The wisdom of the desert monks of Egypt, Syria and Palestine. Life-giving
"words" from the solitude of monastic life. Collected and written
down by disciples of the first monks.
The
following are excerpts from what is widely known in the Coptic Church as
"Bustan al-rohbaan" (The Monks' Garden), also referred to in English
as the "Paradise of the Desert Fathers". Bustan al-rohbann is not a
single book, rather it is a collection of sayings and accounts written by and
about the Desert Fathers of Egypt. The excerpts presented here are adopted
from an abbreviated book edited by Dr. Benedicta Ward. --Copt-Net
Editorial Board
In
the desert of the heart, let the healing fountain start; In the prison of his
days, teach the free man how to praise. -- W. H. Auden
A prayer from the desert
Lord Jesus Christ, whose will all things
obey: pardon what I have done and grant
that I, a sinner, may sin no more. Lord,
I believe that though I do not deserve
it, you can cleanse me from all my sins.
Lord, I know that man looks upon the
face, but you see the heart. Send your
spirit into my inmost being, to take
possession of my soul and body. Without
you I cannot be saved; with you to
protect me, I long for your salvation.
And now I ask you for your salvation.
And now I ask you for wisdom, deign of
your great goodness to help and defend
me. Guide my heart, almighty God, that I
may remember your presence day and night.
++ Amen ++
INTRODUCTION
In the fourth century, an intensive experiment in Christian living began to
flourish in Egypt, Syria and Palestine, uniting the ancient forms of monastic
life with the Gospel. In Egypt the movement was soon so popular that both the
civil authorities and the monks themselves became anxious: the officials of
the Empire because so many were following a way of life that excluded both
military service and the payment of taxes, and the monks because the number of
interested tourists threatened their solitude.
The first Christian monks tried every kind of experiment with the way they
lived and prayed, but there were three main forms of monastic life: in Lower
Egypt there were hermits who lived alone; in Upper Egypt there were monks and
nuns living in communities; and in Nitria and Scetis there were those who
lived solitary lives but in groups of three or four, often as disciples of a
master. For the most part they were simple men, peasants from the villages by
the Nile, though a few, like Arsenius and Evagrius, were well educated.
Visitors who were impressed and moved by the life of the monks imitated their
way of life as far as they could, and also provided a literature that
explained and analyzed this way of life for those outside it. However, the
primary written accounts of the monks of Egypt are not these, but records of
their words and actions by their close disciples.
Often, the first thing that struck those who heard about the Desert Fathers
was the negative aspect of their lives. They were people who did without: not
much sleep, no baths, poor food, little company, ragged clothes, hard work, no
leisure, absolutely no sex, and even, in some places, no church either - a
dramatic contrast of immediate interest to those who lived out the Gospel
differently.
But to read their own writings is to form a rather different opinion. The
literature produced among the monks comes from the desert, from the place
where the amenities of civilization were at their lowest point anyway, where
there was nothing to mark a contrast in lifestyles; and the emphasis is less
on what was lacking and more on what was present. The outsider saw the
negations; disciples who encountered the monks through their own words and
actions found indeed great austerity and poverty, but it was neither
unbelievable nor complicated. These were simple, practical men, not given
either to mysticism or to theology, living by the Word of God, the love of the
brethren and of all creation, waiting for the coming of the Kingdom with eager
expectation, using each moment as a step in their pilgrimage of the heart
towards Christ.
It was because of this positive desire for the Kingdom of heaven which came to
dominate their whole lives that they went without things: they kept silence,
for instance, not because of a proud and austere preference for aloneness but
because they were learning to listen to something more interesting than the
talk of men, that is, the Word of God. These men were rebels, the ones who
broke the rules of the world which say that property and goods are essential
for life, that the one who accepts the direction of another is not free, that
no one can be fully human without sex and domesticity. Their name itself,
anchorite, means rule-breaker, the one who does not fulfill his public duties.
In the solitude of the desert they found themselves able to live in a way that
was hard but simple, as children of God.
The literature they have left behind is full of a good, perceptive wisdom,
from a clear, unassuming angle. They did not write much; but they asked each
other for a "word", that is, to say something in which they would
recognize the Word of God, which gives life to the soul. It is not a
literature of words that analyze and sort out personal worries or solve
theological problems; nor is it a mystical literature concerned to present
prayers and praise to God in a direct line of vision; rather, it is oblique,
unformed, occasional, like sunlight glancing off a rare oasis in the sands.
