The Irish Catholic Hermit

                                              O n   Humility T he iniquitous mouth is stopped during prayer, for the condemnation of the conscience deprives a man of his boldness.  A  good heart joyously sheds tears in prayer.  V oluntary and steadfast endurance of injustice pur ifies the heart.  P atient endurance of injustice springs from disdain for the world; and a man endures calumny cheerfully because his heart has begun to behold the truth.  J oy arising from voluntary endurance of calumny and injustice exalts the heart.  T hey for whom the world is dead submit to contumelies with joy.  B ut they for whom the world still lives cannot submit to injustice: either, moved by vainglory, they are provoked to anger and are troubled, being stirred up in the manner of brutes, or else they are overcome by grief.  O  how di...

  O Lord! Grant us to see our transgressions so that our intellect would be completely drawn to attention to our own sins and stop seeing the sins of our neighbours and, in this way, we would see all our neighbours as good. G rant our hearts to abandon the ruinous attention to the failings of our neighbours, to unite all of our attention to the acquisition of purity and holiness commanded and prepared by You. G rant us to once again whiten our desecrated spiritual garments: they were already cleansed in the waters of baptism, and now they need, after being desecrated, cleansing with tears. G rant us to see, in the light of Your Grace, the multifarious ailments in us that are destroying the heart's spiritual movements and introducing into it carnal movements that are in enmity to the Kingdom of God. G rant us the great gift of repentance that precedes and gives birth to the great gift of seeing one's sins. P rotect us with these great gifts from the chasms of self-del...

M ost holy and eternal Father, your divine Son has taught us that no one can come to Him unless you draw him, and that none shall be lost of those whom you have given Him. I beg of you, therefore, in the name of the mutual love you bear to Him and He to you, to offer me and all whom I love to this divine Son, begotten of you, so that being born again in Him, your Word, we may have a share in the eternal glory which He gives to you, and that we may thus be sanctified in you. E ternal Son, whose holiness is equal to that of the Father, you have promised that “when lifted up from the earth, you would draw all to yourself.” Draw me, then, to you, O well-beloved of my soul, that being fed by you I may live by you, even as you live by your Father. H oly Spirit, who descended upon the Virgin to accomplish the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word, come down upon me, O joy of my heart and strength of my soul! Impregnate me, to the end that Jesus Christ may grow in me, so that by your power, ...

I believe, O Lord, and I confess that thou art truly the Christ, the Son of the living God, who didst come into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.  A nd I believe that this is truly thine own immaculate Body, and that this is truly thine own precious Blood.  W herefore I pray thee, have mercy upon me and forgive my transgressions both voluntary and involuntary, of word and of deed, of knowledge and of ignorance; and make me worthy to partake without condemnation of thine immaculate Mysteries, unto remission of my sins and unto life everlasting. Amen.  O f thy Mystic Supper, O Son of God, accept me today as a communicant; for I will not speak of thy Mystery to thine enemies, neither will I give thee a kiss as did Judas; but like the thief will I confess thee:  R emember me, O Lord, in thy Kingdom. Not unto judgement nor unto condemnation be my partaking of thy Holy Mysteries, O Lord, but unto the healing of soul and body.         ...

St. Isaac stretches love and mercy to it’s farthest limits, occasionally beyond the bounds of canonical understanding. He remains a saint of the Church and his words are very important to hear.                           +++ L et yourself be persecuted, but do not persecute others. B e crucified, but do not crucify others. B e slandered, but do not slander others. R ejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep: such is the sign of purity. S uffer with the sick. B e afflicted with sinners. E xult with those who repent. B e the friend of all, but in your spirit remain alone. B e a partaker of the sufferings of all, but keep your body distant from all. R ebuke no one, revile no one, not even those who live very   wickedly. S pread your cloak over those who fall into sin, each and every one, and shield them. A nd if you cannot take the fault on yourself and accept punishment in their place, do not destroy th...

1. O pen up the treasury door for us, Lord, at the prayers of our supplications; let our prayers serve as our ambassador, reconciling us with Your Divinity. Listen, all who are wise, pay attention, all who are learned, acquire understanding and knowledge, seeing that you are instructed and wise, I will relate before you the accomplishments of holy prayer. 2. P rayer divided the Red Sea, allowing the People to cross through its midst; by the same prayer the sea was reunited once more, swallowing up Pharoah, the rebellious and impious. Prayer brought down manna from heaven, prayer brought the quails from the sea, prayer struck the rock in the desert, causing water to gush forth for the thirsty. 3. B lessed is the person who has consented to become the close friend of faith and of prayer: he lives in singlemindedness and makes prayer and faith stop by with him. Prayer that rises up in someone’s heart serves to open up for us the door of heaven: that person stands in converse with the...

  This  commentary  explains the theology and practice of the Jesus Prayer. Prayer, to the average person, is asking God for something. But the Jesus prayer is not this. It is an attempt to change the one who prays. This prayer is traditionally a monastic prayer. Its simplicity allows everyone to practice it. In this prayer, there is faith and hope in the goodness of Christ. It is the prayer from our whole being. It is a cry out of the deep heart and nepsis without ceasing. The unceasing repetition of the Jesus Prayer kept the mind on the thought of God and dispersed all irrelevant thoughts (logismoi). This is the prayer that requires watchfulness as a lantern requires a candle. Watchfulness, mature in Christ, the fruit of Spirit, and theosis will follow in the praying unceasingly: the Jesus Prayer. I. INTRODUCTION  We all know that prayer is the most important thing in spirituality especially in Christianity. Prayer is our true life, our highest task. Without prayer...