Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

The Catholic Book Blogger

Home
About
Publications
Contact
The Open Book Podcast
Children's and Teen Book Reviews
Interviews
The Clergy Speaks
More
- 2015 Book Reviews
  - 2014 Book Reviews
  - 2013 Book Reviews
- Author Interviews
- Archive Index

Home
Catholic

Saint John Cassian

Select a Category A Year with Mary A Year with the Angels A Year with the Church Fathers Book News Children's Review Featured CD Giveaway Guest Post Interview Linked Review Media review Movie Review New Releases Off the Shelf Review speakers Teen Review The Clergy Speaks The Laity Speaks The Open Book Podcast Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012

July 2018

July 15, 2018

Let your struggles help others; Church Fathers: Day 344

The desert fathers, St. John Cassian tells us, had a custom of revealing their most...

July 04, 2018

Evil is evil, even if God turns it to good; Church Fathers: Day 335

St. John Cassian tells how an earnest monk asked a hard question of the wise...

June 2018

June 06, 2018

Not even the devil can make you sin; Church Fathers: Day 307

St. John Cassian remembers the words of the wise Abbot Theodore in the Egyptian desert....

May 2018

May 28, 2018

Set one vice against another; Church Fathers: Day 298

St. John Cassian shares the wise advice of Abbot Serapion in Egypt: sometimes you can...

May 27, 2018

Guard against every vice; Church Fathers: Day 297

No matter how strong your defenses against the worst vices, says St. John Cassian, opening...

May 26, 2018

Overcome your jealousy; Church Fathers: Day 296

Envy is listed among the deadly sins for a good reason. As St. Cyprian tells...

May 20, 2018

Destroy covetousness before it destroys you; Church Fathers Day 291

How dangerous is covetousness? St. John Cassian answers that it was this sin that led...

May 14, 2018

Don’t blame your bad mood on someone else; Church Fathers: Day 286

The cause of our gloominess is nowhere outside ourselves, says St. John Cassian. Depression grows...

May 13, 2018

Never be angry—at all; Church Fathers: Day 285

Anger clouds our judgment, says St. John Cassian. The only way to be safe is...

May 12, 2018

Blame yourself for your anger; Church Fathers: Day 284

We often say that someone has “made” us angry. Don’t blame someone else, says St....

May 11, 2018

Find the right use for your anger; Church Fathers: Day 283

The passion of anger blinds us and sends us tumbling into sin, says St. John...

May 10, 2018

Don’t excuse your anger from Scripture; Church Fathers Day 282

Some people, says St. John Cassian, try to excuse their anger by saying that righteous...

May 06, 2018

Make the right use of your passions; Church Fathers: Day 278

God gave you your emotions for good reasons, says St. John Cassian. The key is...

April 2018

April 29, 2018

Gluttony brings you down to earth; Church Fathers: Day 271

The abbot Serapion tells St. John Cassian that we can see what gluttony is like...

April 27, 2018

The opposite of gluttony is moderation; Church Fathers: Day 270

You’re never too sick or weak to be virtuous, says St. John Cassian. To avoid...

April 24, 2018

Don’t run away from sloth; Church Fathers: Day 268

Sloth, laziness, boredom—these are problems that can sap our energy for doing what needs to...

April 21, 2018

Keep struggling against vanity; Church Fathers: Day 265

Vanity, or “vainglory” as old English writers used to call it, is a hard vice...

April 14, 2018

Give the credit to God; Church Fathers: Day 259

The Syrian abbot Chaeremon tells St. John Cassian that we can’t give ourselves the credit...

April 08, 2018

Keep your soul light as a feather; Church Fathers: Day 253

The abbot Isaac told St. John Cassian that we can compare the soul to a...

March 2018

March 25, 2018

Attack your strongest sin first; Church Fathers: Day 243

The wise abbot Serapion told St. John Cassian that we should attack the enemy first...

January 2018

January 05, 2018

Your heart is like a flour mill; Church Fathers: Day 164

St. John Cassian recalls a striking illustration a wise old abbot named Moses taught him....

November 2017

November 18, 2017

Suit your practice to your nature; Church Fathers: Day 117

Not everyone can fast heroically, says St. John Cassian. We need to take our own...

November 16, 2017

Be like steel, not like wax; Church Fathers: Day 115

St. John Cassian remembers the wise comparison of the abbot Theodore. Your mind, he says,...

November 15, 2017

Love virtue for its own sake; Church Fathers: Day 114

The Syrian abbot Chaeremon, as St. John Cassian remembers, explained that it’s far better to...

November 10, 2017

Feel pity for your persecutors; Church Fathers: Day 109

The wise abbot Chaeremon told St. John Cassian that forgiveness and compassion are the signs...

November 07, 2017

Cultivate patience and be at peace; Church Fathers: Day 106

If you cultivate patience, says St. John Cassian, you will be at peace not only...

November 01, 2017

Be kind even to people who don’t deserve it; Church Fathers: Day 100

Is that beggar on the street just a lazy bum? Maybe so, but St. John...

October 2017

October 21, 2017

Learn how to control your thoughts; Church Fathers: Day 089

St. John Cassian recalls the wise words of an Egyptian abbot named Moses. You can’t...

October 16, 2017

Learn practice before theory; Church Fathers: Day 084

The abbot Nesteros tells St. John Cassian that he needs to learn practice before he...

October 06, 2017

Stay on course; Church Fathers: Day 074

If you flit from one activity to the next, the abbot Nesteros tells St. John...

Related posts from The Catholic Book Blogger

Catholic

Learn persuasion from the Lord; Church Fathers: Day...

The Catholic Book Blogger

Catholic

Pray for conversions; Church Fathers: Day 348

The Catholic Book Blogger

Catholic

Welcome the straying when they turn back; Church...

The Catholic Book Blogger

Catholic

Pray for the straying; Church Fathers: Day 346

The Catholic Book Blogger

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Subscription Support Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In

Follow Patheos