The Biography of Saint Abba Nofer the Hermit

Lecture Summary

The lecture speaks about the biography of Saint Abba Nofer the Hermit, one of the great fathers of the wilderness who lived a life of complete solitude with God in the mountains and deserts. His biography was narrated by Pope Shenouda III in a spiritual style that explains the depth of the life of the hermits and their severe asceticism.

The Life of the Hermits

Pope Shenouda III explained that the biographies of the hermits were not written in complete detail, because they lived far from people, and no one saw them except at the end of their lives. Their lives were filled with prayer and complete detachment from the world.

The Meeting of Anba Pbnouda with Abba Nofer

Anba Pbnouda narrates how he went out searching for the hermits, enduring hunger, thirst, and fatigue for many days until God sent him heavenly help to strengthen him on the road. Then he met Abba Nofer who had been living in the mountain for sixty years without seeing another person.

The Beginning of Abba Nofer’s Life

Abba Nofer was a young monk living in a monastery full of holy monks, but when he heard about the greatness of the life of the hermits, his heart burned with love for this life. So he left the monastery to be alone with God in the wilderness, relying only on God’s care.

God’s Help for the Hermits

The biography showed how God did not leave Abba Nofer alone, but sent him an angel to guide him to the way of the wilderness and lead him to a holy elder who taught him the life of solitude, spiritual struggle, and the wars of demons.

The Life of Spiritual Struggle

Abba Nofer learned patience, endurance, and struggle against temptations, hunger, thirst, and cold, but he always felt God’s comfort and strength. He lived sixty years in the wilderness depending only on God for food, help, and protection.

The Spiritual Lesson

The lecture focuses on that the life of holiness is built upon complete love for God, separation from worldly attachments, and dependence on God in everything. It also shows that the person who leaves himself for the sake of God receives heavenly help and continual divine comfort.