“One must always remember the difference between the emotional, the
spiritual, and the physical: the life of the spirit, the life of the
soul (that is, the senses and emotions, and the life of the body. This
is exactly where there is so much confusion. By the way, the Western
[Christan] denominations . . . all have precisely this confusion between
the spirit and the soul. The mother can transmit to the child many
wonderful qualities of character, of the soul, right? But not the
qualities of the spirit: faith and love towards people which are given
by the Holy Spirit.
“Therefore [because Orthodoxy discerns the difference between the
gifts of the Holy Spirit and mere emotions] satan has risen up against
us … against Orthodox people. We are always openly infringing upon his
sphere of spiritual influence, his evil powers, evil influence.”
+ Elder Sampson, Orthodox Word #177, “Discussions & Teachings of Elder Sampson”
0 comments:
Post a Comment