The principal struggle - St Anthony the Great

And that said, the man who lives in the desert and abides in contemplation is free from the threefold struggle: for hearing, for speaking and for seeing. He only has to fight for the heart.

The first thing that struck me in the above sentence was the information that the desert dweller is not free from struggle at all. There is a constant battle for his heart - the most important battle that can take place in a person's life.

It seems to me that Abba Anthony emphasises this on purpose, so that some people don't think that escaping to the desert is a demanding but ultimately comfortable option, because it relieves them of a lot of effort. It is not.

In fact. Retreating to the desert frees one from certain circumstances which, in normal life, give rise to temptations and can lead to falling into sin. But the absence of occasions to sin does not make a person virtuous, nor does it guarantee that he will turn his heart to God.

The struggle of which Anthony speaks is precisely this. For the heart of man not only to be free from sin, but to be full of love for God. It is a struggle for this love to find concrete expression. Concrete manifestations. 

It is interesting to read this reflection from the perspective of modern man, who has come to live in a world that is as far from the ideal of the desert as it is possible to be. In a world where it is difficult to find a space of true silence, where no sound can reach except that of nature. In a world where streams of messages (because not even words themselves, if you consider any kind of social media based on film or images) are thrown out. In a world that tries to influence people in so many ways through what they see.

So the basic struggle of many modern people is the struggle to find at least a patch of desert for themselves. It is a struggle, by the way, that many lose because they see no point in it.

This struggle is so absorbing that it often overshadows the need to fight for one's heart. 

And that seems to be something worth thinking about.

Love your cell - St Anthony the Great

He also said: "Just as a fish that lingers too long on the shore perishes, so monks who delay returning to their cells or who quarrel with lay people lose their ability to concentrate. Therefore, as a fish returns to the sea, so we must return to our cells: lest, by staying too long outside, we forget our inner vigilance".

For the desert monks, the cell was the centre of all life. It was a defined area where they lived, worked, prayed and ate their meals. They rarely and reluctantly left it, seeing the permanence of the place as one of the means of attaining holiness.

The cell offered a certain space of freedom from distractions that made it difficult to concentrate on the things of God.

The comparison used by Saint Anthony is reminiscent of the description of a living environment, specific to certain organisms. For fish it is water, for monks it is a cell.

It is possible to be outside the right environment, but only for a short time. If it is prolonged, there are negative consequences.

The question that arises in me after reading this Apoftegma is: What is my environment? What conditions help me to develop optimally?

In other words. In which places am I most distracted? What harms me most?

In other words, what is my purpose? Where is it?

I know that I will not be able to live like the monks, like Saint Anthony. I don't have the opportunity to lock myself up in a small cell, completely cut off from the world. But perhaps I should create a kind of substitute? To find my place, a time when I can concentrate on my relationship with God. A fixed ritual through which my inner alertness and focus will grow.

Life of the neighbour - St Anthony the Great

He also said: "Life or death depends on our neighbour. For if we have won our brother, we have won God; but if we have rebuked our brother, we have sinned against Christ".

There is much room for charity in the spirituality of the Desert Fathers.

They are not hindered by an ascetic life, they are not hindered by seclusion. In their neighbour they try to see Christ coming to them, in accordance with the Gospel.

Therefore, the above sentence of Saint Anthony should not be considered in relation to the Gospel in which we read: "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me".

This seems to be the source of the thought expressed by Saint Anthony.

This phrase also shows that even if the flight to the desert involved a withdrawal from the community, from a certain way of life in which it was more difficult to focus on God, it was not a withdrawal from human beings. Going into the desert, motivated by the commandment to love God, did not exempt one from the obligation to observe the commandment to love one's neighbour.

The fact was, as we will see in the later Apocalypses, that this demonstration of love for others could sometimes take a hard or harsh form. Sometimes it involved a difficult trial or a harsh admonition. But showing love to the other person was never neglected.

In fact, I would like to say a few words on the subject of scandal as we read this Apophthegmata. It seems that modern man does not really understand it. Perhaps in a different way. He understands it in a very one-sided way.

