Editing Asceticism (section)

====Christianity====
{{Christian mysticism |practices}}
{{main|Ascetical theology|Christian monasticism|Christian mysticism}}
{{further|Christian meditation|Consecrated life|Hesychasm|Imitation of Christ|Kenosis}}
[[File:StAnthony.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Coptic Orthodox Church|Coptic]] [[icon]] of St. [[Anthony the Great]], father of Christian monasticism and early [[anchorite]]. The [[Coptic language|Coptic]] inscription reads 'Ⲡⲓⲛⲓϣϯ Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ⲁⲛⲧⲱⲛⲓ' ("The great Abba Anthony").]]

Notable Christian authors of [[Late Antiquity]] such as [[Origen]], [[St Jerome]], [[John Chrysostom]], and [[Augustine of Hippo]], interpreted meanings of the [[Christian Bible|Biblical texts]] within a highly asceticized religious environment.<ref name="Campbell 1907">{{cite encyclopedia |author-last=Campbell |author-first=Thomas |year=2022 |origyear=1907 |title=Asceticism |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01767c.htm |url-status=live |editor-last=Knight |editor-first=Kevin |encyclopedia=[[Catholic Encyclopedia]] |volume=1 |publisher=[[New Advent]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316232239/https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01767c.htm |archive-date=16 March 2022 |access-date=12 April 2022}}</ref> Scriptural examples of asceticism could be found in the lives of [[John the Baptist]], [[Jesus Christ]], the [[twelve apostles]], and [[Paul the Apostle]].<ref name="Campbell 1907"/> The [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] revealed ascetic practices of the ancient Jewish sect of [[Essenes]] who took vows of abstinence to prepare for a holy war. An emphasis on an ascetic religious life was evident in both [[early Christian writings]] (''see'': [[Philokalia]]) and practices (''see'': [[Hesychasm]]). Other Christian practitioners of asceticism include saints such as [[Paul the Hermit]], [[Simeon Stylites]], [[Saint David|David of Wales]], [[John of Damascus]], [[Peter Waldo]], [[Tamar of Georgia]],<ref name="OrthoChristian.com">{{Cite book |last=Machitadze |first=Zakaria |date=2006 |title=Lives of the Georgian Saints |chapter=Holy Queen Tamar (†1213) |publisher=Saint Herman Press |via=OrthoChristian.Com |chapter-url=https://orthochristian.com/7262.html |isbn=978-1-887904-65-0 }}</ref> and [[Francis of Assisi]].<ref name="Campbell 1907"/><ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Wylie |first=J. A. |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924099176046/page/n7/mode/2up |title=History of the Waldenses |date=1880 |publisher=London, New York [etc.]: Cassell & Company|others=Cornell University Library}}</ref>

According to British [[historian]] and [[Roman Catholic theology|Roman Catholic theologian]] [[Richard Finn]], much of early Christian asceticism has been traced to the [[Judaism|Jewish tradition]], not to Ancient Greek asceticism.<ref name="Finn2009p94"/> Some of the ascetic thoughts in Christianity nevertheless, Finn states, have roots in [[Ancient Greek philosophy|Greek moral thought]].<ref name="Finn2009p94"/> Virtuous living is not possible when an individual is craving bodily pleasures with desire and passion. Morality is not seen in the ancient theology as a balancing act between right and wrong, but a form of spiritual transformation, where the simple is sufficient, the bliss is within, and the frugal is plenty.<ref name="Finn2009p94"/>

The deserts of the Middle East were at one time inhabited by thousands of male and female Christian ascetics, [[hermit]]s and [[anchorite]]s,<ref>For a study of the continuation of this early tradition in the Middle Ages, see Marina Miladinov, ''Margins of Solitude: Eremitism in Central Europe between East and West'' (Zagreb: Leykam International, 2008).</ref> including St. [[Anthony the Great]] (otherwise known as St. Anthony of the Desert), St. [[Mary of Egypt]], and St. [[Simeon Stylites]], collectively known as the [[Desert Fathers]] and [[Desert Mothers]]. In 963 an association of monasteries called ''Lavra'' was formed on [[Mount Athos]], in [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox tradition]].<ref name="Johnston2013p548"/> This became the most important center of orthodox Christian ascetic groups in the centuries that followed.<ref name="Johnston2013p548">{{cite book |author=Johnston |first=William M. |year=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iepJAgAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Monasticism |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |edition=1st |isbn=978-1-136-78716-4 |pages=290, 548, 577}}</ref> In the modern era, Mount Athos and [[Meteora]] have remained a significant center.<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Johnston |author-first=William M. |year=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iepJAgAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Monasticism |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |edition=1st |isbn=978-1-136-78716-4 |pages=548–550}}</ref>

