True Discernment Comes Through Humility

Then Moses said: True discernment is gained only by true humility. And the first proof of this humility is given by keeping everything, not only what you do but also what you think, for the elders to examine. So you do not trust your own judgment at all, but agree with their decisions in every point, and acknowledge, by their traditions, what ought to be considered good or bad. This habit will not only teach a young man to walk in the right path by the true way of discernment, but will also keep him unharmed by all the tricks and deceits of the enemy. For a man cannot possibly be deceived who lives not by his own judgment but by the example of the elders. Nor will our crafty foe be able to take advantage of the ignorance of one who is not in the habit of hiding, out of false shame, all the thoughts that rise in his heart, but either checks them or lets them remain according to the ripened judgment of the elders. [a]

For a wrong thought is weakened the moment it is brought into the open. Even before the sentence of discernment has been given, the foul serpent is dragged out, so to speak, by the power of confession from his dark underground cave, and in a sense exposed and sent away in disgrace. For evil thoughts will hold sway in us just as long as they are hidden in the heart. And so that you may grasp still more fully the power of this judgment, I will tell you what Abbot Serapion did, and what he used often to tell the younger brothers for their building up.