This Desert Life

What's happening now...

2010-03-31T11:22:00.004-04:00

Because it is Holy Week, and I cannot hope to keep up with posting, I am posting everything today. You will notice that they are posted 'backward' so that you will not have to scroll down and read the posts from the bottom of the page up. If you that clarified, just look at how older posts are listed below newer ones. Remember there are no special prizes for reading ahead.

Peace.
Fr. Matt Humm+

2010-03-31T11:22:00.001-04:00

Wed, Mar 31st
Ps 55
Anthony’s message to later Christianity was very simple: obedience coupled to abstinence offers a powerful break against excess. As he remarked, “Whoever hammers a lump of iron, first decides what he is going to make of it, a scythe, a sword, or an axe. Even so we ought to make of our minds what kind of virtue we want to forge.” There is nothing profoundly mystical about his observation, except that buried in it lies an injunction that for its time was revolutionary. The mind had become the new theater of spiritual exploration rather than the handmaid to rationality, custom, or tradition. Henceforth a person was in charge of his inner life in a way that few before Anthony had foreseen (48).
From ¬James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

2010-03-31T11:21:00.000-04:00

Maundy Thurs, Apr 1st
Ps 102
“Those who are great athletes must contend against strong enemies.” –Amma Syncletica
At the period in history in which the desert became filled with men and women seeking God, the church had incorporated the ideal of ascesis from Greek life and culture, a term that referred to the physical preparation of athletes. As these Christians understood it, an ascetical life was one in which disciplined training and preparation of athletes were also necessary to “run the race” of faith. We know this imagery from Saint Paul, who writes, “Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one” (1 Corinthians 9:25). At the same time, a good athlete knows the balance and moderation , of not doing things to excess. An athlete who loves her practice will come to it daily and allow it to inform the rest of her daily life. Lessons learned while warming up, while seeking to train her body for the sport or game, translate to other dimensions of her life (57).
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from Women of the Wilderness.

2010-03-31T11:20:00.002-04:00

Good Fri, Apr 2nd
Ps 22
It was wishful thinking after my first visit to the cave to think that I understood Anthony. I was conscious that I was dealing with an historical personage rather than anyone that I might know. To experience his presence inside the cave was to feel an energy that was in part the result of my own desire to understand. Anthony, this solitary hero, had made it possible for me to believe that a life lived inside the earth was less an act of turning one’s back on the world than an attempt to unshackle the mind from its dependence on social values. Autarkism was a statement about human kind’s capacity for freedom. It reminded me of Simone Weil’s remark:”Society is a cave. The way out is solitude.” Anthony would have concurred. For him the universe was a compact mass of obedience. His cave was a stark contrast to society’s cave because of the solitude he found there (67).
From ¬James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

2010-03-31T11:20:00.001-04:00

Holy Sat, Apr 3rd
Ps 88
I reached the cave at last. Behind me the narrow entrance disappeared into the depths of the mountain. Instead of entering it immediately, I sat on a rock nearby and gazed at the view. At once I felt settled, not at all out of breath. I sensed that I belonged here too, that I had finally serve d my apprenticeship in my knowledge of the ascetic life Anthony and his friends had done their work well; they had taught me how to embrace the idea of discretion in my bid to become a more complete and resolved person. An asceticism of the mind was possible, I told myself. All it required was for me to replace the desert that they knew so well with its psychic equivalent, that of genuine aridity of consciousness of my own (196).
From ¬James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

2010-03-30T09:14:00.000-04:00

Ps 6, 12
A teacher ought not be a stranger to the desire for domination, vainglory, and pride. A teacher should not be fooled by flattery, nor blinded by gifts, conquered by stomach, nor dominated by anger. A teacher should be patient, gentle and humble as far as possible; successfully tested and without partisanship, full of concern and a lover of souls (39). –Amma Theodora-
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from Women of the Wilderness.

