Spiritual Counsels, Volume II: Spiritual Awakening
By Saint Paisios the Athonite
Size: 6" x 9" (15.3 x 23 cm)
Pages: 410
Binding: Softcover
From the Introduction to the Elder's Counsels:
"- Geronda, how do you see things going?
- How do you see things going?
- What can we say, Geronda? You tell us.
- The present calm worries me. Something is up. We haven't quite understood what times we're living in and we don't even consider that we will die someday. I don't know what will happen; the situation is very difficult! The world's fate is in the hands of a few, but God is still holding the brakes. We need to do a lot of praying with pain and love for God to intervene. We need to take matters seriously and live spiritually. These are very difficult times. Much ash and trash has fallen, there is great indifference. A very strong wind is needed to blow them away. The old timers used to say that the time will come when people will start kicking. All barriers are discarded and nothing is respected. It's terrible! Everything has become Babylon. We must pray for people to come out of this Babylonian captivity. Read the Prayer of the Three Young Men, to see how humbly they prayed; read Psalm eighty three: O God, who shall be compared to Thee? Be not silent, neither be still, O God... We have to do this, otherwise we struggle in vain. We need divine intervention.
Now, certain European sicknesses have come into the mix and they keep getting worse. A Cypriot family man who lived in England once told me "We are in spiritual danger; I must take my family away from England." Over there you can see a father taking is daughter, a mother her son. Everyone is "crowned" in marriage, everyone is "blessed". I am ashamed to even mention some of the things that are going on. But we don't lose any sleep over it. Now, I'm not saying that we ought to take up banners and marching in protest, but we should turn our attention to the great danger ahead of us and raise our hand to God in prayer. We must defend ourselves against evil. We must put on the brakes because..."
From the Contents:
- Prologue
- An Introduction to the Elder's Counsels
- Part One: The Responsibility of Love
- Part Two: Struggle and Devoutness
- Part Three: Spiritual Bravery
- Part Four: Dependence Upon Heaven
- Part Five: Spiritual Weapons
Other books in this series: With Pain and Love for Contemporary Man, Spiritual Struggle, Family Life, Passions and Virtues, and On Prayer.