Abba Amoun of Nitria came to Abba Anthony and said to him, ‘I labor more than you do, so how is it that your name has become greater among people than mine?’ Abba Anthony said to him, ‘Because I love God more than you do.’
It was said of Abba Amoun that he lived for two months on a small measure of barley. He came to Abba Poemen and said to him, ‘If I go to my neighbor’s cell, or he comes to me for some need, we are wary of talking with one another, lest some unrelated conversation arise.’ The elder said to him, ‘You are doing well, for young men need watchfulness.’ Abba Amoun said to him, ‘What, then, did the elders do?’ He said to him, ‘The elders who had advanced had nothing else within them, nothing foreign in their mouths, to speak about.’ Amoun said, ‘If it becomes necessary, then, to speak with my neighbor, do you want me to speak about the Scriptures or about the sayings of the elders?’ The elder said, ‘If you cannot be silent, it is better to speak about the sayings of the elders and not about Scripture, for the danger is not small.’
A brother came from Scetis to Abba Amoun and said to him, ‘My Father is sending me on an errand, and I am afraid of fornication.’ The elder said to him, ‘Whenever temptation comes to you, say, “God of hosts, by the prayers of my Father, deliver me.”’ One day, then, a virgin shut the door on him. He cried out in a loud voice, ‘God of my Father, deliver me!’ and immediately he found himself on the road to Scetis.