These life-giving "words" were collected and eventually written down
by disciples of the first monks, and grouped together in various ways,
sometimes under the names of the monks with whom they were connected sometimes
under headings which were themes of special interest, such as "solitude
and stability", "obedience", or "warfare that lust arouses
in us". Mixed in with these sayings were short stories about the actions
of the monks, since what they did was often as revealing as what they said.
These collections of "apophthegmata" were not meant as a dead
archaism, full of nostalgia for a lost past, but as a direct transmission of
practical wisdom and experience for the use of the reader. Thus it is as part
of tradition that this small selection has been made from some of the famous
collections of desert material, most of which have been translated and
published in full elsewhere. They are placed in pairs, so that a
"word" faces a story and illustrates its central, though not its
only meaning. Each saying-and-story pair has been given a heading; these are
arranged in two series, the first part relating to the commandment to love
one's neighbour, the second to the commandment to love God.
This material first appeared among uneducated laymen; it is not
"churchy" or specifically religious. It has its roots in that life
in Christ which is common to all the baptized, some of whom lived this out as
monks, others who did not. There is common a universal appeal in these
sayings, in spite of much which is at first strange. I have not tried to
eliminate all the strangeness of the material, but to present a very small
part of it as it is, in the belief that the words and deeds of these men can
still make the fountain of life spring up in the arid deserts of lives in the
twentieth century as they did in the fourth. "Fear not this
goodness", said Abba Antony, "as a thing impossible, nor the pursuit
of it as something alien, set a great way off; it hangs on our own choice. For
the sake of Greek learning, men go overseas. But the City of God has its
foundations in every seat of human habitation. The kingdom of God is within.
The goodness that is in us asks only the human mind."
Note:
The editor has retained the words "Abba" and "Amma" which
are used in these texts for addressing and describing certain men and women of
the desert; "Abba" is a term of respect, and to translate it by
"Abbot" would be misleading.
NOT
TO JUDGE
Sayings:
The old men used to say, "there is nothing worse than passing judgement."
They said of abba Macarius that he became as it is written a god upon earth,
because just as God protects the world, so abba Macarius would cover the
faults that he saw as though he did not see them, and those which he heard as
though he did not hear them.
Abba Pastor said, "Judge not him who is guilty of fornication, if you are
chaste, or you will break the law like him. For He who said "do not
commit fornication" said also "Do not judge"."
A brother asked abba Poemen, "If I see my brother sin, is it right to say
nothing about it?" The old man replied, "whenever we cover our
brother's sin, God will cover ours; whenever we tell people about our
brother's guilt, God will do the same about ours."
Stories:
A brother in Scetis committed a fault. A council was called to which abba
Moses was invited, but he refused to go to it. Then the priest sent someone to
him, saying, "Come, for everyone is waiting for you". So he got up
and went. He took a leaking jug and filled it with water and carried it with
him. The others came out to meet him and said, " what is this,
father?" The old man said to them, "My sins run out behind me, and I
do not see them, and today I am coming to judge the errors of another."
When they heard that, they said no more to the brother but forgave him.
A brother sinned and the priest ordered him to go out of the church; abba
Bessarion got up and went out with him, saying, "I, too, am a
sinner."
TRUE PEACE
Sayings:
One of the brothers asked abba Isidore, a priest of scetis, "Why are the
demons so terrified of you?" And the old man said, "Ever since I
became a monk I have tried never to let anger rise as far as my mouth."
Abba Joseph asked abba Nisteros, "What should I do about my tongue, for I
cannot control it?" The old man said to him, "When you speak, do you
find peace?" He replied, "No." The old man said to him,
"If you do not find peace, why do you speak? Be silent, and when a
conversation takes place, prefer to listen rather to talk."
Stories:
Two old men had lived together for many years and they had never fought with
one another. The first said to the other, "Let us also have a fight like
other men." The other replied, "I do not know how to fight."
The first said to him, "Look, I will put a brick between us and I will
say: it is mine; and you will reply: no, it is mine; and so the fight will
begin." So they put a brick between them and the first said, "No, it
is mine", and the other said, "No, it is mine." And the first
replied, "If it is yours, take it and go." So they gave it up
without being able to find a cause for an argument.
