Saint Arsenius the Great, and the Silent
Saint Arsenius, called ‘the Great’, (350 – 445), whom we recall on this 19th of July, was one of the early monks of the desert, and founders of the eremitical way of monastic life. As an anchorite, he lived alone in prayer and penance. But he did not begin this way, born into wealth and privilege, and receiving the most elite of educations for his time. There was an initial conversion to a deeper spiritual life when his parents died – Arsenius sold everything, placed his sister Afrosity (love those names!) into a community of virgins, and was himself ordained a deacon. His erudition could not go unnoticed, however, and he was called to the imperial palace by Theodosius the First (also called ‘the Great’, and the same one who came into conflict, and eventual repentance, with Saint Ambrose). Arsenius was tasked with tutoring the royal sons. The emperor, much pleased, bestowed on him many favours, a lavish life, wide acclaim, and Arsenius the Deacon was beloved by all.
Even though there was nothing explicitly wrong with such a life, the grace of God called the receptive soul of Arsenius higher, and he responded with unconditional fervour, eventually resigning his post, and fleeing into the wilderness like John the Baptist, where many others had already gone, the thousands we now know as the Desert Fathers. Arsenius presented himself to the renowned Macarius, who handed him over to John the Dwarf to be tested. John was in the middle of a meal with some others, and took no notice of his noble guest, until halfway through, he tossed a piece of bread on the ground, which Arsenius sat down and ate without a word.
And so began the solitary monastic life of Arsenius for the next 55 years – he lived to ripe old age of 95, signifying the healthy nature of the ascetical modus vivendi. He would flee further into the desert whenever he was discovered, seeking the lowest and most obscure place, weeping over his past life, and mortified himself in ways that can only be understood supernaturally. One penance was that he never changed the water he used to moisten the fronds to make baskets and such – one of the employments of the monks. He would top it up, which meant that the bowl reeked so much even the angels could probably smell it, had they a sense of smell. Arsenius said that this was to atone for all the times he wore ‘perfume’ at court, which made me think of men’s cologne, which they call that since it wouldn’t sell as perfume.
He also, more to the point, and more pertinent for us, Arsenius kept an almost perpetual silence, alone with God, and it is to Arsenius that the aphorism is attributed: “Many times have I repented of having spoken, but never have I repented of having remained silent”.
Like all aphorisms, there are exceptions (I would replace ‘never’ with ‘rarely’, but who am I to correct a Desert Father?). There are times when we must speak, not least for those of us still in ‘the world’. But silence is indeed golden, and would that we take more time in our culture of constant noise, bustle and boisterousness, to reflect and be alone with God, as today’s Gospel attests.
May Saint Arsenius, the Great and the Silent, intercede for us all.
Carney’s Amoral Majority
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Saint Kateri , Canada’s Protectress
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A Tale of Two Benedicts
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My Name is Bernadette
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Saint Lydwina of Schiedam and Suffering Joyfully
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The Glorious Martyrdoms of Martin and Maximus
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Saint Stanislaus of Szczepanów
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Saint Gemma Galgani
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An Ideological and Improper Translation
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Saint Jean-Baptiste de la Salle: A Teacher for Teachers
Jean-Baptiste de la Salle (1651 – 1719), a French nobleman, ordained a priest, founded the first order in the Church’s history entirely without priests, and this came about almost by accident. I say ‘almost’, for, of course, there are no accidents with God. Destined for ordination from an early age, Jean-Baptiste never looked back, even[…]Continue reading→