Venerable Macarius of Alexandria (+394–395)

The Venerable Macarius of Alexandria was a contemporary and friend of the Venerable Macarius of Egypt (commemorated 19 January). The saint was born in 295 and followed the trade of a merchant until he was forty; then he was baptised and withdrew into the desert. Some years later he was ordained priest and appointed superior of the “monastery of the Cells” in the Egyptian desert.

Macarius of Alexandria was distinguished by wonderful zeal. When he heard of some outstanding labour of any monk, he tried to imitate it.

Once the Venerable Macarius was brought a bunch of grapes. He very much wanted to eat it, but restrained himself and sent the fruit to an infirm monk. This monk in his turn overcame his love of pleasant food and passed the grapes to a second, the second to a third. At last the bunch came back to Macarius. The holy father marvelled at the monks’ abstinence and gave thanks to the Lord. Once a proud thought took hold of the saint, that he should go to Rome to heal the sick. The valiant ascetic filled a sack with sand, threw it over his back, and walked about the desert with this load until his body was utterly exhausted and the tempting spirit left him.

For his long and tireless labours God granted Macarius the gifts of wonderworking and of seeing people’s hidden thoughts, and counted him worthy of seeing many wonderful visions.

The holy father died at the age of a hundred.