Fr. Arseny (Streltzoff): Faith will never die on earth

I was granted great mercy by the Lord and by the Mother of God, who showed me the most sacred and magnificent treasure - that of the human soul, filled with faith, love and kindness. They showed me that faith will never die on earth. Many people carry it with them - some with ardor, others with a trembling respect, others carry just a spark - and it is essential for them that a good priest help them as a pastor to turn this spark into  an unquenchable flame of faith. The Lord showed me that the people who carry the faith, and especially the shepherds of human souls, must help fight for each person to the end of their own strength, until their last breath. The basis of the fight for a soul is love, kindness and helping your neighbor, help given not for one's own sake, but for the sake of one's brother. People judge faith, and judge even Christ Himself, based on the behavior of others. It is also written: "By your words you will be saved, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matt 12:37) and, "bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Gal 6:2).
+Fr. Arseny (Streltzoff), discussing what he had learned from his experiences in the Russian Gulags, from Father Arseny 1893-1973, Priest, Prisoner, Spiritual Father, by the servant of God Alexander

Fr. George Calciu: Angels are in twos

In ancient icons they represented the devils as single - one, but the angels in twos. It has very deep significance, because the devil was alone, but the angels were in twos. They were not alone; everyone was with someone else. After Pitesti,¹ I understood the iconography of the ancient icons, because we were put in this diabolical situation when we trusted no one, love no one, were not in connection with anyone - we were absolutely alone. No cornerstone. No indication - we did not know where we were going. At this, the spiritual terror was complete.
+Fr. George Calciu from Father George Calciu, Interviews, Homilies, and Talks, An interview with Fr. George.

¹ Pitesti was an experimental Communist prison in Romania, intended to destroy the personality and remake people into "ideal Communists"