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| (Lions in the Desert by Henry Ossawa Tanner) |
“We came near to a tree, led by our kindly host, and there we stumbled upon a
lion. At the sight of him my guide and I quaked, but the saintly old man went
unfaltering on and we followed him. The wild beast — you would say it was at
the command of God — modestly withdrew a little way and sat down, while the
old man plucked the fruit from the lower branches. He held out his hand, full
of dates; and up the creature ran and took them as frankly as any tame animal
about the house; and when it had finished eating, it went away. We stood
watching and trembling; reflecting as well we might what valour of faith was
in him and what poverty of spirit in us.”
~From The Paradise of the Desert Fathers
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