Macarius Virtues

From the Virtues of Our Righteous Father, the Great Abba Macarius (-1-) It was said concerning Abba Macarius that once when he had received a blessing in the virtue and it happened to him that he received grace with great patience, the Lord of glory sent a cherub. He made way before him into this mountain, and he washed his hand in his inner thought like a measure. And Abba Macarius said to him, "What is this?" The cherub said to him, "I have measured your heart." Abba Macarius said to him, "What is the interpretation of this saying?" The cherub said to him, "They will call the name of your heart down upon this mountain which the Lord has given you as an inheritance, but he will seek his ordinances from you." Abba Macarius said to him,

What are these fruits? The Cherubim said to him, "They are spiritual fruits, which are these: the commandments and the virtues. And our God Christ will judge the gods upon this earth, this people who are many, and those who will hear and keep and guard your other commandments; they will make for themselves a crown and a royal diadem upon your head in the presence of the King Christ." And these things which the Cherubim recounted to him, he spread upon the ground and said to him, "You will be spread with Christ, and you will be crucified with him in the contests of the virtues and the good odor, and your great deeds will reach the beginning of the earth, and they will raise up a multitude of thorns in the threshing of sin, and they will become warriors and soldiers in the portion of Christ." And Apa Macarius would lift up his body and fulfill all the works which the Cherubim had recounted to him with zeal. Apa Macarius was once going out from the desert where he dwelt, carrying some loaves, and the devil met him on the road with a sickle and was seeking to strike him, but he could not. And he said to him, "O wretch, your hand, Macarius, for I have no power against you. Behold, what you do, I do also, for you fast, but I do not eat at all; you keep vigil, but I do not sleep at all. Only one thing you have that overcomes me in it." Apa Macarius said to him, "What is this?

He said to him, "Your humility is what it is about. For because of your humility, I have no power over you." And the holy one spread out his hands, and the demon appeared, and he was walking, giving glory to God. It was said concerning Apa Macarius that Agathonikos, the eparch of Antioch, heard about him, that he performed great deeds and gifts of healing through our Lord Jesus Christ. He sent his daughter to him, for an unclean spirit was with her, so that he might pray over her. And through the grace of God that was in him, when he prayed over her, she was healed immediately, and he sent her away in peace to her parents. (-4-) When her father and mother saw the healing that the holy one had performed with their daughter through the prayers and supplications of the holy Apa Macarius, they gave thanks, glorifying our Lord Jesus Christ. Apa Macarius said, "Once in the desert, the devil appeared to me in his form, and...

He was very afraid, and he said to me, "O violence from you, Macarius, for your voice resounds in the places of the desert and the places of concealment, just as also the great Antony, the chief of the monks, the apostolic one, and you took his form like Elisha, who took the form of Elijah. For truly, he himself, Antony, became a teacher to you because he is the one who gave you the monastic habit. For indeed, you were guided by your humility, for you received counsel from Antony in humility, and you placed it in yourself, for God is with you through the love of your humility towards me. And whenever I am tested in a bush of thorns by the passionless ones, you say in the depth of your heart with firm faith, 'Behold, my physician and my sign upon the mountain and the river.' I also said to him, 'I am Macarius, for the Lord Jesus has not hated you, but you give me strength of heart and faith to enter into the monastery. For indeed, the remedies of my Lord, the father Abba Antony, are not carnal, but the power of the Paraclete works in his prayers, the spiritual remedies hidden before God like a ship of fragrance.' And when he heard these things, he became like smoke and dissolved, and these things went on, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Abba Macarius said, "The snares of the enemy are these: they are called the dawn and the dusk, just as Paul said, 'We are not of the dawn, nor of the dusk, but we are of the day, for the Son of God is himself the day.' And the devil is himself the dawn. But if the heart endures these battles from the parts, again they turn back against the ascetic through an envious one, and then they begin to cast the battle of fornication upon him, and the pleasure of the young ones within. In these battles, the heart labors so that the work becomes powerless for the man to preserve purity before the multitude of time and the toil of the virtues, and the weariness of life, and what toil it is that is great, and the labor of the body. But if the heart labors in these and becomes weary from the toil of the battles, and it casts off from itself the heart, and goes and cries out against God in the groan of his soul, then the good God, the compassionate one, sends a holy power that strengthens the heart and gives it tears.

and joy and health, so that his (-z-) might become strong, more than his enmity, and they cannot overcome him; they will fear the heart of the power that was with him, as the apostle Paul says, "Strive to receive the power." This also is the power that Peter spoke of, saying, "There is an inheritance indestructible and incorruptible, which is preserved for those whom the power of God protects through faith." Then, if the good God sees the heart, that it has overcome the enmity, then he takes the power away from him, testing his intention, and the enmity enters into him to fight with him in the desires and pleasures of the eyes and vain glory and pride, being like a ship without a rudder, taking on water here and there. But if the heart works greatly against the enmity, then the good and merciful God, for his creation, sends him again the holy power, and it strengthens the soul and the heart and the body and the joining of the members under the comfort of the Paraclete, as our Lord Jesus Christ says, "Take my comfort upon you and know from me that I am a man.

they rejoice and humility in my heart. Then the good God opens the eyes of the heart to know the honor of God in humility and meekness of the heart, as David says, "The praise of God is a heart that is meek and humble." For through these labors of these struggles, humility and meekness come to be in the heart. Then the power draws near from heaven to the mind and the heart and the taking of the veil and the honor that will come to those who will abide by them. And if a man endures many labors for a little while before the honors that God will give him, it is as the apostle says, "The sorrows of this time are not worthy of the glory that will appear to us." Then they begin to draw near the punishments before the heart and those who punish them, and many others I cannot recount all of them. And the Paraclete establishes some boundaries of the heart, which are purifications of the soul and the prostration of the members and great humility and a vigil and a lamp that is lit and darkness beneath the whole body and a contempt for the evil of any man and a purity of the eyes and a keeping of

the tongue and purity of the lips, and truth of the hands, and service of the knees, and labor of the body, and vigilance of the spirit. These are established for him in silence and counsel, not in disturbance, but in order. But if the heart begins to think of the forms of the spirit, then the power of the senses is weakened, and wars arise in the heart, and disturbances, and the passions of the body are stirred up through the movements and attacks of the enemy. But if the heart turns to guard the forms of the spirit, a shelter is formed over it. Then the man understands that the steadfastness toward God is his rest, as David says, "Lord, since I cried out to you, I have rested according to my counsel." I say that outside of man there is a great servitude in his heart and his body, and a lack of self-control in every matter, and a great endurance of shame, and a bearing of injustice in all things, and to place your death before you daily under the sun, and a loosening of matter, and a loosening of the fleshly things, so that he is not able to guard the forms of the holy spirit.

Then he went to Abba Macarius. He said to him, "Speak a word to me, for I wish to be saved in some way." The old man said to him, "Go, fill the baskets with sand, and set them to dry." The brother went and filled them with sand and set them to dry. And when he came to the old man, the old man said to him, "You have done nothing for me." He said to him, "No, father." And the old man said to him, "Go, take the baskets and give them honor, saying, 'You are apostles, you are saints, and you are true.'" And he came to the old man saying, "I have given them honor." The old man said to him, "You have done nothing for me." He said, "No." The old man said to him, "Did you see how much labor you spent on them, and you did nothing for me? And how much honor you gave them, and they did nothing for you? In the same way, you also, if you wish to be saved, go, become a dead man, not caring for the shame of men or their honor, in the same way as the dead, and you will be able to be saved." A brother asked Abba Macarius, "Teach me the way of life, father." Abba Macarius said to him, "As the millstone, if it turns around the wheat, it grinds all its husk away.

and he becomes a pure loaf of bread in this way, my son, the eternal one. Your father is also the wheat; if you listen to him, he will pray for you, and he will break all the snares of Satan away from you, and you will become a pure loaf of bread, a son of God. Abba Poemen said, "I went once to Abba Macarius and said to him, 'Father, how should I behave with the brothers, for if I speak a word to them, they do not listen?' He said to me, 'Perhaps they have not received humility from another, therefore they do not listen.' I said to him, 'What is humility?' Abba Macarius said to me, 'Perhaps they have not taken counsel from another, for it is written, "The door that is not opened does not let in the wind." That is, if you find the brothers fulfilled in faith and love and obedience in humility towards their fathers, they are not opened, because their hearts are hardened. But know this: if a faithful man marries a faithful woman and they keep the purity of the marriage of the one, they become peaceful with each other and they rest well, so that they rejoice and weep together.

they have become corrupted in the knowledge. But if the evil one himself envies them, the man or the woman before their eyes because of the glances of the house, and the man does not have his eyes on the dignity of a virgin or a woman in this way, if they take a foreign bond, the man or the woman, let there be no peace between them until they separate from each other. Likewise, the brothers, if they abandon the counsel of their fathers and take the counsel of other outsiders, that is not from their father, but he causes them further harm, they become in a state of turmoil within and without until they separate from their fathers. When Abba Poemen heard these things from Abba Macarius, he marveled at the outpouring of his mind and his heart. Abba Poemen said to him, "Truly, this is how it is, my father." After these things, he prayed and went on his way, rejoicing and giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ and his servant Abba Macarius. Abba Macarius said, "As for the eye, if you contemplate it in a moment of humility and it shows you your dignity and

Your virginity, for it did not hide you from her, nor did it speak any falsehood to you at all, but she begins to depict and to engrave and to characterize all your signs and the forms that are in you, until she enters into the taking of his mouth, so that you see what kind of form it is, and she informs you of your hidden things, that they are hidden, and your forms, that they are shameful, and she makes you know yourself, that you are a certain kind of being in your movement. In this way it will be in the place of judgment without deceit. For it is not a matter of the hand of a painter, but rather actions that are set forth, being images that reveal the form of the sins. For they are not hidden from you, but they stand before you, they paint you, without a witness, and you are like a diaphthora in their midst, you are poor, not finding a word, while the hand of the sins teaches you all of them, and they are imprinted in your heart like the tablet of a painter, they paint you, and you will think each one of the actions that you have done, because at what time or at what season you did this and that other one, at what hour, simply, they become for you a shame and a disgrace before the world, both the things of heaven and the things of earth, in the ecumenical place of judgment.

