St. Isidore of Pelusium
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Isidore of Pelusium (360-440 A.D.) was born in Egypt to a prominent Alexandrian family. He became an ascetic, and moved to a mountain near the city of Pelusium, in the tradition of the Desert Fathers. Isidore is known to us for his letters, written to Cyril of Alexandria, Theodosius II, and a host of others. A collection of 2,000 letters was made in antiquity at the “Sleepless” monastery in Constantinople, and this has come down to us through a number of manuscripts, with each letter numbered and in order. The letters are mostly very short extracts, a sentence or two in length. Further unpublished letters exist in Syriac translation.
Writings:
- Letters
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Quotes and Excerpts:
“When the bishop goes up to the church’s episcopal chair, he extends the peace, doing so in imitation of the peace Jesus left to his disciples. The people reply, “And with your spirit.” The meaning here is as follows. Lord, the peace you offered us is our unity together. Grant us peace, namely, a similar unity with you, a unity that can in no way be broken, so that we, made peaceful with your Spirit (indicated to us at creation’s beginning), may never be separated from your love.” –Letters to Various People CXII. Worship in the Early Church, An Anthology of Historical Sources, Volumes 1-4.
“In grave necessities and dangerous situations the saying is: ‘Surrounded as we are by evils, let us baptize our children as soon as possible.'” –Letters to Various People CXXV. Worship in the Early Church, An Anthology of Historical Sources, Volumes 1-4.
On the Sacrament of Holy Communion:
“The reason why the reception of the divine sacraments is called Communion is that the sacraments join us to God and make us members and participants of his kingdom.” Letters to Various People CXXVI. Worship in the Early Church, An Anthology of Historical Sources, Volumes 1-4.
“Just as the fishermen hide the hook with bait and covertly hook the fish, similarly, the crafty allies of the heresies cover their evil teachings and corrupt understanding with pietism and hook the more simple, bringing them to spiritual death.” -Letter to Timothy the Reader, Patrologia Graeca (PG) 78:252.
“Once the hierarchy used to correct and temper the office of emperor when it stumbled and fell, but now it has fallen beneath it, losing not its own rank, instead possessing ordained men unlike those in our ancestors’ time.[1] Previously when those crowned with a holy office lived the evangelic and apostolic life, naturally the office of emperor stood in awe of the hierarchy, but now it is the hierarchy of the office of emperor. In my opinion, the office of emperor is following its natural course, since it has not intentionally meant to assault the hierarchy, which it reveres like a god, but avenge it of the assaults on it and temper the people not conducting themselves as they should toward it.” – Letter to the Bishop Cyril
“If you could personally take the time to join them in deliberating at Ephesus, I am sure that there will be no censure of you on their part. If you leave the voting to the crowd’s antipathies, who would free the synod from all of the mockery? You would also remedy the situation, if you would stop your servants from dogmatizing, since they stand uncertainly between a great chasm of serving the emperor and quarreling with God, for fear that they make waves for the empire, dashing against the rock of the Church the contrivances of their bad faith. That Church has been set up, and cannot be lorded over by the gates of Hell, as God announced when He was creating it.” -Letter to the Emperor Theodosius
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