A brother asked abba Poemen, "How should I behave in my cell in the place
where I am living?" He replied, "Behave as if you were a
stranger, and wherever you are, do not expect your words to have an influence
and you will be at peace."
OBEDIENCE
Sayings:
The holy Syncletia said, "I think that for those living in community
obedience is a greater virtue than chasity, however perfect. Chastity carries
within it the danger of pride, but obedience has within it the promise of
humility."
The old men used to say, "If someone has faith in another and hands
himself over to him in complete submission, he does not need to pay attention
to God's commandments but he can entrust his whole will to his father. He will
suffer no reproach from God, for God looks for nothing from beginners so much
as renunciation through obedience."
Abba Mios of Belos said, "Obedience responds to obedience. When someone
obeys God, then God obeys his request."
Story:
They said that abba Sylvanus had a disciple in Scetis, named Mark, who
possessed in great measure the virtue of obedience. He was a copyist of old
manuscripts, and the old man loved him for his obedience. He had eleven other
disciples who were aggrieved that he loved more than them.
When the old men nearby heard that he loved Mark above the others, they took
it ill. One day they visited him and abba Sylvanus took them with him and,
going out of his cell, began to knock on the door of each of his disciples,
saying, "Brother, come out, I have work for you." And not one of
them appeared immediately.
Then he came to Mark's cell and knocked, saying, "Mark". And as soon
as Mark heard the voice of the old man he came outside and the old man sent
him on some errand.
So abba Sylvanus said to the old men, "Where are the other
brothers?", and he went into Mark's cell and found the book in which he
had been writing and he was making the letter O; and when he heard the old
man's voice, he had not finished the line of the O. And the old men said,
"Truly, abba, we also love the one whom you love; for God loves him,
too."
HOW TO BECOME A DISCIPLE
Sayings:
Some old men said, "If you see a young man climbing up to the heavens by
his own will, catch him by the foot and throw him down to the earth; it is not
good for him."
At first abba Ammoe said to abba Isaiah, "What do you think of me?"
He said to him, "You are an angel, father." Later on he said to him,
"and now, what do you think of me?" He replied, "You are like
Satan. Even when you say a good word to me, it is like steel."
Abba Moses asked abba Sylvanus, "Can a man lay a new foundation every
day?" The old man said, "If he works hard, he can lay a new
foundation at every moment."
Stories:
It was said of abba John the Dwarf that one day he said to his elder brother,
"I should like to be free of all care, like the angels who do not work,
but ceaselessly offer worship to God." So he took leave of his brother
and went away into the desert. After a week he came back to his brother. When
he knocked on the door he heard his brother say, "Who are you?"
before he opened
it. He said, "I am John, your brother." But he replied, "John
has become an angel and henceforth he is no longer among men." Then John
besought him, saying, "It is I." However, his brother did not let
him in but left him there in distress until morning. Then, opening the door,
he said to him, "You are a
man and you must once again work in order to eat." Then John made a
prostration before him, saying, "Forgive me."
Abba John said, "A monk is toil. The monk toils in all he does. That is
what a monk is."
HUMILITY
Sayings:
An old man was asked, "What is humility?" and he said in reply,
"Humility is a great work, and a work of God. The way of humility is to
undertake bodily labour and believe yourself a sinner and make yourself
subject to all." Then a brother said, "What does it mean, to be
subject to all?" The old man answered, "To be subject to all is
not to give your attention to the sins of others but always to give your
attention to your own sins and to pray without ceasing to God."
An old man said, "Every time a thought of superiority or vanity moves
you, examine your conscience to see if you have kept all the commandments,
whether you love your enemies, whether you consider yourself to be an
unprofitable servant and the greatest sinner of all. Even so, do not pretend
to great ideas as though you were perfectly right, for that thought destroys
everything."
Stories:
As abba Macarius was returning to his cell from the marsh carrying
palm-leaves, the devil met him with a sharp sickle and would have struck him
but he could not. He cried out, "Great is the violence I suffer from you,
Macarius, for when I want to hurt you, I cannot. But whatever you do, I do and
more also. You fast now and then, but I am never refreshed by any food; you
often keep vigil, but I never fall asleep. Only in one thing are you better
than I am and I acknowledge that." Macarius said to him, "What is
that?" and he replied, "It is because of your humility alone that I
cannot overcome you."
