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Where Is Peace?
Abba Arsenius and the disciple “Learn where there is wisdom, where there is strength, where there is understanding; that you may know also where there is length of days and life, where there is light of the eyes and peace.” — Baruch 3:14 A brother came to Abba Arsenius and said: Disciple: Abba, I have come seeking wisdom. Arsenius: Why? Disciple: So that I may know what to do. The old man was silent. The brother waited. He had walked many days to hear a word from Arsenius, an
Father Charbel Abernethy
Sep 284 min read
The Things We No Longer Need to Hold
The strange freedom that begins when we cease clinging even to what was once given by God “He did not cling… but emptied himself.” — Philippians 2:6–7 There are things we cling to because we love them. There are other things we cling to because we are afraid of who we would be without them. The distinction is not always apparent. A vocation may be received from God. A work may be blessed by God. A place, a relationship, a responsibility, even a particular way of understanding
Father Charbel Abernethy
Sep 265 min read
The World After You Have Died to It
Phronema and the Recovery of Wonder “What is a merciful heart? It is a heart on fire for the whole of creation.” — St. Isaac the Syrian There is a way of leaving the world that is really an attempt to escape it. And there is another way of leaving the world that finally allows us to see it. The Fathers went into the desert not because they despised creation. They went because they understood how difficult it is to see anything clearly while we are trying to possess it. The pa
Father Charbel Abernethy
Sep 215 min read
The Life We Cannot Save
The Cross, the loss of the false self, and the Kingdom already breaking into the world “Whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” — Mark 8:35 There comes a moment in the spiritual life when Christ no longer permits us merely to admire Him. He says: Follow Me. And the road upon which He walks is unmistakable. It is the road of relinquishment. “Let him deny himself and take up his cross.” These words can sound severe until we begin to understand what Ch
Father Charbel Abernethy
Sep 204 min read
When Certainty Is No Longer a Criterion
The freedom that comes when the soul no longer asks where it will be safest, but where it can belong wholly to God “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.” — Psalm 37:5 There comes a point in the spiritual life when certainty is no longer a criterion. Not because certainty is undesirable, nor because prudence has ceased to matter. Rather, the soul discovers that there are moments when every road disappears into mist. No choice guarantees security. No deci
Father Charbel Abernethy
Sep 185 min read
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