The Temptations of St. Anthony
He had overmany temptations of the devil. Then on a time when he had overcome the spirit of fornication which tempted him therein by the virtue of his faith, the devil came to him in the form of a little child all black, and fell down at his feet and confessed that he was the devil of fornication, which St. Anthony had desired and prayed to see him, for to know him that so tempted young people. Then said St. Anthony: Sith I have perceived that thou art so foul a thing I shall never doubt fear thee.The Devils in the Cave
After, he went into a hole or cave to hide him, and anon at once he found there a great multitude of devils, that so much beat him that his servant bare him upon his shoulders in to his house as as if he had been dead. When the other hermits were assembled and wept his death, and would have done his service, suddenly St. Anthony revived and made his servant to bear him into the pit again where the devils had so evil beaten him, and began to summon the devils again, which had beaten him, to battles.And anon they came in form of divers beasts wild and savage, of whom that one howled, another siffled, whistled and another cried, and another brayed and assailed St. Anthony, that one with the horns, the others with their teeth, and the others with their paws and ongles, fingernails and disturned, ruined and all to-rent tore up his body that he supposed well to die.
Then came a clear brightness, and all the beasts fled away, and St. Anthony understood that in this great light our Lord came, and he said twice: Who art thou?
The good Jesu answered: I am here, Anthony.
Then said St. Anthony: O good Jesu! where hast thou been so long? why wert thou not here with me at the beginning to help me and to heal my wounds?
Then our Lord said: I was here but I would see and abide to see thy battle, and because thou hast manly fought and well maintained thy battle, I shall make thy name to be spread through all the world.
St. Anthony's Desire for Martyrdom
St. Anthony was of so great fervour and burning love to God, that when Maximus, the emperor, slew and martyred Christian men, he followed the martyrs that he might be a martyr with them and deserve it, and was sorry that martyrdom was not given to him.The Platter of Silver
After this, as St. Anthony went in desert he found a platter of silver in his way; then he thought whence this platter should come, seeing it was in no way for any man to pass, and also if it had fallen from any man he should have heard it sound in the falling. Then said he well that the devil had laid it there for to tempt him, and said: Ha! devil, thou weenest expect to tempt me and deceive me, but it shall not be in thy power. Then the platter vanished away as a little smoke.The Mass of Gold
And in likewise it happed him of he chanced upon a mass of gold that he found in this way, which the devil had cast for to deceive him, which he took and cast it into the fire and anon it vanished away.The World Full of Snares
After, it happed that St. Anthony on a time was in prayer, and saw in a vision all the world full of snares and gins. tricks, machinations Then cried St. Anthony and said: O good Lord, who may escape from these snares? And a voice said to him: Very true humility shall escape them without more. all by itselfThe Devils Accuse Him
When St. Anthony on a time once was left lifted up in the air, the devils came against him and laid to him all the evils that he had done from his childhood, tofore the angels. Then said the angels: Thou oughtest not to tell the evils that have been defeated, but say if thou know any evil sith he was made a monk, then the devils contrived many evils, and when they might not prove them, the angels bare him higher than tofore, and after set him again in his place.The Man Who Vaunted Himself
St. Anthony recordeth of himself that he had seen a man so great and so high that he vaunted boasted about himself to be the virtue and the providence of God, and said to me: Demand of me what thou wilt and I shall give it to thee. And I spit in the midst of his visage, and anon I armed me with the sign of the cross, and ran upon him, and anon he vanished away.The Devil Destroyed and Come to Naught
And after this the devil appeared to him in so great a stature that he touched the heaven, and when St. Anthony had demanded asked him what he was, he answered: I am the devil and demand thee why these monks and these cursed Christian men do me thus much shame?St. Anthony said: They do it by good right, for thou dost to them the worst thou canst.
And the devil answered: I do to them none harm; but unless they trouble each other, I am destroyed and come to naught because that Jesu Christ reigneth over all.
Sayings of St. Anthony
The Young Man with the Bow
A young man passed by St. Anthony and his bow in his hand, and beheld how St. Anthony played with his fellows, and was evil apaid. displeased Then St. Anthony said to him that he should bend his bow, and so he did, and shot two or three shots tofore him, and anon he unbent his bow. Then demanded him St. Anthony why he held not his bow bent. And he answered that it should then be over weak and feeble; then said to him St. Anthony: In likewise play the monks, for to be after more strong to serve God.How to Please God
A man demanded asked of St. Anthony what he might do to please God, and he answered: Over all where thou shalt be or shalt go, have God tofore thine eyes, and the holy scripture, and hold thee in one place all still, and walk not ne nor royle wander not about in the country, do these three things and thou shalt be safe.Like a Fish Out of Water
An abbot came to St. Anthony for to be counselled of him what he might do for to be saved. St. Anthony answered to him: Have none affiance no trust, no confidence in the good that thou hast done, ne nor that thou hast kept thy belly and thy tongue well soberly, and repent thee not of penance that thou hast done I say, for like as fishes that have been long in the water when they come in to dry land they must die, in like wise the monks that go out of their cloister or cells, if they converse long with seculars they must needs lose their holiness and leave their good life. It behoveth the monks that they be solitary, and that they have three battles, that is of hearing, of speaking, and of seeing, and if they have but one of these battles, that is of the heart, yet they have overmuch.Mouths Overmuch Open to Speak
Some hermits came to St. Anthony for to visit him, and their abbot was with them; then said St. Anthony to the hermits: Ye have a good wise man with you, and after he said to the abbot: Thou hast founden good brethren.Then answered the abbot: Truly I have good brethren, but there is no door on their house, each body may enter that will, and go into the stable and unbind the ass of within. And this said he because that the brethren had overmuch their mouths open to speak, for anon as they have thought on a thing is it come to the mouth.