...into fear. For all the holy ones and the celestial orders will be amazed and will cry out to you, seeing the great flood that has occurred within you because of your glorious deeds that you have done. However, this is the work of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the inquiries of his heart are true, for there is no repentance, nor mercy, nor one who listens to you except the only one who is the stronghold of the hours, who binds the inquiries of the heart, and this is the one from whom the priestly office takes its power to slay and to bring to life, to say "Amen" and to bring to the height, which is our Lord Jesus Christ, the savior of our souls and our bodies, who does not desire the death of the sinner as he is established and lives. Let us seek this, O brothers, and let us be wise, for now, then, at the time of his philanthropy, also at the time when his heart wept over Lazarus before the goodness of his father at the moment of the breaking forth of tears from Mary and Martha, the sisters of the one who had died, and after four days he raised him from the dead. Let us give our attention through prayers and holy tears so that he may have mercy on us and raise our souls from the death of sins and we may live in his mercy.

A brother asked Abba Macarius, “Tell me, what is prostration before God, my father?” Abba Macarius said to him, “You are mistaken, for without a parable I cannot speak with you. For it is like an irrational wild animal: if it falls upon a tame animal and its foot slips against it in great fierceness of heart, the one that is beneath it is in great distress before it, and all its strength and its hope are placed in its master, and it cries out with a great voice, giving a sign to its master. If its master hears, then he runs to it, hastening, and he comes to its aid and rescues it from destruction by the wild beast. If the master of this irrational animal ran to it and made haste until he rescued it from that wild beast, how much more should we, the rational sheep of the flock of Christ, if we have hope in him, not be abandoned by the enemy to be taken by force, but he will send his angel to us to rescue us from the devil. For this reason, my son, prostration before God is that a man should not place his trust in his own strength alone, but should have hope in the help of God, for it is he who is able to save us.

He asked again, "My father, how does a man weep because of the passions and become renewed in the spirit?" The old man said to him, "I will tell you a parable. For it is like a garment: if it tears, they give it a patch until it becomes new again. For they bring the garment upon the body, the tear upon sin and pleasure, and the patch, as it were, upon repentance, which our Lord Jesus Christ gave to us from above." This same brother asked again, "My father, show me the way to the one who is sweet and the one who is bitter." Abba Macarius said to him, "They say concerning the small child: if his mother throws him down upon the ground, she gives him a sweet morsel in his hand to suckle, and he does not take the breast of his mother. They bring the breast upon sin and pleasure; the sweet morsel itself is our Lord Jesus Christ, the blessed name, the true pearl. For it is written in the holy Gospel: 'The kingdom of the heavens is like a merchant man seeking beautiful pearls; he found a pearl of great price, which is our Lord Jesus Christ, the king of kings and Lord of lords.'

Abba Poemen said, "I sat once with some brothers near Abba Macarius. He said to me, 'My father, what is the work that a man does so that a renewal of life may come to him?' The old man said to me, 'I know myself, in my youth in my father's house, that I used to give my heart to the old men and the old women, each one of whom had a kind of sickness in their mouths, so that they would anoint themselves with it, so that this would cause the spittle and the phlegm of their mouths to become a medicine in their putrefaction, and it would give a little relief and a covering to the liver and all the entrails. If this kind of fleshly thing gives medicine in this way to those who anoint themselves and are anointed with it, how much more does the food of life, the moisture of health, the spring of the water of life, the medicine of all medicines, our Lord Jesus Christ? If the demons hear his honored and blessed name in a mouth, they dissolve like smoke. But this blessed name, if we persist in it and anoint ourselves with it, it gives a release to the mind, the charioteer of the soul and the body, and it drives away all evil thoughts from the drunkenness of the soul.'

and to cast out the old men, but rather the one who dwells among the old men, our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the kings and the Lord of the lords, the one who gives the heavenly rewards to those who seek him with their whole heart. When Abba Poemen heard these things from him, for whom Christ bears witness, that Macarius the True stood there that day at the place of judgment, they cast them down under his feet in the sand, and he prayed over them, and he let them go, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Macarius said, having spoken openly with the brothers, "It happened to me once when I was in the desert, I brought forth a heart, and a wild beast came to me, a lioness, weeping as if she were in distress, her tears flowing upon the ground. And she cast herself down upon the thorns of the briars, and she hid them in her tears, and I sat down to take rest with her, stretching out my hands and my feet in wonder upon her tears, weeping within myself, and after these things she licked my wound, she drew me, and I followed her in the power of my Lord Jesus Christ, and she led me to the place where she dwelt, and I found the cross of her.

They were there, and when I sat down, I anointed them one by one, and I placed them down into the jars. And when I found them, I found them twisted, with the cord around their neck. And I inquired about them and the mothers of the orphans, and I raised a cry over them, saying, "The diligent concern of the All-Encompassing, our Lord Jesus Christ, the one of the hours of the inquiries, is bound to inquire about the creature that He created." These things I said in some orphans before our Lord Jesus Christ over them, and I stretched out my hand, I placed the sign of salvation of the cross upon them, and it healed them. When I had placed them down beside her, she gave them heed, and they went in under the jars, they became healthy. As for her, she rejoiced with them, being entwined around them, looking inward at them, being in great joy. As for me, I was amazed at the goodness of God and the philanthropy of our Lord Jesus Christ towards His creatures, that even the other beasts care for them. And I arose and walked, giving glory to the great goodness of our Lord Jesus Christ and the abundance of His inquiries into His entire creation that He made. Abba Macarius said to the brothers concerning the difficulty of old age in

The taking of the cord, he said to them, "If you see some faces that have been turned in the circle, and if you see the trees that are planted along the rivers, and you see the children who have multiplied, take them and flee for yourselves." Some old men asked Abba Macarius, "What is the work of silence?" He said to them, "It has taken the form and the pattern of the city that God scattered our children from the Cross, so that if a fornicator or a murderer flees into one of them, he will become a helper if he keeps it." (-24-) Again Abba Macarius said to them, "There are cities that the king of the rivers and the Lord of the lords, Christ our God, has established, and he has sent them forth from the four corners of the earth with some spiritual soldiers, and he has strengthened them, having placed them under some laws and some commandments, and he said to them, 'Work at these things, and I will make the rivers of the earth find you,' and when they heard, they did according to the manner that he commanded them, and these things will continue until the end of the first day of silence of three hundred years because of the completion of the passions. Again the king Christ will seek the heart and will send them into the second time.

and he will also say to them concerning the laws and the commandments, "Work on these things in the same way that I and your fathers have worked with you. And they listened and they acted according to the fulfillment of the commandments, and these things will continue until the second cord of the sixty (-ke-) because of the multitude of the congregation. And again the king Christ and the catholic service of the church remembered the fathers, and he will also bring them in for the fifth time and he will bring them out from the laws and the commandments of the same kind, and they will say to him, "It is not possible, we are not able to keep them." And the king Christ does not wish to destroy the cities, and he will say to them, "Sit alone in the cities, and I will act for you in the same way as your fathers, and I will turn back to you if I have found a place within you, and you yourselves within, and I and my good father and the Holy Spirit the Paraclete, we will make for ourselves a dwelling place within you for glory for us forever, which has no end." Abba Euagrius asked Abba Macarius while he was sitting before him.

Abba Poemen and Abba Paphnutius, the true disciple of mine, concerning the purity of the choice. (—26—) Abba Macarius said to them, "The purity of the choice: this is the man who gives a hundred nomismata according to his will, according to his choice, and they will become like one obolos from him. If they take his choice by force, one obolos will give a hundred litrai because of the taking by force of the choice." They said to him, "What kind of word is this?" Abba Macarius said to them, "Turn and see, examine the word." And when they had considered, they found the word to be true, and when they had given repentance, he prayed over them and dismissed them, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Macarius said, "If you have first established yourself in the monastery, make a beginning for yourself in becoming a monk: all the virtues and all the commandments of God, and great patience, and humility of heart in fear, and love of God and of men, in humility of heart and humility of body (—27—) in diligence and in endurance of

...a hundred nomismata according to his means, and another gives a single nomisma according to his means, and they are both equal in the purity of the choice. (—27—) A struggle in prayers, and in labors, and in prostrations, in purity of the tongue, and in guarding the eyes, in humility, and in meekness, in peace, and in not giving offense to the evil one, in not judging the sinful, in not being proud in any matter, and in placing yourself beneath the whole creation, in renunciation of matter and the fleshly passions, in a struggle of the cross, in poverty of the spirit, in a good intention, and in an asceticism of the body, in fasting, and in repentance, and in weeping, in a struggle of war, and in a captivity of counsel, in a purity, and in the finding of the good Christian life, in bonds of love, and in handiworks, in vigils, and in prayers, in hunger, and in thirst, in cold, and in nakedness, and in afflictions, and in the placing of your death before you, as though you were entering there, and in placing your death before you daily, as you wander in the deserts and the mountains and the hollows of the earth. Likewise our father Abba Macarius said, "It is written, 'Your fear, how it has made us tremble, and we have given you our hands, and we have brought forth a spirit of salvation, behold.'

