Ambrose of Optina Quotes
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Where there is simplicity, there are a hundred Angels, but where there is cleverness - there are none.
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God Himself heals the proud. This means that inner sorrows (by which pride is healed) are sent to us by God, for the proud man will not suffer anything from others. But the humble person will endure everything, and will always say, 'I deserve this.'
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In the beginning, envy is revealed through inappropriate zeal and rivalry, and later by fervour with spite and the blaming of the one who is envied.
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“You must not be greatly troubled about many things, but you should care for the main thing — preparing yourself for death.”
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If you find that you have no love but desire to have it, do the works of love and the Lord will see your desire and effort and put love in your heart.
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“Years are not needed for true repentance, and not days, but only an instant.”
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“We must begin with thanksgiving for everything. The beginning of joy is to be content with your situation.”
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“How does a person become bad?─from forgetting that God is over him.”
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If you do good, you must do it only for God. For this reason you must pay no attention to the ingratitude of people. Expect a reward not here, but from the Lord in heaven. If you expect it here — it will be in vain and you will endure deprivation.
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“Our invisible enemy plants a sinful thought in the soul of a person, and then records it as if it were the person’s own thought, so that later he can accuse the person at the terrible judgement of God.”