ST. MARUTHAS closes, with the acts of these martyrs, his history of the
persecution of king Sapor, which raged without intermission during forty
years. The venerable author assures us, that, living in the
neighborhood, he had carefully informed himself of the several
circumstances of their combats from those who were eye-witnesses, and
ushers in his account with the following address: "Be propitious to me,
O Lord, through the prayers of these martyrs--Being assisted by the
divine grace, and strengthened by your protection, O ye incomparable
men, I presume to draw the outlines of your heroic virtue and incredible
torments. But the remembrance of your bitter sufferings covers me with
shame, confusion, and tears, for myself and my sins. O! you who hear
this relation, count the days and the hours of three years and a half,
which they spent in prison, and remember they passed no month without
frequent tortures, no day free from pain, no hour without the threat of
immediate death. The festivals and new moons were black to them by fresh
racks, beatings, clubs, chains, hanging by their limbs, dislocations of
their joints, &c." In the thirty-seventh year of this persecution, a
fresh edict was published, commanding the governors and magistrates to
punish all Christians with racks, scourges, stoning, and every sort of
death, laying to their charge the following articles: "They abolish our
doctrine; they teach men to worship one only God, and forbid them to
adore the sun or fire; they use water for profane washing; they forbid
persons to marry, to be soldiers in the king's armies, or to strike any
one; they permit all sorts of animals to be killed, and they suffer the
dead to be buried; they say that serpents and scorpions were made, not
by the devil, but by God himself."
Acepsimas, bishop of Honita in Assyria, a man above fourscore years old,
but of a vigorous and strong constitution of body, was apprehended, and
conducted in chains to Arbela, before the governor. This judge inquired
how he could deny the divinity of the sun, which all the East adored.
The martyr answered him, expressing his astonishment how men could
prefer a creature to the Creator. By the orders of the governor he was
laid on the ground with his feet bound, and in that posture barbarously
scourged, till his whole body was covered with blood; after which he was
thrown into prison.
In the mean time one Joseph, a holy priest of Bethcatuba, and
Aithilahas, a deacon of Beth-nudra, famed for eloquence, sanctity, and
learning, were brought before the same governor. To his interrogatories,
Joseph answered, that he was a Christian, and had always taught the sun
to be an inanimate creature. The issue was, that he was stretched flat
on the ground, and beaten with thick twigs stripped of the thorns, by
ten executioners who succeeded one another, till his body seemed one
continued wound. At the sight of himself in this condition the martyr
with joy said: "I return you the greatest thanks I am able, Christ, the
Son of God, who have granted me this mercy, and washed me with this
second baptism of my blood, to wipe away my sins." His courage the
persecutors deemed an insult, and redoubled their fury in tearing and
bruising his blessed body. After he was loosened, loaded with heavy
chains, and cast into the same dungeon with Acepsimas, Aithilahas was
called upon. The governor said to him: "Adore {592} the sun, which is a
divinity, eat blood, marry,[1] and obey the king, and you shall live."
The martyr answered: "It is better to die, in order to live eternally."
By the judge's command, his hands were tied under his knees, and his
body fastened to a beam: in this posture it was squeezed and pulled many
ways, and afterwards scourged. His bones were in many places broken or
dislocated, and his flesh mangled. At length, not being able to stand,
he was carried back to prison on men's shoulders. On the next day, they
were all three again brought forth and stretched on the ground, bound
fast with cords, and their legs, thighs, and ribs so squeezed and
strained by stakes, that the noise of the bones breaking filled the
place with horror. Yet to every solicitation of the judge or officers,
their answer was: "We trust in one God, and we will not obey the king's
edicts." Scarce a day passed in which some new torture or other was not
invented and tried upon them.
After they had for three years suffered the hardships of imprisonment
and daily torments, the king coming into Media, the martyrs were brought
before Adarsapor, the chief of all the governors of the East, several
other Satrapes and governors sitting with him in the palace. They were
carried thither, for they were not able to walk, and they scarce
retained the figure of human bodies. The very sight of such spectacles
moved all who saw them to compassion, and many to tears. They
courageously professed themselves Christians, and declared that they
would never abandon their faith. Adarsapor said, he saw by their wounds
what they had already suffered, and used both threats and entreaties to
work them into a compliance with the law. When they begged him to hasten
the execution of his threats, he told them: "Death frees criminals from
pain: but I will render life to you as grievous as a continued death,
that others of your sect may tremble." Acepsimas said: "In vain do you
threaten. God, in whom we trust, will give us courage and constancy." At
this answer, fury flashed in the eyes of Adarsapor, and he swore by the
fortune of king Sapor, that if they did not that instant obey the
edicts, he would sprinkle their gray hairs with their blood, would
destroy their bodies, and would cause their dead remains to be beaten to
powder. Acepsimas said: "To you we resign our bodies, and commend to God
our souls. Execute what you threaten. It is what we desire." The tyrant,
with rage painted in every feature of his countenance, ordered the
venerable old man to be stretched on the ground, and thirty men, fifteen
on each side, to pull and haul him by cords tied to his arms, legs, and
other limbs, so as to dislocate and almost tear them asunder; and two
hangmen in the mean time to scourge his body with so much cruelty, as to
mangle and tear off the flesh in many parts: under which torment the
martyr expired. His body was watched by guards appointed for that
purpose, till after three days it was stolen away by the Christians, and
buried by the care of a daughter of the king of Armenia, who was at that
time a hostage in Media.
