He is John of Sinai, named after Sinai, and he was named Al-Sulami because he wrote the book “The Ladder of Virtues.” Saint John of the Ladder was born in Palestine around the year 525 AD. His youth is unknown, except that the title of scholar who was given to him while he was alive assumes a wide cultural background, and most of what is known about him is quoted from his writings. At the age of sixteen, he became an apprentice to a saintly monk from the sheikhs of the Monastery of Mount Sinai, that is, the Monastery of Saint Catherine, called (Martirius), where he handed over leadership of his order to him. Only a few years had passed before he had reached a sublime degree of virtue due to his obedience to his guide.

At the age of twenty, after he had practiced this life, his father, the spiritual sheikh who trained him, left life. He regretted his separation, then left the monastery and went alone in a barren wilderness about eight kilometers away from the monastery, called “Al-Thula,” in the desert. He spent forty years in seclusion, fighting the struggle of repentance and prayer, testing the unseen arts of war and the sweetness of communing with God. In his solitude, he would receive those who came to him for guidance, including monks and laymen, and would visit autistic patients, checking on them, as we know from his book. Then he was elected president of the Monastery of Mount Sinai. It is not known exactly how long Saint John took over the presidency of the Monastery of Mount Sinai, but he resigned from the presidency to return to his seclusion before his death. He lived for about seventy-five years and died in the year 600 or shortly before.

Father John, the head of Raitho Monastery, asked him to write instructions for the monks, so he wrote a book called “The Ladder,” which was later called the Heaven’s Ladder, the Degrees of Virtues, or the Holy Ladder.

The naming of the ladder was inspired by the vision of Jacob (Genesis 28: 12-13). It can be seen from his book that he had a strong, free personality. He had seen and heard many things in his life, so he narrated them and evaluated them personally, not caring about his contradiction with prevailing opinions at times. It seems clear that he was fully informed of conditions. People living in the middle of the world and their opinions, customs, and psychology, and that he knows the human soul in a deep way and analyzes it with a precise analysis worthy of today’s psychologists, and he is always ready to acknowledge his weakness, which makes him one of the most humane spiritual teachers. In his book, Saint John arranged thirty steps in reference to the thirty years of Jesus before his appearance to the world. The staircase generally symbolizes the path of perfection as a spiritual ascent toward God and to the Cross of Christ as the only path that unites earth and heaven. The book of the ladder is also a unique book of its kind due to the character of His powerful authorship, breadth of knowledge, depth of spiritual experience, and method of research are distinguished by both harmony and richness. The book is useful for every Christian who seeks the path of perfection. Saint John of the Ladder included his experience, as he saw and heard many things in his life, which he narrates and evaluates from a personal assessment, not caring that he sometimes contradicts prevailing opinions.
In his book, Saint John of the Ladder arranged thirty levels through which the seeker of perfection can ascend as a jihadist, from asceticism in the world to union with God, through combating the desires and acquiring the virtues: patience, meekness, and humility.

God rewarded the virtues of John by performing miracles. On the day of his inauguration as ruler, the Prophet Moses appeared and began to serve the guests himself. He saved his student Moses from certain death through his prayers. During a time of drought in Palestine, he prayed and it rained heavily. He had many other miracles.

Our Orthodox Church celebrates him on March 30 and on the fourth Sunday of Great Lent.

From the book Peace to God: (Translated into Arabic by the Order of Saint George, Monastery of Al-Harf, and published by Al-Nour Publications)

• A sheikh blamed one of the brothers for his arrogance with a spiritual reproach. The brother replied: Forgive me, father, for I am not arrogant. The all-wise Sheikh said to him: My son, what clearer proof can you give us of your arrogance than your saying, “I am not arrogant”?
• Do not be haughty when you are from the earth, because many have been brought down from heaven and are saints and incorporeal.
• The arrogant person is a worn-out pomegranate inside that shines brightly on the outside.
• Arrogance arises from forgetting missteps because mentioning them leads to humility.
• In the hearts of the proud arise blasphemous sayings, and in the souls of the humble, heavenly contemplations.
• If we pray, these impure and unspeakable thoughts arise upon us. But she leaves immediately if we continue our prayers, because she does not fight her warriors.
• Meekness is a rock on the shore of the sea of anger. It breaks all the waves that hit it and does not move or be disturbed at all.
• Whoever thinks that he is not attached to something he has and is saddened by its loss is completely deceived.
• Flee from places of fall as you would from whips, because you do not crave the fruit continuously if it is absent from you.
• Let us confess our sins to our righteous judge alone before anyone else. If we are commanded, let us acknowledge it to all people. Because if the surgeries are healed, they will not get worse, but will heal.
• A person knows the sincerity of his love for his brother and his affection for him when he feels sad for his mistakes and rejoices for his progress and the blessings he receives.
• He who obeys God sometimes and disobeys Him at other times is like a man who sometimes has medicine dripped into his eyes, and sometimes acid. It was said: “One built and another demolished, so what benefit have we gained except fatigue?”
• The servant of God is the one who, during prayer, knocks with his mind on the heavens while his body is among the people.
• He who dies for all things comes to the remembrance of death. As for those who still cling to the world, they conspire against themselves.
• Someone said that it is impossible for us to pass through our day with righteousness and piety if we do not consider it the last day of our lives.
• Hatred is the fruit of anger, an accumulation of sins, aversion to righteousness, a decline in virtues, a poison to the soul, a worm to the mind, a disgrace to prayer, a cutting off of supplication, an alienation from love, a nail to the soul, a constant sin, a transgression that never sleeps, and an evil that exists at every hour.
• Whoever acquires love has the utmost hatred.
• I saw some people secretly and secretly committing terrible sins, and because people thought they were pure, they openly despised and harshly attacked those who committed minor sins.
• Lying extinguishes love, and a false oath denies God.
• The beginning of the love of money is the pretext of benevolence to the poor, and its end is hatred of the poor. As long as the lover collects money, he is merciful, and when the money is available, he closes his hand on it.

Troparion on the eighth tune
For the fruitless wilderness, with the streams of your tears, you were gracious, and with the sighs from the depths, you bore fruit with your labors a hundredfold, and you became a star for the inhabited world, shining with wonders, O our righteous father John, so intercede with Christ God to save our souls.

Also a troparia on the eighth tune
The barren wilderness has been fertilized by the rain of your tears. Your arduous efforts in escalating your exhalations have paid off a hundredfold. You have become a star for the inhabited world, sparkling with wonders, O our righteous father John. So intercede with Christ God for the salvation of our souls.

Qandaq with the first tune
From the book of your teachings that bear ever-fresh fruits, O Wise One, they delight the hearts of those who listen to them with vigilance, O Blessed One, because they are a ladder ascending from the earth to firm heavenly glory. Souls of those who honor you, beware of you with faith.