“I am with you always.”
Jesus Christ
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“There was only one brick, but it was composed of three elements. In the Holy Trinity there are three Persons, but only one God.”
Saint Spyridon the Wonderworker, Bishop of Tremithus
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“God became Man so that man can become god by Grace.”
Saint Athanasius the Great
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“I am the Trinity, simple and undivided, yet divided in Persons, and I am the Unity by Nature one,” says the Father and the Son and the Divine Spirit.
The Great Compline
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“We Venerate One God in Trinity and Three Persons in Unity.”
Saint Athanasius the Great
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“For darkness will not be darkness with You, and night shall be bright as day.”
Psalm 138
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“This is the way we should see Christ. He is our friend, our brother; He is whatever is good and beautiful. He is everything… He shouts it out… ‘I love you. I want you to enjoy life together with Me.'”
Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia
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“I cannot think on the One without quickly being encircled by the splendour of the Three; nor can I discern the Three without being straightway carried back to the One.”
Saint Gregory the Theologian
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“My Christ, Your Love knows no limits.”
Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia
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“It is God Who died. It was God’s Blood which was shed upon the Cross.”
Saint Nicholas Cabasilas
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“The Lord will then give you His Grace, and you will know Him through the Holy Spirit, and after death, when you enter into Paradise, there too, you will know the Lord through the Holy Spirit, as you knew Him on Earth.”
Saint Silouan the Athonite
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“We cry in faith: Holy God, that is the Father; Holy Mighty, that is the Son and Word, for He has bound the mighty devil and made him who had dominion over death powerless through the Cross and He has given us Life by trampling on him; Holy Immortal, that is the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, through Whom all Creation is made alive and cries out; Have mercy on us.”
Saint Germanus of Constantinople
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“Happiness is a pure heart, for such a heart becomes the Throne of God.”
Saint Nektarios of Aegina
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“O Lord teach me by the power of Your Holy Spirit the way in which I should walk.”
Saint Sophrony of Essex
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“When the Soul knows the Love of God by the Holy Spirit, then he clearly feels that the Lord is our own Father, the closest, dearest Father, the best. And there is no greater happiness than to love God with all the mind and heart, and our neighbour as ourself. And when this love is in the Soul, then all things bring joy to the Soul.”
Saint Silouan the Athonite
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“Dearly beloved, each word and deed of Our Saviour Jesus Christ is for us a lesson in virtue and piety. For this end also did He assume our nature, so that every man and every woman, contemplating as in a picture the practice of all virtue and piety, might strive with all their hearts to imitate His example. For this He bore our body, so that as far as we could we might repeat within us the manner of His life. And so therefore, when you hear mention of some word or deed of His, take care not to receive it simply as something that incidentally happened, but raise your mind upwards towards the sublimity of what He is teaching, and strive to see what has been mystically handed down to us.”
Saint Basil the Great
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“We must worship, not a God-bearing Man, but a flesh-bearing God.”
Saint Gregory the Theologian
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“I am your Father, I am your Brother, I am your Bridegroom, I am your Home, I am your Sustenance, I am your Clothing, I am your Root, I am your Foundation, Everything you want, I am. You have need for nothing. I will work for you, I have come to serve and not be served. I am your Friend, I am your Members, I am the Head, I am your Brother, I am your Sister, I am your Mother, I am all things. Only abide in Me. I have died for you.”
Saint John Chrysostom
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“God is the source of every virtue, as the sun is of daylight.”
Saint Mark the Ascetic
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“Everywhere and always God is with us, near to us and in us. But we are not always with Him, since we do not remember Him… Take upon yourself this task – to make a habit of such recollection.”
Saint Theophan the Recluse
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“Christ, finding the Holy Body and Soul of the Virgin, builds for Himself a Living Temple, and as He had willed, formed there a Man from the Virgin; and, putting Him on, this day came forth; unashamed of the lowliness of our nature.”
Saint John Chrysostom
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“For the Holy Spirit, sweet and gracious, draws the Soul to love the Lord, and the Soul loses her fear of suffering.”
