Here is a parable passed on to us by the Holy Fathers. Imagine a circle on the floor. In the middle of this circle there is its center. Straight lines that connect the center and the circumference are called radiuses. Now listen attentively to what I have to say: let’s imagine that this circle is our world, with God at the very center. The radiuses that go from the circumference to the center are the ways of life of human beings.
The more the saints go inside the circle, eager to get closer to God, the closer they become both to God and to one another; the closer they become to God, the closer they are to one another; the closer they become to one another, the closer they are to God.
Similarly, when people move away from God, it is obvious that they become farther from God and from one another at the same time; the farther they become from one another, the farther they are from God.
This is the nature of love: we are isolated from our neighbors as long as we stay away from God and don’t love Him. If we love God, then we will unite with our neighbors in love to the same extent that we become closer to God by loving him; and we will be united with God to the same extent that we are united with our neighbors.
Translated by The Catalog of Good Deeds