Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Sophrony Sakharov

Quote by Sophrony Sakharov

“Contemporary man has not been able to organize his life in such a way as to allow himself sufficient leisure- free time- for prayer and the contemplation of Divine Being. The reason for this is covetousness, that passion which St. Paul called 'idolatry' and St. John Climacus 'the daughter of unbelief ... blasphemy against the Gospel, a turning aside from God'. True Christian 'poverty' is unknown and uncomprehend by the world. And if we go on to say that this spirit of non-acquisition grows and develops until it embraces not only the material but 'intellectual' possessions too, to the majority of people this will seem madness. Men regard their learning as spiritual riches, not suspecting the existence of a higher knowledge and riches quite incomparable, since they bring with them a deep peace. In pursuing material comfort men have lost spiritual comfort. The materialistic dynamism which dominates our century is rapidly acquiring a demoniacal character; which is not surprising, since it is nothing else but the dynamics of sin.”

Quote by Sophrony Sakharov

Work

Truth and Life

Browse quotes and source details for this work. more

Author

Sophrony Sakharov

Browse famous quotes and profile details for Sophrony Sakharov. more

You May Also Like

“Virtue and vice are very personal. It is a moral judgement of ourselves, of our behavior and attitude. It's so personal that we could share this only with a spiritual father and through him with God. It's a judgment that we give ourselves. It's an inner aspect, and not public. The confession of a sin is secret. Not because it's shameful (it is), but it should be secret because it concerns the deepest and innermost levels of the soul. It's a dialogue of the soul with itself, making this judgement ( or hesitation of judgement ) open to God.”

“There was once a very, very proud man who sought, with all of his might, to beat God the Almighty in something...anything. He tried everything imaginable, but always, he failed miserably. His efforts continued to no avail, until one day he heard a voice, and it said, 'God is an awful sinner...' Desperate to win at something, he chose to listen to the voice. He chose sin. He out-sinned God with flying colors, and laughed until his heart stopped beating. Ultimately, his victory against God claimed his life; because sin leads only to Death.”

“From the very beginnings of our story as followers of Jesus, we have recognized and honoured the fundamental truth that every person is made in the image of God. Yet, while we are quick to celebrate those aspects of the divine image with which we personally relate, we all too quickly reject and denounce those that are different than ourselves as suspect or lesser than or sinful.”