St Neilos the Ascetic, from the Philokalia

Today we will learn and reflect on the writings in the Philokalia by St
Neilos the Ascetic, also known as St Nilus of Sinai.
What does Athens have to do with Jerusalem? Can Christians study
philosophy?
When you are devout, how can you be sure that your devotions are not
merely for display? How do you know your devotion is genuine?
Why are we so distracted from living a godly life? Why do the years
whittle away at our devotion? How can possessions endanger our soul?
What are the spiritual dangers for teachers and their disciples?
How can laymen apply the advice given meant for monks by writers in
the Philokalia to living their lives in an imperfect world?

Please, we welcome interesting questions in the
comments. Let us learn and reflect together!
At the end of our talk, we will discuss the sources
used for this video.
Feel free to follow along in the PowerPoint script we
uploaded to SlideShare.

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St Neilos was an abbot in a monastery near Ankara,
now Turkey, early in the fifth century, perhaps he was
a disciple of St John Chrysostom, he definitely has his
sharp tongue. He is the earliest writer to mention the
Jesus prayer in his other works. Dr Wikipedia
definitely affirms his connection with St Chrysostom,
he vigorously protested his persecution in a letter to
the emperor. Later he and his son joined a monastery
in Palestine.

Philosophy & Socrates, by Antonio Canova, 1799
Criticisms of Greek and Jewish Philosophy
St Neilos opens his Ascetic
Discourses: “Many Greeks
and not a few Jews
attempted to philosophize;
but only the disciples of
Christ have pursued true
wisdom, because they alone
have Wisdom as their
teacher, showing them by
His example the way of life
they should follow.”

This reminds us of the question posed by Tertullian
several centuries earlier, What does Athens have to
do with Jerusalem? While both criticize these pagan
traditions, the stoic philosophers had a deep
influence on Eastern Christianity, the opening work of
the Greek Philokalia was relegated to the Appendix
by its English translators because they suspected that
the author was a Stoic Philosopher, since it contained
few Biblical references.

St Neilos continues, “For the
Greeks, like actors on a stage, put
on false masks; they were
philosophers in name alone, but
lacked true philosophy. They
displayed their philosophic calling
by their cloak, beard and staff, but
indulged the body and kept their
desires as mistresses. They were
slaves to gluttony and lust,
accepting this as something
natural. They were subject to anger
and excited by glory, and they
gulped down rich food like dogs.”
The comic playwright Aristophanes lampooned Socrates as a
Sophist philosopher who lived in a basket.

https://youtu.be/zAAal5p8AX8
St Neilos explicitly mocks the Cynic philosopher Diogenes of Sinope: “The
only object was to show off, and they endured hardships simply to gain
cheap applause. Moreover, what can be more stupid than to keep silent
continually, live on vegetables, cover oneself with ragged garments of hair
and spend one’s days in a barrel, if one expects no recompense after death?”

Diogenes of Sinope was a student of the founder of
the Cynics, Antisthenes, who in turn was a student of
Socrates, and he was one of the dinner guests who
spoke in Xenophon’s Symposium.

Diogenes of Sinope was perhaps the original hippie,
challenging social conventions, not only did he live in
a large barrel in the Athenian market; he also
masturbated in public. But he also provided an
ascetic example that may have influenced the later
monastics, and his sayings contributed to the
Athenian culture that in turn influenced Christianity.

Diogenes’ student was Crates, whose student in turn was Zeno of Citium,
the founder of the Greek stoic philosophers. Although Seneca mentions
studying his works, only fragments of the works of the Greek stoic
philosophers survive. Why were they lost to history? Perhaps Seneca’s
restatement of stoicism was far superior to the Greek original. Or perhaps
Zeno’s writings offended the Christian scribes, who declined to copy
them for posterity. The ancient biographer Diogenese of Laertius, who
preserved most of the fragments that have survived of the Greek Cynic
and Stoic philosophers, stated that the libertine actions and teachings of
Zeno and later Greek stoics offended many in Athens.

We do wholeheartedly agree with St
Neilos’ teaching, “Philosophy is a state
of moral integrity combined with a
doctrine of true knowledge concerning
reality. Both Jews and Greeks fell short
of this,” and he also has specific railings
against Jews, “for they rejected the
Wisdom that is from heaven and tried to
philosophize without Christ, who alone
has revealed the true philosophy in both
His life and His teaching.”
Diogenes, by John William Waterhouse, 1882

We believe that you should reflect on both Stoic philosophy and
the Jewish rabbinical writings, as both Judaism and Stoicism
prepared the world for Christ. Christian monastic teaching
enriches Stoicism. Likewise, studying the teachings of the ancient
and medieval Jewish rabbis can enrich your Christianity.
Should St Neilos have compared the Greek philosophers to dogs
gulping down rich food? During his day, Christians still felt
insecure and embattled, the reign of the Emperor Julian the
Apostate was in living memory, many feared that a subsequent
emperor might mainstream paganism and restart the Christian
persecutions once again.

