The History of Coffee ....

Some Early Coffee Drinking Legends
In approximately 1258 AD, Sheik Oman of Mocha was exiled for "moral" issues.  He was expected to die of starvation in the desert.  However, he and his men found the coffee berries growing on a shrub and due to their lack of food, decided to try the berries.  They were edible but bitter, so he decided to try roasting them.  This, however, hardened them, so he tried to soften them by adding water.  This produced a brown liquid which he hoped contained some of the nourishment of the berries.  But to his amazement, the beverage made him feel more refreshed, raised his spirits and enlivened his sluggishness.  Later when he returned to Mocha, his salvation was considered a miracle.  His newfound beverage became very popular and he was made a saint.

There are several stories of this nature throughout the early history of coffee.  Shepherds and farmers alike noticed behavior changes of their animals as they would eat the berries off nearby coffee plants.  Each finding that if they boiled the berries, a resulting beverage would provide an improvement in their ability to stay awake and overall mood.  Due to this effect, coffee was often thought of and used for medicinal purposes.  Many cleric would drink the beverage to stay awake during the overnight religious services.  It is even believed the church provided the beverage for the clerics use.  Therefore, coffee had attained a religious purpose.

Source: All About Coffee, William H Ukers, author and Coffee Technology, Michael Sivetz, author.