Month of May

who cannot be comprehended; but he even sacrificed himself for the sheep, and tasted death and the cross, and rose again on the third day, and ascended again into heaven, ^A lifting up with him me also, who had fallen from there because of disobedience. Of him I am a priest, and to him have I purposed to offer myself as a sacrifice. But your affairs, and those of your gods, as you call them, are worthy of the night and of corners, and are to be mourned for their ruin and calamity rather than to be invoked with maledictions.

XII. Provoked to anger by these words, the emperor commands the noble Anthimus to be led to death. The athlete is led away, keeping his joy lively through the hope of things to come. And when he had arrived at the place where he was to pass through death ^B to life, having requested and received time for prayer, and after he had prayed at the last and addressed God, that blessed head of his is severed on the third day of the month of September. In the evening, some of the faithful arrived, and taking up his precious body, and having holy and honorably laid it out, they deposit it becomingly in the very place where he was finished, praising the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the one divinity and kingdom; to whom be all glory, honor, and adoration unto the ages of ages. Amen.

MONTH OF MAY

ON SAINT PHILIP THE APOSTLE

A very ancient apograph of the Hieronymian Martyrology, written nearly a thousand years ago, which we have used from the beginning of this work as our own, and which we returned to the Epternacenses when they requested it as theirs, has a prefixed Index concerning the feast days of the apostles, and suggests these things to be referred to the Kalends of May: "Birth of St. Philip the apostle, in the city of Hierapolis in the province of Asia." But in the context of the Martyrology for the Kalends of May, only these words are read: "Birth of the holy apostles Philip and James." In a Corbie apograph of the same Hieronymian Martyrology, printed at Paris, it is kept thus: "In Asia, at Hierapolis, of the holy apostles Philip and James." Regarding St. James, who does not pertain to Hierapolis, we shall speak separately hereafter. Similar things regarding both are held in ancient manuscript Fasti, which it is not worthwhile to indicate. The Venerable Bede, in his genuine Martyrology, which we published before the second volume of the Acts of March from eight ancient codices, writes these things: "At Hierapolis, of Philip the apostle, and of James the apostle, brother of the Lord." Florus adds: "The first of whom suffered in Asia in the city of Hierapolis of the province of Phrygia, and there rests with his daughters." Rabanus, next in age, writes thus: "At Hierapolis, of Philip the apostle, who extinguished the heresy of the Ebionites, and rested in peace." Usuardus committed these words to writing: "Birth of the apostles Philip and James, of whom Philip, after he had converted Scythia to the faith of Christ, rested with a glorious end at Hierapolis, a city of Asia.

^A Thus Ado; to which Notker adds: "The heresy of the Ebionites, who denied that Christ Jesus existed before the time of the Incarnation, having been extinguished." In the current Roman Martyrology, some things are added concerning his martyrdom in these words: "Birth of the blessed apostles Philip and James, of whom Philip, after he had converted almost all of Scythia to the faith of Christ, rested with a glorious end at Hierapolis, a city of Asia, having been fixed to a cross and overwhelmed with stones." Thus it is there; Galesinius reports similar things in his own Martyrology. But Maurolycus, inserting somewhat more, says: "Birth of the blessed apostles Philip and James, of whom Philip, after he had converted Scythia to the faith of Christ, where he had erected a cross after the idol of Mars had been cast down, and had exterminated a poisonous dragon, rested with a glorious end at the city of Hierapolis in Asia; or he died, fixed to a cross and stoned by the Ebionites: next to whom his two virgin daughters are buried; the third lies at Ephesus." Thus Maurolycus: in addition to which Constantinus Felicius mixes in some things from the Greek Acts, of which we shall speak presently.

^B The first day of May had to be treated more broadly, so that a way might be paved for the Latin acts, which are to be given in the first place, in which everything is contained that is touched upon in the cited Martyrologies. We possess the same Acts in three of our illustrious codices, one of which appears to have been written eight hundred years ago. Furthermore, we have received the same, transcribed from the ancient codices of St. Martin of Trier, the double codex of the cathedral church of St. Omer, the codex of the church of St. Savior in Utrecht, and the Roman codex of Cardinal Baronius. We also find them in three codices of the Queen of Sweden marked with the numbers 81, 482, and 1604, those of the Cardinal Mazarin in Paris, the Cistercian monastery of Aduard in Westphalia, and the manuscript codex of the hospital of St. Nicholas near Cusa: nor are they different from these which the author of the history regarding the Translation of the arm of St. Philip to Florence possessed. If it were our pleasure to examine the legendaries, we could indicate more examples. But first is the very ancient codex, which contains the same Acts and is highly remarkable, which was written with square letter-strokes and the distinction of diphthongs and vowels accurately preserved, which once belonged to the monastery of SS. Peter and Paul in Wissembourg in the diocese of Speyer, and now belongs to the most illustrious Baron Blume, often mentioned by us, on account of the ancient copy of the Hieronymian Martyrology which he himself, having received it from the same monastery, communicated out of his kindness. From this ancient codex, Reinoldus Dehnius, a learned man of our society, transcribed and sent to us the Acts of the virtues and passions of the holy apostles of Christ.

^C ...bishops and Churches of the Catholics, concerning a certain Leucius, who had written the Acts of some of the apostles." Melito notes this man with the title of falsity, especially because he said, "that they taught that there are two principles of good and evil, and that good things subsisted from a good principle and evil things from an evil principle." The same epistle is prefixed before the Acts of St. John the Evangelist in the Florentine copy of the Hieronymian Martyrology. Mention of the aforesaid Leucius, by others called Leontius, appears to be made in the Treatise *On Faith or the Unity of the Trinity against the Manichaeans*, which is contained in Volume VI of the Works of St. Augustine: however, it is not found in his *Retractations*, nor in the *Indiculus* of Possidius; and Philippus Labbe asserts in *On Ecclesiastical Writers* that "Sirmondus proved from the faith of the manuscripts, especially the Corbie codex, that it is the work of Evodius, Bishop of Uzalis, in the Proconsular province of Africa, to whom various letters of St. Augustine are extant: so that even then the indicated Melito or Mellitus appears to have lived as bishop."

^D ...ordained by the apostles, are often rejected; as if the disciple of Abdias, Eutropius, had translated them from the Hebrew into the Greek language, and Julius Africanus, who flourished in the third century under the emperors Heliogabalus and Alexander the son of Mammaea, says that he turned them from thence into Latin. Baronius, in his notes for this day, says: "Although these accounts under the name of Abdias may be judged apocryphal, I easily persuade myself, however, that some things there are true;" especially when those Acts (such as this one concerning St. Philip) are sufficiently proven from elsewhere. The same are extant, printed in the year 1531, among the *Rhapsodies of the Anonymous Eusebian Philalethes*, in the Lives, miracles, and passions of the apostles collected by Frederic Nausea: and in most of these it is not read that Philip "was fixed to a cross and overwhelmed with stones." Truly, those words are inserted in those of Joninus Mombritius, in the Legendary printed two hundred years ago: likewise in the Roman Breviary of the year 1522 and in that which, ordained by Cardinal Quiñones by the order of Pope Paul III and later edited by the order of Pius V, is preserved until now, although the complete Acts are not given in these, as they are in the more ancient Breviary. The earlier part of the Acts is had in its entirety in the Breviary of the year 1479, 1490, and those following: and in that part are contained those things which Maurolycus transmitted above regarding the "exterminated poisonous dragon," or perhaps a devil in the shape of a foul monster. Petrus de Natalibus, Book IV of the *Catalogus*, Chapter 107, Philippus Ferrarius, *On the Saints of Italy*, and many others have similar accounts.

COMMENTARY ON THE HOLY APOSTLE PHILIP

^A 1. God, the Word of God, always coexisting with the Father, and being timeless, chose also to become like us at a certain time and to come under time, because of the fall of our nature; hence also he is circumscribed in the flesh by a Virgin, and deifies by his communion that which he had assumed. But since His coming in the flesh was to work salvation for all, it was fitting that He should also have spectators and participants in this divine and ineffable dispensation, through whom He might copiously minister the heavenly calling to our race. After, therefore, the preaching of John had passed through the entire region bordering the Jordan, and by the working of the Spirit of grace many were being baptized by him (when even my Christ received baptism), this same incomprehensible Word of God left the urban crowds (for He was indeed seen to dwell in Jerusalem) and journeyed to Galilee.

^B 2. Here the admirable Philip was dwelling, being from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter, but present at that time in Galilee; and he, even from his earliest age, was immediately given over by his parents to the liberal arts; being of good disposition and apt for any praiseworthy knowledge, he immediately perused the Mosaic books and imbibed whatever was predicted concerning Christ, how, namely, He was to come in the last days and be about to impart salvation to all: and

^A for it was not permitted to those who were then teaching to impart any other doctrine to their students, unless they had first read through the teachings of Moses.

III. Jesus, therefore, coming into Galilee and finding this great Philip, invited him to follow Him. As soon as he heard Him calling, he immediately brought to mind those things which he had perceived and gathered from his boyhood concerning Christ, and he recognized Him to be the very one whom the Mosaic books indicated would come later. From then on, he clung to the Master who had called him, and, advancing little by little in virtue, he was numbered among the chief of the disciples. And because he wished to share with others the good which he had obtained, he did not hide it, but, meeting first with Nathanael—who happened to be his friend and companion from long ago—he proclaimed the presence of Him who was coming, not as still being in the future, but as already present. He said, "The salvation of Israel no longer consists in hope alone; but He whom the prophetic tongues in the Spirit predicted as the Savior to be raised up in the last days, He is now present. Having ourselves found this Jesus of Nazareth, and being unable to be incredulous regarding the excellence of His miracles, we have bidden long farewell to all others and have chosen the way of life with Him."

IV. ^B By these words he won over Nathanael, though he was reluctant at the matter and questioned whether any good could come from Nazareth, and he drew him away from the concerns of Israel and presented him as one who would obey Christ—and this was the first proof he gave of his incomparable goodwill. Nathanael, standing firm with perfect faith, cried out very freely, "Rabbi, you are the King of Israel." As soon as Christ perceived that he spoke from an immutable conviction of mind, He revealed to him that he would be conscious of greater mysteries and a spectator of the kingdom of God. For what does He say? "Amen, I say to you, you shall see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man." ^C From that time forward, therefore, the most holy Philip, lending his ear to the sacred mysteries, was entirely occupied with them in his mind, and, turning his attention to no other concern, he was purified in his intellect by the light of diviner knowledge; and, putting off his former ignorance, he was renewed as to his inner man. As he came to adulthood, he received a more perfect love toward Christ, and in turn received the same love from Him, so that he was accounted as a son and occupied the place of an heir, and at the arrival of the Holy Spirit he was ordained a prince over all the earth.