...a hundred nomismata according to his means, and another gives a single nomisma according to his means, and they are both equal in the purity of the choice. (—27—) A struggle in prayers, and in labors, and in prostrations. Perhaps you are a monk of the word, and you are not a begetter. These are the garments of the serpent; these also are the thorns of those who have worked well; these are those who have built their house upon the strong rock. Mercy and faith, that they may not be wearied by you, fear and violence and humiliation and a maker of abominations, a monk among them. Salvation in the name of those who wish to live in peace. Amen. Some brothers were sitting around Abba Macarius, and when an opportunity occurred, they asked him about the nature of the fig tree, saying, "Is (—29—) the solution coming upon one?" He said to them, "The nature of the fig tree is brought upon the mind. For even if the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ is in a man, they say of him that his mind has become strong. In this way, the nature of the fig tree is strong and it dries up. In this way, they say of the teacher that he dries up and his heart is strong." The brothers said to him, "Alas, what is it? Or what are the fruits?" Abba Macarius said to them, "Alas, the spiritual virtues are the fruits; the seasons are pure and simple. And it becomes a tree so that the fruits of the sky come and rest upon its branches. May it be for us also that we may find the dew of the sky.

The tree itself, the teacher, the instructor of teachings and the words of the law, he gives them to us. The coals also are of one heart that come up in the naptha of the lamp. We also, our brothers, let one heart come to be within us, into our Lord Jesus Christ and virtue, so that we may receive the bridle, which is the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and we may place it in the three measures, which are the soul and the body and the spirit. The three measures are one perfect man, complete, a measure of the love of the fullness of our Lord Jesus Christ. All these our Lord Jesus Christ spoke to the crowds in parables, and without parables he did not speak to them. When the brothers heard these, they marveled at the strength of his mind and his strong heart, and their hearts were renewed to them, so that the one who was written fulfilled concerning them: "In meditation, he will be filled with fire." Abba Macarius said, "Let us not let our heart go out, nor...

Let us not cause ourselves to lose hope, for indeed, according to the saying of the figs of our joy, our Lord Jesus Christ has left a place for us to repent. He also said: Like the multitude of the inner man who are always throwing themselves upon him, he becomes purified. Likewise also a man who is in afflictions, who is under a burden, and they teach him continually, he becomes for himself and he perseveres in the vigil until he is purified from all the hidden corruptions of the evil one. He also said: Let not the little flame rise up against the one who is kindled from this one single opening, which is the temple of the heart, but let it rise up against the one who is always kindled, which is our Lord Jesus Christ in a single steadfastness. A brother asked Abba Macarius: My father, I have fallen into a transgression. Abba Macarius said to him: It is written, my son, that I do not wish the death of the sinner, as though to stone him and kill him. But turn, my son, and you will see the weeping and rejoicing of our Lord Jesus Christ, his face full of joy, like a mother whose face is full of joy within towards her daughter; he stretched out his hands and his face upwards over her, even if she is full of all kinds of uncleanness, she became an object of shame to that place and the filth.

But she seeks a heart for him, to make him stumble upward over the hatred of the heart, in a face full of joy, and all things happen (-32-) as a mixture from her. If this one is a potter, she sought a heart for her son, or rather, the love of the potter, our Lord Jesus Christ, toward us. Once, Abba Macarius asked, "Teach me the meaning of repentance." Abba Macarius said to him, "Repentance reaches to the last limit, not like a stream that gives water flowing upward, coming downward, but like a wise goldsmith who wished to forge a chain, a chain of gold and a chain of silver, going into the furnace and the anvil, until he sets the chain upright. This is the form of repentance: all the virtues follow after it." Some brothers asked Abba Macarius the Great, "Do the acts of seeking a heart prevail over the practices?" He said to them, "Yes." The brothers said to him, "We are not of one heart." And when Abba Macarius saw them being lazy of heart and downcast, and he wished to encourage them, he said to them, "Do you see (-33-) the marketplace, how he gives to the one who buys? He says to him, 'I have done business with you,' and if he sees him again, he gives.

and a small thing for him, and he goes away rejoicing. Likewise also the practices, if they are placed before God, the one who gives the good things, the righteous judge, our Lord Jesus Christ, truly, then his bowels, which are strong in compassion, are moved toward him, and the practices come forth in joy and delight and gladness. When the brothers heard these things, they took courage, and when Abba Macarius saw them, that they were glad, he added and said to them in joy, "A drop of oil gladdens the soul before the king of this world. Likewise also a small virtue gladdens before the king of the heavens and the earth, the one of the hours, which is strong in compassion, our Lord Jesus Christ." It is written, for, "Since the days of John the Baptist (-34-) until now, the kingdom of the heavens is taken by force, and those who take it by force are the ones who contend for it. Therefore, let us also take by force a small portion of the kingdom of the heavens; we will contend for ourselves with the one who is king forever, our Lord Jesus Christ." When the brothers heard these things, they cast themselves down, worshipped his feet, and went forth from him rejoicing, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Once again Abba Macarius asked, saying, "Teach me the work of charity, what it is like." Abba Macarius said to him, "It is like this: There were some men. If the king were to exile them to a foreign country, far away, one of them took for himself wisdom and counsel from the things of the superior, he took it by force, and he sent some gifts to that king. The others said, 'We did not do thus.' But after a long time, the king sent for those men to bring them to their city and their homeland. Will not he who sent the gifts rejoice more, because they will become for him a protector, and he will obtain great freedom of speech, more than those who sent nothing at all? Or like a chief general who has freedom of speech before the king of this world. This is the likeness of charity before the great king, Christ. She who has it has great freedom of speech before him, and she can intercede on behalf of all who honor her." This same brother asked him again concerning this saying, that it might be renewed for his youth like a whetstone. Abba Macarius said to him, "It is like gold: if they burnish it in the fire, it becomes...

A newness of this kind, as the soul, if it comes to be in virtue and its purity from its defilements and all its stains, it will come to be in a newness of its ascent to the height. (- 32 -) The brother asked him again, "The ascent to the height, what is it, father?" Abba Macarius said to him, "Like the eagle: if it ascends to the height of the air, it is saved from the snare of the fowler, but if it itself lets itself down, it comes to be in the snares of the fowler. In this way, as the soul, if it becomes negligent and goes down from the height of virtue, it comes to be in the snares of the fowler of the thoughts." The brother asked him again, "Teach me the steadfastness in God, father." Abba Macarius said to him, "Like the fire of the oven which is in the midst of the coals and the embers of the furnace: it seeks after the oven until it fills its vessels from it. If they do not give it strength, there is no power for anything to lift its flame." The brother said to him, "What is the strength, or what is the flame, father?" The old man said to him, "The fornications and the defilements and the pollutions and the sins and the hatreds (- 37 -) and the pride of heart.

and the rest of the pleasures, this is the strength. The wonders, however, are the virtues. The sweat is the service of God. The sign is the heart. The covering, however, is the mind of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who will abide by it will fill the soul with all virtue and all purity, for this is the abiding with God. Go, my son. Once, Abba Macarius was asked, "Do you think I should go first to the church?" Abba Macarius said to him, "You speak of the gate of heaven and the mother of all the living. I say to you, my son, there is a time hidden, a day for salvation, for the taking up and leaving behind of diabolical works, for a time is coming. A multitude will gather to enter the church and will be strangers to the mysteries because of the fear of the authority of that time, to fill these whose mouths are open like the sardine in the sea, these that swallow molten lead like the sponge that swallows in the days of summer. I say to you, my son, fornication and love of money are all evil practices. They will be placed in the basket, even if fornication is greater, but it is for a time, and a man will cease to seek after it and will put his end to it because of its stench. Love of money, however, it comes to swallow, it comes to cover you alone, for it is alone.

Therefore, for this reason, it is the custom to close the mouths of the churches of the desert and the mouths of the dead concerning the fear of the authorities of that hour, for some will arise who seek and search after the inheritances of those who have fallen asleep, to cover the one who is written, that a certain rich man has come to me, do not place the heart. This also is that which the apostle spoke concerning it, saying, "The root of all evil is the love of money." Now, my son, strive in all things, for Abba Antonius said, "It is fitting that each one make a church for himself in this hour," which is that a man use all his strength to purify his soul as a church of God, so that in a harmonious voice we may send up a hymn of the Trinity to our Lord God through the steadfast confession of the orthodox faith. It was said concerning our holy father Abba Macarius the Great that when he made progress in virtue, he received the power of the Paraclete from our Lord Jesus Christ, so that the spirit of the adversary might be troubled and...

They were troubled before him because of the power of the Paraclete that was with him. It happened in the time when the wise Cyril summoned the holy Apa Shenoute to the holy synod that was assembled in Ephesus concerning the impious Nestorius, the shameless man, who dared to say that our Lord Jesus Christ was a mere man like them, until they wrote his condemnation. But after this struggle of the holy Cyril and the holy synod of the bishops, they wished to go to those who were not of their throne, by the command of the pious king Theodosius. And after these things, they brought the holy Apa Shenoute in secret, and they led him down to the holy place of our father the righteous great Abba Macarius of Shiet, over whom the voice of the Lord had come, saying, "You have become a god upon the earth." And he saw in a revelation the holy prayers of his sons, which were like a golden chain of incense rising to the throne of the Pantocrator. And the old archimandrite Apa Shenoute marveled within himself, saying, "If my Lord Jesus Christ and I were in my monastery, I would come to this place to see his glory.

