Ammon, Amun ( cop, Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ), Ammonas ( grc-gre, Ἀμμώνας), Amoun (), or Ammonius the Hermit (; el, Ἀμμώνιος) was a 4th-century Christian

ascetic Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

and the founder of one of the most celebrated monastic communities in Egypt. He was subsequently declared a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...

. He was one of the most venerated ascetics of 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 Oxford ...

, and

Athanasius of Alexandria Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...

mentions him in his life of

Anthony the Great Anthony the Great ( grc-gre, Ἀντώνιος ''Antṓnios''; ar, القديس أنطونيوس الكبير; la, Antonius; ; c. 12 January 251 – 17 January 356), was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is d ...

Life

Pushed into marriage by his family at the age of 20, he managed to persuade his bride to take a vow of chastity together with him by the authority of Paul's Epistle to the Corinthians.Socr. ''Hist. Eccl.'' iv. 23 They lived together this way for 18 years, when at her wish, they parted, and he retired to

Scetis 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 ...

and Nitria, to the south of

Lake Mareotis Lake Mariout ( ar, بحيرة مريوط ', , also spelled Maryut or Mariut), is a brackish lake in northern Egypt near the city of Alexandria. The lake area covered and had a navigable canal at the beginning of the 20th century, but at the begin ...

, where he lived 22 years, visiting his sister-wife twice a year. She had founded a

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Angl ...

in her own house. He cooperated with Anthony and gathered his monks under his direct supervision, thus forming a monastery from sole hermits. Traditionally, he is supposed to have been the first hermit to have established a monastery, known as

Kellia Kellia ("the Cells"), referred to as "the innermost desert", was a 4th-century Egyptian Christian monastic community spread out over many square kilometers in the Nitrian Desert about 40 miles south of Alexandria. It was one of three centers of ...

, near Nitria. This is by no means verifiable, but it is more certain that Amun's piety and fame drew others to the region. He is considered to have died at the age of 62 years. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context do ...

is 4 October in the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...

, Byzantine Catholic, and

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

es. His feast in the

Coptic Orthodox Church The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي� ...

is on 20 Pashons. He died before Anthony the Great from whom there is an epistle to him, that is, before the year 365, for the latter asserted that he "saw the soul of Amoun borne by angels to heaven." As Athanasius's history of Anthony preserves the order of time, he died perhaps about 320.

Works

There are generally seventeen or nineteen ''Rules of Asceticism'' () ascribed to him; the Greek original exists in manuscript; Lambecius, ''Commentariorum de augustissima bibliotheca Caesarea Vindobonensi'' lib. iv. cod. 156, No. 6 they were published in the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

version of Gerardus Vossius. ''Twenty-two Ascetic Institutions'' of the same Amoun, or one bearing the same name, exist also in manuscript. There is a collection of his letters in the '' Patrologia Orientalis'', volume 10/6.St. Amoun's Letters translated to Arabic
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References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Amun Saints from Roman Egypt Egyptian hermits Egyptian Christian monks 4th-century Christian saints 295 births 357 deaths 4th-century Egyptian people Desert Fathers Anglican saints