"The first year after I had received the Holy Spirit I thought to myself: ' The Lord has forgiven me my sins: grace is witness thereof. What more do I need?' But that is not the way to think. Though our sins be forgiven we must remember them and grieve for them all our lives, so as to preserve a contrite heart. I did not do this and ceased to be contrite, and suffered greatly from evil spirits. And I was perplexed at what was happening to me, and said: 'My soul knows the Lord and His love. How is it that evil thoughts come to me?' But the Lord had pity on me, and taught me the way to humble myself: 'Keep thy mind in hell, and despair not.' Thus is the enemy vanquished; but when my mind emerges from the fire the suggestions of passion gather strength again.
Fight the enemy with the weapon of humility.
Whoever like me has lost grace, let him wrestle manfully with evil spirits. Know that you yourself are to blame: you fell into pride and vanity, and the Lord in His mercy shows you what it means to be in the Holy Spirit and what it means to be at war with evil spirits. Thus the soul learns by experience the harm that comes of pride, and shuns vainglory and the praises of men, and evil thoughts. Then will the soul begin to recover her health and learn to retain grace. How can we tell if the soul is well or ailing? The ailing soul is full of pride, while the soul that is well loves the humility taught her by the Holy Spirit." - Wisdom from Mount Athos, Chapter 9
As this conference serves as a continuation of its predecessor, St. Germanus asks Abba Serenus, "Should it be believed that these powers (demons) were created by the Lord for the purpose of warring against human beings in grades and ranks?" (8.2)
Abba Serenus immediately begins to explain the nature of the Holy Scriptures and how to interpret them. The Holy Scriptures at times state things clearly for all to understand, while at other times conveying things in a shroud of mystery. Why? Because certain things need to be veiled in order to distinguish the faithful from the profane and the lazy from the zealous with regards to virtue and prudence (8.3.2). The Holy Mysteries provide an excellent example, because the Eucharist separates the faithful from casual inquirers and slothful members.
Before Abba Serenus began his conference on spiritual warfare between the demons and the soul St. Cassian expressed his frustrations with his spiritual progress in the desert, "Nonetheless I find that, as I strive laboriously in this purity, I have progressed in this alone: I know what I cannot be. Hence I think that nothing but hard work will be my lot as a result of such contrition of heart, so that there may always be reason for weeping. Yet I do not cease to be what I must not be" (7.3.2). This line is so comforting. Often we forget that the saints were men and women like us with their own struggles and battles to fight. We have great comfort in this solidarity, as we summarize this conference on spiritual warfare and consider the principalities and powers of this painful world.
The mind, the demons, and spiritual progress are the focus of this conference. When these three realities are properly understood, the nature of spiritual warfare is perceived with great clarity.
