St. Sabas was born last Mutalaska, Cappadocia, which is near Caesarea, in or around the year 439. His father was an army officer at Mutalaska, Cappadocia. When his father was assigned to Alexandria, he left young Saba's with an uncle. Saba's was mistreated there and ran away too the home of another uncle. He was eight years old at the time that he ran away. When the uncles got embroiled in litigation over the estate of Sabas, he ran to a nearby monastery at Mulataska.
Image of Saint Sabas from https://artisgr.shop/en/saints/82759-saint-sabbas-the-sanctified.html used under Fair Use.
The uncles of Saba's did reconcile. At this point, they both wanted Saba's to marry, but he chose to stay in the monastery. Around 456, Saba's went to a monastery near Jerusalem under the tutelage of St. Theoctistus. Around the age of thirty (the year 469), Saba's became a hermit.through the guidance of St. Euthymius until his death, after which he spent four years alone in there desert near the town of Jericho.
Saba's attracted disciples despite his desire to be alone. He organized these 150 monks into a hermitage of sorts, or a Laura, which was a church surrounded by several hermitages. The monks lived alone from Monday through Friday, but were required to come to the church on Saturday to participate in Sunday Mass (proving that Sunday Mass attendance is a SATURDAY decision) around the year 483. Saba's was opposed to monks being ordained as priests, but was left without an option when the monks demanded a priest around 483.
Saba's attracted disciples from as far away as Armenia and Egypt (remember that there were no cars or jet airplanes in those days so 150 miles might take weeks or even months top travel in the hot desert. Compasses were likely scarce (although they were invented in China around 200 BC), so the traveller often had to travel during the day to get fixes on the sun. He allowed the foreign monks to have liturgies celebrated in their native tongue. Saba's and his monks also built several hospitals near Jericho, as well as another monastery in the vicinity.
Sabas was eventually appointed superior over all hermits in Palestine who lived in separate cells. Saba's had this habit of going off on his own during Lent. This caused problems among the other hermits. Because of this, sixty monks left the monastery at Jericho to reopen and rebuild an older monastery near Thecuna. Saba's bore them no ill will and actually sent them supplies and food and water to assist them.
Sabas was one of a delegation of Abbotts too pay a call on Emperor Anastasius I regarding his support of Eutychianism to plead with him to cease his persecution of orthodox religious (including priests, bishops and monks - of course, today, all bishops were priests, but back in the day, not all bishops were priests). Their mission failed.
Saba's died on December 5, 532 at the ripe old age of 93. His feast day or today, December 5.
Thank you to Catholic.org and Morningoffering.com for providing the information used to describe St. Saba's today.
Saint Sabas, pray for us.
The Saint Andrew Christmas Novena:
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, O my God, to hear our prayers and grant our desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen.
(Prayer copied from EWTN).
Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern fore the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to learn about Saint Saba's and to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/divine-mercy-chaplet-and-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update
Comments