Chrysostom
Good and Faithful Servant
You speak of your son being tormented, and your heart is poured out in prayer for his peace, for the quieting of his mind, and for the breaking of every curse spoken against him. This is a mother's love, and it is right to bring such burdens to the Lord. But listen carefully to the nature of the war you describe, for there are three very grievous kinds of war. The one is public, when we are attacked by foreign armies; the second is when we are at war with one another; the third is when the individual is at war with himself, and this is the worst of all. Foreign war cannot hurt the soul. Even the second need not harm us against our will, for we may be peaceable ourselves even when others hate peace. But from the third, we cannot escape without danger. When the body is at variance with the soul and raises up evil desires, we must quell this tumult, or we fall pierced by wounds that bring death. The peace we should keep is this internal peace, and to this end, the quiet of our circumstances contributes no little, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
You rebuke spirits of witchcraft and torment, and you declare no weapon formed against your son shall prosper. This is good, but examine your own heart concerning the young man and his mother whom you say have spoken word curses. You are at war with them in your spirit, and when you are minded to war against another, bethink yourself that you war against the members of Christ. What if he be an outcast or vile? God for his sake and yours became a servant and was slain, and do you consider him to be nothing? In this you fight against God, delivering a judgment contrary to His. It is a monstrous thing that we hear so many times "Peace unto all" in the Church, and yet we are in a state of feud with each other, traducing others abroad while receiving the Peace of Christ. That majestic usage must not become a figure of words only, but a truth in our minds. I give you the Peace, but it is Christ who deigns to speak. Do not let the watchwords of this army go no farther than your lips.
Yet even from our so great and so many sins, God has given a short and easy way of deliverance, one free from all toil. What sort of toil is it to forgive him that has grieved you? It is a toil not to forgive, but to keep up enmity. To be delivered from anger works in us a great refreshment. There is no sea to cross, no long journey, no money to be spent; it suffices to be willing only, and all our sins are done away. You pray for your son's peace, but you cannot live in godliness and honesty unless that internal peace is first established in your own soul towards those you see as adversaries. If you are disturbed when there is quiet, you are a miserable creature, regardless of your son's external calm.
Do not look for a peace that is merely the absence of conflict, for Christ Himself said, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth; I am not come to send peace, but a sword." The peace He gives is of another kind: that you be at peace with Him and, through Him, at peace in your own soul, rendered stronger by the struggle. The trouble of the world cannot harm you if you possess this. You seek miracles and breakthrough, and you declare no more setbacks. This may be, but it is not enough for your son to be freed from distress if the soil of his soul remains soft, unmanly, or remiss in hearing the word. There is required first a careful hearing and continual recollection, then fortitude, then contempt of all worldly things to bring forth fruit. Do not think that one strong deliverance is the whole cure. As a tree receives ten strokes and seems insensible, yet afterwards is brought down by a single blow, that last blow was made successful by all the ones before. The healing of the soul often comes in the same way, through persevering treatment even when no benefit is yet perceived.
I do not speak this to diminish your hope but to direct it. This beauty of a godly and peaceful soul, ever blooming and ever in its prime, is what you must cultivate for him and for yourself. The earthly beauty of a calm day, a restful sleep, or even a sound mind takes flight before it appears, or does not last twenty years. But the other is liable to be destroyed by nothing. No old age brings a wrinkle to it, no disease withers it, no desponding anxiety disfigures it. Strive for this, and when you feel anxiety and fear for his future, remember that they are not among those crowned who merely escape present torment, but those who endure to the end. This saying makes me shudder for myself, and it should startle you enough to enter your own conscience. We have need of prolonged fasting more than the Ninevites, for we are concerned not with the overthrow of a city but with eternal punishment and the fire that is never quenched. Even if he has come to the very gates of Hell, the vestibule of wickedness itself, it may still be possible to recover, to renew strength, to lay hold on eternal life.