V. ^D When, moreover, the time of the saving Passion was drawing near, through which impassibility was gained for the passible nature—and he himself continued to be with Christ without hesitation—it happened at that time that some envoys of the Gentiles were sent to Jerusalem

^A for the sight of the feast. These men, having been struck in mind by the wonderful things reported about Jesus (for great things were already being reported about Him, even to them, beyond belief—how He would raise Lazarus from the dead, and how He was ushered along by the whole crowd with favorable cries, and would perform ten thousand other miracles), became possessed of a longing to come to Him by means of an introduction. They were overcome, therefore, by this noble longing, as they heard of my Jesus; and approaching Philip, they explain the purpose of their arrival. He, having shared the matter concerning them with the first-called Andrew, reports their arrival to Jesus along with him; and He signifies to them the matters concerning the Passion and His glory by the word, saying: «Unless the grain of wheat falling into the earth dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.» ^B VI. These, then, Christ set forth to them. But when, after the Passion and the Resurrection, He frequently manifested Himself to the disciples and made them spectators of things exceeding human comprehension, this great Philip himself, as a fellow-student and participant in the ineffable mysteries, was present at what was taking place, and was reckoned as one of them. Now when our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ had completed the entire order of the dispensation undertaken for us in the flesh, and had miraculously united earthly things with heavenly things, and had been taken up into heaven with glory and sat at the right hand of the greatness of the Father, and had sent the Comforter, the Spirit, to His eyewitnesses and confidants as He had promised, in the form of tongues of fire—Philip also, being filled with this, prepared himself for the course of the Gospel. ^C VII. And when some of them set out for the Eastern parts, others for the Western, and some also traversed the Northern and Southern climates, fulfilling the proclamation entrusted to them, this admirable apostle was allotted Asia; and going round this, and visiting every city and town in it, he brought an innumerable multitude to piety; and marking them all with the light of regeneration, he brought them to the heavenly Father. Furthermore, he cured those oppressed by certain ailments and diseases, and also those who were evilly afflicted by a demon, by a word alone and the imposition of a holy hand; invisibly driving away the adversaries themselves, but visibly saving those who were vexed by them, while through the magnificence of his preaching and the operation of stupendous miracles, as if by certain nets, ^D he brought them to the knowledge of the truth.

He appointed and built priests and altars everywhere in those places; instead of sacrifices on the altars, he reverently prepared the holy mystery to be celebrated in them, so that the rule of the Gospel might be kept even there. Thus, therefore, he brought a very great multitude of those who believed in Christ through him. Now, when the time arrived for him to depart from there, and for him to pass on to the Lord, something of this sort befell him toward the end.

^B Ⅷ. There is a prominent city in Phrygia, called the Holy City. This city, having flourished in population beyond others and being named the mother of other cities, received the most holy Philip after those countless labors for the Gospel. When this great apostle arrived, so that he might preach the Gospel there as well, he saw that it offered worship—alas!—to idols, and to a certain monstrous, venomous viper, among the pestilential creatures. His soul was kindled with divine zeal, and by applying himself more intensely to prayers and invoking the name of Christ, he immediately showed that this ruinous cause of destruction for many was dead.

^C Ⅸ. Since his petition to the Lord against this cruel beast had succeeded so well, he began thereafter to urge and advise everyone to believe that God lives in the heavens and not to pay attention to beasts crawling upon the earth. For God, who is always existing, a God perfect and incomprehensible, after having produced this visible and invisible world, also formed man after the image of His own majesty; and by honoring him with free will, He allowed him to enjoy the good things of paradise, commanding only that he abstain from the tree of knowledge. ^D Yet, since it was not for God to overlook him—having transgressed the commandment and slipped from friendship with Him—He first instructed him through the law and the prophets; and in the end, He willed that the Word, consubstantial to Him, be born of a pure Virgin according to our nature. Appearing in the likeness of men and, though impassible, communicating in our sufferings, and rising on the third day from the dead, He lovingly manifested Himself to us and departed to the heavens from whence He had descended. We believe that He will come again to resurrect His creature and render to each according to his works. You, too, who have been deemed worthy of the divine light of regeneration, will know this; for your mind will be purged of every base passion and you will be filled to satiety with His gifts—if, indeed, satiety of them can be—and you will inherit the promised good things.

X. The divine apostle discoursed of these and more than these, both publicly and privately. Those whom he saw, more than others, receiving the word of faith, he brought to the light of regeneration, enrolled in the order of the priesthood, and raised up as living temples for Christ, as holy ones. Seeing the truth progressing thus favorably, his enemy ^A could not restrain himself from laying snares and throwing a stumbling block in its way. He insinuated himself among those who then held the chief offices in the city, and, kindling their indignation like fire, he first caused them to seize Philip, suddenly inciting the multitude against him, and then inflicted upon him all the harm and destruction he could. For those who had apprehended him cast him into a harsh prison, and more harshly they beat and scourged him; then, having passed ropes through his ankles, they hung him aloft.

XI. And this could indeed signify the state of his soul, holding the straight path to things above; yet the Lord did not abandon him. But because the divine apostle Bartholomew was also in Hierapolis at that time, having been with him and announcing the Gospel—just as he had shared in the preaching, so too he wished him to be a sharer in the passion—Bartholomew also is condemned to the cross, after he, as we said, had been hung by the ankles. His sister Mariamne, a virgin in body and soul—and not less joined to him by nature than by purpose—was also present, suffering with her brother Philip, and she endured and supported the torment as much as she could by her resolve. While these things were happening, a quite strange event occurred: the earth was suddenly shaken and suffered an unusual tremor, and a fear fell upon the minds of all ^B who had gathered for the spectacle for the sake of amusement. The entire place was overturned from its foundations and yawned open into a deep, invisible abyss; at the same time, the people were being swallowed up, and they were in danger of most wretched destruction.

XII. When, therefore, all were stunned, and could devise no useful plan, at length, though late, they recognized that they were ^C suffering retribution for the punishment and injury inflicted upon Philip. Standing around him, they called him their savior and begged him to reach out his right hand to them for their salvation, and not to disregard the souls imperiled solely because of him. It is related that as they insisted on their prayers and spoke many things suitable to move him to pity, and did not cease from their entreaties, Jesus, having pity on those who were suffering what was occurring, bowed His ear from above toward the human-loving— ^D

^A benignity, and suddenly appeared to them; and by that appearance He immediately caused the terrors to cease, and the ground, which until then had been shaking, stood firm, and to those who were there in pitiable danger of death there appeared a more divine power, acting in the place of a ladder and providing an easy ascent upwards. This became a path of faith to salvation for the unbelievers, and it proclaimed Philip to be great, but it proclaimed as greater still the Lord whom he himself preached.

XIII. Those who had been saved therefore hastened to deliver the disciples from their bonds, and made speed to take them down from the wooden stake as quickly as possible. And they loosed Bartholomew, but Philip forbade them from doing the same to him; for he knew that he was about to depart forthwith to the One whom he desired. And so, while hanging from the wood, he spoke the whole day to the citizens ^B concerning their salvation, confirming their souls by his exhortation and pouring out prayers for them. He departed this life holily among holy words, and passed to the Lord whom he had loved, committing his own soul into His hands.

XIV. His venerable body, having been piously taken down by Bartholomew and Mariamne, and having been granted with splendor what is customary at burials, was laid to rest with sacred hymns and honors in a prominent and holy place, on the fourteenth day of November. Bartholomew and Mariamne remained for a short ^C time in that place, and having rendered the rites of hymns and honors to this venerable relic, and having further confirmed those present in the faith more brilliantly and more securely, they departed to their own lands, preaching everywhere the Gospel of Christ: for to Him is due all glory, honor, and worship, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

COMMENTARY ON THE HOLY APOSTLE JAMES, THE BROTHER OF THE LORD

PROLOGUE. I. Nothing is as agreeable to a good man and a lover of virtue—nor anything that offends less by satiety—than the memory of a righteous man, especially if he has suffered for Christ’s sake. For that moves him more ^A to joy than gold does the lovers of money, or than whatever things are delightful to behold move those fond of novelties. Add to this that the memory of a righteous man is not only pleasant, but also exceedingly useful; since it introduces into souls a stimulus of zeal and emulation, and excites them to undertake similar things. Come then, let us also bring into our midst the great James (who truly is, and is called, the Just, and who has been uniquely enriched by being called the brother of Christ), that we may derive ^B both common utility and pleasure from his story. For although many others, who have devoted themselves to writing ecclesiastical history, have told of this righteous man—and before all others, Hegesippus and Clement: of whom the former in his fifth book, and the latter in the sixth of those works called *Hypotyposes*, have taken up some of the things done by him and handed them down to posterity—yet no one has extended himself to cover everything, nor has any endeavored to speak of each point individually. The reason is that it was not their intention to write about him specifically; rather, they had another subject for their argument, and only mentioned him in part, as the situation happened to arise.

CHAPTER. Country, the epistle written and elucidated. Other virtues.

II. To the divine James, then, his country was Judea, ^C and his father was Joseph, who on account of his singular virtue and goodness of character was the betrothed of the Virgin who gave birth to the Lord. ^D (We have rejected above this opinion held by certain Greeks, and shown him to have been the son of Cleophas, who according to some was the brother of the aforementioned St. Joseph, or at least the husband of Mary, who was born of the maternal aunt of the Mother of God, and was therefore called the sister of Mary.)

^A His actions were consistent with the name; for they say he was called Oblias, which indeed is meant to signify "the just." His eye was gentle and placid, and truly worthy to obtain mercy from God; his hearing was altogether open to divine words, his mouth having the law as a constant delight at all times, his hand ever moved to do good, his belly entirely restrained from its own appetites; for throughout his whole life he abstained from animal food and wine to such a degree that he considered water the most pleasant drink, and bread his food, mixing the drops of his tears abundantly with his drink. The calloused knees of the just man are known, as is his flesh, through these things as if dead, and the readiness of his soul standing by. A rag was his preferred garment, and a linen cloth when he was about to ascend to sacred duties. ^B Night and day were not distinguished for him; but the night was also active in the works of light, and the day, by the tranquility of his life and the absence of disturbances, clearly imitated the silence of the night. He was pleasant to his own, and reverend to strangers; for the man was so honored by the striving of virtue, not only among friends, but even among those ignorant of piety, that some of them even wrote down his martyrdom, and said that those who killed the Just One did not only pay the penalty, but that the city also received a great calamity in which that detestable crime came to pass. Josephus bears witness to the statement, relating matters concerning the man in the twentieth book of his Antiquities.

III.

IV.

^A straight from the starting line the modesty of the saint. It runs thus: "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are in the dispersion, greeting." For although it was permitted to him to call himself an apostle, or a bishop, or—what is greater—the brother of the Lord, by which names even Paul, writing to the Galatians, designated him, yet he appears to delight in the more humble titles, and makes himself known to the tribes of Israel as a servant of Christ God. Possessing moderation as the most distinct mark of a teacher, he prides himself in this more than in the dignity of the episcopate or of the brotherhood.

V. But come, let us pursue some of the things that are read in the Epistle, as far as we are granted, through which the purity of his mind and the accuracy of his doctrine will be made manifest. For when he had reached the beginning of the Epistle, and had considered with the contemplative eye of his soul that, as is ^B logical, whoever approaches God encounters temptations (for God is the beginning and root of good, and good is virtue; but the way that leads to virtue is rough and difficult, and has many obstacles; and therefore it happens entirely that those who come to God encounter uneven matters), having considered this, he exhorts the saints to invincible and unyielding patience, imitating good instructors of the young, and those who know how to exercise men well according to the laws of striving. For he says: "Count it all joy, my brethren, when you fall into various temptations," and the reason: "Knowing, he says, that the testing of your faith produces patience." [Let patience have its perfect work, that you may be lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all abundantly and does not reproach.] Consider, moreover, with what wisdom he exhorts. For he does not only bid them to endure, ^C but even to rejoice when temptations assail them; and not only to rejoice, but also to count it all joy. Nor does he say any temptations whatever, but "When you fall into various temptations." The cause is: "Knowing, he says, that the testing of your faith produces patience." Then he adds that there must be firmness and constancy in faith, and no doubt, saying: "A double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."

