Where there is humility and remembrance of God, which give rise to sobriety and watchfulness, attention and perseverance in prayer directed against the enemies, there is the place of God1, that is, the heaven of the heart2, where the army of demons fears to linger, because God abides in that place.
Philotheus of Sinai, Forty Neptic Chapters, 4. In Filocalía de los padres népticos, vol. 2, Spanish trans. Juan María de la Torre, Ediciones Monte Cassino, 2017, p. 501.
1 Cf. Gen 28:16-17.
2 kardiakòs ouranós.
How important humility is! Being aware of our weakness, of our dependence in so many respects, makes the remembrance of God easier. When I do not forget that I am a creature, that in everything I need His grace, that my life is always in His hands, that I am not the master of the moment when I must depart from this earth, the remembrance of God arises naturally. And living a sober, restrained, moderate life, with vigilant attention and in prayer, becomes much easier. The demons Philotheus speaks of, I understand them mainly as this essential forgetfulness, or as letting myself be dazzled by vain desires, by mirages or fantasies that might make me believe that something other than the divine presence can fill my heart.
Comment by Mario
elsantonombre.org
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