"Our Sins Run out Behind Us"
Holy Saturday – April 4, 2015
A brother at Scetis committed a fault. A council was called to which Abba Moses was invited, but he refused to go to it. Then the priest sent someone to say to him, “Come, for everyone is waiting for you.” So he got up and went.
He took a leaking jug, filled it with water and carried it with him. The others came out to meet him and said to him, “What is this, Father?”
The old man said to them, “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them, and today I am coming to judge the errors of another.”
When they heard that, they said no more to the brother but forgave him.
[Benedicta Ward, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, pp. 138 – 139.]
Abba Moses was a former robber, who gave up his life of marauding and thievery to live as a monk dedicated to God in the desert. A formerly vicious man, late in life Moses became known for his compassion. To others, he seemed to embody God’s generosity and mercy.
Scetis was one of the large monastic communities in the desert of Egypt. It became something of a hub for monastic activity during the period of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (3rd – 5th centuries). Life in community, while lived in some solitude, also included a great deal of interaction. These desert monks were known for their austerity and ascetic lifestyles. Moral failures or grievances against the other brothers or sisters would have been difficult to hide or cover up.
So someone in the community committed a fault. We’re not told what they did – or did not do – in the story. But the community called together a council to deal with this wayward brother. And they invited Abba Moses, who lived outside Scetis, to be a part of the council that would decide the fallen monk’s fate.
Moses, though, refused to attend the council, and though the others waited for him, he would not come. Finally, the convener of the council sent a special envoy to solicit Abba Moses’ attendance.
Our Abba found a water jug that had slight cracks and holes in it. He filled it with water and walked to the council. When the others saw him carrying the cracked jug, they wondered what it meant.
The wise one said to them, “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them. And yet today I am coming to judge the sins of another.”
This is a form of teaching by enacted parable. It was common among the Hebrew prophets (see Jeremiah and Ezekiel), and it was one of the ways Jesus taught.
Perhaps you would read the story again, and find the parts of yourself that identify with the various characters in the story . . . the one who committed a fault . . . those who convened the council to judge another . . . the Abba who went with a leaky jug . . . those who said no more to the wayward brother, but forgave him. What is your experience of each of these persons or groups?
Or maybe the story would cause you to give some consideration today to the sins that run out behind you, that you have not yet seen. This might include a prayer that would ask God to help you to see something about yourself that you have not previously seen.
Finally, you may want to allow this story to illumine your relationship to someone who has been tangled up in their own darkness or brokenness . . . their “fault”. As you are connected to this person – who may or may not have committed some fault – what is God’s invitation to you in relationship to him or her?
A brother at Scetis committed a fault. A council was called to which Abba Moses was invited, but he refused to go to it. Then the priest sent someone to say to him, “Come, for everyone is waiting for you.” So he got up and went.
He took a leaking jug, filled it with water and carried it with him. The others came out to meet him and said to him, “What is this, Father?”
The old man said to them, “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them, and today I am coming to judge the errors of another.”
When they heard that, they said no more to the brother but forgave him.
[Benedicta Ward, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, pp. 138 – 139.]
Abba Moses was a former robber, who gave up his life of marauding and thievery to live as a monk dedicated to God in the desert. A formerly vicious man, late in life Moses became known for his compassion. To others, he seemed to embody God’s generosity and mercy.
Scetis was one of the large monastic communities in the desert of Egypt. It became something of a hub for monastic activity during the period of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (3rd – 5th centuries). Life in community, while lived in some solitude, also included a great deal of interaction. These desert monks were known for their austerity and ascetic lifestyles. Moral failures or grievances against the other brothers or sisters would have been difficult to hide or cover up.
So someone in the community committed a fault. We’re not told what they did – or did not do – in the story. But the community called together a council to deal with this wayward brother. And they invited Abba Moses, who lived outside Scetis, to be a part of the council that would decide the fallen monk’s fate.
Moses, though, refused to attend the council, and though the others waited for him, he would not come. Finally, the convener of the council sent a special envoy to solicit Abba Moses’ attendance.
Our Abba found a water jug that had slight cracks and holes in it. He filled it with water and walked to the council. When the others saw him carrying the cracked jug, they wondered what it meant.
The wise one said to them, “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them. And yet today I am coming to judge the sins of another.”
This is a form of teaching by enacted parable. It was common among the Hebrew prophets (see Jeremiah and Ezekiel), and it was one of the ways Jesus taught.
Perhaps you would read the story again, and find the parts of yourself that identify with the various characters in the story . . . the one who committed a fault . . . those who convened the council to judge another . . . the Abba who went with a leaky jug . . . those who said no more to the wayward brother, but forgave him. What is your experience of each of these persons or groups?
Or maybe the story would cause you to give some consideration today to the sins that run out behind you, that you have not yet seen. This might include a prayer that would ask God to help you to see something about yourself that you have not previously seen.
Finally, you may want to allow this story to illumine your relationship to someone who has been tangled up in their own darkness or brokenness . . . their “fault”. As you are connected to this person – who may or may not have committed some fault – what is God’s invitation to you in relationship to him or her?
Comments
Post a Comment