Tag: Solitude

Desert Fathers: Away from annoying people

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solitude

A brother was restless in his community and he was often irritated. So he said, “I will go and live somewhere by myself. I will not be able to talk or listen to anyone and so I shall be at peace, and my passionate anger will cease.” He went out and lived alone in a cave.

But one day he filled his jug with water and put it on the ground. Suddenly it happened to fall over. He filled it again, and again it fell. This happened a third time. In a rage he snatched up the jug and smashed it.

Coming to his senses, he knew that the demon of anger had mocked him, and he said, “Here am I by myself, and he has beaten me. I will return to the community. Where you live, you need effort and patience and above all God’s help.” So he got up, and went back.

– De vitis Patrum, Sive Verba Seniorum, Liber V

Wise Words on Wednesday: Silence & Solitude

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Sheen Preaching

“…there come moments, at night or when alone or in the silence of the country, where we cannot help but pass judgement on ourselves. But those whose consciences are no good avoid this by immersing themselves in externals. Hence the reluctance of such persons to be alone with themselves. They search for constant distractions, or something ‘to make one forget’, anything to keep the wound below the surface, and the memories from flying upward into consciousness” – Archbishop Fulton Sheen, “Guide to Contentment”, Page 53