One day a young monk went to the cell of the holy Abbot Serapion to ask him for advice and instruction. Serapion told him to enter, that they might both kneel together in prayer.

The monk said:

“O Father, who am I that I should enter the cell of a holy man like you, much less be permitted to pray at your side? I am a great sinner, and most unworthy of wearing the habit of a monk, or even of looking up to Heaven.”

The Abbot saw at a glance that the man before him was not so holy in the eyes of God as he imagined himself to be. So, to give him a lesson of humility, Abbot Serapion said to him:

“Do not be kept back by the thought of your unworthiness, my brother. Come in and share in my frugal meal.”

So, leading him by the hand, he washed the feet of the young monk, as Our Lord had washed the feet of His Apostles. Then the Abbot made him sit at his side, and they ate together. When the meal was finished, the Abbot said:

“Now, my brother, what is the subject on which you want to receive my advice?”

The monk answered:

“I desire to obtain from you some good counsels, so that I may become more and more perfect.”

Serapion paused a moment, inwardly praying for Heaven’s guidance in how to counsel this monk before him. Then, following an inspiration, he turned to the younger monk and said,

“Then, my brother, this is my advice: Go back to your cell, and remain in it. Do not let your mind wander on worldly things, as it is now doing; And keep your body from wandering as well, idly from place to place, for those who live in this manner are very far from being perfect.”

While the Abbot was saying this, the face of the monk became very red from subdued anger. But before long, he could no longer restrain himself, and said some harsh words to the holy man. Serapion endured this storm of anger without showing the least sign of displeasure. When the monk had finished, Serapion calmly said to him:

“When there is question of you yourself humbling yourself, you succeed admirably; but when someone else tries to humble you, you burst forth into anger. Now I know what you are, and you also now know what you have been. Your pretended piety was, after all, only hypocrisy. You might, indeed, succeed in deceiving men, but you can never deceive God. If you now want my advice, this is it: Shun that hypocrisy which is founded in pride, and seek only to appear in the eyes of men what you are in the eyes of God.”

This was a hard but fruitful lesson for the young monk. He returned to his cell, and for the rest of his days he desired to be great only in the eyes of God, not in his own nor in the eyes of the world.