Then St. Anthony said: Ye ought to know that there be three bodily movings, that one is of nature, another of overmuch plenty of meats, and the third of the devil.
The Hermit Who Kept Things for Himself
There was an hermit that had renounced the world, but not perfectly, for he had somewhat proper private to himself, whom St. Anthony sent to the market to buy flesh, and as he was coming and brought the flesh, the dogs assailed him, and all totare tore at him grievously him, and took the flesh from him; and when he came to St. Anthony he told him what was happed to him; and then said St. Anthony to him: Thus as the hounds have done to thee, so do the devils to monks that keep money and have some proper to themselves.Labour and Pray
On a time as St. Anthony was in the wilderness in his prayer and was weary, he said to our Lord, Lord, I have great desire to be saved, but my thoughts let hinder me. Then appeared an angel to him and said: Do as I do, and thou shalt be safe, and he went out and saw him one while period of time labour and another while pray, do thus and thou shalt be saved.The State of Souls Departed from the Body
On a time when the brethren hermits were assembled tofore St. Anthony, they demanded of him of the state of souls when they be departed from the body, and the next night after a voice called St. Anthony and said: Arise, and go out and see up on high.When St. Anthony beheld upward on high he saw one someone long tall and terrible, whose head touched the clouds, which kept people having wings that would have fled to heaven, and this great man retained and caught some, and others he might not retain ne let hinder for they flew forth up. Then he heard a noise full of joy, and another full of sorrow, and he understood that this was the devil that retained some souls that went not to heaven, and the other he might not hold ne retain, wherefore he made sorrow, and for the other he made joy, and so he heard the sorrow and the joy meddled together.
A Vision Foretells the Arian Heresy
It happed on a time that St. Anthony laboured with his brethren the hermits, and he saw a vision much sorrowful, and therefore he kneeled down on his knees and prayed our Lord that he would empesh prevent the great sorrow that was to come. Then the other hermits demanded what thing it was, and he said that it was a great sorrow, for "I have seen of great plenty of beasts which environed me, which feared frightened all the country, and I wot know well that this is to say that there shall come a great trouble of men like unto beasts, that shall defoul the sacraments of holy church."Then came a voice from heaven to St. Anthony that said "that great abomination shall come to mine altar."
And anon after, the heresy of Arius began, and much troubled holy church, and did many evils. They beat monks and other all naked tofore the people, and slew Christian men like sheep upon the altars, and in especial one Balachyn did great persecution. To whom St. Anthony wrote a letter which said: I see the ire and mal talent ill disposition of our Lord coming upon thee if thou suffer not the Christians to live in peace. Then I command thee that thou do to them no more villainy or thou shalt have a mischance hastily.
The unhappy man received this letter and began to mock St. Anthony, and spit on it, and beat well him that brought the letter, and sent again back to St. Anthony these words: If thou hast so great charge of thy monks come to me and I shall give to thee my discipline.
But it happed that the fifteenth day after he mounted upon a horse over debonair, quite gently and nevertheless when the horse felt him upon him he bit him on the legs and thighs that he died on the third day.
The Hermits Incapable of Patience
It happed another time that the hermits were come to St. Anthony and demanded of him a collation. Then said St. Anthony: Do ye this that Do you do what is written in the gospel, if one give to the other a stroke on that one cheek show him that other?And they made answer: We may not do so.
Then said he: Suffer ye it once debonairly. meekly
They answered: We may not.
Then said St. Anthony to his servant: Give them to drink good wine, for these monks be over delicious. too sensuous Fair brethren, put yourselves to prayer, for ye have much great need.
At the last St. Anthony assembled the hermits and gave to them the peace, and died and departed out of this world holily when he was of the age of an hundred and five years. Pray we to him that he pray for us.
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St. Anthony's attributes are a pig, a bell, and a tau-topped staff, as in this frontispiece from Raynaud's In Symbolicam S. Antonii magni Imaginem commentatio.
VORAGINE'S ETYMOLOGY FOR THE NAME ANTHONY
Anthony is said of Ana, which is as much to say as high, and tenens that is holding, which is as much as to say as holding high things and despising the world. He despised the world and said: It is deceiving, transitory and bitter, and Athanasius wrote his life.
This text was taken from the Internet Medieval Source Book. E-text © by Paul Halsall. Annotations, formatting, and added rubrics by Richard Stracke. The drop initial (first letter of the text) is from the Isabella Capitals font by John Stracke. Permission is granted for electronic copying, distribution in print form for educational purposes and personal use. If you do reduplicate the document, indicate the sources. No permission is granted for commercial use.