Sarah of the Desert

Amma (Mother) Sarah of the Desert (5th century) was one of the early Desert Mothers who is known to us today solely through the collected Sayings of the Desert Fathers. She was a hermit and followed a life dedicated to strict asceticism for some sixty years.

Sarah is said to have dwelt in a monastic cell near a large river, likely the Nile, at which she would never look. Her sayings attest that this saint spent her life battling a demon that tempted her to fornication. Records indicate that Sarah lived near Skete in the early to mid-5th century.

Sarah is commemorated on 13 July in the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches.