Venerable Dorotheus the Hermit of Egypt

Venerable Dorotheus

The Venerable never slept, except during meals, and even then his bread often fell from his mouth. When his disciples tried to persuade him to rest a little, he replied that if they could persuade an angel to sleep, then they could persuade him.

Once, sending a disciple for water, he himself went to the well and saw a viper in it. He said that if the devil wanted all wells to be full of poisonous creatures, people would never drink water. Then, making the sign of the cross over the water, he drank it, asserting that where the cross is, the power of demons does not harm.