Advent Retreat 2/3: The Incensive Power (heart) | Healing the Angry Soul: Ordering the Passions

About this sermon

In this Advent spiritual talk, Father Deacon Matthew Haynes (St. Basil the Great Parish) continues his series on the three powers of the soul: desiring, incensive, and reasoning. Tonight’s focus is the incensive power (also called the irascible aspect): the part of the soul meant to fuel holy zeal, courage, perseverance, and spiritual warfare, but which—when misused—leads to anger, wrath, despondency, and madness. Drawing from the teachings of the Holy Fathers—St. Gregory Palamas, St. Isaac the Syrian, St. John Climacus, St. Maximus the Confessor, St. Anthony the Great, St. Hesychios, St. Dorotheos of Gaza, and others—Father Deacon Matthew explains: • How anger is meant to help us fight sin, not each other • How the misuse of anger makes us “most like the demons” • How despondency is a blend of anger + desire • How the Fathers fought temptation using Scripture and Psalms • Why St. Joseph is the model of a rightly ordered incensive power • How fathers and families can cultivate gentleness, perseverance, and peace • How almsgiving, humility, prayer, and forgiveness heal the soul • Why complaining blocks holiness • Why the real “robbers” are inside the soul, not outside • How to turn personal offenses into opportunities for virtue This talk ends with a prayerful reading of Psalm 4, a powerful psalm for anger, restlessness, and spiritual warfare. Perfect for Advent, Great Lent, catechesis, study groups, Orthodox catechumens, and anyone seeking deeper spiritual healing. ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS & CHAPTER TITLES 00:00 – Opening Prayer 00:33 – Introduction & Review: The Three Powers of the Soul 02:16 – Recap of the Desiring Power 03:29 – Introduction to the Incensive (Irascible) Power 04:44 – How Anger Becomes Madness 05:34 – Using Anger Against Sin, Not People 06:22 – Adam & Eve’s Failure to Use Incensive Power 07:30 – Christ as the Model of Zealous Resistance 08:02 – Desert Fathers & Scripture as Warfare 09:03 – St. Isaac on Zeal, Virtue & Trials 10:45 – Despondency: Anger + Desire 12:19 – The Danger of the Noon-Day Devil 13:14 – Tribulation & Courage 13:55 – Anger Makes Us Demon-Like 14:48 – Avoiding Angry Company & Influences 15:14 – Sloth & Despondency Interwoven 15:54 – Remedies: Prayer, Confession & Sacraments 16:45 – The Fight Against Self-Love 17:34 – Physical Prayer Practices (Vigils, Prostrations) 17:53 – Patience, Almsgiving, Psalms 19:01 – How Almsgiving Heals Anger 20:09 – Praying for Those Who Offend Us 20:52 – Seeing Offenders as Benefactors 22:36 – Saints Who Loved Their Offenders 23:30 – Loving Those Who Hurt Us 24:33 – The Real Enemy Is Within 25:40 – Delusion: How the Devil Hides 26:00 – St. Joseph as the Icon of Rightly Ordered Incensive Power 27:31 – Fathers as Protectors of the Domestic Church 28:58 – Handling Conflict in the Home 29:48 – Sacrificial Love & Family Holiness 31:39 – Submitting Tribulations as an Offering 32:45 – Closing Thoughts: Anger Blinds the Intellect 33:04 – Closing Prayer: Psalm 4 Please say 3 Hail Marys for the deacon. 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶️ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶️ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.com for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶️ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 SensusFidelium.TV - https://sensusfidelium.tv/@SensusFidelium 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶️ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶️ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶️ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. #orthodoxchristianity #orthodoxsermon #orthodoxspirituality #stbasilthegreat #adventreflection #christiananger #spiritualwarfare #patristicwisdom #despondency #desertfathers #stjoseph #angerheal

Topics

• Anger
• Christmas
• Healing