Shelby

“Let not us, who would be Christians, expect anything else from it than to be crucified. For to be Christian is to be crucified, in this time and in any time since Christ came for the first time. His life is the example — and warning — to us all. We must be crucified personally, mystically; for through crucifixion is the only path to resurrection. If we would rise with Christ, we must first be humbled with Him — even to the ultimate humiliation, being devoured and spit forth by the uncomprehending world. And we must be crucified outwardly, in the eyes of the world; for Christ’s Kingdom is not of this world, and the world cannot bear it, even a single representative of it, even for a single moment. The world can only accept Antichrist, now or at any time. No wonder then, that it is hard to be a Christian — it is not hard, it is impossible. No one can knowingly accept a way of life which, the more truly it is lived, lead the more surely to one’s own destruction. And that is why we constantly rebel, try to make life easier, try to be half-Christian, try to make the best of both worlds We must ultimately choose — our felicity lies in one world or the other, not in both. God give us the strength to pursue the path to crucifixion; there is no other way to be Christian.”
― Fr. Seraphim Rose

“Why, you will go home and then you will find that home is not home any more. Then you will really be in trouble. As long as you stay here, you can always think: One day I will go home." [...]
"Beautiful logic," I said. "You mean I have a home to go to as long as I don't go there?"
He laughed. "Well, isn't it true? You don't have a home until you leave it and then, when you have left it, you never can go back.”
― James Baldwin, Giovanni’s Room

“Until a person is illumined by the Holy Spirit, fear is always present. Afterwards there is no fear. Such a soul has compassion for everyone; he understands that all creation suffers because of the Fall of man. Such a person is always ready to weep for all and to pray for all.”
― Thaddeus of Vitovnica, Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives: the Life and Teachings of Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

“Woman A often thinks about growing old. At the same time, she often thinks back to those years when old age seemed a very distant thing, more like an option than a law of nature.”
― Sigrid Nunez, What Are You Going Through