Saint Anthony and Saint Paul
"We have left all and followed You.”
Saint Anthony the Founder of Monasticism
Saint Anthony was born to Christian parents in the year 251 AD in the village of Kemmen El-Arous, near the city of Beni Suef. This small village was located in the middle of Egypt.
As a child, Saint Anthony grew up in the church, learning all its biblical teachings. His love for Christ grew as each day passed.
Following the death of his father, he came to realize that earthly existence was but a passing of time. He began to examine the true meaning of life. It is said that Saint Anthony learned his first lesson from a dead man. As he looked at his dead father's body, he realized that his father's 300 acres of the best farmland in Upper Egypt, his wealth, power, and influence will all be left for Saint Anthony to inherit. He would often ask, "How can I leave everything in this world and live only for the Lord Jesus Christ? I want to live as the Lord Jesus Christ and his disciples lived." To Saint Anthony, this was indeed the life of perfection he sought after.
One day, while attending church services, he heard one of the deacons reading from the Holy Bible, which said,
"If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
Saint Anthony was a very serious listener and considered every word he heard as though it was directed to him personally. This verse had such a profound effect on his heart, that he sold all that he owned.
He gave to his sister her portion and distributed his portion among the poor and churches. He went outside the village and dwelt in a small hut beside the Nile River, and had occasionally visited the nearby hermits to learn virtues from them. After a while, he crossed the Nile and dwelt in an ancient pharaonic tomb beside a fig tree on the eastern bank of the Nile. Later on, he travelled deep into the Eastern Desert until he found a spring of water. He dwelt beside it in a cave where he remained in fasting, worship and resisted the devil's warfares.
The Lord supported him in his spiritual struggles for about twenty years. Many gathered around him to become his disciples and dwelt in caves around his cave. In this way, he founded the first monastic institution in the world, so he is rightfully called the father of all monks. Many came to him seeking healing from their sicknesses, and the Lord performed on his hands many healings.
Saint Paul the First Hermit
Saint Paul was from the city of Alexandria, and had a brother whose name was Peter. After the departure of their father, they divided the inheritance between them, with his brother taking the greater share. When they did not agree with each other about the inheritance, they went to the governor to judge between them.
On their way, they saw a funeral procession. Paul asked one of the mourners about the deceased man. He was told that he was one of the rich nobles of the city. Saint Paul realized that he was leaving all his riches behind but a single garment for his burial. He sighed in his heart and thought to himself,
"What do I have to do then with all the money of this temporal world which I shall leave naked?"
He looked to his brother and said to him, "My brother, let us return, for I shall not ask you for anything, not even for what is mine." On their way back, Paul left his brother and went on his way until he came out of the city.
Paul found a grave where he stayed for three days praying to the Lord Christ to guide him in what He would like him to do. God sent Saint Paul an angel who took him out of this place and walked with him until they reached the eastern inner wilderness. He stayed there for about 70 years, during which he saw no one. He put on a tunic made of palm tree fiber and the Lord sent him a raven every day with half a loaf of bread.
The Two Saints Meet
When the Lord wanted to reveal the holiness of Saint Paul and his righteousness, He sent His angel to Saint Anthony the Great, who thought that he was the first to dwell in the wilderness. The angel told Saint Anthony,
"There is a man who lives in the inner wilderness; the world is not worthy of his footsteps. By his prayers, the Lord brings rain and dew to fall on the earth, and brings the flood of the Nile in its due season."