August 28
Moses the Ethiopian (330–405)
Abbot
He was born in Ethiopia and became a colossus capable of swallowing half a lamb and a skin of wine in a single meal.
Biography
As a highwayman he had no rival. After dispossessing his victims, he often murdered them so that they would not report him. Touched by grace, he met Abbot Arsenius in the desert and asked him, with sword in hand, to make him know God. Arsenio entrusted it to Macarius, a monk who “had the gift of taming wild beasts.” Moses began to progress rapidly in the spiritual life, becoming an almoner priest. He died at the hands of soldiers who were devastating the region, because he did not want to leave the monastery in the face of imminent danger. Simon said to his brothers, remembering their misdeeds: "Save yourselves. I remain, because I do not want to deny the Lord when he told us: "Whoever kills with iron, dies with iron."
Practical advice
In a spirit of service, pray for the Pope, the bishops and the priests with external order and internal recollection.