When spiritual purification, with the help of the heart prayer, is practiced, together with watching and guarding the mind, all passions and evil thoughts are uprooted and replaced by contrition, mourning, tears, knowledge of ourselves and our sins, memory of death, true humility and obedience. As our mind becomes firmly established in the heart, with pure, unwavering attention and the prayer of Jesus, it becomes impenetrable to suggestions from the evil one. In this way, we are led more and more to longing for God. And as we persist in prayer, with strong desire and focus, a whole host of new virtues spring from our heart and become manifest, e.g. charity, joy, hope, silence, peace and endless love for God, our fellow human beings and everything around us. In addition, all of our petitions to the Lord are answered in the name of Jesus Christ. Here, the early Fathers suggest that those who have attained perfect Prayer of the Heart and enlightenment should remain in the silence of the Holy Spirit, because they are now united with God and they should not tear their minds and hearts away from Him for any reason (e.g. a monk leaving the monastery to help his relatives.) The Holy Spirit will help those in need, in His own time and in His own way.

That is the Eastern Orthodox way. In the Western Church perhaps St John of the Cross has written about this the most. and so as I send you off to silence to purify your hearts I'm going to give you a slip of paper with some thoughts by St John of the Cross to the Nuns at Beas.

Prayer; Lord, as we turn in silence to you for the next 30 minutes, help us to explore the inner most recesses of our minds and discover those murky places where we hide things we don't want you to see. Help us to realise that you know about them already and we can be open and honest with you about them and that you will help us lose our attachment to them. We ask this in Jesus name. Amen