Saint Pakhom
Father of Spiritual Communal Monastic Life
Born	ca. 292, Thebes, Egypt
Died	9 May 348, Egypt
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Churches Eastern Catholic Churches Oriental Orthodox Churches
Feast	May 9 14 Pashons (Coptic Orthodox)Roman Catholic Benedictine celebrate his feast day on May 15.
Attributes	Hermit in a garb, Hermit crossing the Nile on the back of a crocodile
Saints Portal

Saint Pachomius (ca. 292-348), also known as Abba Pachomius and Pakhom, is generally recognized as the founder of Christian cenobitic monasticism. His saint day is celebrated on 9 May. Image File history File links StPakhom. ... [edit] Events [edit] By Place [edit] Roman Empire Constantius Chlorus divorces Helena, mother of Constantine the Great (approximate date). ... Thebes Thebes (, Thēbai) is the Greek designation of the ancient Egyptian niwt (The) City and niwt-rst (The) Southern City. It is located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile (). Thebes was the capital of Waset, the fourth Upper Egyptian nome... is the 129th day of the year (130th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Births Saint Jerome, Christian writer Deaths Categories: 348 ... “Catholic Church” redirects here. ... Eastern Orthodoxy (also called Greek Orthodoxy and Russian Orthodoxy) is a Christian tradition which represents the majority of Eastern Christianity. ... The Eastern Catholic Churches are autonomous particular Churches in full communion with the Pope of Rome. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organising a liturgical year on the level of days by associating each day with one or more saints, and referring to the day as that saints day. ... is the 129th day of the year (130th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 13 Pashons - Coptic calendar - 15 Pashons All fixed commemorations below are observed on 14 Pashons by the Coptic Orthodox Church Saint Pakhom (64 A.M.), (348 A.D.) Saint Epimachus of Pelusium Coptic Synexarion Categories: | ... Christ - Coptic Art Coptic Orthodox Christianity is the indigenous form of Christianity that, according to tradition, the apostle Mark established in Egypt in the middle of the 1st century AD (approximately AD 60). ... Saint symbology was important to people who couldnt read because they can figure out what symbols mean. ... The Nile (Arabic: , transliteration: , Ancient Egyptian iteru, Coptic piaro or phiaro) is a major north-flowing river in Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. ... Image File history File links Gloriole. ... Species see text Pachomius is a spider genus of the Salticidae family (jumping spiders). ... [edit] Events [edit] By Place [edit] Roman Empire Constantius Chlorus divorces Helena, mother of Constantine the Great (approximate date). ... Events Births Saint Jerome, Christian writer Deaths Categories: 348 ... For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... The cenobitic tradition is a monastic tradition that stresses community life. ...

Biography

He was born in 292 in Thebes (Luxor, Egypt) to pagan parents. According to his hagiography, he was swept up against his will in a Roman army recruitment drive at the age of 20, a common occurrence during the turmoils and civil wars of the period, and held in captivity. It was here that local Christians would daily bring food and comforts to the inmates, which made a lasting impression on him, and he vowed to investigate Christianity further when he got out. As fate would have it, he was able to get out of the army without ever having to fight, was converted and baptised (314). He then came into contact with a number of well known ascetics and decided to pursue that path. He sought out the hermit Palaemon and came to be his follower (317). Thebes Thebes (, Thēbai) is the Greek designation of the ancient Egyptian niwt (The) City and niwt-rst (The) Southern City. It is located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile (). Thebes was the capital of Waset, the fourth Upper Egyptian nome... Luxor on Nile, at Luxor Temple with mosque. ... Hagiography is the study of saints. ...

Pachomius set out to lead the life of a hermit near St. Anthony of Egypt, whose practices he imitated. An earlier ascetic named Marcarius had earlier created a number of proto-monasteries called "larves", or cells, where holy men would live in a community setting who were physically or mentally unable to achieve the rigors of Anthony's solitary life. Pachomius set about organizing these cells into a formal organization. For other uses, see Hermit (disambiguation). ... For the 13th century saint, see Saint Anthony of Padua. ... Macarius of Egypt (300-390) was an Egyptian Christian monk and hermit. ...

Up to this point in time, Christian asceticism had been solitary or eremitic. Male or female monastics lived in individual huts or caves and met only for occasional worship services. Pachomius seems to have created the community or cenobitic organization, in which male or female monastics lived together and had their possessions in common under the leadership of an abbot or abbess. Pachomius himself was hailed as "Abba" (father) which is where we get the word Abbot from. This first cenobitic monastery was in Tabennisi, Egypt. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The cenobitic tradition is a monastic tradition that stresses community life. ... Abbots coat of arms The word abbot, meaning father, has been used as a Christian clerical title in various, mainly monastic, meanings. ... An Abbess (Latin abbatissa, fem. ... Tabenna (Tabennae, Tabennisi) is considered the first cenobitic monastery. ...

