THE C O M P L E T E WORKS
OF
SAINT ALPHONSUS DE LIGUORI,
DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH,
Bishop of Saint Agatha, and Founder of the Congregation of the Most
Holy Redeemer.
TRANSLATED FROM THE ITALIAN.
EDITED BY
IRIEV- IE TJ G- IE JST IE Gr IR. I IMI ~ML ,
Priest of the Congregation of the IMost Holy Redeemer.
THE ASCETICAL WORKS.
Volume IX.
VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS ;
OR,
IVES OF THE MOST CELEBRATED MARTYRS OF THE CHURCH.
JEftftfon.
THE COMPLETE ASCETICAL WORKS
ST. ALPHONSUS DE LIGUORI.
18 vols., Price, per vol., net, $1.25.
book is complete in itself, and any volume ivill be
sold separately.
Volume
I. PREPARATION FOR DEATH ; or, Considerations on the Eter
nal Truths. Maxims of Eternity — Rule of Life. Ready
II.
WAY OF SALVATION AND OF PERFECTION: Meditations.
Pious Reflections. Spiritual Treatises.
" III. GREAT MEANS OF SALVATION AND OF PERFECTION:
Prayer. Mental of a Retreat.
Choice of a State of Life, and the Vocation to the
Religious State and to the Priesthood.
" IV., V., VI. THE MYSTERIES OF THE FAITH : i. Incarnation,
Birth and Infancy of Jesus Christ. 2. The Redemption,
Passion and Death of Jesus Christ. 3. The Holy
Eucharist, Sacrifice, and Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.
Practice of Love of Jesus Christ. Novena to the Holy Ghost.
" VII., VIII. GLORIES OF MARY : i. Explanation of the Salve
Regina, or Hail, Holy Queen. Discourses on the Feasts
of Mary. 2. Her Dolors. Her Virtues. Practices.
Examples. Answers to Critics. — Devotion to the Holy
Angels. Devotion to St. Joseph. Novena to St. Teresa.
Novena for the Repose of the Souls in Purgatory.
IX. VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS; or, the Lives of 'the Most
Celebrated Martyrs of the Church.
" X., XI. THE TRUE SPOUSE OF JESUS CHRIST: i. The first
sixteen Chapters. 2. The last eight Chapters. Appends
and various small Works. Spiritual Letters.
XII. CONGREGATION OF THE MOST HOLY REDEEMER : Rule.
Instructions about the Religious State. Letters and
Circulars. Lives of two Fathers and of a Lay-brother.
" XIII. DIGNITY AND DUTIES OF THE PRIEST : A Collection of
Material for Ecclesiastical Retreats. Rule of Life and
Spiritual Rules.
" XIV. THE HOLY MASS : Sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Ceremonies
of the Mass, Preparation and Thanksgiving. The Mass
and the Office that are hurriedly said.
" XV. THE DIVINE OFFICE : Translation of the Psalms and
Hymns.
XVI. PREACHING: The Exercises of the Missions. Various
Counsels. Instructions on the Commandments and
Sacraments.
" XVII. SERMONS FOR THE SUNDAYS.
"XVIII. VARIOUS SMALL WORKS: Discourses on Calamities. Reflec
tions useful for Bishops. Seminaries. Ordinances.
Letters. General alphabetical index.
Benziger Brothers, New York, Cincinnati, and St. Louis.
Edition.
UB«^h
VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS;
OR,
THE LIVES OF THE MOST CELEBRATED MARTYRS OF THE
CHURCH.
BY
ST. ALPHONSUS DE LIGUORI,
Doctor of the Church.
EDITED BY
REV. EUGENE GRIMM,
Priest of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer.
NEW YORK, CINCINNATI, AND CHICAGO
TZIG-IEDR, IB :R, O T IKC IE R S .,
Prinlt'rs to the Holy Apostolic Sec.
R. WASHBOURNE, M. H. GILL & SON,
PATERNOSTER Row, LONDON. 'Lso UPPER O'CoNNELL STREET, DUBLIN.
issa.
APPROBATION.
By virtue of the authority granted me by the Most Rev. Nicholas
Mauron, Superior General of the Congregation of the Most Holy
Redeemer, I hereby sanction the publication of the work entitled
the " Victories of the Martyrs," which is Vol. IX. of the new and
complete edition in English of the works of Saint Alphonsus de
Liguori, called "The Centenary Edition."
ELIAS FRED. SCHAVER,
Sup. Prov. Baltimorensis.
BALTIMORE, MD.. FEAST OF ST. MICHAEL,
September 29, 1887.
JAN 23
Copyright. i88d, by p- IAS FKEDEKICK SCHAI
CONTENTS.
PAGE
APPROBATION 10
NOTICE ii
VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS.
INTRODUCTION. — Useful reflections by which we may derive great
fruit from the reading of the combats and the victories of the
martyrs. I. Virtues practised by the holy martyrs in the
combats that they had to sustain against their persecutors, 23.
II. The advantages of devout meditation on the virtues that
the martyrs practised during their sufferings, 34. Prayer to
the holy martyrs to obtain their protection, 40. III. The
various tortures to which the martyrs were subjected, 41.
PREFACE 45
PART I.
MARTYRS OF THE FIRST AGES.
CHAPTKR
I. St. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch 49
II. SS. Juhtta, and Quiricus, her son 54
III. St. Vincent, deacon 57
IV. SS. Agricola and Vitalis of Bologna 62
V. St. Vitalis of Ravenna 64
VI. St. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna 66
VII. SS. Theodora, virgin, and Didymus 70
VIII. SS. Philip, bishop of Heraclea, and his two compan
ions, Severus and Hermes . 74
IX. St. James, surnamed Intercisus 80
X. St. Afra, penitent . . 82
XI. St. Sabinus, bishop of Spoleto, and his companions. 87
XII. St. Euplius, deacon go
XIII. St. Theodotus. vintner 92
XIV. SS. Trypho and Respicius 97
Contents.
XV SS. Romanus, deacon, and Barulas, the infant martyr, 100
XVI. St. Crispina ]<>(>
XVII. SS. Dionysia, Majoricus, her son, and other holy mar
tyrs or confessors in the persecution raised in Africa
by the Vandals 108
XVIII. SS. Phileas, bishop of Thmuis, and Philoromus,
tribune 112
XIX. St. Dionysia, virgin, with SS. Andrew and Paul of
Lampsacus 1 16
XX. St. Febronia, virgin 118
XXI. St. Arcadius 121
XXII. St. Justin, philosopher 123
XXIII St. Agatha, virgin 131
XXIV. SS. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople;
Tygrius, priest; and Eutropius, lector 134
XXV. St. Pionius, priest 141
XXVI. St. Adalbert, bishop of Prague 145
XXVII. SS. James, deacon ; Marianus, lector; and compan
ions 148
XXVIII. St. Lucy, virgin 152
XXIX. SS. Theodorus and Nicholas, abbots of Studius ..... 156
XXX. SS. Eulalia and Julia, virgins 160
XXXI. St. Pollio, lector 163
XXXII. SS. Apian and ^Edesius, brothers 164
XXXIII. St. Gordius, centurion 167
XXXIV. SS. Chrysogonus, priest, and Anastasia, widow 169
XXXV. SS. Fructuosus, bishop of Tarragona, and his two
deacons, Augurius and Eulogius 175
XXXVI. St. Irenaeus, bishop of Sirmium 178
XXXVII. SS. Cecilia, virgin ; Valerian, her husband ; Tibur-
tius, her brother-in-law; and Maximus, officer 182
XXXVIII. St. Agnes, virgin " 189
XXXIX. SS. Simeon, archbishop of Seleucia ; Usthazades .and
and Pusikius; and their companions 193
XL. SS. Lucius, Montanus, Flavian, and their companions,
disciples of St. Cyprian 197
XLI. SS. Epipodius and Alexander of Lyons 200
XLII. St. Leo of Patara 204
XLIII. St. Basil of Ancyra, priest 207
XLIV. SS. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons ; Sanctus, deacon ;
Alexander, physician; Veitius Epagathus, Maturus,
Attalus of Pergamus, Biblis, Blandina, and their
companions 213
Contents.
CHAPTER I'AGK
XLV. St. Alban, first martyr of Great Britain ............. 217
XLVI. St. Peter of Lampsacus ........................... 219
XLVII. St. Cyril, child .................................. 219
XLVIII. SS. Potamiena, virgin; Marcella, her mother; and
Basilides, soldier ................. .............. 221
XLIX. SS. Nicander and Marcian, soldiers ................ 223
L. St. Gallican, a Roman general, with SS John and
Paul, officers ................. .................
LI. St. Theodore of Amasea, called the young soldier. ..
LI I SS. Perpetua and Felicitas of Carthage, with SS. Re-
vocatus, Saturninus, Secundulus, and Saturus .... 232
LIII. SS. George, deacon ; Aurelius, Natalia, Felix, Liliosa
of Corduba ........ .... .................. ..... 236
LIV. SS. Tarachus, Probus, and Andronicus, martyred in
Cilicia ........................................ 240
LV. St. Quirinus, bishop of Siscia ..................... 247
LVI. St. Blase, bishop of Sebaste ....................... 250
LVII. SS. Anastasia, virgin, and Cyril of Rome .......... 254
LVI II. SS. Victor, officer; Alexander, Felicianus, Longinus,
soldiers, of Marseilles ........................... 257
LIX. SS. Peter, Dorotheus, and Gorgonius, chamberlains. 261
LX. SS. Timothy, lector, and Maura, his wife ........... 263
LXI. SS. Sixtus II., Pope ; Laurence, deacon ; Romanus,
soldier ...................................... 265
LXII. St. Sebastian, officer; and the two brothers, Marcus
and Marcellianus ............................. 270
LXI 1 1. SS. Cyriacus, Largus, and Smaragdus .............. 272
LXIV. SS. Mammas ; Theodotus, his father : Rufina, his
mother; and Amya ............ . ................ 275
LXV. SS. Januarius, bishop of Benevento ; Sosius, Procu-
lus, Festus, deacons ; Didier, lector ; Eutychius,
Acutius ..................................... 280
LXVI. SS. Faith, virgin, Caprais, Primus, and Felician ____ . 288
LXVII. St. Genesius, comedian ............................ 291
LXVIII. St. Hippolytus, priest ............................. 293
LXIX. St. Symphorian ................................. 296
LXX. SS. Bonosius and Maximilian, officers .............. 298
LXXI. SS. Liberatus, abbot; Boniface, deacon; Servus, Rus-
ticus. subdeacons; Rogatus, Septimus, and Maximus,
religious. . . c ................................. 301
LXXI I. SS. Seraphia, virgin, and Sabina, widow ........... 303
LXXIII. SS. Cyprian, magician, and Justina, virgin .......... 306
Contents.
CHAl'TEK I'AGK
LXXIV. SS. Hermolaus, priest; and Pantaleon, physician. ... 308
LXXV. St. Felix, bishop of Abbir, and other holy martyrs
and confessors of the Vandalic persecution. 311
PART II.
THE MARTYRS OF JAPAN
NOTICE 315
I. Miraculous cross found near Arima. Persecution]] in
the Kingdom of Bungo. Joram Macama. Courage
of the Christians 316
II. Persecution by the Emperor Taicosama. Great zeal
of the Christians. Twenty-six martyrs crucified at
Nangasaki 319
III. Persecution in the Kingdom of Fingo. John Min-
ami ; Magdalen, his wife, and Louis, their adopted
son; with Simon Taquenda; Jane, his mother; and
Agnes, his wife 329
IV. Persecution in the Kingdom of Saxuma and d'Aman-
guchi. James Sacoiama, Melchior Bugendono, Da-
mian, the blind man. Leon Xiquemon 336
V. New persecution in Fingo. Joachim Girozaiemo,
Michael Faciemon and his son Thomas, John Tin-
goro and his son Peter 341
VI. Persecution in the Kingdom of Firando. Caspar
Nixiguenca; Ursula, his wife; and John, their son. 343
VII. Death of the King of Arima and persecution raised
by his son. Thomas Onda and his family. Fran
cis and Matthew, young princes. Eight martyrs
burnt alive. The tyrant punished 345
VIII. General persecution ordered by the Emperor Daifu-
sama. Firmness of the Christians of Meaco 355
IX. Persecution in the Kingdoms of Aqui and Bungo.
Benedict, a converted bonze. Two families that
were put to the test. Michael; Lin. his brother:
and Maxentia, his wife 356
X. Joachim and Thomas of Facata. Adam of the Island
of Xiqui. Paul of the Kingdom of Jamaxiro 361
XL Persecution at Nangasaki and at Omura. Brother
Leonard Guimura and his companions. Lin Toie-
mon 363
Contents.
XII. In the Kingdom of Bungo, James Faito, Balthasar
and his son James 366
XIII. Fifty-two martyrs burnt alive at Meaco 368
XIV. Ignatius Xiquiemon, martyred at Fucimo. Conver
sion of a bonze who had led a bad life. Matthias,
of the Kingdom of Arima 371
XV. Simon Bocusai and his companions, in Bungo. John
Ciu and Joseph Ito, at Nangasaki. Leo Xonda, in
Fingo 374
XV7!. Persecution in the Kingdom of Oxu. A father re
claimed by the example of his child. Joachim and
Ann of Mizusama 376
XVII. Great execution at Nangasaki. Justa, her daughter
Mary, and her daughter-in-law Agatha. Paul
Gazaiemon. Constancy of a child 379
XVIII. Many victims of the persecution at Jedo. Mary Ja-
gesa and her companions. Massacre of children. . 383
XIX. Francis Sintaro and Matthias Squiraiemon at Firox-
ima. lohn Cuffroi in the Kingdom of Zio 384
XX. In the island of Nancaia, Isabella, mother of Damian,
and his family; Mary, widow of John Sucamota,
and his four sons 387
XXI. In the Kingdom of Firando, Michael Fiemon and his
family 389
XXII. Five religious burnt alive at Omura. Leo Misaqui
and his three sons, at Bungo 391
XXIII. Caius and James Coici, burnt at Omura 393
XXIV. Organtin Tanxu, and Lucy, his wife, burnt at Funai. 395
XXV. Monica Oiva, killed by her relatives at Cubota.
Thirty-two martyrs burnt alive 396
XXVI. Peter Cabioie and Susanna. John Naisen and Monica,
young Louis, and their companions, executed at
Xangasaki 398
XXVI 1. Frightful persecution in the Kingdom of Arima. Jo
achim Minesuiedai, Caspar Xagaiosan, Louis Xin-
saburo, John Tempei, Bartholomew Sanuiemon, Si
mon Keisaiemon, Paul Uchibori, Leonard Massu-
dadeuzo, and their companions 401
XXVIII. Persecution in the principality of Jonezava. Louis
Yemondono and his family, Paul Xiquibu, Anthony
Anazava, and their companions 413
XXIX. Persecution pushed to '.he last degree of violence at
TO Contents.
PAGE
Nangasaki. Isabella and Simeon. Father Anthony
Iscida „ 419
XXX. James Cufioie; Mary, his mother; Leo Tasuque, his
father-in-law; and his family 423
XXXI. Extreme cruelties exercised in the Kingdom of Ari-
ma. Thomas Ouichibioie and his companions. Re
markable punishment of the tyrant 426
XXXII. Last efforts of the missionaries. Father Sebastian
Vieyra. End of the mission 428
CONCLUSION 433
HYMNS 435
On the tomb of Alexander the Great, 435. Eternal Max
ims, 436. Paraphrase on the words of St. Aloysius, 438. Af
fections to Jesus and to Mary, 439. Lines sung during the
missions 440
Canzoncine Spiritual! 443
Sopra la Scpoltura d' Alessand.ro il Grande, 443. Sopra le
Massitne Eterne, 443. Canzoncina di San Luigi Gonzaga,
445. Affetti verso Gesu Sacranientalo 446
APPENDIX : Japan and the Holy See 447
TABLE OF THE HOLY MARTYRS according to the order in which
they are given in the calendar 467
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE FOR PART 1 471
ALPHABETICAL INDEX 475
NOTICE.
ST. ALPHONSUS was in his eightieth year when he
wrote the VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS, which appeared
in the year 1776. He had just been relieved by Pope
Pius VI. of the burden of the episcopate, which weighed
so heavily upon him, but not of the burden of his Con
gregation, which furnished him with a retreat that was
most laborious. Moreover, he had to compose this work
in the midst of the greatest sufferings, says Father Tan-
noia.1 The kingdom of Naples, he adds, received this
new fruit of the zeal of our saint with general satisfac
tion; and in the opinion of Canon Fabius Massa, the
Church was to derive the greatest profit from it, nothing
being better suited, especially in those calamitous times,
to strengthen the faith and to enkindle piety.
But the reading of such a book is not less useful in our
age, and will be so in every age. The constancy of the
faithful will always be tried, piety will always be perse
cuted, by the enemies of Jesus Christ: All that will lire
godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution? Other suf
ferings will also not be wanting; for the road leading to
heaven is sown with all kinds of tribulations: Through
many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God? Such
was the way in which our divine Saviour walked: Ought
not Christ to hare suffered these things, and so to enter into
1 Book iv. Chap. 3 (7).
" Omnes qui pie volunt vivere in Christo Jesu, persecutionem
patientur." — 2 Tim. iii. 12.
:) " Per multas tribulationes oportet nos intrare in regnum Dei." —
Af/s, xiv. 21.
1 2 Notice.
his glory? ' And he himself informs us that his disciples
and his servants should be treated as he was treated:
The disciple is not above the master, nor the servant above his
Lord? But he assures us that the trial will never be above
our strength, and that he is ready to aid those that call
upon him: And God is faithful, who will not suffer you
to be tempted above that which you are able; but will also
make with temptation issue, that you may be able to bear it?
Hence he wishes us to have unshaken confidence while
we are in the midst of the most cruel anguish, since
beforehand he has made sure our victory: In the world
you shall have distress : but have confidence, I have overcome
the world? He even wishes that at such a time we
should be filled with joy while considering the eternal
reward that he has prepared for the pains of a moment:
Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven?
And when we think of the love that our Saviour has shown
us in all that he has done and suffered for us, our hearts
are inflamed with gratitude and love towards him; we,
then, desire to labor and to suffer yet more for his glory;
we desire to sacrifice for him our lives, finding no other
happiness than that of suffering and dying for God.
Such are the sentiments that we admire in the athletes
of the faith — sentiments with which we feel ourselves
sweetly penetrated wrhile reading the Victories of the
Martyrs. This volume is a selection of the most beautiful
1 " Nonne haec oportuit pati Christum, et ita intrare in gloriam
suam ?" — Luke, xxiv. 26.
2 " Non est discipulus super magistrum, nee servus super dominuin
suum." — Matt. x. 24.
•' " Fidelis autem Deus est, qui non patietur vos tentari supra id quod
potestis; sed faciet etiam cum tentatione proventum, ut possitis sus-
tinere." — i Cor. x. 13.
" In mundo pressuram habebitis; sed confidite, ego vici mundum."
— John, xvi. 33.
'J " Gaudete et exsultate, quoniam merces vestra copiosa est in coelis.'
— Matt. v. 12.
Notice. 1 3
examples drawn from the history of the martyrs of every
age and place, after the time of the apostles, and taken
from the best sources. We have carefully revised these
sources in order to be able to establish the correctness of
the narrative according to the intention expressed by the
author in his preface. We have at times found it neces
sary, as was the case in the preceding works, to make
certain corrections; we have even here and there added
the name of a place or of a person, a date or some trifling
circumstance, which the clearness and the interest of
the narration seemed to us to demand. When, however,
we did not follow the author literally, we only did so in
order to render his thought more clear; and when the
matter appeared to us to be of some importance, we
added a note, so as to give to this good book all the ac
curacy that the readers might desire. In a word, we
have done what we think the author would himself have
done, and have written for our time and for those
for whom our work is intended, without, however,
confounding what is the translator's with what belongs
to the author, whose every word has always been sacred
to us.
This volume completes the first series of the Ascetical
Works, comprising the volumes that are suitable for
persons of every age and every state of life. We began
the series by the Preparation of Death, and we finish it
by the Victories of the Martyrs, who are our principal
models after Jesus and Mary, the King and the Queen
of martyrs. The other saints had only to follow them;
it is thus that they have acquired the same glory. " St.
John beheld all the saints clothed in white, and with
palms in their hands: Clothed with white robes, and palms
in their hands? The palm is the symbol of martyrs; and
yet all the saints did not suffer martyrdom; — why, then,
1 " Amicti stolis albis, et palmre in manibus eorum." — Apoc. vii. y.
1 4 Notice.
do all the saints bear palms in their hands ? St. Gregory
replies, that all the saints have been martyrs either of
the sword or of patience; so that he adds, 'We can be
martyrs without the sword, if we keep patience.' " We
can even obtain many times the merit of the martyrs and
increase the value of our crown by acts of a good-will,
as is explained in the Introduction."
But our revered author was not satisfied with telling
us how we may imitate the heroes of faith; he shows us
this much better in his wonderful life, which was a
prodigy of patience and long martyrdom. There are
but few saints who suffered as much as he suffered.
He was his own tyrant and his own executioner. Al
though he had never committed a grievous sin from his
youth, yet, impelled by his ardent love for Jesus Christ,
he gave himself up to the most cruel penances, and God
permitted that he could continue them to the age of
nearly ninety-one years. He regarded himself as a
victim that was to be entirely immolated to divine love
without the least reserve; and convinced that this love
is manifested by labor and suffering, as he himself
teaches us,:i he thought only of laboring and suffering
as much as possible for God. But obedience being
better than sacrifice, he bound himself by a vow to
follow in all things the advice of the director of his con
science, in which he recognized the divine will. By re
nouncing all worldly hopes, he condemned himself to a
life of extreme poverty; his garments, his furniture, and
everything that he used, even when he was a bishop, bore
the impress of this virtue, and reduced him to what was
strictly necessary. At night he took his short repose on
a simple straw-mattress, and sometimes on a plank; and
when travelling, if he could not go on foot, he would use
1 Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ, vol. vi. page 308 or 309.
2 See pp. 37, 39.
3 Sure Signs of Divine Love, vol. ii. page 492.
Notice. 1 5
only a donkey for riding. He took hut little nourish
ment, and was careful to mix it with bitter herbs so as
to render its taste very disagreeable; and this he often
ate on his knees or sitting on the floor. Besides the
ordinary fast and abstinence, he fasted on bread and
water on all Saturdays and vigils of the principal feasts
When he studied or wrote, he would stand with small
stones in his shoes in order to suffer. He severely
scourged himself everyday, and frequently to blood; he
used, besides, little chains, hair-cloth, and other instru
ments for the purpose of continually tormenting his
flesh. One evening, worn out with fatigue, he fell down
in his room, having swooned away, and remained uncon
scious the whole night and the greater part of the fol
lowing day; the doctor ordered him to be disrobed, and
on him was found a hair-shirt that covered his whole
body. From this we may form an idea of his austerities,
which he strove so much to conceal from the eyes of
men. To these self-inflicted penalties must be added
his great labors in the midst of pain, solicitude, and con
tinual trials.
Our saint had at one time conceived the idea to devote
himself to the Chinese missions, and he was anxious to
know God's holy will in regard to this matter; but the
Lord deigned to call him to another apostolate. Obedi
ent to the voice of Heaven, he generously undertook the
work of his Institute, notwithstanding numerous obsta
cles. When, after having laid the foundation, he saw
himself all at once abandoned by his first companions,
far from yielding to the efforts of hell to discourage him,
he bound himself by a formal vow, under pain of grave
sin, to persevere in his vocation, should he have to re
main alone, and to offer himself as a sacrifice for the sal
vation of souls. Wishing to consecrate himself unre
servedly, during his whole life, to the service of God, he
made another vow, which the Bull of his canonization
1 6 Notice.
declares to be very difficult, and till that time unheard of,
namely, never to allow a moment to pass without em
ploying it in some useful work. Heaven blessed these
magnanimous acts. The devil, however, although al
ways conquered by him, never ceased to excite against
him a thousand contradictions, unjust prejudices, per
fidious accusations, endless intrigues, law-suits, threats,
and odious attacks. His enemies went so far as to bribe
an infamous creature to sully his reputation and that o£
the missionaries. A man of influence, who was leading
a scandalous life, took with him one day a troop of as
sassins for the purpose of murdering him; but he was
arrested on the way. The saint, on learning the danger
that threatened him, quietly said: "He may take my
life if he pleases; in this way I shall obtain the crown of
martyrdom."
It was a remarkable thing that his own friends were
the cause of affliction to him no less than his enemies.
As soon as they heard of the design that he had formed
of founding a new Congregation of missionaries, nearly
all of them turned against him. Those who but recently
admitted his talents and his virtues allowed a change to
come over them in their conduct towards him, looking
upon him as an extravagant and fanatical man, a vision
ary filled with self-conceit, the sport of a foolish illusion;
without consideration they heaped upon him, both in
public and private, the most humiliating reproaches;
everywhere there were persons that vied with one
another to decry him; and men in authority that were
secretly his guides and his support did not dare to permit
him to use their testimonials that he might defend him
self. His associates of the Propaganda wished even to
exclude him from their society and to deprive him of a
benefice that was his only support. Those that had de
clared themselves against him triumphed, especially when
it became known that his first attempt had failed, and
Notice. 1 7
that he now found himself abandoned by his compan
ions; he was regarded as one that was irretrievably lost;
no one dared to take up his defence; and he was even
referred to from the pulpit as a melancholy instance.
The confusion and the anguish of our saint reached their
highest point. Yet the most cruel trial to which his
heart had to submit came from the excessive tenderness
of his father when it became necessary for him to tear
himself away from his gentle embraces in order to pro
ceed to the place whither God was calling him.
The Lord, moreover, reserved for his virtue many
other assaults, and these came from his own children, and
from the common Father of the faithful, by whom he was
loved and venerated, and to whom he was always per
fectly devoted. Alphonsus had known how to avoid the
episcopate, of which the thought alone made him trem
ble. He had already thought himself free from all
danger, when, at the age of sixty-six and under the
burden of grave infirmities, he found it suddenly im
posed upon him by the irrevocable command of Clement
XIII. This was for the poor old man like a thunder
bolt, which he appeared only to survive by a miracle.
After having carried this heavy burden for thirteen years,
with a courage that was truly heroic, he was finally re
lieved of the episcopate owing to the infirmities that
were overwhelming him. It was then believed that he
would finish his days in peace among his own children,
but he was really going to empty the cup of bitterness
that was yet far from being empty. The enemies of his
Congregation never ceased to compass his ruin by all
imaginable proceedings. His Congregation was con
tinually hovering between life and death; but they were
unsuccessful in their criminal designs. When this violent
storm appeared to have subsided and peace was restored,
the devil succeeded in stirring up, in the Institute itself,
a domestic war that shook it in its very foundation.
1 8 Notice.
This was caused by some subjects that abused the confi
dence of the holy Founder, and turned against him. He
was shamefully calumniated at Rome in the midst of such
a concourse of circumstances that it was impossible for
him to defend himself. He was accused of having in
fringed his Rule, and consequently the authority of the
Holy See that had approved it. He was judged and
was treated as the author of a culpable act of which he
was only the principal victim. Pius VI., prepossessed
by false reports and deceived by every appearance of
truth, believed it to be his duty to condemn him, to de
pose him from his office of Superior-General, and even
to exclude him from his dear Congregation. Our saint,
aged eighty-four years, suffering and powerless, received
this news without being able to answer; his heart was,
moreover, filled with great sorrow in being obliged to
see his most worthy children involved in his own dis
grace, and the great injury to souls that would be the
result. There was no one left to console him; humble
and resigned, he profoundly bent his head, and said: "It
is only God whom I desire; it is sufficient if his grace is
not wanting to me. The Pope wishes it so; may God be
praised ! The will of the Pope is the will of God." He
was for several years suffering under this fatal blow, the
hardest that could have been inflicted upon him; and it was
only after his death that the Holy Father learned the en
tire truth, and became fully convinced of his innocence.
God permitted this event in order to give his servant
an occasion to exercise till the end his great virtue, and
to acquire very great merits. But this was not all: he
still had to suffer a long and painful martyrdom, both in
his body and in his soul.
At the beginning of his apostolic career he was af
fected by two mortal illnesses in consequence of his ex
cessive labors; his recovery was obtained only through
the particular help of the Blessed Virgin. In his fifty-
Notice. 19
second year he was taken with a violent asthma that en
dangered his life; he was relieved of this trouble, but
continued to suffer from it ever after. The violence that
he had to do to himself in order to accept the episcopal
charge again reduced him to extremity; he rallied with
great difficulty, and had a relapse during the first visita
tion of his diocese, about two years after. Each time his
case was despaired of, the last sacraments had to be ad
ministered to him, and preparations were made for his
funeral; but his course was not yet finished. It was in
the seventy-second year of his age, in 1768, that he was
attacked by his most cruel malady. An extremely pain
ful rheumatism, which at first was thought to be sciatica,
gradually encroached upon all his joints and ended by
affecting the vertebrae of his neck. His head was very
much bent over, so that his chin rested on his breast,
where the pressure of the beard produced a painful
wound. As the sick man suffered without complaint,
this wound was only perceived when the vitiated erup
tion flowing from it attracted the attention of the doctors.
All his members were contracted, and the body, when
viewed from behind, appeared to be without a head.
The holy bishop had to remain painfully seated in an
arm-chair, during the night as well as during the day,
and could not lie down, nor dress, nor move, nor rest.
However, at the end of a few months he became con
valescent; but he continued to suffer, and it was no
longer possible for him to raise his head during the
nineteen years that he still lived. Nothing was more
wonderful than his patience and his resignation during
this painful sickness; and yet great was the constancy of
his zeal to perform the exercises of piety, to mortify
himself, to apply himself to the duties of his charge, not
withstanding all his sufferings.
And to all this we must add his interior trials with
which the others cannot be compared. Alphonsus was
2O Notice.
a little more than thirty-three years old when God sub
jected him to this terrible cross. His life was then only
a life of aridity and desolation. At the altar he found
himself without devotion; prayer had become to him
most irksome. " I go to Jesus Christ," he used to say, " and
he repels me; I have recourse to Mary, and she is deaf
to my voice." A most sensible privation fora soul that
has tasted heavenly delights, and that now, plunged into
darkness, sees only misery, and fears to have made itself
unworthy of the presence of its Beloved ! But it was,
above all, during the last period of his life that our saint
had to undergo the most frightful combats. It seems that
God had given to the devil the power to afflict him as he
afflicted Job. After having struck him in his body and in
his religious family, having made him fall into disgrace
with the Sovereign Pontiff, the tempter represented to
him these evils as the punishment of his sins, and wished
to persuade him that God had abandoned him. The
poor old man was then heard to cry out in a heart-rending
voice: "Help me; the devil wishes to make me despair.
Help me; I do not wish to offend God." The enemy
being repulsed, returned again and again to the charge,
seeking to take him by surprise. He attacked him in
different ways — by darkness, scruples, fears, perplexities,
horrible temptations. He even appeared to him under
the form of different persons, and now flattered him to
inspire him with the sentiment of vanity, now endeavored
to make him believe that he was a reprobate, But
in his distress the saint never omitted to invoke Jesus
and Mary, and assistance was given to him.
We give but a cursory view of what Alphonsus suffered
during his long career. Would it not have been much
more agreeable to him to shed his blood "by the hand of
the executioner, in the midst of the most cruel tortures,
with the consolation of sacrificing his life for Jesus Christ
as he desired to do ? and would not his merits have been
Notice. 2 r
proportionate to his trials and to his fidelity ? We
should, therefore, be convinced that he bears a brilliant
palm in the assembly of the celestial conquerors.
O great saint, who hast done so much to draw us to
God, to show us the way to salvation, and to conduct us
to it by thy example ! now that thou dost occupy so high
a rank in glory, assist us from the heights of heaven;
obtain for us the grace to follow thee at least from afar;
or rather, obtain for us the grace generously to walk in
thy footsteps. Obtain for us great humility, great con
fidence in the divine mercy, great faith, great patience
in trials, great love, great courage, great devotedness
until the last breath. Obtain for us by thy prayers that
we may reach a place near to thee, so that thou mayest
present us as thy conquest for Jesus Christ. Amen.
ED.
Jfntrobttction.
USEFUL REFLECTIONS
By WHICH WE MA Y DERIVE GREA T FRUIT FROM THE READING
OF THE COMB A TS AND THE VICTORIES OF THE MARTYRS.
I.
Virtues Practised by the Holy Martyrs in the Combats that
they had to Sustain against their Persecutors.
IF the reading of the Lives of the Saints is a great
means to preserve piety, as is said by St. Philip Neri,1
and as is taught by all the masters of spiritual life, we
shall find it yet more useful to read about the victories
that the holy martyrs gained by sacrificing their lives
amid torments. Hence, before relating their individual
triumphs, we shall consider, to our spiritual advantage,
the principal virtues of which they gave proofs in their
combats.
There is no doubt that the martyrs are indebted for
their crown to the power of the grace which they re
ceived from Jesus Christ; for he it is that gave them the
strength to despise all the promises and all the threats
of tyrants, and to endure all the torments till they had
made an entire sacrifice of their lives. So that all their
merits, as St. Augustine writes,2 were the effects of
the grace that God in his mercy imparted to them.
But it is also certain, and even of faith, that on their
part the martyrs co-operated with the grace which ena
bled them to obtain their victory. Innovators have
blasphemed against this truth, saying that all the crimes
1 Bacci, 1. 2, ch. 5.
2 Con/. Book 9, c. 13.— S. 131, E. B.
24 Introduction.
of the wicked and all the good works of the just are the
offspring of necessity; but the same St. Augustine gives
them the lie when he says that in this case no reward or
punishment would be just.1
The martyrs, therefore, acquired great merits, because
the virtues of which they gave proofs in their combats
were great and heroic. We shall briefly describe these
virtues in order that we may imitate them in the tribu
lations to which we may be exposed in this life.
We at first remark that the martyrs were firmly attached
to all the dogmas of the Christian faith. In the first
ages of the Church two false religions specially opposed
ours : these were the religion of the Gentiles and that
of the Jews. The religion of the Gentiles, by admitting
several gods, furnished itself the proof of its falsity; for
if the world had been under the dominion of several
masters, it could not have maintained that regular and
constant order which we see has been preserved for so
many centuries up to the present time, This is evident
even to the eyes of natural reason; for every kingdom
divided against itself shall be destroyed.'1 Moreover, the very
words of the idolatrous priests clearly demonstrated the
falsity of their worship, since the actions that they at
tributed to their gods represented the latter as filled
with passions and vices. This was the way in which the
holy martyrs reproached the tyrants when the latter ex
horted them to sacrifice to their idols: " How can we,"
they said, " adore your gods, if, instead of offering us
models of virtue, they exhibit us only examples of vice ?"
The religion of the Jews, although formerly holy and
revealed by God, was at that time not less manifestly ob
solete and false. In fact, in the Scriptures themselves
which they had received from God, had preserved with so
1 " Sive autem iniquitas, sive justitia, si in potestate non esset, nullum
praemium, nulla poena justa esset." — Contra Faust. 1. 22, c. 78.
8 " Omne regnum in seipsum divisum desolabitur." — Luke, xi. 17.
Introduction. 25
much care, and had transmitted to us, it was predicted
that at a certain time the Sun of God was to come down
upon earth, to become man, and to die for he salvation of
the world; that they themselves would put him to death
on the Cross as they actually did, and that in punishment
of this impiety they would be driven from their own
kingdom, and without a king, without a temple, without
a country, they would live scattered, and be vagabonds
throughout the world, abhorred and despised by all na
tions. These were predictions that were manifestly
realized in every particular after the death of the Saviour.
What rendered still more certain the truth of our
faith was the formation of a new people of God by the
conversion of the Gentiles: this was known to have been
announced beforehand in the Scriptures, and this was
seen to be realized as soon as the apostles spread through
out the world in order to promulgate the New Law
preached by Jesus Christ. This event was an evident
proof of the protection that God gave to the Christian re
ligion; for how could these poor sinners or these publicans,
such as the apostles were — men devoid of instruction, of
wealth, of every human assistance, and even persecuted
by the magistrates and the emperors, have induced, with
out divine assistance, so many Christians to renounce all
their property, all their honors, and generously to sacri
fice their lives amid tortures the most excruciating that
the power and the cruelty of the tyrants could invent ?
But what was still more marvellous was to behold so
many Gentiles embrace a religion difficult to believe and
difficult to practise. It was difficult to believe on the
part of the intellect, for this religion teaches mysteries
beyond the reach of human reason; namely, the Trinity
of one God in three distinct persons, who have but one
nature, one power, and one will; the Incarnation of the
Son of God come upon earth to die for the salvation of
mankind; and many other articles regarding original
26 Introduction.
sin, the spirituality and the immortality of the soul, the
sacraments, especially the sacrament of the Holy Eucha
rist. It was difficult to practise on the part of the will,
because it commands things contrary to the inclinations
of nature corrupted by sin and repugnant to the libertin
ism in which the pagans were living, who were accus
tomed to follow their passions and to give themselves up
to the pleasures of the senses. Notwithstanding these
obstacles, the Christian religion saw itself embraced by
so many nations ! From this universal consent of the
nations St. Augustine argues the divinity of our religion,
saying that had not God illuminated by his powerful
grace so many people — civilized and barbarian, learned
and illiterate, noble and plebeian, all immersed in the
superstitions of their country, imbued from their earliest
years with maxims so opposed to the sanctity of faith —
how could they have embraced it ?
Besides the interior lights of grace, there were many
other causes that induced the people to embrace Chris
tianity and to remain firm in professing it. Miracles
contributed much to inflame their zeal; for from the
moment in which the apostles began to preach, the Lord
caused miracles to abound in testimony of the faith, as
St. Mark says: They preached everywhere, the Lord working
withal, and confirming the word with signs that followed.1
It is certain that the great miracles that had been
wrought by the apostles and their disciples contributed
largely to the conversion of the world. In vain the ad
herents of idolatry tried to make believe that these prodi
gies were the effect of magical incantations: every one
well understood that God would never permit them if
they were to serve the purpose of giving support to dia
bolical agency or to a false religion. The proof of mira
cles was therefore a truly divine proof, by which the
1 " Praedicaverunt ubique, Domino cooperante et sermonem confirm-
ante sequentibus signis." — Mark, xvi. 20.
Introduction. 27
Lord confirmed the Christian religion and the faith of
believers.
The faith became further strengthened by the con
stancy of martyrs of both sexes, of every age and condi
tion : men and women, the aged and the young, the
noble and the plebeian, the rich and the poor, the learned
and the unlearned, married and single. They were seen
to renounce their homes, their parents, their titles, their
fortunes, and everything they possessed, to embrace
scourges, racks, fire, torture, and to encounter death under
its most horrible shapes; and all this not only with
courage, but with joyfulness and thanksgiving to God,
who made them worthy to suffer and die for his love.
St. Justin, who was himself a martyr, confessed that this
heroic virtue of the Christians had been to him a power
ful stimulus to embrace the faith!1
The martyrs received great courage in their sufferings
from the desire of quickly arriving at the fruition of the
promises made by Jesus Christ to his followers: Blessed
are ye when they shall revile you and persecute you. . . . Be
glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven""
Every one therefore that shall confess me before men I will
also confess him before my Father who is in heaven?
But what above all filled the martyrs with courage and
ardor and made them wish to die was their great love
for their divine Master, whom St. Augustine4 calls the
King of Martyrs, who wished to die on the Cross in pain
and in desolation for the love of us, as St. Paul says:
1 Apolog. i.
a " Beati estis, cum maledixerint vobis, et persecuti vos fuerint . . .
Gaudete et exsultate, quoniam merces vestra copiosa est in ccelis."-
Matt. v. ii.
3 " Omnis ergo qui confitebitur me coram hominibus, confitebor et
ego eum coram Patre meo, qui in ccelis est." — Matt. x. 32.
4 In Ps. Ixiii.
28 Introduction.
He loveth us, and hath delivered himself^/ or us.1 Actuated
by this love, they went with joy to suffer and to die for
Jesus Christ; so that, not content to endure the pains that
were inflicted upon them, they besought, they provoked
the executioners and the tyrants, to obtain from them an
increase of torture, in order that they might show them
selves more grateful to God who died for love of them.
Hence it came to pass, according to St. Justin, that in
the course of three centuries the whole earth was filled
with Christians and martyrs. " There is no nation,
Greek or barbarian," writes the holy martyr to Trypho,
" that does not offer prayers and thanksgivings to the
Creator of the universe by invoking the name of Jesus
Christ."1 St. Irenaeus,3 in like manner, attests that at
his time the faith of Jesus Christ was extended over the
entire world. Pliny, in his celebrated letter to the Em
peror Trajan,4 declared that the Christian faith was ex
tended to such a degree that the temples of the gods were
abandoned, and that victims were no longer offered to
the idols. And Tiberian also wrote to the same emperor
that it would be unwise to put to death all the Christians,
since the number of those who were anxious to die for
Jesus Christ was incalculable.5
From these facts Clement of Alexandria0 subse
quently inferred, that if God himself had not upheld
the Christian faith, it never could have withstood the
efforts of so many philosophers who endeavored to ob
scure it with sophisms, or the violence of so many kings
and emperors who labored to extinguish it by persecu
tion. The number of Christians, far from having been
1 " Dilexit nos, et tradidit semetipsum pro nobis." — Eph. v. 2.
2 Dial, cum Triph.
3 Adv. Hares. 1. 3, c. n.
4 Lib. 10, Ep. 97.
'•" Suidas, Hist. v. 7'rajanus,
ti Strom* 1. 6.
Introduction. 29
diminished by the slaughter of the saints, became so
wonderfully increased, that Tertullian said: "Our num
ber grows in the same measure that you decimate us;
the blood of the Christians is a sort of seed." ' He used
the word seed because the blood of the martyrs w?s
that which multiplied the faithful. Tertullian, indeed,
boasted of this, and upbraided the tyrants with their
impotency; since, notwithstanding all their endeavors
to -exterminate the followers of the Gospel, the streets,
the forum, and even the senate, were filled with Chris
tians. Origen likewise writes: " It is a thing worthy to
be observed, and eminently calculated to excite wonder,
to behold the steady progress of the Christian religion,
in spite of the most untiring persecution and continual
martyrdoms." " Greeks and barbarians," continues this
celebrated writer, " the wise and the unlearned, volun
tarily embraced it; from which we may conclude that its
propagation was due to a power superior to the human." '
Before the end of the second century, we are assured
by Tertullian, all nations (universa gentes) had embraced
the faith of Jesus. He makes special mention of the
Parthians, Medes, and Elamites, the inhabitants *of
Mesopotamia, of Armenia, and of Phrygia, of Cappa-
docia, Pontus, Asia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Cirenasia, and
Palestine; the Gethuli, the entire of Spain, many of the
Gallic tribes, Bretagne, the Sarmatians, the Dacians, the
Scythians, and many remote nations, provinces, and isl
ands.3 Arnobius," who died a hundred years after Ter
tullian, adds to the list of those converted to the faith,
the Indians, the Sarii, the Persians, and the Medes;
Arabia, Syria, Gallacia, Acaja, Macedonia, and Epirus,
with all the islands and provinces from the rising to the
1 Apologet. c. 50.
'-' DC P rind p. \. .], c. I.
•' Adv. Jiulu'os.
* Aiir. Cent. 1. 2.
30 Introduction.
setting sun." Besides those regions enumerated by
Tertullian, St. Athanasius, half a century afterwards,
mentions others. Writing to the Emperor Jovinian, he
says: " Know that this faith has been preached from the
beginning, approved by the Nicene Fathers, and pro
fessed by all the Churches of the world — in Spain, in
England, and in Gaul; throughout the entire of Italy,
in Dalmatia, Dacia, Mysia, and Macedonia; in all Greece,
and in all Africa; in Sardinia, Cyprus, Crete, Pamphylia,
Lysia, and Isauria; in Egypt and Lybia, in Pontus and
Cappadocia. With the exception of a few of the Arian
faction, we may add all the nearer Churches, as well as
those of the East."
Thus we see that, after the ten persecutions of the
Roman emperors, which lasted for more than two
hundred years, beginning from the first under Nero, the
greater part of the human race, having abandoned the
worship of false deities, had embraced the doctrines of
Christianity. Finally, after so many struggles, it pleased
the Almighty Disposer of events to grant peace to his
Church under Constantine. This emperor was, after a
miraculous manner, chosen by Heaven for the carrying
out of the merciful dispensations of divine Providence.
Having first overcome Maxentius, and afterwards Licin-
ius, in the strong arm of the Lord, — for, as Eusebius re
lates, in whatever direction the Labarum, or standard of the
cross, appeared, the enemy either fled or surrendered, —
after peace had been established he forbade the Gentiles
to sacrifice any longer to their idols, and caused magnifi
cent temples to be erected to the honor of Jesus Christ.
And oh, how glorious did not the Church then appear ! still
more widely extending her blessed influence, and, with
every new conquest, bringing additional joy to the hearts
of her once persecuted children ! Then ceased the torments
of the martyr, and with them the bitter calumnies of the
idolater. Busv multitudes of zealous converts were to be
Introduction. 3 1
seen in every city destroying the idols which they once
adored, pulling down the ancient shrines of superstition,
and erecting new altars to the worship of the true God !
The confines of so vast an empire were too narrow a
limit for the active zeal of the great Constantine. He
labored to propagate the saving doctrines of religion in
Persia and among the barbarous nations he had subdued;
nor would he, according to Eusebius1 and Socrates,3
grant them the amity of the Roman Empire, except upon
the condition of their becoming Christians.
True it is that from time to time divers heresies have
sprung up in the Church, which have been productive of
much evil; but the hand of the Lord hath not been shortened?
Even in these latter days we have had authentic accounts
of many considerable acquisitions made by the Church,
both among heretics and pagans. A learned author
writes that ten thousand Arians have recently been con
verted in Transylvania. In Prussia an additional num
ber of Catholic churches have been erected. In Den
mark the public profession of the Catholic religion is
now tolerated. The missions in England are being carried
on with very happy results. We have been assured by
persons of authority and undoubted veracity, that in the
East forty thousand Armenian and other oriental here
tics have been received into the communion of our holy
Church; that in Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and Chaldea
the number of Catholics is every day increasing; and
that during the last few years several Nestorian Bishops
have abjured the errors of that sect. Finally, during
the present century a considerable number of Pagans
have been converted in India and China.*
1 Vita Const. 1. 2, c. 7, 45, 46.
* Hist. 1. i, c. 1 8.
3 Is. lix. i.
* No, certainly, " the hand of the Lord hath not been shortened;" we
see this at all times displaying itself with a new lustre. At the time
32 Introduction.
But to return to the martyrs. The number of Chris
tians who had received the crown of martyrdom, pre
vious to the accession of Constantine, was almost in-
when St. Alphonsus wrote this sketch, more than a century ago, one
of the most terrible trials to which the Church had to submit began by
the suppression of the Jesuits, and ended in the French Revolution. The
altar and the throne were overturned ; the last trace of them was to be
effaced; the blood of the martyrs flowed in torrents; the Sovereign Pon
tiff, despoiled of his States, was dragged into exile, where he died. The
Church appeared annihilated in the eyes of her enemies, when she rose
again with Pius VII., who, chosen miraculously at Venice, proceeded
without hindrance to Rome and sat triumphantly on his throne in
sight of an astonished world. His invincible patience, resting only on
God, overcame all the artifices and all the violence of a tyrant who*was
then all-powerful, of whom God made an illustrious example of his
justice and mercy. At the present day we see that three things are
lying in the abyss opened by impiety to ingulf religion. These three
things are Josephism, Gallicanism, and Jansenism. Not only is divine
worship re-established in France, but this fertile land, notwithstanding
the efforts of hell, produces a multitude of new institutions, fruits of
the noblest zeal, such as the admirable work of the Propagation of the
Faith. The same religious movement signalizes itself in other parts of
Europe by many remarkable conversions, notably in Germany, Sweden,
and England. The Catholic missions make progress nearly everywhere
— in Africa, Asia, America, and Australia, and as far as the innumerable
islands of Oceanica, where horrible cannibals become exemplary Chris
tians. Corea counts more than ten thousand followers of Christ and
one hundred and forty martyrs before it has even seen a priest; some
thing nearly similar took place among the Indians of the Rocky Mountains
in northern Oregon. The pontificate of Pius IX., troubled as was that
of Pius VII., is not less fertile in wonders of every kind; thus, among
other things, at the moment of peril, a devoted band of young men
came from different Catholic countries, closed around the Vicar of Jesus
Christ, and did not hesitate to shed their blood in defence of the rights
of the Holy See; and when the Holy Father was deprived of necessary
resources there was established the Peter's pence, which extended from
Belgium to all other countries, to assist in overcoming falsehood, hypo
crisy, and brutal force that had conspired against the Church. The
Church of God on earth is always militant; but each of her combats fur
nishes a new proof of the truth of the infallible words : ' ' The gates of hell
shall not prevail against her" (Matt. xvi. 18).— ED.
Introduction, 33
credible. Many authors calculate the number of those
who had laid down their livres for the faith to have been
nearly eleven millions! So that if this number were
equally distributed in the course of one year, thirty thou
sand would be allotted to each day.
Oh, the beautiful harvest of holy martyrs that para
dise has reaped since the preaching of the Gospel ! But,
O God ! what will be, on the day of general judgment,
the confusion of the tyrants and of all the persecutors of
the faith, at the sight of the martyrs once so despised
and so maltreated by them, when these celestial heroes
shall appear in glory, extolling the greatness of God,
and armed with the sword of divine justice to avenge
themselves for all the injuries and cruelties exercised
against them, as was foretold by David : The high praises
of God in their mouths, and two-edged swords in their hands
to execute vengeance upon tJie nations; to bind their kings in
fetters, and their nobles in manacles of iron.1 Then shall
the martyrs judge the Neros, the Domidans, and other
persecutors, and shall condemn them; yea, as we read in
the Gospel of St. Matthew, even to the exterior darkness,
where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth?
But it will be for us a subject of more profitable medi
tation to reflect upon another scene which the great day
of general and irrevocable doom \vill present — the de
spair of so many Christians who, having died in mortal
sin, will behold with unavailing anguish the triumph of
so many martyrs, who, rather than lose God, suffered
themselves to be despoiled of all things, and underwent
the most horrid torments that hell could suggest or
1 " Exaltationes Dei in gutture eorum, et gladii ancipites in manibus
eorum, ad faciendam vindictam in nationibus, increpationes in populis,
ad alligandos reges eorum in compedibus et nobiles eorum in manicis
ferreis, ut faciant in eis judicium conscriptum." — Ps. cxlix. 6.
'* " Ligatis manibus et pedibusejus, mittite eum in tenebras exteriores;
ibi frit tletus et stridor dentium." — Mutt. xxii. 13.
3
34 Introduction.
tyrants inflict; while they, rather than yield a point of
honor or forego a momentary gratification, despised the
suggestions of divine grace, and lost their souls forever !
II.
The Advantages of Devout Meditation on the Virtues that
the Martyrs Practised during their Sufferings.
From an earnest consideration of the illustrious ex
amples of virtue which the saints have given us during
their martyrdom, oh, how much is to be learned !
I. By beholding, in devout meditation, the utter con
tempt in which they held the world and all the allure
ments of its pompous vanities, we are taught to despise
the fleeting and unsubstantial pleasures which it offers
to its deluded votaries. Many of them, previously to
having been put to torture, had been offered by the
tyrants immense rewards, posts of honor, and noble
marriages, to induce them to abandon the faith. Yet
they not only indignantly refused them, but willingly
renounced the riches and honors which they already
held, and offered themselves up to tortures the most ex
cruciating and deaths the most ignominious, in order not
to lose those heavenly graces which benign Providence
fails not to impart to the servants of the Lord, as the
earnest of the eternal blessings which shall be the re
compense of their fidelity. To St. Clement of Ancyra
the tyrant offered a great quantity of gold and precious
stones if he would deny the name of the Lord Jesus;
but the saint, raising his eyes to heaven, exclaimed:
"And is it thus, O my God, that men treat Thee!
— to compare Thee to dust and dross !" The pontifi
cal dignity was offered to St. Theodore of Amasea, as
the reward of his apostasy. The holy martyr, ridiculing
the proposal, replied: "Pontifical dignity ! I am about
to enjoy God forever in heaven; and is it likely, think
Introduction. 35
you, that I should prefer remaining on earth, to follow
the trade of a cook and a butcher to your false gods?"
II. From the example of the martyrs we learn also to
place our confidence only in God, and to become daily
more enamoured of the excellence of our faith: since in
their constancy we cannot help admiring the wonderful
power of God which enabled them to encounter tor
ments and death with heroic fortitude and ecstatic joy.
For without the interposition of the most powerful as
sistance from heaven, how could the delicate constitution
of nervous persons, the tottering decrepitude of age, the
timorous disposition of tender virgins, the recklessness
of adolescent manhood, or the inconsideration of boyhood
years, be equal to tortures, the bare recital of which fills
us with horror ? Caldrons of boiling oil and liquid pitch,
red-hot coats of mail, hooks to pull out the eyes and
teeth, iron combs to tear off the flesh; fires quickly to
consume, or tediously to torture; scourging until bones
and bowels appeared; beheading, quartering, lacerating,
impaling — these were only some of the ingredients of the
martyr's cup.
• St. Barlaam, a poor laborer of a village in Antioch,
having evinced extraordinary fortitude during his suffer
ings, and having been scourged until the executioners
had exhausted their strength, was obliged by the tyrant
to hold his hand over the flame that burned before the
shrine of an idol. At the same time burning coals and
incense were placed upon his hand, in the hope that he
might be obliged by the pain to let them fall upon the
altar, and thus afford them the opportunity of asserting
that he had sacrificed to the idols; but the constancy of
the saint was greater than their malice — he allowed his
flesh to be burned to the bone, and expired in the effort.
St. Basil and St. John Chrysostom have eulogized this
martyr.
St. Eulalia affords another instance of the wonderful
36 Introduction.
aid which the Almighty gives to those who are devoted
to his service. She was a youthful virgin, of only twelve
years; the tyrant ordered her to be cruelly scourged, and
then caused boiling oil to be poured into the wounds,
and burning torches to be applied to her breasts and
sides. During these tortures she ceased not to praise
the Lord. Her joints were entirely dislocated, the flesh
torn from her bones with iron hooks, and she was fin
ally burned alive, having baffled the ingenuity of her in
human executioners.
The martyrdom, also, of St. Vitus and St. Agapitus
shows us the wonderful assistance of grace, which never
fails the servants of the Lord. The former, when only
fourteen years of age, was scourged, racked, and torn with
irons. His father, who was a Gentile, wept with anguish
to see hisson expire in such torments. " No, father !" ex
claimed the boy, "I do not die: I go to live with Christ
forever." St. Agapitus, also a youth, evinced the same
fortitude : the tyrant threatened that he would place
upon his head a red-hot helmet: "And what better
fortune could await me," said the saint, " than to ex
change your instrument of torture for a heavenly crown ?"
Then the emperor ordered that red-hot coals should
be placed on his head, that he be scourged, and be sus
pended by the feet over a thick smoke; he afterwards
had boiling water poured over his breast, and finally had
him beheaded.
The triumph of divine grace in the aged was manifested
in St. Simeon, who at the age of one hundred and twenty
endured the most excruciating tortures and expired on a
cross, as is related by Eusebius of Caesarea. St. Philip,
Bishop of Heraclea, at a most decrepit old age, was
dragged by the feet through the city, scourged till his
bowels appeared, and afterwards burned alive. The
venerable martyr, till his last breath, ceased not to return
thanks to the Lord, who had made him worthy to die for
his glory.
Introduction. 3 7
III. From the patience which the martyrs evinced
during their tortures, we should learn to suffer with
holy resignation the crosses and afflictions of this life;
poverty, sickness, persecution, contumely, injustice, and
all other evils, are but trifling when compared with their
sufferings. The reflection that it was the will of God
that they should suffer for his love, was their only solace.
We also in our tribulations should remember the neces
sity of resignation to the divine will; and, calling to
mind the more grievous sufferings of the martyrs, should
blush to complain. St. Vincent de Paul used to say:
" Conformity to the divine will is a sovereign remedy for
all evils."
It may be useful here to remark, with St. Augustine,
that it is not the torture but the cause which maketh the
martyr.2 Whence St. Thomas3 teaches that martyrdom
is to suffer death in the exercise of an act of virtue.
From which we may infer that not only he who by the
hands of the executioner lays down his life for the faith,
but whoever dies to comply with the divine will, and to
please God, is a martyr, since in sacrificing himself to
the divine love he performs an act of the most exalted
virtue. We all have to pay the great debt of nature; let
us therefore endeavor, in holy prayer, to obtain resigna
tion to the divine will — to receive death and every tribu
lation in conformity with the dispensations of his Provi
dence. As often as we shall perform this act of resigna
tion with sufficient fervor, we may hope to be made
partakers of the merits of the martyrs. St. Mary Mag
dalene de Pazzi, in reciting the doxology in the office,
always bowed her head in the same spirit as she would
have done in receiving the stroke of the executioner.*
1 Abelly, 1. 3, ch. 9.
- " Martyres veros, non poena facit, sed causa." — Kfist. 89, E. B.
3 2. 2, q. 124, a. 5.
* The same idea is repeated, page 39.
38 Introduction.
IV. The examples of the martyrs teach us also to have
immediate recourse to the assistance of God, by earnest
supplication, when we feel ourselves disconsolate or weak
under affliction. Thus did the holy martyrs. As their
torture increased, they multiplied their prayers and se
cured the victory. St. Theodore, after a long endurance
of his tortures, was stretched upon burning tiles; feeling
the pain penetrating to his very heart, he besought the
Lord to mitigate the torture, and persevered to the end.
There have, on the contrary, been examples of Christians,
who, failing to invoke the assistance of the Almighty,
have fallen off from the confession of the,. faith, and for
feited the glorious crown. An example is found in the
acts of the martyrs of Japan. An aged man, having'
been condemned to a protracted martyrdom, endured
the torture for a considerable time, but failing to invoke
heavenly aid, denied his faith a few moments before he
expired — a startling warning to all, that perseverance in
prayer, in times of temptation and distress, is that which
alone can insure us the victory.
V. But the most important lesson which we learn from
the martyrs is the necessity of the love of God: He
who loveth not abideth in death? We cannot manifest our
love of God so well by a multitude of actions performed
for his glory, as by a willingness to suffer for his sake.
St. Gordianus replied to the tyrant, who threatened to
put him to death if he did not deny the name of Jesus:
"You threaten death ! but my greatest regret is, that I
can die but once for Jesus Christ." In a similar manner,
St. Procopius exclaimed to the tyrant, who was directing
further tortures: "Torment as much as thou wilt, but
know that to one who truly loves Jesus Christ, nothing
is dearer than to suffer for his sake." "And did the
s-aints speak thus," says St. Bernard, "because they were
1 " Qui non diligit, manet in morte." — i John, iii. 14.
Introduction . 3 9
insensible to torments ? No," continues the holy Doctor,
" they were neither frantic nor insensible, but their love
of Jesus Christ caused them to esteem it all joy to suffer
and to die for his glory." This ardent love of God is
certainly the greatest spiritual advantage to be derived
from the perusal of the acts of the martyrs; the recol
lection of their conduct will make us ashamed to repine
under the tribulations which divine Providence sends us,
and will strengthen us to receive them with resignation.
VI. I add that death, which is the tribute that every
one must pay, is the greatest of all our tribulations, and
that makes not only sinners but the just tremble. Our
Saviour himself as man wished to show the fear that he
felt in the face of death, so that he began to pray to his
Father to free him from it, But at the same time he
teaches us to accept death according to the good pleasure
of God by saying: Nevertheless, not my will but thine be
done? The following is the way in which we acquire the
glory of martyrdom: It is by accepting death to please
God and to conform to his will; for, as we have remarked
above with St. Augustine, not the pain, but the cause of
death, or the end for which one submits to it, is that
which makes martyrs. It follows that he who dies, in
courageously accepting death and all the pains that ac
company it, to accomplish the divine will, though he does
not receive death by the hands of the executioner, dies,
however, with the merit of martyrdom, or at least with
a very similar merit. It also follows that as often as
any one offers himself to undergo martyrdom for the
love of God, so often he gains the merit of martyrdom.
We have seen above3 the example of St. Mary Magdalene
of Pazzi, who when she inclined the head at the Glory be
to the Father, imagined that at the same moment she was
1 " Neque hoc facit stupor, sed amor." — In Cant. s. 61.
* " Verumtamen, non sicut ego volo, sed sicut tu." — Matt. xxvi. 39.
3 Page 37.
40 Introduction.
receiving the stroke of the executioner. Hence we shall
see in heaven a great number of saints doubly crowned
with the merit of martyrdom without having been
martyred.
VII. Finally, \ve should be moved to recommend our
selves every day, with great confidence, to the interces
sion of the holy martyrs, whose prayers are most effica
cious with God. When we suffer some grievous pain, or
when we desire a special favor, let us make a novena or
a triduum in honor of the holy martyrs, and we shall
easily obtain the grace. Let us not fail to honor them,
says St. Ambrose; for they are our princes in the faith
and our powerful intercessors.1 If the Lord promises a
reward to him who gives a drink of water to a poor man,8
what will he not do for those who sacrificed their lives
in the midst of torments! Let us here observe that the
martyrs, before receiving the mortal blow, without doubt
prepared themselves many times for the many tortures
and for death, so that when they closed their earthly
career they died with the merit not only of one martyr
dom, but with the merit of all those martyrdoms that
they had already accepted and offered sincerely to God.
Hence we may imagine with what abundance of merits
they entered heaven, and how valuable is their mediation
with God.
A Prayer to the Holy Martyrs to obtain their Protection.
O ye blessed Princes of the heavenly kingdom ! ye
who sacrificed to the Almighty God the honors, the
riches, and possessions of this life, and have received in
return the unfading glory and never-ending joys of
heaven ! ye who are secure in the everlasting possession
of the brilliant crown of glory which your sufferings
have obtained ! — look with compassionate regards upon
^\\_2jp^Hpnoremus beatos Martyres, principes fidei, intercessores mun-
92. * Matt. x. 42.
Introduction. 41
our wretched state in this valley of tears, where we groan
in the uncertainty of what may be our eternal destiny.
And from that divine Saviour, for whom you suffered so
many torments, and who now repays you with so un
speakable glory, obtain for us that we may love him
with all our heart, and receive in return the grace of
perfect resignation under the trials of this life, fortitude
under the temptations of the enemy, and perseverance to
the end. May your powerful intercession obtain for us
that we may one day in your blessed company sing the
praises of the Eternal, and, even as you now do, face to
face, enjoy the beatitude of his vision !
III.
The Various Tortures to which the Martyrs were Subjected.
The Rev. Father Mamachi, in his erudite and labored
work entitled " Manners and Customs of the First
Christians,"1 gives an account of all these tortures suf
fered by the martyrs, from the works of ancient writers
who were their contemporaries, as St. Justin, Tertullian,
Athenagoras, Origen, Eusebius of Caesarea, Clement of
Alexandria, and others. This author describes at much
length the various species of torture employed against
the servants of Jesus Christ during the ten persecu
tions of the Roman emperors ; we shall be more brief,
as our intention is merely to .show how rich in merit
those sainted heroes closed their earthly career.
I. THE MARTYRDOM OF THE CROSS.
Some were crucified in an erect posture, as was our
Lord Jesus Christ ; others with the head downwards, as
St. Peter, according to Eusebius, who relates this on the
authority of Origen ; others in the manner in which the
martyrdom of St. Andrew is represented. Many were
made to pass their arms under the transverse beam of
1 L. 2, ch. 6.
42 Introduction.
the cross, and had their hands nailed upon the upper
part. Some were suspended from a tree by the hands,
their arms having been first tied behind their backs,
and heavy weights attached to their feet. Women were
hung up by the hair, the agony of which torture was suf
ficient to cause death ; others were hung by one or both
feet, with the head downwards, and in many cases a
large stone tied round the neck ; finally, many had
their hands nailed to a beam, with enormous weights at
their feet.
2. THE MARTYRDOM OF FIRE.
Some were placed upon gridirons, others plunged
into caldrons of boiling oil or pitch. Many were suffo
cated with smoke, or dressed in a garment smeared with
some combustible matter, and so burned at a stake.
Some were cast into fiery furnaces ; more were crowded
into a ship, which was set on fire at sea ; others were in
closed in a brazen bull and roasted alive ; more were
tortured by red-hot plates of iron applied to their sides;
some, finally, were thrown upon the earth, and molten
lead poured over them, or were impaled upon a spit,
and roasted before a slow fire.
3. THE TORTURE OF THE SCOURGE.
Scourges were of various kinds — of leather, of cane,
of the tendons of oxen, of iron links, and sometimes of
rods of iron, shaped like thorns, which were called scor
pions. The martyrs were generally tied to a post, or
between four posts, to increase their punishment; but
some were placed in a kind of stock. This stock con
sisted of two large pieces of wood, one above the other,
between which the feet of the sufferers1 were confined,
1 There was another instrument of torture which is called in Latin
Nervus. It was a wooden machine destined to confine the feet, and
sometimes the neck and the hands ; it had several holes at different dis
tances from one another. Hence it is said of certain martyrs that their
feet were stretched as far as the fourth or fifth hole. — ED.
Introduction. 43
and in this torture they were sometimes scourged, others
were thrown with their backs on a table filled with
large nails, then struck with sticks or rods.
4. THE TORTURE OF THE IRONS.
These were iron hooks on which the Christians were
suspended, and iron claws that served to tear them to
the bone and to their very entrails. Other instruments
were destined to pull out all their teeth, one after the
other. Their flesh was lacerated with iron combs, or
they were flayed. They were tied to the ground and
were cut with blows of the hatchet, or their members
were gradually cut to pieces, from the toes till their
thighs, and from the fingers to the breasts, so that
nothing was left but the trunk. They were stretched
with their backs against a wheel that made them move
on sharp irons fixed in the ground ; or they were tied
upon a table, then disembowelled, and their intestines
taken out.
5. OTHER TORTURES.
The martyrs were also tortured on the rack, and with
other torments. Sometimes they were exposed to the
sun, their bodies being rubbed with honey so that they
might be stung by the flies and wasps. They were
made to die in different ways. They were stoned, be
headed, strangled, drowned. There were some who
were tied to two trees that had been bent by main force,
which when released would tear them to pieces. Others
tied in a bag were thrown into the sea, or thrown to the
dogs or wild beasts. Some were made to die under the
press; others perished from hunger.1
1 In Part II. we shall see several other tortures invented by the re
fined cruelty of the Japanese. — ED.
PREFACE.
IT is not our intention to give, in this work, a history
of all the martyrs who have glorified the Church ; but,
without subjecting ourselves to any order of time or of
persons,' merely to relate the victories of some saints
who showed the greatest courage in their combats, and
suffered the most horrible tortures that could have been
invented by the tyrants.
In some of our narrations the reader may find himself
at a loss to account for such barbarity and fierceness as
the tyrants practised upon the martyrs, whose innocence
and meekness might be expected to save them from per
secution. Let us consider whence this fury came.
It at first originated in the hatred which the Pagans
bore towards Christians, whose virtues were the strong
est censure upon their infamous lives.
It was also caused by the instigation of the devils
who vehemently abhorred these pious athletes, the more
their example served to propagate the faith and induced
the rest to imitate them.
The principal reason of this persecution was the
hatred that these tyrants conceived against the martyrs
1 This holds good only of Part I. ; in Part II. the author has followed
a chronological order, but we may everywhere : ee that he has taken
care to vary the subjects, according to the condition of persons, of their
country, of their manner of death; for instance, a distinguished old man,
the Bishop of Antioch, is transported to Rome to be devoured by beasts;
now a young woman with her child is beheaded in Asia Minor; then
a generous deacon undergoes various tortures in Spain; etc. — ED.
46 Preface.
in seeing themselves overcome by children, by tender
virgins, by simple and ignorant men, who upbraided
them with their insanity in following a false religion,
which authorized every vice, and called upon them to
worship as gods men who, during their lives, had given
the most horrid examples of turpitude and crime that
ever human nature revolted at.
Their rage was yet more increased at the sight of the
very many miracles wrought through the servants of
the true God ; — they saw wild beasts cast themselves at
the feet of the martyrs ; they perceived that red-hot
coals, molten lead, did not burn them, and witnessed
other similar prodigies. In vain did they cry out :
"This is magic; these are incantations;" the people
were converted in the presence of these miracles, and
thousands of them embraced the faith ; and this re
doubled the irritation of the judges.
They believed that they were frightening the Chris
tians by inventing new tortures, and flattered them
selves that they were extinguishing the faith by putting
to death all Christians. But the more they multiplied
tortures and immolated victims, the more did the num
ber of the faithful increase. Tertullian1 relates that a
certain governor in Asia, named Arrius, was putting to
death those who confessed the name of the Lord Jesus,
when such a multitude presented themselves before his
tribunal as caused him to shudder at the thought of
shedding so much blood ; he therefore contented himself
with putting a few of them to death, and to the rest he
said : " If your desire of death be so irresistible, there
are precipices enough from which to fling yourselves.
Begone !"
As I have already remarked, I do not intend to give a
general history of the martyrs : I wish only to describe
1 Ad Scapul.
Preface. 4 7
the heroic acts of some of the most remarkable of them.
No one should be astonished that at times I do not
relate all the circumstances that are found in other
books ; I have only taken care to mention most authen
ticated facts, drawn from trustworthy authors, omitting
a few particulars which I do not reject as being false,
but which appear to me to be doubtful, as they are
taken from uncertain and suspected acts. According to
Cardinal Baronius,1 " it is better to relate a few facts of
undoubted certainty, than to risk the introduction of
any dubious circumstances, by indulging in lengthy
details, because the few facts given upon respectable
authority will always be received with satisfaction by
the reader, while the detection of any dubious matter
would make him suspect even that which is in reality
true."
In compliance with this excellent advice, we shall en
deavor to select the best authenticated facts, while we
intend to avoid, on the other hand, the extreme of scep
ticism. For such it would be to reject the testimony of
an author whose authority is generally received, or who
has the characters of antiquity, probity, learning, and
exactness.
I say this because there are certain writers who seem
to take merit to themselves by doubting everything.
An accurate discrimination in the selection of facts and
authorities is a homage due to truth ; but even this may
be carried to an excess bordering on scepticism ; for as
it is a weakness to put faith in everything we find re
corded, without the concurrent testimony of competent
authority, so, on the other hand, it is rashness to receive
everything with doubt. We should not refuse belief to
the wonderful acts of the martyrs ; but on the contrary,
we should be persuaded that God can work in his saints
1 ;lnn. 307.
48 Preface.
more wondrous effects than the weakness of our under
standings can comprehend.
In describing the following triumphs of the martyrs
I have with the utmost diligence consulted the most
learned and accurate authors. I have retrenched all
superfluous words as well as certain unimportant de
tails, and have endeavored to present clearly and con
cisely only the substance of the facts, selecting those that
most abound in generous traits and in useful instruc
tion ; in a word, those that are most conducive to spirit
ual edification.
PART I.
ittartnrs of ll)c firet
CHAPTER I.
ST. IGNATIUS, BISHOP OF ANTIOCH.
February i.
ST. IGNATIUS, also called Theophorus, that is, one that
carries God, lived in the first century of the Church. He
was a disciple of the apostles, particularly of St. John ;
by them he was baptized, and subsequently ordained
Bishop of the Church of Antioch which had the honor
of having been founded by the Apostle St. Peter, and
as the place where the disciples of Jesus Christ were first
called Christians.
St. Ignatius undertook the government of this church
after the death of Evodius, the successor of St. Peter,
which occurred in the year of the Lord 69 ; although
Cardinal Orsi1 cites the opinion of some who would
have it that St. Ignatius was the immediate successor of
St. Peter. Our saint governed his flock with such zeal
that all the churches of Syria consulted him as an ora
cle. In the persecution of Domitian he had to suffer
much, and labored, at the risk of his life, for the preser
vation of the faith, animating his flock to be faithful to
the death. He longed for the glory of martyrdom, fre-
1 Jstor. t't'f/. 1. 3, n. (.).
50 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
quently saying that he could not be persuaded of his
love for Christ till he had testified it with his blood.
Upon the death of Domitian in the year 96, the tem
pest abated under Nerva, his sucessor, But during this
time heretics did not cease to trouble the Church ; this
is the reason why the saint, writing to the faithful of
Smyrna, recommended them not to have any communi
cation with them : " Be satisfied," he said to them, "with
merely praying to God for those who abstain from the
Eucharist, because they deny it to be the flesh of Jesus
Christ, who died for our sins."
In the year 105 the persecution was renewed by the
Emperor Trajan. This prince, after his conquest of
the Scythians and the Dacians, published an edict
which obliged all, under pain of death, to offer sacrifice
to the gods. Marching afterwards against the Par-
thians, he arrived at Antioch ; and, hearing with how
much zeal and success St. Ignatius propagated the
Christian religion, he called him to his presence and
thus addressed him: "Art thou that wicked demon
called Theophorus, who taketh pleasure in violating
our edict of sacrificing to the gods, and dost continue
to seduce the inhabitants of this city by preaching the
law of Christ?" Ignatius replied: "Yes, prince, I am
called Theophorus ; by no one can Theophorus be
called a demon, because the devils fly from the servants
of God. If thou callest me a devil because I endeavor
to defeat the machinations of the devil, I well deserve
the name." Trajan asked him the signification of the
term Theophorus; the saint replied, "It signifies 'the
bearer of God.' " The emperor replied : " Thou earnest
God in thy heart ; and we, have we not also in our
selves the gods that assist us ?" The saint answered
with enthusiasm : "It is an error, O prince! to give the
name of gods to the demons that you adore : there is
only one true God, the Creator of heaven and earth,
CHAP. LI St. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch. 51
and Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son." The emperor
replied, "Dost thou speak of Him who \vas crucified
under Pontius Pilate?" "Yes," answered the saint, "of
Him I speak who has confounded the malice of devils,
and placed them beneath the feet of those Christians
who carry God in their hearts." He added that Trajan
would be more happy, and his empire more prosperous,
if he would believe in the Lord Jesus ; but the emperor,
heedless of these exhortations, offered to make him a
priest of Jupiter and a member of the senate if he
would sacrifice to the gods. The saint replied that he
was content to be a priest of Jesus Christ, for whom he
ardently desired to shed his blood. Trajan, filled with
anger, then pronounced sentence upon the saint — that
he should be conducted in chains to Rome, and de
voured by wild beasts at the public games.
St. Ignatius having heard the sentence, raised his
eyes to heaven, and exclaimed : " I thank Thee, O Lord,
because that Thou hast vouchsafed to make me worthy
of giving Thee a proof of my love by sacrificing my life
for Thy faith ; I desire, O Lord, that the beasts may
hasten to devour me, that I may make to Thee the sac
rifice of myself." He then stretched forth his hands to
be chained, kissing the manacles as they bound him ;
and with tears recommending his church to God, he
was conducted by the soldiers to Seleucia, and thence
to Smyrna, accompanied by two of his deacons, Philo
and Agathopodus, who are believed to be the authors
of his acts. Wherever the saint passed, he ceased not
his exhortations to the faithful to persevere in faith and
prayer, to be enamoured of the riches of heaven, and to
despise those of this earth. The Christians came, in
great numbers, to meet him and to receive his blessing,
especially the bishops and priests of the churches of
Asia, who, as they perceived him going so joyfully to
martyrdom, wept in the tenderness of affection. Hav-
52 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
ing arrived at Smyrna, he embraced St. Polycarp, and
they mutually consoled each other ; he thence wrote
to the churches of Ephesus, Magnesia, and Trallia.
Amongst other things, he says to the Ephesians : " I
carry my chains for Christ, which are to me spiritual
pearls, more prized than all the treasures of the world."
Knowing that from Smyrna some Ephesians had to
go to Rome by a route shorter than his, he conveyed by
them his celebrated letter to the Romans ; the letter is
long, but a few passages are particularly worthy of
being transcribed ; they are as follows :
" Suffer me to be the food of wild beasts, whereby I
may attain unto God. I am the wheat of God, and am
to be ground by the teeth of wild beasts, in order that
I may be found the pure bread of Christ. ... I ear
nestly wish for the wild beasts that are prepared for
me, whom I heartily desire may soon dispatch me ; I
will entice them to devour me entirely and suddenly,
that they may not spare me as they have others whom
they feared to touch ; but, if they are unwilling to med
dle with me, I will even compel them to it. Pardon
me, my children, I know what is good for me ; I now
commence to be a disciple of Christ, since I have no
desire for anything visible or invisible, so that I may
attain to Jesus Christ. Let fire or the cross, or the con
course of wild beasts — let cutting or tearing of the flesh
— let breaking of bones and cutting off limbs — let the
shattering in pieces of my entire body, and all the tor
ments invented by the devil, come upon me, so I may
but attain unto Jesus Christ. ... It is better for me to
die for the sake of Jesus Christ, than to rule to the ends
of the earth. . . . Pardon me, brethren ; be not my
hindrance in attaining to life, for Jesus Christ is the life
of the faithful ; whilst I desire to belong to God, do not
ye yield me back to the world. . . . Permit me to imi
tate the Passion of Christ my God ; let none of you
CHAP, i.i >SV. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch. 53
who are present attempt to succor me — be rather on
my side, that is, on God's ; entertain no desire of the
world ; having Jesus Christ in your mouths, let no envy
find place in your breasts. Even were I myself to en
treat you, when present, do not obey me, but rather
believe what I now signify to you by letter. . . . My
love is crucified! ... I take no pleasure in the food of
corruption, nor in the enjoyment of this life. I desire
the bread of God, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, and
for drink his blood. . . . Pray for me, that I may pos
sess God. If I consummate my sacrifice this will be a
sign that you have given your consent, and that ye
truly love me."
He next arrived at Troas, whence he wrote epistles
to the churches of Philadelphia and Smyrna, and to his
friend St. Polycarp, to whom he recommended the
church of Antioch. The soldiers fearing that they would
arrive too late at Rome, because the public games
were nearly at an end, hastened their march, to the
great satisfaction of the holy martyr, who ardently de
sired to be at the place of execution. When he was near
Rome, the Christians came in great numbers to meet
and salute him. They thought, as Fleury relates,1 to in
duce the people to solicit his pardon, but the saint re
peated what he had stated in his letters, and prevented
all interference. On entering Rome, he knelt down
with the other Christians to offer himself to God, and
fervently prayed that peace might be restored to the
Church. He was then conducted to the amphitheatre,
where immense numbers were assembled ; and, hearing
the bellowings of the wild beasts, he repeated the mem
orable words of his epistle to the Romans : " I am the
wheat of God, and am to be ground by the teeth of
wild beasts, in order that I may be found the pure
1 Hist, ccc I. 1. 3, n. 12.
54 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
bread of Christ." The saint was instantly devoured by
lions, as he had desired to be, and at the moment of
his death he was heard to invoke the adorable name of
Jesus.
Only the larger bones of his body were left ; these
were collected and brought to Antioch by his two dea
cons, to whom he appeared on the following night, re
splendent with glory. His martyrdom took place on
the 2oth December, of the year 107. After the destruc
tion of Antioch by the Saracens, his relics were removed
to Rome, and placed in the Church of St. Clement where
at the present day they are venerated with great devo
tion. His name has been inserted in the canon of Mass.
The acts of the martyrdom of St. Ignatius are found
in the collection of Ruinart, entitled : Acta Primorum
Marty rum Sine era.
CHAPTER II.
ST. JULITTA, AND ST. QUIRICUS, HER SON.
June 16.
ST. JULITTA was a noble lady of the city of Iconium, in
Lycaonia. During the reign of the Emperors Dioclesian
and Maximian, a most cruel tyrant called Domitian
was governor of the province. While the persecution
was raging most violently, St. Julitta took her infant
son Cyr,1 only three years old, and accompanied by two
female servants, fled for safety to Seleucia, in Isauria;
where, however, she found Alexander, the Proconsul of
Cilicia, who exercised a no less barbarous cruelty .than
Domitian against those Christians who refused to sacri-
1 In Latin, Cirycus or Quiricus.
CHAP, ii.] SS. Julitta and Quiricus. 55
fice to the gods. The saint passed from Seleucia to
Tharsis, where Alexander arrived about the same time,
Having been recognized, she was arrested and conducted
before the judge with the infant Quiricus in her arms.
Fire and incense were produced, in order that, renounc
ing Jesus Christ, she might sacrifice; but the saint an
swered: " I am a Christian, and therefore am prepared
to lose not only my property, but even my life, rather
than deny my God." The judge frequently urged her
to abjure her faith; but she who wished to compensate
her temporal loss by the acquisition of eternal gains
uniformly replied: "I am a Christian: I cannot deny
Jesus Christ."
Alexander, infuriated by her constancy, ordered that
the child should be torn from her embrace, and that she
should be cruelly scourged; but the holy lady under this
torture fervently and continually repeated: "I am a
Christian: I cannot sacrifice to your gods." Quiricus,
meanwhile, was beholding the agonies of his mother,
and struggled to return to her embrace; but Alexander,
to quiet him, placed him on his knee, and endeavored
to kiss him. The child, however, kept his eyes fixed con
tinually upon his parent, and by plunging and kicking,
tried to free himself from the tyrant, crying out at the
same time: "I also am a Christian." The inhuman
wretch dashed the child from him, and the agonizing
mother, seeing the steps of the throne bespattered with
the blood and brains of her infant, exclaimed: " I give
Thee thanks, O my God ! for having called my boy be
fore me to Thyself."
The brutal judge, still more infuriated by this excla
mation, caused her sides to be torn with iron hooks, and
boiling pitch. to be poured upon her feet. Meanwhile
one of the bystanders said to her: "Julitta, have pity
upon thyself; perish not as thy son has perished; sacri
fice to the gods." " I cannot," she replied, " sacrifice to
56 Martyrs of the First Ages. FPART i.
devils and to mute statues. I adore the Lord Jesus, and
wish to meet my son in heaven;" upon which the judge
decreed that she should be beheaded. This sentence
filled the saint with joy. Arrived at the place of her
last struggle, she cast herself upon her knees, as Father
Massini relates in his beautiful work of the lives of the
Saints, according to the acts of the martyrs by Ruinart.