They were troubled before him because of the power of the Paraclete that was with him. It happened in the time when the wise Cyril summoned the holy Apa Shenoute to the holy synod that was assembled in Ephesus concerning the things that were in him, for they were of what kind. It happened, however, that when he went to greet the brothers in his monastery, he took with him some elders, and he went to the holy shrine of Abba Macarius, and the superior of that monastery received him with joy and a disposition of love and consolation, and the holy Apa Shenoute reflected within himself, saying, "According to the revelation that I saw, it is fitting for me to take the blessing." But while he was reflecting on these things within himself, God revealed the holy superior to the reflections of the holy Apa Shenoute, and he wished to find a way to the shrine in his taking of the blessing to him, for he was still conversing with him, while the elders were receiving a blessing from him. He brought him to the place of the right hand of the brothers. There was a little joy on that day through a faithful one, and the superior said to the brother on the right hand at the bronze vessel, "There is a little something for you in it, for it is still bubbling in abundance. Let down your hand, my son, and take the oil." And when he heard, he let down his hand into the bronze vessel and took the oil to eat. When he saw

...then the holy Apa Shenoute, the great wonderworker, said, "The brother did not harm anyone." He said with boldness, "Truly, there is no name without action; actions raise up Tabitha. Likewise, the faith concerning the holy actions of Abba Macarius raised up the dead man. And I will say, 'Why the wonders?' For indeed, my eyes saw hermits, and their inner selves were cut off because of the disturbance of their nourishment, and until now they have not been able to produce anything of that kind. And thus he went to his monastery, giving honor to the place and giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ and his disciple, the true Abba Macarius. A brother asked Abba Macarius, "What is this saying that Abba Cychoi spoke: 'One who receives gives to one'?" He answered him, "Because the devil does not cease by night or by day; he attacks the ascetic and the continent and the monk. But if he himself gives one entrance to the devil through some hermits, he is near to goodness and the virtues of our Lord.

Jesus Christ. Let the good man, the true God, rejoice over the one man of his body, the one of the devil, because man is flesh and blood, and the one feared, he prevailed over the incorporeal ones, the earth of the devil, to come out through the servant. The help of our Lord Jesus Christ is to protect us through his holy grace. The brother also asked, "What is the chosen work in the practical and self-controlled life?" He answered him, saying, "Woe to the one who will find him guarding the blessed name of our Lord Jesus Christ in steadfastness and with a heart of obedience, for truly there is no chosen work in the entire practical life like the food of blessedness. If you hear it at all times, like the sheep, if it is called upward and it finds the pasture of the hearing, until it goes into the folds of its heart and draws upon itself a pasture and a measure, it will be a wonder to its neighbors and its entire interior. You do not see the honor of its vessels filled with the pasture of the hearing that is in its mouth. May it be for us that our Lord Jesus Christ grants us his sweet and measured name. A brother asked Abba Macarius, "Tell me the interpretation of this saying: 'The meditation of my heart is before you.'

The old man said to him, "Is there not another chosen meditation beyond this name of salvation and blessedness of our Lord Jesus Christ, which dwells within you in a continuous manner like the writing that says, 'Like a palm tree I will call out, and like a lamp I will meditate'? This is like the service of God which abides in the name of salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ." It was said concerning Abba Macarius the Great that it happened once while he was in the desert with the brothers, a fire appeared above. He let out a great cry, his eyes streaming down to the ground under the sky. The saint, however, stood still and bowed his head among the hermits. When the brothers saw him, they marveled and fell at his feet, giving him honor, saying, "We honor you, our father; tell us why your eyes weep among the hermits." Yet he wept among the hermits, his face like fire, as if from the rays of the sun, because of the grace.

of our Lord Jesus Christ, which dwells within him. He said to them, "Have you not heard what it is that this desire has cried out?" They said to him, "What is it, our father?" He said to them, "It cried out against the lover of men, the one who alone is the friend of the hours of the strong-hearted, our Lord Jesus Christ, saying, 'If I do not take care of your command for me, for the nourishment or the labor, what is it that you have done, the other beast? If the other wild animals eat flesh, they have sensation, and they cry out against the goodness of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he tames them all. How is it that we, rational men, do not take care of our concern in his strong compassionate heart?'" As he was saying these things to the brothers, the light-bringer, the illuminator, the desire stood before him, crying out. After these things, he went to the place that God had prepared for him, and there the beast died. All the brothers prostrated themselves and kissed the holy feet of our righteous father, the great Abba Macarius, the Phatophoros, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ.

They said concerning Abba Macarius the Great that an old man and a brother came to him. They said to him, "We wish to live in unity with each other, our father." Abba Macarius said to the old man, "Take first the likeness of the shepherd. If the sheep runs away to the east, he gives it fodder until its fleece is shorn of the east. But if, on the other hand, it goes to the west, he gives it fodder until its fleece is shorn of the west." The old man said to him, "Explain the meaning of this saying to me." Abba Macarius said to him, "The sheep signifies the devil, and the sheep itself signifies the brother who is with you. The east and the west, they are the passions and the pleasures of the demons that exist in the soul, entangled in the heart like the east and the west that are in the caves of the body. The fodder itself, which nourishes the sheep, is progress and self-control and the holy teaching of God. These are what purify the soul, making it clean from every passion and every evil of the evil enemies, the demons.

He said also to the brother, "Take for yourself likewise, my son, the likeness of the potter." When he had heard his father, he brought him up to a high place of rejoicing and a sacrifice prepared before God, which became an enkraton in the church until the completion of this age and the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Macarius also said, "Like the potter who sits and works on the clay first, he first strives to mold some vessels that are polished with some paintings of colors, so that they become honored in the dining rooms and banquets of the great, even into the order of the heretics of the church. After these, he molds some others that are coarse and rough, for the water jars and the seats of the new ships and without defect. After these, he lights the kiln of his fire for them. Amen, I say that just as he prays over those that are honored and polished, he also prays over those that are coarse and rough, for it is the work of his hands. In this same way, our Lord Jesus Christ, the one of the hours of the hard-hearted, the one who alone is the mother with his good father and the Holy Spirit, just as he rejoices over the one who is pure and polished in the purity of the progress of virtue and enkrateia.

He rejoiced also over the receiving of the repentance of the one who stumbles, that is, the sinner, according to the manner that is written: "There is a joy that will happen in heaven before the angels of God over a single sinner if he repents." He himself also said, "I do not desire the death of the sinner, but his repentance and his life." For even he who took on this flesh and became for us a sacrifice in his own will. Because of this, in this manner, our father Jesus Christ also says, "I did not come to hinder the righteous, but the sinners, for repentance." Abba Evagrius said, "I went to Abba Macarius and said to him, 'Speak a word to me by which I may live.' He said to me, 'If I speak to you, will you listen and act?' I said to him, 'My faith and my love are not lacking toward you.' Abba Macarius said to me, 'Truly, according to the practice of virtue, we are weary. But it is good, if you have cast off from yourself the pride of the rhetoric of this world, and have clothed yourself in the humility of the tax collector, that you may live.' These things he said to me, and all my thoughts were loosened, and I gave repentance to him. He prayed over me and forgave me. And these were my ways, as I found grace with him, saying,

They are not hidden from Apa Macarius, the man of God, and all the rest. When I would encounter him, I would be troubled because of the habit which I had received from him, and it became a humiliation for me. It was said concerning Apa Macarius that he was traveling in Egypt once with some brothers. He heard one who was in distress crying out, saying, "A stone rolled and fell upon me, a hut of straw fell upon me, I am dead." The old man marveled at the saying, and when the brothers saw him marveling, they fell down at his feet, giving honor to him, saying, "Tell us, our father, the interpretation of this saying." He, however, said to them, "There is a great mystery in this saying, O my children. For the stone is an image of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the manner that is written concerning him, that the stone which the lawless Jews broke, this became a cornerstone. That this happened through the Lord is a wonder in our eyes. This also is the true stone which the man of the desert, having given all the desires of his heart away, and this stone became within the inner chambers of his heart, he found it clinging like the ivy and...

The eternal one, that is, our Lord Jesus Christ. For the man who will keep this eternal one in his heart, he will receive a reward that is great in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ in the kingdom of the heavens forever. For our Lord Jesus Christ showed his face like a rock that is hard, according to the word of the apostle, who says, "The rock is Christ." He gave his labor for stripes and his wounds for blows of the whip. But his face did not turn away from the shame of spitting, because our salvation is for men. And if our Lord Jesus Christ sits upon us through sicknesses because of his great love toward us, the soul becomes in immortality because of the purity of the dispassion that exists within the heart. The devil himself is powerless like a shadow. And if he falls upon a man and takes hold of him strongly in his tyranny, and the man does not give heed to him, he will cry out against the goodness of God. But he will go up with the passions of the devil. The Spirit of God will withdraw from the man. Then the soul dies, even while it is in the body, because of the burden of the passions and their disturbance.

