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Even Now, Return
The Holy Prophet Joel and the Mercy Hidden Within Repentance “Even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart… Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful.” — Joel 2:12–13 There are two words in the prophecy of Joel that contain almost the whole mystery of repentance. Even now. We usually imagine repentance beginning somewhere else. Earlier. Before the damage was done. Before the years were lost. Before the ha
Father Charbel Abernethy
3 days ago5 min read
The Grammar of the Heart — Reflection IV
When Repentance Ceases to Be Fear “Repentance is the trembling of the soul before the gate of Paradise.” — St. Isaac the Syrian There is a kind of repentance that leaves us staring at ourselves. We examine our failures. We measure our guilt. We rehearse what we have done. We wonder whether God has forgiven us, whether we have repented sufficiently, whether some hidden severity remains behind the mercy we have been promised. God may be present in such repentance, but often at
Father Charbel Abernethy
6 days ago6 min read
Sitting at the Feet of Mercy
Rereading St. Isaac and discovering how quietly a vision of God can become the language of the heart “As a grain of sand cannot counterbalance a great quantity of gold, so in comparison God’s use of justice cannot counterbalance His mercy.” — St. Isaac the Syrian I have been rereading Desire and Wonder, and something has surprised me. It is not primarily the arguments that remain with me, nor even the passages I remember laboring over. What I notice now is the tenderness. The
Father Charbel Abernethy
Oct 125 min read
She Saw Only Jesus
The Freedom of a Heart That Has Forgotten the Room “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” — Luke 7:50 Everyone in the room is looking at the woman. The woman is looking only at Jesus. Perhaps this is the most beautiful thing about her. She enters the house already known. Her reputation has arrived before her. Simon does not need to ask who she is. He knows—or thinks he knows. A sinner. The others surely know as well. But she seems almost unaware of them. She does not explai
Father Charbel Abernethy
Oct 125 min read
Will You Say the Name into Darkness?
The Poverty of Prayer When Nothing Answers “Blessed is the man who knows his own weakness, because this knowledge becomes for him the foundation, root, and beginning of all goodness.” — St. Isaac the Syrian There comes a moment in the life of prayer when even tears seem rich. At least tears can be felt. They tell us that something within us is still moving toward God. The heart aches. It longs. It grieves. It reaches through its sorrow toward the One it loves. But there is a
Father Charbel Abernethy
Oct 45 min read
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