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.