Abba Macarius the Great said, "Take heed to this name of our Lord Jesus Christ in a certain manner of the heart, and take hold of him, drawing him out from your lips and drawing him to yourself, and do not let him slip from your face in your mind, but take heed to call upon him, saying, 'My Lord Jesus Christ, come to me,' and in a state of rest you will see the rest of his divinity within you, his chasing after the darkness of the passions that exist in you, his purification of the inner man according to the purity of Adam as he was in Paradise. This blessed name, which John the Evangelist called 'the light of the world' and 'the inextinguishable lamp, the food of life and the true one.'" Abba Evagrius said, "I went to Abba Macarius, being troubled by the thoughts and passions of the body. I said to him, 'Father, say a word to me by which I may live.' Abba Macarius said, 'Burn the incense of anointing, and by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the ship will carry the demonic waves and the billows of this sea of brine, and the darkness of this world of passions.' I said to him, 'What is the ship, or what...'

The frankincense, or the anoi. Abba Macarius said to me, "The ship is your heart; guard it. The frankincense is your mind; bind it to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is the anoi that protects us from all the snares and the diabolical illusions that attack the holy ones." For what shall we say, according to the hundred of the virtues? "My Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me; my Lord Jesus Christ, help me." And if the serpent pursues the illusion, it will be confounded without understanding. But we, if we persist in this name of salvation of our Lord Jesus Christ, it will confound the devil and his wiles because of what he does to us. But we will know his weakness, that the help is from our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Macarius also marveled once when the brothers asked him about mercy. The old man said to them, "There was a merciful archon in a city, and a famine occurred in that city, so that the people despaired of life. The archon, a man gave his donkey to him to transport bread for him because of the hunger within him. And because of his humility, he went in to that merciful archon with great pains and troubles.

In the same way, he gave the bread to the man, but without blood. And the day of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the holy Theotokos Mary, is the day of the nativity. In that place, the ruler of that place, who was without mercy, suddenly took his soul out of his body and dragged it to the place of punishment, where they torment it without mercy. And while they were dragging it in a merciless manner, a voice came from the one who is the healer of the sorrowful, the only one, our Lord Jesus Christ, our true God, the redeemer of sins and the forgiver of iniquities, saying, "Return this soul to its body again because of the bread that it gave to the one who was hungry, but rather because of the day of the birth of the one who brought me into the world, Mary the Virgin." And when he awoke from death, he remembered the voice that he had heard while being dragged to the punishments, and he said, "If it is a single bread that I gave in anger, and the blood that I shed, did my Lord Jesus Christ return me from the punishments? Or rather, if I had persevered...

He was with all the hyparchontas, and they found more abundance. And in this way, he would pour out in a greater measure, even entering into his body, giving himself entirely to a state of servitude, giving his honor to the poor and the works. And in these things, the good man saw his upright intention, and he brought him into the order of the eratical of the church, so that he might be worthy of the episcopacy, and he fulfilled the liturgy, giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Macarius said, "I found an old man suffering in his illness. The old man, however, was a protiman of the name of salvation and blessedness of our Lord Jesus Christ. I was still asking him about his health, and he said to me with joy, 'I still remember the nourishment of life and the sweet name of the holy name of our Lord Jesus Christ.' A vision was revealed in the dream of the king Christ, like a Nazorean. He said to me three times, 'See, see that it is I, and there is no other besides me.' And after these things, I was filled with great joy, so that I forgot the pain.

He hated himself, giving thanks to him at all times, calling him, "The brother of the face of the brothers." And he spent twelve years in the desert, suffering under this great hardship. Afterwards, God revealed the matter to Apa Macarius in a dream, and Apa Macarius went to Egypt so that he might see the brother. And when he arrived at the desert, all the brothers gathered together with some reeds, so that they might go out before Apa Macarius. The brother also rejoiced, saying, "There is no one more shameless than I am, nor one who would oppose the old man, for I am full of hardship, as you yourselves have seen me." And when the brothers withdrew from before the old man, he greeted them one by one, and not seeing the brother, he asked, "Where has he gone?" And the brothers told him, "For what reason did he not meet you, being ashamed?" (61) And when Apa Macarius heard, he smiled and went in to the desert. The brother, however, met him in humility and gave repentance to the old man. In this way, Apa Macarius also gave repentance to the brother, and they received each other's hands. Apa Macarius said to the brothers, "Neither I nor you are as worthy as this one, for not only did he suffer...

Under the great hardship, but the other brother placed it upon his head. And Abba Macarius established him in his place. He himself, the brother, placed his burden upon himself, and he withdrew from that wicked heart, not establishing himself against it. Abba Macarius said, "If the hardships have done such honor to you, and poverty like wealth, or haste like leisure, or agitation like rest, or the fleshly things like the strangers, you will not die, but you will live. Guard your conscience and your heart, and be outside of all hidden things." Abba Macarius the Great said, "I give glory to you, my brothers, for those who receive the salvation of their souls and the help of souls, so that you do not give evil for evil, and that on this day I have brought strangers to the good things of God." Abba Macarius also said, "The path that leads to Gehenna: fasting draws one to it, meditation draws one to it, charity draws one to it, discipline draws one to it." And the brothers said to him, "Does humility also draw one to it, our father?" He said, "True humility does not.

not say, "Leave me alone, the path of God." A heart that has renounced its own will in all things that draw it, then he who thinks to prepare himself, not to be negligent toward him, the gates of the marketplace have not been opened, nor have they found strength to say, "Neither do I go out" (63). Neither did they open, saying, "The tears of the virgin, those that flow to make me weep, and they cry out at the gate, those that have been shut against them because of their negligence." Then keep, in every keeping, whether you sit in the street or you lie in the midst of men. He also said, "Let the half of the evening rejoice in your service, the other half you give rest to your body." He also said, "The frequent fast until evening is God, and he who does more will receive more reward." He also said, our righteous father, the great Abba Macarius, "The deeds of each one of them are not all written, whether a service or an additional prayer, that one may do, or an additional bending of the knee, or an additional vigil, or an additional fast, or a good word that one may say to his brother, or a very small thing.

Each one will do it for God, and they will enter into the work of the hand. They are all written for the brotherhood continually. But our father, our savior, will tell you nothing of yourselves. All the labors that each one will do, they will reveal them to you at the time when you come out of the body. Strive, then, my children; do not despise a multitude of eaters and drinkers and sleepers, whose heart does not consume them. Do not say, "They have given them pain, and those to whom they have not given pain." It is the same with them also. Our father, my children, strengthen yourselves upon the faith of the land, that you may enter into a small polity, which each one will do, or take it by force in his taking of food. All the various labors that you will do more, you will find them all revealed to you from the coming eternity. Flee, then, my children, into the labor and love it; let it be sweet to you in great humility of heart exceedingly. Apa Macarius spoke once in a village with some brothers; he heard a small child saying to his mother, "My mother, there is a rich man who loves me; he loves me. I also hate him. There is a poor man who hates me; I also love him.

of him. When the holy Apa Macarius heard these things, he marveled greatly, and the brothers said to him, "What is this saying, our father, that you marvel at it in this entire manner?" But the old man was groaning in his heart's distress, saying, "Oh, that there is a great mystery in this saying." They, however, pressed him, saying, "Tell us about it." And he said to them, "Truly, my children, the Lord is a rich man, and he loves us; but we do not wish to listen to him. Our enemy, however, the devil, is a poor man, and he hates us; yet we love his deceits and his evil and his shameful desires and the corruption of his pleasures." (66) Apa Macarius the Great said, "It is fitting for the one who has renounced the world and entered into the monastic life to remember the apostolic saying of the holy apostle, who received the wounds of evil, having spoken in this manner as if giving birth to those who have become foolish among them, saying, 'In receiving the thorns from the path of virtue and stripping them of the grace of the Holy Spirit, they became reprobate, filled with every wickedness and every evil and injustice, filled with envy and murder and slander and the fulfillment of all those things which he enumerated in this place,' and he added the word in this manner, saying...

of him. When the holy Apa Macarius heard these things, he marveled greatly, and the brothers said to him, "What is this saying, our father, that you marvel at it in this entire manner?" But the old man was groaning in his heart and said, "Those who do these things in this manner are worthy of death. Because of this, I give heed to you, O my beloved children, in the Lord: watch over your tongue from speaking out in slander and from every thought that makes us strangers to the King Christ. For the devil himself also rejoices, O my children, over those who fall into his hands, together with his seventy-two demon companions. But I trust that the protection of God will watch over you from his snares." Abba Macarius the Great said, "It is fitting for the monk to sit in his cell, gathering himself inward, not casting his care upon any of the affairs of the world, nor letting himself be distracted by the pleasures of this age, but to be in a single purpose, which is the taking up of himself for the remembrance of God alone at all times, continually from within him every hour, with a joy that does not receive, and to let nothing of the earth disturb his heart, neither the thought of his flesh nor the care of his parents nor the consolation of any relatives, but to be thus in his mind and all his senses, as if he stands before God, so that in this he might complete the eighty.

of the word of the apostle which says, "So that the virgin might be continually well-pleasing to the Lord in complete joy." Abba Macarius also said, "The order of the monk is equal to that of the angels, just as the angels stand before the Lord at all times. There is nothing of earthly things that hinders them from standing before Him. In like manner, the monk also ought to be thus at all times in his life. This one, then, who does this will fulfill the word of our Savior, which commands that each one deny himself and take up the cross and follow after Him. In this way, you also, take a little force, O my beloved children, so that you may generate for yourselves virtue alone. For it is written, 'The kingdom of the heavens belongs to those who take force.'" Abba Macarius the Great said, "It is fitting for the monk to be pure, free from every passion of the flesh and every disturbance, and not to let his thoughts come down with evil thoughts at all, but to be steadfast in the spirit at all times." Abba Macarius also said, "The monk is a stranger.

