OUR HOLY FATHER MOSES THE ETHIOPIAN

AUGUST 28th/SEPTEMBER 10th

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OUR HOLY FATHER MOSES THE ETHIOPIAN

Troparion Tone 5
Thou didst abandon the Egypt of passions/ and fervently ascend the mount of virtues,/ and didst take Christ's Cross on thy shoulders./ Thou wast glorified in thy works/ and wast a model for monks,/ O Moses summit of the Fathers./ With them pray unceasingly that we may obtain great mercy.

Kontakion Tone 3
Thou wast enriched with divine illumination, O Moses,/ and didst dispel the darkness of passions./ Thou didst quench the pride of the flesh by thy vigils and prayers/ and didst go forth to the heavenly citadel./ O holy Father, pray to Christ our God to grant us His great mercy.

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St. Moses the Black is remembered on Aug 28. He is also known as "St. Moses the Ethiopian".

He shines as one of the brightest stars among the Egyptian fathers. His formerly prodigal life as a thief and murderer, drunkard and fornicator, addicted to anger, violence and carnal dissipation, and the heights to which he obtained should make anyone who calls himself a lover of God to consider the following things carefully.

God will save any man who repents of his sins, no matter how long-standing and terrible they are, and the exploits of the Saints leave us with no excuse. God wishes for every man the blessings and peace he gave to the great Moses, and we have this athlete of Egypt as our sure guide. His life and strenuous repentance teach us that our salvation is waiting to be attained, if we make great efforts, for we have no excuses, nor any higher calling. Great Moses shows us the ONLY way to win the kingdom. The kingdom of heaven is won by violence, by those with ardent love, and the strong take it by force. (cf., Mat 11:12) O Christian, be violent against your passions, and when you falter, remember Moses and the legacy he left for you, and ask his intercession before the throne of God, because he is very near to it.
(http://www.orthodox.net/questions/menaion_august_2.html)

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HYMN OF PRAISE
VENERABLE MOSES THE BLACK [THE ROBBER]

Blessed is he upon whom God shows mercy!
The mercy of God is joy,
In both worlds joy.
Moses Murin [the Black] as a prodigal son
Repented and to God returned,
By much weeping, many sins repaid
By much fasting, himself withered,
Black in the face, shining in the soul.
By many all-night vigils, passions he tamed,
Of demons authority, freed himself.
While his soul, as a lake became
Atop the mountains that, into the heavens gaze.
In which heaven mirrors its face.
When once, they asked Moses
"Do not the sins of others sadden you?"
"Sinful men, do they not concern you?"
Saint Moses tearfully replied:
"Whoever has a corpse in the house
That one does not weep over someone else's corpse
Rather weeps over his own corpse."
The lion, into a lamb, often changes,
Such a miracle, only Christ performs.
Moses, a lion in the mountain was
And, a gentle lamb became.
By his holy prayers, let
God grant salvation to us also.

Bishop Nikolai Velimirovich

The Prologue from Ohrid