Saint Silouan the Athonite
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“It is a fact that the Eternal God listens to us – corruptible as we are – more than we listen to Him.”
Saint Nikolai Velimirovich
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“When the Spirit of God descends upon a man and overshadows him with the fullness of His outpouring, then his Soul overflows with a joy not to be described, for the Holy Spirit turns to joy whatever He touches. The Kingdom of Heaven is peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Saint Seraphim of Sarov
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“The Son of God, Who in His compassion became Man, dies so far as His Body was concerned when His Soul was separated from His Body; but this Body was not separated from His Divinity, and so He raised up His Body once more and took it with Him to Heaven in Glory.”
Saint Gregory Palamas
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“The Cross is the haven of the storm-tossed, the guide and support of those that go astray, the Glory of Christ, the power of the Apostles and the Prophets, the strength of God’s athletes, the refuge of all men. We see it set before us in this time of fasting and we Venerate it.”
Lenten Triodion
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“With You, Lord, I will flee, that I may gain in You life in every place. The prison with You is no prison, for in You, man goes up into Heaven: the grave with You is no grave, for You are the Resurrection!”
Saint Ephrem the Syrian
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“The most precious thing on Earth is to know God.”
Saint Silouan the Athonite
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“We confess unity in Trinity and Trinity in unity, divided but without division and united but with distinctions.”
Saint Thalassios the Libyan
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“Our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.”
Saint Augustine of Hippo
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“It is easier to measure the entire sea with a tiny cup than to grasp the ineffable greatness of God with the human mind.”
Saint Basil the Great
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“Christ, the Divine Man from Heaven, purchases humanity’s life by His death.”
Saint Cyril of Alexandria
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“Accept Christ’s Conception and leap with joy; if not like John in the womb, then like David when the Ark came to rest. Be in awe of that Birth, by which you were released from the bonds of your birth and honour little Bethlehem which has led you back to Paradise.”
Saint Gregory Nazianzen
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“How very very sweet Jesus is! Full of joy, full of love, full of peace, full of serenity, full of rejoicing, full of elation. How very very sweet Jesus is!”
Saint Ephraim of Katounakia
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“Jesus is the Christ, Our Lord and Our God, who grants us faith in Him so that we may live”
Saint Thalassios the Libyan
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“When God became known to us in the flesh, He neither received the passions of human nature, nor did the Virgin Mary suffer pain, nor was the Holy Spirit diminished in any way, nor was the power of the Most High set aside in any manner, and all this was because all was accomplished by the Holy Spirit. Thus the power of the Most High was not abased, and the child was born with no damage whatsoever to the mother’s virginity.”
Saint Gregory of Nyssa
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“The wall that separated Heaven and Earth is destroyed; the sword that barred the way to the Tree of Life disappears. Unto man that had sinned comes his Creator, calling him into His embrace! By the mouths of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit cries out: ‘In Christ, be ye reconciled to God.’ You that had sinned came not to God, but the Son of God, before Whom you sinned, came to you! He calls everyone to Himself; He gives forgiveness to everyone who merely thirsts for this. For without the desire of man himself, without at least his little effort, God’s peace cannot settle in him. The Lord forces no one to come to Him, but calls everyone: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ Come all ye who are heavy laden with sins, who are exhausted from your labors and who do not find rest! You shall find that inner peace, which you will find nothing on earth more desirable than. The Soul will feel unearthly peace and joy.”
Saint John Maximovitch
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“Let Him be your Father Who is able and willing to labor with you in bearing the burden of your sins; and your Mother, contrition, which can cleanse you from impurity; and your Brother, your comrade Who toils and fights side by side with you in your striving toward the heights.”
Saint John Climacus
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O Trinity, my One God, Father, Son, and Spirit, grant the world Your Mercy.
A Prayer
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“The sun rising over the earth creates the daylight; and the Venerable and Holy Name of the Lord Jesus, shining continually in the mind, gives birth to countless intellections radiant as the sun.”
Saint Hesychios of Jerusalem
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“We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of all things, both visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God… Who for us men and for our Salvation came down and took flesh, that is, was born perfectly of the Holy Ever-Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit.”
