Spiritual direction owes much to the early Christians known as the “desert fathers and mothers.” We continue this series looking at some of the most interesting of the desert mystics.
Riches to Rags
As a young 4th century woman, Syncletica of Alexandria had it all. Legend has it she was beautiful, desired by many eligible suitors, educated, and wealthy. Early in her childhood, Syncletica gave herself so totally to God that when her father arranged a marriage to a wealthy man, she begged her father to first allow her to go into the desert and explore the ascetic life. While on that Holy Land pilgrimage, she escaped her entourage, wrote a letter to her family saying, “don’t try to find me,” and ran off to study with a desert father to learn about living the solitary life.
When her parents died, she gave her entire inheritance to the poor, cut off all her hair to appear androgenous, and took her sister, who was blind, with her to the desert. There, in a cave where she lived 28 years, Syncletica found few distractions from her goal to be closer to God.
Becoming an Amma
Syncletica became a well-known desert teacher and “Amma” (spiritual mother) – one of the few women quoted in the Sayings of the Desert Fathers. In her sayings, it is clear she did not think the desert hermit life was for everyone, and even believed that some who came to the desert to live were outwardly quiet but inwardly louder than many who lived in cities.
One of her spiritual gifts was spiritual discernment. When women would come to the desert seeking a life like hers, she noticed many of them weren’t ready to live in poverty. It wasn’t enough for these women to renounce all worldly possessions, Syncletica expected them to practice the physical hardships of poverty, such as fasting and sleeping on the bare ground.
Meek as Moses
Humility was a value Syncletica held dear. She taught that “the soul is made feeble by praise and soon loses the resilience of its virtues.”
Choose the meekness of Moses and you will find your heart
which is a rock changed into a spring of water.
At the age of 81, Syncletica developed a painful disease of the throat, probably a type of cancer, which left her mute. By that time, the witness of her life and way of faith spoke louder than any words. She was 84 when she died.
These vignettes are found in a card collection called “Exploring the Depths: Desert Fathers and Mothers” offered by Teresa Blythe and Trey Everett. The cards are suitable for coloring. For more information, visit treyeverettcreates.com.
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