brought the visitor to Abbâ Moses said unto him, “Behold, I brought thee to a man from a foreign land, and to an Egyptian, which of the two pleaseth thee?” And he answered and said unto him, “The Egyptian who hath just received me, and refreshed me.” And when one of the old men heard what had happened, he prayed to God, and said, “O Lord, shew me this matter; one fleeth from the world for Thy Name’s sake, and another receiveth and is gracious for Thy Name’s sake.” And behold, suddenly there appeared unto him on the river two great boats, and lo, Abbâ Arsenius and the Spirit of God were travelling in silence in the one, and Abbâ Moses and the angels of God were in the other, and they were feeding the monk with honey from the comb.
22. A certain brother asked Abbâ Poemen a question, saying, “If I see something done, dost thou wish me to tell it abroad?” The old man said unto him, “It is written, ‘Whosoever shall declare a matter incorrectly, it is a disgrace to him and [a subject for] mockery.’ And if thou art asked, speak; and if thou art not asked, hold thy peace.”
23. On one occasion there was an assembly in a great church, and all the old men were asked in a body, “What striving is the mightiest against the monks?” And they all agreed that there was none stronger than that which would make a man leave his cell and depart, for when this striving is overcome, all the rest can quite easily be brought low.
24. They say concerning Abbâ Âpôs, who afterwards became Bishop of Oxyrhyncus, that when he was a monk he laboured with great toil in the ascetic life, and that he was moved every hour by Divine Grace, but that after he became Bishop, though he wished to perform the same labours, he was not able to do so. And he cast himself before God, and made supplication unto Him, saying, “Peradventure, O my Lord, it is because of the Bishopric that Thou hast removed Thy grace from me,” and it was said unto him, “It is not so, but formerly thou wast in the desert, and there were no men there, and God took care of thee; here, however, thou art in a portion of the world which is inhabited, and men care for thee.”
25. A certain brother from the Cells soaked some palm leaves in water, and then sat down to weave ropes, and his mind said unto him, “Go and visit such and such a brother”; and he pondered on the matter, and said, “I will go after a few days.” And again his mind said unto him, “Supposing thou shouldst die, what wilt thou do? for thou wouldst not see thy brother”; and once again he satisfied his mind by saying, “I will go after such and such a time.” Now when the
