"Be careful from all things; then, you will have time for God.  Die to all people; for, this is true exile.  Moreover, retain the virtue of not reckoning yourself as anything; thus, you will find your thought to be undisturbed.  In addition, do not consider yourself as having done anything good; thus, your reward will be kept whole.

Therefore, you should keep your tongue from idle talk, your stomach from pleasure, refrain from irritating your neighbor, stay modest, do not reckon yourself as anything, love everyone, and always have God in your intellect, remembering the time when you will appear before God's contenance.  Keep these things, and your soul will yield an hundredfolld in fruits for God, to whom be the glory to the ages.  Amen."  Barsanuphius in Letters 259 and 271

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After your morning prayers, while washing say:  "Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be clean:  Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow."  When dressing, think of the cleanliness of the heart, and ask the Lord for a pure heart:  "Create in me a clean heart, O God."  If you have bought or made new clothes and are putting them on, think of the renewal of the spirit and say:  "Renew a right spirit within me."  When you are about to leave the house to go to work or school or on a trip, think of the righteousness of spiritually walking before God; turn to face the Holy Icons in your house, bless yourself, and say:  "Direct my steps according to Thy word:  and let no iniquity have dominion over me."  (Psalm 118:133).  When you are about to take up your day's duties, you may say some or all of the Prayer of the Optina Elders:  "Grant unto me, my Lord, that with peace of mind I may face all that this new day is to bring.  Grant unto me Grace to surrender myself completely to Thy Holy Will.  For every hour of this day instruct and prepare me in all things.  Whatsoever tidings I may receive during the day, do Thou teach me to accept tranquilly, in the firm conviction that all eventualities fulfill Thy Holy Will.  Govern Thou my thoughts and feelings in all I do and say.  When unforseen things occur, let me not forget that all cometh from Thee.  Teach me to behave sincerely and reasonably toward every member of my family, that I may bring them no confusion or sorrow.  Bestow upon me, my Lord, strength to endure the fatigue of the day, and to bear my part in all its passing events.  Guide Thou my will and teach me to pray, to believe, to hope, to suffer, to forgive and to love.  Amen"

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"OH LORD, THOU ART MY GOD; I WILL EXALT THEE, I WILL PRAISE THY NAME; FOR THOU HAS DONE WONDERFUL THINGS; THY COUNSELS OF OLD ARE FAITHFULNESS AND TRUTH."  Isa. 25:1

TYPES OF PRAYER:

A.  INTERCEDING (Intercession)

1.  Salvation of our souls (Romans 10:1)  2.  Communication with God (John 6:44)   3  Understanding of the Scriptures (2 Cor. 4:4)  4  To open our eyes so that we can see the goal of Salvation (John 17:20) Eph. 1:16-20)  5  To intercede for others (Col. 1:9-13) 

B.  CONFESSIONAL (Matt. 5 & 6) (Romans 12:3) (Col. 3) (Eph. 4:29) (Daniel 9:4-6)

C.  DISCIPLINE 

D.  THANKSGIVING  1.  for needs met (Phil. 4:19)  2.  for strength (2 Chron. 16:9)  3.  for prayers heard (Ps. 4:3)  4. for Gifts of the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13)  5.  for eternal life (1John 5:11-12)

E.  PETITIONING             IF YOU ASK IN FAITH AND HAVE A PURE HEART 

F.  PRISE TO GOD    Chron. 29:12     Eph. 3:20-21    Isa. 6:3          2 Cor. 9:8      Psalms 34:8  Mic. 7:18     Romans 11:33 

G.  SUBMISSIONAL  "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.  Honor one another above yourselves . . . Live in harmony with one another.  Do not be proud."  (Romans 12:10,16)

LASTLY, private, personal requests for:  body (health, protection, strength and fitness) labor (good job, income, financial security), emotional (joy, peace, patience, self-control), social (for marriage, family, love and forgiveness) and spiritual (for salvation, spritual growth, grace and hope).

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AS I LOOK AT MY LIFE, WHAT IS POSSIBLE FOR ME IF I TRUST GOD?

HOW CAN I LEARN TO RECOGNIZE THE SIGNS GOD MAY SEND ME? 

HOW HAVE I CHANGED OR GROWN AS I TAKE MY JOURNEY OF FAITH?