to cause him to be a stranger to himself, it is to give pain to his brother in any way. Abba Macarius the Great also said, "A time is coming, there is a severe labor that will overtake those who work on the practical life, so that they will do the washing of renunciation and continence, and the king of that time will turn against them to seize them." The brothers said to him, "What kind of king is that?" Abba Macarius said to them, "It is a tyrant, along with the Ishmaelites, the offspring of his wife, some from Esau. The king of us is our Lord Jesus Christ, his people also are virtue and purity and cleanness of the soul and the body. The king of the earth, his seizure is from our king of heaven, Christ the true God, and he himself, the king of the earth, is a lover of wealth, a lover of silver, and a lover of pleasure, like the male horses of a woman, a lover of deceit, serving the women and the male horses like gods, a lover of passion in all his works, being proud and hoping for the things of the earth and thinking of the things of the earth, that they will also be for him in the coming eternity, because of the multitude of pleasure that is in him, and he will exercise his power to seize.

over the whole earth in a disturbance, he will tyrannize him in the midst of the earth, he will burn the earth with two kinds of vipers, with severe labors, with afflictions, and not even the king Christ. And the brothers said to him, "What will happen to the fathers of that time?" Apa Macarius said to them, "They will be greatly troubled, so that some will let their hands fall and will wash the taking of the angelic life because of the love of silver. Our Lord Jesus Christ will protect them from them, looking at their choice; they will be natural in a gathering inward with severe handiworks, the taking and the giving will be many among them, like the worldly because of the greed for public things; they will seek the fleshly to wash the apatheia; he who will find it among the fathers of that time, being pure for eating and drinking beyond measure because of the abundance of the disturbance, and he will guard his body from the fornication of the world and the love of silver, and he will not judge those who are weak among them; they will be blessed before the king of glory Christ, and they are births of the gospel, and they are heirs of the eternal life.

and they will reveal themselves before the king Christ with great boldness. Abba Macarius said: It is fitting for the monk, according to the discipline of the body, that he not cease from the prayers, and that he not abandon his habit of praying for the sake of any other matter whatsoever, but that he pray, giving his attention with a joy of his mind, hoping that God will have mercy on him and that he will find the healing of the places of the soul together with all its senses and all its ways. And thus, if a time should come for us to cease or to cry out in prayer, the mind, however, should remain watchful, hoping in the Lord at all times. Abba Macarius also said: Woe to the soul that has not given honor and has not besought the Lord so that he might rest himself in it and purify it from every impurity and every defilement, and keep it as a free woman from the wild beasts and the serpents, which are the spirit of evil in the form of small animals and creeping things that crawl in the darkness. If they see a light or a vessel full of oil, they rush upon it and go into the flame by themselves and burn.

In this way the monk draws all these things to himself by his own will and his choice, until he becomes a living coal of eternal fire. Abba Macarius also said: Just as the rod of Aaron, which was cast down from a single thicket, brought forth fruit, so also the soul of the monk, in the receiving of the things of God, brings forth fruit from the spiritual things in the things of Christ, and she bears the fruits of the Spirit, offering them to the one who created her, Christ her good king, the true God who is blessed. Abba Macarius the Great also said: If a man is negligent and seeks God and consumes his heart over the things he has done in the time of his carelessness, God gives him a pain of heart over the things he has done. Afterwards, through his repentance, he grants him a capacity to endure labor in the body through fasts and prayers and vigils and abstinence and a casting off of matter and a humbling of the flesh and a taking of measure, the mortification of the body, and loving weeping more than laughter, and a casting off of his carnal things.

It was said concerning Abba Macarius the Great that he was dwelling in Egypt. Once he came upon a well, and he saw a boat that had been purified, with its captain giving wages to the workers from within it. And when the old man wished to test the boatman, desiring to draw a word from his mouth concerning a certain matter of a practice, he said to him, "Do me this favor, father, a little wheat." The boatman said to him, "If you work, I will give you wages, for truly, he who works is given wages." The old man said to him, "Is it not so that he who works receives wages?" The boatman said to him, "Yes, that is how it is: he who works receives wages." The old man said to him, "I wish to hear this word from you." And when he had gone, he struck himself in the face with both hands, saying, "Woe to you, Macarius, if you have been cast out because you were not given wages for the carnal work of this world. For it is written, 'Jesus stands you before a worker; he did not receive shame; he will work well for the work of his Lord.' Therefore, woe to you, Macarius, you did not strive to give that goodness there of the Lord of the vineyard, saying, 'Call the workers, give them their wages, the first ones, a satyrion to each one,' and saying, 'He who works, his wages are given to him according to a grace.' And in this way the old man Macarius walked, laboring in the deserts with a carrying of a load.

Abba Macarius said, "It is like the sea: it makes the crooked straight, and those who are straight it makes crooked. This is how repentance is, for our Lord Jesus Christ has given it to us to make straight those who are crooked, and to turn aside those who are entangled in the mud of sin, making them straight again and pure, like virgins before our Lord Jesus Christ, if they turn to repentance. They receive the pure garment, the angelic one, in the heavens." Abba Macarius the Great said, "The footprints of the disciples of the hand of the teacher and the coenobiarchs have not been found, who are hastening to the harvest of the one who is under the winnowing-fan in great patience. It is not possible for this one to receive the crown and the reward of the perfect sonship and the honor of the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ as well.

For the teacher took the form of the cherub and the chariot of the true teacher, the one who placed the materials of the arrows and the spear and the lance, which were fixed in his body as a testimony and a seal of the Jews, and these he made for himself in his - ( - 79 - ) reading in a great joy. Likewise, those who are a harbor and a support for those who are under the burden, if they do not become in a state of goodness and gentleness, in this way they are not able to produce for themselves spiritual children like Elijah, who produced Elisha, and like Paul, who produced Timothy and Onesimus. Abba Paphnutius, my disciple of Abba Macarius, said, "They concealed the old man once because of his blindness, for there is a virtue in him, and through the covering of darkness that was spread over his heart and the flame that was in him all day, he did not know nor did he perceive it. And when the old man arose, he went to the river and saw his blindness, and there was no sense of God in him, and he marveled at his taking of the time and the fearlessness.

...which was within her, he began to give heed to his suffering. And when the day had passed, he went to his house. I, too, said, I followed him. And when we met his wife, we sat down, and I said, "Blessed am I that I did not take the opportunity, and I did not see anything among those which God had prepared for me, except for the two loaves that were brought in." After these things, I asked him about virtue and his manner of work, and he said to me, "What is virtue? For God has hidden the work from him who does good. And when I saw his humility, I prayed to God that he might open his heart. And the Lord heard me immediately; he opened the senses of the man and his heart, and he became in fear, bearing a burden, and his tears would flow upon the ground, and I was amazed at the consolation that came to be within her. He said to me, "Now God has opened my heart and my heart to know those things which are in them at this entire time, which God has prepared for the goodness of my soul and my body.

It happened to me, however, with my wife, that God joined me with her according to the world, and while I was still upon the bed with her, we established a covenant with God and with each other, that we might preserve our purity until we depart from this world. And until now, I do not know the nature of my wife, nor does she know me, nor do I know my children, whose they are, or how they were born. And by the grace of God, I did not speak a word of evil concerning her, and behold, I receive it from him, and I go to the desert. If I were to consider this honored soul, I would be ignorant of the grace which my Lord Jesus Christ gave me. And these things which he told me, I placed upon his shoulder, I gave him my hand, and I departed from him, giving thanks to my Lord Jesus Christ, for the abundant graces which he has done for me and for men for the salvation of their souls, so that through the intercession of all, we might simply attain the eternal life of the kingdom of the heavens through his compassionate heart which is abundant within him. Abba Macarius the Great said, "If you bring your little one to prayer, be steadfast in yourself, lest you give your vessels into the hands of your enemies. For they desire to plunder your vessels, which are the logismoi of the soul. These are the precious vessels with which you will serve God. For God does not seek from you the glory for himself in your vessels alone, while your logismoi are scattered abroad and...

...they are scattered throughout the whole world, but so that the soul and all your thoughts might rest upon him in a state of joy without distraction. He himself, however, is the great physician (the Father) of the souls and the body. Our Lord Jesus Christ, let us turn to him that he might heal the sicknesses of our souls and illuminate our thoughts and the perceptions of our heart, so that we might set aside his great love for humanity and the trouble he endured for the world on our behalf, and his good deeds which he does for us, we who are unworthy day by day, because he is our Lord and our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ. A brother asked Abba Macarius about the anchoritic life. The old man said to him, "If you wish to live as an anchorite, endure it in every kind of place, and let no day pass within and without, but continue to endure it, and God with his grace will help you. Do not despise the thoughts of shame before people, and do not let anyone destroy a single day for you, except for the destruction of your brother's poverty or someone who is in need.

...in necessity or hardship. However, if God binds his need to be fulfilled through another or through his children, you, then, go to your place of dwelling and endure your poverty, so that the sweetness of the scattered one may extend to you. Do not look outside, lest the disturbance of the cares seize you and your hardships become renewed for you, and you find yourself high only once until your water is purified. But sit in your place of dwelling, endure your poverty, and the consolation, the joy, and the happiness of the Lord will come to you. Do not make a companion for yourself with any person apart from your brothers the monks. Do not enter into any person for the sake of some good thing that he has brought with you. Flee to the feet of God alone. Go to him; he is the one who will minister to you with compassionate bowels of mercy. You, however, guard yourself from the companionship of men. Let all your companionship be with God alone. Do not enter into a man whom you love, lest he entangle you in a companionship. Neither act with boldness in his house, nor intrude upon him in any commandment, lest you become ensnared. My brother, if you wish, if you are able, all your time, let your thought be fixed on God at all times. Guard yourself from the companionship of men.