VI. And what he says after this, how much depth it also has, along with grace! "For let," he said, "the humble brother glory in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation." For since wealth entices to arrogance, and poverty to humility and dejection of spirit, ^D he commands the opposite to be done; he bids the rich man to construct his own exaltation in modest actions, and the poor man to deem this very thing an honor not to be despised—to bear poverty with a great and lofty spirit. Thus he makes both poverty and riches, which are often to many a source of sin, material for the worship of God. Then again, knowing of what glory and of what great goods temptations are the procurers to those who conduct themselves bravely, repeating, he says: "Blessed is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been proved, he shall receive the crown of life."

^A VII. Nor did he leave unhealed the malady of the many, who, in order to defend their own desires, say that sin is of nature, and who do not even hesitate to consider God the author of evils; but, like a most excellent physician employing prophylactic remedies, he resisted this disease, saying: "Let no one when he is tempted say, 'I am tempted by God.' For God is untempted by evils, and He Himself tempts no one, but everyone is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own desire; then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death." Thus the just man justly arbitrated between men and God, bearing witness to Him that He was not the author of evils, and persuading loquacious tongues to be silent; while for men, he made them recognize their own weakness and their sins, and reasonably prepared them to attribute their failures to themselves, rather than to God, because of their evil habits and sloth, and thus to learn humility and to ask for pardon.

^B VIII. From there, you will see the just man wisely removing the pride that follows upon the performance of good, and persuading them to attribute what has been rightly accomplished to God rather than to themselves. "Do not err, therefore," he says, "my beloved brethren; every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, descending from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures." These words both empty out pride and show that God is the giver of good things, and that He is immutable, and that alteration does not fall upon Him; and that He is supreme if compared with created things, and appears to have the greatest care for man.

^C IX. After this, he touches upon more ethical admonitions, saying: "Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath." For if speaking quickly deserves caution, how much more does being quick to anger require care? But see also what he says are the characters of the true Christian: "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." ^D He commands both that one depart from the world and that one attach oneself to one's neighbor; for we will then truly and sincerely sympathize with our brethren when we have torn ourselves away from affection for the world. But by saying, "My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality," he removes that which is done for display, teaching us not to live as

men-pleasers ^A nor to seek glory from men, thinking lowly and humble thoughts; but to love God alone, to have Him as the praiser of what is done, and to await the recompense from Him alone. By calling him who loves his neighbor as himself one who fulfills the royal law, he provokes us to the love of our brethren by the dignity of Him who gave the law, knowing the magnitude and beauty of this commandment, and that love toward one's neighbor is the fulfillment of the law, and that this indeed is the sum of all good things.

X. How, then, does he move us to mercy? He terrifies us with the merciless and inevitable judgment that is there. "For judgment," he says, "is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy," and [he adds that] mercy triumphs over judgment, granting to the former the victory over the latter. Moreover, he says that faith thus requires action, just as the body requires ^B the spirit; and that without this, it is as it were dead and profitless, so that we may not trust in believing alone and glory in vain. He proves this immediately, bringing forward Abraham and Raab as witnesses: the former, who with faith also offered up Isaac; the latter, who sent the spies away by another way. And what need is there for me to recount individual cases? For he has left out almost no moral virtue to which he has not urged the godly and religious man, with great persuasiveness and grace. He gave a law to the tongue, to teach one accurately both the time to be silent and the time to speak; he teaches us paternally to hold to the truth and to abstain completely from falsehood. ^C Furthermore, he also severely accuses the abusive and calumniating tongue, and he drives far from the minds of men the habit of secretly slandering or judging one's neighbor.

XI. It is your task, O Just one, to admonish both the rich and the poor again: the former, not to trust in riches; the latter, to bear evils patiently, as those who are to receive a reward for their endurance which cannot be taken away; to the former, he casts up riches as an argument of unbelief, as those who trust in them and not in the bosom of God, which is never exhausted; to the latter, as a prophet, he proclaims that the Judge stands before the doors. And for whom else but a righteous tongue could it be an admonition that not only perjury, but the very act of swearing at all, ought to be declined, saying before all things: ^D "My brethren, do not swear, either by heaven, or by the earth, or any other oath: but let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No' be 'No,' lest you fall under condemnation." He teaches those who are of a serene and tranquil mind to fortify themselves with prayer; those who are sick, to use oil with the prayer of the priest for anointing, and to hold this as a medicine for their illness, inasmuch as prayer, when aided by works, is able to accomplish the greatest things. What need is there to go over all the contents of this sweet Epistle, when it is possible for anyone who wills to read it [original-script column: see facsimile]

and from there to draw as from a fountain, and by tasting it to prove the facts, and thus become a trustworthy witness of those things which are beautifully said by James?

CHAPTER II. The Synod held at Jerusalem. Singular estimation among the apostles and the Jews. Martyrdom.

XII. Furthermore, from this point also it is possible to know the magnitude of his authority and faculty of speech. Once a question arose at Antioch, whether those who came from the Gentiles to the word of grace ought thereafter to be circumcised according to the custom of Moses. The brothers, therefore, who were at Antioch committed the judgment to the apostles who were at Jerusalem, using Paul and Barnabas as ministers to propose the matter about which there was a question. When the Church that was in Jerusalem had assembled for this purpose, and Peter, the first of the apostles, presided over the faith and was sowing the seeds of piety, James said: “Men, brothers, Simon has explained how God first visited to take from the Gentiles a people for his name, and the words of the prophets agree with this.” Then, having added the words of the prophet, he put to a vote the matters that were being sought: “I judge, therefore,” he said, “that we should not trouble those who are turning to God from the Gentiles, but that we should write to them to abstain from the pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from what is strangled, and from blood.” Thus he spoke, and the word became deed, and what was voted by James was written down as a formal decree for the apostles and handed over to the Church; such was the reverence the man held even among the apostles themselves.

XIII. But it is also possible to hear what Paul wrote about him to the Galatians: “I went,” he says, “to Jerusalem to see Peter, but I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the brother of the Lord,” as though it were a great thing and worthy of remembrance to see James. What kind of exhortations James used toward Paul himself, he who reads the Acts of the Apostles shall clearly know. “For when we had come,” says Luke, “to Jerusalem, all the brothers received us. On the following day, Paul entered with us to James, and all the presbyters came to him. And when he had greeted them, he explained one by one all the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified God and said to Paul: ‘You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and all are zealous for the law; but they have been instructed concerning you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles a defection from Moses. But do this thing which we tell you: there are with us four men who have a vow upon them; take them along, purify yourself with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads, and they will know

^A that the things they have heard about you are nothing.” And we must by all means consider these words to be those of James, as one who was the prince of that Church; for this reason, this was excellently added by Luke: “Paul entered in with us unto James.” So much respect was attributed to James among the apostles, and he was so renowned and held in such honor, partly indeed possessing this from his virtue, and partly having attained it from the fact that he was the brother of the Lord.

XIV. But Judas, who wrote the seventh of the Catholic Epistles, by what means does he signify himself, and how does he make the inscription? “Judas, a servant of Jesus Christ, but a brother of James, to those who are beloved in God the Father.” Those who are splendid in the world do not attribute to themselves so much radiance from these imperial and empty dignities as he knew how to glory in the fact that he was and was called the brother of James ^B. But if it is a glory for Jude to be called the brother of James, how much greater is it for James himself to be named the brother of Christ? For he alone attained these privileges, and he was held worthy to be called alone the brother of the Lord.

XV. Therefore, this great and divine James was holy (as the sacred Eloquia say) from his mother’s womb. On account of which, immediately after Christ, he received the rudder of the Church of Jerusalem as the first Pontiff, and alone he perpetually enters into the Holy of Holies ^C. For entry was not granted to him only once, as it was to those who served the law and the shadow of heavenly things, but he entered in such a way that he alone could enter on account of his purity. But entering, he would incline himself onto his knees and reconcile the forgiveness of sins to the people, better than Moses: to such an extent that his knees became callous like those of camels, because he would bend them assiduously; for thus God, who became man, hands down to us how to pray. Moreover, on account of his signal justice, he was called Just, Oblias, which in our tongue signifies the comprehension of the people and justice.

XVI. Furthermore, just as the prophets previously signified, certain ones from the seven heresies, by whom ^D

^A the hope through which they had prepared the ambush against Paul had been frustrated (for Ananus, who was then high priest, at the time when Paul, having appealed to Caesar, was sent as a prisoner to Rome by Festus to Nero), turned against James, the brother of the Lord; for such were the deeds they had dared to perform even against him. And having taken the Just One into their midst, they sought from him a denial of the faith in Christ before all the people, and they inquired of him, saying: "Tell us, O Just One, what is the door of Jesus?" But he, confirming their word, and wishing to appear as the just man he was called, gave forth a just utterance, saying: "This is the Son of God, Jesus who is Christ." Some of them, therefore, believed what was said by James; but others did not believe, but rather spoke against it according to a tradition that was not upright and was an error; for these heresies among the Jews (as the divine Oracles say) neither professed a resurrection, nor believed that One was coming to render to every man according to his works. Many, however, even for the sake of James, were joined to the choir of believers, and a great tumult ^B occupied the rulers of the Jews, inasmuch as the Pharisees and Scribes were saying that the whole people was in danger of awaiting Jesus as the Christ.

XVII. Having therefore approached James, they said to him with great earnestness: "We beseech you, O Just One, restrain the people, for they have been led astray in regard to Jesus, as if he were the Christ; but see to it that you persuade those who have gathered for the day of the Passover not to be led astray regarding him; for we all obey you, and we, as well as all the people, bear witness to you that you are just and do not respect persons." This testimony—that he was just and did not respect persons—they offered to him for this reason: that by this name of "Just" they might entice him to themselves and persuade him to accept their persons, corrupted by flattery. "Ascend, therefore," they said, "and stand upon the pinnacle of the temple, that you may be visible to all the people and your words may be heard; for because of the Passover, all the tribes have gathered together with the nations." The Scribes and Pharisees therefore set James upon the pinnacle ^C of the temple and said in a loud voice: "O Just One, to whom we all ought to listen, since the people are led astray after Jesus, whom we all know to have suffered death under Pontius Pilate, declare to us what is the door of Jesus."