What do others see in me?  Do they recognize the image and likeness of God?

How can I transform myself, my earthly canvas, into a heavenly image?

Is Christ really central to my whole life, in all I think, in all I say, in all I do?

Do I accept adversities of life according to God's will as our Blessed Mother did?  or do I want only answers according to my will? Do I remember to pray to the Theotokos, who as the mother of Jesus, will intercede for me for the salvation of my soul?

Through prayer and fasting, can I forgive the offenses of others, so that my sins may be forgiven?

How am I preparing for the Bridegroom's arrival?

What are the times in my life when I can remember repenting, confessing my sins and knowing that my burdens were lifted?

How can I increase my desire to follow in the path of Jesus?

Have I set aside time each day to pray a Psalm and reflect upon its meaning to my life?

Do I make good use of the opportunities for quiet time and listen to what God may be saying to me?

Am I where I would like to be in my journey toward Christ?  What concrete steps steps can I take to bring myself closer to where I should be on the road to salvation?

HAVE I PONDERED THAT BY CHRIST'S DEATH HE TRAMPLED DEATH  

HAS THE GLORIOUS LIGHT OF THE RESURRECTION TRANSFORMED MY FEAR OF DEATH TO HOPE IN GLORY?

Have I, in my prayers for departed ancestors, been thankful for the gift of faith they passed on through my family, and eventually, to me?

Is the Cross a source of healing, life and love?  What areas of my life do I need to bring before the Cross for healing/transformation during the Great Fast?  How do I embrace the "crosses" of my life? 

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". . . behold me sunk in sin, filled with despair by reason of my deeds, yet not rejected b y Thy love."

In my most sinful, darkest hours, have I remembered to fall at the feet of Jesus and seek His mercy?  When I have done this, has He not always generously forgiven and comforted my despairing soul?

Have I, in turn, sought to generously forgive others, even when they fail to seek my forgiveness?

As I draw closer to remembering the day of sublime mercy when Jesus died for us even though we were still in sin, have I forgiven those who have wronged me and sought forgiveness of those I have wronged?

Do we come to the Passover mystery with the humility to accept the gift that is offered - a gift beyond our power to comprehend?

Is God's love the greatest reality in our lives? 

How will our faith that we truly receive the Body and Blood of the Lord in Holy Communion change us? 

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--- "Those who still fear the war against the passions and dread the assaults of invisible enemies must keep silent; in their struggle for virtue they must not enter into dispues with their enemies but through prayer must entrust all anxiety about themselves to God. The Lord will fight for you, and you must be silent." (Ex. 14:14)

They are to flee to God through prayer, not only through prayer which is said with the mouth, but more rather through noetic prayer spoken in the heart with the inner word of the heart. This prayer means that they who are warred upon by demonic thoughts are to keep the inner and esoteric word of the heart silent from every other thought, in order for the inner word to repeat and say this short and so-called single-phrased prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ Son of God have mercy on me." And while the inner word below is repeating this prayer, the intellect is to bring down its noetic energy into the heart and noetically concentrate with all of its might on the words spoken by the inner word of prayer, without imagining anything noetic or sensible, just as all the divine Fathers, ancient and new, commonly teach. This noetic prayer is the only mighty, the only helpful, and the only victorious weapon in the noetic war of the thoughts, and this is necessarily so, for the war is noetic, and noetic weapons are required to be victorious. The Jesus Prayer treats all of the causes for bad thoughts. The inner word of the heart, always repeating and saying the prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ," ceases from being an organ of the evil spirits and from speaking some other obscene or blasphemous or evil words; and because the imagination, being the bridge of the demons by which they mingle with the soul, according to the divine Fathers, is purified from every passionate idol. " The warmth generated in the heart from the continual repetition of the sacred prayer chases away and scorches the assaults of evil thoughts like a fly, according to the great Gregory of Thessaloniki, and it scatters the passions of the intellectual aspect of the soul like clouds and smoke and causes it to become bright and radiant, it placates and calms the passions of the incensive aspect, it scatters the passions of the desirable aspect, and draws all of that loving power to itself and to the love of the one being repeated, Jesus Christ." Always repeating the very name of Jesus Christ in the heart flogs, wounds and drives away the demons from the heart. That is why the divine John of the Ladder said, "Flog your enemies with the name of Jesus." (Step 21) Gregory of Sinai says: "The memory is restored above all by constant mindfulness of God consolidated through prayer, for this spirituality elevates the memory from a natural to a supranatural state." Matthew 15:19 " . . . and where in the past out of the heart proceeded evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies . . . afterward come good thoughts, spiritual reflections, words of wisdom, judgments, analyses, and discernment. Therefore repeat continuously in your heart the name of Jesus Christ through the Jesus prayer because this noetic and uninterrupted prayer in the heart was not only given to ascetics and monks, but also to all Christians in the world. Therefore the Apostle Paul commands and says to those in the world to pray always: "Pray without ceasing." (1 Th. 5:17) because it is possible for us to pray continuously: when at work, when eating and drinking, when at home, when outside, when sitting, when walking.

