Spiritual Sentences

1Spiritual sentences arranged according to the alphabet. 1 The beginning of salvation is self-condemnation. 2 It is better to throw a stone in vain than a word. 3 Become to all people what you wish all people to be. 4 One practices justice more by deed than by word. 5 A pious man is not one who pities many, but one who does injustice to no one. 6 To live lying upon a mat and to be courageous is better than to be troubled having a golden bed. 7 Pleasant is that friend who nourishes the soul. 8 Revere God indeed by deeds, but honor Him by word, and by thought. 9 Prudence and life and nobility make the priest. 10 It is worst to be a slave to shameful passions. 11 Teach virtue indeed by word, but proclaim it by deed. 12 Do not think that having virtue is good, but rather to be as it is necessary. 13 Honoring law, according to law you shall live. 14 A stranger is he whose things are foreign to the world. 15 He who envies harms himself; for he, speaking evil against another, destroys himself by suffering evil. 16 A rich man, neither flatter nor provoke. 17 Wine indeed strengthens the body, but the word of God the soul. 18 Use food not for the pleasant, but for the useful. 19 Trying to please the crowds, you will be like the crowds. 20 Above all things, use the body as a tool. 21 Industrious...

The text ends abruptly at 'Φιλόπονος' (Industrious/Zealous).

2That one, for whom time overflows.

Do not accept the outward appearance of a Christian man, but rather the mindset of his soul. To grasp the ungraspable God is sin. The danger of the mouth and tongue is great.

It is absurd for one who pursues honors to flee from the labors through which honors are gained. If you wish to know God, first having known yourself. A true friend is one who shares circumstances. It is terrible to think greatly while performing small deeds. In everything, the desire to know hinders the actual knowing. A demon of irrational life is a leader. The nobility of the soul shines forth from its strength. That God-fearing man is he who does not speak of himself. A holy man of God is ungraspable. A life of unproven character is the worst of possessions. Speak what is necessary and when it is necessary, and you will not hear what is not necessary. An unshakeable friend is the greatest of possessions. A glory-loving opinion is a sickness of the soul. A stranger and a poor man is the beloved of God. He who receives him will quickly rise up. On the one hand, to do good to all.

3It is beautiful, but rather it is for those not able to be repaid. A rhetorician in justice is a cup of cold water. Sobriety and meekness are the Cherubim of the soul. To be greedy in old age is a proof that one has become greedy before old age; to be diligent in youth is a pledge of being greedy in old age. True contemplation is the upper room of the soul. Loving what is not necessary, you will not love what is necessary. A counterfeit gold is better than having acquired a friend. A pure soul is god with God. Oh, from the self-love that hates all things.

Other sayings: The beginning of love is the assumption of glory. It is beautiful to be rich in meekness and love. The lightning-strike of virtue is a proud calculation. A smooth path is made by almsgiving. An unjust judge is a stained conscience. It is terrible to be a slave to the passions of the flesh. If you wish to be without sorrow, strive to please God. He who takes good care of himself is cared for by God. A sober heart is a harbor of contemplations. When...

4If you wish to know who you are, do not compare who you were, but what you have become from the beginning. A glory-seeking soul is a dry pit. A proud soul is a receptacle for robbers, and it hates the sound of knowledge.

For a true man, not knowing the Scriptures is a bad wandering. If you fear God, know him through tears. The humility of the soul is an unutterable weapon. A lover of virtue is a tree of paradise. Jesus Christ is the wood of life; use it as is necessary and you shall by no means die for eternity.

Do good to the truly poor and you will eat Christ. To eat the body of Christ is true strength. If you love Christ, you will not neglect to keep his commandments; for from there one shines as a benefactor with God. He who is a friend according to God flows with milk and honey in true words, but a restless soul will not have such a friend.

A glory-seeking thought is a shouting master. To bury the truth is to silence gold. He who fears God does all things according to God.