The cause of all evil & its remedy

Listen to what the Lord Himself tells us, Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest for your souls, (Matt 11:29).  There you have it in a nutshell:  He has taught us the root and cause of all evils and also the remedy for it, leading to all good.  He shows us that pretensions to superiority cast us down and that it is impossible to obtain mercy except by the contrary, that is to say, by humility.  Self-elevation begets contempt and disobedience begets perdition whereas humility begets obedience and the saving of souls.  And I call that real humility which is not humble in word and outward appearance but is deeply planted in the heart; for this is what He meant when He said that I am meek and humble of heart. 

When endurance is no longer possible

The grace of God comes swiftly to the soul when endurance is no longer possible. 

On Christian books

The acquisition of Christian books is necessary for those who can use them.  For the mere sight of these books renders us less inclined to sin and incites us to believe more firmly in righteousness. 

 

Beware: the sin of anger

A man who is angry, even if he were to raise the dead, is not acceptable to God. 

Check your heart when seeking God's will

If a man really sets his heart upon the will of God, God will enlighten a little child to tell that man what is His will.  But if a man does not truly desire the will of God, even if he goes in search of a prophet, God will put into the heart of the prophet a reply like the deception in his own heart. 

Keeping God's commandments brings its reward

By keeping the Commandments the soul is purified and the mind, too, is enlightened and starts to function as nature intended it to.  The command of the Lord gives light and enlightens the eyes, (Ps. 19:8). 

No cause for repentance

I have often repented of having spoken, but never of having been silent. 

Suspicions

By accepting a suspicion against the neighbor, by saying, ‘What does it matter if I put in a word about my suspicion?  What does it matter if I find out what my brother is saying or what a guest is doing?’ the mind begins to forget about its own sins and to talk idly about his neighbor, speaking evil against him, despising him, and from this he falls into the very thing he condemns.  Because we become careless about our own faults and do not lament our own death, we lose the power to correct ourselves and we are always at work on our neighbor. 

Our life and death is with our neighbor

Our life and our death is with our neighbor.  If we gain our brother, we have gained God, but if we scandalize our brother, we have sinned against Christ.