Saint Macarius the Great

Life story

Macarius was born around 300 in Lower Egypt, possibly at Shabsheer (Shanshour). Traditional biographies say he worked as a tradesman before entering the ascetic life. At about thirty he left his village for the desert of Scetis (now Wadi El Natrun), where a growing number of hermits were gathering.

He visited Anthony the Great and then returned to Scetis. Around the age of forty he was ordained a priest to serve the community, and he stayed there as spiritual father to the hermits until the end of his life. Many of his sayings and anecdotes are recorded in the Sayings of the Desert Fathers and in Palladius's Lausiac History, though some details are legendary.

Fourth-century sources report that during the Arian persecution he and another monk also named Macarius were exiled to an island around 374 and later allowed to return. He died around 391, in his nineties. The Fifty Spiritual Homilies bearing his name are no longer thought to be his own but the work of an unknown Syrian author, usually called Pseudo-Macarius. Several Coptic monasteries in Scetis still bear his name. His memorial is 15 January in the Catholic Church.

Works and witness

• Entered the desert of Scetis around 330
• Visited Anthony the Great and returned to Scetis
• Ordained a priest to serve the community of hermits
• Exiled around 374 during the Arian persecution
• His sayings are recorded in the Sayings of the Desert Fathers

Saints from the same country

Saint Anthony of Egypt, Saint Athanasius, Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Saint Catherine of Alexandria

References

• Palladius, Lausiac History
• Apophthegmata Patrum (Sayings of the Desert Fathers)
• Martyrologium Romanum

Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.