This quotation was found on the Facebook page for a Romanian Orthodox monastery in the Bay Area and was sent to me by my friend Flo.
“Do not say, as the divine Jeremiah tells us, that you are the Lord’s temple (cf. Jer. 7:14). And do not say that ‘mere faith in our Lord Jesus Christ can save me.’ For this is impossible unless you acquire love for Him through works. For in what concerns mere believing, 'even the demons believe and tremble’ (James 2:19).” – St. Maximus the Confessor, “Four Hundred Chapters on Love” (I, 39)
I can’t get over that quotation. Too many people use their religion as an excuse to be crappy and then confess. Religion shouldn’t just be about finding solace and coming to peace with your faults. Religion IS about those things, but more than that, it’s about fostering selflessness and the kind of compassion that Jesus was trying to build within his community. I think it’s tragic when people use religion solely to service themselves. I can’t find a self-servicing Jesus in my scripture.
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