It's very easy for us to use the concept of scandal when we are offended by someone's unseemly, inappropriate or downright evil behaviour. We are then able to clearly identify the source of our offence and condemn the offender and his offending behaviour. We adopt an attitude of indignation and are prepared to draw the consequences, or at least to demand them from people who are in a position to do so.

Outrage also has the ability to become an excuse for us to walk away, change a decision, etc.

We take a more lenient view of the issue when we are the ones accused of the offending behaviour. When we are the ones being blamed. 

Then it is much easier for us to wave our hands, to dismiss the matter with disdain, to treat it as unimportant.

In fact, it is easier for us to make demands on others than on ourselves.

Sometimes it is worth stopping and thinking. Is what I am doing wrong? For example, is someone offended by the fact that I speak beautifully about the things of God, but on closer inspection of my life it is impossible to see that I am at all concerned about my own words?

If we have despised a brother.... That is, if we have in any way made him a worse person, if we have made him doubt, if we have made him fall....

"Whatever you did to one of the least of these brothers of mine..."

Have moderation - St. Anthony the Great

"He also said that there are people who have ravaged their bodies with asceticism, but because they lacked prudence, they have distanced themselves from God".

Given the severity of the ascetic practices undertaken by the monks in the desert, St Anthony's above sentence is surprisingly balanced. But it illustrates a very important point.

Asceticism, understood as mortification of the body, was not an end in itself for the monks. It was merely a means to an end.

Anthony points out that an important characteristic of the penitent monk is common sense, which allows him to keep the practices he undertakes in proper perspective, so that they do not become more important than the God to whom they are meant to lead.

Such an exaggeration must have taken place in the desert for St Anthony to be so radical.

The Lord God is not concerned with the total destruction of man's body, as if it were something inferior or unimportant. We have received it from Him. We should take care of it.

Excessive mortification, the kind that leads to loss of health, is a violation of the fifth commandment. It is a sin. And as such - it distances us from God.

The ancient practice of the Church has always indicated that anyone wishing to undertake a special, extraordinary mortification should do so under the guidance of a confessor or spiritual director. In this way it was possible to avoid exaggeration on the part of the penitent, or even to stop the practice being undertaken if it proved to be more spiritual danger than good.

Extending the understanding of this apophthegm, it is worth reflecting on the practice of piety in general, since prudence should not be expressed only in the practice of mortification.

One can also show a lack of prudence when, in the name of piety, one forgets one's fundamental vocation and neglects the duties of the state. 

Such a situation would be, for example, the story of a wife who, because of her commitments to prayer, does not find time to build a relationship with her husband, of a father who puts prayer before time spent with his children, etc. 

We must remember that while prayer in itself is a pious and good practice, we cannot use it to justify an objectively evil action.

Let us therefore be prudent.

On Humility - St Anthony the Great

Abba Anthony said: "I saw all the snares of the enemy spread over the earth, so I groaned and said: "And who will escape them?" And I heard a voice say to me: "Humility".

Modern man is not very concerned about Satan and his powers. We have relegated him to fairy tales and legends, made him a "cool guy" from the TV series "Lucifer" or a cartoon character. We do not take him seriously.

Anthony and his ilk had a very different approach to him. 

For them, Satan was a real opponent to be reckoned with. He was someone who fought for the soul of man and tried to prevent man from reaching salvation. His weapons were temptations and, in certain situations, other ways of harassing people.

The life of the desert monks, as we know it from the Apophthegms, is full of different kinds of battles against temptation. Some spectacular, others quite ordinary (if we can call it a battle for the salvation of the soul).

St Anthony's vision shows one of the most universal methods of dealing with Satan's actions: humility.

It is undervalued, especially today. Yet it remains effective.

But how does it work?

Firstly, the humble person is aware of Satan's objective power and therefore does not rely on his own strength alone in the fight against temptation, but relies on God. It is in God's grace that he seeks help, and it is by God's grace that he can prevail.

