There is a saying in
the book of Proverbs which introduces the theme of Step 19 very well: "A
little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep - - so
shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, and your need like an armed
man." (Interestingly, this saying is repeated twice: Proverbs 6:10,11 and
Proverbs 24:33,34). In step 19,
St. John reminds us that too much sleep, like too much of anything, can be
spiritually dangerous. Of course,
we all need to sleep. Just as we
need to eat, so we need to sleep in order to live. But, although sleep is natural and needful, like desire it
has many sources.
How
can we tell the difference? St.
John does not spend a great deal of time in explaining the answer. He simply reminds us: it is too much
sleep when it keeps us from fulfilling our rule of prayer. When we choose to sleep rather than to
pray - we have entered into the spiritual danger zone.
Many
of the fathers have pointed out that Satan can oppress and make us feel more
tired than we are in order to keep us from praying. This often happens at night when it is time to say your
prayers before going to bed. All of a sudden, you are hit with a
tremendous sense of fatigue so that you can barely make it to your bed without
falling asleep. Sometimes,
undoubtedly, this is natural, but more often than not it comes from the evil
one. It is a trick to get us to go
to bed without prayer. For if we
go to bed without prayer, we leave open our minds and imaginations for demonic
assault all night. When we are
sleeping, we cannot be vigilant over our thoughts. Therefore, our prayer before sleep is of the greatest
importance.
In
this short step, John describes sleep and its sources, the habit of
oversleeping, the tactics of demons especially at the time of prayer, and
finally how these demons may be overcome.
Sleep
is a natural state. It is also an
image of death and a respite of the senses. Sleep is one, but like desire it has many sources. That is to say, it comes from nature,
from food, from demons, or perhaps in some degree even from prolonged fasting
by which the weakened flesh is moved to long for repose.
Just
as too much drinking comes from habit, so too from habit comes overindulgence
in sleep. For this reason one has
to struggle against it especially at the start of one's religious life, because
a long standing habit is very difficult to correct.
Let
us observe and we shall find that the spiritual trumpet that summons the
brethren together visibly is also the signal for the invisible assembly of our
foes. Some stand by our bed and
encourage us to lie down again after we have got up. "Wait until the first hymns are over," they
say. "Then it will be time
enough to go to church."
Others get those at prayer to fall asleep. Still others cause a bad and unusual stomachache, while
others encourage prattle in the church.
Some inspire bad thoughts, others get us to lean against the wall as
though we were weary or to start yawning over and over again, while still
others cause us to laugh during prayer so as to provoke the anger of God
against us. Some get us in our
laziness to hurry up with the singing, while others suggest we should sing
slowly in order that we may take pleasure in it. Others, by sitting on our mouths, shut them so that we can
scarcely open them.
However,
the man who considers with sensitivity of heart that he is standing before God
will be an immovable pillar of prayer, and none of the demons mentioned above
will delude him.
A
furnace tests gold. Prayer tests
the zeal of a monk and his love for God.
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