Books about the Desert Fathers

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From a recent bio of the newly reposed Desert Father Elder Ephraim’s spiritual formation in the Desert of Mt. Athos, Greece:

Of Elder Joseph, Elder Ephraim writes, “It was impossible for a person to come and stay with him and not be cured of his passions … as long as he was obedient to him,”[7] and it was in this atmosphere that he struggled for twelve years. Although Elder Ephraim does not write it of himself, as can be seen in his own writings , he himself is one who overcame his own passions by the guidance of Elder Joseph. As he describes it, his spiritual regimen included the practice of Christ-like obedience, fasting, all-night vigils, the extensive practice of the Jesus Prayer, silence, and the endurance of verbal abuse.[8] While Elder Joseph allowed a little laxity concerning fasting, he was quite strict in every other aspect—for speaking two or three words on a trip Elder Ephraim received a first penance of two hundred prostrations, and he relates to Constantine Cavarnos that six or seven continuous hours of the Jesus Prayer replaced Matins, and in the afternoon it also replaced Compline.[9]

Elder Ephraim’s spiritual state and popularity seem to have grown rapidly.

From: Catch a Fire: An Athonite Missionary to America / OrthoChristian.Com

geo
 
A website that may be of great interest to those interested in this thread is:


It is about the current, and not merely the historical and ancient, praxis of askesis in the Faith of Christ… There are living ascetic Fathers in Christ’s Holy Church as we speak… This site seems dedicated to the glorification of those to whom the words of Paul in 1st Corinthians 4:9ff are a serious call to action…

1Co 4:9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.
…for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.
…Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.

geo
 
“Neither the educated, nor the priests, nor the high priests of the Jews recognized Him,
despite the fact that they scrupulously studied the letter of the Law of God.
The thief is made a theologian.
And before the eyes of all the people, who considered themselves wise and powerful,
who laughed at Christ, he confessed to Him
— trampling on the lies of the world-wise and powerful with his holy faith.”
St. Ignatius Brianchininov
 
Thanks for the quote, @George720. St. Ignatius Brianchaninov is one of my favorite Russian mystics/authors (along with St. Theophan the Recluse).
 
There is already a complete translation of The Evergetinos, published by the Center for Traditionalist Orthodox Studies (which is, incidentally, the center of the Old Calendarist synod I used to be under before I became Catholic).

https://ctosonline.org/monastic/EvCT.html
 
@HesyCath

Yes indeed. A very fine and readable translation. I owned (and read) all four volumes at one point, then decided to give them to my parish priest as I figured he could make better use of them than I. Now I’m debating whether or not to order the set again.

If you’d be willing to share (via private EM), I’d be very interested to hear about your journey from Old Calendarist Orthodox to Catholic.
 
I sent them an enquiry - Will report their response…
Click to expand...
@George720 did you ever get a response to your inquiry?

I’ve nearly read all of vol.1 of their Gerontikon, and have come across a good deal of grammatical and spelling errors that I want to let them know about. With content as rich as what they’re translating, I believe the presentation ought to be on par as well.
 
This is an article about Elder Ephraim of Blessed Recent Memory by Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos on the importance of his work in the US - A true and recently living Desert Father…


A very good pic of what this man looks like…

Here is a small extract, talking about why Elder Ephraim came to America to establish Athonite Ascetic and Hesychastic Monasticism in the United States:

“It is precisely because the Church in the world has been cut off from the monastic tradition that the familiar decline in the spiritual life has been observed in our days. Satan has so distorted the theology of the heretics and the so-called Orthodox who are influenced by the West, that some think that salvation is not from the power and hands of the enemy, but from God. God became man in order to save us from Himself! This is why the ascetic life has disappeared in the West. They neither fast nor pray much. They simply pursue happiness…When there is mistaken theology, Christianity is reduced to activity. The monastic life of the non-Orthodox here consists of extremely active orders, who engage in anything except spiritual asceticism as the Orthodox tradition understands it…Unfortunately we do not have a single ascetic or monastery here and there is no living example of the Orthodox life…

geo
 
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One last note on the funeral of this contemporary Desert Father…

He was laid in his coffin, and during the entire time, he remained warm and flexible…
There was never any rigor mortis…
Everyone came and venerated him…
The parking lot at St. Anthony’s was packed…
So was the desert along the road leading into it…
Thousands and thousands came…
People dropped their lives in Greece immediately…
And flew to Arizona to say good-bye to him…
Before he was buried…

There is no rigor mortis on Mount Athos…
And this Saint is an Athonite Father…
Who moved from the demons of the desert of Mount Athos…
To take on the demons of the desert of the USA…

geo
 
O the depth of riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! The instrument of sin
that had brought death upon all flesh is become the first fruit of salvation for the whole
world through the Theotokos. For the All-Perfect God is born of her as a babe; by His
birth he setteth the seal on her virginity, while loosing cords of sin with his swaddling
bands. And by becoming a child, He healeth Eve’s travailing in sorrows. Wherefore let
all creation dance and leap for joy, for Christ is come to call it back again and to save
our souls.

Aposticha Doxastikon by St. John of Damascus
 
And another from our Bishop:

May our All-Perfect God grant to you and your loved ones all the joy,
grace, and peace graciously bestowed to those who come to worship and
glorify Him at the cave now become a heaven and the manger now become
a cherubic throne. Let us join all of creation in dancing and leaping for joy
at this feast, and may this joy carry us into the new year renewed spiritually
for the holy labors that lay ahead of us.
With prayers and best wishes for a feast filled with God’s grace and a new
year replete with both heavenly and earthly blessings, I remain,
Yours in the service of Christ,

geo
 
Just to keep the thread alive another 14 days:


Enjoy the beauty of this Service…

geo
 
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I highly recommend Merton’s Wisdom of the Desert.
https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Desert-New-Directions/dp/0811201023

His introduction is excellent and the way he puts the sayings together is really helpful. You can also check out his source material, the Verba Senorium: Page Title

I personally wouldn’t go to Athanasius’ Life of St. Anthony if you’re looking for sayings. Not really where I would start in general actually concerning the Desert Fathers and Mothers, though I think it’s really worth reading once you have your feet on the ground.
 
I’d be interested to know why you think the Life of St. Anthony isn’t a good place to start when learning about the Desert Fathers. From what I’ve read that along with the Lausiac History by Palladius are considered two of the foundational texts for studying the Desert Fathers. Just curious.
 
I don’t know if Athenasius isn’t a good place to start, it’s just not where I would. (I haven’t read Palladius so I won’t comment on it.) I love the sayings because I feel like they contain the grain(s) of what was so distinctive about the desert fathers’ spirituality in their simplest and direct form. Athenasius’ Life contains some of that wisdom, but there’s also a lot of other stuff about confronting demons and long sections that seem to relate more directly to Arianism than to desert spirituality.

I found those elements distracting given my reasons for coming to the text and my lack of knowledge about the desert fathers and mothers in general. Several of my friends coming to desert spirituality for the first time via The Life of Saint Anthony had the same experience independently, and we kind of felt like we had a better feel for part of what was going on in the Life after getting to know some of the sayings. tldr I feel like there may be a difference between what/how to read studying the desert fathers and what/how to read seeking their spirituality.

That said, I was more saying that’s it’s not where I would go for sayings — I’m not super well versed in relevant literature, and the Life is obviously a classic and foundational to the genre, so I would want to read more to be able to give a more helpful opinion if I was going to really seriously recommend people reserve it after reading the sayings or after reading several other relevant books.
 
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