Orthodoxy of the Heart
“He (the Word) underwent a birth and came forth as man from woman. This did not mean that he abandoned what he was, for even when he came in flesh and blood, even so he remained what he was, that is God in nature and truth.”
– Saint Cyril of Alexandria
(Third Letter to Nestorius)
“…He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not…All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
– Isaiah 53:3,6
“…the essence of prayer is the lifting
of the mind and heart to God”
– St. Theophan
“Truly wondrous is God in His Saints, Who revealed the Hermitage of Optina as a garden of eldership, / where the God-enlightened Fathers, knowing the secrets of the human heart, became valiant protectors of the people of God; / for they set those burdened by sin on the path of repentance, / enlightening those whose faith was wavering with the light of Christ’s teachings, / and teaching them the wisdom of God, / they felt compassion for the sick and healed them. / Now, in God’s glory, they pray unceasingly for our souls..”
– Kontakion for the Synaxis of the
Venerable Fathers of Optina
“Always remember, God is love. Perform acts of kindness to the best of your ability, as through such acts, you shall save yourself. Embrace modesty, for God showers His mercy upon His humble servants. Repent for your sins and do not delay for ‘tomorrow,’ as this delay is a snare set by the Devil. Love one another, for a person devoid of love cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.”.”
– Saint Gabriel, Fool for Christ
“For God seeks nothing else from us, save a good purpose. Say not, ‘How are my sins blotted out?’ I tell you, from willing, from believing; what is shorter than this? But if your lips declare your willing, but your heart is silent, He knows the
heart who judges you. Cease then henceforth from every wicked thing: refrain thy tongue from light words, thine eye from sin, thy mind from roving after useless matters..”
– Saint Cyril of Jerusalem
(23 Catechetical Lectures)
“…but the person who is greatly distressed, who walks bent over, who is ailing and going blind, and the person who hungers – these will give glory and righteousness to You, O Lord.”
– Baruch 2:18
“Thus says the Lord…In those days and at that time I will cause to grow up to David. A Branch of righteousness: He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell safely. And this is the name by which she will be called:
THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.”
– Jeremiah 33:15-16
“The three one God when contemplated together; each God because consubstantial; one God because of the monarchia.”
– Saint Gregory the Theologian
“Who gives you the day will give you also the things necessary for the day.”
– Saint Gregory of Nyssa
“Run, I beseech you, with him who said: Let us hasten until we attain to the unity of faith and the knowledge of God, unto a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the
fullness of Christ…”
– Saint John Climacus
(The Ladder of Divine Ascent, A Brief Exhortation, p 248)
“None is worthy among those bound with carnal desires and pleasures to approach or draw nigh or to minister to Thee, O King of glory, for to serve Thee is a great and fearful thing even unto the heavenly Powers.”
– Saint Basil the Great
(Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil)
Orthodoxy of the Heart
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