“Everyone Baptised in the Orthodox manner has received Mystically the fullness of Grace; but he becomes conscious of this Grace only to the extent that he actively observes the Commandments.”
Saint Mark the Ascetic
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“We Baptise even infants, though they are not defiled by sins, so they too may be given Holiness, righteousness, adoption, inheritance, brotherhood with Christ, and membership in Him.”
Saint John Chrysostom
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“Baptism does not take away our free will or freedom of choice, but gives us the freedom no longer to be tyrannised by the devil unless we choose to be.”
Saint Symeon the New Theologian
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“Christians, have we understood the great responsibility that we have taken on before God through Baptism? Have we come to know that we must conduct ourselves as children of God, that we must align our will with the Will of God, that we must remain free from sin, that we must love God with all our hearts and always patiently await union with Him? Have we thought about the fact that our heart should be so filled with love that it should overflow to our neighbour? Do we have the feeling that we must become Holy and perfect, children of God and heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven? We must struggle for this, so that we may not be shown unworthy and rejected. Let none of us lose our boldness, nor neglect our duties, nor be afraid of the difficulties of spiritual struggle. For we have God as a helper, Who strengthens us in the difficult path of virtue.”
Saint Nektarios of Aegina
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“In spite of our sinfulness, in spite of the darkness surrounding our Souls, the Grace of the Holy Spirit, conferred by Baptism in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, still shines in our hearts with the Inextinguishable Light of Christ… and when the sinner turns to the way of repentance the Light smooths away every trace of the sins committed, clothing the former sinner in the garments of incorruption, spun of the Grace of the Holy Spirit. It is this acquisition of the Holy Spirit about which I have been speaking.”
Saint Seraphim of Sarov
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