The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Paul of Thebes
c. 227 – c. 341 · “The First Hermit” · the Thebaid, Egypt
The Nicene Age
Who Paul of Thebes was
Reckoned by tradition the first Christian hermit — a young Egyptian of the Thebaid who fled the Decian persecution into the desert around 250 and stayed ninety years, fed (in Jerome’s telling) by a raven that brought half a loaf daily. Jerome wrote his Life partly to insist that the eremitic life had a founder even before Anthony, and told of Anthony’s visit to the aged Paul, the two sharing the raven’s whole loaf, and Anthony burying him in a cloak borrowed from Athanasius. Whether biography or edifying romance, the Life fixed Paul as monasticism’s legendary pioneer.
Jerome alone; Athanasius's Antony knows no earlier hermit.
Also listed in desert fathers & mothers.
Common questions
When did Paul live?
Paul of Thebes is dated c. 227 – c. 341 in the archive, which places Paul in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Paul?
Paul of Thebes is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Jerome. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Paul from?
The archive associates Paul of Thebes with the Thebaid, Egypt. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Paul’s contemporaries?
The archive links Paul of Thebes to 3 other figures, including Anthony the Great, Jerome of Stridon and Hilarion of Gaza. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Life of Paul the Hermit
c. AD 393While Antony was journeying to visit him, a raven, lighting on a branch, flew gently down and deposited a whole loaf before their wondering eyes. ‘Truly,’ said Paul, ‘the Lord has sent us our dinner.’Jerome · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 272 · Aurelian awards the Antioch church, AD 272
- AD 301 · Hripsime and her company, AD 301
- AD 303 · The Great Persecution begins, AD 303
- AD 303 · The search of the church at Cirta, AD 303
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Paul, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.
- 1the Thebaidprovince only
- 2Egyptprovince only