Page:Theparadiseoftheholyfathers.djvu/445

 And to another of them also he said, “This night thou hast pondered in thy mind about filthy fornication.” And to another he said, “Thou hast thought in thy mind that whether a man be righteous or wicked there is nothing to hinder thee from drawing nigh to the goodness of God.” And to another he said, “Thou hast had doubt in thy mind whether the Holy Things are able to sanctify those who draw nigh to them; therefore keep thou away for a little from the Holy Mysteries, and repent with all thy soul, so that thou mayest obtain remission of [thy] sins, and thou mayest be held worthy of association with Christ. For if ye do not cleanse your thoughts before ye draw nigh [to them] ye will be unable to [obtain forgiveness].”

ND we also saw in Thebaïs the monastery of the blessed Isidore, which was a strong building with a high brick wall, and in it dwelt thousands of monks; in it also were a well, and a garden, and whatsoever was required for the food of its inhabitants. None of the monks ever went forth from the monastery, for they had as a doorkeeper a certain elder who would neither permit any man to depart, nor to come in, except him who had determined in his mind to remain there until the day of his death, and never to leave. And this doorkeeper had a small house by the side of the gate wherein he received such strangers as came [by night], and in the morning he would give them a blessing (i.e., a gift) and dismiss them in peace. Now there were two of the elders who used to go outside the building, and they did so to sell the work of the brethren, and to bring in such things as were required by them. And the elder who was always at the door was in the habit of saying that all the monks who dwelt within the building were so holy that all of them could work miracles, and that it was impossible for any one of them to fall into sickness before the day of his departure from the world, and that whensoever the end of any of them was coming he knew it beforehand, and told all the the brethren about it, and then he lay down and died.

Here end the Triumphs of Isidore

ND we saw also another holy man in Thebaïs, whose name was Dioscurus, and he was the Abbâ of one hundred monks. And when the monks were about to draw nigh to the gracious gift of the Mysteries, he would say to them, “Peradventure there is a man among you who dareth to draw nigh to the Holy Things, in whose mind the lust for women hath risen up during the night. The nocturnal