A Lesson To Challenge Your Thinking!! What are our goals in life? What do we spend most of our days trying to achieve? Which would you choose?

Which would you choose?

Which would you choose?

Which would you choose to be like?

Amongst all these desirable worldly pleasures, who noticed the average? Who would consider the average? Who would value the average? ...And Why?

Who won out of David and Goliath? Which of King David’s or St. Bishoy’s brothers did GOD choose for Himself? (Read 1Samuel 16:1-13) The richest?..The coolest?..The strongest? Who won out of David and Goliath? ...And Why?

What can we learn from this? The Lord does not consider the exterior but rather looks to the heart! King David murdered, lied, committed adultery..and the Lord said He could not find a heart like His more than David’s heart! (Compare David to Saul) St. Bishoy was the youngest to six other brothers, he was weak and frail. His mother saw an angel in a vision asking her to give God one of her children. When the mother tried to offer one of her stronger children, the angel insisted that Bishoy was the chosen one! What can we learn from this?

This so called “weak” child became... Saint Bishoy (320-417 A.D) (8 Epip – 15 July) The Star of the Desert The Beloved of our Good Saviour The Righteous perfect man He is said to have seen Jesus...(When?) His body is preserved to this day in the Monastery of St. Bishoy. (He used to shake hands... why not any more?)

What can we learn from his life? Saint Bishoy was born in 320 A.D. in the village of Shensa, currently in the Egyptian governorate of Al Minufiyah. At the age of 20, St. Bishoy went to the wilderness of Scetes and became a monk by the hand of St. Bemwa, who also ordained St. John the Dwarf. When St. Bemwa died, St. Bishoy was guided by an angel to the site of the present Monastery of St. Bishoy, where he lived the life of a hermit. At this time, he became the spiritual father of many monks. He was famous for his love, wisdom, simplicity and kindness, as well as for his extremely ascetic life. He was also known to love seclusion and quietness. St. Bishoy was strict in his ascetism to the extent of tying his hair to the ceiling of his cell, in order to resist sleeping during his night prayers. What can we learn from his life?

Heroic Characteristic: St. Bishoy is known as a defender of Orthodoxy against heresies. Having heard of an ascetic in the mountain of Ansena (where he moved because of the berbers) who taught that there was no Holy Spirit, St. Bishoy went to him carrying a weaved basket with three ears. When the old man asked him about the reason for making three ears for a basket, St. Bishoy replied "I have a Trinity, and everything I do is like the Trinity". After much debate from the Scriptures, the old ascetic reverted to Orthodoxy. On December 13 841 AD, Pope Joseph I fulfilled the desire of Saint Bishoy and moved his body as well as that of St. Paul of Tammah (not St. Paul the first hermit) back to the Original Monastery of St. Bishoy in the wilderness of Scetes. They first attempted to move the body of St. Bishoy only, but the boat would not moved until they brought in the body of St. Paul also.

Who knows anything about St. Shenouda? What is his title? Who is another Saint whom we celebrated this week, who defended the faith? Who knows anything about St. Shenouda? What is his title? What does Archimandrite mean?

When Pope Athanasius the apostolic was near the city of Akmim to escape the Arians (followers of Arius), Archangel Michael appeared to him and took him to the wilderness and said to him; “Stretch your hands in the form of a cross, and at that moment the Archangel stretched a sword of fire and burnt all the heretics, false teachers and those who departed from faith and the church”. He told the pope that a child would be born after a short time and he would be called Shenouda (the son of God) and he would be a pillar in the church and he would overcome the heretics and conquer them.

He was born on the 2nd of May 333 A.D. in a village called Shendaweel He used to fast all day as a child & give his food to others After he used to work all day as a shepherd he used to go to a near by pond and pray & cry to God to lead his life to His will When he prayed his fingers would light as candles & the smell of incense surrounded him At 9 years of age his father took him to his uncle St. Bigoul who ask the child to bless him The child Shenouda stayed with his uncle & became a monk.

He used to live in caves away from the monastery & one day he heard a voice saying “Shenouda has become an Archimandrite” – his uncle had died & the monks chose him as abbot St. Shenouda was taken to heaven, Archangel Michael, John the Baptist, Elijah & Elisha used to visit him, Jesus visited him & told him about Heaven & managing the monastery He would travel on clouds He fought paganism, destoryed their temples & idols and burnt their books

He resisted & excommunicated Nestorious as he accompanied Pope Cyril the Great to the 3rd Ecumenical Council at Ephesus in 431 A.D. He was a Coptic man of letters & wrote many sermons which we have today It was said that when he passed away a stone in front of his cell split Jesus, St. Anthony, St. Pachomius & St. Bishoy all visited him to comfort him during his sickness He died on 7th Abib (14th July), 451 A.D. at the age of 120 years old

St. Anthony St. Shenouda St. Pachomius Monasticism There are different school of monasticism & St. Shenouda was instrumental in combining the style of St. Pachomius father of the community with the style of St. Paul the first hermit. He believed that if a monk sinned they should leave till they repent. St. Pachomius considered all the monks one family & one’s sin is everyone's sin they would help each other Coptic was the only language used in St. Shenouda’s monasteries & he did not ordain foreigners