The Heart: An Orthodox Christian Spiritual Guide overview

I recently bought and read The Heart: An Orthodox Christian Spiritual Guide by Archimandrite Spyridon Logothetis (2001).

This post will be a quick summary/overview of the book.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. – Psalm 51:10

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – Matthew 6:21

Heart before everything

We have two hearts: the bodily heart and the heart of the soul.

Rare are the Christians who choose to place the invisible things in the right order.

No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. – Luke 6:43-45

What is the Heart

Heart = Feelings + Will + Thoughts. A symbiosis:

Goal of mind: know God.
Goal of feelings: love God.
Goal of will: perform God’s will.

Sin disturbs this unity.

Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. – James 1:8

Sometimes, Soul is used synonymously with Heart.

The mind is just a piece of the Heart – the root of thoughts arises in the Heart, and then they get passed to the brain for further processing. If we have good thoughts, nurture them. If they are bad, cut them off immediately at the root.

A good thought needs to be united with a good feeling and a strong will, for it to become perfect.

Our hearts need to output only perfect, truthful, holy, and sacred things.

The goal of the Heart: Return to God.

Sin: alienation from the Creator, focuses on the created
Repentance: alienation from the created, returns to Creator

The Heart is the center

The Heart is the master of our bodily and psychological nature.

These passages show that the heart represents the whole inner person: the place of thought, memory, motives, conscience, pride, faith and moral choice: Matthew 9:4; 15:18–19; Mark 2:6, 8; Luke 1:51; 2:35, 51; 3:15; 5:22; 9:47; John 12:40; and Romans 1:21. What people say and do flows from this hidden interior, which can be humble and reflective or darkened and hardened by resistance to God.

Jesus fully knows and reveals what is within each person, and encountering him exposes our true loyalties. Genuine spiritual change therefore requires not only better outward behaviour, but the healing and transformation of the heart itself.

The kingdom of God is in our Heart

The mission of the Spirit is to continuously remind and warn our hearts with the Father’s voice.

The spiritual land of the person whose soul is pure lies within him. The sun that shines there is the light of the Holy Trinity. The air breathed by those who inhabit that realm is the comforting and All-Holy Spirit. The holy and bodiless beings dwell there. Christ, the Light from the Father’s Light, is their life, joy, and blessedness. This is Jerusalem and the Kingdom of God hidden within us, as our Lord teaches. – St. Isaac the Syrian

Great things dwell in the heart: God’s mercy, courage, optimism, joy, grace, peace, love. Those who carry God’s strength and power in their hearts fear nothing.

“Kingdom of sin”

If the heart is unguarded, fear, bad thoughts, hatred, and evil planted by the devil may also dwell there.

There, within the heart, are the root and source of all the unnatural sins that we have committed after Holy Baptism, through evil thoughts and deeds which we continue to commit even now—or at least desire to commit. There, within the heart, is Satan also, although he is not in the heart’s innermost core, for, according to St. Diadochos, divine grace dwells in its depths. – St. Kallistos

You have come to me again, O crafty plotter, just as you intended, feeding deep within my heart. – St. Gregory the Theologian

Using temptations, sins, passions, demons, and other evil things, the devil tries to win the heart. So we must fight that.

If our heart loves sin or evil, it cannot love God.
If our heart thinks of sin, it cannot think of God.

God wants our heart and welcomes us. But we can’t serve both God and sin; only one. We choose.

My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes watch my ways. – Proverbs 23:26

Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind – Matthew 22:37

True love comes from the Heart

We all want true love and a meaningful, deep connection rather than clichéd relationships and useless, expensive gifts.

God wants the same from us. Our gifts, acts, and words are useless to Him if we have given our hearts to a different place.

The precious values of the Heart

Meekness, modesty, humility, repentance, contrition, mercy, chastity, peace, simplicity and seriousness, faith, prayers.

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. – John 14:27

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. – Colossians 3:15

These qualities have value only if they come deeply from the heart, not to impress, not to be seen, not for selfish reasons, not to appear calm, not to say empty words.

For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. – Romans 2:28-29

Pray alone from the heart, not to be seen.

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. – Matthew 6:5-8

The Lord despises hypocrisy

Prayers, holidays, our presence in the Church and all other things mean nothing to the Lord if our Heart doesn’t participate.

A lot of politicians act as if they are faithful, but they only fool the nation on TV.

The issue with hypocrites is that they also fool others into thinking “This is a holy person”. But the Lord knows everything.

Saint Maximus the Confessor writes:

The Lord sees and seeks to know the true and sincere motive behind every one of our actions. He wants to know whether we do what we do for His sake or for some other purpose.

And what does He find? When He searches our heart, He finds it empty. Then everything we have done, good deeds, offerings, prayers, worship services, and vigils we have attended, provokes His displeasure and anger, because it is the fruit of our hypocrisy.

This is also how the Pharisees became proud, fooling themselves into thinking that they did the right things and that others did not.

