Cassian the Monk by Columba Stewart, O.S.B.

Abstract

Cassian the Monk. By Columba Stewart, O.S.B. [Oxford Studies in Historical Theology.] (NewYork: Oxford University Press. 1998. Pp. xv, 286. $60.00.) John Cassian (c. 365-435) was one of the most prolific and influential writers of early monasticism. He was also a world traveler. This native of Romania made his novitiate in a Greek monastery in Bethlehem, but soon he and his fellownovice Germanus went to Egypt, where they spent years sitting at the feet of the great desert hermits. In 400 A.D., Cassian was expelled from Egypt along with the other adherents of intellectual monasticism. He went to Constantinople, where he was made a deacon for John Chrysostom; then to Rome to report to the pope on Chrysostom's exile. About 415, Cassian moved to Marseilles, where he founded two monasteries and wrote two extensive sets of reports on Egyptian monasticism, the Institutes and the Conferences. Because he was bilingual, Cassian was an indispensable bridge between Greek and Latin monasticism. His writings have been regarded through the centuries as a valuable window on the mind of the early monks. And yet only two major studies of Cassian in English have been published since 1950. Probably the reason for this has been the need for a fresh translation and the rambling, sometimes confusing, nature of Cassian's discourses. This situation has now changed, however, with a fine new translation of the Conferences by Boniface Ramsey (Paulist Press, 1997) and this magisterial study by Columba Stewart, O.S.B. Cassian the Monk is not a particularly long book, having only 140 pages of text, but ninety pages of notes and thirty pages of bibliography show that it is massively researched. Although it is accessible to general readers, Stewart makes no effort to entertain them. Adequate comprehension can only be had by following his extensive cross-references within the text of Cassian; those who can do so should pursue his references to European literature. Stewart is one of those scholars who has read everything about his subject and condensed it into a deceptively simple text. Stewart admits that Cassian is a prolix and unsystematic writer, but he has no difficulty in locating the heart of his method. Cassian is resolutely eschatological: everything in the monastic life must lead toward heaven. But since that is too vague a road-map, the monk needs a more detailed itinerary suited to his specific way of life. The intermediate goal of the monk's journey is purity of heart, which is in turn attained by monastic practices such as vigils, fasting, and so on. …