2010-03-29T10:42:00.001-04:00

Ps 51:1-20
Abba Elias, the minister, said, ‘What can sin do where there is penitence? And of what use is love where there is pride (71)?’
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

2010-03-27T10:44:00.000-04:00

When we lay bare the hidden meaning of the history, scripture is
seen to teach that the birth which distresses the tyrant is the
beginning of the virtuous life. I am speaking of the kind of birth
in which free will serves as the midwife, delivering the child
amid great pain. For no one causes grief to his antagonist unless
he exhibits in himself those marks which give proof of his victory
over the other.

St. Gregory of Nyssa, The Life of Moses.

2010-03-26T14:22:00.000-04:00

Ps 22
A brother asked Abba Rufus, ‘What is interior peace and what use is it?’ The old man said, “Interior peace means to remain sitting in one’s cell with fear and knowledge of God, holding far off the remembrance of wrongs suffered and pride of spirit. Such interior peace brings forth all the virtues, preserves the monk form the burning darts of the enemy, and does not allow him to be wounded by them. Yes, brother acquire it. Keep in mind your future death, remembering that you do not know at what hour the thief will come. Likewise be watchful over your soul (210).’
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

2010-03-25T10:44:00.001-04:00

Ps 131, 132, 133
89. It is worth while that I should relate, and that you, as you wish it, should hear what his death was like. For this end of his is worthy of imitation. According to his custom he visited the monks in the outer mountain, and having learned from Providence that his own end was at hand, he said to the brethren, 'This is my last visit to you which I shall make. And I shall be surprised if we see each other again in this life. At length the time of my departure is at hand, for I am near a hundred and five years old.' And when they heard it they wept, and embraced, and kissed the old man. But he, as though sailing from a foreign city to his own, spoke joyously, and exhorted them 'Not to grow idle in their labors, nor to become faint in their training, but to live as though dying daily. And as he had said before, zealously to guard the soul from foul thoughts, eagerly to imitate the Saints, and to have naught to do with the Meletian schismatics, for you know their wicked and profane character. Nor have any fellowship with the Arians, for their impiety is clear to all. Nor be disturbed if you see the judges protect them, for it shall cease, and their pomp is mortal and of short duration. Wherefore keep yourselves all the more untainted by them, and observe the traditions of the fathers, and chiefly the holy faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, which you have learned from the Scripture, and of which you have often been put in mind by me.'
St. Athanasius: The Life of St. Anthony

2010-03-24T10:38:00.000-04:00

The fourth-century Christians who wished to dedicate themselves fully to Christ went to the desert. In doing so, they were following the pattern established by their ancestors in the faith. The scriptures themselves point to the barren places as places of grace and mercy. As the psalmist writes, “God turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water” (Psalm 107:35). The desert is a place of transformation, transformation often occurring when we least expect it and coming to us in forms that we would never have chosen (pg 82).
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

What Happened This Week?

2010-03-24T10:37:00.001-04:00

Due to some technical difficulties, I was unable to post previously. However, things are back in order, and I shall resume posting.

2010-03-20T08:14:00.001-04:00

Ps 107:33-43, 108:1-13
41. 'And since I have become a fool in detailing these things, receive this also as an aid to your safety and fearlessness; and believe me for I do not lie. Once some one knocked at the door of my cell, and going forth I saw one who seemed of great size and tall. Then when I inquired, Who are you? he said, I am Satan. Then when I said, Why are you here? he answered, Why do the monks and all other Christians blame me undeservedly? Why do they curse me hourly? Then I answered, Wherefore do you trouble them? He said, I am not he who troubles them, but they trouble themselves, for I have become weak. Have they not read , The swords of the enemy have come to an end, and you have destroyed the cities? I have no longer a place, a weapon, a city. The Christians are spread everywhere, and at length even the desert is filled with monks. Let them take heed to themselves, and let them not curse me undeservedly. Then I marveled at the grace of the Lord, and said to him: You who art ever a liar and never speakest the truth, this at length, even against your will, you have truly spoken. For the coming of Christ has made you weak, and He has cast you down and stripped you. But he having heard the Savior’s name, and not being able to bear the burning from it, vanished.'
St. Athanasius: The Life of St. Anthony