She then prayed after the following manner: "O God,
who hast been pleased to admit my child to a participa
tion of the glory of Thy saints, turn Thine eyes of mercy
towards me also, and grant me a place among the souls
destined to love Thee and adore Thee forever." Having
finished her prayer her head was at once cut off. It is
thus that Julitta, with her heart all inflamed with holy
love and full of joy, consummated her sacrifice in the
year 304. l
1 We think it our duty to rectify several passages of this narration, in
which the author has confused two holy martyrs of the same name and
of the same period, but not of the same place. She whose victory St.
Basil describes in his homilies was of Caesarea in Cappadocia, when she
was denounced as a Christian by the spoliation of her property, and
then condemned to be burnt alive, because she had steadfastly refused
to offer incense to the idols, as we read in the martyrology, July 30.
This was at the beginning of the persecution of Diocletian in 303. She
was courageous enough to place herself at once on the funeral pile.
After the execution her body was found entire, without change; then it
was interred in the vestibule of the cathedral church, where afterwards
a fountain sent forth miraculous water which healed many sick persons.
All these circumstances have reference to St. Julitta of Caesarea. — As
for St. Julitta of Iconium, the mother St. Cyr, the martyrology men
tions her, June 16. She was recognized and arrested as a Christian on
her arrival in Tharsis. After seeing her son perish in a manner so cruel
and yet so consoling, she was subjected to various tortures, and termi
nated her triumph by being beheaded. Her body and that of her son
were then cast out of the city with those of other crimjnals ; but her two
servants who had taken flight and had hidden themselves, came secretly,
carried them away, and carefully buried them in the field. Later on, when
peace was restored to the Church, under the great Constantine, one of
them who was yet living discovered the precious deposit, which became
CHAP, in.] St. Vincent, Deacon. 57
CHAPTER III.
ST. VINCENT, DEACON.
January 22.
ST. VINCENT, one of the most celebrated martyrs of
Spain, was born in Saragossa, of one of the most re
spectable families of that city. While very young, he
was placed under the tutelage of Valerius, Bishop of that
church, who with great pains instructed him in the doc
trines of religion, giving him at the same time a very
extensive acquaintance with human science. Vincent,
having made wonderful progress in learning, was or
dained deacon by this prelate, who being himself pre
vented from preaching by an impediment in his speech,
entrusted this office to Vincent. The young Levite
discharged this important duty with such success that a
•great number of sinners, and even of pagans, was con
verted at his discourses.
At that time, namely, in the year 303, Spain was under
the rule of Maximian; and Dacian was governor of the
province of Tarragona, in which Saragossa was situated.
This Dacian was a most cruel man, and an unrelenting
persecutor of the Christians. Hearing of the manner
in which Vincent advanced the Christian faith, he had
the object of the veneration of the faithful. Dom Ruinart and the
other authors cited by St. Alphonsus are in accord with these facts, the
narrative of which is drawn from a letter of Theodore, Bishop of Ico-
nium. Giry and Butler add that St. Amator, Bishop of Auxerre from
388 till 418, carried to France the relics of St. Cyr and of St. Julitta,
and distributed them in several places, especially at Nevers, Toulouse,
St. Amand in Flanders, etc. Churches and monasteries were conse
crated in their honor, and they were venerated in the West as well as in
the East. — El).
58 Martyrs of the First Ages. CPART'I.
him arrested, together with his Bishop, Valerius, and
brought to Valencia, where he resided. He caused them
to suffer much in prison, thinking that by maltreatment
lie would render them easier to be tampered with, but
he soon perceived that this means did not correspond to
the end he had in view. When they had been brought
into his presence, he first endeavored by kindness to
induce them to apostatize. To Valerius he represented
that his declining age and infirmity required that repose
which he might obtain by obeying the imperial edicts,
but if he resisted he would feel the effects of their just
anger. Then turning to Vincent he said: "You are
young, and should not despise the reward of fortune
which you may earn by abandoning your religion.
Obey, young man, the commands of the emperors, and
do not, by refusal, expose yourself to an ignominious
death."
Whereupon Vincent, turning to Valerius, who as yet
had made no reply to the governor, said: "Father, if
thou wilt, I shall answer for thee." The saintly bishop,
resolved to suffer for Jesus Christ, replied: "Yes, my
son, as I formerly entrusted to thee the preaching of
God's holy word, I now charge thee to manifest our
faith." The holy deacon then declared to Dacian that
they adored one only God, and could not worship the gods
of the empire, who were devils, adding: " Do not think
to shake our fortitude with threats of death or promises
of reward, because there is nothing in this world which
can be compared with the honor and pleasure of dying for
Jesus Christ." Dacian irritated by such liberty of speech
said to the holy deacon: "Either you must offer incense
to the gods or you must pay with your life the contempt
that you show." To this Vincent, raising his voice, re
plied as follows: "I have already told you that the
greatest pleasure and the most distinguished honor
that you can procure for us is to make us die for Jesus
CHAP, in.] St. Vincent, Deacon. 59
Christ. You may rest assured that you will tire of in
flicting torments sooner than we of suffering them."
Dacian condemned Valerius to banishment, and re
solved to wreak his vengeance upon Vincent.
He first caused him to be stretched upon the rack, by
which horrid machine the saint's arms and feet were so
distended, that the bystanders could hear the noise of
the dislocation of his joints, which remained attached
only by the over-stretched and relaxed sinews. Dacian
perceived the placid meekness with which the young
martyr endured his torments, and, as Fleury observes,1
heard him say, " Behold, what I have ever desired is now
being accomplished ! Behold the happy consummation
of what I have always sighed for!" The tyrant hence
concluded that the executioners were remiss in making
him feel the torments, and caused them to be beaten with
rods.
He then commanded that the sides of the saint should
be torn with iron hooks, until the ribs should be visible;
and, knowing how much the pain would increase by
allowing the wounds to cool, and then opening them
afresh, he ordered this torture, which was inflicted with
great cruelty, until the bowels appeared, and the blood
flowed in torrents. Meanwhile, as Orsi relates, the
martyr insulted the tyrant, saying: " Since thy cruel
ministers have exhausted their strength, come, thou
chief butcher, and help them; — stretch forth thy wicked
hands and slake thy thirst in my blood. Thou art de
ceived, thinking that torments can overcome my faith —
within me there is another man strengthened by God,
whom thou canst not subdue."
Hereupon, seeing his constancy, Dacian ordered a
cessation of his tortures, begging of the saint, for his own
sake, that if he persisted in refusing to sacrifice to the
1 Hist, cccl 1. 8, n. 46.
60 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART T.
gods, he would at least give up the sacred books to be
burned. Vincent answered that lire was not created by
God to burn holy books, but to torture the wicked for
ever: nor did he hesitate to admonish him, that if he did
not abandon the worship of idols, he would be one day
condemned to eternal flames. The governor, more in
censed than ever, condemned him to the most cruel of
torments — that of being broiled on a species of grid
iron studded with sharp points. The saint hearing this
barbarous command, walked with joy to the frightful
engine, in anticipation of his executioners: — such was
his eagerness to suffer. Upon this gridiron the saint was
stretched at length, and bound, hand and foot, while the
fire burned beneath. Red-hot plates of iron were placed
on his mangled flesh; and his wounds were rubbed with
salt, which the activity of the fire forced deeper into his
burned and lacerated body. In the midst of these tor
tures, the countenance of the martyr evinced the inward
consolation and joy of his soul, while, with eyes raised
to heaven, he blessed the Lord, and besought of him to
receive his sacrifice. All admired the prodigious forti
tude with which God inspired the holy youth, and the
pagans themselves exclaimed that it was miraculous.
The effect that the spectacle of such patience produced
obliged Dacian to remove him from the public view.
Yet, not content with the tortures he had already in
flicted, he caused him to be thrown into a dungeon, his
feet placed very wide apart, in wooden stocks, the pain
of which was so great that many martyrs died under it.
His body was then stretched on potsherds, which, open
ing his wounds afresh, caused the most painful anguish.
In order to weary his patience, strict orders were given
that no one should be admitted to see or offer him the
least consolation; but the saint at midnight perceived his
dungeon illuminated by a celestial light, and perfumed
by a heavenly odor. The Lord then sent his angels to
CHAP, m.i St. Vincent, Deacon. 61
console him, to intimate that his tortures were at an end,
and to assure him of the reward of his fidelity. The
jailers, being awakened by the splendor of the light, ap
proached, and heard the martyr in concert with the
angels rendering praises to the Lord. They believed and
avowed the Christian faith.
Dacian being informed of this, ordered that the saint
should be removed from prison to a soft bed, and that
his wounds should be healed, with the intention of re
newing his torments when he would be sufficiently re
covered to bear them. The faithful being permitted to
visit and console him, kissed his wounds and absorbed
the blood in their napkins, which they preserved as most
precious relics. But the time for our saint's triumph had
arrived, and he expired in the embraces of his brethren;
while his soul was wafted, by the angels who had assisted
him, to the regions of everlasting bliss.
The tyrant on hearing of his death commanded that
his body should be exposed to be devoured by wild
beasts; but a raven was sent by God to defend it with
its claws and beak, even against a wolf that had come to
devour it. Dacian having exhausted his malice, ordered
that the body should be put in a sack, and, with a heavy
stone tied to it, cast into the sea; but there is no power
against the Lord — the body floated like a feather on the
water and was carried by the waves as far as Valencia.
The mariners tried to get possession of it, but before
they could reach it, it was carried by the waves on the
seashore and covered with sand.
The saint afterwards appeared to a pious lady named
lonica, and indicated the place where his body lay. She
went there, accompanied by other Christians, and find
ing the relics, deposited them in a little chapel; after the
persecution had ceased, they were translated to a mag
nificent church outside the walls of Valencia, where they
62 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
have always been regarded with devout veneration.* St.
Augustine attests that at his time the feast or St. Vincent
was celebrated with a special joy in all the countries
whither the Christian religion had penetrated.1
The acts of the martyrdom of this great saint are
among the number of those that Ruinart has tran
scribed.
CHAPTER IV.
ST. AGRICOLA AND ST. VITALIS, OF BOLOGNA.
November 4.
ST. AGRICOLA was a gentleman of the city of Bologna
at the time of the persecution of Diocletian. He led a
very pious life; by his universal kindness he conciliated
to himself the esteem and affections of all, even the
pagans. He had in his service a very holy man, called
Vitalis, who served him with great fidelity. As they
both ardently loved Jesus Christ, they assisted each other
in the practice of virtue, and encouraged each other to
shed their blood for the faith, when God should so ordain
it. But it was the lot of Vitalis to obtain the crown
first — to go before, as St. Ambrose says, and prepare
a place for his master in heaven.
The enemies of the faith having seized him, tortured
1 " Quae hodie regio, quousque Christianum nomen extenditur, natalem
non gaudet celebrare Vincentii ?" — Serm. 276, E. B.
* About the year 864, adds Alban Butler, the relics of St. Vincent
were carried to the abbey of Castres, in Languedoc to withdraw them
from the sacrilegious fury of the Moors; part of them were given to the
abbey of St. Germain-des-Pres; those that were deposited at Castres
were burnt by the Huguenots about the end of the sixteenth century.
Aimon, who wrote the history of the translation of these holy relics from
Valencia to Castres, relates several miracles that attended it. — ED.
CHAP, iv.] St. Agricola and St. Vitalis. 63
him so cruelly that his entire body was one wound; but
Vitalis remained firm to the death. As the termination
of his struggle approached, the Lord Jesus sent an angel
to show him, in a vision, the crown which was being
prepared for him in heaven. Whereupon Vitalis, with
his dying breath, pronounced this prayer — " Jesus, my
Saviour, and my God ! command my longing soul to
come to Thee, to receive the crown which has been
shown me by Thy angel." Having uttered these words,
he expired.
The persecutors vainly hoped that by the torments and
death of Vitalis they would induce his master, Agricola,
to abjure the faith. They, however, soon discovered that
all their arguments to induce him to obey the imperial
edicts, by sacrificing to the idols, were vain; for Agricola,
far from being dismayed by the cruelties practised upon
his servant, derived from them greater courage, and a
still more ardent desire to be made worthy of the crown
that awaits those who lay down their lives for Jesus
Christ. He had the happiness of dying, like his Saviour,
nailed to a cross.
The bodies of these two martyrs, together with the
instruments of their martyrdom, were buried in a ceme
tery, where they lay unknown until it pleased God to
manifest the place of their burial to St. Ambrose. This
holy bishop, when passing through Bologna, in the year
393, found the depository of these precious relics, and
transferred them, with becoming solemnity, to a neigh
boring church. He took a portion of the blood of the
martyrs, and of the cross of St. Agricola, which he had
found in the sepulchre, and carried them to Florence,
and placed them under the altar of a church which he
afterwards consecrated in that city.
St. Ambrose preached upon the occasion, and from his
sermon these facts have been extracted. They are to be
found also in Ruin art.
64 Martyrs oj t/ic First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER V.
ST. VITALIS OF RAVENNA.
April 28.
ANOTHER holy martyr by the name of Vitalis was a
citizen of Milan, of noble descent ; the entire family
were Christians, and his conduct was most exemplary.
He had served in the army of the einperor, and was con
sequently on terms of friendship with Paulinus, the con
sul, trusting to whose favor he assisted the persecuted
Christians, succored them in their need, and visited them
in their prisons or in the caverns where they lay con
cealed.
Paulinus was a great enemy of the Christians, but, not
knowing that Vitalis was one, invited him to travel to
Ravenna. On their arrival our saint heard that a certain
Christian, named Ursicinus, by profession a physician,
had been condemned to torture, and seemed frightened
at the approach of death. Vitalis, leaving the consul,
ran to the spot, and finding Ursicinus almost ready to
yield, exclaimed: "How is this, my friend ? Thou hast
the crown almost within thy grasp. Having already
suffered so much, wilt thou miserably lose it ? To avoid
these short pains, wilt thou cast thyself into everlasting
torments ? Thou hast cured the maladies of others ;
wilt thou now condemn thyself to eternal deatli ? En
liven thy faith ! Have confidence in Jesus Christ !
Bravely consummate the sacrifice of thyself." Upon
this exhortation the constancy of Ursicinus revived, and
he gave his life for Jesus; upon which Vitalis carried off
his body and respectfully interred it.
Information having been given to Paulinus of all that
CHAP, v.] St. Vital is of Ravenna. 65
had passed, he said to Vitalis: " How then ! art thou
mad, to have acted as thou hast, not being a Christian ?"
The saint instantly replied : " Nay, but I am a Christian,
and am proud to be so. Nor am I mad either. He is
mad who gives to wicked men the honor due to God.
There is but one only God : this God we adore, and we
glory in dying for his sake."
Paulinus loved Vitalis, but his hatred to the Christians
prevailed over this feeling, and he ordered Vitalis to be
imprisoned ; who, finding himself in the company of
other confessors, made such manifestation of his joy, that
Paulinus became infuriated, and commanded all his
joints to be dislocated upon the rack, and his sides to be
torn with iron hooks. During these tortures the holy
martyr ceased not to preach Jesus Christ, whereupon he
was thrown into a ditch and buried alive beneath a tor
rent of stones, on the 27111 of April, of the year 171,
according to Baron i us.
As St. Vitalis expired, one of the priests of Apollo, who
had incensed the tyrant against him, was possessed by
a devil ; full of rage, he cried out: "Thou tormentest
me, O Vitalis ! thou burnest me." Seven days after, he
cast himself into a river and was drowned.
The relics of this saint are deposited in a magnificent
church at Ravenna, built upon the place of his martyr
dom.
On the day dedicated to the honor of St. Vitalis, com
memoration is made of his wife, St. Valeria, who, while
returning from Ravenna, after the death of her husband,
was so beaten and maltreated by the pagans for her
faith, that she expired on the second day after her ar
rival at Milan. She is also honored as a martyr.
5
66 Martyrs of tlie First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER VI.
ST. POLYCARP, BISHOP OF SMYRNA.
January 26.
ST. POLYCARP was a disciple of the Apostle St. John,
and was born about the seventieth year of the Christian
era. He was a Christian from his infancy, and on ac
count of his extraordinary piety was greatly beloved
by the apostles, his teachers. St. Irenaeus, Bishop of
Lyons, writes that lie had had the good fortune, when
young, to know our saint, who was then far advanced in
years, and remark show strongly impressed on his mind
were the instructions which he had received from him,
and with what delight he remembered having heard him
recount his conversations with St. John and others who
had seen the Redeemer.
St. Polycurp was consecrated Bishop of Smyrna by
St. John himself before this apostle's banishment to the
Island of Patmos. It is looked upon as certain that our
saint was the angel, or Bishop of Smyrna, commended
by the Lord in the Apocalypse: And to the angel of the
church of Smyrna write . . . I know thy tribulation and thy
poverty ; but tJwu art rich. . . . Be thou faithful unto death,
and I will give tJiee the crown of life. 1
Our saint governed the church of Smyrna seventy
years, according to Fleury,2 with so much prudence and
approbation that he was regarded as the principal of the
Asiatic bishops, on account of the great veneration in
1 " Scio tribulationem tuam et paupertatem tuam ; sed dives es. . . .
Esto fidelis usque ad mortem, etdabo tibi. . . . coronam vitae." — Apoc.
ii. 9.
•Hist. eul. 1. 3, n. 48.
CHAP, vi.] St. Poly carp, Bishop of Smyrna. 67
which he was held. When eighty years of age, he went
to Rome to consult with Pope Anicetus on some points
of discipline, particularly regarding the time at which
Easter should be celebrated. St. Polycarp's delay in
Rome was very useful to the faithful, as it afforded
him an opportunity of confuting the heresies of that
period. Meeting the heresiarch Marcion, who inquired
of the holy bishop whether he knew him ; " Yes," an
swered the saint, " I know thee to be the first-born of the
devil."
On his return to Asia, he suffered much in the perse
cution which the Emperor Marcus Aurelius raised against
the Church, and which was particularly felt at Smyrna,
where the proconsul, Statins Quadratus, was exercis
ing the most barbarous cruelty against the faithful.
Amongst other acts of persecution, he caused twelve
Christians, who were brought from Philadelphia, to be
devoured by wild beasts. Excited by this bloodshed, the
pagans were loud in their demands for the slaughter of
the Christians, particularly of Polycarp, who failed not
on his part to encourage his flock to the most heroic
proofs of constancy, in suffering torments and death for
Jesus Christ. Notwithstanding the continual clamor
raised against him, the saint wished to remain in the
city for the discharge of his pastoral duties, but was
obliged, by the importunity of the faithful, to retire to a
house without the city, where, during his stay, he oc
cupied the entire night and day in holy prayer.
After a short time, however, he was discovered. Three
days previouly to his arrest, he saw in a vision his pillow
in flames, from which he knew that the martyrdom re
served for him was that of fire, and, turning to his com
panions, told them that he would be burned alive. The
Christians, aware that the soldiers were in pursuit of
him, removed him to another house; but a young servant,
overawed by the fear of torture, revealed the place of
68 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
his concealment. The saint was informed of this, but
refused to retreat any farther, saying, with holy resigna
tion : "The will of God be done." Full of heroic zeal,
he offered himself to God as a victim destined for his
honor, besought him to accept the sacrifice of his life,
and joyfully delivered himself up to his pursuers. He
received them into his house, ordered them a handsome
supper, and desired only some time for prayer, which
being granted, he was for two hours absorbed in medita
tion.
The captain and the soldiers were filled with confusion
at the sight of the venerable bishop; and unwillingly
executing their commission, departed with him at break
of day. As the journey to Smyrna was long, they set
him on an ass, and were conducting him to the city,
when they met on the road two superior officers, called
Herod and Nicetas, who took him into their chariot, and
endeavored to persuade him to obey the imperial edict,
saying, among other things: "What harm is therein
sacrificing to the gods in order to save your life ?" The
saint answered with fortitude that he would rather
suffer every torture, even death itself, than consent to
what they advised. Upon this resolute answer they
turned away in anger, regarding him as a man lost
through his obstinacy, and pushed him from the chariot
with such violence that his leg was bruised, or, accord
ing to Fleury, broken by the fall.
The saint nevertheless, with undisturbed tranquillity
of mind, proceeded to the amphitheatre, where he was
about to sacrifice his life. Upon entering it he heard a
voice from heaven, saying: " Be courageous, Polycarp;
act manfully." He was presented to the proconsul, who
endeavored to shake his resolution, saying: " Polycarp,
thou art old, and should free thyself from torments which
thou hast not strength to bear; swear, therefore, by the
fortune of Caesar, and exclaim with the people, ' Be the
CHAP. vi. j St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. 69
impious exterminated ! ' The saint immediately re
plied: "Yes ! be the impious exterminated — but by the
impious I mean the idolaters." The proconsul, thinking
that he had gained him over, said: "Now blaspheme
Jesus Christ, and I will discharge thee." The saint re
joined: " I have served Jesus Christ these fourscore and
six years; he never did me harm, but much good ; how
can I blaspheme him ? How can I blaspheme my Creator
and my Saviour, who is also my judge, and who justly
punishes those who deny him ?" The tyrant, still con
tinuing to tempt him to deny Jesus Christ, Polycarp re
plied that he was a Christian, and considered it a glory
to die for Christ.
The proconsul threatened him with wild beasts. " Call
for them quickly," replied the saint; "I cannot change
from good to evil; the beasts will help me to pass from
mortal suffering to the glory of heaven." " Then," said
the tyrant, " thou shalt be burned alive." The saint
answered: "Thy fire only lasts a moment; there is
another fire which is eternal, and of that I am afraid.
Why dost thou delay to execute thy threats ?" This he
said with so much intrepidity, that the tyrant himself
was struck with admiration; he ordered, however, a crier
to make public proclamation that Polycarp had avowed
himself a Christian ; whereupon the entire multitude of
pagans cried out: " Let this destroyer of our gods die !"
The public shows having terminated, it was resolved
that he should be burned alive, instead of being devoured
by wild beasts.
The pile was prepared by the pagans, and also by the
Jews, who were particularly active in offering them
selves as executioners. Polycarp put off his garments,
and seeing they were about to fasten him to the
stake, said: "Leave aside these nails: He who gives me
fortitude to undergo this fire, will enable me to stand
still without them." They therefore contented them-
/O Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
selves with tying his hands behind his back, and placed
him upon the pile, whence raising his eyes to heaven,
the saint prayed after the following manner: "I bless
Thee, O God, for having vouchsafed to make me a par
taker in the Passion of Jesus Christ Thy Son, by render
ing me worthy to offer myself as a sacrifice for Thy
honor, that I may be enabled to praise Thee in heaven,
and to bless Thee for all eternity." The pile was set on
fire, yet the flames did not touch the body of the saint,
but formed, as it were, an arch around him, while his
flesh exhaled a most fragrant odor. The pagans, ex
asperated to see that the fire had no effect, transfixed
him with a spear, and such a quantity of blood issued
from the wound as extinguished the flames.
Thus did St. Polycarp terminate his triumph, as is re
corded in the celebrated epistle of the Church of Smyrna,
which may be seen in "Ruinart's Collection of the Acts
of the Martyrs." His martyrdom took place about the
year 160.
CHAPTER VII.
ST. THEODORA, VIRGIN, AND ST. DIDYMUS.
April 28.
ST. THEODORA, a native of Alexandria, was descended
from noble and opulent Christian parents; she was born
towards the close of the third century, and at the early
age of sixteen years was distinguished for her beauty.
Desirous of having Jesus Christ alone for her spouse,
she made a vow of perpetual virginity, and her many
admirable virtues made her a model of perfection to the
CHAP, vii.] SS. Theodora and Didymns. 7 i
other Christian virgins of her acquaintance. No sooner
were the edicts of Diocletian against the Christians pub
lished in Egypt, than our saint was inflamed with the
holy desire of sacrificing her life for Jesus Christ, and by
prayer commenced to prepare herself for the great
struggle, and to make frequent offerings of herself to
God.
She was amongst the first of those who were arrested,
and being presented to the judge Proculus, who was
much struck with her beauty, was asked whether she
was a slave or a free woman ; the saint replied that she
was a Christian, having been freed by Christ from the
slavery of the devil, and that she was also born of what
the world called free parents. The tyrant, having dis
covered that she was of noble birth, inquired why she
had not married. St. Theodora replied that she had ab
stained from marriage that she might live alone to Jesus
Christ her Saviour. "But dost thou not know," con
tinued the judge, " that it hath been commanded by the
emperor that each one shall sacrifice to the gods, or else
be condemned to the most infamous punishments?"
" And thou also knowest very well," rejoined the saint,
" that God is careful of those who serve him, and defends
them from contamination." Proculus continued to per
suade her to sacrifice to the gods, threatening that
otherwise the imperial edicts should be enforced. The
saint answered as before, adding that she was consecrated
to Jesus Christ, and would not abandon him though she
were torn to pieces. "I am no longer my own," said
she, "but His: He will defend me."
"Thou shalt pay dearly for thy obstinacy," said the
judge; " what madness to place thy trust in a man who
could not free himself from the death of the cross !"
"Yes," replied the saint, " my .confidence is placed in
Jesus Christ, who hath suffered death to grant life unto
us; he will preserve me from all evil. I fear neither tc r-
7 2 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
ments nor death, but, on the contrary, I long to die for
love of my God who died for me."
" But thou art of noble birth," said the judge, " and
shouldst not dishonor thy family with eternal infamy."
Theodora answered: "My glory is to confess the name
of Jesus Christ my Saviour; he hath given me both
honor and nobility; he knoweth how to preserve his
dove from the hawk."
"Thou dost but trifle," said Proculus; "instantly
sacrifice to our gods — be not insane." "I would indeed
be insane," said Theodora, " if I were to sacrifice to
devils and gods of brass or marble." Exasperated by
this answer, the judge caused her to be buffeted, and
said: " Thou wilt charge us with this dishonor; but thou
shouldst not have dishonored our gods." " I do not
complain," said the saint, " but rather rejoice at this
opportunity of bearing insult for my Saviour."
" I shall give thee," said the tyrant, " three days to
deliberate ; after which, if thou wilt remain obdurate,
punishment awaits thee." Theodora replied, " Thou
mayest look on these three days as already expired; thou
shalt find me the same then as now." The three days
having expired, and the saint being still constant in her
faith, Proculus said that he was bound to obey the edict,
and commanded her to be conducted whither he had
threatened.
Upon entering the infamous place the saint fervently
recommended herself to Jesus Christ, and was heard;
for Didymus, habited like a soldier, mingled in the crowd,
and obtained admission to the room where she was.
Upon seeing him, Theodora fled from him into several
corners of the room; but Didymus said to her: ''Fear
me not, Theodora; I am not such a one as thou supposest;
I have come to save thy honor and to set thee free. Lei
us change habits; take thou my clothes and depart; I
will remain here in thine." Theodora did as she was de-
CHAP, vii.] kS\V. Theodora and Didyunis.
/ o
sired, and in her disguise joyfully departed from that
place of infamy; holding down her head, she passed
undiscovered through the midst of the crowd.
After some time, another young man, on entering the
apartment, was astonished to find a man there instead
of the virgin, and in his astonishment exclaimed: "Per
haps Christ changeth women into men !" But St. Didy-
mus explained, and said to the idolater: " Christ hath
not changed me from a woman to a man, but hath given
me an opportunity of acquiring the crown of martyrdom.
The virgin is out of your reach; I have remained in her
place; do unto me as it pleaseth you."
The prefect being informed of this, sent for Didymus,
and asked him why he had so acted. He replied that
it was in consequence of an inspiration from God. He
was then commanded to sacrifice to the gods, and to
make known where Theodora was. He replied, that as
to Theodora he knew not, and as to sacrificing to the
gods, the judge had better put in force the imperial edict,
since he would never sacrifice to devils, though he should
be cast into a furnace. The prefect, incensed at this
declaration, commanded that he should be beheaded,
and that his body should afterwards be burned.
Didymus accordingly went to the place of execution,
but at the same moment Theodora arrived, and with holy
emulation contended for the crown. Didymus said: "It
is mine, because on me hath sentence been pronounced."
Theodora replied: " I was willing thou shouldst save my
honor, but not my life. I abominated infamy, but did
not shrink from death. If thou hast intended to deprive
me of martyrdom, thou hast deceived me." Finally, the
judge ordered them both to be decapitated, and thus
both received the crown of martyrdom.
The original Acts of this glorious martyrdom are
transcribed by Ruinart.
74 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER VIII.
ST. PHILIP, BISHOP OF HERACLEA, AND HIS TWO COMPAN
IONS, ST. SEVERUS AND ST. HERMES.
ST. PHILIP was elected Bishop of Heraclea, the metrop
olis of Thrace, in consequence of his extraordinary vir
tue; and so fully did he correspond to the expectation
of his people, that, while they tenderly loved him, there
was not one among his flock who was not the object of
his most affectionate pastoral solicitude. But there were
two of his disciples whom he loved with peculiar affec
tion — Severus, a priest, and Hermes, a deacon, whom he
afterwards had companions of his martyrdom.
In the persecution of Diocletian he was advised to
retire from the city. This, however, he refused to do,
saying that he wished to conform to the dispensations
of God, who knows how to reward those who suffer for
his love, and that consequently he feared not the threats
or torments of the tyrant. In the year 304 the saint
was one day preaching to his people upon the necessity
of patience and resignation, when a soldier, by the
order of Bassus, the governor, entered the church, and
having commanded the people to retire, shut the doors
and sealed them ; upon which Philip said to him:
u Dost thou think that God dwelleth in these walls, and
not rather in our souls ?"
Philip, although unable to enter the church, was un
willing to abandon it altogether, and remained at the
door with his people. Separating the good from the
bad, he exhorted the former to remain constant in the
faith, and called upon the latter to return to God by
sincere repentance. Bassus, finding them assembled,
CHAP, vin.] St. PJiitip, Bishop of Hcrac lea . 75
caused them to be arrested, and having demanded who
was their master, Philip answered: "I am he." The
governor said: "Hast thou not heard the edict of the
emperor, that in no place shall the Christians be as
sembled, but shall sacrifice to the gods, or perish ?" He
then commanded that the gold and silver vessels,
together with the books that treated of the Christian
law, should be delivered up ; otherwise that recourse
would be had to torture. Philip replied: " For my part,
I am willing to suffer in this my body, tottering with
age, whatever thou canst inflict; but abandon thou the
thought of having any control over my spirit. The
sacred vessels are at thy disposal; but it shall be my
care to prevent the holy books from falling into thy
hands." Bassus, .infuriated at this answer, called for
ward the executioners, and caused the saint to undergo
a cruel and protracted torture.
The deacon, Hermes, witnessing the agonies of his
bishop, told the governor that, although he were pos
sessed of all the holy books, good Christians would
never fail to teach Jesus Christ to others, and to render
him the honor he deserves. After these words the holy
deacon was most cruelly scourged.
Bassus commanded that the sacred vessels should be
removed from the sacristy, that the Scriptures should
be burned, and that Fhilip, with the other prisoners,
should be led by the soldiers to the forum, to be exe
cuted, in order that the pagans should be gladdened
and the Christians affrighted by the spectacle. Philip,
having arrived at the forum, and being informed of the
burning of the Scriptures, spoke at length to the people
of the eternal fire prepared by God for the wicked.
During this discourse, a pagan priest, called Cataphro-
nius, came carrying some meats that had been sacrificed
to the idols. Hermes, seeing him, exclaimed: "This
diabolical food hath been brought, that we, being
76 Martyrs of the First Ages. IPAR.T i.
forced to eat it, may be contaminated !" St. Philip de
sired him to be calm.
In the mean time the governor, arriving at the forum
again, commanded the holy bishop to sacrifice to his
gods. The saint asked: "Being a Christian, how can I
sacrifice to marble ?" " Sacrifice at least to the em
peror," said Bassus. " My religion," said the saint,
" commands me to honor the princes, but teaches me
that sacrifice is due to God alone." '' But doth not this
beauteous statue of Fortune," said the governor, " de
serve a victim?" The saint replied: ''It may receive
that honor from thy hands, since thou dost adore it; but
it shall not from mine." " Let then," urged Bassus,
"this fine figure of Hercules move the.e." Here the
holy bishop, raising his voice, rebuked the insanity of
those who worship as gods statues that, being taken
from the earth, like earth should be trodden upon, not
adored.
Bassus, turning to Hermes, asked him if he at least
would sacrifice. The holy deacon resolutely answered
that he was a Christian, and could not do so ; and hav
ing been told that, should he continue obstinate, he
would be cast into flames, replied: " Thou dost threaten
me with flames that last but for a short time, because
thou art ignorant of the strength of those eternal flames
in which the followers of the devil shall burn."
Bassus, exasperated at the constancy of the saints, re
manded them to prison. As they went along, the in
solent rabble frequently pushed the venerable and aged
bishop, so as to throw him down, but he with joyous
looks quietly raised himself again.
Meanwhile the term of Bassus' government having
expired, Justin, his successor, arrived at Heraclea. He
was a much more cruel man than his predecessor. St.
Philip, having been brought before him, was told that
if he would not sacrifice, he should, notwithstanding
CHAP, viii.] St. Philip, Bishop of Heraclea. 77
his extreme age, have to suffer tortures that were intol-
lerable even to youth. The venerable bishop replied :
"Ye, for fear of a short punishment, obey men: how
much more ought we to obey God, who visits evil-doers
with eternal torments? Thou mayest torture, but canst
never induce me to sacrifice." Justin : " I shall com
mand thee to be dragged by the feet through the streets
of the city." Philip: "God grant that it may be so."
The bloody threat was executed ; yet the saint did not
die in that torment, but his body was torn to pieces,
and in the arms of the brethren he was carried back to
prison.
After this the governor called before him Hermes the
deacon, whom he exhorted to sacrifice, in order to
escape the torments that were being prepared. But the
saint replied : " I cannot sacrifice and betray my faith ;
do, therefore, according to thy pleasure — tear my body
to pieces." "Thou speakest thus," said Justin: "be
cause thou knowest not the pains that await thee;
upon a trial thou shalt repent." Hermes: "Atrocious
though they may be, Jesus Christ, for whose love I am
about to suffer, will render them not only light, but
sweet."
Justin sent him also to prison, where the saints re
mained for seven months. Thence he sent them before
him to Adrianople, and upon his arrival again sum
moned Philip to his presence, intimating to him that he
had deferred his execution in the hope that, upon
mature consideration, he would sacrifice. The saint
boldly replied : " I have already told thee that I am a
Christian, and I will always say the same. I will not
sacrifice to statues, but only to that God to whom I
have consecrated my entire being." Angered by this
reply, the judge ordered him to be stripped and scourged
until the bones and bowels were laid bare. The aged
bishop suffered this torture with so much courage, that
78 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
Justin himself was astonished. Three days afterwards
he was again summoned before the tyrant, who inquired
why it was that with so much temerity he continued to
disregard the imperial edicts. The saint replied : " That
which animates me is not rashness, but the love I bear
my God, who one day shall judge me. In worldly mat
ters I have invariably obeyed the rulers, but now the
question is, whether I will prefer earth to heaven. I am
a Christian, and cannot sacrifice to thy gods."
Seeing that he could not shake the constancy of the
holy bishop, Justin, turning to Hermes, said : " This old
man is weary of life, but thou shouldst not be so reck
less of it: offer sacrifice, and consult thy safety."
Hermes began to show the impiety of idolatry, but
Justin hastily interrupted him, saying : " Thou speakest
as if thou wouldst persuade me to become a Christian."
" I earnestly desire," said the saint, "that this should
happen not only to thee, but to all those who hear me."
Finally, the tyrant, perceiving that he could not win
over these generous confessors, pronounced sentence in
the following manner: "We command that Philip and
Hermes, for having contemned the imperial edicts, shall
be burned alive." Sentence having been pronounced, the
saints proceeded to the place of execution, evincing by
their holy joy that they were two victims consecrated
to the Lord. But from having been tortured in the
stocks their feet were so sore that the holy bishop had
to be supported, while Hermes with great difficulty fol
lowed, saying to Philip : " Let us hasten, Father, nor
care for our feet, since we shall no longer have need of
them." When they came to the place of their martyr
dom, according to the custom of the country, they were
placed standing in a trench, and covered with earth up
to the knees, in order that they might not be able to
flee from the fire. Upon entering the trench, Hermes
smiled with holy joy, and the fire having been kindled
CHAP, viii.] St. Philip, Bishop of Heraclea. 79
by the executioners, the saints began to thank Almighty
God for their death, terminating their prayer and their
martyrdom with the usual "Amen." *
Severus, who was the other disciple of St. Philip, had
beenleft in prison while his holy bishop consummated his
martyrdom in the flames ; and having been informed of
his glorious triumph, was deeply afflicted at not having
been able to bear him company ; hence he earnestly be
sought the Lord not to think him unworthy of sacrific
ing his life for his glory. His prayers were heard, and
on the following day he obtained the desired crown.
The martyrdom of these saints is related by Cardinal
Orsi,1 who quotes Ruinart.
1 Istor. Eccl. 1. 9, n. 33.
* After the execution their bodies were found entire and fresh as in full
health, without any trace of fire. St. Hermes, though a simple deacon,
was a distinguished man. He had been first magistrate of the city of
Heraclea, and had fulfilled the duties of his office with so much wisdom
that he conciliated the esteem and veneration of all his fellow-citizens.
After having renounced everything to devote himself to the service
of the Church, he took the resolution to live only by the labor of his
hands, like the great Apostle, and he had a son named Philip whom Re
brought up in the same principles. While the executioners were set
ting fire to the pile in which he was to be consumed, and perceiving one
of his friends in the crowd, he called him and said: " Go, and tell my
son: ' These are the last words of your dying father — words that he
leaves you as the most precious marks of his affection. You are young:
avoid as dangerous everything that can weaken your soul; above all,
avoid sloth; keep the peace with every one.' " The flames having risen
prevented him from continuing. These details are given by Ruinart.
—ED.
So Martyrs of t/ie First Ages. LPART i.
CHAPTER IX.
ST. JAMES, SURNAMED INTERCISUS.
November 27.
The Christian religion had been for a long time per
secuted in Persia, but during the reign of King Isde-
gerdes it had enjoyed a peace of twenty years. A
certain bishop, named Abdas, set fire to a temple, in
which was an idol worshipped by the Persians; and this
circumstance gave rise to a fierce persecution of the
Christians, since Isdegerdes, infuriated by the fact,
gave orders that all Christian churches should be
levelled with the earth, and that all his subjects should
profess only the Persian religion.
James, overcome by the fear of losing his property
and the honors he enjoyed at court, obeyed the iniqui
tous decree. But his mother and his wife, most exem
plary Christians, who were then absent, having heard of
his fall, wrote to him a letter, in which, after exhorting him
to repair his grievous error, they said : " If thou wilt not
return to the good path from which thou hast departed,
we shall treat thee as a stranger, and separate from
thee ; it behooveth us not to have any communication
with one who hath abandoned his God to please men,
and to secure to himself the perishable things of this
life, which will cause him to perish everlastingly."
James, whose conscience continually upbraided him
with his apostasy, was strongly affected by the letter; and
he began to reflect that if his nearest relatives thus re
proached him, how much more would he have to fear
the censure of the Eternal Judge. While he bewailed
the publicity of his sin, lie resolved that his repentance
CHAP, ix.] 6V. James y Sur named Inter cisus. 81
should be equally notorious, and took frequent occasion
to express himself in the following terms: " I am a
Christian, and I repent that I have abandoned the faith
of Jesus Christ."
The king upon hearing this was much enraged, and
considering himself personally offended by the insult
offered to the gods whom he adored, ordered him to be
conducted to his presence. The saint appeared before
the tyrant, who reproached him with fickleness, and
threatened him with the most cruel death unless he im
mediately sacrificed to the gods of the Persians. But the
saint replied that he \vas a Christian, that he sincerely
repented of his apostasy, and that he wished to continue
no longer unfaithful to his God. The tyrant, in trans
ports of rage, commanded that his body should be
chopped to pieces, limb by limb, in order, as he said,
that others might be deterred from following his ex
ample.
The saint intrepidly offered himself to this horrible
torture. The executioner first cut off the thumb of his
right hand, telling him that if he would obey the king his
torments should cease there. But James was anxious
to give his life for Jesus Christ, and to repair the scandal
he had given by having denied him; presenting, there
fore, each limb to the executioners, he suffered them to
be cut off, joint by joint, without a moan. The faithful
witnessed his martyrdom with great edification, until,
his body being reduced to a mere trunk, his head was
struck off. This happened on the ayth of November, in
the year 420, ' and from the nature of his martyrdom he
was called Intercisus, that is, cut into pieces.
The constancy of this martyr makes us better under
stand the efficacy of the grace of Jesus Christ, since by
1 This was, according to Alban Butler, in 421, during the reign of
Vararanes V. , son and successor to Isdegerdes, who died a short time
after he had rekindled the fire of persecution in 420. — ED.
6
82 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
it he was enabled to suffer this cruel butchery not only
with resignation, but with great spiritual joy. All the
martyrs were, of themselves and as men, vile and wreak,
but they were enabled by Jesus Christ, who strengthened
them, to suffer their trials with fortitude, and to obtain
the victory. Let us also have confidence in the assist
ance of Jesus Christ, and whenever we find our strength
or courage to falter under trial or temptation, let us in
stantly have recourse to him, praying him to succor us
by the merits of his precious blood. If we but do this
with fervent faith we also may be sure of triumph.
The martyrdom of St. James the Intercisus is related by
Father Massini, who collected the particulars from his
Acts in Surius, November 27.
CHAPTER X
ST. AFRA THE PENITENT.
August 5.
THE history of St. Afra is related by most respectable
authors, such as Fleury,1 Orsi,2 and Massini.3 Penitent
sinners may receive great encouragement from the con
sideration of the fortitude communicated to this penitent
by the Lord, which enabled her to suffer the martyrdom
of fire; and also from the consideration of the wisdom
given to her, by which she answered the insidious argu
ments that were intended to pervert her.
St. Afra was a citizen of Augsburg, in Rhaetia (Ba
varia), and a pagan of so dissolute a character, that her
1 Hist. eccl. 1. 8, n. 48. - 1st or. cccl. 1. 9, n. 46. 3 Race, di V. Gag.
CHAP, x] St. Afra the Penitent. 83
house and its inmates were used by her for the infamous
purpose of corrupting the youths of that city. But the
triumph of divine grace appeared the more brilliant in
bringing this most wretched creature from the very
lowest abyss of infamy to the glory of martyrdom.
It is believed that St. Afra, together with her mother
and entire family, was converted by the holy bishop, St.
Narcissus. From her Acts, found in Ruinart, it would
appear that she had always before her eyes the deformity
of her crimes, and was tortured by the recollection of
them; so that when she had embraced the faith, she en
deavored to get rid of the price of her infamy by giving
liberally to the poor; and when some Christians, al
though in extreme penury, refused to receive from her
what had been the wages of sin, she would beseech of
them to accept it, and pray to God for the remission of
her grievous offences. Thus did this holy penitent
prepare herself to receive from God that glorious palm
which she finally obtained.
The persecution of Diocletian was raging when St.
Afra was arrested and brought before the judge named
Gaius, who said to her: " Come now, sacrifice to the
gods; it is better to live than to die amid torments."
The saint replied: "The sins which I have committed
before I knew the true God are sufficient; wherefore I
cannot now do that which thou commandest. I never
will do so: it would be adding a new insult to my God."
The judge having ordered her to repair to the temple,
she answered with great courage: " My temple is Jesus
Christ, whom I have continually before mine eyes, and
to whom I every day confess my sins. Since I am un
worthy to offer him any other sacrifice, I am anxious to
sacrifice myself, in order that this body, with which I
have offended him, may be purified by torments; — this
reflection shall make me suffer most willingly."
"Since, therefore," said Gaius, "by reason of thy
84 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
wicked life thou hast nothing to expect from the God of
the Christians, thou hadst better sacrifice to our gods."
The saint replied: " My Lord Jesus Christ has said, that
he descended from heaven to save sinners. We read in
the Gospel, that a sinful woman, having washed his feet
with her tears, obtained from him the forgiveness of all
her offences; and, moreover, that he never rejected sin
ful creatures nor publicans; but, on the contrary, con
descended to converse and even to eat with them.''
The iniquitous judge was not ashamed to counsel her
to return to her infamous practices, in order that she
might gain the favor of her gallants, and enrich herself.
"I renounce," said the penitent saint, " that execrable
gain, and look upon it with horror. That which I had,
I have cast from me and given to the poor, imploring
them to accept it; how, then, can I consent to earn it
again ?"
After this the discussion was continued in the follow
ing manner:
Gaius said: " Thy Christ esteemeth thee unworthy of
him; in vain thou callest him thy God; he will have
nothing to do with thee; a common prostitute cannot be
called a Christian."
"True," replied Afra, "lam unworthy of this name;
but my God, who chooseth not persons according to
their merits, but according to his own goodness, hath
been pleased to accept me, and make me a participator
of his name."
Gaius: " And whence knowest thou that he hath done
thee this favor ?"
Afra: " I know that God has not cast me off, since he
has given me strength to confess his holy name; and I
feel a hope within me that I can thus obtain the pardon
of all my sins."
" These are foolish stories," replied the judge; " sacri
fice to our gods; because they alone can save thee."
CHAP, x.] St. Afra the Penitent. 85
" My salvation/' answered the saint, " depends alone
upon Jesus Christ, who, while hanging on the cross,
promised heaven to a robber that confessed his sins."
Gaius replied: "If thou wilt not sacrifice, I shall
cause thee to be stripped and whipped publicly, to thy
great shame."
Afra: " I am ashamed only of my sins."
"And I," said Gaius, "am ashamed to be losing my
time in disputing with thee. Sacrifice to the gods, or I
shall condemn thee to death."
Afra replied: "That is what I desire, since I hope thus
to find an eternal repose."
Gaius threatened that if she would not sacrifice, he
would order her to be tortured and burned alive.
The saint courageously replied: " Let this, my body,
which hath been the instrument of so many sins, under
go every torment; but let my soul not be contaminated
by sacrificing to demons."
The judge then pronounced sentence upon her, in the
following words: " We ordain that Afra, a prostitute,
who has declared herself to be a Christian, and has re
fused to sacrifice to the gods, be burned alive."
The place selected for the execution of this terrible
sentence was a little island in the river Lech. The saint,
having been conducted to this place, and the execution
ers having tied her to the stake, she raised her eyes to
heaven, and prayed after the following manner: " O
Lord Jesus Christ, who earnest to call, not the just, but
sinners to repentance, and who hast vouchsafed to make
known unto us, that, upon whatever day the sinner shall
return to Thee by contrition, Thou wilt forget all his of
fences; receive me now, a poor sinner that offers herself
to suffer this torture for Thy love. By this fire, which is
about to burn my body, deliver my soul from everlasting
flames." At the termination of this prayer, fire was set
to the pile, and the saint was heard to say: " I give Thee
86 Martyrs of tJie First Ages. [PART i.
thanks, O Lord, who, being innocent, didst offer Thyself
a sacrifice for sinners; and being the ' Blessed of God,'
didst vouchsafe to die for us ' children of wrath.' I give
Thee thanks, and offer myself a sacrifice to Thee, who,
with the Father and the Holy Ghost, livest and reignest
world without end. Amen." Having concluded her
prayer she expired.
Her three servants, Eunomia, Digna, and Eutropia,
were standing on the banks of the river witnessing her
martyrdom. As they had been partners in her vice,
they had also imitated her in her conversion, and had
been baptized by the holy Bishop St. Narcissus, Know
ing that their mistress was now dead, they crossed over
to the island; and the news having reached Hilaria, the
saint's mother, she also came, accompanied by some
priests: they took the saint's body and carried it to the
family bury ing-place, two miles distant from Augsburg.
Gaius, having been informed of this, sent a troop of
soldiers with orders to arrest all who were at the bury-
ing-place, and, in case they refused to sacrifice, to shut
them up in the sepulchre,1 and burn them there. This
barbarous order was cruelly executed, and thus all these
holy women received the crown of martyrdom in the
year 304.
1 The sepulchres of the ancients, says Fleury, were high buildings,
often large enough to contain rooms. St. Hilaria and the three other
saints martyred with her are inscribed in the martyrology, August 12. —
ED.
CHAP, xi.j St. Sabimis, Bishop of Spoleto. 87
CHAPTER XI.
ST. SABINUS, BISHOP OF SPOLETO, AND HIS COMPANIONS.
December 30.
THE persecution under the emperors Diocletian and
Maximian is considered as the most violent that the
Church has had to endure; and yet the triumph of the
Christian faith was never more glorious than under these
two notable tyrants. It was considered as a capital
offence for Christians to absent themselves from the
public games; and not only in the principal towns, but
even in the smaller villages, gibbets were prepared to
execute those who would dare to confess the name of the
Lord Jesus. Irons, scourges, racks, caldrons of boiling
oil, and all the apparatus of torture were everywhere in
readiness for those who refused to sacrifice to the idols.
The cruelty of Maximian went so far as to ordain that
in the market-places, in the mills, in the bakers' shops,
and in the taverns idols should be set up, to which every
body should show some mark of idolatrous veneration,
on pain of being arrested. Yet, notwithstanding this
wholesale butchery, never were there seen greater mul
titudes of Christians professing a desire to suffer and to
die for Jesus Christ; so that the number of holy martyrs
amounted at that time to eight millions.1
St. Sabinus, who was, during this persecution, Bishop
of Spoleto in Umbria, going through all the towns of his
diocese, ceased not to exhort his flock to seek a union
with God in holy prayer, that they might be enabled by
his grace to suffer tortures and death in testimony of
1 Of the number of martyrs mention was made on page 33.
Martyrs -of the First Ages. [PART i.
his holy faith. Venustianus, who was then governor
of Tuscany, having heard of the pious labors of the holy
Bishop, caused him to be arrested at Assisi, with his two
deacons, Marcellus and Exuperantius, and others of the
clergy.
Upon the arrival of this tyrant at Assisi, he summoned
the bishop and his two deacons before him, and having
inquired of Sabinus who he was, the saint replied: " I am
the bishop, although an unworthy sinner." " And how,"
said the governor, " hast thou dared to teach the people
to abandon the worship of the gods, and to follow a dead
man?" Sabinus replied: " Thou knowest that he died,
but dost not know that he rose the third day; and yet
thou shouldst know it." The governor angrily ex
claimed: "Sacrifice to the gods, or thou shalt die by
torture as thou deservest: then mayest thou rise again
like thy Christ." The saint answered: "This is my de
sire — to die and rise again, as did the Lord Jesus."
Sabinus continued to preach Jesus Christ.
The governor, however, sent for an idol which he
always kept by him — a small coral image of Jove, with
robes sculptured in gold — and commanded all present to
adore it; but Sabinus, animated with holy zeal, dashed
the idol to the earth, and broke it to pieces. Venustianus,
exasperated at this insult offered to his idol, caused both
the hands of the holy prelate to be instantly cut off.
He then ordered Marcellus and Exuperantius to be put
to torture, for having also refused to adore his gods. He
had their flesh torn with iron hooks, and their bodies
burned with lighted torches; in which torments they
expired.
St. Sabinus, who was present animating his compan
ions, was sent to prison by the governor, in the expecta
tion that he would die of the pain caused by the amputa
tion of his hands, or perish by hunger, in case this should
prove insufficient to cause death.
CHAP, xi.] k$Y. Sabimis, Bishop of Spoleto. 89
But a pious widow, called Serena, found means to sup
port the holy bishop; and her charity was rewarded by
the saint, who, by praying over her nephew, restored to
him his sight. This miracle worked the conversion of
fifteen prisoners who were present.
Venustianus, the governor, allowed the saint to remain
unmolested for a month, being tortured by an excessive
pain in his eyes. All remedies having proved useless, he
was advised to have recourse to the saint, and accord
ingly sent his wife and two children to Sabinus. When
the saint came to his house, Venustianus threw himself
at his feet, beseeching him to forget the tortures which
he had caused him to suffer, and imploring at the same
time the cure of his eyes. Sabinus told him that if he
would become a Christian he should be relieved from
the pain at his baptism. Venustianus consented, was
instructed in the Christian religion, received baptism,
together with his entire family, and instantly re
covered.
St. Sabinus had the consolation of seeing this entire
family receive the crown of martyrdom; for the emperor
Maximian sent the tribune Lucius with orders to put
Sabinus and Venustianus to death. Lucius upon his ar
rival at Assisi, without any trial whatever, caused Venus
tianus, with his wife and children, to be instantly be
headed; and brought Sabinus with him to Spoleto,
where he had the holy bishop scourged to death.1
Serena, a noblewoman of this city, who had procured
the hands, and had kept them embalmed by her, placed
them with the body, and buried the saint at a place
two miles distant from the city. A magnificent church
1 According to certain authors, St. Sabinus consummated his martyr
dom December 7, 304, although the martyrology mentions him on De
cember 30. Giry adds that the virtuous Serena also obtained the crown of
the martyrs some time after, and that she is honored at Metz, January
30.— ED.
90 Martyrs of tJie First Ages. . [PART i.
was subsequently raised over the place of his inter
ment.
The martyrdom of this saint is related by Fleury in
his Church History.1
CHAPTER XII.
ST. EUPLIUS, DEACON.
August 12.
ST. EUPLIUS obtained the crown of martyrdom in
Sicily during the persecution of Diocletian and Maxim-
ian. He was arrested while reading the Gospel in the
city of Catana, and brought before the governor, Cal-
visianus, with the sacred volume in his hand. The
governor asked him whether he had brought those writ
ings from his own house, or happened to have them
about him. The saint replied: " I have no house; I carry
them about me, and was arrested with them." The
judge ordered him to read something from them; and the
saint read the two following texts: Blessed are they that
suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of
Heaven? And: He that will come after Me, let him take up
his cross and follow Afe.3 The judge inquired the meaning
of these words. Euplius replied: "This is the law of
God, which hath been given me." "By whom ?" "By
Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God." " Since,
then, thou dost confess thyself a Christian," said Calvisi-
anus, " I shall deliver thee to the executioners, that
they may torture thee."
While the saint was undergoing the torture, Calvisi-
anus said to him: " What dost thou now say of thy con-
1 Livre 8, n. 39. '2 Matt. v. 10. 3 Ibid. xvi. 24.
CHAP, xn.i St. Euplius, Deacon. 91
fession ?" The saint replied: " That which I have said
I now repeat: I am a Christian !" " But why," said the
judge, " didst thou not give up those writings as the em
perors have commanded ?" " Because I am a Christian.
I will sooner die than deliver them. In them is eternal
life, which is lost by him who would betray what God
has intrusted to his keeping." The tyrant ordered his
tortures to be continued, and Euplius said: "I thank
Thee, my Lord Jesus Christ. Since I suffer for Thy
sake, do Thou preserve me." The judge said: "Adore
the gods, and thou shall be set at liberty." The saint
replied: " I adore Jesus Christ, and detest the demons.
Torture as much as thou pleasest, still shall I proclaim
myself a Christian."
After the saint had been tortured for a considerable
time, the tyrant exclaimed: "Wretch that thou art!
worship our gods; adore Mars, Apollo, ^Esculapius."
The martyr answered: " I adore the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Ghost, one only God; besides whom there is
.no God. May your gods find no worshippers ! I offer
myself a sacrifice to the true God; nor is it possible to
change me." Calvisianus gave orders that his torments
should be increased to the utmost; and while this was
being performed, Euplius was heard to say: "I thank
Thee, my Lord Jesus Christ. Since I endure these tor
ments for Thy sake, do Thou succor me." Although the
agony of his torments caused his voice and strength to
fail him, his lips still moved, as if he would repeat this
prayer.
At last Calvisianus, seeing that the constancy of the
saint was not to be overcome, commanded his head to be
struck off. The book of the Gospels was tied round his
neck, and, while he was proceeding to the place of exe
cution, the public crier proclaimed before him: "This
is Euplius the Christian, an enemy to the gods and
to the emperors." But the saint ceased not to return
92 Martyrs of the First Ages. IP ART i.
thanks to Jesus Christ, until he arrived at the place
of execution, when, casting himself upon his knees,
he said: " O Lord Jesus Christ ! I give Thee thanks for
having granted me strength to confess Thy holy name.
Complete, O Lord, what Thou hast begun, that Thy ene
mies may be confused." Then, turning to the people
who had followed him, he said: " Brethren, love the Lord
with all your hearts; for he never forgets those who love
him. He remembers them during life and at the hour
of their death, when he sends his angels to lead them to
their heavenly country." Having said these words, he
presented his neck to the executioner, who struck off his
head, on the i2th of August, in the year 304. The Chris
tians carried off his body, embalmed and buried it. The
Acts of his martyrdom are found in Ruinart.
CHAPTER XIII.
*
ST, THEODOTUS, VINTNKR,
May 1 8.
BY the example of St. Theodotus we are taught the
important lesson, that there is no state of life in which a
man may not become a saint. He was a citizen of
Ancyra, the capital of Galatia, was a married man, and
followed the humble calling of an innkeeper. Although
his life presented to the eyes of the world nothing extra
ordinary, it was one of sanctity before God: since having
been disciplined in the fear of the Lord from his youth,
by a holy virgin called Thecusa, he practised temper
ance, chastity, and the mortification of the flesh, by fast
ing and other penitential works. As he loved poverty,
he gave to the poor whatever he could afford; and his
inn was the home of the needy, the asylum of the infirm,
CHAP, xiii] St. Theodotus, Vintner. 93
and a school of Christian piety. He converted many
from the practice of a shameful vice and from other
crimes, and also brought many, both Jews and Gentiles,
to the profession of the true faith, a considerable num
ber of whom arrived at the glory of martyrdom. He had
likewise the gift of miracles, particularly that of healing
the sick, which he effected by laying his hands upon
them, and invoking the adorable name of Jesus.
The persecution of Diocletian was raging, and Theo-
tecnus, a most cruel man, was governor of the province
of Dalmatia. He commanded that all the churches
should be demolished, and that all who were known to
be followers of Jesus Christ should be slaughtered. The
pagans, animated by the cruelty of the governor, en
tered the houses of the Christians, and plundered what
ever they thought tit; and if any one dared to complain,
he was accused of being a rebel. Every day Christians
were put into prison, and even noble ladies barbarously
dragged through the streets; so that many hid them
selves in caves, or flew to the woods, living, like the
beasts, upon wild herbs.
Theodotus remained in Ancyra, where he employed
himself in assisting those who had been imprisoned for
the faith, helping those in need, and burying the bodies
of the martyrs. Moreover, as the governor had forbid
den bread or wine to be sold to any one who was not
known as an idolater, Theodotus supported the poor, and
supplied the priests with bread and wine for the celebra
tion of the Mass. Thus, by the charity of Theodotus, his
inn became the temple and asylum of the Christians.
Having been informed that a certain friend of his,
named Victor, had been imprisoned for the faith, he went
by night to see him, and encouraged him, saying: "A
Christian should have no other concern than firmly to
maintain his faith." Having learned that most enticing
promises had been made to him in case he would re-
94 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
nounce his faith, Theodotus said: " Believe me, my dear
Victor, the promises which the impious make to us are
for our perdition; they are intended to make us slumber
in order that we may not see the eternal death to which
they lead us." Victor, animated by this exhortation,
went boldly to the place of torture; but having suffered
for some time, demanded a respite to consider the pro
posals made to him. He was accordingly brought back
to prison, where he soon died of his wounds, leaving his
eternal salvation in great doubt, to the inexpressible
grief of Theodotus.
Some time after this sad occurrence our saint met a
priest, named Fronto, in a country place called Malus,
and told him that he thought it a most appropriate spot
for placing the relics of the martyrs. The priest replied
that the relics should be procured before the work would
be undertaken. Theodotus said: "God will take care of
that. Let it be thy concern to build the crypt, and the
relics shall not be wanting." As an earnest of this prom
ise, he gave the priest a ring from his finger, and re
turned to Ancyra.
Here he learned that the bodies of seven martyred
virgins had been cast into a pond, and was miraculously
assisted in releasing them; for there arose a strong wind
that drove the waters to the sides of the pond, and dis
covered at the bottom the bodies of the saints, which he
drew out and placed in a neighboring oratory.1
Informations to this effect having been lodged against
him, he voluntarily surrendered himself to the magis-
1 These glorious victims of the most odious of tyrannies were all of an
advanced age; but this did not hinder the tyrant from subjecting them,
through hatred of their religion, to the most shameful indignities.
Among them was particularly noticed St. Tecusa, of whom mention was
made above, the names of the six others are: Alexandra, Claudia,
Faina, Euphrasia, Matrona, and Julitta. See the martyrology, May 18.
—ED.
CHAP, xiii.] St. Theodotus^ Vintner. 95
trates. On entering the court the governor, Theotecnus,
told him that if he sacrificed to the gods he would be
made high-priest of Apollo, and be loaded with riches
and honors. Theodotus, despising all, undertook to
prove to the governor the greatness and sanctity of Jesus
Christ, and the enormity of the vices which the pagans
themselves attributed to their false gods. But Theo
tecnus, angered by this discourse, ordered that he should
be stretched upon the rack, and that, one after another,
the executioners should tear his flesh with iron hooks;
after which vinegar was poured into his wounds, and
lighted torches applied to his sides.
When the saint smelt the burning of his flesh he
turned his head somewhat aside, which the governor
mistaking for a sign that he was yielding to the torments,
approached him and said: "Where now, Theodotus, is
that daring thou didst so lately glory in ? Hadst thou
respected the emperor, thou wouldst not now be reduced
to this piteous state ? Vile innkeeper ! thou shall learn
not to contend henceforward with emperors who have
power over thy life." Theodotus replied: " If thou hadst
arrested me for any crime, then I should fear. As it is,
I fear nothing. Invent new torments, and my Lord
Jesus Christ, for whose love I suffer, will grant me
strength to disregard them." The governor enraged at
these words, caused his jaws to be struck with a stone so
as to beat out his teeth, upon which the saint said: " Al
though thou shouldst cut out my tongue my prayers
cannot be interrupted, for God hears the Christians even
when they are deprived of their speech." The governor
having ordered him back to prison he showed his wounds
to the crowd as he went along, giving them thereby to
understand the strength which Jesus Christ imparts to
his servants. " It is only reasonable," he said, " to suffer
thus for our Lord, who has suffered so much for us."
At the end of five days, the governor, seated upon a
96 Martyrs of the First Ages. FPART i.
throne in one of the public squares, ordered the martyr
to be again brought before him. He then commanded
that his wounds should be reopened, his sides again torn
with irons, and that in this state he should be stretched
upon red-hot tiles. The saint, says Cardinal Orsi,'
feeling a most excruciating pain, penetrating to his very
bowels, prayed that the Lord would somewhat mitigate
his suffering ; and having obtained additional consola
tion, continued to endure this horrible torture with ad
mirable fortitude.
The tyrant had him stretched upon the rack a third
time, and caused him to be lacerated as before ; but
ultimately despairing of being able to overcome his con
stancy, condemned him to lose his head, and ordered
that his body should be burned. Arrived at the place of
execution, the saint gave God thanks for the grace which
had enabled him to overcome his torments, and fervently
implored peace for the Church. Then turning to the
Christians, who had followed him with many tears, he
consoled them, and desired that they should give God
thanks for his victory, assuring them that he would not
fail to assist them by his prayers in heaven. He then
presented his neck to the executioner, and received the
crown. His body was placed upon a funeral pile to be
burned, but appeared surrounded with a light so super-
naturally resplendent that no one dared approach it. It
was therefore left guarded by soldiers.
Upon that same day the priest Pronto arrived in
Ancyra with the ring which Theodotus had given him,
as an earnest that God would supply relics for the place
previously prepared at Malus. He had with him an
ass laden with excellent wine, and the animal upon reach
ing the place where the martyr's body was being watched
instantly lay down. It was night; the soldiers, who had
1 Is tor. eccl. 1. 9, n. 21.
( HAP. xiv.i >S'/. Trypho and St. Rcspicius. 97
retired to eat their supper in a little hut, invited the priest
to join them, and Fronto gladly complied, giving them
in return some wine. The guard, having drunk freely,
fell into a sound sleep, while Fronto, adoring the won
drous ways of divine Providence, took the body of
Theodotus, and, replacing his ring, laid it upon the ass.
The animal being let loose, went back to Malus, where a
church was subsequently built in honor of St. Theodotus.
His martyrdom took place in the beginning of the per
secution under Diocletian, in the year 303.
Cardinal Orsi says that his acts were written by one
Nilus, his most intimate friend, and an eye-witness of
the facts herein recorded.
CHAPTER XIV.
ST. TRYPHO AND ST. RESP ICTUS.
November 10.
THESE two holy martyrs, Trypho and Respicius, were
natives of Bithynia, and having been educated from
their infancy in the Christian faith, were young men of
exemplary virtue. Aquilinus, the governor of the
province, being informed that they were Christians, or
dered them to be arrested, upon which they returned
thanks to God, who made them worthy to suffer for his
sake, beseeching him at the same time to accept their
sacrifice, and grant them strength to persevere to the
death. After their arrest they were conducted to Nice
and imprisoned. Aquilinus, having summoned them to
his presence, inquired of what condition they were, and
what was their fortune. The youths replied: "Chris
tians know not what fortune is, since they believe that it
7
98 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
is God who regulates all things according to his infinite
wisdom." The officers who accompanied the governor
said to them: "All of your religion are to be burned
alive unless they sacrifice to our gods. Such is the im
perial command." The holy prisoners answered: " We
are not afraid to suffer for our religion; on the contrary,
we desire it."
The governor here interposed, saying: "Ye are now
old enough to know what ye ought to do." "Yes,'
answered Trypho, " and it is because we are well aware
of it that we follow Jesus Christ. All that we desire is,
to arrive at the perfection of this knowledge; and we
think, moreover, that the surest road is that which we
have just commenced to tread," The judge, seeing their
constancy, ordered them to be tortured; but they hear
ing the command, forthwith stripped themselves and
were placed upon the rack, which torture they endured
with the most astonishing fortitude and tranquillity.
During the torments they did not even open their mouths,
except to invoke the adorable name of Jesus, or to give
Aquilinus to understand the eternal damnation to which
he exposed himself by following the worship of idols.
But the governor despised all their exhortations, and
gave orders that as he was going to hunt, the martyrs
should be exposed in the fields to the severity of the frost
until his return. The order was executed, and by reason
of the excessive cold the martyrs' legs were burst in
many places.
After his return from the chase the tyrant asked them
whether they would not now learn to be wise. "This,
indeed," said Trypho, " is what we are anxious to learn,
through the homage we render to our God." Hereupon
the governor sent them to prison; and having made an
excursion to some other cities, returned to Nice, where
he again summoned the martyrs before him. Speaking
in a kind manner, he promised them riches and honors
CHAP, xiv.] St. Trypho and St. Respicius. 99
if they would obey the imperial edicts; but finding them
still constant, he said: " Have pity upon your youth; de
spise not the favors which you may obtain from us."
Trypho answered: "We cannot better follow your ad
vice than by remaining steadfast in our confession of
Jesus Christ."
Aquilinus, enraged at their firmness, caused them to
be dragged through the streets of the city, and to be
scourged until the executioners became exhausted. He,
moreover, ordered their sides to be torn with iron hooks,
and their lacerated flesh to be burned with torches;
during which butchery the martyrs said: "O Jesus our
God, for whom we thus combat and suffer, permit not
that the devil overcome us. Hear Thou our prayers,
and grant that we may happily arrive at the consumma
tion of our course." Thus did the saints continue to
speak to Jesus Christ without heeding the tyrant, who
during their tortures ceased not to importune them to
sacrifice to the gods. Seeing, however, that all his
efforts were unavailing, he condemned them to lose their
heads. They suffered about the year 251.
Their Acts are found in Ruinart.1
1 Such are in substance the Acts that Ruinart admits to be true in his
second edition (A m stela-dam i, 1713). We must, however, observe that
according to other authorities, confirmed by the Roman Breviary, St.
Respicius was a tribune who, at the sight of the superhuman courage
shown by St. Trypho while he was tortured, opened his eyes to the
faith, at once declared himself a Christian, and was united to the glorious
martyr. Their relics have been transported to Rome and deposited in
the Church of the Holy Ghost. — ED.
i oo Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XV.
ST. ROMANUS, DEACON, AND ST. BARULAS, THE INFANT
MARTYR.
November 18.
THE martyrdom of St. Romanus is truly wonderful,
and is celebrated by oriental writers, as well as by those
of the Western Church. Eusebius, St. John Chrysostom,
and Prudentius are, according to Cardinal Orsi,1 amongst
his panegyrists. St. Romanus was a Syrian, and de
scended of noble and Christian parents. At a very ten
der age he applied himself to study, in which his natural
abilities enabled him to make great progress ; but still
greater was the advancement which he attained in the
science of the saints, by the sanctity of his morals and
his zeal for religion.
When the persecution of Diocletian began, he was
already a deacon of the Church of Caesarea, and went
from house to house exhorting the Christians to endure
with becoming fortitude whatever trials that great tribu
lation might bring upon them. His bishop, having sent
him to Antioch on some very urgent business in the
year 303, he found that the Christian churches were
being pulled down in obedience to the imperial edict.
Much as this afflicted the saint, his grief was much more
poignant at beholding the fall of many Christians who,
terrified by the threats of the judges, presented them
selves to offer sacrifice ; whereupon the saint, inflamed
by holy zeal, and regardless of his own danger, entered
the crowd of apostates and exclaimed : " Alas, brethren,
what is it ye do :* Do ye abandon the true God, your
1 1st or. ('('(/. 1. 9, n. 20.
CHAP. xv. i SS. Rowtinns and Barnlas. 101
Creator and Redeemer, to sell yourselves to the devil,
your enemy? Do you offer incense to gods of bronze,
of stone, and of wood, and do you adore as gods those
who during life have been the most abandoned of
men ?" By such discourse he not only withheld those
who were about to fall, and confirmed the constant,
but he gave courage to the pusillanimous, and dis
posed them to brave all the persecutions of their
enemies.
Cardinal Orsi, on the authority of Prudentius, relates
that the prefect of the praetorium, Asclepiades, having
sent some soldiers to a church to offer, upon the conse
crated altar, victims to the idols, and afterwards to level
the church with the earth, the saint opposed the sacri
legious attempt, saying that, if they wished to slay a
victim, he was ready to offer to God the sacrifice of his
life. Asclepiades having heard this, ordered Romanus
to be arrested. The saint wras advised to seek safety in
flight, but refused to do so, and surrendered himself to
the soldiers ; he confessed at the tribunal that he was a
Christian, and that he had dissuaded the faithful from
obeying the edict, which he termed impious. " I clearly
foresee," continued the holy deacon, " that this my con
fession will subject me to torments, but I hope to suffer
them with constancy for the love of my God, since I
have committed no crime."
The prefect commanded that he should be stretched
upon the rack and torn with irons; but having been in
formed that the saint was a nobleman, he changed the
punishment, and had him beaten with scourges armed
with lead. " We shall see," said the prefect, "whether
thou wilt speak with so much insolence during thy tor
tures." The holy martyr replied : " God would not be
pleased were I insolent; but by the grace of Jesus
Christ I shall remain faithful, nor will I cease, while I
have life, to publish his praises and to detest your su-
IO2 Martyrs oj the First Ages. [PART i.
perstitions." Meanwhile Romanus suffered the torture
not only with patience but with joy, which caused
Asclepiades to burn with rage. In order to oblige the
saint to be silent, he would sometimes by gestures en
courage the executioners, and at other times, in trans
ports of anger, rise from his seat in order to intimidate
the martyr. He then commenced to speak in praise of
his gods, to whom, he said, Rome was indebted for her
acquisition of empire, and added, that it was his duty
to implore of them prosperity for the emperor, and to
take a bloody vengeance on those that rebel against
their authority. Romanus answered that he could not
invent a better prayer for the princes and the soldiers
than that they should all embrace the faith of Jesus
Christ ; adding, that he would never obey the emperor
in his persecution of the Christians.
Asclepiades became infuriated beyond measure at
these last words, and ordered that the martyr should be
stretched upon the rack, and his sides and breast torn
with iron hooks, until the bones and bowels should ap
pear. But because the saint continued to despise these
tortures, and encouraged the bystanders to be regard
less of all temporal punishments, the prefect com
manded that his mouth and cheeks should be torn with
the same irons. But the saint thanked him, saying,
that he had thus opened more mouths to celebrate the
praises of Christ. Whereupon the judge threatened to
burn him alive for his obstinacy fn preferring to the
ancient religion the novel doctrines of a crucified man.
Herefrom Romanus took occasion to celebrate the glories
of the Cross, explaining the holy mysteries which it in
dicated, and concluded by saying, that as Asclepiades
did not understand these mysteries, he would give him
an irrefragable proof of them. " Let there be brought,"
said the saint, "a child of tender years, and let us learn
from him whether it be better to follow a religion which
CHAP, xv] SS. Romanus and Barillas. 103
teaches a plurality of gods, or that which adores only
one."
The prefect accepted the challenge, and the young-
child, who had not been long weaned, was brought for
ward, to whom Romanus said: "Which is better, my
child, to adore Jesus Christ or a plurality of gods?" The
boy replied that the true God could be only one, and
that a plurality of gods was inconceivable. The tyrant,
confused by this answer, turned to the child and said :
"Who has taught thee these things?" He replied:
"My mother, who was herself taught by God."1 Ascle-
piades had the cruelty to have the child torn by force
from his mother's embrace, scourged, and beheaded.
The Church celebrates the triumph of this infant
martyr, named Barulas, who was baptized in his own
blood on the i8th November. The good mother, who
was a Christian, having heard the sentence pronounced
against her child, carried him herself to the place of ex
ecution, and without shedding a tear, kissed him and
gave him to the executioner, telling him to remember
her in heaven; she then held out her garment to receive
his head, which she brought home as a precious relic.
The inhuman Asclepiacles, instead of being moved at
this miracle, which astonished all the bystanders, be
came more infuriated and cruel: he caused St. Ro
manus, whom he called " the author of so many evils,"
to be again put to the torture, and the fragments of
1 A wonderful profession of faith, evidently inspired by Him who
said : " You shall be brought before governors, and before kings for
my sake, for a testimony to them and to the gentiles [of my divinity
and of the truth of my doctrine], Bui. when they shall deliver you up,
take no thought how or what to speak ; for it shall be given you in that
hour what to speak. For it is not you that speak, but the Spirit of
your Father that speaketh in you" (Matt. x. 18). The Holy Church
is our mother according to faith, and it is God who has revealed to her
the truths that she teaches us. — En.
IO4 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
flesh which still remained on his body to be pulled off;
but the saint mocked the weakness of his executioners,
saying, that they did not know how to deprive him of
life. The prefect having heard this, said: "Since tliou
art so desirous of ending thy life, thou shalt soon be
satisfied ; fire shall quickly consume thee to ashes."
While the executioners were leading him forward, he
said to the judge: ''Perfidious man! I appeal to my
Saviour Jesus Christ from this thy cruel sentence." The
saint said this to give the tyrant to understand that he
should one day render an account to the Supreme
Judge; but Asclepiades, notwithstanding, dictated the
final sentence, condemning the martyr to the flames.
Meanwhile the funeral pile on which he was about to
be burned was prepared, and while the executioners
were tying the saint to the stake he told them that he
knew that this sort of martyrdom \vas not destined for
him, and that another miracle would astonish them.
Even so it happened, for on a sudden it rained in such
torrents that the executioners were unable to fire the
pile, though it was covered with oil and pitch. This
caused so great a murmur among the people, that a re
port of the fact was sent to the emperor; and while
they were awaiting his decision the saint mocked his
executioners, saying, " Where is now your fire?"
The emperor was inclined to release a man so evi
dently protected by Heaven, yet Asclepiades not only
dissuaded him, but even obtained an order that Ro-
manus should lose that tongue with which he had so blas
phemed their gods. Having, therefore, proceeded to the
forum and summoned Romanus, he ordered a surgeon
called Aristones to pull out his tongue, which was
easily executed, as the saint presented it in such a man
ner as enabled him to take it out by the root: a torrent
of blood followed, which covered his beard and breast.
It was a new miracle that Romanus could survive these
CHAP, xv.] SS. Romanus and Barillas. 105
barbarous torments; but it was a still greater prodigy
that the saint continued to speak. Eusebius writes1
that in his time there were many persons yet alive who
had witnessed this miracle.
Asclepiades, not content with what he had already
done, made another attempt upon the constancy of the
saint, and caused an altar, with fire, incense, and the flesh
of animals, to be prepared. He then brought Romanus
forward, exhorted him to sacrifice, and concluded by
saying in derision: <% I now give thee leave to speak."
But the saint, raising his voice, replied that he should not
be surprised if words were never wanting to those who
preached Jesus Christ, to whom the laws of nature are
subject, and who consequently enabled him to speak
without a tongue. The tyrant, not knowing what to
say to this new prodigy, declared his suspicions that he
had been deceived by the surgeon, who instantly de
manded an examination; whereupon the mouth of the
saint was found without a tongue! This miracle was
further tested by an experiment tried upon a criminal
who had been condemned to death. His tongue was
cut out, and he instantly expired.
St. Romanus was brought back to prison and detained
there for some months, during which time he ceased not
to preach the glories of Jesus Christ with even greater
energy and clearness than he had before been master of.
Upon the celebration of Diocletian's birthday all the
prisoners were set at liberty except Romanus, who was
kept in prison, with his legs stretched in the stocks, as
far as the fifth hole, and was finally strangled upon the
iyth November, in the year 303. He thus went to
heaven to receive the reward for all his sufferings. St.
John Chrysostom and other Fathers of the Church have
celebrated his martyrdom in great eulogies.
1 DC Resurr. 1. 2.
io6 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
CHAPTER XVI.
ST. CRISPINA.
December 5.
ST. CRISPINA was held in high veneration all through
Africa, and is honored by St. Augustine in various parts
of his works, in which he speaks of her martyrdom.
She was a noble lady, very rich, and the mother of sev
eral children. When she found herself in danger of los
ing her children, her possessions, and her life, in the
persecution which was then raging, instead of being in
timidated, she was filled with a holy joy, not unworthy
the Christian education which she had received from her
most tender years. Being arrested in her native city of
Thagara by order of the proconsul Anulinus, and
brought before his tribunal, he inquired of her whether
she was aware of the imperial edicts which commanded
that all persons should sacrifice to the gods of the empire.
She replied: u I have never sacrificed, nor will I sacrifice
to any other than to one God, and to our Lord Jesus
Christ his Son, who was born and suffered for us."
Anulinus then said: "Leave this thy superstition, and
adore the gods."
"Every day," said Crispina, "I adore my God, and
besides him I know of no others."
" I perceive now," said the judge, " that thou art ob
stinate, and dost contemn our gods: thou must be made
to experience the rigor of the laws."
"I shall suffer most willingly," replied the saint,
" whatever may be exacted as the testimony of my
faith."
"T will give thee to read," said the proconsul, "the
CHAP. xvi. j St. Crispina. 107
edict of the emperor, which it behooveth thee to ob
serve."
The saint replied: " I observe the commands of my
Lord Jesus Christ."
Anulinus: "But thou shalt lose thy head, unless thou
wilt observe the commands of the emperor, as they are
observed throughout Africa."
Crispina: "No one shall oblige me to sacrifice to
demons: I sacrifice to the Lord only, who made heaven
and earth."
Here the proconsul began to exhort her to obey the
edicts and to avoid the terrible consequences of the em
peror's wrath. The saint courageously replied: "I fear
not the anger of men; all they can do is nothing: I fear
only God who is in heaven; and I should be lost forever
were I to offend him by sacrilege."
"Thou shalt not," said the proconsul, " be guilty of
that crime by obeying the princes and adoring the gods
of the Romans." But Crispina, raising her voice, ex
claimed: " Wouldst thou then have me guilty of sacri
lege before God, in order not to appear sacrilegious to
the eyes of men ? It never shall be ! God alone is great
and omnipotent, the Creator of all things; men are his
creatures; what, therefore, can they do?"
Anulinus, seeing that the saint continued firm in the
faith, after some other invectives and threats, ordered
that her head should be shaved, as a token of degrada
tion, adding, that if she continued obstinate he would
condemn her to a most cruel death. The saint answered:
"I care not for the present life, and am only anxious
for the life of my soul. I fear eternal torments only."
"Instantly obey," exclaimed the proconsul, "or your
head shall at once be struck off !" The saint meekly
answered: "I shall return thanks to my God, for mak
ing me worthy of this blessed lot. God is with me, that
I may not consent to thy suggestions."
io8 Martyrs of t lie First Ages. [PART i
Here Anulinus exclaimed: ''Why do we any
bear with this impious woman ?" Then, having caused
the process of her trial to be read over, pronounced the
final sentence, that Crispina should lose her head, for
obstinately refusing to sacrifice to the gods, in obedi
ence to the edicts. Crispina, having heard the iniqui
tous sentence, calmly and with holy joy said: "'I return
thanks to Jesus Christ, and I bless the Lord who has
vouchsafed thus to deliver me from the hands of men."
She consummated her martyrdom on the 5th December,
about the year 304.
St. Augustine frequently proposed in his sermons the
example of this martyr. " See," says the holy Father,
" how St. Crispina despised all things, and life itself, for
the love of Jesus Christ. Rich and noble as she was,
she might have lived somewhat longer in the enjoyment
of earthly happiness; but she would not have obtained
everlasting life. Wisely, therefore, did she prefer to live
forever, than to prolong for a short while her temporal
existence." '
CHAPTER XVII.
ST. DIONYSIA, ST. MAJORICUS, HER SON, AND OTHER HOLY
MARTYRS OR CONFESSORS IN THE PERSECUTION RAISED
IN AFRICA BY THE VANDALS.
December 6 and 16.
