The Ladder of Divine Ascent - Chapter XXVI: On Discernment, Part I

The fruit of humility is the emergence of discernment. For beginners, it is a true knowledge of themselves. For intermediate souls, it is a spiritual sense that distinguishes what is truly good from what is of nature or opposed to it. For the perfect it is knowledge that one comes by through divine illumination. God illuminates the darkness within by his grace. 

St. John begins to define for us the nature of this gift. However, what follows is quite different from how we in modern times think of discernment. So often it does not rise above private judgment or the natural virtue of distinguishing between the nature of things in accord with our intellect. Yet, as mentioned, discernment is a divine gift for which one prepares to receive through the grace of God and the ascetic life. 

We must seek to remove every impediment to our having a well formed conscience. Furthermore, we must avoid the traps that the evil one sets for us to draw us back in darkness. We must continue toiling in this fashion until the very fire of God enters the sanctuary of the human heart and renders our proclivity for sin powerless and consumes every fever of lust and movement of passion within us. Knowing that the demons seek to extinguish this light, we must constantly press on in the struggle. We must not believe ourselves incapable of engaging in the spiritual battle but always trust in the action of God‘s grace. 

Once St. John defined discernment for us, he begins to lay out the path of education in the spiritual life that is needed. He warns us not to stop with the beginner’s lessons but rather to press on and strive to advance in our understanding. What we must come to value above all things is the science of sciences and the art of arts – that is the wisdom of the fathers. In comparison to our worldly formation, how deeply do we penetrate the treasure of their teachings?

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Text of chat during the group:

00:08:59 FrDavid Abernethy: Step 26 page 190

 

00:09:18 FrDavid Abernethy: On discernment of thoughts, passions and virtues

 

00:14:54 Sean: Isaac's awesome.

 

00:15:02 Art: Isaac the Syrian or Life of Repentance and Purity

 

00:15:32 Vanessa: Replying to "Isaac's awesome."

 

Agreed!

 

00:16:19 Sean: Replying to "Isaac's awesome."

 

I'm reading it a second time right now, slowly and listening to the old podcast.

 

00:25:21 Sean: #4. Why would one fall into disbelief upon seeing the supernatural? I would think it would lead one to believe in something more than oneself.

 

00:25:46 Vanessa: Reacted to "I'm reading it a sec..." with 👍

 

00:44:59 Sean: It's interesting that he links soul and mind in #11, which he also does in #8. These two are usually seen as separate or at least distinct, with the soul being pure. It's like the mind reflects the soul and the soul can go toward either good or bad.

 

01:00:22 Sean: pleasures = mud in the story, I would think.

 

01:18:43 Greg Chura: Thank you, Father!

 

01:19:52 Rebecca Thérèse: Thank you🙂

 

01:19:53 mflory: Thank you, Father!

 

01:19:54 Jeff O.: thank you!

 

01:20:26 Jeff O.: Palamas!