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Saint Sophrony the Athonite (✝ July 11th, 1993):
I remember one such happening, which occurred in France, in the early twenties – before my departure to Mt. Athos in 1925. I wept and prayed to God: ‘Find a way to save the world – to save all of us, we are all defiled and cruel.’ I would pray with particular fervour for the ‘little ones’, the poor and oppressed. Towards morning, with my strength waning, my prayer would be disturbed by the thought that if I grieve for mankind with all my heart, how is it that God can look on indifferendy at the pain and torment of millions of beings whom He Himself had created? Why does He allow the innumerable instances of brute force in the world? And I would turn to Him with the insane challenge, ‘Where art Thou?’ And in my heart I heard: ‘Was it you who was crucified for them?’ . . . The gentle words uttered by the Spirit shook me to the core – He Who was crucified had answered me as God.
Saint Sophrony, On Prayer
