ACC ~ John 4 v24b
THE SPIRIT IN THE STILL SMALL VOICE
ORIGEN: In the [First] Book of Kings, the Spirit of the Lord, who came to Elijah, makes the following suggestions concerning God: âFor he said, you shall go out tomorrow and stand before the Lord on the mountain. Beyond, the Lord will pass by as a great and strong wind [1] destroying mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord. The Lord is not in the wind (but in other texts we find:âin the spirit of the Lordâ). After the wind, an earthquake; the Lord is not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire; the Lord is not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a gentle breeze.â [2] Perhaps, indeed, these words reveal how many must experience the fire of the direct apprehension of the LordâŚ. But who could more properly tell us about whom God is than the Son? âFor no one has known the Father except the Son.â [3] We too aspire to know how God is spirit as the Son reveals it, and to worship God in the spirit that gives life and not in the letter that kills. We want to honor God in truth and no longer in types, shadows and examples [4] even as the angels do not serve God in examples and the shadow of heavenly realities but in realities that belong to the spiritual and heavenly order. COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 13.145-46. [5]
[1] Pneuma, which means wind, as well as spirit.
[2] See 1 Kings 19:11-12.
[3] Mt 11:27.
[4] See Heb 8:5.
[5] FC 89:98-99; SC 222:108-10.
THE THEOLOGIANâS PRAYER
EVAGRIUS OF PONTUS: If you wish to pray, you have need of God, âwho gives prayer to him who prays.â [1] Invoke him, then, saying, âHallowed be thy name, thy kingdom comeâ [2] âthat is, the Holy Spirit and your only begotten Son. For this is what he taught us, saying, âWorship the Father in spirit and in truth.â He who prays in spirit and in truth is no longer dependent on created things when honoring the Creator but praises him for and in himself. [3] If you are a theologian, you will pray truly. And if you pray truly, you are a theologian. CHAPTERS ON PRAYER 59-61. [4]
[1] 1 Sam 2:9 LXX.
[2] Mt 6:9-10.
[3] God.
[4] TP 1:62.
THOSE WHO WALK IN THE SPIRIT ARE WORSHIPING IN THE SPIRIT
ORIGEN: If there are many who profess to worship the Creator, there are some who are no longer in the flesh but in the spirit, because they walk in the spirit and do not fulfill the desire of the flesh. [1] And there are others who are not in the spirit but in the flesh and wage war according to the flesh. [2] If this is so, then one must say that those who worship the Father in spirit and not in flesh, in truth and not in types, are the true worshipers, and that those who do not so worship are not true worshipers. COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 13.109. [3]
[1] Gal 5:16.
[2] 2 Cor 10:3.
[3] FC 89:90*; SC 222:88.
ILLUMINATION OF THE SPIRIT ENABLES WORSHIP
BASIL THE GREAT: To worship in the Spirit implies that our intelligence has been enlightened. Consider the words spoken to the Samaritan woman. She was deceived by local custom into believing that worship could only be offered in a specific place. But the Lord, attempting to correct her, said that worship ought to be offered in Spirit and in truth. By truth he clearly meant himself. If we say that worship offered in the Son (the truth) is worship offered in the Fatherâs image, we can say the same about worship offered in the Spirit since the Spirit in himself reveals the divinity of the Lord. The Holy Spirit cannot be divided from the Father and the Son in worship. If you remain outside the Spirit, you cannot worship at all, and if you are in him you cannot separate him from God. Light cannot be separated from what it makes visible, and it is impossible for you to recognize Christ, the image of the invisible God, unless the Spirit enlightens you. Once you see the image, you cannot ignore the light; you see the light and the image simultaneously. It is fitting that when we see Christ, the brightness of Godâs glory, it is always through the illumination of the Spirit. Through Christ the image, may we be led to the Father, for he bears the seal of the Fatherâs very likeness. ON THE SPIRIT 26.64. [1]
[1] OHS 97.
PRAY IN THE TEMPLE AFTER YOU BECOME THE TEMPLE
AUGUSTINE: âO for a mountain to pray on,â you cry, âhigh and inaccessible so that I may be nearer to God and God may hear me better. For he dwells on high.â⌠Yes, God dwells on high, but he is also considerate of the humbleâŚ. Come down so that you may come near him. But do you want to ascend? Ascend, but do not seek a mountain. âThe ascents,â it said, âare in his heart, in the valley of weeping.â [1] A valley has humility. Therefore, do everything within. Even if perhaps you seek some lofty place, some holy place, make yourself a temple for god within yourself. âFor the temple of God is holy, which means you.â [2] Would you pray in a temple? Pray in yourself. But first be a temple of God, for he in his temple hears the one who prays. TRACTATES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 15.25. [3]
[1] Ps 84:6 (83:7 LXX, Vg).
[2] 1 Cor 3:17.
[3] NPNF 1 7:105-6**.
SPIRITUAL PRAYER
ABRAHAM OF NATHPAR: Do not imagine, my beloved, that prayer consists solely of words or that it can be learned by means of words. No, listen to the truth of the matter from our Lord: spiritual prayer is not learned and does not reach fullness as a result of either learning or the repetition of words. For it is not to a man that you are praying, before whom you can repeat a well-composed speech. It is to him who is Spirit that you are directing the movements of prayer. You should pray, therefore, in spirit, seeing that he is spirit. He shows that no special place or vocal utterance is required for someone who prays in fullness to God. [1] ON PRAYER AND SILENCE 1-2. [2]
[1] Abraham then cites Jn 4:21-24 as well as 1 Cor 14:15.
[2] CS 101:191**.
Jn