Asceticon 1 part 3/6

but let separate exercises, and modes of life as regards both sleep and waking, and the time, measure, and quality of food, be fittingly set apart for the children.

Let one who is advanced in age, and who surpasses others in experience, and who has a good testimony for patience, be set in charge of such children;

so that, with fatherly compassion and skilled method, the sins of the young may be corrected, applying to each fault its fitting remedy, so that the same remedy may serve both as a rebuke for the sin and as an exercise for the soul unto freedom from passion.

For example: has he grown angry at his peer? Let him be compelled to serve and minister to him, in proportion to the offense he dared.

For the habit of humility, as it were, excises from the soul the irascible part, since it is for the most part pride that produces anger in us.

Has he touched food out of season? Let him go without food for the greater part of the day.

Has he been found guilty of eating immoderately or unseemly? Let him, being kept from food at the time of the meal, be compelled to watch the others eating with proper discipline, so that he may both be punished by abstinence and be taught propriety.

Has he uttered an idle word, an insult against his neighbor, a lie, or anything else of what is forbidden? Let him be brought to soberness by both the belly and silence.

so that they should be accustomed to use names taken from the Scriptures, and, instead of fables, be told the accounts of extraordinary deeds, and be instructed by the maxims drawn from Proverbs, and be set contests of memory concerning names and events, so that with delight and ease, without distress and without stumbling, the goal may be accomplished for them.

And attentiveness of mind, and the habit of not being distracted, would easily be instilled in such children through right training, if they were continually questioned by their supervisors as to where they keep their mind, and what they are turning over in their thoughts.

For the simplicity and guilelessness of that age, being unpracticed in falsehood, readily discloses the hidden secrets of the soul;

and so that he may not be continually caught in what is forbidden, such a one would flee thoughts of what is improper, and would continually call himself back from what is improper, fearing the shame that comes from being exposed.

The soul, then, being still pliable and tender, and yielding like wax, easily taking the impression of whatever forms are imposed upon it, must be led, immediately and from the very beginning, toward the whole practice of good things;

so that, when reason has developed, and the habit of discernment has come, there may already be a course under way from the elements laid down at the beginning, and from the patterns of piety handed down — reason supplying what is useful, and habit producing facility toward doing what is right.

Then also the profession of virginity ought to be admitted, as being now firm, and made from one’s own judgment and decision, after reason has reached its full development;

after which both honors and punishments are given by the just Judge to those who sin or to those who do right, according to the worth of their deeds.

‘For, it says, by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established.’

For in this way the zeal of the brothers will be kept free from reproach, and no occasion for shamelessness will be left to those who, having professed themselves to God, then attempt to renounce that profession.

But let him who does not accept the life of virginity, on the ground that he is not able to be anxious for the things of the Lord, be dismissed in the presence of these same witnesses.

He, however, who does profess the vow, after much examination and scrutiny — which it is fitting to allow him to conduct by himself over a number of days, so that nothing may seem to be done by us in a manner of seizing him hastily — should then indeed be received, and be numbered among the brotherhood, sharing the same dwelling and manner of life as those who are more mature.

What escaped our notice to say, it is not untimely to add even now: that, because certain trades must be practiced from earliest childhood, whenever some of the children appear to have an aptitude for learning such a trade, we do not forbid their spending the day together with the teachers of that trade;

but at night we necessarily bring them back to their peers, with whom it is also necessary for them to partake of food.

That one must exercise self-control also with regard to laughter

And what is overlooked by most people is, for those in ascetic training, worthy of no small vigilance.

For to be seized by uncontrolled and unrestrained laughter is a sign of lack of self-control, of not keeping one’s impulses in check, and of the soul’s looseness not being held down by strict reason.

For to show, so far as a cheerful smile, the gladness of the soul is not unseemly, only so much as to display what is written:

‘When the heart is glad, the countenance blooms.’

but to burst out laughing aloud, and to have the body convulsed involuntarily, belongs neither to one composed in soul, nor to one approved, nor to one who has firm mastery over himself.

This kind of laughter Ecclesiastes also rejects, as most of all overturning the stability of the soul, when he says:

"Of laughter I said, 'It is madness.'"

"As the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of fools."

And the Lord is clearly seen to have endured the necessary experiences of the flesh, and as many as bear witness to virtue;

such as weariness, and compassion for those who are afflicted;

but he is nowhere seen to have made use of laughter, so far as the narrative of the Gospels shows, but rather to have called those held fast by it wretched.

