January 17 — Saint Antony, Abbot

The Eaat and West unite, to-day, in honouring St. Antony, the Father of Cenobites. The Monastic life existed before his time, as we know from indisputable testimony; but he was the first Abbot, because he was the first to bring Monks under the permanent government of one Superior or Father.

Antony began with seeking solely his own sanctification ; he was known only as the wonderful Solitary, against whom the wicked spirits waged an almost continued battle : but, in course of time, men were attracted to him by his miracles and by the desire permitted them to cluster round his cell ; and Monasteries thus began to be built in the desert The age of the Martyrs was near its close ; the persecution under Dioclesian, which was to be the last, was over as Antony entered on the second half of his course : and God chose this time for organizing a new force in the Church. The Monastic Life was brought to bear upon the Christian world ; the Ascetics, as they were called, not even such of them as were consecrated— were not a sufficient element of power. Monasteries were built in every direction, in solitudes and in the very cities ; and the Faithful had but to look at these communities living in the fervent and literal fulfilment of the Counsels of Christ, and they felt themselves encouraged to obey the Precepts* The apostolic traditions of continual prayer and of their own perfection

; this gave him Disciples ; he penance were perpetuated by the Monastic system ; it secured the study of the Sacred Scriptures and Theology; and the Church herself would soon receive from these arsenals of intellect and piety her bravest defenders, her holiest Prelates, and her most zealous Apostles. Yes, the Monastic Life was to be and give ail this to the Christian world, for the example of St. Antony had given her a bias to usefulness. If there ever were a Monk to whom the charms of solitude and the sweetness of contemplation were dear, it was our Saint ; and yet, they could - not keep him in his desert, when he could save souls by a few days spent in a noisy city. Thus, we find him in the streets of Alexandria, when the pagan persecution was at its height ; he came to encourage the Christians in their martyrdom. Later on, when that still fiercer foe of Arianism was seducing the Faith of the people, we again meet the great Abbot in the same capital, this time, preaching to its inhabitants, that the Word is consubstantial to the Father, proclaiming the Nicene faith, and keeping up the Catholics in orthodoxy and resolution. There is another incident in the life of St. Antony, which tells in the same direction, inasmuch as it shows how an intense interest in the Church must ever be where the Monastic Spirit is. We are alluding to our Saint's affection for the great St. Athanasius, who, on his part, reverenced the Patriarch of the Desert, visited him, promoted the Monastic Life to the utmost of his power, used to say that he considered the great hope of the Church to be in the good discipline of Monasticism, and wrote the Life of his dear St Antony.

But, to whom is due the glory of the Monastic Institute, with which the destinies of the Church were, from that time forward, to be so closely connected, as that the period of her glory and power was to be when the monastic element flourished, and the days of her affliction were to be those of its decay ? Who was it that put into the heart of Antony and his disciples the love of that poor and unknown, yet ever productive, life ? It is Jesus, the humble Babe of Bethlehem. To him, then, wrapt in his swaddling-clothes, and yet the omnipotent God, be all the glory !

_ It is time to hear the account of some of the virtues and actions of the great St. Antony, given by the Church in her Office of his Feast.

Antony was born in Egypt, of noble and christian parents, who left him an orphan at an early age. Having, one dayentered a Church, he heard these words of the Gospel being read : If thou wilt be perfect go and sell all thou host, and give to the poor. He took them as addressed to himself, and thought it his duty to obey these words of Christ his Lord. Selling therefore his possessions, he distributed all the money among the poor. Being freed from these obstacles, he resolved on leading on earth a heavenly life. But at his entrance on the perils of such a combat, he feltt that besides the shield of faith, wherewith he was armed, he must needs fortify himself with the other virtues ; and so ardent was his desire to possess them, that whomsoever he saw excelling in any virtue, him did he study to imitate.

Nothing, therefore, could exceed his continency and vigilance. He surpassed all in patience, meekness, mercy, humility, manual labour, and the study of the Sacred Scriptures. So great was his aver- (2)

Antonius JSgyptius, nobilibus et christianis parentibus natus, quibus adolescens orbatus est, cum ingressus Ecclesiam ex Evangelio audivisset : Si vis perfectus esse, vade et vende omnia qu® habes, et da pauperibus ; tanquam ea sibi dicta escent, sic Christo Domino obtemperandum existimavit. Itaque, vendita re familiari, pecuniam om» nem pauperibus distribuit. Quibus soiutus impedimentis, coelestis vitae genus in terris colere instituit. Sed cum in periculosum illud certamen descenderet, ad fidei presidium, quo erat armatus, adhibendum sibi putavit subsidium reliquarum virtutum, quarum tanto studio incensus fuit, ut quemcumque videret aliqua virtutis laude excellentem, ilium imitari studeret

