![[St.
Pachomius Library]](title.gif)
Translated by Sir E. A. Wallis Budge from a Coptic source dated ca. A.D. 1000
THE LIFE AND CONVERSATION OF OUR HOLY FATHER, WHO WAS GLORIOUS IN EVERY WAY, APA ONNOPHRIOS THE ANCHORITE, WHO ENDED HIS LIFE ON THE FOURTEENTH DAY OF THE MONTH OCTOBER IN THE PEACE OF GOD! BLESS US! AMEN.
I, [your] brother, was thinking one day, and I determined to go into the
inner desert, so that I might see if there were any brethren who were
monks living in the most remote parts of it. I marched four days and
four nights, and I neither ate bread nor drank water. I marched on into
the inner desert, and at the end of a [further number] of days I came
upon a cave. And when I had drawn nigh thereto I knocked at the door at
midday, and no one answered me, and I thought in my mind: ``There is no
brother in this place.'' And I saw a brother seated inside it, and he was
silent, and I took hold of his arm, and his arm came off in my hands, and
became particles of dust; and I felt his body all over, and I found that
he was dead, and that the skin had perished (?). And I looked and I saw
a short-sleeved shirt hanging up inside the cave, and when I felt it with
my hands, it also fell to pieces and became dust. And I stood up, and I
prayed, and I took my garment and wrapped the body up in it, and I dug a
hole in the earth with my hands, and I buried him [in it]. And I came
forth from that place.
And I marched on into the desert, and I came upon another cave,
and my courage came to me, and I thrust open the door [and cried
out], and no one answered me. And I went in and I found no man,
and I came forth, saying , ``The place of a servant of God; he
will soon return to this place.'' And I remained in that place,
and I prayed until the day ran to its close, and I recited the
books which I had learned by heart. And afterwards, just as the
sun was about to set, I looked up and saw a herd of buffaloes in
the far distance coming towards me, and that brother was among
them, and when he approached me he was naked, and his hair
covered his shame, and it served as raiment to clothe him.
And when he had come to the place where I was he was exceedingly
afraid, for he thought that I was a spirit, and he stood up and
prayed, for very often spirits used to come to tempt him,
according to what he himself subsequently said. And I perceived
that he was afraid, and I went to him, and I said unto him,
``Wherefore art thou afraid, O servant of God? Look, and thou
wilt see my footprints, and that I am a man. Touch me, and [thou
wilt find] that I am flesh and blood.'' And when he had gazed
upon me he repeated the prayer in the Gospel.
And I urged him to take me into the cave. And he asked me,
``Wherefore didst thou come to this place?'' And I said, ``I came
to this place because I wished to see the servants of God who
live in this desert, and God hath not denied me that which I
asked of Him.'' And I asked him, saying, ``How didst thou come to
this place? And how long ago is it since thou didst come here?
And what dost thou usually eat? And why dost thou go naked and
wear no clothing on thy body?''
And he began to talk with me, saying, ``I was a monk, and I lived among a
congregation of monks in Thebais. And there came into my heart a thought
of this kind: Rise up, go forth, and abide in a place by thyself. And
thou
shalt lead a life of peaceful contemplation. Thou shalt become an
anchorite, and shalt receive the brethren. Thou shalt shew abundant
hospitality to strangers, and thou shalt find abundant wages by the work
of
thy hands. And that which I thought in my mind I carried into effect. I
came away from the house of the monks, I built myself a habitation in a
place apart, and I took up my abode therein. And men employed me, and
what
they gave me for the work of my hands I used to give away in charity to
strangers.
``At that time the Devil became envious of me, because of the wage which I
was earning before the Lord in respect of what I did for strangers and for
other folk who were in want, for he saw how diligent I was in manual
labour, and he was exceeding jealous of me. And he entered into a certain
woman who was a nun, and who came to me, and employed me to do certain
hand
work, and when I had finished it I gave it to her, and she talked to me
about further work.
``And it became a customary thing for us to meet each other, and the Enemy
put it into my heart to take work of the hands from her. And when we had
learned to talk freely to each other we ate bread together, and the affair
continued to grow until at last we brought forth death, and produced
iniquity. And when once I had fallen with her into folly we remained in
this wicked state for six months.