Pray then for kings and all in authority, for caregivers and doctors, that your son may lead a quiet and peaceable life. But know that the peace he truly needs is the cessation of the war within his own soul, and you will best beseech God for this when you first cease from your own war with others. Forgive, and let the peace of Christ rule in your heart, that it may then overflow to your household. Do not expect an immediate and painless victory, but apply the medicine of the word with patience. I am fully persuaded that such eager desire as yours will not fail of its effect, if it is directed not only at the removal of suffering but at the salvation of the soul. May it be that, having become worthy of these admonitions, you both obtain the everlasting blessings.
You rebuke spirits of witchcraft and torment, and you declare no weapon formed against your son shall prosper. This is good, but examine your own heart concerning the young man and his mother whom you say have spoken word curses. You are at war with them in your spirit, and when you are minded to war against another, bethink yourself that you war against the members of Christ. What if he be an outcast or vile? God for his sake and yours became a servant and was slain, and do you consider him to be nothing? In this you fight against God, delivering a judgment contrary to His. It is a monstrous thing that we hear so many times "Peace unto all" in the Church, and yet we are in a state of feud with each other, traducing others abroad while receiving the Peace of Christ. That majestic usage must not become a figure of words only, but a truth in our minds. I give you the Peace, but it is Christ who deigns to speak. Do not let the watchwords of this army go no farther than your lips.
Yet even from our so great and so many sins, God has given a short and easy way of deliverance, one free from all toil. What sort of toil is it to forgive him that has grieved you? It is a toil not to forgive, but to keep up enmity. To be delivered from anger works in us a great refreshment. There is no sea to cross, no long journey, no money to be spent; it suffices to be willing only, and all our sins are done away. You pray for your son's peace, but you cannot live in godliness and honesty unless that internal peace is first established in your own soul towards those you see as adversaries. If you are disturbed when there is quiet, you are a miserable creature, regardless of your son's external calm.
Do not look for a peace that is merely the absence of conflict, for Christ Himself said, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth; I am not come to send peace, but a sword." The peace He gives is of another kind: that you be at peace with Him and, through Him, at peace in your own soul, rendered stronger by the struggle. The trouble of the world cannot harm you if you possess this. You seek miracles and breakthrough, and you declare no more setbacks. This may be, but it is not enough for your son to be freed from distress if the soil of his soul remains soft, unmanly, or remiss in hearing the word. There is required first a careful hearing and continual recollection, then fortitude, then contempt of all worldly things to bring forth fruit. Do not think that one strong deliverance is the whole cure. As a tree receives ten strokes and seems insensible, yet afterwards is brought down by a single blow, that last blow was made successful by all the ones before. The healing of the soul often comes in the same way, through persevering treatment even when no benefit is yet perceived.
I do not speak this to diminish your hope but to direct it. This beauty of a godly and peaceful soul, ever blooming and ever in its prime, is what you must cultivate for him and for yourself. The earthly beauty of a calm day, a restful sleep, or even a sound mind takes flight before it appears, or does not last twenty years. But the other is liable to be destroyed by nothing. No old age brings a wrinkle to it, no disease withers it, no desponding anxiety disfigures it. Strive for this, and when you feel anxiety and fear for his future, remember that they are not among those crowned who merely escape present torment, but those who endure to the end. This saying makes me shudder for myself, and it should startle you enough to enter your own conscience. We have need of prolonged fasting more than the Ninevites, for we are concerned not with the overthrow of a city but with eternal punishment and the fire that is never quenched. Even if he has come to the very gates of Hell, the vestibule of wickedness itself, it may still be possible to recover, to renew strength, to lay hold on eternal life.
Pray then for kings and all in authority, for caregivers and doctors, that your son may lead a quiet and peaceable life. But know that the peace he truly needs is the cessation of the war within his own soul, and you will best beseech God for this when you first cease from your own war with others. Forgive, and let the peace of Christ rule in your heart, that it may then overflow to your household. Do not expect an immediate and painless victory, but apply the medicine of the word with patience. I am fully persuaded that such eager desire as yours will not fail of its effect, if it is directed not only at the removal of suffering but at the salvation of the soul. May it be that, having become worthy of these admonitions, you both obtain the everlasting blessings.
