THE TEMPTATIONS OF ST. ANTHONY
HISTORY
Saint Anthony of Egypt was a religious hermit and one of the earliest monks. He is considered the father of organized Christian monasticism.
Anthony was born in Egypt in 251 to a wealthy family. When he was 18 years old, his parents died and Anthony decided to follow the Evangelical counsel of Jesus which reads, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven." [Mt 19:21] Anthony gave away all of the land and money he inherited and dedicated himself to living an ascetic life. He went to live in the Nitrian Desert near Alexandria in Egypt. He remained in the desert for the rest of his life with two exceptions. The first was when he recovered in a town after being found beaten unconscious, some say, by the devil. The second time Anthony emerged, he traveled to the city of Fayyum to teach Christianity for a short time and was hailed as a hero because of his dedication to God. Stories surrounding Anthony quickly spread after his visit to Fayyum and have persisted since.
Famously, Anthony is said to have faced a series of supernatural temptations during his time in the desert. Many artists, including Hieronymus Bosch, Michelangelo, and Salvador Dalí, to name just a few, have depicted these incidents from the life of Anthony.
HISTORY
Saint Anthony of Egypt was a religious hermit and one of the earliest monks. He is considered the father of organized Christian monasticism.
Anthony was born in Egypt in 251 to a wealthy family. When he was 18 years old, his parents died and Anthony decided to follow the Evangelical counsel of Jesus which reads, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven." [Mt 19:21] Anthony gave away all of the land and money he inherited and dedicated himself to living an ascetic life. He went to live in the Nitrian Desert near Alexandria in Egypt. He remained in the desert for the rest of his life with two exceptions. The first was when he recovered in a town after being found beaten unconscious, some say, by the devil. The second time Anthony emerged, he traveled to the city of Fayyum to teach Christianity for a short time and was hailed as a hero because of his dedication to God. Stories surrounding Anthony quickly spread after his visit to Fayyum and have persisted since.
Famously, Anthony is said to have faced a series of supernatural temptations during his time in the desert. Many artists, including Hieronymus Bosch, Michelangelo, and Salvador Dalí, to name just a few, have depicted these incidents from the life of Anthony.
THE SATYR AND THE CENTAUR
Anthony was on a journey in the desert to find Paul of Thebes. On his way there, he ran into two demons in the forms of a centaur and a satyr. Anthony was stopped by the two demons and he asked them, "Who are you?" To that, the satyr replied, "I am a corpse, one of those whom the heathen call satyrs, and by whom they are snared into idolatry." The satyr then tried to terrify the saint while the centaur attacked Anthony's belief in God. Anthony's prayers and faith converted the two demons and soon, the centaur offered to show Anthony where to find Paul while the satyr ended up asking for Anthony's blessing. |
SILVER AND GOLD
Another time Anthony was traveling in the desert, he found a plate of silver coins in his path. He pondered for a moment as to why a plate of silver coins would be out in the desert where no one else travels, and realised the Devil must have laid it out there to tempt him. To that he said, "Ha! Devil, thou weenest to tempt me and deceive me, but it shall not be in thy power." Once he said this, the plate of silver vanished. Anthony continued walking along and saw a pile of gold in his way which the Devil had laid there to deceive him. Anthony cast the pile of gold into a fire, and it vanished just like the silver coins did. After these events, Anthony had a vision where the whole world was full of snares and traps. He cried, "Oh good Lord, who may escape from these snares?" A voice replied, "Humility shall escape them without more." Anthony continued his travels never once touching the precious metals. |
DEMONS IN THE CAVE
After being tempted by the Devil at least twice, Anthony tried hiding in a cave. Unfortunately, there were so many demons in the cave that Anthony's servent had to carry him out because they had beaten him to death. Once out of the cave, Anthony came back to life and demanded to go back to the cave. When he got there he called out to the demons and they came back as wild beasts to rip him to shreds. All of a sudden a bright light flashed, and the demons ran away. Anthony knew that the light must have come from God, and he asked God where was he before when the demons attacked him. God replied, "I was here but I would see and abide to see thy battle, and because thou hast mainly fought and well maintained thy battle, I shall make thy name to be spread through all the world." |