The old
men used to say, "When we do not experience warfare, we ought so much the
more to humiliate ourselves. For God seeing our weakness, protects us; when we
glorify ourselves, he withdraws his protection and we are lost."
TRUE
POVERTY
Sayings:
Abba Theodore, surnamed Pherme, had three good books. He went to abba Macarius
and said to him, "I have three good books, and I am helped by reading
them; other monks also want to read them and they are helped by them. Tell me,
what am I to do?" The old man said, "Reading books is good but
possessing nothing is more than all.' When he heard this, he went away and
sold the books and gave the money to the poor.
Someone asked amma Syncletica of blessed memory, "Is absolute poverty
perfect goodness?" She replied, "It is a great good for those
capable of it; even those who are not capable of it find rest for their souls
in it though it causes them anxiety. As tough cloth is laundered pure white by
stretched and trampled underfoot, so a tough soul is stretched by freely
accepting poverty."
Stories:
When abba Macarius was into Egypt, he found a man who had brought a beast to
his cell and he was steeling his possessions. He went up to the thief as
though he were a traveller who did not live there and helped him to load the
beast and led him on his way in peace, saying to himself, "We brought
nothing into this world; but the Lord gave; as he willed, so is it done;
blessed be the Lord in all things."
Someone brought money to an old man and said, "Take this and spend it for
you are old and ill", for he was a leper. The old man replied, "Are
you going to take me away from the one who has cared for me for sixty years? I
have been ill all that time and I have not needed anything because God has
cared for me." And he would not accept it.
Once abba Arsenius fell ill in Scetis and in this state he needed just one
coin. He could not find one so he accepted one as a gift from someone else,
and he said, "I thank you, God, that for your name's sake you have made
me worthy to come to this pass, that I should have to beg."
LIFE TOGETHER
Sayings:
Amma Syncletica said, "We ought to govern our souls with discretion and
to remain in the community, neither following our own will nor seeking our own
good. We are like exiles: we have been separated from the things of this world
and have given ourselves in one faith to the one Father. We need nothing of
what we have left behind. There we had reputation and plenty to eat; here we
have little to eat and little of everything else."
Abba Antony said, "Our life and our death are with our neighbour. If we
gain our brother, we have gained our God; but if we scandalize our brother, we
have sinned against Christ."
A brother asked, "I have found a place where my peace is not disturbed by
the brethren; do you advise me to live there?" Abba Poemen replied,
"The place for you is where you will not harm the brothers."
Stories:
There was an anchorite who was gazing with the antelopes and who prayed to
God, saying, "Lord, teach me something more." And a voice came to
him, saying, "Go into this monastery and do whatever they tell you."
He went there and remained in the monastery, but he did not know the work of
the brothers. The young monks began to teach him how to work and they would
say to him, "Do this, you idiot," and "Do that, you fool."
When he had borne it, he prayed to God, saying, "Lord, I do not know the
work of men; send me back to the antelopes." And having been freed by
God, he went back into the country to graze with the antelopes.
A beginner who goes from one monastery to another is like a wild animal who
jumps this way and that for fear of the halter.
SILENCE
Sayings:
Having withdrawn from the palace to the solitary life, Abba Arsenius prayed
and heard a voice saying to him, "Arsenius, flee, be silent, pray always,
for these are the source of sinlessness."
A brother in scetis went to ask for a word from Abba Moses and the old man
said to him, "Go and sit in your cell and your cell will teach you
everything."
Abba Nilus said, "The arrows of the enemy cannot touch one who loves
quietness; but he who moves about in a crowd will often be wounded."
Stories:
Theophilus of holy memory, bishop of Alexandria, journeyed to Scetis and the
brethren coming together said to Abba Pambo, "Say a word or two to the
bishop, that his soul may be edified in this place." The old man replied,
"If he is not edified by my silence, there is no hope that he will be
edified by my words."
This place was called Cellia, because of the number of cells there, scattered
about the desert. Those who have already begun their training there [i.e. in
Nitria] and want to live a more remote life, stripped of external things,
withdraw there. For this is the utter desert and the cells are divided from
one another by so great a distance that no one can see his neighbour nor can
any voice be heard. They live alone in their cells and there is a huge silence
and a great quiet there. Only on Saturday and Sunday do they meet in church,
and then they see each other face to face, as men restored to heaven.