Secondly, the humble man, aware of his own weakness, does not put himself to the test. He does his best not to expose himself to circumstances in which temptation can overcome him.

Such humility was learned by the monks every day they spent in the desert. Such humility can be a life-saver for us too.

Here and now... - Saint Anthony the Great

Abba Pambo asked Abba Anthony: "What should I do?" The old man replied: "Don't trust in your own righteousness, don't care about the past, and control your tongue and your stomach".

It was the custom in the desert that monks, known for their special wisdom, would be approached by others who would ask them how to act in order to attain salvation. Questions along the lines of: Abba, say the word .... What should I do... obviously appear very often in the Apocalypses.

In the above, the questioner is Abba Pambo (who also has some very nice stories about him). 

Let's look at the answer he gets from Abba Anthony.

First of all, it is appropriate to consider what the words mean: "Do not trust in vassal justice". This is very important because, whatever it is, we tend to associate justice rather positively, as a virtue worth having and worth living. And St Anthony would probably agree. For his point is not to reject justice as such. It is about not making oneself the centre of justice. 

In interpreting this apophthegm, it is worth recalling the words of Saint Paul in his Second Letter to the Corinthians, first chapter, ninth verse: "But in ourselves we have found the sentence of death: not to trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead".

St Anthony points out that man has the capacity to twist even the most beautiful virtue in a peculiar way. When he tries to make himself a point of reference. When he places himself at the centre of a cause, he almost always ends up caricaturing something, twisting something.  That is why he advises against using one's own righteousness and trusting in the divine, recalling the admonition of the Apostle of the Gentiles himself.

In the same way, Anthony warns against dwelling too much on the past. It has already happened. Yes, it has left its mark on us in some way, but it is already past and cannot be changed. Focusing too much on it does not lead to good and, moreover, can keep us stuck and prevent us from growing.

Restraining the tongue and the belly, on the other hand, means acting in the present. It is all the more important because it focuses on refraining from doing evil.

To understand this better, it is worth reading the teaching of Evagrius of Pontus on the "Eight Spirits of Evil", among which gluttony appears as one of the first ways of living badly, which can lead to even worse downfalls.

Traces, or rather the origins, of this way of thinking can be found in the words of Abba Anthony, who advises restraint in speech and fasting as a way of living well.

A salutary temptation? - Saint Anthony the Great

The same one said: "No one can enter the kingdom of heaven without being tried. Take away the temptations," he said, "and no one will be saved.

The above apophthegm is one of the most surprising. 

We are used to treating the temptations we experience as a problem, perhaps even as a challenge. And I suppose that if someone managed to free themselves from them, they would treat it as a cause for rejoicing.

But Anthony, miraculously, sees some value in temptation. Passing through it makes a person "tested".

What is at stake here?

As a desert monk, Anthony is aware that man will experience temptations, one of the most serious of which is the temptation to believe that one is self-sufficient. That, in fact, the Lord God is unnecessary for man. He also knows that giving in to such a temptation is an easy way of cutting oneself off from God's grace and, consequently, from salvation. 

Anthony's understanding of temptation differs from ours above all because, unlike many of his contemporaries, he understands that the struggle against temptation is not his alone. If it is to be effective, it must be based on God. The experience of temptation is therefore for him a circumstance through which he can draw closer to God and experience God's mercy.

Looking for the strength to fight temptation not in himself but in God, Anthony can say that to take temptation away from people is to deprive them of salvation. For salvation is given by God. And temptation, in St Anthony's experience, was the factor that bound him more closely to God.

And perhaps this is the most important lesson to be learnt from this apophthegm: not to remain alone in the experience of temptation, but to turn to God.

Truth and Vigilance - St Anthony the Great

Abba Anthony said to Abba Pojmen that this is the great work of man: to always bear his guilt before God and to expect temptation until his last breath.

Looking at this apophthegm, there are two thoughts to consider. The first speaks of a kind of honesty in one's approach to oneself and at the same time in one's relationship with God. It also seems to derive from a profound knowledge of human nature, in which there seems to be an inherent mechanism for putting oneself in the best possible light, even to the point of being dishonest.