XVIII. Since, therefore, the time called for the valiant man to stand [firm] ^D

resisted the lie, he did not hesitate, nor did he betray the truth out of fear; but being most free in spirit and tongue, he immediately uttered a loud voice: "Why do you ask me about Jesus? He himself sits in heaven at the right hand of the power of His Father, and will come hereafter upon the clouds of heaven, to judge the world in righteousness." And when many had been convinced by this testimony of James, and were crying out and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David," a great repentance for what had been done entered into the Scribes and Pharisees then, and they said among themselves, "We have done evil, in having furnished such testimony to Jesus; come, therefore, let us cast down James, so that the people, being restrained by fear, may not believe in Jesus." Having said this, they cried out loudly: "Oh! Oh! The Just One has also gone astray." ^A

XIX. When, therefore, they had gone up to the pinnacle of the temple, they immediately cast him down. And not even then desisting from their madness, they said: "Let us stone the Just One." And they began to throw stones at him, since, having been cast down, he had not died; but he, having turned—O holy soul!—fixed his knees on the ground, saying: "Lord God Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." The divine James uttered the same voice as Stephen. Thus, therefore, as they were stoning him, one of the priests of the sons of Rechab—sons of Rechabim, of whom the prophet Jeremiah bears witness—cried out, saying: "Stop, what are you doing? The Just One is praying for us." And one of them, having taken the club from the fullers' shop with which they used to press garments, struck it violently against his head; and thus the Just One gave up his soul. And they took him and buried him near the temple of God. ^B

XX. But as many in the city as were most moderate and upright, and seemed to observe the laws accurately, took this grievously; and they sent secretly to Agrippa (for he was the successor to the tetrarchy of Herod), requesting him to write to Ananus not to dare such things; for they said that he had not done right in what he had done to the great James. Some of them also, meeting Albinus on his way from Alexandria (for Caesar had appointed him procurator of Judea after Festus), informed him that it was not lawful for Ananus to hold a council without his judgment. Albinus, therefore, being persuaded by those who had spoken, wrote in anger to Ananus, threatening that he would make him pay the penalty for such a daring act. King Agrippa, however, having removed Ananus from the priesthood, after he had been Pontiff for no more than three months, appointed someone else in his stead. But extreme evils overtook the Jews after the death of James; of these the Jew Josephus is a witness, who concealed nothing of the truth. ^{C D}

XXI. Thus these things came to pass, and the Saint was added to the saints, the Martyr to the martyrs, the just man to the just—who was called Justus—in that he was the first among bishops to be wreathed with a martyr's crown. ^A For although Stephen had gone before among the deacons, and James the son of Zebedee among the apostles, now the high priest followed Christ, the first High Priest; the martyr followed Him who offered His own blood for the sake of the whole world. How many divine dignities, how many crowns are owed to thee, O disciple, O high priest, O just man, O brother of God, O martyr? For whatever good thing anyone might say, thou possessest it in abundance, unto the glory of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, the one and inseparable Godhead, to whom is due all glory, honor, and majesty, now and ever, and unto the endless ages of ages. Amen.

THE MARTYRDOM OF THE HOLY AND GLORIOUS GREAT MARTYR OF CHRIST, ACACIUS THE CAPPADOCIAN

^B I. When the enemy of all that is good, that dragon and devil, wicked in every respect, had stirred up a tempest against the servants of God in the time of Maximinus, the son-in-law of Diocletian and himself the son and champion of Satan, his impious edicts were immediately sent throughout every region. It was commanded in those edicts that in every city, if there were anyone who did not wish to approach the worship of the gods, he should be subjected without any remission to every punishment and torment. Those edicts themselves were filled with every terror ^C and with royal threats and dangers. Furthermore, it was commanded to the leaders of his army that if any of the soldiers of the emperor did not obey the edicts regarding the worship of the gods—or rather, of the demons—he should be bound and delivered to the civil courts to suffer punishment.

II. In that time, therefore, the deeds of the blessed and holy martyr of Christ, Acacius, blossomed forth—he who proved his own name by the deed itself, since he was in no way a participant in the evils of the demons, nor did he do anything ^D that would accord with the contrivances of the malicious devil. This most holy man was a Cappadocian by birth; by profession he was a soldier, but by purpose and will he was an athlete of Christ. And thus he adorned both his birth and his rank. His fa—

^Ather was someone serving as a commander of the troop known in the Roman tongue as the Martenses, but in Greek as the Arii. He himself was serving in this troop with the rank of centurion. When Acacius was summoned by Firmus, and the latter tried to sound out the disposition of his mind, and by means of flatteries and threats enticed many toward destruction, when the trial of this leader finally reached him, the blessed man cried out with a loud voice, saying: "I was born a Christian, and I am one, and I will remain one, as my Lord Jesus Christ commands and wills; for I am, in fact, born of Christian parents and lineage." Since Firmus was making this effort for the third time—and as for his ways, he was a man who tried at one moment with harsh threats and at another with greater promises to soften his eager spirit and draw him away—the blessed man remained unshaken in his confession. Thus, Firmus was at last forced, as he was commanded by royal edict, to send the holy man Acacius, bound in chains, to a certain Bibianus, who held the command of the entire army.

^BIII. When the latter had taken his seat before the tribunal and was about to conduct the examination of those who had made their confession to God, Antoninus, the secretary, reported to Bibianus, saying: "My lord, yesterday Firmus, tribune of those called the Martenses, sent Acacius, a soldier of his troop, bound to your authority, because he did not wish to obey the edict of our lords, the invincible Augusti, but rather followed the religion of the Christians. He has also carefully written down the cause of his action for your excellence." Bibianus said: "Let what was written to my reverence by the noble and virtuous tribune Firmus be read first." And it was immediately read. The letter written was of this tenor: "Flaccus Firmus to Bibianus, the general, greetings. I have sent bound to your firmness Acacius, a soldier of the rank serving under my command, who, having been urged by us much—at times by enticements and promises, at other times by being reminded of threats—to depart from the sect of the Christians, continued to affirm that he was a Christian and remained steadfast in that ^C confession. Obeying the commands of our invincible and triumphant emperors, I have sent him bound to you, for he ought first to be questioned, and then thus be subjected to tortures and punishments, so that he may yield to the laws of the emperors."

IV. When this letter was read, Bibianus said: "Let Acacius, whom the tribune mentions, be brought in." "He is present, my lord," said Antoninus, the prefect of the records. The blessed Acacius then stood there with a smiling countenance, a thing which foreshadowed the joy that was to befall him. The judge therefore said to him: "What is your name?" He replied: "The name that is desirable to me and to my whole lineage is Christian; that, however, by which I am called in human usage is Acacius." To this the judge said: "Why, then, Acacius, you— ^D who you say are called by this name—are you now appearing wicked, not obeying the edicts of the emperors?" This

is what was written to us by Firmus the chiliarch." ^A Saint Acacius said: "You are practicing sophistry upon me, O judge; but I say to you that for this very reason I am more truly called Acacius [guileless], because I do not wish to share in the wickedness and malice of the wretched and blood-drinking demons, or of the Greeks who obey them." The judge said: "From where do you derive the confidence to be so impudent in your speech?" Saint Acacius said: "What does this matter, that you ask about my homeland?" The judge said: "Because we have become experienced and know the customs of homelands, I asked you so that, having heard the customs of your homeland, I might act accordingly in this present command." Saint Acacius said: "By birth I am an Achaean, but I was born in Cappadocia. Since my parents had their dwelling there, I came to the army; where I learned that many of my fellow soldiers had previously become martyrs for Christ, and I also knew my neighbors and peers. I preferred, therefore, to follow them rather than those who are called laws by you, since those are human and are corrupted along with men after the departure of this life." ^B V. The judge said: "Do not think, Acacius, that you will receive ordinary punishments; for that idle and rash boldness of your homeland demands exactly this. Therefore, cast away all that reasoning of yours, and be willing to obey the laws of the emperors by serving the worship of the gods, by whose nod the Augusti, who conquer and govern all things, hold their power; and respect us and our tribunal. Do not think that you are the wisest of all by using this untimely insanity, and placing your hopes in a man, who, as they say, has been made subject to the laws." Saint Acacius said: "You are mistaken, judge, being led astray by a terrible deception of Satan; for it is not on account of the worship of the gods, whom you speak of, that the emperors hold their power, but by the permission of the good and compassionate God who made and governs all things. ^C But as for your saying that I have placed my hopes in a man condemned—as you say—know that for our sake our Lord Jesus Christ appeared in the world, that He might save us. Although He was true God and bore His unspeakable dispensation—which you will not be able to hear or know, unless you first prepare yourself through faith—how can I explain it to you worthily? For being true God, as I have said, by nature, and existing as the Word undivided and coeternal with the Father forever, in His own time, as He willed, He accomplished the work of our salvation, and He freed us from the condemnation of Satan, who has been envious of us from the beginning." ^D VI. The judge said: "And if the emperors act against Him, how does your Christ not punish them—He who, as you yourself say, bore the human nature for our sake, if He is indeed true God and powerful—

^A the holy Acacius said: "From this fact, judge, you ought all the more to recognize Him, and His goodness, and His power, in that even when insulted He does not immediately pay us back, awaiting the repentance and conversion of you Greeks, who offer to demons the worship due to Him; and further, because He wishes to fulfill the election and progress of those servants who are pleasing to Him, He has thus arranged it. For if He had wished to recompense you immediately, and for you to perish eternally, His own servants would not have become manifest, and the power of His grace would have remained idle. And how could our Lord Jesus Christ have been glorified, if He were not long-suffering regarding your wicked deeds? But now He permits these things to happen in this way, so that you yourselves, who do not repent, but spurning His forbearance and long-suffering, persist in your cruelty and in your defection from salvation, may be self-condemned, and that we, having intentionally acknowledged His lordship, may live eternally with Him; and that His glory may be made manifest through those human beings who repent and amend their own lives."

^B VII. Bibianus said: "Perhaps you have learned letters, and that is why you answer so eloquently. For by the gods themselves, you have spoken a discourse consistent with reason, that the salvation of men is under the power of God." The holy Acacius said: "From this very fact, judge, you ought all the more to recognize the power and grace of God, the Master of us all, because, not having learned those letters which seem so desirable to you, except for a few things necessary for the reading of the divine Scriptures, God Himself answers on behalf of us His miserable servants, and causes us to be praised by all men, and indeed even by you who are learned. For even from the beginning, when He was fulfilling the work of the divine dispensation and intending to preach His own kingdom to the world, He did not use men excelling in lineage or wealth, or in the art of rhetoric or letters for the preaching of His Gospel, but used fishermen and tax collectors, and poor men entirely. This the lover-of-mankind God did, so that His power, which surpasses every mind, might be recognized, with the holy and divine Spirit assisting them in all things."

^C VIII. The judge said: "I, neglecting what is opportune for me to do, am trifling with you by debating such things. You know that the edicts of the emperors, full of every terror, have been proposed to you, that you Christian men must either sacrifice and worship the gods, in all things subjecting yourselves to them and in that way receiving honors from them: or, if you are unwilling to sacrifice, you shall be condemned, and subjected to tortures and punishments. I wish, therefore, for you to say whether you will sacrifice to the gods themselves and obey the laws of the emperors, or if you deny that you will do so." Acacius answered: "Often, even when questioned by Firmus, I confessed myself to be a Christian. Therefore what I said, I say again, that I am a Christian, and I do not sacrifice to impure demons at any time." The judge said: "I am still moved with compassion by the measure of your age; for I see that you are not more than twenty-five years old; but also the soldier's

^A dignity having been respected, I was unwilling to subject you immediately to torments. But if you persist longer in that madness of yours, you will compel me to subject you to inevitable torments." To this Acacius said: "What I desire to do is not foolish, but very prudent and a work pleasing to God, so that I may not desert Him who created me and has attended to me by His providence even until now; I mean the One who alone is the true God." The judge said: "How could you have said that there is only one true God, when you say that Christ is the Son of God? It is absolutely necessary that, if He is the Son and is equal to the Father, they are two, and therefore not one God. Since you yourselves say there are two gods, why do you now proclaim one? For you compel me to babble with you, speaking such unlawful and discordant things."