THE KINGDOM WITHIN
Sayings:
It was revealed to Abba Antony in his desert that there was one in the city
who was his equal. He was a doctor by profession, and whatever he had beyond
his needs he gave to the poor and every day he sang the sanctus with the
angles.
Amma Matrona said, "There are many in the mountains who behave as if they
were in the town, and they are wasting their time. It is better to have many
people around you and to live the solitary life in your will than to be alone
and always longing to be with a crowd."
Abba Isidore said, "If you fast regularly, do not be inflated with
pride; if you think highly of yourself because of it, then you had better eat
meat. It is better for a man to eat meat than to be inflated with pride and
glorify himself."
Story:
When blessed Antony was praying in his cell, a voice spoke to him, saying,
"Antony, you have not yet come to the measure of the tanner who is
in Alexandria." When he heard this, the old man arose and took his stick
and hurried into the city. When he had found the tanner...he said to him,
"Tell me about your work, for today I have left the desert and come here
to see you."
He replied, "I am not aware that I have done anything good. When I get up
in the morning, before I sit down to work, I say that the whole of this city,
small and great, will go into the Kingdom of God because of their good deeds,
while I alone will go into eternal punishment because of my evil deeds. Every
evening I repeat the same words and believe them in my heart."
When blessed Antony heard this he said, "My son, you sit in your own
house and work well, and you have the peace of the Kingdom of God; but I spend
all my time in solitude with no distractions, and I have not come near the
measure of such words."
HOSPITALITY
Sayings:
Once three brothers came to visit an old man in Scetis and one of them said to
him, "Abba, I have committed to memory the Old and New Testaments."
And the old man answered, "You have filled the air with words." The
second one said to him, "I have written out the Old and New Testaments
with my own hands." He said, "And you have filled the window-ledge
with manuscripts." Then the third said, "The grass is growing up my
chimney." And the old man replied, "You have driven away
hospitality."
Once two brothers came to a certain old man. It was his custom not to eat
every day but when he saw them he received them joyfully and said, "A
fast has its own reward, but he who eats for the sake of love fulfils two
commandments: he leaves his own will and he refreshes his brothers."
Stories:
A brother came to see a certain hermit and, as he was leaving, he said,
"Forgive me Abba for preventing you from keeping your rule." The
hermit replied, "My rule is to welcome you with hospitality and to send
you away in peace."
It was said of an old man that he dwelt in Syria on the way to the desert.
This was his work: whenever a monk came from the desert, he gave him
refreshment with all his heart. Now one day a hermit came and he offered him
refreshment. The other did not want to accept it, saying he was fasting.
Filled with sorrow, the old man said to him, "Do not despise your
servant, I beg you, do not despise me, but let us pray together. Look at the
tree which is here; we will follow the way of whichever of us causes it to
bend when he kneels on the ground and prays." So the hermit knelt down to
pray and nothing happened. Then the hospitable one knelt down and at once the
tree bent towards him. Taught by this, they gave thanks to God.
GENTLENESS
Sayings:
Abba Nilus said, "Prayer is the seed of gentleness and the absence of
anger."
We came from Palestine to Egypt and went to see one of the fathers. He offered
us hospitality and we said, "Why do you not keep the fast when visitors
come to see you? In Palestine they keep it." He replied, "Fasting is
always with me but I cannot always have you here. It is useful and necessary
to fast but we choose whether we will fast or not. What God commands is
perfect love. I receive Christ in you and so I must do everything possible to
serve you with love. When I have sent you on your way, then I can continue my
rule of fasting. The sons of the bridegroom cannot fast while the bridegroom
is with them; when he is taken away from them, then they will fast."
Stories:
A hunter in the desert saw Abba Antony enjoying himself with the brothers, and
he was shocked. Wanting to show him that it was necessary sometimes to meet
the needs of the brothers, the old man said to him, "Put an arrow in your
bow and shoot it." So he did. And the old man said, "Shoot
another," and he did so. Then the old man said, "Shoot yet
again," and the hunter replied, "If I bend my bow so much, I will
break it." Then the old man said to him, "It is the same with the
work of God. If we stretch the brothers beyond measure, they will soon break.
