What wonderful words for my Saturday night in an “empty” house! And what a perfect focus and starting point for the re-ordering of my life back in Greece, after one more re-location … I hope our Lord has kept you all these weeks in the palm of His Hand!
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Slowing Down for the Necessary Thing
It has always struck me as interesting that the life of a hermit is generally restricted to older, more experienced monks: young ones are not allowed to venture into that territory. St. John of the Ladder said, “Solitude ruins the inexperienced” (Book 27 in The Ladder). St. Ignatius Brianchininov, in his The Arena, gives an entire chapter over to warnings about solitude. It is, nevertheless, the case that nature conspires to press us into solitude as often as not. It is little wonder that we fall into depression and worse. An involuntary ascesis can become torture.
For myself, I am working to make voluntary what will eventually happen anyway. Learning to bear my own company and seeking to bear the company of God are proper to this time. I am noticing some changes. For example, I can barely stand to have the radio or music playing in the car when I’m driving – they’re distractions. I’d rather pray. Nevertheless, the noise of my ADD-addled brain provides ample distraction by itself most of the time. What to do with that noise is a matter of constant learning.
Attention-deficit. Those words, strangely, describe much of our lives, even when our brains are fine. The world lives in a permanent state of distraction, summoning our passions with an incessant call for its own attention. Our lives will be lived in “just a minute,” while such a minute never seems to arrive. Despite the best efforts of all, history fails to conform to our demands, creating ever more distraction that says we must try harder.
In the Orthodox tradition, there is what is termed “the one thing necessary.” It harkens back to Christ’s word to distracted Martha’s complaints regarding her sister. Mary sits at Jesus’ feet, listening, ignoring the housework. Christ says to Martha, “Only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen that good part and it will not be taken from her” (Luke 10:42). It is in prayer that we sit at the feet of Christ. It is communion with Him that constitutes the one necessary thing. This is true life, the fount of all blessings. It takes a little time.
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ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN FAITH AND LIFE 
Glad that you are back. A good book that discusses silence is written by a Greek theologan, Stelios Ramfos, entitled “Like a Pelican in the Wildness.” I try to connect my own nosiness (loud talk, etc) by remembering what St. Seraphim of Sorov said, “Silence is the Cross the crucifies the ego.” I am with you on the need for silence, hard to find in this modern world. Watchman Nee commented many years ago said that we are constantly surrounded by the ‘chattering of the demons.” He also said in his book, “The Spiritual Man”,that he, at the end of a day of ministry, had to spend the night in prayer to remove the tarnish of the world.”
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