Saint Epiphanius, Bishop of Cyprus
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“There is one God in the Heavens and on Earth: the Christian God, and the other gods are but dust and ashes!”
Saint Agnes the Holy Martyr
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“God can only be experienced through the Holy Spirit.”
Saint Silouan the Athonite
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“Even on the Cross He did not hide Himself from sight; rather, He made all creation witness to the presence of its Maker.”
Saint Athanasius the Great, Patriarch of Alexandria
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“This All-Holy Trinity we pious Orthodox Christians Glorify and Worship. He is the True God, and all other so-called gods are demons. And it is not we alone that believe, Glorify, and Worship the Holy Trinity, but Angels, Archangels, and all the Heavenly Hosts, as numerous as the stars of the Heavens and the grains of the sand of the sea unceasingly praise in Hymns and Worship and Glorify this All-Holy Trinity. Again, out of their love for the Holy Trinity men and women as numerous as the stars of the Heavens and the grains of the sand of the sea spilt their blood, and as many renounced the world and went to the deserts and led a life of Spiritual endeavour, and still as many lived in the world with temperance and virginity, fasting, Prayer, almsgiving and other practices; and all went to Paradise and rejoice forever.”
Saint Cosmas of Aitolia
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“I remember,” said Saint Ephraim of Katounakia, “that I was astonished by everywhere in the Holy Lands, but when I went to the Cave of Bethlehem, there, my heart was broken! It was torn into a thousand pieces! And I said, ‘How was God born in this place, in this cave, without any consolation, like one thrown out of the city? This God Who could make anything for Himself, but, without complaint, far from every worldly comfort, during the night (and the coldest night of the year), the longest night of the year, in a totally abandoned place, He Who created everything — Heaven and Earth — He was born in this place! “And when I returned [to his cell on Mount Athos], I entered in and saw my blankets (what blankets did He have?), and I saw what I had, and I was ashamed, and said: ‘If God was born in that cave, how could I need all of these things?’ I saw pots and pans…” Metropolitan Athanasios of Lemesou, who was relating the story, comments that: “If I were to describe his pots…not even our dogs would eat from them! And if I could describe his bed…not even our pigs would we put in them! “But, he perceived his place to be a luxury, over the top. And from then on, when they would tell him: “Elder, your cell is small.” He would reply: “God was born in a cave. If I thought of God’s cave, well then, what could I say regarding my own?”
Saint Ephraim of Katounakia
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“We are blessed, for Our Lord has come. He has come for our sake. He likened Himself to His people and came to His people for their sake. He came to save the sinners, which means us, for we are among the sinners. He came to redeem the dead, which means us, for we are among the dead. Blessed is the Lord Who came to save the sinners and to redeem the dead!”
Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk
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“Do you see this shared celebration and joy of ours, which the Lord bestowed on those who believe in Him with His Resurrection and Ascension? It sprang from affliction. Do you see this life, or rather, this immortality? It shone upon us through death. Do you see the Heavenly height to which Christ Ascended when He was taken up, and the sublime Glory with which He was Glorified according to the flesh? He attained to this by means of humility and dishonour…”
Saint Gregory Palamas
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“This Christmas night bestowed peace on the whole world, so let no one threaten. This is the night of the Most Gentle One, let no one be cruel. This is the night of the Humble One, let no one be proud. Now is the day of joy, let us not revenge. Now is the day of Good Will, let us not be mean. In this Day of Peace, let us not be conquered by anger. Today the Bountiful impoverished Himself for our sake, so, rich one, invite the poor to your table. Today we receive a Gift for which we did not ask, so let us give alms to those who implore and beg us. This present Day cast open the Heavenly doors to our Prayers, let us open our door to those who ask our forgiveness. Today the Divine Being took upon Himself the seal of our humanity, in order for humanity to be decorated by the Seal of Divinity.”
Saint Isaac the Syrian
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Glory to Christ’s Golgotha!
