Men’s Purity Weekend

First Annual Men’s Purity Weekend

July 15-17, 2022

A few Men gathered from

all over the U.S. to spend

time together sharing

strategies for living as

men of purity in a culture

of spiritual darkness.

Each Year men gather out in the country to camp together and spur one another on

The following teachings are used each year for the first time attenders. Then they are followed up with further teachings on manhood, strength & Purity

St. Paisios the Athonite “Work and the Spiritual Life” and “On Our Times” Both can be found on youtube. The notes to go with them are below:               

***Please keep in mind that this message was shared by St. Paisios in the 1980’s or before.  How much further have we come since then?  So, listen with keen ears to the Saint’s words, and know that what he says is even more true today.

Important Quotes

·        The spirit of lukewarmness reigns.         There is no manliness at all.        We have been spoiled for good.

·        How does God still tolerate us?

·        There are no warriors.        The great majority are fit for only parades and feasts.

·        Godlessness and blasphemy are allowed to appear on the television [and the computer/internet] and the Church is silent and does not excommunicate the Blasphemers.  They need to be excommunicated.

·        We have to witnesses our Faith with Boldness…to resist evil. 

·        A lukewarm Clergy lull people to sleep.  … in their false kindness they say, “We musn’t expose heretics in their delusions, so as to show our love for them.

·        Today’s people are water soluble.

·        Spiritual Meekness is one thing.  Softness and indifference are quite another.

·        Our goal is to live an Orthodox life, not just to speak or write Orthodox.

Question:  Do you speak Orthodox, orthodox theology? How do you live? 

I mean how do you live when no one else is around you?

·        To think like an Orthodox is easy! But to live an Orthodox life takes effort.

·        God expects patience, prayer, and struggle from us.

·        If you want to help the Church, try to mend your ways and not the ways of others.

·        Today’s people attend to everything under the sun; only not to themselves.  Because it is easy to teach others while mending one’s own ways requires effort.

·        We must always ask ourselves, “Why do I want to say what I’m about to say.  What is motivating me?  Do I really care about my neighbor?  Or do I just want to show him how wonderful I am?  To show off a bit.

·        He who throws words around carelessly, even true words, does evil.

·        Wakefulness and sobriety are needed.

·        Difficult years are ahead of us. Apostasy is upon us.

·        The most we can suffer is martyrdom.

·        Some modern priests diaper their congregation to keep them from getting upset. 

·        Cultivate self-sacrifice.

·        You must be ready for death. 

·        There is no spiritual life without sacrifice.

·        A kind man prefers to be killed, than to kill.

·        In order to succeed in anything, one needs a wild streak, in the positive sense.  He who lacks this wild streak can become neither a hero or a Saint.  The heart must become uncalculating.

·        Water, not blood, flows through people’s veins.  …they are used to an easy life.

·        If a person refuses to strive to become courageous, if he doesn’t strive for real love, when a difficult situation comes, he will become a laughing stock.

·        The warrior takes joy in the fact that he is dying so that others don’t have to.

·        Courage is born from much love, kindness, and self-sacrifice.

We listened to the lectures “On Love’s Thief and The Black Death” by Fr. Josiah Trenham. The lectures can be found at Patristicnectar.org under Theological lectures.

May men be pressed on to live a seriously pure, traditional, Orthodox lives in a world of ‘woke’, weak, effeminate masculinity. We hope the men who attended were challenged and strengthened.  They began some lifelong friendships.   Strong men are forged in the fire of the Word of God, sharpened by their brethren, spurred on by the messages... may the Holy Trinity continue the work in the lives of all who have participated the Purity Weekend.

I am so glad you were able to come.  I know that if you press hard into the Orthodox Faith, do your prayers consistently, attend services faithfully, have brothers who will keep you accountable, turn off the trash on the phones and screens, and guard your eyes, you will become a holy man of God, and you will be part of those who will be responsible for once more turning the world upside down For Christ and His Kingdom- the Orthodox Church- just like in the first few centuries of the Church.  Brothers!  Stand strong!  You can do it!  The battle rages hotly all around us.  Be the warrior for Christ that you were made to be!

In the Peace and Love of Christ,

Priest, Steven R. Mitchell, II

P.S.  Can you think of men who would benefit from attending such a Purity Weekend as this?  How many can you think of? Two, five, ten?  Well, start telling them about it, share the information that is on the Church’s website:  ascensionofchristorthodoxchurchswmo.com, and get them to start planning on attending next year.  You should start planning on bringing a group of men from you church and your area.