If your brother by blood comes to you and you do not wish to receive him, send him away to another brother, so that the heart of the brothers may be troubled, saying, "He is harsh." But you, remain in your poverty, and do not give occasion to the idle talk of the people. For men have found profit in their labor in Palestine. For first, Abraham, whose door was open to everyone, and he was a servant of the entire image of God, standing and serving the guests, and he brought out the cakes of his offering (—p. d Cod. p. s—) with his angels. For he gave him the choice at the hour it was revealed to him, and he established with him his covenant, and his labor became manifest, being profitable in the church, and entering in to God. And Moses, who sat with the people in the desert, while God spoke with him face to face, and he too was profitable in his labor. And Lazarus, who was sick, receiving grace in his sickness, being rich in his heart in his suffering and his affliction, seeing them eating and drinking before him in the good things of this life, like the rich of this world, and they did not ask about him for a single day. But he received grace in his simplicity and

...his freedom from deceit and his freedom from desire. Our Lord indeed bears witness for him that he is perfected through his taking up of work, being pure in heart. And Elijah, in his humility, dwelling in the desert, being without care, and God ministering to him, being pure in his taking up of work. Now then, my brother, if you also desire to dwell in the withdrawal and in poverty, well, a poor man who is humble, his care cast upon God, bound to his place, enduring in his poverty, purifying his mind within the whole image of God—I will not speak of his honor, for who knows the honor of this virtue? But this grace is from our Lord Jesus Christ, that he might take it with us on account of his compassionate heart. It was said concerning Abba Macarius that a brother came to him once. He said to him, "My father, I think, say to me, 'Seek the healing of those who are sick,' for this is a great commandment." And Abba Macarius said to him in a prophetic word, "The desire for false humility—our Lord Jesus Christ himself said, 'The sick, you have sought my healing.' He took on the flesh of humanity and made it one with himself, and he received humanity into himself in every work, until sin...

...not by himself, but I tell you, my son, that it is better to sit in the desert. I tell you, it is more than the harvest of the field, for truly, after a time, they will come to drag away those who sit in the desert. And the saying of Abba Antony was fulfilled: "If they see someone who has not labored, they rise up against him, saying, 'You are idle,' because he did not become like them." I tell you, my son, that if Moses had not gone up to the mount, he would not have received the tablets of the covenant, written by the finger of God in glory... Abba Pamo said: "I resolved in my heart to worship the hands of Abba Macarius the Spirit-bearer again, while I was still in the body. But when I came to the cell of Abba Moses, I consulted Abba Poemen and Abba Evagrius the wise and Abba Chronius and another two with us, in the place of Abba Moses, and the one for whose sake I had found them, they were of one mind with me. After he had ceased...

...like the sun. There came some Arabs and some barbarians, and a gnophos of darkness, and a storm of winds that were very strong. And they were at a loss as to what to do, and they were unable to receive the blessing of the holy one, the great Spirit-bearer, Abba Macarius. One of them said, "The Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, who is in Abba Macarius, will give us a sign, and he will take the lead before us to his place in peace. And he led us out to do the work. We stood up, we prayed, and there was a ladder upon the mountain of the rock of Abba Macarius. And we saw, behold, a pillar of fire standing upon it, shining and giving light greatly, rising up to the sky. And as we walked, the pillar came to meet us little by little. And when we came upon the rock of the holy Macarius, he bowed down, and we saw inside his dwelling place like a fire that was full. And when we knocked at the door, the holy one came out. When we saw the light in his face, we fell down upon the ground, we kissed his holy feet, and he raised us up and greeted us.

...and when we had prayed, we sat down to speak of the honor of progress according to God, and of the good conduct and the establishment of the practical life that is in the monastery. And after these things, Abba Macarius answered, saying, "My brethren, there is one among you who, under the number 7, will complete a martyr's struggle, and 7 other brothers with him will complete likewise." And Abba Moses also answered, saying, "Remember me, O my father, so that he may complete upon me the 9th, for the saying of the Savior: 'The blessed who have taken up the sword will be destroyed by the sword.' This also is the hope that bows down before it." And after these things, we went down and received a blessing from him, and the holy old man prayed over us, dismissed us, and we departed, giving glory to God for the discourse that had taken place and the vision we had seen, and we rejoiced in the graces that God and the holy one would work for us. A brother fell into a transgression and came to Abba Macarius in the desert, saying, "Pray for me, my father, for I have fallen into the sickness of Sodom; I have been caught in the one that was hidden from me." Abba

...and when we had prayed, we sat down to speak of the honor of progress according to God, and of the good conduct and the establishment of the practical life that is in the monastery. And after these things, Abba Macarius said to him, "My son, find a helper, a support for the time without beginning, the eternal work that is constant, which has no end, the helper of those who have no hope except in him alone, the name that is sweet in the mouth of everyone, the only remedy, the perfect life, that of the hours that bind the heart, our Lord Jesus Christ, our true God. Let this be for you a helper and a supporter and a forgiver. My son, I say to you, if a virgin falls into the brothel and she preserves the formation, I say to you, because of the shame of her face and the cries that are given to her, if she is in joy, Christ rejoices over her like a virgin. Likewise you also, my son, since you have revealed your cry according to the way that the holy Scripture said, 'Reveal your sins to one another so that you may pray over yourselves and a forgiveness may happen for you and you may be saved.' For also Peter said to the Lord, 'I have forgiven my brother how many times?' up to seven times. The good God said to him, 'I say to you not seven times, but seventy times seven times.'" Abba Macarius said, "Like one who if he goes...

...and when we had prayed, we sat down to speak of the honor of progress according to God, and of the good conduct and the establishment of the practical life that is in the monastery. And after these things, Abba Macarius said, "He cannot reach the place of perfection. But if he has not stripped himself of all his garments, he has no power to reach perfection, nor all his passions. This is like one who has taken upon himself to become a monk, for he has stripped himself of all the cares of this world and all its desires, which are full of vile pleasure. He has no power to make progress or to receive the progress of virtue, nor his strength to overcome all the snares of the enemy, which are the passions. Abba Macarius the Great said, 'Like the helmsman, who is the pilot, he is in danger for the ship and the cargo until he moors it in the harbor. Likewise, a spiritual father who has children with him takes care for their salvation. For the helmsman does not cease to care for the ship at any time, but he examines his ropes, what water is against him or what is favorable to him, until he has all his places, lest he sink in the waters and be destroyed. Likewise, he who is a father over the brothers ought to examine all the passions and the evil thoughts of the demons that are in them, what among all these passions goes against their souls, lest he cease to care for the fleshly, that a danger may come to him and an accusation before God, because he neglected the discipline of the brothers who are with him until they are cast into the sea and the tyrannical waves of the evil demon, the enemy of renunciation and continence.'

They said concerning Abba Macarius the Great that a cherub was with him from the day he began the progress, giving him strength and giving him counsel for self-control. And in these things he progressed continually, giving increase in the practice of virtue, so that his good reputation covered all Romania and the places of the sun, for truly all were drawn to him for the angelic practical life, because of the fragrance of the lifting up of his high way of life, so that he passed from death into eternal life. Our Lord Jesus Christ granted him grace, so that he might see the sins of

...the men like a lamp placed in a dark place, and it covered them all, taking the form of God. Abba Papnoute, the disciple of my father Abba Macarius, said: They revealed the old man concerning a worker, that he should work in a state of not being disturbed, and that he should be in great patience, hoping for the end of the eternal life. And when he arose in a certain hour, he said to me: "Rise, follow me." And when we walked, we came to a deserted place by the river (the distance of 500 cubits, Cod. 600 cubits), and while we were sitting and hesychazing, the old man was weeping in a vision. I said to him with boldness, as one who is confident and knows that through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ nothing is impossible for him: "Father, command me to speak this word." He said to me: "My son, what is the matter?" And I answered him, saying: "Pray, so that we may go." He answered and said to me with a joyful and grace-filled countenance: "My son, shall we not pray to our Lord Jesus Christ, or shall I take the power of the chief of the apostles, Peter, or shall we flee from him the vain glory of men, or until men give us glory?" When he said these things...

Behold, a beast appeared that was in the waters. Saint Abba Macarius said to him, "It is the will of my Lord Jesus Christ that you should not harm us." And after he said this, the beast went to the shore, and when it came up to him, it stretched out to be bound, and when we went to the other side, my father Abba Macarius said to him, "Take you by force, yoke yourself, and my Lord Jesus Christ will give you your reward." After he yoked it, a great cow appeared, and when I saw this great wonder, I fell down at the feet of his sandals, being in great fear. He then arose in this manner, and we walked giving glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. And when we arrived at the village, we sat down, and our righteous father Abba Macarius would give the blessing to those who would come. Behold, he saw the worker coming, carrying the gift of patience. He said, "Behold, a chosen and honored vessel." And when he stood up before him, he greeted him and said to him, "Peace to you, worker of the covenant of God." He also answered and said, "According to the will of my Lord Jesus Christ." Our father Abba Macarius said to him, "What kind of work do you do?

