The Early Church Fathers of the Western Christian Tradition are widely known, but the Early Desert Fathers of the Orthodox Church (The Writers of the Philokalia) are not as widely known or understood. What makes them unique is their unusual asceticism. Most of them became hermits and lived in the caves of Egypt to uncover the deepest secrets of the inner soul of man. It was in this profound aloneness and heightened dispassion, that these Early Desert Fathers found God. And it was in this utter silence, that they expounded the deep truths which they discovered and wrote down for generations to come.
Prayer, like faith itself, is a gift from God. But we must actively accept the gift through our participation.
The Fathers define prayer as a spiritual weapon. Unless we are armed with it, we cannot engage in warfare, but are carried off as prisoners to the enemy’s country. Nor can we acquire pure prayer unless we cleave to God with an upright heart. For it is God who gives prayer to him who prays and who teaches man spiritual knowledge.
St. Theodoros The Great Ascetic, A Century Of Spiritual Texts, Sec. 8
Especially important is pure prayer — prayer that is unceasing and uninterrupted. Such prayer is a safe fortress, a sheltered harbor, a protector of virtues, a destroyer of passions. It brings vigor to the soul, purifies the intellect, gives rest to those who suffer, consoles those who mourn. Prayer is converse with God, contemplation of the invisible, the angelic mode of life, a stimulus toward the Divine, the assurance of things longed for, “making real the things for which we hope” Hebrews 11:1). As an ascetic you must embrace this queen of the virtues with all your strength. Pray day and night. Pray at times of dejection and at times of exhilaration. Pray with fear and trembling, With a watchful and vigilant mind, so that prayer may be accepted by the Lord. For, as the psalmist says: “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer” (Psalm 34:15).
St. Theodoros The Great Ascetic, A Century Of Spiritual Texts, Sec. 60
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The monastic tradition emphasizes the importance of rising early to praise God.
Whatever a man loves, he desires at all costs to be near to continuously and uninterruptedly, and he turns himself away from everything that hinders him from being in contact and dwelling with the object of his love. It is clear therefore that he who loves God also desires always to be with him and to converse with him. This comes to pass in us through pure prayer. Accordingly, let us apply ourselves to prayer with all our power; for it enables us to become akin to God. Such a man was he who said: “O God, my God, I cry to Thee at dawn; my soul has thirsted for Thee” (Psalm 63:1, LXX). For the man who cries to God at dawn has withdrawn his intellect from every vice and clearly is wounded by divine love.
St. Theodoros The Great Ascetic A Century Of Spiritual Texts, Sec. 94
Prayer gives thanks for blessings received and asks for failures to be forgiven and for power to strengthen us for the future; for without God’s help the soul can indeed do nothing. Nonetheless, to persuade the will to have the strongest possible desire for union with and enjoyment of God, for whom it longs, and to direct itself totally toward him, is the major part of the achievement of our aim.
St. Theodoros The Great Ascetic, Theoretikon
Almsgiving heals the soul’s incensive power, fasting withers sensual desire; prayer purifies the intellect and prepares it for the contemplation of created things. For the Lord has given us commandments that correspond to the powers of the soul.
St. Maximos The Confessor, First Century On Love, Sec. 79
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In the West, there is a strong tradition of prayer using images (kataphatic prayer), as well as imageless (apophatic) prayer. In the East, however, and especially in the Athonite (that is, having to do with Mount Athos) spirituality contained in the Philokalia, the use of images in prayer is strongly discouraged.
When during prayer no conceptual image of anything worldly disturbs intellect, then know that you are within the realm of depression.
St. Maximos The Confessor, First Century On Love, Sec. 88
He who truly loves God prays entirely without distraction, and he who prays entirely without distraction loves God truly. But he whose intellect is fixed on any worldly thing does not pray without distraction, and consequently he does not love God.
St. Maximos The Confessor, Second Century On Love, Sec 1
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Christ becomes king over man’s soul through man’s frequent prayer and the outpouring of his self. He becomes the true center of its being and movements. At that stage, man will never find rest in anything except in Christ alone, where the image would rest in its own likeness. Since the soul has been created for immortality, it will thus find in Christ, when it unites with him, its ultimate joy. Through his existence, he consummates its own existence and immortality.“
Matthew the Poor, Orthodox Prayer Life: The Inner Way
Two states of pure prayer are exalted above all others. One is to be those who have not advanced beyond the practice of the virtues, the other in those leading the contemplative life. The first is engendered in the soul by fear of God and a firm hope in him, the second by an intense longing for God and by total purification. The sign of the first is that the intellect, abandoning all conceptual images of the world, concentrates itself and prays without distraction or disturbance as if God himself were present, as indeed he is. The sign of the second is that at the very onset of prayer the intellect is so ravished by the divine and infinite light that it is aware neither of itself nor of any other created thing, but only of him who through love has such radiance in it. It is then that, being made aware of God’s qualities, it receives clear and distinct reflections of him.
St. Maximos The Confessor, Second Century On Love, Sec. 6
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Imageless prayer is seen as superior to the use of images in prayer, and as necessary to unceasing prayer.
It is said that the highest state of prayer is reached when the intellect and the flesh and the world, and while praying is utterly free from matter and form. He who maintains this state has truly attained unceasing prayer.
St. Maximos The Confessor, Second Century On Love, Sec. 6
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Enmity is considered not only alien to the life of prayer, but as an enemy of prayer. Here Maximos exhorts us to accept an apology (if made), or to assume that we are at fault. The point is not to establish who is right, but to be forgiving and humble.
Has a brother been the occasion of some trial for you and has your resentment led you to hatred? Do not let yourself be overcome by this hatred, but conquer it with love. You will succeed in this by praying to God sincerely for your brother and by accepting his apology; or else by conciliating him with an apology yourself, by regarding yourself as responsible for the trial, and by patiently waiting until the cloud has passed.
St. Maximos The Confessor, Fourth Century On Love, Sec. 22
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Maximos provides practical guidance for each part of the soul and body. The Eastern approach is holistic.
If you want to be a just person, assign to each aspect of yourself — to your soul and your body — what accords with it. To the intelligent aspect of the soul, assign spiritual reading, contemplation, and prayer; to the incensive aspect, spiritual love, the opposite of hatred; to the desiring aspect, moderation and self-control; to the fleshly part, food and clothing, for these alone are necessary (1 Timothy 6:8).
St. Maximos The Confessor, Fourth Century On Love, Sec. 44
Who in this generation is completely free from impassioned conceptual images, and has been granted uninterrupted, pure, and spiritual prayer? Yet this is the mark of the inner monk.
St. Maximos The Confessor, Fourth Century On Love, Sec. 51
