The Patience of Moses

At a meeting of monks in Scetis, the hermits wanted to test Moses. So they poured scorn on him, saying, "Who is this black man who is here with us?"

Moses heard them but said nothing. When the meeting had dispersed, the monks who had insulted him asked him, "Weren't you upset inside?"

He replied, "I was upset, and I said nothing."

Moses was a black man from Ethiopia who was often teased about the color of his skin. He accepted such humor happily, aware of the affection with which it was offered. He was a released slave who lived as a robber in Egypt until he became a monk as a disciple of Isidore. He was ordained a priest and had many disciples. He went to Petra at the end of his life and was killed there with some of his followers by the barbarian invaders.