Then he received a tax from him. The worker said to him, "I work for a ruler of the land and the king who is in the heavens who gives me a tax." Father Abba Macarius said to him, "I am not strengthened concerning this in this manner." The worker said to him, "I am strengthened concerning the voice of the Lord of the grape harvest." Father Abba Macarius said to him, "In what way do you say this?" The worker said to him, "He himself said, 'Call the workers, give them their tax.' And these we have gathered, we have spoken, we have prayed in this manner, we have arisen, we have walked, while our father Abba Macarius was silent, saying, 'Woe to you, Macarius, for behold, not even in the manner of this worldly worker am I strengthened, for my work has pleased my Lord Jesus Christ.' Or even, 'Am I worthy of a tax of the land, or rather of the heavens?' After these things, when we had again gone up to the river, the holy father Abba Macarius said to me, 'My son, let us perform the form of this humanity, draw near.' And when we had gone up to the bank, he turned to the south, and when we had walked a little, Father Abba Macarius said to me, 'Let us sit a little, my son.' And while we were sitting, we wept.

I did not know anything until I reached the cave. He said to me, "Come, let us go, my father." He said to me, "Let us give glory to our Lord Jesus Christ, for he who fought against Abba Koum and Philip is the same one who led the way for us." Abba Macarius said, "While I was still sitting in the cave, I heard a voice crying out like the sound of a thunderbolt, and when I came out I saw a great dragon. When it saw me, it coiled its coils, bowed down to me, and then stood up and turned its face away from me. (-ⲫ︦ⲏ︦ Cod. ⲣ̄-) When I gave heed, behold, there was a splinter in its right eye, and I took for myself the mercies of our Lord Jesus Christ and the invincible power of the cross, I subdued it, I struck it in the face, saying, 'Our Lord Jesus Christ, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have mercy on the labor of this beast of your creation.' And what I said came to pass: the splinter fell from its eye, and it coiled its coils three times, gave a roar, and in this way I released it, and it went away. And I give glory to our Lord Jesus Christ for his strong mercies, that even the other beasts submit to him for their part.

Abba Euagrios asked Abba Makarios, who was still sitting beside him, along with some other brothers, "How does Satan find all these evil thoughts and sow them among the brothers?" Abba Makarios said to him, "He who works the kiln brings many coals to his hands and does not put them all into the fire at once. In the same way, the devil is a worker, and he does not put all his evil garments, which are the passions, into the heart of anyone at once. But now we also see that water extinguishes the power and strength of fire. In the same way, the help of the protector, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the invincible power of the cross, if we arm ourselves with the virtue of work, they extinguish all the snares of the malice of Satan from us, and they cause our heart to be filled and to burn in the spiritual fire of heaven and to be filled with joy." Abba Euagrios also said, "I turned to Abba Makarios at the time of the heat, burning from the sun. I said to him, 'I am very thirsty, my father.' He said to me, 'Let the thirst burn you, for there are many on the...'

...they walk, I see a fire (—Cod. 2—) that is like a flame of the other hearth. And after these things, I sat with him concerning the virtues. He said to me, "My son, by nature I have spent twenty years in the inner part of the bread, neither water nor anything else, but I would go to the river and struggle a little to get a bit of air." Abba Makarios the Great said, "You know in your hearts that you rejoice in the voice of the Lord, not only hearing it, but also receiving instruction from it. For all who hear the word of God in its full power, it is also they who receive instruction from it. For many hear the word of God, but they did not hear it in the power of God and with its fullness. Because of this, they did not walk forward. Our Lord Jesus Christ says concerning those of this kind, crying out, 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.' For all who hear, it is not to him that this voice belongs (—1—), but 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.' Our Lord Jesus Christ knows the nature of the devil, that he fights with souls so that they do not allow them to hear the word of God and be saved. Because of this, he said, 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.'

...they walk, I see a fire (—Cod. 2—) that is like a flame of the other hearth. And after these things, I sat with him concerning the virtues. He said to me, "My son, by nature I have spent twenty years in the inner part Let them hear, for if they hear, they come to the front and they are strong against all the passions of the soul and the body. For the soul cannot hear the word of God with a strong power, it does not come to the front, nor does it find a way to give to the passions of the body, because the word of God is not in it, and the enemy seizes a place over it, and it finds no way to cast out any evil passion from within it entirely. But the soul itself, when the word is with it, it runs and pursues the passions away from itself, and it casts out Satan, who flees from it, for he has been put to shame. For it is written in the Apostle (—Cod. 2—) thus: "The word of God casts out more than any sword of two edges, and it enters into the joints of the soul and the coverings and the sinews." You see that if a man is allowed to hear the word of God, how he casts out the passions. But if he is not allowed to hear, the soul becomes idle, casting out nothing from the evil thoughts. Therefore the devil despises those who are like this. For these ones have spent their whole life in the monastic life and the virgin life, and they have not come to the front of anything, nor have they known the sweetness of God, which is sweeter than honey and the date, nor have they known the power of God, which is stronger than anything, which gives strength to the soul day by day, and it prepares itself to be strong in heart. For it is written that the heart of the righteous is stronger than that of lions.

...they walk, I see a fire (—Cod. 2—) that is like a flame of the other hearth. And after these things, I sat with him concerning the virtues. He said to me, "My son, by nature I have spent twenty years in the inner part You see, my son, that the heart (—Cod. 103—) of the righteous is strong, how strong it is! Why? Because they set it to receive the grace of the spiritual, which is the word of God. Therefore his soul is strong like a man who sets himself to receive from the grace of the body, for he becomes strong by day under the yoke. If the days were such that they did not let him eat from the grace, his body would become weak. This is so; if his enemies attack him, they will overcome him by deceit. Now then, O my beloved, practice also yourselves to eat from the spiritual grace, so that you may find strength and overcome your enemies. Why did they not let them eat? Because their heart is not upright, nor do they enter into the inner desire of the heart, because their heart is hardened against them. And (—Cod. 104—) they receive nothing of the things of God at all. Therefore the demons do not let themselves eat from the holy grace, so that they may find strength in their soul. Therefore they spent their entire life in affliction.

...in the heat of heart and the wrath of heart and the pains of heart which are upon you, a mountain together with each other for the whole time of your life. Keep yourselves, then, from this evil disturbance, O my beloved, so that you may live and attain the honor of God in Christ Jesus our Savior. Abba Macarius the Great said: It happened to me once that I was journeying in Egypt. I came upon a fold of some sheep. I saw a ewe outside the fold which had given birth, and a wolf came and seized her lamb, and she was weeping, saying, "Woe is me! If only I had not gone outside the fold, the wolf would not have found it to seize my lamb." And still she was marveling at the speech of that ewe. The brothers who were traveling with him asked him about the interpretation of the saying. He answered, saying: "There will be a time when the monks will leave the deserts and gather together into some populous villages. If one separates himself from them, the spiritual wolf will seize his mind, that is, his understanding, and he will become insensible, harder than stones and immovable, like the irrational ones. But the one who has turned to him in humility and without counsel will not be able to resist him, as in the midst of the brothers.

They said concerning Abba Macarius that he was coming up from Scetis one time to Egypt. He carried some palm leaves. When he had become tired, he sat down. He raised his eyes up to the sky and said, "Lord, you who see my weariness, and this one who made it, he found him on the river with the palm leaves." Abba Evagrius said, "I sat one time with some brothers near Abba Macarius. He was speaking to us about the meanings of the Holy Scriptures. And I asked the old man, 'What is this saying in the Gospel: "He who will blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, I will not forgive him, neither in this age nor in the one to come"?' The old man said to me, 'This is revealed because in every kind of sin, the man who sins and does not strengthen himself in hope and firm faith, as the Lord said in the Gospel: "If you have faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mountain, 'Move away,' and it would move, and nothing would be impossible for you." But if there is a man from his first youth who is in sins until his end, and this one says in his heart, 'If I turn to God, he will not forgive me, nor will he accept me,

In truth, this one said that one who has the power of the holy Trinity, and he gave place to Satan to come down upon him, and the sin of this one is unforgivable. He did not turn back to repent in his whole heart. Likewise also one who is in a bodily illness did not hope for help from above, like Job and the one who is separated in truth. This one said that one who has the power of the holy Trinity, and again he gave place to Satan to come down upon him, and the sin of this one is unforgivable, his judgment being worse than eternal Tartarus and the outer darkness, the place where weeping will be for him, and the trembling of the teeth. But the repentance of all these is cast away before the compassionate hearts of the merciful ones of the Lord Jesus Christ. He spoke these things to us, the holy Abba Macarius the truthful. A great comfort happened to us, and a spiritual joy, we became as if we saw the King Christ, who is in our midst giving us comfort. After all these words which he spoke to us, full of life and healing of our souls, from his mouth, the Paraclete who dwells within him, the great Abba.

Macarius the Virtuous came upon our face, we worshipped his holy hands, and he prayed over us. We went forth from him receiving grace, and we gave glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Abba Poimen said, "Many times when we would go to visit Apa Macarius, we would not speak any word until we knew his disposition, that he was a pneumatophoros, and that there was in him a prophetic spirit like Elijah and all the other prophets. For he was clothed with the divine life like a double cloak through the power of the Paraclete that was in him. For at the very moment of seeing him, he was filled with the grace of God, and the glory of the Lord was upon his face. The consolation of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete who was with him, would come down upon everyone who sat around him. If we were filled with the delight and joy and gladness of his life-giving words, which were full of grace, we would go to our dwelling place and give glory to God and his servant Apa Macarius. Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and always and unto all eternity, amen.