Barsanuphius and John: Letters, vol. 1
Overview
The complete text of the Letters of Barsanuphius and John appears here in English for the first time. John Chryssavgis’s faithful and deft translation brings vividness and freshness to the wisdom of a distant world, ensuring its accessibility to contemporary readers. Addressed to local monastics, lay Christians, and ecclesiastical leaders, these remarkable questions and responses (850 of them) offer a unique glimpse into the sixth-century religious, political, and secular world of Gaza and Palestine during a period torn by doctrinal controversy and in a context shaped by the tradition of the early desert fathers.
The “great old man,” Barsanuphius, and the “other old man,” John, flourished near Gaza around the early sixth century. Choosing to dwell in complete isolation, they saw no one with the exception of their secretaries, Seridos and the well-known Dorotheus of Gaza. Barsanuphius and John communicated in silence through letters with numerous visitors who approached them for counsel. Curiously, this inaccessibility became the very reason for the popularity of the elders. They formed an extraordinarily open system of spiritual direction, which allowed space for conversation and even conflict in relationships, while also accounting for the wisdom and the wit of the correspondence.
Barsanuphius’s inspirational advice responds to problems of a more spiritual nature; John’s institutional advice responds to more practical problems. The two elders in fact complement one another, together maintaining a harmonious authority-in-charity. Their letters are characterized by spontaneity and sensitivity, as well as by discretion and compassion. They stress ascetic vigilance and evangelical “violence,” gratitude and joy, humility and labor, prayer and tears.
For The Fathers of the Church series in its entirety, see Fathers of the Church Series (127 vols.).
Key Features
- Initial translation in English for modern scholarship
- Provides a contrast between two elders of the ancient church
- One of 127 published volumes in a well-respected series on the Church Fathers
Top Highlights
“Humility means not reckoning oneself as anything in every situation and cutting off one’s own will in everything and calmly enduring whatever occurs externally.” (Page 278)
“If you were dead and the widow who had suffered injustice came to you, would you be able to help her? And if you help her, and another woman later comes to you asking the same, could you overlook her and transgress the commandment at that time? A dead person does not worry about such matters. And if they complain against you, this, too, should not affect you.” (Page 221)
“I shall rebuke you. For you called yourself a sinner, but in your deeds you did not consider yourself in this way. For one who considers oneself a sinner and the cause of evil is neither argumentative nor contentious nor angry against anyone else, but always considers everyone else to be better and wiser.” (Page 36)
“And as for the conversation, when you see yourself almost theologizing, remember that silence is more admirable and more glorious than that.” (Page 53)
“To renounce one’s own will is a sacrifice of blood. It means that one has reached the point of laboring to death and of ignoring one’s own will. The statement ‘Behold, we have left everything and have followed you’ is about perfection; it is not about property and small amounts of money, but about thoughts and desires. You, however, have not yet come to this perfection; when you approach there, you will hear what you have to do. For the time being, simply remain carefree in all matters and concerns. As for your property, keep it for now for your nurture. The Lord Jesus Christ will bring you to that ineffable joy; for he is eternal light. Amen.” (Pages 257–258)
- Title: Barsanuphius and John: Letters, Volume 1
- Authors: Joseph Priestley, Barsanuphius
- Series: The Fathers of the Church
- Volume: 113
- Publisher: Catholic University of America
- Print Publication Date: 2006
- Logos Release Date: 2014
- Pages: 359
- Era: era:byzantine
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Spiritual life › Orthodox Eastern Church; Asceticism › Orthodox Eastern Church; Monastic and religious life
- ISBNs: 9780813201139, 0813201136, 9780813201146, 0813201144
- Resource ID: LLS:LETTERSVOLUME1
- Resource Type: text.monograph.letters
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T20:12:38Z
About the Translator
John Chryssavgis studied theology in Athens and Oxford. He taught at St Andrew’s Theological College in Sydney and at Holy Cross School of Theology in Boston. His writings have focused on the early ascetic literature of Egypt, Palestine, and the Sinai Peninsula.