the steps that an ascetic must overcome on the path to acquiring grace are described in figurative form. The elder's works are characterized by a unique style, combining archaism with popular expressions and the use of rhymed prose.
To the same young man about prayer, as well as answers to questions
Your ardent desire to benefit your soul makes me happy. And I long to benefit everyone who seeks salvation. Therefore, pay attention, my dear and beloved brother. The purpose of human life from the very moment of his birth is to find God. However, he will not be able to find Him until the Lord Himself finds him first. “In it we live and act.” Unfortunately, passions close the eyes of our soul, and we cannot see with them. But when our much-loving Lord turns His active gaze on us, it is as if we awaken from sleep and begin to seek salvation.
Regarding your question. The Lord saw you, He illuminated you and guides you. Stay and work where you are. Continue to pray continuously, both mentally and verbally. When the tongue gets tired, pray with the mind; when the mind gets heavy, let the tongue begin again, just don’t stop. Confess often, stay vigil at night as much as you can. And if you see how love for God burns with flame in your heart, if you want hesychia (peace) and cannot remain in peace, because prayer is burning in you, then write to me and I will tell you what to do next. But even if grace does not act in this way, and your zeal and desire results only in keeping God’s commandments regarding your loved ones, be calm, remain in peace where you are and everything will be fine with you. Don't look for another. You will understand the difference between thirty, sixty and a hundredfold fruit (Matthew 13:8), which you read about in the lives of the saints. There you will find many more stories that will bring you great benefit. And now about other questions: prayer should be said with an “inner voice.” But since the mind is not yet accustomed to this at first, it forgets about prayer. That is why I say that you need to alternate the way you pronounce prayer: sometimes with your mind, sometimes with your tongue. Do this until the mind is filled with prayer, and grace begins to act along with it itself. This action of grace is the joy and delight that you feel in yourself when you pray and want to pray without ceasing. Then the mind is absorbed in prayer, and it happens without any compulsion on your part. This is called "visiting" the work of grace because it works itself. A person walks, sleeps, wakes up, but internally he cries out prayer incessantly. He is peaceful and joyful.
Regarding the time for prayer. Since you are in the world and have various concerns, pray at any time as soon as possible. But constantly encourage yourself to do this, so as not to fall into negligence.
Spiritual life has three stages, and grace acts in a person according to his spiritual development. The first degree is called Purification. At this stage, a person is cleansed of passions. What you have now is called cleansing grace. It leads to repentance. All spiritual desire appears in a person solely under the influence of grace. And nothing from the man himself. She operates secretly everywhere. If a person progresses in mental prayer, he receives another grace, which is completely different from the previous one. As we have already mentioned, that grace is called cleansing grace, and the one who prays feels its presence in himself. The second form is called Enlightening grace. At this level, a person receives knowledge and ascends to the Vision of God. This does not at all mean seeing lights, images or fantasies, but means transparency, clarity of mind and purity of thoughts. In this case, a person needs peace, silence and unmistakable guidance to pray. The third level is Covering grace, perfect grace, a truly great gift. There is no need to write about this yet, however, if you want to know something more about this, I wrote, despite my illiteracy, a small handwritten work, you can find it. Also buy the book of St. Macarius of Skoinsky, and even the ascetic teachings of St. Isaac the Syrian, and you will receive great benefits. Write to me about your conditions and changes, and I will be happy to answer you. All these days I constantly write to those who ask me about mental prayer. These are people from Germany, America, France and there are a lot of them. But why are we, who have everything right here at our feet, why are we so careless? Is it really difficult to constantly repeat the name of Christ so that he will have mercy on us?
Nowadays, the world has adopted the evil and insidious idea that praying is dangerous and unnecessary in order not to fall into delusion, but in the end, on the contrary, he himself remains in delusion.
If there is anyone who wants mental prayer, let him do it. And prayer done for a long time will bear fruit. And man will find heaven within himself. He will receive freedom from passions, he will become that “new man”. And if at this time he is in solitude, - oh!, oh!, it is impossible to describe the fruits of prayer.
The life of Joseph tells us that he was born on the island of Paros, in the village of Lefke
The life of Joseph tells us that he was born on the island of Paros, in the village of Lefke on November 2, 1897. His parents were great workers. They all lived a righteous life.
From childhood, they taught their children to live piously. After the boy's father died, his mother took over all upbringing. Since there were six children in the family, the family had to face great difficulties.
Due to the death of his father, the boy was never able to complete his primary course at school.
In 1914, Frangiskos left for another city in search of income for his family.
Soon he was called up for military service. After his demobilization, he takes a job in Athens. Many sources provide different information. Some sources say that the boy worked as a cook, while other sources say that he worked as a tram conductor.
When a boy turns 20, he begins to show interest in various spiritual literature, he begins to be inspired by the lives of various saints of God. And he tries as much as possible to become like them.
