The Desert Mothers and Fathers

2024-02-22

In 250AD a young man named Paul walked out into the Egyptian desert in fear of his own life and was never to return. He did not find safety or comfort but rather communion with God. 100 years later, Anthony the Great, a man who had taken Paul's way of life and turned it into a burgeoning communal approach to spiritual living, met the elderly hermit on the day of his death. These two great men were the example for the thousands of monks and hermits that came to live in Egypt, Syria and ...

In 250AD a young man named Paul walked out into the Egyptian desert in fear of his own life and was never to return. He did not find safety or comfort but rather communion with God.

100 years later, Anthony the Great, a man who had taken Paul's way of life and turned it into a burgeoning communal approach to spiritual living, met the elderly hermit on the day of his death.

These two great men were the example for the thousands of monks and hermits that came to live in Egypt, Syria and Palestine that would go down in history as The Desert Mothers and Father.

In this episode, we take a look at The Desert Mothers and Father: who they were, where they came from and what they got up to. At a time of great upheaval throughout the Mediterranean world, they would come to set a foundation of not only monasticism but all Christianity.

This episode forms part of a series on the Desert Mothers and Father and in the next episode we will be heading to Egypt to see the lives of the people who continue to live out this tradition.

Thanks to Lebot for our new theme music, more of which can be found by clicking this link.

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