On Watchfulness and Noetic Prayer - Elder Ephraim of Arizona
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- Опубликовано: 6 окт 2024
- A reading of the homily titled, "On Watchfulness and Noetic Prayer" from Chapter 15 of "Counsels from the Holy Mountain" by Elder Ephraim of Arizona
-Learn more about the ever-memorable Elder Ephraim: stanthonysmona...
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0:09 The Watchful Fathers, especially St. Gregory Palamas, showed us the way
2:41 We must attack evil thoughts with anger, the Jesus Prayer, and rebuttal
5:06 Before noetic prayer was systematized, monks primarily focus on asceticism done with the body
8:02 The work of watchfulness led the Watchful Fathers to freedom from care
9:40 The value of silence
10:26 If one has tasted prayer and then loses prayer, he feels empty
11:29 Those who pray with watchfulness acquire great gifts
13:32 Prayer is the catapult against the demons, passions, and sin
14:45 The ax of prayer
15:37 A story of how a demon spoke through a woman to show a negligent monk that the Jesus prayer burns the demons
17:40 Must listen! A story of a man who comes to Elder Joseph and suffers from the demons yet courageously persists in saying the Jesus prayer
24:10 The power of prayer and the demons’ refusal to repent, yet we are lazy
25:34 Even laypeople occupy themselves with the prayer and bear fruit
27:54 Conclusion
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Elder Ephraim teaches:
A monk who lacks prayer feels empty, unless he has not tasted the benefit of prayer and does not realize his emptiness. If a poor man never had anything, he is not troubled. But if a monk who has been taught the prayer becomes neglectful and loses it, he knows his loss and is troubled. Therefore, monks must pray not only to carry out their duty as monks, but at the same time to be monks in deed; not just monks in name and outward appearance, but also inwardly. According to the Watchful Fathers, one is not called a monk if he does not have this hidden work within him. Therefore, we too must compel ourselves to pray for our soul to be full of benefit. Only then can we consider ourselves to be monks. Just as someone could wonder how a body could live without a soul, likewise a person experienced in prayer would be at a loss and say, "But how can people live without this spiritual nourishment!"
Our passions of soul and body are remedied in proportion to the progress we have made in prayer and the benefit we have received from it. The healing of one's passions and weaknesses marks how much a person has advanced in prayer.
Consequently, we must compel ourselves. We must constantly urge ourselves not to forget the prayer, not to neglect it. When we notice that the prayer has "sprung a leak," has weakened and begins to waver and stumble, it is necessary as quickly as possible to strive to correct it, to work with diligence, to restore strength to our prayer. How will this be accomplished? the soul must collect itself immediately, must concentrate, "tighten the belt,” as we say, and vigorously begin to pray. It must drive away thoughts, expel worries, free the mind from distraction and say, “I will occupy myself with the prayer now." And when we occupy ourselves with it in this way for a while, we shall soon feel the power which proceeds from diligence in prayer.
In conclusion, there is nothing left for us to do except to compel ourselves; to compel ourselves constantly. We should occupy ourselves with prayer above all, saying continuously: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." As we wake up in the morning we should say the prayer; then, we should do our work with the name of Christ on our lips.
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Holy elder Ephraim never got a diploma from college. Not that college is useless but life spent in prayer is the most important thing since prayer gives knowledge not of this world as we can hear from this talk. Holy elder Ephraim pray for us!
The world is slowly, through atheistic jews, becoming more and more difficult to find employment anywhere, without being persecuted for your Christian beliefs, in the Western world at least.
The Protocols of Zion.
Awesome acknowledgement of the women laboring toward prayer so diligently at home
Everything else was equally as important
@@Dionysius93 I disagree, but respect your right to your own opinion. Peace to you!
I think this happens very small at first. This awakening of our nous. Almost to be missed in the exchange. The exchange is through humility! Full humility! Humiliating in how it feels. Painful. But in persevering one realizes it is a good pain! Then we see the result. Our nous takes a breath of that air it breathes! Uncreated light!
Christ is risen!
Bless you brother for this timely reminder of Grace. I really needed it today. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon us sinners.
Wonderful reading. Much needed in our time. Thank you for your efforts.
Always a pleasure to see that OW posted. 🙏☦️ Please pray for us Elder Ephraim, that we may be watchful and anger may have it's place against our passions and not our fellow men and trivial matters.
Amen.
Do not suffer thy children to come unto to jesus.may the promises of our lord be blessed mark 13:13
Thank you very much for this lecture!!!! It was incredibly insightful and enlightening!!! 🤗🙏🕯️💖
Profound. Thank you. Amen
Beautiful.
Thank you
Thank you for sharing.
Thank you Father.
Thank you.
top notch content in a clown world
Holy elder Ephraim of Arizona, pray to God for us!
Thank you, Timothy.
I don't know if you've heard of the holy elder Sampson Sievers? I'm not sure how many of his writings are out there, but do you think you could do a video on him at some point?
Do you have a link to his writings?
I replied with the links, but it looks like it was removed for some reason. Could I email them to you?
Yes, please. See my email in the “about” section
Elder Ephraim is such a spirit filled elder, and will be eventually canonized as a saint. At the same time, we're specifically taught to not put halo's around their head, until they are an official canonized saint of the church. Is this not the teaching of the Orthodox church, or am I mistaken?
St. Anthony's Monastery just put a mosaic on his at the monastery with a halo (see the community tab on this channel). St. John Maximovitch prayed before an icon of St. Herman with a halo well before his canonization. Icons of Fr. Seraphim with a halo have streamed myrrh, I'm told. So the halo is not entirely forbidden before canonization.
@@OrthodoxWisdom Makes sense, thanks!
❤
☦️☦️☦️
ربنا والهي يسوع المسيح يا ابن الله الحى ارحمني انا عبدك الخاطئ امين
Brother, what’s wrong with the world? My reply...ME. 🌺☦️🌺
Thank you for sharing.