2010-03-19T09:33:00.001-04:00

Ps 102
Abba Zeno said, ‘If a man wants God to hear his prayer quickly. Then before he prays for anything else, even his own soul, when he stands and stretches out his hands towards God, he must pray with all his heart for his enemies. Through this action God will hear everything that he asks (67).’
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

2010-03-18T07:23:00.002-04:00

Ps 69
An old man [desert father] said, ‘The reason why we do not make progress is because we do not know our own measure, and we do not persevere in the work we undertake, and we want to acquire virtue without labor (47).’
From Benedicta Ward SLG The Wisdom of the Desert Fathers.

2010-03-17T09:49:00.001-04:00

Ps 101, 109
81. And the fame of Antony came even unto kings. For Constantine Augustus, and his sons Constantius and Constans the Augusti wrote letters to him, as to a father, and begged an answer from him. But he made nothing very much of the letters, nor did he rejoice at the messages, but was the same as he had been before the Emperors wrote to him. But when they brought him the letters he called the monks and said, 'Do not be astonished if an emperor writes to us, for he is a man; but rather wonder that God wrote the Law for men and has spoken to us Hebrews 1:2 through His own Son.' And so he was unwilling to receive the letters, saying that he did not know how to write an answer to such things. But being urged by the monks because the emperors were Christians, and lest they should take offense on the ground that they had been spurned, he consented that they should be read, and wrote an answer approving them because they worshipped Christ, and giving them counsel on things pertaining to salvation: 'not to think much of the present, but rather to remember the judgment that is coming, and to know that Christ alone was the true and Eternal King.' He begged them to be merciful and to give heed to justice and the poor. And they having received the answer rejoiced. Thus he was dear to all, and all desired to consider him as a father.
St. Athanasius: The Life of St. Anthony

2010-03-16T08:17:00.000-04:00

Ps 97. 99. 100
The desert mothers invite us to enter into training, a kind of schooling of body, mind, and spirit. This training and practice is regular, and it is lived in small moments. Ascetical practice, ascetical training, is always lived out in the daily sphere. If it becomes heroic and ego centered, it is no longer about living a dedicated, balanced life (pg 68).

From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

2010-03-15T10:07:00.001-04:00

Ps 89:1-18
All these trips of mine impressed on me the importance of making my own journey to the inner mountain. In a sense, I had taken on myself the task of realizing what the Greek ascetic writers called xeniteia, or “living as a stranger.” It is a curious term that means more than “exile” in that a nomadic existence is not implied. Its meaning pertains to a sort of journey away from the world, a withdrawal from its contingencies, in pursuit of a deeper awareness of the shortness and fragility of life. Xeniteia also suggests a desire to be unknown and of no account, and a willingness to be more flexible in one’s approach to one’s professional life. Isaac himself associates xeniteia with the acquisition of humility (pg. 82).
From -James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

2010-03-13T07:35:00.002-05:00

Ps 87, 90

Abba Poemen said, ‘If you are silent, you will have peace wherever you live (178).’

From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

"It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine..."

2010-03-12T10:10:00.003-05:00

Ps 88
What Anthony and his successors did was find a way to create an “eschatological” environment in which they could exist as servants of Christ. Monasticism became a reminder that while the pledge and source of a new life may have been the Eucharist and the grace it bestowed, acceptance of it was still an act of a free man. Solitary asceticism was a self-imposed discipline designed to demonstrate certain absolute demands on the conscience of those whom it sanctified(43).

From James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

2010-03-11T08:06:00.002-05:00

Ps 42, 43
Abba Alonius said, ‘If a man does not say in his heart, in the world there is only myself and God, he will not gain peace (35).’
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

Submitted by Kate Gillooly

"Only God can Judge Me Now..."

