The Wisdom of the Desert (New Directions Book 295)

by Thomas Merton

They seem to have doubted that Christianity and politics could ever be mixed to such an extent as to produce a fully Christian society.

They did not reject society with proud contempt, as if they were superior to other men. On the contrary, one of the reasons why they fled from the world of men was that in the world men were divided into those who were successful, and imposed their will on others, and those who had to give in and be imposed upon. The Desert Fathers declined

to be ruled by men, but had no desire to rule over others themselves. Nor did they fly from human fellowship – the very fact that they uttered these “words” of advice to one another is proof that they were eminently social. The society they sought was one where all men were truly equal, where the only authority under God was the charismatic authority of wisdom, experience and love.

What the Fathers sought most of all was their own true self, in Christ.

And in order to do this, they had to reject completely the false, formal self, fabricated under social compulsion in “the world.

“Therefore, whatever you see your soul to desire according to God, do that thing, and you shall

keep your heart safe.”

“the prayer of the monk is not perfect until he no longer realizes himself or the fact that he is praying.

They neither courted the approval of their contemporaries nor sought to provoke their disapproval, because the opinions of others had ceased, for them, to be matters of importance. They

What good will it do us to know merely that such things were once said? The important thing is that they were lived.

They were humble, quiet, sensible people, with a deep knowledge of human nature and enough understanding of the things of God to realize that they knew very little about Him.

If these men say little about God, it is because they know that when one has been somewhere close to His dwelling, silence makes more sense than a lot of words.

Indeed there was more real love, understanding and kindliness in the desert than in the cities, where, then as now, it was every man for himself.

through the Verba Seniorum we find a repeated insistence on the primacy of love over everything else in the spiritual life: over knowledge, gnosis, asceticism, contemplation, solitude, prayer.

like Abbot Moses, that great gentle Negro, who walked into the severe assembly with a basket of sand, letting the sand run out through many holes. “My own sins are running out like this sand,” he said, “and yet I come to judge the sins of another.”

Perhaps the most memorable of all were the two old brothers who had lived together for years without a quarrel, who decided to “get into an argument. like the rest of men” but simply could not succeed.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner!”

But in the end he concluded that not even the devil was purely evil, since God could not create evil, and all His works are good.

The Coptic hermits who left the world as though escaping from a wreck, did not merely intend to save themselves. They knew that they

were helpless to do any good for others as long as they floundered about in the wreckage. But once they got a foothold on solid ground, things were different. Then they had not only the power but even the obligation to pull the whole world to safety after them.

We must transcend them, and transcend all those who, since their time, have gone beyond the limits which they set. We must liberate ourselves, in our own way, from involvement in a world that is plunging to disaster. But our world is different from theirs. Our involvement in it is more complete. Our danger is far more desperate. Our time, perhaps, is shorter than we think.

Let it suffice for me to say that we need to learn from these men of the fourth century how to ignore prejudice, defy compulsion and strike out fearlessly into the unknown.

Not all works are alike. For Scripture says that Abraham was hospitable and God was with him. Elias loved solitary prayer, and God was with him. And David was humble, and God was with him. Therefore, whatever you see your soul to desire according to God, do that thing, and you shall keep your heart safe.

If, wishing to correct another, you are moved to anger, you gratify your own passion. Do not lose yourself in order to save another.

The reason why we do not get anywhere is that we do not know our limits, and we are not patient in carrying on the work we have begun. But without any labour at all we want to gain possession of virtue.

And taking with him a very old basket full of holes, he filled it with sand, and carried it behind him. The elders came out to meet him, and said: What is this, Father? The elder replied: My sins are running out behind me, and I do not see them, and today I come to judge the sins of another! They, hearing this, said nothing to the brother but pardoned him.

Despise no one, condemn no one, rebuke no one, God will give you peace and your meditation will be undisturbed.

Do not judge a fornicator if you are chaste, for if you do, you too are violating the law as much as he is. For He who said thou shalt not fornicate also said thou shalt not judge.

It is the same with the thoughts in our heart. If we do not carry them out by physical action, after a long while they will spoil and turn bad.

HE SAID, again: Malice will never drive out malice. But if someone does evil to you, you should do good to him, so that by your good work you may destroy his malice.

If you cannot catch the wind, neither can you prevent distracting thoughts from coming into your head. Your job is to say No to them.

When a man sees that his soul is suffering harm, he has no need to ask advice about it.

When it is a matter of secret thoughts, one asks advice, that the elders may test them. But when there are manifest sins there is no need to inquire – you just break off at once.

For the first step away from God is a distaste for learning, and lack of appetite for those things for which the soul hungers when it seeks God.

It is not because evil thoughts come to us that we are condemned, but only because we make use of the evil thoughts. It can happen that from these thoughts we suffer shipwreck, but it can also happen that because of them we may be crowned.

ANOTHER elder said: It happens that one man eats more and yet remains hungry, and another man eats less, and is satisfied. The greater reward belongs to the one who ate more and is still hungry than to him who ate less and is satisfied.

Never despise anybody, never condemn anybody, never speak evil of anyone, and the Lord will give you peace.

ONE of the elders used to say: In the beginning when we got together we used to talk about something that was good for our souls, and we went up and up, and ascended even to heaven. But now we get together and spend our time in criticizing everything, and we drag one another down into the abyss.

At that time wickedness will overflow and the charity of many will grow cold. And there shall come upon them a terrible testing. Those who shall be found worthy in this testing will be better than we are and better than our fathers. They shall be happier and more perfectly proven in virtue.

But there is one thing alone in which you overcome me. Abbot Macarius said to him: What is that? Your humility, the devil replied, for because of it I cannot overcome you.

A man must breathe humility and the fear of God just as ceaselessly as he inhales and exhales the air.

what was humility, and he said: If you forgive a brother who has injured you before he himself asks pardon.

The seventy weeks you fasted did not bring you any closer to God, but now that you have humbled yourself and set out to ask your

brother, I am sent to reveal the meaning of that text. And opening to him the meaning which he sought, he went away.

So also it is written: Our God is a consuming fire. Hence we ought to light the divine fire in ourselves with labour and with tears.

Lord, give me strength to get through the fight.

THERE was an elder who had a well-tried novice living with him, and once, when he was annoyed, he drove the novice out of the cell. But the novice sat down outside and waited for the elder. The elder, opening the door, found him there, and did penance before him, saying: You are my Father, because your patience and humility have overcome the weakness of my soul.

Come back in; you can be the elder and the Father, I will be the youth and the novice: for by your good work you have surpassed my old age.

The important thing is not to sadden your brother,

leading them perhaps into sin by perjuring themselves and then, perhaps, if I have some extra money, giving it to the brethren? God does not want alms of this kind from me and it does not please Him if, in order to make my offering, I lead someone into sin.