Sometimes it is necessary to come down to meet their needs."
Some monks came to see Abba Poemen and said to him, "When we see brothers
dozing in the church, should we rouse them so that they can be watchful?"
He said, "For my part, when I see a brother dozing, I put his head on my
knees and let him rest."
BEASTS AND SAINTS
Sayings:
Abba Antony said, "Obedience with abstinence gives men control over wild
beasts."
Abba Theon ate vegetables, but only those that did not need to be cooked. They
say that he used to go out of his cell at night and stay in the company of the
wild animals, giving them drink from the water he had. Certainly one could see
the tracks of antelopes and wild asses and gazelles and other animals near his
hermitage. These creatures always gave him pleasure.
Once when a hippopotamus was ravaging the neighbouring countryside the fathers
called on Abba Bes to help them. He stood at the place and waited and when he
saw the beast, which was of enormous size, he commanded it not to ravage the
countryside any more, saying, "In the name of Jesus Christ, I order you
not to ravage this countryside anymore." The hippopotamus vanished
completely from that district as if driven away by an angel.
Abba Xanthios said, "A dog is better than I am, for he has love and he
does not judge."
Stories:
We came near to a tree, led by our kindly host, and there we stumbled upon a
lion. At the sight of him my guide and I quaked, but the saintly old man went
unfaltering on and we followed him. The wild beast - you would say it was at
the command of God - modestly withdrew a little way and sat down, while the
old man plucked the fruit from the lower branches. He held out his hand, full
of dates; and up the creature ran and took them as frankly as any tame animal
about the house; and when it had finished eating, it went away. We stood
watching and trembling; reflecting as well we might what valour of faith was
in him and what poverty of spirit in us.
While Abba Macarius was praying in his cave in the desert, a hyena suddenly
appeared and began to lick his feet and taking him gently by the hem of his
tunic, she drew him towards her own cave. He followed her, saying, "I
wonder what this animal wants me to do?" When she had led him to her
cave, she went in and brought her cubs which had been born blind. He prayed
over them and returned them to the hyena with their sight healed. She in turn,
by way of a thank offering, brought the man the huge skin of a ram and laid it
at his feet. He smiled at her as if at a kind person and taking the skin
spread it under him.
JOY
Sayings:
Amma Syncletica said, "In the beginning there are a great many battles
and a good deal of suffering for those who are advancing towards God and,
afterwards, ineffable joy. It is like those who wish to light a fire. At first
they are choked with smoke and cry, until they obtain what they seek. As it is
written, "Our God is a consuming fire" (Hebrews 12:24); so we also
must kindle the divine fire in ourselves through tears and hard work."
Abba Hyperichius said, "Praise God continually with spiritual hymns and
always remain in meditation and in this way you will be able to bear the
burden of the temptations that come upon you. A traveller who is carrying a
heavy load pauses from time to time and draws in deep breaths; it makes the
journey
easier and the burden lighter."
Story:
When Abba Apollo heard the sound of singing from the monks who welcomed us, he
greeted us according to the custom which all monks follow... He first lay
prostrate on the ground, then got up and kissed us and having brought us in he
prayed for us; then, after washing our feet with his own hands, he invited us
to partake of some refreshment...
One could see his monks were filled with joy and a bodily contentment such as
one cannot see on earth. For nobody among them was gloomy or downcast.
If anyone did appear a little downcast, Abba Apollo at once asked him the
reason and told each one what was the secret recesses of his heart. He used to
say, "Those who are going to inherit the Kingdom of heaven must not be
depondent about their salvation... we who have been considered worthy of so
great a hope, how shall we not rejoice without ceasing, since the Apostle
urges us always, "Pray without ceasing, in everything give
thanks"?"
LOVE
Sayings:
Abba Poemen said, "There is no greater love than that a man lays down his
life for his neighbour. When you hear someone complaining and you struggle
with yourself and do not answer him back with complaints; when you are hurt
and bear it patiently, not looking for revenge; then you are laying down your
life for your neighbour."
One of the beloved of Christ who had the gift of mercy used to say, "The
one who is filled with mercy ought to offer it in the same manner in which he
has received it, for such is the mercy of God."
Abba Antony said, "I no longer fear God, I love him; for love casts out
fear."