2010-03-10T08:04:00.000-05:00

Ps 119:97-120
One of the most startling aspects of the spirituality of these desert mothers was their insistence on not judging the actions of others. In our society, where the judging of others is constantly encouraged and practiced, this refusal to judge seems almost absurd. The desert mothers based their insistent refusal to judge their neighbors on the merciful love of God revealed in Jesus. They perceived that God’s mercy encompasses all human failure and that if God is willing to be merciful, then so should we. In part, the ammas were able to come to this conclusion because, in becoming aware of their lives as gifts from God, they were also aware of being creatures. There is no such thing as a self-made desert mother. In fact, that term “self-made,” would have confounded the ammas. Their perspective was first to notice the grace, mercy, and love of God that has brought everything that exists into being. To begin to love God and love our neighbor, we need to begin with recognizing that we did not make either—neither God nor neighbor. For that matter, we did not make ourselves(pg 9).
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

2010-03-09T07:59:00.000-05:00

And when at last the persecution ceased, and the blessed Bishop Peter had borne his testimony, Antony departed, and again withdrew to his cell, and was there daily a martyr to his conscience, and contending in the conflicts of faith. And his discipline was much severer, for he was ever fasting, and he had a garment of hair on the inside, while the outside was skin, which he kept until his end. And he neither bathed his body with water to free himself from filth, nor did he ever wash his feet, nor even endure so much as to put them into water, unless compelled by necessity. Nor did any one even see him unclothed, nor his body naked at all, except after his death, when he was buried.

St. Athanasius: The Life of St. Anthony

Who wins in this story?

2010-03-08T09:10:00.001-05:00

Ps 80
“What Anthony had done at this point was propose an alternative to civic life that involved withdrawal, renunciation, and the reestablishment of a proper relationship between body and soul. The ancient philosophers of Greece may have discussed such a concept several hundred years earlier, but since then it had fallen into abeyance. Normal human society was governed by sex, food, and wealth. If a society of piety and justice were to be inaugurated, then these demons needed to be overcome. The desert of human nature had to be nourished, and to do this Anthony proposed a radical solution. He proposed that one set up camp in the devil’s domain, in the very heartland of human negativity and failure, and so reclaim it for gnosial man, the man of knowledge. If one were to ‘breath Christ,’ then one had to possess a certain kind of knowledge that Anthony identified with self-knowledge. In this context he wrote in one of the few letters that have come down to us: ‘I write to you as men of understanding who are able to know yourselves: you know that he who knows himself knows God.’ One now sees that the desert represented a place of knowing all but denied to normal society. It was, to use Meister Eckhart’s haunting words, the ‘inner ground’ of spiritual experience. Only there could the wind of the spirit begin to blow (pg 34).”
From ¬James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

You're not lost, you're right herer...

2010-03-06T07:37:00.001-05:00

Ps 75, 76
“We carry ourselves wherever we go and we cannot escape temptation by mere flight.” –Amma Matrona
“You may be thinking to yourself, ‘Of course, I could be whoever I am called to be if I pulled up stakes and left. What does desert spirituality offer someone who has to stay put?’ Amma Matrona’s saying reminds us of a spiritual truth. No matter how far we flee, we always carry who we are with us. The desert mothers left their immediate contexts not to run away, but to encounter themselves and to encounter God (pg 15).”

From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

For those who might actually be reading these, I apologize for the lateness...

