A brother questioned an Elder, saying: “Father, must I seek the counsel of the Elders for all of the temptations which come passing in my heart?”
“It is not necessary,” answered the Elder, “for someone to be questioned about all the temptations which pass through his heart, for they pass away. For example, a man can be insulted by others, yet ignore the insults and not concern himself with them; if however, one of those insulting him bothers him or attacks him, then he must report him to the authorities. In other words, he will go to the authorities and submit a charge against the one who has attacked him. The same thing happens with temptations, too. That is, we must reveal to our spiritual Fathers only those things which attack us or remain in our soul for a long time.”
The brother said: “How does it happen that I find fault with others after I have confessed?”
“You criticize others even after confession,” answered the Elder, “because within you reigns a disposition toward vindication, which has not died; criticize yourself and not others and the condemnation will pass from you.”