Stories:
Abba Agathon said, "If I could meet a leper, give him my body and take
his, I should be very happy." That is perfect charity. It was also said
of him that when he came into the town one day to sell his goods, he met a
sick traveller lying in the public place with no one to care for him. The old
man rented a room and lived with him there, working with his hands to pay the
rent and spending the rest on the sick man's needs. He stayed there four
months until the sick man was well again. Then he went back to his cell in
peace.
A soldier asked Abba Mios if God accepted repentance. After the old man had
taught him many things, he said, "Tell me, my dear, if your cloak is
torn, do you throw it away?" He replied, "No, I mend it and use it
again." The old man said to him, "If you are so careful about your
cloak, will not god be equally careful about his creature?"
GOD IS FOR ALL
Sayings:
God is the life of all free beings. He is the salvation of all, of believers
or unbelievers, of the just or the unjust, of the pious or the impious, of
those freed from passions or those caught up in them, of monks or those living
in the world, of the educated and the illiterate, of the healthy and the sick,
of the young or the old. He is like the outpouring of light, the glimpse of
the sun, or the changes of the weather which are the same for everyone without
exception.
Abba Pambo said, "If you have a heart, you can be saved."
Story:
There was an old man living in the desert who served God for so many years and
he said, "Lord, let me know if I have pleased you." He saw an angel
who said to him, "You have not yet become like the gardener in such and
such place." The old man marvelled and said, "I will go off to the
city to see both him and what it is that he does that surpasses all my work
and toil of all these years."...
So he went to the city and asked the gardener about his way of life.... When
they were getting ready to eat in the evening, the old man heard people
singing in the streets, for the cell of the gardener was in a public place.
Therefore the old man said to him, "Brother, wanting as you do to live
according to God, how do you remain in this place and not be troubled when you
hear them singing these songs?"
The man said, "I tell you, Abba, I have never been troubled or
scandalized." When he heard this the old man said, "What, then, do
you think in your heart when you hear these things?" And he replied,
"That they are all going into the Kingdom." When he heard this, the
old man marvelled and said, "This is the
practice which surpasses my labour of all these years."
PRAYER
Sayings:
They asked Abba Macarius, "How should we pray?" And the old man
replied, "There is no need to speak much in prayer; often stretch out
your hands and say, "Lord, as you will and as you know, have mercy on
me." But if there is war in your soul, add, "Help me!" and
because he knows what we need, he shows mercy on us."
Abba Lot went to see Abba Joseph and he said to him, "Abba, as far as I
can, I say my little office, I fast a little, I pray and meditate, I live in
peace and as far as I can I purify my thoughts. What else can I do?" Then
the old man stood up and streched his hands toward heaven; his fingers became
like ten lamps of fire and he said to him, "If you will, you can become
all flame."
Abba Paul said, "Keep close to Jesus."
Story:
Some monks came to see Abba Lucius and they said to him, "We do not work
with our hands; we obey Paul's command and pray without ceasing." The old
man said, "Do you not eat or sleep?" They said, "Yes, we
do." He said, "Who prays for you while you are asleep?... Excuse me,
brothers, but you do not practice what you claim. I will show you how I pray
without ceasing, though I work with my hands."
"With God's help, I collect a few palm-leaves and sit down and weave
them, saying, "Have mercy upon me, O God, after thy great goodness;
according to the multitude of thy mercies do away with mine offences." He
said to them, "Is this prayer or not?" They said, "Yes, it
is."
And he continued, "When I have worked and prayed in my heart all day, I
make about sixteen pence. Two of these I put outside my door and with the rest
I buy food. And he who finds the two coins outside the door prays for me while
I eat and sleep. And so by the help of God I pray without ceasing."
INTERCESSION
Sayings:
It is clear to all who dwell in Egypt that it is through the monks that the
world is kept in being and that through them also human life is preserved and
honoured by God... There is no town or village in Egypt that is not surrounded
by hermitages as if by walls, and all the people depend on the prayers of the
monks as if on God himself.
Palladius said, "One day when I was suffering from boredom I went to Abba
Macarius and said, "What shall I do? My thoughts afflict me, saying, you
are not making any progress, go away from here." He said to me,
"Tell them, for Christ's sake, I am guarding the walls."
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