But let not the ambiguity of the word "laughter" mislead us.

For it is the custom of Scripture often to call the joy of the soul, and the cheerful disposition over good things, "laughter," as Sarah says:

"God has made laughter for me."

and, "Blessed are those who weep now, for you shall laugh";

and that which is found in Job:

"He will fill the mouth of the truthful with laughter."

For all these terms are used in place of "cheerfulness," to denote the exultation that belongs to the soul.

So then, he who is superior to every passion, and suffers no stirring of pleasure, nor gives way to it, but is disposed with self-control and unyielding firmness toward every harmful enjoyment, is the perfect man in self-control;

and such a one is evidently also freed from all sin.

But there are times when one must abstain even from things that are permitted and necessary for life, whenever such abstinence is arranged for the benefit of our brothers.

"If food causes my brother to stumble," he says, "I will never eat meat again."

And though he had the right, according to the Gospel, to live by it, he did not use that right, lest he should give any hindrance to the Gospel of Christ.

Self-control, then, is the abolition of sin, the estrangement from the passions, the mortification of the body even to its natural feelings and desires, the beginning of spiritual life, the procurer of eternal goods — blotting out within itself the sting of pleasure.

For pleasure is the great bait of evil, on account of which we men are most prone to fall into sin;

by which every soul is dragged toward death, as by a hook.

Through self-control he has accomplished the complete flight from sins.

But if a man has fled from most things, and yet is mastered by one, such a person is not self-controlled;

just as he who is troubled by even one bodily ailment is not healthy;

and he who is mastered even by one thing, and that a chance one, is not free.

The other virtues, then, being accomplished in secret, are seldom made manifest to men;

but self-control, from the very encounter itself, makes known the one who possesses it.

For as bulk of flesh and good complexion characterize the athlete, so the hardened condition of the body, and the pallor that blooms from self-control, show the Christian to be truly an athlete of the commandments of Christ;

wrestling down his own enemy in the weakness of the body, and displaying his power in the contests of piety, according to what is said: "When I am weak, then I am strong."

How great is the gain merely to see the self-controlled man — scarcely and sparingly touching what is necessary, rendering it to nature as though a burdensome service, showing distress at the time spent on such things, yet quickly springing up from the table to the eager pursuit of his work.

For I think that no argument would so touch the soul of one given over to the belly, and lead it to change, as would the mere encounter with the self-controlled man.

And this, it seems, is what it is to eat and drink to the glory of God:

that even at table our good works should shine, so that our Father who is in heaven may be glorified.

QUESTION 18. That we must taste of everything set before us.

It must also, of necessity, be further determined that self-control is indispensable for the contestants of piety, for the subduing of the body;

"for everyone who competes exercises self-control in all things."

But so as not to fall in together with the enemies of God who are branded in their own conscience, and who for this reason abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by the faithful, one must taste of each kind, whenever the occasion presents itself, so far as to show those who see it that all things are pure to the pure, and that every creature of God is good, and nothing to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving;

"for it is sanctified through the word of God and prayer";

yet even so one must keep the aim of self-control:

occupying oneself with the cheaper things necessary for life only up to the point of need, and in these avoiding the harm of satiety, while abstaining altogether from those foods that serve mere pleasure.

For in this way we shall both cut off the passion of those who love pleasure, and, so far as lies in us, heal those who are branded in their own conscience, and also free ourselves from suspicion in either respect.

"For why," he says, "is my freedom judged by another's conscience?" Self-control shows the one who has died together with Christ, and has put to death his members that are upon the earth.

This we know to be the mother of temperance, the procurer of health, sufficiently removing the obstacles to the bearing of good fruit in Christ;

since, according to the word of the Lord, the cares of this age, and the pleasures of life, and the desires for the rest of things choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

This even the demons flee, the Lord himself having taught us that "this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."

What is the measure of self-control?

As regards the passions of the soul, there is one measure of self-control: complete estrangement from whatever leads to destructive pleasure;

but as regards foods, just as needs differ from one to another, being properly distinguished according to age and occupation, and according to the condition of the body,

so also the measure of use is different, and likewise the manner of it.

It is impossible to comprehend under a single rule all who are engaged in the exercise of piety;

but having defined the measure that applies to ascetics who are in good health, we leave it to those appointed over the administration to make the variation from this, by conjecture, according to what befalls each individual.