He established his first monastery between 318 and 323. The first to join him was his elder brother John, and soon more than 100 monks lived at his monastery. He came to build six or seven more monasteries and a nunnery, and after 336, Pachomius spent most of his time at his Pabau monastery. From his initial monastery, demand quickly grew and, by the time of his death in 345, one count estimates there were 3000 monasteries dotting Egypt from north to south. Within a generation after his death, this number grew to 7000 and then moved out of Egypt into Palestine and the Judea Desert, Syria, North Africa and eventually Western Europe.^[1] Events Gregory the Illuminator appoints his son Aristax as successor in the Patriarchate of Armenia. ... Events July 3 - Battle of Adrianople: Constantine defeats Licinius, forcing Licinius to retreat to Byzantium. ...

He is also credited with being the first Christian to use and recommend use of a prayer rope. He was visited once by Basil of Caesarea who took many of his ideas and implemented them in Caesarea, where Basil also made some adaptations that became the ascetic rule, or Ascetica, the rule still used today by the Eastern Orthodox Church, and comparable to that of the Rule of St. Benedict in the West.-1... Basil (ca. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Coptic Orthodox Pope · Roman Catholic Pope Archbishop of Canterbury · Patriarch of Constantinople Christianity Portal This box:      Faith... St Benedict of Nursia The Rule of St Benedict by Benedict of Nursia (fl. ...

Though Pachomius sometimes acted as lector for nearby shepherds, neither he or any of his monks became priests. St Athanasius visited and wished to ordain him in 333, but Pachomius fled from him. Athanasius' visit was probably a result of Pachomius' zealous defence of orthodoxy against Arianism. Athanasius redirects here. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ...

He remained abbot to the cenobites for some forty years. When he caught an epidemic disease (probably plague), he called the monks, strengthened their faith, and appointed his successor. He then departed on 14 Pashons, 64 A.M. (9 May 348 A.D.) The bubonic plague or bubonic fever is the best-known variant of the deadly infectious disease caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis. ... 13 Pashons - Coptic calendar - 15 Pashons All fixed commemorations below are observed on 14 Pashons by the Coptic Orthodox Church Saint Pakhom (64 A.M.), (348 A.D.) Saint Epimachus of Pelusium Coptic Synexarion Categories: | ... is the 129th day of the year (130th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Births Saint Jerome, Christian writer Deaths Categories: 348 ...

His reputation as a holy man has endured. He is currently commemorated in several liturgical calendars, including that of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. ...

Coptic literature

Examples of purely Coptic literature are the works of Abba Antonius and Abba Pachomius, who spoke only Coptic, and the sermons and preachings of Abba Shenouda, who chose to write only in Coptic. Abba Shenouda was a popular leader who only spoke to the Copts in Coptic, the language of the repressed, not in Greek, the language of the repressive ruler. Coptic literature is the body of writings in the Coptic language of Egypt, the last stage of the indigenous Egyptian language. ... Saint Shenouda the Archimandrite (348-466) was the abbot of the White Monastery in Egypt. ...

The Pachomian system tended to treat religious literature as mere written instructions.

The earliest original writings in Coptic language were the letters by St. Anthony of Egypt, first of the “Desert Fathers.” During the 3rd and 4th centuries many ecclesiastics and monks wrote in Coptic among them St. Pachomius, whose monastic rule (the first cenobitic rule, for solitary monks gathered in communities) survives only in Coptic. St. Athanasius, is the first Patriarch of Alexandria to use Coptic, as well as Greek. ^[2] The Coptic language is a direct descendant of the ancient Egyptian language which was once written in Egyptian hieroglyphic, hieratic, and demotic scripts. ... Athanasius of Alexandria (also spelled Athanasios) was a Christian bishop of Alexandria in the fourth century. ... It has been suggested that Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church be merged into this article or section. ... The Coptic language is a direct descendant of the ancient Egyptian language which was once written in Egyptian hieroglyphic, hieratic, and demotic scripts. ...

See also

• St. Benedict
• Desert Fathers
• Book of the First Monks
• Coptic Saints

This article is about Saint Benedict of Nursia, for other uses of the name Benedict see Benedict (disambiguation) Saint Benedict of Nursia (c. ... The Desert Fathers were Christian Hermits who lived in the Sahara desert of Egypt, beginning in about the third century. ... The Book of the First Monks[1] is a medieval Christian work in the contemplative and eremetic tradition of the Carmelites. ... Egypt was one of the first countries to know Christianity and the Copts belive in Christianty goes back to the first cetury A.D. Coptic saints have been a part of history of Christianity since its beginings and a lot of them are recognised by other Churches like the Catholic...

External links

• The Rule Of Pachomius: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, & Part 4
• Coptic Orthodox Synaxarium (Book of Saints)
• http://www2.evansville.edu/ecoleweb/glossary/pachomius.html
• http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/pachomius.html
• St. Pachomius (Catholic Encyclopedia)
• http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintp38.htm

Notes

1. ^ Kenneth W. Harl (2001), The World of Byzantium, ISBN 1565850904 (audio recording)
2. ^ encyclopedia britannica