Fruit of Quietude

by Georgios I. Mantzarides

Today the human person is caught up in an intense activism. He has so fashioned his way of life, that he has no time to pray, to cease and be still to know God (Ps. 45:11). Moments of serenity are rare and difficult to find in his life. With the contemporary means of transportation and telecommunications, man comes in touch, directly or indirectly, with the rest of the world so fast, as never before. People know so much and communicate with so many other people. But in the end, however, people are ignorant of and overlook the most important person - their own personal being. Quietude, according to St. Basil the Great, is the beginning of the purification of the soul. No one can know themselves, recognize their faults, their weaknesses, their sins, nor even repent unless they first find the stillness of quietude. This constitutes the best therapeutic method for the healing of the human personality, that can lead one to become familiar with the grace of God. The human person can be perfected and sanctified by experiencing the divine grace in the quietude of their heart.

With reference to: Hesychasm, St. Gregory Palamas, St. Cosmas Aitolos, Elder Joseph, Elder Sophronios, St. Paisios and Elder Ephraim Katounakiotis.

Edition #1 published in 2023 by Alexander Press.
ISBN: 978-1-990444-02-9