``Afterwards I meditated in my heart upon what I had done, and I grieved,
and
wept exceedingly, and I was always having sighs. And I thought in my
heart
when I was alone, saying, `If I were to die to-day or to-morrow they would
punish us with a severe punishment, with the gnashing of teeth, and with
outer darkness, and with the fire that cannot be quenched, and with the
worm that never sleepeth, and that devoureth the soul. Rise up, let us
escape from this place, let us get away into the desert.' And I wished to
escape from the sin.
``And I rose up and came forth, and I departed into the desert, and I have
never been with that woman since I have been here. And I found this
spring of water, and this palm-tree, and this cave. This palm-tree
yieldeth twelve bunches of dates each year, a bunch for each month, and
one bunch of dates is sufficient to last me for the month. I possess
nothing, neither raiment nor the food of bread. My hair increaseth, and
as my clothes were worn out utterly long ago, I clothe myself, as is most
seemly, with the raiment of my hair. And behold, it is thirty years since
I came to this place, and the climate thereof bestoweth upon me health
uniformly. And I never eat bread.''
And I asked him, ``At first when thou didst come to this place, didst
thou suffer greatly?''
And he said unto me, ``Yea, I did suffer greatly,
so much so in fact that sometimes through the intensity of my sorrow I
used to throw myself on the ground, and cry up to God because of my
manifold sins. And I also suffered great pain through an infirmity which
was upon me. [One day] I looked and I saw a man who was exceedingly
splendid standing by me, and he said unto me, `In what part of the body
art thou ill?' And my strength returned unto me a little, and I said unto
him, `I am ill in my liver.' And he said unto me, `Shew me the place
wherin thou art ill,' and I shewed him the place where my liver was in
pain. And he stretched out his hand upon me, and his fingers rested upon
each other, and he made an opening between my ribs as with a sword (or,
knife), and he brought forth my liver, and he shewed me the wounds that
were in it, and he relieved the pains in them, and bound the wounds up,
and he put my liver back into its place again. And he rubbed my body
lightly with his hands, and he rejoined the sides of the opening which he
had made in my side, and he said unto me, `Behold, thou art healed. Sin
not again lest evil more severe than this come upon thee. But make
thyself a servant of God from this time for ever.' From that day all my
bowels have remained in a healthy condition, and I have ceased to suffer
in my liver, and I have lived in this place in the desert without pains.
And he taught me what the medicament was wherewith he treated my liver.''
And I entreated him to let me stay in the cave wherein I had seen him at
first, and he said unto me, ``Thy strength is not sufficient to enable
thee to resist the attacks of the devils.'' And I urged him to tell me his
name, and he said unto me, ``Timothy is my name. Remember me, O my beloved
brother [in thy prayers], so that the Lord may make me to bring to an end
the good fight whereto He hath summoned me.'' And I cast myself down at
his
feet so that he might remember and bless me. And he blessed me, saying,
``The Lord bless thee! May he deliver thee from the snares of the Devil,
and may He set thee on all His good paths at all times, and mayest thou
escape to the saints.''
And when he had finished blessing me my strength came to me in such a
degree that I never felt when I was hungry or when I was thirsty. And
when I perceived the great marvel that had come to me I rose up, and I
journeyed into the mountain. And when four days had passed by I felt
pain, and I stretched out my hands to heaven, and I prayed, and behold
the man who had come unto me at first again came unto me, and he gave
unto me strength as at the first. In short, when four days had passed I
journeyed on into [the desert].
And straightway I looked, and I saw a
man in the distance, and he was an exceedingly horrifying object, for
his hair was spread out over his body like that of a panther, and he was
naked, and his privy parts were covered with leaves. And when he had come
nigh unto me I was afraid, and I went up on a pinnacle of the mountain,
[thinking that] perhaps he was a man in delirium. And when he had come
he cast himself down for a little time under the shadow of the pinnacle
of the mountain, and he was greatly distressed because of the pain which
he was suffering, and he was in great danger of dying of hunger and
thirst.
And he lifted up his eyes to the pinnacle of the mountain, and when he
saw me he cried out, saying, ``Come down to me, O thou holy man. I also am
a man of the mountain like unto thyself, and I am living in the desert
because of my sins.'' And he said unto me, ``Thou art a friend (?) of
God.''
And I sat down before him, and I conjured him to tell me his name.
