The intellect joined to God for long periods through prayer and love become wise, good, powerful, compassionate, merciful and long-suffering; in short it includes within itself almost all the divine qualities. But when the intellect withdraws from God and attaches itself to material things, either it becomes self-indulgent like some domestic animal, or like a wild beast it fights with men for the sake of these things. (Maximos the Confessor)

Until undertaking this "conversation" with Maximos I did not realize what a materialist I am.

I recognize the potential dichotomy between the material and spiritual. Most of those I know seem to be loyal citizens of the material world and suspicious or worse of the spiritual.

Maximos has recognized a symptom of profound spiritual deficiency, but I am not confident his is the only therapy.

I do not perceive God intends for us to reject the material or that such rejection is the only path to the spiritual.

Rather there is a need to heal that which has fractured the material and spiritual, reuniting and restoring what was meant to be joined.