TOWARDS the close of the fifth century a most cruel
persecution was raised in Africa by Huneric, king of
the Vandals, with the object of obliging the Catholics
to follow the Arian heresy. This persecution is de
scribed by St. Victor, Bishop of Vita,2 who witnessed it
1 In Ps. clvii. - DC Pcrsccnt. Afr. 1. 5.
CHAP, xvn.] ,5^. Dionysia and Companions. 109
and suffered from it. The tyrant, in the year 485, sent
emissaries throughout Africa, with orders to spare no
one who remained constant in the profession of the
Catholic faith; and in pursuance of these orders, racks,
gibbets, scourges, and torturing instruments were every
where in requisition throughout the provinces.1
Among the many martyrs who, in this persecution,
sacrificed their lives, Dionysia, a lady of the city of Vita,
was conspicuous. The persecutors, seeing her more
animated than the rest, were preparing to strip her, in
order that she should be scourged with rods, when she
said: " I am willing to suffer ; torture me as much as you
please, but spare my modesty." These words, however,
irritated the barbarians still more: they exposed her
naked in the public square, and rent her flesh with
scourges so cruelly, that the blood ran in streams down
her body. In the midst of these torments the saint ex
claimed : "Ministers of Satan! all that you do to dis
honor me shall hereafter redound to my greater glory."
Meanwhile she animated others to martyrdom, and her
example was the salvation of almost that entire city.
The saint had an only son, named Majoricus, of very
tender age, wrho trembled at the sight of her torments ;
but the pious mother, steadfastly looking at him, said :
"Remember, O my son ! that we have been baptized ;
let us not lose the unsullied robes of grace, that when
the Lord cometh to judge us, he may not say, 'Cast
them into outer darkness.' My child! it is the torment
which never ends that we should fear, and the life which
never terminates that we ought to sigh for." The
child was so strengthened by these words, that he en
dured torments which terminated his life; when the
mother, embracing the dead body, ceased not to return
thanks to God for so great a mercy.
See chapters Ixxi. and Ixxv.
1 1 o Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
The executioners next commenced to exercise their
cruelty upon Dativa, the sister of Dionysia; then upon
Leontia, ^Emilianus, Tertius, and Boniface, who were
torn until their bowels appeared; and they expired dur
ing the torture.
St. Victor further relates the great torments to which
a citizen of Suburbis, called Servus, was put. He was
first scourged until his body was completely lacerated,
and then hoisted high in air with ropes, and let fall
with all his weight to the earth. After putting him
many times to this torture, they dragged him along the
streets, so that his flesh, being torn by the sharp stones,
hung down in pieces upon his belly, sides, and back ;
but the holy martyr suffered all with joy, in testimony
of his faith.
In the city of Cucusa also there were many who laid
down their lives in the same cause ; among whom a lady
named Victoria deserves special mention. She was sus
pended in the air, while a fire was kindled beneath to
roast her by slow degrees. While she was suffering this
exquisite torture, her husband, who had renounced the
faith, used all his endeavors to pervert her ; and pre
senting his children, said to her: "Why, my wife, wilt
thou suffer such torture? Have pity at least upon these
children! Ah! do obey the commands of the king, and
console these children and me." But the servant of the
Lord closed her ears to these seducing words, and
turned her eyes from her children, that she might raise
her heart to God. The executioners seeing her shoul
ders broken and her arms dislocated by being so long
suspended, thought her dead, and left her ; but on
being taken down she related that a virgin had ap
peared to her, and cured her by touching her limbs.
It is also recorded by St. Victor, that at Thipasa, in
Mauritania,1 many Catholics used to perform their de-
1 Algiers.
CHAP, xvii.] .SIS'. Dionysia and Companions. 1 1 i
votions in a private house, to avoid communicating with
an Arian bishop who endeavored to pervert them ; but
the impious Arian wrote of the matter to Huneric, who
sent thither a command to amputate the right hands
and cut out the tongues of all these pious persons.
The barbarous order was executed ; but God enabled
them all to speak, notwithstanding the loss of their
tongues. St. Victor attests that these confessors of the
faith were able to speak when he wrote, which was
three or four years after the event; and there are other
authors who confirm the fact. JEneas of Gaza, a phi
losopher of the Platonic school,1 assures us that he him
self saw the persons and heard them speak ; and that,
to be the more certain, he caused them to open their
mouths, and saw plainly that they wanted their tongues.
Procopius, also a contemporaneous writer, in the his
tory of the Vandal war2 affirms that many persons so
treated under Huneric were, notwithstanding, able to
speak. He makes special mention of some at Constanti
nople, two of whom, having miserably fallen into a cer
tain sin, lost this miraculous gift of speech. Also Count
Marcellinus, in his chronicles, relates that Huneric or
dered the tongue to be cut out from a certain Catholic
who had an impediment in his speech, and that he after
wards spoke plainly, giving glory to God. This author
cites other cases which took place at Constantinople.
Finally, the Emperor Justinian, in publishing a certain
law, declares that he himself had heard some of these
persons speaking.3
This same holy bishop informs us, that among the
martyrs of Africa there were many holy virgins who
1 Theophrastus .
* DC Hello Vaini. 1. i. c. 8. Anno 484.
:i We may recall to mind a similar miracle related above, in the mar
tyrdom of St. Romunus, page 104. — En.
1 1 2 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
had consecrated their purity to Jesus Christ ; but the
Arians, who, like the generality of heretics, are opposed
to virginity, regarding with envy the edification given
by these pious women, wrote calumnious letters to
Huneric concerning their conduct with their spiritual
directors, and obtained from that wicked king an order
that they should be put to torture until they should
confess those falsely alleged crimes. They were sus
pended in air with great weights at their feet, and
burned with red-hot plates of iron. Many expired
under these torments, and those who survived remained
crippled and burn-marked for life. The martyrology
mentions these saints on the 6th of December.
But God did not long delay the punishment of the
wicked Huneric, who, as St. Victor relates, was eaten up
alive by worms, and died, tearing his own flesh through
despair.
CHAPTER XVIII.
SS. PHILEAS, BISHOP OF THMUIS, AND PHILOROMUS, TRIBUNE.
February 4;
AMONG the many martyrs of Egypt and Thebais, SS.
Phileas and Philoromus attract particular attention, on
account of their exalted rank and the high estimation
in which, according to Eusebius, they were held in their
own country. They shed together their blood for the
faith, at Alexandria, between the years 306 and 312.
Phileas had discharged some of the first offices of
state, in the city of Thmuis, in Egypt. He was a pagan
by birth, was married, and had some children, who
were still pagans when the saint laid down his life for
Christ. He was somewhat advanced in life when he
was converted, but the Lord filled him with such virtue,
CHAP, xviii.] SS. Phileas and Philoromus. 1 13
that he deserved to be appointed bishop of his native
place.1 He was arrested during the persecution, and
was conducted to prison in Alexandria.
We have a letter written by him to his flock, while he
was in prison for the faith and about to consummate
his martyrdom, which shows his holy zeal and pastoral
solicitude. He there encourages the faithful to suffer
every torture for Jesus Christ rather than renounce the
faith ; adducing the examples of so many saintly heroes
who, having the eyes of their souls fixed on God, went
joyfully to encounter death, in the full confidence that
he would comfort his servants in the trial which would
enable them to obtain eternal life. He then exhorts
them to confide in the merits of Jesus Christ, and to
keep continually before their eyes his Passion and
death, as well as the eternal rewards which he promises
to those who will be constant in confessing him before
men.
A short time after the writing of this letter the mar
tyrs were brought before Culcian, the governor of
Egypt, who exhorted them to have pity upon them
selves, their wives and children, who, together with
many relatives and friends in Alexandria, had come to
dissuade them ; but all their arts were incapable of
shaking the constancy of the martyrs. Phileas, stand
ing upon the platform and being told by the governor
to enter into himself and be wise, answered : " I have
never lost my judgment." Culcian : u Then sacrifice to
the gods." Phileas : " I sacrifice to one only God, not
to many."
1 In the primitive times, in which the Church was composed only of
converts, it was not unusual to see married men raised to the dignity of
the priesthood and even to that of the episcopate ; but these were
obliged to live in perpetual continence. The ministers of the altar are
consecrated to God, and can no longer belong to any one except to
him. — EJ>.
8
114 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
"Thy conscience," said the governor, "should make
thee sacrifice for the sake of thy wife and children."
Phileas answered : " Conscience obliges me to prefer
God to all things, since the Scripture saith that thou
shalt love thy God, who created thee, above all things."
"Which God ?" said Culcian. The saint stretching out
his hand to heaven, said : " That God who created
heaven and earth, and endureth forever." Culcian
asked him : " Was Christ God ?" The saint replied :
"Yes, truly, for he hath raised the dead to life, and
worked many other miracles." "But how?" exclaimed
the governor; "was a god then crucified?" "Yes." re
plied Phileas, " he was crucified for our salvation, for
which he willingly suffered ignominy and death ; all his
sufferings had been foretold in the Holy Scriptures. If
any be desirous of further information, let them come
forward and they shall see the truth !"
The saint then told the governor that he was anxious
for him to execute his orders. " Then," said Culcian,
" thou art anxious to die without reason." " Not with
out reason," said Phileas, " but for God and for truth."
" I would wish," said the governor, " to save thee for
thy brother's sake."1 But Phileas replied: " I beseech
thee to execute that which hath been commanded thee."
Culcian said: "If I knew thee to be poor, I would not
desire to save thee; but thou art possessed of great
wealth, and canst support many; sacrifice, therefore, and
live." Phileas answered :" I will not sacrifice." Culcian:
" Dost thou not see thy wife, how piteously she looks at
thee ?" Phileas: " Jesus Christ, whom I serve, is our
Saviour; as he has called me, he can also call her to the
inheritance of his glory."
The governor here offered him time to consider, but
the holy bishop said: " I have given all these points suf-
1 This brother, says Alban Butler, was one of the judges. — Ei>.
CHAP, xviii.] SS. Phileas and Pkiloromus. 1 1 5
ficient consideration, and am determined to suffer for
Christ." Hereupon his relatives cast themselves at his
feet, and besought him to have compassion upon his wife
and children; but the saint, raising his eyes to God, de
clared that he should not think of any other relatives
than the saints in heaven.
Among the persons of distinction present at this
spectacle was Philoromus, a military tribune, wrho held
a very high office in the administration of justice. Hav
ing listened to the waitings of the bishop's relatives and
the exhortations of the governor, raising his voice he
exclaimed: "Why do you vainly endeavor to shake his
constancy? Why do you fatigue yourselves uselessly
with one whom you see faithful to his God ? Do ye not
perceive that your entreaties and your tears are of no
avail ? Tears shed from human motives cannot move
the soul of a Christian wiio has God before his eyes."
The entire multitude, enraged at these words of Philoro
mus, cried out that he should be condemned to the same
death as Phileas; whereupon the governor commanded
that they should be both beheaded.
As the entire crowd were proceeding, together with
the martyrs, to the place of execution, the bishop's
brother said with a loud voice that Phileas had de
manded an appeal. Culcian instantly called them back,
but Phileas said: "I have not demanded any appeal.
Give no ear to this wretched man. I am much beholden
to the judges who have made me a co-heir with Jesus
Christ."
Having said this he moved forward to the place of
execution, where, having arrived together with his com
panion, he raised his voice to the Christians and said:
" My dear children, those of you that seek God in truth
should be careful to abstain from sin, since the enemy
goeth about seeking whom he may devour. As yet we
have not suffered; we now commence to suffer, and to be
i 1 6 Martyrs of the First Ages. FPART i.
truly disciples of Jesus Christ. Be ye attentive in the ob
servance of his commandments, and continually invoke
the Creator of all things, to whom be glory forever !" At
the termination of this exhortation both martyrs were
beheaded. In this manner did these two heroes con
summate their sacrifice.1
CHAPTER XIX.
ST. UIONYSIA, VIRGIN, WITH SS. ANDREW AND PAUL OF
LAMPSACUS.
May 15.
IT is recorded by Fleury,2 that in the third century, at
Lampsacus, a city in Lesser Asia, there were presented
to Optimus, the proconsul, three Christians — Andrew,
Paul, and Nichomacus.3 Being asked to what country
they belonged, Nichomacus, first of all, raising his voice,
answered: "I am a Christian." The proconsul having
repeated the question to the other two, they also replied:
"We likewise are Christians."
Optimus then, turning to Nichomacus, ordered him to
sacrifice in obedience to the emperor; but he replied:
" Thou art already aware that a Christian cannot sacri
fice to demons." The proconsul had him tortured so
cruelly that he was about to expire, when, his courage
failing him, the wretched man exclaimed: "I am no
longer a Christian; I will willingly sacrifice to the gods."
He was quickly withdrawn from the torture, but was
1 Hist, eecles. 1. C, n. 41.
- Their Acts are found in the collections of Ruinart.
•" As for St. Peter, who suffered with them, see Chapter XLVI,
CHAP, xix.] SS. Dionysia and Companions. 1 1 7
instantly possessed by a devil, and violently casting him
self upon the earth, bit off his tongue and expired.
St. Dionysia, a young virgin only sixteen years of age,
having witnessed this spectacle and being deeply pene
trated by the misfortune of Nichomacus, exclaimed:
" O miserable wretch ! by not having suffered a moment
longer, thou hast condemned thyself to eternal pains !"
The proconsul hearing these words caused her to be
dragged from out the crowd and asked her if she were a
Christian. " Yes," she replied, '' I am a Christian, and
therefore weep for that unhappy man, who, by suffering
a little more, might have earned heaven for himself,
whereas he will now weep for all eternity." The pro
consul, enraged at these words, exclaimed: "Instantly
thou shalt sacrifice to our gods, or thou shalt be igno-
miniously treated and afterwards burned alive." Dio
nysia answered: "My God is greater than thou, wherefore
I fear not thy threats; he will grant me strength to suffer
every torment for his love." Optimus then delivered her
to two young libertines who brought her to a house; but
there appeared a youth surrounded with a supernatural
splendor who was ready to defend her from insult, where
upon the young men cast themselves at her feet and im
plored her intercession in their behalf.
On the following morning the proconsul summoned
before him Andrew and Paul, who had been kept in
prison, and called upon them to sacrifice to Diana. They
both replied: " We know not Diana nor the other demons
whom you adore; we worship the only God." At these
words the crowd of idolaters called upon the proconsul
to leave the execution of the two saints to themselves;
and he accordingly delivered them up to be stoned by the
multitude. The saints were tied and dragged by the
feet through the streets to the place of execution.
While they were being stoned, Dionysia escaped from
the guard and repairing to the place threw herself upon
i 1 8 Martyrs of the First Ages.
the martyrs exclaiming: " To live with you in heaven, I
will die with you upon earth." The proconsul upon
hearing this ordered her head to be struck off; and this
was accordingly done.
CHAPTER XX.
ST. FEBRONIA, VIRGIN.
June 25.
DURING the persecution of Diocletian there existed
in the city of Sibapoli,1 in Syria, a celebrated nunnery,
containing upwards of fifty most exemplary religious.
The Superior, named Briena, was a lady of noble birth
and great virtue, and had with her a niece called Fe-
bronia, whom she had reared from her third to her nine
teenth year. She was exceedingly beautiful, and still
more adorned by the most exalted virtue ; and the
pious aunt was so careful of her that she would not al
low' her to be seen by anybody.
Febronia, almost from her infancy, had dedicated her
virginity to Jesus Christ ; and, having become a re
ligious, led a life of the most perfect sanctity. She
fasted almost the entire year, her food being only bread
and roots, or lentils, and she sometimes passed two days
without any nutriment at all. She slept mostly upon a
narrow plank, and sometimes on the ground.
It was known that there was in the convent a young
lady of extraordinary beauty and virtue, and many per
sons were most anxious to see her and speak with her,
but in vain. A young widow, however, of very noble
family, called leria, who was as yet a catechumen, cast
ing herself at the feet of the Superior, with many tears
1 Or Nisibis, at present Nezib in Mesopotamia.
CHAP, xx.] kSV. Febronia, Virgin. 119
sought, and finally obtained, an interview with Febronia;
the conversation so inflamed her with the love of God,
that she immediately received baptism, induced her
family to do the same, and renouncing second nuptials,
dedicated herself exclusively to the service of God.
Some time after, it was reported that the emperor
Diocletian w^as about to send the prefect Lysimachus,
accompanied by his uncle Selenus, to Sibapoli, with
orders to exterminate the Christians. This news spread
terror among the Christians; and the bishop, knowing
the danger in which the nuns would be placed, gave
them leave to depart from the convent, which they could
not d^> without shedding many tears. The Superior,
however, determined to await her crown in the convent;
and turning to her niece, she wept and said "What
will become of thee, Febronia ?" The young virgin re
plied : "I shall stay here, my dear aunt; what better lot
could await me than to shed my blood for Jesus Christ !"
The prefect Lysimachus was inclined to show favor to
the Christians, on account of his mother, who was a true
believer. Hence Diocletian associated with him in the
proconsulate of the East his uncle Selenus, who was a
mortal enemy of the Christians, and gave the command
of the troops to Primus, with directions to obey the
orders of Selenus. The edicts of extermination were
first executed in Palmyra, to a horrible extent, the num
ber of slaughtered Christians being innumerable.
The pagans called the attention of Selenus to the nun
nery of Sebapoli, whither a company of soldiers was
forthwith despatched. Upon breaking open the gates
they were met by Febronia, who casting herself at their
feet, implored them to make her the first victim; but
the general, Primus, struck with her appearance, went
to Lysimachus, who was only twenty years of age. and
informed him that he had found in the convent a lady
of rare beauty, and apparently of noble family, whom he
I 20 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
could recommend to him for a wife. Meanwhile one of
the guard went to inform Selenus that Primus was en
deavoring to have his nephew married to a Christian
virgin, whereupon the uncle ordered that Febronia
should be brought before him. The young lady was
accordingly laden with chains; some of the religious
wished to accompany her, but the soldiers refused, when
the pious aunt, taking leave of her, said: "Go, my child,
and show thyself a worthy spouse of Jesus Christ!"
When Febronia was brought before Selenus, he asked
her whether she was free. "No," she replied, "I am a
servant." Selenus: "Who is thy master?" Febronia:
"Jesus Christ my Saviour and my God." Hereupon,
Selenus began to represent to her the misfortune of hav
ing been deceived by the Christian sect, and besought
her to awake from the delusion, and sacrifice to the gods,
who would prosper her; since she would thus contract
nuptials with his nephew, Lysimachus, and become one
of the most distinguished ladies of the empire. The
saint, raising up her chains, said: "I beseech thee not to
deprive me of the most precious gems that I have ever
worn. As regards the nuptials, I am consecrated to God,
and cannot accept the sons of earth. — Then I am a
Christian, and how can I worship devils? Know that
for my faith I am willing to suffer all torments."
Selenus, infuriated by this speech, ordered the saint
to be scourged, which torture was so cruelly inflicted
that her body might be said to be one wound; never
theless, Febronia ceased not to bless the Lord. Selenus,
thinking that her prayers were intended to insult him,
ordered her to be roasted on a gridiron over a slow fire,
at which horrid spectacle even the pagans turned away,
while the saint continued to thank Jesus Christ, who
thus made her worthy to suffer for his sake. The tyrant,
not content with what she had as yet endured, caused
her teeth to be knocked out, and her breasts to be torn
CHAP, xxi.] St. Arcadins. 121
off; but seeing that all these tortures could not shake
the constancy of Febronia, he ordered her head to be
struck off; this completed her martyrdom, on the 251!]
of June, about the beginning of the fourth century.
While Primus and Lysimachus were conversing about
the heroic conduct of the youthful virgin, news was
brought them that Selenus, having been seized by a
sudden madness, had clashed out his brains. They pro
ceeded to his apartments and found him dead, where
upon Lysimachus ordered Primus to have the body of
St. Febronia laid in a rich coffin, and honorably buried.
This act of piety performed, Primus and Lysimachus
embraced the Christian faith, and their example was fol
lowed bv manv others.1
CHAPTER XXI.
ST. ARCADIUS.
January 12.
ST. ARCADIUS was a native of Africa, and most proba
bly suffered in Caesarea,'2 the capital of Mauritania. A
furious persecution — during which the Christians were
1 This history is related more at length by Father Marin ( Vies dcs
Peres, 1. ix. ch. i) after the Bollandists. He adds several interesting cir
cumstances. God glorified St. Febronia after her death by many mira
cles. Lysimachus and Primus were not only converted, but renounced
all worldly prospects and embraced the religious life. Moreover. leria
threw herself at the feet of the venerable Briena, and begged her to re
ceive her into her community that she might occupy the place of Fe
bronia; she also wished that her jewels should serve to adorn the coffin
of the glorious martyr. — ED.
- At present Cherchell, a small village in the province of Mascara, in
Algiers. The time in which St. Arcadius suffered is uncertain; accord
ing to Alban Butler it was probably in the third century. — En.
122 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
cruelly dragged before the idols to sacrifice — was raging,
when Arcadius withdrew to a solitary place, where he
employed his time in fasting and in prayer. Meanwhile,
as he appeared not at the public sacrifices, soldiers were
despatched to surprise him in his house, but not finding
him, they arrested one of his relatives, in order to make
him discover the retreat of his kinsman.
Arcadius was unwilling that another should suffer on
his account, and presented himself to the governor, say
ing that his relative might be discharged, as he had
come to answer for himself. The governor replied that
he also might depart unhurt if he would sacrifice to the
gods. The saint courageously answered: "Thou art
deceived if thou believest that threats of death can affright
the servants of God. They say with St. Paul, ' To me
to live is Christ, and to die is gain ' [Philipp. i. 21], In
vent, therefore, what tortures thou canst, we shall never
be separated from our God."
Hereupon the tyrant, full of wrath, and thinking the
usual tortures too light for Arcadius, ordered that joint
by joint should be chopped off the saint's body, begin
ning with his toes. The barbarous butchery was in
stantly executed, during which the holy martyr ceased
not to bless the Lord. After his body had been reduced
to a mere trunk, calmly surveying his mangled limbs
scattered around him, he exclaimed: "Oh, happy mem
bers that have served to manifest the glory of God! now
that I behold you separated from my body, you are
dearer to me than ever. I now know that I belong to
Jesus Christ, as I have always desired."
Then turning to those present, who were idolaters, he
said: " Know ye that all these sufferings are easily over
come by those who continually keep before th^'r eyes
the eternal life that God bestows upon his servants.
Adore the true God, who consoles me in these tortures ;
and abandon the worship of your false gods, who cannot
CHAP, xxii.i J>7. Justin, the Philosopher. 123
assist you in your need. He who dies for the true God
acquires life everlasting. Behold, for having suffered
these torments, I go to live with him eternally, without
the fear of ever losing him." Having finished his dis
course, he placidly gave his soul to his Redeemer, on the
1 2th of January.
This martyrdom filled the idolaters with confusion,
and inspired the Christians with a great desire of laying
down their lives for Jesus Christ. They afterwards col
lected the scattered limbs of the martyr, and gave them
honorable burial.
CHAPTER XXII.
ST. JUSTIN, THE PHILOSOPHER.
April 13, and among the Greeks, June i or 12.
ST. JUSTIN was one of those glorious saints that have
illustrated the Church of Christ by their extraordinary
learning, as well as by their eminent virtues. He wrote
in defence of Catholic truth against pagans, Jews, and
heretics, and presented to the emperors and Roman
senate two famous " Apologies," wherein he vindicates
the innocence of the Christians, and proves that the
crimes imputed to them were mere calumnies of the
pagans. By the sanctity of his life, and the zeal and
energy of his preaching, he converted many infidels, and
finally terminated his brilliant career by a glorious mar
tyrdom.
St. Justin was born about the beginning of the second
century at Neapolis,1 the capital of Samaria, of Greek
1 The ancient Sichem, now called Naplous. — It is in reference to the
place of his birth, and not in allusion to his religious principles, that
St. Epiphanius calls our saint a Samaritan, for St. Justin himself de
clares that he had been a Gentile previously to his conversion.
i 24 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
parents, who were idolaters. Having gone througli the
usual elementary course of studies, he found himself in
spired with a great desire to know something concern
ing the Great Cause, or Creator of all. Having in vain
sought for truth among the Stoics, Peripatetics, Pythag
oreans, and those of the Platonic school, God was
pleased to satisfy his yearnings after a wonderful man
ner. Having wandered one day into a solitary place in
order that he might with more quietude enjoy his medi
tations, he met with an old man of very venerable ap
pearance, who told him that if he wished to arrive at the
knowledge of the true God, he should leave the study of
philosophy, and begin to read the Prophets, who in
their writings had manifested to man the mysteries of
God, and announced Jesus Christ his Son, through whom
alone we can arrive at the knowledge of the true God.
" But," continued this venerable personage, " above all
things, pray to the Lord to illuminate thy mind; because
these things are not to be understood except by those
unto whom God hath given the knowledge of them."
Having pronounced these words, he disappeared.
After this interview, Justin applied himself continu
ally to the reading of the Holy Scriptures, from which
he derived that blessed knowledge which made him em
brace the faith and receive the sacrament of regenera
tion about the year 133, being then about thirty years
of age. The constancy and fortitude of the martyrs, in
suffering tortures, and laying down their lives for Jesus
Christ, as he himself confesses, contributed much to his
conversion, from which time he dedicated himself en
tirely to the love of Jesus Christ, and the advancement
of his religion. To this end he received the holy order
of priesthood,1 and exerted himself continually in the
1 The clerical character of St. Justin is by no means an uncontro-
verted point. The silence of the ancient authors with regard to his or-
CHAP, xxii.] Si. Justin, the Philosopher. 125
conversion of infidels and heretics, as considering him
self called by God to the defence of his Church. Hence
he used to say: "Since I have obtained from God the
grace to understand the Scriptures, I labor to make them
understood by others also, lest my neglect should be
punished at the tribunal of God." And again: "lam
determined to manifest the truth, although I should be
cut to pieces."
Having proceeded to Rome, he instructed many in the
doctrines of the Christian faith; and there about the
year 150 composed and presented to the Emperor An
toninus Pius, and to the Roman senate, his first "Apolo
gy," wherein he demonstrates the truth of the doctrines,
and the sanctity of life, which the Christians professed.
He adds, that many of them had lived in a state of invi
olate purity for sixty or seventy years; and that Chris
tians are so enamoured of this angelic virtue, that they
either live in perpetual continency, or embrace the mar
ried state for the holy purpose of training children in
the love and service of God; their desires being placed
in the joys of eternal life, which they expect through the
death of Jesus Christ.
In testimony of the truth of the Christian faith, he brings
forward the fulfilment of the prophecies, which had been
preserved by the Jews, the avowed enemies of the Chris
tians. " We have seen," says the saint, " those prophe-
dination has induced some to consider him a layman, as they think
that so important a circumstance, had it taken place, could not have
been omitted by early writers. Yet this, after all, is but a negative ar
gument; and the other opinion, although founded only upon inference,
seems more probable. His preaching, teaching, catechizing, etc., would
proclaim him a deacon, at least; and it is hard to believe that if such a
person at all entered the clerical state the Church would have failed to
promote him to the priesthood. The circumstantial evidence in favor
of his ordination has been sufficient to convince Tillemont and others. —
En,
i 26 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
cies fulfilled in our own days, by the birth of Jesus
Christ from a virgin; by his preaching and miracles; by
his Passion, resurrection, and ascension into heaven;
by the reprobation of the Jews and the destruction of
Jerusalem; by the conversion of the Gentiles, and the
establishment of the Church throughout the entire world !
These prophecies, so perfectly fulfilled, must convince
us that Jesus Christ is truly the Son of God, who shall
come one day to judge mankind, as hath been foretold,
and as we believe."
The Church in those days kept concealed from the un
initiated the celebration of the most holy mysteries; but
St. Justin thought it necessary to explain them, in order
to contradict the infamous calumnies of secret lewdness
and infanticide, which were being circulated against the
Christians. Wherefore having explained the sacred
ceremonies of baptism, he proceeds to speak of the
Eucharist in the following terms: " He that presides in
the assembly is presented with bread and a chalice of
wine, with water; whereupon, in the name of the Son
and the Holy Ghost, he renders glory to the Father.
And by these gifts doth he make thanksgiving, which all
the faithful confirm by the word 'Amen.' The prayers,
praises, and thanksgiving being terminated, the deacons
take of the bread and the wine, mixed with water, over
which all cliese holy prayers have been recited, and hav
ing distributed them among those present, they carry
some to the absent -also.1 This food is bv us called
1 The deacons of the ancient Church frequently carried the Eucharist
to the Christians who were in prison for the faith, or otherwise unavoid
ably absent; and sometimes even administered it in the assemblies of
the faithful, as these words of St. Justin are frequently cited to prove.
They did not, however, discharge this duty by virtue of their office, but
merely by the delegated power given them by their Superiors. The
circumstances of the Church, during the persecutions, rendered this
discipline necessary, and an instance is recorded by Eusebius (Lib. 6,
CHAP, xxn.] St. Justin, the Philosopher* 127
Eucharist; of which no one can partake who believeth
not our doctrines, and who hath not been cleansed from
sin in the laver of regeneration. This is not common
food or drink; but as Jesus Christ our Saviour was, for
our redemption, by virtue of the divine word, composed
of flesh and blood; so we are aware that, by virtue of
the prayer containing his divine words, the food by
which we are nourished is the flesh and blood of the
WORD INCARNATE." Thus we see that the present doc
trine of the Catholic Church is that which was believed
and practised in the apostolic times, in which our saint
flourished.
St. Justin proceeds to describe the meetings of the
faithful: "Upon the first day of the week, a general
meeting takes place, when, as time permits, the prophe
cies, and writings of the apostles, are read. The read
ing being terminated by the Lector, he who presides
makes an exhortation, to excite the people to the imita
tion of worthy actions. We then all rise, and place our-
.selves in prayer, which being finished, bread and wine
with water are prepared, over which the bishop or priest
recites the prayers and thanksgiving, the people answer
Amen; and, finally, the distribution of the holy gifts is
made by the deacons. The richer sort make a liberal
collection, which by the president is distributed to
widows and orphans, to the sick and those in prison, to
pilgrims or other persons in need. The reason why we
meet on Sunday is, because it was the day upon which
God began the creation of the world; and upon which
Jesus Christ arose from the dead."
It is believed that, although this " Apology" of St.
Justin did not cause the persecution to cease, it made a
Histor, cap. xxxvi.) of even a layman having been sent with the Viati
cum to a dying person. Vasquez (Disp. 219, cap. i) shows that this
practice was not contrary to the divine institution of the Eucharist. — ED.
128 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
favorable impression on the Emperor Antoninus Pius,
as is inferred from his letter, written to the cities of
Asia Minor, in favor of the Christians, and recorded by
Eusebius.
Our saint composed other works in defence of Catho
lic doctrine, against the Marcionites and Valentinians; '
and also his Dialogue with Trypho,2 against the perti
nacity of the Jews. Marcus Aurelius having succeeded
Antoninus Pius in the empire, the persecution was re
newed; and one Crescens, who, although styling himself
a Cynic philosopher, was in reality a very shallow fellow,
took occasion to exclaim loudly against the Christians.
St. Justin, in public dispute, frequently convicted him of
the most violent malice, and the greatest possible igno
rance of the doctrine and practices of the Christians, and
was induced to publish, and present to the emperor, his
second "Apology," in which he defends his religion
against the calumnies of Crescens and others.
1 The followers of Marcion and Valentinus. — Marcion, having been
excommunicated for a crime of incontinency, committed under very ag
gravating circumstances, professed himself a Stoic philosopher, turned
heresiarch, and taught the existence of two gods, or first principles.
Valentinus fell away from the faith, as Tertullian (Lib. cont. Valent.
cap. 4) relates, in consequence of his pride and jealousy, because an
other person was preferred to him, in the election of a bishop. The
errors of this heresiarch were most ridiculous: he taught the existence
of an eternal and invisible God, called Bathos, who, being married to a
divinity styled Ennoia, produced thirty inferior deities, whom he de
nominated y£6nes. Pope St. Anicetus was most vigilant in protecting
the faithful from the artifices of these heretics, and their errors were
ably refuted by St. Irenaeus, Tertullian, and others. — ED.
'-' A learned Jew who, being obliged to fly from his country, retired
to Greece and spent a considerable time in the study of philosophy,
principally at Corinth. He introduced himself to St. Justin, who con
tinued to wear the philosopher's cloak after his conversion, on one of
the public walks, and spoke of the excellence of philosophy. This con
versation, which forms the substance of the book referred to in the text,
is given at some length by Fleury. — Hist. Ecc. toni. i, Uvrc 3, inun. Hi.
in fine, — ED.
CHAP, xxii] kSV. Justin, the Philosopher. 129
In showing that Christians had been unjustly put to
death, he relates that a married couple had both been
guilty of incontinency; the woman, having been con
verted to the Christian religion, used all her endeavors
to withdraw her husband from his shameful practices;
but he, instead of amending, accused her and one
Ptolemy, who had been the means of her conversion, of
being Christians. The prefect, Urbicus, sentenced them
to death; whereupon a certain Christian, named Lucius,
exclaimed: " With what conscience, O Urbicus! dost
thou condemn a man who hath been guilty of no crime ?''
Lucius, together with another Christian, received a sim
ilar sentence.
A very short time after the publication of this dis
course St. Justin was apprehended, together with six
other Christians of his acquaintance.1 and brought be
fore Rusticus, the Prefect of Rome, who exhorted him
to obey the imperial edicts. The saint replied: " No
one can be reproved or condemned for obeying the
precepts of our Saviour, Jesus Christ."
The prefect asked him what kind of learning he pro
fessed. Justin answered that he had learned the doc
trines of various sects, and had finally embraced Chris
tianity, although it was despised by those who were led
away by errors and false opinions. " Unhappy wretch!"
exclaimed the prefect, " dost thou then delight in this
discipline?" Justin: "Yes, because it teaches me the
true doctrine." Rusticus: "Which is this doctrine?"
Justin: "The true doctrine which we profess is, to be
lieve in one only God, the Creator of all things, visible
and invisible, and to confess Jesus Christ, the Son of
God, the foretold by the Prophets, the preacher of sal
vation unto men, and the Master of those who happily
observe the divine precepts. But neither have I a
1 These were Chariton, Evelpiste, llierax, Peon, Liberianus, and a
worn an named Charitana. — ED.
9
130 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
tongue to express nor a mind to conceive anything
worthy of his infinite dignity; — to do so, I would need
the mind and the spirit of the prophets, who, inspired
by God, foretold his coming."
The prefect asked him where the Christians were in
the habit of assembling. Justin replied: "Where they
please, and where they can. Dost thou imagine, per
chance, that we all assemble in the same place ? The
God of the Christians is not confined to a place; he is
invisible, and fills both heaven and earth; and is every
where adored and praised by the faithful." " But I wish
to know," rejoined Rusticus, " where thou and thy dis
ciples assemble." The saint answered: "As for myself,
I dwell at the Timothean baths: this is the second time
I have come to Rome, and I am scarcely acquainted with
any other place in the city; if any one should wish to
seek me, I am ready to communicate to him the doc
trines of truth." Rusticus: " Thou art then a Christian ?"
Justin: "So it is: I am a Christian."
The prefect then turned to St. Justin's companions,
and interrogated them, one after the other, concerning
their faith. They all confessed themselves Christians,
and manifested a desire to die for Jesus Christ. Rusti
cus then said to Justin: "Tell me, thou who dost believe
that thou hast the true wisdom, whether thou art per
suaded that thou shalt ascend into heaven, after I shall
have caused thee to be scourged and beheaded." The
saint replied: "If I shall surfer these punishments, I
hope to receive the reward which is prepared for those
who observe the commandments of Christ." The pre
fect asked: "Dost thou, then, really imagine that thou
shalt ascend into heaven ;" "This I do not only imagine,
but I know it," replied the saint, "and am so fully as
sured of it, that I entertain no doubt whatever."
Finally, the prefect, turning to all those confessors of
Jesus Christ, said to them: "Go ye together, and unani-
CHAP .xxiii.] St. Agatha, Virgin. 131
mously sacrifice to the gods." Justin, answering for all,
replied: "No man in his senses could abandon religion
to become a participator in impiety." The prefect
hereupon threatened that their non-compliance would
be followed by the most unrelenting tortures. Justin
said: "There is nothing which we more earnestly desire
than to endure torments for the love of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and thus attain unto salvation; for this it is that
will enable us to present ourselves with confidence at
the tribunal of that Judge before whom all the world
must necessarily appear." To this the other martyrs
assented, adding: "Do quickly what thou art about.
We are Christians, and will never sacrifice to idols."
The prefect then pronounced against them the follow
ing sentence: " Those who have not wished to sacrifice
to the gods, nor obey the edict of the emperor, shall
first be scourged, and afterwards beheaded, in pursu
ance of the law." The martyrs were forthwith led to
the place of execution, where the sentence being carried
into effect, they received the glorious crown of martyr
dom, in the year 167, or the following. Their bodies
were privately carried away by the Christians, who gave
them honorable interment.
The Acts of these martyrs are found in Ruinart and
Tillemont.
CHAPTER XXIII.
ST. AGATHA, VIRGIN.
February 5.
THIS holy virgin and martyr is held in great venera
tion by the Greek as well as the Latin Church; and al
though her original Acts have not been preserved, many
1 3 2 Martyrs of the First Ages. FPART i.
well-authenticated facts concerning her martyrdom are
found in the Bollandists, Surius, and others. She was
a native of Sicily, and descended of a noble and opulent
family. These circumstances, added to her extraordinary
beauty, inflamed Quintianus, a man of consular dignity,
with such love of her, that he resolved to compel her to
become his wife. The edicts of the emperor Decius
against the Christians having been published, he ordered
Agatha to be arrested as a Christian, and conducted to
Catania, where he then resided.
The holy virgin having heard the proclamation
against the Christians, retired to a solitary place in or
der to avoid the snares of Quintianus, concerning which
she had received some intimation. The emissaries of
the governor, however, discovered her place of conceal
ment, and after having been arrested, she prayed after
the following manner: "O Jesus Christ, Lord of all
things, Thou seest my heart, and knowest my desire,
which is to possess only Thee, since I have consecrated
myself entirely to Thee. Preserve me, dear Lord, from
this tyrant, and enable me to overcome the devil, who
layeth snares for my soul."
When the saint appeared before Quintianus, in order
the more easily to overcome her modesty, he gave her
up to Aphrodisia, an abominable woman, who, together
with her daughters, publicly professed immodesty. In
her infamous house the saint suffered greater torture
than the darkest and most fetid dungeon could afford.
All the arts of Aphrodisia and her partners in crime
were unceasingly applied, in order to induce the saint
to comply with the wishes of Quintianus; but Agatha,
who from her infancy had been consecrated to Jesus
Christ, was enabled by his divine grace to overcome all
their attempts.
Quintianus, having been informed that the efforts of
Aphrodisia for an entire month had been employed in
CHAP, xxiii.] St. Agatha, Virgin. 133
vain, commanded that the saint should be again brought
before him. He upbraided her, that, being a free wom
an and noble, she had allowed herself to be seduced
into the humble servitude of the Christians. The holy
virgin courageously confessed that she was a Christian,
and that she knew of no nobility more illustrious, nor
liberty more real, than to be a servant of Jesus Christ.
In order to give the governor to understand how infa
mous were the deities which he adored and desired her to
worship, she asked whether he would wish that his wife
should be a prostitute, like Venus, or that he himself
should be considered an incestuous adulterer like Jupi
ter. Quintianus, irritated at her rebuke, commanded
her to be buffeted and led to prison. The following day
she was again summoned, and asked whether she had
resolved to save her life. She replied: "God is my life
and my salvation." The governor then put her to the
torture; but perceiving how little it affected her, he
commanded her breasts to be lacerated, and afterwards
cut off, which was executed with barbarous cruelty.
Quintianus then remanded the saint to prison, com
manding that her wounds should be left undressed, in
order that she might expire under the torture. But at
midnight St. Peter appeared to her in a vision, perfectly
cured her wounds, and freed her from all pain: during the
entire of that night there appeared in the interior of the
prison so resplendent a light that the guards fled in ter
ror, leaving the door of her dungeon open, so that she
could have escaped, as the other prisoners advised her,
but that she was unwilling, as she said, to lose by flight
the crown which was being prepared for her in heaven.
Quintianus, nothing moved by her miraculous cure,
but on the contrary more irritated, after four days de
vised new torments for the saint. He commanded that
she should be rolled over broken tiles, mixed with burn
ing coals; but she endured all with constancy; and while
134 Martyrs of the First Ages. PART i.
the tyrant was planning fresh torments, the saint, per
ceiving that her life was drawing to a close, made the
following prayer: " O Lord, my Creator, who hast pre
served me from my infancy, hast given me strength to
overcome these torments, and hast taken from me the
love of the world, receive now my soul. It is time that
I should at last pass from this miserable life to the fru
ition of Thy glory." Just as she had finished these
words, she tranquilly expired, and went to be united to
God, to praise him and love him forever. This hap
pened in 251. Her name is mentioned in the Canon of
the Mass.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ST. JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, ARCHBISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE;
ST. TYGRIUS, PRIEST; AND ST. EUTROPIUS, LECTOR.
January 27 and 12.
ALTHOUGH this great saint did not actually die for the
faith by the hand of the executioner, yet he may be
styled a martyr, as he died of the maltreatment which
he received for defending God's honor and the rights of
the Church.
St. John was born at Antioch, about the year 347, and
was descended of one of the most illustrious families of
that city.1 His mother, being left a widow at the early
1 His father, whose name was Secundus, was master of the horse,
that is, chief commander of the imperial troops in Syria. His mother
was Anthusa, and she had two children, one of whom was a daughter.
Anthusa did not wish to marry again, in order to devote herself entirely
to the welfare of her children: she herself took care to instil into them
the first principles of Christianity. " Never," says Alban Butler, " was
CHAP, xxiv.j St. John Chrysostom. 135
age of twenty years, took particular care in the education
of her child, and placed him under the most eminent mas
ters, to study rhetoric and philosophy. It was expected
that the pious youth would attain to great worldly for
tune; but he, from his twentieth year, applied himself to
the study of the sacred Scriptures and to prayer, and
dedicated himself entirely to the service of his crucified
Lord. Whereupon St. Meletius, his bishop, took a great
liking to him, and having instructed him for three years,
made him Lector of his own church.
Although during his stay in Antioch he led a very re
tired and mortified life, he bethought him of the advan
tages of a still more solitary and austere state; and con
sequently retired to a cave, where he passed some years
in continual prayer and penitential practices, which
were so severe as to injure his health. He was there
fore obliged to return to Antioch, where he was ordained
deacon by St. Meletius, whose successor, Flavianus, con
ferred upon him the holy order of priesthood five years
afterwards, and in consequence of his great eloquence,
appointed him preacher of that church. This office he
discharged so well, that public demonstrations of ap
probation were frequently made, against which the saint
protested, saying: " What good can these your applauses
do me ? That only which I desire is, that you practise
what I preach; this to me will be the most acceptable
applause."
Nectarius, Patriarch of Constantinople, died in the
year 397; and as the name of our saint had obtained
great celebrity throughout the entire province, the Em
peror Arcadius, the clergy, and people, agreed in having
a woman more worthy of bearing the name of mother." The pagans
themselves could not help admiring her virtues; and a celebrated phi
losopher cried out while speaking of her: "What wonderful women
have the Christians!" — ED.
136 Martyrs of the First Ages. IPART i.
him promoted to that see. The emperor accordingly
summoned him to Constantinople, and without making
known to him his design, took him into his carriage, and
brought him to a church outside the city, where, not
withstanding his reluctance, he was consecrated by the
bishops previously assembled.
The see of Constantinople had unfortunately been
governed for sixteen years by Nectarius,1 a man with
out learning or zeal; so that this great city, containing as
it did so many strangers and heretics, required a thorough
reform. To this St. John Chrysostom gave his entire atten
tion. With an untiring and holy zeal he labored for the
reformation of his clergy, and endeavored to suppress
the avarice and haughtiness of the emperor's court; this
made for him many enemies.
It happened that there arrived at Constantinople some
monks, who had been expelled from Egypt by Theophi-
lus, Bishop of Alexandria, under the pretext of Origen-
ism; but St. John being satisfied of their innocence, wrote
to Theophilus in their favor, beseeching him not to dis-
1 He was born at Tharsus, of a patrician family, and had been for
some time Praetor of Constantinople. After the cabal which obliged St.
Gregory Nazianzen to retire from that see, he was appointed to it. al
though at the time advanced in years, and not only a layman, but a
catechumen, and one. moreover, whose conduct had been irregular.
The circumstances that led to his appointment are rather curious, and
are given at length by Fleury (Hist. torn. iv. liv. 18, num. v.). Hav
ing made a complimentary visit to Diodore, Bishop of Tharsus, this
prelate was so taken with his venerable appearance, his majestic mien
and the amiability and blandness of his deportment, that he repre
sented him to Flavianus, Bishop of Antioch, as a fit person to occupy
the vacant See of Constantinople. Flavianus, knowing that many emi
nent persons were being presented, laughed at the proposal; but wish
ing to please his friend, placed the name of Nectarius at the end of the
list of candidates, which he presented to the Emperor Theodosius. The
emperor used all his influence to have him appointed, and finally suc
ceeded in obtaining his confirmation from the Pope. — ED.
CHAP. xxiv.] 67. John Chrysostom. 137
turb them. He, however, being a haughty and vindic
tive man, succeeded in raising a persecution against the
saint for protecting the monks. The emperor indeed
summoned Theophilus to Constantinople, to account for
his conduct; but he easily gained over to his side the
nobles, bishops, and clergy, who were opposed to St.
Chrysostom. But the greatest acquisition to his party
was the Empress Eudoxia, who bore a mortal enmity to
our saint, on account of having been rebuked by him for
her avaricious rapacity in depriving Callitropa of her
money and another widow of her land. Backed by
this party, Theophilus was enabled to get together a
cabal of thirty-six bishops, who from the place where
they met styled themselves the Synod of the Oak, and
having drawn up some false accusations, deposed St.
John from his bishopric, and obtained from the emperor
a decree for his banishment.
The people, hearing of the decree, surrounded the
church to defend their bishop; but St. John, to avoid a
sedition, escaped through a private door, and surren
dered himself to the guards, who brought him to Bithyn-
ia. On the night of the following day Constantinople
was shaken with an earthquake, which was regarded as
a sign of God's displeasure by all, not excepting Eudoxia,
who in the greatest consternation besought the emperor
to recall the holy bishop. The entire population went
out to meet him, chanting hymns, and bearing lighted
torches in their hands, and having arrived at the cathe
dral, obliged him to seat himself upon the episcopal
throne.
Theophilus and his party having fled from Constanti
nople, the saint resumed the discharge of his pastoral
duties, and was treating with the emperor about the
convocation of a council to vindicate his innocence, when
a new accident totally changed the aspect of his affairs.
In the square before the great church of St. Sophia a
138 Martyrs of the Fii'st Ages. [PARTI.
silver statue had been erected to the empress, where
dances and public games were performed, which dis
turbed the sacred offices of the church. The saint
strongly rebuked the people for this irreverence; but his
zeal only infuriated the Empress Eudoxia, who to satisfy
her revenge availed herself of the enmity which The-
ophilus and other bishops bore our saint. They formed
a second cabal, in which they condemned and deposed
St. Chrysostom, under pretext that he had reassumed
the episcopal function, without having justified himself
in synod.
In pursuance of this most iniquitous deposition, an
order came from the emperor that he should not enter
his church, and he accordingly departed from the city.
As this happened upon Holy Saturday, the saint retired
to a country chapel, in order to celebrate the sacred
offices; but his enemies obtained a troop of four hundred
soldiers, and entered the church, where baptism was be
ing administered, wounded some of the priests, and in
jured some of the children who were about being bap
tized. Their sacrilegious impiety went so far as to
trample on the Blessed Sacrament ! Such, in fine, was
the uproar, that many of the people ran, in consterna
tion, to hide themselves in the woods and valleys.
Although the Emperor Arcadius had no personal en
mity to St. John, he was induced by the importunity of
his wife and the hostile bishops to send him into ban
ishment. The saint having received the order, took
leave of the bishops who w^ere his friends, and departing
through a private door, delivered himself to the soldiers
who obliged him to travel day and night, until they ar
rived at Cucusus, a small city of Aimenia, the place of
his banishment; the journey lasted seventy days, during
thirty of which the saint suffered from a tertian fever.
When they arrived at Cucusus, the bishop of that
place received St, John in his house, who thus found
CHAP, xxiv.] 6Y. John Chrysostom. 139
some repose after so much suffering. The saint here
did not remain idle, but employed himself, as much as
possible, in instructing the people and relieving the poor.
He also wrote many letters to console his friends, and to
assist the churches which had been lately founded in
Persia and Phoenicia.
Meanwhile, Pope Innocent I. having been informed of
the injustice done St. John, did all in his power to as
semble a synod where the innocence of the saint would
be definitely declared. But his enemies labored suc
cessfully to prevent its celebration, and jealous of the
fame he was acquiring in his first place of exile, pre
vailed upon Arcadius to banish him to Pytius, a small
town on the borders of the empire. St. John was ac
cordingly consigned to two officers, one of whom was a
most brutal man; and having been instigated by the
enemies of the saint to cause his death by maltreatment
on the road, he obliged him to travel in the most violent
rains and amid scorching heats, not allowing him to rest
in any town, but halting at obscure villages, where no
accommodation could be found.
When they arrived at Comana, in Pontus, the inhu
man officer obliged him to continue his journey five or
six miles to the church where St. Basiliscus, Martyr and
Bishop of Comana, had been buried; they lodged in a
house contiguous to the church, and in the night the
holy martyr appeared to St. John, and exhorted him to
have courage, adding: " To-morrow we shall be to
gether." St. Chrysostom, knowing thus that the ter
mination of his sufferings was at hand, besought the
soldiers to defer their departure till the morrow: this he
could not obtain; but they had travelled only a few
miles when, seeing the saint about to expire, they re
turned to the same house. St. Chrysostom then changed
his dress, putting on a white robe; he received the holy
Viaticum, and poured forth his last prayer, which he
140 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
concluded with an expression he was constantly in the
habit of using: " Glory be to God for all things." Hav
ing said "Amen," he gave up his soul to God, on the
i4th September in the year 407, being about sixty years
of age, and having been bishop nine years and almost
seven months. A great concourse of monks and per
sons of rank came from the neighboring provinces to
celebrate his funeral. God did not delay the punish
ment of his enemies, and especially of Eudoxia, who
died a few days afterwards. She was soon followed by
Arcadius, who expired in his thirty-first year; and these
deaths have generally been considered the effects of
divine wrath.
But the persecution against the followers of St. John
Chrysostom did not end with his death. Tygrius, a
priest, and Eutropius, a lector, were particular objects
of vengeance; because, after his second departure from
Constantinople, the great church of St. Sophia and the
senate-house were burned down, and these two ecclesi
astics were accused of having done so maliciously. Op-
tatus, an impious pagan, was governor of the city, and
he first 'put Eutropius, as being the younger, to torture,
in order that he might reveal the authors of the fire; but
Eutropius suffered himself to be torn with iron hooks
and burned with torches rather than falsely accuse any
person. Palladius1 writes, that in these tortures he ex
pired. Optatus then caused Tygrius to be scourged,
and stretched upon the rack until his bones were dislo
cated, and finally banished him^to Mesopotamia, where
he died. The Church honors both of these saints with
the title of martyr.8
In the year 428, the honors of a saint were first given
to St. John Chrysostom, and the archbishop, St. Procu-
1 This writer attributes the fire to the divine displeasure at the saint's
banishment. — Dialog, c. 20.
2 They are mentioned in the Roman Martyrology on the I2th January.
CHAP, xxv.i St. Ptonius, Priest. 141
lus, afterwards persuaded the emperor, Theodosius the
younger, to bring the saint's body from Comana to Con
stantinople ; the translation of the sacred relics was per
formed with the utmost pomp, the entire population
going forth to join in the procession. The arm of the
sea over which they passed was covered with barges,
and illuminated with torches. When the sacred relics
arrived, the Emperor Theodosius, his eyes bathed in
tears and fixed upon the coffin, humbly asked pardon of
the saint for the injustice done him by his parents.
This translation took place on the 28th of January, in
the year 438, thirty-one years after the saint's death.1
CHAPTER XXV.
ST. PTOXirs, PRIEST.
February i.
ST. PIONIUS was a priest of the church of Smyrna ; he
was exceedingly learned, and inflamed with the love of
Jesus Christ, and a zeal for the conversion of souls,
which was successfully exercised in the conversion of
many infidels and abandoned sinners.
In his time, that is, about the year 250, the persecution
of Decius was raging, and the saint by continual prayer
prepared himself for martyrdom, in case such should be
his lot. One day, as he was engaged in prayer with
Asclepiades and Sabina, two pious Christians, it was re-
1 Later on his venerated relics were transported to Rome and placed
in the Vatican Church, under the altar erected in his honor. As the day
of his death is that on which is celebrated the feast of the Exaltation of
th? Cross, the Greeks keep this feast on November 13, and the Latins,
January 27. His wonderful eloquence earned for him the surname of
Chrysostom, or Golden Mouth, and his excellent writings the title of
Doctor of the Church. — En.
142 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
vealed to them that, on the day following, they would
be arrested for the faith ; they therefore made an offer
ing of their lives to Jesus Christ, and placed halters
about their necks in order to signify to the soldiers that
they were ready to undergo martyrdom.
On the following morning, Palemon, the guardian of
the temple, came with a troop of soldiers, and said to
them: "Are ye aware of the orders of the emperor, that
ye are all to sacrifice to the gods of the empire?"
Pionius answered : "That which \ve know is the order
of God — which is, not to sacrifice to any but himself, the
sovereign Lord of all." Upon this reply they were all
arrested and led into a great square, where St. Pionius,
turning to the enemies of the faith, said that they were
vainly rejoicing on account of the apostasy of some few
bad Christians, and protested that no species of torture
would ever compel him to adore those whom they im
piously called gods.
Palemon said to him: "And why wilt thou, Pionius,
regardless of life, deprive thyself of the beauteous light
of the day which thou enjoyest?" The saint replied:
"This light is beauteous, but there is another light more
glorious, and a life more estimable, to which Christians
aspire." The people called upon him to sacrifice, but he
answered : "Our resolve is to persevere in the faith."
The people desired that the saint should speak in the
theatre, in order that they might all hear him conve
niently, but some told Palemon that if he gave him lib
erty to speak, a tumult might follow ; he therefore said
to Pionius : "If thou wilt not sacrifice, come with us at
least to the temple." The saint said: "Our entrance
into your temple cannot benefit your gods." "Then,"
said Palemon, " thou wilt not be persuaded ?" Pionius
replied: "Would to God I could persuade ye all to be
come Christians." Some of the idolaters exclaimed:
" Thou canst never induce us to that ; we would rather
CHAP, xxv.] St. Pionius, Priest. 143
be burned alive." The saint rejoined: " But it will be
worse for you to burn eternally after death."
Palemon, who was anxious to save the life of Pionius,
ceased not to importune him; but the saint resolutely
answered: "Thou hast orders to persuade or to punish
me; thou canst not persuade, therefore punish." Here
upon Palemon, being enraged, asked: "But why wilt
thou not sacrifice?" Pionius: "Because I am a Chris
tian." Palemon: "What is the God whom thou ador-
est ?" Pionius: "I adore the Almighty God, who, having
made all things, created us also, as I have learned from
Jesus Christ." Palemon: "Sacrifice to the emperor at
least." Pionius: "I shall never sacrifice to a man."
The judge then judicially inquired his name, and to
what church he belonged. The saint replied: "lam a
Christian, and belong to the Catholic Church." His
companions gave the same answer, and they were all
sent to prison. On the road thither, some of the idola
ters observed that many Christians had sacrificed. The
saint answered: "Each one is master of his own will :
my name is Pionius." By this he meant to encourage
the others to imitate his example, and remain constant
in the faith.
When they came to the prison, many Christians offered
them refreshments, but Pionius said: "I have not time
to think of anything but the martyrdom which awaits
me." The guards, seeing so many Christians coming to
visit the saint, brought him and his companions to a
more remote and obscure place, for which they gave
thanks to God, as their more solitary confinement en
abled them to commune more freely with God. Not
withstanding the change, however, many Christians, who
had abandoned the faith on account of the violence of
the torments, came to Pionius, who wept over their fall,
and exhorted them to do penance, and hope for pardon,
through the mercy of Jesus Christ.
144 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
Palemon then arrived with a troop of soldiers, and
orders from the proconsul to take the confessors to
Ephesus. The saint desired to see the order, but the
commanding officer put a halter round his neck, and
dragged him so violently as almost to suffocate him.
He was thus led to the square ; and when the martyrs
arrived at the temple, they cast themselves on the
ground in order not to enter, but the soldiers dragged
them in, and placed them erect before the impious altar.
They there met Eudaemon, the unhappy Bishop of
Smyrna, who had miserably sacrificed to the gods, and
the idolaters vainly hoped that they might be moved by
his example to prevaricate also. One of the idolaters
wished to place on the head of St. Pionius a crown which
had been worn by one of the apostates, but the saint
broke it in pieces, and cast it from him. Not knowing
what to do to pervert the confessors, they brought them
back to prison, and while Pionius was entering, one of
the soldiers smote him on the head. The saint bore it
with patience, but God chastised his assailant by caus
ing not only his hand but his side to become swollen
and inflamed, so that he could not breathe.
After some days, the proconsul arrived at Smyrna,
and having summoned Pionius, asked him to what sect
he belonged. The saint replied : "I am a priest of the
Catholic Church." The proconsul rejoined : " Then art
thou a doctor and a professor of folly." Pionius : "No,
but of piety." Proconsul: " And of what piety ?" Pio
nius : " Of that piety which has for its object the God
who made heaven and earth." The proconsul then
commanded him to sacrifice, but the saint replied : "I
have learned to adore one only living God." The tyrant
then ordered him to be tortured, during which having
in vain importuned him to sacrifice, he finally condemned
him to be burned.
In proceeding to the place of execution, St. Pionius
CH. xxvi.i St. Adalbert, Bis/icp of Prague. 145
walked quickly and with joyous countenance ; having
arrived at the place, he undressed without assistance,
and offered himself to be nailed to the stake, after which
the pagans exclaimed : " Repent, O Pionius ; promise
to obey, and thou shalt be saved." But he replied : "I
have not felt the pain of the nails ; I desire to die, that
the people may know that death shall be followed by
resurrection." The pile having been fired, the saint
closed his eyes, so that the spectators thought he was
already dead, but he was only praying ; he opened his
eyes, and having concluded the prayer with the usual
"Amen," placidly gave up the ghost, saying : "Lord
Jesus, receive my soul."
The end of his companions is not upon record, but it
is piously believed that they also received the crown of
martyrdom.
CHAPTER XXVI.
ST. ADALBERT, BISHOP OF PRAGUE.
April 23.
ST. ADALBERT was born in Bohemia, of noble parent
age, about the middle of the tenth century. His father,
a Slavonian, sent him to study at Magdeburg, under the
care of the Archbishop Adalbert ;' who placed him in a
school, under the direction of a holy monk, named
1 This prelate, charmed with the happy disposition of his pupil, con
ceived for him the tenderness of a father, and gave him his name in ad
mitting him to the sacrament of confirmation. Young Adalbert was a
child of the Blessed Virgin. Being yet an infant, he was attacked by a
violent illness that reduced him to extremity. His parents then carried
him to the church, and placed him on St. Mary's altar, and promised to
consecrate him to the service of God if he should recover his health.
Their prayers were heard. (See Alban Butler and Giry.) — ED.
10
146 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
Odericus, where the pupils, by serious attention to their
studies, and most exemplary morals, edified one an
other.
Adalbert, having remained nine years in this school,
made considerable progress in human sciences, but still
more in the science of the saints ; for whatever time
was allowed for recreation, he spent in holy prayer, in
relieving the poor, and visiting the sick. Having made
a copious collection of books, consisting chiefly of the
writings of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, he
returned to Bohemia, and entered the ecclesiastical state
at Prague. Diethmar, bishop of that city, was greatly
enamoured of his virtue, and ordained him subdeacon
shortly before his death.
An assembly was held to propose a successor, at which
the prince of Bohemia and other grandees were present,
and, by unanimous consent, Adalbert was chosen. Not
withstanding all his reluctance, and his pleas of unwor-
thiness and youth, he was obliged to accept the oner
ous charge ; and the election having met the approval
of the emperor, our saint received the episcopal conse
cration at the hands of Villegisus, Archbishop of May-
ence. He immediately proceeded to Prague, to take
possession of his see, and was received amid the accla
mations of the people. In assuming the government of
his Church, his extraordinary piety became manifest ;
for on all festivals he distributed abundant alms, and
supported twelve poor persons continually. He slept
upon the bare floor, or upon sack-cloth, and passed a
considerable part of the night in prayer. His continual
preaching, and frequent visits to the sick and those in
prison, manifested how totally he was devoted to the
glory of God and the welfare of his flock.
But they treated his admonitions with an obstinacy
surpassing the enthusiasm with which they had at first
hailed his arrival ; and Adalbert accordingly resolved to
CH. xxvi.] St. Adalbert, Bishop of Prague. 147
leave them, having first consulted, and obtained permis
sion from Pope John XV. His first intention was to
make a pilgrimage on foot to the Holy Land ; but on
his arrival at Mount Cassino, the Abbot and some of the
monks induced him to remain with them for some time,
until it became known who he was ; whereupon the holy
bishop proceeded to Rome, and, by the advice of the
Pope, received the religious habit in the monastery of
St. Alexis, in the year 900. Here he lived in tranquillity
for three years and a half, until the Duke of Bohemia,
moved by the wretched state of the Church at Prague,
induced the Pope to send him back.
Upon his return, the most ample promises of obedi
ence were made, but never fulfilled. So the saint again
abandoned his rebellious flock, and went to preach the
Gospel to che idolaters of Hungary. His success here,
however, was not proportionate to his zeal ;' and the
Bohemians continuing as obstinate as ever, he again re
turned to his monastery at Rome.
He was obliged by the Pope to repair a second time
to Prague. The saint set out in obedience to this com
mand ; but being informed that his ungrateful flock had
shown their implacable hatred of him by murdering his
1 Geysa, or Giesa the Fourth, Duke of Hungary, had been converted
to the Christian faith, and baptized, together with his entire family.
Shortly after his baptism, and just before the arrival of our saint, he
was informed in a vision that a heavenly messenger would arrive in his
dominions. St. Adalbert was therefore kindly received at his court; and
we are informed by Fleury (Nisi., torn. 12, liv. 58, num. vii.) that his
preaching was followed by the conversion of many, and the erection
of churches in various places. Geysa had contemplated the establish
ment of bishoprics throughout his dominions, but was told, in the vision
already mentioned, that his hands had been stained with human blood,
and that God had reserved the accomplishment of this great work for
his son. This promise was amply fulfilled in the per on of St. Stephen,
first king of Hungary, who seems to have been born about the time of
St. Adalbert's arrival, and was baptized by him.— ED.
148 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
brothers, he requested the Duke of Poland to ascertain
whether they were willing to receive him. The Bohe
mians replied : " Adalbert is a saint, and we are sinners ;
so it is impossible to expect that we can live quietly to
gether." The saint took this as a sufficient exoneration
from the solicitude of his Church, and went to under
take the conversion of the pagans who were then in
Prussia.
After he had suffered many hardships on this mission,
the idolaters one day assembled in great numbers, and
demanded of him why he had entered their coun
try. The saint replied that he had come for their sal
vation, and exhorted them to abandon the worship of
idols, and to adore the true God. But the barbarians
were displeased at his words, and Siggo, the priest of the
idols, ran him through the breast with his lance, where
upon the others rushed upon him also, while the saint,
raising his hands to heaven, prayed to the Lord for
their conversion. The inhuman wretches placed his
head upon a pole, and bore it away amid shouts of exul
tation. His martyrdom happened on the 23d April, of
the year 997, and the Lord honored him by many subse
quent miracles.
CHAPTER XXVII.
ss. JAMES, DEACON; MARIANUS, LECTOR; AND COMPANIONS.
April 30.
ST. JAMES was a deacon, and St. Marianus a lector,
but it is not known for what Church they were ordained,
nor is the place of their birth upon record. During the
persecution of Valerian, they were travelling towards
Numidia, and stopped at a certain village called Mugu-
en. xxvn i SS. James and Marianus, etc. 149
as, some distance from the city of Cirtha1. The perse
cution was raging violently in the province, and the
prefect bore such a mortal hatred towards the Chris
tians, that he recalled those who had been banished dur
ing former persecutions, to stand a new trial. This
circumstance induced the saints to remain, as they ex
pected to receive there the crown of martyrdom, which
they so ardently desired.
Meanwhile, two holy bishops, Agapius and Secondi-
nus,a who had been banished for the faith, were passing
through Muguas, having been summoned by the prefect
for a second trial. James and Marianus felt a still
stronger desire of martyrdom, from the example of
these two holy prelates, which was satisfied two days
afterwards, when they were arrested and brought to
Cithra. Some good Christians seeing them in chains,
envied their blessed lot, and encouraged them to remain
constant. The idolaters perceiving this, asked them
whether they were Christians, and having been answered
in the affirmative, these also were arrested, and obtained
the crown of martyrdom, even before our saints.
James and Marianus being presented before the mag
istrates of Cirtha, were interrogated concerning their
faith. James boldly acknowledged that he was not only
a Christian, but a deacon; although he knew that, in the
latter case, capital punishment was inevitable. Mari
anus was cruelly tortured, being hung up, not by the
hands, which was the usual method, but by the thumbs,
which was far more painful, weights being also attached
to his feet, so that his bones were dislocated, and his
bowels convulsed; but the holy martyr, having suffered
all with wonderful constancy, was sent with James and
the others to prison.
1 Or Cirta, at present Constantino, in Algiers. The province of Con-
stantine is ancient Numidia, of which Cirta was the capital. — ED.
* Inscribed in the martyrology under date of April 29.
150 Martyrs of tJie First Ages. [PART i.
Here Marianus was consoled with a vision which he
related as follows:1 "I saw a great tribunal and a judge
seated thereon; there was a platform on which many
confessors were placed, whom the judge successively
condemned to death. Methought I was mounting the
platform, and saw, near the judge, St. Cyprian, who
stretched forth his hand, as it were helping me to ascend.
He said to me with a smile: ' Come thou and sit with
me.' The judge arose and came with us to the prae-
torium. We passed through a beautiful meadow, sur
rounded with high trees, in the midst of which was a
limpid fountain; the judge disappeared, and St. Cyprian
taking a bowl, drank of the water, which I also drank
with pleasure." James hearing this narration, related a
vision by which he also had been given to understand
that he would obtain the crown of martyrdom.
The saints were then brought before the magistrates,
and by them sent to the governor of the province, in
company with some other Christians; they found the
governor still sitting in judgment on others of the faith
ful, many of whom he condemned to death; amongst
them was Agapius, who immediately after his death
appeared in a vision to James, and said to him: " Be ye
of good courage, for to-morrow ye shall be with us." So
it happened; for on the following day the governor pro-
]St. Peter Damian (Tom. II. in fine) explains this vision to us.
The judge is evidently our Lord himself, who makes his faithful ascend
by degrees to the perfection that he requires of them; then he sends
them to martyrdom by giving them the strength to triumph, although he
seems to disappear at the moment of the combat. St. Cyprian, who
comes to the assistance of Marianus, was Bishop of Carthage, a neigh
boring city in Numidia, and had been martyred only a short time before,
in 258; this makes us believe that our two saints belonged to his church.
The meadow represents this world through which we are only passing.
The high trees are the saints who look down upon us and protect us.
The bowl out of which St. Cyprian was the first to drink is the chalice
of the passion or martyrdom: " He shall drink of the torrent in the
wav " — /A- torrents in via bibct (Ps. cix. 7)." — ED.
CH. xxvii.] SS. James and Marianus, etc. 151
nounced sentence of death upon James, Marianus, and
tlie others.
The place selected for the execution was a valley,
through which ran a river, with a ridge of hills on both
sides. As the number of the condemned was great, the
martyrs were placed in rows on the bank of the river, in
order that the executioner might pass from one to the
other, cutting off their heads, after which the bodies
were thrown into the stream, that the spectators might
not be disgusted at the sight of so much carnage,
While the martyrs, with their eyes bound, awaited the
stroke of death, they spoke of the visions by which God
was manifesting to them the certainty of their reward.
St. Marianus in particular foretold the vengeance which
was being prepared by God for those who were shedding
the blood of the guiltless.1
When the saints had terminated their struggle, the
mother of Marianus was transported with joy at finding
herself the mother of a martyr. She is panegyrized by
St. Augustine,2 and by the author of the Acts of those
martyrs, who had been a sharer of their prison, and an
eye-witness of their martyrdom, which took place in the
year 259, under the Emperor Valerian.
1 The fulfilment of this was not long delayed, for in this very year, or
the one following, Valerian's affairs in the East became so desperate that
he had to proceed thither in person, and even offered to purchase an
inglorious peace from Sapor the First, King of the Persians. This mon
arch refused to treat with his ambassadors , and requested a personal
interview, at which he treacherously seized Valerian, and retained him
till his death in captivity, during which he suffered every species of
indignity. Fleury relates that he used to have his wretched captive led
forth, when he was going to ride, that he might mount his horse by
placing his foot on his neck; and that he finally caused him to be flayed
alive, and his skin having been dried and dyed red, to be hung up in
one of the temples. This and many other calamities which befell the
empire were regarded by the Christians as so many instances of divine
wrath. — ED.
. 284, E. B.
152 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
ST. LUCY, VIRGIN.
December 13.
ST. LUCY was descended of a noble family of Syracuse,
which was then regarded as the principal city of Sicily.
She lost her father in her infancy; but Eutychia, her
mother, took care to educate her properly, and to
instruct her well in the doctrines of our holy faith.
When our saint arrived at a proper age, her mother
began to think of giving her in marriage, but Lucy, who
had consecrated her virginity to Jesus Christ, awaited
only a favorable opportunity to reveal her resolution to
her mother.
This opportunity soon presented itself. Eutychia was
afflicted for many years with a rlux of blood, without
being able to find any effectual remedy. St. Lucy,
therefore, persuaded her to repair to the tomb of St.
Agatha, martyred a half century before in Catania,
where the Lord was pleased to work man)'- miracles,
and there to implore her cure. When they arrived at
Catania, they prostrated themselves in prayer before
the sepulchre of St. Agatha, where Lucy, perhaps from
fatigue of the journey, was overpowered with sleep.
The blessed martyr appeared to her, and as we read in
the Roman Breviary, said: " Lucy ! why dost thou de
mand through my intercession that which, by thy faith,
thou canst thyself obtain for thy mother ?" She then as
sured Lucy that God would work the desired cure, and
that, for having preserved her virginity inviolate, God
would reward her in Syracuse with the same glory she
herself had received in Catania.
CH. xxvin.i Sf. Lncy, Virgin. 153
Lucy, animated by this vision, was the more confirmed
in her resolution of remaining always consecrated to
Jesus Christ, and told her mother to speak to her no
more of marriage, but to distribute her fortune among
the poor. Eutychia answered, that at her death she
would bequeath all to her, and that she might do with
it as she pleased; but Lucy replied, that gratitude for
her miraculous cnre ought to induce her willingly to
deprive herself during life of that which, at her death,
she should necessarily leave behind her.
The mother consented, and when they returned to
Syracuse, they commenced to sell their property, and
to distribute the proceeds among the poor. Lucy's
suitor perceiving this, complained to Eutychia; but he
found that his representations were totally ineffectual,
and, in his rage, accused her before the governor, Pas-
chasius, as being a Christian, contrary to the edicts of
Diocletian and Maximian. The saint was accordingly
arrested and brought before the governor, who endeav
ored to persuade her to sacrifice to the idols ; but Lucy
replied, that the sacrifice most agreeable to God was the
relief of the poor, in which she was actually engaged
and that she was prepared to sacrifice even her life.
Paschasius replied, that she ought to obey the em
peror, as he did; but the saint answered: "Day and
night I meditate upon the divine law; and if thou art
anxious to please the emperor, I am anxious to please
my God; therefore it is that I have consecrated to him
my virginity." Paschasius in his rage told her that she
was impurity itself. The saint replied: " No, thou art
impurity, since thou dost endeavor to corrupt Christian
souls, alienating them from God, to serve the devil, —
wrongly preferring, as thou dost, the goods of this world
to those of heaven." Paschasius: "Torments shall
stop thy mouth." Lucy: '* Words shall never be want
ing to the servants of God. since the Lord hath promised
154 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
that the Holy Ghost shall speak through them." ' Pas
chasius: " Then the Holy Ghost is within thee ?" Lucy:
" St. Paul hath said, that those who live chastely and
piously are the temples of the Holy Ghost."2 "Since
this is the case," said the tyrant, " I will cause thee to be
brought to an infamous place, in order that the Holy
Ghost may leave thee." The saint replied: " The body
receiveth no stain when the will is averse to sin; on the
contrary, the violence you meditate would double my
crown."
The governor then threatened the most horrid tor
tures, in case she continued obstinate. The saint
intrepidly exclaimed: ''Behold my body ready to suffer
every torture ! why dost tliou delay ? Begin the execu
tion of that to which the devil, thy father, prompts
thee." Paschasius, maddened with rage, ordered that
she should instantly be brought to the place of infamy,
in order that she might first lose the honor of virginity,
and then be deprived of life.
The guards endeavored to execute this command, but
found that God had rendered her so immovable, that all
their exertions were insufficient to drag her from the
spot. Paschasius in astonishment exclaimed: "What
incantation is this?" The saint replied: " This is not an
incantation, but the power of God. Why dost thou
fatigue thyself ? Dost thou not manifestly perceive that
I am the temple of the Lord ?"
Paschasius, more confused and infuriated than ever,
ordered a great fire to be kindled round the saint that
she might be burned; but Lucy, nothing daunted, said
to the tyrant: " I will pray to the Lord Jesus that the
fire may not injure me, in order that the faithful may
witness the divine power, and that the infidels may be
confused." The friends of Paschasius. unwilling that
1 Matt. x. 20. : i Cor. v. ifi-vi. 19.
CH. xxviii.] ,5V. Lucy, Virgin. 155
the people should witness any further miracle, advised
him to have her beheaded; but after having been tor
tured in many other ways, her throat was pierced with
the point of a sword.1 The saint did not expire imme
diately; she threw herself on her knees, offered her
death to God; and having foretold that peace would
soon be restored to the Church, consummated her mar
tyrdom, in the year 303 or 304, Her name is inserted in
the Canon of the Mass.2
1 See the Breviary and the martyrology.
2 After the persecution there were built at Syracuse, in honor of St.
Lucy, two churches, of which one was in the city where her body was
buried, and the other outside of the city, in the place where she was
martyred. One of her arms was afterwards taken to Constantinople, and
thence to Venice. In the eighth century, the Duke of Spoleto, having
made himself master of Sicily, had the relics of the saint taken away to
enrich therewith the city of Corsino, in his duchy; and in 970, Thierry,
Bishop of Metz, having come to Italy with the Emperor Otto I.,
obtained this great treasure for the church of St. Vincent at Metz, where
he had it deposited in a sumptuous chapel. The second arm was given
in 1042 to the abbey of Liutburg. The precious relics of the saint hav
ing fortunately escaped the sacrilegious fury of the revolutionists, repose
at present in the Church of Ottange (Moselle). They have been every
where, and are even now, venerated with the greatest devotion. (See
Giry, Paris, 1860.) — ED.
J 56 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XXIX.
SS. THEODORUS AND NICHOLAS, ABBOTS OF STUDIUS.*
November 12 and February 4.
ST. NICHOLAS was born in the city of Canea, in Candia,
of noble and pious parents, who sent him to Constanti
nople for his education, and placed him under St. The-
odorus, abbot of the monastery of Studius, from which
the saint was called the " Studite." St. Theodorus first
placed him in the seminary where the youths were edu
cated apart from the monks, but finding the progress
which he made in virtue, he allowed him, while yet very
young, to make his religious profession. Nicholas soon
manifested that he had dedicated himself to God with-
* A celebrated monastery of Constantinople; hence the surname of
Studite, given to St. Theodorus and St. Nicholas. We read in the
martyrology, November 12: "St. Theodorus the Studite, who, by the
combat that he sustained for the Catholic faith against the iconoclast
heretics, has made himself famous in the whole Church." He was of a
very distinguished family, and had for his master in spiritual life St.
Plato, his uncle, Abbot of Symboleon, then of Saccudion, near Constanti
nople, where he succeeded him in 794. He was beaten with rods and
exiled to Thessalonica by order of the Emperor Constantine VI.,
whose scandalous marriage he had blamed. Having been restored to
his community after the sad death of this prince in 797, he assumed the
direction of it, and afterwards transferred it to the monastery of Stu
dius in order to avoid the insults of the Mussulmans, who were
already making incursions as far as the gates of the city. As for St.
Nicholas, we do not find him inscribed in the Roman martyrology, but
the Bollandists give his Life on February 4. This Life is so intimately
united with that of his illustrious master, that it is, so to speak, one and
the same history. This is the reason why we have believed it to be well
to place the two names at the head of the paragraph, although the orig
inal bears only the name of St. Nicholas. — ED.
CHAP, xxix.] SS. Theodorus and Nicholas. 1 5 7
out reserve; he was obedient not only to the abbot, but
to every individual of the community; and whatever
time remained after the discharge of the duties which
were imposed upon him, he spent in holy prayer. His
example became so edifying, that the monks regarded
him as a model of perfection, and besought St. Theo
dorus to promote him to the priesthood, which dignity
he was induced to receive only by obedience.
At this time was raging the persecution of Leo the
Armenian, who had deposed Michael I., and declared
himself in favor of the Iconoclasts. Having attained the
imperial dignity, he wished to bring over the bishops
and principal abbots to his party. St. Theodorus hav
ing been called to the court for this purpose, resisted the
impious attempts of Leo, and was in consequence ban
ished. The charity of St. Nicholas induced him to fol
low the holy abbot into exile.
When they arrived at the Castle of Mesope, in Mysia,
they were shut up in a dark dungeon; and, at the end
of a year, were brought out to receive a hundred stripes;
after which they were again sent to prison, with the in
tention of starving the-m to death, but were subsequently
removed to the Castle of Bonitus. An ambassador ar
rived there from the emperor, to ask them if they had
written a letter, condemning his doctrine regarding holy
images. Nicholas affirmed that he had written the let
ter, whereupon the ambassador caused him to be sus
pended in the air, together with Theodorus, and both to
be cruelly scourged for a considerable time. Naked and
bleeding as they were, he commanded that they should be
exposed to the cold, which was at that time very severe,
in the hope that they would thus expire. These expec
tations, however, not having been realized, the saints
were again brought back to prison, where they suffered
cold, hunger, and every other hardship, for the space of
three years. After this, they were transferred to an-
158 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
other prison in Smyrna, where they were again cruelly
scourged, and afterwards chained by the feet to a post,
for twenty months; during which time they were fre
quently put to the torture.
The saints, after having suffered seven years' persecu
tion, were at last set at liberty, on the accession of Mi
chael, surnamed the Stutterer, who, on Christmas eve,
caused Leo the Armenian to be assassinated in the
church, and took possession of his throne. When re
turning to Constantinople, they were everywhere re
ceived with great honors, and several miracles were
wrought in their journey. They did not, however, re
main a long time in the monastery of Studius, for The-
odorus, after fruitless efforts to convert the new em
peror, who continued the war against holy images,
wished to retire to the peninsula of St. Tryphon, near
Calcedonia, in order to lead an eremitical life ; and
Nicholas followed him. In this place the holy ablpot
finished his crown, giving up his beautiful soul to God,
November n, 826, at the age of sixty-eight.
Nicholas wished to remain, to live near the sepulchre
of his holy master. But a new persecution having been
raised by the Emperor Theophilus, who succeeded his
father Michael, in the year 829, our saint was obliged to
fly from this retreat, and to wander from place to place,
until he was received by a pious lady, in one of her
country houses, where he remained in the practice of
piety, until, upon the death of Naucratius, Abbot of Stu
dius, the monks unanimously elected him their Superior;
his enemy, Theophilus, having died in the year 842. He
governed the Community for three years, when his hu
mility induced him to resign the office in favor of a holy
priest called Sophronius, and to retire again to his soli
tude.
He enjoyed his retirement for four years only, when
the Abbot Sophronius dying, the monks, by their tears
CHAP, xxix.] SS. Theodorus and Nicholas. 1 59
and entreaties, compelled him to assume again the gov
ernment of the monastery. But here he had to suffer
new persecutions; for the Emperor Michael III. took for
his associate in the empire, his uncle Bardas, a most
scandalous man, whom St. Ignatius, Patriarch of Con
stantinople, had excommunicated for the horrid crime
of incest, and was, in consequence, banished from his
see, into which the impious Photius was intruded. Our
saint, being unwilling to hold communion with this
schismatic, retired to a house in the country, belonging
to the monastery of Studius.
St. Nicholas having shown, by his departure, his dis
approval of the emperor's conduct in banishing St. Ig
natius, received a visit in his retirement from the em
peror, and Bardas, who wished to gain him over, in
order to quiet the people. But the saint openly up
braided Bardas with his excesses, in such unmeasured
terms, that the princes were exceedingly enraged, and
forbade him to live in any house belonging to the mon-
.astery of Studius. He therefore retired to a little house
in Constantinople, which had been given him for char
ity; but being here subject to the importunity of the
emperor, he retired to the island of Chersonesus, where,
after two years, he was discovered, arrested, and im
prisoned in his own monastery. For two years more he
remained here, bound hand and foot.
Basil having succeeded to the empire upon the death
of Michael, banished the impious Photius, restored St.
Ignatius to his see, and having set our saint at liberty,
obliged him to assume, for the third time, the govern
ment of the monastery of Studius; where he ultimately
died, in the seventy-fifth year of his age, in 868 — a mar
tyr, not indeed of blood, but certainly of suffering, con
stancy, and patience.
i 60 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XXX.
ST. EULALIA AND ST. JULIA, VIRGINS.
December 10.
ST. EULALIA was born of a noble Spanish family
at Merida, then the capital of Lusitania, toward the be
ginning of the fourth century, when the persecution of
Diocletian and Maximian was raging most violently,
that is to say, in 304.
Her parents were pious Christians, who took care to
educate her in sentiments of piety; and they had the
consolation of seeing her totally given to practices of
virtue and inflamed with the love of Jesus Christ, to
whom she consecrated her virginity at a very early age,
and for whose honor she was .anxious to suffer martyr
dom. She therefore took the greatest pleasure in hear
ing of the victories, or reading the Acts of the martyrs.