And he said unto me, ``Onnophrios is my name. And behold, I have lived
in this desert for sixty years. I wander about in the mountains like
the wild animals, and I never see any man who recognizeth me. I
lived at one time in a habitation of monks, in the mountain of Shmun
of the Thebaid. And the name of that monastary was Erete. We all
lived together, and each of us was of the same mind, and peace dwelt
in our midst. We lived with each other a life of quiet contemplation,
and we ascribed glory unto God. And I passed nights in vigil with
them, and I learned the rules of God from them; and their chief men
were perfect even as the angels of the Lord.
``And I heard them speaking about our father Elijah, the Tishbite, and
saying that he was wholly powerful in God. And there lived in this
desert John the Baptist also, than whom of all those who have been
born of women none hath arisen who is greater than he. [Matt. 11:11]
He lived in the desert-places until the day of his manifestation
before Israel.
``And I said unto them: `My fathers, are not then those who are in the
desert more excellent than we are? For behold, we see each other
daily, and we partake of the Sacrament together. When we are hungry
we make use of the food which is prepared for us. When we are thirsty
we take water to drink. When we are weak our brethren reach out their
hands to help us, and when we wish for the loan of a vessel to eat
from we make use of those belonging to each other, for the love of
God.
```But where shall those who are living in the desert, for God's sake,
find a man if trouble come upon them? If they are hungry where can
they find food? If they are thirsty where can they find water to
drink? When they begin to lead the life of the anchorite they rejoice
exceedingly because of hunger, and thirst, and the excellence of their
manner of life.
```And the Adversary who fighteth with them to tempt them thereby doth
not wish them to continue the life of the anchorite, for he knoweth
that the reward is great which they will receive from God when they
shall come forth from the body. When they are preaching ascetic
labours the compassion of God cometh upon them, and He maketh the
angels to serve them in respect of their food, and He bringeth for
them water out of the rock.
```For it is written in Isaiah, Those who abide patiently in the Lord
shall renew their strength, they shall spread out their wings like the
eagles in flight. They shall fly away and shall not fall, they shall
journey and shall not suffer hunger. [Isa. 40:31] He saith, Water
shall be brought to them out of the rock. When they suffer hunger He
will make the grass which is in the field to be sweet to their mouths,
even as honey is sweet. If tribulation come upon them, or danger rise
up against them, straightway they spread out their hands and they pray
to the King Jesus until there cometh to them speedily His help which
He sendeth forth, and straightway He strengtheneth them because of the
integrity of their heart in respect to Him.
```Hast thou never heard that which is written, The Lord will not
forsake His people, and the patient endurance of the miserable man
shall not fail utterly? [Ps. 9:9-12] And again, The poor man
crieth out, and the Lord heareth him, and delivereth him in all his
tribulations. [Ps. 34(33):6] The Lord giveth unto every man
according to what he hath suffered. Blessed is the man who shall do
the will of God upon the earth! I say unto thee that the angels shall
serve him from the time when he entereth the body, and they shall
comfort him at all times in his need.'
``And to me, your brother, when I had heard these things from these
perfect men of God, they became like unto honey, which is sweet in my
belly, and a mighty ecstasy took place within me, and I became like
unto those whose minds are carried away into another world. And I
rose up straightway, and I took a few bread cakes with me, sufficient
for the four days' journey, so that I might eat of them until [I
arrived at] the place which God should appoint for me.
``And when I had come forth from the monastery I looked, and I saw a
being of light before me, and I was afraid, and I thought in my mind
that I would turn back to the place to which I came first of all, and
remain there(?). And when he knew that I was afraid, he said unto me,
`Fear not, for I am the angel that dwelleth with thee, and that hath
travelled with thee from thy childhood; this stewardship, which the
Lord hath appointed to thee, thou shalt be able to fulfil.'
``And when I had come into the mountain, and I had journeyed in the
desert for six or seven miles, I saw a cave, and I turned towards it,
for I saw that there was a man inside it. And a very great saint of
God came out to me; now this form (or, behaviour) was goodly, and
there was a fine graciousness over his countenance, and when I had
seen him I made obeisance unto him.