Holy Golgotha, Divine Golgotha, Sanctified with the Blood of Christ! We beg you, tell us how many thousands and millions of sinners, by the Grace of Christ, repentance and tears, you have cleansed and brought to fill up the Bridal Chamber of Paradise? With Your ineffable Love, Christ Our King, with Your Grace, you have filled all the Celestial Palaces with repentant sinners. You have Mercy on those here below, too, and save them. And who could render You worthy thanks, had he even the mind of an Angel?
Sinners, come quickly. Holy Golgotha is open and Christ is Merciful. Fall before Him and kiss His Holy Feet. He alone, as the Merciful One, can heal your wounds!
How Blessed we shall be when Christ the Most Merciful counts us worthy, with great humbleness, fear of God, and burning tears to wash His Spotless Feet and kiss them with love! Then Christ, the Merciful, will be pleased to wash away our sins and will open unto us the gates of Sweet Paradise.
We shall then, in sweet Paradise, with great joy, together with the Archangels and Angels, the Cherubim and the Seraphim and all the Saints, Glorify the Saviour of the World eternally, Our Most Sweet Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity Undivided and of One Essence.
Sinner Tychon,
Fiery tears are the key to Paradise.
Saint Tikhon of Mount Athos
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“After this, Christ Himself appeared to me in a Great Light. He was visible from the waist up. He looked at me with tremendous love and said, “I am the Resurrection, and the Life; he that believeth in Me, even if he dies, he shall live” (John 11:25). He was holding the Gospel in His left hand, open to the page where the same words were written.”
Saint Paisios the Athonite
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The facts themselves bear witness and his Divine acts of power teach those who doubt that he is True God, and his sufferings show that he is true man. And if those who are feeble in understanding are not fully assured, they will pay the penalty on his dread day.
If He was not flesh, why was Mary introduced at all? And if He was not God, whom was Gabriel calling Lord?
If He was not flesh, who was lying in the manger? And if He was not God, whom did the Angels come down and Glorify?
If He was not flesh, who was wrapped in swaddling clothes? And if He was not God, whom did the shepherds Worship?
If He was not flesh, whom did Joseph circumcise? And if he was not God, in whose honour did the star speed through the Heavens?
If He was not flesh, whom did Mary suckle? And if He was not God, to whom did the Magi offer gifts?
If He was not flesh, whom did Symeon carry in his arms? And if He was not God, to whom did he say, “Let me depart in peace”?
If He was not flesh, whom did Joseph take and flee into Egypt? And if He was not God, in whom were words “Out of Egypt I have called my Son” fulfilled?
If He was not flesh, whom did John baptise? And if he was not God, to whom did the Father from Heaven say, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased”?
If He was not flesh, who fasted and hungered in the desert? And if He was not God, whom did the Angels come down and serve?
If He was not flesh, who was invited to the wedding in Cana of Galilee? And if He was not God, who turned the water into wine?
If He was not flesh, in whose hands were the loaves? And if he was not God, who satisfied crowds and thousands in the desert, not counting women and children, from five loaves and two fishes?
If He was not flesh, who fell asleep in the boat? And if He was not God, who rebuked the winds and the sea?
If He was not flesh, with whom did Simon the Pharisee eat? And if He was not God, who pardoned the offences of the sinful woman?
If He was not flesh, who sat by the well, worn out by the journey? And if He was not God, who gave living water to the woman of Samaria and reprehended her because she had had five husbands?
If He was not flesh, who wore human garments? And if He was not God, who did acts of power and wonders?
If He was not flesh, who spat on the ground and made clay? And if He was not God, who through the clay compelled the eyes to see?
Saint Ephrem the Syrian
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“By the Cross on Golgotha, the prince of this world was cast out and an end was put to his authority. The weapon by which he was crushed became the Sign of Christ’s Victory.”
Saint John Maximovitch
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“Man’s Maker was made Man that He, Ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother’s breast; that the Bread might hunger, the Fountain thirst, the Light sleep, the Way be tired on its journey; that Truth might be accused of false witnesses, the Teacher be beaten with whips, the Foundation be suspended on wood; that Strength might grow weak; that the Healer might be wounded; that Life might die.”
