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Shorter Rules

St Basil the Great, tr. Lowther Clarke, 1925

Rule 278: How Does a Man’s Spirit Pray While His Understanding Remains Without Fruit?

This was said concerning those that utter their prayer in a tongue unknown to the hearers. For he says: “If I pray in a tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.” For when the words of the prayer are unknown to those who are present, the understanding of him who prays is unfruitful since no one is benefited; but when those who are present understand the prayer, which is able to benefit the hearers, then he who prays has the bettering of those who are benefited as a fruit. The same applies to every utterance of God’s words. For it is written: “Such as is good for edifying of the faith.”²

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