``And he raised me up, and he saluted me, and he said unto me, `Thou
art Onnophrios, my fellow worker in the Lord; come in. The Lord be
with thee. Thou shalt succeed in the good work whereunto He hath
invited thee.' And I went inside, and I sat down there with him for
a few days, and I learned the rules of the doctrine of God from him,
and he taught me the regulations which governed the life of the monk
in the desert. And when he saw that I was acquainted with the hidden
and terrible fighting which existed in the desert, he said unto me,
`Rise up, my son, and let me take thee to a desolate place in the
inner desert, and thou shalt abide therein by thyself for God's sake.
Since God hath appointed thee to this work thou must dwell in the
desert.'
``And straightway he rose up, and journeyed with me into the desert for a
distance of four days' journey, and at the end of the four days we came to
a
small hut, and he said unto me, `This is the place which the Lord hath
appointed thee to live in;' and he sat down with me for a month of days,
until I understood the good work which it was meet for me to do. And
afterwards he departed from me, and we never saw each other again until
this
year when I saw him once on the day whereon he laid down the body, and I
buried him inside the place wherein he was.''
And I (i.e. Papnoute) said unto him, ``My good and beloved father, at the
beginning, when thou didst first come to this place, didst thou suffer
from
the weather?''
And the blessed old man said unto me, ``I suffered greatly on
several occasions from hunger, and thirst, and the heat outside in the
daytime, and the great cold by night, and my flesh was wasted away by the
dews of heaven. And when God [saw] that I endured patiently in my good
strife of fasting, and that I gave my heart to ascetic practices, He made
holy angels serve me, and bring to me my daily food, and an angel gave it
to
me evening by evening, and he stood by my body. And the palm-tree yielded
unto me each year twelve bunches of dates, and I ate one bunch every
month.
And, moreover, he made the herbs (or, grasses) which grow in the desert to
be sweet to my mouth, even as honey. For it is written, Man shall not
live
by bread alone, but by every word which cometh forth from the mouth of God
doth man live. [Matt. 4:4; Luke 4:4]
``If thou doest the will of God, He shall take care of thee in every
place.
For He hath said in the Holy Gospel, Take no care for what ye shall eat,
or
for what ye shall drink, or with what raiment ye shall clothe yourselves,
for
your Father Who is in heaven knoweth of what things ye have need without
your
asking Him. Seek ye His kingdom and His righteousness, and these things
shall be added unto you.'' [Matt. 6:31-33]
And when I had heard these things I marvelled exceedingly, and I said unto
him, ``O my holy father, where dost thou partake of the Sacrament on the
Sabbath Day and on the First Day of the week?''
And he said unto me, ``O my holy father, an angel cometh and
administereth to me the Sacrament on the Sabbath Day and on
the First Day of the week. And the angel cometh and administereth
the Sacrament to every one who is in the desert, and he giveth
unto them consolation. And, moreover, when they desire to see any one,
they
are taken up into the heights of heaven, and they see all the saints, and
they salute them, and thereby their hearts receive light, and they
rejoice,
and are glad with God in those good things. And when they see them they
receive consolation, and they forget that they have suffered in any way;
and
afterwards they return to their bodies, and they continue to feel
comforted
for a very long time. And if they are transferred to another world
through
the joy which they have seen they do not even remember that the world
existeth.''
And when I had heard these things I rejoiced exceedingly that I was held
to
be worthy to hear them from him. And I forgot all the sufferings which I
had
endured when I was journeying in the desert, and strength came into my
body,
and renewed power came to my body and to my soul. And I said unto him,
``Blessed am I that I am held to be worthy to see thy holy face, and to
hear
thy sweet words.''
Then he said unto me, ``Rise up, O my brother, and let us
depart to the place wherein we are to be.'' And we rose up, and we
journeyed
on, and we came to a hut, and when we had entered into the hut he stood up
and prayed with me. And when we had finished the prayer we gave (i.e.
said)
the ``Amen'', and we sat down together and talked on about the majesty of
God.
And at the time when the sun was about to set I looked and I saw a loaf of
bread and a vessel of water. And he said unto me, ``Rise up, my brother,
and
eat, and drink this small quantity of water, for I see that thou art
exhausted by hunger and thirst, and by the toil of the road.'' And I said
unto him, ``As God Almighty liveth, I will neither eat nor drink unless we
stretch ourselves out and eat the bread together.'' And when I continued
to
press him with difficulty [he agreed], and we stretched ourselves out
together, and we divided the bread, and ate, and put back some of it; and
the
two of us drank from the vessel of water, and we were satisfied, and we
left
some of it in the vessel. And we passed the whole night in prayer, and we
prayed to God until the morning.