Sexual abstinence such as those of the [[Encratites]] sect of Christians was only one aspect of ascetic renunciation, and both natural and unnatural asceticism have been part of Christian asceticism. The natural ascetic practices have included simple living, begging,<ref name=jbarrier163/> [[Fasting#Christianity|fasting]] and [[Christian ethics|ethical practices]] such as humility, compassion, [[Christian meditation|meditation]], patience and [[Christian prayer|prayer]].<ref>Elizabeth A. Clark. ''Reading Renunciation: Asceticism and Scripture in Early Christianity.'' Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1999.</ref> Evidence of extreme asceticism in Christianity appear in second century texts and thereafter, in both Eastern & Western Christian traditions, such as the practice of chaining the body to rocks, eating only grass,<ref>{{cite book |author1-last=Robinson |author1-first=Thomas A. |author2-last=Rodrigues |author2-first=Hillary P. |year=2014 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgwBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT147 |title=World Religions: A Guide to the Essentials |location=[[Ada, Michigan]] |publisher=[[Baker Academic]] |isbn=978-1-4412-1972-5 |pages=147–148}}</ref> praying seated on a pillar in the elements for decades such as by the monk [[Simeon Stylites]],<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Johnston |author-first=William M. |year=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iepJAgAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Monasticism |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |edition=1st |isbn=978-1-136-78716-4 |pages=582–583}}</ref> solitary confinement inside a cell, abandoning personal hygiene and adopting lifestyle of a beast, [[Mortification of the flesh|self-inflicted pain]] and voluntary suffering,<ref name="jbarrier163">{{cite book |author-last=Barrier |author-first=Jeremy |year=2013 |chapter=Asceticism in the Acts of Paul and Thecla's Beatitudes |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=upBFHk-jo0AC&pg=PA163 |editor-last=Weidemann |editor-first=Hans-Ulrich |title=Asceticism and Exegesis in Early Christianity: The Reception of New Testament Texts in Ancient Ascetic Discourses |location=[[Göttingen]] |publisher=[[Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht]] |series=Novum Testamentum et Orbis Antiquus/Studien zur Umwelt des Neuen Testaments |volume=10 |isbn=978-3-525-59358-5 |pages=163–185}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author-last=Johnston |author-first=William M. |year=2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iepJAgAAQBAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Monasticism |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |edition=1st |isbn=978-1-136-78716-4 |page=93}}</ref> however they were often rejected as beyond measure by other ascetics such as [[Barsanuphius of Gaza]] and [[John the Prophet]].<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Torrance |author-first=Alexis |title=Repentance in Late Antiquity: Eastern Asceticism and the Framing of the Christian Life C.400-650 CE |year=2013 |location=[[Oxford]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-966536-5 |page=126 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LKoGyqLzX9MC |access-date=2 April 2024 |language=en}}</ref> Ascetic practices were linked to the Christian concepts of [[Sin in Christianity|sin]] and [[Salvation in Christianity|redemption]].<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Chin |author-first=Catherine M. |year=2013 |chapter=Who is the Ascetic Exegete? |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=upBFHk-jo0AC&pg=PA203 |editor-last=Weidemann |editor-first=Hans-Ulrich |title=Asceticism and Exegesis in Early Christianity: The Reception of New Testament Texts in Ancient Ascetic Discourses |location=[[Göttingen]] |publisher=[[Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht]] |series=Novum Testamentum et Orbis Antiquus/Studien zur Umwelt des Neuen Testaments |volume=10 |isbn=978-3-525-59358-5 |page=203–218}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Peeters |editor1-first=Evert |editor2-last=Van Molle |editor2-first=Leen |editor3-last=Wils |editor3-first=Kaat |year=2011 |chapter=Introduction to Modern Asceticism: A Historical Exploration |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_w96zkx02LsC&pg=PA5 |title=Beyond Pleasure: Cultures of Modern Asceticism |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Berghahn Books]] |doi=10.3167/9781845457730 |isbn=978-1-84545-987-1 |jstor=j.ctt9qd2zc.5 |pages=1–18}}</ref>

