Saint Aphrahat
The Persian Sage
His life, writings, thoughts
With a simplified introduction to Syriac literature
[تم حذف المقدمة والابقاء على سيرة القديس فقط… (الشبكة)]
2003
Preparatory edition
Father Tadros Yacoub Malti
Church of St. George the Martyr, Sporting
A joyful evangelical heart!
Little is known yet of the life of Father Aphrahat, the Persian sage, who ranks high among the early Syriac writers. But his writings bear witness to his exultant evangelical thought.
لم يتأثر أفراهاط بالفلسفات، الأمر الذي يندر وجوده بين الآباء الأوائل الشرقيين. وجد عذوبة في الحياة الجديدة خلال بساطة الإنجيل، فقد تتلمذ على الأسفار الإلهية، وعاشها واقتبس الكثير منها، فحسب نفسه “Bible Student” [1].
مقالاته مع ما تحمله من طابع نسكي بكونه راهبًا، تتلمس فيها فرحه الداخلي أو قل ضحكات قلبه الروحية. فمن كلماته المفرحة: “يتكلم المتواضع فيليق به الكلام، وتضحك شفتاه فلا يُسمع صوت ضحكه” [2].
Biography of Saint Aphrahat
The Persian Sage
Saint Aphrahat or Aphrodites or Farahad or Joys or The Persian Sage the Persian Sage – كما كان يُسمى أحيانًا، هو أول كاتب سرياني كبير تبقى أعماله، ولا نعرف الكثير عن ظروف حياته.
Theodoret of Cyrus, who visited him and received his blessing as a child, wrote about him. [3].
But in a later tradition he is counted as the abbot of the famous monastery of Mar Mattai near Mosul in northern Iraq, and as the bishop of the same region. In 344 he presided over a church council for his province of Adiabene. [4] Adiabene.
من الواضح أنه كان من الشخصيَّات الهامة في الكنيسة المسيحيَّة بمملكة فارس. ولقد حضر وشاهد بداية اضطهاد قادة الكنيسة بواسطة الملك الشوشاني Sasanian شابور الثاني Shapur II في أوائل عام 340م. ونتيجة لهذا الاضطهاد قامت الحرب بين فارس والإمبراطوريَّة الرومانيَّة تحت قيادة حكامها الجدد الذي تحوَّلوا حديثًا إلى المسيحيَّة.
Saint Aphraates lived as a true ascetic, with an evangelical mind. In his asceticism, his heart expanded with love for all, and he met others with cheerfulness, also striving to preserve the faith.
His upbringing
Born in the late 3rd or early 4th century AD [5] In Persia, his parents were from the Magi lineage of idolaters, but since his childhood he was not comfortable with the thoughts of his fathers and their lives filled with impurities. [6].
When he was of age, he met some Christians and was touched by their love, gentleness and chastity. He asked them about their faith, and they spoke to him about God’s supreme love, His work of salvation, the oneness of God and the trinity of the divine persons. He accepted the faith with great joy and was baptized. He was called Jacob. [7] Either in his baptism, monasticism, or ordination as a bishop. Which caused confusion between him and Jacob of Nisibis, who died in 338 AD.
لا يزال الجدال قائمًا بخصوص أصله إن كان وثنيًا أم مسيحيًا. فالبعض يعتمد على عباراته عن الوثنيين حيث يقول: “نحن”. والآخرون يرون في معرفته الواسعة للكتاب المقدس بعهديه واقتباساته الكثيرة دليلاً على أنه من أصلٍ مسيحي.
Aphrahat decided to leave his country like Abraham and go to Edessa (Edessa) in Mesopotamia to strengthen the faith of the Christians there. Since he was inclined to a life of solitude, he lived in a place near the city, practicing a life of ascetic worship with a spirit of true piety. The sweet fragrance of Christ wafted through him, and many came to seek his guidance and to ask for his prayers. After a while, he went to Antioch and resisted Arianism.
It seems that he left his place and went to another area in Syria where he increased in his asceticism, eating only bread and drinking water once a day with some uncooked vegetables as he grew older.
Afrahat the Bishop
He seems to have been a bishop, as is evident from his address to the pastors (Article 14), and his presentation of the faith in his articles as bishops did at that time.