And when it was morning I saw that his face was changed, and was
altogether
transformed, and that it was like unto that of another man, and that it
seemed to be [made] wholly of fire. And his form terrified me
exceedingly.
And he said unto me, ``Fear thou not, O my brother in God, for the Lord
hath
sent thee to care for my body, and to bury it. In a day or two I shall
fulfil my stewardship, and shall go to the place of everlasting rest.''
Now
that day was the sixteenth day of the month Paone [June 10].
And he also said unto me, ``When thou departest into Egypt proclaim
the remembrance of me as a sweet-smelling thing to the brethren.
Whosoever shall make an offering in my name, and keep me in remembrance,
Jesus Himself shall bring him in the first hour of a thousand years.''
And I said unto him, ``If he be a poor man he will not be able to give
an offering in thy name.'' And he said unto me, ``Let him feed a
poor brother in my name.''
And I said unto him, ``If he be a poor man he will not be able to feed
him; wilt thou not take him in to the feast at the first hour of
a thousand years?'' And he said unto me, ``Let him give a little scent
in my name.''
And I said unto him, ``If he be a poor man he will not be able to give
scent in thy name because of [his] poverty. O my good father, let
thy grace be with us all, for whatsoever thou shalt ask of God that
will God give unto thee.'' And he said unto me, ``Let him stand up
and say three times prayers to God in my name, and the Lord Jesus
shall bring him to the thousand years, and he shall receive an
inheritance with all the saints.''
And I said unto him, ``O my holy father, if I am worthy of it, I
should like to be present in thy holy abode when thou shalt cease
[to be] in this body.'' And he said unto me, ``Certainly thou shalt,
my son. For thou hast not been appointed to the stewardship, but
the Lord hath appointed thee to console the holy brethren who live
in the desert, and to proclaim their sweet odour among the brethren
who worship God for the benefit of those who hearken unto thee.
Get thee forth to Egypt, O my son, and do thou continue to carry on
the good work.''
And straightway I fell down upon the ground, and I said unto him,
``Bless me, O my father, that I may be made to stand before God,
and that as I have been held worthy to see thee upon the earth, I
may also be held worthy to see thee in the Other World before the
Lord Jesus the Christ.'' And he said unto me, ``O my son, may
God not cause thee to grieve about any matter whatsoever, and may
He strengthen thee in His love, so that thine eyes may receive the
light of His Godhead, and so that thou mayest neither lean to one
side nor fall, but mayest end successfully the work whereunto thou
has set thy hand. May the angels shelter thee, and deliver thee from
the plottings of the Jews, and may no accusation fall upon thee
when thou hast to meet God.''
And when he had made an end of saying these things he rose up,
and prayed to God with sighings and many tears; and afterwards he
laid himself upon the ground, and he completed his stewardship in
God, and yielded up his spirit into the hand of God on the sixteenth
day of the month Paone. And I heard the voices of the angels
singing hymns before the blessed Apa Onnofrios, and there was
great joy at his meeting God.
And I took off the garment wherewith I was clothed, and tore it into
two pieces; in the one I wrapped up [the holy man] for burial, and
the other I used as raiment, so that I might not be naked. And I
placed his body down in a cleft in the rock, and I heard the sounds
of a multitude of angels rejoicing, and crying out, ``Alleluia;'' and I
said my prayer over him, and I rolled several stones upon him.
And I stood up and prayed the second time, and straightway the
palm-tree fell down, and I marvelled exceedingly at what had taken
place; and I ate what was left of the bread, and I drank of the water
which was left to us.
And when I perceived that it was not according to the will of God
for me to remain in this place, I spread out my hands, and I prayed
unto the Lord; and behold, the man who had come to me at the first,
and who had given me strength, came to me again as he had done
before. And he said unto me, ``My God, our Lord, informed us
this day that thou wast coming to us in this place. Behold, for six
years we have seen no man except thyself.'' And when we had
talked together for a long time . . . . . .
