“An indication of the authenticity of the inner spiritual state of a person is the fact that he is very strict with himself and lenient with others."
— St Paisios of Athos
“The Western conception that we obtain salvation on our own account in a juridical way renders our works useless (Protestantism), or considers them as a supplement to the juridical restitution that Christ paid for our sins (Catholicism). In either case the heart does not soften and does not open up for Christ from Christ and for other persons from Christ. This is our salvation that Christ seeks by the fact that He became man: to communicate His love to us so that we may become the bearers of His love, to remove us from the rigidity of sinful egoism. Neither Protestantism nor Catholicism sees the salvation that Christ brought as a foundation for the human person’s real restoration in communion with God. Only works springing from love, who’s source in us is Christ’s love, have meaning for our salvation.”
- Saint Dumitru Staniloae, The Experience of God, Volume 4, p. 151
"If all else fails, I will retreat up the valley of Virginia, plant my flag on the Blue Ridge, rally around the Scotch-Irish of that region and make my last stand for liberty amongst a people who will never submit to tyranny whilst there is a man left to draw a trigger." -GW
“While he was bishop of Ochrid, Archbishop Nikolaj went every summer to Mount Athos, where he did not miss paying a visit to the Russian monastery of Saint Panteleimon, and the monk Silouan (the future Saint Silouan of Athos). At that time, he was one of the few people to be able to see the exceptional spiritual stature of the starets, behind the simple appearance of the monk. Under the influence of Mount Athos, his relationship with the elder Silouan (whom he considered his 'master'), and his close contact with the works of the Fathers, he began to read and study a lot at that time. A deep inner change took place in him, marked by a focus on Orthodoxy and by a personal transformation that could be noticed by all. In terms of ideas, Bishop Nikolaj threw away from himself whatever (either from the West or the Far East) was foreign to the Orthodox Tradition.”
Jean-Claude Larchet, La vie et l’œuvre de Saint Nicolas de Zitcha