St. Eulalia was only twelve years old when she heard
the edicts of the emperors published in Merida; yet she
began to prepare herself for the struggle. Her mother,
perceiving her ardor, endeavored to mitigate it, by rep
resenting to her the horrible tortures to which the con
fessors of the faith were exposed, but this only inflamed
the holy enthusiasm of Eulalia still more. Calpurnianus,
having arrived at Merida to execute the imperial man
dates, her mother brought her to a country house, and
watched her very closely.
The saint, inspired by God, spoke to a young lady
named Julia, who had been given her as a companion,
and persuaded her to escape with her to the city, in
search of martyrdom.1 This they effected in the night,
1 It is well known that St. Teresa with her young brother did the
same thing when she was seven years old. See Volume VIII. pp.
370, 381. — ED.
CHAP, xxx.] SS. Eulalia and Julia, Virgins. 161
travelling without a light or a guide. The impatient
zeal of Eulalia caused her to walk so quickly, that Julia,
being unable to keep pace with her, at length exclaimed:
" Walk as fast as thou canst — I have a presentiment
that I shall receive the crown of martyrdom before
thee."
The two young heroines, travelling by night over an
unknown country, injured their feet very much ; they
arrived, however, at the city in the morning, and pre
sented themselves to Calpurnianus, whom Eulalia up
braided with the impiety of doing honor to the devil, by
worshipping statues of wood and stone. The prefect,
surprised to hear a young girl speak so, asked her who
she was, and why she spoke with such boldness. The
saint replied: "I am a Christian, and the God whom I
adore inspires me with a horror of thy impiety." The
prefect said: "But knowest thou, child, to whom thou
speakest ?" She answered: "I am aware that I speak
with the governor, and therefore it is that I call it an
impiety to oblige Christians to sacrifice to false gods."
Calpurnianus endeavored to gain her over, first by
promises, and afterwards by threats; but the saint con
tinued to proclaim herself a Christian, and that she was
most anxious to lay down her life for Jesus Christ. Car
dinal Orsi ! and Fleury2 add, that she spat in the face of
the judge, threw down the idols, and trampled upon the
flour which had been provided for an offering.
The judge thereupon commanded the executioners to
torture her. They lacerated her entire body with
scourges armed with lead, poured boiling oil over her
wounds, and applied burning torches to her sides and
breasts ; she, however, bore all this without uttering a
word, except to bless the Lord, and return him thanks.
The tyrant, enraged at the constancy of the young vir-
1 1st or. fed. 1. 9, n. 51. 'J Hist. <r</. 1. S, n. 46.
II
1 62 Martyrs of t lie First Ages. (.PART i.
gin, ordered that her flesh should be torn off with iron
hooks until the bones should be laid bare. The saint,
then, with uplifted eyes, exclaimed : " Behold, my Sa
viour, these wounds make me believe that I am des
tined to be thy spouse; — do thou, of thy mercy, render
me worthy to be so." Finally, the tyrant, perceiving
that nothing could weaken her constancy, determined
to burn her alive.
The executioners therefore kindled a great fire around
her, and the flames catching her hair she was quickly
smothered. This circumstance is described in verse by
Prudentius,1 who lived toward the end of the century in
which she suffered. She consummated her sacrifice on
the loth December.
Prudentius also relates, and Fleury also adds his tes
timony, that, when the holy martyr expired, the by
standers saw a dove, so resplendent that it dazzled the
beholders, proceeding from her mouth, and winging its
flight to heaven.
A great snow fell, and covered the saint's body, which
gave the Christians an opportunity of burying it near
the place of her martyrdom. When peace had been re
stored to the Church under Constantine, a magnificent
church was raised over her tomb, which the Lord glori
fied by many miracles. In the eighth century, that the
body of the saint might be preserved from the profana
tions of the Saracens, it was translated to the cathedral
of Oviedo, and placed in a rich chapel dedicated in her
honor.
While St. Eulalia was undergoing her tortures, her
companion, St. Julia, was arrested as a Christian, and
condemned to be beheaded; and this was done immedi
ately. Thus was her prediction verified, since she died
before our young heroine had consummated her sacri
fice.
1 I*?)') stcpJl. JlV»l1l. 9.
CHAP, xxxi.] Si. Pollio, Lector. 163
CHAPTER XXXI.
ST. POLLIO, LECTOR.
April 28.
CARDINAL ORSI ' relates that in the city of Cibales,*
Pollio was presented to the governor, Probus, who asked
him whether he was a Christian. Pollio answered that
he was a Christian, and the chief of the Lectors. Pro-
bus asked : " Of what Lectors?" The saint replied :
"Of those who read the Word of God to the people."
" Of those, perhaps," added Probus, " who are in the habit
of seducing silly women, persuading them to refrain
from marriage, and to observe a foolish continency?"
Pollio rejoined: " Those, indeed, are foolish who aban
don their Creator, to follow thy superstitions; on the
contrary, they are wise who, notwithstanding their tor
tures, persevere in the observance of the command
ments." Probus: "Of whose commandments speakest
thou ?" Pollio: " Of those that teach us to adore one
only God, and not gods made of stone or wood: that
teach sinners to be converted, and the virtuous to per
severe — that teach virgins their exalted dignity, and
married persons the observance of modesty — that teach
subjects to obey, and legislators to command just things;
finally, I speak of those commandments that teach us to
aspire to eternal life, and to despise the death that thou
canst inflict upon us." Probus: " But what happiness
can a man hope for, who, with life, has lost the enjoy
ment of light, and all the pleasures of the world ?" The
1 htor. ,'(•(/. 1. (), n. 37.
* (.'ibittis, an ancient c-piscopal city, the native place of the emperors
Yalentian anil Valens, at Swilei, on the Save, in Illvria. — En.
1 64 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
saint answered: "There is an eternal light incalculably
better than this, which in a short time must, to us, be
obscured forever! Happiness which never ends is, be
yond comparison, preferable to that which shortly ter
minates; and is it prudent to prefer eternal enjoyments
to those that quickly fail ?"
Probus interrupted the saint's discourse, saying :
" What do these words avail ? Do that which the em
peror hath commanded — sacrifice to the gods." Pollio
replied: "Do thou that which hath been commanded
thee: I will not sacrifice, for it is written: ' He that sac
rifices to devils, and not to God, shall be exterminated.' "
Probus: "Then shall thou be decapitated." Pollio:
"Execute thy orders: I am obliged to follow the doc-
Irine which my fathers and bishops have taught me; I
shall suffer with joy whatever thou mayest infjict." Pro-
bus was so enraged, that instead of ordering his decapi
tation, he condemned him to be burned alive.
When the saint was led to the place of execution, he
offered himself as a sacrifice to God, and blessed his
holy name for making him die a martyr for his glory.
He suffered courageously on the 2yth or 28th of April,
in the year 304.
CHAPTER XXXII.
ST. APIAN AND ST. ^DESIUS, BROTHERS.
April 2 and 8.
ST. APIAN: was born in Lycia, of rich and noble par
ents, who sent him to Berytus, to study the humanities;
and, notwithstanding that the youths of thai cily were
exceedingly corrupt, Apian preserved himself from con-
1 Also called Aphian and Amphian.
CH. xxxii.] SS. Apian and .'Edesius, Brothers. 165
lamination. Being eighteen years of age, he returned
to his father's house; but finding that the family had
continued idolaters, he retired to Csesarea, in Palestine,
where he was most hospitably received into the house
of the celebrated Eusebius, who afterwards became
bishop of that city. Under this great master he stud
ied the Sacred Scriptures, and practised those austerities
that prepared him for the glorious end which he made.
At this time, in the year 306, the Emperor Galerius
Maximian was not only persecuting the Christians, but
searching for them with the greatest scrutiny. He
caused the families to be enrolled, and each individual
to be summoned, that he might either sacrifice or be put
to death. Apian prepared himself for this trial, and
having understood that the governor was about to offer
a solemn sacrifice to the gods, he went, on the appointed
day, to the temple. Finding himself influenced by a
special inspiration from Heaven, he passed the guards,
approached the impious altar, and, while the governor
was raising his hand to pour out a libation of wine be
fore the idol, he seized his arm, and earnestly exhorted
him to desist from the impiety of offending the true
God by sacrificing to demons and images.
The soldiers rushed upon Apian, as though they would
tear him to pieces; and, having beaten him most cruelly,
brought him to prison, where they put him to the
torture of the stocks for four-and-twenty hours. Upon
the following day he was brought before the governor,
who, having in vain sought to gain him over by prom
ises and threats, ordered that his sides should be torn
with iron hooks, until the bones and bowels should be
laid bare. He was then buffeted upon the face until he
became so deformed, that he could not be identified by
those who had formerly known him. The tyrant, per
ceiving that these torments made no impression upon
the saint, caused linen, steeped in oil, to be rolled round
1 66 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
his legs, and then to be set on fire. It is easy to con
ceive that the saint suffered the most excruciating tor
ture from the new infliction, yet he endured it with un-
diminished fortitude. The governor, after three days,
finding him armed with the same constancy, ordered
him to be thrown into the sea.
Eusebius,1 an eye-witness, relates that upon the exe
cution of this sentence, the city was shaken with an
earthquake, and the sea became violently agitated, and
cast the body back upon the shore before the gates of
Csesarea. St. Apian was not quite twenty-nine years of
age at the time of his martyrdom, which took place in
the year 306, on the 2d, or, as some will have it, on the
5th, of April.
St. ^Edesius,2 who was the brother of St. Apian, not
only according to the flesh, but equally so in faith and
piety, also applied himself to the study of philosophy,
which served to separate him still more from the world,
and unite him to Jesus Christ. In this same persecution
he frequently confessed his adorable name, and suffered
long imprisonment and various punishments, which he
endured with Christian fortitude. He was sent to labor
in the mines of Palestine, from which he was subse
quently released; but finally, one day, in Alexandria,
perceiving a judge pronouncing cruel sentences against
the Christians, and delivering over holy virgins to the
lusts of abandoned young men, he went forward and
spoke with such force against these acts of injustice,
that, as Eusebius says, he covered the persecutors with
confusion, and received from them the crown of martyr
dom. Like his brother, he was horribly tortured, and
afterwards cast into the sea.
1 De Mart. Palcest. c. 4. - Martyrology, April 8.
CH. xxxiii.] St. Gordius, Centurion. 167
CHAPTER XXXIII.
ST. GORDIUS, CENTURION.
January 3.
ST. GORDIUS, who was born in the third century, fol
lowed the military profession, and obtained the rank of
centurion, or captain. St. Basil the Great, who wrote a
homily in praise of this saint, relates that at the time of
his martyrdom there was a great persecution of the
Christians at Caesarea; in the public squares idols of
wood and stone were exposed, and those who refused to
sacrifice to them were tortured and put to death. The
consternation of the faithful was very great, for their
houses were, with impunity, sacked by the idolaters, the
prisons filled with Christians, and while the churches
were deserted, the woods and mountains were peopled
with the fugitives.
Hereupon St. Gordius renounced his profession, laid
aside the military insignia, and retired to the desert, to
unite himself to God by holy prayer and penitential
practices. He casually heard that on a certain day
public games were about to be celebrated at Caesarea, in
honor of Mars; he accordingly proceeded to the city, and
beheld there a great concourse, not only of Gentiles, but
of Christians, who, weak in faith, were not ashamed to
assist in these festivities of the devil. The saint, in
spired by the Holy Ghost, proceeded to glorify the
Christian religion, and to reprobate that of the pagans,
who adored, and sacrificed to false gods.
The Gentiles at this interruption of the games vocifer
ated that the saint should be put to death for his temer
ity; they seized upon him, therefore, and led him to the
governor, accusing him of all that he had said. The
governor, knowing that he had retired to the mountains,
1 68 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
asked him why he had fled, and afterwards returned.
St. Gordius replied: "I have returned, because I am
anxious to die for Jesus Christ; and knowing thee to be
the most cruel of men, I thought that this afforded me
the best opportunity of satisfying my desire."
The tyrant, hearing him speak thus, ordered the exe
cutioners to prepare their tortures. The saint, nothing
daunted, fervently offered himself to Jesus Christ, and
implored strength to suffer for his sake. Scourges, the
rack, and fire were used to shake the constancy of the
holy martyr, but he said: "Torture me as much as thou
pleasest, the more excruciating my agony the greater
my reward in heaven; for the wounds which now cover
my body, I shall there be covered with a garment of
glory; and by the pains which now afflict me, I shall
earn everlasting joy."
The governor, perceiving that he could not cause him
to prevaricate by tortures, endeavored to gain him over
by promises of riches and honors; but the saint answered:
"Thou art deceived if thou thinkest that I will barter
the joys of heaven for the miserable advantages this
world can afford." Finally, the judge perceiving that
promises were as ineffectual as threats, pronounced
upon him sentence of death.
While the saint was proceeding to the place of execu
tion, his friends exhorted him to yield, for the present,
to the wishes of the governor, and not perish thus mis
erably in his youth. The saint replied: "Weep not for
me, but for those who persecute the faithful, since for
them eternal fire is prepared; for my part, I am pre
pared to die, not once, but a thousand times, for Jesus
Christ." They urged that, to avoid death, he might
deny Jesus Christ with his tongue, though he continued
to adore him in his heart. The saint said: "Far be it
from me to deny my God with that tongue which he
himself hath given me."
CH. xxxiv.] SS. Chrysogomts and Anastasia. 169
He then armed himself with the sign of the cross, and
went boldly to encounter death, which, according to St.
Basil and the Menologies of the Greeks, was that of fire,
in which he gloriously consummated his martyrdom.1
CHAPTER XXXIV.
ST. CHRYSOGONUS, PRIEST, AND ST. ANASTASIA, WIDOW.
November 24 and December 25.
ST. CHRYSOGONUS, who is mentioned in the Canon of
the Mass, was a Roman priest; there are no Acts of this
saint's martyrdom, and that which we know of is de
rived from the Acts of St. Anastasia, who is also men
tioned in the Canon of the Mass, and is commemorated
by the Church on the 25 ih of December. From these
Acts we discover that St. Chrysogonus, during the per
secution of Diocletian, was giving most exemplary proofs
of his piety at Rome. He passed his nights in the sub
terraneous oratories, and by day visited the houses of
the Christians, to strengthen them in the faith, while he
also effected many conversions among the Gentiles.
Most remarkable among the children of his ministry
was Anastasia, a Roman lady of noble descent. Her
father, Prsetextatus, was an opulent and noble pagan;
but her mother, who was a Christian, caused her to be
1 The Menology of Basil, quoted by Hollandus, does not mention the
kind of death that St. Gordius suffered. The Menologies of the Greeks,
which are also quoted by Bollandus, say that he perished by the sword :
Fcrro ocatbuit. Baronius (anno 304, n. 62) leads us to believe that his
throat was cut: Jugulwn ferro obtulit. St. Basil, however, speaks
only of flames to which the martyr was consigned. Perhaps the holy
martyr was stabbed on the funeral pile and burned afterwards as a vic
tim immolated as a holocaust. — ED.
1 70 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
baptized in her infancy, and secretly reared her in
sentiments of Christian piety, in which she made great
progress.
The active zeal of St. Chrysogonus in assisting the
Christians, quickly discovered him to the persecutors;
he was accused before the prefect at Rome as being the
greatest enemy of the gods and of the imperial edicts;
he was accordingly sent to a prison, which he found full
of Christians. St. Anastasia, inflamed with the love of
God, occupied her time in consoling and succoring the
Christians, particularly those who were in prison, whom
she exhorted to suffer for the faith. Having heard of
the arrest of St. Chrysogonus, she hurried to his prison,
and esteemed herself fortunate in having it in her power
to be of service to him in this trial. St. Chrysogonus
had been in prison for a year, during which he ceased
not to instruct and animate those of his fellow-prisoners
who were Christians, and he had also the consolation
of converting many pagans to the faith. In this St.
Anastasia rendered him much assistance, by reason of her
extraordinary works of charity, which afforded the great
est edification.
We must here observe, that St. Anastasia had been
married to a noble Roman, named Publius, who was a
pagan; he loved his wife much, but having discovered
her acts of piety, and that she was a Christian, from a
loving husband he became a cruel tyrant, confined her
to the house, and treated her like a slave. The saint,
instead of being mortified at this maltreatment, was
rejoiced, as she considered that she suffered for the love
of Jesus Christ; but she was afflicted at seeing herself
prevented from assisting the confessors of the faith, and
accordingly wrote to St. Chrysogonus, requesting him
to pray to God that he would either convert her hus
band, or take him out of the world in case he was
determined to remain obstinate. St. Chrysogonus, in
CH. xxxiv.] ,515". Chrysogonus and Anastasia. 171
*/ & *
answer, exliorted her to be patient, and gave her an
assurance that God would shortly console her.
This letter animated the saint with new courage to
suffer the increased cruelty of her husband, who doubled
the hardships of her confinement, and allowed her so
scanty a portion of food, that she thought she could not
long survive. She therefore wrote again to her holy
director, imploring him to offer frequent prayers to the
Almighty in her behalf, that she might die in the grace
of God. The saint replied, that Jesus Christ permitted
these things, because he loved her, and that she should
prepare herself to endure still greater sufferings for his
glory. So in fact it happened; for Publius, her cruel
husband, having been appointed by the emperor ambas
sador to the King of Persia, gave orders to his domestics
that they should so maltreat his wife during his absence
that there would be no fear of her being alive upon his
return. God, however, ordained it otherwise, for Pub
lius met with an untimely death upon his journey; while
the saint, having regained her liberty and her property,
resumed her pious labors in behalf of the prisoners of
Jesus Christ.
Meanwhile, St. Chrysogonus had remained two years
in prison, during which time he ceased not to attend to
the spiritual wants of his brethren, and to make new
conversions among the pagan prisoners; of which Dio
cletian being informed, he commanded that the saint
should be brought before him, at Aquileja, where he
then was. The tyrant used all his endeavors to pervert
the holy priest, and offered him even the prefecture of
Rome as the reward of his apostasy; but the saint re
plied, that he knew of no honor so great as that of
serving the true God; that he found no pleasure in life,
except that of sacrificing it to Jesus Christ; and finally,
that the religion ot the empire was only a compound of
fables, which, instead of being entitled to veneration,
172 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
deserved only to be despised. Diocletian, infuriated at
these words, ordered that his head should be instantly
struck off, which was accordingly done, on the 24th
November, in the year 303.
On this day his festival is celebrated by almost all
the Western Churches. The saint's body was thrown
into the sea after his martyrdom, but was found two
days afterwards on the shore, by a holy priest named
Zoilus, who piously buried it in his house; and who,
after thirty days, received an assurance from the martyr
in a vision, that his charity would be soon rewarded.
From the fifth century there was a church in Rome dedi
cated to this saint; it was rebuilt in 740, by Pope Greg
ory III., and at present gives title to a Cardinal.
Now come we to relate the martyrdom of St. Anasta-
sia. After the death of St. Chrysogonus, the emperor
ordered that all the confessors who were in prisons at
Rome should be brought to Aquileja. Thither, there
fore, repaired Anastasia to exercise her charity; but,
being informed that many were about to be sent to
Macedonia, together with Agapia, Chionia, and Irene/
who had already been sentenced, she resolved to accom
pany them, and to afford them whatever assistance she
could, by bribing the guards to obtain admission, as she
had done on former occasions. Having privately sold
all that she possessed, she had ample means to succor
the sufferers for the faith. She proceeded one day to
the prison upon her errand of charity, and having found
that all the holy confessors had been butchered by order
of the emperor, she wept bitterly. Some of the officers
of the court being present, asked her the cause of her
tears. " I weep," replied the saint, " because I have lost
1 Three sisters, virgins and martyrs, executed at Thessalonica. The
first two were burnt alive on April 3, and the third on April 5, accord
ing to the martyrology. Dom Ruinart has recorded their Acts in his
collection, after Baronius and Surius. — ED.
CH. xxxiv.] SS. Chrysogonus and Anastasia. \ 73
my brethren, who have been cruelly put to death." She
was hereupon arrested, and brought before Florus, pre
fect of Illyricum.
The prefect understanding that she was the widow of
Publius, a favorite of the emperor, who had died on his
journey to Persia, spoke to her in a very respectful man
ner, and labored much to induce her to abandon her
faith; but perceiving by her answers that he was only
losing his time, he sent her to the emperor.
Diocletian's avarice induced him to ask her, first of all,
what she had done with her riches; and the saint an
swered, that she had distributed them among the poor
and the Christians, who were so unjustly persecuted.
The emperor, although irritated at the declaration, con
tinued to exhort her in respectful language to abandon
a religion which was proscribed throughout the empire;
but finding her constancy still the same, he sent her
back to Florus.
The latter gave her over to Upian, the pontiff of the
capitol, in the hope that he would induce her to sacrifice
to the gods. Upian having used all his arts of persuasion
in vain, said to her: " Now I shall give thee but three
days to determine." Anastasia replied: "They are three
too many; thou mayest imagine them already past. I
am a Christian, and am anxious to die for Jesus Christ.
From me thou shalt never get any other answer." Upian
then employed the assistance of three idolatrous wom
en ; but this having proved also ineffectual, he made
a second attempt himself, in which, he had the effrontery
to be guilty of some immodest action. This was in
stantly punished by the Almighty; for he was struck
blind upon the spot, and seized by convulsions that
within an hour terminated his life.
Florus, enraged at the death of Upian, caused the
saint to be shut up in prison, with the intention of starv
ing her; but the Lord having miraculously preserved
1/4 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
her life, the prefect believed that the jailer had trans
gressed his orders, and therefore caused her to be re
moved to another prison, where also she still continued
to live without food. The prefect having some unwill
ingness to shed her blood, ordered her to be put on
board a ship, which was bored, together with one hun
dred and twenty idolaters who had been condemned to
that death. The ship soon filled with water, but instead
of sinking went ashore; and the miracle worked the con
version of all these persons, who afterwards had the
glory of suffering martyrdom for Jesus Christ St. An-
astasia was then conducted to the island of Palmarola,
under sentence of death; she consummated her triumph
in the flames.
A Christian lady obtained her body, and gave it hon
orable burial near Zara, in Dalmatia ; but about the
year 460, under the Emperor Leo, her relics were trans
lated to Constantinople, and placed, as Cardinal Orsi
writes,1 in the celebrated church of the Resurrection,*
called The Anastasia.\ This church was used by St.
1 Is/or. ('(-<•/. 1. 9, n. 45.
* Alban Butler says with greater authority that the relics translated
to Constantinople seem to have been those of St. Anastasia the Elder,
martyred at Sirmich (or at Rome, according to the martyrology, Octo
ber 28, and our author, Chap. LVIL), under Valerian, and that the body
of St. Anastasia, widow, called the Junior, was transferred to Rome
and deposited in the church that still bears her name. It was in this
church that the Pope in ancient times used to celebrate the second Mass
of Christmas, in which a commemoration of the saint is made. The
holy widow did not live a long time with her unworthy husband; she
was therefore very young; and we read in her first letter to St. Chry-
sogonus that she had preserved her virginity. This is undoubtedly the
reason why several authors give her the title of virgin. — En.
f The origin of this appellation was the following: The violent Arian
Bishop, Macedonius, obtained from the Emperor Constantius an edict
commanding that the churches of all those who maintained that God the
Son was consubstantial with the Father should be pulled down. This
CH. xxxv.] St. Fructuosns and his Deacons. i 75
Gregory Nazianzen as a cathedral, and was afterwards
burned during the episcopate of St. John Chrysostom.
The feast of St. Anastasia is celebrated on the 25th of
December, Christmas Day.
CHAPTER XXXV.
ST. FRUCTUOSUS, BISHOP OF TARRAGONA, AND HIS TWO
DEACONS, ST. AUGURIUS AND ST. EULOGIUS.
January 21.
THE Acts of these martyrs, as found in Ruinart, relate
that in the year 259, under the Emperors Valerian and
Gallien, the Bishop Fructuosus, Bishop of Tarragona,
in Spain, with his two deacons, Augurius and Eulogius,
were apprehended by order of Emilian, the governor of
the province.
. The holy prelate had retired to his room when the
soldiers came to arrest him. On hearing the noise he
opened the door; and being informed that the governor
had summoned him and his two deacons, he said: "We
are ready; but if you permit me, I will put on my shoes."
This done, the three confessors were led to prison.
intolerant measure affected the Novatians as well as the Catholics, and
one of their churches in Constantinople was demolished. They, how
ever, assembled in such numbers, and men, women, and children labored
so perseveringly, that in a surprisingly short time they transferred the
materials to the other side of the water, and built their church there.
The Emperor Julian afterwards gave them their original site, and again
they brought back their materials; and having rebuilt the church, and
rendered it more magnificent than before, they called it " The Anasta
sia," i.e., the resuscitated. It is in this sense only that it can be styled
" The Church of the Resurrection," for it was not dedicated in honor of
the Resurrection of our Lord, but to the Eternal Wisdom, as the title,
San eta Sophia, implies.
i 76 Martyrs of the First Ages* [PART i.
After six days' imprisonment they were brought before
the governor, who, turning to Fructuosus, said: "Hast
thou heard that which the emperors have commanded ?"
The saint replied: " I know it not; but this I know, that
I am a Christian." Emilian: "They have commanded
that the gods be honored." Fructuosus: " For my part,
I adore only one God, who hath made heaven and earth."
Emilian: "Art thou not aware of the existence of the
gods?" Fructuosus: "I am not." Emilian: "Shortly
thou shalt be. To what will men render homage, if they
adore not the gods and the images of the emperors ?"
Then turning to Augurius, the deacon, he said: " Give no
ear to the words of Fructuosus." Augurius replied: "I
adore one omnipotent God." The governor then turned
to Eulogius and said: "Perhaps thou also adorest Fruc
tuosus?" The deacon replied: "No; I adore him not;
but I adore the same God whom he worships." The
governor, then turning to Fructuosus, asked him: "Art
thou the bishop?" The saint replied: "Yes, I am."
Emilian said: "Thou shouldst have rather said, ' I have
been,' for thou shalt be so no longer. I condemn ye all
three to the flames."
Whilst St. Fructuosus and his deacons were being led
to the amphitheatre to undergo their sentence, the peo
ple, moved to compassion for the venerable bishop, who
was beloved not only by the faithful, but even by the
idolaters, presented him a cup, requesting him to drink
and be strengthened; but he refused, saying, that it was
not yet the hour for breaking the fast.1 When they
arrived at the amphitheatre, the saint appeared filled
with a tranquil joy; his lector, Augustalis, came to him
weeping, and begged he would permit him to take off
1 There was question, says Alban Butler, of the fast called the fast of
the stations, which was kept on Wednesdays and Fridays; it was not
broken till None, that is, about three o'clock in the afternoon, and it
was then ten o'clock in the morning. — ED.
en. xxxv i St. Fructitosus and Jits Deacons. \ 77
his shoes. "No, my son/' replied the holy bishop,
"allow me to take them off myself; for the certainty
which I have of the divine promises gives me sufficient
strength." Having taken off his shoes, one of the faith
ful took him by the hand, and desired he would remem
ber him in his prayers. The saint replied: "I am bound
to pray for the whole Catholic Church, from east to
west." By these words, as St. Augustine observes,1 he
wished to signify that each one of the faithful becomes
a participator in all the prayers of the Church.
When he was about to receive the crown of martyr
dom he raised his voice, as the Acts relate, and said to
the Christians: ''Be not afraid; you shall not be left
without a pastor, for the love and the promises of the
Lord never fail. That which you see me now about to
suffer, is the pain only of an hour." Having said these
words, he was, together with his companions, encircled
with fire; but the Lord so disposed it, that the flames
consumed only the bands with which their hands were
tied; wherefore, being at liberty to stretch forth their
arms, they prostrated themselves in prayer, and raising
their hands to Heaven, besought the Almighty to allow
the fire to consume them, that their sacrifice might be
completed. The Lord vouchsafed to hear their prayers,
and, placidly expiring, they went to receive the reward
of their martyrdom.
After their death, God was pleased to glorify his ser
vants, by manifesting their triumph to two Christians,
Babylas and Mygdone, who were domestics of the gov
ernor. These saw the heavens open, and St. Fructuosus
between his two deacons, surrounded with a halo of
glory, and ascending to receive their crowns. They
called Emilianus to witness the ascent into heaven of
those whom he had that day condemned; but he was
unworthy a heavenly vision.
1 Scrm. 273, E. B.
12
I 78 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i
The faithful, who were exceedingly afflicted at the
death of their pastor, came in the night to the amphi
theatre, extinguished the smouldering remains of the
fire, and were carrying away the bones of the martyrs;
but the holy bishop appeared to them, and commanded
that all the relics should be buried together.
The Acts of these martyrs terminate with the follow
ing devout aspiration: " O blessed martyrs! like gold,
they have been tried in the furnace, and found worthy a
crown of everlasting glory: to this crown their example
invites us also !" St. Augustine, in a sermon delivered
on the anniversary of these martyrs, observes that, from
the fact that they have attained to such glory, although
being men of the same condition that we are, we should
hope to overcome all the obstacles to our salvation,
through the grace of Jesus Christ, who can render that
easy, which our weakness looks upon as insuperable.1
CHAPTER XXXVI.
ST. IREN/EUS, BISHOP OF SIRMIUM.
March 25.
IT is believed that St. Irenaeus was born in the city of
which he was afterwards bishop; and, although it is
probable that his parents were pagans, he professed the
faith of Jesus Christ from his childhood. He married at
an early age, and had many children, whom he left
young behind him at the time of his martyrdom. This
saint gave such extraordinary examples of virtue, that
he deserved to be made Bishop2 of Sirmium while yet a
young man; and from the time he received that charge,
he ceased not to combat the enemies of the faith, and to
1 Serin. 273, E. B. -See note, page 113.
CH. xxxvi.] St. Irenceus, Bishop of Sirmium. \ 79
defend his flock from their artifices, until he terminated
a brilliant career in the glory of martyrdom.
The edicts of the Emperor Diocletian against the
Christians were published in Sirmium in the year 304,
and Probus, the governor of Lower Pannonia, was most
indefatigable in putting them into execution. The
ecclesiastics, and particularly the bishops, were the first
objects of his unholy zeal; for he thought that by strik
ing the pastors he could the more easily disperse the
flock of Jesus Christ.
Irenaeus was accordingly arrested, and brought before
Probus, who said to him : "Obey the imperial edicts,
and sacrifice to the gods." The saint replied: ''The
Scripture saith that whosoever sacrifices to false gods
shall be exterminated."1 Probus: "The princes have
commanded that all Christians shall sacrifice to the
gods, or shall be tortured." Irenaeus: " But I have been
commanded to suffer all tortures rather than deny my
God, and sacrifice to demons." Probus: "Either sacri
fice, or I will put thee to the torture." Irenaeus: " In
doing so, thou shalt please me; for thus shall I be made
a participator of the Passion of my Saviour."
Hereupon the governor commanded that he should
be tortured; and, seeing that he suffered much, said:
" What dost thou now say, Irenaeus ? Wilt thou now
sacrifice?" The saint replied: "I sacrifice, by my con
fession, to my God, to whom I have always sacrificed."
During the torments of St. Irenaeus, his father, his
wife and children, his domestics and friends, came to
implore of him to obey the emperors. His children
embraced his feet, crying out: " Father, if thou hast no
pity for thyself, have pity, at least, on us." The wife,
with many tears, besought him not to leave her discon
solate; while his friends exhorted him not to throw away
1 Dent. xiii.
180 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
his life in his youth. But the saint, like an immovable
rock upon which the waves lose their strength, armed
himself against their assaults with the words of the Sav
iour: But he that shall deny me before men, I will also deny
him before my Father who is in heaven? To their importu
nities he returned not a single word of reply, but sighed
only for the consummation of his martyrdom. Probus
then said to him: " Irenseus, abandon this thy folly; sac
rifice to the gods, and destroy not thyself in the prime
of life." The saint answered: " It is that I may not de
stroy myself for all eternity, that I refuse to sacrifice."
He was then taken down and sent to prison, where he
had to endure various tortures for several days.
After some time, Probus, seated upon his tribunal,
ordered that the holy bishop should be again brought
before him, and, upon his appearance, said: " Irenseus,
now at length sacrifice, and free thyself from the tor
ments which otherwise await thee." The saint replied:
" Do that which thou art commanded to do, and do not
at all imagine that I am likely to obey thee." Probus,
enraged at this answer, caused him to be scourged in
his presence, during which infliction the saint said:
" From my childhood I have adored the one only God,
who has always assisted and comforted me, and I can
not adore gods made by the hands of men." Probus:
" Let the torments which thou hast already suffered
suffice thee; free thyself from death." Irenaeus: " I do
free myself from death, when, by the pains which I suf
fer, I gain eternal life."
The governor then asked him, whether he had a wife,
children, or parents alive; but Irenaeus answered that he
had not, adding: "I say I have not, because Jesus
Christ hath declared that whosoever loveth father or
mother, wife or children, more than Him, is not worthy
1 Matt. x. 33.
CH. xxxvi. i St. Ircnteus, Bishop of Sir mm m. 181
of Him."1 Probus: "Sacrifice at least for thy chil
dren's sake." Irenaeus: "My children have God to
provide for them." Probus: " Do not oblige me to put
thee again to the torture." Irenaeus: "Do thy pleasure;
but thou shalt see what constancy my Lord Jesus Christ
will give me to overcome all thy arts."
Probus then ordered Irenaeus to be cast into the river;
but the saint, hearing the sentence, exclaimed: " I
thought, that, after so many threats, thou wouldst have
caused me to suffer many tortures, and to be cut to
pieces; I beseech thee to do so, that thou mayest per
ceive how Christians, who have faith in God, despise
death."
Probus, enraged at these words, ordered that the saint
should be beheaded, and then cast into the river. The
holy bishop, perceiving that his end was approaching,
returned thanks to Jesus Christ for having given him
the necessary fortitude, and for calling him, by such a
death, to the participation of his glory. When he ar
rived at the bridge of Diana, which was the place
selected for the execution, he threw off his garments,
and prayed thus: "O Lord Jesus Christ! who didst
vouchsafe to die for the salvation of the world, I beseech
Thee that Thy angels may receive my soul; since I most
willingly suffer death for the honor of Thy name, and the
edification of Thy Church. Receive me into Thy glory
for Thy mercy's sake, and strengthen my flock in Thy
holy faith." His head was then struck off, and his body
thrown into the river Save.
1 Malt. x. 37.
182 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PAR
CHAPTER XXXVII.
ss. CECILIA, VIRGIN; VALERIAN, HER HUSBAND; TIBURTIUS,
HER BROTHER-IN-LAW; AND MAXIMUS, OFFICER.
November 22 and April 14.
ST. CECILIA, virgin and martyr, has always been most
celebrated in the Church of God; even from the fourth
century a church has been dedicated to her honor in
Rome; and honorable mention is made of her, not only
in all the martyrologies, but even in the Canon of the
Mass. In the eighth century there was a report that
Astulphus, King of the Longobards, had carried off the
body of our saint from Rome; but she appeared, in a
vision, to Pope Paschal I., assured him that the report
was false, and encouraged him to seek her relics. The
holy pontiff found them, in the cemetery of Praetexta-
tus, on the Appian road; and, having rebuilt her church,
placed them there in the year 821. After a lapse of
nearly eight centuries, when the place in which the
saint's body had been deposited was forgotten, it was
again discovered, in 1599,' in a case of cypress-wood,
within a marble sarcophagus, together with some linen
cloths, steeped in her blood. The celebrated Cardinal
Baronius witnessed this second discovery; and Pope
Clement VIII. placed the case, containing her body, in
another very precious one of silver, where it still remains.
As regards the history of St. Cecilia, we must observe
that some writers doubt the authenticity of her original
1 This was on the occasion of the second rebuilding of her church, by
Cardinal Paolo Emilio Sfrondato, to whom Rome is indebted for the
present most magnificent church called " Santa Cecilia in Trastevere"
CH. xxxvii.] St. Cecilia and her Companions. 183
Acts; but, as they have been generally received, in both
the Greek and Latin Churches, for fourteen centuries,
we shall make use of them in the present narration.1
According to the most generally received opinion, our
saint was born at Rome about the beginning of the third
century, and was descended of a most ancient Roman
family. She professed the Christian faith from her
childhood, although it is uncertain whether her parents
were Christians or idolaters. By reason of her extraor
dinary natural endowments, she was sued for by the
most opulent and noble of the Roman youth, but in
variably declined their offers, as she had dedicated her
self entirely to Jesus Christ, and resolved that He only
should be her spouse. It is said of her, that she took
great delight in playing upon musical instruments, ac
companying herself upon which, she used to sing the
praises of the Lord. Her Acts also relate that she con
tinually carried about with her a copy of the holy Gos
pels, in order that she might follow the blessed maxims
and counsels therein contained; and her life was accord
ingly spent in holy prayer, and the mortification of the
senses.
In the mean time, her parents determined to give her
in marriage to a noble youth, named Valerian. Cecilia,
however, lost not her courage; but, during the three
days that immediately preceded her marriage, she ob
served a rigorous fast, and put on a rough sackcloth,
which she never afterwards took off. To these peniten
tial practices she added continual prayer, beseeching the
Lord Jesus Christ, that he would not permit her to lose
that virginity which she had already consecrated to him.
She was heard. The Lord consoled her through her
angel guardian, who, appearing visibly to her, told her
1 Dom Gueranger, in his history of St. Cecilia, defends these Acts
with as much learning as argument against the critics of whom they
have been the targets in the two last centuries. — ED.
184 Martyrs of tJie First Ages. [PART i.
that lie would assist her, and that Valerian, although
destined to be her spouse, should not offend her. With
this assurance she consented to the marriage.
o
Upon the night following the celebration of this cere
mony, St. Cecilia said to Valerian: "Know, Valerian,
that I am a Christian. From my infancy I have been
consecrated to God, by dedicating to him my virginity;
and he has appointed an angel from heaven to protect
me from every insult. At thy peril, therefore, do not
anything to me, by which thou mayest excite the wrath
of the Lord/' Upon hearing this, Valerian was afraid
to touch her, and said that he also would believe in Je
sus Christ, if he were allowed to see the angel. Cecilia
overjoyed at this announcement, told him that he could
not expect such a favor without being baptized. Valer
ian, inflamed with the desire of seeing the angel, said he
was willing to comply with this condition. Hereupon
Cecilia directed him to St. Urban, who, by reason of the
persecution, was concealed in the catacombs; and Valer
ian, having received the necessary instruction, was bap
tized by that holy Pope.
On his return home he found St. Cecilia in prayer,
and accompanied by the angel, surrounded with rays of
heavenly splendon As soon as he recovered from the
vision, he determined to use all his energies in order to
induce his brother, Tiburtius, whom he tenderly loved,
to embrace the Christian faith. To this end he related
what had happened to himself; and Cecilia, who was
present at their conversation, undertook to demonstrate
to Tiburtius the truth of the Christian religion, and to
show that the superstitions of the pagans were a collec
tion of fables and falsehoods, invented by the devil for
the perdition of souls. While she spoke, the grace of
God touched the heart of Tiburtius, and he also was in
structed and baptized by St. Urban.
The two brothers being thus happily made followers
CH. xxxvn. i St. Cecilia and her Companions. i 85
of Jesus Christ, employed themselves in relieving the
poor, consoling the confessors of the faith, and burying
the bodies of the martyrs. Almachius, prefect of Rome,
and mortal enemy of the Christians, being informed of
this, summoned them to his presence, and rebuked them
for thus identifying themselves with the Christians; but
they answered that, having been illuminated by God,
they were led to know the vanity and deceit of all
worldly things, and that it was madness to prefer the
transitory goods of this life to the inamissible joys of
heaven. The prefect asked: "Who has taught ye this
folly ?" They answered: " It is folly, sir, to worship a
statue of stone or of wood, instead of the true God, and
to prefer a life that lasts but a few days, to an eternal
beatitude. Heretofore we also have partaken of this
folly, but henceforth we are resolved to be wiser. And
thou, Almachius, sliouldst thou continue to worship
false gods, shalt bewail thy folly after death, when there
shall be no remedy for thy eternal ruin."
Almachius, enraged at this admonition, caused the
brothers to be scourged so cruelly that they were very
near expiring under the infliction; yet these young
Christians ceased not their thanksgiving to Jesus Christ
for having made them worthy to shed their blood for his
sake. The prefect then decreed that they should be
brought to the temple of Jove to sacrifice, commanding
at the same time that they should be put to death in
case of refusal. The execution of these orders was en
trusted to an officer named Maximus.
The latter, seeing the joy with which the martyrs an
ticipated death, inquired the reason of their rejoicings.
Tiburtius answered: "How is it possible that we would
not rejoice, finding that we are about to pass from this
miserable life to one of ineffable and never-ending felic
ity ?" Maximus: " There is, then, another life after the
present?" Tiburtius: "Most undoubtedly. Our souls
1 86 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
are immortal; and after this life, which, although short,
is so full of tribulation, there is another life prepared by
God for those who serve him faithfully." Maximus,
moved by these words, but more so by the grace of God,
said: ",If things stand thus, I also will be a Christian."
The execution of the sentence pronounced against the
two saints was thus deferred to the following day; and
Maximus was instructed and received baptism that same
night, in the presence of St. Cecilia, who spoke most en
couragingly of the glory of martyrdom. On the day
following the two brothers were beheaded; and Maxi
mus saw their souls, like two bright stars, surrounded by
angels, entering into heaven; whereupon, weeping with
joy, he exclaimed : " O ye blessed servants of the true
God ! Who can comprehend your glory as I see it? As
I also am a Christian, why can I not enjoy the same
blessed lot ?" Almachius having heard that his officer
had been converted, and that his conversion had been
followed by that of many others, ordered him to be
beaten with rods. This order was so cruelly executed,
that the saint expired during the infliction. The relics
of the two martyred brothers were first buried in a place
four miles distant from Rome, but were translated to the
church of St. Cecilia, in the year 821, by Pope Paschal I.
St. Valerian and St. Tiburtius had left all their prop
erty to St. Cecilia, who, foreseeing that her death was not
far distant, sold all, and distributed the proceeds among
the poor. Almachius discovered that she was a Christian,
and had her arrested. Those who were leading her to
prison wept to see a young lady of noble birth and ex
traordinary beauty about to be condemned to death, and
besought her to abjure Jesus Christ; but she on the other
hand, weeping over their blindness, said: "Ye speak
thus because you are ignorant of the happiness of dy
ing for Jesus Christ. Know, then, that I desire nothing
more ardently." Filled with holy zeal, she showed to
CH. xxxvii.] St. Cecilia and her Companions. 187
the crowd of pagans that surrounded her how happy is
the lot of those who believe in the true God, and forego
all worldly felicity in the hope of an eternal recompense.
Having spoken for some time, she asked them if they
believed what she said; and they answered: " Yes, we
believe, and wish to become Christians." This dis
course was followed by the conversion of four hundred
persons, who were baptized by St. Urban, and the
greater part of whom laid down their lives for Jesus
Christ.
The glorious conquest of the souls which she had
made filled our saint with holy jubilee as she proceeded
to prison. Upon being brought before Almachius, he
was so enraptured with her beauty and her eloquence
that he found himself inclined to dismiss her without
any further punishment; but being informed that great
numbers had been converted through her means, he en
deavored to frighten her by threats of death, in case she
refused to obey the edicts. St. Cecilia replied: "You,
indeed, condemn us to death; but, instead of the wretched
existence which we thus lose, our God gives us an ever
lasting life of happiness. How, then, can you wonder
that Christians have so little fear of death ? You adore
a statue of stone formed by a sculptor's chisel, or an
image made from a block that has grown in the forest.
These are your gods ! But the Christians, on the con
trary, adore one only God, the Creator of all things; and
for so doing you condemn them to die ! And why ? Be
cause, forsooth, they will not commit acts of impiety !"
Almachius became infuriated at these words, and told
her she should obey the emperor; the saint replied that
she considered the obligation of obeying God much
more stringent, The governor then remanded her to
prison.
Fearing that the public execution of such a person
might cause a sedition, he ordered that she should be
1 88 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
shut up in an oven and suffocated. This, however, not
having produced the desired effect, an executioner was
sent to cut off her head. The law, in such case, per
mitted only three strokes; these the executioner gave
with all his might, but, failing in his attempt, left her
still alive, although weltering in her blood. She prayed
to the Lord that she might survive for three days, in
order to strengthen in the faith those whom she had
converted ; and during the entire of this period the
house1 was filled with these zealous neophytes, who be
came thoroughly confirmed in their religion by the ex
hortations of St. Cecilia. At the expiration of the three
days she placidly rendered her soul to God, and went
to receive the reward of so many heroic actions, on the
22d November, in the year 232.
St. Urban, who assisted at her death, had her body
buried in the cemetery of Calixtus, and formed her house
into a church, which he dedicated.
1 There exists to the present day a tradition that St. Cecilia was
confined, not in the common prison, but in her own house, perhaps out
of respect to her rank. This is the more probable as she suffered under
the Emperor Alexander Severus, who was very favorable to the Chris
tians; for although, as Cardinal Orsi and Tillemont relate, several of
them suffered martyrdom during his reign, this was owing to popular
disturbance, or to the tyranny of the governors. It was thought neces
sary to record the opinion, that the saint was imprisoned in her own
dwelling; as, without the knowledge of this circumstance, several of
the facts stated by our holy author might appear dubious. It is only
by supposing this circumstance and her having amply satisfied the
avarice of the guards, that we can imagine it possible for her to have
summoned St. Urban from the catacombs, and to have held such as
semblies in her prison. The oven or stove in which they attempted to
suffocate the saint was that which warmed the domestic baths. — ED.
CH. xxxviii.] St. Agnes, Virgin. 189
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
ST. AGNES, VIRGIN.
January 21.
THE name of St. Agnes has obtained universal celeb
rity. St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, St. Maximus, Pru-
dentius, and other illustrious writers1 have been her
panegyrists, and she is also mentioned in the canon of
the Mass.
She is said to have been descended of very noble and
pious parents, and to have been but twelve or thirteen
years of age at the time of her martyrdom. Her extra
ordinary beauty caused her to be desired by many as their
future spouse, but her principal suitor was Procopius, son
of Symphronius, governor of Rome, who sent her a rich
present, signifying that he was most anxious to be her
husband. But the saint, who had dedicated her vir
ginity and all her affections to Jesus Christ, answered
him that she had been promised to another spouse.
Procopius, nothing discouraged by this answer, contin
ued his ineffectual importunities, until at last the saint,
wishing to free herself forever from his unwelcome at
tentions, said to him: ''Begone from me, thou food for
death ! I am already engaged to another and a far better
1 Among these, St. Jerome should not be forgotten, whose beautiful
and concise eulogy of the saint was considered by Baron ius as her most
appropriate panegyric : "By the writings and the tongues of all na
tions, particularly in the churches, hath St. Agnes been praised, who
overcame both the tenderness of her age and the cruelty of the tyrant
and sanctified the honor of her chastity with the glory of martyrdom."-
S. Hicr. Ef>. viii.
i go Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
spouse. He is the King of Heaven, to whom I have con
secrated my entire being."
Procopius not knowing what to do, employed the as
sistance of his father Symphronius, whose authority, he
thought, might induce Agnes to comply. The governor
accordingly summoned her to his presence, and told her
he could not conceive why she should refuse the hand
of his son, as it was impossible for her to obtain a more
advantageous match. The saint replied, that she had a
divine spouse, who was far preferable to his son. The
governor being unable to conceive what she meant by a
"divine spouse," one of the gentlemen in waiting said to
him: "That young lady is a Christian, and the divine
spouse to whom she refers is none other than the God
of the Christians." Hereupon the governor, changing
his tone, told her that she should abandon that sect and
its maxims altogether, or else not only lose the good
fortune which now presented itself, but be exposed to
infamy and the most cruel torments. He concluded by
giving her four-and-twenty hours to consider whether,
under these circumstances, she would obstinately con
tinue to be a Christian. Agnes boldly replied that she
required no time for deliberation, as she was already re
solved to have no other spouse than Jesus Christ, and
that neither torments nor death could frighten her, as
she was most anxious to lay down her life for him.
The governor then thought to intimidate her by
threatening to have her sent to an infamous place, to be
there dishonored; but the saint replied: "My confidence
is placed in Jesus Christ, my spouse, who is omnipotent
—he will defend me from all outrage." Enraged at
this answer, Symphronius ordered her to be handcuffed,
and dragged in chains before the idols, that she might
offer incense; but on arriving at the place, she made the
sign of the cross, declaring that her Crucified Spouse
alone should be adored. She was then led, by force, to
CH. xxxviii.] St. Agnes, Virgin. 191
a house of prostitution; but if any approached her with
an immodest intent, he became so overawed as not to be
able to look at the saint. Only one rash young man,
whom some suppose to have been Procopius, attempted
to offer her any violence; but as Cardinal Orsi 1 here ob
serves, the impure wretch soon experienced the jealousy
with which the " Spouse of Virgins" defends them, for a
flash of lightning struck him blind, and he fell as if dead
upon the ground. While his companions were endeav
oring to afford him some relief, and were already be
wailing him as dead, the saint was requested to pray for
him, and this she did; whereupon he instantly recov
ered, and again received his sight.
The governor, surprised at this miracle, was inclined
to dismiss the holy virgin; but the idolatrous priests ex
claimed that it was the effect of magic, and excited the
people to demand that Agnes should be put to death as
a witch. The governor, fearing a sedition if he should
discharge her, and, on the other hand, being unwilling
.to put her to death, left the judgment of the case to his
lieutenant, Aspasius, who being obliged to it by the
populace, condemned her to be burned alive. The fun
eral pile was accordingly erected, the saint was placed
upon it, and the fire enkindled; but the flames, respect
ing her person, divided themselves on either side, and
consumed many of the idolaters who were assisting at
the execution. •
The priests and the people continued to cry out that
it was the work of the devil, and obliged the lieutenant
to send an executioner to behead her. The horror of
such an execution caused even this minister of cruelty to
turn pale, and, says St. Ambrose,8 he trembled to give the
stroke : but the saint animated him, saying: k' Haste
thee to destroy this my body, which could give pleasure
1 fstor. cccl. 1. 9, n. 42. 8 Df Virginid. 1. i.
192 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
to others, to the offending of my divine Spouse. Fear
not to give me that death which shall be to me the com
mencement of eternal life." Having raised her eyes to
heaven, and besought Jesus Christ to receive her soul,
this tender virgin received the stroke of death, and went
to receive from her Saviour the palm of her triumph.
As early as the time of Constantine the Great, a
church was erected in honor of St. Agries ; and her fes
tival is celebrated twice a year by the Church — on the
2ist January, in honor of her earthly triumph; and on
the 28th of the same month, in commemoration of her
heavenly reward.1
1 The martyrdom of St. Agnes took place, according to Ruinart,
about the year 304. Her virginal body was religiously deposited in a
place belonging to her parents. The following is what is contained in
the Roman Breviary in her office of January 28: " One night when the
parents of the blessed Agnes were watching at her grave, she appeared
to them in company with a band of virgins, and said to them: ' Father
and mother, weep not for me as though I were dead; for now these vir
gins and 1 live together in Him whose love was my whole life upon
earth.' Some years afterwards, Constance, the daughter of the Em
peror Constantine, being sick of an incurable ulcer, betook herself to
the said grave, although she was not yet a Christian, and as she lay by
it and slept, she seemed to hear the voice of Agnes, saying to her:
'Constance, be of good courage; believe in Jesus Christ the Son of
God, and he will make thee whole.' The princess, being healed, was
baptized, along with many others of the emperor's family and house
hold, and afterwards built over the grave of the blessed Agnes a church
named in her honor."
Alban Butler or Godescard adds: " This church gives title to a Car
dinal. Every year, on the feast of St. Agnes, the abbot of St. Peter's ad
Vincula blesses in it, at High Mass, two lambs, which are thence car
ried to the Pope, by whom they are again blessed. After this they are
sent to the nuns of St. Laurence's, in Panisperna, or sometimes to the
Capucinesses, who make of the wool of these lambs palliums, which the
Pope blesses and sends to the archbishops .and bishops who occupy
privileged sees. These palliums are emblems of meekness and spotless
purity. St. Augustine says that the name Agnes signifies lantl> in
Latin, and chaste in Greek."
Dom Gueranger, in his history of St. Cecilia, chapter 31, describes
CH. xxxix.] St. Simeon of Seleucia. 193
CHAPTER XXXIX.
SS. SIMEON, ARCHBISHOP OK SELEUCIA,1 USTHAZADES, AND
PUSIKIUS, AND THEIR COMPANIONS.
April 21.
ECCLESIASTICAL history informs us that the faith of
Jesus Christ was preached in Persia by the apostles
themselves ; and the number of Christians in this king
dom was consequently very considerable during the
reign of Sapor, which was about the middle of the
fourth century.2 The Magians, or priests of the Persian
religion, became alarmed at the spread of Christianity,
the labors undertaken in ifx>5 to discover the relics of St. Agnes. They
were found under the main altar in a marble tomb in which they had
been resting for a thousand years, with the relics of St. Emerantiana, her
foster-sister. The precious relics of these two virgins were at once
enclosed in a silver reliquary presented by Pope Paul V. — ED.
1 He is also styled Bishop of Ctesiphon, a city built by the Parthi-
ans, on the bank of the river Tigris, opposite to that upon which the
ancient Seleucia, now Bagdad, stood. Some are of opinion that these
ancient cities were separated only by the river, while others contend
that they were three miles apart ; Fleury makes the distance thirty.
This last opinion seems improbable, as bishoprics were formerly very
small; and we frequently find Seleucia and Ctesiphon spoken of as one
archbishopric. The first general council of Nice is said to have made
it the Metropolitan Sec of Persia, during the episcopate of St. Simeon.
'•* The father of Sapor died before the birlh of his son; and the Ma
gians, that he might be born a king, performed the ceremony of his
coronation upon the pregnant mother ; so that the wicked life and
bloody reign of this vainglorious tyrant began together in the year
310. But our author, in saying that the latter was about the middle of
the fourth century, refers to that part of it which was rendered most re
markable by his third, and most cruel, persecution of the Christians.
1 9 4. Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
and, together with the Jews, induced Sapor to persecute
the faithful.
St. Simeon was, at that time, Archbishop of Seleucia,
and his zealous solicitude for his flock caused him to be
regarded as the principal defender of the Christian faith.
In order to effect his ruin, his enemies represented to
Sapor that he was in continual correspondence with the
Roman emperor, to whom, they said, he revealed the
most important concerns of the state. Sapor lent a will
ing ear to these calumnies, and regarding Simeon as his
enemy, resolved not only upon his death, but upon the
total extermination of the Christians in his dominions.
He began by confiscating their property ; and finding
that they bore this with patience, he ordered that the
clergy who would not abjure Jesus Christ should be be
headed, and that all Christian churches should be lev
elled with the ground.
The holy bishop was arrested and brought before the
tyrant; but, lest it should be thought that he was about
to ask pardon for having preached the Christian relig
ion, he did not comply with the Persian custom of pros
tration, although he had frequently done so on former
occasions. Sapor, enraged at this omission, asked him
why he refused to render him the homage to which his
rank entitled him. The saint answered: "When I, on
former occasions, appeared in thy presence, I was not
led to deny the true God, and therefore refused not to
comply with the usual ceremonies; but now I cannot do
so, as being called upon to defend my God and my re
ligion." The king exhorted him to adore the sun, de
claring that great riches and honors would be the re
ward of his obedience; while his own death, and the
extermination of the Christians, should inevitably be
the consequence of his non-compliance. The saint,
having given the most decided refusal, was sent to
CH. xxxix] St. Simeon of Seleucia. 195
prison in the hope that he would be thus induced to
change his resolution.
While St. Simeon was being led to prison, an aged
eunuch, named Usthazades, who was the lord chamber
lain, prostrated himself before him. But the holy prel
ate, despising this mark of veneration, and turning his
face from the eunuch, reprimanded him, because that,
being a Christian, he had adored the sun. The apos
tate wept bitterly at this rebuke, and throwing off his
white robes, dressed himself in mourning. Thus clothed
he sat at the palace gate, and, with many tears, fre
quently exclaimed: "Wretch that I am ! If Simeon, my
friend, treats me thus harshly for my fault, and turns
away his face from me, what am I to expect from that
God whom I have denied?"
Sapor, being informed of the affliction of the eunuch,
sent for him, and inquired whether any calamity had
befallen him. The other replied: uAh ! would to God
that all calamities had befallen me, and not that which
is the cause of my grief! I weep because I did not die
long ago, but live to behold that sun, which, to please
thee, I have adored. I deserve a double death — one for
having betrayed Jesus Christ, and another for having
deceived thee." tie then protested, in the most solemn
manner, that he would never, henceforward, deny his
God. The king became infuriated at these words, and
believing that the Christians had turned his head, swore
that he would put them all to death ; entertaining, how
ever, some compassion for the poor old man, he did all he
could to gain him over. Usthazades, notwithstanding,
continued to protest that he never again would be so
fooi'ish as to give to creatures the honor due to the Cre
ator ; and Sapor, finding that his constancy was invinci
ble, ordered him to be beheaded.
While he was being led to execution, he told another
eunuch, his friend, to request of Sapor, that, in consid-
196 Martyrs of t fie First Ages. [PART i.
eration of his past services, he would order him to be
preceded by a crier, who would proclaim to the people
that Usthazades had not been condemned for any crime,
but merely for being a Christian, and having refused to
abandon his God.1 Sapor the more willingly acceded
to his wish, as he was anxious to terrify the Christians
by showing them that he would not tolerate the profes
sion of their religion, even in an old man who had served
him so faithfully.
The king then turned his thoughts toward St. Simeon
and again endeavored to gain him over; but seeing that
all his arts were ineffectual, he commanded him to be be
headed. As a last resource, however, he ordered the heads
of one hundred Christians to be first struck off in presence
of the saint, who, far from being intimidated, exhorted
the sufferers to constancy, by telling them how glorious
was their lot in acquiring the rewards of eternal life by
dying for their Saviour. After the martyrdom of these
hundred Christians the holy bishop was beheaded on
Good Friday, and thus united his death to that of Jesus
Christ.
Together with the bishop were beheaded two vener
able priests of his church, Ananias and Abdechalas.
Pusicius, the prefect of the king's workmen, seeing that
Ananias, in preparing to receive the stroke, was trem
bling, exclaimed : " Father, shut thy eyes for one mo
ment, and thou shalt instantly see the light of Christ."
These words proclaimed Pusicius to be a Christian; he
was accordingly arrested and brought before the king,
whom he upbraided with his cruelty towards the Chris
tians. Sapor, enraged at his freedom of speech, caused
him to be put to death in a strange and most cruel man-
1 The happy penitent was too much afflicted at his apostasy to be
solicitous for his honor, and seems to have made this request in order
that the real cause of his death, being made public, the scandal which
he had given might be repaired. — ED.
CHAP. XL.I SS. Lucius and Montanus. 197
ner — his tongue was pulled out, not from his mouth, but
through an incision made in his neck. His virgin
daughter, who had consecrated herself to God, was also
arrested and put to death.
All these holy martyrs died about the year 344. Their
martyrdom is related by Sozomen,1 a contemporaneous
author, who is cited by Ruinart.
CHAPTER XL.
SS. LUCIUS, MONTANUS, FLAVIAN, AND THEIR COMPANIONS,
DISCIPLES OF ST. CYPRIAN.
February 24.
THE account of the martyrdom of these saints is ex
tracted partly from a letter which they wrote, and partly
from the testimony of an eye-witness ; they suffered in
Africa, in the year 158, in the persecution of the Em
peror Valerian.
After the death of Galerius Maximus, Proconsul of
Africa, the governor, who held the command until the
appointment of his successor, gave an order for the ar
rest of Lucius, Montanus, Flavian, Julian, Victoricus,
Primolus, Rhenus, and Donatian : they were all Chris
tians and disciples of St. Cyprian, but Primolus and
Donatian were as yet catechumens. The letter written
by these martyrs is long; the following is an extract:
" As soon as we were arrested, we were given in custody
to the officers of the quarter, and thence led to prison,
by the horror and stench of which we were not dismayed,
but rather rejoiced, as though we had entered heaven;
we were here visited by many of our Christian brethren,
1 ///.,.' eft'/. 1. 2, C. (j-II.
1 98 Martyrs of the Fii st Ages. [PART i.
who by their discourse made us forget the privations
we had suffered. We were then brought before the gov
ernor, who, without examining us, remanded us to pris
on, where we suffered much from hunger and thirst,
since a cup of cold water was denied even to the sick;
but the Lord failed not to console us with heavenly
nourishment in this tribulation."
The martyrs were detained in prison many months,
during which two of them died — one shortly after his
baptism, the other before he had received it, but after
he had confessed Jesus Christ. In this persecution lay
"persons were not condemned to death; and when the
martyrs were again brought before the governor, the
relatives and friends of Flavian, in order to save his life,
protested that he was not a deacon, as he had declared
himself to be ; he was therefore sent back to prison, but
the others were condemned to die, and walked cheerfully
to the place of execution. Lucius, being unwell, and
fearing that he might be oppressed by the crowd, and
so lose the honor of shedding his blood for Jesus Christ
in company with the rest, requested to be led forward
before the others. Some of the crowd said to him :
" Lucius, remember us;" but he humbly replied: "Do
you rather remember me."
Montanus, just before his martyrdom, frequently re
peated with a loud voice: " He that sacrificeth to any but
the true God, shall be destroyed by the Lord." He also
exhorted the heretics to return to the Church, telling
them that the many martyrs who had laid down their
lives in testimony of her was a sufficient proof of the
truth of her doctrines. He besought sinners to return
to God by repentance, and exhorted all to constancy in
the faith, and a strict observance of the divine com
mandments. Before receiving the stroke of death, he
raised his hands to heaven, and prayed that Flavian
might follow him after three days; and, as if certain of
CHAP. XLJ SS. Lucius and Montanus. 199
being heard, he tore the kerchief with which his eyes
were to be bound in two parts, and desiring them to
keep one half for Flavian, he terminated his martyrdom.
Meanwhile Flavian, in prison, lamented that he had
been separated from those who had the happiness to lay
down their lives for Jesus Christ; but he endeavored to
console himself and his mother, who also grieved at this
disappointment, by adverting to the necessity of con
formity to the will of God. He felt great confidence in
the prayer of Montanus, whose presentiment was ful
filled; for, on the third day, he was again summoned to
the presence of the governor. Those who were conduct
ing him said it was a folly to prefer death to life, and
exhorted him to sacrifice to the gods; but he replied that,
although there were no obligation of worshipping the
God who created us, nor rewards promised to our fidel
ity, it nevertheless would be unworthy human reason to
adore gods of wood and stone. The governor asked
him why he had said he was a deacon, when such was
not the case. The saint answered, that he had confessed
the truth; and the people, who wished to save him by
this means, demanded that he should be tortured till he
would confess the fact; the governor, however, con
demned him to death.
While he was being led to the place of execution, there
fell a great deal of rain, and the martyr was led into a
house, where he had an opportunity to speak with the
Christians who followed him. Having arrived at the
scene of his martyrdom, he spoke to the faithful on the
necessity of brotherly love, and having finished his dis
course, he bound his eyes with that half of the kerchief
.which had been left him by Montanus, and kneeling
down in prayer, received the stroke which consummated
his martyrdom.
2oo Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XLI.
SS. EPIPODIUS AND ALEXANDER OF LYONS.
April 22.
BOTH these saints were of noble family. Epipodius
was a native of Lyons, and Alexander a Grecian by
birth. From their first studies together in the same
school, they contracted the strictest friendship, which
was strengthened and increased by the mutual practice
of those Christian virtues in which they had been reared
by their parents. These two saints were in the flower of
their age, and both unmarried, when the persecution of
Marcus Aurelius was raging, particularly at Lyons, where
the slaughter of the faithful was so great, that the pagans
thought they had succeeded in extinguishing the
Christian religion there.
Epipodius and Alexander were betrayed by a servant,
and denounced as Christians to the governor, who or
dered them to be arrested. Having heard of this order,
they fled from the city, in compliance with the Gospel
counsel, and having taken refuge in the cottage of a poor
Christian widow, remained concealed there for some
time. They were, however, discovered, and most unex
pectedly arrested, and after three days brought before
the governor, to whom they acknowledged that they
were Christians. The pagans loudly demanded their
death, whereupon the governor said: "Then the temer
ity of the Christians in despising the gods and the edicts
of the emperor still continues. We have put to death
numbers of these rash people, leaving their bodies un-
buried, and still there are found some to speak of Christ!
What audacity is this of yours to profess a religion for-
CHAP, x LI.] SS. Epipodius and Alexander. 201
bidden by the emperor? But you shall shortly pay the
penalty."
He sent Alexander to prison, and commenced tamper
ing with Epipodius, who, he thought, might be more
easily perverted, as he was the younger of the two; he
first spoke to him with kindness, saying: "It is a pity
that thou, who art a young man, shouldst be anxious to
perish, through perseverance in the religion of this false
sect. We adore the gods, who are adored by all the people
and their rulers, and the worship which we render them
allows us to lead a life of pleasure. But ye, Christians,
adore a crucified man, who loves to see his followers af
flicted with penance, and debarred from every enjoy
ment. What benefits can he bestow on his followers,
who could not save himself from the death to which the
Jews condemned him? Abandon, my son, this sect, and
enjoy the pleasures which are permitted to us."
Epipodius answered : u The pity which thou dost
manifest in my regard is in reality a cruelty ; since, to
live as pagans live, is productive of eternal death ; while,
on the contrary, to die for Jesus Christ is the greatest
of all blessings. Thou knowest that Christ hath died
upon a cross, but knowest not that he hath risen again,
being both God and man, and that he hath thus opened
to his followers the gates of eternal life, to lead them
thither from this short and miserable existence, that
they may reign with him in heaven everlastingly.
Thou understandest not the truth of the* Christian faith,
but mayest well understand that the pleasures of the
body cannot satisfy souls that have been created by
God for an immortality. We deny to our bodies the
pleasures of this life to save the soul eternally. Thou
believest that existence terminates with this life ; while
we, on the contrary, are assured that the termination of
this present miserable existence is only the beginning
of a happy state of being that knows no end."
2O2 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
The governor, although somewhat moved by this dis
course, gave way to the impulse of anger, and ordered
the executioners to strike the saint upon the mouth;
but the saint, bleeding from the blows, courageously
said : " I confess that Christ, together with the Father
and the Holy Ghost, is the true and only God ; and it
is but reasonable that I should resign my soul to him
who has created and redeemed me. I do not thereby
lose my life, but change it for a better one. It matters
little in what manner my body may be destroyed, so
that my soul return to him that gave it."
The governor ordered him to be stretched upon the
rack, and two executioners to tear his sides with iron
hooks. The people tumultuously exclaimed that the
saint should be delivered up to them, that they might
stone him ; and the governor, fearing that his authority
might be set at nought by their seizing on the prisoner,
ordered his head to be immediately struck off, and the
holy youth thus hastened to the enjoyment of the
crown.
Upon the death of St. Epipodius, the governor sum
moned his companion, Alexander, before him, and said :
* It is yet in thy power to avoid the death to which
others have been consigned. I imagine that thou art
the only Christian remaining ; if, therefore, thou art de
sirous to save thy life, thou must honor and sacrifice to
our gods." Alexander, encouraged by the martyrdom
of his companion, answered : " I thank my God that
the mention of the deaths of my brethren only confirms
my desire of imitating their example. Dost thou im
agine that their souls have died with their bodies? No ;
they have gone to the enjoyment of heaven. Thou art
deceived, thinking that thou canst extinguish the Chris
tian faith, which hath been so established by God, that
it is propagated by the death of the faithful. Those
whom thou believest to have killed are now in the en-
CHAP. XLI.] SS. Epipodius and Alexander. 203
joyment of heaven, which they shall continue to enjoy
for all eternity ; while, on the contrary, thou and the
objects of thy adoration shall be cast into the fire of
hell to suffer for all eternity. I am a Christian, like my
brother Epipodius, who is now reigning in heaven.
Do therefore, to my body as it pleaseth thee ; for my
soul shall be received by that God who created it."
The governor, infuriated at these words, ordered
three executioners to scourge the saint most cruelly,
while he, imploring the divine assistance, continued to
suffer with fortitude. The governor, perceiving that
this protracted butchery of the saint's body made no
impression upon his constancy, asked him if he would
still continue obstinate. Alexander answered : " I shall
never change my resolution, because it is in the keeping
of a God who is omnipotent, unlike thy gods, who are
devils."
The governor said : " The Christians are so mad as
to believe that they can acquire glory by sufferings.
This man, therefore, shall be punished as he deserves."
He then ordered the saint to be crucified ; but his body
had been so lacerated, that his entrails were visible,
and he was but a short time fastened to the cross when
he consummated his martyrdom, and went to receive
the reward of so much suffering.
The triumph of these two saints is believed to have
taken place in the month of April, in the year 178. The
Christians privately carried off their bodies, and buried
them upon a little hill, which afterwards became cele
brated ; as many miraculous cures were there wrought
during the pestilence which afflicted the city of Lyons,
shortly after the death of these saints. The author of
their acts attests these miracles ; they are related by
Ruinart.1
1 Alban Butler adds that St. Eucherius, Bishop of Lyons, wrote the
panegyric of these saints, in which he says that the dust of their tomb
204 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER XLII.
S T. L E O OF P A T A R A.
February 18.
AT Patara, in Lycia, a great festival was once being
celebrated in honor of a certain idol, at which a great
concourse assembled ; some having gone willingly, and
many through fear, as an edict had been published to
that effect. But St. Leo, who was a good Christian, de
parted from the city, and went to perform his devotions
before the relics of St. Paregorius, who had died for the
faith some short time previously. Upon his return home,
St. Paregorius appeared to him in a vision, standing at
the opposite side of a torrent, and inviting him to pass
over.
St. Leo hence conceived a great hope that he would
be honored with martyrdom ; and going, some days
after, to make a second visit to the tomb of St. Pare
gorius, he passed by the temple of Fortune, where many
lanterns burned before the idol. Impelled by a special
impulse of the Holy Ghost, he entered the temple and
threw down the lights ; but the idolaters, enraged at
the insult offered to their idol, raised such a clamor,
that the governor heard of the affair, and ordered that
the saint should be brought before him.
was distributed over the whole country for the benefit of the sick. The
virtue of this dust is also attested by St. Gregory of Tours. He says
that their bodies in the sixth century lay deposited with the body of St.
Irenaeus, under the altar of the Church of St. John, that at present bears
the name of St. Irenaeus. The relics of St. Epipodius and St. Alexan
der were discovered and solemnly translated in 1410. — ED.
CHAP. XLII.] St. Leo of Pat ar a. 205
When Leo made his appearance, the governor rebuked
him for the outrage he had committed against the gods,
in violation of the commands of the sovereign ; but the
saint, animated with holy zeal, replied : "Thou speak-
est to me of the gods, as if there were many : there is
but one God, and Jesus Christ is his only begotten Son.
Since statues of stone and wood are devoid of sense
and feeling, of what use can lanterns be to them ? If
thou hadst the knowledge of the true God, them wouldst
not worship these false deities. Oh, do abandon this
vain superstition, and adore our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ !"
The governor said : " Thou dost then exhort me to
become a Christian ? Better it were for thee to conform
to the general practice, lest thy rashness be punished
as it deserves." The saint with increased ardor re
plied : "I see about me a multitude of those who,
blindly persevering in error, despise the true God ; but
I am a Christian notwithstanding, and follow the in-
.structions of the apostles. If this deserve chastisement,
award it ; for I am determined to suffer every torture,
rather than become the slave of the devil. Others may
do as they please, since they are solicitous merely for
the present, and are reckless of the future life, which is
to be obtained only by sufferings. The Scripture tells
us that narrow is the way which Icadeth to life."
The governor observed : " Since, then, the way of the
Christians is narrow; exchange it for ours, which is wide
and commodious." Leo answered : " I have said that
the way is narrow, because it is one of affliction, and of
persecutions suffered for justice sake ; but it is wide
enough for those who walk therein, because their faith,
and the hope of an eternal reward, make it so to them.
The love of virtue maketh that easy which to thee seem-
1 Mut I. vii. 14.
so6 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PAKT i
eth difficult. On the contrary, the road of vice is in
reality narrow, and leads to an eternal precipice."
This discourse was most unpalatable to the pagans,
who accordingly exclaimed that the impious man, who
had spoken against their religion, should be silenced.
The governor then asked St. Leo whether he would
sacrifice ; and being answered that his compliance was
totally impossible, he ordered him to be scourged. Al
though this command was most cruelly executed, the
saint suffered without a groan ; whereupon the governor
threatened still greater torments, but the saint answered:
" I know not these gods, and will never sacrifice to
them." " At least," said the governor, " say that our
gods are great, and I will dismiss thee, for I have com
passion upon thy old age." The saint replied : "They
are great for the destruction of those souls that believe
in them." The governor, infuriated at this reply, said :
"I will order thee to be dragged over stones till thou
art torn to pieces." The saint replied: "I shall wel
come any kind of death that procures me the kingdom
of heaven, and that blessed life which I shall enjoy in
company with the saints, upon my departure from this
world."
The tyrant continued to importune him to sacrifice,
or at least to acknowledge that the gods could save him
from death. The saint replied: "Thou art very weak,
since thou dost nothing but threaten, without putting
thy threats into execution." The populace, being en
raged at this reply, obliged the judge to condemn the
saint to be tied by the feet and dragged through a
torrent.
St. Leo finding 'himself about to obtain the accom
plishment of his desire to die for Jesus Christ, raised his
eyes to heaven, and prayed after the following manner :
" I thank Thee, O God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, for granting me the grace to follow Thy servant
CH. xLiii] ,5V. Basil of Ancyra, Priest. 207
Paregorius. I praise Thee, because Thou hast enabled
me, by martyrdom, to cancel my past sins. I commend
my soul to the care of Thy holy angels, that it may be
saved from the perdition prepared for the wicked. I
beseech Thee, by that which it is my blessed lot to
suffer, to have mercy on those who are the cause thereof ;
and since Thou desirest not the death of the sinner,
grant them the grace to recognize Thee as the Lord of
the universe. May all that which I suffer in the name
of Jesus Christ thy Son redound to Thy glory forever
and ever. Amen." As soon as he pronounced the word
Amen, he rendered up his soul to God, and went to en
joy the crown to which St. Paregorius had invited him.
The executioners cast the body into a deep pit, in
order to break it to pieces ; but it was taken thence and
found entire, with only a few slight bruises, and the face
appeared comely and smiling.1
CHAPTER XLIII.
ST. BASIL OF ANCYRA, PRIEST.
March 22.
ST. BASIL was a priest of Ancyra, in Galatia, who dur
ing the reign of Constantius bravely defended the divin
ity of the Son of God against the Arians, and converted
many from that heresy. Upon the death of Constantius,
Julian the Apostate succeeded to the empire, and used
1 The names of St. Paregorius and St. Leo, martyred at Patara,
are not found in the Roman martyrology; but the Bollandists and Rui-
nart give their acts as trustworthy, and the Greeks celebrate their feast
on February 18. As for the time of their martyrdom, it is unknown;
several think that it took place in the third century. — Kn.
208 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
all his energies for the re-establishment of idolatry,
which at this time had been almost annihilated. St.
Basil, on the other hand, struggled with all his might
against this impious project, and ran through the entire
city of Ancyra, exhorting the Christians to preserve
themselves from apostasy, and to despise the promises
of Julian, whom, he said, God would quickly remove.
By this conduct he brought upon himself the hatred of
the idolaters, who united with the Arians in persecuting
him; but the saint was not to be deterred from defend
ing the faith of Jesus Christ.
One day while some of the Gentiles were sacrificing
to the gods, he prayed aloud that the Lord might con
found them, in order that no Christians should be
seduced by their example. The idolaters, upon hearing
this prayer, became infuriated, and one of them, named
Macarius, laying violent hands upon him, said: "Who
art thou that darest to disturb the people, and to preach
against the worship of the gods ?" Basil replied: " Not
I, but the God of Heaven, with his invincible power,
will destroy your false religion." The heathens, more
infuriated than ever, dragged him before Saturninus,
the governor of the province, saying: "This man has
been guilty of sedition, and threatens to overturn the
altars of the gods."
Saturninus, turning to him, said: "Who art thou that
showest so much rashness ?" Basil answered: " I am a
Christian, and glory in being so." "If then thou art a
Christian," said Saturninus, " why dost thou not act
like a Christian ?" Basil: "Thou art right ; a Christian
ought to appear so in all his actions." Saturninus :
" Why hast thou raised the people and blasphemed the
emperor as the follower of a false religion ?" Basil : " I
blaspheme not the emperor nor his religion ; but I say
that in heaven there is a Ruler whom the Christians
adore as the only true God, and who can in one mo-
cH.xLin.j St. Basil of Ancyra, Priest. 209
ment destroy your false worship." Saturninus : " What
canst thou say against the religion of the emperor?"
Basil was about to reply, but Saturninus interrupted
him, saying: ''All reply is useless ; thou must obey the
emperor." Basil : "I never yet have failed to obey the
Emperor of Heaven." Saturninus : "Who is this Em
peror of Heaven ?" Basil : " He that dvvelleth in
heaven and beholdeth all things ; while your emperor
commands only upon earth, and is a man like the rest,
who is shortly about to fall into the hands of the Great
King."
The governor, irritated at this answer, ordered that
the saint should be suspended, and torn with iron hooks;
but while Basil was returning thanks to God, he asked
him whether he would sacrifice. The saint replied : " I
have placed all my confidence in the King of kings ; nor
is it in the power of man to change me." The tyrant,
perceiving tliat the executioners had fatigued them
selves, sent him to prison ; and one Felix, a bad Christian,
who met him by the way, advised him to obey the em
peror, but our saint answered: "Depart from me, O
impious wretch ! enveloped as thou art in the darkness
of sin, how canst thou see the light ?"
The Emperor Julian was at this time at Pessinunte,
celebrating the festival of the goddess Cybele, who was
said to be the mother of the gods. Here Saturninus in
formed him of what had taken place regarding Basil.
The apostate hearing that he possessed great influence,
sent two other apostates, Elpidius and Pegasus, to gain
him over. When the latter went to the prison to speak
to him, the saint said : " Traitor ! why hast thou re
nounced Jesus Christ and thy hopes of salvation ?
After having been cleansed in the waters of baptism,
how couldst thou stain thyself with idolatry ? —
after having been fed with the flesh of Jesus Christ, how
canst thou sit at a feast of demons ? Thou wert the
2 io Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
disciple of truth, and art now become a master of per
dition, to the eternal loss of thy own soul. What wilt
thou do when the Lord shall come to judge thee ?" Then
raising his eyes to heaven, he exclaimed : "Vouchsafe,
O Lord, to deliver me from the snares of the devil."
Pegasus, covered with confusion, related the affair to
Elpidius and they both proceeded to inform the gov
ernor, who again caused Basil to be put to torture.
When the saint was placed upon the rack, he said :
" Impious tyrant, thou mayst exercise all thy cruelty,
but so long as Jesus Christ is with me, I never will
change."
The emperor, having arrived at Ancyra, summoned
the martyr before him, and inquired his name. The
saint replied: " I am a Christian. This is my principal
name; but I am generally called Basil. Now, if I shall
have preserved the name of a Christian without blemish,
Jesus Christ will reward me, on the day of judgment,
with an eternal glory." Julian: " Do not thus miserably
deceive thyself, continuing to believe in him that was
put to death under Pontius Pilate." Basil: " No. em
peror; I am not deceived, but thou hast deceived thy
self, who by thy apostasy hast forfeited thy right to
heaven. I continue to believe in Jesus Christ, whom
thou hast renounced, although he placed thee upon a
throne; he will, however, quickly hurl thee thence, that
thou mayest know the power of the God whom thou
hast despised." Julian: "Madman, thou art raving; it
shall not befall me as thou wouldst." Basil: "Thou hast
forgotten Jesus Christ, and he shall never again remem
ber thee in his mercy. He that is the Emperor of all
shall despoil thee of the authority thou hast, and cause
thee to expire in agony; nor shall thy body find burial."
This prediction was shortly afterwards fulfilled.
Julian, infuriated at the martyr's speech, said: " I had
designed to discharge thee unmolested; but, since thy
CH. XLIII.] St. Basil of Ancyra, Priest. 211
temerity hath gone so far as to reproach me, I now com
mand that there be torn, every day, from off thy body,
seven pieces of flesh." This barbarous command was
quickly put into execution by the Count Frumentinus,
to whom the charge was given. Our saint endured it
with great fortitude; and, when he had been entirely
lacerated, he desired to speak with the emperor. The
count, believing that he was induced by the torture to
sacrifice to the gods, made known his desire to Julian,
who commanded him to be brought to the temple of Es-
culapius. Upon being presented to the emperor in the
temple, the saint said: " Where, sir, are the persons who
are wont to accompany thee ? Have they not foretold to
thee the motive of this my visit ?" Julian: " I suppose
thou hast returned to thy senses, and art willing to adore
the majesty of the gods." Basil: " Not so; I have come
to make thee know that thy gods are but blind and deaf
statues, the worshipping of which is punished in hell."
Then taking a piece of his torn flesh, he cast it in the
emperor's face, saying: " Take this, O Julian, since such
food pleaseth thee. To me death is a gain, and Jesus is
my life and my strength; in him I believe, and for his
sake I am willing to suffer."
The Christians looked with satisfaction upon the con
stancy of Basil, and the glorious testimony he had given
to the faith; but equal to their joy was the fury of Fru
mentinus at his disappointment. He therefore ordered
the executioners to tear the saint with irons, until his
bones and bowels should be laid bare. During the in
fliction of this sentence the holy martyr prayed thus:
•' Be Thou forever blessed, () Lord, who giveth strength
unto the weak that put their trust in Thee. Mercifully
vouchsafe to look upon me, and grant me the grace
faithfully to consummate my sacrifice, that I may be
made worthy of thy eternal kingdom."
