As we move ahead in the Great Fast, having barely left its entry portals, we will no doubt begin to be affected by the efforts we make to remove things from our diets and from our 'normal' ways of doing things, and we will also be affected by our attempts to add things to our daily regimen. The body, which is worldly, will resist. It is the spirit which must overcome. The spirit is that portion which declares our heavenly citizenship, and in seeking that heavenly home, this season is one in which we attempt to bring the body into subjugation to the spirit.
Saint Basil wrote of this, teaching, "The Lord says, 'Be not as the hypocrites, of sad countenance, but anoint your head and wash your face.' Let us, therefore, exhibit the demeanor that we have been taught, not being doleful about the coming days, but maintaining a joyful attitude, as befits holy people. No one who desponds is crowned, no one who sulks sets up a trophy of victory. Do not be sullen while you are being healed. It would be absurd not to rejoice over the health of your soul. For satiety brings delight to the stomach, whereas fasting brings profit to the soul. Be of good cheer, for the Physician has given you a medicine that destroys sin. For just as the tapeworms that breed in the intestines are obliterated by certain very pungent drugs, so also fasting - a remedy truly worthy of its appellation - when introduced into the soul, kills off the sin that lurks deep within it."
No comments:
Post a Comment