St. John Climacus - 5 Steps from The Ladder

Step 1: On Renunciation of Life (Excerpts from Page 77 & 78.)

“I have seen men go out to where plunder, having no fear of God but being brought up short somewhere at the sound of dogs, an effect that fear of God could not achieve in them.

We should love the Lord as we do our friends. Many a time I have seen people bring grief to God, without being bothered by it, and I have seen these very same people resort to every device, plan, pressure, plea from themselves and their friends, and every gift, simply to restore an old relationship upset by some minor grievance.
At the beginning of the religious life, we cultivate the virtues, and we do so with toul and difficulty. Progressing a little, we then lose our sense of grief or retain very little of it. But when our mortal intelligence turns to zeal and we are mastered by it, then we work with joy, determination, desire, and a holy flame.” (Page 77)

“Some people living carelessly in the world put a question to me: “How can we who are married and living amid public cares aspire to the monastic life?””
I answered: “Do whatever good you may. Speak evil of no one. Rob no one. Tell no lie. Despise no one and carry no hate. Do not separate yourself from Church assemblies (Office or Eucharist). Show compassion for the needy. Do not be a cause of scandal to anyone. Stay away from the bed of another, and be satisfied with what your own wives (or husbands) can provide you. If you do all this, you will not be far from the Kingdom of God.” (Page 78)


Step 2: On Detatchment (Excerpts from Page 83.)

I have observed many men in the world assailed by anxiety, by worry, by the need to talk, by all-night watching, and I have seen them run away from the madness of their bodies. They turned to the monastic life with totally free hearts, and still were pitiably corrupted by the stirrings of the body.

We should be careful in case it should happen to use that while talking of journeying along the narrow and hard road we may actually wander onto the broad and wide highway.

Mortification of the appetite, nightlong toil, a ration of water, a short measure of bread, the bitter cup of dishonor—these will show you the narrow way. Derided, mocked, jeered, you must accept the denial of your will. You must patiently endure opposition, suffer neglect without complaint, put up with violent arrogance. You must be ready for injustice, and not grieve when you are slandered; you must not be angered by contempt and you must show humility when you have been condemned. Happy the man who follow this road and avoid other highways. Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Page 83)

Step 3: On Exile (Excerpts from Page 88/89.)

“To establish a good and firm character within ourselves is something very difficult and troublesome, and one crisis can destroy what we have worked so hard to set right. Bad, worldly, and disorderly company destroys good character (1Cor 15:33). When a man (or woman) has renounced the world and still returns to its affairs or draws near to it, he will either fall into its snares or will defile his heart with thoughts of it. He may perhaps be uncorrupted himself. But if he comes to feel contempt for those who are corrupted, then assuredly he will join them in their corruption. (Page 88/89)

Step 4: On Obedience (Excerpts from Page 95/96, 104/105.)

“I must tell you about the astonishing achievement of the baker they had there (a monastery on Sinai where St. John was staying). Noticing that during his work he preserved a totally recollected state and a capacity for tears, I asked him how he had managed to be granted such a grace. He answered me when I became insistent: “It always seems to me that I serve God and not men,” he said. “And so I judge myself to be undeserving of any rest. And this fire here reminds me of the everlasting fire to come.” (Page 95/96)

“I noticed one brother during the singing of the psalms. Her showed more feeling than many of the others, and his movements and expressions were such as to make it look as though he were carrying on a conversation with someone. This was particularly so at the beginning of the hymns. I asked the holy man to explain this to me and because he knew it was to my advantage that he should not be reticent about it, he said this to me: “Father John, it is my custom at the very start to gather my thoughts, my mind and my soul. I call them and cry out, “Come! Let us worship and fall down before Christ, our King and God (Ps 94:6).”” (Page 104/105)

“At confession, you should look and behave like a condemned man. Keep your head bowed and, if you can, shed tears on the feet of your judge and healer, as though he were Christ. Very often demons manage to persuade us either to omit confession, or else to confess as though the sins were committed by someone else or else to blame others as responsible for our own sins.” (Page 108/109)

“I once saw an inexperienced disciple who used to boast in certain quarters about the achievement of his teacher. He imagined that in this way he would win glory for himself from another’s harvest. But he only got a bad name for himself, for everyone put this question to him: “How then could a good tree grow such a dead branch.” (Page 111)

“I once saw two people sitting out of sight and watching the toils and hearing the groans of the ascetics. One did this so as to be able to imitate them. But the other did it so that when the time came he could laugh at God’s laborer and get in the way of his good work.” (Page 112)

“I have seen innocent lovely children come to school for wisdom, education and profit, and learn only cunning and vice through the contact they made with other students. The wise man (or woman) will understand what I am saying.” (Page 118)

“We should analyze the nature of our passions and of our obedience, so as to choose our director accordingly. If lust is your problem, do not pick for your trainer a worker of miracles who has a welcome and a meal for everyone. Choose instead an ascetic who will reject any consolation of food. If you are arrogant, let him be tough and unyielding, not gentle and accommodating. We should not be on the lookout for those gifted with foreknowledge and foresight, but rather for those who are truly humble and whose character dwelling place match our own weaknesses.” (Page 119)

Step 5: On Penitence

“Do not be surprised if you fall every day and do not surrender. Stand your ground bravely. And you may be sure that your guardian angel will respect your endurance. A fresh, warm wound is easier to heal than those that are old, neglected, and festering, and that need extensive treatement, surgery, bandaging, and cauterization. Long neglect can render many of them uncurable. However, all things are possible with God (Mt 19:26).”

“If you have no courage, if you are lazy, then lapses that occur after entering the religious life are hard to bear. They wipe out the hope of dispassion and they make us imagine that true blessedness is simply to rise from the pit of sin. But note well that we never return by the road on which we strayed, but by a different and a shorter route.” (131)