Wednesday, August 26, 2009

paths of holiness

Here are five ways of growing in holiness according to St. John Chrysostom:

First path: condemnation of your own sins; be the first to admit your sins and you will be justified.   A man who condemns his own sins is slower to commit them again.  Rous eyour conscience to accuse yourself with in your own house while their is time.  Better to accuse yourself now then have to face the judgment seat of God

Second path: put out of our minds the harm done to us by another; we must seek to forgive others often without cause without hesitation.  Jesus tells us, "forgive others and your heavenly Father will forgive you.

Third path: prayer that is fervent and careful and comes from the heart.  Communion with God awakens in us a deep awareness of ourselves and where God wants us to be.  When we look toward God in prayer we gaze into our own hearts and become aware of our own need of compassion and mercy.  Thus, we will be merciful in our life.

Fourth path: almsgiving.  We must be generous in our gifts toward others in need.  This way we show to God that what we have received from him is not in vain.  The power of almsgiving is great and far reaching.  We must always remember the poor for we ourselves are poor in spirit. 

Fifth path: humility.  A man who lives a modest and humble life and sin is removed form him.  We must remember the tax collector he beat his breast and hung his head and was heard.  The humble cry reaches the ears of God and God reaches down to lift us from the dung heap.  

Do not be idle, then, but walk daily in these paths.  Through them we can once again gain our health and thus truly approach the holy table with confidence, and go gloriously to meet Christ, the king of glory, and attain the eternal blessings through grace, mercy and kindness of Jesus Christ, Our Lord. 

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