1. While travelling through a certain region, Abba Milesius saw a monk whom someone had seized under the pretext that he had committed a murder. The old man went and questioned the broth- ers. Learning that he had been wrongly accused, he said to those who were holding him, 'Where is the man who has been killed?' They showed him to him. Telling them all to pray, he went up to the dead man. While he was stretching his hands towards heaven, the dead man stood up. He said to him in front of everyone, 'Tell us who killed you.' The man said, 'As I was going into the church, I gave some money to the priest. He stood up and killed me; then he took me and threw me into the abba's monastery. Therefore I beseech you to take the money and give it to my children.' Then the old man said to him, 'Go, and rest until the Lord comes and awakens you.'
2. Another time, when he was living with two disciples on the borders of Persia, two of the king's sons, brothers by blood, went to hunt according to their custom. They spread nets around a wide area; at least forty miles, so as to be able to hunt and shoot every- thing that was found inside the nets. Now the old man happened to be there with his two disciples. Seeing him, all hairy and like a wild man, they were struck with amazement and said to him, 'Tell us if you are a man or a spirit?' He said to them, 'I am a sinful man, and I have come away to weep for my sins, and I adore Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God.' They said to him, 'There is no god save the sun, the fire, and the water' (which they worshipped). 'Therefore, come and make a sacrifice in their honour.' He said to them, 'They are creatures and you are wrong. But I implore you to be converted and to acknowledge the true God, the Creator of all these things.' They said to him, 'You say that the man who was condemned and crucified is the true God?' T h e old man said, 'He who has crucified sin and killed death, is He whom I say is the true God.' But they tortured him and the brothers, to compel them to offer sacrifice. After many torments, they beheaded the two broth- ers, but they tortured the old man for many days. Finally they used a different procedure, and placing him between them, they shot
148 ] Sayings of the Desert Fathers
arrows at him, one in front and the other behind. But he said to them, 'Since you have agreed about shedding innocent blood, at the same time, tomorrow, at the same hour, your mother will no longer have you as sons, and will be deprived of your love and by your own arrows you will shed each other's blood.' They scorned his words and went to hunt the next day. A hart ran close to them. They spurred their horses and galloped after it. They threw their javelins at it, and they pierced each other's hearts, as the old man had said when he warned them. An so they died.
MOTIUS
1. A brother questioned Abba Motius, saying, 'If I go to dwell somewhere, how do you want me to live?' The old man said to him, 'If you live somewhere, do not seek to be known for anything special; do not say, for example, I do not go to the synaxis; or perhaps, I do not eat at the agape. For these things make an empty reputation and later you will be troubled because of this. For men rush there where they find these practices.' The brother said to him, 'What shall I do, then?' T h e old man said, 'Wherever you live, follow the same manner of life as everyone else and if you see devout men, whom you trust doing something, do the same and you will be at peace. For this is humility: to see yourself to be the same as the rest. When men see you do not go beyond the limits, they will consider you to be the same as everyone else and no-one will trouble you.'
2. Concerning Abba Motius, his disciple, Abba Isaac, told this (both of them became bishops): 'This old man was the first to build a monastery at Heracliopolis and when he left he went to another place and did the same there. But through the power of the devil, there was a brother who opposed him and grieved him. The old man got up and withdrew to his own village; he built a monastery there and lived as a recluse. After some time the old men came from the place he had left, bringing with them the brother who had distressed him, to ask him to take him into his hermitage. When they drew near to the place where Abba Sores was, they left their sheep-
Megethius [ 149 skins with this abba together with the brother in question. When they knocked, Motius put up the ladder, looked out, recognized them and said, 'Where are your sheepskins?' They said, 'Down there, with the brother.' As soon as he heard the name of the brother who had distressed him, in his joy the old man took a hatchet, battered down the door and came running out to where the brother was. He went to him first of all and made a prostration to him, and embraced him. He took him into his cell. For three days he enter- tained them all and relaxed with them, which he was not accus- tomed to do; then he got up and went home with them. Later, he became a bishop. In fact he was a wonder-worker, and Blessed Cyril made his disciple, Abba Isaac, a bishop also.'
MEGETHIUS
1. They said of Abba Megethius, that if he left his cell and it occurred to him to leave the place where he was living he would go without returning to his cell. He owned nothing in this world, except a knife with which he cut reeds and every day he made three small baskets, which was all he needed for his food.
2. They said of Abba Megethius that he was very humble, for he was brought up by the Egyptians and in contact with many old men, including Abba Sisoes and Abba Poemen. He lived on the river bank at Sinai. It happened, as he himself related, that one of the holy men visited him and said to him, 'Brother, what is your way of life in this desert?' He said, 'Every second day, I eat one loaf only.' The old man said to him, 'I advise you to eat half the loaf every day.' This he did and he found rest.
3. Some of the Fathers questioned Abba Megethius, saying, 'If some cooked food remains over for the next day, do you recom- mend the brethren to eat it?' The old man said to them, 'If this food is bad, it is not right to compel the brethren to eat it, in case it makes them ill, but it should be thrown away. But if it is still good and is thrown away through extravagance in order to prepare more that is wrong.'
4. He also said, 'Orginally, when we met together we spoke of edifying things, encouraging one another and we were "like the angels"; we ascended up to the heavens. But now when we come together, we only drag one another down by gossiping, and so we go down to hell.'
MIUS
1. Abba Mius of Belos said, 'Obedience responds to obedience. When someone obeys God, God obeys his request.'
2. Concerning an old man who was at Scetis he said that he had been a slave and he had become a true reader of hearts. Every year he went to Alexandria, taking his wages to his masters. They went to meet him with great respect, but the old man put water into a basin and brought it to wash his masters' feet. They said to him, 'No, Father, do not overwhelm us.' But he said to them, 'I acknowledge that I am your slave and I acknowledge that you have left me free to serve God; I wash your feet, and you accept my wages, which are here.' They argued, not wishing to receive them, so he said to them, 'If you refuse to accept them, I shall remain here and serve you.' Since they revered him, they allowed him to do what he wanted; then they saw him off, giving him many provisions and money so that he could give alms for them. For this reason he became famous and beloved in Scetis.
3. A soldier asked Abba Mius if God accepted repentance. After the old man had taught him many things he said, 'Tell me, my dear, if your cloak is torn, do you throw it away?' He replied, 'No , I mend it and use it again.' The old man said to him, 'If you are so careful about your cloak, will not God be equally careful about his creature?'