Demons

Some demons once came neaer Arsenius in his cell, and they were troubling him. Then some brothers who usually ministered to him arrived. As they stood outside the cell, they heard him crying aloud to the Lord, "Lord, do not leave me, though I have done nothing good in your sight. Grant me, Lord, by your loving kindness, to make at least the first beginnings of good."

The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Grunewald; 1515. Panel from the Isenheim altarpiece: oil on wood; Musee d'Unterlinden, Colmar

The Virtue of Obedience

They said of John, the disciple of Paul, that he was full of the virtue of obedience. There was a tomb in which lived a dangerous lioness.

Paul saw the dung of the lioness lying around and said to John, "Go and fetch that dung."

John said to him, "What shall I do, abba, about the lioness?"

Paul said, as a joke, "If she comes at you, tie her up and bring her here."

So, John went there in the evening, and the lioness rushed at him. John obeyed Paul, and ran to catch her, so the lioness turned and fled. John chased her, shouting, "Wait! My abba told me to tie you up." He eventually caught her and tied her up.

Paul sat a long time waiting for him, and was getting very anxious because he was late. But at last John came, and brought the lioness with him, tied up. Paul marveled at the sight, but wanting to humble him, he beat him and said, "You fool, have you brought me that silly dog?" And he immediately untied the lioness and drove her away.

Commandments of God

In Scetis, there once went out an order that they should fast for a week, then celebrate Easter. During the week, some brothers happened to come into Egypt to visit Moses, and he cooked a little vegetable stew for them.

The nearby hermits saw the smoke, and said to the clergy of the church, "What is that smoke? Moses must be disobeying the order, and cooking in his cell."

The clergy said, "We will talk to him when he comes."

On Saturday, the clergy, who knew the greatness of his way of life, said to Moses in front of the entire congregation, "Moses, you have broken a commandment of men: but you have kept the commandments of God valiantly."

~~Photo of wheat in Tuscany by Frank Logue

Pray

Evagrius said, "If your attention falters, pray. As it is written, pray in fear and trembling (cf. Phillipians 2:12), earnestly and watchfully. We ought to pray like that, especially because our unseen and wicked enemies are trying to hinder us forcefully."

~~Pray for Peace by Hiyalah Indiga

What do you think of me?

At first Ammoi said to Aesius, "What do you think of me?"

Aesius said, "You are like an angel, abba."

Later on, Ammoi asked again, "What do you think of me?"

Aesius replied, "You are like Satan, for even if you speak a good word, it is like a sword to me."

A Strongly Flowing Fountain

As a handful of sand thrown into the ocean, so are the sins of all flesh as compared with the mind of God. Just as a strongly flowing fountain is not blocked by a handful of earth, so the compassion of the Creator is not overcome by the wickedness of his creatures. As the flame of a fire cannot be prevented from ascending upwards, so the prayers of the compassionate cannot be held back from ascending into heaven.

~ Isaac of Syria

~~Photo of fountain near the Parthenon in Rome, Italy, by Frank Logue

Inner Conflict

Antony said, "God does not let inner conflicts be stirred up in this generation, because he knows they are too weak to bear it."

~~Acrylic, Conflict, by Goyce Kakegamic, 2006