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"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrightousness." (1 John 1:9)

Paul commands in 2 Timothy 2:25, "in meekness instruct those that oppose themselves."

"Reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge." (Pr. 19:25)

"Repentance is the second grace and is begotten in the heart by faith and fear." No other virtue can reconcile all of us who have sinned with God except repentance. Let us also cry out with David: "O come, let us worship and fall down before Him, and let us weep before the Lord Who made us. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand." (Ps. 94:6-7) Let us cry out with the three holy youths unto God: "We have sinfully and lawlessly departed from Thee, and have sinned in all things and have not obeyed Thy commandments; we have not observed them or done them, as Thou has commanded us that it might go well with us." (Song of the Three Youths verses 6-7) "Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?" (John 3:9) And let us not cease, night and day, to shout those compunctionate words which were taught "Whoever received heavenly baptism and then sinned, sinned in heaven. For he who sinned prior to baptism, sinned on earth." (Gen. 3:19), it was said to Adam. But, whoever through baptism put on Christ, is no longer earth, but heaven: "As is the earthly, such are they also that are heavenly" (1 Cor. 15:48). Let him therefore come forth and say: "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee." (Luke 15:18) Why? Because my heart which was sprinkled with the blood of Jesus and had blossomed like a rose, I have soiled by hedonistic pleasures of the flesh. I have infuriated Thee. I have grieved Thy Holy Spirit. I have smeared the resplendent garment of Faith through sin. I have subjugated my soul to the darkness of sin.

"Indeed, self-reproach on its own, when lying for a protracted time upon the soul's thoughts like some intellectual weight, crushes and presses and squeezes out the saving wine that gladdens the heart of man, that is to say, our inner self. This wine is compunction. Together with grief, compunction crushes the passions and, having freeded the _from the weight that oppresses it, fills it with blessed joy. That is the reason why Christ says: "Blessed are they that mourn, for for they shall be comforted." (Matt. 5:4) This interior sorrow of the soul brings about true repentance, as the Apostle said: "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of." (2 Cor. 7:10)

Mark says: work of repentance is evident:following three virtues: the withdrawal of thoughts, ceaseless prayer and the endurance of encountered afflictions. Let all involuntary suffering teach you to remember God, and you will not lack occasion for repentance. Consider the outcome of every involuntary affliction, and you will find it has been the destruction of sin." John of the Ladder says: "A sign of true repentance is the acknowledgment that we deserve all the afflictions, visible and invisible, that come upon us, and even greater one." (Step 5) Gregory of Palamas of Thessaloniki says: "If you regard yourself as deserving the more drastic remedy of repentance, you will be ready to bear any affliction and will accept any temptation as your due, and you will rejoice when it comes, for you will see it as a cleansing-agent for your soul."

We all cry out to God: "Lord have mercy," and "Master pardon our transgressions."

For those who pray for me to find stillness and silence feelng compunction upon my bed for what "..say what is in our heart. . ." (Ps.4:5) And Basil the Great said: "Do not make light of a fall even if it be the smallest of faults; rather, be quick to repair it by repentance for in repentance is salvation." (St. Basil: Ascetical Works), Imust remind you that "every daythat we do not repent and grieve over our sins, we must consider as lost, even if we did other good deeds that day"as John of the Ladder says in Step 5.