Aphrahat and the persecution
Article 14 dates the year 655 for the Seleucids and 35 for Shahpur or Shapur, i.e. 344 AD. At the end of Article 23 it appears that he wrote it in 345 AD, from which we understand that the persecution was light five years ago, then intensified after that, especially after the death of the Catholicos. Some believe that he may have died in that year.
Article 21 records the persecution of that era to encourage believers in the face of persecution.
With Governor Anthimos [8]
افتقده تارة أنثيموس Anthimius والي أنطاكية الذي صار فيما بعد سفيرًا في فارس Persia. في طريقه عبر بأنطاكية عام 405م، وقدم للقديس أفراهاط ثوبًا جديدًا جاء به من بلاد فارس كهديةٍ من بلد هذا المتوحد. وإذ كان بطبعه لطيفًا وبشوشًا تقبل الهدية وشكره عليها. وبعد قليل سأله أفراهاط: “إني أستشيرك في قضية تحيرني وتبلبل فكري، وهي إنني منذ حوالي 16 عامًا عزمت أن يكون لي صديقًا واحدًا اخترته ليرافقني ويعيش معي. وكان هذا الصديق يعجبني جدًا ويعزيني ولم يحزنني قط، لكن جاء آخر من بلدٍ بعيدٍ وأراد أن يحتل مكانه، فأي الاثنين أقبل؟! أجاب الوالي: “الأول”. ابتسم أفراهاط وقال له: “إن الصديق القديم هو ثوبي يلازمني هذه السنوات الطوال، فكيف استبدله بآخر؟!” حينئذ ابتسم الوالي وأدرك أن أفراهاط يود الاعتذار عن قبول هديته بلطفٍ، فاسترد الثوب وهو متعجب من حكمته ولطفه، إذ لم يرد أن يجرح احساساته حتى في رفضه للهدية.
With King Valens [9]
The saint remained confined to his cell and did not leave it. It became a strong spiritual center, and all who came to him were comforted by the words of grace coming from his mouth, and enjoyed the blessings of God’s work with him.
When Emperor Valens Meletius, Bishop of Antioch, was exiled and persecuted the Church because of his Arian thought, Aphrahat entered the city of Antioch, and encouraged the believers, and strengthened them in the right faith, proving to them the divinity of the Lord Christ. The Arians were unable to resist or argue with him because of the grace that was given to him through his words and life and the miracles that God performed through his hands. Therefore, the Arians feared him and wanted to get rid of him.
Theodoret describes to us the story of the meeting of the righteous Aphrahat with the Emperor Valens, where he wrote:
To the north of the Orontes lies the palace. To the south is a spacious two-story portico, built on the city wall, with high towers on each side. Between the palace and the river is a public road open to passers-by coming from the city, and the gate in this quarter leads to the town on its outskirts.
حدث أن كان البار أفراهاط عابرًا هذا الطريق العام في طريقه إلى ساحة تدريب الجنود ليقوم بعملٍ رعويٍ لشعبه. وإذ كان الإمبراطور يتطلع إلى أسفل من بهو القصر ورآه سائرًا مرتديًا عباءة عادية من جلد الماعز ويسير بسرعة بالرغم من تقدم سنة، أدرك أنه أفراهاط الذي التصقت به كل المدينة، فصرخ الإمبراطور: “أين أنت ذاهب؟ أخبرني”. بمهارة وسرعة بديهة أجاب “لأصلي من أجل الإمبراطورية”.
قال الإمبراطور: “كان الأفضل أن تبقي في مسكنك وتصلي وحدك كراهبٍ”.
قال الرجل القديس: “نعم، إني ملتزم بالعمل هكذا، وأنا دومًا أفعل هذا حتى الآن، مادام قطيع المسيح في آمان. لكن الآن إذ القطيع مرتبك وفى خطورة ومحنة عظيمة يتعرض للافتراس بالوحوش، يلزمني ألا أترك وسيلة لأعمل بها على إنقاذ الرضيع.
Tell me, sir, if I were a girl sitting in my room and I looked up and saw a flame falling on the house and my father's house was on fire, what should I do?
Tell me, should I stay inside and not care about the house being on fire, and wait for the fire to get close to me? Or should I leave my spot and run here and there and get water and try to put out the fire?
