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Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert: the Case of Evagrius of Pontus

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Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert: the Case of Evagrius of Pontus Scholars Crossing LBTS Faculty Publications and Presentations 10-2011 Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert: The Case of Evagrius of Pontus Edward L. Smither Liberty University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/lts_fac_pubs Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, Ethics in Religion Commons, History of Religions of Eastern Origins Commons, History of Religions of Western Origin Commons, Other Religion Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Smither, Edward L., "Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert: The Case of Evagrius of Pontus" (2011). LBTS Faculty Publications and Presentations. 380. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/lts_fac_pubs/380 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Crossing. It has been accepted for inclusion in LBTS Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of Scholars Crossing. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert: The Case of Evagrius of Pontus1 EDWARD L. SMITHER In this article, an invitation is given to modern practitioners and thinkers on missionary tentmaking - especially those from the majority world- to reflect on the apparent tentmaking approach of the fourth-century monk Evagrius of Pontus (c. 345-399). Though not a missionary himself, Evagrius proved to be innovative in his approach to work, which sustained his primary spiritual calling-monasticism. After exploring the necessity and context for his manual labor, his theology of work and the relationship between physical and spiritual labor will be considered. Finally, some suggestions for applying Evagrius' tentmaking principles will be offered. Introduction In his recent book on missionary tentmaking, Patrick Lai asserts that" ... churches tend to look backward instead of forward for direction. We look backward at what has already been accomplished and limit the opportunities for God to work based on what He has done in the past" (Lai 2005:371). While Lai is warning against a complacent acceptance of traditional thought and practice in mission without a fresh vision for the present or future, I suggest that a healthy interaction with mission and church history will actually humble, inspire, and even instruct modern practitioners. This conviction was evident at the 1999 Iguassu (Brazil) Dialogue- a meeting that con­ sidered global missiology for the twenty-first century- as papers devoted to Celtic, Nestorian, Moravian, Jesuit, and Coptic missions were included in the conference (Taylor 2000:489-517). Also, in a recent monograph on business as mission, a work largely dedicated to theory and practice in tentmaking, Howard Owens contributed an article on the Nestorian approach to tentmaking (2006: 133-146). In light of this renewed appreciation for church history and its relationship to contemporary missi­ ological thought and practice, my aim in this article is to consider the case of the Edward L. Smither (Ph.D., University of Wales-Lampeter) is Associate Professor of Church History and Intercultural Studies at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. Smither, who served in cross-cultural ministry for ten years in France and North Africa, is the author of Augustine as Mentor: A Model for Preparing Spiritual Leaders and translator of Frans;is Decret' s Early Christianity in North Africa. He may be contacted at [email protected]. Missiology: An International Review, Vol. XXXIX, no. 4, October 2011 i I 486 Edward L. Smither Lessons from a Tentmaking Ascetic in the Egyptian Desert 487 fourth-century monk Evagrius of Pontus (c. 345-399), who took an app~en~ ~ent­ the churches of the Global South -churches lacking the resources of their North­ making approach in his monasticism- that is, he sustained himself and his mmistry ern counterparts-tentmaking has also emerged as an alternative form of generating through labor. support for missionaries and mission work. Before moving into the argument, two qualifications should be made about Eva­ Given these points of qualification, in this article, following a brief narrative grius' ministry as well as the subject oftentmaking. First, .as he was mostly kn?wn for of Evagrius' background and journey in monasticism, I will explore the context of his implication in the Origenist controversy as well as his work ~s .a monastic th~o­ his work, his thoughts and conviction about work, and his views on the relationship logian, it is clear that Evagrius was not a missionary or even a missionary-monk hke between physical and spiritual labor. My hope is that modern missionaries - espe­ Augustine of Canterbury (d. 604), Columba (c. 521-597}, or. Columba~ (5~3-.615). cially those being sent from the more economically challenged churches of