by DAVID BROWN | CLEARNFO.com | January 26, 2024
St. Anthony Assaulted by Demons | Considered to be the founder of monasticism, was born in Egypt in 251.
Logismoi is assaultive thoughts or thought forms, not your everyday thoughts. We swim in a sea of thoughts; the Zeitgeist or the culmination of the culture. Thought forms which are within this Zeitgeist can be assaultive. They are not harmless. Thoughts and thought images. Logismoi are caused by battle with the devil.
There are 5 stages:
- Assault – ignore – turn away from it. Don’t have to fight it…swat them like flies buzzing around. A thought enters our mind… for example to steal some money, lust, etc. We are not accountable for the strike or the assault. We have not committed a sin. We have not done anything except being assaulted.
- Interaction – we open a dialogue with the logismoi .. Should I do this or should I do that? Should I steal this money or not? We analyze the risk vs. reward. Slap it down. No accountability; no sin yet committed.
- Consent – defeat … we are accountable. Consent to what the logismoi tempted you to commit. This is the beginning of sin. Guilt.
- Captivity – if you can’t free yourself from the previous stage, then there is defeat. You become hostage to the logismoi, next time it comes around with greater force. Becomes a habit that is repeated time and again.
- Passion – it takes the grace of the Holy Spirit…prayer, passions to recover who you are. An entrenched reality. You are a captive to destructive acts to yourself and others. You get rewired and reoriented. Not a simple matter to deal with. Capable of reasoning with the mind but the heart can’t escape and you descend into sin.
Assault > Interaction > Consent > Captivity (you become hostage to the logismoi); thus it becomes more and more difficult to resist > Passion / obsession / addiction – you then participate in ongoing destructive acts … you give a key to your heart to Satan so he can get in and out without effort … Obsessive / Compulsive – this clouds and darkens the nous. Takes the grace of the Holy Spirt to recover who you are. Obey His commandments. This is spiritual warfare.
Note: When the nous is illuminated it means that it is receiving the energy of God which illumines it. Nous refers to our highest faculty… the “I” that perceives God.
Seven (7) Deadly Sins and their remedy:
More on this topic: Time marker 54:04 in this video: Orthodox Catechism: Part 11: Spiritual Life and Spiritual Warfare
12 Degrees of sins – St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain
- Does good, but not in a good manner – mixture of the good with the bad. For example you practice Lent perfectly but only so you can show off.
- Idleness in regard of good… not engaged in actively doing good
- Assault of evil because of our carelessness
- Coupling with the assault – this is where sin starts – we start playing with sinful thoughts
- The struggle which is no struggle
- Consent
- Sin of the mind
- The deed itself
- Habit of committing the sin often
- Addiction to it
- Despair and hopelessness
- Suicide – being conquered by despair