Holy Martyr Barlaam of Antioch: Summaries of the Encomiums of Basil the Great and John Chrysostom

Encomium on the Martyr Barlaam By Basil the Great

Once the deaths of holy men were adorned with lamentations and tears: Joseph wept bitterly for Jacob when he died; the Jews greatly lamented Moses’ death; they honoured Samuel with many tears. But now we rejoice in the deaths of the hallowed ones. The nature of distressing things has been transformed after the cross. We no more accompany the deaths of the saints with lamentations, but dance at their tombs in godly companies. For death is just sleep for the righteous. It is rather departure for a better life. For that reason, the martyrs rejoice when they are slain. The desire for a happier life mortifies the distress of slaughter. The martyr does not look at the perils, but at the crowns of victory. He is not distressed by the beatings, but counts the prizes. He does not see the torturers flogging him down here, but envisions the angels acclaiming from above. He does not consider the temporary state of danger, but the eternal natue of his reward. Even among us, he already enjoys a splendid repayment, as he is applauded by everyone’s pious acclamations, and captivates from his tomb myriads of crowds. This is then what was done today by the brave Barlaam....

On the Illustrious Holy Martyr Lucian (St. Jerome)

 By St. Jerome

(On Illustrious Men, ch. 77)

Lucian, a man of great talent, presbyter of the Church at Antioch, was so diligent in the study of the Scriptures, that even now certain copies of the Scriptures bear the name of Lucian. Works of his, On Faith, and short Epistles to various people are extant. He was put to death at Nicomedia for his confession of Christ in the persecution of Maximinus,* and was buried at Helenopolis in Bithynia.**

Homily on the Holy Martyrs Juventinus and Maximinus (St. John Chrysostom)

St. Juventinus and Maximinus (Feast Day - October 12)

 

 

 

 

The Veneration of Saint Asteios (Asti) in Albania

The Church of Durrës (ancient Dyrrachium), one of the most important Churches in Albania, was founded by Paul the Apostle, although an ancient tradition says that the first to pass through was Saint James, on his way to Spain. Near Durrës, where the town of Shijak (Saint James) now stands, there was a large cathedral dedicated to Saint James, just beyond the hill, where according to tradition he had given his first sermon. According to old documents, in 58 AD, the Church of Dyrrachium had about 70 Christian families.

The Persecution of Christians Under Emperor Diocletian

By St. Justin Popovich

During the reign of Diocletian (284 to 305), four decrees were issued against Christians. 

 

The first was promulgated in February 303. This decree ordered the destruction of churches and the burning of sacred books; at the same time, Christians were deprived of civil rights, protection of the law and their services; Christian slaves lost the right to freedom if they got it for some reason but still remained in Christianity. 

 

Saint Asklas the Martyr as a Model for our Lives

St. Asklas the Egyptian (Feast Day - May 20)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

Saint Asklas lived in the third century, which was a period of terrible persecution against the Church. He was from the Thebaid in Egypt and was considered a man of deep faith and spiritual courage. He was arrested by the pagan ruler Arrian, who tried, first with flattery and then with threats, to persuade him to deny Christ and sacrifice to idols. Because, however, he remained steadfast in his faith, he was subjected to severe torture, which he faced with admirable courage and patience. He was suspended, his sides torn and then, as he was wounded, he was imprisoned. There in prison, as he was praying, the Grace of God enlightened him and he understood that the ruler Arrian with his companions were traveling by boat along the Nile River. Then he made the sign of the cross over the boat and it was immobilized in the river, as if tied up. He sent a message to the ruler and called on him to confess in writing that Christ is the only true God, otherwise the boat will not sail. The ruler asked for a piece of paper and wrote: "The God of the Christians is great and besides Him there is no other." Then the boat started moving again and arrived at its destination.

Saint Isidore of Chios Resource Page

St. Isidore of Chios (Feast Day - May 14)

Verses

 

Isidore is gladdened with the hope of the crown,

And he went to be beheaded after the crown. 

On the fourteenth Isidore was beheaded by the sword. 

