who hast never brought forth, for the children of the barren woman are more numerous than those of her who hath had a husband” (Isaiah 54:1). And the word of the Prophet concerning the church among the Gentiles was fulfilled, and was completed also by the desert of Egypt, for the sons of God were more numerous there than in the land which had become settled and occupied by people. For in many of the cities of Egypt true congregations of monks increased even as they drew nigh to God in the desert thereof, and in proportion as the nation was at peace even so did the monks multiply in the desert of Egypt, and in them were fulfilled the words of the Apostle (Romans 5:20), who said, “Where sin increased there also did grace abound.”
Now at one time in Egypt the exceedingly abominable worship of idols was more common than among any other nation, for they worshipped dogs, and apes, and other things, and even garlic, and onions, and common garden herbs were considered to be gods, according to what we heard the holy man Apollo say, and he described the reason for the worship of idols which existed among the Egyptians, and said, “These heathen, and the early inhabitants of the country worshipped the bull because he was useful in ploughing the ground wherefrom they obtained their food, and they worshipped the waters of the Nile which irrigated their whole country, and also the earth itself which yielded to them excellent crops, and which is far more excellent than the soil of other countries. And they held in reverence their other polluted things, that is to say, dogs, and apes, and all their abominable animals and vegetables, because they had been to them the cause of redemption; now they had been brought to naught in the time of Pharaoh, when he and those who were with him were drowned whilst the children of Israel were pursued by them. For they did not cleave unto Pharaoh in that day, but each man among them made that which was his familiar [spirit] his god, and said, ‘This is my god, and through him I shall not perish with Pharaoh.’ ”
Such were the things which were in the discourse of Apollo, but it is meet that we should write down his deeds before his words. Once heathen peoples dwelt in the various places which were round about the blessed man, and the ten villages which were near him were very wicked, and they went astray in respect of the worship of idols. In one of these villages was a temple, and the idol which was in that village was very famous, and he was made of wood, and the priests danced before him, and carried him about in a procession from village to village, and then the people who were with him leaped and
