Listlessness, Discouragement, and Depression — An Orthodox View

There is a state of the soul known to the early Church Fathers as listlessness (ἀκηδία (akēdia))

Evagrius (345–399 AD) sees this as the demon of listlessness: no longer love; God no longer cares for you; cuts off hope; shuts off the holy light from the soul; no longer dare to seek mercy of God with prayers; want to cry but terrible thought suppress tears; lasts for days on end; you want to scream about your discouragement and boredom; can make you sick; lose patience; feel crazy; then cry like a baby. In this condition, it can seem like there is no way out. This condition is experienced on the spiritual path for those who are advanced and strong spiritually but for those who are weak, it can lead to a desire for suicide after going through insanity.

The Fathers teach that listlessness often arises when a passion—an illusion of happiness or fulfillment—can no longer be satisfied. The soul, having expected life or meaning from something created, finds only frustration. When this frustration persists, it can lead to apathy, despair, and a sense that there is no way forward. The soul does not necessarily reject God; rather, it feels unable to reach Him.

For those who are spiritually strong, this state may become a battlefield where deeper humility and trust in God are forged. But for those who are weak, wounded, or already burdened, listlessness can become overwhelming and dangerous. The Fathers speak with great sobriety here: prolonged discouragement can distort perception, suppress tears, weaken the body, and in severe cases give rise to thoughts of escape from life itself. In such moments, the person is not guilty—they are suffering.

It is essential to say clearly: this condition is an illness of the soul, and often of the body as well. It may resemble what modern psychology calls depression, and the two can exist together. The Church does not oppose medical care in such cases. Medicine may help stabilize the body and mind so that the soul can breathe again. Seeking help is not a lack of faith; it is an act of humility and wisdom.

The Fathers do not burden the weak with heroic demands. They offer mercy.

When prayer feels impossible, they do not say, “Pray harder,” but rather, do not abandon prayer entirely. Even a single phrase—“Lord, have mercy,” or “Help me”—repeated without feeling, is enough. Prayer in this state is not about joy or clarity; it is about remaining turned toward God, even in darkness.

They also teach that the body must be cared for: regular meals, rest, simple activity, and structure are not distractions from spiritual life, but supports for it. Listlessness feeds on isolation and disorder. Therefore, one should not remain alone. Speaking with a priest, a trusted believer, or simply being in the presence of another person can quietly restore hope.

Most importantly, the Fathers remind us that hope does not have to come from within us. When the soul cannot hope, the Church hopes for it. When prayer feels empty, the prayers of others carry us. God’s mercy does not depend on our emotional strength. Christ remains faithful even when we feel abandoned or numb.

If you are experiencing this state, know this:
You are not broken.
You are not rejected by God.
You are not failing at the spiritual life.

You are wounded—and Christ came precisely for the wounded.

Remain where you are. Ask for help. Do not believe the thoughts that tell you there is no way out. This darkness does not define you, and it will not have the final word.

Awakening Our Heart to a God (4) - Internal Perceptions

Most of us live a worldly life with a spirit that is locked up in our heart by all our desires, resentments and cares of daily life. In reality this spirit is free, but we have covered it up, bound it, with all our cares. All we need to do is remove the obstacles that block our awareness of its powers. It appears to be asleep, because our worldly cares make it appear this way. It is by God’s Grace that we are awakened revealing to us this condition. Saint Theophan points out that this can happen as the result of grace working either directly on it or indirectly. When divine grace through direct action reveals our true condition, it arouses dissatisfaction with one’s current way of life and leads to a desire to change.

Saint Theophan puts this aroused dissatisfaction this way:

The person is not satisfied by anything around him; not by his accomplishments or possessions, even if he has incalculable wealth; and he walks around as if heart broken. Because he finds no consolation in visible things, he turns to the invisible, and receives it with a readiness to acquire it for himself sincerely and to give himself over to it.

Psychologists have termed this condition as a mid-life crisis or it is also misdiagnosed as depression. Commonly, when we reach our forties, we develop a feeling that something is missing, all our successes have not led us to an inner happiness or satisfaction. If we respond by following this awakening spirit we will return to the Church, begin to seek a deeper understanding of the Gospel and the Orthodox way of life, discover a deeper meaning in life and a peace and joy we did not know existed. If we ignore it, we may begin a new path of worldly seeking and the spirit within remains asleep.