Nihil igittir eo continentius, nihil vigilantius erat. Patientia, mansuetudine, misericordia, humilitate, labore, ac studio divinarum Script urarum superabat omnes. Ab hsreticorum et

322 chk schismaticorum hominum, maxims Arianorum, congressu et colloquio sic abhorrebat, ut ne prope quidem ad eos accedendum diceret Humijacebat, cum eum necessarius somnus occupasset Jejunium autem adeo coluit, ut salem tantummodo ad panem adhiberet, sitim aqua extingueret ; neque se ante soJis occasum cibo aut potu recreabat; a»pe etiam biduum cibo absiinebat, saepissime in oratione pernoctabat. Cum talis tantusque Dei miles evasisset Antonius, sanctissimum juveuem hostis humani generis variis tentationibus aggreditur, quas ille jejunio, et oratione vincebat. Sec verofrequens de satana triumphus securum reddebat Antonium, qui diaboli innumerabiles artes nocendi noverat

Itaque coatulit se in vastisaimam JEgypti solitudinem, ubi quotidie ad Christianam perfectionem proficiens, djemones (quorum tanto erant acriores impetus, quanto Antonius ad resis tend um fortior evadebat) ita contempsit, ut illis exprobraret imbecillitatem : ac saepe discipulos suos excitans ad pugnandum contra diabolum, docensque quibus armi vinceretur : Mini credite, dicebat, fratres : pertiinescit sa tanas piorum sion for the company of, or conversation with, heretics, especially the Arians, that he used to say, that we ought not even to go near them. He lay on the ground, when necessity obliged him to sleep. As to fasting, he practised it with so much fervour, that his only nourishment was bread seasoned with salt, and he quenched his thirst with water; neither did he take this his food and drink until sun-set, and frequently abstained from it altogether, for two successive days. He very frequently spent the whole night in prayer. Antony became so valiant a soldier of God that the enemy of mankind, illbrooking such extraordinary virtue, attacked him with manifold temptations; but the Saint overcame them all by fasting and prayer. Neither did his victories over Satan make him heedless, for he knew how innumerable are the devil's artifices for injuring souls.

Knowing this, he betook himself into one of the largest deserts of Egypt, where such was his progress in christian perfection, that the wicked spirits, whose attacks grew more furious as Antony's resistance grew more resolute, became the object of his contempt, so much so, indeed, that he would sometimes taunt them for their weakness. When encouraging his disciples to fight against the devil, and teaching them the arms wherewith they would vanquish him, vigilias, orationes, jejunia, voluntariam paupertatem, '* misericord iam et numilita- " dreads tern, maxime vero arden- " tern amorem in Christum " Dominum, cujus unico sane- " tissimse Crucis signo debilitatus aufugit Sic autem daemonibus erat formidolosus, ut multi per JSgyp- " ab illis agitati, invo- " disabled, cato nomine Antonii liberarentur : tantaque erat ejus fama sanctitatis, utperlitteras se ejus orationibus Constantinus Magnus et filii oommendarent Qui aliquando quintum et centosimum annum agens, cum innumerabiles sui instituti imitatores haberet, convocatis monachis, et ad perfectam christian© vit» regulam instructis, sanctitate et miraculis clarus migravit in coelum, decimosexto he used often to say to them : Believe me, Brethren, Satan the watching* of holy men, and their prayers, and fasts, and voluntary poverty, and works of mercy, and "humility, and, above all, their "ardent love for Christ our "Lord, at the mere sign of whose most holy Cross, he is turn and put to flight1* So formidable was he to the devils, that many persons, in Egypt, who were possessed by them, were delivered by invoking Antony's name. So great* too, was his reputation for sanctity, that Constantine the Great and his Sons wrote to him, commending themselves to his prayers. At length, having reached the hundred and fifth year of his age, and having received a countless number into his institute, he called his Monks together ; Kalendas Februarii. and having instructed them how to regulate their lives according to christian perfection, he, venerated both for the miracles he had wrought, and for the holiness of his life, departed from this world to heaven, on the sixteenth of the Calends of February (January 17).

