Father, do you think that the ascetic effort associated with the Prayer of the Heart should be the same for monks and for lay people?
The first step should be the Prayer, I mean the formula. If you repeatedly recite the Jesus Prayer, the rest come naturally. Man cannot become dispassionate without falling on his knees and asking God for this grace, because everything comes by the grace of God. Attaining dispassion is not the result of personal effort, but it comes by the grace of God; so you must fall on your knees, see yourself as a sinner, and ask for God's help. Prayer and the purification of passions happen at the same time. I think that priority must be given to prayer. It is said that there is no pure prayer without first attaining dispassion. But I say that whether pure prayer or forced prayer, prayer must be the beginning of any spiritual work.
+Archimandrite Roman (Braga), from Exploring the Inner Universe, Joy - the Mystery of Life, from an interview with Dina Cruga.
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