In conclusion, I say with St. Symeon the New Theologian that,"is necessary for all of us Christians to be healed of the passions and the wounds of sin, and then also to keep all of the commandments of the Lord and to perform every virtue. For if we die healthy and healed of the passions and sins through repentance, we will go to the kingdom of heaven."

Therefore let us always cry out to God those familiar supplications of the Church: "Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for Thy Name's sake," and: "Heavenly King, receive us in repentance and confession, as Thou art good and lovest mankind." Amen

"Those who desire to see Me shall pass through tribulation and despair." Epistle of Barnabas 7:2

"Do you understand what you are reading? How can I unless someone guides me?" (Acts 8:30-31)

The Christian Church is a Scriptural Church. The Bible is the supreme expression of God's revelation to the human race, and Christians must always be "People of the Book." The Bible is something that lives and is within the Church. It is from the Church that the Bible ultimately derives its authority, for it was the Church which originally decided which books form a part of Holy Scripture; and it is the Church which can interpret Holy Scripture with authority. There are many sayings in the Bible which by themselves are far from clear and individual readers are in danger of error if they trust their own personal interpretation. "When the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth." (1 John 16:13). It is this divine promise that forms the basis of the Orthodox devotion to Tradition. An Orthodox must see Tradition from within, he must enter into its inner spirit. Tradition is a life, a personal encounter with Christ in the Holy Spirit. Tradition is the life of the Holy Spirit in the Church. Tradition is the constant abiding of the Spirit; it is the principle of growth and regeneration. St. Basil said: "Some things we have from written teaching, others we have received from the Apostolic Tradition handed down to us in a mystery; and both these things have the same force for piety."

The Orthodox Church has the same New Testament as the rest of Christendom. As its authoritative text for the Old Testament, it uses the ancient Greek translation called the Septuagint. When this differs from the original Hebrew, Orthodox believe that the changes in the Septuagint were made under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Orthodoxy, while regarding the Church as the authoritative inerpreter of Scripture, does not forbid the critical and historical study of the Bible.

Holy Scripture is read constantly at Orthodox services: Old Testament readings occur at Vespers; the reading of the Gospel is included in Matins on Sundays; at the Liturgy a special Epistle and Gospel are assigned for each day of the year, so that the whole New Testament is read at the Eucharist (except the Revelation of St. John). The Lord's Prayer is read at every service. The Liturgy contains 98 quotations from the Old Testament and 114 from the New Testament.

Orthodoxy regards the Bible as a verbal icon of Christ. In every church the Gospel Book has a place of honor on the altar; it is carried in procession at the Liturgy; the faithful kiss it and prostrate themselves before it. Such is the respect shown in the Orthodox Church for the Word of God.

The Tradition of the Church is expressed not only through words, not only through the actions and gestures used in worship, but also through art--through the Holy Icons. An icon is one of the ways whereby God is revealed to us. Through icons the Orthodox Christian receives a vision of the spiritual world. Because the icon is a part of Tradition,

icon painters are not free to innovate as they please as their work must reflect the mind of the Church. Icon painters should be sincere Christians, living within the spirit of Tradition.

These are some of the primary elements which make up the Tradition of the Orthodox Church: Scripture, Liturgy, Icons. It is the Holy Spirit which speaks through them all, and together they make up a single whole, each part being understood in the light of the rest--Theology, mysticism, spirituality, moral rules, worship, art. Doctrine cannot be understood unless it is prayed. A theologian is one who knows how to pray, and he who prays in spirit and in truth is by that very act a theologian.

And doctrine must also be lived. The Creed belongs to those who live it. Faith and love, theology and life are inseparable. The Creed is introduced with the words, "Let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Trinity one in essence and undivided." This exactly expresses the Orthodox attitude to Tradition. If we do not love one another, we cannot love God; and if we do not love God, we cannot make a true confession of faith and cannot enter into the inner spirit of Tradition, for there is no other way of knowing God than to love Him.

"Guard the deposit." 1 Timothy 6:20

Teresa Duro, a sinner

The Lord said:  "Blessed are they that mourn."  (Matthew 5:4) and the Apostle says:  "Be joyful and cheerful."  (Romans 12:8) what should one do in order to appear to be both mournful and cheerful?  In addition, how can both of these, mournfulness and cheerfulness, exist in one and the same person?