Coptic icon: St Mercurius killing Julian.
According to a tradition, St Basil had
been imprisoned by Julian. Basil prayed
to Mercurius to help him, and the saint
appeared in a vision to Basil, saying he
speared Julian to death in battle.
Julian the Apostate presiding at a conference
of sectarians, by Edward Armitage, 1875

The modern experience differs, World War II promoted
democracy while discrediting the fascist regimes, many
which supported Catholicism. Today’s global economy and
migration means that many of us have business associates
or friends and relatives who have differing religious faiths
and philosophies. Definitely denigrating other religious
traditions is spiritual dangerous, the Vatican II decrees
teach us that we should be respectful of other religious
traditions.

St Neilos: False Asceticism Merely For Show
St Neilos then reflects on how Christians
should avoid these spiritual traps that so
many Greeks and Jews succumbed to.
St Neilos teaches us that the apostles
“adopted a harsh and strenuous way of life,
facing every kind of adversity, afflicted,
tormented, harassed, naked, lacking even
necessities; and finally, they met death
boldly, imitating their Teacher faithfully.”
Crucifixion of St Peter, by Caravaggio, 1600,

After Emperor Constantine favored Christianity, ending the persecutions, Christians
could only challenge their faith through monasticism.
St Neilos teaches us that “although
all Christians should have modeled
their own life on this image, most of
them either lacked the will to do so
or else made only feeble efforts.”
The ancient world was a different
world, St Neilos speculates that
many come “to the monastic life
because of some pressure, not
realizing what is involved; so, they
regard it merely as a way of making
a living.”

We ponder this also in our reflection on Dark Night of the
Soul by St John of the Cross, where his monks rebelled
against his insistence on strict monastic observance of diet
and prayers. In the ancient and medieval worlds,
monasteries played the same role that the military does
today, it was often the default career for young men who
did not have a clear career path, and the monasteries were
much larger than they are today. St Neilos even says that
many ancient citizens were critical of the low standard of
monastics in their day.

St Neilos notes that the
monastic movement began
with great promise, “envy,
malice, arrogance and
haughtiness were banished,
along with all that leads to
discord.” But as the decades
passed, “this strict and angelic
way of life suffered the fate of
a portrait many times
recopied by careless hands,
until all likeness to the
original had been lost.”
Saint Catherine's Monastery, Sinai, Egypt

St Neilos speaks of his fellow monks, “We no
longer pursue plainness and simplicity of life. We
no longer value stillness, which helps to free us
from past defilement, but prefer a whole host of
things which distract us uselessly from our true
goal. Rivalry over material possessions has made
us forget the counsel of the Lord, who urged us to
take no thought for earthly things, but to seek only
the kingdom of heaven.”
St Neilos tells his fellow monks, “We distinguish
ourselves merely by the habit we wear, not by our
way of life. We reject all ascetic effort, but madly
desire a reputation for asceticism. We have
debased the truth into play acting.” How different
is this from Christians of today?

St Neilos contrasts the holy men “who live
for the soul alone, turning away from the
body and its wants,” the holy men who have
no need to flatter the wealthy because they
live simply, to those of us who, “instead of
courageously struggling against our
difficulties, come fawning to the wealthy,
like puppies wagging their tails in the hope
of being tossed a bare bone or some
crumbs. To get what we want, we call them
benefactors and protectors of Christians,
attributing every virtue to them, even
though they may be utterly wicked.”
Temptations of St Anthony, by Follower
of Hieronymus Bosch, 1515

How Possessions Can Endanger Our Soul
St Neilos reminds us how
Jesus exhorts us in the Sermon
on the Mount: “Do not resist
one who is evil. But if anyone
strikes you on the right cheek,
turn to him the other also; and
if anyone would sue you and
take your coat, let him have
your cloak as well; and if
anyone forces you to go one
mile, go with him two miles.”
Sermon on the Mount in the Black Forest, by Rudolf Yelin, 1912

Can Christians live up to this ideal? Should Christians
always live up to this ideal? Does Jesus want us to
live the life of a wussy Wookie, a walking carpet? If
we have a family, we are obligated to provide for
them, and since we do not want to be a burden on
society, we cannot allow someone to defraud us of
much of our assets without complaint. But we must
not allow our possessions to possess us.