For it is not possible to comprehend particular cases by verbal instruction, but only what depends upon common and general teaching.

It is therefore not possible to legislate the same time of eating for all, nor the same manner, nor the same measure;

but let the common aim be the fulfillment of need.

For to overfill the belly, and to be weighed down by food, is deserving of a curse, since the Lord said:

"Woe to you who are full now";

and it also renders the body itself unserviceable for its activities, and prone to sleep, and more ready to suffer harm.

Nor indeed should one make pleasure the goal of eating, but rather the need for life, rejecting the licentiousness of pleasure.

For to be enslaved to pleasures is nothing other than to make one's own belly one's god.

For since our body, being always emptied and flowing away, has need of filling (for which reason the appetites for food are also natural), right reasoning concerning the use of foods dictates the filling of what has been emptied, for the sustenance of the living creature, whether the deficiency be of dry or of liquid nourishment.

Whatever, then, is likely to relieve us of the need with least elaborateness, this is to be taken.

Concerning drink he made no mention at all, since water lies ready at hand, natural to all and sufficient for their needs;

except that, if such a drink should be harmful to someone on account of illness, it is to be declined, according to the counsel of Paul to Timothy.

And all things, too, that manifestly do harm are to be avoided.

For it is inconsistent to choose foods for the sake of sustaining the body, and yet, through these very foods, to wage war against the body, and to hinder it from serving the commandment.

This same thing is also an example to us, teaching us to accustom our soul to flee harmful things, even if they contain pleasure.

One must, however, in every way prefer what is more readily obtainable, so that we do not, under the pretext of self-control, elaborately seek out the more costly things, preparing expensive foods with expensive seasonings;

but rather one must choose what is easily obtainable and cheap in each region, and ready for use by the many, making use of imported goods only for what is most necessary for life;

such as oil, and things of that kind, and whatever is suitable for the necessary comfort of the sick — and this too, only if it can be obtained without officious meddling, disturbances, and distractions.

What is the manner of receiving food?

Vainglory, and man-pleasing, and doing anything for display, are altogether forbidden to Christians in every matter,

since indeed even the one who keeps this very commandment, but does so in order to be seen by men and to be glorified, loses the reward for it.

For those who have accepted every form of humiliation on account of the Lord's commandment, every manner of vainglory is to be shunned in the extreme.

As for those who are ashamed of the humbleness of poverty, and who contrive an abundance and extravagance of food whenever they receive any stranger, I fear that the same passion may secretly touch us as well, and that we may be convicted of being ashamed of the poverty which Christ has pronounced blessed.

Just as it is not fitting for us to procure from outside silver vessels, or purple-bordered curtains, or a soft couch, or transparent coverlets,

so too it is not fitting to devise foods far removed from our accustomed diet.

For our running about, searching out things sought not for the necessity of need but devised for wretched pleasure and pernicious vainglory, is not only shameful and inconsistent with the purpose set before us, but also carries no ordinary harm — namely, whenever those who live in luxury, and who define blessedness by the pleasures of the belly, see us also turning about with the very concerns over which they themselves are aflutter.

For if luxury is evil and to be shunned, it is never to be chosen by us.

For nothing that has been condemned can be fitting for any occasion.

Those who live in wanton luxury, and anoint themselves with the finest ointments, and drink filtered wine, are condemned by Scripture.

And on account of wanton luxury, the widow, though living, is said to be dead.

The rich man was deprived of paradise because of his luxury here on earth.

What then have we to do with extravagances? Has some stranger arrived? If he is a brother, and holds the same purpose of life, he will recognize our accustomed table as his own.

For what he left behind at home, this he will find with us.

But has he grown weary from the journey? We add to him only so much as will relieve his fatigue.

Has another come from the life outside the community? Let him learn through our deeds what our words did not persuade him of, and let him receive a pattern and example of self-sufficiency in food.

Let there remain with him a remembrance of the Christian table, and of poverty unashamed for Christ's sake.

But if he pays no heed, and instead laughs it to scorn, he will not trouble us a second time.

But we, whenever we see certain of the rich who reckon the enjoyment of pleasures among the foremost of goods, groan greatly over them, because, spending their whole life on vanity, and having made gods of their own pleasures, they do not perceive that, in receiving their portion of good things in this life, they are, through their luxury here, journeying toward a fire already prepared and the burning heat within it.

