The virtue of silence, source of dispassion

In a world where communication is considered a virtue in itself, silence cannot be seen as anything other than a defect or, at best, a weakness. But silence is often mentioned both in Holy Scripture and in patristic writings as an important aid in reaching the heights of spiritual life. An example in this sense is also found in Saint Arsenius the Great.

Saint Arsenius the Great’s call to monastic life occurred when he was serving as a pedagogue to Arcadius and Honorius, sons of Emperor Theodosius the Great. The Egyptian Pateric tells us from the first apophthegm: “Abba Arsenius, while still in the royal palaces (s.n.), prayed to God, saying: ‘Lord, guide me, so that I may know how to be saved.’ And a voice came to him saying: ‘Arsenius, flee from men and you will be saved’” (Arsenius, 1, in: Patericul egiptean, Alba-Iulia, Ed. Reîntregirea, 2003, p. 12). This flight from men will become a leitmotif of the later life of the famous ascetic and spiritual father who was Saint Arsenius the Great. Implicitly, an existence separated from most people also presupposes the preservation of a deep silence and, as can be seen from the following apophthegm, silence is also the true mother of tranquility and co-creator with it of dispassion: “He, after he went to the hermit’s life, prayed again, saying the same word. And he heard a voice saying to him: ‘Arsenius, flee, be silent, be still; for these are the roots of sinlessness’” (Arsenius, 2, in: The Egyptian Pateric, p. 12). These words received from God Himself will be meticulously preserved by Saint Arsenius the Great, sometimes reaching situations that can shock us, those who are accustomed to much talk and unlimited “communication”. Thus, even in the case of visits from high-ranking persons, such as the Archbishop of Alexandria, Saint Arsenius the Great would either refuse dialogue from the start, or would ask that any communication with him be avoided in the future when he was forced to discuss. “Once, the Archbishop, wanting to go to Abba Arsenius again, first sent to know if he would open the door for him. And the elder sent him this answer, saying: ‘If you come, I will open it for you; and if I open it for you, I will open it for everyone; and then I will no longer stay here.’ Hearing this, the Archbishop said: ‘If I go to drive him out, then I will not go there anymore’” (Arsenius, 8, in: Egyptian Patericon, p. 13). Also, in another place we find an old Greek maxim of Sextus, fully assumed by Saint Arsenius and since then erroneously attributed directly to him: “And this was the word of the elder: ‘Arsenius, why did you leave the world? I have often repented of having spoken, and of having been silent, never (s.n.)’” (Arsenius, 40, in: The Egyptian Patericon, pp. 22-23).

For Saint Arsenius, the importance of silence for his hesychast life, for his unceasing prayer dedicated to God, was an undeniable fact, but for no moment should we consider that his silence stemmed from misanthropy, a disregard for his neighbor. This fact also emerges from the following account: “Abba Mark said to Abba Arsenius: ‘Why are you fleeing from us?’” The elder said to him: “God knows that I love you, but I cannot be with people and with God. The things above, thousands and tens of thousands, have only one will, and people have many wills. Therefore, I cannot leave God and come with people” (Arsenius, 13, in: The Egyptian Patericon, p. 15). This spiritual word combines silence and hesychia, submission to the will of God with overcoming the often perverted will of people.

Pr. Adrian Agachi