{"podcast":{"title":"Philokalia Ministries","slug":"philokalia-ministries-1083501","podcast_index_feed_id":1083501,"rss_url":"https://philokalia.podbean.com/feed.xml","website_url":"https://philokalia.podbean.com","image_url":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/594245/My_Post_Copy-1acrsu.jpg","author":"Father David Abernethy","episode_count":877,"summary":"Philokalia Ministries is the fruit of 30 years spent at the feet of the Fathers of the Church. Led by Father David Abernethy, a member of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri since 1987, Philokalia (Philo: Love of the Kalia: Beautiful) Ministries exists to re-form hearts and minds according to the mold of the Desert Fathers through the ascetic life, the example of the early Saints, the way of stillness, prayer, and purity of heart, the practice of the Jesus Prayer, and spiritual reading. Those who are involved in Philokalia Ministries - the podcasts, videos, social media posts, spiritual direction and online groups - are exposed to writings that make up the ancient, shared spiritual heritage of East and West: The Ladder of Divine Ascent, Saint Augustine, the Philokalia, the Conferences of Saint John Cassian (a favorite of Saint Philip Neri, the founder of the Oratory), the Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian, and the Evergetinos. In addition to these, more recent authors and writings, which draw deeply from the well of the desert, are read and discussed: Lorenzo Scupoli, Saint Theophan the Recluse, anonymous writings from Mount Athos, the Cloud of Unknowing, Saint John of the…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-14T06:21:09.072660+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/philokalia-ministries-1083501"},"episode":{"title":"The Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian - Homily XV, Part II","slug":"the-ascetical-homilies-of-st-isaac-the-syrian-homily-xv-part-ii","published_at":"2026-06-11T16:08:26+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/philokalia-ministries-1083501/the-ascetical-homilies-of-st-isaac-the-syrian-homily-xv-part-ii","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/philokalia-ministries-1083501","url":"https://philokalia.podbean.com/e/the-ascetical-homilies-of-st-isaac-the-syrian-homily-xv-part-ii/","audio_url":"https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/4r6akgpe8esrhd9p/E61_20260603Isaac_FINAL.mp3","summary":"When we read a passage like this from St. Isaac, it is tempting to focus on the warnings. We notice his words about passions, distraction, worldliness, anger, vainglory, and talkativeness. We see the severity of his language and immediately begin examining ourselves. Yet I do not think that is where Isaac wants us to begin. He wants us first to behold the beauty. Again and again throughout his writings, Isaac speaks as one who has glimpsed something almost too wonderful for words. He has seen what a human being becomes when Christ reigns in the heart. He has seen the Kingdom hidden within. He has seen the glory for which every man and woman was created. Listen to his words. The country of the pure soul is within. The sun shining there is the Holy Trinity. The air breathed there is the Holy Spirit. Christ Himself is the joy, life, and happiness of that realm. Isaac is describing nothing less than the transfiguration of the human person. So often we think of the spiritual life as self-improvement. We focus on our weaknesses, our failures, our habits, our mistakes. We become preoccupied with ourselves. Even our repentance can become a subtle form of self-absorption. But Isaac speaks of something infinitely greater. He speaks of a life so united to Christ that the human heart becomes a dwelling place of divine glory. He speaks of a man whose deepest identity is no longer found in his wounds, his history, his successes, his failures, or even his struggles. His identity is found in Christ who dwells within him. This is why Isaac can speak of the soul beholding its own beauty. At first this sounds strange to modern ears. We are accustomed either to pride or self-hatred. We know how to admire ourselves and we know how to despise ourselves. We know very little of seeing ourselv…","meta_description":"When we read a passage like this from St. Isaac, it is tempting to focus on the warnings. We notice his words about passions, distraction, worldliness, an…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3933,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/philokalia-ministries-1083501/episodes/the-ascetical-homilies-of-st-isaac-the-syrian-homily-xv-part-ii/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/philokalia-ministries-1083501/the-ascetical-homilies-of-st-isaac-the-syrian-homily-xv-part-ii.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}