The ascetic literature of early Christianity was influenced by [[Paganism|pre-Christian]] [[Ancient Greek philosophy|Greek philosophical traditions]], especially [[Plato]] and [[Aristotle]], looking for the perfect [[Spirituality|spiritual way of life]].<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Rubenson |author-first=Samuel |year=2007 |chapter=Asceticism and monasticism, I: Eastern |editor1-last=Casiday |editor1-first=Augustine |editor2-last=Norris |editor2-first=Frederick W. |title=The Cambridge History of Christianity: Constantine to c. 600 |location=[[Cambridge]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |volume=2 |pages=637–668 |doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521812443.029 |isbn=978-1139054133}}</ref> According to [[Clement of Alexandria]], philosophy and Scriptures can be seen as "double expressions of one pattern of knowledge".<ref name="Evagrius"/> According to Evagrius, "body and the soul are there to help the intellect and not to hinder it".<ref>{{cite book |last=Plested |first=Marcus |year=2004 |title=The Macarian Legacy: The Place of Macarius-Symeon in the Eastern Christian Tradition |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-b0SDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA67 |location=[[Oxford]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |series=Oxford Theology and Religion Monographs |doi=10.1093/0199267790.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-926779-8 |page=67}}</ref> [[Evagrius Ponticus]] (345–399 [[Common Era|CE]]) was a highly educated monastic teacher who produced a large theological body of work,<ref name="Evagrius">{{cite journal |author-last=Young |author-first=Robin Darling |date=Spring 2001 |title=Evagrius the Iconographer: Monastic Pedagogy in the Gnostikos |journal=[[Journal of Early Christian Studies]] |location=[[Baltimore]] |publisher=[[Johns Hopkins University Press]] |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=53–71 |doi=10.1353/earl.2001.0017 |s2cid=170981765}}</ref> mainly ascetic, including the ''Gnostikos'' ({{langx|grc|γνωστικός}}, ''gnōstikos'', "learned", from γνῶσις, ''gnōsis'', "knowledge"), also known as ''The Gnostic: To the One Made Worthy of Gnosis''. The ''Gnostikos'' is the second volume of a trilogy containing the ''Praktikos'', intended for young monks to achieve ''[[apatheia]]'', i.e., "a state of calm which is the prerequisite for love and knowledge",<ref name="Evagrius"/> in order to purify their intellect and make it impassible, to reveal the truth hidden in every being. The third book, ''Kephalaia Gnostika'', was meant for meditation by advanced monks. Those writings made him one of the most recognized ascetic teachers and scriptural interpreters of his time,<ref name="Evagrius"/> which include [[Clement of Alexandria]] and [[Origen]].

Between the [[Middle Ages]] and the [[Protestant Reformation]], Christian asceticism became more focused on communal life of [[Bible study (Christianity)|studying]] and [[Bible translations|translating]] the [[Bible]], [[Christian prayer|prayer]], [[Evangelism|preaching the Gospel]], and other [[spiritual practice]]s.<ref name="Hamalis 2014">{{cite book |author-last=Hamalis |author-first=Perry T. |year=2014 |origyear=2003 |chapter=Asceticism |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=frt7RDOT1PUC&pg=PA38 |editor1-last=Djupe |editor1-first=Paul A. |editor2-last=Olson |editor2-first=Laura R. |title=Encyclopedia of American Religion and Politics |location=[[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Facts On File]] |pages=38–39 |isbn=978-0-8160-7555-3 |lccn=2002033921}}</ref> The [[Proto-Protestantism|proto-Protestant]] [[Lollards]] and [[Waldensians]] originated as ascetic lay movements within [[Christianity in the Middle Ages|medieval]] [[Western Christianity]], and both were persecuted by the [[Roman Catholic Church]] throughout several centuries.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book |author-last=Macy |author-first=Gary |year=1984 |title=The theologies of the Eucharist in the early scholastic period: a study of the salvific function of the sacrament according to the theologians, c. 1080 – c. 1220 |location=[[Oxford]] |publisher=[[Clarendon Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-826669-3}}</ref> Notable examples of [[Protestantism|Protestant asceticism]] are the [[Anabaptism|Anabaptist Churches]] ([[Amish]], [[Hutterites]], [[Mennonites]], [[Schwarzenau Brethren]]), [[Quakers]], and [[Shakers]], which espouse their [[Christian pacifism|pacifist ethics]] and [[Nonconformity to the world|separation from the world]] by [[simple living]], which includes [[Plain dress|plain dressing]] and preference for [[Appropriate technology|antiquated technology]].<ref name="Hamalis 2014"/><ref>{{cite book |author-last=Davies |author-first=Alan |year=1999 |chapter=Tradition and Modernity in Protestant Christianity |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9PD7EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA30 |editor-last=Ishwaran |editor-first=K. |title=Ascetic Culture: Renunciation and Worldly Engagement |location=[[Leiden]] and [[Boston]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |series=International Studies in Sociology and Social Anthropology |volume=73 |page=30 |isbn=978-90-04-47648-6 |issn=0074-8684}}</ref>