On the following day the emperor departed from An
2 1 2 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PAR r i.
cyra without granting an audience to Frumentinus, who,
having summoned Basil before him, exclaimed: "O!
thou most rash and obdurate of mortals! wilt thou at
last yield to the emperor, or terminate thy days amid
the most excruciating torture?" Basil replied: "Dost
thou not recollect to what state thou didst reduce my
body yesterday, when its mangled appearance drew tears
from all who beheld it? Now it hath pleased Jesus
Christ lo heal me, as thou seest. Make this known to
thy emperor, in order that he may understand the power
of that God whom he hath abandoned to become the
slave of the devil; but God also will abandon him, and
he shall die in his sins." Frumentinus replied: "Thou
art mad; but if thou wilt not sacrifice, I shall cause thy
entire body to be pierced with red-hot spikes." The
saint answered: "I have not been afraid, as thou know-
est, of the threats of the emperor; think now whether
thy words can strike me with terror."
Although Frumentinus was aware that the constancy
of Basil was not to be overcome, he nevertheless caused
the irons to be heated, and the saint's shoulders to be
pierced through. During this most agonizing torture,
the saint prayed thus: "I thank Thee, O Lord, my God,
who hast delivered my soul from hell. Preserve Thy
blessed spirit within me, in order that, having overcome
these torments, I may offer to Thee the sacrifice of my
life, and become an heir to everlasting bliss, through the
promises of our Lord Jesus Christ; by whose merits I
beseech Thee to receive my soul in peace, since I have
continued to the end to confess Thy name, who livest and
reignest, world without end. — Amen." Having finished
this prayer, the saint, as though falling into a sweet
sleep, in the midst of his tortures placidly rendered his
soul to God, on the 28th of June, in the year 362. The
Acts of his mirtyrdom are found in Ruinart,
CH. XLIV.] St. Pot kinus and Companions. 213
CHAPTER XLIV.
SS. POTHINUS, BISHOP OF LYONS; SANCTUS, DEACON; ALEX
ANDER, PHYSICIAN ; YETTIUS EPAGATHUS, MATURUS,
ATTALUS OF PERGAMUS, BIBLIS, BLANDINA, AND THEIR
COMPANIONS.
June 2.
WHILE the Emperor Marcus Aurelius was carrying on
the war against the Quadi and other German tribes, he
was on one occasion very much terrified at the proba
bility of his entire army perishing from thirst. But the
Christian soldiers who were scattered among the ranks,
having fervently prayed for rain, it descended in such
quantities as to enable all the troops to slake their
thirst. The enemy was at this time attacking the Ro-
•mans with great advantage, when thunderbolts and
heavy hail disconcerted their ranks, and obliged them
to fly. The emperor, justly attributing this miracle to
the power of the God of the Christians, prohibited, in
the year 174, under pain of death, that any one should
accuse them for their religion. After three years, how
ever, by popular commotion, the idolaters raised a per
secution against the Christians, which raged most
furiously at Lyons and Vienne, and the adjacent towns.
But the more the faithful were persecuted, the more
they experienced the protection of the Almighty, who
strengthened them to suffer with heroic patience the
maltreatment they received from the populace or the
magistrates. Several were arrested and brought before
the president, who treated them with such cruelty, that
a young nobleman, named Vettius Epagathus, fired
with the Spirit of God, exclaimed that the Christians
214 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
had been guilty of no crime, and that they were, there
fore, most unjustly punished. The president asked
him who he was. Vettius replied : " I am a Christian."
The president then ordered that all the Christians in
Lyons and Vienne should be imprisoned. Some per
sons came forward to accuse the Christians of having
committed the most execrable impurities in their assem
blies, and also having eaten children there. Hereupon
the magistrates prepared the most atrocious torments,
in order to oblige the faithful to confess these crimes,
and to abandon the faith of Jesus Christ.
Among others, they put to torture a certain deacon
named Sanctus, who, being asked his name and the
place of his birth, would give no other answer than — " I
am a Christian." They applied red-hot plates of brass
to the tenderest parts of his body ; but, although from
his head to his feet he might be said to be one wound,
he was so strengthened by divine grace as to remain
constant in the profession of his faith. When he be
came quite shrivelled and stooped by reason of his tor
ments, they sent him back to prison ; and when, a few
days afterwards, they brought him out to renew his tor
tures, they found that the second became the remedy of
the first affliction, for the saint had perfectly recovered.
In this persecution, many unhappily renounced Jesus
Christ, amongst whom was a woman named Biblis ; she
was, notwithstanding her apostasy, put to the torture,
in order to make her confess the crimes with which the
Christians had been charged. But her sufferings oper
ated upon her in a .very different manner : she began to
reflect how insupportable must be the torments of hell,
which she should suffer, were she to die in her sin. In
stead, therefore of accusing the Christians, she ex
claimed : " How is it possible that those who abstain
even from the blood of animals could be induced to
feed upon their own children?" Biblis then protested
CH. XLIV.] 6V. Pothinus and Companions. 2 i 5
that she was a Christian, and wished to die for her
faith ; and was thus ranked among the martyrs.
At this time St. Pothinus, Bishop of Lyons, was ninety
years of age, and so very weak that he could scarcely
draw his breath ; but proportionate to his weakness was
his desire to lay down his life for Jesus Christ, and to
mingle his blood with that of his flock, which was being
spilt. When the soldiers carried him before the presi
dent, and he had been asked, who was the God of
Christians, the holy prelate replied: "When thou art
worthy, thou shalt know him." The idolaters no sooner
heard this answer than they set upon the aged bishop
like a set of wild beasts, and so inhumanly maltreated
him with kicks and blows, that, being led to prison, he
expired after two days.
The prisons were filled with Christians, who were
tortured in every possible way ; and it was easy to
distinguish those who had prepared themselves for
the great struggle by a life of sanctity and mortifica
tion, from those whose faith became weak by reason of
their tepid and effeminate lives. The former were con
stant in confessing the name of Jesus Christ, and ap
peared joyous and confident ; but the others basely
abandoned their faith, and, stung with remorse, appeared
sorrowful and confused, while they were despised by
the very Pagans themselves. Many of these good
Christians died in prison, being overcome by the damp
and loathsomeness of the place, as well as hunger and
the other sufferings,
Others were reserved by God to expire publicly amid
tortures. Among the latter were Maturus, and Sanctus
the deacon, who, besides the torments which they had
already endured, were, at the request of the populace,
placed sitting in a red-hot iron chair — a cruelty that
one would think could be invented only by demons.
The noisome smell which proceeded from their burning
216 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
flesh, became offensive to their persecutors, who, accord
ingly, cut their throats ; thus did these two saints ob
tain the victory of their prolonged martyrdom.
The multitude next called for the death of Attains of
Pergamus, who was known by all to be a zealous Chris
tian ; but the governor, hearing that he was a Roman
citizen, remanded him to prison, until a decision should
arrive from the emperor. At that time there was also
at Lyons a certain Christian named Alexander, a phy
sician by profession, and a native of Phrygia, who,
being near the governor during the interrogation of
some Christians, made signs to them with his head and
his eyes to exhort them to remain steadfast in the faith.
The pagans accused him of this, and the governor,
hearing from himself that he was a Christian, sent him
also to prison. On the following day he was brought
out, together with Attains ; they were worried by wild
beasts, and finally despatched by the swords of the exe
cutioners.
The scene of blood wras terminated by the martyrdom
of St. Blandina, whose glorious triumph is worthy of
special commemoration. She was a slave, and a very
tender virgin, of such a delicate constitution, that her
mistress, who was an excellent Christian lady, enter
tained very great fears that she would be imequal to the
tortures, and deny the faith ; but no one could evince
more courage than Blandina, or greater patience in en
during the various tortures by which her constancy was
tried. The executioners employed an entire day in tor
menting her, relieving one another at intervals ; and
they were astonished to find that a young, a delicate,
and sickly creature could survive so many tortures.
She was first scourged, next torn with iron hooks until
her entrails appeared, and then placed in a red-hot iron
chair ; yet did she make no complaint, and was only
heard to say : " I am a Christian, and among Christians
CHAP. XLV] St. A /ban. 217
the name of sin is unknown." She was afterwards
wrapped in a net and exposed to a wild bull, who tossed
her in the air for a considerable time. At last the sainted
heroine had her throat cut, and thus consummated her
sacrifice, while the pagans themselves confessed that no
woman had ever been known to endure so horrid tor
tures with so much constancy.
The bodies of all these martyrs were burned, and the
ashes thrown into the river Rhone. Their acts were
written by some of the faithful of the Churches of Lyons
and Vienne, who were witnesses of their triumph, and
perhaps the companions of some of their sufferings.
The strength evinced by these martyrs, in enduring
these cruel and most bitter tortures with so much con
stancy, proves to us that the souls who really love Jesus
Christ, and are dedicated to his service, can easily over
come, by the assistance of his grace, whatever tribula
tions we are doomed to suffer in this life.
CHAPTER XLV.
ST. ALBAN, FIRST MARTYR OF GREAT BRITAIN.
June 22.
ST. ALBAN was an Englishman, and a pagan by birth.
During the persecution of Diocletian, he fortunately re
ceived into his house a holy ecclesiastic, who was flying
from the persecutors. Alban was greatly edified by the
saintly life of his guest, who was almost continually
employed in prayer, was exceedingly parsimonious in
the use of food, and was remarkable for his humility
and blandness of manners. Knowing him to be a Chris
tian, our saint begged to be instructed in the religion ;
and the clergyman so forcibly showed him the extrava
gances of idolatry, and the truth of the doctrines of
218 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
Jesus Christ, that Alban, illumined by divine grace, em
braced the Christian faith.
It was discovered after some time that the ecclesiastic,
after whom search was being made, lay concealed in
Alban's house, whereupon the governor sent a party of
soldiers to seize him ; but Alban, upon their approach,
put on the habit of the clergyman, and enabled him to
effect his escape. Our saint was accordingly arrested
and brought before the governor, who was engaged, at
the time, in offering sacrifice to his gods. Seeing Alban,
with whom he had been acquainted, in that strange
dress, and judging that he had become a Christian, he
threatened that if the saint would not abandon the
faith, he would cause him to suffer all the torments that
had been prepared for him whose habit he had assumed.
The saint replied that he never would abandon that
faith which he had fortunately discovered to be the only
true one. The governor then caused him to be cruelly
scourged ; but Alban suffered this torture, and many
others that followed it, with such joy, that the governor,
despairing of being able to change his resolve, con
demned him to be beheaded.
The saint proceeded to the place of execution, as
though it were to a banquet; but having arrived at the
bank of the river, which should be crossed in order to
reach the destined place, such a multitude had assem
bled, that it was considered impossible to pass the
bridge before evening. Hereupon the saint, anxious to
give his life for Jesus Christ, prayed to the Lord, and
the waters, dividing themselves on either side, left a dry
passage to the opposite bank. At the sight of this mir
acle the executioner was converted, and happily obtained
the crown of martyrdom, together with St. Alban.1
1 Later on a magnificent church was at first erected in this place that
became famous for its great number of miracles; there a very cele
brated monastery was built, and finally a city under the name of St
Alban, between Birmingham and London. — ED.
CH.XLVII.] St. Cyril, t lie Child. 219
CHAPTER XLVI.
ST. PETER OF LAMPSACUS.
May 15.
DURING the persecution of Decius, at Lampsacus, a
city near the Hellespont, a young man named Peter was
brought before the proconsul, and having confessed him
self a Christian, was commanded to sacrifice to the great
goddess, Venus. Peter replied: "I wonder much how
thou canst expect me to sacrifice to a woman, whose
shameful impurities it were immodest even to mention.
Sacrifice should be offered to the true God alone." At
this answer the tyrant caused him to be bound to a
wheel, that, revolving, by certain pieces of wood appro
priately placed, caused a complete and gradual fracture
of his bones. After this torture, the saint, raising his
eyes to heaven, exclaimed: "I thank Thee, my Jesus,
because that Thou niakest me worthy to suffer for Thy
sake." The proconsul, perceiving his constancy, com
manded him to be beheaded.1
CHAPTER XLVII.
ST. CYRIL, THE CHILD.
May 29.
ST. CYRIL was born at Caesarea, and, while yet a child
became a Christian, in consequence of which he was
1 Dom Ruinart gives the Acts of this martyr with those of Saints
Andrew, Paul, and Dionysia, or Denysa, whose triumph has beer, al
icady related at page 116. — En.
22O Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
maltreated, and finally turned out of doors by his idol
atrous father. Information to this effect having been
given to the judge, he caused Cyril to be brought before
him; and, being told that the child frequently invoked
the name of Jesus, he promised him that he would effect
a reconciliation with his father, on condition that he
would never more pronounce that name. The holy
child replied: "I am content to be turned out of my
father's house, because I shall receive a more spacious
mansion in heaven; nor do I fear death, because by it
I shall acquire a better life." The judge, in order to
frighten him, caused him to be bound and led, as it
were, to the death, but gave private orders to the execu
tioner not to injure him. He was accordingly brought
before a great fire, and threatened to be thrown in; but,
being most willing to lay down his life, he was brought
back to the judge, who said to him: " My child, thou
hast seen the fire; cease, then, to be a Christian, that
thou mayest return to thy father's house, and inherit thy
estates." The saint replied: " I fear neither fire nor the
sword; but I am desirous to have a dwelling more mag
nificent, and riches more lasting than those of my father!
God will receive me. Do thou hasten to put me to
death, that I may quickly go to enjoy him."
The bystanders wept to hear the child speak thus;
but he observed: " You should not weep, but rather re
joice, and encourage me to suffer, in order that I may
attain to the possession of that house which I so ardently
desire." Remaining constant in these sentiments, he
joyfully suffered death.
The Acts of his martvrdom are found in Ruinart.
St. Potamiena and Companions.
CHAPTER XLVTII.
SS. POTAMIENA, VIRGIN; MARCELLA, HER MOTHER; AND
BASILIDES, SOLDIER.
June 28 and 30.
THE martyrdom of St. Potamiena was most illustrious.
This holy virgin was educated with great care in the fear
of the Lord, by her pious mother Marcella; but being
by condition a slave, and gifted by God with extraordi
nary beauty, her pagan master conceived towards her a
shameful passion, which he frequently manifested, and
was as often indignantly repulsed. The unchaste wretch
accordingly had recourse to the prefect of Egypt, and
promised him a large sum of money if he would compel
the saint to yield to his wishes, beseeching him at the
same time to put her to death as a Christian, in case she
should prove inexorable.
The prefect forthwith summoned Potamiena to his
presence ; and showing her all the apparatus of torture
that -had been prepared for her in case of refusal, he
commanded her to obey her master. He used all his
arts to induce her to comply ; but the saint expressed
her horror of the iniquitous demand, and, upbraiding
him with the infamy of urging such a request, she said:
" How is it possible that there can be found a judge so
unjust as to condemn me, because I will not satisfy the
inordinate desires of a lewd person ?"
Mortified at the saint's constancy, and still more so
by the rebuke, the prefect condemned her to a most
cruel death. He ordered a caldron of pitch to be placed
upon the fire, and when it commenced to boil, he com
manded the holy virgin to be thrown in. The saint
implored of him, since she had to suffer that death,
222 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
that she might not be thrown into the caldron at once,
but let down into it by degrees, in order that she might
suffer the more, and thus manifest her love towards her
crucified Spouse. "Thou shalt see," she continued,
" how much patience is given to his servants, by that
Jesus Christ whom thou knowest not." Although the
prefect admired the courageous request of the virgin, he
nevertheless acceded to it, and gave orders accordingly.
The superintendence of the barbarous execution was
entrusted to a soldier named Basilides, who, notwith
standing that he readily accepted the commission, was
kind enough to drive back some lewd young men, who
were so insolent as to insult the saint. Potamiena
promised him that she would reward his kindness by
praying to God for him after her death. She was then
immersed in the caldron by such slow degrees that, as
Cardinal Orsi 1 writes, her martyrdom was protracted for
a considerable time ; nor did she expire until the boil
ing pitch reached her neck, when her pure soul went to
enjoy the beatific vision of that God for whose love she
had suffered so painful a death. Her triumph took
place at Alexandria, about the year 210- when her pious
mother also suffered the martyrdom of being burned
alive.
Three days after her death, St. Potamiena appeared
in glory to Basilides, and, placing a crown upon his
head, said to him: " Know that I have prayed for thee
to my God, whom I now enjoy ; he will presently call
thee to that glory of which I have already been made a
participator." The event proved the vision to be real ;
for Basilides embraced the Christian faith, received
baptism, and was beheaded by order of the prefect.
The Acts of St. Potamiena's martyrdom are found in
Ruinart, and are mentioned also by Tillemont in his
memoirs.
1 Is for. eccl. 1. 5, n. fy.
CHAP. XLIX.J SS. Nicandir and Martian. 223
CHAPTER XLIX.
SS. NICANDER AND MARCIAN, SOLDIERS.
June 17.
BOTH these saints belonged to the military profession,
but in the reign of Diocletian, at the beginning of the
fourth century, distressed at seeing the faithful perse
cuted, they left the army, renouncing even the money
that was due for their services. According to the mar-
tyrology they retired to Venafro.1 They were accused
of being Christians, before the governor Maximus, who
ordered them to sacrifice ; but Nicander answered :
" This order should be given only to those who are will
ing to obey it ; now we are Christians, and cannot do
so." Maximus: "But why have ye refused to receive
your pay?" Nicander : " \Ve cannot receive it, because
the money of the impious is regarded by the servants of
God as a contamination." Maximus: " Offer incense at
least to the gods." Nicander : " How can a Christian
abandon the worship of the true God, to adore stones
and blocks? Or why should that honor be given to
them which is due only to God ?"
Daria, the wife of Nicander, was present at this inter
rogation, and, filled with the Spirit of God, said to her
husband : ''Far be it from tiiee, Nicander, to obey the
governor, and renounce Jesus Christ. Remember that
God to whom thou didst plight thy faith; he will be thy
protector." Hereupon Maximus exclaimed: "Wicked
woman ! why wouldst thou procure the death of thy
husband?" Daria: " That he may the sooner attain to
eternal life." Maximus: " Say rather, that thou art
1 Ai present a city in the province of Naples.
224 Martyrs of the First Ages, [PART i.
anxious to have another husband, and therefore dost
desire his death." Daria: " If thou hast any such sus
picion, and sufficient authority, cause me to be first put
to death for Jesus Christ." Maximus replied that he
had received no orders regarding women; nevertheless
he sent her to prison.
Turning then to Nicander, the governor said: "Give
no ear to the words of thy wife ; she pleads for death,
but I will give thee time to consider whether it behove
thee to live or die." Nicander answered: "Consider
the time as already past. I have deliberated upon the
matter, and am resolved to save myself." Maximus,
believing that the saint meant to save his life by offer
ing sacrifice, exclaimed : "Praise be to God."
The words were repeated by the saint, and the gover
nor was rejoicing over his imaginary victory, when he
heard Nicander continue his prayer aloud; which was,
that God would deliver him from the contamination of
this world. Astonished at the supposed change, the
governor exclaimed: "How is this? Just now thou
wert anxious to live, and at present dost pray for death!"
Nicander answered: "No; I wish not to die, but to live
forever; therefore it is that I despise this life of which
thou speakest. Upon my body thou mayest exercise
what power thou hast. I am a Christian."
The governor then, addressing himself to Marcian,
asked him what he intended to do. The saint replied:
"I profess and desire the same as my companion."
" Then," said Maximus, " you shall both be brought to
prison. Be prepared to receive the punishment you
deserve."
After twenty days they were again summoned before
the governor, who asked them whether they were now
prepared to obey the emperors. Marcian courageously
replied: "All thy exhortations can never make us aban
don our God. We know that he calls us to himself.
CHAP. XLIX.J SS. Nicander and Martian. 225
Detain us not, therefore, but send us to our crucified
Lord, whom, although you blaspheme, we nevertheless
adore." Maximus then said: "Since ye wish to die, be
it so." Marcian: "Let it be quickly, not that we are
afraid of torments, but because we are anxious to be
united to Jesus Christ." Maximus: •' I am innocent of
your deaths; they are the orders of the emperors, not I
that condemn you. If you are sure of going to a better
place, I am glad." Having received sentence of death,
the saints replied: " Peace be with thee, Maximus;" and
full of religious joy, they went forward to martyrdom,
praising the Lord.
Nicander was followed by his wife Daria and his little
son, whom Papian, brother to the martyr St. Pasicrates,
carried in his arms. When the holy martyr was about
to be decapitated, Daria endeavored to approach, in
order to encourage him, but could not by reason of the
crowd; whereupon Marcian, stretching forth his hand,
presented her to Nicander, who took leave of her with a
•serene countenance, saying: " Peace be with thee." The
undaunted woman exhorted him in the following words:
" Be of good courage, my dear husband, and complete
thy sacrifice. I am consoled now that I behold thee
going to everlasting glory; and being thus made the
wife of a martyr, I rejoice at my happy lot. Give to
God those manifestations of love which are his due, and
pray for me, that he may save my soul from eternal
death."
Marcian also was followed by his wife and other rela
tives; but she, on the contrary, tore her garments, and
exclaimed: "Ah me! why dost thou despise me, my
Marcian? Take pity on me, or at least upon this my
child." Marcian, interrupting her, said: "How long
shall the devil continue to keep thee blind ? Depart, and
allow me to terminate my martyrdom in peace." But
she continued her wailings, and even threw herself upon
15
226 Martyrs of t lie First Ages. [PART i.
him to impede his progress. The saint, therefore, re
quested a pious Christian, named Zoticus, to keep her
back, and having arrived at the place of execution, said
to her: "In the name of the Lord, retire, possessed as
thou art by the devil, thou canst not behold the termina
tion of my triumph." Then embracing his son, he raised
his eyes to heaven, and said: "My God, take this my
child into thy holy keeping."
Finally, the two saints, having given each other the
kiss of peace, had their eyes bound by the executioner,
and were beheaded.
The Acts of this martyrdom are also copied by
Ruinart.1
CHAPTER L.
ST. GALLICAN, A ROMAN GENERAL, WITH SS. JOHN AND
PAUL, OFFICERS.
June 25 and 26.
JOHN and Paul were two holy brothers, Italians of noble
birth, and strongly attached to the Christian religion. It
happened at their time that Constance, the daughter of
Constantine the Great, having been cured of a trouble
some disease through the intercession of St. Agnes,8
1 Dom Ruinart adds the following extract from manuscripts in the
Vatican Library: "The holy martyrs Nicander and Marcian, as also
Daria, the wife of Nicander, and his son, terminated their career at
Venafro. The Christians carried off their bodies, and buried them near
the place where they had been beheaded ; afterwards a church was built
here in their honor." And Cardinal Baronius, in his notes upon the
martyrology, cites another author (Petrus de Natalibus, in Catal. 1. 5, c.
go), who assures us that the wife of St. Nicander also underwent the
capital punishment three days after her husband. — ED.
2 See note, page 189.
CHAP. LI 61S. Gallican, John, and Pan I. 227
resolved to lead a devout life, and made a vow of vir
ginity. The emperor, willing to indulge her religious
propensities, allowed her to live quite retired, and ap
pointed the two young brothers to act as her pages.
The Scythians having invaded Thrace some time after,
witli a formidable army, Constantine thought of sending
Gallican to oppose them as he had been consul, and by
reason of many victories obtained over the barbarians,
had acquired the reputation of a valiant commander.
The emperor accordingly appointed him general over
the entire army; but Gallican refused to accept the com
mission, except on condition that, upon his returning
victorious, he should marry the princess. To this the
emperor assented.
In the first engagement, the Roman army was so over
powered by the enemy, that Gallican was on the point
of giving orders for a retreat, when our two saints, John
and Paul, who had accompanied him to this war, advised
him to make a vow that he would embrace the Christian
faith if the Lord would render him victorious. Gallican
adopted this pious counsel; whereupon the enemy,
miraculously seized with a sudden panic, threw down
their arms, and surrendered at discretion.
After the victory Gallican returned to the court, not
indeed with the intention of being married to the prin
cess, but with the more pious resolution of receiving
baptism, and dedicating the remainder of his days ex
clusively to the service of God. In effect he retired to
Ostia, with St. Hilarinus, where he caused a great hos
pital to be built, in which he assisted the sick with his
own hands.
Julian the Apostate, upon his accession to the empire,
commanded him either to adore the idols or withdraw
from Italy; and Gallican accordingly retired to Alexan
dria, where he continued to lead a holy life, which he
terminated by a glorious martyrdom, on the 25th of
228 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
June, upon which day he is commemorated by the
Church.
John and Paul returned to the princess, and continued
to wait upon her until her death, when they were em
ployed in the court; but as soon as Julian ascended the
throne, and declared his intentions regarding the Chris
tians, our saints left the palace, to lead a private and
religious life.
Julian, knowing their strong attachment to the faith
of Jesus Christ, and their readiness to assist the needy
or afflicted Christians, ordered Terentian, captain of the
Imperial Guards, to intimate to them that it was the
emperor's will they should remain at court, and continue
to discharge the duties annexed to their respective offices.
f he saints replied that, being Christians, they could not
serve an emperor who was an avowed enemy of Jesus
Christ. Upon receiving this answer, Julian commanded
Terentian to put them to death, if, after ten days, they
should still refuse to return; but the saints declared that,
not only after ten days, but after ten years, they would
be equally unwilling to abandon their religion, for which
they were most anxious to lay down their lives.
After the ten days, however, Terentian appeared at
their house with an image of Jove, and a message from
the emperor that, if they would but adore it, he would
be satisfied. The saints, filled with horror at seeing an
idol in their house, exclaimed: " In pity, sir, remove
from our sight that execrable object ! Who can be so
blind as not to perceive that there is but one only God,
and that the histories of all these false deities are only
fables and impiety?" Terentian replied: "But if you
obey not, I am obliged to put you to death." Hereupon
the saints, casting themselves upon their knees, and rais
ing their eyes to heaven, gave God thanks for having
given them the grace to die for his holy faith.
These two pious brothers were greatly esteemed in
CHAP. LI.] A7. Theodorus of Amasea. 229
Rome; and Terentian, fearing that their public execu
tion might occasion a sedition, caused them to be be
headed in their own house, about midnight, and to be
buried in the adjoining garden. By this means he
thought to conceal their death, but God caused it to be
published by several energumens, who went about the
following morning, declaring that the brothers had suf
fered martyrdom. A young son of Terentian, who was
also possessed of the devil, proclaimed their death; and
having been cured through the intercession of our saints,
Terentian and his entire family embraced the Christian
faith.
These events occurred in 362. From the fifth century
there has existed a church in Rome dedicated to God in
honor of Sts. John and Paul, martyrs, in which their
bodies are preserved. This church stjll exists at the
present time.1 Their names are inserted in the Canon
of the Mass.
CHAPTER LI.
ST. THEODORUS OF AMASEA, CALLED THE YOTNG SOLDIER.
ST. GREGORY NYSSENUS has left us a noble panegyric
in praise of St. Theodorus, who belonged to the military
profession, and was a most exemplary Christian. He
happened to be witli his legion at Amasea, a city of
Pontus, when Galerius and Maximin were persecuting
the Christians, in the year 306. His commanding officer,
knowing him to be a Christian, commanded him to sac-
1 This church gives title to a Cardinal. In 1773 it was given by
Clement XIV. to the Blessed Paul of the Cross, Founder of the Congre
gation of the Passionists — a work which he had begun with his brother
John Baptist. The Holy Father, while making this donation graciously
called to mind the names of the two brothers: Joannes et Pan Ins. — ED.
230 Martyrs of t/ie First Ages. [PARTI.
rifice to the gods, in obedience to the imperial edicts.
The saint protested that he was faithful to the emper
ors, but was also anxious to be faithful to his God, and
that sooner than abandon his faith, he would willingly
lose his honors, his possessions, and his life.
He was accordingly brought before the governor, who
used all his arts to persuade him to renounce Jesus
Christ, but the Christian hero, despising alike his prom
ises and his threats, boldly answered: "lam prepared
to persevere in my religion, although I be torn to pieces
or burned alive; it is but just that my body should be
sacrificed to Him who created it." After this protesta
tion, the governor discharged him, adding that he would
give him time to consider whether he would obey the em
perors ; but Theodorus employed the while in implor
ing from God the graces necessary for the struggle that
awaited him.
He continued to comfort the persecuted Christians,
and to exhort them to remain steadfast in their confes
sion of Jesus Christ. Moved by an extraordinary in
spiration from God, he set fire one night to a famous
temple in the city, dedicated to the goddess Cybele, who
was adored by the pagans as the mother of the gods;
and, as there was a high wind at the time, the fabric was
quickly reduced to ashes. The saint, instead of conceal
ing his action, joyously proclaimed that he had burned
the execrable building, and was accordingly arrested and
brought before the governor, who threatened the severest
tortures unless he would atone for his crime by sacrific
ing to the gods. Theodorus answered that he gloried in
what he had done.
The governor, perceiving that Theodorus was not to
be moved by threats, endeavored to gain him over by
allurements, and promised to raise him to the pontifical
dignity if he would comply. The saint replied: "I look
upon the idolatrous priests as unhappy men, and the
CHAP. LI] Si. Theodorus of A masea. 231
pontiffs I consider more so. Since, among the impious,
they rank highest, their condition is the more lamentable.
Truly pious persons should rejoice in having the lowest
place in the house of God." x Enraged at these words,
the tyrant caused him to be stretched upon the rack, and
his sides to be torn with iron hooks, until the bones were
laid bare; yet during this terrible torture the saint joy
ously chanted that verse of the Psalm: I will bless the
Lord at all times: his praise shall be always in my mouth?
The governor, astonished at so much patience, said to
him: "Unhappy man! art thou not ashamed to place thy
confidence in that Christ who was obliged to suffer so
ignominious a death?" Theodorus returned him the
following pious answer: "It is an ignominy which is
gloried in by all those who invoke the name of the Lord
Jesus." The governor then sent him to prison, hoping
that after some time he might be enabled to overcome
his fortitude; but the saint was visited in the night by
angels, who, together with him, chanted the divine
praises, and filled his dungeon with celestial splendor
that astonished the keeper.
After some day-s, the governor, finding his constancy
undiminished, commanded him to be burned alive. St.
Theodorus received the sentence with joy; upon ap
proaching the fire he armed himself with the sign of the
cross, and continued till his last breath to bless the
Lord.
1 See another part of the answer of the saint, page 34.
• " Benedicam Dominum in omni tempore; semper laus ejus in ore
meo." — Ps. xxxiii. 2.
232 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER LII.
SS. PERPETUA AND FELICITAS OK CARTHAGE, WITH STS.
REVOCATUS, SATURNINUS, SECUNDULUS, AND SATURUS.
March 7.
ST. AUGUSTINE makes frequent and honorable men
tion of these saints in his works, and was wont to hold
them up to the people as examples of fidelity to Jesus
Christ.
The Emperor Severus published an edict, commanding
all Christians who refused to sacrifice to the gods to be
put to death; whereupon Minutius, the proconsul of
Africa, caused five young persons to be arrested at
Carthage, who were as yet catechumens, and, together
with them,1 Sts. Perpetua and Felicitas, Sts. Saturninus
and Secundulus."
Perpetua was a young woman, only twenty-two years
of age, who led a very devout life, was married, and had
1 We are here informed that the martyrs were nine in number — five
catechumens, and four whose names are given; but from their Acts,
most correctly edited by Ruinart, it appears that the saints who are
named were four of the five catechumens; the fifth was one Revocatus.
They were afterwards joined by Saturus, who voluntarily surrendered
himself to the persecutors, and is mentioned by St. Perpetua in the nar
ration of her first vision. — ED.
'-' We have judged it necessary to modify somewhat a few passages of
this interesting account after authentic Acts collected with much care
and given entire by Ruinart and Alban Butler. By them we are in
formed that Felicitas was seven or eight months gone with child, and
that Perpetua had yet a father, an old man still very much attached to
paganism; her mother was evidently a Christian, as was one of her two
brothers, the other being a catechumen; her infant was yet at her breast,
and she nursed it herself. We observe that St. Saturus is not men
tioned in the Roman martyrology. — En.
CHAP. LII.I Sf. Perpetua and Companions. 233
an onlv son. Felicitas was still younger, but also mar
ried, and a most exemplary person. The martyrs were
kept for some time in a private house, guarded by
soldiers; during which time the father of St. Perpetua
came to see her, and, being a pagan, used all his en
deavors to make her abandon the faith. In the original
Acts of these martyrs we find that the occurrences which
took place up to the eve of their martyrdom were writ
ten by St. Perpetua herself. The principal facts are the
following:
''My father," writes the saint, ''used all his endeavors
to pervert me; I resolutely answered, ' Father, I am a
Christian.' He instantly threw himself upon me in a
rage, as if to tear out my eyes, and used the most in
jurious language. A few days afterwards we all received
the holy baptism, and were led to the public prison,
where I was horrified by the darkness, the noisome
smell, and the great heat occasioned by the number of
prisoners. I had the happiness to have my son brought
to me here, which greatly consoled me. My brother
came to see me, and desired me to pray to the Lord to
let me know whether I was to. obtain the crown of mar
tyrdom. I accordingly placed myself in prayer, and
saw, in a vision, a golden ladder which reached to the
heavens; it was very narrow, and to the sides were fixed
sharp knives and iron spikes. At the foot of this ladder
was a dragon, who appeared ready to devour those that
would attempt to mount it. The first that went up was
a certain Christian named Saturus, who invited me to
follow him. I ascended, and found myself in a spacious
garden, where I met a man of very fine aspect, who said
to me: 'Thou art welcome, my daughter.' After this
vision I knew that we were all destined to surfer martyr
dom, and I told my brother so.
"My father came again to see me at the prison, and
throwing himself at my feet in a flood of tears : ' Da ugh-
234 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
ter,' he said, * have pity on me, a poor old man, that am
thy father; have pity, at least, on thy child, and bring
not ruin upon us all by thy obstinacy/ I was pierced
with grief, but remained immovable in my resolution.
"On the following day I was brought before the au
ditor, Hilarian, who, by reason of the death of the pro
consul, acted as judge. My father appeared with me,
holding my son in his arms, whereupon the judge said :
' Perpetua, have pity on thy father and on thy son — •
sacrifice to the gods.' I answered that I was a Chris
tian, and that we were all ready to die for our faith.
The judge then condemned us to be devoured by wild
beasts.
" We received the sentence with joy, and were
brought back to prison, where we were met by my
father, who tearing his hair and his beard, threw him
self upon his face on the earth, lamenting that he lived
to see that day. He once endeavored to pull me off the
platform, but the judge commanded him to be beaten
off, and he received a blow with a stick, at which I was
much grieved; but the Lord continued to grant me
strength."
Secundulus died in prison, of his sufferings, and Sa-
turus had already obtained the crown.1 Felicitas de-
1 The Acts state that Saturus suffered with the rest, and also relate a
vision with which he was honored. We are assured by the same ven
erable authority, that St. Perpetua was favored with two other most
important visions. She had a young brother, named Dinocrates, who
died when he was only seven years of age, of a most hideous ulcer in
the face. She recollected his death during her imprisonment; and
having prayed for his repose, saw him in a vision, with the ulcer on his
face, having a most squalid appearance, and endeavoring to drink from
a vessel which he could not reach. After her vision she knew that her
brother was in pain, and continued to pray fervently for his relief.
She was accordingly favored with a second vision, in which she saw
him quite clean, refreshing himself with the water, and retaining only a
scar where the ulcer had formerly been, " I knew," she says, " from
CHAP. LII.I St. Perpetua and Companions. 235
sired to suffer with the rest, but she was pregnant, and
the law forbade women to be put to death in that state.
Her companions therefore prayed for her, and on that
very day she was delivered of a daughter. The saint
moaned by reason of her pains, and one of the guards
said to her: "Dost thou moan? What wilt thou do
when thou shalt be devoured by wild beasts ?" She an
swered : "I now suffer by myself; but then I shall have
Jesus Christ with me, and by his grace I will endure all
things for his sake."
Upon the appointed day the martyrs went forward to
execution with a joy that was manifest to all.
The other saints having been torn, by the wild beasts,
this vision, that he had been released from his pain." It has been
thought worth while to mention these visions of St. Perpetua, as they
must be most acceptable to the reader, since they show that the ex
istence of a place of temporary punishment after death, and prayers
for the departed, were doctrines of the Church as early as the year 203.
Ruinart, in his " Admonitio in passionem, SS. Perpet. et Felic., num.
6," refutes the opinion of Valesius, that the compiler of these Acts was
a Montanist, because these heretics pretended to have many supernal
illustrations, and like the fanatics of our own days, extraordinary im
pulses from the Holy Spirit. He also mentions a letter written to
Valesius, wherein the writer endeavors to prove from his style in simi
lar productions that Tertullian was the original compiler. Indeed, St.
Perpetua herself has been most unjustly charged with Montanism by
the enemies of Catholic doctrine, but the imputation is as injudicious
as it is unjust, since it establishes beyond a doubt the authenticity of
the Acts, which could not be denied, and palpably manifests the straits
to which heresy is driven. How could the Church rank as a martyr a
woman belonging to a sect universally condemned for their blasphe
mous errors, and loathed and abhorred for their enormous extravagan
ces ? St. Augustine himself, although he declares (Lib. I, de anima,
ad Renatum, et Lib. 3, ad Vincent.) that the Revelations of St. Per
petua are not to be placed in the Canon of Scripture, nevertheless
styles them " Divine Revelations," and calls upon the faithful to honor
them — Exhortationes earum in DiviNis REVELATIONIBUS, cum Icgeren-
tur, audivimus . . . niente spectavirnus, religione honoravimus." S.
Aug. Serm. i, de SS. Perpet. et Felic.— ED.
236 Martyrs of the First Ages. (PART i.
Sts. Perpetua and Felicitas were wrapped in nets and
exposed to a mad cow. St. Perpetua was first attacked,
and having been tossed in the air, she fell upon her
back. Then sitting up, she perceived her clothes torn,
and was endeavoring to cover herself, when she was
again knocked down; but recovering herself, she
stretched forth her hand to raise St. Felicitas, whom
she perceived prostrate upon the ground, much hurt.
The populace were at length moved to compassion, and
the two saints were led into the centre of the amphi
theatre, and despatched by the gladiators. Thus did
they receive, with their companions, the heavenly crown,
on the yth March, in the year 203.
St. Augustine1 cites the Acts of their martyrdom, and
Tertullian2 and St. Fulgentius3 have passed the most
magnificent encomiums on Sts, Perpetua and Felicitas.
They are mentioned also in the Canon of the Mass.
Their relics were brought to Rome."
CHAPTER LIIL
ss. GEORGE, DEACON; AURELIUS, NATALIA, FELIX, LILIOSA
OF CORDUBA.
July 27.
SPAIN was honored by the martyrdom of many Chris
tians under the Moors, in the ninth century. Among
these was Aurelius, who was born in Corduba, of an opu-
1 De Aniina, 1. i, c. 10; 1. 3, c. 9; 1. 4, c. 18.
- De Anima.
'•'• Sertn. 70.
4 Dom Ruinart and Giry add that the body of St. Perpetua, taken later
to France, was resting in their time at the Abbey of St. Peter of Vier-
zon. — ED.
CHAP. Liii.i SS. George and Companions. 237
lent and noble family. His father was a Mahomedan,
and his mother a Christian; but having been left an
orphan very young, he was reared by his aunt in the
Christian religion. The Mahomedan books which the
Moors made him read served only to convince him of the
falsity of their sect, and to make him more enamoured of
the religion of Jesus Christ. Urged by his relatives to
marry, he espoused Natalia, a Christian virgin, remark
able for her piety.
Aurelius was related to a certain Christian named
Felix, who had unhappily denied the faith; but al
though he repented of this sin he had not the courage
to proclaim himself, and accordingly lived very retired
with his wife; both families, however, lived on terms of
the strictest intimacy.
Aurelius one day saw a certain Christian merchant
called John cruelly scourged in the public square, and
afterwards dragged through the city; after which sight
he returned home and said to his wife: "Thou art con
tinually exhorting me to retire from the world. I be-
believe the hour has now arrived, in which God calls me
to a more perfect life. Let us, therefore, from this day
forward live as brother and sister; let us give our whole
attention to the service of God, and prepare ourselves
for martyrdom." Natalia instantly adopted the advice,
and from that hour they gave themselves to a more holy
life of prayer and mortification. Among other works of
Christian charity, Aurelius visited the men and Na
talia the women who were imprisoned for the faith;
and among these confessors they met a holy priest
named Eulogius, who afterwards wrote the Acts of their
martyrdom. He advised Aurelius to put his children
in a place of safety; and, having left them a competence,
to sell the remainder of his goods, and give the money to
the poor. Meanwhile, two holy virgins, Mary and Flora,
who had been visited in prison by Natalia, suffered mar-
238 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
tyrdom, and afterwards appeared to her in a vision,
dressed in white robes and resplendent with glory.
Natalia at this happy sight said to them: " Shall I also
have the blessed lot to tread the same path which con
ducted you to heaven?" "Yes," they replied, "for thee
also is martyrdom being prepared — thou shalt shortly
be with us in glory." Natalia related her vision to Au-
relius. From that moment they thought of nothing but
preparing themselves to die for Jesus Christ; and, ac
cording to the advice of Eulogius, distributed their
property to the poor.
At this time there came to Corduba a certain monk,
from Palestine, named George, who had lived for
twenty-seven years in the monastery of St. Saba. He
had been sent by the abbot of another monastery, con
taining nearly five hundred religious, to Africa, for the
purpose of collecting alms; but on his arrival he found
the Christians greatly oppressed by the Moors, and ac
cordingly passed into Spain, where he found religion
similarly circumstanced. Uncertain what course to
adopt, he repaired to a certain monastery of exemplary
religious, at Tabnes, to recommend himself to their
prayers. He here met Natalia, who upon seeing him,
exclaimed: "This good monk is destined to be our
companion in martyrdom!" It so happened; for on the
following day Natalia brought him to her own house
at Corduba, where they found Felix and his wife Liliosa
speaking with Aurelius concerning their desire of dying
for Jesus Christ. Moved by divine grace, they all re
solved to repair to the church, that, thus declaring them
selves to be Christians, they might obtain the wished-
for crown.
They were not arrested in the church; but on their
return, being asked by a Moorish officer why they had
entered the church, they answered: "The faithful are
wont to visit the tombs of the martvrs; and we have
CHAP. LIU.] SS. George and Companions. 239
done so, because we are Christians." The officer in
stantly sent a report to the governor, and on the follow
ing day a guard was sent to the house. Having arrived
at the door, they cried out: '• Come forth, ye wretches!
come to the death, since ye are weary of life!" Aurelius
and Felix appeared, accompanied by their wives; and
George, the monk, perceiving that the soldiers heeded
him not, said to them: "Why will ye compel Christians
to follow your false religion ?" For these words he was
instantly maltreated by the soldiers, with blows and
kicks, and knocked prostrate on the ground; whereupon
Natalia said: "Rise, brother, and we shall proceed."
The holy monk answered: " Meanwhile, sister, I have
earned this much for Christ;" and having raised him
self up very much bruised, he was in that state presented
with the rest to the governor, who asked them why they
thus blindly ran to death, and made them promises of
the most ample rewards if they would renounce Jesus
Christ. They answered with one accord: " These prom
ises can avail nothing. We despise this present life, be
cause we hope for a better one. We love our faith, and
abhor every other religion." Hereupon the governor
sent them to prison, and having found them constant in
their faith at the end of five days, condemned them all
to death, with the exception of George. But the holy
monk having declared that Mahomet was a disciple of
the devil, and that his followers were in a state of per
dition, he also was condemned with his companions.
While they were proceeding to the place of execution
Natalia encouraged the others to suffer with fortitude;
which so irritated the soldiers that they ceased not to
buffet and kick her until they arrived at the appointed
place, where all these blessed martyrs received the
crown, on the 2yth July, in the year 852.'
1 Alban Butler adds that the Christians took away the bodies dur
ing the night and buried them in different places. St. Eulogius took
240 Martyrs of tke First Ages. IPART i.
CHAPTER LIV.
STS. TARACHUS, PROBUS, AND ANDRONICUS, MARTYRED IX
CILICIA.
October n.
THE martyrdom of these three saints causes us to
wonder at the extent to which the cruelty of tyrants and
the patience of saints can be carried. Cardinal Orsi '
assures us that there is no document of antiquity more
authentic than the original Acts of these martyrs. They
were brought before Numerianus Maximus, governor of
the province, at Tarsus, the metropolis of Cilicia. Their
Acts are given at length by Orsi, but we here give a
succinct account, for the convenience of the reader.
Tarachus, who was the eldest, was first interrogated.
Being asked his name, he replied: "I am a Christian."
The governor said: " But I wish to know thy name."
Tarachus again replied: " I am a Christian." Maximus,
in a rage, desired the executioners to break his jaw
bones, and to tell him not to answer one thing for an
other. The saint observed that he had answered his
real name, but that he was called Tarachus by others;
and proceeded to state that he was a Roman citizen, and
had belonged to the military profession, but retired
charge of the education of the two daughters of Sts. Aurelius and Na
talia, and finished also his life by a glorious martyrdom, March n, 859.
In 858 two monks of the abbey of St. Germain des Pres, at Paris,
named Usnard and Odilard, carried from Corduba to France the bod
ies of Sts. George and Aurelius with the head of St. Natalia. This
transfer was accompanied by many miracles: Aimoin wrote an account
of it. — ED.
1 Is tor. ecti. 1. 9, n. 30.
CHAP. LIV.] SS. TaracJius and Companions. 241
from the army in order the better to observe his relig
ion. Maximus then said: "In consideration of thy age
I am anxious to honor thee, if thou wilt obey the emper
or by sacrificing to the gods." The saint replied: " The
emperors are grievously mistaken and blinded by the
devil. To my God I sacrifice my heart, and not the
blood of animals which he needetli not. Whilst I honor
the law of God, 1 cannot observe the law of false deities."
Maximus asked: ''And besides ours, is there any other
law?" Tarachus answered: "This your law is impious,
since it teaches you to adore as gods blocks of marble
and of wood." The governor then caused the saint to
be stripped and scourged with rods, during which tor
ture he said: ''These stripes but encourage me to place
all my confidence in God and in his Christ." Maximus
rejoined: "Then thou servest two gods? Having con
fessed God and Christ, how canst thou deny a plurality
of Gods?" Tarachus explained: "I confess one only
God, because Christ is the Son of God; and the Father
and the Son are but one God." Maximus, being un
willing to hear him any further, sent him to prison; and
desired Probus to be brought before him.
This saint being asked his name and parentage, an
swered that men called him Probus, but that it was much
more pleasing to him to be called a Christian. He add
ed, that his father was of Thrace, but that he was born
in Pamphylia; that he was a plebeian by condition, and
had been possessed of a large estate, which he had re
nounced to serve God. Maximus told him that by sac
rificing to the gods he would be honored by the emper
ors, and that he himself would admit him to his friend
ship. Probus replied: "I want neither honors from the
emperors, nor thy friendship." The governor then or
dered him to be stripped and beaten with sinews of
oxen, and after some time to be turned and beaten on
the belly. During this torture Probus called upon the
1 6
242 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
Lord to assist him; whereupon Maximus sent some of
the executioners to ask him where was the assistance of
God which he had invoked. The saint replied: "God
helps me, and will continue to help me; so much so that
I dread not your torments." Maximus said: "Look,
wretch, how the ground is all covered with thy blood !"
The saint answered: " But thou shouldst know that the
more my body suffers for Christ, the more my soul is
enlivened." The governor then sent him to prison, and
called Andronicus.
Maximus questioned this saint also concerning his
name and parentage; he answered that he was a Chris
tian, but was called Andronicus by men, and that he was
a native of Ephesus, of noble family. Maximus said to
him: " Obey the emperors who are our fathers, and
adore the gods." Andronicus replied: " Thou art right
in calling them fathers; for the devil is thy father."
Maximus said: "I have compassion on thy youth; but
know that I have great torments ready, in case thou wilt
not sacrifice to the gods." Andronicus replied: "I ap
pear to tliee young in years; but my soul hath grown to
a manly age, and I am prepared for all thy torments."
Maximus then commanded him to be put to torture;
during which a certain notary told him to obey the gov
ernor. Andronicus said: "Keep thy advice to thyself;
although older than I am thou art foolish in advising
me to sacrifice to demons." During the infliction of the
tortures the tyrant said to him: "Wretch, art thou in
sensible to torments ? Wilt thou not give over thy fol
lies which cannot save thee from my hands?" The
saint answered: "These follies are necessary for those
who put their trust in God; but thy wisdom shall bring
eternal death to thy soul." The governor then ordered
that he should be cruelly tortured in the limbs, that his
sides should be torn, and his wounds scraped with broken
tiles. The saint having endured all with fortitude, had
CHAP. LIV.] SS. Tarachus and Companions. 243
chains put about his neck and feet, and was sent to
prison with the rest.
The governor having gone from Tarsus to Mopsues-
tia, summoned the three saints before him at this place;
and again beginning with Tarachus, commanded him
to sacrifice to the gods. The saint having persevered
in his refusal, Maximus ordered his mouth to be beaten
with a stone until his teeth were knocked out; upon
which he said: "Although thou shouldst break every
limb of my body, yet will I not alter my resolution. I
am prepared to suffer all thou canst invent; and am
well assured of receiving the necessary assistance from
him for whom I combat." Maximus then caused the
fire to be brought, and his hands to be burned; where
upon Tarachus said: " This fire doth not cause me to be
afraid; I fear rather the eternal fire which would await
me, did I obey thy command." Maximus then com
manded him to be tied up by the feet, and suspended
over a great smoke; the saint having suffered these tor
tures without the least complaint the tyrant caused his
nostrils to be filled with vinegar, salt, and mustard; but,
perceiving that Tarachus endured all in silence, he re
manded him to prison till he could devise new tortures.
After this Probus was called up, and the governor
said to him: "The emperors sacrifice to the gods, and
wilt thou not sacrifice?" Probus answered: "The tor
ments which thou hast already caused me to suffer have
given me new strength; it is, therefore, improbable that
I can be induced to sacrifice to the gods whom I know
not. I adore one only God, and him only do I serve.
How can blocks of wood and marble be called gods?"
Maximus. interrupting him, caused him to be buffeted
on the rnouth, and the soles of his feet burned with red-
hot plates of iron; but the saint appearing insensible to
these tortures, was stretched upon the rack and most
cruelly scourged. The tyrant perceiving that all these
244 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
torments were insufficient to overcome the constancy of
the saint, commanded his head to be shaved and burn
ing coals to be placed upon it; but finding that this tor
ture was also to no purpose, he endeavored to seduce
him by promising him the favor of the emperors, which
had been extended to previous apostates. Probus an
swered: " All those who have received such favors have
thereby miserably lost themselves. What can he ex
pect who has lost the favor of the only true God ?"
Maximus, who imagined himself personally offended by
every answer of the saint, ordered him to be again buf
feted on the face, and brought back to prison.
Andronicus was next summoned, whom the tyrant
endeavored to persuade that Tarachus and Probus had
already sacrificed. The saint replied: "In vain dost
thou attempt to deceive me with lies; they have not
done so, nor will I ever be induced to do so. I fear thee
not; use all thy tortures, and thou shalt see how far
superior to them is a true servant of the Lord." Upon
these words the tyrant caused him to be tied between
four posts, and most cruelly scourged; whereupon the
saint asked: "Have all thy threats only come to this?"
Maximus ordered his lacerated back to be rubbed with
salt, but the saint told the executioners to continue this
infliction in order that he might be well seasoned.
"Thou shalt not," said Maximus, "overcome me."
"Nor shall I," replied Andronicus, "ever permit thy
torments to diminish my constancy. By the grace of
that God who strengthens me, thou shalt always find
me the same." It so happened: the governor, wearied
by his perseverance, ordered him back to prison.
Maximus then passed to the city of Anazarbus,
whither he commanded the saints to be brought, and
again began with Tarachus, ordering him to sacrifice
to the gods. "O wretched deities!" exclaimed the
saint, " for whom and for whose worshippers eternal fire
is prepared." Maximus: " I perceive that thou wouldst
CHAP. UY i .SIS". Tarachus and Companions. 245
have me instantly behead thee in order that thy suffer
ings be shortened." Tarachus: "Thou art deceived:
for, on the contrary, I beseech thee to prolong my com
bat, that I may receive the greater reward." " Un
happy wretch!" exclaimed the tyrant, "what reward
canst thou hope for from death ?" Tarachus: "Alas,
thou knowest not the reward which is prepared for us
by our God who is in heaven!" After this interroga
tion had continued for some time, the tyrant ordered
him to be stretched on the rack, to be buffeted on the
face and mouth, and his breasts to be perforated with
red-hot iron spikes; he then commanded his ears to be
cut off, and the skin to be flayed from his head, that
burning coals might be placed thereon; during this tor
ture the saint said: " Exercise what cruelty thou wilt, I
will never turn my back upon the God who strengthens
me." Finally, his shoulders having been pierced as his
breasts had been, he was condemned to the beasts and
sent to prison.
Probus was next called, and Maximus, finding his
constancy undiminished, caused him to be suspended by
the feet, and his sides and back to be pierced with red-
hot spikes. Having then caused wine and meats, which
had been offered to the gods, to be forced down his
throat, the tyrant said to him: " What has the endurance
of thy tortures availed thee? Behold ! thou hast at last
participated in our sacrifices." Probus answered: "Doth
it, then, appear to thee that thou hast obtained a great
victory? Although thou shouldst cause all the filth of
thy altars to be forced into my mouth, yet would not my
soul be contaminated, since God beholds the violence
which I have suffered." Maximus, to vent his rage upon
him, caused the calves of his legs and his hands to be
thoroughly perforated with red-hot spikes, and his eyes
to be burned out with them; yet during these horrible
tortures no word of lamentation was heard from the
saint; but he continued to bless the Lord, and said to the
246 Martyrs of flic First Ages. [PART i.
tyrant: "As long as I shall have breath, I will render
thanksgiving to the Lord, who grants me strength and
patience; I desire nothing so much as to finish my life
by the most cruel death which thy tyranny can invent,
in order that I may render to God the homage which he
deserves."
Andronicus was then brought forward, and having
continued to despise equally the threats and promises of
the tyrant, rolls of paper were lighted upon his abdomen,
and burning spikes placed between his fingers. The
saint having invoked the name of Jesus for strength to
suffer these tortures, Maxirnus said to him : " This Jesus,
in whom thou confidest, was a malefactor, crucified by
Pontius Pilate." "Peace!" replied Andronicus, " thou
shouldst not speak of him, of whom thou art unworthy;
if thou didst know him, thou wouldst not blaspheme his
name, nor persecute his servants. Thou and thy associ
ates shall suffer for this; but may the Lord punish ye in
such a manner that ye may come to the knowledge of
your misdeeds." After this speech Maximus caused his
teeth and tongue to be pulled out, and sent him back to
prison.
Upon the following day an arena of wild beasts was
prepared, to whom the martyrs were exposed; the beasts
not daring to approach them, a most ferocious bear was
let loose; but the animal having approached Andronicus,
began to lick his wounds, whereupon Maximus com
manded her to be killed at the saint's feet. A lioness
was then put forward; but she laid down at the feet of
Tarachus like a lamb. Maximus having caused her to
be irritated, her fury was directed towards the spectators,
and she was accordingly shut up in her deij. Finally,
the tyrant caused the martyrs to be cut down by the
gladiators, and they thus obtained the desired crown.1
1 Their Acts contain another interesting fact. Before retiring the gov
ernor commanded ten soldiers to intermix the bodies with those of the
CHAP. LV.J Si. Quirinus, Bishop of Siscia. 247
CHAPTER LV.
ST. QUIRINUS, BISHOP OF SISCIA.
June 4.
THE Emperors Diocletian and Maximian having abdi
cated the empire, in the year 303, their successor, Gale-
rius, continued the persecution against the Christians.
St. Quirinus, who was bishop of Siscia,1 in Croatia, after
having converted the inhabitants of that country to the
faith of Christ, understanding that Maximus, who ruled
in Pannonia as lieutenant for the governor, had given
orders for his arrest, escaped from the city, in order
that he might be spared for the benefit of his flock.
He was overtaken, however, by the soldiers, and pre
sented before Maximus, who asked him why he had fled;
the saint replied: "I obey the orders of my Master, who
hath said, When they persecute ye in one city, fly ye into
another'''1' Maximus: "Who hath given this order?"
Quirinus: "Jesus Christ, who is the true God." Maxi
mus: "But knowest thou not that the emperor can find
gladiators who had been slain, and to guard them in order that they might
not be recognized and the Christians might not be able to carry them
off. Several, however, approached in the darkness and implored the
help of God with great fervor; their prayers were heard. The night
was very dark and a violent thunderstorm with rain dispersed the guards,
The faithful distinguished the three bodies by a miraculous star or ray
of light that streamed on each of them. They joyfully carried off the
precious treasures and hid them in a hollow cave in the neighboring
mountains, where the governor was not able, by any search that he could
make, to find them. — ED.
1 At present Sisek, or Sisseg, a town situated two leagues from Zagrab,
in Croatia. The episcopal see of Siscia has been transferred to Zagrab.
— Eu.
* Matt. x. 23.
248 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
thee in all places, and that thy God cannot save thee
from our hands?" Quirinus: "I know this, that our
God is with us, and can succor us in all places. He it
is that grants me strength in this my decrepit age, and
will also uphold me during thy tortures."
Maximus: "Thou speakest much because thou art an
old man, and hopest to baffle us with talk; we require
thy submission, not thy exhortations; there shall be no
further toleration for Christians in the empire. The
emperor has ordered that all shall sacrifice to the gods
on pain of death; obey therefore." Quirinus: "I cannot
obey orders that are contrary to my religion. How can I
refuse to obey God, in order to please men ?" Maximus:
"Dotard ! hadst thou not lived so long, thou wouldst not
have learned such idle talk — obey the emperor, and learn
to be wise, even at the close of thy days." Quirinus:
"Dost thou then think it wisdom to commit such an act
of impiety?" Maximus: " No more words — choose to be
a priest of Jupiter, or to die amid torments." Quirinus:
"I have already made my choice, and I now exercise the
functions of a priest, in offering myself as a sacrifice to
my God, and esteem myself happy in being, at the same
time, the priest and the victim."
Maximus, unwilling to hear him any longer, caused
him to be cruelly scourged. The holy bishop, during
the infliction, raised his eyes to heaven, and returned
thanks to God. Then, turning towards Maximus, he
said that he was willing to suffer still greater torments,
in order to give a good example to his followers; but
the lieutenant, fearing that he might expire under the
lash, sent him back to prison.
St. Quirinus, upon his arrival, again thanked God for
what he had suffered, and prayed that those who were
in prison might be illuminated by the light of the true
faith. About midnight the martyr was seen surrounded
by a great light, whereupon the jailer, named Marcel-
CHAP. Lv.i >SV. Oitirinns, Bis/iop of Siscia. 249
lus, casting himself at the feet of the saint, exclaimed:
" Servant of God, pray to him for me, since I believe
that there is no other God than he whom thoif adorest."
St. Quirinus, having instructed him in the faith, as well
as the time would permit, baptized him.
At the expiration of three days he was sent, loaded
with chains, to Amantius, the governor of the greater
Pannonia, which is now called Hungary. On his way
thither he was confined at Sabadia, where he was visited
by some Christian women, who brought him food; and
while the saint was blessing it, the chains fell from his
hands and feet, as the Lord wished to show, by this sign,
his approval of the charity done to the venerable prelate.
Upon his arrival the governor had him brought before
him, and, having read the proceedings of his former trial?
endeavored to shake his resolution by threatening to put
him to a most cruel death, notwithstanding his most
advanced age. The saint replied that the recollection
of his old age should the more induce him to despise
death, as he had but a short time to live; and Amantius
despairing of being able to change him, ordered him to
be cast into the river Sabarius, with a mill-stone tied to
his neck.
While the saint was being led to the bridge, a great
concourse of people had assembled. They saw him cast
into the river, together with the mill-stone; but both
were seen to float upon the surface of the water; whence
the holy bishop commenced to exhort the faithful to
remain firm in the faith, and, as he continued to preach
thus for a considerable time, many pagans were con
verted. At last the saint made the following prayer:
"Christ Jesus, my Saviour, these people have already
seen the wonders of Thy power; grant me now the grace
to die for Thee, nor permit me to lose the crown of
martyrdom." His body then sank, together with the
stone, and lie thus rendered his soul to God on the 4th
250 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
June, in the beginning of the fourth century. His death
is placed by St. Jerome in the year 310, and by Baronius
308.
The body of Saint Quirinus was afterwards translated
to Rome, and buried near the catacombs of St. Sebastian;
but Pope Innocent II. finally deposited it in the church
of St. Mary beyond the Tiber.
CHAPTER LVI.
ST. BLASE, BISHOP OF SEBASTE.
February 3.
ST. BLASE was a native of the city of Sebaste, in
Armenia, and in his younger days applied himself to the
study of philosophy, in which he made considerable
progress; he afterwards studied medicine with great
success. The science of the saints, however, and a desire
to improve in the love of God, occupied his principal
attention, whereby being inflamed with an ardent charity
towards the poor, he went frequently to relieve them in
their sickness. Upon the death of the bishop, his fellow-
citizens unanimously elected him their pastor, by reason
of his extraordinary virtues and great learning.
He accepted the office, as being unwilling to resist the
will of God, which appeared too manifest in his election
to be mistaken; but in the government of his church he
lost not that spirit of holy retirement which he had had
from his youth. He therefore retired to Mount Argeus,
without the city, and dwelt in a cave there.1 During
1 The holy bishop retired, however, only when he was obliged to do so
on account of the persecution, following in this the counsel and example
of the divine Master. This we find in his office as well as in the Acts
collected by the Bollandists. — ED.
CHAP. LVI.] St. Blase, Bishop of Sebaste. 251
our saint's residence in this place the Lord was pleased
to manifest his sanctity by honoring him with the gift of
miracles, and numerous crowds of persons used constant
ly to come to him for the cure of their bodily diseases
as well as of their spiritual maladies. Even the most
ferocious animals are said to have proceeded to his cave
to be relieved. If they found the saint in prayer, they
would patiently wait until he had done; nor would they
depart until they had received his blessing.1
About the year 315, Agricolaus, governor of Cappa-
docia and the lesser Armenia, had been sent, by the
Emperor Licinius, to Sebaste, to put to death the Chris-
1 Four different manuscript acts of this saint have been published by
Bollandus, who observes that the first, which was found in a monastery
of Canons Regular, is of very great antiquity. These four MSS. agree
in the leading facts, and all mention the circumstance of the beasts visit
ing our saint and being blessed by him. The MS. III. compares St.
Blase, in this respect, to Daniel in the den of lions, and to Elias in the
wilderness, and MS. IV., which was in the possession of Cardinal
Baronius, observes that, as the prophet was fed by ravens, so our saint
was supplied with food by the wild beasts that frequented his cave. As
it was the sin of man that first rendered animals savage towards him, it
has been regarded as a proof of the innocence and sanctity of a person
to find wild beasts inoffensive and familiar with him; and several
instances of this mark of holiness are to be met with in the " Lives of
the Saints." The blessing of those beasts by St. Blase will remind some
readers of the ceremony still performed at Rome, on St. Anthony's day,
1 7th January, when horses and other useful animals are assembled
before the church, and blessed. This ceremony has been the subject of
much unbecoming and inconsiderate ridicule, for it should be remem
bered that, in the beginning, the Almighty Creator himself blessed all
his creatures; and, after the fall of man, pronounced a curse upon the
earth. It is to avert as much as possible the effects of this maledic
tion that we pray for the giving and preserving of the fruits of the
earth, and for the well-being of those animals that God has created for
our benefit, and for the manifestation of his own almighty power. Yet
the man who, with scrupulous punctuality, says grace before meat, and
implores the blessing of heaven on the roasted ribs of an ox upon his
table, will ridicule the benediction invoked over the living animal, when
standing at the foot of the Esquiline! — ED.
252 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
tians of that city; and, immediately upon his arrival,
commenced to put his bloody commission into execution,
by commanding that all those who had been already im
prisoned for the faith should be devoured by wild beasts.
He accordingly sent huntsmen into the neighboring
forest to catch the ferocious animals, in order to execute
his barbarous design. When they arrived at Mount
Argeus, they found a multitude of these beasts assem
bled round the cave of St. Blase, and the holy bishop
in the midst of them, performing his devotions. Aston
ished at this sight, they returned to Agricolaus, and in
formed him of the fact; which, although it caused him
to marvel greatly, did not prevent him from sending his
soldiers to arrest our saint. When they intimated to
him the order of the governor he answered with a cheer
ful countenance: "Let us go to shed our blood for
Jesus Christ;" then turning to those who stood by, he
protested that he had long sighed for the honor of
martyrdom, and that on the preceding night the Lord
had manifested to him that he would vouchsafe to accept
the sacrifice of his life.
As soon as the news was spread among the citizens
that their bishop was being led to Sebaste by order of
the governor the streets were filled with people who.
with tears in their eyes, asked his blessing. Among the
rest was a woman, who, weeping bitterly, presented to
him her child, who was expiring by reason of a small
bone having stuck in his throat; full of holy confidence,
she besought the saint to save his life. St. Blase, moved
to compassion by the tears of the afflicted mother, prayed
to the Lord not only for the relief of that child, but of
all those who would find themselves similarly afflicted.
Having terminated his prayer the child perfectly re
covered; and hence the origin of the peculiar devotion
of the faithful to this saint when afflicted with diseases
of the throat.
CHAP. LVI.] .SV. Blase, Bishop of Scbaste. 253
When St. Blase arrived at the city and was presented
to the governor, he was commanded to sacrifice to the
immortal gods. The saint answered: " What a title for
your demons, who can bring only evil on their worship
pers ! There is only ONE Immortal God, and him do I
adore." Agricolaus, infuriated at this answer, caused
the saint to undergo a scourging so prolonged and cruel
that it was thought the saint could not possibly survive
it; but having endured this torture with placid courage,
he was sent to prison, where he continued to work mir
acles so extraordinary that the governor ordered him to
be again lacerated with iron hooks.
The blood of the saint ran profusely, and certain pious
women were induced to collect portions of it, which act
of devotion was amply rewarded, for they were seized,
with two of their children, and brought before the gover
nor. He commanded them to sacrifice to the gods under
pain of death. The holy women asked for their idols, as
some thought, to sacrifice to them, but they no sooner
laid hands upon them than they cast them into an ad
joining lake, for which they were instantly beheaded,
along with their children.
Agricolaus resolved to wreak his vengeance on St. Blase;
and ..ot content with the torture which he had already
caused him to endure, commanded him to be stretched
upon the rack, and his flesh to be torn with iron combs,
in which state a red-hot coat of mail was placed upon
him. Finally, the tyrant, despairing of overcoming his
constancy, ordered him to be cast into the lake; the
saint, arming himself with the sign of the cross, walked
upon the waters, and, arriving at the middle, sat down,
and invited the idolaters to do the same if they believed
that their gods could enable them. Some were so rash
as to make the attempt, but were immediately drowned.
St. Blase was admonished then by a voice from heaven
to go forth from the lake and encounter his martyrdom.
254 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
When he reached the land the impious tyrant ordered
him to be beheaded. This sentence was executed in the
year 313. The republic of Ragusa honor him as their
principal patron, and he is the titular saint of many
cities.
CHAPTER LVII.
ST. ANASTASIA, VIRGIN, AND ST. CYRIL OF ROME.
October 28.
VALERIAN succeeded to the empire on the death of
Gallus, in the year 244, and in the beginning of his reign
showed himself so favorable to the Christians, that many
of them were employed at his court; but his subsequent
cruelty towards them was as remarkable as his former
clemency. A certain Egyptian magician succeeded in
ingratiating himself into the emperor's confidence; and
as many Christians, by the sign of the cross, were en
abled to destroy his demoniacal incantations, the favor
ite stimulated Valerian to undertake the destruction of
the Christian religion, towards the close of the year 247.
St. Anastasia was a Roman virgin of noble and Chris
tian parentage; and, although endowed with extraordi
nary beauty, manifested from her tenderest years a desire
to be espoused to Jesus Christ only. She accordingly
led a most holy life, without any other desire than to in
crease in the divine love. There was at Rome a nunnery
governed by a most holy lady named Sophia, the in
mates of which lived in the greatest Christian perfection
and among these St. Anastasia enrolled herself, in order
to make still further progress in virtue. The devil left
no means untried in order to tempt her to abandon her
holy design; but, by the assistance of continual prayer,
CHAP. LVII.] St. Anastasia, Virgin. 255
she overcame these temptations, and thus rendered her
self more perfect, and more intimately united to Jesus
Christ.
No sooner were the edicts of Valerian published
against the Christians than his emissaries began a most
searching inquisition. They discovered the residence
of Anastasia, who, by reason of her exemplary life, had
acquired great reputation for sanctity amongst the
faithful; and accordingly, an officer, accompanied by a
band of soldiers, having proceeded to the monastery,
broke open the doors, and in the name of Probus, Pre
fect of Rome, demanded that Anastasia should be given
up to them. Hereupon the good Sophia hastened to
animate her disciple in the following terms: " Behold,
my daughter, the time hath arrived when the Spouse
calleth thee. Go, and offer thyself as a sacrifice of love
to him who for thee offered himself upon the cross.
Be strong and fear not; make it appear that thou art
worthy of such a spouse."
The young virgin was forthwith brought before Pro-
bus, who, admiring her wonderful beauty, spoke to her
with much affability, and inquired her name. She re
plied: " My name is Anastasia, and I have the happi
ness to be a Christian." "This," said the prefect, uis
a bad recommendation; it overshadows thy prospects,
and I would, therefore, recommend thee to abandon so
odious a religion. I intend to render thee perfectly
happy; but, to this end, thou must come with me to
the temple, and offer sacrifice to Jove; but, if thou wilt
not obey, know that the most cruel torments await
thee." The saint replied: "I shall rather await these
torments, and I am ready to suffer them for the love of
God. Thy promises and thy threats are equally in
effectual; for the Almighty God, whom I adore, will
give me strength to resist both."
At these words, so resolutely uttered, the prefect
256 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI
became greatly exasperated, and commanded the saint
to be buffeted upon the face; which was done with such
violence that she was covered with blood, and in this
state was sent back to prison. Here she manifested so
much holy joy, that the tyrant's fury knew no bounds;
he commanded that she should be tortured by the dis
location of all her limbs, and that her sides should be
burned with lighted torches. This infliction was en
dured by the saint without a moan, and with so serene
a countenance, that the prefect, perceiving that torture
and fire moved her not, commanded the nails to be torn
from her fingers, her teeth to be broken with a hammer,
and her breasts to be pulled off with iron pincers. In
the order of nature, she should have expired under
these tortures; but the Lord so upheld her that she did
nothing but bless his holy name, and upon being
brought back to prison, all her wounds were miracu
lously cured.
Probus having heard this, and being informed, more
over, that the saint called his gods "gods of wood, of
clay, and of metal," ordered her tongue to be pulled
out by the roots. The holy virgin, upon hearing the
cruel command, began to thank the Lord, and to sing
his praises. The operation filled the spectators with
horror, and a torrent of blood proceeded from her
mouth, which completely stained her clothes. Finding
herself ready to faint after the infliction, she made signs
to a certain Christian, named Cyril, to give her some
water; he complied, and this act of charity earned for
him the crown of martyrdom.
Notwithstanding the loss of her tongue, St. Anastasia
ceased not to bless the Lord, and implore of him help
to consummate her sacrifice. In these prayers she fre
quently raised her hands to heaven, which so annoyed
the tyrant that, in addition to her other torments, he
had her hands and feet cut off, and finally ordered her
CHAP. Lvni.] St. Victor and Companions. 257
to be beheaded. Thus did this glorious saint enter the
kingdom of Jesus Christ, with as many merits as she
had suffered tortures for his sake.
The above-mentioned Cyril was also beheaded at the
same time, which was on the 2yth or 28th of October,
about the year 249.
Surius adds, that the good Sophia, having heard the
glorious end of her novice, procured the body; and
with the assistance of two pious persons, buried it with
out the city.1
CHAPTER LVIII.
STS. VICTOR, OFFICER ; ALEXANDER, FELICIANUS, LONGI-
NUS, SOLDIERS, OF MARSEILLES.
July 21.
DURING the reign of the Emperor Maximilian the
Christian religion was extensively propagated at Mar
seilles; in consequence of which this notable enemy of
the faithful caused a great slaughter of them upon his
arrival in that city. Among these was St. Victor, a
military officer, and so good a Christian that he let no
opportunity pass of animating the faithful, and exhort
ing them to suffer every torture, rather than abandon
the religion of Jesus Christ. To this end he frequently
visited them in their houses by night.
His zealous conduct could not long remain concealed,
and he was soon arrested and brought before the pre
fects of the city, Asterius and Eutychius, who told him
that they would obtain his pardon if he would consent
to sacrifice to the gods, and exhorted him not to lose
1 St. Anastasia, virgin, is often called the Elder, to distinguish her
from St. Anastasia, widow. As to her relics, see note, page 174. — ED.
17
258 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i
his past services by being the follower of a dead man,
as was Jesus Christ. Victor answered that the gods of
the pagans were none other than devils, who deserved
only contempt. He added, that he gloried in being a
follower of that " dead man," Jesus Christ, who being
the Son of God, became man, for the salvation of the
world; but who, in doing so, did not cease to be God,
since by his own power he rose again on the third day,
and ascended into heaven, where he reigns with his
Father. The pagans hearing these things, which they
imagined to be fables, commenced to deride him; but
Victor being a nobleman, the prefects forwarded his
case to the emperor for judgment.
Maximilian endeavored to intimidate him by threats;
but finding that Victor disregarded them, he com
manded that he should be bound hand and foot, and
dragged through the streets of the city. When the
saint was brought back to the prefects all torn and cov
ered with blood, they thought that he had been daunted
by the torture already suffered, and used all their exer
tions to make him renounce Jesus Christ ; representing
to him the good fortune he might enjoy by complying
with the will of the emperor, and the evils which would
be the consequence of his disobedience ; but Victor,
even more courageously than before, replied : " I have
committed no crime against the emperor, nor have I
failed to serve him when it was a duty. I, moreover,
pray every day for his salvation ; but how can it be ex
pected that I will bring damnation upon myself by pre
ferring temporal to eternal things? Would I not be
truly mad to prefer the insignificant and transitory
goods of fortune, to those which are immensely greater
and never end ? Is it not reasonable that I should think
less of the emperor's favor than of the favor of that
God who created me, and prepared for me an eternal
felicity? As for the tortures which you threaten, I re-
CHAP. LVIII.T St. Victor and Companions. 259
gard them rather as so many favors conferred upon me,
since they are likely to free me from eternal torments ;
the death which is being prepared shall be to me the
entrance into life everlasting. Should I not be sup
posed to have lost my senses, were I to prefer your
gods, who are only demons, to my God, the living and
the true ?
The saint spoke at some length of the evidences of the
Christian religion, the glories of Jesus Christ, and the
many miracles wrought by him when on earth ; but the
prefects, unwilling to hear him further, interrupted him,
saying : " Now, Victor, thy words are of no avail ; either
choose to appease our offended deities, or to end thy
days by an ignominious death." Victor answered :
"Since this is your decision, let the tortures be pre
pared. I despise your gods, and adore Jesus Christ."
The prefects disputed amongst themselves for some
time regarding the torments to which they would sub
ject the saints ; but it was finally resolved that he
should undergo a long and painful torture suggested by
Asterius, during which Jesus Christ appearing to him,
said : " Be of good courage, Victor, I am with thee in
the combat, to help thee, and shall be with thee in
heaven to reward thee after thy triumph." The saint,
consoled by this vision, endured his torments with a
serene countenance, rendered thanks to God ; and, after
the executioners had exhausted their strength, was cast
into a dark dungeon, whither there came angels to con
sole him, with whom he chanted the divine praises.
The guards seeing the place filled with a heavenly
light, cast themselves at the feet of the saint, and re
quested him to baptize them ; these guards were named
Alexander, Longinus, and Felicianus. The saint in
structed them as well as time would permit, and in the
course of the night they were baptized by a priest, for
whom he had sent.
260 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
On the day following, the conversion of the three
guards having been made public, the emperor ordered
Victor to be again tortured ; and the guards, having
remained faithful to the religion which they had em
braced, were beheaded.
Victor having undergone the tortures, was brought
before an altar of Jove, and commanded to sacrifice ;
but he threw it down with his foot, which was instantly
cut off by order of the emperor. A mill-stone was then
placed upon him, by which he was greatly bruised and
crushed, but it broke to pieces before the saint expired,
and his head was accordingly struck off. At the mo
ment of his death a voice was heard from heaven, say
ing: "Victor, thou hast conquered !"]
The tyrant commanded that the bodies of the mar
tyrs should be cast into the sea ; but God so disposed
it that they were cast ashore upon the opposite side of
the port, so that the Christians were enabled to recover
them, and place them in a grotto, where the Lord was
pleased to honor them with many miracles.2
1 Victor in Latin signifies a conqueror.
2 These holy relics were preserved at Marseilles in the cathedral
church and in that of St. Victor, till the revolution of 1793, the sac
rilegious deeds of which deprived the Church of this treasure as well
as of many others. Two celebrated abbeys bore the name of St. Vic
tor : one of the Benedictines at Marseilles, erected at the beginning
of the fifth century on the tomb of the glorious martyrs by the illus
trious abbot John Cassian ; the other of the regular Canons at Paris,
where two distinguished authors lived, often cited by St. Alphonsus,
namely, Hugo of St. Victor, a Belgian, and his disciple Richard, a
Scotchman. — ED.
CHAP. LIX.] SS. Peter and Companions. 261
CHAPTER LIX.
SS. PETER, DOROTHEUS, AND GORGONIUS, CHAMBERLAINS.
March 12 and September 9.
DIOCLETIAN having been greatly alarmed by a fire
breaking out in 303 in his palace at Nicomedia, was told
by some malevolent persons that the disaster had been
caused by the Christians, who, it was said, intended to
burn him alive. The emperor accordingly determined
to exterminate them from the empire, and forthwith
sent orders to all the governors that they should put to
death all the Christians of their respective jurisdiction,
without any exception whatever, and this on pain of los
ing not only their office, but their lives.
Galerius, the son-in-law of Diocletian, being an im
placable enemy of the Christians, caused the palace to be
a second time set on fire, in order the more to incite the
emperor against them; he, moreover, accused the Chris
tian officers of the palace with being the authors of the
fire, alleging that their intention was to destroy both the
emperors, together with the household. Diocletian's
rage knew no bounds; and the first victim was one of his
chamberlains, a zealous Christian named Peter, who be
ing commanded to sacrifice or lose his life, answered: " I
would rather lose my life than my religion. How can it
be expected that I should sacrifice to the devils, who are
our enemies ?" Having said these words, he was hoisted
in the air, and most cruelly scourged upon every part of
the body; after which he was taken down, and vinegar
and salt being rubbed into his torn flesh, he was roasted
on a gridiron, in which torture the Christian hero ter
minated his life.
Diocletian was aware that the lord chamberlain Doro-
262 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
theus, and Gorgonius, one of the principal officers of the
household, were Christians; but as he loved them on ac
count of their fidelity and virtue, he could not bring
himself to condemn them to death. The two saints,
however, had witnessed, and regarded with a kind of
pious jealousy, the martyrdom of Peter; and finding
themselves one day alone with the emperor, they re
spectfully represented to him how much he had been
imposed upon by those malevolent persons, who induced
him to persecute the innocent. They continued: "What
evil hath Peter done, my lord, to merit so cruel a death?
True, he was a Christian; but what subjects are there in
all the empire more faithful than the Christians? If to
be so be considered a crime, we are willing to die for it.
But it is no crime; on the contrary, we are obliged to
adore the one only true God."
After this protestation, Diocletian was wavering be
tween his regard for the saints and his hatred of their
faith: but Galerius soon caused the latter to prevail;
and it was intimated to them that they should renounce
their faith, or suffer death. Having refused to comply
with the wishes of the emperor, they were scourged so
cruelly, and their blood flowed so copiously, that the tor
ture was suspended lest they should expire under it.
However, as they were found yet alive, and firm in their
resolution, they were roasted over a slow fire, upon a
gridiron, and afterwards strangled. Thus on the Qth of
September, in the year 302, did they consummate their
sacrifice, a striking example of the love of God, and an
acceptable holocaust to his honor.
Their relics were subsequently brought to Rome, and
buried on the Via Latina, whence they were translated
by Pope Gregory IV. to St. Peter's Church, in the year
764. Pope Paul the First granted the body of St. Gor
gonius to the Bishop of Mentz, and it was again trans
lated, in the year 1595, to Pont Mausson, where it still
remains.
CHAP. LX.] SS. Timothy and Maura. 263
CHAPTER LX.
ST. TIMOTHY, LECTOR ; AND ST. MAURA, HIS WIFE.
UPON the death of the Emperor Diocletian, his succes
sors Galerius and Maximilian continued the persecution
against the Christians, and our saints were of the num
ber of those who then obtained the crown of martyrdom.
Timothy was a native of the town of Perapus in The-
bais, and was so exemplary a Christian that his bishop or
dained him lector. He was married to a Christian lady
named Maura, only seventeen years of age; and the mar
riage had been solemnized but three weeks, when Ari-
anus, the governor of the province, issued an order for
the arrest of Timothy, who had been represented to him
as one of the greatest enemies of the gods. When the
latter was presented, Arianus said to him: "Art thou
not aware of the edicts of the emperors against those who
refuse to sacrifice to the idols?" Timothy answered: "I
am aware of them, but will rather lay down my life than
commit such an act of impiety." "Then," said the gov
ernor, "we shall put thee to the torture, and hear how
thou wilt speak during the infliction." The saint reso
lutely refused to comply, and the barbarous tyrant caused
burning irons to be put into his ears, until the violence
of the pain caused his eyes to start from their sockets.
After this horrible torture Timothy commenced to
return thanks to the Lord; whereupon the tyrant, more
infuriated than before, ordered him to be suspended by
the feet, with a large stone tied to his neck, and a kind
of bridle on his mouth to prevent him from speaking.