Response:  "Mourning  is sorrow according to God, which gives rise to repentance. The characteristics of repejntance are fasting, psalmody, prayer and meditation on the words of God.  Cheerfulness is gladness according to God, whioch is revealed through modesty in word and conduct when people encounter one another.  Thereforel, let your heart have mourning,k which your conduct and words should have modest gladness; then, both virtues may coexist."  taken from Letters from the Desert by Barsanuphius and John: The Old Men of Gaza, St. Vladimir's Seminary Press

If the devil fools one into proudly thinking that one has done well, then everything that has been achieved is lost.  Therefore, as you do whatever you do, humbly say:  "Lord, forgive me. . ."  The Lord Jesus Christ will save you.  Amen. 

This is why a person should not have one's own will but in everything blame oneself, and then that person shall find the mercy of God."  (2 Cor. 4:8)

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The freedom to truly be followers of Jesus Christ, the unhindered discipleship that we seek, is constantly threatened by various temptations.  The image of St. Anthony being pulled in many directions at once by demons reminds us of the daily distractions that draw us away from prayer and faithful living.

St. Anthony the Great of Egypt (c. 251-356) became a larger-than-life hero in late antiquity.  He was only about eighteen or twenty years old when he inherited him family's wealth upon the death of his parents.  Several months later as he was thinking about how the first Christians in Jerusalem shared their possessions (Acts 4:32-35), he heard in church the reading of Jesus' instruction to the rich young man, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me."  (Matthew 19:21-22; Luke 18:22) "When he heard this, Anthony applied the Lord's commandment to himself and immediately went home and sold the possessions he owned," notes his biographer, Athanasius, the bishop of Alexandria.  Anthony became a humble and devoted disciple, learning self-restraint, cheerfulness, gentleness, prayer, diligence in reading and compassion from the more mature Christians around him."  Athanasius writes, such that "they called him God's friend." 

Precisely because Anthony continued to grow in goodness through loving others, Athanasius suggests, Satan decided to send subordinate demons to attack Anthony when he was 35 years old.  So, Anthony responded to Satan by singing a psalm:  "The Lord is my helper and I will exault over my enemies"  (Psalm 118:7)

Athanasius describes the later stages of the devil's temptation of Anthony as a physical attack by demons masquerading as wild animals of the desert.

Athanasius's account of vicious demonic assault reflects the early Christian interpretation of Psalm 91, where God defends the believer from a desert attack.  This is the psalm, by the way, that Satan mockingly sang to Christ in the desert (Matrthew 4:6; Luke 4:11)

About the conclusion of Anthony's trials it is reported that "Jesus did not fail to notice his servant's struggle but came to protect him."  The vicious assault ends when Anthony raises his eyes to see the light of the divine presence above him.  As might be expected, the weary Anthony asks his Lord:  "Where are you, good Jesus?  Where are you?  Why were you not here from the beginning to heral my wounds?"  Jesus saw Anthony's success in resisting the demonic temptations and that his faith was not weakened.

Like Anthony, we are not immune to life's temptations.  They are opportunities for faithful obedience and resistance to evil.  Through our struggle against them we participate in God's gift of spiritual freedom.  by Heidi J. Hornik and Robert B. Kruschwitz

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Paul's writing hints that our earthly bodies will be transformed into glorious bodies with characteristics like:  imperishable, glorious, powerful and spiritual.  We'll never again experiencer sin, sickness, pain, suffering, weakness, exhaustion or death.

What is Jesus doing now that He has ascended to heaven?  Scripture tells us that after offering Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, He sat downj at the right hand of the Father.  Besides that, He is also residing within every believer in the person of thge Holy Spirit, Whom He sent to be in us and with us (John 15:26, Romans 8:9-10).  Christ is actively working within you to shape your character and empower your obedience. 

Jesus lives to intercede for those who believe in Him (Hebrews 7:25).  John 2:1-2 says that Jesus is our Advocate when we sin.  Christ is preparing a place for us in heaven (John 14:1-3). 

We are Christ's body--His eyes, erars, voice, feet and hands--pointing others to Him.

Jesus--the Lamb of God--John 1:29--the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world.