You will surely tell me the last thing, for that is what a serious, brave girl should do. And that is what I am doing now, sir.
إنك تشعل النار في بيت أبينا، ونحن نسرع ساعين لإطفائها”.
Thus said Aphrahat, and the emperor threatened him, but he no longer spoke.
One of the imperial palace guards threatened the righteous man with extreme violence, and this was his fate. He was in charge of the bath. Immediately after the discussion, he went down to prepare a bath for the emperor. Upon entering, he lost his mind and stepped into the boiling water before mixing it with cold water, and he died.
The Emperor sat waiting for him to tell him that the bath was ready for him to enter. But as he waited too long, he sent some of his men to tell him the reason for the delay. They entered and began to search for him in the room and discovered that the chamberlain was dead in the boiling water.
The king knew this and those with him knew the power of Aphrahat's prayers, but they did not abandon their evil teachings, for their hearts hardened like Pharaoh's. And when the mad emperor knew, he was not admonished by the miracle, but was driven mad against piety. [10].]
It was not long before Valens died in a fire, and the Church was relieved of his resistance.
His death
The saint returned to his solitude and secluded himself there, offering his prayers for the world until he passed away around the year 345 AD.
تعيِّد له كنيستنا الأرثوذكسية في 29 من يناير، والكنيسة الكاثوليكية في السابع من أبريل. [تم تعديل هذا السطر… (الشبكة)]
Writings of Saint Aphrahat
The Persian Sage
His writings
Saint Aphrodite left us 23 articles called the Articles or Demonstrations, and most of these articles were about the Christian life or about the dangers threatening the Church through Jewish tendencies among Christians. They include three groups:
The first group: It consists of ten articles written around 336/337 AD, on Faith, Charity, Fasting, Prayer, Wars, Monks, Penitents, The Resurrection, Humility, and Pastors.
The second group: It consists of twelve articles, written around 343/344 AD during the persecution. Its topics are: Circumcision, Passover, Sabbath, Abstinence from Strife, Divers Meats, Call of the Gentiles, Jesus the Messiah, Virginity, Almsgiving, Persecution, Death and the Latter Times.
Group 3: It consists of a single essay, written in 345, entitled Of the Grape.
Who are the articles addressed to?
وجَّه أفراهاط مقالاته إلى من دعاهم “أبناء العهد” أو “جماعة القيامة”. يبدو أن هذه الجماعة تعود إلى أصل يهودي، وبالأخص إلى رهبان قمران الذين عاشوا بالقرب من البحر الميت. وهم يضمون مجموعة من الإكليروس أساقفة وكهنة وشمامسة، بل ومنهم من هم من الشعب. هم جماعة بتوليون ناسكون يكرسون حياتهم للعبادة ولا يمارسون أعمالاً تجارية أو زراعية أو أية وظيفة تدر مالاً، ذابوا فيما بعد في التنظيمات الرهبانية.
يوجه المقالة السادسة إلى “المتوحدين وأبناء العهد البتوليين والقديسين”.
Characteristics of his writings
1. جاءت هذه المقالات إجابة على أسئلة موجهة إليه من صديق له أو جماعة من الإخوة يعانون من الضيق ويستفسرون عن بعض المسائل الإيمانية والروحية.
2. لم يذكر الكاتب اسمًا لأحد ولا موضعًا ما، ولا انتقد الرئاسات الدينية، حتى لا تحمل أي تحيز شخصي. حتى بالنسبة للشخص الذي يتعامل مع الملوك (مقالة 8:14) فيكتفي بالقول “ليسمع الحكيم ويفهم”، وكأنه يقول لا أريد أن أوضح أكثر من هذا، إنما يليق بالقارئ أن يدرك خطأه.
3. لما كان أصل الجماعة التي كتب إليها يهوديًا فلا نعجب من اقتباسه الكثير من العهد القديم، وقيامه بمقابلات بين شخصٍ وآخر مثل تقدمة هابيل وتقدمة قايين، وصوم موسى والصوم الذي فرضته ايزابيل. لكن ما يشغله بالأكثر المقابلة بين شخصية يسوع مخلصنا وكثير من شخصيات العهد القديم.
