Sixteenth-Century Protestants and the Desert Fathers: The Monastic and Ascetic Ideals in Reformation England

The Desert Fathers such as Paul of Thebes and Anthony of Egypt—traditionally regarded as the first hermit and the first monk respectively, and renowned for their strictly ascetic lifestyles—were widely venerated in pre-Reformation Europe. Given their strong associations with the monastic life and with miracles, the Desert Fathers might appear obvious targets for Protestant disapproval. In fact, English Protestant responses to Paul, Anthony and their disciples were highly varied, often positive, and rarely openly critical. This article contends that a study of diverse perspectives toward the desert monks in sixteenth-century England can offer insights into evolving Reformation views about monasticism and bodily asceticism. This is particularly valuable since relatively few English Protestant writers and preachers directly addressed the theme of strict austerity of life prior to the late 1500s. Scholars of early modern England have often discerned a pattern of initial and emphatic Protestant rejection of the monastic and ascetic ideals, followed by a gradual rediscovery or reclaiming over the course of the late 1500s and 1600s. However, sixteenth-century English Protestant responses to the Desert Fathers—at first highly positive, and then increasingly ramified and conflicted—imply that this is not the whole story, and indicate a significant degree of continuity with respect to traditional notions of holiness.