What Pride of Mind and Pride of Will Are

Archimandrite Cleopa (Ilie). "What pride is and what it is born of".

Archimandrite Cleopa (Ilie)

Brother: Rev. Father, please tell me what pride is and what kinds of it are there in the world?

Elder: Let it be known to you, brother John, that pride is the beginning, root and source of all sin and all lawlessness. And since you have asked what kinds of it are there, then let it be known that, as St. Gregory the Dialogist says, “pride has five stages, and to understand these steps, you should first understand that there are five kinds of benefits to be proud of, namely:

natural benefits, that is, quick wit, beauty, courage, and the like;

the second type is the acquired benefits, such as knowledge, wisdom, skill, and the like;

the third type includes random goods, such as wealth, fame, position, and the like;

the fourth is the benefit of strong will;

the fifth is spiritual blessings, that is, the gift of prophecy, miracles and the like.”

So, brother John, at the first stage of pride is peculiar to the person who, possessing any of these benefits, does not recognize that he has received them from God, but believes that he has them by himself, in a natural way.

The second stage of pride is when a person admits that these benefits were given to him by God, but not for nothing, but because they befit him as supposedly worthy of them.

The third stage of pride is when someone thinks that he has some talents, which he, however, does not have.

The fourth stage of pride is when someone defames others and wants to be revered by all as more worthy than them.

The fifth, and last, step of pride is when a person comes to the point that he defames the holy laws and does not obey them as the holy fathers prescribed.

Let it be also known to you, brother John, and remember that pride has twelve daughters: vanity, curiosity, arrogance of mind, boasting, laziness, insolence, a hypocritical confession, self-justification, apostasy, self-will, willfulness, and getting completely accustomed to the sin.

A Warning to Those Wishing to Practice Noetic (Mental) Prayer

Venerable elder Macarius of Optina. "A warning to those reading spiritual books of the holy fathers and wishing to practice the noetic Jesus prayer".

St. Macarius of Optina.

This “Warning” was compiled about a century and a half ago by the venerable Optina Elder Macarius (Ivanov). It is addressed to those who wish to practice the noetic Jesus Prayer, but who do not have expert mentors and guides.

However, the creation of the elder Macarius can be equally addressed to all Christians - as advice not to look for high spiritual gifts and conditions in themselves, but to humbly walk by the way of the fulfillment of Christ's commandments, relying on God's will in everything. Citing the testimonies of the great ascetic fathers, the elder convinces: an untimely desire for a "high", "contemplative" life is fraught with delusion, and often not only mental, but also physical death.

At the same time, the venerable Macarius, who himself had experienced the path of noetic prayer, in no way seeks to avert contemporary monks and pious laymen from salvation and the prayer in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ commanded by the holy fathers. He only asserts: the measure for a novice is an oral prayer, not accompanied by any “artistic means”, information about which is contained in patristic works.

A contemporary of the elder Macarius - Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov) writes very clearly about this in his instructions about Jesus prayer: “Novices should keep the most reverent attention while practicing the Jesus prayer, concentrate the mind on the words of the prayer. (...) Here is my command to you (the novice): do not seek the place of the heart. Do not try in vain to explain to yourself what is meant by the place of the heart; the experience will explain it satisfactorily (in due time). If God wants to give you this knowledge, He will give it when the due time comes. Practice exclusively the prayer of repentance with all diligence; try to perform penance by the prayer” [1].

The venerable Macarius also explains what mental order it is necessary to have while practicing the Jesus prayer, what should be the active life of a Christian, and what kind of spiritual fruits should be aspired by the one praying in the name of Christ. We believe that the “Warning” of the Optina elder will be useful to modern Christians who strive to lead a spiritual life, will help to avoid various schemes of the enemy of the human race and not become a victim of delusion or incorrect “opinion” about themselves.

The Novice Escaped Perdition Only through the Prayers of the Elder

Archimandrite Ioannicius (Kotsonis). "Athonite Paterikon".

Many years ago, on the southern outskirts of Katunaki, there lived a very reverent elder with his novice named Spyridon. At first, Spyridon was diligent and obedient in everything. However, over time, the invisible worm of vanity began to corrode his monastic living. He performed excessive deeds, increased number of bows, the number of prayers with the prayer rope, kept vigil for more time without taking permission and blessing from his spiritual father. He began to consider himself much higher than other monks and, little by little, doing his own will, reached the point that he was completely possessed by the spirit of pride.

One night, he heard someone knocking on his cell, saying: “Through the prayers...”. He opened the door and saw an Angel in front of him. But it was an Angel only in appearance, and not in essence.

The Delusion Due to Mistrust to the Confessor

Archbishop Theophan (Bystrov). "Letters".

78. To Archbishop Averky (Taushev) (?)

A request for blessing to become a monk.

Honorable friend,

I answer your main question. If you want to accept monasticism and if there is the consent and blessing from your parents, then, of course, I have nothing against your desire. But I consider it my duty to give you advice: first thoroughly test yourself: can you conduct a monastic life in the conditions of your actual life? It is better to foresee everything before enduring the frustration of unforeseen surprises. Without objecting to the merits, I only warn against haste. But in the end, this question will have to be decided not by me, but by your diocesan bishop.

At the beginning of monastic life, it is especially necessary to have experienced, wise guidance. As a spiritual guide, if one is not available on the spot, I could recommend you the hieroschemamonk from Athos, father Lot, who is well known to you. I advise you to have confidence in this guide: otherwise thoughts may confuse you. And it can cause great spiritual harm.

Arch. Theophan. 1931. V. 3. Clamart.

http://oprelesti.ru/index.php/what-is-spiritual-delusion/847-the-delusion-due-to-mistrust-to-the-confessor

Liberation from the Delusion of the False Desire for Martyrdom

"The Great Watch". The cell notes of Hieromonk Jerome.

Once he [the monk Paisius] came to me for confession and said: “Father! I have a great desire to become a martyr, bless me to go to Thessaloniki or to Smyrna to be tormented for Christ, I really want this, my heart burns day and night, everything draws me to lay down my life for Christ.” Hearing this from him, I was surprised and asked him: “Where did such a strange thought come to you from? What is this for?” “So that,” he answered, “Firstly, by these means I can sooner be saved, and secondly, I will be forever in the rank of martyrs who are most glorified in the Kingdom of God. That’s why I want to be a martyr.” I told him a lot from the Scriptures regarding this; I tried to convince him that every Christian, especially a monk, should be ready, if necessary, to sacrifice his life for God, and this is Christian selflessness. But we are forbidden to go into temptations without permission, but, on the contrary, we are commanded to pray so that we are not led into temptation. “And you,” I continued, “you needlessly dare to do such a terrible thing. Your desire is correct, but bringing it into practice is not God-pleasing and it is very dangerous for your salvation because of the weakness of our nature. Remember the example of Peter the Apostle, and besides him, there were many unfortunate examples of people who dared for such a great thing without a high calling and could not stand the torment and fell away from Christ. It can easily happen to you.” But he was little convinced by my exhortations. After our conversation with him, the thought of martyrdom bothered him for more than a year, and he himself did not understand that it was not the love of God that attracted him to martyrdom, but his love for himself, in order to become famous and in order to surpass others. And this idea was born in him from a misunderstanding of the essence of selflessness. But, when I invited him to make sure by his own experience in small and even insignificant matters of the difficulty of selflessness, or of cutting off his own will, then he was quite convinced that cutting off his will is a true torment.