In another article, How Our Hearts Are Works of Art, I discuss the way that courage is the contrary of anger. For instance, shame is something which is a detriment to the soul but humility is its contrary and is a beautiful thing. The idea of contraries is that each vice which affects a person’s soul can be corrected by a corresponding virtue. In this article I want to look very briefly at the concept of contraries which became the foundation of the work of the anamcaras.
Either way, the teachings of the desert and of Cassian in particular were of great importance. This is partially because Celtic Christianity was primarily a monastic Christianity rather than one based on bishops and their respective diocese. So, Cassian’s influence was not only on the Celts, but his influence on the Celts was profound nonetheless. Benedict, for instance, in his rule, said that what he taught was a simplified version of what Cassian taught and that an experienced monk following his rule should turn to Cassian to learn the full truth of the monastic life. Cassian’s teaching and way of life is perhaps the foundation of all western monasticism. Cassian had lived in the desert with the abbas and recorded their teachings in two volumes titled Institutes and Conferences. The wisdom of the desert came to the Celtic people primarily through the teachings of John Cassian. Perhaps it was the common indigenous mindset shared by both these groups who had not been as thoroughly influenced by the Roman empire as others which attracted the Celts to their ways. They integrated the lifestyle, teachings, and imagery of these Egyptian ascetics into their own way of life. The early Celtic Christians were very fond of the wisdom of the Desert Mothers and Fathers.
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