“I write to you not to draw you to the monastic life but more to dissuade you from it. For if you depart from the world with a wavering spirit, the longing for the world will strengthen within you and, I fear, will overwhelm you. And you will be with your body in the monastery and with your soul in the world. And the world torments more in the mirror of the soul than in reality.

Thank God, who besides the narrow path of the monks has shown a somewhat broader path to salvation and eternal life. Begin, daughter, this broader path, which suits your inclination more. Start on this path, but again with fear of God and entirely with trust in God. For, know that even this easier path is unbearable without God...

Bishop Nicholas is not only a great Serb. He represents for all of us Orthodox the expression of Orthodox spirituality and holds a prominent position among those who work to make Orthodoxy eternal.

Fr. Alexander Schmemann