What do the Church Fathers consider to be the most important virtues?

St. Anthony the Great asked his spiritual sons, the monks, about the most important virtues, and each monk spoke of his own preferred virtue. But St. Anthony he singled out the virtue of discernment, insight, or illumination, saying, “A person can practice many acts of worship, and without discernment he deviates from the path of truth and holiness.”⁷⁵⁷

St. Clement of Alexandria says, “Our transgressions being taken away by one Pœonian⁷⁵⁸ medicine, the baptism of the Word. We are washed from all our sins, and are no longer entangled in evil. This is the one grace of illumination, that our characters are not the same as before our washing [changing our ways]. And since knowledge springs up with illumination, shedding its beams around the mind, the moment we hear, we who were untaught become disciples … For instruction leads to faith, and faith with baptism is trained by the Holy Spirit.”⁷⁵⁹

St. Anthony the Great says:

754 St. John Chrysostom, De Res. Dom. (on the resurrection of the Lord) (PG 50:441–442A).

755 St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew 79.2 (NPNF I/10:457–458).

756 St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew 11.3 (NPNF I/10:66).

757 “St. Antony the Great” in Early Fathers from the Philokalia , trans. E. Kadloubovsky and G. E. H. Palmer (Faber & Faber, 1981): p.46.

758 See Homer’s Iliad , v. 401.

759 St. Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) 1.6 (ANF 2:216–217).

“Some have afflicted their bodies by asceticism, but they lack discernment, and so they are far from God.”⁷⁶⁰

“Helmsmen and charioteers gain proficiency through practice and diligence. Likewise those who seek the life of holiness must take care to study and practice what conforms to God’s will. For he who so wishes, and has grasped that it is possible, can with this faith attain incorruptibility.”⁷⁶¹

“Many have performed truly great labors of virtue, but have ruined themselves through folly. It would not be surprising if the same thing were to happen to you too; if, for example, having cooled towards active work, you begin to imagine that you already possess virtues. For there you have already fallen into that devilish disease (thinking highly of yourself), thinking that you are close to God and are in the light, whereas in actual fact you are in darkness.”

“I know that I am writing to you as to my dear children, and children of promise, and children of the kingdom. That is why I remember you night and day, that God may keep you from all evil, and that you may continually have care how He may give you discernment and new vision, that you may learn to discern the difference between the good and the bad in all things. For it is written, ‘Solid food is for the perfect, who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil’ (Heb. 5:14). These are they who have become children of the kingdom, and are reckoned in the measure of adoption, to whom God gives this new vision in all their works, so that none, neither man nor demon, may deceive them. For a believer can be snared by the pretext of the good, and many are thus deceived, since they have not yet received from God this new vision. That is why the blessed Paul, knowing that this is the great wealth of the faithful, says thus, ‘I bow my knees day and night before our Lord Jesus Christ for them, that He may give unto them a revelation in order to know Him, having the eyes of their heart enlightened, so as to know what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the richness of the inheritance of the saints’ (cf. Eph. 3:14, 16, 18.) For since Paul loved them with his whole heart he wanted that great wealth of knowledge, which is the new vision be given to his sons whom he loved; since he knew that, if it were them, they would no longer have labour in any matter, nor would they be afraid with any fear, but the gladness of God would be with them night and day, and the work of God would in all things be for them ‘sweeter than honey and the honey-comb’ (Ps. 19:10). And God would be with them continually, and would give them revelations and great mysteries, which my tongue cannot utter.

760 Benedicta Ward, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Alphabetical Collection , trans., Benedicta Ward (Liturgical Press, 1984): p. 3.

761 St. Anthony the Great, “On the Character of Men and the Virtuous Life: One Hundred and Seventy Texts,” in The Philokalia: The Complete Text, Volume I , trans., G. E. H. Palmer et al., eds., Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain, and Makarios of Corinth (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1979): p. 332.

“Now, therefore, my beloved, since you have been counted to me as children, pray both day and night that this gift of discernment may come upon you, which has not yet come upon you since you came to this ascetic way. And I too, your father, will pray for you, that you may attain this stature, to which not many of the monks have come-save a few souls here and there. But if you want to come to this measure, do not be in the habit of mentioning to one another the name of any lax monks among you, but withdraw yourselves from them, or else they will not allow you to progress, but instead will quench your fervour. For the lax have no fervour, but follow their own wills; and if they meet you, they talk of the things of this world, and by such conversation they quench your fervour. For this reason it is written, ‘Quench not the spirit’ (1 Thess. 5:10); for it is quenched by this sort of talk, and by distractions.”⁷⁶²

“Know the counsels of the wicked one, for if he comes to you in the guise of one who teaches the truth to deceive you and lead you with cunning or comes to you as an angel of light, do not believe him nor obey him, because he tempts the believers with seductive apparitions that may seem to be true. Beginners cannot discern the trickeries of the adversary whereas the perfect know them as the apostle says: ‘As for strong food, it is for adults who, because of training, have their senses trained to distinguish between good and evil’ (Heb. 5:14). Such people cannot be deceived.”

“Those who do not watch over themselves, are easily caught with a bait that seems to them to be sweet. This is like a fisherman who hides his hook in bait until he catches fish, as Solomon the Wise says: ‘There is a way that appears right to a man, and its consequences are the ways of death’ (Prov. 16:25). He says this of those who do not understand the will of God, but follow their own will. For such people, not knowing the will of God at first receive from Satan a fervor which is like joy, but is not joy: and afterwards it turns to gloom and lays them open. But he who follows the will of God endures great labor in the beginning, but afterwards finds rest and gladness. Satan therefore shows them apparitions and deceptive illusions to puff them up with pride. Other times, he sends them dreams at night that are fulfilled in the morning so that they marvel. In addition to that, he shows them great light during the night that illuminates the entire place they are in, as well as many other signs and deceptive illusions. He does all that so that their hearts may be pleased to accept him as an angel, and as much as they accept him, he casts them down through the spirit of pride which takes hold of them. He thus makes them think of themselves as great and noble spiritual men much more than others, and therefore are not in need of their fathers’ advice. In this the scripture is fulfilled which says that they are fresh clusters of grapes but are bitter and sour. The teachings of the fathers become difficult for them as they think of themselves as knowing all things.”⁷⁶³

762 St. Ammonas, The Letters of Ammonas: Successor of St. Antony , trans., Derwas Chitty (SLG Press, 1979) 4: pp. 6–7.

763 St. Ammonas, The Letters of Ammonas: Successor of St. Antony , trans., Derwas Chitty (SLG Press, 1979) 11: p. 30.

St. Mark the Ascetic says, “The disciples taught the multitudes this discernment regarding prayer, saying, ‘It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word’ (Acts 6:2–5). What do we learn from this? For those who are not able to remain in prayer [during their lives], it is better to serve [without abstaining from prayer], lest they lose the first and the second. For those who have the ability [to devote themselves to prayer] … it is better for them that they should not leave what is better.”

Evagrius Ponticus says, “Wisdom is associated with serenity [weeping], and true discernment is associated with works. We cannot acquire wisdom without struggling, and we cannot be victorious in struggle without true discernment. Among the works of ‘true discernment’ is to repel the anger provoked by the devils, and to strengthen the power of the soul so that this power can work as much as possible according to its nature. Thus, righteous discernment paves the way to wisdom.”