The Passions
Submitted by Dirk G on September 16 1999 at 10:40:10
In reply to New Re: to Ownership Submitted by LostBoy on September 16 1999 at 02:44:47
|
This meditation seemed to follow quite nicely on LostBoy's comments. It was published by an Orthodox Church in Kansas, and is available at the URL posted below. You can also sign up to get these emailed to you. The appropriate info is at the site. Dirk ----------------------------------------------------------------- Readings for Wednesday, September 15, 1999: Epistle: Galatians 6:2-10 Gospel: St. Mark 7:14-24 The Passions: St. Mark 7:14-24, especially vss. 20, 21, "And He said, 'What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts....'" Today the Lord begins to illumine the real purpose of the Mosaic Law. He directs us to look away from outward conformity to the commandments and to delve instead into our inner condition. This all-important status of the interior life is what led St. Pasius Velichkovsky to say that "a man does not perform a single sin before he has become disposed toward every sin." Inner disposition is uppermost in the Lord's mind when He lists the twelve "evil thoughts" (vss. 21,22). Good and bad thoughts begin first within, from one's "thought-life." Sinful deeds are only telltale symptoms of disorder that direct us to look deeper for the source of sin. It is the heart that needs healing. As fallen men, our need is to become sensitive to the progression within our hearts that moves from evil thoughts to the bodily commission of sins. The heart of man: what is the Lord speaking about? If our soul is the source of rational thinking, of emotions and of the capacity to will and decide, then the heart is the deeper aspect of our being in which moral action begins, whether good or bad. So when the Lord speaks of evil thoughts coming "out of the heart," He is not speaking of a mere rational process but of moral activity. The heart also is the locus of capacity for communion with other spiritual beings: men, angels, demons, and God. This list of twelve thoughts is not about evil acts but about immoral inclinations, attitudes and assumptions in the heart. It is urgent that we understand that the heart is the primary battleground of good and evil, which is why St. Isaac of Syria can ask, "who can become pure of thought and humble of heart when he is licentious and dissolute in his members?" A heart that in any way entertains the twelve dispositions the Lord lists, is sick, morally corrupt, "defiled" to speak in His terms (vss. 15,18,20,23). The Fathers of the Church, such as Nicetas Stethatos, developed the terms "sinful practice" and "passion" to distinguish between a person's outward and inward activity: "that which is manifested in the body" being sinful practice and "the movement that takes place in the soul" being passion. While sometimes we can spot sins in the deeds or words of others and even ourselves, we very often miss the passions that lurk both in our hearts and in the hearts of others. However, never doubt that a major conflict is raging in men's hearts. During the Soviet era in Russia, the Tikhvin icon of the Theotokos was wrapped and put in a cart for transport to a local church. The communist militia stopped the cart, and when they found the icon, tried to seize it. But the Orthodox people struggled, and, in the process, the icon broke in two, the militia taking the Theotokos and the people preserving the Lord. The militia chopped their half to kindling and burned it. The other half blesses the church to this day. Actually such battles happen in our hearts every day, but what we are fighting to destroy or to preserve is the living icon or image of God within us, our own true identity. The struggle within the heart progresses from provocation, initiated by a sight, a word, or by demonic activity. The passions in themselves are good, natural, God-given powers of the soul; but, if our hearts connect with some evil or unnatural thought and commune with it, then the heart is captured and the passions inflamed. We have surrendered to evil , even if no action follows. The Lord wants our hearts pure. How, then, do we gain the blessings of purity of heart (Mt. 5:8)? It is up to us to fight against the provocations and the inflamed passions, realizing that only God can uproot them, which He is ready to do as we work with Him. Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of Thy Holy Spirit, O Christ God. |