Hierarch’s Divine Liturgy ( 11.11.2005 )
Today, in honor of the Holy Martyr Anastasia the Roman, Metropolitan Nahum of Strumica celebrated Divine Liturgy in the chapel of Saints Gregory Palamas and Elder Joseph the Spilaioti in the Vodoča monastery of Saint Leontius.
“You will fatigue greatly until you realize that prayer without attention and watchfulness is a waste of time; work without pay. You must set attention as a vigilant guard over all your inner and outer senses. Without attention, both the nous and the powers of the soul are diffused in vain and ordinary things, like useless water running down the streets. No one has ever found prayer without attention and watchfulness. No one was ever counted worthy to ascend to the things above without having despised the things below. Many times you pray and your mind wanders here and there, wherever it pleases, to everything that attracts it out of habit. It takes considerable force and a struggle to break the mind away from there so that it pays attention to the words of the prayer. Many times the enemy craftily creeps into your thoughts, your words, your hearing, your eyes, and you are unaware of it. When you do realize it later on, you need to struggle greatly to be cleansed. However, don’t give up fighting against the evil spirits. By the grace of God, you will be victorious, and then you will rejoice for all you had suffered.” (Elder Joseph the Spilaioti)
