At the first monastery, he learned of the departure
of St. Antoni from this life. The bond of love which had
cemented his heart so strongly to the great saint during
his earthly life, gave Athanasius a sense of assurance that
the Spirit of this Athlete of God would be with him and
help him more than ever. With this assurance he carried
on his life of Christ-centred activities, and as he moved
from one monastery to the other, his prayers, his praise
and his adoration mingled with prayers, praise, and
adoration of the desert conquerors. He was consoled to
think that Christ was loved and glorified in the desert; he
was sad to think that Christ was persecuted in Alexandria
and other cities of Egypt by his blinded foes.^46
It was through the fidelity and vigilance of the
monks that Athanasius, though absent from his flock, was
ever present in his church. At the least movement of the
enemy, they immediately warned him. Whenever he
wrote, they immediately transcribed his writings and
circulated them throughout Christendom. He continued
his course of action giving his counsels and his orders,
teaching, guiding, writing.
- These years of seclusion in the depths of the desert
were probably the most prolific years in the life of Abba
Athanasius. Alone with his thoughts, away from all the
distraction of city life, he wielded his indefatigable pen.
Out of the dark desert caverns shone the Light which
illumined the path for all religiously-minded people
throughout the ages. While this masterful teacher was
forced to find shelter in the solitude of the desert, he
wrote his defence against Arianism in four volumes.
Forgetting all personal questions, and ignoring all
treachery and backhandedness, he concerned himself
solely with the theological questions. He rose above all