St. Apollo

St. Apollo was an Egyptian monk of the fourth century who, according to the ancient accounts of the desert fathers, withdrew into the wilderness of the Thebaid in Upper Egypt as a young man and spent some forty years as a hermit in prayer, fasting, and severe penance before God called him to a wider work.

In his later years, about the age of eighty, he gathered and governed a large monastic community in the Thebaid, said to have numbered many hundreds of monks. His community was celebrated among the visitors who recorded the lives of the desert monks for its spirit of joy, gentleness, and charity: Apollo taught that the servants of God should not be gloomy or downcast, since they, of all people, have the surest cause for gladness in the hope of salvation, and his monks were known for their cheerful countenances and mutual love. Renowned for wisdom, miracles, and the discernment of spirits, he died toward the end of the fourth century and is venerated as a saint.