You ask: where should this go? – What, isn’t it labeled?! There we go again! That lazy Dziunio messed something up again!… Just put it here, let it lie here on the side… The elder will come (he knows what these thoughts-medications are for and why) and will tell you where to put it. Oh, I see that today Dziunio will have birch porridge for dinner again (sometimes porridge doesn’t help, so we have to resort to “book therapy”)… As the grandmothers say: poor Dziunio – because he’s foolish, and foolish – because he’s poor… Let me at least take a look at what we have here?
Someone is interested if it is permissible to strive for perfection in spiritual life? We are called to perfection, to holiness, to deification—to be pleasing to the Lord Jesus Christ, to be perfect-merciful as the Heavenly Father is perfect! Therefore, it is necessary not only to desire but also to strive for perfection in humility, that is, to be capable of fulfilling all of God’s will, to perceive all reality as God’s Love, as God’s Gift, to consider oneself in the feeling of the heart worse and lower than all people and all creation (“Whoever wants to be first, let them be the servant and the last of all”, “Learn from Me (your Lord and God – gentleness and humility), for I am gentle and humble in heart”).
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Why is it never permissible to speak ill of anyone? – First of all, because when you speak ill of someone or about someone’s evil, you sow evil in the hearts of people (and by the spiritual law: what you sow, you will also reap); since you sow evil (judge, condemn, pronounce judgment within yourself and even publicly), – this is a sign that you are deceitful, evil, malicious… You cannot recount the sins of others (whether near or far, in a word, anyone) (and if you want to warn someone about evil, sin, then speak about evil, sin in general, in principle, discussing its essence, but never about a specific person (because you can cause the listener to dislike or hate them, – and this is already a grave sin (judgment, murder); and this person (sinner, criminal) at the time of the conversation (about them as a sinner) may already be a great Saint, and you, condemning them, mislead people, sowing evil prejudice, and like the deceiver, set people against each other! Again, I say – the person may have already repented (for repentance (turning around – changing the direction of movement: from moving to hell to moving to Paradise) takes only a moment! For example, the bullet of a terrorist-killer who shot at a person (he has already killed them in himself – the moment he pulled the trigger, he is already a murderer (regardless of the outcome of the shot)), has not yet reached the victim, and he has already repented; or a suicide jumper from a bridge or the 20th floor, – before reaching the ground, they may have already repented, and finish the sin (of course, not voluntarily, unwillingly, even against their enlightened by repentance will), being already holy… (that is, the sin is not yet completed, and the sinner may already have repented!!!)!!! Glory to You, Merciful Father, who gave us all (maniacs, terrorists, perverts, vile sinners…) repentance for salvation! Glory to You!). The elder said – cover the sins of others (all people), and the Lord will cover yours! Do not judge, and no one will ever judge you! Do to others what you want them to do to you! Speak only good about all people (and above all, think good of everyone; always have a good, merciful thought about everyone and everything), sow love in people’s hearts, not hostility and evil prejudice! Let us watch over ourselves!
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“You have heard that it was said to those of old: An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” In reality, it is inconvenient to strike the right cheek (with the right hand); therefore, it can be understood this way: if someone slanders you or unjustly troubles you, persecutes you, does evil (it is harder to condemn, wrong, punish the innocent – “inconvenient to strike-punish”, because you have to fabricate a case, lie, deceive, bear false witness, etc.) – this will be a blow to the right cheek (of the righteous, innocent – with the left, unjust, not-right hand). Do not complain but endure this blow patiently, turning the left cheek, that is, remembering your wrongful, “left”, sinful deeds (they are not hitting the cheek (right or left), but “you”, the sinner, the debtor…). And if, perhaps (for the sake of the weakness of the flesh we say: “perhaps”), you are now not guilty, then in the past you have sinned greatly; and thus you will realize and acknowledge that you deserve punishment-treatment, that this suffering is not accidental, not foreign, but yours, given to you by God for salvation-healing (from sin (the pride of egoism) or a particular symptom of sin (that is, sins), for the sake of quelling some inflamed passion)!
So accept all treatment from the Lord (God of Love, Who Divinely loves you every moment), especially the bitter, painful (from egoism-pride) medicines (various sorrows and “injustices”); do not forget that you are a sinner, an irreparable debtor, incurably (by human means) sick (with death-godlessness). Therefore, the Merciful Lord suggests how to humbly, meekly endure the healing “injustices” – though your egoism-pride screams about the injustice to you, about your innocence (while we each before each other are guilty in everything!). The Lord suggests (to the blind egoist): turn the left cheek, that is, remember your sins (though you now seem innocent, feeling no guilt – but what about yesterday, a year ago?…)! The wise thief on the day he was crucified also did not kill, torture, rob, orphan… he was, like other “good”, moral people, but on the cross he acknowledged his sins and said: “according to my deeds I am suffering these torments today and accepting such a shameful, terrible crucifixion death” (see Luke 23)! “I deserve worse (various more severe injustices, sorrows)”, “according to my deeds” – this is the necessary minimum for the novice-catechumen, and then he must glorify God for His Love, because what is happening (sorrows, injustices…) is not “for something”, but “for something”: for salvation, treatment, for the sake of Happiness-Bliss (humility, with which we accept Christ, the Holy Spirit)! Glory to You, God! Glory to You, God! Glory to You, God! Therefore, never ask: for what?! why?! (if we understand nothing about earthly medicine, then what can we say about Heavenly, Spiritual, and tire the Doctor-Savior with questions! The Lord reveals His secrets and paths to the Spirit-bearers, those who can accept it (see John 16:12), and the catechumen, having a carnal mind for now, understands nothing Spiritual. Later, from the perspective of eternity and the understanding of the expediency of all sorrows, injustices, he will glorify God in the Holy Spirit: “You are righteous (merciful), O Lord, in all that You have done to us” (see Revelation 15:3)). Do not justify yourself, do not blame anyone, do not judge, do not condemn, but be grateful, that is, love your enemies, for they are your greatest benefactors! Without the good will of God-Love, no one will even say an evil word to you, let alone a hair from your head will fall if it is not beneficial to you!