The Noonday Demon
The giving of ourselves over to depression
There are times when we are tempted by what has been
called the Noonday Demon, and we struggle with depression. It is during periods
like this that depression can take on a life of it's own, and we feel helpless
and overwhelmed.
Depression is sometimes a matter of a chemical
imbalance that may need the attention of a physician. However, it can also be a
case of giving ourselves over to negative thinking, which in itself can be the
catalyst to periods of deep depression.
The Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica taught that "Our
life depends on the kind of thoughts we nurture. If our thoughts are peaceful,
calm, meek, and kind, then that is what our life is like. If our attention is
turned to the circumstances in which we live, we are drawn into a whirlpool of
thoughts and can have neither peace nor tranquility".
Saint Seraphim of Sarov said that if we "acquire
peace, a thousand around us will be saved", for having been created in the
image of God, and we are part of the Divine thought that was made material in
time and space. We not only influence those around us with our thoughts, but we
even influence the cosmos. If we focus on the negative, those negative thoughts
impact everyone around us, and even the whole world. The Elder Thaddeus tells
us we can be either very good, or very bad, depending on the thoughts and
desires we breed.
There is a lot that is wrong with the world, but it
begins with us. If there is to be peace in our world, it must begin with me. If
hatred, anger, envy, lust, and spite, are to end, it must end with me. When we
allow destructive thoughts to destroy our peace, the peace around us is
destroyed. We can not blame the world, or even those around us, for that which
happens around us, radiates from us. Blame for all that is wrong with the
world, can not be placed beyond our own hearts.
Love
in Christ,
Abbot
Tryphon
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