the Global Rather, his spiritual vocation was pursuing an austere ascetic existence, pnmardy m ~he South - would glean some helpful principles from Evagrius, and that the current Egyptian desert. While his activities certainly included prayer, ~~u~l la?or: fas~mg tentmaking debate would also be enriched by a model from the early church. from food and sleep, reading and memorizing Scripture, and partiCipatmg m liturgical assemblies, Evagrius also taught Scripture and spiritual disciplines, showed hospital.ity Who Was Evagrius? to visitors, and emerged as the most prolific writer among the fourth-century Egyptian Evagrius was born around 345 in the city of Ibora in Pontus (Asia Minor). The monks (cf. Harmless 2004:315; Casiday 2006:7, 10-12, 36; Caner 2002:42; Brakke son of a country bishop, he was educated in philosophy and rhetoric, which meant 2006:50). 0 that he probably came from a family of some means. In the late 350s, he was ordained Though Evagrius was not a missionary, there are sev~ral paralle.ls betw.e~n his as a reader under Bishop Basil of Caesarea. It was probably at this time that Evagrius experiences and those of tentmaking missionaries today. First, Evagnus exhibited a became a monk, following the example of Basil who had combined his clerical calling profound sense of calling to serve God. Second, he understood what it meant to ~ors~e with coenobitic (communal) monasticism (cf. Harmless 2004:312; Casiday 6-7). In his homeland and live cross-culturally as he migrated from a Greek context m Asia the late 370s, Evagrius was made a deacon by Gregory of Nazianzus in the church Minor and settled in a Coptic milieu in Egypt (cf. Linge 2000:538; Driscoll2005:5-6). at Constantinople. There Evagrius served the bishop in the battle against Arianism Third, he had a primary focus -prayer and knowing God- that was clear~y more and was involved in the council of Constantinople of 381. Following an apparent important to him than his manual labor. Fourth, it was necessary that he w_ork m or~er sexual affair at Constantinople, he fled to Jerusalem where he joined Rufinus, Mela­ to sustain himself, others, and the ministry in general. Fifth, he ran the nsk of bei~g nia the Elder, and others in a monastic circle devoted to studying Origen' s writings under-supported materially. Finally, he was forced to think through the rel~tionship (cf. Harmless 2004:314; Young 2001:56). After confessing his failures to Melania, between spiritual and manual labor. Hence, Evagrius' approach to tentmakmg, even Evagrius was encouraged by her to continue his ascetic journey in Egypt. In 383, as a monk, is worth investigating. he arrived in Nitria where he apprenticed under Ammonius and the Tall Brothers for Second, a great deal has been written in the past 30 years on the notio~ o.f tentm~k­ two years before moving to Kellia, an environment of greater solitude, where he was ing, platforms, and more recently, kingdom business and business as mission. While mentored from a distance by Macarius the Egyptian and Macarius the Alexandrian the scope of this article does not allow for a complete interaction with the various def­ (cf. Harmless 2004:313-315). By the time Evagrius reached Kellia in 385, where he initions and perspectives on tentmaking which are being treated adequately elsewhere, would largely remain until his death around 399, he had gone from one end of the a brief word will suffice (see Wilson 2002; Hamilton 1987; Lewis, 1996; Befus 2001; monastic spectrum as a city dwelling monk-cleric in the coenobitic tradition to being Yamamori and Eldred 2003; Rundle and Steffen 2003; Lai 2005; Steffen and Barnett a more isolated, desert-dwelling anchorite (hermit). Evagrius was surely following 2006; and Pocock, Van Rheenen, and McConnell2005:209-244). the counsel of the abbas who "approve highly of an anachoresis that is undertaken by The notion of tentmaking, of course, originates with Paul who, along with col­ degrees" (Evagrius, To Eulogios 29.32 in Sinkewicz 2003:56). leagues such as Priscilla and Aquila, supported himself through working with his As noted, despite his pursuit of monastic solitude, Evagrius was in regular con­ hands- worked that also gained credibility for the gospel (cf. 2 Thess. 2:8-12). tact with others as a teacher of Scripture, prayer, and spiritual disciplines and through Though the circumstances of modern tentmakers vary greatly, my basic ~ssun:p~ion is offering hospitality to visitors. A recipient of a classical education that certainly em­ that tentmaking efforts provide material support on some level to sustam misswnar­ phasized reading and writing, Evagrius entered the predominantly oral environment ies and mission work, and that this labor also provides credibility and access for the of the Egyptian abbas - many of whom were actually illiterate - and he put this gospel. This approach has become more important in the last 50 yea~s ?ecause many tradition to writing (cf. Harmless 2004:311; Driscoll 2005 :3).
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