Paul describes saints as "tose who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling." Sancify means to set apart from common use to a sacred use.  Throughout Scripture, the Lord has sanctified days, such as the Sabbath, places and things.  A saint is simply a person whom God has set apart for His purposes.

Peter 1:16 says, "You shall be holy for I am holy."   Santification, a three stage process by which He sets us apart for His purposes.

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The  Last Supper, which took place hours before the Lord's crucifixion--was a Seder (Passover observance.)  That Thusday night Jesus revealed the messianic significance of two symbols:  bread and wine.

In a Seder, a cloth bag with separate compartments holds three sheets of matzoh, or unleavened bread.  The middle matzoh is removed and split.  One half is broken and distributed; the other is wrapped in a napkin, hidden and brought back after it is found. 

Breaking the bread, Jesus said, "Take eat; this is My body" (Matt. 26:26).  In Scripture, leaven symbolizes sin, so bread without yeast represents holy God.  In the divided bag, matzohs are unified yet distinct--a picture of the Trinity.  The middle bread signifies the Son, who left His Father's side to dwell among us (Gal. 4:4) and was broken for mankind (Isa. 53:5), wrapped in a burial cloth (Matt. 27:59), hidden in a tomb and resurrected (28:6).  Our redemption was costly (1 Cor. 6:20).  

Wine, the other symbol Jesus highlighted, is poured four times at a Seder.  Scholars believe it is the third cup, known as the cup of redemption, that He called "My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins."  (Matt. 26:27-28) 

The next time you take Communion, remember He is our Passover  (1 Cor. 5:7)

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MONK PACHOMIOS THE GREAT was both an exemplar of wilderness dwelling and a founder of the monastic 'life-in-common" coenobitism in Egypt.  Born in the III Century in the Thebiad (Upper Egypt).  His parents were pagans.  When the Monk was 20, he was called up into the army of the emperor Constantine.  When the youth learned that local Christians came with supplies of food to feed the soldiers in order to act for the sake of their God, fulfilling His commandment about love for neighbor, Pacholios made a vow to become a Christian.  He accerpted Holy Baptism, resettled himself into the lonely settle-ment of Shenesit and began to lead a strict ascetic life.

One time, after 10 years of wilderness life, the Monk Pacholios was making his way through the desert, he heard a Voice ordering him to form a monastery at the ruins of the former village of Tabennis.  Believing this to be a Commandment from God, he began to build a small monastic hovel.  An Angel of God appeared to Saint Pacholios in the form of a schemamonk and entrusted to him an ustav-rule of monastic life. 

Gradually there began a gathering of followers to the Monk Pachomios who introduced a monastic rule of "life in-common," making everything the same for everyone in food and attire.  He considered that an obedience, filled with zeal, was higher than fasting or prayer, and he demanded from the monks an exact observance of the monastic rule, strictly chastising flaggards.

The number of monks at the monastery grew quickly, and it necessitated the building of 7 more monasteries in the vicinity.  Saint Pachomios remained a deeply humble monk who was always ready to comply with and accept the remarks of each brother.

The Lord granted the Monk Pachomios the gift of wonderworking and healing the sick.  The Lord revealed to him the ultimate fate of monasticism.  The monk learned that successiv e monks would not have such zeal in their efforts as did the first, and they would walk in the darkness of not having experienced guides. 

The Monk taught to avoid against judging others, and he himself feared to be judgemental of anyone even in thought.

The Monk Pachomios always taught the monks to have hope only upon the help and mercy of God.

The Monk Pachomios underwent many a temptation and assault frrom the enemy of the rtace of man, but he bravely warded off all the temptations by his prayer to God and endurance.

Towards the end of his life the Monk Pachomios likewise fell ill from a pestilence that afflicted the region.  The Monk died in about the year 348 at age 53, and he was buried on a hill near the monastery.

To the Monk Pachomios one time came his sisterr, Maria, who for a long tiome had wanted to see herr brother.  But the strict ascetic refused seeing her, and via the gate-keeper, he gave her the blessing to enter upon the path of monastic life, promising his help with this.  Maria wept, but did as her brother had ordered.  The Tabennis monks built her a hut on the opposite side of the River Nile.  And to Maria also there began to gether nuns, and soon there was formed a women's monastery with a strict monastic rule, provided by the Monk Pachomios.  ____________________________________________________________________