To take one's guilt upon oneself is to stand before God in the truth about oneself. Also in relation to those events in our lives that are not something to be proud of. 

Of course, one can cling to the fact that Abba Anthony emphasises the negative.... but if we think about it a little more, we have to admit that it makes sense. First of all, when it comes to bragging about what we've achieved, what we're proud of, we don't need much encouragement. That's something we can do ourselves, often more than we need to.

Admitting guilt, on the other hand ... is sometimes difficult, even for ourselves.

It seems to me that Abba Anthony's way of thinking lets us know that the attitude of taking one's guilt upon oneself is valuable in that it can be the beginning of conversion. Acknowledging one's guilt leads to repentance, and repentance becomes a source of healing in one's relationship with God and with others. Nor is Anthony in any way anxious to take on a burden of guilt that will lead to depression or breakdown. He knows that God wants to bring healing to the sinner. Relief. 

The second thought contained in this apophthegm is a warning that grows almost directly from the words of Christ, who says Look! Anthony, an experienced monk who had fought temptation more than once, knew that Satan was a powerful and intelligent adversary who used deception masterfully. A momentary pause in the experience of temptation can be a fortress that makes a person lazy and gives him the conviction that he has won. And if the vigilance is let down, then comes the blow that can lead to a fall. Therefore, a person should always be vigilant so that he does not allow thoughts to enter his heart until the last moment that will lead him to sin and thus away from God.

Three Counsels - St Anthony the Great

Someone asked Abba Anthony: "What should I do to please God?" The old man replied: "Observe these commandments of mine: wherever you go, always keep God before your eyes; whatever you do or say, base it on the Scriptures; and wherever you once dwell, do not easily depart from it. If you do these three things, you will be saved.

A man who wants to please another man is prepared to do a lot. A change of attitude, a change of behaviour - everything is on the table, especially if there is a tangible gain in sight.

But what should a person do if he wants to please God? 

Whoever put this question to Anthony received an answer consisting of three tips.

1. Always have God before your eyes - that is, live with the awareness that God exists and that your every action, your every word, your every thought is clear and obvious to Him. There are no secrets from God.

This injunction is not meant to make me believe that I am a participant in some "God's Reality Show" or that I am under some kind of constant surveillance.

Keeping God always before my eyes does indeed mean that I should remember Him in all my actions and treat Him with seriousness and respect. 

Having God always before my eyes is also not an invitation to build some kind of neurotic vision of Christianity (I recently read such a term somewhere on Facebook in reference to a more traditionally understood religiosity). It is an invitation to show the same respect to the personal God as to a loved one. To include God in one's plans and actions in the same way that one includes a husband, wife and children in one's daily life. ....

2. Whatever you do or say, base it on Scripture - this sounds like a big nudge to modern man, who is often unfamiliar with Scripture, and even if he is, he does not necessarily see it as a source of inspiration for his words and actions.

This reference, however, is a testimony to the way in which St Anthony and his contemporaries approached the Word of God. For them, it was not just one of the many "cultural texts" which, of course, are worth reading, but with which they should not concern themselves... For them, the way to study Scripture was to go into the desert and learn it by heart, if not in its entirety, then at least in fragments. Their journey into the desert usually began with inspiration from the words of Scripture.

In addition, they came with the quite reasonable conviction that the more in line with Scripture their words and actions were, the closer they were to what God was calling his followers to do.

3. Wherever you live, don't just leave - in a world as interconnected as ours, this seems impossible. After all, many modern people move at least several times in their lives. It is increasingly difficult to achieve stability, understood as a fixed place in the world.

But this injunction can be understood more sincerely, even though monks did indeed attach themselves firmly to their goals and cared deeply about what the Rule of St Benedict developed into the vow of stabilitas loci. A broader understanding will be concerned primarily with perseverance. Especially perseverance in the pursuit of the good. Perseverance in the pursuit of heaven. 

It can be expressed, for example, in faithfully getting up every morning and starting the day with prayer. It can be expressed in devoting 15 minutes a day to reading the Scriptures. It can be expressed in ...

