By St. John the Prophet
Question 129: What should I do? For my sorrow at being separated from my wife is persisting violently.*
Response: It is written about man and woman: "The two shall be one flesh" (Gen. 2:24). Therefore, just as if you were to cut off a member of your own flesh, the rest of the body would also be in pain for a while, until the wound is healed and the pain subsists; so is it necessary for you to be in pain for a while, since your very own flesh has been cut away.
* Written by a monk, named Theodore.
From The Letters of Saints Barsanuphios and John; translated by John Chryssavgis.
