St Tikhon's Orthodox Monastery

We should live on earth like a wheel turns: it touches the earth only at one little point, while all the rest of it ceaselessly rushes upward; but we, how we lie down on the earth and cannot get up! (St Ambrose of Optina, quote)

every passionate thought is tied to the earth, with matter, and always takes a certain form, it’s a certain type. And if our heart or word does not accept this form, the passion stops. But sometimes, in the beginning, hand to hand combat needs to take place. (Elder Sophrony+, interview)

Divine Liturgy for the Feast of St. Herman - December 13th - St. Tikhon's Monastery Submit names for commemorating here: https://www.sttikhonsmonastery.org/molebenform St. Tikhon's appreciates your support of the Monastery community and the cost of live-streaming. Please help and donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/

Vigil - December 12th - St. Tikhon's Monastery Submit names for commemorating here: https://www.sttikhonsmonastery.org/molebenform St. Tikhon's appreciates your support of the Monastery community and the cost of live-streaming. Please help and donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/

When your mind does wander during prayer, bring it back. When it wanders again, bring it back again. Each and every time that you read a prayer while your thoughts are wandering (and consequently you read it without attention and feeling,) then do not fail to read it again. Even if your mind wanders several times in the same place, read it again and again until you read it all the way through with understanding and feeling. In this way, you will overcome this difficulty so that the next time. (St Theophan the Recluse on Prayer)

In essence, prayer is our conversation with God, with our Heavenly Father. In the Gospel it says that Christ, the Son of God, would seclude Himself and pray. This was, in fact, the Son’s conversation with the Father. Likewise for us, prayer is our conversation with the Heavenly Father. God speaks to us through Holy Scripture and we should reply to Him through prayer. (Patriarch Pavle+ of Serbia, quoted from ‘Please be People’)