“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought,
but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.”
(Romans 8:26 NRSV)
Originally posted by retired music history professor Carol Reynolds, today’s writing shares what many in today’s world are feeling. I’ll close with my prayer at the end.
March 10, 2022 by Professor Carol
“We should live on earth like a wheel turns: it touches the earth only at one little point, while all the rest of it ceaselessly rushes upward; but we, how we lie down on the earth and cannot get up!” — Ambrose of Optina
“It is hard to write anything right now. So I turn to the words of others, and share this statement by a 19th-century Orthodox monk known as St. Ambrose of Optina (1812-1891). His utterances of wisdom were widely recorded, particularly beginning in 1860 when he was elevated as starets of that historic monastery.
“Starets comes from the Slavic adjective for “old” (Russian staryi; Ukainian starii; Polish stary; Czech starý). It translates fairly well as “Elder,” although that word, to me, does not fully convey the gravity such revered figures have in the Orthodox monastic tradition. The tradition of staretsy (plural) intensified in the 19th century as Russian monasteries strived to recover from the disastrous ruin inflicted by anti-clerical tsars in the 18th century, particularly Peter the Great, but also those after him.
“Staretsy would enter monasteries or convents as ordinary monastics, as did Ambrose in 1839. Most of these figures sought to withdraw into a secluded life of intense prayer, but found themselves magnets, drawing waves of people from near and far once their reputations for wise counsel spread. This particularly St. Ambrose is known in the West because he served as spiritual advisor to Fyodor Dostoevsky. Dostoevsky undeniably took aspects of Ambrose’s personality and character and filtered them into the masterful character of Father Zosima in The Brothers Karamazov.
“As many of you know, I have spent my life studying Russian history, music, language, and literature with an unabated passion. That passion, aided by copious opportunities to travel, has led me into a deeper understanding and love of Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Croatia, and the three Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. In these places, what is happening now does not surprise people on any side of this tragic divide. They have lived their lives knowing such a crisis waited in the wings.
“Along with others, my heart grieves to the point of paralysis. There is little to do, beyond answering questions from friends and colleagues, donating to organizations with boots on the ground caring for refugees, and praying for safety for those I love and all who are caught up in the tragedy.
“The words “Teach us to Pray,” said by Christ’s disciples, booms now like the crash of a bass drum, rather than a sweet line from a Sunday-School lesson. St. Ambrose asks us to see the rising of that wheel, and its power to uplift even the darkest of days. We can think about this any way we wish, from the deepest study of Old and New Testaments, to a poetic understanding graced by clear skies and flowers of spring. The only real solution, and what we are called to do if we embrace a life of faith, is to pray as best we know how. There is nothing easy about doing it, though.
Lord Christ,
In the places where our spirits are heavy, pray with us. By your Spirit, infuse us with hope and willingness to serve others. Help us to love without hypocrisy, abhor what is evil, and cling to what is good. Help us to be kindly affectionate to others around us, fervent in prayer and service to you. Help us continue steadfastly in prayer, even when we don’t have words – especially when we feel like all we have are “sighs too deep for words.” Meet us in that silence with an overwhelming sense of your Presence and Peace. In Jesus’s name we pray, Amen.
9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.” (Romans 12:9-13 NKJV)