^B IX. Saint Acacius said: "I believe in Jesus, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, that the gift of speech may be granted to me through His Holy Spirit to answer this inquiry and to clarify it; for this is no ordinary question, how—while we name two—we profess that one God is worshipped. But I tell you, judge, that the Holy Spirit is inseparable from the Father and from the Son, and that there are indeed three persons in three designations, but that there is one power and divinity of these names; and we say that there is one God, possessing the Word, and that He is not without the life-giving Spirit. And I will give you a pattern admissible ^C as far as our human capacity allows in this matter: just as the present emperor, whom you designate as master—but I call him a man, and subject to a higher judgment—has a son (whose father is called Maximian, and the son, Maxentius), and they are two persons, yet the nature of them is one, namely of the human condition, and the empire of the father and the son is one and inseparable; for the son is honored through the father, and the father through the son. In the same way, God is also considered; for since the divine essence of the Father, of the Word, and of the Holy Spirit is one and the same immutable essence, therefore He is one, and is truly the God who is worshipped by us."

X. The judge said: "Often, I have exhorted you to return to the matter at hand, but you, with these speeches of yours which profit you nothing, ^D strive to lead me away from the purpose. Do, therefore, what I say, and offer sacrifice, and acknowledge the ancestral gods by whom all these things have been established; for I have spared you for a long time." Saint Acacius says: "Do not think that you can strike me with fear; you have my body ready for scourges; use it as you will, but you can never pervert the reasoning of my soul, nor can your emperor, nor the presence of your demons, compel me to wickedness." The judge said: "Since, then, you wish it so, it is entirely necessary for me to proceed to torments against you and to fulfill the imperial edict; for it is impossible that you, having fallen under such an examination, should depart having mocked

^A our judgment. Then the prefect, moved by fury, speaks to the guard: Drive four stakes into the ground, and having bound him there, use raw thongs upon his back and belly, so that he may learn not to talk such nonsense and imagine he knows something, when he knows nothing. And as he was bound to the four stakes and scourged severely on every part of his body, this alone was his cry: Jesus Christ, help me, your humble servant; Lord, do not forsake me!

XI. But when six executioners were scourging him in shifts, and his blood was flooding the earth, and his whole body was cruelly lacerated with wounds, the judge himself, seeing the wretched condition that had come about and that the mind of the martyr remained unmoved, says to him: Do you sacrifice, Acacius, or do you still contradict? For you have chosen to appear altogether wretched rather than to become a friend of the ^B Emperors. The holy Acacius says: I will never sacrifice; for I have my Lord Jesus Christ who always helps me. You have made me much stronger and more courageous against these torments of yours; for until now, the expectation of cruelties did somewhat trouble my mind, but since the experience of suffering has come, and has been brought about through the Lord Jesus Christ who strengthens me, it has made me most valiant to face every punishment, having believed in God without any doubt. The judge said: Since I have not yet inflicted greater punishments upon you, you speak these things; I shall break this boldness of yours, for by sparing you ^C until now, I have made you bold, as you say. The holy Acacius says: Do quickly what you wish; for the physical tortures you think to inflict upon me will be to my benefit; and the more grievous the torments you bring against me, so much the more grace do you, against your will, procure for me from the Lord. The judge says: You speak this way, Acacius, because your body has not yet been shredded by the tortures. The holy Acacius said: I already told you, and I say again, do what you wish; for I do not sacrifice to impure demons, nor do I perform your will, or that of your father, Satan. The judge said: Crush his cheeks ^D with leaden plates, so that he may not take advantage of our patience toward him. And when this was quickly done, the holy Acacius said: See, tyrant, you have done even this which you wished, and you have profited nothing; for your evil arts shall not conquer my love for Christ. The judge said: Sacrifice then, and be free from the torments that await you. The holy Acacius says: I have told you, O judge, many times, that I will never sacrifice to demons; for I have despised the future torments just as little as I cared for those already past, my God granting me the strength.

XII. The judge said: How is it that, being a soldier and unlettered, Acacius, you answer so readily? The holy Acacius said: Why then, do you think that we answer from our own thought or learning? Not so;

^A but the rich and holy Spirit of God provides to His servants much and abundant boldness of speech and patience, just as the Savior Himself taught, saying to His disciples: "When they deliver you up before the rulers for My name's sake, be not anxious how or what you should speak; for it shall be given to you in that hour what you should speak: for it is not you who are speaking, but the Spirit of your Father who is speaking within you." Antoninus the scribe said to the holy martyr: What profit is there for you, wretched man, if, being admonished of such things and not persuaded, you obey the edict of the emperors only after being brought to more severe tortures? The holy Acacius said: Begone! Admonish yourself, you miserable man! For if, by the grace of my God, I have not cared for your ruler, nor for his threats, nor for the torments brought upon me by him, do you think I shall listen to you? The judge said: As for Acacius, that unholy man who was once a soldier, having placed him under secure guard in the innermost prison with three wooden stocks, bind heavy irons about his neck and about his whole body, to be kept for me for the next hearing; and let him not be permitted to be seen at all by those of his own nation, lest, perhaps, being honored by them, he be found more constant for us in the coming examination. ^B XIII. The blessed Acacius was then led away into the prison, rejoicing both at the past questioning and at the future blessings he was to receive from the truthful God; and he remained in the prison of Perinthus for seven days. Now it happened that Bibianus received letters from Flaccinus, the prefect, to proceed to Byzantium; and he commanded the prisoners also to follow him. The blessed martyr Acacius, then, both worn by the swelling of his wounds and distressed by bodily pain, and further burdened by the multitude of irons, and harassed by the soldiers driving them along the way, and crushed by the fatigue of the journey, and fainting from lack of food, and in despair of life any longer because he was not permitted to see any of his acquaintances who were of his nation, with the other prisoners who were with him following on the way and the executioners driving them forward, prayed to God, having first asked the executioners to allow him to pray; and standing in a certain place, he prayed to the Lord and said: Glory to You, O Lord, who according to Your great mercy do acts of mercy towards those who love Your name; ^C glory to You, who have also called me, the sinner, into this lot; glory to You, Jesus, who know the weakness of our flesh and have given me patience in the midst of torments. Since, therefore, You see, my Lord, the many evils that beset me and that my soul is about to depart from my body, do You Yourself, Master Lord, send me an angel for my healing, healing me of the pains and straits that encompass me, and command that I be found worthy in whatever way—only let it be by the sentence of a judge—to be brought to completion and to be with You. When he thus prayed to God, a voice was sent down from a cloud (for the air itself was thick with clouds): "Be,"

^A "Be strong and of good courage, Acacius; for I am always with you." So that even the executioners and the prisoners, having heard the voice, were struck with wonder and said, "Does even a cloud speak? Or was it ever heard, as we have now heard?" And they were in doubt about this. Many of the prisoners, having heard these things, believed in the Word and in God, and fell at the feet of the blessed martyr Acacius, beseeching him to set forth for them the Word of faith.

XIV.

XV.

bringing him food—and having seen these miraculous events on several occasions, they reported them to the jailer, and caused him also to be convinced by the evidence of his own eyes; whence the ^A *capiclarius*, having been astonished at what he had seen, went away and revealed it to many of his friends.

The governor, after his arrival in Byzantium, having sat before the tribunal after seven days, demanded the martyr, saying, "Call Acacius, the advocate of the impious religion of the Galileans." Antoninus the scribe said, "He is standing here, my lord." When the martyr had stood before the tribunal, the judge, seeing the face of the saint radiant as the face of an angel, was astonished. For the judge expected to see him utterly worn out and withered in body from the wounds of his body, from the distress of his bonds, from the lack of food, and from the weariness of such a long journey; and as he wondered and was amazed at his beauty and the radiance of his face, he said to the guard, "O most wicked and evil soldiers, did I not ^B command you to cast this man into the inner prison, to bind him in the stocks with the heaviest and most numerous irons about his neck and feet, and to have them cast upon his whole body, so that his flourishing and blooming youth might be crushed by the weight of these things, and that no one should visit him except the one bringing him his food? How, then, do I see him now so nourished, like an athlete—nay, even added to in beauty and become much more graceful?"

XVI. Antoninus the scribe said, "By your own virtue, as you commanded, he has been cast into all the afflictions, and wearing these same irons he has come from Perinthus all the way here. If, therefore, it please your authority to inspect and weigh the irons themselves, they are here; for until this tribunal they were not removed from him. But let your authority also question the jailer with threats ^C as to whether it was not ordered to him according to your command."

The judge said, "Let the jailer be brought in." When he had been brought in, the judge said to him, "Why, most accursed one, did you not do according to what was commanded you, but have brought him to us so nourished and refreshed, as if he were to be a champion for us?"

The holy Acacius said, "My being a champion for you, O judge, is reserved for you in heaven, before the eternal and true judge of the contest, Christ, who has granted me also this radiance and strength; my Lord and God thus heals his servants by a word alone."

The judge said, "Break his teeth, so that he does not speak unless questioned." And he says to the jailer, "What do you say, you most accursed one?"

XVII. Cassius the jailer said, "By your virtue, what was commanded was done entirely and with the addition of evils to him; but there were others who were guarding him, as even all the prisoners who are with him will testify, and if I am speaking otherwise, I have my head—I beg of you, you have the authority, do as you wish; ^D

^A for we often saw some men dressed in splendid garments, others like soldiers, and others like civilians, and we deemed others to be physicians, associated with him, attending to him, and washing his wounds with water, and at the same time eating with him, with many good things set before them. All these things the men who were brought bound with him from the city of Perinthus, having seen them often, both on the road and here, reported to me, so that I myself, though not believing them, was persuaded by seeing it with my own eyes. But if ever, while observing these things, I wished to open the door and enter, and desired to ask them whence they had entered or who those were whom I saw with him, upon entering to him, I would find none of them, nor any of the good things set before them, but only *him* bound to the wood, praying and glorifying his God, or even lying in sleep.

^B XVIII. The judge said: "Having received money from his fellow-tribesmen, you want to make a mockery of the court." And being enraged, he ordered him to be beaten on his back with leaden rods. As he was being tortured, the guard cried out and said: "I beg you, if I have spoken otherwise, kill me." The judge said: "Do you not then confirm that he is a sorcerer?" The guard said: "I have said what I saw; but whether he is a sorcerer, I do not know." The blessed Acacius, standing and hearing these things, laughed at their folly, and this even though his jaws were broken, so that the judge becoming enraged again said: "Have you come to mock us, trusting in your sorcery?" Acacius answered: "I am not mocking *you* by rejoicing in your destruction; rather, I genuinely grieve for your eternal judgment. But you yourselves make a mockery of your own lives, having abandoned the true God, who made the heaven, and the earth, and the sea, and all that is in them, and worshipping stones." The judge said to him: "Do not imagine that you will defeat me with your firmness; I will not let you live unless you sacrifice to the gods and fulfill what has been commanded you by the unconquered emperors." Acacius says: "If I feared your threats, I would have been persuaded by you from the first and done what you say; but since my judgment is better than yours and I do not fear your threats, do what you wish."