This injunction is also about developing the ability to see your resolutions through to the end. Not getting discouraged too easily.

It can also be about not giving in to the volatility and instability that is so fashionable today, but building your life on something sustainable.

Mind your own business - St Anthony the Great

The same Abba Anthony, once reflecting on the depth of God's judgments, asked: "Lord, why is it that some die in early youth and others live to a ripe old age? Why is it that some live in poverty and others become rich? Why do the wicked get rich and the good get poor?" And he heard a voice saying: "Anthony, be careful: for all these things are the judgments of God, and it would not do you any good to understand them".

If you were looking for a summary of this apophthegm, you could use the sentence: Mind your own business, Anthony. Concentrate on yourself and trust that God knows what He is doing.

Of course we understand Abba Anthony and his thoughts very well. We may have done it ourselves more than once or twice, wondering why the world is the way it is.

The question of why is quite ingrained in human nature. My metaphysics lecturer used to say that it is the origin of all philosophy, of all the quest for knowledge. 

As human beings we want to know. We want to overcome our ignorance. We want to know.

To say that something cannot be explained, that there is some knowledge that we do not deserve, that there is some knowledge that may not even work for us.... That doesn't convince us. It goes against the part of our nature that is driven by that inner why of ours?

And yet that is the message this apophthegm gives us. There are things - the "judgments of God" - that are beyond our capacity to understand. Which we do not need to know and understand. Which we should accept in order to express our trust in God.

Someone will say - a convenient explanation by which to spread ignorance.

Is this really so?

The real meaning of this apoftegma lies in understanding two things.

The first is that if we constantly focus on 'important things', such as the great questions posed by Antony, we will in time lose the ability to work on ourselves. What is always important is 'something else'. And that other, in time, robs us of the ability to open ourselves to God, with the result that we neglect the pursuit of holiness.

The second is very natural. When we are constantly focused on others, we quickly begin to see things that are not the case. The state of preoccupation with others can also be a source of sins: slander, gossip, jealousy.... All these sins have their origin in an excessive focus on others. Therefore, not caring about what does not belong to us is to our own detriment. So it is worth guarding against them.

But what seems to me most important in all this is the implicit reminder: Trust in God; His judgments cannot be measured by human standards, and His justice is greater than any human concept of justice.

Trust!

How can I save myself? - St Anthony the Great

Saint Abba Anthony, when he was living in the desert, once fell into discouragement and great inner darkness. And he said to God: "Lord, I want to save myself, but my thoughts do not allow me: what shall I do in this affliction? How can I save myself?" And a little later, when he had gone out, Anthony saw someone like himself, sitting and working, then getting up from his work and praying, then sitting down again and weaving a rope, and getting up again to pray. And it was an angel of the Lord, sent to instruct and strengthen him. And Anthony heard the angel's voice: "When he heard this, he felt great joy and confidence, and by doing this he achieved salvation. 

When one reads this story, the object of Saint Anthony's concern is astonishing from the point of view of modern man. Lord, I want to be saved.... 

Let's face it, worrying about salvation is not one of the first things on a 21st century man's mind. He has no shortage of worries. Problems of all kinds. But salvation is not necessarily at the top of the list.

And that in itself can be a challenge. - Learning to think about your salvation. To strive to be saved. - That's it, and that's all.

But let us go one step further.

As far as Abba Anthony is concerned, we have no doubt that his ambition was to live a holy life and to achieve salvation. But the fact that he had such beautifully defined goals did not protect him from the weakness described here as discouragement. But even in this matter we can learn something from our hero. 

Abba begins by diagnosing his problem quite clearly. I have good intentions, but I experience thoughts that make it difficult for me to carry them out. Is he relying on himself? Does he look to himself for the solution? None of these things. Having diagnosed his situation, he turns to God. He goes to Him with the question of what to do. And he receives an answer.

In the case of Saint Anthony, this answer comes in an extraordinary and miraculous way. He had a vision in which he saw someone similar to himself. This someone is doing nothing other than what was Anthony's daily life. Prayer - work, prayer - work, prayer - work.... - Do this and you will be saved.