. . . . . . said unto him, ``O our brother, stablish thy heart
with a little bread, for thou hast travelled from a place
afar off. The Lord hath ordained that we are to remain
with each other for some days, and we will rejoice with thee, O our
beloved brother.'' And whilst we were talking to each other,
behold, five loaves of bread were brought in, and they were warm
and soft as if they had been [just] baked in the oven, and
straightway there were also brought in other articles of food, and
we sat down and ate together. And he said unto me, ``Behold, this
is the sixth year since we came to this place, and four loaves of
bread have been allotted to us daily, and these came to us through
God; but as soon as thou didst come unto us this day, behold, a
fifth loaf hath been brought for thee. And we have never known
whence they came, but when we came in we found them placed
here.''
And when we had finished eating together we passed the whole
night in praying, and we prayed till morning. And when the
morning had come I entreated them to let me remain with them until
the day of my death. And they said unto me, ``O our brother
labourer, it is not ordained for thee to tarry in this place. But rise
up, and go into Egypt, and tell those whom thou shalt see there that
the brethren [here] remember them; and it shall be a benefit unto
those who hearken.''
And I entreated them to tell me their names,
but they would no be persuaded to utter them, and although I
pressed them to do so they would not tell me their names. And they
answered and said, ``He Who hath given names unto everything,
and Who knoweth everything, He it is Who knoweth our names.
Now therefore, O our brother, keep us in thy memory until we see
thee in the House of God. And be thou most careful and let not the
world lead thee astray as it hath lead astray many.'' And when they
had finished [saying] these things they blessed me, and they saluted
me, and I came forth from their mountain.
And when I had journeyed away from them for some days I came to
a well of water, and I sat down there for a little because of [my]
fatigue; and large trees were growing by the well. And when I had
refreshed myself and had rested a little, I walked among the trees,
and I marvelled, and I said unto myself, ``Who was it that planted
them in this place?'' And among them there were date-palms,
loaded with fruit, and citron trees, and pomegranate trees, and fig
trees, and apple trees, and vines, and dorakion trees, and kisma
trees, and trees which emitted sweet odours. And the well supplied
water, and it watered all the trees which were growing in that place.
And whilst I was marvelling at the trees, and was looking at them,
and at the fruit that was on them, behold four young men appeared
in the distance, and their forms were goodly, and they were dressed
in fine skin garments which, as it were, covered all their bodies.
And when they had come up to me they said unto me, ``Hail, thou
man of God, O our beloved brother!'' And I cast myself upon the
ground and made obeisance unto them, but they raised me up and
kissed me. And they remained in a state of great dignity (?), and
they were like unto beings who had transferred themselves from
another world in respect for the joy and comfort which they
displayed towards me; and they gathered fruit from the trees and
placed it in my mouth. And as for me my heart rejoiced because of
the affection which they shewed towards me, and I passed seven
days with them eating of the fruit of the trees.
And I asked them, saying, | ``Whence have ye come to this place? And
of what region are ye natives?''
And they said unto me, ``O our brother, God hath sent thee
unto us so that we may declare unto thee
our whole manner of life. For we are natives of a city of Egypt
called Pemdje (Oxyrhynchus). Our fathers were councillors (or,
magistrates) of the city, and they sent us to the school there to have
us educated; and we were all in the same school together, and we were
all of the same mind. And when we had finished our education in the
school they sent us on to the college, and when we had been thoroughly
well taught there and had learned therein all the learning (?) and all
the wisdom of this world, we wished to be instructed in the wisdom of
God.
``And it came to pass on a certain day that whilst we were talking
together about these things a good resolution stirred in our inner
man, and we four rose up, and we set ourselves on the way to the
desert, so that we might live therein quietly until we should see what
the Lord had ordained for us. And we took with us a few loaves of
bread, sufficient for seven days. And when we had come into the
mountain, straightway an ecstasy fell upon us, and a man, who was all
light, laid hold of our hands and brought us into this place. And
when we had come into this place we found a holy man of God, and the
angel of the Lord put us in his hand, and he taught us to be servants
of God for a year of days. And at the end of the year the holy and
blessed old man died, and we remained by ourselves in this place.
``Behold, O our lord brother, we declare unto thee by God that for
sixty years we have not known the taste of bread, or of any other
kind of food except the fruit of these trees whereon we live. If we
wish to see each other we come here every week to do so. We pass the
whole night of the First Day of the week together, and after that each
one departeth to perform his spiritual labours [for the rest of the
week].''
