“The man who cultivates virtue realizes the depth of sin and not the opposite” (Emilianos Simonopetritis)
The humble will understand the damage of pride.
The good understand the miss of vengeance.
Τηε self-controlled the uncleanliness of prostitution.
Τhe merciful will understand the captivity of avarice.
The one who tastes the divine comfort understands the misery that brings hope alone in human comfort.
Virtue enlightens the man to understand the size of the sin.
The light makes you understand what darkness is.
Understanding the speech of Truth in your life, makes you see the wrongs as Saint Antony did.
The Saint slapped Areios, because of love in the first Ecumenical meeting. He didn’t caress him.
He slapped him, seeing a creature of God being lured, because of the sharpness of his mind, his knowledge, and his ego, into roads of lies, self-destruction, and illusion. He slapped Areios because he saw the danger on the people of God.
Whoever loves is not only caressing. True love needs union with God as the Lord said “who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (Timothy 2:4)
In order for love to be true must handle -with its presence- the word of the truth aright otherwise is vain, cunning, crippled, and malevolent.
Arch. Pavlos Papadopoulos
