On this day we commemorate our Holy Father JOHN OF THE LADDER (649). We also commemorate St. Eutychius of Constantinople (582), St. Methodius, Equal-to-the-Apostles, enlightener of the Slavs (885), the 120 Martyrs of Persia (344-347), St. Platonida of Nisibis (308), the Martyrs Jeremiah and Archilias the Presbyter, St. Gregory of Mt. Athos, who instructed St. Gregory Palamas (1308), St. Gregory the Sinaite (1346), New Martyr Nicholas of Lesbos, New Monk-martyr Gennadius of Dionysiou (Mt. Athos), who suffered at Constantinople (1818), New Martyrs Manuel, Theodore, George, Michael, and another George, of Samothrace (1835), and St. Sebastian, Elder of Optina (1966).
Prayer, by reason of its nature, is the converse and union of man with God, and by reason of its action upholds the world and brings about reconciliation with God; it is the mother and also the daughter of tears, the propitiation for sins, a bridge over temptations, a wall against afflictions, a crushing of conflicts, a work of angels, the food of all the bodiless spirits, future gladness, unending activity, a source of virtues, a means of obtaining graces, invisible progress, food of the soul, enlightenment of the mind, an ax against despair, a demonstration of hope, a cure for sorrow, the reduction of anger, the mirror of progress, the disclosure of stature, an indication of one's condition, a revelation of future things, and a sign of glory. For him who truly prays, prayer is the court, the judgment hall and the tribunal of the Lord before the judgment to come.
Let us rise and listen to what that holy queen of the virtues cries with a loud voice and says to us: 'Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and ye shall find rest for your souls and healing for your wounds. For my yoke is easy and is a sovereign remedy for great sins.'
- When you are going to stand before the Lord, let the garment of your soul be woven throughout with the thread of obliviousness to wrongs. Otherwise, prayer will bring you no benefit.
- Let your prayer be completely simple. For both the publican and the prodigal son were reconciled to God by a single phrase.
- Before all else, let us list sincere thanksgiving first on the scroll of our prayer. On the second line, we should put confession and heartfelt contrition of soul. Then let us present our petition to the King of all. This is the best way of prayer, as it was shown to one of the brethren by an angel of the Lord.
- If you have ever been under trial before an earthly judge, you will not need any other pattern for your attitude in prayer. But if you have never stood before a judge yourself and have not seen others being cross-questioned, then learn at least from the way the sick implore the surgeons when they are about to be operated on.
- Do not be over-sophisticated in the words you use when praying, because the simple and unadorned lisping of children has often won the heart of their Heavenly Father.
- Do not try to be verbose when you pray, lest your mind be distracted in searching for words. One word of the publican propitiated God, and one cry of faith saved the thief. Loquacity in prayer often distracts the mind and leads to fantasy, whereas brevity makes for concentration [Ed. Note: This is why the Jesus Prayer "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me" is perhaps the simplest and best prayer.]
- Try to lift up, or, rather, to enclose your thought within the words of your prayer, and if in its infant state it wearies and falls, lift it up again. Instability is natural to the mind, but God is powerful to establish all things. If you persevere indefatigably in this labor, He who sets the bounds to the sea of the mind will visit you too, and during your prayer will say to the waves, "Thus far shall ye come and no further."
- The beginning of prayer consists in banishing by a single thought the thoughts that assault us at the very moment that they appear; the middle stage consists in confining our minds to what is being said and thought; and its perfection is rapture in the Lord.
- We who are passionate must constantly pray to the Lord. For all the dispassionate have progressed from passion to dispassion.
- Do not say, after spending a long time at prayer, that nothing has been gained; for you have already gained something. And what higher good is there than to cling to the Lord and persevere in unceasing union with Him?
- Do not admit any sensory fantasies during prayer, lest you become subject to derangement.
- Be very merciful if you care about prayer. For through mercy , [you] shall receive a hundredfold, and the rest in the future life.
- Do not abandon prayer until you see that, by Divine providence, the fire and water have diminished. For perhaps you will not have such a moment for the remission of your sins again in all your life.
- Ask with tears, seek with obedience, knock with patience. For thus he who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him that knocks it shall be opened (Matthew 7:8).
About the year 626, the Persians, Avars, and Slavs came with a great host and besieged the imperial city of Constantinople while the Emperor Heraclius and the main body of the Byzantine army were absent in the East. Enemy ships filled the sea, especially the Golden Horn, and on land the adversaries were ready for attack with foot-soldiers, horses, and engines of war. Though the citizens courageously withstood them, yet they were few in number and would be unable to repulse the attack of such a great host. Hence, they could not count on any other means of salvation, except the protection of the Theotokos. And truly, suddenly a violent tempest broke up all the ships and submerged them, and the bodies of the invaders were cast out near the Blachernae quarter of the city where the famous Church of the Theotokos stood. Taking courage from this, the people went forth from the city and repulsed the remaining forces, who fled out of fear. In 673, the city was miraculously delivered yet again, this time from an invasion of the Arabs. Then in 717-718, led by the Saracen general Maslamah, the Arab fleet laid siege once more to the city. The numerical superiority of the enemy was so overwhelming that the fall of the Imperial City seemed imminent. But then the Mother of God, together with a multitude of the angelic hosts, appeared suddenly over the city walls. The enemy forces, struck with terror and thrown into a panic at this apparition, fled in disarray. Soon after this, the Arab fleet was utterly destroyed by a terrible storm in the Aegean Sea on the eve of the Annunciation, March 24, 718. Thenceforth, a special "feast of victory and of thanksgiving" was dedicated to celebrate and commemorate these benefactions. In this magnificent service, the Akathist Hymn is prominent and holds the place of honour. It appears that even before the occasion of the enemy assaults mentioned above, the Akathist Hymn was already in use as the prescribed Service for the Feast of the Annunciation, together with the kontakion, "When the bodiless one learned the secret command," which has the Annunciation as its theme. It was only on the occasion of the great miracle wrought for the Christian populace of the Imperial City on the eve of the Annunciation in 718 that the hymn "To thee, the Champion Leader" was composed, most likely by St. Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople. From its language, style and content, it appears that the composer of the Akathist Hymn itself is probably St. Romanus the Melodist (6th c.).