The Churches of the West, during the Middle- Ages, have left us several Sequences in honour of St Antony. They are to be found in the ancient Missals. As they are not, by any means, remarkable as liturgical pieces, we shall content ourselves with inserting only one, omitting the three which begin: Alme Confessor ; — In hoc die Icetabunda ; — Antonvus humilis.

SEQUENCE.

Pia voce prodicemus, Et devotia celebremus Laudibus Antonium.

Dei Sanctus exaltetur, Et in suis honoretur Sanctis, auctor omnium.

Hie contempsit mundi florern, Opes ejus et honorem : Parens Evangelic

Et confugit ad desertum : Ut non currat in incertum In hoc vit® stadio.

Mira fuit ejus vita : Claras f ulsit eremita. Sedmox hostis subdoli

Bella perfert : ssspe concutitur

Gravi pugna : verum non vincitur Insultu diaboli.

Ictu crebro flagellatur : Et a sfflvis laceratur Immane daemonibus.

Lux de coelo micuit : Et clara person uit Dei vox de nubibus.

Quia fortis in agone Decertasti : regione Omni nominaberis :

Te clamabit totus orbis. Pro pellendis item morbis Ignis, invocaberis

Id, Antoni, nunc impletum

Conspicamur, et repletum Munaum tuo nomine. Hoc implorat gens devote ;

Let us piously proclaim the praises of Antony, and celebrate his name in sacred hymns.

Let us honour God's Saint ; and God, the author of all, be honoured in his Saints 1

Antony despised, in obedience to the Gospel, the beauty, and riches, and honours of the world.

He fled into the desert, that he might not run at an uncertainty, in the race of this life.

Wonderful was his life. He was the celebrated hermit. But, soon does the crafty enemy

Wage war against him. The combat is fierce and oft renewed: but he is not vanquished by the devil's attacks.

The demons scourge him with many blows, and his flesh is cruelly torn by the angry enemy.

But, a light shone down from heaven ; and the sweet voice of God was heard speaking from above :

" Because thou hast bravely "fought in the combat, thy 44 name shall be published in " every country.

" The whole earth shall pro- " claim thy glory. Thou snalt " be invoked against the dis- " ease of the Fire."

This, O Antony 1 we see fulfilled, and the world resounds with thy name.

The devout servants of God call on thy name, and fervently pray to thee for help and pro- Tibi pia defert vota tection. Pro tuo muni mine.

Sometimes, again, it is in Nunc in forma speciosa the appearance of a beautiful Mulieris : pretiosae woman, and sometimes under Nunc in inassae specie, the form of a piece of gold,

That the devil lays snares Daemon struitilli fraudea; for the holy man : but, after Sed, qui tanta, vafer, audes, all thy daring, O crafty tempt- Succumbis in acie. er! thou art defeated in the fight

Yea, vain are his thousand Mille fraudes, mille doli frauds and tricks ; and all Sunt inanes : ill! soli hell falls back bemoaning that Cedit orcus ingemens, one single-handed man has repelled them.

Roaring with rage, the' Militem hunc venera- enemy trembles before this turn, venerable soldier, whose hand Et robuatam ejus manum

The brave combatant resists Non lorica corporali these mighty enemies, and yet Fultus. inimico tali he wears no breast-plate such Hie athleta restitit. as soldiers use.

His drink is water, his bed Aqua potus, terra lectua the ground ; these were his Uli fuit : his protectus arms, and by these he con- Armis, victor exstitit. quered.

Herbs were his food ; the Herba fuit illi victus : palm-leaf gave him raiment ; Palmae frondes et amictus, and his companions were the Ac cum bestiis conflictus, wild beasts of the wilderness. Intra solitudinem.

He restrained lust by assi- Precum assiduitate, duous prayer, frequent manual Operandi crebritate,

He confutes the Arians and Confutatis Arianis, the profane Philosophers ; he Et philosophis profania, visits Paul the Hermit, nor Paulum visit, nec inanis was the journey fruitless or Fit via, nec irrita. vain ;

For he found him alive, and Nam convenit hunc vi then saw his holy soul mount- ventem, ing up to heaven, and buried Inde sanctam ejus mentem

O Antony ! thou art now 6 Antoni, cum beatis

Horret hostis mfremens. labour, and short sleep.

Atque somni parcitate Restinxit libidinem. his body.

Ccelos vidit ascendentem, Came terras reddita.

Nunc in regno claritatis Gloriaris ; tic gravatis Mole carnis, pietatia Tun pande viscera.

Ne nos rapiat tremend© Mors gehenn®, manum tende. Nos a morbido defende Igne? nobis et impende Gionam post funera.

