Elder Sofian: Our Prayers Can be Like Those In The Communist Prisons
We were so well-guarded, so constrained in prison that we could only think upwards, vertically, to God.
What can you tell us about the power of prayer that some people had in prison?
We were so well-guarded, so constrained in prison that we could only think upwards, vertically, to God. Usually, a person prays fervently when he is in trouble. And the prisons were truly great trials. The prayers of those in the Communist prisons were received by God. With all the misery, the evil commanded against the poor prisoners, they all had a peace and joy that could only come from above, from God.
The prayers of those in prison were like those of the Holy Fathers in the desert or like the martyrs burnt at the stake, who, with a fire burning beneath them, were joyful and thanked God for the sacrifice they were bringing before Him. The prayers of those in prison, of the political prisoners, were similar. For us today, their prayers and way of life suggest the thought that it is good to humble ourselves, to struggle, to lead an ascetic life—as much as possible—through fasting, prayer, prostrations, forgiving the insults we receive in life, patiently enduring without complaining, and then our prayers will be received by God, just as the ones of those in the Communist prisons.
Excerpt from a Conference on prayer held in Bucharest in 1996 with the Association of Romanian Orthodox Christian Students.