And should we ever find occasion, we do not hesitate to set these very things forth even to them.

But if we ourselves should also be about to fall into the same faults, and, according to the power available to us, both seek after things for pleasure and make preparations for display, I fear lest we should be found building up the very things we tear down, and lest, by the very things by which we judge others, we condemn ourselves — living our life in a feigned manner, and being transformed now one way, now another, unless indeed we should also change our garments whenever we happen to meet the proud.

But if this is shameful, it is far more shameful to alter our table on account of those who live in luxury.

The life of the Christian is single in manner, having one purpose: the glory of God.

For "whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God," says Paul, speaking in Christ.

But the life of those outside is manifold and various, being reshaped now one way, now another, to please whomever they encounter.

So then, you too, when for pleasure's sake you alter your brother's table with an abundance of foods and elaborate contrivance, you accuse him of love of pleasure, and pour upon him reproaches of gluttony by the very things you prepare, thereby exposing his self-indulgence in such matters.

Or is it not often the case that, upon observing the kind and manner of the preparation, we can conjecture the one expected — who he is, or what sort of person he is? The Lord did not praise Martha for being distracted with much serving;

but rather he said, "You are anxious and troubled about many things;"

"but few things are needful, or only one."

And you are not ignorant of what kind of food the Lord himself set before the five thousand.

And the prayer of Jacob to God was:

"If you will give me," he says, "bread to eat and a garment to wear" —

not, "If you will give me luxury and extravagance."

And what of the most wise Solomon? "Give me neither riches nor poverty," he says,

"but appoint for me what is needful and sufficient, lest, being filled, I become false, and say,"

"'Who sees me?'; or, being poor, I steal, and swear falsely by the name of my God."

defining riches as satiety, and poverty as the utter lack of what is necessary for living;

and by "sufficiency" signifying at once the freedom from want and the absence of superfluity in what pertains to need.

But sufficiency differs from one person to another, according both to the condition of the body and the need in relation to the task set before him.

For one person, on account of labor, has need of more food and of stronger fare; another, on account of weakness, has need of finer and lighter food, and of everything suited to his condition;

but for all in common, the food should be the more inexpensive and the more readily obtainable.

In everything, however, care and hospitable good order are necessary, provided that we nowhere overstep the bounds of our need;

but let this be the limit of hospitality: what is sought after by the particular need of each of those who arrive.

"As using this world," he says, "and not abusing it."

And "abuse" is expenditure beyond what is needed.

Do we have no money? Then let us not have any.

Are our storehouses not full? For our food is provided for us only day by day;

why then do we squander, on the pleasures of those who live in luxury, the food given by God for the hungry? We sin on both counts, both intensifying for the latter their afflictions from want, and for the former the harms that come from excess.

How ought one to conduct oneself concerning seats and reclining-places at the time of the midday meal or supper?

Since it is a commandment of the Lord — who everywhere accustoms us to humility — that even when reclining at meals we should take beforehand the last place, it is necessary that one who is zealous to do all things according to the commandment should not overlook this precept either.

If, then, some secular persons recline together with us, it is fitting that we become, even in this respect, an example to them, teaching them neither to exalt themselves nor to seek the love of preeminence.

But where all come together with the same purpose, so as to give proof of their own humility of mind on every occasion, it is incumbent on each one, in accordance with the commandment of the Lord, to take the last place beforehand;

yet, on the other hand, to press contentiously together for this place is again disapproved, as being destructive of good order and a cause of disturbance.

And to be unyielding toward one another, and to contend over this, will make us like those who quarrel over first places.

For in this way we shall also bear with one another in love, doing all things decently and in order;

and we shall not, for display before the many, nor in a manner that courts popular favor, exhibit our practice of humility through unyielding and vehement contradiction;

but rather we shall accomplish humility through ready compliance.

For a greater display of pride comes from contradiction than from accepting the first place, when we accept it as a result of a command.

What is the fitting garment for the Christian?

Our discourse has already shown, in what preceded, that humility of mind is necessary, together with simplicity, and frugality in all things, and economy of expense, so that from bodily needs there arise for us only few occasions of distraction.

Those same principles, then, must also be followed by the rule concerning clothing.

In this matter, evidently, the lowliest is the most preferable.

For just as the lovers of glory hunt after glory for themselves even by the manner of their dress, being ambitious to be looked upon and envied for the costliness of their apparel;

so too, evidently, it is fitting that one who has brought his own life down to the very lowest place through humility should choose, in this matter as well, the very lowest of all.

