[Part 1] Commentary on Saint Paisius of Neamț’s Defense of Noetic Prayer
by Saint John Jacob of Neamț (the Hozevite)
“News reached us about certain persons among the ranks of monastics who basing themselves on the sand of their understanding dare to slander the divine prayer of Jesus which through the mind effectuates a divine service in the heart.
In response to them, I dare to say that the enemy arms them in order to destroy with their tongues (just as with weapons) this divine work, and to darken their heart by blinding their mind. Fearing lest hearing such a thing someone fall into similar slander and sin before God, I determined, calling on the most sweet name of the Lord Jesus for help, to write a refutation of these blasphemers’ deceitful thoughts and to strengthen God’s chosen flock which has collected a number of writings in our monastery on divine, noetic prayer based on the teachings of the Holy Fathers.
Therefore, I, dust and ash, bending the knees of my mind and heart before the immeasurable grandeur of Thy divine glory, I entreat Thee, Only Begotten Son and Word of God, Who illumined the man blind from birth, illuminate my darkened mind as well, grant my soul Thy grace, that this work of ours may be to the glory of Thy name and the benefit of others who desire through noetic work of prayer to glue themselves to Thee with their spirit and to always bear Thee in their heart, as well as for the correction of others who on account of their great ignorance have dared to slander this holy work.”
Teaching on noetic prayer in six chapters follows.
In chapter 1, the staretz writes that noetic prayer is the work of the Holy Fathers that he defends against slanderers. It must be known that this divine work was the ceaseless preoccupation of our God-bearing Fathers of old who shined as the sun in many desert areas and in monasteries with cenobitic life: on Mount Sinai, in Scetis of Egypt in the Nitria Mountains, in the City of Jerusalem and surrounding monasteries, on Holy Mount Athos and islands in the sea—in a word, in all of the East and in Tsargrad, and in following times in great Russia.
Through this mental work (of Holy Prayer) many God-bearing Fathers, becoming aflame with the seraphic fire of love for God and others, became the most zealous followers of God’s commandments and were made worthy of being chosen vessels of the Holy Spirit.
No one among the Orthodox dared to utter slander against this divine work of the mind and of preserving the paradise of the heart, but rather all showed great respect and especial devotion to it as to something full of great spiritual benefit; however, the devil, the instigator of evil and adversary to all good works, seeing that the monastic ranks (who chose the good portion) sit at the feet of Jesus through this noetic work especially, growing towards perfection by fulfilling the divine commandments, the enemy began to employ all of his power in order to defame and slander this salvific work in hope of completely erasing this Prayer from the face of the earth.
He (that is, the enemy) seeks to do so sometimes by destroying books, other times by mixing poisonous tares with the heavenly, true wheat, so that people without discernment will slander this holy work.
Unsatisfied with this, the devil sought and found the heretic Barlaam in the region of Calabria in the country of Italy, who was similar to the devil through his pride, who worked through him, entering him with all his power, compelling him to defame our Holy Orthodox faith, as well as the Prayer of life. You see, thus, friends who dare to slander noetic prayer, that you take the side of this heretic and those with him?
Do you not fear with your soul that you will, like him, fall under the Church’s anathema and will be cast away from God?
And, truly, what is the reason that justifies you to slander this righteous Prayer? I have no doubts. Does calling on the name of Jesus seem useless to you? But you cannot be saved by any other name except the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Or is the mind of a person who practices this prayer corrupted? But this too is impossible, for God made man according to His image and likeness. However, the image and likeness of God is found in man’s soul…And should the heart in which a hidden sacrifice of prayer is offered to God (exactly as on an altar table) be mocked? But not this either, for the heart is also God’s creation, as is all the body, and it is very good. Therefore, if calling on the name of Jesus is salvific, and a person’s mind and heart are God’s creation, then what is a person’s sin, who from the depths of his heart raises the Prayer of the sweetest Jesus with his mind and entreats Him for mercy?
[End of Part 1]
Source:
Sfantul Ioan Iacob de la Neamț—Hozevitul, Opere complete (Doxologia: Iași, 2010) p. 426-428.