"Talkativeness is the throne of vainglory on which it loves to preen itself and show off. Talkativeness is a sign of ignorance, a doorway to slander, a leader of jesting, a servant of lies, the ruin of compunction, a summoner of despondency, a messenger of sleep, a dissipation of recollection, the end of vigilance, the [...]
"Intelligent silence is the mother of prayer, freedom from bondage, custodian of zeal, a guard on our thoughts, a watch on our enemies, a prison of mourning, a friend of tears, a sure recollection of death, a painter of punishment, a concern with judgment, servant of anguish, foe of license, a companion of stillness, the [...]
"To pass judgment on another is to usurp shamelessly a prerogative of God, and to condemn is to ruin one’s soul." Source: St. John Climacus, The Ladder of Divine Ascent
"I have rebuked people who were engaged in slander, and, in self-defense, these evildoers claimed to be acting out of love and concern for the victim of their slander. My answer to that was to say: 'Then stop that kind of love, or else you will be making a liar out of him who declared, [...]
"The remembrance of what Jesus suffered is a cure for remembrance of wrongs, shaming it powerfully with His patient endurance." Source: St. John Climacus, The Ladder of Divine Ascent
"The holy virtues are like the ladder of Jacob and the unholy vices are like the chains that fell off the chief apostle Peter. The virtues lead from one to another and carry heavenward the man who chooses him. Vices on the other hand beget and stifle one another." Source: St. John Climacus, The [...]
"I once saw three monks receive the same type of injury at the same time. The first felt it keenly, but did not speak; the second was delighted by the thought of the reward the injury would bring him and felt compassion for the wrongdoer; the third wept fervently at the thought of the harm [...]
"You wish, or rather, have decided, to remove a splinter from someone? Very well, but do not go after it with a stick instead of a lancet for you will drive it deeper. Rough speech and harsh gestures are the stick, while even-tempered instruction and patient reprimand are the lancet." Source: St. John Climacus, [...]
"A sign of utter meekness is to have a heart peacefully and lovingly disposed toward someone who has been offensive, and a sure proof of a hot temper is that a man, even when he is alone, should with word and gesture continue to rage and fulminate against some absent person who has given offense." [...]
"The first step toward freedom from anger is to keep the lips silent when the heart is stirred; the next, to keep thoughts silent when the soul is upset; the last to be totally calm when unclean winds are blowing." Source: St. John Climacus, The Ladder of Divine Ascent