Amen. in glory, with the Blessed, in the kingdom of light ; show thy affectionate pity on us, who are here weighed down by the burden of the flesh.

Stretch out thy hand, lest the death of terrible hell seize upon us. Defend us from the burning distemper, and assist us to gain heaven when our life is spent.

Amen.

The Greek Church is enthusiastic in her praises of St Antony. We extract the following stanzas from her Menaea*

XVH. DDE JANUARII.

Quando in sepulchroteipsum gaudens inclusisti, Pater, propter Christi amorem, sunerebas quam fortiter dsemonum insultus, oratione et charitate istorum fumo debiliora depellens tentamenta ; tunc plauserunt Angelorum ordines clamantes : Gloria roboranti te, Antoni.

Helias demonstratus es alter, habens celebres discipufos, novos Eliseos, sapiens, quibus et gratiam tuam duplicem dereliquisti, raptus tanquam in curru, SBthereus pater; nunc ab illis decoratus, omnium recordaris, beatissime, tuam celebrantium cum amore venerabilem festivitatem, o Antoni.

In terris Angelum, in coelis Dei vim in, mundi ornamentum. bonorum et vir-

When, O Father ! thou didst shut thyself in a sepulchre, with jov, for the love of Christ, thou didst most bravely endure the attacks of the demons, putting to flight, by prayer and charity, their smoke-like temptations : and the choirs of Angels applauding, cried out : Glory, 0 Antony ! be to Him that strengthens thee.

Thou wast as another Elias, surrounded by thy glorious disciples, the new Ehseuses: to wnom thou, their wise father, taken up as it were to heaven in a chariot, didst leave thy twofold grace ; now, that they are thy ornament above, thou art mindful of all us who lovingly celebrate thy venerable feast, O Antony I

Let us honour Antony who was an Angel on earth, the man of God in heaven,

JAN. 17. ST the ornament of the world, the flower of good men and of virtues, the glory of Ascetics ; for beim? planted in the house of the Lord, he bloomed in perfect justice, and, as a cedar in the desert, he multiplied the flocks of Christ's spiritual sheep, in holiness and justice.

O Antony ! illumined by the rays of the Spirit 1 when divine love consumed thee, and made thy soul take her flight to the summit thou didst loug for of charity— then didst thou despise flesh and blood, and become a stranger to this world, in deep spirituality and peace united to Him, with whom thou wast filled. Then didst thou seek after true goods, and shine as a star reflecting light on our souls.

Thou that didst, by the love of the Holy Spirit, break the arrows and darts of the demons, laving open their malice and their snares to all men ; thou that didst shine with the divine teachings, thou wast made, O Antony ! the brightest luminary of Monks, the grandest glory of the desert, the ablest physician of the sick, the Archetype of virtue.

Professing on earth the life of an Ascetic, O Antony i thou didst deaden in the torrent of thy tears all the blows of thy passions. Thou art the holy and venerable ladder, that raises men to heaven ; and thou healest of the infirmities of their passions them that cry to thee with faith : Rejoice, most richly gilded Star tutum florem, asceticoruin gloriam, Antonium honoremus ; plantatus enim in domo Domini effloruit justissime, et quasi cedrus in deserto multiplicavit greges ovium Chris ti spiritualium in sanctitate et justitia.

O illuminate Spiritus radiis, quando te divinus amor combussit, et animam evolare fecit ad desiderabile charitatis fastigium, tunc despexisti carnem et sanguinem, et extra mundum f actus es, multa ascesi et tranquillitate ipsi unitus, quo repletus es ; exinde auaesisti bona et resplenduisti sicut Stella irradians animas nostras, Antoni.

Tu am daemonum sagittas et jacula contrivisti charitate divini Spiritus, et malitiam insidiasque ejus omnibus patefecisti, divinis coruscans illustrationibus, Monachorum effectus es fulgidissimum luminare, et eremi primum decus, et supremus aagrotantium medicos, et Archetypus virtutum, Antoni Pater.

Asceticum super terrain professus exercitium, Antoni, passionum ictus in torrente lacrymarum omnes hebetasti ; scala divina et veneranda, ad ccelos eleyans, mederis passionum infirmitatibus eorum qui ad te cum fide exclamant : Gaude, Orientis stella deauratissima, Monachorum lampadifer et pastor ; gaude, celebrande, tu aeserti alumne, et Eccleaiae inconcussa columna : gaude errantium dux illustrissime ; gaude, o gloriatio nostra, et orbis terrarum decor fulgidissime,

Columna splendida et virtutibus obfirmata, et nubee obumbrans effectus es, his qui in deserto ad caelum e terra Deum contemplantur, propositus; crucis baculo passionum rumpens mare, spiritualem autem arduamque ad coelum in facile m mutatus viara, invenisti, beatissime, incorruptibilem haereditatem ; cum mcorporeis throno assistens Chnsti, quern deprecare animabua nostris dare magnam misericordiam.