St Nelios teaches us,
“Possessions arouse feelings of
jealousy against their owners,”
“divide families, and make
friends hate one another.
Possessions have no place in the
life to come, and even in this
present life have no great use.
Why, then, do we abandon the
service of God and devote
ourselves entirely to empty
trivialities? For it is God who
supplies us with all we need.”
St Nilus healing a possessed boy by anointing him with lamp oil.
From a painting in the church at Grottaferrata, Rome

St Neilos asks us, “Is it ever right to engage in
disputes in order to protect our property?”
Should we not do as Jesus bids us, to also give
our cloak to those who take our coat, to walk
two miles when we are forced to walk one, to
turn the other cheek? How should we act when
our neighbor steals our treasure, like when
Jezebel had Naboth killed so she could steal his
vineyard for her husband Ahab? St Neilos asks,
“Must we lose all self-control in such situations,
and become worse than madmen?” “Why do we
try to make other people’s property our own,
weighing ourselves down with material fetters?”
Naboth in his Vineyard, by James Smetham, 1856

We must also be thankful to God for his
gift for our abilities that enable us to
earn a good living. St Neilos notes that
Job’s greatest sin “was to raise his hand
to his mouth and kiss it.” Likewise, “many
people kiss their hands, saying it is their
hands which bring them prosperity.”
St Neilos warns us, “Through our anxiety
about worldly things, we hinder the soul
from enjoying divine blessings, and we
bestow on the flesh greater care and
comfort than are good for it.”
Suffering of Job, by Léon Bonnat, 1880

What Are Lessons From Elijah and Elisha?
St Nelios teaches us that “Elijah and Elisha
became what they were through their
courage, perseverance and indifference to
the things of this life. They practiced
frugality; by being content with little, they
reached a state in which they wanted
nothing, and so came to resemble the
bodiless angels.” Thus, “they became
stronger than the greatest of earthly rulers;
they speak more boldly to crowned monarchs
than any king does to his own subjects.”

These prophets displayed many signs, blinded an
opposing army, fire was sent down from heaven to
consume offerings on altars, a leper was healed, a
young daughter was resuscitated.

The Sacrifice of
Elijah Before the
Priests of Baal,
by Domenico
Fetti, 1622

St Neilos teaches us that “these holy men
achieved such things because they had resolved
to live for the soul alone, turning away from the
body and its wants. The fact of needing nothing
made them superior to all men. They chose to
forsake the body and to free themselves from
life in the flesh, rather than to betray the cause
of holiness and, because of their bodily needs,
to flatter the wealthy. But, as for us, when we
lack something, instead of struggling
courageously against our difficulties, we come
fawning to the rich, like puppies wagging their
tails in the hope of being tossed a bare bone or
some crumbs.”
Elijah Fed by the Raven, by Giovanni Girolamo Savoldo, 1510

Spiritual Dangers for Teachers and Disciples
St Neilos repeats a warning of Jesus from the
Sermon on the Mount: “But woe to you,
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you
shut the kingdom of heaven against men; for
you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those
who would enter to go in. Woe to you, scribes
and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you traverse sea
and land to make a single proselyte, and when
he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice
as much a child of hell as yourselves.”

Who are the Pharisees? Here the
Pharisees are anyone who seeks
to be a spiritual teacher. St
Neilos teaches us that “in reality,
by rebuking the Pharisees in this
way, He was warning those who
in the future would make the
same mistake; so that, from fear
of His condemnation they would
restrain their improper desire for
human glory.”
Pharisee and Tax Collector, by Hardman, 1874,
St James' church, Louth, UK

When we volunteer to
serve in a ministry, St
Neilos teaches us that
“first, we must struggle
against our own passions,
watching and keeping in
mind the course of our
spiritual battle; and then
on the basis of personal
experience we can advise
others about this
warfare, and render
victory easier for them by
describing the tactics
beforehand.”
St Theodoulos, son of St Neilos the Ascetic

St Neilos says that some self-appointed
teachers with little experience seek glory in
how many disciples they can attract, as today
television and YouTube preachers often seek
as large an audience as possible. They become
arrogant, even giving orders, “not for the
benefit of their disciples, but to promote their
own pleasure.”
On the other hand, those uniquely qualified to
be teachers, as St Neilos states, “who perceive
in themselves some fruit of virtue and feel its
benefit, refuse to assume leadership even
when pressed by others, because they prefer
this benefit to receiving honor from men.”