^C XIX. Then the judge, enraged, says: "Are you sacrificing, or do you still persist in your folly?" Acacius said: "Do *you* persist in consuming in such an unjust manner, men who have committed no evil or done any wrong to you?" Having heard these things, the judge ordered oak rods to be brought and for his back and belly to be beaten. ^D As ten men took turns beating the body of Acacius, the martyr, afflicted by the torments, cried out saying: "Christ, help your humble servant." But the judge, angered, ordered his belly to be beaten further. And when those ten men had done this, and the blessed martyr was in pain, he said with a loud voice: "Lord Jesus Christ, help your servant Acacius." When this had been said by him, straightaway a voice came from heaven saying to him:

^A "Fear not, Acacius, but take courage; for it is fitting that you should depart to your fathers and rejoice here, where now you confess my name." And when this voice had come, those who were beating him became numb and stood speechless, unable to move their hands, so that the magistrate was perplexed by this; and, inflamed with great anger, he sent the holy Acacius to Flaccinus, the proconsul of Europe, having also written a report as follows:

XX. "To the most admirable in all things and greatest judge, Flaccinus the proconsul, Bibianus, most reverend Catholic: Acacius, the advocate of the impious religion of the Christians, having been sent to me by Firmus, tribune of the Martensian regiment, and refusing to yield to the orders commanded by our invincible emperors—for though I received him having been sent to me twenty days ago, and examined him rigorously, I effected nothing more regarding him, except for weariness and anger; for he adheres diligently to the purpose set before him. Since, then, fear can contribute more to your ^B greatest authority, I have sent him, along with the acts concerning him [performed] under my own humble self, to your greatest authority, having inflicted many tortures upon him from the judgment seat, and thus having passed him on to your magnificence; thus, according to the arrangement of the imperial commands, you shall act against him. Farewell."

Accepting the letter of Bibianus, Flaccinus ordered the holy martyr Acacius to be locked up in prison without bonds. For Flaccinus had a Christian wife, and he had been entreated and sworn secretly by her, so that those examined by him for the sake of the Word of Christ ^C should not be punished by him for very long.

XXI. After five days, the proconsul Flaccinus, having taken his seat upon the tribunal, ordered the martyr to be brought. And when he had come, he ordered the acts performed against him by Bibianus to be read; and when they were read, as the judge learned of the severity of the examination performed against him, the endurance and immovable confession of the martyr, and the miraculous signs that had occurred on account of him, he blamed Bibianus for not having killed him more quickly, but for having acted with such exactitude against a man of military rank. And he ordered the head of the martyr to be cut off with a sword ^D before the city of Byzantium, saying: "Acacius, the ally of the Galileans and a deserter from the alliance of our victorious emperors, who by this force sought rather to see his end swiftly, as the examination of the racks in his case has taught us—this [man], refusing to obey the laws, our tribunal orders to be struck with the sword and deprived of his head."

XXII. But when the blessed one knew that the work of his calling was being fulfilled, the Holy Spirit granting it to him, he cried out and said: "With how many tongues, O Christ, shall I praise you, Author of life, Son of the living God, that you are so merciful and long-suffering toward me, a sinner, in having deemed me worthy of such a lot." And having been led outside the city

to the place where he was to reach his end, ^A he asked the executioners to grant him a short moment to pray. And having knelt upon the ground, he offered this prayer to God, saying: "Glory be to You, O God, and to Your incomparable magnificence there belongs praise, that You thus show Yourself glorious in us who are burdened by the weight of sins. For by as much as You forgive and overlook our iniquities, by so much more the glory of Your goodness abounds. Blessed be the name of Your glory, O Lord, that You have thus been well-pleased, in Your only-begotten Son and Your Holy Spirit, to honor man, whom You fashioned according to Your own image and likeness; and now, O good Master, me, though I am unworthy and humble, You have brought into such glory and joy by reason of Your goodness and compassion, and not because of my works or struggles. ^B Therefore, I bless You, O Lord God, holy One of Israel, together with Your only-begotten Son and the Holy Spirit, for Yours is the glory, Yours the honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen." Having said these things, the holy martyr was struck by the sword and beheaded. And so, holy Acacius completed his martyrdom on the eighth day of the month of May, under the emperor Maximian. His body, however, the pious and religious men took up and attended to his burial with all care and diligence in the place which is called Staurion, under the tyrant Maximian, though with our Lord Jesus Christ reigning over us, to whom be glory and power to the ages of ages. Amen.

The Acts of the holy virgin martyr Glyceria, at Heraclea in Thrace, and of the blessed Romanus Alexander, martyr at Drizipara in Thrace, which exist in Lipomanus and Surius; the Bollandist associates deny them to Metaphrastes at the 14th day of May, "since the style is concise and most foreign to his periodic manner of writing;" which Leo Allatius, most experienced in discerning the genuine writings of Metaphrastes, acknowledging, lists these acts among those which are attributed to Metaphrastes by Lipomanus and Surius, but by a common error.

THE MARTYRDOM OF THE HOLY MARTYR BONIFACIUS, AT TARSUS, METROPOLIS OF CILICIA.

^A I. The struggles of other martyrs of Christ bring great and substantial gain to the diligent; for they demonstrate deeds that surpass the common nature of man, and they show Christ as the victor, while the enemy is clearly defeated and put to open shame. Furthermore, they most clearly refute the impious, while they confirm and strengthen the pious even more, stirring up the most fervent to spiritual struggle. Such is the case with those whose previous life was consistent with their martyrdom, and whose practice of virtue was developed from childhood. But if someone has spent the beginning of his life in sloth, yet afterwards has shone so brightly in good works as to suddenly snatch away the crown of martyrdom, what excellence of grace does this leave for the pious? For it is natural that what happens beyond expectation is more delightful than that which is customary. The finding of the lost sheep by the Lord points to this. ^B We know that such a one was this famed athlete of Christ, Bonifacius; whose struggle it is not right to overlook, but rather to commit to written records as best as we are able. It proceeds as follows.

II. There was in Rome a woman, Aglaïs by name; and other qualities were in harmony with this name, such as lineage, and beauty, and wealth, which reasonably served to make her shine. For by lineage she was of the patricians, and of those who had attained proconsular honors; in beauty, she possessed the youth which is apt to make a woman more fervently inclined toward love; and she had vast wealth, sufficient to indulge in all these things. ^C Added to all this, the independent power of her lifestyle strongly kindled the fire of desire, and urged her toward base, illicit loves. Thus, Aglaïs, being wealthy and flourishing in the goods of the earth, and because of these things being unrestrained in her passions, had a certain overseer or steward of her estates (this fine man was Bonifacius, and he was not only distinguished by keenness of mind...

and by his benevolence toward her, but also excelled by far in physical appearance) ^A who used to engage in dishonorable associations; for I do not blush to say these things, since a little later I can show a truly divine and miraculous transformation. Otherwise, however, he was indeed overcome by wine and illicit loves from the start: but he was also a most magnificent despiser of money, and most liberal in distributing it to those in need, and devoted to hospitality, if ever anyone was. If, therefore, he ever saw any wayfarers, either wasted by heat and thirst, or frozen stiff by snow and cold, or otherwise burdened by the journey, he would himself hasten with a cheerful spirit to meet them, and would beg them to rest from their labor; and when they had yielded, he would bring them into his own house, receive them kindly with hospitality, and by both words and deeds would drive away all their discomfort. These things also adorned Bonifacius before his martyrdom. Nor is he to be examined and regarded solely by the things of others; but those things which are better must also be joined to them. For Bonifacius, while indeed granting a certain portion to pleasure, yet assigned the greatest part to virtue, and practiced various most beautiful types of virtue with precision, being kept back from being perfect by nothing other than this, that he was not temperate. ^B

III. Furthermore, not much time having elapsed, this stain also was washed away, as if from the whole wide and beautiful body, and the disgrace that was being incurred from his vice was covered over with much greater glory. For the Lord could not endure to overlook a soul so beautiful in every respect, to be polluted forever by the foulness of a single vice; but it pleased [Him] in the total dispensation of divine reasons to bestow upon it, through the blood of martyrdom, a purple and royal color as well. And in what manner this was brought about, and what foundation for his martyrdom was laid, my discourse is prepared to teach. ^C For the persecution against Christians was still flourishing at that time, and that profound gloom of the idols occupied the entire Orient at once. But a saving thought steals into the mind of his mistress, and a certain vehement and invincible desire for the relics of the martyrs penetrates her heart. And since she considered no one more faithful to Bonifacius, or more diligent in serving in these matters, she communicates to him a love which was as noble and blessed as it was carnal and base, and taking him aside, "You know," she said, "brother, with what sins we have been defiled, and that it is of no concern to us that we must soon stand before God, and undergo heavy punishments for these things. But I have heard from a certain pious man that if anyone honors and cherishes those who have suffered and been afflicted with martyrdom for Christ's sake, a certain great and illustrious reward awaits him from that source, and he will enjoy the same blessedness as they. Many, moreover, even now, as they say, are entering upon beautiful struggles for Christ. ^D But you (for indeed the time has now come that my Bonifacius should show what affection he has for them), serve me in this, and going there with all zeal, hasten to bring to me some of these holy relics; so that when we have honorably deposited them…

^A and built sacred houses for them, we may always have them as our guardians and protectors. Having said these things to him, since she was speaking to one who was willing and ready for the service, she puts into his hands a large amount of gold. For it was not permitted to receive any relic of a martyr gratuitously; but the great love of the Christians for them was a cause of profit to the ungodly, and caused them to provide them only at a great price. For this reason, then, she provides a large amount of gold, and also so that there might be enough for distribution to the poor. She also sends with him twelve horses, and ointments, and shrouds, and whatever else was fitting for the honoring of the saints. But one must pay attention; for we have come here to where the most delightful part of the narrative is.

IV. As Boniface was already about to set out on his journey, straightway, as if describing in a drawing his own victory and crown, he said: “If it happens, mistress, as it sometimes does, that you are thwarted in this undertaking, but the 'second sailing,' as they say, should bring my body to you, would this be, in your estimation, a moderate consolation for your purpose and pursuit, and would it be considered worthy of honor by you?” And perhaps he said these things while playing with his mistress, rather than speaking seriously; but God predicted what was to come to pass, as it were, through his own tongue. ^B Aglaïs, however, said: “It is not the time, Boniface, for play nor for such words; and I urge you to abstain from them and to behave with propriety, since you are going to serve those whom it is an act of excessive audacity and rashness for such as we, who are unworthy, not only to touch, but even to behold.” Having sufficiently rebuked and shamed him with these words, and having guided his soul, as if in place of ill-timed play, toward a reasonable fear, she then added: “May God, who for our sake took the form of a servant and poured out His own blood, overlook my offenses and send His angel before you, ^C and direct your steps.” Furthermore, having prayed for his safe return ^D, she sent him forth. The words of his mistress benefited Boniface not a little, and they made him hold divine and holy things in awe. Hence it came about that on the journey he neither touched meat nor partook of wine; and a thought entered his mind, like a good tutor: “What sort of things have I done, and what sort of things am I about to carry with unclean hands?” Because of this fear, he gradually neglected his former concern for the body and persuaded himself to take heed of himself. For fear is the mother of tranquility and rest; and this produces consciousness, which makes the soul, as in some undisturbed and clear water, perceive its own stains; and thus the principles and roots of repentance are born. This had by then taken root well in Boniface, and he was already manifest to be turning toward a life of strictness, abstaining, as we have said, from this richer and superfluous food, and keeping to constant prayer and fasting during the journey.