For just as the Corinthians are rebuked concerning the common meal, for shaming, by their own extravagance, those who have nothing;

so too, evidently, in the common and public use of clothing, an appearance that exceeds that of the many likewise shames the poor man, as it were, by the comparison.

And since the Apostle says:

"Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the lowly" — let each one examine himself, as to which likeness is more fitting for Christians: that of those who dwell in palaces and are clothed in soft garments, or that of the messenger and herald of the Lord's coming, than whom none greater has arisen among those born of women.

I mean John, the son of Zechariah, whose garment was of camel's hair.

And the saints of old also went about in sheepskins, in goatskins.

The Apostle indicated the purpose of their use, saying it in a single phrase:

"Having food and covering, with these we shall be content," since we need only covering for ourselves —

no longer requiring variety of it, nor the adornment that arises from it, which lapse into the forbidden vain ostentation;

For these things were later introduced into life through the vain over-elaboration of idle craft.

"For God made for them," it says, "garments of skin."

For such a use of tunics was sufficient to cover what is unseemly.

But since another purpose also enters in, that of being warmed by coverings, the use of clothing must of necessity aim at both — at covering our unseemly parts, and at being a protection against the harm of the weather.

Since, moreover, even among these garments —

some are of much use, and others of less, it follows that we should prefer whatever can serve the more numerous needs, so that the principle of poverty is in no way harmed;

and that we should not have one set of garments prepared for display, and another for use at home;

nor again one set for the day, and another set of coverings for the night;

but rather devise the possession of one such garment as can suffice us for everything, both for decent covering by day and for what is needed at night.

From this it results that we also share a common outward form with one another, and that, as it were, a certain distinctive character is impressed on the Christian even by his clothing.

For things that converge upon one and the same purpose are, for the most part, alike to one another.

It is also useful that the distinctive character arising from one's clothing proclaims each person beforehand, and bears witness in advance to his profession of a life according to God;

so that it follows that consistent conduct is also demanded of us by those who meet us.

For unseemliness and impropriety do not appear alike in ordinary persons and in those who profess great things.

but the one who has professed strictness, even if he overlooks some trifling duty, is watched by all, and it is held up to him as a reproach, so that people thereby fulfill what is said: "they will turn and tear you."

So the profession made through outward habit serves, as it were, as a kind of discipline for the weaker, so that even against their will they are restrained from base things.

...of clothing that is seemly and consistent, preserving the modesty handed down by the Apostle —

at one time prescribing that the bishop be orderly, at another directing that women be in orderly attire — the term "orderly" being understood, of course, according to Christianity's own particular aim.

My reasoning is the same also concerning footwear:

so that at every season, what is unelaborate, more easily obtainable, and sufficient for the purpose of need is to be chosen.

That the use of the girdle is necessary the saints who went before us also show:

John, girding his own loins with a leather girdle, and Elijah even earlier,

for it is written, as a certain peculiar mark of the man: "a hairy man, with a leather girdle about his loins."

And Peter, too, is shown to have used a girdle, as is clear from the words of the angel who said to him:

"Gird yourself, and put on your sandals."

And the blessed Paul also appears, from Agabus's prophecy concerning him, to have used a girdle.

"For the man to whom this girdle belongs, thus shall they bind him," it says, "in Jerusalem."

And Job, too, is commanded by the Lord to gird himself.

For as a symbol of manly courage and readiness for work: "Gird," it says, "your loins like a man."

And it is clear that the use of the girdle was customary among all the disciples of the Lord, who were forbidden to carry money in their girdles.

Besides, one who is about to labor with his own hands must of necessity be trim and unimpeded in his movements.

So he too has need of a girdle, by which the tunic is drawn close to the body;

and it will warm him all the more by enfolding him on every side, and will secure for him freedom of movement.

Since the Lord himself, too, when he was preparing to serve the disciples, took a towel and girded himself.

As for the quantity of garments, we have no need to say more, this having already been sufficiently examined by us in the discourse on poverty.

For if the one who has two tunics is commanded to share with him who has none, it is evident that the acquisition of more than one for one's own sake is forbidden.

For those, then, to whom even having two tunics is forbidden, what need is there to legislate about further use?

Now that these matters have been sufficiently handed down to us, it would be fitting for us next to learn the manner of our conduct with one another. ANSWER.