What are the responsibilities of the teachers
and their disciples? St Neilos teaches us that
“the teacher’s ineptitude destroys the
disciples, and the disciples’ negligence
endangers the teacher, especially when,
because of his ineptitude, they grow lazy.
For its is the teacher’s duty to notice and
correct his disciple’s faults, and it is the
disciples’ duty to obey all his instructions. It
is a serious and dangerous thing both for
them to commit sins and for him to
overlook them.”

St Neilos is referring to an Abbott of a monastery who
knows all his monks and interacts with them on a daily
basis. This close control is spiritually dangerous if a priest
tries to supervise his parishioners this closely. But when
you confess to a Catholic or Orthodox priest who knows
you well, you should be reluctant not to follow their
spiritual advice during Confession. You should select a
priest whom you respect and feel comfortable in bearing
your soul during Confession.

Scene from life of st Benedict, by Neroccio di Bartolomeo de' Landi, 1475

St Neilos reminds us that there
are who become clerics for
imperfect motives. “Under the
influence of self-esteem, a man
may perhaps enter the priesthood
or the life of monastic perfection;
and because many come to him
for help, his self-esteem makes
him think highly of himself thanks
to what he says and does. So, by
beguiling him with such thoughts,
self-esteem draws him far away
from the inner watchfulness that
he should possess.”
St. Benedict delivering his rule to the monks of his order

St Neilos teaches us, “Every
shameful thought formed in the
mind is a secret idol.” “Virtue is a
thing most delicately balanced, and
that if neglected it quickly turns into
its opposite.” “When an athlete’s
body is thrown to the ground, he
can easily get up; but in the spiritual
warfare it is men’s soul that falls,
and then it is very difficult for them
to rise once more.”
Israelites Worshiping The Golden Calf, by Lorenzo de Caro, 1758

St Neilos continues, “The
Lawgiver, symbolically
commanding us to deny
entry to sensual pleasure,
told us to watch the head of
the serpent, because it is
watching our heel. Its aim is
to bite our heel and so to
poison us; whereas our aim
is to crush every provocation
to sensual pleasure, for
when the provocation is
crushed, sensuality has little
power over us.”
Eve Tempted by the Serpent, by William Blake, 1800

St Augustine teaches us that all Scriptures should be
interpreted to further the two-fold Love of God and
love of neighbor in our heart, and if a passage
appears to violate this two-fold love, then it should
be interpreted allegorically. One such verse is a
favorite verse of the Church Fathers in the Philokalia
where the Jews imagine what it would be like to
smash the heads of Babylonian babies against the
rocks.

https://youtu.be/uQCnAJMPoos
St Nelios teaches us that “the Psalms praise
those who do not wait for the passions to grow
to full strength but kill them in their infancy:
‘Happy shall he be who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rock!’”

St Neilos draws spiritual lessons from several Old
Testament Bible stories. The first is the story of Lot
and his wife. The angels inform them that God will
send fire down to destroy the sinful city of Sodom,
and that they must flee and not look back.

Lot flees Sodom, Lot's wife is a pillar of salt, by Paolo Veronese and workshop, 1585

St Neilos teaches us
that “we gain
nothing, therefore,
by our decision to
renounce earthly
things if we do not
abide by it but
continue to be
attracted by such
things and allow
ourselves to keep
thinking about
them.”

“By constantly
looking back like
Lot’s wife towards
what we have
renounced, we make
clear our attachment
to it. For she looked
back and turned into
a pillar of salt,
remaining to this day
as an example to the
disobedient.”

“She symbolizes
the force of
habit, which
draws us back
again after we
have tried to
make a
definitive act of
renunciation.”

We reflected on the deceits that dominated the two
generations of Jacob and Joseph, and how these
deceits corrupted the family and caused much
suffering. In one of these deceits Rachel, who may
have been resentful of the deceits that her father
committed against her husband Jacob, stole the
valuable household idols that belonged to her father,
denying her theft.

Rachel sitting on the idols, by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1728
St Neilos teaches us that
“the soul that succumbs to
past habits and gives all its
attention to material
things, which lack true
reality, is like Rachel sitting
on Laban’s idols; it does
not listen to the teaching
which would raise it up to
higher things, but says like
Rachel, ‘I cannot rise up
before you, for the custom
of women is upon me.’”

