Daniel Edwards

Marquette University

Aiming at Perfection: The Life of Holiness according to the Epistola Magna

Since the discovery of its longer (and earlier) recension last century and the publication of its critical edition in 1984, the Epistola Magna ascribed to Macarius has rarely been studied in its own right. Overlooked due to debates over its precise relationship to St. Gregory of Nyssa’s De Instituto Christiano and mischaracterizations (as Messalian or Encratite), this letter provides a fascinating view into an understanding of asceticism near the end of the fourth century which synthesizes aspects of Greek and Syriac ascetic life. Through a careful analysis of this text, and with an attentive eye toward both early Syriac asceticism (particularly in Aphrahat and the Book of Steps) and the early development of cenobitic monasticism (particularly in Cappadocia and surrounding regions), this paper presents a detailed account of the life of holiness envisioned by its author. At once a call to a life aimed at perfection and a charter for a monastic brotherhood in all of its imperfections, the Epistola Magna presents this life as an actualization of the initial grace of baptism in good works and virtue, by which the monk progresses toward holiness. Thus, through strenuous effort, virginity, and prayer, the ascetic aims to arrive in this life at the final goal: transformation and immersive participation in the luminous, infinite life of God.