Evagrius Ponticus on Prayer and Anger

Authors

Columba Stewart, College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's UniversityFollow

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2000

Disciplines

Arts and Humanities | Christianity | History of Christianity | Liturgy and Worship | Religion

Abstract

Evagrius Ponticus was the most acute monastic psychologist of the fourth century C.E. He was also a remarkable teacher of prayer. For Evagrius, the workings of the passions had a direct bearing on both the possibility and the quality of prayer. This was especially the case with the passion of anger. Anger is part of the interpersonal terrain of monastic life, remaining an issue even after other passions such as gluttony or lust have been effectively managed. Both perennial and deeply subversive, anger was a passion to be reckoned with over the long haul.

Comments

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Recommended Citation

Stewart, Columba. “Evagrius Ponticus on Prayer and Anger.” In Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice, edited by Richard Valantasis, 65-81. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2000.