 

Holy Martyr Isidore of Chios

Saint Isidore of Chios as a Model for our Lives

 

May: Day 14: Holy Martyr Isidore of Chios

 

Holy Martyr Isidore of Chios in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church 

 

The Relics of Saint Isidore of Chios 

Saint Isidore and his Basilica in Chios

The Location of the Martyrdom of Saint Isidore of Chios

The Beautiful Chapel of Saint Isidore in Leros

 

The Seal of the Pilgrims of Saint Isidore of Chios

 

Holy Martyrs Irenaeus, Pellegrinos and Irene of Thessaloniki

Sts. Irenaeus, Pellegrinos and Irene(Feast Day - May 5)

The Holy Martyrs Irenaeus, Pellegrinos and Irene are an unknown triad of saints from Thessaloniki, who were commemorated in ancient synaxaria and in the West, but for some reason were left out of later lists and manuscripts of saints from Thessaloniki.

During the persecution of Emperor Diocletian, Irenaeus, Pellegrinos and Irene the Virgin were arrested and urged to deny their Christian faith and sacrifice to the idols. They refused to do so, which led to them being condemned to be burned to death. In this way they delivered their souls into the hands of the Lord and gained the crown of martyrdom.

 

 

Saint Conon of Isauria as a Model for our Lives (1)

St. Conon of Isauria (Feast Day - March 5)

 

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

The Venerable Martyr Conon lived during the times of the Holy Apostles and was from the village of Vadini in Isauria. His parents Nestor and Nada became Christians, and Nestor was found worthy to be a confessor and a martyr. Conon, together with his pious wife, devoted himself entirely to the spread of the true faith. His idolatrous compatriots reacted to the gospel preaching and claimed that their own faith was true. Then Conon said to them that he could prove to them that the God he worships is the only true God, in the following way: "When you go up to the mountain and sacrifice to your gods, notify me and we will set off together. You will go up with your horses and I with my feet, and whoever arrives first, their faith is true." They also agreed on the appointed day and then they set off with their horses like lightning. When they arrived, however, at their destination and saw him waiting for them, they could not believe their eyes.

Holy Seventy-Nine Martyrs of Sicily

79 Holy Martyrs of Sicily (Feast Day - February 21)

In Sicily, during the reign of Diocletian, seventy-nine holy martyrs received an immortal crown for the confession of their faith after enduring various torments.

 

 

The Martyrdom of Saint Domnina and Her Two Daughters (Eusebius of Caesarea)

From Eusebius (Ecclesiastical History, Bk. 8, Ch. 12):

A certain holy person,--in soul admirable for virtue, in body a woman, -- who was illustrious beyond all in Antioch for wealth and family and reputation, had brought up in the principles of piety her two daughters, who were now in the freshness and bloom of life. Since great envy was excited on their account, every means was used to find them in their concealment; and when it was ascertained that they were away, they were summoned deceitfully to Antioch. Thus they were caught in the nets of the soldiers. When the woman saw herself and her daughters thus helpless, and knew the things terrible to speak of that men would do to them,--and the most unbearable of all terrible things, the threatened violation of their chastity,--she exhorted herself and the maidens that they ought not to submit even to hear of this. For, she said, that to surrender their souls to the slavery of demons was worse than all deaths and destruction; and she set before them the only deliverance from all these things,--escape to Christ. They then listened to her advice. And after arranging their garments suitably, they went aside from the middle of the road, having requested of the guards a little time for retirement, and cast themselves into a river which was flowing by. Thus they destroyed themselves. 

Saint Aristides and His Veneration in Greece

St. Aristides in a fresco from the Church of Panagia Phaneromeni in Aigio

 

 By Aristides G. Theodoropoulos

On September 13, the Orthodox Church honors and celebrates the memory of Saint Aristides, this eminent and eloquent Athenian philosopher and famous martyr of Christ, who became better known in Ecclesiastical History and Patrology by his famous Apology, which is also the oldest surviving apologetic text.

This eminent Christian philosopher, ardent apologist and glorious martyr of the 2nd century AD was born in Athens and studied classical philosophy at the famous Philosophical School of Athens.

