“Know thyself”?

[SingularityOne]

How does one “know thyself” in that our minds are distorted by sin? When I repent I find it hard to know if what I’m seeing is actually a sinful thought or if it is just something the devil is showing me of a false memory.

How does one “know thyself” without being deluded?

 

[Aussie Pete]

How does one “know thyself” in that our minds are distorted by sin? When I repent I find it hard to know if what I’m seeing is actually a sinful thought or if it is just something the devil is showing me of a false memory.

How does one “know thyself” without being deluded?

You need the Lord to show you. Ask Him. We all need discernment. One key is your will. Did you choose to think the thought? Or did it just drift into your mind? If you chose, it is your thought. If not, it was injected by an evil spirit. It will pretend to be you.

 

[ArmyMatt]

How does one “know thyself” in that our minds are distorted by sin? When I repent I find it hard to know if what I’m seeing is actually a sinful thought or if it is just something the devil is showing me of a false memory.

How does one “know thyself” without being deluded?

keep praying and coming to the sacraments. as we say in Lent, the Light of Christ illumines all.

 

[Moses Medina]

According to the book "Ladder of Divine Ascent" an aspect of it is realizing what ones passions are and their triggers

 

[AMM]

Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica, in Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives, says that thoughts can come from 3 sources. I believe I also just heard a talk on YouTube where Archimandrite Sergius (Bowyer) of St Tikhon’s says the same thing, though it may have been in The Way of the Pilgrim which I’m reading now too.

Thoughts can come from the demons, they can come from ourselves (our human nature), or they can come from the Holy Spirit and one’s guardian angel

I’m not sure how that necessarily answers your question - it’s a good question for sure.

 

[SingularityOne]

Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica, in Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives, says that thoughts can come from 3 sources. I believe I also just heard a talk on YouTube where Archimandrite Sergius (Bowyer) of St Tikhon’s says the same thing, though it may have been in The Way of the Pilgrim which I’m reading now too.

Thoughts can come from the demons, they can come from ourselves (our human nature), or they can come from the Holy Spirit and one’s guardian angel

I’m not sure how that necessarily answers your question - it’s a good question for sure.

Yeah, this makes sense. I’m more asking how to discern between those three sources of thoughts if our faculty of discernment is distorted. Thank you for the information though.

 

[nicholas123]

How does one “know thyself” in that our minds are distorted by sin? When I repent I find it hard to know if what I’m seeing is actually a sinful thought or if it is just something the devil is showing me of a false memory.

How does one “know thyself” without being deluded?

An eternity of asceticism to differentiate prelest from truth! While you have not the time, you have the right attitude towards it. To believe oneself free from prelest is the greatest prelest.

 

[SingularityOne]

An eternity of asceticism to differentiate prelest from truth! While you have not the time, you have the right attitude towards it. To believe oneself free from prelest is the greatest prelest.

So, you’re saying the attitude is the only thing that’s important in this?

 

[nicholas123]

So, you’re saying the attitude is the only thing that’s important in this?

I'm saying we cannot escape prelest and to believe one escaped is a great delusion. You will be deluded by yourself and others, it's just part the human condition. Though the fact that you watch your judgement will minimize such delusions.

 

[SingularityOne]

I'm saying we cannot escape prelest and to believe one escaped is a great delusion. You will be deluded by yourself and others, it's just part the human condition. Though the fact that you watch your judgement will minimize such delusions.

So it’s more about being “aware/watchful” of the judgement instead of being blind to it...?

 

[JohnTh]

Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica, in Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives, says that thoughts can come from 3 sources

A classical teaching of the fathers.

...in order to know ourselves we must be, first of all, obedient and after this detach from the world in order to not be trembled by any external factors (as much as possible) and in this stillness to see, under guidance, who he is.

Our mind is very weak and watchfulness needs a lot of stillness.