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I know a man who, when he saw a woman of striking beauty, praised the Creator for her. The sight of her lit within him the love of God.

John Climacus

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More quotes by John Climacus

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The lover of silence draws close to God. He talks to Him in secret and God enlightens him.
John Climacus
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Meekness is an unchanging state of mind, which both in honor and dishonor remains the same. Meekness consists in praying sincerely and undisturbedly in the face of afflictions from one's neighbor. Meekness is a cliff rising from the sea of irritability, against which all the that waves that strive against it break, but which is itself never broken.
John Climacus
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Humility is the only virtue that no devil can imitate. If pride made demons out of angels, there is no doubt that humility could make angels out of demons.
John Climacus
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Someone who is elated with wine speaks the truth on all subjects, even without meaning to. In the same way, anyone who is inebriated with the spirit of penitence will never be able to tell lies.
John Climacus
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The friend of silence comes close to God. In secret he converses with him and receives his light.
John Climacus
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The slave of the belly ponders the menu with which to celebrate the feast. The servant of God, however, thinks of the graces that may enrich him.
John Climacus
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Become aware of God, in whose presence you are while you pray . . . Then take a formula of prayer and recite it with perfect attention both to the words you are saying and to the Person to whom you are saying them.
John Climacus
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When you are depressed, bear in mind the Lord's command to Peter to forgive a sinner seventy times seven (cf. Mt. 18:22). And you may be sure that He Who gave this command to another will Himself do very much more.
John Climacus
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Forgetting offences is a sign of sincere repentance. If you keep the memory of them, you may believe you have repented but you are like someone running in his sleep. Let no one consider it a minor defect, this darkness that often clouds the eyes even of spiritual people.
John Climacus
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Simplicity is an enduring habit within a soul that has grown impervious to evil thoughts.
John Climacus
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An angel fell from Heaven without any other passion except pride, and so we may ask whether it is possible to ascend to Heaven by humility alone, without any other of the virtues.
John Climacus
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He does not show humility who accuses himself (for who will not accept rebukes from himself?), but he who, being rebuked by another, does not decrease his love toward him.
John Climacus
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It can happen that when we are at prayer some brothers come to see us. Then we have to choose either to interrupt our prayer or to sadden our brother by refusing to answer him. But love is greater than prayer. Prayer is one virtue among others, whereas love contains them all.
John Climacus
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As fire does not give birth to snow, so those who seek honor here will not enjoy it in heaven... As those who climb a rotten ladder are in danger, so all honor, glory, and power are opposed to humility.
John Climacus
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The man who pets a lion may tame it, but the man who coddles the body makes it ravenous.
John Climacus
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When a man has found the Lord, he no longer has to use words when he is praying, for the Spirit Himself will intercede for him with groans that cannot be uttered.
John Climacus
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The first stage of this tranquility consists in silencing the lips when the heart is excited. The second, in silencing the mind when the soul is still excited. The goal is a perfect peacefulness even in the middle of the raging storm.
John Climacus
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A servant of the Lord stands bodily before men, but mentally he is knocking at the gates of heaven with prayer.
John Climacus
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Pride is the utter poverty of soul disguised as riches, imaginary light where in fact there is darkness.
John Climacus
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We know the utility of prayer from the efforts of the wicked spirits to distract us during the divine office and we experience the fruit of prayer in the defeat of our enemies.
John Climacus