Abba Arsenios - 4.0

21. It was said of him that his cell was thirty-two miles away and that he did not readily leave it: that in fact others did his errands. When Scetis was destroyed he left weeping and said, 'The world has lost Rome and the monks have lost Scetis.

22. Abba Mark asked Abba Arsenius 'Is it good to have nothing extra in the cell? I know a brother who had some vegetables and he has pulled them up.' Abba Arsenius replied, 'Undoubtedly that is good but it must be done according to a man's capacity. For if he does not have the strength for such a practice he will soon plant others.'

23. Abba Daniel, the disciple of Abba Arsenius, related this: 'One day I found myself close to Abba Alexander and he was full of sorrow. He lay down and stared up into the air because of his sorrow. Now it happened that the blessed Arsenius came to speak with him and saw him lying down. During their conversation he said to him, 'And who was the layman whom I saw here?' Abba Alexander said, here did you see him?' He said, 'As I was coming down the mountain I cast my eyes in this direction towards the cave and I saw a man stretched full length looking up into the air.' So Abba Alexander did penance, saying, 'Forgive me, it was I; I was overcome by sorrow. 'The old man said to him, 'Well now, so it was you? Good; I thought it was a layman and that was why I asked you.'

24. Another time Abba Arsenius said to Abba Alexander,
'When you have cut your palm-leaves, come and eat with me,
but if visitors come, eat with them.' Now Abba Alexander
worked slowly and carefully. When the time came, he had
not finished the palm leaves and wishing to follow the old
man's instructions, he waited until he had finished them.
When Abba Arsenius saw that he was late, he ate, thinking
that he had had guests. But Abba Alexander, when at last he
had finished, came away. And the old man said to him, 'Have
you had visitors? "No, 'he said. 'Then why did you not come?
'The other replied, 'You told me to come when I had cut the
palm-leaves; and following your instructions, I did not come,
because I had not finished.' The old man marvelled at his
exactitude and said to him, 'Break. your fast at once so as to
celebrate the synaxis untroubled, and drink some water,
otherwise your body will soon suffer.'

Ciao!

+TOM

Abba Arsenios - 3.0

So, we started with several weeks of keeping a journal.  We wrote about the various texts supplied on line.  We went back and read our journal entries and noted patterns and development.  Next, we moved on to lectio divina - holy reading.  We read daily passages of scripture, over and over until we heard a message from the Spirit coming through.  Then, we sat with that message and listened to it in our heart.  Hopefully there was some journaling of the messages we heard so we can go back to them in the future.

Today we are going to begin with lessons from the desert Saints of Christianity.  Each day I will post several of the sayings of one of the desert fathers or mothers.  Read them over and find one that interests you.  Use that one saying as something to mull over in silent reflection and meditation.

Essentially you will be using it like a zen koan.  You will be doinglectio divina - this time it will be with a short aphorism from theApophthegmata (Sayings of the Fathers).  Repeat it inside, over and over.  Listen for what the Spirit has to teach you from these aphorisms.

We will work with these sayings for a few weeks.  Be sure to journal what you hear.  This will leave a path for you to follow later, when you want to see where you have been and how you have developed.  On-line Journal at:  http://my-diary.org/



ABBA ARSENIOS



13. Abba Mark said to Abba Arsenius, 'Why do you
avoid us?' The old man said to him, 'God knows that I love
you, but I cannot live with God and with men. The
thousands and ten thousands of the heavenly hosts have but
one will, while men have many. So I cannot leave God to
be with men.'

14. Abba Daniel said of Abba Arsenius that he used to
pass the whole night without sleeping, and in the early
morning when nature compelled him to go to sleep, he
would say to sleep, 'Come here, wicked servant.' Then,
seated, he would snatch a little sleep and soon wake up
again.

15. Abba Arsenius used to say that one-hour's sleep
is enough for a monk if he is a good fighter.

16. The old man used to tell how one day someone
handed round a few dried figs in Scetis. Because they were
not worth anything, no one took any to Abba Arsenius in
order not to offend him. Learning of it, the old man did not
come to the synaxis saying, 'You have cast me out by not
giving me a share of the blessing which God had given the
brethren and which I was not worthy to receive.' Everyone
heard of this and was edified at the old man's humility.
Then the priest went to take him the small dried figs and
brought him to the synaxis with joy.

17. Abba Daniel used to say, 'He lived with us many a
long year and every year we used to take him only one
basket of bread and when we went to find him the next year
we would eat some of that bread.'

18. It was said of the same Abba Arsenius that he only
changed the water for his palm-leaves once a year; the rest of
the time he simply added to it. One old man implored him in
these words, 'Why do you not change the water for these
palm-leaves when it smells 'Instead of the perfumes and
aromatics which bad?' He said to him, I used in the world I
must bear this bad smell.'

19. Abba Daniel used to tell how when Abba Arsenius
learned that all the varieties of fruit were ripe he would say,
'Bring me some.' He would taste a very little of each, just
once, giving thanks to God.