Saint Euplos, an Important Saint for the People of Eastern Thrace

Church of Saint Euplos in Ainos in 1908

To most of the Orthodox Christian world, Saint Euplos, who is commemorated on August 11th, is completely unknown. But to the Greek people of Ainos (Enez) in Thrace, Saint Euplos has historically been very important and well known.

His significance mainly stems from his name - Euplos - which in Greek essentially means "good voyage" or "good sea voyage". To the port city of Ainos, they celebrated and loved this Saint in his church to ensure a good voyage by sea through his intercessions.

The Divine Eros of Saint Eros and his Six Brothers

 

In the West, Saint Valentine has come to be known as the patron saint of love, a day on which couples everywhere celebrate the love they share for one another. It is so popular that despite the fact that Saint Valentine is not officially among the saints of the Orthodox Church, since he was martyred in Rome and only honored as a local saint there without spreading eastward, still he is acknowledged even by Orthodox, especially in Greece, as the patron saint of love. Unbeknownst to the majority of Orthodox in Greece, however, they already long had a patron saint of love, though he was mostly only known locally in Crete until the 1990's when he became more well known with the rise of Saint Valentine, and his name is Saint Hyacinth, or Saint Yakinthos, and his feast day is July 3rd. Yet there is really no good reason, based on the lives of these two saints, for them to be patron saints of love for loving couples. However, in the Orthodox Church there is one saint whose name alone would justify him being the patron saint of love, but he is almost completely unknown.

Synaxarion of the Holy Martyr Thallelaios

 Synaxarion

On the 20th of this month [May], we commemorate the Holy Martyr Thallelaios

Verses

Thallelaios having been harshly beheaded,
God gave a plant for the release of all suffering.*
On the twentieth the head of Thallelaios was cut off.

This Saint Thallelaios flourished during the reign of Emperor Numerian in the year 284, and was from a country in Phoenicia called Lebanon, whose father was Berukios the Hierarch of the Christians and his mother was called Romylia. Having learned the art of medicine, and gone into hiding inside an olive tree out of fear of the idolaters, he was arrested as a Christian in the city of Anazarbus, which is located in the second province of Cilicia. Being brought before the ruler Theodore, who, being unable to persuade the Saint to sacrifice to the idols, for this reason ordered that his ankles be pierced through, in order for a rope to go through them, and then have him suspended upside down. The servants therefore thought they did as the ruler ordered, by piercing through the ankles of the Saint and suspending him, but in fact they neither pierced him nor suspended him, but were struck with blindness, and their minds were altered by some divine power, so that they were unable to know what they were doing, which is why they pierced through a piece of wood and suspended it instead of the Saint. The ruler thought the soldiers were mocking him, so he had them flogged. Two of them, whose names were Alexander and Asterios, seeing this paradoxical matter, believed in Christ. Because of this they were beheaded, and received crowns of martyrdom.

Saint Kalliopios as a Model for our Lives

St. Kalliopios (Feast Day - April 7)

 

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

 

Saint Kalliopios came from Perge of Pamphylia and lived during the reign of Emperor Maximian. His pious mother Theokleia raised him "in the education and instruction of the Lord". When the persecution against the Christians broke out, Kalliopios, who was distinguished for his spiritual courage and fighting spirit, presented himself alone before the ruler Maximus, who was then in Pompeiopolis.

Saint Kalliopios, therefore, boldly confessed his faith before the ruler and he subjected him to horrible tortures. He tied his hands behind his back, stretched his body on a wheel and lit a fire underneath. An Angel of the Lord, however, put out the fire and stopped the wheel. Then, full of wounds, he was taken to prison. His mother asked to visit him and she remained in prison with him. At midnight, while they were praying and chanting, the prison was filled with heavenly light and a voice was heard encouraging the martyr. Finally, because Kalliopios remained steadfast and unshakable in his faith, he was crucified, and thus he became a communicant of Christ's crucifixion. In fact, the day on which he was crucified was Holy and Great Thursday and the dawn of Holy and Great Friday. He was crucified with his head down, which is why the Holy Hymnographer, praising the martyr, exclaims: 

Kalliopios inverted is nailed to the wood,
Glorifying the Word who was nailed upright.
On the seventh Kalliopios found life without end.

