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COPTIC PALLADIANA III: THE LIFE OF MACARIUS OF EGYPT 93ed], 50 for truly he was in the habit of stealing money that was given to himto distribute to the poor. This then was the prophecy of Saint AbbaMacarius, for he saw what would happen before it happened.His Way of Life and Virtues and Ascetic Practices (LH 17.5)4. With regard to his way of life, we will report it just as we heard. Thefirst of his virtues was that he lived alone in the desert at all times. TheEgyptians, to be sure, take great pride in this ability, along with manuallabor, which for them is a thing of beauty, and along with poor quality foodeaten in poverty and keeping vigil where you live while working with yourhands. But it is unnecessary to speak further about this old man’s food anddrink, for truly even those who neglect their ascetic practice do not find sufficientbread and water in the desert of Scetis, 51 either because of the povertywhere they live or on account of zeal that leads each of them to asceticism.52 Truly that desert leads each person into feats of asceticism, whetherhe wants to or not. And concerning the great asceticism of the old man,they say about him that in everything that he undertook he turned histhoughts to union with God in everything he did so that when he prayed histhoughts would often fly to the heights and he would speak with God whileabiding in the vision of heaven. And everyone was amazed at all the gracesthat God gave to him, and in all these things no one was able to surpass himin all the virtues or be greater than he. 53 God did 54 great miracles throughthis Abba Macarius the Egyptian, healings of those who were sick, all ofwhich I will recount together, for he used to cast out numerous demons. 55Abba Macarius Saves a Woman Changed into a Mare (LH 17.6-9) 565. An Egyptian fell in love with a free woman who was married. 57 Hehad a word with her but she did not listen to him. When he saw that shewould not give herself to him, he went to a magician’s place and made thisrequest, saying, “I’m in love with a woman but she won’t give herself to me.50 This phrase, supplied from Gk, seems required for the sense, and may have been omitted accidentally.51 Do not find sufficient bread and water in the desert of Scetis: Gk one cannot find gluttony or indifference.52 See Life of Antony 7.6-7. See also Philo, De vita contemplativa 34-35, reproduced by Eusebius, EH2.17.16-17 [BV].53 See Life of Macarius of Scetis 38.54 Literally: created.55 And concerning . . . demons: Gk And now I will speak of the rest of his asceticism, for he was saidto be in continual ecstasy. He occupied himself much more with God than with earthly things, andthese are the wonders told of him:56 For a condensed version of this story with considerable differences, see HM 21.17 (Russell, trans.,110 and 151). See also the Short Recension below.57 Gk + “of good position.” In both the Greek (21.17) and Latin versions of this story, attributed toMacarius the Great, the girl is not married but is a consecrated virgin and her parents, not her husband,take her to Abba Macarius.
94 Fall 2000 • Coptic Church Review - Volume 21, Number 3Either force her to love me or stir up enmity between her and her husbandso he will repudiate her and I can take her as my wife.”When the magician had received a great deal of money from theEgyptian, he worked his wicked sorcerer’s craft and cast a spell 58 overhuman eyes that caused them to see her as a mare. 59 (It is not possible for aperson to change God’s creatures; only God can do so: he who createdthem is the one who has the power to change the nature of his creatures ashe wishes.) 60 Her husband spent many days with his clothes torn, mourningfor his wife, seeing her as a mare, and she spent many days without eatinganything. If he gave her a bunch of hay, she would not eat it; if he gave herbread, she would not eat it. Her husband was amazed, saying, “How hasmy wife, who is lying in my bed, become a mare?” He would speak to her,weeping, but she gave him no reply.He went and implored the priests of the Church, saying, “Come to myhouse and see the suffering that afflicts me.” When they entered his housethey saw her but did not understand what was taking place. When she cameto her third day of not eating (she had eaten neither bread nor hay for twodays), he said, “If I let her go on like this, she will die from starvation. Iwill rise and take her to the house of Abba Macarius, the man of God so hewill see her and know what is going on.” 61 This happened so that the powerof God that resided with Abba Macarius the Great might be manifested.Her husband got up and put a bridle on her like a mare and led her tothe desert and brought her to Abba Macarius’. When he arrived at theplace, the brothers gathered together outside the church of AbbaMacarius. 62 The brothers quarreled with the man, saying, “Why have youdared to bring this female mare 63 up here to this monastic community? Youhave committed a very great sin. Why then have you brought this femalemare here with you?”He said to them, “I have brought her to the saint so pity might be takenon her.”They said to him, “What’s wrong with her?”He said to them, “This is my wife and I do not know how she became amare. Look, she hasn’t eaten for three days.”58 Literally: darkness.59 Gk simply says that he “caused her to assume the shape of a brood mare.” See the next sentence.60 This theological reflection is put in the mouth of Abba Macarius below.61 Gk: At last, so that God might be praised and the virtue of the holy Macarius be made manifest, itentered into the mind of the husband to lead her out into the desert.62 Gk: by the cell of Abba Macarius. BV suggest, 107 n. 18, that perhaps the Coptic editor misread“church” (ekklêsia) for “cell” (kellês), although the short recension (below) also reads “church.”63 BV point out, 107 n. 19, that this redundancy (omitted by Chaîne in his translation) emphasizes thatfemale animals were not allowed in the community, the same situation that exists today (with theexception of hens) on Mt. Athos. See Life of Macarius of Scetis 32 for a similar situation. In Coptic,“female,” shimi, is the same word as “wife.”
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