2010-03-05T14:09:00.001-05:00

Ps 69:1-38
“Abba Silvanus and his disciple Zacharias went to a certain monastery one day. They were given something to eat a little before taking the road and when they got outside his disciple found some water beside the path and wanted to drink. The old man said to him, ‘Zacharias, it is a fast today.’ The latter said to him, ‘But, Father, have we not eaten?’ The old man said to him, ‘What we have eaten came through charity but, my child, let us keep our own fast (pg 222).’”
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

2010-03-04T08:22:00.002-05:00

Ps 70, 71
“Once the order was given at Scetis, ‘Fast this week.’ Now it happened that some brothers came from Egypt to visit Abba Moses and he cooked something for them. Seeing some smoke, the neighbors said to the ministers, ‘Look, Moses has broken the commandment and cooked something in his cell.’ The ministers said, When he comes, we will speak to him ourselves.’ When Saturday came, since they knew Abba Moses’ remarkable way of life, the ministers said to him in front of everyone, ‘O Abba Moses, you did not keep the commandment of men, but it was so that you might keep the commandment of God (pg 139).’”
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

The Desert was made to train the faithful...

2010-03-03T08:17:00.002-05:00

Ps 72
Author James Cowan points out, just as Mary Earle has, that the actions of the Desert Fathers and Mothers were not just for them as individuals, but what they represented—and the trail that they blazed set a precedent for all people. This was because rather than playing into the trap of living into the illusions others had for them, or societal conventions; they found a life living for God only by entering into the “Inner Mountain.”
“Not only had he [Anthony] become the ‘lonely man’ par excellence, but his decision to live in a tomb (as later in his cave in the desert) gave reality to a long tradition of speculation on the lost simplicity of Adam. His withdrawal had taken place in a world that was exceptionally sensitive to its social meaning. The tension that existed between man and man had finally been annulled by his extraordinary ascetic encounter with the devil. Moreover, his power and prestige were realized in acting out, heroically, before a society enmeshed in oppressive obligations and abrasive relationships, the role of an utterly self-sufficient, autarkic man. Anthony had attained to a ‘vertical’ existence that most men only dream about. The air may have been thick with evil spirits, but he, the lonely man, was prepared to fight them on behalf of everyone (pg 30).”
From ¬James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

Everywhere you go, that is where you're at.

2010-03-02T07:32:00.002-05:00

Ps 61, 62
49. But when he saw himself beset by many, and not suffered to withdraw himself according to his intent as he wished, fearing because of the signs which the Lord wrought by him, that either he should be puffed up, or that some other should think of him above what he ought to think, he considered and set off to go into the upper Thebaid , among those to whom he was unknown. And having received loaves from the brethren, he sat down by the bank of the river, looking whether a boat would go by, that, having embarked thereon, he might go up the river with them. While he was considering these things, a voice came to him from above, 'Antony, where are you going and why?' But he no way disturbed, but as he had been accustomed to be called often thus, giving ear to it, answered, saying, 'Since the multitude permit me not to be still, I wish to go into the upper Thebaid on account of the many hindrances that come upon me here, and especially because they demand of me things beyond my power.' But the voice said unto him, 'Even though you should go into the Thebaid, or even though, as you have in mind, you should go down to the Bucolia , you will have to endure more, aye, double the amount of toil. But if you wish really to be in quiet, depart now into the inner desert.' And when Antony said, 'Who will show me the way for I know it not?' immediately the voice pointed out to him Saracens about to go that way. So Antony approached, and drew near them, and asked that he might go with them into the desert. And they, as though they had been commanded by Providence, received him willingly. And having journeyed with them three days and three nights, he came to a very lofty mountain, and at the foot of the mountain ran a clear spring, whose waters were sweet and very cold; outside there was a plain and a few uncared-for palm trees.

"More human than Human..."

