Death And The Commandments

Ἔλεγον περὶ τοῦ ἀββᾶ Ἰσαὰκ, ὅτι μέλλοντος αὐτοῦ τελευτᾷν, συνῆλθον πρὸς αὐτὸν οἱ γέροντες, καὶ ἔλεγον· Τί ποιήσομεν μετὰ σὲ, Πάτερ; Ὁ δὲ εἶπεν· Ἴδετε πῶς ἐπορεύθεν ἐνώπιον ὑμῶν· ἐὰν θέλητε καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀκολουθῆσαι, καὶ φυλάξαι τὰς ἐντολάς τοῦ Θεοῦ, πέμπει τὴν χάριν αὐτοῦ, καὶ φυλάσσει τὸν τόπον τοῦτον. Ἐὰν δὲ μὴ φυλάξητε, οὐ μὴ μείνητε ἐν τῷ τόπῳ. Καὶ ἡμεῖς γὰρ ὅταν ἤμελλον ἀποθανεῖν οἱ Πατέρες ἡμῶν, ἐλυπούμεθα· ἀλλα τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ αὐτῶν τὰς παραγγελίας τηροῦντες, ἐστήκαμεν, ὡς αὐτῶν ὄντων μεθ' ἡμῶν. Οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς ποιήσατε, καὶ σώζεσθε. Ἀποφθέγματα Των Ἁγίων Γερόντων, Παλλαδιος Source: Migne PG 65.225d-228a

They said about father Isaac that when he was at the point of death the old men gathered to him, and said, 'What shall we do without you, father?' He said to them, 'See how I have walked before you. If you wish to follow me and guard the commandments of God, He will send his grace and protect this place. But if you do not guard His commandments, you cannot remain in this place. For we, when our fathers were dying, were full of grief, but, keeping the Lord's commandments and their admonitions, we have stood fast as though they were with us. Do likewise and you will be saved.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia