Pachomius, Presbyter and Monk

Pachomius the monk, a man endowed with apostolic grace both in teaching and in working miracles, and founder of the Egyptian monasteries, wrote an Order of Discipline suited to both kinds of monks, which he received by the dictation of an angel. He also wrote letters to the bishops associated with him in his district, in an alphabet hidden under mystic symbols, so as to go beyond ordinary human knowledge and be clear only to those of special grace or merit. These are one To the Abbot Cornelius, one To the Abbot Syrus, and one To the Heads of All the Monasteries. In this last he urged them to gather at one very ancient monastery, called in the Egyptian language Bau, and to celebrate the day of the Passover together, as by an everlasting law. In another letter he likewise urged that on the day of remission, which is celebrated in the month of August, the chief bishops should be gathered together at one place. He wrote one other letter to the brothers who had been sent to work outside the monasteries. [a]