Seeing, however, that torments had no effect upon Tim
othy, he sent for Maura, and told her that she alone
264 Martyrs of t lie First Ages. [PART :.
could save her husband from death, as by her tears she
might induce him to sacrifice to the gods. She went
accordingly to the place, and seeing him in so piteous a
condition, endeavored to induce him to abandon the
faith. Timothy, whose mouth had been unbridled that
he might answer his wife, replied: " How is it possible,
O Maura, that, being thyself a Christian, instead of ani
mating me to die for the faith, thou dost tempt me to
abandon it; and thus, to obtain a short and miserable
existence here, expose myself to the never-ending pains
of hell? Is this, then, thy love?"
Maura was instantly converted by this rebuke ; and,
casting herself on her knees, besought Jesus Christ,
with many penitent tears, to forgive her. She then
asked pardon of her husband, and exhorted him to re
main firm in his profession of faith, expressing at the
same time a desire to sacrifice her life in atonement for
her fault, and be the happy companion of his martyr
dom. Timothy, much consoled by the repentance of
his wife, told her that her last words had caused him to
forget his past sufferings, and that she should forthwith
return to the governor to retract her first step, and to
express her desire of dying for Jesus Christ. Maura at
first was afraid to trust her own weakness ; but Tim
othy prayed for her so effectually, that the Lord granted
her grace and strength to execute the orders of her
pious husband.
The governor, surprised at her sudden change, en
deavored to dissuade her from her holy purpose, by
promising to obtain for her an advantageous match
upon her husband's death, but Maura replied that after
his death she would have no other spouse than Jesus
Christ. Hereupon Arianus caused her hair to be vio
lently pulled out and her fingers cut off ; after which
she was immersed in a caldron of boiling water, from
which, however, she came out uninjured. Arianus was
CHAP. LXI.] ,SV. Si.rtits and Companions. 265
much affected by this miracle, and it contributed much
to his conversion, which happened a few days after.
Before the martyrdom of the saints, however, he had
not that happiness ; and, lest he should be remiss in
executing the orders of the emperor, he caused the
saint to be tortured with burning sulphur and pitch,
after which she was sentenced to be crucified, together
with her husband.
While she was proceeding to the place of execution,
her mother, shedding many tears, embraced her ; but
the saint, freeing herself from her parent's embrace,
hastened to the cross. The husband and wife were
crucified one opposite to the other ; and in order that
their agonies might be prolonged, they were not
strangled. They continued to live in this state for some
days, during which time they ceased not to bless the
Lord, and to encourage each other with the hope that
they would soon be united to Jesus Christ in heaven.
These two saints obtained the crown of their glorious
martyrdom on the iQt'h December, in the beginning of
the fourth century.
Their festival is kept by the Greeks, and also by the
Muscovites. There was a church at Constantinople
dedicated to God in honor of these martyrs.
CHAPTER LXI.
SS. SIXTUS II., POPE ; LAURENCE, DEACON ; ROMANUS, SOT.-
DIER.
August 6, 9, and 10.
FROM the sacramentary of St. Leo it would appear
that St. Laurence was by birth a Roman citizen, but
was probably a Spaniard by descent ; yet some authors
266 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
state that he was born in Spain, and that he came to
Rome when very young. St. Peter Chrysologus ob
serves, that though poor in earthly possessions, he was
rich in heavenly gifts, for which reason Pope St. Sixtus
conceived a great affection for him, and not only re
garded him as one of his most beloved disciples, but
promoted him to deacon's orders, placed him over seven
other deacons, and appointed him his treasurer and
almoner.
The Emperor Valerian was, at the beginning of his
reign, rather favorable to the Christians, but in the
year 258 he raised a fierce persecution against them,
which was particularly directed against the bishops and
clergy. St. Sixtus was accordingly one of the first who
was arrested ; as he was preparing to 'celebrate the
divine mysteries in the cemetery of Calixtus, he was
loaded with chains and conducted to prison. St. Lau
rence, having heard of his arrest, went to see him, and
as St. Ambrose relates,1 addressed him in the following
manner : " Whither dost thou go, Father, without thy
deacon ? What hast thou seen in me to displease thee,
and which could induce thee to abandon me ? Dost
thou doubt me ; let me have some trial before I am
thus cast off ?" St. Sixtus replied : " No, my son, I
abandon thee not ; a trial greater than mine,, in testi
mony of the faith of Jesus Christ, awaits thee. The
Lord, in consideration of the weakness of my age, ex
poses me to a less arduous struggle ; but greater tor
ments and a more glorious victory are reserved for
thee. Go ; and instantly distribute amongst the poor
the treasures of the church, and prepare thyself for
martyrdom." St. Laurence, inflamed as he was with
the desire of martyrdom, received great consolation
from these words, and lost no time disposing of the
sacred vessels and vestments of the church, and dis-
1 DC Ojficiis, 1. I, c. 41.
CHAP. LXI.] St. Sixtus and Companions. 267
tributing the money among the poor. He then returned
to the prison, to visit the Holy Father, and finding him
about to be led to the place of execution to be beheaded,
he informed him that he had complied with his orders,
and casting himself at his feet, implored his benedic
tion, in the hope of shortly following his footsteps. St.
Sixtus was beheaded, August 6, in the year 258.
The prefect of Rome, having been informed that St.
Laurence held the property of the church, sent for him,
and required him to deliver it up, alleging that the
emperor needed it for the payment of the army. The
saint composedly replied that he should be allowed some
time, and that he would then show him how rich the
church was. Within eight days the saint was enabled
to assemble all the poor who had received succor from
the church funds, and going to the prefect said to him:
"Come, and thou shalt see the treasures of our church."
The prefect, finding only an assemblage of paupers,
looked furiously upon the holy deacon, who said to him:
"My lord, thou art angered; but remember, that silver
and gold and precious stones are but dross extracted
from the earth, but the riches of the Christians are the
poor, whom the property of the Church supports." The
prefect, finding his avarice baffled by the saint, com
manded him to renounce Jesus Christ; and finding his
faith immovable, ordered that he should be scourged
with rods as a slave. At the same time he was threat
ened with greater torments unless he consented to sacri
fice to the gods; but Laurence protested that he was
willing to undergo any punishment rather than worship
deities who were worthy of nothing but contempt. The
prefect then sent him to prison, in charge of Hippolytus,
an officer of the guards. Hippolytus was struck with
the intrepidity, the conduct, and the language of the
saint, and began to conceive a species of veneration for
him, but the miracles which lie subsequently wrought in
268 Martyrs of Ike /fV/\\7 Ages. IPART i.
prison affected his conversion. Amongst these was the
cure of a blind man named Lucillus, whose sight was
restored by the saint's touching his eyes; upon witness
ing this miracle, Hippolytus requested to be baptized.
On the following day the prefect summoned the saint
before him, and endeavored by promises and threats to
make him renounce Jesus Christ. All his exertions
proving useless, he commanded him to be stretched
upon the rack until all his bones were dislocated, and
his llesh to be torn by scourges armed with iron points.
The saint believed that he was about to expire under
this torture, Tor he prayed to the Lord to receive his
soul; but he heard a voice which intimated to him that
his triumph was not yet complete, and that other tortures
were reserved for him. It is recorded by some writers
that this voice was heard by all, even the prefect, who
exclaimed: "Heed not the voice of the demons who
wait upon this sorcerer." At the same, a soldier named
Romanus saw an angel in the form of a beautiful youth,
who wiped away the blood which Mowed from the wounds
of the holy martyr, ami being converted by this vision,
approached St. Laurence, and intimated to him his desire
to be baptized. The saint could not then comply with
his wish; but the emperor, understanding that Laurence
still persisted, ordered that he should be sent to prison,
and there undergo still greater tortures.
Romanus procured a vessel of water, and entering the
prison of St. Laurence received the necessary instruc
tions, the sacrament of regeneration, and exhortations to
prepare himself for martyrdom, which he received with
great joy on the 9th of August, the day immediately
preceding the triumph of our saint.
The prefect again summoned Laurence to his presence,
and asked him: "Why dost thou so insolently despise
our gods ?" The saint replied: " Because they are false
gods; reason itself dictates that the true God can be
CHAP. LXI.] Si. Sixtiis and Companions. 269
only one." Upon these words the tyrant caused his
jaws to be broken by blows of a stone, and ordered him
to be stretched upon a red-hot gridiron, under which a
slow fire was placed, in order that his torture might be
the more prolonged and painful. But these cruel tor
ments seemed only to inc'rease the intrepidity of the
saint, who, perceiving that one side was completely
roasted, said to the tyrant: "If thou wilt feed upon my
flesh, thou mayest turn me and eat, as one side is done."
He then raised his eyes to heaven, and manifesting the
joy with which he died, placidly rendered his soul to
God, on the loth of August, in the year 258.
Hippolytus and a priest named Justin took his body
and buried it in a cave in Agro Verano; upon the spot
a famous church was afterwards erected. Indeed, there
are innumerable churches dedicated to God in his honor
throughout Christendom; almost all the holy Fathers
have celebrated his triumph, and Prudentius1 attributes
the conversion of Rome principally to the martyrdom of
this great saint. His name has been inserted in the
Canon of the Mass.3
1 Pcristcph. hvnin . 3.
'-' Alban Butler and Giry cite several churches in France that possessed,
relics of St. Laurence, but it is probable that they possess them no
longer in consequence of the outrages of the Calvinists of the i6th cen
tury, and of the revolutionists of 1793.
We read in the annals of Erstein. in Alsace, that the Empress Irmen-
gard, the wife of Lothair I. , obtained from Pope Leo IV. , about the year
850, the body of St. Sixtus 1 1., and that he had it buried in the abbey of
Erstein, the church of which bore the name of this holy Pope.
The relics of St. Romanus were transferred to Lucca, where they are
kept under the high altar of the church that bears his name.— ED.
Martyr* of t/ic First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER LXII.
SS. SEBASTIAN, OFFICER; AND THE TWO BROTHERS, MARCUS
AND MARCELLIANUS.
January 29 and June 18.
THIS saint was born of Christian parents, who dwelt
at Narbonne, in Languedoc, but were natives of Milan.
St. Ambrose ] relates that, by reason of his extraordinary
talents and exemplary conduct, our saint was much be
loved by Diocletian, who appointed him captain of the
first company of his guards. Sebastian employed the
emoluments of his station in the relief of the poor; he
was indefatigable in assisting his brother Christians,
and particularly those who languished in prison, whom
he not only relieved with alms, but encouraged to
suffer for Jesus Christ. He was consequently con
sidered the main prop of the persecuted faithful.
At this time it happened that the two brothers, Mar
cus and Marcellianus, Roman knights, who had suffered
tortures with considerable constancy, were being led to
death, when their father, Tarquillinus, and their mother,
Marcia, accompanied by the wives and children of the
two confessors, obtained from the judge, Cromatius, by
tears and entreaties, that the sentence should be de
ferred for thirty days. It is easy to imagine what wail-
ings and entreaties were used by their relatives during
the respite in order to induce the two brothers to pre
varicate; indeed, they were so importunate and unceas
ing, that they who had already confessed the faith be
gan now to vacillate. But Sebastian, knowing them,
ran instantly to their assistance, and God's blessing so
1 Ada .V. Scbasl. ufml ttoll.
CHAP. LXII.] St. Sebastian and Companions. 271
accompanied his words, that he induced them to receive
with joy a most cruel death; for they were obliged to
hang nailed by the feet to a gallows for a day and a
night before they were transfixed with a lance. Nor
was this all: the zealous captain likewise converted to
the faith not only all the above-named relatives of Mar
cus and Marcellianus, but also Nicostratus, an officer of
Cromatius, Claudius, the provost of the prison, and
sixty-four prisoners, who were idolaters.
But the most remarkable conversion was that of Cro-
matius himself, who, hearing that Tarquillinus had em
braced the faith, sent for him and said: "Hast thou
then turned mad in the last days of thy life ?" The
good old man replied: " On the contrary, by embracing
the Christian faith I have become wise, for it is wisdom
to prefer an everlasting life to the few wretched days
that await me in this world." He then persuaded him
to have an interview with St. Sebastian, who quickly
persuaded him of the truth of the Christian religion;
and Cromatius, having received baptism, with his en
tire family, and one thousand four hundred slaves, to
whom he granted their freedom, renounced his office,
and retired to his country house.
Fabian, the successor of Cromatius, having learned
that Sebastian not only exhorted the Christians to re
main steadfast in the faith, but procured also the con
version of the pagans, reported the fact to the emperor,
who sent for our saint, and upbraided him with the
crime of perverting his subjects. Sebastian answered
that he considered he was rendering the greatest pos
sible service to the emperor, since the state benefited by
having Christian subjects, whose fidelity to their sover
eign is proportionate to their devotedness to Jesus
Christ. The emperor, enraged at this reply, ordered
that the saint should be instantly tied to a post, and
that a body of archers should discharge their arrows
2', 2 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
upon him. The sentence was immediately executed,
and Sebastian was. left for dead ; but a holy widow,
named Irene, went at night to bury him, and finding
him yet alive, brought him to her house, where he re
covered. After this the saint went to the emperor, and
said to him : " How long, O Prince, wilt thou believe
the calumnies that have been spread against the Chris
tians ? I have returned to tell thee again that thou
hast not in the empire subjects more faithful than the
Christians, who by their prayers obtain for thee all thy
prosperity."
Diocletian, surprised to see the saint still living, ex
claimed : " How is it that thou art yet alive ?" Sebas
tian answered : " The Lord has been pleased to preserve
my life that I might admonish thee of thy impiety in
persecuting the Christians."
The emperor, irritated at the admonition, ordered
that the saint should be scourged to death. This sen
tence being executed, he expired on the 2oth January,
about the year 228.
The pagans threw the body of the martyr into a
marsh, but a holy lady named Lucina caused it to be
taken thence, and buried it at the entrance of a ceme
tery which is now called the " Catacombs of St. Sebas
tian."
CHAPTER LXIIT.
SS. CYRIACUS, LARGUS, AND SMARAGDUS.
March 17 and August 8.
THE vanity of the Emperor Diocletian incited him to
build a palace which would be one of the wonders of
the world ; and in truth he succeeded in erecting at
CHAP. LXIII.I St. Cyriacus and Companions. 273
Rome a stupendous fabric, where he placed the baths,
afterwards called " Le Terme Diocleziane," the vestiges
of which are still visible. Amongst the many punish
ments which the intense hatred of this emperor directed
against the Christians was that of obliging them to as
sist in the erection of this palace. Multitudes of them
were there to be seen rolling stones, digging the foun
dations, and carrying lime and water ; and as his bar
barous intention was to make them die of fatigue, they
were obliged to labor unceasingly, and without suffi
cient food.
An opulent and noble Roman, named Thraso, who
privately practised the Christian religion, regarding with
compassion these confessors of Christ, employed three
of his friends who were zealous Christians, namely, Cyri-
acus, Largus, and Smaragdus, in relieving their necessi
ties and in encouraging them to endure their trials for
the love of Jesus Christ. Pope St. Marcellinus having
been informed of their many acts of virtue, promoted
Cyriacus to the order of deacon, in order that he might
the more effectually carry on the holy work.
The saints were ultimately detected carrying food to
the Christians, and were immediately arrested and con
demned to labor at the building ; but here they so dis
tinguished themselves by their charity and zeal, that
they were accused before Maximian, the colleague of
Diocletian, who being no less cruel, caused them to be
arrested and led to prison, where the Lord wrought
many miracles by them. Some persons who had been
blind recovered their sight when Cyriacus blessed them
with the sign of the cross, and many others, afflicted with
various diseases, came to the prison, and were by the
same means restored to health. The saints availed
themselves of these opportunities to inculcate the truths
of Christianity, and induced many to embrace the faith.
The fame of these miracles at last reached the court,
18
274. Martyrs of the First Ages. LPART i.
and a daughter of Diocletian, named Arthemia, being
possessed by a devil, from which she suffered much, de
clared that she could not be cured except through the
intercession of the deacon Cyriacus. The emperor being
induced by the great love which he bore his daughter,
sent to the prison for Cyriacus, who, having prayed over
the princess, and commanded the devil to depart from
her, received the following answer : " I obey, because I
cannot resist the power of Jesus Christ ; but I shall pro
ceed to the court of the King of Persia." The saint
observed: "All shall ultimately be to the glory of
Christ, and to thy confusion." The young lady was im
mediately freed from the evil spirit, and boldly mani
fested her intention of becoming a Christian.
Meanwhile the daughter of the King of Persia, named
Jobia, was possessed by the same evil spirit, and ex
claimed that she could not be relieved unless by the
deacon Cyriacus, who was at Rome. The king immedi
ately sent an ambassador to request of Diocletian that
Cyriacus should be sent to him. The emperor accord
ingly despatched the deacon and his two companions,
and upon their arrival in Persia, Cyriacus declared to
the king, that in order to see his daughter relieved from
the evil spirit, he should embrace the faith of Jesus
Christ. The king consented ; the princess was cured,
and the monarch and his daughter, with four hundred
pagans, received the sacrament of baptism. The king
was desirous that the saints should remain in his domin
ions ; but, anxious for the glory of martyrdom, they
insisted upon returning to Rome. On their arrival there
they labored indefatigably in assisting the persecuted
Christians, and Diocletian tolerated their proceedings.
When the emperor left Rome, his colleague, Maxim-
ian, whose hatred to the Christians was ungovernable,
caused our saints to be arrested, and intimated to his
lieutenant, Carpasius, that they should either sacrifice,
CHAC. LXIV.] St. Mammas and Companions. 275
or be themselves sacrificed, to the gods. The saints ex
pressed their horror at the proposal, and Cyriacus said :
" How can we sacrifice to the gods, who are only demons
of hell?" Carpasius caused boiling pitch to be poured
upon his head, and then had him stretched upon a
rack, and beaten with clubs ; but the saint suffered these
tortures, not only with patience, but with thanks to Jesus
Christ, who rendered him worthy to suffer these tortures
for his sake. Maximian, perceiving that the heroism of
the saints could not be overcome by tortures, caused
them to be beheaded, with twenty other martyrs, on the
i6th of March, in the year 303.
Their bodies were buried near the place of their mar
tyrdom, upon the road called Via Salaria, but those of
our three saints were shortly afterwards translated by
Pope St. Marcellus, to the farm of a Christian lady
named Lucina, on the Ostian way.
CHAPTER LXIV.
ss. MAMMAS; THEODOTUS, HIS FATHER; RUFINA, HIS MOTHER;
AND AMYA.
August 17 and 31.
ST. MAMMAS was born in Paphlagonia, a town of Asia
Minor, now called Bolli, and situated between Pontus
Euxinus and Galatia. He was the son of Theodotus
and Rufina, both noble and exemplary Christians.1 The
1 This is the account given by Surius, who quotes Metaphrastes ; but
it is far more probable that our saint's parents, however virtuous, were
poor. St. Gregory Nazianzen concludes one of his sermons with an al
lusion to the saint, and calls him " the renowned Mammas, a shepherd
and a martyr." St. Basil also has an admirable homily upon this blessed
martyr, who seems to have been celebrated among the Greeks. The
2/6 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
persecution against the Christians was raging in this
province, and Theodotus was arrested and sent to prison
by Alexander, the governor of the town, who, however,
not having authority to inflict capital punishments, and
fir ding Theodotus persevering in his profession of the
faith, sent him to Faustus, governor of Caesarea, in Cap-
padocia, whither Rufina, although pregnant, accompanied
him. It was intimated to Theodotus, on being presented
to the cruel Faustus, that he should either obey the em
peror, or be prepared to undergo tortures that would
finally cause his death. The pious confessor replied
that it was his desire to die for Jesus Christ ; but being
taken ill on account of the want of food and the fatigue
of his journey, which was on foot, he was sent to prison,
where he ended his days in a holy manner. Rufina was
his companion in death, for she prematurely gave birth
to her child, and died the day following.
A rich and noble Christian widow, named Amya, while
engaged in holy prayer, was favored with the vision of
an angel, who intimated to her that she should take care
of the orphan infant who was in prison, The good lady
obtained from the governor a legal possession of the
child, whom she called Mammas, at baptism. The boy,
as he grew up, made considerable progress in human
learning, but still greater in the science of the saints, and
object of the homily is to show that poverty and humility constitute
real glory ; and that, although custom may warrant the profane pane
gyrist in extolling the character of a person by referring to the nobility
of his birth and to the glorious achievements of his ancestors, yet the
laws of truth shall forever prohibit us from praising any one except for
his own virtues. The holy Father insists that our saint was but a poor
shepherd, who could boast of no worldly distinction ; and indeed the
reader is inclined to suspect that he was anxious to contradict some
apocryphnl accounts that would attribute noble ancestry to St. Mam
mas, for he emphatically says, " Yes, a shepherd ! Let us not be ashamed
of the truth. Let us not imitate the profane writers of fable." — St. Basil,
horn, xxiii. in Mamant. martyr.
CIIAl
. LXIV.I ,C7. Man:mas and Companions. 277
a holy zeal for the advancement of the Christian relig
ion; so much so, that at twelve years of age he under
took the task of making converts to the faith of Jesus
Christ. Meanwhile the good Amya died, leaving him
heir to all her riches, which, however, he quickly dis
tributed among the poor. Faustus also died, and was
succeeded in the government by Democritus, an implac
able enemy of the Christians, who arrived at Caesarea;
and, having heard of the zeal and energy with which the
young Mammas labored for the increase of the faithful,
summoned him to his presence, and said: " How is it
possible that, being so learned thou art anxious to follow
the Christian sect, which is proscribed throughout the
empire? Come with me to offer sacrifice at the temple
of Jove, and I will not fail to use my interest with the
emperor for thy advancement." The holy youth replied:
" However grateful, my lord, for thy very kind opinion
regarding my learning. I should feel myself unworthy of
being esteemed wise were I to sacrifice to any creature,
'knowing as I do that there is but one only God. If I
were to give the honors due to the emperor to one of his
vassals, would I not become guilty of treason ? How
then can I sacrifice to thy gods, who are none other than
devils ?"
Democritus, enraged at this answer, ordered Mammas
to be put to the torture; but the saint observed that,
being the adopted son of a noble woman, it was not in
the governor's power to authorize the execution of such
a sentence. Democritus therefore reported all the cir
cumstances to the Emperor Aurelian, who commanded
that the saint should be brought before him, and upon
his appearance addressed him thus: "I wish, my son, to
employ thee at court, but thou must therefore abandon
the Christian faith. Choose, then, a happy life at my
palace, or an ignominious death upon the scaffold."
Mammas replied: "The choice, O prince, is already
278 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
made: thou dost propose unto me a death which shall
render me forever happy, or a short life that must make
me eternally miserable." The emperor asked: "And
from whom, if not from our gods, canst thou expect this
everlasting bliss ?" " No," rejoined Mammas, " thy gods
which are but deaf and blind statues, can confer no favq.r
upon me. I adore the one only true God, and for him I
am most willing to lay down my life. To be permitted
to do so I would esteem the greatest possible happi
ness."
This conversation so irritated Aurelian, that he com
manded the saint's body to be torn with scourges: yet
Mammas endured this torture without a groan; and the
emperor, who appeared moved by the horrid infliction,
said, in a tone of entreaty: "Mammas, merely say with
thy mouth that thou wilt sacrifice." The saint replied:
" It would displease my God were I to deny him with
my heart or with my tongue. Continue to torture me as
long as it pleaseth thee. The executioners shall sooner
tire than I." This expression exasperated Aurelian, and
he commanded that the saint's flesh should be burned
with torches, which, however, by God's permission,
burned not the saint, but those who held them. The
emperor perceiving this, ordered that he should be cast
into the sea; but while he was being led thither, an an
gel, appearing in the form of a young man, put the
guards to flight, and intimated to Mammas that he
should retire to a mountain in the neighborhood of Cae-
sarea; the saint accordingly dwelt in that solitude for
forty days.
A new governor was appointed to Caesarea, and hav
ing been informed that there lived on the adjoining
mountain a Christian whom the emperor had con
demned to death, he sent a troop of cavalry to seize him.
The soldiers having met the saint, without knowing him
to be the object of their pursuit, asked him if he knew in
CHAP. LXIV.] St. Mammas and Companions. 279
which part of the mountain Mammas dwelt. The saint
replied that he could show them his abode, and led them
to his hut, which was instantly surrounded by a troop of
wild beasts. The soldiers being alarmed hereat, the
saint said: "Fear not: these creatures come to nourish
me with their milk. I am Mammas, whom you seek; re
turn to town, and I will follow you." The soldiers were
too much alarmed not to obey the saint; and on their
return informed the governor of what had happened.
The holy martyr soon presented himself before the gov
ernor, who said to him: "Art thou the wizard that by
the magical arts of the Christians dost tame wild beasts ?"
The saint answered: "I am a servant of Jesus Christ,
who protects his servants, and condemns to eternal fire
those that confide in idols. For the rest, know that the
practice of magic, of which you falsely accuse us, is un
known to Christians. Thou hast sent for me; what is
thy will?" The governor replied: "Thou art a rash
man, opposing, as thou dost, the edicts of the emperor;
but torments shall alter thee."
The tyrant then ordered that the saint should be
stretched upon the rack, and scourged; but as he evinced
considerable fortitude, the governor threatened to have
him burned alive, and accordingly sent him to prison.
St. Mammas here found forty Christians who had been
incarcerated for the faith, and being moved to compas
sion, prayed for them; whereupon the gates of the prison
opened of themselves, and these holy confessors were
thus restored to liberty.
The miracle converted some pagans, but increased the
fury of the tyrant, who ordered that Mammas should be
bound hand and foot and cast into a furnace. The fire,
however, touched not a hair of his head, but merely
burned his bonds, and during his stay in the fire he
ceased not to bless the Lord. The saint after this trial
prayed for the termination of his martyrdom; and being
280 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
cut down by the swords of the executioners, went to re
ceive the reward of his many victories, in the year 275,
which was the last year of Aurelian's reign.
Surius has written the life of this saint, who has al
ways been regarded by the Greeks as one of their most
glorious martyrs. During the reign of Constantine a
church was built over his tomb at Caesarea, and other
churches have been erected to his honor throughout
Christendom.1
CHAPTER LXV.
SS. JANUARIUS, BISHOP OF P>KNEVKXTO; SOSIUS, PROCULUS,
FESTUS, DEACON?; DIDIKR, LECTOR; EUTYCHES, ACUTIUS.
September 19.
NAPLES and Benevento both claim the honor of hav
ing given birth to Januarius; he is said to have been de
scended of the ancient family of the Sanniti, who had
made war with the Romans, and were masters and dukes
of Benevento. There are no historical records of the
first years of St. Januarius, but it is certain that his
parents were Christians, and that he was esteemed the
most learned and pious of the clergy, for which reason
he was unanimously chosen bishop of Benevento, upon
a vacancy having occurred in that see. The humility of
the saint induced him most resolutely to refuse that dig-
1 St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory of Nazianzen, and many other cele
brated authors eulogize St. Mammas. Alban Butler or Godescard, and
Giry, assure us that his head was translated from Constantinople to
Langres at the beginning of the I3th century, and deposited in the
cathedral that tool: this holy martyr as its chief patron and titular
saint. — ED.
CHAP. LXV] .SV. Januarius and Companions.
281
nity, until he was obliged to accept it by a command
from the Pope, who was at that time St. Caius, or St.
Marcellinus.
Our saint undertook the government of his church
during the persecution of Diocletian and Maximian,
which circumstance gave him noble opportunities of
manifesting the extent of his zeal for the faith of Jesus
Christ. Not content with propagating and maintaining
the faith in his own diocese, he ran through the neigh
boring cities converting pagans, and assisting and en
couraging the faithful.
In the discharge of these duties he became acquainted
with a holy deacon of the city of Miseno, named Sosius,
with whom he formed a most intimate friendship; for as
Sosius was one day reading the Gospel to the people,
St. Januarius saw a most resplendent flame upon his
head, from which fact he predicted that the pious dea
con would be crowned with martyrdom. The prophecy
was soon fulfilled; for after a few days Sosius was ar
rested as a Christian, and brought before Dracontius,
governor of the district, who having in vain endeavored
with promises and threats to make him prevaricate,
caused him to be cruelly scourged, tortured, and sent to
prison. He was here frequently visited by the Chris
tians, but the deacon Proculus, and his fellow-citizens
Eutyches and Acutius, were particularly attentive to
him; and St. Januarius was no sooner apprised of his ar
rest than he repaired to the prison to comfort and en
courage him.
Meanwhile Dracontius was removed to another place
by the emperor, and succeeded in the government by
Timothy, who upon his arrival at Nola, having heard of
the preaching of St. Januarius, and the assistance which
lie afforded to the faithful in the neighborhood, ordered
him to be arrested and brought before him, bound hand
and foot. On being presented to the new governor,
282 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
our saint was commanded to sacrifice, but immediately
rejected the iniquitous proposal with horror and con
tempt; whereupon Timothy ordered him to be thrown
into a furnace. The order was instantly executed, but
the saint received not the least hurt; and although this
miraculous preservation excited the wonder of all pres
ent, it was so far from making any salutary impression
on the tyrant, that it rendered him more furious and
cruel than before, and he accordingly ordered that the
saint's body should be stretched upon the rack until his
every nerve should be broken.
As soon as these proceedings were known at Beneven-
to, Festus, the bishop's deacon, and Desiderius, his lec
tor, forthwith departed to visit their holy prelate in the
name of his entire flock; but Timothy being informed of
their arrival at Nola, caused them to be arrested, and
their depositions to be taken regarding the motives of
their journey. They answered that, holding as they did
subordinate offices in the church of the good bishop,
they thought it their duty to visit their Superior in
prison, and minister to him whatever assistance it might
be in their power to afford. Upon hearing this declara
tion the tyrant commanded that they should be loaded
with chains, and made to walk before his chariot to
Puzzuoli, to be there delivered to wild beasts together
with their pastor.
Immediately after their arrival they were exposed in
the amphitheatre, when St. Januarius said to the rest:
" Be of good heart, brethren ! Behold, the day of our
triumph has arrived. Let us confidently give our lives
for Jesus Christ, who vouchsafed to give his for us."
The beasts were let loose upon them, in the presence of
a great multitude; but although they ran towards the
martyrs as it were to devour them, they cast themselves
before them and licked their feet. The miracle was evi
dent to all, and a deep murmur was heard to run through
CHAP. i. xv] St. Januarius and Companions. 283
the amphitheatre: "The God of the Christians is the
only true God."
The effect produced by this miracle made Timothy
fear a general sedition, and he accordingly gave orders
that the martyrs should be led to the public square and
beheaded; but St. Januarius, in passing the governor,
prayed that the Lord might strike him blind, for his
own confusion and the conversion of the people. This
prayer having taken instant effect, the tyrant delayed
the execution of the sentence, and besought the holy
bishop to forgive the maltreatment he had received, and
to pray for the restoration of his sight. St. Januarius
did so, and the miracle was followed by the conversion
of five thousand pagans; but Timothy, fearing lest he
should lose the favor of the emperor, ordered his officers
to have the last sentence privately but instantly exe
cuted.
While our saint was being led to Vulcano, the place
selected for his last struggle, an aged Christian fol
lowed him, imploring with many tears that he would
give him something to keep for his sake; the good
bishop, moved by the devotion of the old man, told him
that he had nothing to give, except his handkerchief,
which, as he needed it to bandage his eyes in receiving
the stroke of death, he could not let him have until after
his martyrdom. On arriving at Vulcano, St. Januarius
tied the handkerchief over his eyes, and repeating the
words, " Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit,"
he was decapitated on the iQth of September, towards
the close of the third century, together with his com
panions, Sosius, Festus, Proculus, Desiderius, Eutyches,
and Acutius.
The relics of these holy martyrs were afterwards
translated to different cities. Puzzuoli was favored
with the bodies of SS. Proculus, Eutyches, and Acutius;
while Benevento was honored with those of SS. Festus
284 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PA;*T i.
and Desiderius; that of St. Sosius was removed to
Miseno. The body of St. Januarius was first deposited
at Benevento, and afterwards at the Monastery of Monte-
Virgine, until during the pontificate of Alexander IV.,
St. Severus, bishop of Naples, accompanied by the
Neapolitan clergy and a great concourse of the laity,
translated it to Naples, and placed it in a church dedi
cated to God in his honor. From this church, however,
which was without the city, the relics of St. Januarius
were again translated to the cathedral, together with
two vials of his blood, and have been there objects of
great religious veneration for fourteen centuries. The
Neapolitans honor this saint as the principal patron of
their city and nation, and the Lord himself has con
tinued to honor him, by allowing many miracles to be
wrought through his intercession, particularly when the
frightful eruptions of Mount Vesuvius have threatened
the city of Naples with utter destruction. While the
relics of St. Januarius were being brought in procession
towards this terrific volcano, the torrents of lava and
liquid fire which it emitted have ceased, or turned their
course from the city.
But the most stupendous miracle, and that which is
greatly celebrated in the church, is the liquefying and
boiling up of this blessed martyr's blood whenever the
vials are brought in sight of his head. This miracle is
renewed many times in the year, in presence of all who
desire to witness it; yet some heretics have endeavored
to throw a doubt upon its genuineness, by frivolous and
incoherent explanations; but no one can deny the effect
to be miraculous, unless he be prepared to question the
evidence of his senses.
All the facts related about St. Januarius are drawn
from trustworthy sources, such as the Acts possessed by
Baronius, the Greek Acts of the Vatican, the Greek
Menology of Basil, the writing of John Diacono, an
CHAP. LXV.] St. Januarius and Companions. 285
author of great credit, who lived in the ninth century,
and whom Muratori himself praises. To this must be
added the very ancient Offices of Naples, Salerno, Capua,
and Puzzuoli, and finally the tradition of Nola, where is
yet shown at the present day the prison in which the
saint was shut up, the place where his bones were dis
located, and the furnace from which he came forth un
hurt. These records contain nearly all that we have
related: all, or nearly all, are written in the Acts of
Baronius, which, resting on other records, deserve our
entire confidence.
I repeat here what I have said at the beginning of this
book, that it seems to be a kind of temerity to wish to
doubt positively about the truth of the facts related by
several ancient authors, though they may not be con
temporaneous — authors grave and careful to examine
into things, especially when these facts are supported by
an uncontroverted and ancient tradition.
It is true that we should justly doubt ancient facts
against the authenticity of which we may allege some
solid reason; but I ask here, which are the arguments
that Tillemont, Baillet, and some other modern authors
oppose to the facts of the martyrdom of St. Januarius?
They say that this antiquity removes them too far
from our time; that the tortures related are too violent,
and therefore incredible; that these facts are too numer
ous. They also add other similar objections which are
groundless, and which I pass over in silence for brevity's
sake. To all these difficulties I reply, that by following
this method we should have to reject many Acts that
are commonly regarded as genuine, such as those of St.
Felix of Nola, of St. Carpus, of St. Theodotus and of
St. Tarachus, and many others that we read of in the
celebrated Ruinart, and in a host of other good authors.
286 Martyrs of the First Ages. IPART i.
Some of our writers have approved of what is said by
Tillemont and Baillet, because of certain Acts of St.
Januarius that were found at Bologna with the Celestin
Fathers in the monastery of St. Stephan. But I do not
see why we should put faith in these Acts, and not in
those of Baronius and of other authors mentioned above.
They say with Tillemont that the Acts of Bologna are
more simple, because in them no mention is made of the
miracles described in the Acts of Baronius, and should
therefore the former be preferred to the latter?
Allow me to make here a painful reflection. The
present age is called the age of light, because it has a
better taste and a more correct judgment of things.
But would to God that it had not degenerated in many
things, and that it were not growing worse by wishing
to subject divine things to be estimated by our feeble
intelligence! Some of these who are learned in this
fashion deny or call in question most of the miracles re
lated in the lives of the saints; they say that the account
of these miracles only makes heretics laugh at the too
great credulity of the Catholics, and for this reason re
fuse to be united to our Church. I answer: Heretics do
not wish to believe our miracles, not because they esteem
us too credulous, but because among them no miracles
are ever seen; this explains why they despise our mir
acles. And it is by no means true that our too great
facility in believing in miracles hinders them from being
united to our Church, for it is precisely because they do
not wish to unite with our Church, and to submit to her
that they refuse to believe in miracles. These unfor
tunate people do not see that in refusing to submit to
the Church they reduce themselves to a state of believing
in nothing, as evidently appears from the books that
often reach us from the so-called reformed countries.
Moreover, they know that the Christian faith was propa
gated and maintained by means of miracles — just as
CHAP. LXV] St. Januarius and Companions. 287
Jesus Christ and the Apostles propagated it; and the
reason of this is clear. For as the revealed truths which
are the object of our faith are not of themselves evident
to the eyes of our mind, it was necessary to induce us to
believe them by means of miracles, which surpassing the
forces of nature aid us to know clearly that it is God
who speaks to us in the midst of these prodigies. Thus
in proportion to the persecutions raised against the
Church has the Lord multiplied miracles. In short, the
miracles wrought more or less frequently by God
through his servants have never been wanting in our
Church.
Let'us return to our subject. It is not therefore just
to prefer the Acts of the Monastery of Bologna to all
those that we have quoted, because they are more simple,
and because they do not comprise all the miracles le-
lated by Baronius, Diacono, and other authors. Besides,
these Acts of Bologna, if carefully examined, date only
from the sixteenth century. Again, another well-in
formed author, Xavier Rossi, in a learned dissertation,
assures us that these Acts should be regarded as less
trustworthy than those that we have followed, since they
are encumbered with other narratives that are false, or
at least improbable, and since it has become known that
they were written by an ignorant person, who collected
them without discretion, and in writing committed many
faults against the Latin grammar.
288 Martyrs of 'the First Ages. [PARTI.
CHAPTER LXVI.
ST. FAITH, VIRGIN; ST. CAPRAIS, ST. PRIMUS, AND ST.
FELICIAN.
October 6 and 20.
ST. FAITH was born at Agen, in Aquitaine, of one of
the most illustrious and Christian families of the prov
ince. She had from her most tender years dedicated
herself to Jesus Christ; and having heard of the many
glorious victories obtained by the martyrs during the
persecution which was still raging, she conceived a most
ardent desire to be made a partaker of their triumph;
nor was the object of her yearnings long delayed.
Dacian, whose cruelty has obtained for him an infa
mous celebrity, was then prefect of Aquitaine; and as the
Christian religion was generally professed at Agen, he
determined to repair thither, in order that his presence
might render the slaughter of the faithful more com
plete. The news of his intended visit struck terror into
the Christians, and the adjoining woods and caverns
were peopled with the former inhabitants of Agen. St.
Faith was also pressed to seek safety in flight, but she
refused to depart from the city, saying that she could
not think of losing the fine opportunity that God had
given her of dying for his love.
Upon the arrival of Dacian she learned that he had
received information regarding her, and of her own ac
cord presented herself before him. The tyrant being
aware of her noble birth, and admiring her intrepidity,
asked her name and religion in a mild tone. The saint
answered: u My name is Faith, and I wish to be in real-
CHAP. LXVI.I St. Faith, Virgin, and Companions. 289
ity that which my name implies. I am therefore a
Christian, and entirely consecrated to Jesus Christ, my
Saviour."
The prefect said: "Abandon, my child, the supersti
tion of the Christians. Have some regard for thy rank
and thy youth. I promise to make thee the first lady of
the province. Go, therefore, and sacrifice to Diana, and
upon coming out from the temple thou shalt receive the
rich reward I have destined for thee." St. Faith re
turned the following animated answer: " From my in
fancy I have known that all the gods whom thou wor-
shippest are devils; and dost thou expect that I can be
persuaded to offer them sacrifice ? The Lord preserve
me from such impiety ! There is but "one true God, to
whom I am willing to sacrifice my life. All thy prom
ises and gifts shall never make me abandon my relig
ion."
Dacian in a rage said: "How dost thou presume to
call our gods 'devils '? Instantly resolve to sacrifice, or
to expire under torments." The saint with increased
courage replied: " Know, sir, that I am not only pre
pared to suffer all tortures for the love of my God, but
I am impatient to give him this proof of my fidelity."
The tyrant then gave orders that the saint should be
roasted alive upon a gridiron; but while the barbarous
sentence was being executed, the pagans themselves
were horror-struck, and proclaimed aloud that it was too
cruel so to torture a young woman for no other crime
than that of being faithful to the God whom she
adored.
Meanwhile St. Caprais, a pious young man, who was
one of the Christians that had retired to the mountain,
beheld from an eminence the martyrdom of St. Faith, and
was favored with a vision, in which he saw a white dove
bearing a rich crown and placing it on the head of the
martyr, at the same time moving his wings, as if to
19
290 Martyrs of the First Ages* [PART i.
draw down the rain which extinguished the fire. St.
Caprais was by this vision inflamed with the desire of
martyrdom; but, irresolute as to how he should act, he
prayed to the Lord to manifest to him whether he was
called to that honor. Upon entering his cave he saw a
vein of water issuing from a stone; and interpreting this
miracle as a call to martyrdom, he left the cave to pre
sent himself before the prefect.
Being asked by Dacian who he was, Caprais replied,
"1 am a Christian;" but the prelect perceiving him to
be a youth ot very pleasing appearance', called him apart,
and used all his arts of persuasion to pervert him. The
young Christian continuing resolute in his profession of
faith, was, by order of the tyrant, stretched upon the
rack and torn with iron hooks. During his tortures
Caprais spoke of the truths of the Christian religion,
and of the impiety and folly of paganism, with such tri
umphant conviction, that the greater part of the pagan
bystanders were converted.
Among these were the two brothers SS. Primus and
Felician, who received baptism, and openly avowed
their belief that the God of the Christians was the only
true God. Dacian left no means untried in order to in
duce them to abandon the faith which they had so re
cently embraced, and even had them conducted to the
temple to sacrifice to the gods; but as their constancy
was unconquerable, they were condemned to be be
headed, together with SS. Faith and Caprais, and some
other converts.
On the following night the Christians of Agen took
the bodies of these blessed martyrs and secretly buried
them. After peace had been restored to the Church, a
holy bishop of Agen, named Dulcitius, built a church
in honor of St. Faith, and placed therein the relics of
the above-named martyrs; but in process of time the
body of St. Faith was translated to the Abbey of
CHAP. !. xvii i .S'/. C/rncsizis, the Comedian. 291
Conques, which was afterwards called after the saint.
She is mentioned in the martyrology on the 6th Octo
ber, and is held in great veneration by the Church of
France.
CHAPTER LXVII.
ST. (il-.NKSM.'S, 'I HI-, COMKUIAN.
August 25.
AUTHKNTIC documents, quoted by Rninart, induce ns
to believe that the martyrdom of Saint Genesins took
place at Rome, at the beginning of Diocletian's reign,
about the year 285.
Our saint was a favorite comedian, and such an en
emy to the Christians, that he did not exempt from his
hate those of his relatives who professed the faith.
Having become acquainted with the ceremonies of the
Church in the administration of baptism, he wished to
amuse the emperor and the Roman people by turning
this holy sacrament into ridicule ; and accordingly, act
ing the part of a dying Christian, the ceremonies of bap
tism were performed upon him by another player, who
personated the character of a priest.
But when the player, sitting down beside him, said,
'• Well, my child, why hast thou sent for me?" Gene-
sius, suddenly illuminated by divine inspiration, an
swered, not in jest, but seriously: " I desire to receive
the grace of Jesus Christ, and to be relieved from the
weight of my sins, which oppress me." The usual cere
monies were then performed, but he seriously answered
the questions proposed, and declared that he was in ear
nest in professing his belief therein. During the recep-
292 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
tion of this baptism ' he was favored with a vision, in
which he saw an angel, surrounded with heavenly light,
holding a book in which his sins had been written. The
angel having immersed this book in the waters of bap
tism, showed it to Genesius perfectly white.
In continuation of the play, Genesius was clothed in
the white robe of the neophytes, after which certain
players representing soldiers came to seize him, and
present him to the emperor as a Christian. But
when he was brought before Diocletian he manifested
the vision with which he had been favored, and pro
claimed his desire that all present should acknowledge
Jesus Christ to be the true God, through whom alone it
is possible to be saved. Diocletian was both surprised
and irritated hereat, and having ordered him to be se
verely beaten with clubs upon the spot, he delivered him
over to Plautian, prefect of the praetorium, that he might
compel him to renounce Jesus Christ.
Plautian ordered him to be stretched upon the rack,
to be torn with iron hooks, and burned with torches ;
during which horrid infliction the saint made the follow
ing protestation : "Jesus Christ is the sovereign Lord of
all things. Him will I adore, although I be obliged to
surfer a thousand deaths. All possible tortures shall
never take Jesus Christ from my heart or from my lips.
My only grief is, that I have so long persecuted his holy
name, and have learned to adore him, alas ! so late."
He was then beheaded, and thus went to receive his re
ward in heaven.
1 St. Genesius did not receive the sacrament of regeneration, as the
player did not intend to do that which the Church doth, but merely to
represent and ridicule her most sacred, rites Our saint, however, re
ceived the baptism of martyrdom. — ED.
CHAP. LXVIII. i St. Hippolytus, Priest. 293
CHAPTER LXVIII.
ST. HIPPOLYTUS. PRIEST.
August 13
ST. HIPPOLYTUS was one of the five Roman priests
that had the misfortune to be implicated in the schism
of Novatian,1 who, renouncing his obedience to Pope St.
Cornelius, had the rashness to have himself surrepti
tiously consecrated Bishop of Rome. God, however,
1 The ambition, turbulence, and hypocrisy of this wretched man are
portrayed at length by Fleury. He had been a stoic philosopher, and
had gained some reputation by his eloquence ; but being possessed by a
devil, he was relieved by a Christian exorcist, and thereupon embraced
the faith. He, however, continued a catechumen until he was over
taken by a dangerous illness, when he received baptism in bed. The
Church condemned the lukewarmness of those who would so defer their
baptism by refusing to admit them to Holy Orders; yet did this
hypocrite so ingratiate himself with his bishop as to be ordained priest,
notwithstanding that the entire body of the clergy and many of the laity
requested the bishop not to lay hands upon him. Novatian soon proved
their distrust of him to be but too well founded ; for the persecution
coming on, he shut himself up in his house, and when the deacons called
upon him for the discharge of his priestly functions, he flew in a passion,
and exclaimed that he would no longer discharge any clerical duty, as
he desired to practise another kind of philosophy. Having thus mani
fested his cowardice and want of zeal, he next showed his turbulent
spirit in opposing and endeavoring to bring discredit upon his Superiors.
To this end he became most rigid, and complained that the bishops
were too easy in admitting those who had offered sacrifice to a reconcili
ation with the Church, and that they were thereby guilty of a most crim
inal relaxation of discipline. He was not only encouraged and abetted
in establishing an open schism at Rome by the turbulent and wicked
Novatus ; but by his hypocrisy, his cunning, and his desperate calumny
of St. Cornelius, he deceived many well -meaning and incautious persons,
among whom were St. Hippolytus, and some others who had actually
2 94 Martyrs of the First Ages. .[PART i.
granted to Hippolytus the grace to expiate this fault by
a glorious martyrdom, which he suffered under Decius,
in the year 252. He had been already imprisoned with
others for the faith, and the prefect of Rome, who had
to pass sentence upon them, was at Ostia, whither he
been confessors of the faith. These, however, were quickly disabused,
with the exception of Evaristus and Nicostrates, who obstinately perse
vered in their errors. By the most nefarious means he seduced three
bishops to Rome, and obtained from them the episcopal consecration.
Thus making himself the first anti-pope, he wrote to the different
churches in the quality of Chief Pastor, which caused much uneasiness
to the distant bishops and congregations, as they thought, on the one
hand, that an impostor could not be favored by ecclesiastics of emi
nent sanctity; and on the other, they doubted the truth of his assertions
regarding the irregularity of the appointment of Pope Cornelius. But
the veil of hypocrisy and cheat under which the schismatic endeavored
to conceal himself was too thin not to be seen through by the intelligent
and penetrating Bishop of Alexandria, St. Dionysius, who having re
ceived from him a formal notice of his appointment, sent him the fol
lowing answer : " You inform me that you were raised to this dignity
very much against your inclination ; you will, therefore, be the more
willing to resign it. This you should do, rather than allow a schism to
continue in the Church ; and for doing so you shall deserve and receive
commendation. But should persecution be the consequence of your
resignation, know that it will be a more glorious martyrdom than to die
for the faith ; because by the latter a person provides only for his o\yn
soul, while he who maintains the unity of the Church consults for the
salvation of many." This holy bishop and St. Cyprian were of great
assistance to the Pope in crushing the schism. The wretched Novatian
afterwards added heresy to his other crimes, by teaching that the Church
had not the power of forgiving certain sins ; but that apostates, murder
ers, etc., should be left to the mercy of God, without being reconciled
to the Church, no matter what penance they might perform. This
doctrine being condemned by the Church, he was followed only by a
few, in giving Communion to whom he used to administer a most hor
rid oath, that they never would abandon him to return to Cornelius.
The history of this schism has been given more at length than the di
mensions of a note would seem to authorize, not only on account of its
importance, but because it is a tolerably fair sample of the motives that
influence the authors of heresy and schism, as well as of the means by
which they are propagated. — En.
CHAP. LXVIII.] St. Hippolytus, Priest. 295
caused all the Christian prisoners to be brought. As
Hippolytus was being led out, the people asked him
who was the real Pope. He replied : " Fly from the un
worthy Novatian; abhor the schism, and adhere to the
Catholic Church. I now see things in a different light,
and repent of what I once taught."
Upon the arrival of the confessors at Ostia, the pre
fect caused some of them to be tortured, and finding
that this availed nothing, he condemned them all to
death. Being informed, however, that our saint was a
chief amongst the Christians, he inquired his name; and
being told that he was called Hippolytus, the prefect
said: "Then let him die the death of Hippolytus, and
be dragged by wild horses." By this sentence he re
ferred to the fabled personage who, falling from his
chariot, became entangled in the harness, and being
dragged along by the horses, was torn to pieces.
The executioners accordingly led out two wild horses,
and tying them together, placed a long rope between
them, to the end of which they attached the martyr's
feet; they then frightened the horses away with shouts
and blows; whereupon the saint was heard to say: "O
Lord, let my body be torn, but save my soul."
The horses dragged him over rocks and hedges, leav
ing the entire way sprinkled with his blood, and his torn
flesh and limbs scattered about. These the faithful
diligently collected, and absorbed his blood in sponges.
The relics of this saint, as Prudentius * writes, were
afterwards brought to Rome, where they were held in
great veneration.
1 Perisleph, hymn. 4.
296 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
CHAPTER LXIX.
ST. SYMPHORIAN.
August 22.
FAUSTUS, an exemplary Christian of Autun, in France,
was the father of St. Symphorian, who by reason of the
pious education he received, and being, moreover, as
sisted by divine grace, made such progress in virtue,
that he was held in the highest esteem by all the faith
ful. There were many idolaters in Autun, who formed
an annual procession, in which a statue of the goddess
Cybele was borne on a richly adorned chariot. As
Symphorianus was, on one occasion, passing the proces
sion, he publicly condemned the veneration of the idol,
whereupon he was instantly seized and brought before
Heraclius, the governor, who was at the time searching
out the Christians, in order to compel them to renounce
Jesus Christ.
Heraclius asked our saint why he refused to adore the
goddess Cybele, and received the following answer: " I
am a Christian; and as such, I adore the true God, who
reigns in heaven ; but certainly not the images of the
devil, which I would rather break to pieces." The* gov
ernor asked whether lie was a native citizen; and being
answered by his attendants that he was one of very
noble birth, he said to the saint: u I perceive that thy
noble birth maketh thee rash and disobedient. But
perhaps thou art ignorant of the imperial edicts." He
then ordered that edict of Marcus Aurelius, commanding
all recusants to be tortured, should be read, and added:
"Thou mayest now perceive that thou art guilty of two
CHAP. LXTX.] Sf. Symphorian. 297
crimes — sacrilege towards the gods, and disobedience of
the law; upon continuing obstinate thou shall die."
Symphorian answered: "The God whom I adore is as
rigorous in awarding punishment as he is bounteous in
bestowing rewards; and I never can arrive at the happy
eternity unless I persevere in the faith."
Having made this confession, the governor caused
him to be scourged with rods and sent to prison; but
after some days he sent for the saint, and promised that
he would obtain for him a high post of honor if he
would adore the gods of the Romans. Symphorian,
interrupting him, said: " A judge descends below his
dignity when he endeavors to corrupt innocence. I fear
nothing; for, sooner or later, I must die; nor do I know
of any other honors than those which Jesus Christ
promises me, and which are immense and eternal. The
honors which are in thy power to bestow are like snow
that melts upon the appearance of the sun. Our God
alone can grant us a lasting felicity, by making us par,
takers of his own glory, which, as it never had a begin,
ning, can have no end."
Heraclius, looking sternly at him, said: "My patiencG
is worn out! Instantly sacrifice to Cybele, or I shall
have thee put to death after a lengthened torture.''
Symphorian answered: "I fear only to offend my God,
who is omnipotent. My body is in thy power, but m\
soul thou canst not injure." The saint then proceeded
to expose the inconsistency of paganism, and spoke sc.
powerfully that Heraclius commanded him to be be^
headed without delay, lest he should make some con
verts.
While he was being led to martyrdom, his pious
mother encouraged him in the following words: "Think
of God, my child, and fear not a death that leads thee to
eternal life. Raise thy eyes to heaven, where the Lord
awaits thee in glory. To-day thou diest not, but dost
298 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
change this for a better life." Symphorian thus happily
terminated his triumph.
The Acts of this glorious martyr are found in Rui-
nart.1
CHAPTER LXX.
SS. BONOSUS AND MAXIMILIAN, OFFICERS.
August 21.
JULIAN THE APOSTATE, upon his accession to the em
pire, found an able minister of impiety in the person of
another Julian, his maternal uncle, who, to please the
wicked emperor, also abandoned the faith. While this
impious wretch held the command in the East, two
officers of the army, Bonosus and Maximilian, were ac
cused before him, because they retained the cross
and the adorable name upon their standards, contrary
to the imperial edicts, which ordained that idolatrous
figures should be substituted for these Christian em
blems. The general having received this information,
summoned the Christian officers before him, and told
them that they should change their standards, and wor
ship the gods. The saints replied that they would do
neither.
Whereupon Julian commanded that Bonosus should
1 The faithful secretly carried off the body of St. Symphorian, and
buried it with great veneration. Towards the end of the fourth cen
tury a chapel was built over the tomb, which became celebrated by
many miracles. Other churches and monasteries have been since
erected in several places in his honor. At the cathedral of Autun there
are a few relics that escaped the sacrilegious fury of the Huguenots,
who burnt a part of them in 1570, and the saint has always been greatly
CHAP
LXX ] SS. Bonosits and Maximilian. 299
be tied up and flogged with scourges loaded with lead.
This sentence was most cruelly executed, the number of
lashes which he received being upwards of three hun
dred. During the infliction the general asked the saint
many questions, without receiving any answer, until at
last he said: "We adore the true God, nor do we know
who these gods are whom we are called upon to wor
ship."
Julian then addressed Maximilian, who returned the
same answer that his companion had given, and then
added : " If we must adore your gods, make them capa
ble of hearing and speaking, for it is forbidden us to
worship deaf and dumb divinities." Hereupon the
tyrant caused both the saints to be tortured on the rack;
but rinding that they suffered with great joy, he ordered
them to be thrown into a caldron of boiling pitch, from
which, however, they came forth unhurt, retaining only
some signs of the torments suffered. The idolaters, as
usual, attributed this miraculous preservation to the
magical abilities of the saints ; but the prefect of the
praetorium, Secundus Salustius, although a pagan, de
clared that he wished to examine the matter more mi
nutely. Accordingly, approaching the caldron, instead
of hearing any magical incantation, he heard them prais
ing the Lord, as placidly as if they were in a cold bath.
Overcome with wonder, he proposed to Julian to expose
the priests of their gods to a similar trial, alleging that,
if the devil could preserve the Christians, surely the im
mortal gods would, for their own honor, preserve their
priests, as the God of the Christians was said to preserve
his servants. Julian dreaded the consequences of refus
ing to comply with so reasonable a demand, coming
from such a person, and accordingly delivered up some
pagan priests to the prefect, who ordered them to be
cast into the caldron, whereupon they were instantly
consumed.
300 Martyrs of tfie First Ages. [PART i.
Our saints were then brought back to prison by order
of the tyrant, who commanded that they should receive
no bread but that which bore the impress of an idol, and
the saints declared that they would sooner die of hun
ger than eat it. Meanwhile the brother of Sapor, king
of Persia, Prince Hormisdas, who, being a good Chris
tian, had retired from his own country and lived in the
Roman empire during the reigns of Constantine and
Constantius, paid our saints a visit of devotion, which so
enraged Julian that he threatened to expose the saints
to wild beasts unless they would abandon their faith.
Bonosus answered : "Our God is with us, and therefore
we fear neither men nor beasts." Julian next declared
that he would have them burned alive ; whereupon the
entire crowd of Christians exclaimed that they also
should be burned. Julian, fearing a sedition, requested
the prefect, Secundus Salustius, to take his place and
cause the saints to be again tortured. The prefect,
however, refused to comply, and although a pagan, re
quested Bonosus to pray to his God for him.
Finally, Julian condemned Bonosus and Maximilian,
together with some other Christian prisoners, to be be
headed. They all proceeded joyously to martyrdom,
accompanied by St. Melesius, Bishop of Antioch, and
many other Christians, who congratulated the blessed
martyrs on their happy lot.
On the third day after their triumph the wretched
Julian was seized with a horrible disorder, which so pu
trefied his bowels that he constantly vomited forth
worms. Having suffered the most excruciating tortures,
he at last acknowledged that his punishment was the
effect of divine vengeance, and died in despair.1
The Acts of SS. Bonosus and Maximilian are found
in Ruinart's collection.
1 The wife of this wretched man, who was remarkable for her piety,
did not fail to make him recognize the hand of God in the exquisite tor-
:n. LXXI.I 6Y. Liber atus and Companions. 301
CHAPTER LXXI.
SS. LIBERATUS, ABBOT ; BONIFACE, DEACON ; SERVUS,
KUSTICUS, SUB-DEACONS ; ROGATUS, SEPTIMUS, AND
MAXIMUS, RELIGIOUS.
August 17.
HUNERIC having succeeded Genseric in Africa, raised
a persecution against the Catholics, and, at the sugges
tion of the Arian bishops, published an edict, in the year
485, wherein it was ordained that the Catholic clergy
should be banished into far distant countries. Those
who had been exiled received no other food than such
grain as was given to horses, and even of this they were
soon deprived.1
During this persecution, seven Religious of a monas
tery in the province of Byzacena were incarcerated:
they were — Liberatus, the abbot ; Boniface, deacon ;
Servus and Rusticus, sub-deacons ; Rogatus, Septimus,
and Maximus, simple monks. They were at first tempted
with promises of riches, honors, and the favor of the
sovereign, but answered : " We hold in contempt all that
you can promise. As we acknowledge but one God,
there can be but one faith. Do unto us as it pleaseth
tures which he suffered during the frightful disease that terminated his
wicked life. Moved by the exhortations of this pious lady, and by his
own sufferings, he wrote to the emperor to restore the Christian religion;
but his prayer was unheeded by the arch-apostate, and he died the vic
tim of God's wrath. It is said that he invoked the mercy of the Lord in
his last moments; but we know that "///«• death of t lie wicked is rerv
evil" — Ps. xxxiii., and we have reason to tremble for the sincerity of
that sorrow which is elicited by bodily pain. — ED.
1 See Chapters XVII. and LXXV,
302 Martyrs of the First Ages. IPART i.
you; we are willing to suffer all temporal punishments
rather than suffer everlastingly." After this protesta
tion they were sent to prison, instructions having been
given to the jailers so to maltreat them that they would
relent.
The Christians at Carthage, notwithstanding, by
bribing the guards, procured admission to them, and
administered whatever relief they could afford. Infor
mation to this effect having reached Huneric, he gave
orders that they should be more closely confined; but,
perceiving that their constancy was superior to all suf
ferings, he ordered that a boat should be filled with dry
sticks, and that, the seven Religious being bound thereto,
the pile should be fired at sea. While they were being
led to the shore they exhorted the faithful to remain
steadfast in the faith, and called that day "the day of
their salvation."
The soldiers who were guarding them endeavored to
seduce Maximus, who was very young, telling him not
to imitate his foolish companions, when he might expect
a happy life in a king's court ; but Maximus replied:
" In vain you endeavor to separate me from my breth
ren. I am anxious to suffer martyrdom with them, and
God will grant us grace that we be not divided."
The martyrs were brought into the boat and tied upon
the wood; but although the soldiers made several at
tempts to kindle it, they found it impossible to do so.
This miracle, instead of converting the tyrant, enraged
him still more, and he commanded the soldiers to beat
out the brains of the martyrs with the oars. This bru
tal order was instantly executed, and the bodies of the
saints were thrown into the sea, but the tide cast them
ashore, and the clergy and faithful of Carthage gave
them honorable burial. The Church celebrates the
memory of these martyrs on the iyth August.
en. LXXII.] SS. Seraphia and Sabina. 303
CHAPTER LXXII.
ST. SERAPHIA, VIRGIN; AND ST. SABINA, WIDOW.
August 29 and September 3.
ST. SERAPHIA was born at Antioch, of Christian parents,
who, to avoid the persecution, retired to Italy, where
they died soon after. Many Roman gentlemen, admir
ing the extraordinary beauty of Seraphia, paid their ad
dresses to her; but she, unwilling to have any other
spouse than Jesus Christ, refused these honorable pro
posals, and preferred becoming a servant to a Roman
lady named Sabina who was at that time a young wid
ow. This lady was a pagan, but Seraphia in the space
of two months gained her warmest affection, and being
full of the Spirit of God, converted her to the faith;
whereupon she persuaded her to retire from the tumult
of Rome to one of her estates in Umbria. She was ac
companied hither not only by Seraphia, but by some
other Christian virgins, and her country seat thus be
came a seminary of saints.
The persecution was renewed in the year 125, and
Beryllus, the governor of Umbria, knowing that there
were many Christian ladies at the residence of Sabina,
ordered that they should be brought before him. Sabina
at first refused to obey the order; but Seraphia, whose
confidence in Jesus Christ was great, besought of her to
let her go alone to the governor, since she hoped that
the Lord would grant her strength. Sabina, after much
ado, consented, but resolved on accompanying her.
Beryllus received Sabina with every mark of respect due
to her rank, and expressed his surprise that a lady of her
quality would follow the abject sect of the Christians, at
304 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
the persuasion of a witch, for so he called Seraphia,
whom he knew to have been the cause of her conver
sion.
The governor on this occasion allowed Sabina to re
turn home with Seraphia; but a few days afterwards he
caused the latter to be arrested. Sabina followed her
on foot, and used all her endeavors to prevent the mal
treatment of her dear friend ; but Beryllus, nothing
moved by her entreaties, called upon Seraphia to sacri
fice to the gods. The holy virgin answered that she
was a Christian, that she neither acknowledged nor
feared any other than the one true God, and that it was
to her a matter of surprise how she could be called upon
to worship demons. The governor said: " Let me see
thee sacrifice to thy Christ." The saint replied: "Day
and night I sacrifice myself to him." Beryllus asked:
"And what sort of sacrifice is this? to offer thyself to
thy Christ!" Seraphia answered: "The sacrifice of a
good life is the most pleasing to him which I can
offer."
Beryllus hereupon delivered her up to the pleasure
of two infamous young men, but they were deterred by
an angel, who struck them almost lifeless to the earth.
When the governor asked the saint by what incantation
she had produced this effect, she answered that the
Christians used no incantations but holy prayer, and
confidence in their God who protects them. Beryllus
exclaimed in a rage: "Instantly sacrifice to Jove, or be
prepared to receive immediate death." Seraphia re
plied: "This thy threat is tome the greatest possible
consolation, since I esteem no happiness so great as that
of being enabled to offer my life as a sacrifice to my
God." The governor, still more infuriated by this dec
laration, Caused her to be cruelly beaten with clubs;
and finding her constancy invincible, finally ordered her
head to be struck off.
CH. LXXII i SS. Scrap kia and Sabina. 305
Sabina, immediately after her death, procured the
body of the martyred virgin, and gave it most honorable
burial; after which she led a very retired life in her own
house, and night and day besought her departed friend
to obtain for her also the grace to terminate her course
by martyrdom. She was soon consoled; for Beryllus,
who had permitted her to return to her house unmolested,
out of respect to her rank, was promoted to the prefec
ture, and was succeeded in the government of Umbria,
by Elpidius, who summoned Sabina before him; and
having grievously maltreated her, sent her to prison.
Upon reaching the prison doors she found herself filled
with holy joy, and exclaimed: "And is it then possible
that I am to be admitted to a participation of the glory
which my Seraphia enjoys ? She undoubtedly has ob
tained for me this great privilege."
On the day following, Elpidius summoned her before
him, and said: " How is it possible that thou couldst so
far forget thy rank as to follow those abject Christians,
who glory in beggary, and madly despise both honors
and life itself? One needs must have a mean soul to
follow so mean a course." The saint answered: "Thou
hast, sir, a false idea of the Christian religion, and art
ignorant of its true nobility and real excellence. It is
no meanness to despise the goods of this earth in order
to attain to those of heaven. It is no disgrace, then, to
be a Christian; but it is a real disgrace, meanness, and
infamy to kneel down before idols, that have no other
merit than that of the materials from which they were
formed, or of the workmanship of the hands that made
them."
After this answer Elpidius resolved to cease threaten
ing, and in the mildest manner said to her : " The em
perors adore these our gods, and thou shouldst also
adore them. Do not oblige me to treat thee with rigor."
Sabina replied : " My life is in thy power ; over my faith
306 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
thou hast no control. I will adore none but the true
God." Hereupon Elpidius condemned her to be be
headed. On hearing the sentence the saint exclaimed :
" I thank Thee, O my God, for the favor Thou hast done
me, and into Thy hands I commend my spirit." After
these words the executioner struck off her head. Her
martyrdom happened on the 2Qth of August, the day
upon which, in the preceding year, her companion St.
Seraphia had received the crown.
The bodies of these two saints were brought to Rome
in the year 430, and placed in a church which was built
in honor of St. Sabina, upon the Aventine Mount.
CHAPTER LXXIII.
ss. CYPRIAN, MAGICIAN; AND JUSTINA, VIRGIN.
September 29.
CYPRIAN was born at Antioch l in Syria, of a noble and
opulent family, who, being pagans, educated him in the
superstitious idolatry, and particularly in the practice of
magic, wherein he made such progress by reason of his
great talents that he was accounted the most famous
magician of Greece. Having become familiar with dia
bolical practices, there was no sort of abomination too
hideous for him to undertake ; and he even went so far as
to bleed children to death, in order to offer their blood to
demons. This impious life he continued to his thirtieth
year, when it pleased the Almighty to make him an illus
trious example of his rreat mercy.
His conversion happened in the following manner :
1 A city which, according to Alban Butler, must not be confounded
with the ancient capital of Syria; it was situated between Syria and
Arabia, and depended on the government of Phenicia. — ED.
CH. LXXIII.] 6\5l Cyprian and Justina* 307
There lived at Antioch a young lady called Justina,
who, notwithstanding that her parents were idolaters,
had embraced the faith upon hearinga Christian sermon,
and had consecrated herself to God by a vow of virgin
ity. Her extraordinary beauty drew the attention of a
young gentleman named Agladius, who used all his en
deavors to persuade her to become his wife, but being
continually repulsed, had recourse to Cyprian, in order
that he might change her resolution by some magic spell.
The wizard used all his arts in vain; and St. Gregory
writes that the devil made use of all his temptations to ef
fect her fall, but that the holy virgin placed herself under
the protection of the Mother of purity, and thus remained
faithful to her vow. Cyprian upbraided the devil with
his impotency in not being able to overcome a young
virgin, but he was answered that she was rendered in
vincible by the God of the Christians. u Since, then,"
said Cyprian, "the God of the Christians is more power
ful than thou art, I will rather serve him than thee."
Cyprian forthwith proceeded to a priest, named Euse-
bius, who had been a friend of his, and from this clergy
man he received great comfort and encouragement, par
ticularly against temptation to despair, with which the
devil continually afflicted him by upbraiding him with
his past enormities. By the charitable assistance of
this holy priest, Cyprian, once a monster of fiendish de
formity, became a most exemplary Christian, and worked
the conversion of many idolaters. It has even been as
serted that upon the death of the Bishop of Antioch
Cyprian was raised to that see.
In the persecution of Diocletian, Cyprian and Justina
were both arrested by Eutolmus. governor of Phenicia,
who upon their resolute confession of the faith caused
Justina to be scourged and Cyprian to be inhumanly
torn with iron hooks. He then sent them into separate
dungeons ; and every endeavor to pervert them having
308 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PART i.
proved useless, he caused them to be immersed in a cal
dron of boiling pitch. The two saints having come forth
unhurt, were by the governor sent to the emperor, who
ordered them to be beheaded. This sentence was exe
cuted on the 26th September. Their relics were brought
to Rome, and a pious lady named Rufina afterwards
caused a small church to be built over them. They were
thence removed into the Lateran Basilica.
CHAPTER LXXIV,
SS. HERMOLAUS, PRIEST; AND PANTALEON, PHYSICIAN.
July 27.
PANTALEON was a native of Nicomedia. His father
Eustorgius was a pagan; and his Christian mother Eu-
bula dying while he was yet a child, he was educated an
idolater. He studied medicine with such success, that
the Emperor Maximilian l appointed him his physician.
One day as our saint was discoursing with a holy priest
named Hermolaus, the latter, after praising the study of
medicine, concluded thus : " But, my friend, of what use
are all thy acquirements in this art, since thou art igno
rant of the science of salvation ?" This expression gave
rise to a discourse, in which Hermolaus explained the
1 It was to Galerius Maximianus that our saint was physician. This
emperor conceived a great liking for him, on account of his great talents
and extraordinary beauty, and placed him under the tuition of the cele
brated Euphrosymus. It has been said of St. Pantaleon that he had
apostatized upon his reception at court, and that St. Hermolaus merely
encouraged him to retract this false step ; but the Acts state that he was
baptized by his friend, and although he himself says that his mother ex
horted him to profess the Christian religion, it does not appear that he
ever did so previously to hij baptism. — ED.
CH. LXXIV.I
Hermolaus and Pantaleon. 309
principal truths of our faith ; so that the physician was
obliged to confess that, in order to be truly happy, it is
necessary to be a Christian. Some time after it hap
pened that Pantaleon, in one of his walks, found a child
lying dead from the recent bite of a viper, and by the
impulse of a sudden inspiration said to the child : " In
the name of Jesus Christ, arise !" The child instantly
arose, and Pantaleon proceeded forthwith in search of
St. Hermolaus, from whom he received the sacrament
of baptism.1
Having once experienced the blessings of the true
faith, our saint wished to communicate them to his
father, for whose infidelity he grieved much. One day
the old man, having asked him the cause of his sorrowful
appearance, he answered : " Father, the extravagances of
Our religion are to me a matter of great concern. If our
gods have been men, how did they afterwards become
divinities ? Again, many idols are formed from the same
clay of which pots are made. How, then, can we offer
sacrifice to these idols, which are nothing more than
blind statues ?" The father was greatly moved hereat ;
and a blind person arriving shortly afterwards to pro
cure some medicine from the saint, he invoked over him
the name of Jesus, and his sight was instantly restored.
Upon this miracle the blind man and the saint's father
were converted, and subsequently baptized.
By these circumstances Pantaleon was discovered to
be a Christian, and was accused before the emperor as
such. Maximilian sent for him who had been blind, and
made inquiry concerning his cure. The man related the
fact as it had taken place, and acknowledged that he had
thereupon become a Christian. In vain did the emperor
endeavor to persuade him that he had been cured not
by Jesus Christ, but by the gods. The other answered :
1 From this circumstance it may be supposed that Hermolaus was a
priest ; the Acts are silent on this point. — ED.
3io Martyrs of the First Ages. IPART i.
" How is it possible, O prince, that the gods, who are
themselves blind, can grant sight to others ?" Mortified
by this answer, the emperor caused his head to be in
stantly struck off, and then sent for Pantaleon, whom he
upbraided with ingratitude for embracing the Christian
religion after having been by him loaded with honors
and riches. The saint answered : " It is not unknown
to thy majesty that we are all aware of the origin of
those gods, their passions and their crimes ; how then
can we adore as gods men who have signalized them
selves only by their impiety ? O prince ! there is but
one true God, and he is the God of the Christians. Let
us in this presence give a proof of the truth of our
faith."
The emperor assented, and a person afflicted with an
incurable disease was produced. In vain did the idola
ters offer prayers and sacrifice for his relief; but no
sooner did Pantaleon make the sign of the cross, and in
voke the name of Jesus, than the sick person exclaimed:
" I am cured ! I am cured ! There is no other god than
the God of the Christians !" The emperor endeavored
to satisfy the spectators of this miracle that it was the
effect of incantation and magic. Vain attempt ! the
greater part were converted, and rendered willing and
public testimony to the power of Jesus Christ.
Maximilian, enraged hereat, caused Pantaleon to be
led out into one of the public squares, where he was torn
with iron hooks, and his wounds burned with torches.
He was then thrown into a vessel of liquid lead, from
which, however, he came forth perfectly cured. The
emperor then commanded him to be cast into the sea,
with a millstone tied to his neck ; but the execution of
this sentence proved also ineffectual. The saint was
next bound to a tree, in order to be cut to pieces by the
swords of the executioners ; their weapons, however, fell
upon him as though they had been made of wax.
CH. LXXV.] St. Felix and Companions. 311
The tyrant, nothing moved by these evident marks of
God's protection, ordered his head to be struck off, and
there issued therefrom blood, and a white liquor like
milk.
St. Hermolaus was the next victim.1 At his prayers
an earthquake shook the entire city, and all the idols
were laid prostrate ; whereupon Maximilian thought it
advisable to despatch him at once, and he was accord
ingly beheaded.
The relics of St. Pantaleon were translated to Con
stantinople, and afterwards brought into France. At
Ravello, a city in the kingdom of Naples, there is a vial
of his blood, which becomes liquid every year, and may
be seen in this state interspersed with the milk, as I, the
author of this work, have seen it.
CHAPTER LXXV.
ST. FELIX, BISHOP OF ABBIR, AND OTHER HOLY MARTYRS
AND CONFESSORS OF THE VANDALIC PERSECUTION.
October 12.
HUNERIC, king of the Vandals, having resolved to ex
tinguish the Catholic religion in Africa, and to establish
there the Arian heresy, by one decree alone banished
bishops, priests, and other ecclesiastics,2 to the number
of four thousand nine hundred and seventy-six. Among
these was St. Felix, Bishop of Abbir, who being afflicted
with paralysis, could neither walk nor speak. Some
persons were so moved to compassion for the helpless
1 St. Hermolaus and his two companions, Hermippus and Hermoc-
rates, suffered before St. Pantaleon. — En.
* See Chapters XVII. and LXXI.
i 2
Martyrs of the I^irsl Ages. [PART i.
state of the venerable prelate, that they besought the
king to let him die at Carthage ; but he replied : " If
Felix cannot sit upon a horse, you may tie him to two
oxen, who will drag him to the place of his banishment."
He was accordingly fastened upon a mule and so borne
away, not without exciting the compassion of all who
beheld him.
The other holy confessors who had been condemned
to banishment were to be driven into the desert by the
Moors ;' and the two officers to whom this barbarous
commission had been given thought that they could in
duce these persecuted ecclesiastics to submit to the
washes of the king. This proposal having been rejected
with horror, they were shut up in prison, where, how
ever, they were at first treated with comparative lenity,
as the Catholics were permitted to visit them, and to
bring them some nourishment.
This indulgence was afterwards not only denied, but
the confessors were crowded into dark and narrow dun
geons, so that the filth and noisomeness of the place
was absolutely intolerable. St. Victor Vitensis, by
bribing the Moors, obtained a few interviews with the
sufferers, whom he endeavored thus to console ; and he
assures us that upon entering he had to stand up to
his knees in filth. Notwithstanding all the hardships
which these true lovers of Jesus Christ had to endure,
and although many of them had died from this cause,
and many of hunger, yet did the constancy of the sur
vivors remain unshaken.
The time appointed for their departure having ar
rived, they were led out, from what might be more
properly called sewers than dungeons, to be driven for
ward by the Moors ; and although their clothes and
faces were besmeared with filth, they nevertheless man-
1 Our author means the aboriginal inhabitants, now called " Ber
bers."— ED.
CH. LXXV.] St, Felix and Companions, 313
ifested a holy joy, while they chanted from the
Psalm : " This glory is unto all his saints." The roads
through which they passed wene lined with Catholics,
who had repaired thither, many of them bearing lighted
tapers, as if to honor their triumph, and others bring
ing their children to kiss the ground that had been
trodden by the martyrs. Among the pious sufferers
were many children who had been employed in the ser
vice of the churches ; and these were followed by their
mothers, some of whom rejoiced at being thus made
the parents of martyrs, while others, influenced by car
nal affection, in vain endeavored to prevail on the chil
dren to consent to Arianism. Among the former was
an aged matron, who carried a bag with some bread in
one hand, and was leading a boy by the other, while
she said to him : " Hasten, my child, hasten. Dost thou
not see how joyously the martyrs hurry towards the
crown ?" Being asked why she said so, she answered :
" Pray for me, I beseech ye, pray for me, and for this
my little grandson. I come with this child into exile,
in order that the enemy find him not alone, and so pre
cipitate him into hell."
Meanwhile the barbarians hurried the holy confessors
towards the desert ; and, as the old men and children
were unable to keep pace with the rest, they were
goaded on with spears and pelted with stones. But the
more they were harassed, the less able they were to ac
complish their task ; so that this gave occasion to an
other diabolical cruelty, for they were tied by the feet
and dragged over stones and briers. Many expired in
this way ; and indeed they were only the most robust
that arrived, worn and lacerated, at the place of their
exile.
This was a desert, tilled with serpents and most ven
omous scorpions, but they did no harm to any of the
314 Martyrs of the First Ages. [PARTI.
servants of God. They were for some time supported
here with barley, like beasts, but even of this food they
were afterwards deprived. Yet St. Victor, who wrote
a history of this persecution, and was himself one of the
persecuted bishops, observes that the Lord did not fail
to succor his servants when they were deprived of every
human aid.
PART II.
iHartnrs of Sapan.
NOTICE.1
I WILL add here the victories of those martyrs who in
the islands of Japan suffered death in order to profess
their faith in Jesus Christ. In giving their history I
have selected the most heroic and the most wonderful
traits by which they signalized their zeal for the Chris
tian religion. I trust that my readers will be very well
pleased to see in the midst of a barbarous nation so
1 This notice is wanting in several Italian editions ; we find it in the
Turin edition of 1831. St. Alphonsus seems to have based his narrative
on the work of Father Crasset, " History of the Church in Japan," pub
lished at first under the pseudonym of " M. 1'Abbe T."
The empire of Japan, situated northwest of China, is composed of a
great number of islands, the area of which is about the same as that of
California, which lies due east, and its population is nearly equal to that
of the United States. Its capital is Tokio, formerly called Jedo. Al
though within the last half-century the Japanese have been compelled
to change their foreign policy, and have even sent several embassies to
Europe, still, as late as 1870, 4000 Christians from one valley alone
were exiled for their faith.
It was on the isth of August, 1549, triat St- Francis Xavier landed in
Japan to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Forty years afterwards
there were seen a great number of servants of the true God in every con
dition of life, some of them even near the throne ; the Christian religion
was dominant in several kingdoms, so that towards the beginning of the
1 7th century, according to trustworthy writers, the church in Japan
numbered two million Catholics. — ED.
316 The Martyrs of ^fapan. [PART n.
many Christians, — men, women, children, old people —
after they had embraced the faith, seeking with eager
ness the opportunity to die for Jesus Christ, and mani
festing their joy at being able to suffer for him the most
cruel torments.
In obedience to the decree of Urban VIII. I protest
that in giving the appellation of Saint or Martyr to any
servant of God, I only intend to do so according to the
usage and opinion of men, since it is reserved to the
Church to decree by divine authority these titles, when
it shall please the Lord.
CHAPTER I.
MIRACULOUS CROSS FOUND NEAR ARIMA PERSECUTION IN
THE KINGDOM OF BUNCO JORAM MACAMA — COURAGE OF
THE CHRISTIANS.
1586-1589.
OUR European priests who undertook to evangelize
Japan were at first very successful ; but in the year
1586 God made known by several signs the approach of
a long and bloody persecution that was menacing the
rising church. Among these signs the following is par
ticularly remarkable :
The King of Arima, named Protasius1, a good and
zealous Christian, had a vision in which there appeared
to him two persons of celestial exterior, who thus spoke
to him : "Know that on the lands over which you rule
the sign of Jesus is found ; honor and love it much, for
1 Protasius was his baptismal name, and he took the name of John
whsn he received confirmation. We may read about his heroic death in
Chapter VII.— En
CHAP, i.] Miraculous Cross. Joram Macama. 3 1 /
it is not the work of man." Six months afterwards, it
happened that a fervent Christian, by the name of Leo,
from the neighborhood of Arima, sent his son Michael to
the woods for the purpose of cutting firewood. On his
arrival the young man perceived a tree that was some
what dried up, of the kind called in that country Tara ;
he cut it down, split it in two, and found inserted in the
middle of it a cross of a brown color and of a regular
form. At the sight of this prodigy every one was struck
with astonishment. As soon as the king heard of this,
he went himself to the place, and on seeing the cross he
cried out : " Behold the sign of Jesus, that I was told
was hidden in my dominions, and that was not made
by the hand of man." He then fell on his knees,
and after having venerated it amidst many tears,
he had it carried to Arima, where by his order it was
framed in a magnificent crystal. This miraculous cross
brought about the conversion of twenty thousand idola
trous inhabitants of this country.
