Schachterle/John Cassian, 2. Cassian's Context and Asceticism as Basis for Valid Authority

This begins with Cassian’s Egyptian context, where he learned how to be a monk from the men he considered masters of the monastic vocation. It then examines fifth-century Gaul, the context in which Cassian wrote both the Institutes and the Conferences. Finally, it demonstrates Cassian’s notion of asceticism as mark of authority.