We learn two things from this. God always gives an answer. Not necessarily as directly as in the case of Saint Anthony, but always. And that is the beauty of it.

The second thing is even more beautiful. The way to salvation is not to make some unknown plan or programme. It is about living your life and fulfilling your vocation. With God and in God. Like Saint Anthony, who prayed, worked and thus achieved salvation.

Abba Anthony the Great

Image source

Abba Anthony is also known as St Anthony the Great or St Anthony the Abbot. He was born in Egypt around the year 250. He came from a wealthy family, but after the death of his parents he gave away all his possessions and began the life of an ascetic. He spent several years in the family home and then moved to an ancient tomb some distance from his home village. There he began to attract people who wanted to imitate his way of life.

He changed his residence several times, but each time his followers found him and followed him. They formed the first groups of Anachorets.

During his life he went to Alexandria twice. Once to support the Christians there during the persecution. The second time to support the Patriarch Athanasius in his dispute with the Arians. It was Athanasius who wrote his life.

What is striking is the great discrepancy between the way St Anthony is represented in iconography and the image of him that emerges from the writings that have survived. Iconography focuses on images of the monk, sometimes very fantastic, attacked by Satan and depicted as various monsters. In contrast, his writings are full of peace.

Undoubtedly, St Anthony experienced the action of Satan in his life. This action was clear and often painful. All the battles he had to fight became a source of strength for him. For painters, these battles are mainly the inspiration for images that are meant to inspire the imagination. For Anthony, however, they were primarily internal.

Satan does not act openly. Such action would be detrimental to him. He prefers subtleties, half-truths and subtle inspirations to 'standing with his visor open'. But original sin makes us vulnerable to his actions. In each person, Satan finds a "beachhead" from which to launch his attacks. He acts through temptation, which concerns the particular weakness that man carries within him. He encourages man to succumb to this weakness until it becomes an addiction, and then he brings evil into man's life and into the lives of those around him. A common tactic of his is to present evil as something good. He wants to confuse minds and consciences with his actions.

But man is not defenceless. He can seek out and recognise his weaknesses. He can also identify the places from which Satan attacks the innocence of another person. There is, however, a danger in this method - because in a defensive struggle, the same methods are very often used by the attacker out of necessity.

The hermits, including Saint Anthony, fought this battle in a different way. They looked for the influence of Satan within themselves and fought on that basis. This battle has a special characteristic. It can only be undertaken out of love for God. It involves great difficulties and the benefits are sometimes elusive and hard to see. This motivation (love of God) is important because it is impossible to fight Satan effectively if the motive for this fight is the pursuit of perfectionism or any other selfish motivation.

What was this like for St Anthony?

Once, when he fell into discouragement and inner darkness, he had a vision of someone like him quietly interspersing his work with prayer. This encouraged him to persevere. When he wanted to delve into God's orchestration of individual people, to look for patterns in the workings of divine providence, he received a vision telling him to stop. Thus Anthony experienced two temptations: despair and complacency in judging God's judgments. His victory over them was not on the basis of his strength, but as a result of God's clear help. His ability to resist temptation, then, is an ability that is well transformed into a strong habit of relying on God's help.

Anthony was characterised by a constant search for closeness to God. This closeness, however, turns out to be difficult - in the sense that a close life with God becomes a source of light that illuminates all that is unholy in us. It offers an experience of weakness that can become a source of despair. This was the experience of our Saint, who, with God's help, found the way to overcome this temptation. It is the recognition of one's own powerlessness - humility. The paradox of this situation is that the encounter with evil in oneself becomes the gateway to the triumph of God. For Anthony, then, temptation became an opportunity not so much for a fall as for a victory made possible by God and his grace. He sums up this experience by saying "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being tried. Take away the temptation and no one will be saved".

This is the first lesson we receive from him. To learn to call the sin in our lives by its name, to recognise it as our weakness, and to entrust it to God so that he may, by his grace, free us from this weakness.