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“If you can help a person – help, if you cannot help – Pray, if you do not know how to Pray – think about the person in a good way! And this will already be a help, because godly thoughts are also a weapon!”
“Do not be vengeful; do not return evil for evil. The evil from your neighbour is sufficient. If you return evil for evil to him, you will double the evil in the world. If you do not return evil for evil to him, he can still burn out his evil through repentance. Thus, you will reduce evil in the world through patience and forgiveness. Do not be vengeful; do not return evil for evil. “But wait on the Lord,” He sees and remembers and, in your time, even you and your evil doer will know that God sees and remembers. You ask yourself: What have I done in that I have not returned evil for evil? You have done the wisest deed that you could do in the given situation; you have relinquished your struggle to the One Stronger than yourself and the Stronger will victoriously fight for you. If you enter into battle with the evil doer you might be defeated. But God cannot be defeated. Therefore, relinquish your struggle to the Victorious and Undefeated One and patiently wait. Learn from a small child. If someone attacks a child in the presence of his parents, the child does not return the attack by attacking but rather looks at his parents and cries. The child knows that his parents will protect him. How is it that you do not know what a little child knows? Your Heavenly Parent is constantly beside you. That is why, do not be vengeful; do not return evil for evil rather look at your Parent and cry. Only in this way will you guarantee victory for yourself in conflict with evil men. O Almighty Lord Who said: “Vengeance is Mine” (Romans 12:19, Hebrews 10:30), protect us from the unrighteous ones by Your almighty hand and restrain us from vengeance. Counsel us by Your Holy Spirit that the greater heroism is to endure rather than to avenge.”
“Enemies have taught me to know what hardly anyone knows, that a person has no enemies in the world except himself.”
“Hiding your virtue and someone else’s flaw is the main spiritual wisdom.”
“When a person speaks to you, do not think about his body, do no look at his body, but look into his soul, check his soul, live into his soul and then you will understand him. And when you talk to a person, do not think about your own body or his, but think about your soul and his soul, repeating to yourself: “This is the soul that speaks to the soul, communicates with the soul.” And then you will feel the presence of God between you. And you will be understood and understand.”
“Do not put dirt on the one who has started cleansing himself but help him to be clean.”
“Love sacrifices itself, and does not feel that the sacrifice is giving but rather receiving.”
“Do good to those who wish to argue with you, and you will win the argument. One deed of compassion will bring the madman to his senses and will pacify the embittered man more quickly than many hours of conversation.”
“A good or bad word that we say about a person, even if said in the greatest secrecy, is felt by the whole universe and by the Creator of feelings.”
“A good deed is a miracle that makes two hearts happy.”
“Love your neighbour, because that will save you from the love of self that can destroy you.”
“People look beautiful only among people. This man seems beautiful to a person. And no one else in the world notices the beauty of man. Nature does not notice beautiful people. Animals, plants and other creatures feel only… Kindness.”
“Marriage is a great and wonderful mystery, one of the greatest mysteries of God’s dispensation. A pure and honourable marriage, in the fear of God, is indeed a vessel of the Holy Spirit.”
“Seven brothers were ill in one hospital. One recovered from his illness and got up and rushed to serve his other brothers with brotherly love, to speed their recovery. Be like this brother. Consider all men to be your brothers, and sick brothers at that. And if you come to feel that God has given you better health than others, know that it is given through mercy, so in health you may serve your frailer brothers.”
“What is the use of man in all his worldly learning, if he can not forgive his neighbour with one insulting word or glance?”
“The body can neither love nor hate. A body can not love a body. The ability to love belongs to the Soul. When the Soul loves the body, it is not love, but desire, passion. When the Soul loves the Soul not in God, it is either rapture or pity. When the Soul in God loves the Soul, regardless of appearance (beauty, ugliness), this is love. And in love there is life.”
“Absolutely nothing will help us if we are not lenient toward the weaknesses of men and forgive them. For how can we hope that God will forgive us if we do not forgive others?”
“Friendship is more necessary for the Soul than for the body. When you’re sad, the thought of a friend brings a smile to your face. On your death-bed, the presence of a friend beautifies the face of death. Friendship is always the life-giving breath of the Angel who accompanies us through life, who raises us when we fall and who inspires us when our strength fails.”
“Time and space make way for love.”