CrucisSt. Macarius of Egypt
St. Macarius of Egypt, also called Macarius the Great, was born around 300 and died around 391. After working as a young man as a smuggler of saltpeter, he withdrew into the desert of Scetis (the Wadi El Natrun) in Lower Egypt, where he became one of the founding figures of that great monastic settlement. He is said to have visited and been formed in the ways of the ascetic life by the example of St. Anthony the Great.
Ordained a priest to serve the growing community of hermits around him, he was renowned for his ascetic wisdom, his gift of miracles, and his profound humility and discernment, and many of his sayings are preserved among the teachings of the Desert Fathers. A collection of spiritual homilies on the life of prayer and the heart's transformation in the Holy Spirit has long been associated with his name and treasured in the Christian East. He is venerated as a saint and a master of the interior life.
Selected quotes
“Treat every person you meet as though Christ stood before you in disguise.”
“Carry no grudge to your bed, for the sun should not set on a heart that holds a wound.”
“In stillness the soul is purified, as still water grows clear when no one stirs the mud.”