Saint Theophan outlines some of the indirect ways grace works on us. The first he describes is self-indulgence. By this he means that through our worldly way of life we have become dependent on the physical and mental aspects of our way of life, all the attachments we have to what makes up our current life. Everything that we think nourishes us is embodied in this worldly life.  We are dead to the nourishment of the Holy Spirit. To think of changing our way of life becomes unthinkable. We can’t conceive of an alternative that would be better. We are stuck in our own self-made patterns. This self-indulgence is very strong and are the bonds constraining the spirit. 

What divine grace does, which may seem cruel, is to destroy one of these indulgences that supports our current way of living. This could be an illness, accident that limits us, loss of job, loss of family or friends, or financial loss. Saint a Theophan describes some of the ways this can happen depending on how we have created this false foundation of our life:

He who is enslaved by pleasing the flesh shall fall ill, and, by weakening the flesh, shall give the spirit freedom and power to come to its senses and become sober. He who is preoccupied with his own attractiveness and strength shall be deprived of this attractiveness and kept in a state of exhaustion. He who finds refuge in his own power and strength shall be subject to slavery and humiliation. He who relies greatly on wealth shall have it taken away from him. He who shows off great learnedness shall be put to shame. He who relies on personal connections shall have them cut off. He who counts on the permanence of the order established around him shall have it destroyed by the death of people he knows or the loss of essential material possessions.

When this happens there is the opportunity for a positive change in one’s life. When we feel weak, humbled, we are apt to turn towards God for help. When we are struck with something that takes something important to us give thanks to God and seek His help. Look for new opportunities to serve Him, new spiritual practices, renewed participation in the sacramental life. Open you heart when something unthinkable happens and allow grace to awaken our spirit.

There are other bonds that constrain our spirit. These are the structures of society such as its rules, laws, principles and ideas. We often feel helpless in going against the waves of our culture. We have been raised to fit in with the norms of society. We often forget we have free will and can choose even in a world with strong societal constraints. Saint Theophan  tells us that these forces are not physical but reside in our imagination. He says, 

“one has only to dispel this imaginative power of the world, and the opportunity for abstaining from its charms becomes more likely.”

This can be overcome by contemplating divine creation or the Church. Time in silence, surrounded by the beauty of a traditional Orthodox Church, we can be moved by grace, find peace of mind, and suddenly choosing to commit to service of God. Or, one may go into a natural area, a walk along a natural lake or creek, a desolate seashore, or a mature wooded area and be uplifted by the beauty of God’s creation untouched by human hands. This experience may cause an opening for divine grace to work on opening the heart and freeing the spirit within. Both of these I find personally very powerful. I am humbled every time I enter into a traditional Orthodox Church. I feel God’s presence and my hardened heart is opened. I regularly take a short walk along a creek lined with mature trees, all is untouched by human hands. God’s handiwork, it’s beauty, it’s complexity also opens my heart to a God who is in all places and all things.

Saint Theophan says,

Nature and Church completely wrench the human spirit from the bonds of the world. In this capacity they dispel, dissipate, and oust the charms of the world of vanity with its many illusions.

When we awaken to the constraints of society, grace will bring new strength to go against the current, to desire to live a God-pleasing life without any concern what old friends may think of you. They are some of the bonds that need to be broken if you are to become a true child of God. When a path is found that is not based on norms of a modern society, then there will be experienced true joy.

In addition there are other ways such as an encounter with a spiritual person who is not bound by such societal forces. There are many ways we can encounter our loving God who is constantly seeking to awaken our spirit so we can be perfected. We are the prize of His creation made in His image and likeness. He wants us to see that our purpose in this worldly life is to be perfected and to become united with His will. This is necessary if we are going to deserve eternal life in His Kingdom. This is why He sent His Son to show us the way through His suffering in Crucifixion and then His glorious Resurrection, Ascension into heaven, and sending the Holy Spirit to heal us all in His Church.

