SerbianOrthodoxChurch.net
The abbot of the famous Scetis in Egypt, he was a disciple of St Arsenius and a teacher of many. Many of his words and teachings are like celestial signposts for monks. Once, when the barbarians were attacking Scetis, the brethren called to him to flee with them, but he replied: `If God does not care for me, what reason is there for me to live?' He also once said: `Insofar as your body grows fat, even so does your soul wither away.' He lived the communal life as an ascetic for forty years, and then in the year 420 took himself off to the desert. He happened to be in Alexandria when an evil man murdered his son's wife because of her chastity. This was St Thomais (see April 13th), and he buried the martyr with the help of his disciples.
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