And I said unto them, ``Where do ye receive the Eucharist?''
And they said unto me, ``We assemble here for that purpose, for an angel
of God cometh hither every Sabbath, and he administereth unto us the
Eucharist on the Sabbath and on the First Day of the week.''
And I stayed with them, and I rejoiced exceedingly. [And they said unto
me], ``On the seventh day the angel of the Lord will come, and he will
administer the Eucharist to thee and to us together. And the man who
shall receive the Eucharist at the hand of that angel shall be
cleansed from all sin, and the Adversary shall never have dominion
over him.''
And whilst we were talking together I smelled a strong sweet smell, the
like
whereof I never smelled before. And immediately the sweet smell reached
us
we rose up, and we stood on our feet, and we blessed God. And afterwards
the
angel came, and he administered unto us the Eucharist, the Body and Blood
of
the Lord. And I became like unto those who sleep, because of the awesome
sight which I saw. And he blessed us, and he went up into heaven, and we
watched him with our eyes. And when he had gone up they comforted me, and
said unto me, ``Be of good cheer, for thou shalt prevail, and thou shalt
become a man of might;'' and straightway I became of good cheer, even as
those
who are under [the influence of] wine.
And we stood on our feet during the [eve of] the First Day of the week,
and
we prayed the whole night long until the morning. And when the light
appeared at dawn on the First Day of the week, behold, we smelled that
exceedingly sweet smell again, and we enjoyed it, and we rejoiced after
the
manner of those who are in another world. And afterwards the angel came,
and
he administered unto us the Eucharist, and he blessed each one of us,
saying,
``Everlasting life shall be unto thee, and [the power of] prophecy which
shall
never be destroyed.'' And we all, with one mouth and with one accord,
answered and said, ``Amen; so be it!''
And afterwards the angel turned to me, and said unto me, ``Arise,
and depart thou to Egypt, and tell the God-loving
brethren the things which thou hast seen, so that they may emulate the
life
and conversation of the saints.'' And I entreated him to let me remain
with
them, but he said unto me, ``The Lord doth not allot unto us the work
which is
imagined by the heart, but God giveth unto each man according to what he
is
able to bear. Now, therefore, arise and depart, for that is what the Lord
hath ordained for thee.'' And he blessed me, and went up into the heavens
in
great glory.
And they brought a large number of plums, and we ate them together, and I
came forth from them, and they accompanied me on my way for a distance of
six
miles. And I entreated them, saying, ``Declare unto me your names,'' and
they
declared me their names, each one of them. The name of the first was
John,
of the second Andrew, of the third Heraklamon, and of the fourth
Theophilus;
and they commanded me to declare their names unto the brethren, [so that]
they might remember them [in their prayers]. And I on my part entreated
them
to keep my name in remembrance. And we prayed and we kissed each other.
And
I journeyed forth, and I grieved exceedingly; nevertheless, because of the
blessing which the holy men had bestowed upon me, I rejoiced. And I came
into Egypt after a journey of three days, and having found certain
God-loving
brethren I rested with them for ten days, and I described unto them what
had
happened unto me; and they said unto me, ``Verily thou art worthy of a
great
reward.''
Written [in the month of] Tybi, the third day (December 30), in the Third
Indiction, in the seven hundred and twenty-first year of the Era of the
Martyrs (i.e. A.D. 1005), year [of Saracens] 365 (i.e. A.D. 987).
. . . . by the zeal and care of our fathers and beloved brethren, Abba
Abraham, the governor, and Abba Khael, the archdeacon, and the warden
Zacharias, deacon and monk of the Monastery of Saint Mercurius, the
general-in-chief, which is in the Mountain of Tbo (Edfu, or Utfu). They
made the book with [the proceeds of] their own labour, and they deposited
it in their monastery in order that [the brethren] may read therein, and
that those who read therein, and those who hear
it read with attention, may profit to the full thereby, and our Good
Saviour and Saint Apa Onnophrios, the anchorite, may bless them,
and all those who are assembled in their monastery, with the
blessing of heaven, and the blessing of earth, in the most complete
fulfilment.
COLOPHON OF ORIGINAL COPTIC MANUSCRIPT