20. Once at Scetis Abba Arsenius was ill and he was
without even a scrap of linen. As he had nothing with which

to buy any, he received some through another's charity and
he said, 'I give you thanks, Lord, for having considered me
worthy to receive this charity in your name.'

+Tom

Abba Arsenios - 2.0

7. Blessed Archbishop Theophilus, accompanied by a

magistrate, came one day to find Abba Arsenius. He

questioned the old man, to hear a word from him. After a

short silence the old man answered him ‘Will you put into

practice what I say to you?' They promised him this. 'If you

hear Arsenius is anywhere, do not go there.'

8. Another time the archbishop, intending to come to

see him, sent someone to see if the old man would receive

him. Arsenius told him 'If you come, I shall receive you; but

if I receive you, I receive everyone and therefore I shall no

longer live here.' Hearing that, the archbishop said, 'If I drive

him away by going to him, I shall not go any more.?

9. A brother questioned Abba Arsenius to hear a word

of him and the old man said to him, 'Strive with all your

might to bring your interior activity into accord with God,

and you will overcome exterior passions.'

10. He also said, 'If we seek God, he will show himself to

us, and if we keep him, he will remain close to us.'

11. Someone said to Abba Arsenius, 'My thoughts trouble

me, saying, "You can neither fast nor work; at least go and

visit the sick, for that is also charity."' But the old man,

recognising the suggestions of the demons, said to him, 'Go,

eat, drink, sleep, do no work, only do not leave your cell.'

For he knew that steadfastness in the cell keeps a monk in

the right way.

12. Abba Arsenius used to say that a monk travelling

abroad should not get involved in anything; thus he will

remain in peace.

Sayings of the Fathers and Mothers

So, we started with several weeks of keeping a journal.  We wrote about the various texts supplied on line.  We went back and read our journal entries and noted patterns and development.  Next, we moved on to lectio divina - holy reading.  We read daily passages of scripture, over and over until we heard a message from the Spirit coming through.  Then, we sat with that message and listened to it in our heart.  Hopefully there was some journaling of the messages we heard so we can go back to them in the future.

Today we are going to begin with lessons from the desert Saints of Christianity.  Each day I will post several of the sayings of one of the desert fathers or mothers.  Read them over and find one that interests you.  Use that one saying as something to mull over in silent reflection and meditation.

Essentially you will be using it like a zen koan.  You will be doing lectio divina - this time it will be with a short aphorism from the Apophthegmata (Sayings of the Fathers).  Repeat it inside, over and over.  Listen for what the Spirit has to teach you from these aphorisms.

We will work with these sayings for a few weeks.  Be sure to journal what you hear.  This will leave a path for you to follow later, when you want to see where you have been and how you have developed.  On-line Journal at:  http://my-diary.org/

ABBA ARSENIOS (Arsenius)

Arsenius was born in Rome about 36o. A well-educated
man, of senatorial rank, he was appointed by the Emperor
Tbeodosius 1 as tutor to the princes Arcadius and
Honorius. He left the palace in 394 and sailed secretly to
Alexandria. From there he went to Scetis and placed
himself under the guidance of Abba John the Dwarf. He
became an anchorite near Petra in Scetis. He seems to
have had only three disciples, Alexander, Zoilus and
Daniel. He was renowned for his austerity and silence and
his combined with his learning made him seem somewhat
forbidding to the Coptic monks. After the second
devastation of Scetis in 434 he went to the mountain of
Troe where he died in 449.

1. While still living in the palace, Abba Arsenius prayed
to God in these words, 'Lord, lead me in the way of
salvation.' And a voice came saying to him, 'Arsenius, flee
from men and you will be saved.'

2. Having withdrawn to the solitary life he made the
same prayer again and he heard a voice saying to him,
'Arsenius, flee, be silent, pray always, for these are the
source of sinlessness.'

3. It happened that when Abba Arsenius was sitting in
his cell that he was harassed by demons. His servants, on
their return, stood outside his cell and heard him praying to
God in these words, 'O God, do not leave me. I have done
nothing good in your sight, but according to your
goodness, let me now make a beginning of good.'

4. It was said of him that, just as none in the palace had
worn more splendid garments than he when he lived there,
so no one in the Church wore such poor clothing.

5. Someone said to blessed Arsenius, 'How is it that we,
with all our education and our wide knowledge get nowhere,
while these Egyptian peasants acquire so many
virtues?' Abba Arsenius said to him, 'We indeed get nothing
from our secular education, but these Egyptian peasants
acquire the virtues by hard work.'

6. One day Abba Arsenius consulted an old Egyptian
monk about his own thoughts. Someone noticed this and
said to him, 'Abba Arsenius, how is it that you with such a
good Latin and Greek education ask this peasant about your
thoughts?' He replied, 'I have indeed been taught Latin and
Greek, but I do not know even the alphabet of this peasant.'

Amen.

+Tom

Arsenios the Great