4. في اقتباساته من الكتاب المقدس لم يلتزم بالنص، إنما غالبًا ما كان يكتب النص من ذاكرته. وقد أحصت مارى جوزيف بيار هذه الاقتباسات سواء الصريحة أو بالتلميح فوُجدت أنها 2691 أما Wright فأحصى 794 نصًا من العهد القديم و446 من العهد الجديد.
Article outline The First Article on Faith
It presents faith as a building, the cornerstone of which is the Lord Christ. This building is completed to become a temple for the Father and His Christ. The building materials are good works. It presents examples of the faith of figures from the Old and New Testaments, and the effectiveness of faith in their lives and service.
The second article on love
He explains the connection between the Law and the Prophets and the commandment of love, affirming that God is a God of love, mercy and forgiveness. He calls us to love our brothers, quoting the hymn of love mentioned by the Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 13). Christ offered us His love in practice before calling us to love God and our neighbor.
The third article on fasting
Pure fasting is acceptable, and it is not just abstaining from food, but from evil. Give examples of the fasts of holy people and others of wicked people mentioned in the Bible. And explain the greatness of Jesus’ fasting, because if Daniel’s fast saved the whole nation, what would be the fasting of the Lord Christ?
The fourth article on prayer [11]
Aphrahat's fourth treatise is one of the oldest extant Christian treatises on prayer. This treatise is not primarily about the Lord's Prayer as are the better-known works on prayer. Tertullian, Origen, Saints Gregory of Nyssa, Cyprian, and Augustine And others. This article is characterized by the following:
1. Rich in evangelical examples Which emphasizes the necessity of purity of heart as a condition for the acceptance of prayer. Father Afrahat looks at prayer as an internal encounter of the pure heart with the Holy God, for prayer is the conversation of the heart, which will not be the subject of the pleasure of the Holy God unless it is pure and clean.
2. Prayer is Internal presentation Or a sacrifice to God. God accepts it through purity of heart and announces His acceptance of it by the descent of a fiery angel carrying it as an offering acceptable to God. God revealed this through the descent of fire from heaven to devour the offerings of righteous believers in the Old Testament. Thus, Saint Aphrahat presented us with the attractive traditional interpretation to explain to us how Abel knew the acceptance of his sacrifice. By fire falling from the sky upon her, Cain knew that his sacrifice was rejected because the heavenly fire did not touch Cain’s sacrifice. It is clear that he borrowed this sign from the biblical expressions such as the sacrifice of David (1 Chronicles 21:26) and the sacrifice of Solomon (2 Chronicles 7:1) where the Bible mentions the descent of fire.
3. This is not the only point that links Jewish tradition to what is written in this article. But the concept of Prayer as a substitute for temple sacrifices, Which was widespread in Judaism after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD.
4. Prayer It is Jacob's ladderFor through the cross (the divine ladder) we meet our Savior, enjoy heavenly things, and experience the divine.
5. Prayer is an inner action that is translated into behavior. Prayer is Will preservation languageOr it is the achievement of inner comfort in God. God's comfort is in giving rest to the tired. (Isa 28:12 LXX) By practicing acts of mercy toward them. Therefore, God will not listen to the prayer of one whose heart is arrogant and hard on his brothers, whether by not forgiving them, or not caring about their needs. He emphasized the necessity of preparing for prayer by paying attention to one’s inner behavior, especially forgiving others.
6. Our whole life is prayerThis will not conflict with allocating times for prayer (hourly prayers) that support us to live every breath of our life in constant prayer.
7. صلاة المحبة التي تتحقق باجتماع اثنين أو ثلاثة باسم ربنا يسوع مستجابة. لكن أن وُجد المؤمن وحده كما كان دانيال في الجب ويونان في الحوت… فقد لا نجتمع مع الغير جسديًا لكننا نجتمع معهم بمشاعر الحب! فهم أفراهاط “The boudoir” (مت 6: 6) مثل The mark Origen [12]، وهو أن مكان الصلاة يجب أن يكون في الداخل، في قلب الإنسان. هذا المفهوم نقابله مرة أخرى مع مار أفرام في “أناشيد عن الإيمان [13]“.
Finally, Father Afrahat warns us against offering prayers with blood-stained hands!
8. Aphrahat's treatise on prayer showed how the saint bore witness to the richness of the Eastern tradition of the spirituality of purity of heart and presented several ideas that later became famous.
