Saint Moses the Ethiopian

You might have arrived at my blog from the link in my bio in my short story in Kosmeo, so I thought I would introduce you the historical man that inspired me. 

Meet Moses!

He has several epithets that help the faithful distinguish him from Moses of the Old Testament. 

Moses the Black

Moses the Ethiopian

Moses the African

Moses the Strong

You can read a short history of his life in wikipedia. 

Why is St. Moses the Ethiopian so inspiring to me? 

His Strength

I love the story of the Moses as a monk in the desert, attacked by four robbers. (You can read the story in the Wikipedia link above.) It helps to remember that Moses used to be a leader of a gang of robbers himself, and became a Christian later in life. Moses had the physicality you might expect from a gang leader. He was so large and so muscular that he was able to wrangle four men without knocking them out. Then he CARRIED all FOUR MEN to the main monastery building to turn them in to his abbot, because he didn't think it would be Christian to hurt them. (I love this detail in the story, because it points out that hurting them was an option. But he didn't do it.) He had physical and spiritual strength.

His Humility

He himself had been a former robber and gang leader. He had a personal conversion story to share that was similar to their own past. He could have sat the robbers down in his own cell and told them his story of becoming a Christian and urged them to follow his model.

But he did not presume to know best what they needed. Like all monks are trained to do, he crucified his own thoughts and desires and brought the robbers to his abbot. That way the abbot could ask Moses to share his story, or ask the cook to prepare them a meal, or ask the infirmary to check their health, or choose to talk to them himself. We don't know exactly what happened, but the four robbers were overcome by the Christian Life, the love-as-deeds-life, the kind of life in which "They will know you are Christians by your love." And the robbers experienced their own conversion story.

His Refusal to Judge

I love this for two reasons. First, I feel like I can come to him and talk to him and know that he is not judging me. Second, I feel drawn to his help when I am tempted to judge someone else. And I am always tempted to judge someone else. I feel grateful to God for the example he gives me in Moses. I know that by the prayers of St. Moses, I have been able to - slowly, over much time - see some of my own sins, my own sand that falls behind my back unknown to me, leaving a mess in my trail. 

Want to Read More about St. Moses?

I haven't read it yet, but want to read this graphic novel about the life of St. Moses. I have read two other graphic novels by the same author and was inspired by them.

If you would like to read about St. Moses in the context of other African saints, you might appreciate Become All Flame: Lent with African Saints – Park End Books. The explanation of the phrase "become all flame" is alone a worthy story!

Here is a little illustrated children's book, The Abbot and the Robbers. This paperback book is just the right size to read as a bedtime story.

I pray that when I am tempted, like Maurice in my own story, to think I am better than others or that others are doing things wrong, St. Moses will help me remember to see my own sin instead. St. Moses, pray to God for us!