Second Sight (continued), Book V

V.xviii. 19.  Holy Bishop Basil told the story of a virgin living in a monastery who pretended to be an idiot possessed of a demon, and was considered by everybody to be so misguided that no-one would even eat with her. Her chosen way of life was to be found always in the kitchen, where she carried out all the duties of a servant. She was everybody's doormat, as the saying goes. By her actions she fulfilled in herself what we read in Scripture, "If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise." (! Cor.5.18)  She wore a piece of old rag on her head, performing all her duties dressed like this, whereas the other virgins shaved their heads and wore cowls. None of the forty virgins ever saw her eating; never in her whole life did she sit down at table with them. Nobody gave her anything except a small portion of bread, but she picked up the crumbs from the tables and cleaned out the leavings in the food jars, and with this pittance she lived content. She harmed no one, no one ever heard her grumbling, she never had either too much or too little to say to anybody. She was lower than anyone else, she lived despised by everyone she was the butt of all their hard words. Then one day the angel of the Lord appeared to a desert dweller called Pyoterius, known to all as a holy and respected man, living in a place called Porphyrites, and the angel said, "Why should you think you are somebody, a holy person, living here? Would you like to see a woman holier than you are? Go to the monastery of women in Tabennisi and you will find one there wearing a crown; know that she is greater than you. She alone battles day and night against many foes, her heart never departing from God, whereas you, even though you stay in one place, are constantly wandering in mind and spirit through all the cities of the world."  He straightway went to the aforesaid monastery, and asked the master of the brothers if he might visit the women's quarters. It wasn't long before he was confidently introduced there as not only a man of exemplary life but also of respected years. When he went in he asked to see all the sisters, but he could not see among them the one on whose account he had come. To the last one he saw he said, "Bring them all; there is still someone lacking."  "There is only one more, the half-wit in the kitchen," they said. "She is known as being one of those who are vexed with demons."  "Bring her to me as well for me to see," he said. So they began to call her. She was very unwilling to listen, sensing that something was up, or perhaps knowing by divine revelation. But they said to her, "Holy Pyoterius wants to see you," for he was someone well known and of a great reputation. When she came in and he saw her with the old piece of rag on her head he threw himself on the floor before her and said, "Give me your blessing." But she then fell at his feet and said, "No, you bless me, father."  All the sisters were shocked at this and said, "Don't let her treat you like this, father. She's stupid, as you can see." And holy Pyoterius said to them all, "You are the stupid ones. She is my Amma and yours." (For so they called spiritual women.) "I pray God that in the day of judgment I may be found as worthy as her." At this they too all fell at her feet and began to confess all the sins they had committed against her. One said she had poured the dirty washing up water over her, another remembered that she had often given her a box on the ear, another that she had tweaked her nose, others spoke of various kinds of injuries they had done her. The holy man poured out prayers to God for all these things and departed. The idiot, finding that she could not bear all this glory, and unwilling to be weighed down by the honour given to her by the sisters, but rather feeling that she was being hardly done by since all were asking her forgiveness, after a few days fled from the monastery secretly, and where she went, where she settled down, or how she died, nobody has ever been able to find out.
V.xviii. 20.  Paul the Simple of blessed memory told the following story to the fathers, He once went to a monastery as a visitor in order to teach the brothers, and after they had mutually encouraged each other they went as usual to church for Mass. As Blessed Paul looked at each person going in to the church, he was able to see what they were like inside, for God had given him the gift of being able to read souls as clearly as we can read each others' faces. He was also able to see the guardian angel of each one. Among those who were going in with open faces and shining eyes he saw one who was all black and disfigured in his whole body, with demons holding him and dragging him towards them by means of halters they had put through his nose, and a very sad looking holy angel following him a long way off. Paul sat down in front of the church weeping and beating his breast, in deep mourning for the one who appeared to him like that. Those who saw his weeping and crying, and how suddenly this change had come on, implored him to tell them what he could see, fearing that some blame must attach to them all to make him act like this. They begged him to go in to Mass with them but he would not. He turned his back on them and stayed prone outside weeping constantly for him whom he had seen. Later when they came out of church Paul again watched them comparing how they looked now as against how they looked when they went in, and the one whom he had seen all black and disfigured in his whole body he now saw coming out of church with an open face and a purified body. the demons who earlier held him now followed afar off, and the holy angel was walking beside him, joyful and eager, giving great thanks for him. Paul began to jump for joy, and blessed God, shouting, "O the ineffable mercy and goodness of God! O divine acts of pity and countless blessings!"  He ran up to the top step and cried with a loud voice, "Come and see him who wishes all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim.2.4). Come let us worship and fall down before him saying, 'You alone can take away our sin.'" Every one came in answer to his cry, eager to hear what he had to say, and when all were gathered together Paul told them what he had seen as they were all going in to church and what he had seen after. And he begged the person concerned to tell what had happened that God should have given him caused such a transformation. When Paul had pointed him out, he began quite openly to tell his story in the presence of all who were standing around. "I am a sinner," he said, "And up till now I have been committing sexual sins, but in the holy church of God I have just now heard the wors of Isaiah the prophet being read, or rather the voice of God speaking through him, where he says, 'Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your thoughts before my eyes, learn to do well...though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as while as snow...if ye be willing and obedient ye shall eat of the good of the land.' (Isaiah 1.16-19) I, a sinner, was cut to the quick by these words, and groaning inwardly I said to God, 'You came into the world to save sinners, O God. Fulfil in word and deed what you have promised through these readings from the prophet, even in me an unworthy sinner. From now on I promise you, I give my word, I confess in my heart, that I will cease to do evil, I will renounce all wrong-doing, and from now on I will serve you with a clean heart. Today, O Lord, at this very hour, accept my sorrow as I call upon you and renounce all sin.'  Having made these promises I came out of church determined in my mind to do no more evil in the sight of the Lord."  Having heard this they all cried to God with a loud voice, saying, "O Lord how marvellous are thy works. In wisdom hast thou made them all." (Psalm 104.24) Wherefore Christians who learn from the holy Scriptures and divine revelation how great is the good that God wills for those who turn to him and amend their former sins by penitence not only do not have to suffer punishment for those sins done aforetime, but also enjoy the promised rewards. Let us then never despair of our salvation, for as it is promised us in Isaiah the prophet, let whoever is bound by sin be washed clean and be white as wool or snow, and enjoy the heaven of the just which is Jerusalem the heavenly city, as Ezechiel also promises, "As I live says the Lord, I desire not the death of a sinner, but rather that he turn from his wickedness and live."