This weekend’s pearl of wisdom comes from one of the most important spiritual texts for eastern orthodox Christians. The collection of spiritual writings called ‘Philokalia’ (‘love of the beautiful)’ were originally compiled for the guidance and instruction of monks in the practice of the contemplative life. This quote from the Byzantine mystic Nikitas Stithatos (11th Century) corrects a misconception about needing to withdraw to special spiritual places (like the desert) to find God:
“I have heard people say that one cannot achieve a persistent state of virtue without retreating far into the desert, and I was amazed that they should think the unconfinable could be confined to a particular locality. Such a state is not achieved adventitiously, by external influences; it is implanted within us at our creation by virtue of our endemic divine and spiritual consciousness. And when we are impelled by this inner consciousness in accordance with our true nature we are led into the kingdom of heaven, which in our Lord’s words, is within us. Thus the desert is in fact superfluous, since we can enter the kingdom simply through repentance and the strict keeping of God’s commandments. Entry into the kingdom can occur, as David states, in all places of His dominion; for he says, “In all places of His dominion bless the Lord, O my soul.”
We are reminded here that God is present with us all the time and everywhere. But whether we will present ourselves to God is for us to decide.
Make the psalm your prayer and your song of praise today.
Read Psalm 103.
