Saint Anne Orthodox Church

We continue to develop our spiritual understanding based on the teachings of the blessed elder Joseph the Hesychast. The Holy Fathers stress the necessity of keeping to a spiritual regime, while they describe disorder in blackest of colours. St Ephrem the Syrian said: ‘Those who have no guidance fall like leaves’ which points to the lack of any regime.

Developing on this we quote from the teachings of Elder Joseph the Hesichast:

“One of the main characteristics of the spiritual warriors was their strictness in keeping a rule of life. The beginning of acquiring character and personhood lies in insistence on following an ordered and systematic way of life. By making the decision to maintain an invariable regime, man acquires resolve and bravery, something very important and essential in our life since our contest is struggle, and indeed, a fierce one. The serpent who ’prowls round like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour’ (1. Pet. 5:8) can be confronted only with bravery and strength of resolve. There is another equally imperative reason for order in keeping to a regime: the mutability of man’s unstable character since the fall of Adam. Also, the general sinfulness which each of us carries with us dulls our courage and resolve. Equally, inexperience, ignorance, the unkown form of the invisible war and the inequality of this struggle naturally increase one’s discouragement. No other human factor is such an aid to success as our firm and steady resolve and a carefully worked-out regime”