It is clear that Aphrahat's continuing influence on Syriac spirituality continued, especially during the sixth, seventh and eighth centuries. Many of his articles were quoted by a number of writers, and his works were translated at an early age into Armenian and circulated in his time under the name of Saint Jacob of Nusaybi. His articles were later translated into Arabic (and attributed to Mar Ephraim) and into Ethiopian and the language of Georgia in Russia.
The fifth article on wars
In the fifth article, Father Ephrahat dealt with the subject of (war) and presented many examples of wars at all levels, from the days of Cain, the murderer of his brother, to Daniel’s visions of wars between successive kingdoms until the coming of the Lord Christ, and also the resistance of the Antichrist to the Church. He elaborated on explaining the visions of the Prophet Daniel.
Father Ephrahat focused on pride as the cause of wars, and that these wars will not stop when the kingdom of Christ - the Son of Man - is completed in his final coming.
Article 6: About Monks
Writing about the monks as serious and exemplary Christians in enjoying the New Testament and the resurrected life, Father Afrahat focuses on the following points:
1. التوبة هي طريق الملكوت، لذا يليق بالراهب أن يمارس التوبة في جانبها الإيجابي والسلبي، كالسهر ومحاربة الشر وممارسة أعمال المحبة والوحدة.
2. أوضح أن الرهبنة هي حياة عرس مُفرح لا ينقطع، يليق بالراهب أن يحفظ ثوب العرس طاهرًا.
3. الرهبنة هي معركة مستمرة ضد قوات الظلمة، وضد الشهوات الجسدية، لذا يليق بالراهب ألا يختلط بالنساء، فقد سقط جبابرة خلال التهاون في هذا الأمر.
4. للمرأة دورها الإيجابي في الخلاص، ويليق بالراهبات أن يتشددن في جهادهن.
5. يحتاج الراهب إلى روح التمييز، فيميز كل روح ويتعرف على حيل إبليس.
6. يقدم مقارنة بين آدم الأول وآدم الأخير واهب القيامة.
Article Twenty-Three: A Blessing in a Cluster
في المقالة الثالثة والعشرين يتحدث عن “بركة في عنقود”. فالصديقون هم بركة العالم، إن زالوا منه زال العالم. وإن كانت صلوات الأبرار أحيانا لا تُستجاب في بعض الظروف، لكن يبقى دومًا أبرار في العالم كغنى له. بموت السيد المسيح انتزعت الخصلة من العنقود، فدُمرت أورشليم، وانتقلت البركة إلى الشعوب بالمسيح. هذه هي البركة الإلهية أو عطية الله للشعوب ألا وهي حضور المسيح واهب السعادة الحقيقية.
[1] Demonstrations, 22:26 (Of Death and the Latter Times).
[2] Demonstrations, 9:2 (Of Humility).
[3] Rev. Baring-Gould: The Lives of the Saints, John Hodges, London, 1880, April 7.
[4] Henry Wace & William Piercy: A Dictionary of Early Christian Biography, Hendrickson, June 1999, p. 31.
[5] Henry Wace & William Piercy: A Dictionary of Early Christian Biography, Hendrickson, June 1999, p. 31.
[6] Dr. Paul Al-Ghafali: Aphrahat, the Persian Sage, The Oriental Library, Beirut, 1992, p. 7.
[7] Henry Wace & William Piercy: A Dictionary of Early Christian Biography, Hendrickson, June 1999, p. 31.
[8] Rev. Baring-Gould: The Lives of the Saints, John Hodges, London, 1880, April 7.
Father Boutros Farmaj, the Jesuit: Meadows of the Righteous in the Biographies of the Righteous, Beirut 1877, April 7.
[9] Rev. Baring-Gould: The Lives of the Saints, John Hodges, London, 1880, April 7.
Father Boutros Farmaj, the Jesuit: Meadows of the Righteous in the Biographies of the Righteous, Beirut 1877, April 7.
[10] Theodoret of Cyrus: HE 4:23.
[11] The Syriac Fathers on Prayer and the Spiritual Life, Cistercian Publications Inc., Michigan 1987, p. 3.
[12] On Prayer, 20:2.
[13] Hymns on Faith, 20:6.