July 12, 1998
The
Monastic Ideal
This week's thought is from an unknown holy father of the
Egyptian Desert who was asked by a disciple what it meant to be a monk. The holy father's
answer sums up the monastic ideal:
BEGIN: And the old man also said, "God saith unto thee thus -- if thou lovest Me, O
monk, do that which I ask, and do not that which I do not desire. For monks should lead
lives wherein they act not in iniquity, and a man should not look upon evil things with
his eyes, no hear with his ears things which are alien to the fear of God, nor utter
calumnies with his mouth, nor plunder with his hands; but he should give especially to the
poor, and he should not be unduly exalted in his mind, and he should not think evil
thoughts, neither should he fill his belly. Let him do then all these things with
discretion, for by them is a monk known."
The old man also said, "These things form the life of a monk: good works, and
obedience, and training. A man should not lay blame on his neighbor, and he should not
utter calumnies, and he should not complain, for it is written, 'The lovers of the Lord
hate wickedness.'" END
from E. A. Wallis Budge, "The Paradise of the Holy Fathers," (Seattle:
St. Nectarios Press), 1984, p. 135
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