Joseph and Aithilahas underwent the same punishment, but came alive out
of the hands of the executioners. The latter said to the judge under his
torments: "Your tortures are too mild, increase them as you please."
Adarsapor, struck with astonishment at their courage, said: "These men
are greedy of torments as if they were banquets, and are fond of a
kingdom that is invisible." He then caused them to be tormented afresh,
so that every part of their bodies was mangled, and their shoulders and
arms disjointed. Adarsapor gave an order that if they did not die of
their torments, they should be carried back into their own country, to
be there put to death. {593} The two martyrs, being not able to sit,
were tied on the backs of beasts, and conveyed with great pain to
Arbela, their guards treating them on the way with no more compassion
than if they had been stones. Jazdundocta, an illustrious lady of the
city Arbela, for a great sum of money, obtained leave of the governor,
that they should be brought to her house, to take a short refreshment.
She dressed their wounds, bathed their bodies with her tears, and was
exceedingly encouraged by their faith and exhortations. The blessed
martyrs were soon taken from her house to prison, where they languished
six months longer. A new governor at length came into that province, the
most savage of men, bringing an edict of the king, commanding that
Christians who were condemned to death, should be stoned by those who
professed the same religion. The news of his arrival drove the
Christians into the woods and deserts, that they might not be compelled
to imbrue their hands in the blood of martyrs. But soldiers there hunted
them like wild beasts, and many were taken. The two confessors were
presented before this new judge. Joseph was hung up by the toes, and
scourged during two hours, in the presence of the judge, who, hearing
him discourse on the resurrection, said: "In that resurrection how do
you design to punish me?" The martyr replied: "We are taught meekness,
to return good for evil, and to pray for enemies." "Well," said the
judge, "then I shall meet with kindness from your hands for the evil
which you here receive from me." To which the martyr answered: "There
will be then no room for pardon or favor: nor will one be able to help
another. I will pray that God may bring you to the knowledge of himself
in this life." The judge said: "Consider these things in the next world,
whither I am going to send you: at present obey the king." The old man
answered: "Death is our desire." The emperor then began to interrogate
Aithilahas, and caused him to be hung up by the heels a long time
together. He was at length taken down, and to move him to a compliance,
he was shown a certain Manichaean heretic who had renounced his religion
for fear of torments, and was killing ants, which those heretics held
unlawful, teaching that insects and beasts have rational souls. The
saint, lying on the ground, was scourged till he fell into a swoon, and
then was hauled aside like a dog. A certain Magian, out of pity, threw a
coat over his wounds to cover his naked body; for which act of
compassion he received two hundred lashes, till he fainted. Thamsapor
arriving at his castle of Beth-Thabala, in that country, the governor
caused the martyrs to be carried before him. They were ordered to eat
the blood of beasts: which they refused to do. One told them, that if
they would eat the juice of red grapes curdled, which the people might
think to be blood, this would satisfy the judges. They answered: "God
forbid we should dissemble our faith." We have elsewhere taken notice
that the Christians then observed in many places the positive temporary
law of the apostles.[2] Thamsapor and the governor, after a short
consultation, condemned both to be stoned to death by the Christians.
Joseph was executed at Arbela. He was put into the ground up to the
neck. The guards had drawn together five hundred Christians to his
execution. The noble lady Jazdundocta was brought thither, and earnestly
pressed to throw but a feather at the martyr, that she might seem to
obey the order of the king. But she resolutely resisted their entreaties
and threats, desiring to die with the servant of God. Many, however,
having the weakness to comply, a shower of stones fell upon the martyr,
which put an end to his life. When he was dead, guards were set to watch
his body; but the Christians found means to steal it away on the third
night, during a {594} dark tempest. St. Aithilahas suffered in the
province of Beth-Nubadra; the lord of that country, who had been a
Christian, by a base apostasy, becoming one of his murderers. St.
Maruthas adds, that angels were heard singing at the place of this
martyrdom, and many miracles wrought. These martyrs suffered in the year
380, the seventieth and last of the reign of Sapor, and the fortieth of
his persecution. They are mentioned by Sozomen,[3] and are named in the
Roman Martyrology on the 22d of April. See their genuine Chaldaic acts,
by St. Maruthas in Assemani, t. 1, p. 171. Act. Martyr. Orient.
Footnotes:
1. From this, and many other passages, it is clear, that the obligation
of perpetual chastity was annexed to Holy Orders in the eastern
churches no less than in the western.
2. Acts xv. 29.
3. B. 2, ch. 13.