The Life of Saint Anthony

Explore a life of unwavering faith, profound wisdom, and the enduring legacy of spiritual transformation, in Athanasius’s, The Life of Saint Anthony (author of On the Incarnation of the Word). Discover in early Christianity and its sacred literature the extraordinary journey of Saint Anthony, and the Father of Christian monasticism, in Athanasius’s 4th-century hagiography, The Life of Saint Anthony. Born wealthy in 251 AD, Anthony relinquished it all to embrace a life of desert solitude, marked by prayer, fasting, and spiritual warfare against relentless demons. His unwavering faith over seventy years led to profound visions and wisdom, making him a mentor to many, and a driving force in early Christian monasticism. Athanasius wrote his inspiring account of the saint to ignite a commitment to the monastic way of life. This timeless narrative from the early church fathers’ writings is considered as one of the greatest Christian history books and continues to inspire seekers of deeper spiritual connections, highlighting faith’s enduring power in Christian thought and practice. “If we would despise the enemy, our thoughts must always be of God and our souls always glad with hope.” ― Athanasius, The Life of Saint Anthony “Whoever hammers a lump of iron, first decides what he is going to make of it, a scythe, a sword, or an axe. Even so we ought to make up our minds what kind of virtue we want to forge, or we labor in vain.” ― Athanasius, The Life of Saint Anthony