2010-03-01T10:06:00.001-05:00

Ps 56, 57, 58
“When a woman made the choice to become more truly the person she was called to be in Christ, it was not the first step in a self-help program. The choice to enter the desert was a choice to trust the divine Presence to restore the essential beauty and grace of each person, for the life of the whole world. As each woman, each man sought to live as honest and as simple life as possible, the immediate community benefited, and—from a faith perspective—that practice of taking the risk of being made new allowed the creative possibility to indwell the whole world. Life in the desert was life offered back to God from whom it came. The whole universe was being made new, bit by bit, person by person, life by life (pg9).”
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

2010-02-27T08:20:00.002-05:00

Ps 55
‘Abba Doulas, the disciple of Abba Bessarion said, ‘One day when we were walking beside the sea I was thirsty and I said to Abba Bessarion, “Father, I am very thirsty.” He said a prayer and said to me, “Drink some of the sea water.” The water proved sweet when I drank some. I even poured some into a leather bottle for fear of being thirsty later on. Seeing this, the old man asked me why I was taking some. I said to him, “Forgive me, it is for fear of being thirsty later on.” Then the old man said, “God is here, God is everywhere (pg 40).”’
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

"Not all those who wander are lost"

2010-02-26T07:09:00.004-05:00

Ps 95
“Being in a desert or in a wilderness helps us to recognize that we are small, mortal creatures. Some years ago I made a retreat at Christ in the Desert, a Benedictine monastery near Albiquiu, New Mexico, after I had felt a call to silence and to the wilderness…I kept thinking that if I were to drive accidentally into the river, no one would know where I had gone…By the time I entered my room, unpacked, and began to fully arrive in that holy space, I realized that I was being invited to reflect on the littleness of my life, the fragility of it, and the beauty of it as well (pg 10).”
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

A House is unliveable without the open space of a window...

2010-02-25T07:43:00.001-05:00

Ps 50
Suggestions for Silence and Stillness:
(1) The desert mothers lived in wilderness. They took up residence in little huts or caves and lived very simply. They invite us to step aside from our full and noisy lives and to find opportunities to notice the self that we carry.
Within the structure of your own daily rhythm, find a time simply to sit still for ten to fifteen minutes each day. This could be at any time of the day. If possible, try to sit in the same place each time. As you sit, gently notice your breath. Pay attention to the rhythm of breathing in and out.
As your breathing eases, notice your body. You may become aware of places that are feeling tight or constricted. Begin to gently stretch and move those places.
Return to gently attending to your breath.
Now, notice your surroundings. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell?
If you miss a day, do not despair. Everyone misses a day or two or more. Return to the sitting and pay attention to what you see, hear, smell.
If you care to, keep a simple journal about your experience of sitting still. The sitting itself is prayer. The sitting itself is an opportunity to step aside, to notice, to allow the divine Presence to make itself known to you. This is an invitation to rest in God’s restorative silence.
While words are not necessary for the practice, if you wish to offer a short prayer of thanks, do so. The desert tradition does not encourage lengthy, long-winded prayers. The emphasis is on becoming aware of God’s presence that is always with us.
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.
-Submitted by Allison Paetz

2010-02-24T07:01:00.001-05:00

Ps 119:49-72
During a time in which St. Anthony allowed himself to be closed in a tomb (something like a cave, in this case), Anthony was set upon by strange things… Why did he go into the tomb? It was because he was set upon making himself ‘dead’ to the world. This is how the story goes:
…so in the night they made such a din that the whole of that place seemed to be shaken by an earthquake, and the demons as if breaking the four walls of the dwelling seemed to enter through them, coming in the likeness of beasts and creeping things. And the place was on a sudden filled with the forms of lions, bears, leopards, bulls, serpents, asps, scorpions, and wolves, and each of them was moving according to his nature. The lion was roaring, wishing to attack, the bull seeming to toss with its horns, the serpent writhing but unable to approach, and the wolf as it rushed on was restrained; altogether the noises of the apparitions, with their angry ragings, were dreadful. But Antony, stricken and goaded by them, felt bodily pains severer still. He lay watching, however, with unshaken soul, groaning from bodily anguish; but his mind was clear, and as in mockery he said, 'If there had been any power in you, it would have sufficed had one of you come, but since the Lord has made you weak, you attempt to terrify me by numbers: and a proof of your weakness is that you take the shapes of brute beasts.' And again with boldness he said, 'If you are able, and have received power against me, delay not to attack; but if you are unable, why trouble me in vain? For faith in our Lord is a seal and a wall of safety to us.' So after many attempts they gnashed their teeth upon him, because they were mocking themselves rather than him.
St. Athanasius: The Life of St. Anthony