V. When he had traveled to Asia and arrived at Tarsus, celebrated in Cilicia, where indeed

^A the martyrs were contending, he permitted the others to rest, and he and the horses were received and lodged by someone there. But he, not even shaking the dust of the road from himself, hurried on as he was, on foot, so that he might behold the much-desired martyrs. And coming into the stadium, he saw that a great multitude of the people had gathered to witness what was being done, and that the holy ones were being subjected to various tortures, and that while one and the same charge was brought against all of them—namely, piety and true religion—they were not all suffering the same torments, but so many that hardly anyone was condemned to the same punishment as another, even though they were united in spirit and, with one mouth, were none the less uttering the same things. For one was hanging by his head, with a fire spread out beneath him; another was stretched out on four pieces of wood; one was being sawn asunder; another was being crushed by the hands of those tearing him apart. For some, eyes were being gouged out, for others, hands were being cut off; for one, a stake was driven through his neck and fixed into the ground, while for another, the hands were twisted behind his back and the feet were viciously bent backward, and both of these having been bound, a rod was breaking their bones. It was permitted to see another—oh, the great madness of the impious!—deprived of both his hands and his feet, rolling along on the ground like a ball. But although these noble and brave men were suffering these things, they were, as it were, not undergoing anything violent or painful, but were rather as if having their bodies made new and enduring a change for something better—as in fact was the case—and they were rejoicing, with divine power bringing them aid and strengthening them for the struggle; for it was impossible in any other way for human nature to sustain such things, and at that time, with joy, if that hand from above were not joining in to help. ^B Boniface, seeing these things, and not merely seeing, but carefully and diligently examining each one—partly astonished at the constancy of the martyrs, partly desirous to attain the same crowns—being wholly inspired by God, went down into the arena, and making himself manifest to all, embraced and kissed each of the martyrs, who were twenty in all. Then, within the hearing of all, he exclaimed in a loud voice: "Great is the God of the Christians; great is He who helps the athletes with His own aid." Having said this, he again joyfully clung to the martyrs, sat beside them, and with longing kissed their feet. And for those who had no feet, he kissed the remaining parts of their bodies, pronouncing them blessed for their strength of mind, and for what they had endured, and because the remainder for them was brief, and that soon there would be release from their labors and eternal joy; and he prayed for himself, that he might be their associate in the struggles and a partaker of the crowns which they were about to receive from Christ. ^C VI. But when it was impossible for these things to remain hidden, especially since he had raised his voice higher, the governor fixed his eyes more sharply through the multitude and, seeing Boniface, said: "Who is this who thus treats both us and the great gods with such disregard?" Let him, therefore, that very man, say so, approaching nearer. After he came near,

and, being asked, he said: "I am indeed a Christian, but trusting in the power of my Master, I love the faithful among my fellow servants, while I despise you and yours as mindless." The governor said: "As for that, let it be for the present; tell me your name and your profession." ^A Boniface replied: "My primary name, and that by which I most rejoice to be called, is Christian; if you also wish to know the name given me by my parents, it is Boniface." And the governor, interrupting the saint while he was still speaking, said: "Come now, Boniface, before I lay hands on your flesh and bones, obey and do what is commanded, and approach and sacrifice to the propitious gods. For this will procure for you many good things: the friendship of the gods, deliverance from grave and harsh matters, and the provision of wealth and greatest honors." To these things the martyr said: "It is not even just to answer you, yet I will say what I have said many times: I am a Christian. Hear only this from us; but if you cannot endure it, do with my body whatever you wish." ^B VII. Having become angry at these things, the governor orders him to be hung head-downwards and scourged vigorously; and for the torture to be prolonged until the bones became visible. And these things were done by the lictors as quickly as he commanded. But the martyr of Christ, as if not grieving that his flesh was being torn apart, but rather feeling pain that he was being separated from the saints, fixed his eyes upon them, desirous of that very vision, and looking upon their struggles for Christ as upon a beautiful example. When, therefore, the governor saw that he had in no way yielded from his set purpose by this torture, he ordered him to be let down a little, and again, after an interval, approaching the martyr and wishing to tempt him in this way, he said: "Let these sufferings, oh Boniface, be for you lessons toward what is better, and having gained experience of these irreparable pains, at long last, wretch, take pity on yourself and, on account of the punishments that await you, approach to offer sacrifice." But the Saint said: "In commanding me to sacrifice, you fool, do you think it is at all possible to attempt such things? Shall I approach gods whose very name is unbearable even to the ears?" ^C VIII. An intolerable rage again took hold of the governor, and sharpened reeds were immediately driven in under his fingernails. I know that you have shuddered even at the mere hearing of it; for the torture is by far the most grievous. But the martyr, looking steadily toward heaven and, as it were, placing his whole sense there along with his mind, did not care even in the slightest for the pain; but he himself bore it more easily than the governor commanded it. When, therefore, this torture also was shown to be empty and useless to the impious man, he devises another bitter punishment again, out of cruelty and wickedness, and orders that, as the mouth of the martyr was opened, very white-hot lead be poured into it. When, therefore, the athlete learned of this, lifting up both his hands and his soul to God, "My Lord," he said, "Jesus Christ, who have made me stronger than the tortures that have already preceded, now also stand by me, who are my only consolation, easing me of the pain, and toward the victory against Sa- tan and this governor…

appear to me as a helper; for it is for your sake and for your glory, as you know, ^A that I am contending." He said these things, and he also begged the saints to assist him with their prayers for the struggle. They, for their part, were praying for him both for victory and for the end of his martyrdom. And there occurred at that time a work of Christ’s power worthy of great admiration. For when the torture was already prepared, and Boniface was standing like some brave athlete awaiting his adversary, while the other martyrs—being not only contenders but also avid spectators of what was happening on his behalf, and in their own souls even more anxious than he—were (as we have said) at the same time praying for his victory, the multitude of people that had gathered, already moved—partly from the preceding events—by pity for the martyrs, and noting with displeasure the excessive cruelty of the governor, and in view of both these things, astounded not only by the endurance but even by the joy of the saints in the midst of harsh and grievous trials, and thus now being guided toward faith in Christ, all suddenly raised a confused cry, and with one mind and voice they shouted together: "Great is the God of the Christians; great art thou, O Christ the King; we all believe in thee."

All of them were shouting these things, and at the same time they were overturning the altar there and pelting the governor with stones; and he, seized with fear and trembling for his own life, and imagining himself to be in imminent danger of perishing, looked solely to flight for his salvation, shamefully deserting the theater.

^B IX. These things would have restrained even another man, no matter how savage and untamed, provided he were placable, and would have persuaded him to think the same as the others and to approach Christ; but not that wicked and accursed man. Indeed, so far was he from deriving any benefit from this fear and this marvelous harmony of the people, that he determined to act with even greater contention, and being urged on by his own anger, to renew the struggle. Therefore, at dawn, having taken his seat upon the tribunal and having had the martyr brought into his sight, he did nothing but reproach his piety and mock the fact that our Lord had been crucified. When, however, the martyr could not endure this, and went on to assail the judge in return with more severe reproaches, he again suffered punishment for his true and just words. And immediately a cauldron, filled with pitch and set to a violent boil, ^C received the athlete. But even as this happened, God from on high did not neglect to perform His customary miracles. For an angel, having descended from heaven, preserved his body unharmed, just as He did the bodies of the three children; while the flame, having suddenly poured out all around, and having seized some of the unbelievers who were standing by, treated them the same way as those of old in Babylon.

X. Then the impious man, although he feared the power of Christ, yet, having yielded nothing of his own impiety—but as if ashamed that he himself should change, or see the holy man alive when he was exposing the weakness of his own gods—decided to hasten his death...

^A thus saying: "I command that Boniface, who has disobeyed the laws of the emperors, has in no way yielded to our words, and has refused to sacrifice to the favorable gods, but rather attends to the Crucified as God, beheaded by the sword." And so the guards took him and led him out from the judicial tribunal. But the glorious martyr of Christ rejoiced, proceeding not as if to death, but rather to life, as indeed it truly was. Asking those who were leading him away to grant him a short time, he stood facing the East and prayed, saying: "My Lord and God, may your mercies quickly overtake me, and stand by me now as a helper, that the wicked one may not hinder me because of the sins committed in ignorance; but receive my soul in peace, and in the number of those who have shed their blood for you and kept the faith until the end, count me also. Deliver also the flock acquired by your blood, your peculiar people, my Christ, from all impiety and Gentile error, for you are blessed and remain unto the ages." ^B He prayed thus, and the sword immediately followed his prayer, and his venerable head was severed. God worked a miracle even here, causing both blood and milk to flow from the wound, so that the one was of nature, but the other of pious faith. And thus the miracle, having appeared great to the point of astonishment, was greater in its utility, persuading five hundred and fifty of the infidels to follow Christ and to abandon the idolatrous error they detested.

XI. The end of the life of Boniface

^A what kind of life is his, how prone and inclined he is to pleasures, and how diametrically opposed he is to the life of a martyr? But when he said that nothing prevented them from approaching the stadium and seeing the body itself, yielding, they approached, with the man leading them. ^B And when he had shown them the body, they cast their eyes upon the corpse, which was lying without a head, and from this alone they recognized Boniface. Then, when they had found the head lying apart and had joined it to his body, believing that it was indeed he, they were seized with amazement and their spirit was constricted by fear. For they were afraid that he might be angry with them for having accused his mind, judging him only by what had preceded, and not knowing what a most gracious end he had set for such a beginning of life. But the martyr soon took away their fear, behaving towards them calmly and kindly. For after the head was joined to the body (You are the Lord of all, O Christ King, who glorifies those who glorify You!), he slowly opened his eyes, and looked at them in a friendly and gentle manner, offering the appearance of one speaking, and showing that he was very well disposed towards them, and did not at all hold a grudge for the insults which they had heaped upon him. They, however, weeping bitterly and shedding hot tears, said: "Do not remember, servant of Jesus, our iniquities, nor the insults with which we foolishly assailed your divine and sacrosanct head." ^C When they had thus placated the saint, and had bought his relics—the body, I say, and the head—for five hundred gold pieces, and had anointed them with fragrant aromatics and ointments, and had wrapped them in white linen, and placed them in an honorable case, they returned to Rome, thinking it of no interest to them to receive the relics of another martyr, when they had one who was already known to them, and who embraces them genuinely and sincerely. And he provides from there a faithful witness of heavenly defense.

XII. Meanwhile, however, as they were traveling home, ^D a divine vision came to Aglaïs; namely, an angel from heaven, saying: "Receive him, who was once your servant, but is now our brother and fellow-minister. Receive him who was once your servant, but now is your lord, and honor him piously: as he who is indeed the savior of your soul, and the guardian of your life." She, rising up in fear, and taking with her some of the notable members of the ecclesiastical clergy, and proceeding with great honor to meet the body of the martyr, receives it and lays it to rest very reverently and magnificently, fifty stadia away from Rome; and she builds a sacred house for him, brilliant in material and beauty, and such as it was absolutely fitting for the body of such a soul to receive, so that not only might the spirit have an eternal tabernacle, but his body also might enjoy a convenient home: in which, even to this day, many wonders are performed, and demons are cast out in throngs, and diseases are driven away by invisible nods.

are driven out, and diseases are expelled by command, which do not fall under human sight. There are, moreover, some who, although they are not healthy in soul, become better through faith.

