Spiritual Fatherhood: Evagrius Ponticus on the Role of the Spiritual Father

Spiritual fatherhood is popular, controversial, and misunderstood. For Evagrius Ponticus (AD 343–99) and the early fathers, nothing can be spiritual without the Holy Spirit, and true spiritual fathers can say, with St Paul: “in Christ Jesus I begot you through the gospel” (1 Cor 4.15). This means freedom, not dependence. In this relationship we see an image of the freedom given to all who receive “the Spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Rom 8.15).

True spiritual fatherhood is a charisma and a ministry of healing and teaching. It is a timeless part of the Church’s tradition, which has been maintained in the Orthodox Church. Fr Gabriel Bunge leads readers into the ancient understanding of spiritual fatherhood in the teaching of Evagrius, without losing sight of our contemporary condition.

About the Author: Fr Gabriel Bunge, a priest and schemamonk of the Russian Orthodox Church, lives in a hermitage in Switzerland, Eremo Santa Croce. He possesses a thorough knowledge of patristic literature, and is known worldwide for his writings on contemplative prayer. Two of his other studies on Evagrius Ponticus—Despondency and Dragon’s Wine and Angel’s Bread—are also published by St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, as well as his book The Rublev Trinity.