“For the sake of Love all the Saints Resisted Sin, not showing any regard for this present life and they endured many forms of death, in order to be seperated from the world and unified with themselves and with God, joining together in themselves the broken fragments of human nature. For this is the true and undefiled theosophy of the faithful. Its consummation is goodness and truth – if indeed goodness as compassion and truth as devotion to God in faith are the marks of love. It unites men to God and to one another, and on this account contains the unchanged permanence of all blessings.
“The actualization and proof of perfect love for God is a genuine and willing attitude of goodwill towards one’s neighbor. ‘For he who does not love his brother whom he has seen,’ says St John, ‘cannot love God whom he has not seen’ (1 John 4:20).
“The way of truth is love. The Logos of God called Himself the way; and those who travel on this way He presents; purified from every stain, to God the Father.
“This is the door through which a man enters into the Holy of Holies and is brought to the vision of the unapproachable beauty of the Holy and Royal Trinity.” ~The Philokalia
Saints Resisted Sin
What it meant to resist sin varies depending on the religion, and even on different churches within the same religion. Christians and Jews have the Ten Commandments to follow. But the Laws of God are more complicated than those basic rules. It can be expressed simply by saying that sin is anything that opposes the Will of God. It has also been said that sin is ignorance of God, because anyone who truly knows God would not violate His laws.
No Regard for the Present Life
I don’t think this is entirely true. There are many Saints in various religions who spent much of their lives fighting for religious freedom and the human rights of their people. Moses took on the Pharaoh. Gandhi took on the British colonialist in India. So I think it is more accurate to say that saints place the spiritual life of themselves and others ahead of physical life on Earth. They are, in almost all cases, willing to fight against those persons, organizations, and forces that prevent people from practicing their spiritual growth methods.
Endured Death
There was a time when many Christians believed that being killed for your faith automatically got you a seat in Heaven. Many became saints that way. But if it were that simple, we would see many devout people placing themselves in the arms of their enemies so they could die a holy death. Being killed for your faith doesn’t guarantee you will go to Heaven. It depends on the circumstances. Let’s look at two examples. One saint is captured by her enemies and ordered to deny her faith or be killed. She refuses and is put to death. That person will almost certainly go to Heaven. Another person is simply part of the crowd, a new member of a congregation when enemy soldiers stomp in and kill everyone. It is highly unlikely that this person has performed the necessary steps to awaken his spirit and soul, therefore, despite being killed for his faith, he is unlikely to go to Heaven. So just getting yourself killed for God is not the answer. Being a saint or spiritual adept doesn’t require getting killed for your faith.
Joining Together the Broken Fragments
This seems like an odd thing to claim, but it isn’t. We humans are very complex beings of many parts. On the largest level, there is the physical body, the mind and mental/psychic body, the spirit or Light body, and the soul. Unfortunately in most of us, the spirit and soul remain dormant throughout our earthly lives. As a result, they remain separate from the rest of us. One of the primary tasks of spiritual development is to join all the parts into one complete Human, the Superhuman, one of the saints.
