Who was St. Macarius the Great, and how did his leadership establish the monastic settlement of Scetis?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-11-02

Background and Early Ascetic Life

Saint Macarius the Great, also referred to as the Egyptian, was born around AD 300 and worked in his early years as a camel-driver trading in nitre. As Sayings-Of-Desert-Fathers records, he began his religious life as an anchorite dwelling in a cell in an Egyptian village. When local inhabitants sought to lay hold of him to make him a village cleric, Macarius chose to flee to another location in order to avoid receiving ecclesiastical dignity. In his new dwelling, a devout layman supported him by selling his manual handiwork and tending to his temporal needs. During his early ascetic period, he was ordained to the priesthood, though he was soon subjected to profound personal humiliation and hardship. A severe moral trial tested the young anchorite when a village virgin fell into temptation and became pregnant, as Sayings-Of-Desert-Fathers details. Under questioning, the woman falsely accused Macarius, crying out that the anchorite was to blame. Villagers seized him, hung soot-blackened pots and varied articles around his neck, paraded him through the settlement, and beat him nearly to death. Macarius endured this persecution patiently until his name was entirely cleared. Sayings-Of-Desert-Fathers also highlights that he drew deep inspiration from Anthony the Great, whom he personally visited on at least two occasions, prior to his definitive withdrawal into the deeper wilderness.

The Venturing into Scetis and Topography of the Desert

The transition of Saint Macarius into the deep wilderness fulfilled a prophetic divine call. According to Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity, an angel appeared to Macarius in a vision, promising him that his followers would eventually dwell in the desert region to which he had previously driven his camels. Consequently, the saint ventured into the inner desert where no ascetics had settled prior to his arrival. As St. Mary's Monastery Baramous, Wadi El-Natroun - Coptic Orthodox Church records, Macarius desired peace and tranquility, becoming the first ascetic to dwell in the wilderness of Scetes around AD 330. Cassian similarly attested to this foundational role, stating, 'He was the first who found a way to inhabit the desert of Scetis.' This harsh region stood apart from older monastic settlements in both distance and desolation. Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity notes that the area was known by various names across history, including Scetis, Scythis, al-Askit, Scitium, Shiet, Shihet, Wadi Habib, and Wadi al-Natrun. The settlement was situated approximately sixty kilometers from Cellia and seventy-five kilometers from Mount Nitria. As The Story of the Church of Egypt - Volume 1 - Edith Louisa Floyer Butcher describes, this upper valley trended toward the southeast and lacked any name when Macarius first established his solitary home in one of its natural caves. From that period onward, it acquired the name Scetis from an expression denoting the place of disciplined souls.

Monastic Organization and Leadership at Scetis

The monastic model established by Saint Macarius was characterized by solitary contemplation supported by communal liturgical life. As The Story of the Church of Egypt - Volume 1 - Edith Louisa Floyer Butcher recounts, disciples soon followed Macarius into the valley, carving out individual cells for themselves and intentionally holding aloof from the busier monastic center of Nitria. The ascetics endured considerable hardship, having to travel great distances to fetch water, and sustained their sparse existence through the sole industry of basket-making. St. Mary's Monastery Baramous, Wadi El-Natroun - Coptic Orthodox Church notes that by approximately AD 356, the rapid development of Baramous was completed as an unfenced monastic group praying together in a central church and living in the caves surrounding it. Despite presiding over an expanding monastic populace, Macarius remained an anchorite throughout his life. Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity explains that the saint resided in a cell connected by an underground tunnel to a small cave, allowing him to withdraw into absolute solitude when necessary. Following the death of Saints Maximus and Domitius, an angel guided Saint Macarius to a specific rock and commanded him to construct a church. Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity observes that this church, together with the scattered cells surrounding it, formed the original nucleus of the community near the present site of Dair al-Baramus.

Historical Evolution, Successors, and Differing Traditions

As the monastic population grew, the sphere of Saint Macarius's leadership expanded across Scetis. According to ce3, the initial settlement emerged between 330 and 340 near the present monastery of Dayr al-Baramus, a name representing the Arabized form of the Coptic paromeos, signifying either 'the one of the Roman' or 'the one of the Romans.' Later in his life, Macarius relocated toward the eastern end of Scetis, where a second community of admirers gathered around him, ultimately forming the nucleus of Dayr Anba Maqar. Sayings-Of-Desert-Fathers and Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity document that Saint Macarius died in AD 390. Following his repose, Saint Paphnutius, who possessed such exceptional scriptural learning that he expounded the holy books without reading from them, became his undisputed successor. Monastic traditions preserve distinct perspectives regarding the initial foundation of Scetis. While Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity and ce3 identify Macarius the Egyptian as the founder of the settlement that yielded Dayr al-Baramus and Dayr Anba Maqar, The Ancient Coptic Churches of Egypt cites the ecclesiastical writer Rufinus, who recorded two great lights named Macarius—the elder Egyptian and the younger Alexandrian. Rufinus attributed the actual founding of the dair at Scithium to Macarius the Alexandrian, describing a perilous settlement twenty-four hours journey from Nitria with foul, bituminous water. Furthermore, St. Mary's Monastery Baramous, Wadi El-Natroun - Coptic Orthodox Church indicates that during the sixth century, Orthodox monks established additional churches dedicated to the Theotokos to counter the Julianist heresy, producing twin monasteries grounded in the ascetic legacy begun by Saint Macarius.

Sources

• Sayings-Of-Desert-Fathers
• two thousand years of coptic christianity 1nbsped 9774247574 9789774247576
• St. Mary's Monastery Baramous, Wadi El-Natroun - Coptic Orthodox Church
• sayings of the desert fathers
• two thousand years of coptic christianity 1nbsped 9774247574 9789774247576
• ce3
• two thousand years of coptic christianity 1nbsped 9774247574 9789774247576
• The Story of the Church of Egypt - Volume 1 - Edith Louisa Floyer Butcher
• sayings of the desert fathers
• The Ancient Coptic Churches of Egypt