XIII. Furthermore, blessed Aglais, with her martyr instructing her soul from above, having distributed all her possessions and divided them among the poor, lived virtuously and piously for the rest of her days. She embraced not only a temperate and virginal life, but also chose a most austere asceticism against her previous corruption, so that she was deemed worthy of the gift of miracles, and was able to drive out from humans the very demons that had previously caused her to stumble. Her monastic life lasted fifteen years, and when she had fallen into that fair sleep, she was joined to the martyr. Such was the end of Aglais and Boniface. Such indeed was their beautiful transformation, that although they had served carnal passions in a human manner, they overcame human nature by suffering for Christ and, bearing themselves manfully and courageously against base passions, they brought glory to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, to whom are due honor and worship, now and always, and to the ages of ages. Amen.

THE MARTYRDOM OF THE HOLY MARTYRS VICTOR AND STEPHANIDA

I. In those days, when the Christians were being persecuted by the emperor of the Romans at that time, Antoninus, who happened to be a pagan, and under Sebastian, who was duke, there was a certain man, a Christian soldier from Italy, very devout and fearing God, by name Victor. The duke said to him, "Letters have been brought to me from the emperor, commanding you Christians to sacrifice to the gods without delay, and that those who disobey must be subjected to dire punishments. Sacrifice, therefore, Victor, lest you incur danger to your soul." The holy Victor said to him, "I am a soldier of the great King Jesus Christ, ^Dthe immortal God, and I do not obey a mortal king; for his kingdom is temporary and fleeting, but the kingdom of God and of my Savior, Jesus Christ, is immortal and eternal, and he who remains in it inherits eternal life." The duke says, "You are a soldier of our emperor; therefore be persuaded and obey the

^A emperor’s edict, and sacrifice to the gods." To this Saint Victor replied: "If, when I was serving under the emperor, I was even then secretly serving my Lord and my God, how can I now commit the crime of abandoning Him to sacrifice to your idols? Therefore, do whatever you wish. For God has my body, He who is able to bring both salvation and ruin."

II. Then that duke says: "I see you adorned with much wisdom, and making great use of it in your reply." Victor says, "My wisdom, O judge, is not from me, but my God bestowed it upon me." The duke says: "Free yourself from many tortures, and sacrifice to the gods." Saint Victor said: "I willingly suffer any torture whatsoever, that I may not offer such sacrifices; but I also declare this, that I rejoice greatly that I have been made worthy to suffer torments for the Name of Christ, and to hope to attain to the good expectation of the King of the heavens." The duke says to him: "Are you a priest of the Christians, that you answer us so prudently?" Saint Victor said: "I am unworthy of this greatest grace and gift; but the grace of my Christ has brought me to this. For it is this that provides wisdom and understanding to those who are upright in heart and to those who keep the commandments of Christ, to partake of every good thing; for just as a farmer, by cultivating his land, prepares it for fruitfulness, so also the wisdom of God ^C makes those who hope in it strong, and makes them wise, and makes them bear fruit for God, not allowing the enemy to prevail against them."

III. The duke Sebastian said: "Have you chosen death rather than life?" Saint Victor said: "This death procures eternal life for those who endure these passing torments to the very end." The duke says to him: "And have you firmly held to this opinion of yours?" Saint Victor said: "Yes." Then the duke ordered the joints of his fingers to be broken, until they protruded through the skin. Upon this having been done, Victor said: "I give thanks to my God always, that His grace has drawn nearer to me." The duke asks him why he would not take food. To whom Victor replied: "I have spiritual food myself, whereby it comes to pass that I shall not hunger forever." Then he ordered a furnace to be lit, and Victor cast into it and kept there until the third day. And it came to pass ^D as he said. But on the third day, when he thought Victor had been consumed by the fire, he ordered the furnace to be opened, and the ashes of the martyr to be cast into the river. Having opened it, therefore, they found Victor himself alive and praising God, because the fire had not touched his body at all. Then the duke ordered lethal poisons to be given to him to eat with meat; and when the poisons had been handed to him by the sorcerer, Saint Victor said: "It was not permitted for me to taste meat, but so that you may know that your sorcery is nothing, I shall eat these meats." And when he had received them from the hands of the sorcerer, having prayed to Christ, such

^A he began to eat, and having eaten, he suffered no harm. The sorcerer, ashamed of his own sorcery, brought him other poisons again, more terrible than the former ones, and says to him, "Now take and eat these; and if, having eaten, you suffer no harm, I abandon my sorceries and I myself will believe in the God whom you worship." But when the blessed Victor received them and ate, and suffered no harm, the sorcerer cried out with a loud voice and said, "You have conquered, by leading a lost soul up from Hades; for just as a bronze statue which has become aged, when polished by a craftsman, is renewed, so too is a man who has become aged in evils: if he turns, God saves him by His own grace." Then the sorcerer immediately burned all his magic books with fire, and having renounced all his possessions, he became a Christian.

^B IV. When all these things had happened in this way, the duke said to the blessed Victor, "Sacrifice to the greatest gods, and be from now on sensible and prudent." Saint Victor said, "I am always prudent, acknowledging God." The duke said, "This is not prudence, but folly—not to be willing to sacrifice to the gods." Saint Victor said, "God chose the foolish things of the world so that He might confound the wise." The duke said to him, "Where is this written?" Saint Victor said, "The apostle Paul taught us." The duke said, "Was Paul, then, God?" Saint Victor said, "Paul is not God, but an apostle of God and a wise master-builder; for upon the foundation that had been laid he built, and he filled the inhabited world with his teaching. And having received wisdom from God, he possessed within himself the fullness of the Scriptures and showed the path to those desiring to be saved." The duke said, "Cease, then, from this folly of yours, and sacrifice to the gods, for these sayings of yours will not profit you." Saint Victor said, "I am not foolish, but very prudent in not denying my God. But they are foolish and senseless who listen to you and sacrifice to demons; for indeed, ^C your father the devil is a liar from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, just as you also, who are his ministers; but your hearts, too, have been hardened, not having the knowledge of the truth."

V. Then, enraged, the duke ordered the nerves of his whole body to be cut away, and this having been done, Saint Victor said, "Suffering all these things at your hands, I felt no pain at all, because of the grace of God which strengthens me. For just as a splinter being pulled from a foot removes the hardship and all the pain along with itself and provides rest to the body, so too I, my nerves having been torn away, found complete rest because of my faith in Christ and the grace strengthening me." Then the duke, having become yet more ^D enraged, ordered oil to be heated vehemently and poured upon him against the

^A hidden parts of his body. And when this was done, the blessed Victor said: "This heated oil is to me as cool water, when given to one who is suffering thirst from excessive heat, and who drinks it and is refreshed." The duke, having been seized by uncontrollable rage, ordered him to be suspended again on the wood and torches of fire to be brought near to his body. But the blessed Victor, though suffering these things, did not feel the torches at all, but was strengthened all the more by the grace of God. After these things, the duke said to him: "Sacrifice, then; for I have endured you for a long time." The holy Victor said: "I do not do your will, but that of my God, and I pray to offer to Him a sacrifice pure and holy, for He has power over both soul and body." ^B VI. And the duke ordered poison mixed with vinegar to be cast into his throat; and when this was done, the holy Victor said: "This vinegar and poison seem to me like honey and honeycomb, because of Christ." Then the duke, not bearing his boldness, ordered his eyes to be gouged out. And the holy Victor says to him: "When you have blinded the sight of the body, then through the interior sight I shall see more clearly with the eyes of the soul, as holy Peter the apostle said: 'If you contemplate the eye of the soul, you have no need of the eyes of the body; for the eyes of the body see the vanities of this world, but the eyes of the heart see the true light.'" The duke said: "You force me to inflict upon you many and great torments." The holy Victor said: "I thank my God who strengthens me to endure your tortures; as you wish, therefore, torment me and do not spare me; for I am ready to endure every agony brought upon me by you, with God granting me strength and patience." ^C VII. Then the duke ordered him to be suspended head downward, until blood should flow from his nostrils to the earth; and the soldiers, having left him suspended, departed from him for three days. But when the end of the three days had passed, they returned to him, thinking him to be already dead; and having seen him, they were immediately blinded. But the holy Victor, moved with compassion for them, and having prayed, said: "In the name of my Lord Jesus Christ, for whom I hang here, receive your sight." And the soldiers, having received their sight immediately and having departed, reported to the duke all that had happened. And the duke, having become enraged, ordered him to be flayed. And the holy Victor said to him: "Even if you should take away the skin of my body, you cannot do anything against my mind." Then a certain wife of a soldier from his camp, by name Stephana, being present there, being about sixteen years of age, cried out with a loud voice and said: "Blessed are you, Victor, and blessed are your holy works; may your sacrifice be accepted as the sacrifice of Abel, because you have offered yourself in uprightness of heart; and God has accepted you as Enoch the righteous, who was translated that he might not taste the death of this age, until the appointed time should come; you have been justified like Noah, filled with the fruits of good works."

You were perfect and just, as he was in all his generation; you believed as Abraham did; you offered yourself to God as Isaac did; you endured temptations as Jacob did, when he was pursued by Esau; you were made wise as Joseph was, to whom the things that were to happen concerning the famine were made known; and you became prudent and faithful; you struggled as Job did, who, having endured many temptations, overcame the enemy; you emulated Isaiah, who was sawn in two by Manasseh. The flame of fire did not touch you, just as the flames of Nebuchadnezzar did not touch those three children; you hoped in the Lord as David the son of Jesse did; you received the wisdom of Solomon, until you might overcome the stratagems of the adversary. May your sacrifice be accepted, as Samuel's was; you became as a fragrance of sweetness, as Eleazar was in his priesthood; may your blood, shed in persecution, be accepted as Daniel's was through his visions; for I saw two crowns being brought down from heaven, one greater and one lesser; and I heard that the greater one was being brought to you by twelve angels, while the lesser one was being sent to me. For although I am a weak vessel, nevertheless I, too, am prepared to undergo the struggle and strive to attain the kingdom of heaven. ^A

VIII. The Martyrdom of Stephana and Victor

When the duke heard these things, he was greatly angered and ordered her to be brought to him, and said to her, "Who are you?" She replied, "I am a Christian." The duke asked, "How old are you?" The holy one said, "Fifteen years and eight months." The duke said to her, "Were you joined to a husband?" The holy Stephana said, "Yes, for one year and four months." The duke said, "And why did you abandon the world so quickly?" The holy Stephana said, "Because I wish to meet with confidence my expected Savior, Jesus Christ, the heavenly and immortal Bridegroom; for the earthly bridegroom is temporal and mortal, but the heavenly One, and the gifts of Christ, are immortal, immovable, indissoluble, and eternal." The duke said, "Cease this useless babbling, and approach and sacrifice to the gods, lest I destroy you with various punishments and terrible torments." The holy one said, "I am called Stephana [Crown], for whom a crown is laid up in the heavens, and for this reason I do not sacrifice, that I may receive it from the just and true Rewarder, Christ." ^B

IX. Having heard these things, the duke, inflamed with excessive rage, ordered two palm trees to be bent and joined at their tops, and the blessed one to be bound by her two feet to them; and then for them to be released suddenly from one another. This being done with great speed, the holy athlete of Christ, Stephana, was torn in two, and became two parts in the two palms, and thus she was brought to completion in peace and fulfilled her martyrdom faithfully, having received the crown of victory from our Lord Jesus Christ. ^C The duke then ordered the holy Victor to be beheaded. The triumphant martyr of Christ, hearing this sentence, said, "I thank my God always, Who has granted me this victory and gift until the end." As the blessed Victor was about to be put to death, he said to the quaestionarii, "Be it known to you that