Pishoy of Scetis (
Coptic
Coptic may refer to:
Afro-Asia
* Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya
* Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century
* Coptic alphabet, t ...
: ''Abba Pišoi'';
Greek: Ὅσιος Παΐσιος ὁ Μέγας; 320 – 417 AD), known in the
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria as the ''Star of the Desert'' and the ''Beloved of our Good Savior'', was a
Coptic
Coptic may refer to:
Afro-Asia
* Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya
* Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century
* Coptic alphabet, t ...
Desert Father
The Desert Fathers or Desert Monks were early Christian hermits and ascetics, who lived primarily in the Scetes desert of the Roman province of Egypt, beginning around the third century AD. The is a collection of the wisdom of some of the ear ...
. He is said to have seen
Jesus, and been bodily preserved to the present day via
incorruptibility at the
Monastery of Saint Pishoy
The Monastery of Saint Pishoy (also spelled Bishoy, Pshoi, or Bishoi) in Wadi El Natrun, Beheira Governorate, Egypt, is the most famous monastery of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria named after Pishoy. It is the easternmost of the four ...
in the
Nitrian Desert
The Nitrian Desert is a desert region in northwestern Egypt, lying between Alexandria and Cairo west of the Nile Delta. It is known for its history of Christian monasticism."Nitrian Desert", in F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone, eds., ''The Oxfo ...
,
Egypt. He is venerated by the
Oriental Orthodox Churches
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent ...
and the
Eastern Orthodox Churches, and is known in the latter under the Greek version of his name, Paisios.
Life
Saint Bishoy was born in 320 AD in the village of Shansa (Shensha or Shesna), currently in the
Egyptian governorate of
Al Minufiyah. Younger to six other brothers, he was weak and frail. His mother saw an
Angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
in a vision asking her to give God one of her children, and pointed at Bishoy. When the mother tried to offer one of her stronger children, the angel insisted that Bishoy was the chosen one.
At the age of twenty, Bishoy went to the wilderness of
Scetes
Wadi El Natrun (Arabic: "Valley of Natron"; Coptic: , "measure of the hearts") is a depression in northern Egypt that is located below sea level and below the Nile River level. The valley contains several alkaline lakes, natron-rich salt de ...
and became a
monk by the hand of
Saint Pambo
Saint Pambo (also known as Pemwah and Bemwah - Όσιος Παμβώ in Greek) (died c. 375) is a Coptic Desert Father of the fourth century. Saint Pambo is venerated by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Churches and the Roman ...
, who also ordained
Saint John the Dwarf
Saint John the Dwarf (Greek: Ἰωάννης Κολοβός; Arabic: ابو يحنّس القصير (Abū) Yuḥannis al-Qaṣīr c. 339 – c. 405), also called Saint John Colobus, Saint John Kolobos or Abba John the Dwarf, was a Coptic Desert ...
a monk. When
Saint Pambo
Saint Pambo (also known as Pemwah and Bemwah - Όσιος Παμβώ in Greek) (died c. 375) is a Coptic Desert Father of the fourth century. Saint Pambo is venerated by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Churches and the Roman ...
died, Bishoy was guided by an
angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
to the site of the present Monastery of Saint Bishoy, where he lived the life of a
hermit. At this time, he became the spiritual father of many monks who gathered around him. He was famous for his love, wisdom, simplicity and kindness, as well as for his extremely ascetic life. He was also known to love seclusion and quietness. Bishoy's asceticism was harsh to the extent of tying his hair and hands with a rope to the ceiling of his cell, in order to resist sleeping during his
night prayers. This asceticism made him so famous that he was visited by
Saint Ephrem the Syrian.
The
Copt
Copts ( cop, ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ; ar, الْقِبْط ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity. Most ethnic Copts are C ...
s believe that Bishoy saw
Jesus a number of times. When Bishoy's brethren learned that Jesus was coming, they gathered at the top of a mountain so that they might see him. On the way, they met an old man that asked these monks to help him on his way but they ignored him. Bishoy saw the man and carried him on his shoulders, only to discover that the old monk was none other but Christ himself. The latter told him that, for the extent of his love, his body will not see corruption. The
Copt
Copts ( cop, ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ; ar, الْقِبْط ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity. Most ethnic Copts are C ...
s also believe that Bishoy washed the feet of Jesus who visited him as a poor stranger.
Bishoy is known as a defender of
Orthodox faith against
heresies. Having heard of an ascetic in the mountain of
Ansena who taught that there was no
Holy Spirit, Bishoy went to him carrying a weaved basket with three ears. When the old man asked him about the reason for making three ears for a basket, Bishoy replied "I have a Trinity, and everything I do is like the Trinity". After much debate from the Scriptures, the
Old
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
*Old, Northamptonshire, England
* Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, M ...
and
New Testaments, the old ascetic reverted to
Orthodoxy.
