μονάζοντες. Compare xii. 33; xvi. 22. The origin of Monasticism is usually traced to the time of the Decian persecution, the middle of the third century. Previously “there were no monks, but only ascetics in the Church; from that time to the reign of Constantine, Monachism was confined to the anchorets living in private cells in the wilderness: but when Pachomius had erected monasteries in Egypt, other countries presently followed the example. … Hilarion, who was scholar to Antonius, was the first monk that ever lived in Palestine or Syria.” Bingham, VII. i. 4.