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his followers, “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees have the authority to tell you what the law of Moses says. So you should obey and follow whatever they tell you, but their lives are not good examples for you to follow. They tell you to do things, but they themselves don’t do them. They make strict rules and try to force people to obey them, but they are unwilling to help those who struggle under the weight of their rules. “They do good things so that other people will see them. They enlarge the little boxes holding Scriptures that they wear, and they make their special prayer clothes very long. Those Pharisees and teachers of the law love to have the most important seats at feasts and in the synagogues. They love people to greet them with respect in the marketplaces, and they love to have people call them ‘Teacher.’ – Matthew 23:1-7

“But you must not be called ‘Teacher,’ because you have only one Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters together. And don’t call any person on earth ‘Father,’ because you have one Father, who is in heaven. And you should not be called ‘Master,’ because you have only one Master, the Christ. Whoever is your servant is the greatest among you. Whoever makes himself great will be made humble. Whoever makes himself humble will be made great. “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You close the door for people to enter the kingdom of heaven. You yourselves don’t enter, and you stop others who are trying to enter. [How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees. You are hypocrites. You take away widows’ houses, and you say long prayers so that people will notice you. So you will have a worse punishment.] – Matthew 23:8-14

“How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You travel across land and sea to find one person who will change to your ways. When you find that person, you make him more fit for hell than you are. “How terrible for you! You guide the people, but you are blind. You say, ‘If people swear by the Temple when they make a promise, that means nothing. But if they swear by the gold that is in the Temple, they must keep that promise.’ You are blind fools! Which is greater: the gold or the Temple that makes that gold holy? And you say, ‘If people swear by the altar when they make a promise, that means nothing. But if they swear by the gift on the altar, they must keep that promise.’ You are blind! Which is greater: the gift or the altar that makes the gift holy? The person who swears by the altar is really using the altar and also everything on the altar. And the person who swears by the Temple is really using the Temple and also everything in the Temple. The person who swears by heaven is also using God’s throne and the One who sits on that throne. – Matthew 23:15-22

“How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You give to God one-tenth of everything you earn—even your mint, dill, and cumin. But you don’t obey the really important teachings of the law—justice, mercy, and being loyal. These are the things you should do, as well as those other things. You guide the people, but you are blind! You are like a person who picks a fly out of a drink and then swallows a camel! “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You wash the outside of your cups and dishes, but inside they are full of things you got by cheating others and by pleasing only yourselves. Pharisees, you are blind! First make the inside of the cup clean, and then the outside of the cup can be truly clean. “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You are like tombs that are painted white. Outside, those tombs look fine, but inside, they are full of the bones of dead people and all kinds of unclean things. It is the same with you. People look at you and think you are good, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and evil. – Matthew 23:23-28

Therefore, it is unmistakably clear that Christians should care above all for the purity of their hearts, more than for anything else.

Help others and be a good person, not so that you may feel good or righteous, but to purify both your own heart and theirs, because that is God’s will.

Cleansing the Heart

Every person wants and longs for a clean heart.

Just as a cup must be clean for a person to drink from it with pleasure, so too must our heart be clean—and even cleaner than the body—so that we may please God, Who desires to see the heart pure. – Saint Nilus of Sinai teaches us:

Let us cast out and drive from the heart: greed, the worship of money, materialism, distrust, doubt and lack of faith, the worship of the body, wicked thoughts, pride, jealousy, envy, hatred, injustice, anger, malice and ill will; selfishness, deceitfulness, fear, insolence, cowardice, bitterness, hypocrisy, carelessness, insecurity, contempt for others, sarcasm, rigidity, obsession with fashion and modern trends, gluttony, suspiciousness, superstition, blindness caused by the passions… and many other evil things.

Cleansing the heart of all these things is not easy, but so what? We shouldn’t be afraid to proceed.

Jesus replied, ‘What is impossible with man is possible with God.’ – Luke 18:27

‘If you can?’ said Jesus. ‘Everything is possible for one who believes.’ – Mark 9:23

Many ways to achieve cleansing.

First, understand that we can achieve nothing by ourselves alone. When we truly want to achieve it, the Holy Spirit will help us, in addition to our effort.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. – Psalm 51:10

Next, patiently, carefully, truthfully, calmly and deeply examine your heart. To achieve this, you can pray for the Lord’s light. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that, if you ignore the bad things in your heart, they don’t exist – they will surface in your behavior and others will notice while you still remain blind. Understand that evil can’t hide forever.

You who desire your heart to be pure, enter into your own soul—into your being enslaved by sin—and look deeper, into its depths, beneath the thoughts found in the so-called treasure of your being, where the deceitful serpent crawls and makes its nest… The human heart is an unfathomable abyss. And only if you succeed in killing the serpent can you then glory in God with your pure heart. – Saint Macarius the Great

After this serious and thorough self-examination and introspection, one of the most powerful ways is prayer. A fiery prayer. Any prayer, but especially the Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. 200 times in the morning, 200 in the evening, 200 in the night. Our hearts will become one with Him, and evil will be defeated by His name.

Pray without ceasing – 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Another powerful way to cleanse the heart is honest repentance: self-observation, self-condemnation, denial of earthly things, denial of self, and denial of the devil. It means submitting to God’s will, rather to our own. It means changing our behaviour and thoughts for the better.