Departure and relics
In 407/408 AD, as the
Mazices
The Mazices were Berbers of North Africa who appear in classical and late antique Greek and Latin sources. Many variants of the name are known: Maxyes in Herodotus; Mazyes in Hecataeus; Mazaces; Mazikes; Mazazaces; etc. They are all derived ...
invaded the wilderness of
Scetes
Wadi El Natrun (Arabic: "Valley of Natron"; Coptic: , "measure of the hearts") is a depression in northern Egypt that is located below sea level and below the Nile River level. The valley contains several alkaline lakes, natron-rich salt de ...
, Bishoy left and dwelt in the mountain of
Ansena. At this time, he met
Saint Paul of Tammah in
Antinoöpolis
Antinoöpolis (also Antinoopolis, Antinoë, Antinopolis; grc, Ἀντινόου πόλις; cop, ⲁⲛⲧⲓⲛⲱⲟⲩ ''Antinow''; ar, الشيخ عبادة, modern ''Sheikh 'Ibada'' or ''Sheik Abāda'') was a city founded at an older Egyp ...
and the two became very close friends. While at the mountain of
Ansena, Bishoy built another monastery, the monastery of Saint Bishoy at
Dayr al-Barsha, which still stands today near
Mallawi. Bishoy departed on 8
Epip
Epip ( cop, Ⲉⲡⲓⲡ), also known as Epiphi ( grc-gre, Ἐπιφί, ''Epiphí'') and Abib. ( ar, أبيب), is the eleventh month of the ancient Egyptian and Coptic calendars. It lasts between July 8 and August 6 of the Gregorian calendar. The ...
(July 15) 417 AD.
On December 13, 841 AD (4
Koiak
Koiak (; cop, Ⲕⲟⲓⲁⲕ, []), also known as Choiak ( grc-gre, Χοιάκ, ''Khoiák'') and Kiyahk. ( cop, Ⲕⲓⲁϩⲕ, ''Kiahk'', []; ar, كياك or ), is the fourth month of the ancient Egyptian and Coptic calendars. It lasts between ...
),
Pope Joseph I of Alexandria
Saint Joseph I of Alexandria (Abba Yousab), 52nd Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark.
He was the son of one of the rich nobles of Menouf, Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a tran ...
fulfilled the desire of Saint Bishoy and moved his body (as well as that of
Saint Paul of Tammah) to the
Monastery of Saint Bishoy in the wilderness of
Scetes
Wadi El Natrun (Arabic: "Valley of Natron"; Coptic: , "measure of the hearts") is a depression in northern Egypt that is located below sea level and below the Nile River level. The valley contains several alkaline lakes, natron-rich salt de ...
. It is said that they first attempted to move the body of Saint Bishoy only, but when they carried it to the boat on the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest ri ...
, the boat would not move until they brought in the body of
Saint Paul of Tammah as well.
Today, the two bodies lie in the main church of the Coptic Orthodox
Monastery of Saint Bishoy in the
Natroon Desert. Eyewitnesses recount that the body of Saint Bishoy remains in an allegedly incorruptible state to this day.
Monastic namesakes
There are currently three monasteries in
Egypt that carry the name of Saint Pishoy:
* The
Monastery of Saint Bishoy at the
Nitrian Desert
The Nitrian Desert is a desert region in northwestern Egypt, lying between Alexandria and Cairo west of the Nile Delta. It is known for its history of Christian monasticism."Nitrian Desert", in F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone, eds., ''The Oxfo ...
* The Monastery of Saint Bishoy at
Deir el-Bersha
Deir El Bersha ( ar, دير البرشا; also written as Dayr al-Barsha, Deir el-Bersheh) is a Coptic village in Middle Egypt, in the Minya Governorate. It is located on the east bank of the Nile to the south of Antinoöpolis and almost opposite ...
, near
Mallawi
* The
Monastery of Saint Bishoy at Armant, east of
Armant
Armant ( ar, أرْمَنْت; egy, jwn.w-n-mnṯ.w or ''jwn.w-šmꜥ.w''; Bohairic: ; Sahidic: ), also known as Hermonthis ( grc, Ἕρμωνθις), is a town located about south of Thebes. It was an important Middle Kingdom town, which was ...
The
Red Monastery near
Souhag is also named after an
Egyptian saint called Bishay. This saint is not to be confused with Saint Bishoy.
References
Coptic Orthodox Synaxarium (Book of Saints)Bishoy from stmaryscopticorthodox.ca
External links
Saint Bishoy Coptic Orthodox Church in Canada
{{Coptic saints
320 births
417 deaths
Saints from Roman Egypt
Angelic visionaries
5th-century Christian saints
People from Monufia Governorate