St Neilos teaches us that “avarice, anger and
dejection are all offshoots of gluttony. For the
glutton needs money first of all, so as to satisfy his
ever-present desire, even though it never can be
satisfied. His anger is inevitably aroused against
those who obstruct his acquisition of money, and in
turn gives way to dejection when he proves too
weak to get his way.” “For those who love pleasure,
when deprived of it, grown angry and embittered.”
“As well as nursing and feeding the passions,
gluttony also destroys everything good.” “How can
someone weighed down with wealth wrestle with
the demon of avarice?”
Allegory of Avarice, by Jacopo Ligozzi, around 1600

St Neilos draws a lesson from the story of Joseph,
who was sold into slavery, and whose services were
rendered to Potiphar, a court official. Potiphar’s wife
attempted to seduce Joseph, but he resisted.

Joseph and Potiphar's wife, by Guido Reni, 1630, and by Antonio María Esquivel, 1854

As background to his telling of this story: in the
ancient world, wrestlers wrestle in the nude, men
exercise in the nude at the gymnasium. Male nudity
was not regarded as offensive in the ancient Greek
world.

St Nelios says that “a naked person is
hard or even impossible to catch. If
Joseph had been naked, the Egyptian
woman would not have found anything
to seize hold of, for the Scriptures say
that ‘she caught him by his garment,
saying: Lie with me.’ Now garments are
the physical things whereby sensual
pleasure seizes hold of us and drags us
about; for whoever is encumbered with
such things will of necessity be dragged
about by them against his will.”
Joseph and Potiphar's Wife, by Guido Reni, 1631

St Nelios continues, “It is difficult for the
devil to seize hold of one who has no
worldly attachments. But when a man is
full of anxiety about material things the
intellect, as though covered with dust,
loses the agility which detachment confers
upon it; and then it is hard for him to
escape from the devil’s grip.”
“Detachment is the mark of a perfect soul,
whereas an imperfect soul is worn down
with anxiety about material things.”
Joseph and Potiphar's Wife, by Guido Reni, 1631

Closing Spiritual Advice From St Neilos
St Neilos teaches us: “Do not let the purity of
your virtue be clouded by thoughts of worldly
things: do not let the intensity of your
contemplation be disturbed by bodily cares.
Then true wisdom will stand revealed in its full
beauty and it will no longer be maligned by
insolent men because of our shortcomings, or
mocked by those who know nothing about it;
but it will be praised, if not by men, by the
angelic powers and by Christ our Lord.”
Icon of Ladder of Divine Ascent

St Neilos continues,
“From malice men
often speak
slanderously of
what is good; but
the tribunal on
high gives
judgment with
impartiality and
delivers its verdicts
in accordance with
the truth.”
The Last Judgement, by Fra Angelico, 1440

St Neilos concludes his Ascetic Discourse with:
“We need not worry about men’s opinions, for
men can neither reward those who have lived
well nor punish those who have lived
otherwise. If because of envy or worldly
attachment they seek to discredit the way of
holiness, they are defaming with deluded
blasphemies the life honored by God and the
angels. At the time of judgment those who
have lived rightly will be rewarded with
eternal blessings, not on the basis of public
opinion, but in accordance with the true
nature of their life.”
Jesus' agony in garden of Gethsemane,
by Giovan Pietro Birago, 1490

Our saint ends this
with a short prayer:
“May all of us attain
these blessings
through the grace
and love of our Lord
Jesus Christ, to whom
be glory together
with the Father and
the Holy Spirit, now
and ever and through
all the ages. Amen.”
Icon of Ladder of Divine Ascent

St Neilos the Ascetic is one of the works included in
the Philokalia. We also found a book of scholarly
essays on the Philokalia. We discuss the sources
more in depth in our introductory video on the
Philokalia.

St John Climacus explores many of the monastic
themes that St Neilos discusses, including cultivation
of good habits and thoughts, detachment, envy,
avarice, anger, dejection, chastity, fasting,
moderation, and most important, true, genuine faith,
in his Ladder of Divine Ascent.

https://youtu.be/NiuWNsy4x4Q
https://youtu.be/_bjQcNvzb-c
https://youtu.be/qDtrgYmaAQU
https://youtu.be/Fco0W3bt5GA

https://youtu.be/SLBIdDHRy3A
https://youtu.be/pFwC2nDf1CQ https://youtu.be/2mEjh425sJk

Several of our icons of St Neilos were from the
Mystagogy website. And the thumbnail is a photo of
a monastery on Mount Athos in Greece.

https://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/search?q=neilos

Mount Athos, Monastery of Esphigmenou "Holy Ascension"

To find the source of any direct
quotes in this blog, please type in
the phrase to the search box in
my blog to see the referenced
footnote.
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St Neilos the Ascetic, from the Philokalia

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