Worries over Prayer

Πάντες δὲ ἐκάθηντο ἀεὶ ἐν ὀφθαλμοίς αὐτῶν ὁρῶντες τὸν θάνατον, καὶ λέγοντες· Ἆρα τί τὸ ἀποβησόμενον· ἆρα τίς ἡ ἀπόφασις; ἆρα τί τὸ τέλος ἡμῶν; ἆρα ἔστιν ἀνάκλησις; ἆρα ἔστι συγχώρησις τοῖς σκοτεινοῖς, τοῖς ταπεινοὶς· καταδίκοις; ἆρα ἴσχυσεν ἡμῶν ἡ δέησις εἰσελθεῖν ἐνώπιον Κυρίου; ἢ ἀπεστράφη δικαίως τεταπεινωμένη καὶ κατῃσχυμμένη; ἆρα δὲ εἰσελθοῦσα, πόσον ἐξευμενίσατο; πόσον ἥνυσεν; πόσον ὠφέλησε; πόσον ἐνήργησεν; ἐπειδὴ ἐξ ἀκαθάρτων στομάτων καὶ σωμάτων ἀνεπέμφθη, καὶ οὐ πολλὴν τὴν ἰσχύν κέκτηται. Ἆρα εἰς τέλος διήλλαξε τὸν κριτήν; ἆρα μερικῶς; ἆρα κατὰ τὸ ἥμισυ τῶν μωλώπων; μεγάλοι γὰρ οὖτοι ὄντως, καὶ πολλῶν ἴδρώτων καὶ μόχθων δεόμενοι. Ἆρα ἐπλησίασαν ἡμιν οἱ φύλακες, ἢ ἔτι πόῥῥω ἀφ’ ἡμῶν ὑπάρχουσιν; Ἐκείνων γὰρ μὴ ἐγγιζόντων πρὸς ἡμᾶς, πᾶς ὁ κόπος ἡμῶν ἀνωφελὴς καὶ ἀνόνητος· οὐ γὰρ ἔχει δύναμιν παῥῥησιας ἡ προσευχὴ ἡμῶν, οὐδε πτερὸν καθαρότητος εἰσελθεῖν πρὸς Κύριον, εἰ μή τί γε οἱ ἄγγελοι ἡμῶν προσεγγίσαντες ἡμῖν, ταύτην λαβόντες Κυρίῳ προσενέγκωσιν. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης τῆς Κλίμακος, ἡ Κλίμαξ

And they were sat with the sight of death ever before their eyes, saying, 'How will it turn out to be? What will the sentence be? What will be our end? Will it be a recall? Will there be concessions for those in darkness, those humble, those condemned? Does our plea have such strength that it might come before the Lord? Or has it been justly rejected and pronounced disgraceful? And if it did come before him, how much favour would it gain? What would it accomplish? What benefit? What power would it have? Since it has been sent from unclean lips and bodies, surely it would not possess great power. Would it fully reconcile us with the judge? Or only in part? Only to the extent of half our whip marks? Because they really are large, demanding much sweat and toil. Have our guardians drawn near to us, or are they still hold off far from us? Without them being near, all our labours are fruitless and useless; for our prayer has not the power of free speech, nor does it have pure wings that it come to the Lord, unless our angels, coming near to us and taking it, bring it to the Lord.' Saint John Climacus, The Ladder