St. Paul the First Hermit | The Birth of Monastic Life (15 January): Go Into the Desert

About this sermon

In this powerful Catholic sermon, we commemorate St. Paul the First Hermit, the prototype of Christian monastic life and the first monk to flee the world entirely for God. Born in the year 230 during fierce Roman persecutions, St. Paul abandoned wealth, inheritance, and worldly security at a young age to live a life of radical prayer, penance, and charity in the desert of Egypt. The sermon reflects on Christ’s words about the simplicity of faith, contrasting earthly wisdom with the humility required to receive the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. St. Paul’s extraordinary life—sustained by a palm tree and miraculously fed by a raven—recalls the prophets of old and reveals God’s providence for those who seek Him alone. We also hear about the profound meeting between St. Paul the Hermit and St. Anthony of the Desert, the father of organized monasticism, and the miraculous events surrounding St. Paul’s death at the age of 115, including the famous account of lions preparing his grave. Finally, the sermon applies the desert spirituality of the early hermits to modern Catholic life, reminding us that while most of us cannot flee physically into the wilderness, we are still called to create an interior desert through prayer, the Rosary, Scripture, and meditation—living in the world but not of the world. 🕊️ May St. Paul the First Hermit and St. Anthony of the Desert intercede for us as we strive to live lives of prayer, penance, and charity. 0:00 – Opening Prayer & Gospel Reflection 0:36 – Christ Reveals the Kingdom to the Simple 0:53 – Feast of St. Paul the First Hermit 1:15 – Roman Persecutions & St. Paul’s Early Life 1:45 – Inheritance, Family Conflict, and Renunciation 2:37 – Flight into the Desert at Age 16 2:59 – Life as the First Hermit Monk 3:25 – The Raven and Miraculous Sustenance 3:39 – Comparison to Elijah the Prophet 4:03 – Life of Prayer, Penance, and Vigil 4:07 – St. Anthony and the Birth of Monasticism 4:40 – St. Paul’s Death at 115 Years Old 5:04 – St. Anthony’s Vision of His Soul 5:54 – Lions Dig the Grave: Divine Confirmation 6:28 – Hermits and Carthusians Today 6:56 – The Carthusian Monastery in Vermont 7:36 – Creating a Desert in Modern Life 8:26 – Final Prayer & Intercession of the Saints Please say 3 Hail Marys for the priest 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶️ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶️ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.us for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶️ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 SpiritusTV - https://spiritustv.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶️ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶️ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶️ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶️ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium ▶️ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758 #StPaulTheHermit #CatholicSermon #CatholicSaints #DesertFathers #MonasticLife #CatholicFaith #TraditionalCatholic #PrayerAndPenance #StAnthonyOfTheDesert #CatholicSpirituality #ChristianMonasticism

Topics

• Suffering & Trials