This is why catechistic teaching is so important and helps nurture all the approaches to an awakening of a sleepy soul. We all need to proclaim the universal Truth of the Gospel and it’s message of divine salvation. This needs to be done in a simple way without philosophizing.  Saint Theophan says, 

“depict the truth as it is, not cluttering it with intellectual concepts and especially speculation about probabilities... Just explain the truth in a simple way; say what it is, and the spirit will be overcome.”

References: Path to Salvation by Saint Theophan the Recluse, pp 111-118. 

Awakening Our Heart to God (3)     Awakening our Heart to God (5)

Why the Ups and Downs?

Why is it that we go through periods of happiness followed by despondency? This seems to happen especially after some joyous event.  It happens even to those who have everything: a good home, good job, many friends, and all the means to enjoy any kind of entertainment or even exotic vacations.  Why do we still experience sadness in our lives when we are blessed with so much?


Saint Theophan reminds us that our amusements can give rise to such feelings.

Amusements, especially pleasant ones, give rise to depression, because while they are not sinful, they are unable to content the heart.

It is common for us to seek this deep contentment from the activities of his world:  A football game, a festival, a play or movie, a party and so forth.  But these are only surface and temporary satisfactions for what we long for deeply. They bring a cycle of happiness that is followed by a sadness when it ends. They do not help us with the angst of life which is death and the unknown that this implies for us. They only distract us from the deep questions our ultimate end raises deep within us.  Our heart is seeking something that such worldly activities can not give us.  We long for a contentment that all the activities, all the riches, all the friends, all the processions of this world will not give us.


True joy and contentment only comes with a deep relationship with God.  He is our purpose. Our aim is to be united with Him for eternity. With Him there is no death. This is the message of Jesus Christ.  This is the way of His life, His teaching, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. He showed and called  us to follow and join with Him. As long as we continue to seek union with God, do our best to carry out His commandments, remain humble in His eyes seeking forgiveness and mercy for all our missteps, we will move closer and closer to true happiness, happiness that does not come and go, something that cannot be taken away from us like the temporary satisfactions we get from our amusements.


Saint Theophan says,

Do not forget God, and thank Him for every comfort, accepting such comfort as coming from His hands... God is asking your heart once and for all, and the heart desires God.  for without God it is never satisfied, it is bored; examine yourself from this aspect. Maybe you will find the door to the peace of God there.

Thank God for everything! 

Reference: The Spiritual Life, pp 280-281 

Combating Feelings of Depression

Often when we feel depressed we try to overcome our state though some kind of amusement.  Such a course will never lead to any real contentment.  That is not to say that their is something wrong with engaging in amusements, it is just that they will not help you overcome any feelings of depression.


Saint Theophan says,

Amusements, especially pleasant ones, give rise to depression, because while they are not sinful, that are unable to content the heart.  Generally speaking, the inconstancy of the emotions is characteristic to us.  It is necessary to discard and overcome this, being concerned that one thing does not change; that is, that your most important decision, the goal of life you have chosen for yourself [to be united with God], always remains in force.

Much time in our lives today is taken up with amusements such as computer games, internet surfing, movies and television.  Regard these as mere pastimes and something that you need to control and not depend on for any personal well being.


True satisfaction only comes with a genuine relationship with God.


Saint Theophan says,

God is asking your heart once and for all, and the heart desires God.  For without God it is never satisfied, it is bored; examine yourself from this aspect.  Maybe you will find the door to the peace of God.

So how do we find this door in our heart?  For those who believe in Christ and His Resurrection, one of the proven ways is through prayer.  Each day. establish a prayer rule for both morning and evening.  Be sure to include as a major part of this rule the practice of the Jesus Prayer.  Daily prayer is essential for any  genuine relationship with God and will surely, with your good effort, bring you inner peace that will lift you above any feelings of depression.  Once we are in true contact with God we only experience joy that comes from His unconditional love.  When wee have opened that door in our heart, we receive His grace freely and are enabled to do the good works he teaches us to do. It is in this way we become like Christ.


Reference: The Spiritual Life, pp 280-281