The Roman Empire
It is important to note the state Egypt was in that caused such individuals, as Pachomius, to leave the city and start something different. Egypt had been under Roman domination and Christians, throughout the third and the beginning of the fourth century, were persecuted for their religious practice. Rome in 300 CE brought forth Diocletian’s government reconstruction where he introduced four emperors, rather than one, in hopes this would assist with ensuring “an orderly process of succession” and hoping “that this would aver the frequent civil wars that racked the empire over the question of succession”. Many Christians were involved in the military at this time, Pachomius being an example. Problems and questions arose with Christian’s involvement in the military and the authorities were not confident they could entrust the service of all Christians due to their conflicting values and beliefs. Diocletian was thus convinced all Christians should be removed from the military, which moved to even larger edict three years later removing all Christians from the empire’s government roles. This decision quickly turned into the involvement of destroying and burning of all Christian buildings and literature. Consequently two fires broke out in the imperial palace and the Christians were blamed sparking great persecution in form of torture and execution.
In time, Constantine became the sole emperor and turned the empire’s main religion to Christianity. This sudden, unexpected switch brought much tension to the lives of the Christian population who were perplexed with how to respond. Christianity had now merged with the empire and therefore with the violence that had been utilized years previously to destroy their very own Christian families. Empire stood in stark contrast to Jesus for many Christians and they believed Jesus was the culmination of the revelation of God in that he was nonviolent. Others believed that the kingdom of God had come to its final fruition through the life of Constantine. With this turmoil some Christians stayed in the city and entertained the newly possessed freedom while others left to lead a life that they believed held true to Jesus’s example. Monasticism was one of the many responses and was a protest against Constantine and the empire. Many left and according to writers such as Jerome and Athanasius, the first to leave were the likes of Anthony and Paul. Important to note however is that “monasticism was not the invention of an individual but rather a mass exodus, a contagion, which seems to have suddenly affected thousands of people”.
The Vocation of Pachomius
Upon baptism in the year 314, Pachomius began to practice a life dedicated to the ascetic way. His ascetic lifestyle was characterized by “ from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and goals.” The practices, in and of themselves, were not considered virtuous practices a tool in the pursuit of a transformation of the mind and body. After three years under the guidance of Palamon, an anchorite, Pachomius withdrew to the desert. Pachomius knew of individuals who took part in the ascetic life, through solitary monasticism, such as the infamous Anthony who had left for the desert even before Constantine took power. After many years spent living a life of seclusion in the desert Pachomius heard a voice commanding him to leave and found a monastic community at Tabbenisi. The voice told him “The will of God is to put oneself at the service of humanity in order to call them to himself”. This revelation was significant not only because the ascetic life only had been lived out alone as hermits but this calling, placed on the life of Pachomius, would leave its mark on the future development of Christianity.
Pachomius was awoken by a revelation from God that his vocation was to serve humankind not to live alone. Following his revelation, Pachomius and Palamon moved with his brother, John, and his sister, Mary. Pachomius moved to serve people; he started in villages because it was the villages that were devastated by Constantine. Most everyone had left for the city trying to find jobs leaving the widows and orphans behind to fend for themselves in the villages. So Pachomius spent his life developing these villages by the Nile River. These villages were self-sustaining and independent of the city. This community transformed Christianity by providing a life that stood in juxtaposition with that of the empire. With Pachomius, Christianity broke away from the city and went into the rural while continuing to emphasize a focus on prayer and the word of God. Up until this point in history, Christianity had permeated cities but never, in a large scale, had the transfer of these beliefs been brought to the rural areas. Also, Pachomius’s monastery was organized in ways that would forever impact Christianity. The Cenobitism, or communal life, of Pachomius from the beginning was known for having quite remarkable laws and structures that even had effects and influence in the church because of its legislative system. Pachomius’s first monastery failed due to lack of organization, member selection and member dedication, however, this only encouraged Pachomius to form another monastery. Through this failure of his first monastery he learned that a monastery must hold everything in common. It was from this moment on he reorganized the monastery and asked those who came to him to “renounce their families and their possessions to follow the Saviour. He proposed as the way to God: that they lead the common life and establish a Koinônia, a community.” The community model Pachomius developed eventually was, ironically, adopted by the city became the official roman building model for the church. This spread to the British as well.
A Different Way
Pachomius’s cenobitic community of love and service stood tall in contrast to the destructive empire Constantine’s visions had created. Constantine built a city for himself while Pachomius built a village community. Rome wholly believed that the state has the right to govern while the Pachomian community believed that God did. Constantine merged Christianity with the empire, which produced a heavy disparity between the rich and the poor while Pachomius refuted to collude with the empire and its acts of injustice. Constantine continued to strengthen the bishop’s authority in his collision of church and state while Pachomius strengthened the authority of the Abbotts, the successors, who oversaw the activity of the community. Constantine drew people into the city with false promises of life and opportunity while Pachomius brought people out of the city and it’s destructive patterns to a life of service and love. Constantine raped the resources of the villages while Pachomius ensured the community could live in a manner that was self-sustaining. The powerful, elite Constantinian community forced conversion through the sword whereas the Pachomian community attracted those poor, outcast, pagan and sick individuals in by choice. These differences marked a community that desired to be a people different, a people set apart from the continual injustice of an empire that neglected the marginalized and poor.
Pachomius died at the age of 54 but even in his pre-mature death he had founded twelve monasteries with a total of roughly 7,000 monks. Pachomius stayed true to his convictions as he refused to let priests join or receive ordination from Athanasius himself, yet interesting enough “many of the candidates who appeared at the gates and were eventually admitted had to be catechized and baptized, for they were not Christians”. This speaks towards the subversive nature of what Pachomius had created and the desire of many, not just Christians, for a change from the destructive ways of empire. As time continued it was bishops and scholars who most contributed to the spread of monasticism due to the ideals held by these communities. The structures and the hierarchical system implemented by Pachomius was utilized in other realms due to its success. “Egyptian monasticism had existed apart and even in opposition to the hierarchy, eventually its greatest impact was made through some of the members of that hierarchy”.
Conclusion
History changed when Pachomius listened to the revelation he received from God and organized the beginnings of cenobitic monasticism. Christianity had merged with the empire and many Christians knew that Jesus stood in opposition to the injustices created by the lives of the powerful that controlled the very systems of empire. Pachomius re-developed the ideas of solitary monasticism and formed cenobitic monasticism by understanding that we are called to serve humanity and not to be alone. To Pachomius, no longer was purpose found in opulent architecture and ornate buildings but in the promise that in serving others he was serving God and in loving others he was loving God. Pachomius offered an alternative to the destructive patterns of history by no longer looking towards the city to find God and life abundant but by serving and loving fellow man.
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