 

Holy Hieromartyr Theodore of Cyrene with the Holy Martyrs Irenaeus the Deacon and Serapion and Ammonius the Readers

Sts. Theodore of Cyrene, Irenaeus the Deacon, Serapion and Ammonius the Readers (Feast Day - March 26)

Saint Theodore the Bishop of Cyrene with his companions Saints Irenaeus the Deacon and Serapion and Ammonius the Readers were from Pentapolis of Libya. They all had their tongues cut out probably during the persecution of Diocletian but survived the ordeal, dying in peace during the lapse in persecutions.

 

 

Saint Conon of Isauria as a Model for our Lives (2)

 

Saint Conon was born at the end of the first century in the village of Vadini in the province of Isauria in Asia Minor, which was located between the provinces of Lycaonia and Pisidia, and included the areas around Mount Taurus. (From this province came the dynasty of the Isaurians, who ruled in Constantinople from 717 to 797 AD). Conon was considered a fiery and radiant preacher of the gospel and with his shining example, his inspired speech, but also with the miracles he performed by the power of the Triune God, he led to the true faith not only his parents, Nestor and Nada, but many other idolaters. He married a pious young woman, who became his coworker and companion in missionary work.

Holy Martyrs Didymos, Nemesios and Potamios

Sts. Didymos, Nemesios and Potamios (Feast Day - February 20)

 

Nothing is known of these three Holy Martyrs except that they were martyred for their faith in Christ on the island of Cyprus at different times, according to Archimandrite Kyprianos (later Archbishop of Cyprus) in his Ιστορία χρονολογική της νήσου Κύπρου (Venice, 1788). The Roman Martyrology also lists them as Martyrs of Cypus to be commemorated on February 20th. However, Hippolyte Delehaye says they could have been from Alexandria.

 

 

The Passion of Saint Theagenes of Parium (BHG 2416)

1. Many great martyrs have prevailed over the work of the Evil Adversary because of their power in the name of the Lord, among whom the most holy martyr Theagenes has also been deemed worthy to be counted, having wrestled with the Enemy in every manner and defeated him.

2. During the time of the emperor Licinius, Theagenes, the son of a bishop, was conscripted in Phrygia and sent to the legion entitled the Second Trajan under the tribune Zelicinthius and the praepositus Posidonius. This legion was stationed in Parium in the Hellespontus, which city is superior to Cyzicus. Brought before the tribune and the praepositus, blessed Theagenes was being forced to serve as a soldier. But being faithful and accomplished in the eyes of God, filled with the Holy Spirit, he declared in the middle of the legion, "I am a Christian, and I serve the Immortal King who is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. His soldier and servant am I, and I cannot serve another king." The tribune Zelicinthius said, "Theagenes, take the cloak, tunic and the full armour, and serve Licinius the great king". Holy Theagenes replied, "I serve my King, and I cannot serve another." Zelicinthius said, "Does Licinius not seem to you to be emperor?" Holy Theagenes replied, "I do not know. I am a Christian, and it is not possible for me to desert my Lord and King." Zelicinthius said, "What, so? Are these men standing about not Christians, and they serve?" Theagenes replied, "Each knows how he serves. For I know that I serve King and Master." Zelicinthius said, "Surely, the gods do not mock?" Theagenes replied "I do not know who are gods, except God the Almighty whom I know through His Son. [For the Holy Scripture says, "I said: You are gods, and all sons of the Most High, but you will die like men." For it calls gods the pious and faithful men who have recognised the Truth.]" Posidonius the praepositus said, "And does your God have a son?" Theagenes replied, "Yes, he has a Son, the Word of His Truth, through whom He made all things." Zelicinthius said, "If we want, can we know Him?" Theagenes replied, "Yes, if you are willing, you will quickly know Him." Posidonius said, "If we recognise Him, can we desert our emperor and surrender to him?" Theagenes said, "There is nothing which prevents you from leaving the darkness and the licence which you enjoy for a short time before your temporary and mortal emperor, and surrendering to the Living God, Eternal King, and Master of the Universe, and serving Him, just as I do and many others who have placed their hope in Him, and you will live for eternity."