Pseudo-Macarius: The Fifty Spiritual Homilies and the Great Letter

In his diary entry for July 30, 1736, John Wesley wrote: "I read Macarius and sang." One assumes he sang because he found in this ancient "Father" a message of life and light, an explanation of the gracious spiritual transformation available to us sinners through the workings of a gracious God. According to Macarius, "Whoever approaches God and truly desires to be a partner of Christ must approach with a view to this goal, namely to be changed and transformed from his former state and attitude and become a good and new person, harboring nothing of 'the old man' (2 Cor 7:17)" (p. 223; H.44). Unlike Wesley, however, few of us have the facility with Greek to read Macarius, so we're blessed to have a modern translation, Pseudo-Macarius: The Fifty Spiritual Homilies and the Great Letter, tr., ed. George A. Maloney, S.J. (New York: Paulist Press, c. 1992). Modern scholars have almost given up trying to decide who exactly "Macarius" was (several candidates by that name have been located) or precisely when he lived. So we just call him "pseudo-Macarius" and know he lived sometime around 400 A.D. Wesley's affinity for Macarius, becomes understandable when you discover the ancient saint's concern for the work of the Holy Spirit which imparts Grace and brings about entire sanctification, holiness of heart, in obedient believers. "Thus the soul is completely illumined," Macarius said, "with the unspeakable beauty of the glory of the light of the face of Christ and is perfectly made a participator of the Holy Spirit" (p. 38; H.1). Still more: "the souls who seek the sanctification of the Spirit, which is a thing that lies beyond natural power, are completely bound with their whole love to the Lord" (p. 52; H.4). Unlike many of the Western Fathers, who at times over-stressed the role of good works, Eastern Orthodox theologians such as Macarius singularly attributed sanctification to the Holy Spirit. Indeed, in his "Introduction," George Maloney writes: "Macarius is one of the first witnesses of what modern Christians would call the baptism in the Holy Spirit. He conceives this to be an ongoing process of surrendering to the indwelling guidance of the Holy Spirit to the degree that the individual cries out for the Spirit to heal the roots of sinfulness that lie deeply within the soul" (p. 19). The cleansing from sin, which comes about as one participates with the life of the Holy Spirit, Who enables one to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Being holy is not so much a matter of external performance as of inner attitude and commitment. "Perfection" is not flawless behavior but forthright surrender to God's perfect will. Surrender is our free response to God's gracious invitation and working. Macarius continually insists that we retain freedom of the will throughout the sanctifying process. "You can trust me," said Macarius, "that grace did not prevent the Apostles, who were brought to perfection by grace, f

"I read Macarius and sang, wrote John Wesley ... There are countless others, alike in Eastern and in Western Christianity, who have experienced a similar joy through reading Macarius. The Homilies are written with a Warmth of feeling, an affectivity and enthusiasm, that are instantly attractive. ... his is an enthusiasm rooted in the realism and austerity of the desert." Bp. K. Ware, Preface Author, Pseudo-Macarius: Macarius of Egypt (301-391) who inspired Wesley, assuming he was reading in the Spiritual Homilies, is one of the most revered of the desert fathers, described as 'bearer of the Spirit.' The publication of seven new homilies in 1918 of Macarii Anecdota, attributed to St. Macarius of Egypt in the Harvard Theological Studies has revived the interest in the authorship of the Macarian writings, and the mystery surrounding them. Pseudo-Macarius, according to some scholars, was a Messalian monk (condemned as heretical in 383). Recent notions support that the author of the Fifty Spiritual Homilies was a fifth-century Syrian monk 'whose conception of Christian spirituality was derived almost exclusively from Gregory of Nyssa.' He is one of the greatest of all the Eastern Church teachers in the quest for perfection. Although Gennadius recognizes a letter addressed to the novice monks, as the only writing of Macarius, there is no evidence to deny the authentic character of the fifty homilies ascribed to him, even if edited later by the Syriac Symeon the Logothete. While the seven so-called Opuscula ascetica edited under his name by Possinus in 1683, are later compilations from the homilies, made by the Syriac writer Symeon, who is probably identical with Metaphrastes (d. 950). Macarius likewise seems to have been the author of several minor writings, and a number of other letters and prayers including the Arrow Prayer (adopted by the Hesycasts as the Jesus Prayer). Those who read Macarius are instructed on the stages of divine ascent, holiness of the heart, progressive perfection, and the affective manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. Messalian movement: Greek historian Sozomen identifies the first Syrian monks as boskoi or "grazers," homeless people who ceaselessly praised God as they wandered the mountain regions, consuming neither bread nor meat nor wine. During this period the nebulous group of Messalians (Syriac: People Who Pray) were classified as heretics with specific doctrines attributed to them by church authorities and councils. This activity was the result of an ecclesiastical process of defining, and homogenizing different forms of Christian life, marginalizing any disturbing factions or competing sects. But since the alleged Messalian practices were rooted in the Gospels rather than a Messalian tradition, what was supposed to be uniquely Messalian could be found all over the Byzantine empire wherever Christian faithful turned to the Gospels for devotion on ascetical forms of monasticism and mysti

Its too bad at times that history can cross over its facts. Macarius is one of its victims, maybe a mix of two different persons from around 385-430 AD, one an Egyptian desert father & the other a Syrian monk, therefore the term 'Pseudo' is always used before this collection of writings. Because of this mix up, it is not know if this set of writings were condemned at the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD as a part of the heretical movement called `Messalians' which emphasized prayer rather than the sacraments, or if these writings are `Orthodox' & have greatly influenced eastern Christian spirituality, & later Pietism & Methodism.Within this spiritual masterpiece, Macarius writes about the `Brotherhood' with its duties & instructions of living, a sort of monastic manual. Then the writings focus of the primary need to follow Jesus Christ, under the control of the Holy Spirit, while grazing directly at God the Father by direct experience. This is done chiefly by prayer with 12 steps of progression to perfection that causes a 'Sober Intoxication' that affects first the single person, than the community at large.Paulist Press does another fine job creating an easy to read, well-made paperback that can fit nicely with the other books from the fantastic series `Classics of Western Spirituality'. Highly recommend.