DOCTRINE TO MONKS. OF OUR HOLY FATHER ATHANASIUS THE GREAT: Doctrine to monks, gentle and spiritual.
A He who believes in the Lord, and turns to Him, and devotes himself perfectly to discipleship, must learn first to depart from every sin; and then, to draw himself toward the mandatory duties, being rightly disposed toward our Lord. Even if, in saying this, I may perhaps appear absurd to you. For it is impossible for one who commits sin, or is entangled in the affairs or cares of this life, to give himself over to the servitude of those things which are necessary for life, or to undergo the discipline of Christ; for He did not say to that young man, "Come, follow me," before He had commanded him to sell his possessions and give to the poor; but neither did He command these things before he had confessed by saying, "All these things have I kept from my youth." For one who has not yet received the remission of sins, and been loosed from them in the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, but serves the devil and is held B by the sin within him, is unable to serve the Lord, who has given an unchangeable decree by saying, "Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. Now the slave does not remain in the house forever." Paul, who speaks in Christ, also testifies that "the slave of sin is free from righteousness." And again the Lord says, "No one can serve two masters," and the rest; by which He taught and showed as a matter of definition, having said that even those who are occupied with the care of things truly necessary for life cannot serve Him, much less learn that which the Apostle, having considered more broadly, has declared: for he said, "What partnership has righteousness with lawlessness, and what fellowship has light with darkness, or what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion has a believer with an unbeliever, or what agreement has the temple with an idol?" And again he defines: "The flesh lusts against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do what you would." One must first be delivered from the tyrant, the devil, who drives into sin the one held captive by it. We said that we desire, at some time, to renounce all present things and ourselves, and, having departed from the affection for living, to be discipled to the Lord, just as He Himself has said, "If any one will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me," which is what being a disciple of mine is in this place. And we are commanded not only to despise our possessions and the necessities of life; but
A we are taught to disregard the mutual duties that are considered natural and legal, since the Lord says: "He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me" (Matt. x, 37). Likewise, what follows is closely situated to this, and indeed it is very far from those who are strangers to the faith. Therefore, he earnestly exhorts us to sustain with perseverance the labors of asceticism, fearing in no way the snares prepared against us by the enemy. "For the fashion of this world passes away." Moreover, the deceit and tribulation of this life are temporal and of brief duration; but the life which is lived in the service of Christ is eternal, perpetual, and immortal, which we await, we who are servants of Christ: on whose account we have renounced the world and all its desires. And we ought not to remember those things which we have abandoned for the sake of keeping His commandment, lest, by desiring temporal things again, we lose eternal life. For He who said: "Everyone who has left house," and the rest, "shall receive a hundredfold, and shall possess eternal life" (Matt. xix, 29), cannot lie. B For the Lord did not speak these things—as some interpret them—only of those who suffered martyrdom for His name during the time of persecution. For He did not say: "Only those who, in the time of persecution, shall deliver up their bodies for my name, shall possess the inheritance of eternal life"; but rather [He meant that] as many as shall renounce the world and its desires and goods for His name, we, together with all those who have suffered martyrdom for His name, shall possess it. For the Savior said that all the poor in spirit, all the pure in heart, the meek, and likewise all who fear His name are blessed: "For yours," He says, "is the kingdom of heaven" (Luc. vi, 20). For the martyrs were generally perfected by struggling for just a single moment in time; but the monastic way of life undergoes martyrdom through its daily struggles, not fighting against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness, wrestling and fighting until our very last breath... C ...armed with the armor of God: and it is enabled to do all things through Christ, who strengthens it and has mercy upon it. For when the Lord desires to bestow His riches upon us in a parable, He says: "The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking goodly pearls" (Matt. xiii, 45), and the rest. Confirming this sentiment in this way, the evangelist says: "Do not love the world, nor the things that are in the world. For he who loves the world does not love the Lord who loved him (I Joan. ii, 15). But he who has hated this world and the scandals that are in it, and has loved the will of God, abides unto the age." For the Lord, wishing to separate us from our conversation with the world, said: "No man putting his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of heaven" (Luc. ix, 62).
A The Apostle also says: "No man, being a soldier to God, entangleth himself with secular businesses" (II Tim. ii, 4). And again the Lord: "And he that is in the field, let him not go back" (Marc. xiii, 16). This means: do not remember or desire to return to that manner of life which, for the sake of God and His commandment, you have hated and left behind. Do not, therefore, fear the temptations brought upon us by the devil, even if they are various; for it is written: "My son, when thou comest to the service of God, stand in justice and in fear, and prepare thy soul for temptation" (Eccli. ii, 1). And concerning the heart B of patience, waiting for the help of God: for He is greater than the devil who attacks you, as it is often said: "Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world" (I Joann. iv, 4). And the Psalmist: "I will not fear evils, for thou art with me" (Psal. xxii, 4). And, "The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?" (Psal. xxvi, 1). And, "If armies in camp should stand together against me, my heart shall not fear" (Ibid., 3). And, "The Lord is my helper: and I will look over my enemies" (Psal. cxvii, 7). Therefore, he who serves the Lord must not distrust, as if he were not always protected by the Lord; for He Himself has said: "I will not leave thee, neither will I forsake thee" (Hebr. xiii, 5). And indeed, if you have set Him as your refuge, "there shall no evil come to thee: nor shall the scourge come near thy dwelling" (Psal. xc, 10), and the rest. Therefore I exhort you, brethren, let us in no wise yield to the evil one, nor deliver ourselves over to death for the sake of any pleasure, but mindful of the good things reserved for us in heaven, let us despise all these things. Let us not, therefore, appear as a laughingstock, having boasted of those who came before us. For the Apostle commands that everyone should remain in the calling in which he was called in Christ, that we may receive from Christ, the rewarder, the crown of patience which He promised to those who love Him. For it is written: "Go not after thy lusts, but turn away from thy will" (Eccli. xviii, 30), and thou shalt be perfect in Christ; and: "To him that overcometh, I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of my God" (Apocal. ii, 7). C The Lord says again: Whoever through the wood of the cross shall overcome all the passions of the flesh, to him I will give a white robe. For if we fear the Lord, the ineffable good things and the crowns of glory are prepared for us. For the war against the wiles of the enemy is not engaged upon by the command of the saints, and the victory over him is given through the help of the Lord, and indeed by three kinds of men, as the Lord Himself speaks in the parable of the seeds: "One gave thirty, another sixty, another a hundred" (Matt. xiii, 8). D If you examine the sacred Scriptures, you will find the reasons for this varied status of these orders. The martyrs, in my opinion, are those who produce the hundredfold fruit; the virgins, those who produce the sixtyfold; and the others, who according to the commandments of the Lord strive to keep themselves blameless in every way of life that is pleasing to the Lord, are the thirtyfold. May it be granted to us, Christ Jesus, to be numbered among your disciples and to enjoy your sacred good things, now and unto the unending ages of ages. Amen.