"Why does striving for imaginary 'freedoms' lead to slavery? The reason is simply that we cannot give evil free rein, because when it is not restrained in any way, it easily enslaves people."
"One who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and conforms himself to His divine teaching becomes truly free, that is, he is delivered from the power of sin, ceases to be a slave of the devil, and becomes a child of God."
"The horror of man's predicament lies in the derangement that has afflicted his mind. It seems to him that he is doing everything himself, that he is acting completely independently, but in reality he is doing only the will of his lord, the devil."
"What then is the true criterion of an authentic and wholly spiritual love for God? It is given to us in the Gospel. God clearly said, If you love Me, keep My commandments (John 14:15). He who does not love Me does not keep My words (John 14:24). Clear and simple."
The laborers and staff of Holy Trinity Publications extend our heartfelt congratulations on this Feast of the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God to the Hierarchs, clergy, and faithful of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.
"What then is the true criterion of an authentic and wholly spiritual love for God? It is given to us in the Gospel. God clearly said, If you love Me, keep My commandments (John 14:15). He who does not love Me does not keep My words (John 14:24). Clear and simple."
This is where the spirit of self-asserting human pride has led us, along with that 'new faith' that has been persistently propagandized among us in recent years in place of the Christian faith, this 'faith in oneself' and 'faith in one’s own god' rather than in the One True God."
"The spirit of Christ is the spirit of humility , the antithesis of the spirit of self-asserting human pride. 'Learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart' (Matt 11:29)—these words should be the life’ s motto of every Christian."