A reading of the homily titled, "On Watchfulness and Noetic Prayer" from Chapter 15 of "Counsels from the Holy Mountain" by Elder Ephraim of Arizona
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0:09 The Watchful Fathers, especially St. Gregory Palamas, showed us the way
2:41 We must attack evil thoughts with anger, the Jesus Prayer, and rebuttal
5:06 Before noetic prayer was systematized, monks primarily focus on asceticism done with the body
8:02 The work of watchfulness led the Watchful Fathers to freedom from care
9:40 The value of silence
10:26 If one has tasted prayer and then loses prayer, he feels empty
11:29 Those who pray with watchfulness acquire great gifts
13:32 Prayer is the catapult against the demons, passions, and sin
14:45 The ax of prayer
15:37 A story of how a demon spoke through a woman to show a negligent monk that the Jesus prayer burns the demons
17:40 Must listen! A story of a man who comes to Elder Joseph and suffers from the demons yet courageously persists in saying the Jesus prayer
24:10 The power of prayer and the demons’ refusal to repent, yet we are lazy
25:34 Even laypeople occupy themselves with the prayer and bear fruit
27:54 Conclusion
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Elder Ephraim teaches:
A monk who lacks prayer feels empty, unless he has not tasted the benefit of prayer and does not realize his emptiness. If a poor man never had anything, he is not troubled. But if a monk who has been taught the prayer becomes neglectful and loses it, he knows his loss and is troubled. Therefore, monks must pray not only to carry out their duty as monks, but at the same time to be monks in deed; not just monks in name and outward appearance, but also inwardly. According to the Watchful Fathers, one is not called a monk if he does not have this hidden work within him. Therefore, we too must compel ourselves to pray for our soul to be full of benefit. Only then can we consider ourselves to be monks. Just as someone could wonder how a body could live without a soul, likewise a person experienced in prayer would be at a loss and say, "But how can people live without this spiritual nourishment!"
Our passions of soul and body are remedied in proportion to the progress we have made in prayer and the benefit we have received from it. The healing of one's passions and weaknesses marks how much a person has advanced in prayer.
Consequently, we must compel ourselves. We must constantly urge ourselves not to forget the prayer, not to neglect it. When we notice that the prayer has "sprung a leak," has weakened and begins to waver and stumble, it is necessary as quickly as possible to strive to correct it, to work with diligence, to restore strength to our prayer. How will this be accomplished? the soul must collect itself immediately, must concentrate, "tighten the belt,” as we say, and vigorously begin to pray. It must drive away thoughts, expel worries, free the mind from distraction and say, “I will occupy myself with the prayer now." And when we occupy ourselves with it in this way for a while, we shall soon feel the power which proceeds from diligence in prayer.
In conclusion, there is nothing left for us to do except to compel ourselves; to compel ourselves constantly. We should occupy ourselves with prayer above all, saying continuously: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." As we wake up in the morning we should say the prayer; then, we should do our work with the name of Christ on our lips.
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