Abba John said, 'We have put the light burden on one side, that is to say, self-accusation, and we have loaded ourselves with a heavy one, that is to say, self-justification.'
-- The Sayings of the Desert Fathers
The same Abba Theophilus,the archbishop, came to Scetis one day. The brethren who were assembled said to Abba Pambo, 'Say something to the archbishop, so that he may be edified.' The old man said to them, 'If he is not edified by my silence, he will not be edified by my speech.'
-- The Sayings of the Desert Fathers
Abba Elias, the minister, said, 'What can sin do where there is penitence? And of what use is love where there is pride?'
-- The Sayings of the Desert Fathers
Abba Isaiah said, 'Nothing is so useful to the beginner as insults. The beginner who bears insults is like a tree that is watered every day.'
-- The Sayings of the Desert Fathers