Climbing the tree of life
Hyperichius said, “The tree of life is high, and humility climbs it.”
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Preference
A hermit said, “I would rather be defeated and humble than win and be proud.”
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Teaching or learning?
A hermit said, “I would learn rather than teach.” He also said, “Do not teach too early, or you will have less understanding during the rest of your life.”
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Ship of Salvation
Syncletica of blessed memory said, “A ship cannot be built without nails and no one can be saved without humility.”
– De Vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Water & Stone
…Poemen said… “The nature of water is soft, the nature of stone is hard; but if a bottle is hung above a stone letting water drip down, it wears away the stone. It is like that with the word of God; it is soft and our heart is hard, but if a man hears the word of God often, it will break open his heart to the fear of God.”
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Curing the faults of serious men
They said of a monk that the more bitterly anyone injured or assailed him, the more he was well disposed to that person, for he said, “People like this are a means to cure the faults of serious men. People who make them happy do their souls harm. For it is written, ‘They that call thee blessed, deceive thee'”
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V
Missing Prayer
A brother asked one of the hermits, “If I happen to oversleep, and am late for the hour of prayer, I am ashamed that others will hear me praying so late, and so I become reluctant to keep the rule of prayer.” He said, “If ever you oversleep in the morning, get up when you wake, shut the door and the windows, and say your psalms. For it is written, “The day is thine and the night is thine” (Ps 74:16). God is glorified whatever time it is.
– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V