Holy Fathers on the Name of God: St. Diadochus of Photiki

When by remembrance of God we close all the exits of our mind it has need of some obligatory work to satisfy its restlessness. The only thing it should be given is the sacred Name of our Lord Jesus; let this wholly satisfy the aim that its has set itself... Those who mentally keep this holy and glorious Name unceasingly in the depth of their heart can see too the light of their mind.

When this wonderful Name is kept in the thought with intense care it very effectively scorches every filth that appears in the soul. ‘For our God is a consuming fire’ scorching all evil says the Apostle (Hebrews 12:29). Out of the fire the Lord finally brings soul into the great love for His glory. For the glorious and most coveted Name, becoming established in the warmth of the heart through the mind’s remembrance of it, gives birth to the habit of unhampered love for His goodness, since nothing then remains to hinder this. This is the precious pearl, which a man acquires having sold his possessions and rejoices greatly in acquiring Him.

St. Diadochus of Photiki, On Spiritual Knowledge and Discrimination, 59