Passions are the root of sinfulness

Saint Maximos the Confessor says, “When the passions dominate the mind, they bind it to material things...” This separates us from God and divine grace. This is why our church fathers and elders like Aimilianos tell us to know ourselves in a deep way to uncover our passions. We often find our passions buried in our habits and our reactions to worldly events or encounters with others. We can often find them by digging into what upsets or hurts us. Also, there are often patterns of behavior that point us to our passions.