”Bear one another’s burdens” (Gal. 6:2) in the Context of Penitential Discipline in the Tradition of Egyptian and Palestinian Monasticism of the IV–VII centuries

Abstract

The article attempts to clarify the place, meaning and methods of implementing the practice of substitutionary repentance based on the Gospel commandment to «bear the burdens» (Gal. 6, 2) of one’s neighbor in the ascetic life of Egyptian and Palestinian monasticism of the IV–VII centuries in the context of Church penitential discipline. On the way to solving this issue, the work clarifies the state of the institution of repentance and the features of its implementation in the life of the Ancient Church, as well as the characteristic features of its functioning in the conditions of monasticism in Egypt and Palestine in the IV–VII centuries. The result of the study is the position on the unity and agreement of the pastoral approach and the penitential institution, attested in written sources dedicated to the ascetic life of Egyptian and Palestinian monasticism of the specified period. The signs of unity are examples of the elder taking on the burden of penitential labors for a sinning monk, thereby attracting Divine mercy to him and providing mediation in joining the sinner to the process of Church repentance.