But let us return to the martyrs. The persecution
begun by the emperor in 1587 became about three
years afterwards very sanguinary in the Christian king
dom of Bungo ; and the first victory that I find de
scribed in Japan is that of a good old man of Funai,
named Joram Macama. He was a soldier when he em
braced Christianity, and afterwards converted his whole
family ; he subsequently spent his time in instructing
the pagans and aiding the faithful. The King of Bungo
having apostatized, commanded three of his officers to
put him to death. They went in search of him ; but
fearing the valor of which Joram had given proofs in
war, they took with them by way of precaution an escort
of one hundred men. Anticipating their arrival, Joram
took leave of his wife and children, sent them to another
place and remained alone in the house, preparing him
self for death. He did not even wish to keep his sword
3 1 8 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
near him, and the night in which he was to die he spent
in prayer before the crucifix.
Towards midnight the soldiers approached the house
to see whether he was armed. The saintly old man,
perceiving them, told them that they had nothing to fear,
because, far from fleeing from them, he was waiting for
them. He then took a cross in his hand, placed a rosary
around his neck, and having knelt down gave thanks to
God for allowing him to die for his name, and even
thanked the soldiers, because by the death-blow they
were going to give him they would procure for him
eternal happiness. Then having received three stabs in
his breast, he presented his neck, and while pronouncing
the names of Jesus and Mary three blows of the cimeter
deprived him of life. The faithful hastened to take
away his body and to bury it. This so enraged the king
that he put to death the wife and children of the valiant
martyr, as also many other Christians.
The tyrant by these first acts of cruelty inspired the
Christians with great fear ; when, however, they heard
of the noble death of Joram and of other Christians,
especially of that of another Christian named Joachim,
who had also been put to death by the king, instead of
being intimidated they appeared publicly with the ro
sary around the neck, testifying thereby that far from
fearing death they had a longing for it. A woman
named Mary, to whom the king before his apostasy had
made a present of a rosary, had the courage to wear it
in the palace before his very eyes. The prince having
asked the reason why she did so, she answered : "Sire,
the presents of kings must be highly esteemed ; it was
your Majesty who gave me this rosary, and I glory in
wearing it." The tyrant seeing the Christians so reso
lute, and fearing that a tumult might arise, was content
for the present to conceal the hatred that he bore them,
in order to revenge himself at a more favorable time.
CHAP, n.i Martyrs Crucified at Nangasaki. 319
CHAPTER II.
PERSECUTION BY THE EMPEROR TAICOSAMA — GREAT ZEAL
OF THK CHRISTIANS TWENTY-SIX MARTYRS CRUCIFIED
AT NANGASAKI.
1596-1597.
TAICOSAMA having in 1582 ascended the imperial
throne, was at first favorable to the missionaries; but
four or five years afterwards, beginning to distrust and
to hate them exceedingly, he published an edict which
proscribed the Christian religion in his whole empire.
He did not, however, push to extremes; for during sev
eral years he contented himself with forbidding all re
ligious manifestations, and the faith continued to be
propagated unnoticed.
On December 9, 1596, feeling again incensed against
the servants of the true God, the emperor ordered the
governor of Meaco, as also the governor of Ozaca,
where the religious of St. Francis were establi^ied, to
arrest these Fathers and to draw up a list of the Chris
tians who frequented their churches. Here follows
what Father Peter Baptist, the Superior of the Francis
cans, wrote at that time to a religious of his Order:
" The first day on which guards were placed before our
door the Christians confessed and passed the whole
night in prayer ; for we had been informed that we
were to be put to death on the following day. I gave
Holy Communion to all our brethren, as if for the last
time. Then each one provided himself with a cross to
carry in the hand while going to the place of execution.
Our Christians filled me with consolation by the ardent
desire which they displayed to die for Jesus Christ.
320 Tkc Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
When the news spread that the latter had been con
demned to death, many others came from different
places to join them. ' We must once die,' they said.
'We all desire that this may be for the glory of God, and
we pray him to give us the grace to do so ; help us to
obtain this from the divine Goodness.' '
During this time were witnessed a large number of
wonderful examples, some of which we will now quote.
Prince Ucondono, a distinguished general, to whom
Taicosama was indebted for his empire, was living for
six years in exile, because he had refused to abjure his
faith. He had been stripped of his dignities, deprived
of his estates, his old father, his wife, and his large
family sharing in the same privations ; yet they es
teemed themselves happy in being able to suffer for
Jesus Christ. When he heard of the persecution, he
took leave of the king of Canga, under whose super
vision he had been placed and whose friendship he en
joyed on account of his great virtue. The latter as
sured him that the court was not thinking of him ; but
the noble Ucondono answered : " My dear prince, the
greatest happiness in which I can delight in this world
is to die for the faith that 1 profess. Whatever may be
the assurance that you give me, I am going to prepare
myself for death." He immediately set out for Meaco.
The fervor of the two sons of Genifonio, who was a
pagan and prime-minister of the emperor, and who was
ignorant of the fact that his sons had received baptism,
was not less great than that of Prince Justus Ucondono.
The elder son, aged twenty years, was named Paul
Sacondono. He enjoyed the favor of the emperor, and
was commander of a fortress that was far away from
the capital. Having heard that all the Fathers, as well
as the bishops, had been arrested, and that all the Chris
tians were to be put to death, lie at once dispatched
two couriers, one to Meaco and the other to Ozaca, in
CHAP, i i.i Martyrs Crucified at Nangasaki. 321
order to assure himself of the truth. While waiting he
began to reflect on the best means to attain martyrdom.
He at first thought of showing himself publicly at the
capital, so as to be arrested ; but fearing that no one
would dare to lay his hand upon him if he were seen
clad in his ordinary costume, he had his hair cut off and
disguised himself as an ecclesiastic, being resolved to
appear there with eight of his faithful Christian ser
vants. Only one among them showed any sign of incon
stancy, because he had been but recently baptized.
Sacondono advised him not to expose himself with the
others; but he generously answered: " My lord, I well
know what the eternal salvation of my soul is worth ;
since martyrdom is the shortest road to gain it, I pre
fer it, and I make no more account of my life than I do
of the dust under my feet." Satisfied with this answer
the young lord went to his room, where, prostrate on
the floor, he prayed fervently to God to make him
worthy to die for the love of him. Then he wrote to
his parents to inform them that he was a Christian, and
that he had formed the resolution to die for his faith.
In this disposition he made a general confession, and
prepared himself for death.
His brother's name was Constantine. He arrived at
Meaco with one of his cousins named Michael, where he
received the fatal news. He cried out : " Oh we have
just come in time to be martyrs." He immediately
went to Fucino, where his father was, and declared to
him that he was a Christian. The minister, who tender
ly loved his son, was astonished ; he took him aside and
said to him : "But, my son, if the emperor commands
me to put to death all Christians, it will be necessary
for me to make you die with them." Constantine an
swered : "My father, I have declared to you that I am
a Christian, not that I may avoid death, but that you
may regulate your affairs. As for me, I am ready to
322 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
die by the hand of the executioner, and even by your
own hand, rather than disobey God ; you certainly do
not wish, I think, that I should cast myself into hell
merely to please a prince." Genifonio communicated
this source of affliction to his wife, and both were
plunged into the deepest grief. Michael happening to
call upon his sorrowing aunt, she entreated him to use
every effort to dissuade Constantine from rushing head
long to so premature a death. Nevertheless both re
turned to Meaco in order to find there an opportunity
to be inscribed on the list of martyrs.
About this time two other gentlemen came to Meaco
to sacrifice their lives for the faith ; and not having
been able to obtain what they desired, they begged
their friends to notify them when the favorable moment
should arrive.
We must also make mention of a gentleman of Bun-
go, named Andrew Ongazavara, who after the martyr
dom of the saintly Joram, of whom we have spoken in the
previous chapter, carried off at night the cross that the
latter wore around his neck. Since that time he lived
retired at Ozaca with his old father, his wife, and his
young child. When this brave man learned that a list
was being made up of Christians who were doomed to
die, he not only courageously prepared himself for
death, but he also advised his own father to prepare for
death, although he was eighty years of age, and had
been baptized only six months before. He had been all
his life a redoubtable warrior, and was still vigorous.
Andrew exhorted him to gain the palm of martyrdom
by informing him that it was gained not by the force of
arms, but by humility and patience. " But," cried out
the old soldier indignantly, "may a man of honor allow
himself to be killed like a coward ?" Andrew, knowing
that all this pride came from his little knowledge of
Christian maxims, said to him : " My dear father, you
CHAP, ii.] Martyrs Crucified at Nangasaki. 323
have given too many proofs of your valor; for no one
will think of reproaching you with cowardice, if you
give your life for Jesus Christ without defending it.
If, however, this manner of acting does not please you,
retire at least for a short time into the country; you
will there preserve your life and honor." Becoming
yet more indignant, the old man replied that he had
always been incapable of such baseness, which would
be worse than the first offer that had been made him,
for to do such a thing would look as if he were fleeing
to save his life. Andrew, however, saw that his object
was attained in another way ; for the good old man,
filled with emotion, entered the apartments of his
daughter-in-law, whom he found occupied in working
at her festive garments ; he also perceived the servants
preparing their rosaries, crosses, and reliquaries for the
day of their martyrdom. He asked what all this signi
fied, and they informed him with a joyful air that all
were preparing themselves to die for Jesus Christ.
These few words and their example made such an im
pression on his mind, that, renouncing the maxims of
the world, he also took a rosary, and said that he
wished to die with them.
We may also see at this time the generosity of several
Christian women of Meaco. Having learned that the
persecution had been proclaimed, they assembled at the
house of one of them, named Mary, in order to be al
ways prepared for martyrdom ; and each one had taken
care to take with her her nuptial garment, that is, the
garment in which she wished to die. There was a
person of very high rank, who, fearing that she would on
this account escape being prosecuted by the law, went
secretly to Mary's house, in order to die with the rest.
Mary had living with her an adopted child, named
Gratia, ten years of age ; she endeavored to persuade
her to return to her father's house in order to avert the
324 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
danger of being crucified ; but the child answered with
firmness : " No ; I wish to die with you, because I am a
Christian. Have no fear for me ; as long as I shall be
with you I shall not fear death." Mary was greatly
consoled to hear such language from the mouth of her
dear child, which was an effect of divine grace. Being
quite ready, one of the women said to her companions :
" I am resolved to die for the faith ; but if you ever see
me tremble at the sight of death, I beg you to drag me
forcibly before the executioners, in order that I may
not fail in having a share in your crown."
Such were the dispositions of these fervent neophytes
at the moment when it was believed that all the faithful
were going to be nailed to the cross ; but as to the ma
jority of them, Heaven was satisfied with their good
will. The governor of Meaco, though a pagan, tried his
utmost to mitigate the sanguinary order that the em
peror had given him, and he finally succeeded in having
the number reduced to twenty-four. The emperor had
commanded that their noses and ears should be cut off ;
but the governor had only the end of the left ear cut
off. This was done January 3, 1597, in the grand
square of Meaco. The twenty-four condemned persons
were then placed upon eight carts, and were ignomini-
ously conducted through the streets, being preceded by
an officer who carried at the end of a pike a sign on
which could be read the sentences pronounced against
them, because they had preached Christian doctrine
that was proscribed in the empire. The entire popula
tion was moved to tears on seeing the modesty, sweet
ness, and even joy of these pretended criminals, so
that their humiliation was changed into a triumph.
Many Christians went so far as to beg the soldiers to
put them among the number of the condemned, that
they might die with them ; but the favor was refused.
When the martyrs had returned to the prison they rap-
CHAP. ii. i Martyrs Crucified at Nangasaki. 325
turously embraced one another, rejoicing at the happy
death that awaited them. This filled the guards with
astonishment, and made them say : " What kind of men
are these who rejoice amidst torments and every sort
of insult ?"
On the following day, January 4, they were placed
upon beasts of burden, to be transported to Nangasaki,
the place of execution, where they arrived after a jour
ney lasting a month. While passing through Ozaca
and Sacaia, they were exposed as at Meaco to the gaze
of the people ; but the effect produced was quite con
trary to what their enemies expected. In this long
journey the severity of the season added not a little to
the sufferings of these holy martyrs , jet a large num
ber of the faithful accompanied them, bestowing upon
them everywhere marks of sympathy and veneration.
Peter Sukegiro and Francis Fahelente, two fervent
Christians, had not ceased for an instant to follow them,
and with an invincible courage to assist them in their
wants. Their faith and their charity were handsomely
rewarded ; for the guards, seeing that nothing could
repel them, concluded to make them prisoners and to
add their names to the list of the condemned. Thus
was the number of martyrs increased to twenty-six.
They arrived at Nangasaki on February 4. On the
following day they were conducted to a hill situated
near the city, where the instruments of death had been
prepared. When they saw the crosses that were des
tined for them on their Calvary, these courageous ath
letes gave themselves up to transports of joy, and each
one hastened to place himself at his post. Their limbs
and the middle of the body were then tied to their
crosses with cords, according to the custom of the
country ; a collar of iron was put round their necks ;
afterwards the crosses were raised simultaneously and
fixed in the ground, all being in one row, with their
326 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART IT.
faces turned to the south, in the direction of the city.
Father Peter Baptist intoned the canticle Benedictus,
and his companions joined their voices to his. Soon
after, each one was pierced with two lances which,
thrust into the sides, crossed each other in the breast
and came out at the shoulders. At this moment a
large number of the faithful who had surrounded the
hill, uttering cries and saying, u Jesus, Mary," made
their way through the line of the soldiers, entering the
enclosure, to gather up the blood of the martyrs with
cloths and procure for themselves a part of their gar
ments. We are told that, a heavenly light was shining
above their bodies, and that for a long time many stars
appeared over the hill.1
1 These twenty-six martyrs, beatified in 1627 by Pope Urban VIII.,
were canonized by Pius IX., June 8, 1862, on the feast of Pentecost,
in the presence of about three hundred bishops who had come from all
parts of the world. Their feast is fixed for the 5th of February, the
day on which they consummated their sacrifice. The following are
their names and their rank :
Six Franciscan Religious ; namely, the three priests, Fathers Peter
Baptist, aged fifty-two ; Martin de Aguirre, or of the Ascension, aged
thirty; and Francis Blanco, aged thirty — all Spaniards ; one cleric,
Philip of Jesus or Las Casas, aged twenty-three, born in Mexico ; two
lay-brothers, Francis of St. Michael, aged fifty-four, a Spaniard, and
Gonzalvo Garcia, aged twenty-five, born in the Indies of Portuguese
parents.
Seventeen Japanese who, before going to execution, were received
into the Third Order of St. Francis ; namely, Michael Cozaki and his
son Thomas, aged fourteen ; Anthony, aged thirteen ; Paul Ibarki and
his younger brother, Leo Garazuma, with their nephew Louis, a boy
of eleven ; Paul Suzuki ; Francis, a physician of Meaco, aged forty-
six; Come Toja or Takia ; Thomas Danki ; Bonaventure or Ventura ;
Gabriel, aged nineteen ; John Kisnia or Kimoia ; Joachim Saquir or
Saccakibara, aged forty ; Matthias, a substitute for another of the
same name; Francis Fahelente, Peter Sukegiro,
Three Japanese Jesuits, namely, Father Paul Miki, aged thirty-
three, with two novices, John de Goto, aged nineteen, and James Kisai,
aged sixty-four, who made their vows on the very day of their martyr-
CHAP, ii.] Martyrs Crucified at Nangasaki. 327
We might relate many interesting particulars about
each one of these glorious soldiers of Jesus Christ, but
we must be brief. We cannot, however, pass over in
silence what concerns the three youngest of them ;
namely, Thomas, of about fourteen years of age ; An
thony, aged thirteen ; and Louis, who was eleven years
old. They used to serve at the altar at the church of
the Franciscans, and might have gone away when the
list of the condemned was published, but they desired
nothing so much as the palm of martyrdom. They
were together on the same cart when, with the end of
the ear cut off, they were conducted through the streets
of Meaco. With their hands tied behind them, these
three young confessors began to sing, with a radiant
countenance and with a penetrating voice, the Pater
noster and the Ave Maria. This spectacle moved all
hearts.
Thomas was the son of Michael Cozaki, one of the
twenty-six martyrs. His father had written to him
that, being resolved to die, he left him heir of all his
property ; but the saintly young man came at once to
see him, and represented to him that it was not just to
-make him the heir of earthly goods by excluding him
from those that he was going to possess in heaven, and
he declared that he was determined to die with him.
Thomas had also the happiness of going to heaven with
his father, his head encircled with the same crown.
Anthony, born at Nangasaki, met his father and his
mother, who subjected him to a violent temptation.
They were Christians, and when they saw their dear
child on the point of being crucified, they permitted
themselves to be overcome by natural affection, and
dom. The Jesuits had not then been included in the sentence of con
demnation ; but the governor of Ozaka had these three arrested as they
were in the city, and joined them to the Franciscans, against whom
this persecution was chiefly directed. — ED.
328 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
began to conjure him with tears to dissimulate for a
little while. "You wish then," said the young hero,
" that in order to preserve this life that lasts only a
moment, I should lose life eternal ? Ah ! cease to tempt
me by your discourses and your complaints. I am
resolved to die for Jesus Christ." Having spoken
thus, he left his parents, refused with the same firmness
the offers of a magistrate whom this scene had deeply
moved, and gave himself up to the executioners. When
he was raised upon the cross he found himself by the
side of Father Peter Baptist ; and after the hymn Bene-
dictus he begged him to intone the psalm Laudate Pueri
Dominum. But the holy religious, who was absorbed in
an ecstasy, not answering him, he intoned it himself, and
continued it as far as the Gloria Patri, which he was
going to chant forever in paradise, having had at this
moment his heart pierced with the lance.
Little Louis, who had been baptized only a few days
before, showed no less courage. The officers of the law
had at first refused to put his name on the list ; but by
dint of crying and begging he succeeded in having his
name inscribed. His face, which was radiant with joy,
attracted in the streets of Meaco the attention of all,
and deeply moved the spectators. The under-governor
of Nangasaki, who was charged with presiding at the
execution, wished to set him free, provided he would
renounce the Christian religion. u On such a con
dition," Louis replied, " I do not desire to live ; since
for this short and miserable life I should lose a happy
and eternal life." It is said that as soon as he saw his
cross he ran to embrace it, as if he had found an object
that was most dear to him. He died with an angelic air,
by the side of Anthony. Further on we shall see other
wonderful victories gained by children.
CHAP, iii.i John Minami, Simon Taquenda. 329
CHAPTER III.
PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOM OF FINGO— JOHN MINAMI,
MAGDALEN HIS WIFE, AND LOUIS THEIR ADOPTED SON,
WITH SIMON TAQUENDA, JANE HIS MOTHER, AND AGNES
HIS WIFE.
1603.
IN the year 1598, at the age of sixty-four, the emperor
Taicosama died, well deserving the fires of hell, since he
had shed so much blood of the faithful servants of Jesus
Christ. He had given orders that after his death he
should be ranked among the gods. As his successor he
left a son scarcely six years old, under the tutelage of
six regents of the empire. At the head of this regency
was Daifusama, who profited by his position gradually
to usurp the imperial power, and, as we shall see, sur
passed his predecessor in cruelty1
Daifusama at first believed it to be the best policy to
treat the Christians like the rest of his subjects until he
could see his authority well established. During the
first years of his reign there were only local persecu
tions that were carried on by secondary tyrants. In
1603, the king of Fingo, named Canzugedono, wishing to
compel the nobility of Jateudixiro to deny the Christian
faith, the magistrates of this city forcibly dragged into
the house of a bonze, a gentleman named John Minami,
in order to place upon his head the book of his sect; for
this was a sign of apostasy. Magdalen, the wife of the
1 Nevertheless the Christian religion, during the regency, which lasted
four years, and before Daifusama became the sole ruler, had spread
rapidly, for the Jesuits converted in two years seventy thousand Japa
nese. — En.
330 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
persecuted gentleman, a fervent Christian, followed her
husband, crying out: " Take care, my dear John, what
you do; if you become faithless to your religion, I will
neither speak to you nor see you any more, and I will
renounce you as my husband." When the bonze, who
was seated on a kind of throne, raised the volume to
place it on John's head, the servant of God, not being
able to do anything else, spit upon the infamous book.
One of his friends by the name of Simon Taquenda
offered a similar resistance, and refused to go to the
house of the bonze. The king being informed of what
had happened, ordered the governor to have them
beheaded, and to have all the members of their families
crucified.
As soon as Minami heard of the fate that was awaiting
him, he presented himself to the governor. The latter
made every effort to gain him over, but could not shake
his constancy; he then showed him the order of the
the king, and saintly man declared that he desired noth
ing so much as to sacrifice his life for the God whom he
adored. Thereupon he was led into a large hall, where
he had to leave his sword; passing then still farther, he
was taken in charge by three soldiers, and there appeared
upon the scene two executioners armed with cutlasses.
John knelt down, presented his neck, and pronounced
the holy names of Jesus and Mary; he received four
blows that cut off his head, December 8, in the thirty-
first year of his age.
On the same day the governor went to the house of
Simon Taquenda, who was his intimate friend, to per
suade him to show some sign of submission to the will
of the king. As soon as the governor saw him he burst
into tears ; Simon, greatly moved, could not restrain his
own, and they thus remained for some time without
speaking. The governor tried in vain to shake his friend,
when Jane, the mother of Simon, entering, he said to
CHAP. 1 1 i.i John Minami, Simon Taquenda. 331
her: " Your son refuses to follow my counsel, preserve
him and his whole family from death, and do not force
me to imbrue my hands in his blood." But his noble
mother replied to him with firmness: "If there were
questions only of terrestrial goods, your counsel would
be good; but, when eternal goods are in question, we
must not prefer a transitory life to a felicity that has no
end. I envy the happiness of my son, and if I could I
would follow him with joy."
This language stung the governor to the quick, and
took away from him all hope of overcoming the con
stancy of his friend. He thereupon withdrew and com
municated to an officer, a relative of Simon, that this
gentleman had been condemned to death, and that he
charged him on the part of the king with the duty to go
and behead him in his house. This officer went to the
house of his relative, rapped at the door, for it was
already night, found the servant of God in prayer, and
made known to him the contents of the written order of
which he was the bearer. " You could not have brought
me," said Simon to him, "more pleasant news; only
allow me a few moments to prepare myself for death."
This delay was granted him.
The pious gentleman went at once to prostrate him
self before an image of our Lord crowned with thorns.
After his prayer he visited his mother and his wife, and
apprised them of his approaching death. These women,
without being disturbed, ordered the domestics to pre
pare some water, according to the custom the Japanese
had of washing themselves when they were invited to a
banquet. Simon, having finished his ablutions, put
on his richest garments and took leave of his mother
and of his wife, not forgetting his servants. When the
latter began to cry and utter lamentations, he said to
them: "What! do you not rejoice at my happiness?
where is your faith ? where is the Christian virtue of
33 2 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
which you have shown proofs up to the present time ?"
Then his wife, whose name was Agnes, throwing her
self at his feet, begged him to cut off her hair. "In
this way," she said, "if I survive you, people may not
think that I ever wish to have another husband." Simon
at first refused the request, but finally yielded at the
entreaties of his mother.
He afterwards arranged that three members of the
confraternity1 of Mary should meet him, and to them
he spoke thus: " My dear confreres, what a happiness is
mine to be able to die as a martyr of Jesus Christ !
What have I done to merit this grace ? " " Yes," replied
one of them, named Joachim, " you are happy. Pray to
God, when you are in heaven, to make us share in your
glory." All knelt down; Simon recited the Confiteor,
and the Our Father and Hail Mary three times; then he
remained silent for some time, conversing interiorly with
his God. His prayer finished, he arose, had the crucifix
brought in and the candle lit, took his mother by one
hand and his wife by the other, and spoke to them the
following words: "I bid you a final farewell; I shall no
longer see you in this world, but I count upon seeing you
soon in heaven. I go before you to pave the way for
you; I shall pray God to permit you to participate in
this happiness, and to call you soon to paradise." After
this they proceeded to the hall where the sacrifice was
to be consummated. One of the associates carried the
crucifix, the two others accompanied him with burning
candles, and the martyr followed them, holding by the
hand his mother and his wife. Then followed the
domestics, plunged in the deepest sorrow.
Having reached the hall, the martyr fell upon his
knees before the image of the Saviour; his mother
1 These were noblemen who devoted themselves to the exercise of
charity, and who were known by the name of Gifiaqui; we shall see
their glorious end, as related in Chapter V. — ED.
CHAP, in.] John Minami and Simon Taquenda. 333
and his wife withdrew a little aside; then all made the
sign of the, Cross and recited the Confiteor, and three
times the Our Father and Hail Mary. At this moment
a gentleman, a friend of Simon, entered to bid him fare
well; his name was Figida, and he had unfortunately
denied his faith. Filled with remorse on witnessing
this spectacle, although he did not dare to confess his
repentance at that time, he asked his friend as a favor
for a bead of a blessed rosary. Simon gave it to him
on condition that he would return to Jesus Christ; this
the gentleman promised to do. Finally, the martyr
having recommended himself to God for the last time,
pulled down the collar of his garment, saluted the
image of the Saviour by bowing down with his forehead
to the ground, and, pronouncing the names of Jesus and
Mary, offered his head to the executioner, who cut it off
with one blow. One of the associates took it up at once,
and placed it upon his own as a mark of veneration. All
those that were present uttered a cry at the moment the
fatal blow was struck; but the mother and the wife of
the martyr appeared to be unmoved, and were silent.
Some time afterwards, the mother took the head of
her son, kissed it several times, and said: "O beauti
ful head, now crowned with glory ! O happy Simon,
you have given your life to Him who gave his own for
you ! — My God, who didst sacrifice Thy Son for the love
of me, receive my son, who sacrificed himself for Thee."
Agnes also approached, kissed the head of her dear
husband while moistening it with her tears, and said:
" As for myself, I am satisfied; I have a martyr husband
who is now in heaven. O Simon ! call me as soon as
possible to you, to see and praise with you the Lord
our God."
Simon Taquenda died, like John Minami, at the age of
thirty-five, December 9, two hours before daybreak. The
soldiers who guarded his body testified to having seen,
334 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
during that same night, a great light descending from
heaven and resting above the house of the martyr.
When the two women, Jane and Agnes, had withdrawn,
Figida, the converted gentleman, came to visit them;
and finding them in tears, said to them: " How is it that
you, who showed so much constancy while seeing your
dear Simon die, now when he is no more you give your
selves up to lamentations?" They answered that what
made them weep was because they were still in this life,
and because they feared that they would not be thought
worthy of martyrdom. Figida, in order to console them,
informed them that Magdalen, the widow of Minami, had
already been condemned to death, and added that they
should not expect to receive better treatment. On hear
ing this news both fell on their knees to thank God,
and their sorrow disappeared. They now had the
courage to ask the governor to let them die with the
virtuous Magdalen, and this request was granted them.
In fact, towards evening Magdalen was led into the
house with a child of about seven years of age, named
Louis, who was a nephew of Minami, and whom she
had adopted as her son. When they found themselves
together, they tenderly embraced each other, happy to
die like Jesus Christ on the Cross, according to the order
given by the emperor. Then Magdalen, turning towards
little Louis, who had been condemned to die with her,
told him to prepare himself to depart for heaven, and
recommended to him above all not to cease, when he
would be on the cross, to repeat till his death the words:
"Jesus and Mary." The child answered: "My dear
mother, I will not forget to do so as long as I am alive."
At night they were informed that they would have to
start for the place of execution. They appeared attired
in their finest garments, recommended themselves to
God, and set out on the journey. Three palanquins,
each carried by two men, were awaiting them at the
CHAP, in.] John Minami and Simon Taquenda. 335
door. Little Louis was placed with his mother. When
they approached the place where the crosses had been
prepared, Agnes said: "Jesus, my Saviour, went on foot
to Mount Calvary, and should I be carried thither in a
litter!" She wished to descend from the palanquin, but
she was prevented from doing so, as she was told that
the officers would not permit such a thing. Having
finally reached their crosses they knelt down to venerate
them.
The first that was crucified was the heroic Jane, the
mother of Simon. She spoke thus from the height of
the cross to the crowd that had surrounded her: "About
to appear before God to render to him an account of all
my actions, I confess that the Christian religion is the
only one in which you can save your soul; open your
eyes, and renounce the false divinities. And you, O
Christians, do not allow yourselves to be unsettled by
the spectacle of our death; there is nothing sweeter than
to die for him who died for us." The executioner in
terrupted her at these words by striking her with the
lance. The first blow wras not mortal, but the second
deprived her of life, and thus enabled her to receive the
heavenly crown. ,
It was then Magdalen's turn. Little Louis, seeing his
mother bound, offered himself to be also bound to the
cross. The executioners raised him on the small cross
prepared for him opposite to his mother, who then said
to him: "My son, we are going to heaven; take courage,
and always say: Jesus! Mary!" While the child was
repeating these sacred names, the executioner struck at
him with his lance, but missed him; and the little lamb
received tranquilly the second blow, which caused his
death. Immediately afterwards, the same executioner
withdrawing the iron, quite red with the blood of the
child, plunged it into the heart of the mother, and thus
united the two victims.
336 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n,
There remained yet the innocent Agnes, who having
descended from the palanquin, remained kneeling before
her cross, and recommended herself to God. The exe
cutioners, moved to tears, had not the heart to approach
and to tie her to the cross, although she begged them
to discharge their duty, and while waiting for them
placed herself on that cruel instrument. Then some
idolaters, urged on by the inducement of receiving a re
ward, took courage to take the place of the executioners,
but when it became necessary to pierce the victims, not
having had any experience, they succeeded in taking
away her life only by repeated blows.
Many persons worthy of belief attested having seen a
resplendent light over the bodies of the four martyrs at
the moment in which they gave up their souls to God.
Their history was written by Louis Cerqueyra, Bishop of
Japan.
After their death the governor was more enraged than
before against the Christians; but God permitted that
he should fall into disgrace with the king, who deprived
him of his office, and ordered him to appear to render
an account of his actions. It is thus that the Lord
punishes those who, to please princes, sully their souls;
they lose at the same time their souls and the favor of
their -master.
CHAPTER IV.
PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOM OF SAXUMA AND D*AMAN-
GUCH1 — JAMES SACOIAMA MELCHIOR BUGENDONO —
DAMIAN, THE BLIND MAN LEON XIQUEMON.
1604-1608.
DURING the persecution of which we have just spoken,
a youth, who was a Christian, named James Sacoiama,
CHAP, iv.] Me Ichior Bugendono and others. 337
and only fourteen years old, had gone with his mothei
to live in the kingdom of Saxuma. As he was of fine
appearance and possessed much intelligence, the king
grew very fond of him, and even thought of giving him
as wife a princess of his family. One day the king com
municated to him what he intended to do; but only on
condition that the young man would renounce the Chris
tian religion. The young man, who already held a
situation at court, answered that he would not abjure
his faith for the whole world. The king tried another
method in order to seduce him: he sent to his mother
four of his trusty servants, in the hope that she would,
influence her son to yield to the wishes of his prince.
This virtuous woman courageously declared that she
could not in conscience lend herself to carry out such a
design. The king became so enraged at this that all
were expecting a terrible revenge. The mother and the
son thereupon retired the following night to the oratory,
which they had in their own house, in the expectation of
death. But the king fearing that his violence might
displease the emperor, who at that time (1604) was yet
favorable to the Christians, restrained himself for the
present. It is not known what subsequently became of
them.
It was about this time that the crown of martyrdom
was obtained by one of the most distinguished person
ages in Japan, named Melchior Bugendono, a lord of
Miri, a place of considerable importance in the king
dom of Aqui. He was a captain and a minister of very
high merit in the service of King Amanguchi. He
had openly professed the Christian religion for eigh
teen years, when the king, notwithstanding the high
esteem in which he held him, wished him to venerate
the gods of the country. The brave man, in answer to
such a request, said that he was ready to give his life
for the king, but that he could not renounce his faith.
338 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
The tyrant informed him that he would let him feel what
it costs to despise his orders. Melchior well understood
that he was threatened with death; but as he was de
sirous of laying down his life, he contented himself with
asking the king that, as the latter was bent upon destroy
ing him, he might have him dragged through the streets
of the city preceded by a herald who would proclaim in
a loud voice that his crime was that he was a Christian.
Had the tyrant only listened to what his anger dictated,
he would have ordered him to be put to death on the
spot; but being in doubt about the disposition of the
emperor, he waited for a more favorable moment. Four
years after, the occasion having presented itself, he sent
a troop of a thousand soldiers with a bonze and an officer
ordering Melchior to deliver up to them as hostages his
son and his nephew. This was done in order to prevent
any resistance to the execution of the sentence. The
following day, August 16, 1605, two officers came and
presented him with a warrant of his condemnation.
Melchior read it without the least emotion; he contented
himself with saying that the only crime for which he
was made to die was that he was a Christian. He could
not receive permission to be dragged through the streets
as he had requested. The executioners told him that as
he wished to die he might die like a man of honor by
cutting open his abdomen, as is the custom in Japan;
the good nobleman, however, replied that he wished to
die not as a despairing Japanese, but as a Christian, re
signed to God's holy will. He then knelt down in his
room before the images of Jesus and Mary, and while he
was recommending himself to God, he was beheaded.
The news of what had taken place was carried at once
to the tyrant, who not satisfied with the death of the
father, ordered that his son, his nephews, as well as his
wife, should also perish, and that their bodies should be
burnt. He also had his son-in-law put to death, as he
CHAP, iv.] Melchior Bugendono and others. 339
was a Christian, and more than a hundred domestics of
the family. The Bishop of Japan having collected in
formation about their martyrdom, transmitted it to
Rome.
In connection with the death of this pious nobleman,
we must mention that of a poor blind man, named
Damian. He had been baptized in 1585; and as he was
gifted with extraordinary talents, he went about explain
ing and propagating the faith. A priest who was in
structing the Christians at Amanguchi having been ex
pelled, Damian took his place, and never ceased to
preach and baptize in case of necessity. Informed of
this conduct, the king sent to that place two commis
sioners, before whom Damian presented himself as soon
as they cited him to appear. They made him on behalf
of the prince brilliant offers should he wish to give up
the Christian religion, and threatened him with death
should he refuse. Damian answered without hesitation:
" You give me the choice between life and death: it is
death which I choose, and I prefer it to all the goods
that you promise me." He then began to demonstrate
to them the truth of the Christian faith; but they took
no heed of his discourse, and resolved to put him to
death. Fearing, however, 'that there might be a tumult,
they placed him upon a horse during the night and con
ducted him to the place of execution. Having been in
formed that he was condemned to death because he was
a Christian, he joyfully dismounted and began to pray.
Some moments afterwards, having thanked Jesus Christ
for the grace of allowing him to die for his sake, he pre
sented his head to the executioner. The latter, while
holding the sabre already raised, told him that he could
still save himself by denying his faith, but the martyr
answered: "I wish to die a Christian; do your work."
He was then beheaded, being at that time forty-five
years old.
340 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Then followed the martyrdom of a valiant nobleman
named Leo Xiquigemon; he was from Jonai, a city of
the kingdom of Saxuma, and thirty-five years old.
Since his baptism he could speak of nothing else but of
God, and when his friends urged him to take part in their
diversions, he answered that present life being short he
had no time to lose, in order to gain that life which has
no end. The lord whose vassal he was, wishing to make
him apostatize under the penalty of death, he protested
that he was ready to die for his faith. It was in vain that
his relatives and friends tried to shake his constancy; he
always answered that he could not be unfaithful to God.
Finally, the tyrant condemned him to be beheaded, and
sent eight soldiers to execute him at his own house.
Leo quietly received them and assured them that they
need not fear any resistance on his part. He then
dressed himself as for a grand feast, and took leave of
his wife, who was still a pagan, saying to her : " If you
love me, and if you desire to be with me after death,
become a Christian, otherwise we shall be separated
forever as far apart as heaven is from hell." He had
two sons, one seventeen years old, who was still an
idolater, the other only seven, who had been baptized
three months before. He said to the first : "My son, if
you love your father, follow his example, and you will
come to join him at the place where he expects you."
Then to the second he said : " Farewell, my dear child;
learn of me to sacrifice your life rather than abandon
your faith." After that he desired to be executed in the
public square in order that every one might know that
he died a Christian. Having laid aside his sword and
dagger, he took in his hand a rosary and a crucifix, rec
ommended himself to God, and gave a sign to the exe
cutioner to discharge his duty. This generous Christian
was then beheaded at Sirassa, September 17, 1608.
] Joackiui Girozaiemo and others. 341
CHAP. V.j
CHAPTER V.
NEW PERSECUTION IN FINGO — JOACHIM GIROZAIEMO,
MICHAEL FACIEMON AND HIS SON THOMAS, JOHN TIN-
GORO AND HIS SON PETER.
1605-1609.
IN the kingdom of Fingo, the persecution, after hav
ing abated, took a fresh impulse. We have spoken of
three charitable noblemen who were present at the
death of Simon Taquenda.1 Their names were Joachim
Girozaiemon, Michael Faciemon, and John Tingoro, and
they directed together a confraternity of mercy that did
a great deal of good. Their zeal was the cause why they
were thrown into a frightful prison, in which Joachim
died a true martyr at the end of two years, a victim of
his sufferings. His two companions bore up under this
torture for four years, when the king ordered them as
well as their children to be beheaded.
This sentence having been made known to them,
Michael asked the chief executioner to permit him to
be crucified like Jesus Christ, and John begged to be
cut to pieces. The officer assented, but he understood
that this was to be done only after their death. While
going to the place of execution with a rope around his
neck, Michael walked rapidly, but John advanced slowly,
exhausted as he was by a grave malady, and the rope
by which he was bound being fastened so tightly that
he could scarcely breathe. While they were on the way,
the officers sent some soldiers to bring the children of
the holy martyrs ; these were Thomas, the son of
Michael, aged twelve, and Peter, the son of. John, who
was only six years old.
1 Page 332.
342 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART u.
Thomas, on hearing that his father was going to mar
tyrdom, conceived so great a desire for death that he
hastened to leave the city to join him; and while em
bracing his father he said : " My father, see your son
Thomas who is going to die with you for the faith. Far
from fearing death, I desire it; we shall go to heaven
together." Little Peter was expected; but as he de
layed in coming, the officer wished to hasten the exe
cution. Michael was the first that was beheaded. The
executioner wished to take Thomas aside to spare him
the horror of seeing the torture of his father; but the
child cried out: "I wish to die near my father." He
was then conducted near the bleeding body; there he
offered his head with a countenance all radiant with joy,
and invoking the names of Jesus and Mary, he received
the death-blow. John was the third one that was be
headed.
There still remained little Peter, as he was at the
house of his uncle and had a longer journey to make.
Some days before, while the conversation was about the
sufferings of his father, he had said: " They will make
me die with him, because I am a Christian, and I am so
glad." When the officers called to take him away, he
was asleep. They awoke him and told him that his
father was waiting for him to die with him. The child
immediately set out with his guards, the latter leading
him by the hand, and he hastened as fast as he could.
On seeing him, the spectators burst into tears. Arrived
at the place of execution, he readily went on his knees,
and seeing the executioner drawing his sword, extended
his neck while clasping his hands in prayer This move
ment deeply affected the executioner; he put back the
sword into the scabbard, and withdrew, saying that he
had not the heart to kill this innocent lamb. Two others
sent to do the bloody deed shed tears and were unable
to execute the order. At last there was no one found to
CHAP, vi.i Caspar Nixiguenca and his family. 343
immolate this tender victim but an unskilful slave, who,
striking Peter at first on the shoulders, threw him on the
ground. He returned twice to the charge without suc
ceeding in cutting off the head, and he was obliged to
saw it off with violence. Truly a barbarity at which a
ferocious beast would have revolted !
Michael Faciemon, besides his son Thomas, had a
daughter whom the Christians saved and conducted to
Arima. Here a gentleman wished to unite her in mar
riage to his son; and as it was represented that this
young orphan was deprived of everything, and had no
dowry, he answered: "It is enough that she is the
daughter of a martyr."
CHAPTER VI.
PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOM OF FIRANDO CASPAR
NIXIGUENCA; URSULA, HIS WIFE; AND JOHN, THEIR SON.
1609.
DURING this period three persons of rank were also
put to death in the kingdom of Firando. A distinguished
nobleman, named Caspar Nixiguenca, was living at Ta-
manda, of which he was the ruler. He married his daugh
ter, by the name of Mary, to the son of Condoquisan,
the governor of the island. But the latter being an
idolater felt reluctant to have in his house a daughter-
in-law professing the Christian religion. He ceased not
to make efforts to pervert her, until one day, no longer
able to suffer his importunities, Mary left his house and
went to the house of her father. The idolater, annoyed
at her flight, wrote to her to return to his house under
pain of being denounced to the king, who would not
344 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
tolerate the Christian religion in his states. The pious
young woman answered him that her religion forbade
her to return, and that as she was a Christian, far from
being afraid of death, she desired it.
Condoquisan, to revenge himself, hastened to accuse
Caspar to the king, who was a profligate pagan. Cas
par was at once summoned by the bonzes, who were
charged with proceeding against the Christian?. Scarcely
had he reached the place when the soldiers threw them
selves upon him to tie him, and when he asked them
why they did so, the bonzes said to him: "You are a
Christian, and it is for this reason that you are con
demned to death." " If it is for this reason," rejoined
the nobleman, " bind me as much as you please, and do
not fear that 1 will offer resistance."
On the following morning the governor came to visit
him, exhorting him to deny the faith if he wished to
save his life as well as the life of his wife and his sons,
who had also been arrested. Caspar answered that he
was ready to die for Jesus Christ, and that he asked for
no other grace than that he might die on the cross. The
governor replied that for this the consent of the prince
was needed. Then he had him conducted to the place
where he was to be beheaded, and wished as a mark of
honor to execute him himself.
On the same day the officers of justice proceeded to
his house, where Ursula, his wife, and John, his son, were
guarded. They wished to make them believe that they
were going to lead them into exile with Caspar; but
they were already aware of his martyrdom, and departed
full of joy, not desiring anything so much as to die for
the faith. The journey finished, a soldier suddenly drew
his sabre and struck Ursula with it with great violence;
but the weapon slipped and did not kill her. The saintly
woman had thus time to fall on her knees. Invoking
Jesus and Mary, she received the second blow which de-
CHAP, vii.] Thomas Onda and others. 345
prived her of life. John, who was in advance, turned
back on hearing the noise; and seeing his mother die,
he also knelt as she had done, and had his head also cut
off.
This triple martyrdom happened November 14, 1609;
Caspar and Ursula were both fifty-four years old, and
John was twenty-five. There was no sentence pro
nounced against Mary, nor against the young wife of
her brother.
CHAPTER VII.
DEATH OF THE KING OF ARIMA AND PERSECUTION RAISED
BY HIS SON THOMAS ONDA AND HIS FAMILY FRANCIS
AND MATTHEW, YOUNG PRINCES — EIGHT MARTYRS BURNT
ALIVE THE TYRANT PUNISHED.
1611-1614.
WE have to relate here the edifying death of the king
of Arima, Protasius or John,1 of whom we spoke in the
beginning — a death that was followed by a horrible
persecution in the kingdom that was nearly Christian.
The emperor had deposed and exiled him, in conse
quence of an odious intrigue concocted against him by
his own son, named Michael. In his exile King John
led a very penitent life, to repair all the bad example
that he had given, and he desired nothing so much as
to expiate by his death his past iniquities. God soon
brought about the accomplishment of his desires.
Prince Michael, not content with having thus humbled
his father, and with seating himself on his throne, wished
also to deprive him of life. He had him accused to the
emperor of several supposed crimes. The latter, taking
1 Page 316.
346 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
counsel only of the hatred that he bore him, condemned
him without trial to be beheaded, and sent one hundred
and fifty soldiers to carry out the sentence. It is the
custom in Japan that when it is desired that a prince
should die, the persons of his court defend him till death.
But John begged his servants not to oppose his execu
tion, and through affection for him they obeyed most
reluctantly. Moreover, he made them swear not to open
his body after death, as he foresaw they would do,
according to another barbarous custom. He then wrote
to his unnatural son a letter full of tenderness, and asked
his pardon should he ever have offended him. He after
wards had the Passion of Jesus Christ read to him, pray
ing with tears that the many sins of his past life might
be forgiven him. Having had a crucifix put before him,
he went on his knees and calmly awaited the death-blow.
The good Princess Justa, his wife, who was present, took
the head of her husband between her hands and kissed
it. Then she withdrew to her apartments, where she cut
off her hair, indicating thereby that she renounced
the world.
The new king of Arima, the infamous parricide
Michael, after having taken possession of all the goods
of his father, declared war against the Christian religion.
Following the advice of the bonzes, he published an
edict obliging all his subjects to swear to him an oath of
fidelity with the books of Cami and of Fotoqui on their
heads, and declaring guilty of high treason all those who
would refuse to do so. But the Christians, while protest
ing their entire submission to the orders of the king,
said boldly that they would never allow the imposition
of that infamous book; and several of them went to ask
for it, not to place it on their heads, but to trample on
it. Informed of what had occurred, the tyrant con
demned all of them to the torture. Listening, however, to
better counsel, he was contented with the death of some
CHAP, vii.j Thomas Onda and others. 347
of them, and sent the rest into exile. Those who were
condemned to death submitted joyfully to the penalty;
but the exiles were in deep affliction because they had
not enjoyed the same happiness. We shall relate a few
beautiful examples furnished by this persecution.
Michael had at his court a valiant captain, by the
name of Thomas Onda. Not being able to suffer to see
him a Christian, he ordered him to abjure his faith.
Thomas answered that he could not betray the God to
whose service he had devoted himself. Thereupon the
tyrant ordered the governor of Arima to put to death
him and his whole family.
The friends of Thomas counselled him to fly during
the night; but the servant of God answered that he
would have come from the extremities of Japan for the
purpose of dying for Jesus Christ. He passed the night
in prayer. The following morning the governor had him
called on a false pretext. Thomas, having a presenti
ment that his end was approaching, embraced his mother
and his three children; then he proceeded to the gov
ernor, who wished him to dine with him. Before sitting
down to table the governor had a sword brought in, and
showing it to his guest, he said: " What do you think of
it? Is it not a suitable instrument to cut off a man's
head ?" Thomas took it, not doubting that it had been
prepared for him, and then returned it, saying that it
was an excellent sword. At this moment the governor
plunged it into his body, and stretched him dead on the
ground.
The same thing happened to Thomas's brother, whose
name was Matthias. Having been summoned by the
governor, he took leave of his family and prepared him
self for death; and as soon as he entered the house of
the governor, the latter dispatched him with his sword.
Soldiers afterwards went to the dwelling of Thomas,
where they found his mother, named Martha ; his wife.
348 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Justa; and his three children — two boys and one girl.
Having entered, they announced to Martha that she
should prepare herself to die, with her two grandchil
dren. The venerable lady thanked God for the favor
that he was granting her, to shed her blood for the faith.
Her two grandsons, Justus and James, aged respectively
eleven and nine, having been brought to her, she em
braced them and said : "My dear children, your father
and your uncle have died for Jesus Christ. I am also
going to die, and you will come with me. Are you
satisfied to join your father, who is awaiting you in
heaven ?" The two boys answered that they wished
this with all their heart ; all that they asked was when this
would take place. "This very day," answered Martha ;
"go, then, and bid farewell to your mother, and prepare
yourselves for death." After having spoken these words
she put on a white dress and made her grandchildren
do the same. She then embraced Justa, her daughter-
in-law, who was greatly afflicted at not being able to
die with her children. She tried to console her by
holding out to her the hope of also dying for the faith.
At this moment there appeared before Justa her two
sons dressed in white, who came to ask her for her bless
ing. ''Farewell, my mother," said James to her; "my
brother and I are going to die in order to be martyrs."
Their Christian mother tenderly embraced them, and
said, while shedding a torrent of tears, "Go, my dear
sons, go and die for Jesus Christ ; when you are at the
place of execution show yourselves Christians. Your
father awaits you, and Jesus Christ calls you to his pal
ace. Go and die generously for him who died for you.
When you extend the neck to receive death, invoke with
out ceasing Jesus and Mary. How unfortunate am I
not to be able to die for you !"
The soldiers made the grandmother with the two chil
dren enter a litter. When the latter reached the place
CHAP, vii.] Thomas Onda and others. 349
where a crowd had gathered they dismounted, and
looked about for him who was to put them to death.
Having recognized him by the unsheathed sword, they
knelt at his feet, with their hands joined, and while re
peating the names of Jesus and Mary they fearlessly
received the death-blow. Martha, who rejoiced at the
firmness displayed hy her grandchildren, advanced
modestly and put herself into an attitude of prayer.
Finally she presented her head, which, being cut off at
one blow, rebounded twice on the pavement.
Let us return to King Michael, the parricide. King
John, his father, had only him from his first marriage ;
but his second wife, Queen Justa, had borne him four
children, among whom were Princes Francis and Mat
thew. These children had remained in the kingdom,
while their mother, after the death of the king, her hus
band, had been sent to Meaco. Prince Francis was
only eight years old, and Prince Matthew was only six.
In so tender an age, both knew how to show an inviola
ble attachment to the faith. Princess Fima, the second
wife, or rather the concubine of Michael, who had taken
her by repudiating his lawful wife, seeing one day these
two children, said to Francis : " Will you deny the God
of the Christians ?" The young prince indignantly an
swered : u No ; I will never deny him." She replied :
"If you do not consent to do so, the emperor will put
you to death/' "God grant it," replied the prince; "I
do not fear it, and I even desire it." She then tried to
pervert Matthew, the younger prince , but he was as im
movable as his brother. This wicked woman, being sup
ported by a perfidious counsellor, afterwards prevailed
upon the king to cause the death of these two innocent
youths, thus to secure for himself the possession of the
throne.
They were at first kept in close confinement, and it
was noised abroad that they were living with their
350 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART 11.
mother at Meaco, whither only the two young princesses,
their sisters, had been sent. Thus imprisoned, our little
martyrs, as if they had a presentiment that they were
doomed to death, prepared thenfselves by exercises of con
tinual piety, especially by prayer and fasting, just as well
as persons who are of a mature age and who have consum
mate virtue. During the night that was to be the last
of their stay upon earth, as Francis was engaged till a
very late hour, his servant reminded him that it was time
to go to bed. " Ah !" cried out the youth, " I am think
ing of the torments that Jesus Christ suffered for us, and
that makes me weep. What goodness was that, to wish
to die for us ! Poor idolaters, who know not this good
Saviour !" Before retiring he recommended his soul to
the Blessed Virgin, in case he was to die that very night.
About midnight a soldier quietly entered the room, ap
proached little Matthew, who was asleep, and plunged a
dagger into his heart ; then he cut the throat of his
brother Francis, and the servant found them in the morn
ing, weltering in their blood. When their worthy
mother, the exiled widow, was informed of this murder,
as she had been for a long time united with God, she
raised her eyes to heaven and thanked the Lord for hav
ing called to himself these two tender lambs that she had
brought into existence.
Michael having been informed of this, resolved to ex
tinguish entirely the Christian religion in Arima, no longer
by putting his subjects to death, as this would have
brought ruin to his states, but by employing the bonzes in
perverting the faithful. For this purpose he had one of the
most renowned of the bonzes to come to his court, but no
Christian would visit him, with the exception of some
who were forced to do so; and when they went they
carried a rosary around the neck. The bonze preached,
but no one would listen to him. The king seeing that
no one took any notice of the bonze, had him come to
CHAP, vii.] Thomas Onda and others. 351
his palace, and ordered that every one should receive
from his hands a kind of rosary by which the idolaters
pretended to honor their god Amida. But all the Chris
tians refused to take it; even the women refused, in spite
of the orders of Princess Fima; and one of them, named
Maxentia, took it and threw it into the face of the bonze.
Then the princess ordered the women of her suite to
take away from the Christians the rosary that they wore
around the neck, and all resisted. She commanded a
nobleman to take it away from them by force; but he
declared that he could not do so, because such a thing
was not proper for a nobleman and for a Christian.
The king desired that at least his pages should receive
the rosaries from the bonzes, but none of them would
obey.
Later on, being instigated to a new persecution, he
undertook to gain over eight noblemen of the highest
rank by urging them to dissemble their religion, at least
for a short time. Five of them consented, but the other
three resisted with firmness, arid were condemned to be
burnt alive with their wives and children. They were at
once made prisoners and locked up in a house, where
they found eight others, namely, Adrian Mondo and
Jane, his wife, with their daughter Magdalen, aged
twenty, who had made a vow of virginity, and their son
James, aged eleven; Leo Luguiemon and Martha, his
wife; Leo Caniemon and his son Paul, who was twenty-
seven years old.
The news of this having spread, about twenty thousand
Christians assembled near the city, not in order to fight
for the deliverance of the prisoners, but in order to die
with them. Then four of the five noblemen who had
apostatized came and threw themselves on their knees
before this large crowd of the faithful, asking pardon for
the scandal that they had given, and imploring the
assistance of a priest to prepare them for death. After
35 2 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
this they wrote to the king to be again united to those
who had been condemned; but this favor was refused
them. The tyrant, frightened on seeing so many Chris
tians, who had come to be present at the execution,
ordered the prisoners to be put to death secretly in the
house in which they were guarded; but having received
from the faithful the assurance that they only desired to
be present at the death of their brethren, so as to pro
vide them with a suitable funeral, he decided that
there should be raised in the middle of a plain a
wooden cabin, to be filled with straw and other com
bustible materials, to serve as a funeral-pile for the con
demned.
On October 7, 1613, the moment of departure having
arrived, they embraced one another, and after having
fallen on their knees to thank God for having made them
worthy of dying for the love of him, they set out for the
place of execution. The Christians having reassembled
for the purpose of accompanying them, were ranged by
the officials of the Confraternity, one half of them before,
the other half behind the martyrs. They walked six
abreast, singing the Litany of the Blessed Virgin. Those
of the city of Arima held each a lighted candle, and wore
upon the head a garland, as a sign of triumph ; the rest
carried each a rosary.
During the procession little James, hearing some one
calling him martyr, answered with great modesty : " Wait
a little ; you are too fast ; I indeed see the crown, but I
am not yet in possession of it." As the distance to
be traversed was great, several Christians offered to
carry him on their shoulders ; but he refused, saying :
"We are imitating our Captain who ascended Calvary
on foot carrying a heavy cross, which I have not to carry.
Now we must labor ; eternity will give us a long rest."
When he perceived the place where all were to be burnt,
he said to those present who were shedding tears :
CHAP, vii.] Thomas Onda and others. 353
"Why do you weep? Do you not envy my happiness ?
Walk merrily, as you see me doing."
Having at last arrived at the place where they were to
finish their sacrifice, our courageous martyrs hastened to
kiss the stakes to which they were about to be tied. One
of them, Leo Caniemon, having been put in a more
elevated position, cried out with a loud voice : " We see
the fire that is to consume us; but we see it without
fear, well knowing that our souls will thence pass to
eternal happiness. My brethren, the Christian religion
is the only one in which we can be saved. Persevere in
the faith ; let not our torments frighten you ; the suffer
ings are light and short; but the reward is great and is
eternal. Be you the witnesses that we die for the faith in
Jesus Christ."
As soon as they had been bound to the stakes, the
head of the Confraternities displayed a banner on which
was represented our Lord bound to the pillar, and said :
" My brethren, see your Saviour, for the love of whom
you are going to die. From the heights of the heavens
he holds your crowns ready ; courageously die for him
who died for you." The funeral pile was then set on
fire, and all the Christians fell at once upon their knees,
praying to the Lord and the Blessed Virgin to assist the
sufferers. The whole plain resounded with their lamen
tations ; one cried out: " Jesus, Mary !" another: "My
God, mercy !" The martyrs did not cease silently to
recommend themselves to God. The fire having con
sumed the cords that tied little James, he suddenly
rushed through the flames and cinders into the arms of
his mother, who said to him : " My son, look up to
heaven and invoke Jesus and Mary." The innocent boy
after having three times repeated the names of Jesus and
Mary, fell dead at the feet of his mother, and she in her
turn fell dead over him. Young Magdalen, the sister of
James, still remained. Already burnt in every part of
23
354 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
her body, she bent over, and seizing some burning cinders
she placed them upon her head as if she wished to make
of them a crown for herself. A little while after she
gently sank down and gave up her soul to God. Oh,
what a beautiful triumph of the faith did the Church see
on that day !
When all the martyrs had breathed their last, the
Christians passed over the palisade, gathered up the
relics, and buried them in the church at Nangasaki.
The Bishop of Japan after due investigation had a public
act drawn up in reference to this event.
Towards the end of the following year, 1614, King
Michael, seeing that he had not gained the favor of the
emperor as he had wished, imagined that he would gain
it by means of a new persecution. To this end he decreed
that all the Christians who were drawing from him
revenues or pensions should lose them unless they
abandoned their religion. After the publication of this
edict fifty of the most distinguished families of the king
dom had the courage to renounce their entire fortune.
Besides, on hearing of this the young persons who were
members of the congregation of St. Joseph, who were
all under fifteen years of age, took among themselves
the following oath : " Even though we should be burnt
alive, we shall never give up the faith." And as for the
unfortunate Michael, who had redoubled the persecu
tion, hoping that the emperor would give him a more
extensive kingdom, received from him, after having
published the barbarous edict, the peremptory order to
leave Arima and to retire to the wretched kingdom of
Fiunga. This was, indeed, a just chastisement of his
perversity, that made him prefer the favor of the emperor
to the grace of God.
CHAP, vin j Firmness of the Christians of Meaco. 355
CHAPTER VIII.
GENERAL PERSECUTION DECREED BY THE EMPEROR DAIFU-
SAMA FIRMNESS OF THE CHRISTIANS OF MEACO.
1614.
TILL the year 1614 there had been only local persecu
tions ; but at this time the tempest extended through
the whole of Japan and enveloped all the Christians.
The Emperor Daifusama wished at first to expel all the
missionaries and demolish all the churches. He then
ordered that all the names of all the Christians should
be taken down in order that they might be subjected to
capital punishment if they did not deny their faith.
When the list of the Christians of Meaco was presented
to him, he became greatly enraged against the governor
for having permitted them to multiply to such an extent.
He then entrusted the task of exterminating the faithful
to one of his most redoubtable generals.
This general proceeded to Meaco with the choicest
troops, and there published that all Christians that
would not apostatize from the faith should be tied to
stakes and be burnt alive. On the following day it was
remarked that the greatest part of the Christians had
placed stakes before their doors in order to give notice
that they were ready to submit to be burnt rather than
renounce their faith. Among them there was a poor
man who sold his garment, as well as a poor woman who
sold her waistband, in order to purchase a stake. In
the face of such disposition the tyrant contrived other
expedients : he had all those stakes burnt in the public
square, and gave orders to his agents to do all in their
power to induce the Christians whose names were
356 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
inscribed on the list to give their consent to have them
erased. Some yielded to the seduction ; others having
had their names erased against their will kept silence ;
but there was a great number who everywhere published
that their names had been effaced without their consent.
One of the streets of the city was inhabited only by
Christians ; there, women were seized, tied tightly in
sacks as far as the neck, and thus left night and day
exposed to the severity of the winter. There were
several children who desired to be treated in the same
manner. Women consecrated to God were in derision
led about in their sacks through the streets of the city ;
then they were set free to make believe that they had
abjured their faith. They did not, however, cease to
cry out that they were Christians. The tyrant after
wards went to Ozaca, where he exercised the same
cruelties ; but the faithful showed no less constancy.
Such was also the courage of the faithful of Sacaia, who
were subjected to the like treatment.
CHAPTER IX.
PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOMS OF AQUI AND BUNCO —
BENEDICT, A CONVERTED BONZE — TWO FAMILIES THAT
WERE PUT TO THE TEST — MICHAEL ; LIN, HIS BROTHER ;
AND MAXENTIA, HIS WIFE.
1614.
TAIDONO, King of Aqui and of Bungo, heretofore favor
able to the Christians, wished to conform to the imperial
edict. He gave orders to four of his officers that they
should also submit to it, but they answered him to his
face that they were Christians, and that rather than
abandon their faith, they were ready to lose all their
CHAP, ix.i Benedict, a Converted Bonze. 357
property, and even life itself. A young page said to the
king with the same boldness : " Sire, I am disposed to
obey you in all things ; but if you command anything
that is forbidden by the true God, here is my head,
I give it up to you." While speaking thus, he uncovered
his neck and presented it. Every one trembled, fearing
that the enraged prince would himself cut off his head ;
but he restrained himself.
The city of Bungo offered in this persecution many
beautiful examples of heroism. A converted bonze
named Benedict was arrested there, with his whole
family and other Christians. After they had been
stripped of their garments, they were ignominiously
dragged the distance of a league to an enclosed place.
Here they were bound fast in sacks, and thrown upon one
another. Benedict, who was lying below all of them,
fainted away. The guards then carried him to a neigh
boring house, where he was importuned to abandon his
faith. But as nothing could shake his constancy, he
was put back into the sack and thrown under the others
as before. When he was at the point of death they took
him again into the house, where he died while pronounc
ing the names of Jesus and Mary. The companions of
his sufferings were banished.
Having through others solicited in vain a Christian
nobleman to obey the orders of the emperor, the king
resolved to visit him in person, hoping to conquer him
by this extraordinary condescension. The nobleman,
hearing that the king was on the road to meet him,
went on towards him and said to him : " Prince, I am
extremely obliged to you for the honor you have deigned
to confer upon me by visiting me in person ; but if all
this is for the purpose of making me change my religion,
I declare that I wish to die a Christian. If that is a crime
you may at once cut off my head." Having said this, he
fell on his knees, uncovered his shoulders, and awaited the
358 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
blow, At that moment his son, who was nine years old,
ran up to him, and also knelt by his side. Then came
his wife and his mother, who did the same in order
that all might die together. This spectacle greatly
moved the king and he withdrew ; but sometime after
wards, for fear of the emperor, he sent this entire noble
family into exile.
Another distinguished nobleman, by the name of
Titus, had to undergo a severer trial. The king used
every kind of solicitation to persuade him to deny his
faith ; and as he courageously resisted, he was ordered
to send, on his return home, his younger son, a boy nine
years of age. Titus felt this order most difficult to exe
cute, as he feared that his son would lose either his life
or his faith ; but forced to obey, he embraced the child,
exhorted him to remain firm, and sent him to the palace.
Two days afterwards the prince sent word to the father
that he had put his son to death because he had refused
to abjure his religion, and he should now send his
daughter, who was fourteen years old. This was a
second cruel blow aimed at the heart of both father and
mother ; but they had to be resigned to it. Some time
having elapsed, Titus received the news that his daugh
ter was also dead, and also the order to send his eldest
son, aged sixteen. The good father was heart
broken by this last blow, which was more painful than
the rest; he called his son, and said to him : "My dear
child, your young brother and sister have died for Jesus
Christ; they are now in heaven calling for you ; go,
show that you are a true Christian, and prepare a place
for your mother and for me, for we shall not delay to
follow you." The young man fell on his knees, asked
his father's blessing, and set out courageously for the
palace. These saintly parents felt keenly the loss of
their children ; but they were consoled in thinking that
these were crowned in heaven, and that they were thus
CHAP. ix. i Benedict, a Converted Bonze. 359
disposing themselves to join them there. In fact the
king soon informed Titus that he should send his wife.
This last separation was cruel, yet it was unavoidable.
Finally, he was informed that his children and his wife
being dead, he was in his turn to be beheaded if he did
not obey. Titus answered that it was the most agree
able news that he could receive ; he joyfully set out for
the palace, and asked the prince for the same favor
that had been granted to his family. Here the scene was
all at once changed: the king in the presence of Titus
opened a door, and out came his wife and his children
alive. He then told them to go home and to practise
the Christian religion, to which they were so much
attached.
Those who were exercising authority under King
Taidono did not use the same moderation. We have
read above about the heroic death of the converted
bonze Benedict : we shall also cite the glorious example
of three other martyrs of the kingdom of Bungo. A
gentleman of rank, named Clement, had two sons,
Michael and Lin ; Michael, being married to a fervent
Christian, whose name was Maxentia, was the father of
several children. Clement showed great firmness at the
beginning of the persecution ; but after the publica
tion of the imperial edict, although his two sons had
protested that they would never abandon their faith, he
cowardly signed a declaration stating that he and his
family renounced the Christian religion. Michael and
Lin, learning what their father had done, hastened to
publish that they had not subscribed this act ; and
Clement himself, moved by the just reproaches of his
children, retracted what he had signed. The governor
then had the father and the two sons arrested, as also
Maxentia, the wife of Michael, with his two young
children. Three of them were seized, namely, Lin,
Maxentia, and Peter, aged fourteen, the eldest son of
360 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Michael. They were stripped and securely tied in sacks;
the others were reserved to a more cruel torment, which
was to see those surfer whom they loved. Young Peter,
enclosed in his sack, encouraged his mother to suffer
with patience ; and, addressing the idolaters present, he
said to them : "Beware of putting my name on the list
of those who have denied the faith; if you dare to do
so, I will myself go and accuse you of forgery." Lin
and Maxentia prayed continually. They passed three
days in this state without being able to turn either to
one side or the other. After this long torture they were
remanded to prison ; and seven days later, July 13, 1614,
Michael and Lin were condemned to be burnt alive.
On leaving the prison Michael said to his brother : " See,
now, in preference to our parents we have received the
happiness of dying for Jesus Christ ! " While going to
the place of execution they saw that Maxentia was also
conducted thither, and they found there three stakes.
Michael and Lin immediately ran to embrace theirs.
While the latter were being tied to them, Maxentia also
asked to be tied ; but she was refused in order that she
might endure the pain of seeing her husband die. When
the funeral pile had been set on fire, she wished to leap
into the flames; but she was prevented. After she had
witnessed this sorrowful holocaust, the executioners
tried to frighten her by putting the sword to her neck,
but she cried out: " This is not the way to frighten Chris
tians : if you wish to frighten me you must threaten to
spare my life." Then she knelt down and presented
her neck to the executioner, telling him to do his duty.
She was then beheaded.
CHAP, x.i JoacJiim and Thomas of Facata. 361
CHAPTER X.
JOACHIM AND THOMAS OF FACATA — ADAM OF THE ISLAND
OF XIQUI— PAUL OF THE KINGDOM OF JAMAXIRO.
1614-1616.
THE church of Facata was enjoying peace under a
good king ; but after the edict of the emperor a day
was fixed on which all the Christians of a quarter of the
city were to present themselves to have their names en
rolled among those who had denied the faith. As the
inhabitants of this city were the richest in Japan, for
fear of losing their property they all made but a feeble
resistance, with the exception of two faithful Christians,
named Joachim and Thomas. Joachim, who was a phy
sician, was so charitable as to treat gratuitously all the
sick, and he exercised this charity principally among the
poor. As the urgent solicitations of his friends could
not shake his resolution, he was finally condemned to be
hanged from a tree head downwards. Thomas was con
demned to the same punishment, and he was tied to the
same tree below Joachim. They remained in this state
for three days, and there was none who dared to give
them anything to eat or to drink ; they, however, con
soled themselves by thinking of the Cross of Jesus
Christ. After this torture they were beheaded. A
bonze was so struck by their constancy that he
did not hesitate to say publicly : "Who could doubt the
salvation of these two Christians who have given their
blood in defence of their law ? "
In the island of Xiqui, when the edict of the emperor
was published, the priests who governed this church
being obliged to depart, they left the care of it to an
362 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
old man named Adam Aracava. As this good man ful
filled worthily the duties of his office, he was arrested
and brought before the governor, who did all in his
power to win him over. Adam, however, replied : " When
I compare the death with which men threaten me with
the eternal life that God promises me, I look upon as
good all the evil that can be done to me. The prince
unjustly persecutes the Christians to preserve his crown ;
and I should not fear what is just in order to acquire
an immortal crown, and to please God, who is the sove
reign Master of all kings." The governor becoming
greatly incensed at such language, ordered that the
saintly old man should be stripped and conducted
through the city, preceded by a public crier, who was to
say in a loud voice : " Here is the man who has rebelled
against the emperor !" He was then kept suspended by
the arms and feet from two posts from morning until
night, for nine days. Finally he was condemned to be
beheaded, and the execution took place during the night,
on a mountain. Several witnesses have testified that
his head while falling pronounced twice in a strong
voice these sacred names : " Jesus, Mary !"
After this glorious death, a Christian who had
through fear denied his faith felt so lively a remorse
that he presented himself to the judges and declared to
them, in the presence of several witnesses, that he had
yielded to violence when he abjured his religion, but
that now he wished to live and die a Christian. The
judges derided him and drove him away. He then
entered a neighboring house and impressed upon his
forehead with a red-hot iron the sign of the cross.
Returning to the judges he said to them : " Now you
cannot doubt that I am a Christian. The God who has
given me the strength to suffer this burning will also
grant me the same to endure all the torments that you
will inflict upon me." The governor intended at first to
CHAP, xi.] Leonard Guinmra and Others. 365
put him to death; but reflecting that thereby the number
of martyrs would only be increased, he left him in peace.
In 1616 occurred the martyrdom of Paul Tarosuque,
who was of the kingdom of Jamaxiro. After the publi
cation of the last edicts he was strongly urged to aban
don his faith. As he refused to do so, his friends drew
up a formula of abjuration, and holding his hand, made
him sign it in spite of himself. This was the cause of the
greatest affliction to him. But while he was in search
of the means to repair this involuntary evil, an officer
came to tell him that the governor was not satisfied with
the act that he had signed, because he had omitted to
indicate the sect which he had embraced. Paul, full of
joy, seized at once the writing and tore it up. He de
clared that he was a Christian, and that he desired to
seal his profession of faith with his blood. Then fore
seeing that his death was near, he wrote to five of his
friends, asking them to recommend him to God, and to
obtain for him the grace of dying for the faith. Some
time afterwards he was informed that he should prepare
himself for death. This news completed his happiness;
he asked the officer to allow him to die on the cross;
but the latter answered that he could not change the
sentence which condemned him to have his head cut off;
and this sentence was carried out.
CHAPTER XI.
PERSECUTION AT NANGASAKI AND AT OMURA — BROTHER
LEONARD GUIMURA AND HIS COMPANIONS LIN TOIEMON.
1618-1619.
IN 1618, at Nangasaki, which was the last refuge of
the Christians, an officer of justice entered the house of
364 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
one of the principal inhabitants of the city and asked for
a pen in order to register the names of all the Christians
living there. A little girl eight years old gave him a
pen, saying: "Take this, and put my name down so that
I may be the first to die for Jesus Christ." Then came
the mother, who also gave her name; and as the officer
was going away she ran after him, holding in her arms
her youngest child, and said: " Put also on your list, I
beg you, the name of this child, who was sleeping when
you came, and whom I had forgotten."
Among the many faithful Christians who were cast
into prison in that year was Brother Leonard Guimura,
a Japanese, of the Society of Jesus. This fervent Chris
tian baptized in the prison eighty-six idolaters who had
been locked up with him. The holy life led by these
prisoners was most remarkable; for every day they made
a two hours' meditation, and spent one hour in vocal
prayer; they fasted Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays;
and on each Friday they prayed for five hours in honor
of the Passion of Jesus Christ.
The governor knowing that Brother Leonard had
changed his prison into a house of prayer, and that he
had converted the idolatrous prisoners, condemned him
to death with four of his companions. When they were
interrogated the judge asked Leonard why he had re
mained in Japan. The Brother answered, saying: "I
remained in order that I might preach the law of Jesus
Christ." " For that," rejoined the judge, "you shall be
burned alive." "Then," exclaimed Leonard, "let the
world know that I am condemned to death by fire, and
that I have preached the law of Jesus Christ." The
judge addressing another of the faithful, named Dominic
George, a Portuguese,1 arrested for having given shelter
to a missionary priest, he said that he also would be
burnt for what he had done. Dominic replied: " I pre-
1 As for his wife and child, see note in chap. xvii.
CHAP, xi.] Leonard Guimura and Others. 365
fer this sentence to the possession of the whole Japanese
Empire." The five who had been condemned were then
led to execution. The streets were crowded with people,
the sea covered with boats filled with spectators who had
assembled to witness the death of the holy confessors.
Each one inclined respectfully to the stake to which he
was then bound. The fire having been kindled, Leonard
was after a short time seen to place reverentially the
cinders upon his head while he sang the psalm Laudate
Dominum omnes gentes. This spectacle so filled the faith
ful with the desire of martyrdom that many of them
approached the fire in order to be thrown into it; there
were even two among them who asked their neighbors
whether it were not permitted to cast themselves into
it. Several pagans were converted when they saw the
joy exhibited by the martyrs in the midst of the flames.
Their sacrifice was consummated November 28, 1619.
One is moved with compassion while reading about
the sufferings of the confessors of the faith endured in
the prison of Omura, a city situated about six leagues
from Nangasaki. These holy prisoners were exposed to
the inclemency of the weather in a place closed on the one
side by a wall, on the other by a row of hedges, with
guards who were keeping watch inside. They suffered
from hunger — so much so that they frequently fainted.
The guards, moved with pity, allowed the Christians to
assist them by secretly furnishing them with food. The
magistrates, however, wished to oblige the guards to
swear by the gods of Japan that they would not permit
any more assistance to be given to the prisoners, but a
noble captain, a Christian, named Lin Toiemon, refused
to take the oath, saying that he could swear only in the
name of the true God. He well knew that such a re
fusal would cost him his life. After having recom
mended himself to the prayers of the prisoners, he re
tired to his own house and took leave of his friends.
366 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
The soldiers did not delay to make an attack upon him,
and one of them struck him in the neck with the sword.
Lin fell immediately on his knees and offered his head*
which was at once cut off. His wife, seeing him dead,
ran after the executioners, crying out that she also was
a Christian; but they refused to listen to her, saying that
they had not received any orders concerning her. The
death of Lin made those enter into themselves who had
taken the sacrilegious oath; for three among them,
moved by repentance for their fault, tore up publicly the
paper on which this oath was written. A young noble
man was a martyr of his charity: he was killed with blows
of the sword, because he had sent by one of his servants
some refreshments to the prisoners. The servant was
beheaded; his name was Thomas, and his master's name
was Peter.
CHAPTER XII.
IN THE KINGDOM OF BUNCO, JAMES FAITO, BALTHASAR
AND HIS SON JAMES.
1619.
AT this period two men of distinction also suffered
martyrdom in the kingdom of Bungo.
The name of the first was James Faito. He had dur
ing the preceding year been expelled from his house,
stripped of all his property, and reduced so much that
he lived with his family in a poor cabin; finally, he was
condemned to death for not having wished to deny his
faith. The news of this sentence having reached him at
his dwelling, he passed at once to a neighboring apart
ment, where he found his wife with one of his daughters,
and said to them: "I have come to bid vou farewell,
CHAP, xii.] James Faito> Balthasar and his Son. 367
but on condition that you do not begin to weep." After
having recommended himself to Jesus Christ and to the
Blessed Virgin, he put on his finest clothes and entered
a boat which was to transport him to the place of execu
tion. Having landed he wished to take off his shoes in
order to go barefooted as far as the hill designated;
there he fell upon his knees, presented his head to the
executioner, and while invoking the names of Jesus and
Mary, received the death-blow, October 15, 1619, at the
age of fifty-four.
On the same day his cousin, by the name of Balthasar,
superintendent of the royal treasury, obtained the same
crown. He had also been despoiled of his property and
exiled from the kingdom on account of his faith, and it
was also in the place of exile where it was announced to
him that he had been condemned to death because he
was a Christian. He rejoiced greatly, and thanked the
governor for having delivered him thereby from the
miseries of this life. He subsequently visited his mother,
Lucy his wife, and his daughter Thecla, and communi
cated to them the good news that he had received. The
officers of justice came to ask him in which place he
wished to die. "Wherever you please," he answered.
Thecla then said: "My father, it is not necessary for you
to leave the house; it would be for us a consolation to
be present at your death." Balthasar rejoined: "My
daughter, the Son of God wished to die outside of Jeru
salem, in a public place; we should imitate his example
by dying in the same place in which malefactors die."
Before departing he prayed before the image of our
Lord. His wife and his daughter wished to have the
consolation of washing his feet; thereupon he set out
and joined the executioners.
Balthasar had a son four years old, named James, who,
seeing his father going to his death, threw himself at
his feet and cried out that he wished to die with him.
368 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
The father persuaded him to remain with his mother;
but the boy did not wish to leave him; finally, to rid
himself of further trouble, he allowed him to follow him.
When all had arrived at the place of execution, the
servant of God, seeing those present moved with com
passion, spoke to them: "You would have reason to
pity me if I died in punishment of a crime; but since I
die for my religion, you should envy my happiness; for I
only quit the earth in order to reign eternally in heaven."
Having said this, he embraced his son, fell on his knees,
made to God an offering of his life, and presented his
neck to the executioner who beheaded him. The mar
tyr was in his forty-eighth year.
Little James, without being frightened by the death
of his father, knelt as he had done, kissed the collar of
his garment, and received also the death-blow, while he
was saying, "Jesus, Mary!" It was indeed wonderful to
see so young a child die with such intrepidity; but it
was still more wonderful that there could be found an
executioner capable of immolating this little innocent.
CHAPTER XIII.
FIFTY-TWO MARTYRS BURNT ALIVE AT MEACO.
1619.
IN the same year of 1619 thirty-six Christians of every
age and of both sexes were arrested at Meaco; and as
the prisons were already filled, they were kept in the
open air.
There was among them a good old man by the name
of James, a physician and a fervent Christian. The
superintendent, who highly esteemed him, had his bands
CHAP, xiii.] Fifty-two Martyrs burnt at Meaco. 369
taken off and had him placed elsewhere, giving him to
understand that he might set himself free; but James
declared that being a Christian he wished to die with
the rest. A soldier then seized him by the arm and said
to him angrily: " Go away from here, unfortunate man;
go and take a good place in prison, where we shall soon
meet you." His intention was that the physician should
return home; but James, obeying the command literally,
went to the prison, happy at being able to rejoin his
companions.
The emperor having come to Meaco, many other Chris
tians were seized and incarcerated. The prisons of Japan,
and above all those of Meaco, were so small and infectious
that one could hardly breathe in them. Eight Christians
died of sickness, hunger, and misery. It having been re
ported to the emperor that many Christians were in
prison on account of their faith, he ordered that all of
them should be burnt alive.
On the day of this barbarous execution, October 7,
1619, all the victims, to the number of fifty-two, were
tied together and transported on nine carts to the place
of execution. The men were placed in front, the young
persons behind; in the middle were placed the women
with their children. A public crier preceded them, pub
lishing the sentence of death in these words: "The em
peror wishes that these who are condemned shall be
burnt alive, because they are Christians." And each
time this announcement was made the holy confessors
cried out: " Yes, we die for Jesus Christ; live Jesus !"
All those who saw them were unable to restrain their
tears, especially when they noticed so many women and
innocent children who were doomed to die.
On the funeral pile had been erected crosses to serve
as stakes; this surprised and consoled our generous mar
tyrs. While leaving the carts each one asked for his
cross in ordqr to embrace it; but it was found necessary
24
370 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
to tie two men or two women to each cross. Among the
men was a lord belonging to the court, named John
Tafioie, to whom great promises were offered, but the
hero remained unshaken. Among the number of women
was found Thecla, the wife of Tafioie; she died in the
fire with five of her children, three of whom expired in
her arms. When the flames burst fortli from the funeral
pile, the executioners began to howl, and those who were
spectators shed tears and uttered cries, while the mar
tyrs sang and invoked the holy name of Jesus. At first
the smoke was so dense that no one could see them; but
after a short time these holy martyrs were seen dying
with their eyes raised to heaven. What was more re
markable was, that of so many persons who could have
escaped, not one attempted to do so, and that even the
children remained steadfastly in the fire till death. It is
related that over this place a brilliant star was afterwards
seen by pagans as well as by Christians.
There was among these martyrs a young person by
the name of Martha, whom the officers at first drew aside
so that she might escape; but she wept so bitterly that,
to please her, they had to lock her up in prison with the
others. She was threatened with the most horrible tor
ments; most seductive offers were made to her; but she
never ceased to answer that she wished to die for the
faith. The dampness of the prison made her blind; and
in this sad state all that she feared was that she might
not die with the others. When the prisoners set out for
the place of execution, Martha clung so closely to her
mother, who was of the number. of the condemned, that
she could not be torn from her arms, and had to be de
livered with her to the flames.
There was also among them another heroine named
Monica; she was from the kingdom of Mino. She
ardently desired martyrdom, and exercised herself be
forehand in the endurance of all the torments that the
CHAP, xiv] Ignatitis Xiquiemon and Others. 371
idolaters could inflict upon her. One day she went so
far as to pick up a red-hot iron. On seeing this her sister
cried out: "Ah! Monica, what are you doing?" "lam
preparing myself for martyrdom," she answered. " I have
already struggled against hunger, and I have overcome
it; now I am handling fire in order to conquer it when I
shall be obliged to endure it. Whoever does not make
a trial of himself in this way should flee from danger,"
This courageous woman having reached the funeral pile,
before descending from the cart, said in a loud voice:
" Listen to me, ye who are present: I declare to you that
I am a Christian, and that I die a Christian." She then
died a glorious death.
CHAPTER XIV.
IGNATIUS XIQUIEMON, MARTYRED AT FUCIMO — CONVER
SION OF A BONZE WHO HAD LED A BAD LIFE — MAT
THIAS, OF THE KINGDOM OF ARIMA.
1619-20.
THE great holocaust, of which we have just spoken,
was followed by a victory that was gained, nearly in the
same place, by a Christian hero, Ignatius Xiquiemon.
Being at that time at Meaco, he was invited to a great
ball which was given in honor of the Fotoqui; but he
refused to take part in it, and ridiculed this vain super
stition. As he was immediately pursued as a Christian,
he withdrew to Fucimo, where he was arrested. The
judges having asked whether he knew other wicked men
professing the same religion that he professed, Ignatius,
quite inflamed with zeal, replied that it was wrong for
them to treat as wicked those men who were thinking
372 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
only of their salvation. He was put into prison, and at
first treated with kindness because of his gentle manners
that gained all hearts. But the news having spread that
fifty-two Christians had been immolated at Meaco, he
was at once brought to trial and condemned to death by
fire. The haste with which he was conducted to the
place of execution gave his executioners no time to pre
pare the stake and to gather the necessary wood. While
they were arranging the funeral pile, Ignatius waited
with so great tranquillity that the pagans themselves
were filled with admiration. When he had been tied to
the stake and the funeral pile had been kindled, he re
cited in a loud voice the Pater noster; but he could not
finish it, as the smoke and the flames prevented him
from speaking. An idolater seeing him half burnt ap
proached and said to him: "Courage, brother; recom
mend yourself to the Fotoqui; there is yet time." Igna
tius turned away his head while continuing his prayer,
and gently gave up his soul to God. The Christians
took his body and buried it with honors.
