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Priest Pavel Serzhantov

The Lord Punished Them and They Repented<br>
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The Lord Punished Them and They Repented

A Reflection on the Book of Joshua

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

In the nomadic camps of the desert, in the fields and pastures, in the cities of the Promised Land, they heard the Lord, and they turned away from God’s path. The Lord punished them and they repented, and the inimitable story of salvation continued. God was with them … and He is near now.

St. Gregory Palamas: A Rare Case in Tradition
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Рейтинг: 8.7|Голосов: 19

St. Gregory Palamas: A Rare Case in Tradition

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

An ascetic who has been accounted worthy of passionlessness can thereafter taste of the experience of pure prayer. His mind “transcends all things” in prayer and renounces all perceptions of created beings and adores the Uncreated God, and the yet higher union with God is possible. Those who have been illumined by the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, have come to know Him and contemplate the Uncreated Light.

Two Holy Hierarchs—Like the Three Holy Hierarchs
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Рейтинг: 9.8|Голосов: 12

Two Holy Hierarchs—Like the Three Holy Hierarchs

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

Our preferences… Well, how can we get by without them? They apply both to the everyday side of life, and to the most exalted side—the religious.

St. Silouan the Athonite: Holy Russian Hero
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Рейтинг: 9.1|Голосов: 28

St. Silouan the Athonite: Holy Russian Hero

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

“I read St. Symeon the New Theologian and my soul grieves over how far I am from a real Christian life. When I read Elder Silouan, then my soul is comforted in the Lord and rejoices in Him Who loves me, a sinner.”

Ceaseless Prayer, Through the Apostle Paul’s Personal Letter
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Ceaseless Prayer, Through the Apostle Paul’s Personal Letter

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

Then the service ends. The pilgrim leaves the church and heads to the feast in the refectory. But at the same time, he hears the Vespers hymns in his mind—“Lord I have cried unto Thee, hearken unto me.”

The Evangelist Mark—Our Contemporary
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Рейтинг: 4|Голосов: 5

The Evangelist Mark—Our Contemporary

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

Look at how dynamic the Gospel of Mark is, just like our life now. One event in it is replaced by another, one after another, and all of this without any pause, without delay; but there is no hustle and bustle in sight. At the same time, there is a tangible, high degree of dynamism in all the descriptions. Therefore, a strong bond is maintained between the rapidly advancing Gospel events. Separate stories are quickly lined up in a sequence of events as Christ’s chosen path, and not scattered in a flash before the reader as incoherent episodes from the life of ancient eastern cities.

The Venerable Poet on the Prose of Life
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The Venerable Poet on the Prose of Life

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

There are considerations of both high and more ordinary things in St. Symeon’s hymns. These reflections put the mundane into a spiritual perspective, prompting me to think about who I am, and whether I have found my place.

John Cassian: Half-Heretic or Saint?
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Рейтинг: 9.8|Голосов: 5

John Cassian: Half-Heretic or Saint?

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

St. John Cassian expressed not simply his own theological opinion, but gave voice to the experience of the hesychastic monks’ ascetical experience of synergy. Striving for their own salvation, the hesychasts saw and understood that asceticism is salvific then and only then when two powers are at work within it in harmony—the Divine and the human. God and man are co-workers in the cause of salvation; their synergy leads sinners into the Heavenly Kingdom.

The Apple of the Almighty’s Eye
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Рейтинг: 10|Голосов: 2

The Apple of the Almighty’s Eye

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

As long as there are repenting sinners on the earth, as long as there is a remnant of the people of God, the history of salvation is not finished. The Lord is continuing to save people. Do we not read about the apple of the eye of the Most High in the New Testament? The Savior says in a parable of the Heavenly Kingdom, For many are called, but few are chosen (Mt. 22:14). The Lord highly values every one of us; the hairs are numbered on the heads of the elect.

The Most-Discerning Abba Isaac the Syrian
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Рейтинг: 6.6|Голосов: 5

The Most-Discerning Abba Isaac the Syrian

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

“A Word on the Subtle Stage of Discernment” by Abba Isaac the Syrian speaks of a passion’s activity, about the assault and consent... It’s a miracle how discerning St. Isaac the Syrian is! He traces all the various ways a sinful thought takes root in the human soul. Abba Isaac reveals the gift of spiritual discernment in all its might.

Simple Images of the Kingdom of Heaven
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Simple Images of the Kingdom of Heaven

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

How can ordinary people like us feel what this Kingdom of Heaven is?

The Prophet Hosea’s Personal Life
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The Prophet Hosea’s Personal Life

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

The Lord showed through the prophet and through his family how the God-chosen nation lives, and what awaits them. The scene was rather horrifying: The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take to thyself a wife of fornication, and children of fornication: for the land will surely go a-whoring in departing from the Lord (Hos. 1:2).

The Favorite Book of Neo-Pentecostals
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The Favorite Book of Neo-Pentecostals

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

The book is small, only three chapters of the Old Testament. In the Neo-Pentecostals’ point of view, the book of Joel confirms their way of life.

Married Life and Asceticism
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Рейтинг: 9.8|Голосов: 6

Married Life and Asceticism

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

It all began with our forefathers, Adam and Eve. They received a commandment in paradise not to taste of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (cf. 2:17). The commandment not to “taste of this or that” is quite well known to any Orthodox Christian. This is the commandment to fast—the most ancient, beginning factor of family life.

On the Passion of Christ and the Book of Job
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Рейтинг: 8.7|Голосов: 6

On the Passion of Christ and the Book of Job

Deacon Pavel Serzhantov

The Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament. The Book of Job reveals its meaning in an amazing way. It is read during the church services during Great Lent. This book prepares us to meet with the Suffering and Risen Christ. What does the Old Testament tell us about? It tells us about the interrelationship between God and man, just as do all the other Old Testament books. The Lord rules the world, rewards the righteous, and punishes sinners. However, as we can see from the Book of Job, not every affliction is punishment for sin.

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