2010-02-23T08:04:00.003-05:00

Ps 45
“Antony was an Egyptian by birth. His parents were of good stock and well-to-do; and because they were Christians he himself was brought up a Christian. … Of course, he attended church with his parents; and here he did not show the disinterest of a child nor youth’s contempt for such things. No, obeying his parents, he paid attention to the lessons that were read, and carefully kept in his heart the profit he gleaned from them…

“Less than six months has passed since his parents’ death when, as usual, he happened to be on his way to church. As he was walking along, he collected his thoughts and reflected on how the Apostles left everything and followed the Savior; also how the people in Acts sold what they had and laid it at the feet of the Apostles for distribution among the needy; and what great hope is laid up in Heaven for such as these. With these thoughts in his mind he entered the church. And it so happened that the Gospel was being read at that moment and he heard the passage in which the Lord says to the rich man: If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell all that thou hast, and give it to the poor; and come, follow me and thou shalt have treasure in Heaven. … Antony immediately left the church and gave to the townspeople the property he had from his forbears…” from St. Athanasius: The Life of Saint Antony (§1-2)

The description of Antony’s childhood is fairly accurate for me and a lot of people I know. I grew up going to church because my parents brought me along with them, and it became an important part of my life. I think about passages from the Bible and often use them as a moral compass to guide my actions. But I still live a pretty comfortable life. Young Antony was not particularly special, yet hearing the same gospel that we all do he decided to shape his existence around it. He devoted the rest of his life to being an ascetic hermit in the desert, becoming the saint that we still remember today.

How can we allow the words of the gospel to completely transform our lives?
-Submitted by Clara Coughlin

2010-02-22T09:08:00.002-05:00

Mon, Feb 22nd
Ps 41,52
Regarding the Making of Your Cell…
Prayerfully walk around you living space and notice if a particular spot seems right. You may need a window, or you may even prefer an enclosed space. Whatever the space, make sure you are comfortable and can use the space without much interruption. This is really an optional exercise, but can really be helpful in intentionally ‘going to’ your prayer time.
After finding your ‘cell’, sit, be still and try to be present with God. Some ways of doing this are to pray with the Psalm appointed for today, using you prayer rope, or even following the directions for a form of contemplation (links are listed on the left hand pane of the page under ‘Related Stuff’).

One Love, One Heart. Let's Get Together and Feel Alright...

2010-02-20T09:50:00.003-05:00

Sat, Feb. 20th
Ps 30, 32
“Salvation is exactly this—the two-fold love of God and of our neighbor.” Amma Syncletica
“Love of God. Love of neighbor. Love of self. Practice. Practice. Practice. The time spent in the desert allowed me to see God at the center of everything—a kind of holographic Christ in whom ‘all things hold together’ (Col. 1:17). Over the years, since that first desert retreat in 1991, I have noticed, as John Chryssavgis remarks, that the desert is not only a place, it is a way. The desert is a way of living, of learning to be fully human, of learning to love. Every day offers us possibility of remembering and recognizing the presence of God in us, with us, through us, healing us and making us new (pg11).”
From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from the Women of the Wilderness.

A Fish Fillet, A Desert Monk, and A Duck Walk Into A Bar...

2010-02-19T07:13:00.004-05:00

Friday, Feb. 19th
Ps 31
“By his [Christ’s] actions alone he had made it possible for everyone, at least potentially, to enter a different space altogether. His virgin birth, miracles, and crucifixion imprinted on history a transcendent possibility that no philosophy in the past had ever been able to achieve. Christ became the mediator between the temporal and spiritual worlds. He became, in actuality, the world’s prayer (pg 128).”
From James Cowan’s book Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony.

So, Now What?