Another way is crying, truly feeling sorry for our sins. The more we do this, the cleaner our heart becomes. But the cleaner we become, the more we will cry, for a clean heart truly sees things and especially God. How can one not cry in such a state?

Other ways are going to church regularly, glorifying God and celebrating holidays, confessions, fasting (not only from food but also from the passions of the soul), and especially reading the Holy Scriptures, thinking and remembering God.

We need silence and calmness – noise, a lot of travel, and fun don’t help. Avoid temptations, TV, bad friends, empty chatter. This takes time and effort; it’s a long and gradual process. Rejoice and celebrate small cleansing victories, just like a housekeeper rejoices when one of the many rooms is clean, but don’t become proud by your wins.

In all this, God’s mercy has the greatest influence, through the visitation of Grace, which cleanses our hearts.

We should always remember the Lord Jesus Christ, His earthly life, and His countenance.

The blessings of the pure Heart

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people. – Ephesians 1:18

We can see clearly, and with these cleansed eyes we can also see the beauty and highness of God’s glory. We can distinguish good from bad and truth from lies and not only with our eyes but with all our senses.

We also become pure so that we are worthy of God’s dwelling within us.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. – Matthew 5:8

Among the many other beauties, we also gain true wisdom:

Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning and even among fools she lets herself be known. – Proverbs 14:33

If the root is holy, so will be the branches. Similarly, if the Heart is holy, so will be the senses.

There are also calmness, innocence, silence, freedom from fear and confusion, and trust and love towards others (experience others as pure). We cannot get upset or angry.

The true sign and sure confirmation of the purity of one’s heart is received when a person is able to discern whether, and to what extent, their heart is pure, and to see its condition as clearly as they see their own reflection in a mirror. – Saint Symeon the New Theologian

The Lord wants and expects prayer and love from exactly such a heart.

God is a fire that illuminates and warms our heart, our inner man. If we feel coldness and a chill coming from the devil, for the devil is cold, then we must pray to the Lord to come again and warm us with perfect love, the love we direct toward Him and toward our neighbor. And so, in the presence of God’s warmth, the coldness of the frost-bearing devil will disappear. – Saint Seraphim of Sarov

The heart grows cold when we turn away from the Lord. The heart grows warm when we return to the Lord.

We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. – 2 Peter 1:19

The Heart rejoices

This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. – Ecclesiastes 5:17-19

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure – Psalm 16:8-9

Teach me Your way, Lord, that I may rely on Your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your name. – Psalm 86:11

When anxiety was great within me, Your consolation brought me joy. – Psalm 94:19

The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous. – Psalm 19:9

In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name. – Psalm 33:21

How to preserve the Heart?

Be careful of any impure thoughts secretly entering the heart.

Be careful that you do not entertain a mean thought in your heart… – Deuteronomy 15:9

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. – Proverbs 4:23

Saint Basil the Great, in his Monastic Rules, teaches us:

By every possible means and with all available resources, we must vigilantly guard our heart, so that it does not lose, even for a moment, the thought and remembrance of the Lord; and even more, so that we do not defile the memory of the Lord’s wonderful words and deeds with impure fantasies and vanity.

Saint Syncletica states that it is necessary, with attentiveness and discernment, to examine the thoughts that arise from the mind:

And whoever looks at everything from every angle—vigilantly and soberly, as though with many eyes—will be saved.

The most valuable treasure of the Heart is the Love for Christ. The unceasing repetition of the name of Jesus Christ greatly helps to renew and preserve the love of our heart for Him.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7

The Jesus Prayer also helps preserving our hearts: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Pray to our guardian angels.

Work is also important. Remember: laziness is the mother of all vices.

My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working. – John 5:17

Good deeds, service to God and to others, and the multiplication of the talents God has given us—all of this should be directed toward one goal: to guard our heart.

Our heart is the principal battlefield in the struggle against the evil one, and although the evil one may indeed be present within a person, he cannot dwell in the depths of the human heart. Our heart is meant to be the throne of God. Saint Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain says:

Before Holy Baptism, your heart was the throne of sin, under the sovereign rule of the evil one; but after Baptism, he was cast down from that throne, which then became the throne of God’s grace. And thus you, who had previously been humbled by sin, were exalted through divine adoption.

Do not allow your heart, through evil thoughts, words, and deceitful deeds, to become once again the throne of sin and of the devil, instead of remaining the throne of Grace. Although the unclean spirit is cast out through Baptism, it has a habit of returning to the place from which it was driven—that is, to the heart. Therefore, heed the advice of Saint John Climacus:

Conquer your enemies with the Name of Jesus Christ!

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed. That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; – Ephesians 4:17-23

Our great and exalted aim should be the sanctification of the heart. We can attain this through inner prayer and contemplation of the holiness of God as Trinity, of the holy Person of our Lord Jesus Christ, and of the holiness of the saints of our Church—especially the holiness of their hearts.

In this way, the desire will arise within us to become holy like them and to acquire hearts resembling theirs. This prayerful contemplation and reflection will continually strengthen holiness and virtue within our own hearts.