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What an amazing book of prayer this is!īy practicing what he was taught from his Staretz and the Philokalia he learned to pray the Jesus Prayer without ceasing. Later the Russian pilgrim was given a copy of the Philokalia, which contains the writings on prayer by the Eastern Orthodox Church Fathers, dating back to the fourth century. The ancient Jesus prayer was developed by the Desert Fathers of the 3 rd and 4 th Centuries from the often-repeated prayer the Psalms, “Kyrie eleison” or “Lord, have mercy on me.” This is also used often in the Gospels, for instance, the prayer of the tax collector in Luke 18:13, and the prayer of the blind men in Luke 18:38-39. The Anonymous Pilgrim’s staretz taught him the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me.” (The longer version of the Jesus Prayer is “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”) I’ve been receiving spiritual mentoring for a number of years - and providing this for others. Every Christian would benefit greatly from meeting with an experienced spiritual mentor for conversation and prayer about how they’re experiencing God (or not) and how he’s guiding them (or not).
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In our culture, we call a staretz a spiritual director.
#Story of the pilgrims how to#
Not only is the staretz able to help pilgrims grow in a praying life, he or she knows how to guide others through times of spiritual dryness, confusion, and frustration with God, including the Dark Night of the Soul. The staretz listens to pilgrims talk about their life and relationship with God and guides them closer to the Lord and deeper in prayer. This is someone who is experienced in the ways of God with the soul and gives spiritual care and advice to others. Oh, to be a close friend with Jesus the Lord!įinally, the pilgrim came upon a “staretz.” A staretz is a Russian term for a spiritual elder known as a holy person. His life was empty and he longed for Intimacy with Jesus. He knew that God had spoken to his heart in church that day. It said, “Pray without ceasing” and he wanted to learn how to do that! So he walked the countryside of Russia asking everyone he met if they knew how to pray without ceasing. The Anonymous Pilgrim took the Bible at face value. On the 24th Sunday after Pentecost I went to church… I heard these words: “Pray without ceasing.” ( The Way of a Pilgrim and the Pilgrim Continues his Way, p. My worldly goods are a knapsack with some dried bread in it on my back, and in my breast-pocket a Bible.
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His amazing story begins this way:īy the grace of God I am a Christian man, by my actions a great sinner, and by calling a homeless wanderer of the humblest birth who roams from place to place. But thankfully, he wrote down his story as he traveled the vast countryside of Russia on foot. We don’t even know the name of this man! That’s what a simple, humble man he was. How could anyone pray continuously? He decided to go on a journey and find people who could teach him how to pray. In church he heard a sermon on 1 Thessalonians 5:17: “Pray without ceasing.” He was drawn to such a life, but couldn’t conceive of how even to begin. On this day as he went to church he was homeless and alone in the world. Then his wife had died after just a few short years of marriage. He had lost the use of his arm in a tragic accident. One day in the early 1800’s a poor young man went to a church in Russia, desperate for God. I have discovered that what was true for the Anonymous Pilgrim and so many others has been true for me and many people that I have helped: God can use a little Breath Prayer to bring about a big change! He Wanted to Learn to Practice God’s Presence Through this simple man God changed the world! Do you know the story of the Anonymous Russian Pilgrim? It’s a heart-warming and unforgettable story of how God brought healing and transformation to a lonely, depressed man.