2010-02-18T06:42:00.002-05:00

Thursday, Feb. 18th
Ps 37:1-18
“Abba Pambo asked Abba Anthony, ‘What ought I to do?’ and the old man said to him, ‘Do not trust in your own righteousness, do not worry about the past, but control your tongue and your stomach.’”
From The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

Ash Wednesday

2010-02-16T23:03:00.002-05:00

Psalm 103

“In this desert tradition, the primordial sin is the sin of forgetting—forgetting that God brings us into being and that each life is a treasure; forgetting that at the end we return to the God who creates us, redeems us, sanctifies us. When we forget that we are crafted by divine skill, we lose the sense of our own sacredness and we lose the awareness of the sacredness of our neighbor and of all that has been created. The call of the desert is a call to remember the wisdom of the psalmist:

For it was you who formed my inward parts;

You knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works; that I know well. (Ps 139:13-14)

It also tends to be the case that when we lose sight of being “wonderfully made,” we fail to see other persons or the creation in that light. The desert tradition took as perennial truth the scriptural description of humanity as being made “in the image of God” (Gen. 1:26). In the desert, men and women sought to recover the image of God in themselves and in one another. This meant that each person who went to the desert inevitably had to become vulnerable enough to admit her or his own behaviors that covered up or sullied that image. Then, each woman began the lifelong collaborative endeavor to be. This process was a painstaking recovering of identity in Christ. Because that desert tradition so emphatically proclaims the mercy and graciousness of God, this kind of vulnerability and honesty is truly possible. Each woman’s faithfulness in growing in the image and likeness of God benefited not only for herself, but also the whole community. As each woman began to know herself as a beloved friend of God, her community was strengthened and made new. (pg 8)”

From Mary C. Earle’s book The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from Women of the Wilderness.

Preparing your way...

2010-02-16T11:23:00.002-05:00

So, tomorrow we begin Holy Lent. I am really excited about this experiment. I hope that you will feel free to ask me any questions to clarify what it is that we will be doing. Most simply put, we are taking on a rule of prayer for Lent--we just have decided to also add the blog and a Desert theme.
I hope this is helpful to you all--I know it will be for me. Remember that you do not do this alone, but you are with God, with each other, and with all of the staff and volunteers as well.
And, as always, please comment--there is no such thing as commenting too much. Besides it makes this more than a one-way conversation.

Thanks.
Matt+

A little more clarity

2010-02-07T12:52:00.001-05:00

So, after a great session with Youth Forum about Centering Prayer, I think that offering a contemplative element to this Lenten offering could really work.

Well, next Sunday will be the last Sunday in Epiphany...and after that, Lent.

Rule for Lent

2010-02-03T14:19:00.001-05:00

The Rule of Life for Lent is posted at the bottom of the page. It will continue to be there as a reminder.
Also, try clicking on pictures and checking out the hyperlinks on the page--there are some interesting things about.

"The Desert is a Dangerous Place..."

2010-01-26T17:54:00.000-05:00

"The hike up the mountain was steep and rough. At every step of the way stones dislodged, to trickle like water down the slope. I grabbed at rocks to steady myself. Whenever I looked up to ascertain my progress, all I could see was the same stony ridge above. Behind the ridge, a high plateau, implacable and remote, stretched southward, its ridges glowing red in the afternoon sun. Desiccated, Mount Colzim was indeed forbidding. I had stumbled upon a place of bones, prayer and memories.
This was the home of Anthony, the first Christian anchorite and solitary. He had lived in a cave on this mountain for the last fifty years of his life. Why he chose such a spot in preference to another was one of the reasons I had come to Egypt in the first place. I wanted to discover what might inspire a man to forsake the world with all its opportunities and pleasures in order to pursue a life of self-abnegation. It just didn't make sense. Either he had been mentally ill or else he knew something that I didn't."

From Desert Father: A Journey in the Wilderness with Saint Anthony. By James Cowan