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Παρασκευή 11 Μαΐου 2018

A swift entry to Paradise...

A swift entry to Paradise

When you establish yourself in the inner man by the remembrance of God, then Christ the Lord will enter and dwell within you. The two things go together.

And here is a sign for you, by which you can be certain that this glorious work has begun within you: you will experience a certain feeling of warmth towards the Lord. If you fulfill everything prescribed, then this feeling will soon begin to appear more and more often, and in time will become continuous. This feeling is sweet and beatific, and from its first appearance it stimulates us to desire and seek it, lest it leave the heart: for in it is Paradise.

Do you wish to enter this Paradise as quickly as possible? Here, then, is what you must do. When you pray, do not end your prayer without having aroused in your heart some feeling towards God, whether it be reverence, or devotion, or thanksgiving, or glorification, or humility and contrition, or hope and trust. Also when after prayer you begin to read, do not finish reading without having felt in your heart the truth of what you read. These two feelings - the one inspired by prayer, the other by reading - mutually warm one another; and if you pay attention to yourself, they will keep you under their influence during the whole day. Take pains to practice these two methods exactly and you will see for yourself what will happen. 

St. Theophan the Recluse, The Art of Prayer An Orthodox Analogy

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