Book - The Desert a City
1. Bibliographic Info
- Author: Derwas Chitty
- Full Title: The Desert a City: An Introduction to the Study of Egyptian and Palestian Monasticism Under the Christian Empire
- Publisher / Year: 1966
- Edition / Translator (if relevant):
- Where I heard about this book: The City Desert blog
- Why I chose to read it: I really enjoyed the writings at the above blog, which the author named that way in honor of this book. I suspect the author passed away, however, as there has not been a post since 2018. That still feels like “two years ago” for me, but it’s actually seven at the time of this writing. Sheesh. I came across the blog before I returned to Christianity, so it was in a way a part of the bridge back from ancient philosophy.
2. Overview
Summary of the book:
- The book covers the history and development of early Christian monasticism in Palestine and Egypt.
Key themes or arguments:
Connection to Catholic theology / spirituality:
3. Key Quotes & Notes
“This making a City of the Wilderness was no mere flight, nor a rejection of matter as evil (else why did they show such aesthetic sense in placing their retreats, and such love for all God’s animal creation?). It was rooted in a stark realism of faith in God and acceptance of the battle which is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual things of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
- Derwas Chitty (1901-1971)
→ Reflection or commentary.
“Another quote…”
→ Reflection or commentary.
4. Personal Reflections
What resonated with me most:
- The hermetic system does seem to me to be the core distillation of the Gospel message in all but one way. It’s absolutely clear to me that the motivation on serious training, spiritual practice, and religious living can (and maybe should) look like what these monks and nuns were/are doing. But, the withdrawal from the world (while often tantalizing to me) means the part you’re missing is service to others. A monastery can of course serve visitors, but how often are those visitors the poor, the sick, the dispossessed, or the elderly? This is especially at issue when you’re living out in the desert. Sure, that makes you face up and removes the distraction, but what about the other part of Christ’s message? Is that a task for someone else? Is that too selfish?
How it challenged or changed my thinking:
- It is interesting to see the development of monastic theory spread across time. Now, the Pachomian system is so well-known and pervasive, it’s a little weird to think that it was more “call and response” than the product of a person sitting down to right a Rule. It’s my instinct do things that way, “okay, now to devise a Rule of Life,” “time to institute the full, complete, BIG PROJECT!” But for these men and women, that obviously isn’t how it goes when you’re inventing something new. Some broad, high-level topics are clear at the outset, but the problems the Rule needs to solve aren’t always apparent until someone steps outside the line you didn’t know was there. I guess my take-away, here, is “patience.”
Ideas I want to act on:
- Previously, I had developed a Rule of Life while studying ancient philosophy. I think that was a useful exercise and training practice. I might like to re-examine that in my present context, and see where that leads. I suspect much of it can stay the same, actually. But it was not informed by Christ’s message. That will have to feature in the largest way, and may disrupt some of the other things.
5. Writing or Study Integration
- Possible essay or journal topic inspired by this:
- Related writing projects:
- Lectio tie-ins: Lectio - Book Chapter or themes: