Category: The Life of Antony
Let’s discuss Athanasius of Alexandria!
St. Athanasius of Alexandria.
Athanasius of Alexandria is one of the most influential figures in Christianity. He was the Bishop of Alexandria, a city that was second to Rome alone in authority. As a young man he was present as the Council of Nicaea as an advisor to Alexander of Alexandria. It seems he became a Bishop at quite a young age since some accused him of not being thirty years old when he took the post as that was the minimum age one could become a Bishop. By that time he had already written the works known as On the Incarnation and Against the Heathen (which may have been a single work at first). These books remain standard reading for those interested in the development of Christian theology, especially Trinitarianism.
Athanasius was one of the earliest Bishops to hold such an office in the post-Constantine era. This is a time when Emperors and statesmen influenced the church unlike in years past. Athanasius remained consistent in his affirmations no matter who was in authority and no matter what their current position. This led to five different exiles from Alexandria! During some of those exiles he spent time in the desert with the monastics where he met the famous St. Anthony about whom he would write a popular hagiography.
“Athanasius Contra Mundum” is popular phrase that explains the dogmatic theologians quite well. It didn’t matter who was for him or against him, if needed he would stand “against the world” if he thought something was heretical. Although the Council of Nicaea seemed to have settled the question of the deity of Christ the influence of the Arian views continued to influence and push against the Council’s ruling. At one point it seemed (as St. Jerome would put it), “The whole world groaned and was amazed to find itself Arian.”
Athanasius may be one of the most important figures between the Council of Nicaea and the Council of Constantinople which many see as affirming and solidifying the decisions of the first council. He stood strong for Nicene Christology against Arianism affirming the full deity of the Son. Also, while Basil the Great is given most of the credit for the church coming around to calling the Spirit “God” one could argue that Athanasius’ Letters to Serapion on the Holy Spirit contain as much force as Basil’s work. I wrote a paper on this subject which you can find here.
These are my brief thoughts on Athanasius of Alexandria, let me know what else you find worth discussing about Athanasius.
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If you’d like to discuss Origen of Alexandria and Irenaeus of Lyons go here.
Demons Should Not Be Feared
For those who fear demons and who think that Satan has any power against the Christian you may find the words of Athanasius that he attributed to Antony, the great ascetic monk, edifying. He wrote:
To end our fear of them, we ought to ponder this: If the capability were theirs, they would not come in great mobs, nor create phantasms, nor would they work their fraud by being transfigured. It would suffice for only one to come and do what he can and wills–especially because everyone who actually possesses the power does not destroy with apparitions, nor arouse fear with large mobs, but exercises his might directly, as he wishes. The demons, however, unable to effect anything, play parts as if they were on stage, changing their forms and striking fear in children by illusion or the hordes and their shapes. For these antics they deserve instead to be ridiculed as weaklings. The true angel of the Lord, at least, who was sent by the Lord to the Assyrians, had no need of hordes, nor of visible apparitions, nor of crashing sounds and rattling noises. He weilded his authority quietly, and at once destroyed a hundred and eighty-five thousand foers. But the demons, who lack the power to do anything, these are the sort who must try to frighten, even if through illusions. [1]
The words of Antony tell us this. Those who fear the demonic do so wrongly. Demons can only scare, manipulate, and deceive. Demons cannot destroy and demons do not have power like we see in the movies (e.g. Constantine). Rather, if demons had any powers there would be no need for spooky antics, but like the angel of the Lord who destoryed the enemies of Israel quickly and quietly, we would all be devistated. Since no such thing happens demons can only threaten, but not act. Christ has conquered the demonic.
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[1] Athanasius, The Life of Antony, trans. Robert C. Gregg. New York, NY: Paulist Press, 1980.
