Antony of Egypt

St Antony, Abbot (251 - 356)
St Antony is the originator of the monastic life. He was born in Egypt: when his parents died, he listened to the words of the Gospel and gave all his belongings to the poor. He went out into the wilderness to begin a life of penitence, living in absolute poverty, praying, meditating, and supporting himself by manual work. He suffered many temptations, both physical and spiritual, but he overcame them. Disciples gathered round him, attracted by his wisdom, moderation, and holiness. He gave support to the victims of the persecutions of Diocletian, and helping St Athanasius in his fight against the Arians. He lived to be over a hundred years old, and died in 356.The Gospels are full of wise sayings of Jesus that seem to be ignored, and one of the most poignant of these was in his meeting with that young man who asked over and over again, insistently, “What must I do to have eternal life?”. When, in the end, Jesus told him that if he wanted to be perfect he would have to sell all that he had and give the money to the poor, the young man went away, sorrowing; because he was very rich. What could be more of a waste than that? You tell someone what he has to do, and he is afraid to do it. And yet... 250 years later, St Antony hears the story, and does give away all that he has, and becomes the founder of monasticism. And then again, over 1,000 years later, St Francis of Assisi hears the story, and gives away his possessions (and some of his father’s) and revolutionises Christianity again.Not all the words that we speak are forgotten, even though we cannot see their effects ourselves. Let us pray that those unknown effects may always be good ones.

Monastery of St Anthony
Located at the foot of Al-Qalzam Mountain near Al Zaafarana, the Monastery of St Anthony was built in 356 AD, soon after the Saint's death, and is the oldest active monastery in the world.
Home to around 70 monks, today the monastery is a self-contained village with gardens, a mill, a bakery and five churches, including St Anthony's Church, where the Saint is buried. A visit to the latter gives access to recently-restored wall paintings of various periods and styles, the ancient library, holding thousands of handwritten manuscripts, and the saint's cave, containing more writings and drawings.As an added bonus, the views of the surrounding mountains, the Red Sea and the valley below are breathtaking.

St Martin on the hill, Scarborough
21 April - 03 May IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE HOLY FAMILY AND OTHER HOLY SITES AN EGYPTIAN PILGRIMAGE Another opportunity to visit sites associated with the exile of the Holy Family in Egypt and the monasteries of the Desert Fathers, and including a visit to Mt Sinai and St Catherine’s monastery. A 12 day inclusive tour, 5* hotels throughout. Departure date: 21st April 2007 Approximate cost: £875 Contact: Rev’d Richard Costin 01723 376141

Richard, a former head of a school in Egypt loves to share his knowledge of the church there by return visits such as this one.

In Scarborough we now have a direct link with orthodox priests from the monastery of St Anthony since they have bought and established a new community on the outskirts of our town.
Fr. Shishoy El Antony
Monastery: St. Athanius Monastery
Monastery Address: Langdale End, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, YO13 0LH, England
Monastery Tel: 01723882341
Web Site: http://www.bishopantony.org