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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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Saint John Climacus
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More quotes by 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.
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The lover of silence draws close to God. He talks to Him in secret and God enlightens him.
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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.
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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.
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I would not consider my spirituality worthwhile that wants to walk in sweetness and ease and run from the imitation of Christ.
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The man who pets a lion may tame it, but the man who coddles the body makes it ravenous.
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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.
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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.
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Obedience is the burial of the will and the resurrection of humility.
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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.
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Pride is the utter poverty of soul disguised as riches, imaginary light where in fact there is darkness.
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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.
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A proud monk needs no demon. He has turned into one, an enemy to himself.
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Often the Lord heals vainglory by dishonor.
John Climacus
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Repentance lifts a man up. Mourning knocks at heaven's gate. Holy humility opens it.
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Ascend, my brothers, ascend eagerly. Let your hearts' resolve be to climb. Listen to the voice of the one who says: 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of our God' (Isa. 2:3), Who makes our feet to be like the feet of the deer, 'Who sets us on the high places, that we may be triumphant on His road' (Hab. 3:19).
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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.
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The friend of silence comes close to God.
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Confession is like a bridle that keeps the soul which reflects on it from committing sin, but anything left unconfessed we continue to do without fear as if in the dark.
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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