And now, if someone asked me “what do you want from the Lord, what gifts?”, I would answer him: “the spirit of humility that pleases the Lord more than anything.”
The Virgin Mary became the Mother of God for her humiliation and is glorified in heaven and on earth more than all. She surrendered completely to the will of God: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord.” And we must imitate the Holy Virgin.
For humiliation, the soul receives rest near God, but to guard it, it is chastised for many years. We are deprived of this rest, because we did not fasten ourselves in humiliation.
I saw many miracles and mercies from the Lord and the Mother of God, but it is completely impossible for me to somehow reciprocate this love.
What shall I repay to the Most Holy Theotokos, who did not despise me while I was immersed in sin, but visited me viscerally and brought me to my senses? I did not see Her, but the Holy Spirit gave me to recognize Her from Her grace-filled words, and my spirit rejoices and my soul is so carried away by love for Her, that the mere invocation of Her name warms my heart.
When I was a young submissive, I was praying once in front of the icon of Theotokos and then the prayer of Jesus entered my heart and began to be pronounced there by itself.
Although the life of the Virgin was covered, so to speak, by the holy silence, the Lord revealed to our Orthodox Church that our Virgin Mary embraces the whole world with her love and sees with the Holy Spirit all the peoples of the earth and, like Her Son, She too has compassion and mercy for everyone.
Oh, and if only we knew how much the Virgin Mary loves all those who keep the commandments of Christ, and how sorry and distressed she is for those who do not repent! I tried this with my experience.
I am not lying, I am telling the truth before God, that I know the Immaculate Virgin spiritually. I did not see Her, but the Holy Spirit gave me to know Her and Her love for us. Without her mercy the soul would have been lost a long time ago. But she was fortunate enough to visit me and instruct me, so that I would not sin. He said to me: “I don’t like to see your works.” Her words were pleasant, calm, gentle and touched the soul. More than forty years have passed, but my soul cannot forget that sweet voice and I do not know how to thank the good and tender Mother of God.
Truly, She is our help before God and Her name alone makes the soul happy. But all heaven and all earth rejoice with Her love.
An admirable and incomprehensible thing. She lives in the heavens and sees the glory of God without interruption, but she does not forget us the poor and embraces with her compassion the whole earth and all the peoples.
The Lord gave this Immaculate Mother to us.
This is our joy and hope.
She is our spiritual Mother and is close to us by nature as a human being, and every Christian soul is drawn by love to Her.
source: original Sofroniou (Sakharov), – Saint Siluanos the Athonite, published by the Holy Monastery of the Holy Prodromos, Essex, England,