Keys and therapy

I guess I left the keys in the Munkee's car yesterday and now he's at work...with my keys and the spare set that I had left in there last week...don't ask. So, here we are...me and the Bas-man. I am bummed mostly because my favorite thrift store, Savers, is having a 50% off everything sale today only. Oh well.

So, instead I have been reading Orthodox Spirituality by Metropolitan of Nafpaktos Hierotheos. The cover claims it is a brief introduction and as I read, I get the feeling that I am getting only glimpses of what is in this book let alone the vast reality of the subject.

It has definitely helped to better shape and clarify my thinking about a lot of things: salvation, asceticism, purification from passions, the cleansing of the heart, the illumination of the soul, Divine grace, and how important the Church is in providing the necessary therapy to restore us to wholeness and cure us from the sickness of our nature. "The essence of Orthodox spirituality lies in its therapeutic effects. It cures a person’s infirmities and renders him an integrated person."

I am slowly coming to realize more fully what all of this "Orthodox stuff" means and as I do...and as I begin more and more to see the world and life through the correct lenses, I am thankful that I have full access to this means of therapy.

I am also comforted by the fact that, contrary to what I used to believe, I don't have to be spiritually perfect tomorrow...like my Father confessor says: "What is most important is that you try." Little by little perhaps it will get easier and then someday, hopefully, the energy of the soul will return to its essence and ascend to God. It is a battle and a journey, that's for sure, and the road ahead seems long.

On the whole...it is all very humbling, sobering, and hopeful at once.