Letters & Poems by Saint Joseph the Hesychast
"So, have much love for Christ, and it won't be long before you enjoy Him. Nothing is higher than love. This is what you should beg the Lord to grant you, as well as His most sweet dear Mother.
When you say the [Jesus] prayer constantly, and His Grace overshadows you, then your soul is warmed by divine love, and your heart is on fire. Then you only want to meditate on the name of Christ constantly, and want it to be your only breath and life.
Then you will see what happens within you. The tears can't be held back. "Love, love, all love!" it cries out. Then you can't restrain the waves, and your soul wants to depart and go beside Him."
Saint Joseph the Hesychast – Letters and Poems (p. 447-448)
Saint Joseph the Hesychast, reposed in 1959, was one of the greatest 20th century ascetics of Mount Athos. His glorification in the Orthodox Church was announced by His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew in 2019. Spiritual grandfather of numerous monasteries in Greece and America, he reveals in this collection of his letters and poems the depth and wealth of his spiritual wisdom and experience in his monastic life of prayer and struggle.
*Paperback 548 pp.
No one has given me the fire for the Jesus Prayer more than Saint Joseph the Hesychast in Letters & Poems. Through the book, he mentors you on how to acquire this inner fire of the heart through prayer. This is a heart-changer. Elder Joseph takes the raw, tough love of asceticism and leads the way, first in line in the spiritual battle against demons. Not many in North America have ever experienced the true mystical beauty and rigor that Elder Joseph explains in this book. This is not a self-help, 'feel-good,' 'everyone’s free to do what they want' type of book. No. This is a complete guide to rebuilding your entire life's foundation on solid granite.
Through this book, you are given the fruits of the years of hard work the Elder spent in pursuit of a spiritual mentor and an education on the Jesus Prayer—a lifetime of effort compiled on Mount Athos during a time when very few mentors existed or were willing to train others. This will give you the truth needed to find the inner stillness of prayer and a real, authentic, lived faith. He brought back to life the Desert Fathers’ way of life and lineage.
Glory to God, Glory to Saint Joseph, and Glory to the Monastery of the Virgin Mary the Consolatory.
This book absolutely belongs in any Orthodox/prayer collection.
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