Repentance, therefore, raises up the fallen soul, which has been estranged from God, and again becomes His friend. Repentance protects the soul’s essence from the darkness, and drives away death. Repentance raises again the fallen soul, lifts up the destitute, heals the broken, and gives health to the traumatized. Let us hasten towards repentance, the promise of the Kingdom, the laver of sins, the mother of salvation.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)