Heaven Begins Within You: Wisdom from the Desert Fathers
"In the final analysis, behind the insistence on asceticism lies a positive image of humanity. The monks believe that we can work on ourselves. We aren't completely at the mercy of our predispositions or our past upbringing. The monks don't try to find excuses for themselves in an education gone wrong; they don't put the blame for their lives on other people. They don't feel helplessly abandoned to their desires. Instead, they trust the power that God has given us, a power by which we can liberate ourselves from the obstacles that might hold us back from life."