Saint Augustine of Hippo
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“In Christianity Truth is not a philosophical concept nor is it a theory, a teaching, or a system, but rather, it is the living theanthropic hypostasis – the historical Jesus Christ (John 14:6). Before Christ men could only conjecture about the Truth since they did not possess it. With Christ as the Incarnate Divine Logos the Eternally complete Divine Truth enters into the world. For this reason the Gospel says: “Truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).””
Saint Justin Popovich of Serbia
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“Why is the God-man the fundamental truth of Orthodoxy? Because He answered all the questions that torture and torment the human spirit: the question of life and death, the question of good and evil, the question of Earth and Heaven, the question of truth and falsehood, the question of love and hate, the question of justice and injustice. In brief: the question of man and God.”
Saint Justin Popovich of Serbia
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“By His Resurrection, Christ conquered sin and death, destroyed Satan’s dark kingdom, freed the enslaved human race and broke the seal on the greatest Mysteries of God and man.”
Saint Nikolai Velimivoric
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“Truth is not a thought, not a word, not a relationship between things, not a law. Truth is a Person.”
Saint Nikolai Velimivoric
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“The Father was revealed to the sense of hearing; the Spirit was revealed to the sense of sight, and in addition to these, the Son was revealed to the sense of touch. The Father uttered His witness about the Son, the Son was Baptized in the water, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove hovered above the water. When John the Baptist witnessed and said about Christ, “Behold, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29), and when John immersed and Baptized the Lord in the Jordan, the mission of Christ in the world and the path of our Salvation was shown. That is to say: The Lord took upon Himself the sins of mankind and died under them [immersion] and became alive again [the coming out of the water]; and we must die as the old sinful man and become alive again as cleansed, renewed and regenerated. This is the Saviour and this is the path of Salvation.”
Saint Nikolai Velimivoric
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“Why did the Lord take only three disciples on Tabor and not all? Because Judas was not worthy to behold the Divine Glory of the Teacher, Whom he will betray and the Lord did not want to leave him [Judas] alone at the foot of the mountain so that the betrayer would not, by that, justify his betrayal. Why was our Lord transfigured on a mountain and not in a valley? So as to teach us two virtues: love of labor and godly-thoughts. For, climbing to the heights required labor and height represents the heights of our thoughts, i.e., godly-thoughts. Why was our Lord Transfigured at night? Because, the night rather than the day is more suitable for PraYer and godly-thoughts and because the night, by its darkness, conceals all the beauty of the Earth and reveals the beauty of the starry Heavens. Why did Moses and Elijah appear? In order to destroy the error of the Jews, as though Christ is one of the Prophets; Elijah or Jeremiah or some other that is why He appears as a King above the Prophets and that is why Moses and Elijah appear as His servants. Until then, our Lord manifested His Divine power many times to the disciples but, on Mount Tabor, He manifested His Divine nature. This vision of His Divinity and the hearing of the Heavenly witness about Him as the Son of God, should serve the disciples in the days of the Lord’s passion, in strengthening of an unwavering faith in Him and His final Victory.”
Saint Nikolai Velimivoric
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“His Resurrection is the proof of Eternal Life and the announcement of Eternal Life to all of mankind. His Resurrection drives away from us all confusion, gloom and sadness. His Resurrection instills serenity, courage and goodwill into the Souls of men.”
Saint Nikolai Velimivoric
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“How can it be other than right to worship the Body of the Lord, All-Holy and All-Reverend as it is, announced as it was by the Archangel Gabriel, formed by the Holy Spirit, and made the Vesture of the Word? It was at any rate a bodily hand that the Word stretched out to raise her that was sick of a fever (Mk. 1:31): a human voice that He uttered to raise Lazarus – the dead (Jn. 11:43); and, once again, stretching out His hands upon the Cross, He overthrew the prince of the power of the air, that now works (Eph. 2:2) in the sons of disobedience, and made the way clear for us into the Heavens.”
Saint John of Kronstadt
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“Anyone who thinks they can understand the Mysteries of God through logic is like someone trying to see Paradise through a telescope.”
Saint Paisios the Athonite
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“Seas dry up, mountains collapse, but the Glory of Christ remains for ever.”
Saint Gabriel, the New Confessor of Georgia