THE COMING MONTH
IN OCTOBER, as we have mentioned in previous issues, there are no Great Feasts and no special fast periods.
Among the Saints we celebrate in October, we have:
Our Venerable Father Ammon the Egyptian (4th/17th) was one of the great Desert Fathers and a contemporary and fellow-ascetic of St Antony the Great. He was orphaned when he was a small child and was brought up by an uncle. In his youth, he was required by his uncle to marry, but as soon as he and his bride entered the bridal chamber, they began to read the Scriptures. Coming upon St Paul’s words about marriage and virginity in the first Epistle to the Corinthians, they resolved that they would live together in virginity, married in the sight of the world but secretly living an ascetical life. After some time, they moved to a desert place so that they could more easily live the ascetic life, and they settled in a hut on Mount Nitria. However, they found from experience, that living together in this way was not expedient, and so they parted to live separately. Ammon lived a very strict ascetical life, never using wine or oil in his diet, and eating only dry bread every two or three days. Through his struggles he was deemed worthy to receive grace from the Lord, and disciples began to gather around him. Each lived in a separate cell so as to maintain quiet or stillness. But when a new member joined the community, St Ammon would leave his own cell for the new brother, and build himself a new one, thus giving them an example of hospitality and of love-of-labour. The community grew so large that some of the brethren conceived the idea of living some distance from the Nitrian community. Once when St Antony visit Ammon, he asked the great Elder’s advice on this matter, and after the meal at the ninth hour (three in the afternoon) they both set out into the desert and walked until sunset. There they set up a Cross, and the two saints blessed those who wished to to build their cells where the cross was planted. Thus a second community was founded which became known as “the Cells” (Kellia). When St Ammon ended his earthly course, St Antony was far away in his mountain hermitage, but at that moment he broke off his conversation with some of the monks, and beheld the soul of Ammon being escorted into the heavenly realms by choirs of Angels. Some of the words of St Ammon have been recorded and come down to us for our edification. One perhaps which in these days of great irritation we can all profit from is: “Bear with everyone as God bears with you.”
Saint Cosmas the Hymnographer (14th/27th) was also orphaned as a small child, and he was adopted by the father of St John of Damascus, whose name was Sergius. Sergius saw to it that his son and his adopted son both received an excellent education, and for this purpose he employed an erudite Sicilian monk, also called Cosmas, who instructed the boys in the various sciences and disciplines of that period. In time both Cosmas and John became monks in the Lavra of St Sabbas the Sanctified in Palestine and there they studied the “science of sciences,” prayer. In time St John was ordained priest, and St Cosmas was elected to be the Bishop of Maiuma, where he tended the flock for many years until his righteous repose. Like St John, St Cosmas was an extremely gifted poet and many of the hymns that we use to this day in church are compositions of this holy father, who has been named from this gift, received from God.
This year, there have been great festivities celebrating the victories of Nelson over the Napoleonic forces, but year by year the Orthodox Church celebrates as one of her saints a man whose forces also defeated Napoleon. He is St Peter of Cetinije, the Metropolitan and Prince of Montenegro (18th/31st). St Peter was born in the village of Njegushi in 1749 A.D. At the age of twelve he took up the monastic life, and in A.D. 1782, he succeeded Metropolitan Sabas. He dedicated his whole life to saving the people entrusted to his care both as their Archpastor and as their prince. He brought peace to a land which was riven by wars between rival clans, and defended them from attacks by enemies without. Thus it was his forces repulsed Napoleonic forces at the battle of Boka in Dalmatia. While caring for his peoples as their defender and prince, he also cared for them spiritually, and although he was their civic ruler, he lived the simple life of a monk in a narrow cell. He gave up his soul on 18th October, 1830, and his incorrupt relics repose in the Monastery of Cetinije where they are a source of healings for those who have recourse to them in prayer.
The Venerable Ethbin (19th October / 1st November) lived in the sixth century and was born in Britain. He went to the continent to take up the monastic life under the spiritual direction of St Sampson of Dol. Hearing the Gospel call of complete renunciation, he felt like St Antony before him that he should take up a more ascetic manner of life and obtained a blessing to place himself in obedience to St Winwaloc the Younger in the monastery at Tauroc. This house was destroyed by the Franks in the year 560, and Ethbin took refuge in Ireland, where at a place called Necton Wood, he built a small cell and lived as a hermit. There at the age of eighty-three he brought his earthly course to an end. 