Vitse derelinquens perturbationes, crucem tuam humeria deferens, totum te commisisti Domino, et extra carnem, Pater, et mundum factus, Sancti effectus es coufabulator Spiritus, ideoque ad zelum populos evigilans, civitates vacuas fecisti, oivitatem in deserto transferee. Antoni Deifer, depiecare Christum Deum dare peccatorum remissionem celebrantibus cum amore tuam sauctam commemorationem. of the East, the lamp-bearer and shepherd of Monks ! Rejoice, illustrious Saint, child of the desert, unshaken pillar of the Church ! Rejoice, most glorious Chieftain I Rejoice, O thou our glory, and brightest ornament of the whole earth 1

God made thee a bright pillar solid in virtue, and a shade-giving cloud, to lead the way to such as, in the journey from earth to heaven, contemplate God. By the rod of the Cross, thou didst break up the sea of the passions : and changing the spiritual and difficult way to heaven into one that is easy, thou didst obtain, O most blessed Antony ! the incorruptible inheritance. Pray to that Christ, at whose throne thou assistest with the Angelic spirits, that he bestow his great mercy on our souls.

Leaving the distractions of this life, and carrying thy cross on thy shoulders, thou didst commit thy whole self to the Lord: and estranging thyself, O Father! from the flesh and the world, thou wast admitted into intimate communication with the Holy Spirit ; and therefore didst thou rouse up the people to fervour, emptying the cities of their inhabitants, and changing the desert into a city. O Antony, that nearest God within thee! beseech Christ our God, that he give remission of sin to all us who lovingly celebrate thy holy commemoration.

We unite, great Saint ! with the universal Church, in offering thee the homage of our affectionate veneration, and in praising our Emmanuel for the gifts he bestowed upon thee. How sublime a life was thine, and how rich in fruit were thy works ! Verily, thou art the Father of a great people, and one of the most powerful auxiliaries of the Church of God. We beseech thee, therefore, pray for the Monastic Order, that it may re-appear in all its ancient fervour ; and pray for each member of the great Family. Fevers of the body have been often allayed by thy intercession, and we beg for a continuance of this thy compassionate aid — but the fevers of our soul are more dangerous, and we beg thy pity and prayers that we may be delivered from them. Watch over us, in the temptations, which the enemy is unceasingly putting in our way ; pray for us, that we may be vigilant in the combat, prudent in avoiding dangerous occasions, courageous in the trial, and humble in our victory. The angel of darkness appeared to thee in a visible shape ; but he hides himself, and his plots from us ; here again, we beg thy prayers, that we be not deceived by his craft. May the fear of God's judgments, and the thought of eternity, penetrate into the depth of our souls. May prayer be our refuge in every

But above all, pray that we may have that, which thou didst counsel above all — the Love of Jesus — of that Jesus, who, for love of us, deigned to be born into this world, that so he might merit for us the graces wherewith we might triumph — of that Jesus, who humbled himself even so far as to suffer temptation, that so he might show us how we were to resist and fight

January 18. SAINT PETERS CHAIR AT ROME.

TflE Archangel Gabriel told Mary, in the Annunciation, that the Son, who was to be born of her should be a King, and that of his Kingdom there should be no end. Hence, when the Magi were led from the East to the Crib of Jesus, they proclaimed it in Jerusalem, that they came to seek a King. But this new Empire needed a Capital ; and, whereas the King, who was to fix his throne in it, was, according to the eternal decrees, to re-ascend into heaven, it was necessary that the visible character of his Royalty should be left here on earth, and this even to the end of the world. He that should be invested with this visible character of Christ our King, would be the Vicar of Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ chose Simon for this sublime dignity of being his Vicar. He changed his name into one which signifies the Rock, that is " Peter and in giving him this new name, he tells us, that the whole Church, throughout the world, is to rest upon this man, as upon a Rock, which nothing shall ever move. But this promise of our Lord included another ; — namely, that as Peter was to close his earthly career by the Cross, he would give him Successors, in whom reter and his authority should live to the end of time.