An Introduction to the Desert Fathers
by
John Wortley
This introduction explores its origins and subsequent development and what it aimed to achieve, including the obstacles that it encountered; making use of the monks' own words as they are preserved (in Greek) primarily in the so-called Sayings of the Desert Fathers. focussing on monastic settlements in the Nitrian Desert (especially at Scêtê).
The Nag Hammadi Codices and Late Antique Egypt
by
Hugo Lundhaug ; Lance Jenott
situate the Nag Hammadi Codices and their texts in the context of late antique Egypt, treating such topics as Coptic readers and readings, the difficulty of dating early Greek and Coptic manuscripts, scribal practices, the importance of heavenly ascent, asceticism, and instruction in Egyptian monastic culture. explore the relationship of the texts to the Origenist controversy and Manichaeism
Monastic Education in Late Antiquity
by
Lillian I. Larsen
situate monasticism within a trajectory of educational and institutional frameworks, documents the degree to which monastic structures emerged in close alignment with urban, literate society, and retain established affinity with classical rhetorical and philosophical school traditions.
Inquiry about the Monks in Egypt
by
Rufinus
monks from Rufinus of Aquileia's monastery on the Mount of Olives made a pilgrimage to Egypt to visit locally renowned monks and monastic communities. reads like a book of miracles that depicts the great fourth-century Egyptian monks as prophets and apostles similar to those in the Bible. introduction and annotations situate the work in its literary, historical, religious, and theological contexts.