About the same time there occurred a wonderful con
version and the holy death of a bonze who had led a
wicked life. He was so wicked, that while giving lodg
ings to travellers, he did so, not to give them hospitality,
but to rob and to kill them. His crimes having come to
the knowledge of the authorities, he was condemned to
be buried in the ground up to his neck, and it was for
bidden to give him any other thing than two or three
mouthfuls of rice every evening, in order to prolong his
torture. The unfortunate man passed several days in
this state; but when already the worms were beginning
to devour his entrails, God permitted that there should
shine forth in him the wonderful effects of his mercy.
Some Christian soldiers, touched with compassion, ex
horted him, since he was about to die, to save his soul
and to receive baptism, without which he could not
CHAP, xiv.] Ignatius Xiquiemon and others. 373
be saved. As this bonze belonged to the number of
those who did not believe in a future life, he ridiculed
their exhortations. The soldiers, however, insisted, in
speaking to him especially of the worm of conscience
that would gnaw his heart eternally in hell, and would
do so in a manner more horrible than the material worms
that were actually gnawing his entrails. This great
sinner becoming then enlightened with the grace of God.
asked for baptism, and received it with great sorrow for
his past life. He thenceforward accepted his punish
ment in a spirit of penance, and died in a holy manner^
never ceasing to repeat the names of Jesus and Mary.
We have here another example of firmness given, in
1620, by a Christian of the kingdom of Arima. His
name was Matthias, and he was devoting himself to the
service of the Father Provincial of the Jesuits. One
night as he was carrying a cassock to Nangasaki, he was
arrested by the soldiers and taken before the governor.
The latter asked him to whom belonged the garment
that he was carrying. Matthias, in order not to expose
himself to the danger of telling a lie, and at the same
time in order not to betray the religious, kept silence.
The soldiers heaped upon him every kind of bad treatment
to oblige him to speak; but he courageously persisted
in giving no answer. Then he was extended on two
pieces of wood, and made to swallow so great a quantity
of water that he was on the point of expiring. Matthias
suffered all without saying anything and without utter
ing the least complaint. His invincible constancy being
thus apparent, he was sent to the governor of Arima,
who although he saw him in a half-dead condition, had
him tormented still more cruelly by forcing him to swallow
water and to vomit it violently. The patient asked for
a moment's repose, which was granted in the hope that
he was at last going to reveal all; but no precise answer
was given. They threatened him with yet more cruel
374 Tli c Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
torments, when he fell down in a swoon, and as his
tongue hung out of his mouth, a soldier struck him on
the head with so powerful a blow of his fist that his teeth
bit off his tongue. He remained in this state during the
whole night; and on the following morning he gave up
his beautiful soul to God, in the forty-ninth year of his
life.
CHAPTER XV.
SIMON BOCUSAI AND HIS COMPANIONS, IN BUNCO — JOHN
CIU AND JOHN ITO, AT NANGASAKI LEO NONDA, IN
FINGO.
I620-2I.
IN the kingdom of Bungo a nobleman named Simon
Bocusai, who had distinguished himself in the army by
his bravery, consecrated himself later on to the service
of God and to the salvation of souls. He opened a
school in which he taught the doctrines and the maxims
of the Christian religion. The king ordered him. to
close his school; but as Simon did not obey, he con
demned him to die on the cross, with Magdalen, his
wife, and the members of the Christian family that were
living in his house, namely, Thomas Guengoro, Mary,
his wife, and James, their child. Simon, informed of his
approaching end, wrote to a religious as follows: " The
prince has pronounced against me the sentence of death;
I must therefore die soon. I have often asked this grace
of God; I hope that, if my sins offer no obstacle, I may
go in a few hours to enjoy eternal happiness. I entreat
you to obtain for me perseverance." The virtuous wife
of Simon and their guests received with the same joy
the news of their condemnation. On the following day,
CHAP, xv,] Simon Bocusai and others. 375
being informed that they would have to proceed to the
place of execution, they knelt down before a crucifix,
and having reached their destination, each one pros
trated himself at the foot of his cross. Simon asked the
officer of justice to thank the prince on his part for the
favor that he had conferred in causing him to die for
Jesus Christ. The five martyrs were then crucified, Sep
tember 14, 1620. Simon was then sixty years old; he
died on the following day; so also did Magdalen; the
others expired somewhat later.
In 1621, two noblemen of Nangasaki, John Ciu and
John Ito, were decapitated for having given hospitality
to two missionary Fathers. As they were persons of dis
tinguished merit, the governor did all he could to save
them; they, on the contrary, far from defending them
selves, maintained that death was their due. Their wives
put the greatest obstacle in their way, for they asserted
that during the absence of their husbands they had had
their names inscribed on the list of Christians, and that
thus on themselves should the death penalty be inflicted^
and not on their husbands; but the latter became so im
portunate by their arguments and entreaties that they
gained the victory.
The same year, a nobleman of the kingdom of Fingo,
by the name of Leo Nonda, after having received bap
tism at Nangasaki, retired to Isafai, his native city, and
there lived a life of piety, applying himself above all to
fortify the Christians who were wavering in their faith.
He made many efforts to bring back to a virtuous life,
among others, a young man who had gone astray; but
seeing that he was only losing time, he abandoned him.
This wretched man afterwards went through spite to
accuse Leo of being a Christian. Whereupon the gov
ernor deputed three officers to visit Leo and to prevail
upon him to deny his faith. They made use of every arti
fice to persuade him; but finding that he was unshaken
3?6 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
in the resolution of remaining faithful, they chained him,
drove his wife and children from the house, and placed
guards over it. Afterwards the governor sent some one
to tell him, as if on behalf of his wife, that he should
consent to dissemble his faith, at least with the mouth,
and he should not by his obstinacy cause his own ruin
and that of his family. Leo replied that the evils of the
present life being transitory, he preferred them to the
evils of the next life that are eternal, and that if he were
forced to abandon his family it would not be abandoned
by God. This stratagem having failed, the governor
also employed several other persons of great authority
to gain him over; but Leo informed him that in recog
nition of the goodness that he (the governor) showed in
his regard, he would warn him that if he did not cease
to adore the Camis and the Fotoqui, he would surely be
condemned forever to hell. Thereupon the governor
became greatly enraged, and pronounced against him the
sentence of death. When Leo was informed of this, he
rendered thanks to the Lord, and gave a beautiful ex
hortation to the idolaters present to induce them to fol
low Jesus Christ. During the following night he was
secretly conveyed to a vessel that carried him to a neigh
boring island, where he was beheaded, July 25, 1621, in
his forty-second year.
CHAPTER XVI.
PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOM OF OXU A FATHER RE
CLAIMED BY THE EXAMPLE OF HIS CHILD — JOACHIM AND
ANN OF MIZUSAMA.
l62I.
A GOVERNOR of the kingdom of Oxu had published an
edict declaring that all the Christians must abandon
CHAP, xvi.] Joachim and Ann of Mizusama. 377
their religion under penalty of losing their lives, and he
thereby forced one of his near relatives to deny the faith.
The latter had a son, aged twelve years, who was also a
Christian; he went to declare to the judges that he and
his son had abandoned the faith. The son, however, as
soon as he heard of this shameful proceeding, went to
the judges and protested against the declaration of his
father, saying that he was a Christian, and that he wished
to die a Christian. The father on hearing of this, con
ducted him again to the judges, who told him that if he
wished to remain a Christian, he would have to renounce
the inheritance bequeathed to him by his father. " I re
nounce," said the boy with magnanimity, " not only the
inheritance of my father, but all the grandeurs of this
world, in order to gain eternal life." On hearing these
words the father seized his dagger and rushed upon him
to kill him. The boy seeing him come, instead of run
ning away fell on his knees and presented his breast;
but those who were present prevented him from com
mitting the crime. A few days afterwards, the father, in
admiration of the fidelity of his son, entered into him
self, acknowledged his fault, asked pardon of God, and
declared in presence of the judges that he was a Chris
tian, and that he willingly accepted death to wipe out
with his blood the injury that he had done to God0
Moreover, finding himself one day in an assembly of the
faithful, he mutilated his flesh with a discipline, crying
out with tears in his eyes: "My brethren, lam unworthy
of the name of Christian; I have sullied my soul with a
great crime, and with black ingratitude towards my
Creator and my Redeemer!" Thus was the constancy
of the son the salvation of the father.
The same governor charged a commissioner to search
for and exterminate all the Christians of his province.
There lived in the town of Mizusama a holy man, named
Joachim, with Ann, his wife, as virtuous as himself,
378 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Both were advanced in years, one being sixty-six, the
other sixty, and they had been baptized only two years
before. The commissioner not having succeeded in
making Joachim renounce his faith, he ordered him to
be put in prison, where he was to be left to die of hunger.
At the end of twenty-three days, as he was still living,
thanks to the aid that had been given him by some of
the faithful, the tyrant ordered that he together with his
wife should be decapitated. The news of this having
spread, the Christians went in crowds to visit Joachim
in prison, where he exhorted all to meditate without
ceasing on the Passion of Jesus Christ, saying that the
remembrance of this mystery would suffice to make them
support courageously all that they would have to suffer
in trying to save their souls. While he was thus speak
ing, the executioners entered and displayed in his pres
ence the iron collars and handcuffs. He then bowed
his head and gave thanks to God for having judged him
worthy to carry these irons, more precious in his eyes
than the sceptres and crowns of princes. The two saintly
martyrs walked to the place of execution, their arms and
neck laden with chains; Ann was accompanied by two
women, and Joachim by a large number of Christians
who had clothed themselves in silk in order to honor
their martyrdom. Finally, at the place of execution
when the executioner raised his arm to cut off the head
of the martyr, the Christians uttered so loud a cry that
the frightened man cutoff only one half of the neck; but
he was at once replaced by another, who finished the
work. This head, only the half of which was cut off,
pronounced the names of Jesus and Mary. Ann was
executed immediately after while repeating the same
sacred names. This event occurred in 1621.
CHAP, xvn.] Great Execution at Nangasaki. 379
CHAPTER XVII.
GREAT EXECUTION AT NANGASAKI — JUSTA, HER DAUGH
TER MARY, AND HER DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGATHA —
PAUL GAZAIEMON — CONSTANCY OF A CHILD
l622.
IN 1622, September 2 or 10, there was at Nangasaki a
great execution of Christians, which was called the Great
Martyrdom, because twenty-one religious and thirty-one
seculars were put to death, some of them being decapitated
and the rest burnt alive. What was above all to be ad
mired was the constancy of those who perished in the fire;
for they had been but loosely tied to their stakes, so that
overcome by their sufferings they could easily get loose,
take flight, and declare themselves apostates; but the
holy confessors steadfastly remained in the midst of the
flames till death.1 One of the condemned, who was not
1 As these illustrious conquerors will probably not fail, as we have
been assured, to receive the honors of triumph in the Church, as we have
seen in the case of those mentioned, Chapter II., page 326, we deem it
useful to give a list of their names.
There were eight Dominicans; namely, the Franciscan Fathers Mo-
ralez, Alphonse de Mena, Ange Ferrier, Joseph and Hyacinthe Orfanel-
li; the brothers Alexis and Thomas; John, of the Third Order. The
first six were burnt.
Four Franciscans: Fathers Peter d'Avila and Richard of St. Anne;
Brothers Leo and Vincent. All four perished by fire. Father Richard
is he of whom St. Alphonsus relates the example in the Glories of
Mary, P. I. ch. viii. § I (Vol. VII. p. 233).
Nine Jesuits: Fathers Charles Spinola, who was very celebrated,
being regarded as the chief of this glorious phalanx, and Sebastian
Quimura; the novices whose vows were received by Father Spinola be
fore the execution, Peter Sampo, Gonzalve Fusai, Thomas Acafoxi,
Michael Xumpo, Anthony Kiuni, Louis Cavara, and John Ciungocu.
380 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
counted among the fifty-two martyrs, came forth from
the fire; but seeing the courage with which his wife suf
fered death, he again threw himself into the flames and
returned to his stake. There were two others, who were
still young, who fled and presented themselves to the
judge, invoking Xaca and Amida. But oh, astonishing
thing, that proves how much the wicked themselves
abhor inconstancy in doing good ! the idolaters felt such
contempt for these two apostates that they seized them
and threw them back into the fire. Thus did these un
fortunate men pass from the temporal to the eternal fire.
These victims were followed by many others immo
lated chiefly at Nangasaki and at Omura. In this latter
city three women distinguished themselves above all by
their admirable firmness. A magistrate having gone to
visit one of them named Justa, whose son had been de
spoiled of all his property and deprived even of life on
account of his faith, declared to her that he would aid
her to recover all the possessions of her son if she would
All were condemned to the fire; but the last one was beheaded, for
want of a stake to which to tie him.
The four seculars delivered up to the flames were: Anthony of
Corea, Paul , Anthony Sanga, and Lucius Fraitez.
Twenty-seven seculars beheaded: Isabella Fernandez, widow of
Dominic George, (Chap. XI. page 364), and his son Ignatius, aged four
years; Mary, widow of Andrew Tocuan, a martyr; Apollina, a widow;
Agnes, widow of Come, a martyr; Marina, a widow; Mary, wife of
Anthony of Corea, condemned to the fire; his son, John aged twelve;
and his brother Peter, aged three; Mary, widow of John Xun, a mar
tyr; Dominica, a widow; Magdalen, wife of Anthony Sanga, con
demned to the fire; Mary, wife of Paul , also condemned to the
fire; Catharine ; Thecla, wife of Paul Nangaxi, the one who, hav
ing come forth from the fire, re-entered it voluntarily, and his son
Peter, aged seven; Dominic Nacavo, son of Matthias, a martyr; Peter
Motoiurna, aged five, son of John, a martyr; Bartholomew Cavano;
Dominic Yamarida; Damian , and his son Michael, aged five;
Thomas ; Clement and his son Anthony, aged three; Rufus ;
Clare, wife of a martyr. — ED.
CHAP, xvii.j Great Execution at Nangasaki. 381
only cease to be a Christian. Justa also had a daugh
ter called Mary, aged fourteen years. The judge having
perceived her, said to her that he would adopt her as his
daughter if she would adore the gods. "Adore the
gods!" cried out the young Christian: " I adore only one
God, the Creator of heaven and earth: it was for Him
that my brother died, and it is for Him that I also wish
to die." The judge then proceeded to the widow of the
martyr, a young woman of eighteen, named Agatha, who
was near her confinement; he falsely stated that Justa,
her mother-in-law, had denied her faith, and that she
should imitate her, and in doing so she would be taking
care of her child. Agatha replied that she would prefer
to see this child perish in her womb, rather than intrust
it to the care of an idolater, the murderer of its father.
She added that she desired death, hoping soon to rejoin
her husband in heaven. The judge having reported all
this to the governor, the latter condemned the three
women to die the following night. When they heard
of this sentence they fell on their knees to thank Jesus
Christ for the grace that he had conferred on them. At
the appointed hour, they joyfully set out for the place
of execution, accompanied by more than three hundred
Christians. When they arrived there, Agatha prostrated
herself, having Justa on her right, and Mary, her daugh
ter-in-law, on her left. After praying for some time, all
three presented their necks and were beheaded, October
9, 1622.
At another place, a generous martyr named Paul
Gazaiemon obtained the crown in his old age, and ob
tained it by a new kind of suffering. He was eighty years
of age, and had employed the greatest part of his life in
works of charity towards his neighbor, applying him
self specially to assist the faithful who were sick or per
secuted. Summoned one day to appear before the
judges, he hastened to present himself, being happy to
382 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
give to God a life of which a natural death would soon
deprive him. The governor seeing his constancy in the
faith, conducted him to a convent of bonzes, who ex
hausted all their knowledge to make him prevaricate ;
but he clearly demonstrated to them the falsity of their
religion and the truth of ours. The governor then en
deavored to conquer him by torments. He was led to the
sea-shore, and was threatened with death by drowning if
he did not renounce his faith. He was then put into
a boat, his feet were enveloped in a bag, and his head in
another ; but Paul tranquilly said to the soldiers that
at his age he had nothing more to hope nor to fear on
earth, and that his greatest regret was not to have loved
God more during life after having received so many
graces. These barbarians, irritated by such language,
stretched the good old man at his full length, and jump
ing upon his abdomen, trampled it with their feet ;
after this they tied his hands and feet, fastened a large
stone to his neck, and threw him into the sea. To their
great surprise, however, he floated upon the water for
nearly an hour, and did not expire until he had peace
fully finished his prayer.
On October 2d of the same year nine Christians were
martyred at Nangasaki. Among them was a boy, who
was tortured during the space of eight days, to make
him discover the place where the religious were hidden ;
but he did nothing else but repeat the names of Jesus
and Mary. The executioners, transported with rage, tore
open his back between the shoulders and poured into it
melted lead — a cruelty that the heroic boy suffered while
constantly saying, " Jesus and Mary ! I desire to go to
heaven and see my God." The judges finally despaired
of conquering him, and had him with his whole family
burnt alive.
CHAP, xviii.] Many Victims at Jedo. 38,
CHAPTER XVIII.
MANY VICTIMS OF THE PERSECUTION AT JEDO MARY
JAGERA AND HER COMPANIONS — MASSACRE OF CHIL
DREN.
1623.
DURING the month of September of the year 1623
many of the faithful were immolated at Jedo. On the
4th of the same month fifty of them perished by fire.
On the 29th there were twenty-four who were burnt,
decapitated, or crucified. Among them was a woman
named Mary Jagera, who had given shelter to a religious
missionary. The governor having tried in vain all that
he could to pervert her, ended by condemning her to
the stake with four other women of high rank. On the
day of the execution Mary was tied to a horse in order
to be carried to the place of torture; she proceeded
thither with a smiling countenance, accompanied by
those who were to die with her. But what drew tears
from the eyes of all was the spectacle of eighteen little
children who were led to execution at the same time.
They were so innocent that they indulged in play the
whole length of the journey. One cannot read without
horror the cruelties that were inflicted on these tender
lambs. Some of them had their heads cut off, others
had their bodies cut open as far as the throat; there
were some who were divided in two; several were taken
by the feet and cut in pieces. During this frightful
butchery the five women continued in prayer, then the
funeral pile was lit, and the saintly heroines were con
sumed by a slow fire.
384 Tke Martyrs of Japan. IPART n.
CHAPTER XIX.
FRANCIS SINTARO AND MATTHIAS SQUIRAIEMON AT FIRO-
XIMA — JOHN CUFROI IN THE KINGDOM OF ZIO.
1624.
THE princes who were the least hostile to the Chris
tians, to please the emperor did not cease to go in search of
them and to persecute them. At Firoxima, a young lord
called Francis Sintaro having learned that during his ab
sence the guardian of his house had declared to the officers
of justice that it harbored no Christian, hastened to write
to the governor that the guardian had imposed on them,
because he was a Christian and was resolved to remain
such till death. This letter gave great pain to the gover
nor, who very much regretted having to lose so distin
guished an officer. He therefore engaged all the relatives
and friends of Sintaro to unite their efforts in inducing
him to deny the faith. They did all that they could for
this purpose, but they gained nothing. The principal
personages of the court wrote to him to make him on be
half of the emperor the most brilliant offers; but when
he perceived what they were aiming at, he threw their
letters into the fire. The courier having remarked to
him that those lords would feel themselves insulted if
they heard what he had done, he said: "My friend, you
are a courier, and not a counsellor ; your duty is to
bring the letters, not to give advice. You have done your
duty: all you have now to do is to depart."
A short time after there presented themselves four
officers, who had been sent by the governor to ask whe
ther he was willing to embrace the religion of the prince.
He answered that he desired to follow till death the
religion of Jesus Christ, the King of heaven and earth.
CHAP xix.] Francis Sintaro and others. 385
After this declaration the governor ordered three other
officers to put him to death if he persisted in his resolu
tion, and would not yield. The latter having arrived
at his house communicated to him the grief that the
governor felt at seeing himself obliged to treat him
rigorously according to the law, and represented to him
the ruin of his whole family which his obstinacy would
cause. Francis, full of intrepidity, answered: "The
governor may order what he pleases: I am ready to obey
him in all that is not contrary to the law of God; but it
is unreasonable for him to demand of me that I should
disobey the Sovereign of kings, who forbids me to adore
any other god except Him." The officers replied : " If you
refuse to do what you are asked, you must make up your
mind to die." "I am resolved to die," he replied; "and
I assure you that you could not have brought me
more welcome news." They then said to him: "Since
you are tired of living, die at least like a man of honor.
Slit open your body, as people of your rank are accus
tomed to do." To this the Christian nobleman re
joined: " I would do so if the law of God permitted me,
but it forbids me to take away my life. You have the
sword in your hands: you may kill me, if you wish. I
shall look upon him as my father who inflicts death up
on me, because he will furnish me with a better life than
that which he takes from me."
Having said this, he asked their permission to go to
bid farewell to his mother; and on reaching her apart
ments he spoke thus to her: "My mother, the hour for
which I have so much longed, and which I have asked
of God to grant me, has at last come; I am going to
die. Forgive me all the displeasure that I have caused
you, and give me your blessing." Then he knelt down
to receive this last favor. His mother tenderly em
braced him, and said : " My dear son, may the Lord
bless you, and give you the strength to die a holy death.
25
386 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
It greatly afflicts me to lose you; but I console myself
in thinking that you are dying for Jesus Christ. May he
be always praised for the grace that he is granting you !"
He also took leave of his young wife, and returned to
the place where he was to be executed. Whilst entering
he saluted the officers, prostrated himself, and, after
having prayed, he presented his head, which one of the
officers cut off immediately. Francis Sintaro died in
this manner, February 16, 1624, in the flower of his age,
being only twenty-four years old.
While he was yet free, and many were urging him to
give up his faith, having learned that a man of his ac
quaintance, by the name of Matthias Squiraiemon, had
just been imprisoned for being a Christian, he cried out:
" Happy Mathias, how I envy your situation !" and having
taken up a pen he wrote him a letter of congratulation,
But he obtained the palm of martyrdom before Matthias;
the latter followed him a short time after.
Matthias was in the service of an idolatrous master of
the city of Firoxima. The latter did all he could to
seduce him; not having succeeded, he had him tied to a
stake by his hands, arms, and neck. This was a fright
ful torture that used to be inflicted in Japan; for the
cords are drawn so tightly that they penetrate the flesh,
and sometimes as far as the bone. Matthias passed a
day and a night in this state; and the tyrant, far from
being moved, became more and more incensed. He
ordered that upon his neck should be placed a large
piece of wood,, which the martyr carried for four days.
During this interval many persons were sent to persuade
him to yield; but as he was steadfast, his master ended
by denouncing him to the governor, who condemned him
to die on the cross.
Matthias received this news with expressions of the
liveliest joy, happy to think that he was going to die like
his Saviour. When he saw the cross he prostrated him-
CHAP, xx.] Isabella, Mother of D ami an. 387
self, and cried out, in imitation of the apostle St. Andrew:
"O cross sanctified by the death of my Lord Jesus
Christ ! I venerate thee from the bottom of my heart."
He then recited the Confiteor, and after a short prayer,
raising his eyes to heaven, he said: "Praised forever be
Jesus Christ, who deigns to call to himself by the way of
the cross a sinner such as I am." He .pronounced these
words with so much serenity, that the idolaters while
listening said to one another: " Who will be saved if
these people are not?" When he had been raised on the
cross he was pierced with lances, and gave up his soul
into the hands of his Creator, February 17, 1624, at the
age of thirty-seven years.
On the i4th of the same month, another noble and
fervent Christian, named John Cufroi, after being eigh
teen months in prison, was condemned to death in the
kingdom of Zio. Esteeming himself happy to die for the
faith, he begged the one who had come to notify him of
his condemnation to thank the governor on his behalf.
Arrived at the place of his sacrifice, he publicly declared
that the only crime for which he died was because he
was a Christian. He was subjected to a barbarous tor
ture. After he had been stripped of his garments, he
was stretched on the ground and cut in two.
CHAPTER XX.
IX THE ISLAND OF NANCAIA, ISABELLA, MOTHER OF JJA-
MIAN, AND HIS FAMILY; MARY, WIDOW OF JOHN SUCA-
MOTA, AND HIS FOUR SONS.
1624.
A GENEROUS servant of God, named Damian, had
sacrificed his life for the faith in 1622. All his property
388 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
having been confiscated, the house where his mother
Isabella, his wife Beatrice, and his children dwelt was
assigned to them as their prison. Guards were constantly
watching over them, and did not cease to importune
them to leave the Christian religion; they, however,
always answered that they desired to die for Jesus Christ.
Finally, after two years of captivity, the governor con
demned all of them to be put to death, with the excep
tion of Isabella; yet this venerable woman, aged seventy-
four, having bitterly complained that she could not share
the fate of her family, to satisfy her he ordered that she
also should be executed. The grandmother, the mother,
and the four children were then led from the house to
the place of execution. A pagan wished to save the
eldest of the two sons, named Paul, aged twelve years,
and he kept him secreted; but the boy managed things
so well that he was able to escape and follow the others.
They were placed in a vessel, to be transported to the
is-land of Nancaia, the place of execution. While on
their journey they were joined by Mary, widow of Suca-
mota, who had been martyred with Damian; she was
also led to death with her four sons. The two families
embraced each other in a most cordial- manner, and be
gan to chant together the praises of God.
Beatrice was the first that was immolated. Paul fol
lowed her; he was already on his knees awaiting the
fatal blow, when the executioner, seeing on his neck a
kind of collar that was the ornament worn by the chil
dren of rank in Japan, ordered him to take it off. The
boy arose at once and removed it; he then knelt down
again, bent his neck while pronouncing the names of
Jesus and Mary. John, his brother, nine years of age,
seeing him stretched dead at his side, courageously fell
on his knees, and was at once decapitated. There still
remained two girls — Magdalen, aged thirteen, and Isabella,
who was seven. The executioners seized little Isabella,
CHAP, xxi.] Michael Ficmon and his Family. 389
and having thrown her on the body of her mother, killed
her witli three blows of the sabre. Magdalen afterwards
perished in the same way. Finally, Isabella, who had
obtained permission to die last, in order, she said, to
have the consolation to see her whole family pass happily
from the earth to heaven, after she had contemplated,
not without the greatest grief, the massacre of all those
who were dear to her, was also beheaded, March 5, 1624.
We may here see how far the noble Christian soul can
go.
Mary and her children, who had been treated in the
same manner, were also put to death in this place. The
mother was the first that was beheaded, together with
the youngest of her sons, aged ten years. The other
three remained on> board of the vessel. Andrew was
twenty-five years of age, Mance twenty-three, and John
twenty-one. The executioners thrust each one into a
sack as far as the neck, and covered the head with
another sack. The three brothers asked to be fastened
together in order that they might be united in death as
they had been in life. Their request was granted; they
were tied together, with large stones attached, and thus
thrown into the sea.
CHAPTER XXI.
IN THE KINGDOM OF FIRANDO, MICHAEL FIEMON A.ND HIS
FAMILY.
1624.
IN a harbor of Firando there lived an excellent Chris
tian by the name of Michael Fiemon, whose religious
zeal was known by every one. This was the reason why
he was soon condemned to death with his whole family.
390 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
He had brought up his children so well that the idolaters
tormented in vain for two days one of them named John,
aged thirteen, trying to pervert him. He always said as
his only answer: " I wish to die a Christian." Ursula, the
wife of Michael, had a little daughter as wise as she was
pretty; some pagans begged the mother to intrust her to
them, promising that they would take care of her. Ursula
declared that for all the gold in the world she would
never permit any one of her children to pass into the
hands of idolaters.
The day of their martyrdom having arrived, Michael
took by the hand his eldest daughter Clara, aged seven,
whilst in the other hand he carried a lighted candle, the
symbol of faith; Ursula took care of Magdalen, the
youngest, and also carried a lighted candle. On arriving
at the place of execution Ursula asked the executioners
to execute her last: " I wish," she said, "before dying to
see all my family in safety." This was done.
Michael, in his thirty-seventh year, was the first that
was decapitated; the executioner took off his head with
one blow, which was also to take off at the same time the
head of little Clara, whom her father held in his arms;
but this was only accomplished after several other blows.
Then John arose and asked his mother to arrange his
hair, which was too long, so as to offer the executioner no
obstacle. The good mother embraced him, and raising
his hair fastened it upon his head. The boy then ap
proached the executioner, and noticing that the latter
was yet very young, he thus addressed him: "It seems
to me that you are afraid, and that you have never yet
cut off a head; take care, and do your duty." Having
said this he fell on his knees, joined his hands, and while
invoking Jesus and Mary he courageously received the
death-blow. Finally, Ursula, after having seen her hus
band and her two children die, cried out with tears in her
eyes: " Be Thou praised, O my God ! for having rendered
CHAP, xxii.] Five Religious Burnt, and others. 391
me worthy to be present at this sacrifice; now grant me
the grace to have a share in their crown. I have no one
else left but this child. O my God ! I offer it to Thee
with me; accept this last sacrifice." After having re
cited this prayer she pressed the little Magdalen to her
bosom; and the same blow caused the head of the mother
and that of the daughter to fall.
CHAPTER XXII.
FIVE RELIGIOUS BURNT ALIVE AT OMURA LEO MISAQUI
AND HIS THREE SONS, IN BUNCO.
1624.
ON August 25, 1624, there were taken from the prisons
of Omura, to be delivered up to the flames, five religious;
namely, a Dominican, Father Peter Vasquez; three
Franciscans, Fathers Louis Sotelo and Louis Sassandra,
and Brother Louis, a Japanese received into the Third
Order; a Jesuit, Father Michael Carvailho. They were
but lightly fastened to the stakes, so that when finding
themselves unbound they could easily escape and declare
themselves apostates, or they might at least serve to
amuse the people by remaining voluntarily in the fire.
The first one burnt was Brother Louis, who seeing him
self loosened from his cords, passed through the flames,
cast himself at the feet of the priests, to kiss their hands,
and then returned to his stake, where he expired a few
moments afterwards. Father Carvailho was the second
to die. The third was Father Sassandra, a Japanese,
who, seeing his cords burnt, wished to join his com
panions; but not being able to walk, because his feet
had been already half consumed, he contented himself
39 2 The Martyrs of ^fapan. [PART n.
with saluting them from a distance, and died imme
diately after. As for the other two, there being but a
slow fire, they remained in this torment for the space of
three hours, at the end of which they expired.
On May 8 of the same year occurred in the kingdom
of Bungo the courageous death of LeoMisaqui. During
the first persecution he had wavered in his faith, or at
least he had given cause of suspicion; he having entered
into himself, he called his oldest son, and declared to him
that in order to expiate his fault lie had taken the reso
lution to die for Jesus Christ. The young man, feeling
himself too weak to imitate him, retired to another coun
try. Leo afterwards called his three other sons, An
drew, Thomas, and John, and asked them what was their
intention. They all three answered that they were
ready to die with him for the faith. The officers of the
governor being somewhat afraid of Leo, arrested John,
the youngest of his sons. Leo at once presented himself
before the judge, declaring to him that if in the past he
had dissembled his religion, he now had made up his
mind to expiate his infidelity, even at the expense of his
life. The judge then summoned Thomas and Andrew.
The latter \vas at first irresolute; but soon finding out
the mistake that he had made, he had himself bound as
a prisoner with his father and his two brothers. Then
all that could be possibly clone was tried to shake the
fidelity of the three young servants of God; yet they re
sisted with firmness, and were finally condemned to die
with their father. On reaching the place of execution
Leo addressed a few words to his children to encourage
them. While he was yet speaking, the son of the gov
ernor arrived, and said that he wished to try the temper
of his arms upon the bodies of the martyrs. This was
the reason why they were executed in so unusual a manner.
Their heads were not merely cut off, but each by a blow
of the sabre had his head taken off together with the left
CHAP. xxin. } Caius'and James Coici, Burnt. 393
shoulder. Leo was in his sixty-first year, Andrew was
twenty-five, Thomas twenty-three, and John twenty.
CHAPTER XXIII.
CAIUS AND JAMES COICI, BURNT AT OMURA.
1625.
I REFRAIN from speaking of those martyrs whose com
bats resemble one another too much, so that the narrative
may not become irksome to the reader. I cannot, how
ever, pass over in silence those whose history contains
certain particular circumstances. Such is the martyrdom
of James Coici and of Cains, both having been burnt for
the faith at Omura in 1625.
James was arrested for having lodged a missionary.
Caius, on learning that James, his friend, was in prison,
went thither to speak to him; and as the guards opposed
his entrance, he opened a passage for himself by main
force. In punishment for this insolence he was held a
prisoner, and the lieutenant of the governor had him
punished so severely that his face was black and blue.
The lieutenant then told him that he could not save him
from the chastisement that he merited unless he would
promise to teach no more the Christian doctrine, as he
had been in the habit of doing. Caius pleaded in ex
cuse that he had consecrated his life to the instruction
of his neighbor. The lieutenant nevertheless, as he took
a liking to him, wished to set him at liberty; but Caius
said to him while leaving the prison: " Do not think that
I shall stop coming here; I will come to serve the prison
ers, cost what it may." At these words the lieutenant
changed his mind, and ordered him to be put in irons.
394 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
The governor having arrived at Omura from Nanga-
saki, ordered Caius to be brought before him; he prom
ised that the past would be forgotten if he would bind
himself no more to instruct the Christians. Caius again
protested that it was a work of charity, which he could
not give up. Thereupon the governor remanded him to
prison, threatening that he would have him burnt alive.
In fact, a short time afterwards he, with his friend James,
was condemned to death by fire. They gayly walked to
the place of execution, singing the litany of the saints.
When they arrived, Caius broke away from the hands of
his guards, and ran to embrace the stake that was des
tined for him; James in his turn did the same. They
were then tied, and fire was set to the funeral pile,
Caius knelt down in the middle of the flames, and while
thanking God in a loud voice for having found him
worthy to die as he had desired, he expired. James was
also kneeling in the middle of the fire; when his cords
had been consumed he arose as if he wished to speak to
those present, but as his strength failed him he again
knelt down, and died while invoking Jesus and Mary.
I must relate here the conversion of Caius. He was a
native of Corea. Although brought up in paganism, he
conceived so ardent a desire for the salvation of his soul
that he retired into the woods so as better to think of
the means to attain it. Corea having fallen into the
hands of the Japanese, our young solitary was made a
slave and transported to Japan, where he began to exam
ine what sect of bonzes he should embrace in order to
secure his salvation. In the mean time he retired to
their principal house at Meaco, but he could not find
there the peace that he was searching for. One day dur
ing sleep it seemed to him that the house was on fire: a
little while afterwards a young child of ravishing beauty
appeared to him, and announced to him that he would
soon meet what he desired; at the same time he felt
CHAP, xxiv.] Organtin Tanxit and his Wife. 395
himself quite well, though he had been sick. Despairing
of seeing among the bonzes the light for which he was
longing, he resolved to leave them. Scarcely had he
left the house when he met a Christian, to whom he
made known his mental troubles. The Christian having
explained to him some truths of our faith, he was filled
with admiration, and went to the house of the mission
aries to become more thoroughly instructed . After re
ceiving baptism Caius consecrated himself unreservedly
to the service of God and to the instruction of the idola
ters, and martyrdom put him in possession of the sover
eign happiness which he was seeking.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ORGANTIN TANXU, AND LUCY, HIS WIFE, BURNT AT FUNAI.
1625.
THE governor of Funai, the capital of the kingdom of
Bungo, having by an edict called upon all the Christians
to abjure their religion, Organtin Tanxu, a personage of
considerable distinction in the country, refused to obey.
He had a noble wife named Lucy, who was also a fer
vent Christian, and both were of an advanced age. The
governor, after vain efforts to make them change their
resolution, ended by condemning them to be burnt alive.
On the day of their martyrdom, September i, 1624 or
1625, they were conducted to the sea-shore, the place
where they were to be executed. Organtin on seeing
his stake alighted from his horse and prostrated himself
to salute it; Lucy followed his example. One of the of
ficers then said to Organtin: " Now, old man, how are
you pleased with the banquet that is prepared for you ?
396 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n,
What, say you in regard to the stake at which you are to
be burnt?" The martyr, kissing the stake, replied:
"This is the ladder which is to conduct me to heaven; I
will never leave it, no matter how terrible my sufferings
may be." Both bade farewell to those of their friends
who were present; after which the executioners tied them
to their stakes, and set the wood on fire. The wind
blew the flames towards Lucy, who almost immediately
gave up her soul to God, in her seventy-seventh year.
Organtin did not cease to hold himself erect in the mid
dle of the flames, without exhibiting the least pain, till
he expired, leaving the executioners wrapt in admiration
at his firmness and patience.
CHAPTER XXV.
MONICA OIVA, KILLED BY HER RELATIVES AT CUBOTA —
THIRTY-TWO MARTYRS BURNT ALIVE.
1625.
A YOUNG woman, twenty- seven years old, by the name
of Monica Oiva, who had been repudiated by her husband
on account of her faith, went to Cubota to her relatives;
but there she found a brother more cruel than her hus
band. In order to pervert her, this unworthy brother
wished to force her to unite herself in marriage to an
other pagan; she excused herself, saying that she had
made a vow of chastity, and consequently could not
marry again. Incensed by her opposition, he made her
serve in the kitchen for a whole year like a slave. The
wife of the governor, informed of what was going on,
sent for her, and strove by all means in her power to
make her alter her resolution; but she labored in vain.
CHAP, xxv.] Monica Oiva and others. 397
To remove all hope in this respect Monica cut off her
hair; this in Japan was a sign of the absolute renuncia
tion of marriage. Her relatives seeing this gave infor
mation of it to the governor, who permitted them to
treat her as they pleased. Then these barbarians ex
tended before her some matting to receive her blood,
and declared to her that she must change her religion
or die. She knelt down and presented her head, which
was immediately cut off by one of her relatives.
About the same time, in the year 1625, the governor
of Cubota condemned to the fire thirty-two Christian
nobles, of whom nine were women; for them this was a
great subject of rejoicing. In consideration of their
rank, it was the intention to lead them to execution
without tying them; but in order to bear greater re
semblance to their divine Master, they entreated the ex
ecutioners so earnestly, that the latter consented to tie
them all, except the women and a boy thirteen years old,
named Thomas. The martyrs moved onward in pro
cession with a joyous and recollected air. Thomas
walked at the head, holding in his hand the book of lita
nies; his exterior was so amiable and he appeared so
cheerful that one could not look at him without being
moved. He began the litany, and the rest responded.
They journeyed a distance of two leagues. Having ar
rived at the place of execution, each one was fastened to
his stake, and the wood was at once set on fire. They
all died holding their eyes fixed on heaven, and while
often repeating, "Have mercy on us, O Lord! have
mercy on us!" Witnesses have testified that during the
night a brilliant light was seen over the bodies of these
martyrs, and that the inhabitants of Mina ascended the
roofs of their houses to contemplate this prodigy, which
on the third night was observed by more than three
hundred persons.
39$ The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
CHAPTER XXVI.
PETER CABIOIE AND SUSANNA, JOHN NAISEN AND MONICA
YOUNG LOUIS, AND THEIR COMPANIONS, EXECUTED AT
NANGASAKI.
1625.
A CHRISTIAN woman, called Susanna, of the city of Fa-
cata, was summoned before the judge with her husband,
Peter Cabioie, like her a fervent Christian, because they
had provided lodgings for the missionaries. She took
into her arms her little girl, aged three, and requested
that the latter's name should be inscribed on the list of
Christians. Five days afterwards, seeing herself led
away with the other prisoners, she took her husband by
the hand and said to him: "I believe that they are
going to torture us. I am going away first, and I hope
with the help of God to remain faithful; I expect of you
a like firmness. Remember that this life is short, and
that eternity is very long."
The judges tried at first to unsettle Susanna by threats;
then they subjected her modesty to a severe test by
stripping her of her garments. They moreover sus
pended her to a tree by her hair; and this was done in
very cold weather. While she was courageously endur
ing these tortures, one of the judges, seeing the little
girl, whom a servant was carrying in her arms, asked to
whom she belonged. The servant, in order to save it,
replied that it was her own child. "No," cried out Sus
anna; " it is my child; look at the list where I have had
her name inscribed." The judge, full of anger, ordered
that the little innocent should also be stripped and
be tied to the feet of her mother. The cold made the
CHAP, xxvi.] Peter Cabioie, Susanna, and others. 599
child cry most bitterly, and the mother offered to God
this cruel torture, which lasted eight whole hours. After
this an iron collar was put upon her, and being fastened
to a column she was obliged to serve in the kitchen like
a slave during six months. Finally, she was conducted
to Nangasaki, to be put to death with the other martyrs
of whom we are going to speak. During the journey
the child was taken from her; and this was for her the
greatest suffering.
After Susanna, another valiant woman, named Mon
ica, the wife of John Naisen, gave an example of a hero
ism not less wonderful. The governor having ordered
her to be disrobed, then exposed to the insults of some
dissolute young men, her husband though a fervent
Christian, frightened by the sight of such an affront,
cried out to the governor: " Impious man ! Save the
honor of my wife, and I will do all that the judge wishes
me to do." John had then the weakness to say that he
denied the faith in order that the honor of his wife
might be respected. Monica, however, remained firm.
The governor commanded her to take in her hands some
burning coals that she might feel the torture of fire with
which he threatened her. As she was stretching out
her hand the tyrant raised his sword to cut it off, and she
did not withdraw it. He, however, set her at liberty
with her husband on account of the words uttered by
the latter.
Having gone to his home, John felt so great remorse
that he resolved to go in search of the governor. The
latter received him most kindly, praising him for what
he had done; but John said: "I come to declare to you
that I spoke against my conscience when I promised you
that I would do what the judge should command. I
have not denied the faith in my heart; I therefore pro
test that I am always a Christian, and I beg you to make
this known to the judge." The governor, after having
400 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
conferred with the judge, sent him to prison, whither
Monica, accompanied by her three young children, soon
after came to rejoice with him at his repentance.
Then there was seen another example of Christian
charity. A young and rich cavalier named Paul Uchi-
bori, learning that John was incarcerated because he had
lodged a missionary, went to present himself to the judge
and told him that it was he, and not John, who had
given shelter to the missionary. In fact, the mission
ary, on the evening preceding the day on which he was
received by John, found himself in the house of Paul,
where he sojourned for a long time; hence Paul con
cluded that the punishment should be inflicted on him,
and not on John. The latter replied that the missionary
had been secreted at his house, and therefore he should
be subjected to punishment. The judge taxed these
two generous men with folly when seeing them thus dis
pute about the right of dying. Finally, it was decided
that John should die, and that Paul should be held a
prisoner.1
The number of the condemned was reduced to eight;
namely, John Naisen, Monica his wife, and little Louis,
their son; Peter Cabioie and Susanna, his wife; Matthias
Aragni, John Tanaca, and Catharine his wife. Tanaca
was a poor laborer, advanced in life. They were in
formed that they had to proceed to Nangasaki to be exe-
cuted there; and soon after the saintly cortege set out
All were on horseback except little Louis, whom a soldier,
carried in his arms. Arrived at the place of execution,
the four men who were to be burnt were tied each to his
stake; the women knelt in prayer near their husbands.
Louis having been placed on the ground ran towards his
mother; but Monica made him leave her in order not to
be disturbed in her prayers, and the child returned to the
1 We shall hear of his martyrdom in the following chapter.
CH. xxvn.] Frightful Persecution in Arima. 401
soldier, who again took him in his arms. John, seeing that
Louis was frightened, said to him: " My son, take cour
age, do not fear; we are going to enter Paradise." The
execution was begun by beheading the three women and
young Louis; then fire was set to the funeral pile.
John Tanaca, seeing his fetters consumed, walked
through the flames and went to kiss the hands of each
of his companions; he then returned to his place, where
he fell and expired. Finally, all having accomplished
their sacrifice, they went to receive in heaven the palm
that they had merited, July 12, 1625.
CHAPTER XXVII.
FRIGHTFUL PERSECUTION IN THE KINGDOM OF ARIMA
JOACHIM MINESUIEDAI, CASPAR NAGAIOSAN, LOUIS XIN-
SABURO, JOHN TEMPEI, BARTHOLOMEW SANUIEMON, SIMON
KE1SAIEMON, PAUL UCHIBORI, LEONARD MASSUDADEUZO
AND THEIR COMPANIONS.
1627.
IN 1627, the persecution in the kingdom of Arima was
redoubled. New tortures were invented to torment the
Christians more cruelly; and the following was the occa
sion. The governor of this country was accused of
malversation and of negligence in driving away the mis
sionaries. The emperor wished to dismiss him and even
to deprive him of life; and the latter only escaped by
promising to exterminate all the Christians of the coun
try. To this end, he had at first the names of all the
males, not excepting the smaller children, taken down.
He then ordered to be manufactured three iron instru
ments, suitable for forming together the word Qitirixitan,
26
402 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
that is, Christian, which was thus divided: Quiri-xi-tan •
being heated in the fire, the three instruments were used
to impress these characters on the forehead and the two
cheeks of every Christian. Many apostatized to escape
this torture; but the rest remained steadfast.
Two young pages, John and Michael, showed a beauti
ful example of firmness. The governor, after having
exhausted every means to make them abandon the Chris
tian religion, threatened them that he would have all the
fingers of their hands cut off. They at once boldly pre
sented their hands, and the governor was on the point
of executing his threat; but he restrained himself, and
drove them away from his house. Michael went to a
forest to hide himself; as for John, he was soon recalled
by the tyrant, who, finding him always firm in his faith,
had his face burnt with a torch so that his nostrils were
entirely destroyed. A rope was then put around his
neck and attached to a beam in a way that he could
touch the ground only with the tips of his feet. After
wards, his hands and feet having been bound behind his
back, and being raised in the air, he was rapidly turned
around. This was the cause of terrible anguish, to
which poor John would have succumbed had not the
governor released him. He did not die, but he con
stantly suffered excruciating pains till he had the hap
piness to give his life for Jesus Christ.
In the country of Ximabara eighty Christians, seeing
that the persecution was increasing, encouraged one an
other to die for the faith. The governor having been
informed of this, had them conducted into a citadel,
giving orders to the commandant to force them into
apostasy; but all his efforts having been useless, he had
them come out one by one, and outside they were scourged
in such a manner that many of them lost their lives, and
the rest scarcely survived.
The governor gave orders that there should be sent to
CH
xxvii] Frightful Persecution in A rima. 403
him at Ximabara the members of the two principal
families of the city of Cuchinozu; namely, Joachim
Minesuiedai, his wife Mary, and his mother-in-law
Mary Piz, who was an octogenarian and blind; Caspar
Nagaiosan and his wife Isabella. These five persons,
after having generously confessed the faith, were tied to
stakes in a public place; then on their forehead and two
cheeks were burnt with hot-irons the letters which we
have mentioned, and thus they were exposed for three
days. After this torment they were remanded to Cuchi
nozu, there to undergo the same ignominy.
In this place a young man, twenty-six years old, named
Xinsaburo, son of a glorious martyr, came to throw him
self at their feet, which he kissed respectfully. The execu
tioners, being greatly incensed at this, seized him at once,
bound him, and inflicted upon him so terrible a bastinado
that the blood flowed from his nose, mouth, and eyes.
As he suffered all this without complaint, they cut off
a finger of his right hand, and having stripped him, he
was tied with the rest.
These intrepid martyrs were afterwards led through
different provinces, to intimidate the Christians by so
frightful a spectacle, and their number increased little
by little to eighteen. From city to city sufferings were
heaped upon them without ceasing. At the same time
a number of other Christians were seized, and they were
subjected to various torments. Some had one or more
fingers cut off with a refinement of cruelty: others had
all parts of the body burnt with torches; others had their
limbs broken, and their heads crushed between two pieces
of wood. A young man of twenty-four years of age,
named John Cauxichi, was condemned to have his fingers
cut off with red-hot scissors. He courageously extended
the hand to endure this torture, but the lieutenant of the
governor had him conducted to a house in order that an
effort might be made to pervert him. His hand was
404 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
taken by force to make him sign the act of renunciation;
but he seized the paper and tore it up. Whereupon the
executioners threw themselves upon him in great rage,
and overwhelmed him with blows. He was bound naked
to a stake, and the flesh of his fingers was torn with red-
hot pincers. Then his face and the sides of his body
were burnt during a whole hour, and in order to com
pletely disfigure him they rubbed his face with sea
rushes. John suffered all these torments with admirable
patience; and thus merited to be placed among the
nnmber of the eighteen who, having been brought back
to Ximabara, were there kept in prison while awaiting
their execution.
We must also mention another man of Sucori, named
Thomas Soxin, who was sixty-eight years old, and had
a son called John Tempei. The latter was at first solic
ited to renounce the Christian religion, and as he could
not be gained over, he as well as his father was told to
prepare himself to undergo the chastisement that the
governor would inflict upon him. John informed his
father of what was going on. The good old man seemed
at that moment to be marvellously fortified by grace;
and he said to his friends: " Help me to thank God, and
to employ well the time that remains to me to live."
The governor made renewed efforts to seduce John; but
finding him immovable he delivered him into the hands
of the judges to be put to the torture with his father and
several others. A gridiron was placed upon burning
coals, and the good old man Thomas was stretched
thereupon; two executioners held his hands, and two
others his feet; they turned his body in every way until
it was entirely roasted. The martyr bore this torture
with admirable courage and without uttering a word.
At last they released him so as to make room for his
son, who was present. The fire also penetrated him so
thoroughly that his bones were laid bare. While he was
CH. xxvii.] Frightful Persecution in A rima. 405
thus tormented, John did nothing but bless the Lord.
Having been thus roasted on the gridiron, both were
fastened to stakes, their ears were cut off, and the name
Qiiirixitan was impressed on the forehead with hot irons
so that they could not longer be recognized.
If any one should blame me for holding up a picture
of these horrible torments, fearing that while reading
this narrative one might happen to lose confidence in
case one should find one's self under similar trials, I
would beg leave to answer him that the strength to en
dure torments during the time of persecution is not to
come from ourselves, but it must be given by God, who
is all-powerful, and who has promised to hear him who
prays with confidence: He shall cry to me and I will hear
him.1 He who is wanting in confidence in God, is also
wanting in faith, when he says that he has not enough
strength; for every one who in a case of necessity re
commends himself to God, trusting in his promises, will
surely be victorious, as he is strengthened by him who
has said to his servants that his help will render them
capable of all things: / can do all things in him who
strengtheneth me? In this way the saints surmounted all
their torments. But let us continue the narrative of the
cruelties exercised against those of whom we have been
speaking.
The other Christians in whose presence Thomas and
John had been so horribly maltreated were asked whether
they had the courage to endure similar tortures. Bar
tholomew Sanniemon, who had been arrested with his
wife and four of his children, approached and fearlessly
placed himself in front of the fire. Thereat the execu
tioners became so enraged that they struck him with
sticks in such a manner that he fell to the ground like
one dead. His daughters were then put to the torture.
1 " Clamabit ad me, et ego exaudiam eum." — Ps. xc. 15.
* " Omnia possum in eo qui me confortat." — Phil. iv. 13.
406 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
One of them, named Regina, as beautiful in mind as she
was in body, having been strongly solicited to deny her
faith, answered that she wished to die for Jesus Christ;
whereupon she was suspended by her feet to a stake,
and her whole body was burnt by a torch.
At thjs moment the governor was informed that
Thomas, who had been put in prison, was about to ex
pire in consequence of his wounds. The barbarous
tyrant wished to profit by the remainder of his life
to torture him still more. By his orders the saintly old
man was put into a boat. Then after four fingers of his
hand had been cut off, he was plunged four times into
the sea; into which he was finally thrown with a stone
around his neck. He underwent these last cruelties be
fore the eyes of his son, whose anguish was thereby in
creased.
The martyrs were afterwards transported to other
cities to frighten the Christians by the spectacle of their
sufferings; and as John's body was entirely burnt, he
was put into a coffin made of reeds, that two men carried
upon their shoulders. He was continually a prey to
more violent pains; for his numerous wounds became as
many centres of corruption that had now- begun to mor
tify. This however did not prevent him from being
always cheerful and from encouraging others to suffer
for Jesus Christ. Finally, May 5, in his thirty-seventh
year he consummated his sacrifice on the cross which he
was bound, head downward.
Among a crowd of other glorious athletes of the faith
there was Peter, a boy, aged thirteen, whom the idolaters
wished to force to yield to their request by suspending
him naked to a tree and burning him with torches; yet
he endured all this with invincible constancy. The ex
ecutioners knowing no more what cruelty to invent,
heated an earthen vessel and put it all burning as it was
into his hand, saying that if he let it fall, it would be a
CH. xxvii.] Frightful Persecution in Arima. 407
sign of apostasy. The young hero held the vessel, and
did not flinch, although the fire penetrated to his very
bones.
Simon Keisaiemon, an old man of sixty-two years,
showing himself immovable in his faith, was summoned
by the governor either to abjure or to be thrown naked
upon a fire of live-coals. The good old man accepted
this order as coming from God. Fearing that he would
be giving a sign of infidelity if he did not obey, he im
mediately disrobed, and boldly stretched himself upon
the burning coals, where he even turned himself, now
upon one side, now upon the other; afterwards on his
face, then on his back, according to the orders that were
given to him. The tyrant, who was put to shame by so
heroic conduct, left the place; but those who were pres
ent took the martyr from the fire and carried him into
a house, where they ga.ve him every care. Having thus
been overcome by the father, the tyrant began to tor
ment his sons in a horrible manner; but the holy old man
had the consolation of seeing them come forth victorious
like himself from the combat. He told them that he
would die contented, since he had seen their fidelity
towards God. Full of this joy, he died in consequence
of the wounds that had been inflicted upon him, Feb
ruary 23, after ten days of suffering.
About this time there was taken from the prison Paul
Uchibori, of whom we have already spoken,1 with his
three young sons. The governor to intimidate the father
asked him which fingers of his eldest sou Anthony he
wished to have cut off. Paul answered that such a thing
did not concern him. The tyrant then ordered that
three fingers of each hand should be cut off. The boy
at once extended his hand and fearlessly suffered this
torture. His brother, Balthasar, when seeing him in this
1 Chapter XXVI., page 400.
408 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
state, cried out: "O my brother! how beautiful ap
pear to me your hands that have been thus mutilated
for the glory of Jesus Christ !" Then he also presented
his hands to the executioner, who cut each finger several
times. The third son, named Ignatius, was only five years
old. On seeing the executioner approach armed with
his knife, he likewise stretched forth his little hand, and
this barbarian, having cut his first finger, held it up be
fore his eyes; then he cut off one finger of the other
hand, and the child did not utter the least complaint.
After this torture they were transported with other
Christians to the sea, into which they were plunged at
different times, then drawn back into the vessel. Those
who persevered were finally thrown into the sea with a
stone around the neck; but several of them, overcome by
the cold, apostatized. The valiant Paul thus saw three
of his children drowned in the sea, and he himself ex
pected in his turn to join them; but he was brought back
with the rest of the faithful to the sea-shore, where all
had their faces burnt with red-hot irons and their
fingers cut off. Paul encouraged his companions, and
all suffered these tortures with firmness. After having
been thus mutilated and disfigured, they were set at
liberty. Paul fell down in a swoon in consequence of
the great loss of blood; and having revived, he related
that he had seen his children and that he had received
from them consolation and encouragement. He then
retired to a small house where he lived in extreme pov
erty while awaiting his execution.
But our martyrs did not long enjoy this liberty; for
the governor, having resolved to^make them die a cruel
death, ordered them to go back to prison, and they
obeyed. Here we must relate the frightful tortures to
which they were subjected. Two leagues from Nangasaki
there is a very high and steep mountain that is called
Mount Ungen. Its summit is divided by three or four
en. xxvn. i Frightful Persecution in Arinia. 409
deep abysses, full of sulphurous waters which subterra
nean fires keep constantly boiling. These waters are
cast up together with flames through these large open
ings which the Japanese call the mouths of hell; and
these masses of liquid are called infernal waters-; they
are seen to boil and are filled with vapor as if they were
in a boiler that is placed over a fire. They are precipi
tated from the mountain with great noise and form
lakes in different places. In these lakes they preserve
such a heat that as soon as they touch the flesh they pene
trate the very bones. It was upon this horrible moun
tain that the condemned, sixteen in number, were con
ducted, February 28, in order to be cast into the abyss.
Among these heroic Christians were several of whom
we have spoken above; 1 the chief of them being Paul
Uchibori. They set out on horseback, singing on the
way the praises of God. Arrived at the summit of the
mountain whence they directed their looks into the
frightful abyss, they were not dismayed ; on the con
trary, Paul and Mary, the wife of Joachim Minesuiedai,
alone of her sex among this troop of the elect, intoned
the psalm Laudete Dominum omnes gcntes. After having
prayed, Paul spoke to the idolaters, saying to them that
there is only one God, for the love of whom he and his
companions were sacrificing their lives. He then ex
horted his brethren, in order to encourage them to sub
mit to martyrdom. They were conducted to the brink
of the precipice, where they were stripped of their cloth
ing. The executioners then passed a rope under their
armpits, so as to be able to plunge them into the abyss
and to withdraw them at will.
The first to gain the palm in the infernal waters was
Louis Xinsaburo. On receiving the command to throw
himself into the gulf, being fortified by the spirit of God,
1 Page 403.
4io The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
after having made the sign of the cross and invoked
Jesus and Mary, he precipitated himself without fear,
and thus consummated his martyrdom. Paul, however,
informed his companions that it was not permitted to
throw .one's self into the gulf voluntarily. The execu
tioners then threw them one after another into the burn
ing waters so that they could be seen swimming about for
an instant and then expiring. The last was Paul ; in his
case after the rope had been fastened to his feet, he was
plunged into the waters, head foremost, and was drawn
out half dead ; the same thing was done a second time,
during which he repeated : " Praised be the Most Blessed
Sacrament !" Finally he was made to perish in the
abyss where he obtained his immortal crown, after hav
ing suffered so many torments for the faith.
The governor, after having used every effort to seduce
the men, undertook to pervert the women. One among
them, named Magdalen, was the wife of Leonard Massu-
dadeuzo, of whom we shall speak further on. As her
hand was forcibly held to make her inscribe her name
on the list of renegades, she struck the register with a
powerful blow and cried out that she would never obey
the ministers of Satan. The judges incensed at such
language, after having inflicted upon her a cruel basti
nado, sent her to prison and afterwards conducted her
to the sea. On the way thither she met her brother Cas
par and wished to bid him farewell ; but the guards
bound him and took him with her. When they were out
upon the sea, they asked that Caspar should persuade
his sister to inscribe her name on the register. "God
forbid !" cried out the young man, " that I should com
mit such a crime ; I would rather encourage my sister
to die for the faith." The guards were on the point of
throwing him into the sea ; but they abstained from do
ing so, since they had not received orders to that effect.
They returned to his sister Magdalen, and enjoined upon
CH. xxvii.] Frightful Persecution in Arima. 41 1
her either to renounce her religion or to throw herself into
the sea. The pious woman replied : " It is in vain that you
importune me to make me abandon my faith ; all the
torments in the world could never force me to do such a
thing. As for throwing myself into the sea, do it your
selves ; I am ready to die, but I must not cause my own
death." Upon this declaration her hands and feet were
tied and she was plunged into the water four times.
Finally, because of her unshaken constancy she was
precipitated into the sea with a stone fastened to her
neck, and she thus gained the victory.
After that another Magdalen was seized. She had al
ready suffered much for not renouncing her religion.
She had been plunged twice into the sea, but when she
saw that a stone was being fastened to her neck to drown
her, she unfortunately failed and declared herself con
quered. Although since that time she did not cease to
lament and protest that she was a Christian, history does
not inform us how she ended her life.
The governor having been told that the waters of the
sea could not shake the constancy of the prisoners again
condemned to the infernal fires ten of them, eight men
and two women. On hearing this the servants of God
passed the whole night in prayer; and on the following
day, on arriving at the summit of Mt. Ungen, they pros
trated themselves on the ground to honor the place of
their martyrdom. One of them, Paul Mofioie, embrac
ing his father, said: "What thanks shall we render
to God for the honor that he confers upon us to die to
gether for his glory ?" Paul was the first that was low
ered into the abyss ; he was soon after withdrawn to see
whether he would surrender; but, as he was about to
expire and did not answer, a large quantity of the burn
ing water was thrown upon him, and he was thus de
prived of life. The executioner then set to torturing
the courageous Joachim Suquidaia. They first made
412 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
him feel the painful effects of the infernal waters: then
seeing his constancy, they opened his sides in different
places with blows of a knife, and poured into his wounds
the horrible liquid. Joachim, however, remained un
shaken till his last breath. After him came John Chiza-
buro's turn. A pagan who wished to save him led him
aside, and after having conversed with him a few mo
ments, he went to tell the judge that John had submitted;
but becoming aware of this trick, the generous martyr
cried out that he wished to live and to die a Christian.
The judge in his anger ordered that his sides should be
cut open and the burning water should be poured into
his wounds. During this torture, the servant of God did
not cease to say : " My Jesus ! do not remove Thy pres
ence from me !" Finally, the executioners being fatigued,
bound the other martyrs together and poured upon
them such a quantity of the poisonous liquid that they
soon expired. Their bodies were quite disfigured as if
they had been flayed alive. This execution took place
in the month of May.
There yet remained in prison a faithful soldier of
Jesus Christ. It was Leonard Massudadenzo, the hus
band of the courageous Magdalen mentioned above.
He had been accused of theft, a crime of which he was
declared innocent. The governor offered him liberty
on condition that he would renounce Jesus Christ.
Leonard answered that he did not wish to abandon his
faith, even though he would have to endure the evils of
the whole world. At these words the tyrant had him
come before him, and seizing in his rage a hammer, he
crushed all the fingers of one hand, one after another,
asking him at each blow whether he persisted in his re
fusal. The holy martyr was then remanded to prison.
On another day he was forced to swallow a large quan
tity of water; when he was gorged with it, he was
stretched on the ground, where one of the executioners
CH. xxvin.] Louis Yemondono and others. 413
stood upon his abdomen, and while trampling it with
his feet, made him vomit forth the water, which came
with the blood through his mouth, nose, and eyes. He
was then placed upon a ladder, on which h» was violently
drawn with ropes attached to his hands and feet. The
servant of God afterwards related that during these tor
tures he was consoled by the apparition of his wife,
Magdalen, and that she encouraged him, saying: " Leon
ard, be faithful to God." The judge not being able to
shake his constancy, sent him back again to prison,
where he spent several months, fasting three times a
week, wearing hair-cloth, scourging himself with the
discipline in order to obtain the grace of martyrdom of
which he believed himself deprived on account of his
sins. He there baptized an idolater, converted two
apostates, and encouraged all the faithful to suffer for
Jesus Christ. Finally, the Lord hearing his prayer and
his desire to die a martyr of the faith, he was condemned
to be beheaded, and he thus consummated his sacrifice,
December 13, 1627.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
PERSECUTION IN THE PRINCIPALITY OF JONEZAVA — LOUIS
YEMONDONO AND HIS FAMILY, PAUL XIQUIBU, ANTHONY
ANAZAVA, AND THEIR COMPANIONS.
1628.
THE following year, 1628, a young prince, Lord of
Jonezava, in order to commend himself to the emperor,
enjoined upon a governor to force all the Christians of
his States to follow the religion of the country. This
governor, who was of a gentle and conciliatory dispo-
414 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
sition, in order to calm him, informed him that there
were no Christians in his dominion. Another function
ary, however, a rival of the former, made up a long list
of Christians and sent it to the prince.
A little while after the prince asked the governor who
among his subjects was the best captain whom he could
safely promote to a higher rank. The governor pro
posed to him Yemondono as the most worthy of all; but
the prince, knowing that he was a Christian, said that he
could not intrust his states to a man of this religion.
To which the governor replied that Yemondono had
been a Christian, but was so no longer. "If this is the
case," answered the prince, " I will promote him."
Upon this promise the governor went in search of
Yemondono witli other friends, and endeavored to per
suade him to accept the advantageous offers. Yemon
dono replied that there was no fortune in this world that
could detach him from Jesus Christ. Having been in
formed of this, the prince ordered the governor to put
to death Yemondono, his wife, his children, and all
Christians. Whereupon the governor said to him:
"Shall we sacrifice more than three thousand persons?"
He knew that he would lose his life if he did not obey;
yet thought it expedient to represent to his young mas
ter that all the precepts of the Christian law were full
of justice, and that among them was one that specially
ordained that one should expose one's life in the service
of the prince. The tyrant would, however, not heed
these representations, and confirmed the order that he
had given, namely, that all the Christians should die.
The eldest son of Louis Yemondono, named Michael
Taiemon, aged twenty-three, was at that time grievously
ill; but hearing of the general condemnation of the
Christians, leaped from his bed and cried out that joy
had healed him. He had himself carried to the house
of his venerable father, who rejoiced with him at the
CH. xxviii. ] Louis Yemondono and others. 415
good news and gave thanks to God. His second son,
Vincent Ichibioie, did not delay to visit the paternal
roof, Two officers afterwards came who were charged
with the duty to announce to Yemondono that the prince
had condemned him and his whole family to die on the
following day, January 12. The good old man answered
that he thanked the prince for making him die for so
noble a cause; then addressing his two sons, he said to
them: " Now, my dear children, I have nothing more to
desire, since God is pleased that I should make him a
sacrifice of my life, — a grace for which I have always
been longing." Michael and Vincent, animated with
the same sentiments, united their thanksgivings to those
of their father. The two young women, Dominica and
Thecla, the wives of the two brothers, having heard of
what was going on, and burning with the same desire
for martyrdom, hastened to join their husbands; they
each had a little daughter that they carried in their arms.
Yemondono then desired to give his servants their
discharge, and to make them presents; but they refused
even the salary that was due to them, and declared that
they all wished to die for Jesus Christ. The servants of
Michael and those of his brother spoke in the same way.
Among them was a young page, less than twelve years
old, who was to be sent home to his parents, but he
refused to go. He afterwards consented to return to
his father's house, but only to take leave. His father
endeavored to retain him by force; but the boy reso
lutely told him that he did not wish to lose so beautiful
an occasion to prove his fidelity to his God; after this
he fled from the house, and returned to join the martyrs.
The night was passed in exercises of piety and in
making preparations under the direction of the saintly
old man. Two hours before day the officers of justice
arrived; they found the servants of God awaiting the
moment of their sacrifice. Upon all a rope was put
41 6 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
around the neck, and their hands were tied oehind the
back, with the exception of the women and Yemondono.
Remaining thus free to receive the executioners, he
went to meet them with a smiling countenance; then
he was bound like the rest. All knelt down before an
image of the Mother of God that was fastened to a pike.
A young page was charged with carrying this holy
standard, and another had to accompany him with a
blessed candle that was burning. The pious cortege
finally left the house in the following order: after the
two pages came the women; Thecla had her little
daughter in her arms, and that of Dominica was carried
by her chamber-maid; then followed the men, masters
and servants; and the brave Yemondono closed the pro
cession. They all showed so great a modesty that the
idolaters were themselves deeply moved. Arrived at
the place of execution, they fell on their knees, and
again recommended themselves to the Blessed Virgin.
All, to the number of fifteen, were beheaded, the women
first, the men afterwards; their venerable chief, Yemon
dono, was the last that was executed; he received the
mortal blow while pronouncing the names of Jesus and
Mary.
There were left five of his servants who expected to
die with the rest; but they were told to return home.
These poor men, who were greatly distressed, said to
the judge: "We are Christians as well as those who
have just died; why do you not make us die with them ?"
Whilst thus speaking they remained on their knees.
The two young pages refused above all to rise and to
go away; they had to be forced out of the enclosure.
They returned home, weeping for not having obtained
the grace of being executed with the rest.
A second band of Christians, composed of seven
persons, all of the same family, were afterwards put to
death. Then came a nobleman, named Simon Xuzaie-
en. xxviii.] Louis Yemondono and others. 417
mon, with his daughter, aged thirteen, whom some
idolaters carried off in the hope of perverting them;
but she escaped from their hands, and ran to the place
of execution, where her father was already on his knees
awaiting death; she placed herself by his side, and both
were beheaded.
On the same day there was also executed a highly
distinguished young lord named Paul Xiquibu, a great
friend of Yemondono. The governor having notified
him the previous evening to prepare himself, he sent his
thanks to him. After midnight an emissary arrived,
with orders to behead him when the sun should rise.
Paul began to pray, and when morning came, set out for
the place of execution. Magdalen, his wife, wished to
follow him, but she was prevented from doing so: she
was told that the prince, at the instance of her father,
allowed her to live. This generous woman replied that
it was an injustice to let a Christian wife live while they
put to death her Christian husband. An officer seeing
her burst into tears, to console her, said to her that he
would try to procure for her the death that she de
sired; he added that the prince would not execute her
publicly on account of the promise that he had given to
her father; but he promised to come in the evening to
behead her in her apartments. In the mean time, Paul,
who had heard this whole conversation, seeing the ardent
desire that his virtuous spouse showed to die for Jesus
Christ, wept for joy; full of this sweet consolation, he
walked cheerfully to the place of execution, where, after
having prayed, he received the death-blow, and the palm
that nothing can tarnish.
One league from Jonezava there lived several Chris
tian noblemen belonging to the prince's court. The
more distinguished among them were Anthony Anazava
and Ignatius Soiemon. While they were absent, their
wives, in order to save them, declared that their luis-
27
4 1 8 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART u.
bands were not Christians. But our two heroes, when
they heard of this, hastened to go in search of the gov
ernor, to let him know that their wives had deceived
him. The latter having told them that they should
obey the prince, they replied that if the prince wished to
be obeyed he had but to order their death and they
would be ready to submit to it.
Three days after, Anthony being in a house with
soldiers, the latter pressed him to deny the faith, because
they had received orders to arrest him in case of refusal.
"That is right," Anthony answered: "do your duty at
once." But as no one dared to put his hand upon him,
he took the rope himself and passed it around his neck;
then having put his hands behind his back, he begged
them to tie him. Thus bound he went to the house of
Ignatius, to whom he said on entering: "Well, friend,
what say you about the state in which you see me?"
"You never," answered Ignatius, "appeared to me more
worthy of honor than on this day on which you carry
the livery of Jesus Christ; I wish to share your glory."
Having said this, he begged and obtained the favor of
being bound like Anthony.
Four other noblemen were also arrested, among whom
was Paul, the eldest son of Anthony. His two younger
sons, Mancio and Michael, the former fourteen, the latter
eleven years of age, having come to visit him, he said to
them: "As you see, I am bound; are you not also ready
to die for Jesus Christ?" "Yes," they answered, "we
are ready." They presented themselves to the soldiers
to be bound; but the latter said to them that if they
wished to die with their father, they needed only to fol
low him.
A short time afterwards, by order of the prince, the
men were conducted to another place, where they were
beheaded. Their wives, who were also condemned, were
taken with their children into the yard of the house that
CHAP, xxix.i Isabella, Simeon, Father Iscida. 419
had belonged to Ignatius, where they suffered the same
punishment. Mancio and Michael having knelt down to
receive the death-blow, the pagans who were present
were touched with compassion, and cried out that these
boys did not even know why they died; but both an
swered with firmness: " We die for Jesus Christ." Where
upon the executioners decapitated at first Mancio, the
elder son. Michael, seeing his brother dead, put his
hands to his hair to raise it up; at the same moment
the executioner cut off with one blow of the sabre not
only the head, but also the two hands — a spectacle that
drew tears from the eyes of those present.
CHAPTER XXIX.
PERSECUTION PUSHED TO THE LAST DEGREE OF VIOLENCE
AT NANGASAKI ISABELLA AND SIMEON — FATHER AN
THONY ISCIDA.
1629-30.
ABOUT the year 1629 there came to Nangasaki a new
governor, who was more cruel than all the rest. He
made a large number of the faithful ascend the horrible
Mount Ungen, and gave orders that they should be tor
mented as much as possible without causing their death,
because death under these torments was the object of
their desires. Among them was a young woman named
Isabella, whose husband had denied the faith. She was
placed on the brink of the abyss; there a large stone
was fastened to her neck, and a small one was put on her
head; she was told that if she let it fall, this would be a
sign of apostasy. Isabella answered that even if her head
were to fall, her soul would always remain firm and con-
420 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
stant in the faith. She nevertheless kept the same pos
ture for several hours, and did not let the stone fall from
her head. She passed the whole night in prayer. On
the following day, from morning till night, burning water
was poured on her head from time to time. She was
treated in this manner for several days, and at intervals
new cruelties were inflicted upon her. * Every time they
urged her to submit she answered: "I am a Christian,
and I will be one till death." " But," said the execu
tioners to her, " we will torment you in this way for ten,
twenty years." " Ah," she cried, " ten, twenty years! that
is too short a time; if I lived a hundred years I should
esteem myself happy to suffer all this time the same
tortures for the love of God." This torture lasted thir
teen days, and the servant of God passed six of them
without drinking, eating, or sleeping — her whole body
being one wound. Finally, despairing of being able to
conquer her, she had to be taken back to Nangasaki,
where the governor had her hand taken by force to in
scribe her name on the list of renegades; he then dis
missed her. She, however, remained firm in her faith,
and the pagans could not help admiring her courage.
The governor having ordered that all those who were
imprisoned for the faith should be prosecuted, there
were found among them two brothers, Alexis and Simeon.
Alexis being asked to deny his faith, protested that he*
would never consent; however, he had the misfortune
to yield later on and to deny his faith. The judge then
took in hand Simeon, the younger brother, who was in
his nineteenth year; he asked him whether he had applied
himself to study. "Others," said Simeon in reply,
" study to succeed in the world; but I have studied only
to learn how to die well." The judge having told him
that many Christians advanced in age had abandoned
the faith to save their lives, he replied: "As for myself,
I am sure that I cannot be saved except in my religion;
CHAP, xxix.] Isabella, Simeon, Father Iscida. 421
let others do what they please, I will never abandon it."
After this, the governor condemned him with several
others to be conducted to Mount Ungen.
Arrived at the summit of the mountain, Simeon was
stripped and tied; then subjected to the same treatment
as Isabella; but after several hours of the most excruci
ating sufferings he fell into a swoon. The same thing
was renewed on the following day. When he recovered
his senses he heard the executioners still speaking to him
about denying his faith; he then said to them: "Know
that whatever may be the torments that you make me
endure, I will never adore your false gods." Irritated
at these words, the judge ordered that he should be sub
jected for the third time to the punishment of the in
fernal waters. The executioners having again stripped
him saw his body all covered with the most frightful
wounds; nevertheless they stretched him on the ground,
and continued to pour the horrible liquid on his flesh
that was already consumed. The poor young man,
quite exhausted, fainted again; he was placed in the
cabin where he had been before, and left lying upon
the ground. The wounds then began to putrefy, and
worms were engendered. This created such a stench
that in order to frighten Isabella, the valiant woman of
whom we have spoken, she was threatened with being
shut up in the same cabin with Simeon. The governor
fearing that the patient might die, sent a doctor to cure
him, or if he could not restore him to health, to have
him sent back to his father. For the emperor desired
that the Christians should no longer be put to death,
but that they should be tormented till they renounced the
faith; — a barbarous invention inspired by the devil. The
doctor despairing of being able to heal Simeon, had him
transported to his father's house; but the saintly youth
was told that should he recover, he would be tortured
anew. To this he replied, " That is just what I desire."
422 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
The young man arrived at his father's house more
dead than alive. As the Christians came to visit him
and congratulated him for having suffered so much
for God, he made the request that in order to be freed
from hearing such eulogies the door should be closed to
every one. There in solitude he was often heard to re
peat: " Oh, my Jesus ! Thy wounds, not mine, are great;
all that I suffer is nothing in comparison with what Thou
hast suffered for me." On the third day he asked that his
face be washed. " But, my son," said the father to him,
" do you not know that your face is but one wound ? To
wash it would only increase your sufferings." Simeon
replied: "Wash it as well as you can; do you not see
that I am going to paradise?" Then he asked for his
crucifix, saying that he wished to give up his soul into
the sacred wounds of the Saviour. It was given to him;
and not being able to raise his arms to embrace it, he
said: " Oh, my Saviour ! have pity on me." Then pro
nouncing the names of Jesus and Mary, he gave up his
spirit to God, August 29, 1630. His father and his other
relatives wept, but less for grief than for joy that they
experienced in seeing this martyr in the bosom of their
family.
The persecution in this country raged afterwards with
such fury that of six hundred thousand Christians who
had been counted before, there soon remained no more
than forty thousand, the rest having been either per
verted or martyred. It was not long after those of
whom we have just spoken that Father Anthony Iscida,
a Japanese and missionary of the Society of Jesus, also
won with much glory the immortal crown. Having
been in prison at Omura for three years, he was worn
out with sufferings. The governor not ceasing to press
him to return to the worship of the gods of the country
in which he had been born, this good priest answered:
" In order to affect me it will be necessary to threaten
CHAP, xxxi James Cufioie and his Family. 423
me with sparing my life. My most ardent desire is to
suffer much and to die for Jesus Christ." The tyrant
had him conducted to Mount Ungen, where, after his
limbs had been dislocated, he was for thirty days subjected
to torture by means of the sulphurous waters. He was
finally burnt alive at Nangasaki, and thus consummated
his sacrifice in the sixty-fourth year of his age.
CHAPTER XXX.
JAMES CUFIOIE; MARY, HIS MOTHER; LEO TASUQUE, HIS
FATHER-IN-LAW; AND HIS FAMILY.
1630.
WE shall now relate the martyrdom of James Cufioie,
one of the most zealous and most charitable Christians
in the kingdom of Fingo. He lived at Nangasaki.
Having offered his house as an asylum to Father Iscida,
he was arrested and imprisoned with him. When he saw
himself a prisoner, he regulated his time and his devo
tions in the following manner: He fasted the whole
week, except on Sundays; he wore continually a hair-
shirt, and spent daily twelve hours in prayer, in order to
obtain from God the grace to die for the faith. The
grace was granted him; for he was condemned to death
by fire, and his mother, named Mary, was sentenced to
die at the same time by being beheaded.
There was a woman named Agatha, who having learned
that her husband had been condemned to death with his
mother, while she herself was spared, went at once to
visit them in prison. James seeing her weep, said to
her: " Agatha, why these tears ? Are you weeping on
account of my death ?" "No," she replied, " I weep be-
424 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
cause I was not condemned with you." James held out
to her the hope that this consolation would not be re
fused to her.
Mary gave thanks to God, happy to see herself on the
point of dying for Jesus Christ. The soldiers did not
hesitate to take the son and the mother in order to lead
them to the place of execution. Having arrived there,
James embraced the stake that awaited him; he was
then bound to it; and when the flames surrounded him
on all sides, he began to sing the psalm Laudate Domi-
unm omncs gentes. Scarcely had he finished it when he
fell and gave up his soul to God. Mary, his good
mother, after having offered to the Lord the sacrifice of her
son, who was immolated before her eyes, knelt down and
presented her head to the executioner, who immediately
cut it off. A few days after, James appeared to one of
his friends, and being somewhat anxious about the
salvation of his soul, said to him: "My friend, every
thing passes away; whence comes it that you neglect
your salvation, and that you do not work for eternity?"
Agatha in the mean time was inconsolable at finding
herself still living. Five days after, it was announced
to her that her three young sons had just been con
demned to death. Far from being afflicted by this news,
she rejoiced at the thought that to her children was as
sured the possession of eternal happiness. She only re
gretted that she was not able to follow them, and there
fore said to the soldiers: "If my children are to die,
why do you let me live — me, who am their mother?"
The eldest, called John, was only nine years old; Michael,
the second, was five; Ignatius, only two. This little
innocent was at play when he was told that he was to
die; and at once, how wonderful ! he entered the house
without emotion, took his rosary, and knelt down for the
purpose of praying.
The three young martyrs, after having bid farewell to
CHAP, xxx.] James Cufioic and his Family. 425
their mother, put themselves at the disposal of the
soldiers. This affectionate mother accompanied them
for some time; then having embraced them, she retired
while encouraging them to die for God. When they
reached the place of execution, John prostrated himself
and lowered his collar in expectation of death; but the
executioner, who trembled in performing so barbarous
an action, missed his aim, and threw the boy on the
ground. John arose again, and received a second blow,
that severed his head from the body. The executioner
passing then to Michael, missed him as he had missed
his brother, and despatched him on \y after the second
blow. There remained only the little Ignatius, who,
with his hands joined, was awaiting tranquilly his turn;
on seeing the boy, who, because of his smallness, was an
object difficult to aim at, the executioner shook in every
limb. With a trembling hand he aimed two blows at
him, the first having missed. The spectators became
quite indignant, and wished to rush upon the cruel
wretch to tear him in pieces, but the judge hindered
them from doing so.
Leo Tasuque, the maternal uncle of the three boys, was
present at their execution, and he was put to death after
them. He was a Christian of great virtue. As soon as
James, his son-in-law, was arrested, he prepared himself
for martyrdom. When his three grandchildren were
taken to be led to execution, he accompanied them to
the gate of the street, where he embraced them, repeat
ing several times, with tears in his eyes: "Farewell, my
dear children; when you get to paradise, do not forget
me." On reaching his house he began to pray; but
scarcely had he begun when he heard a confusion of
voices saying: "Kill him, kill him !" Agatha hastened
to the place whence the noise proceeded, and believing
that she was the object of search, presented herself in
order to be conducted to prison; but the soldiers cried
426 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
out: " Go away; it is not you whom we are seeking, but
Tasuque, your father." The saintly old man, hearing
his name mentioned, arose at once, and advanced to
wards them. A soldier threw himself upon him to tie
him. "One moment, I beg you," said Leo to him; your
cords are too weak; I am going to give you better ones."
He then produced iron handcuffs, which he told him to
fasten on him. He was at once conducted to the place
where his three grandchildren were awaiting death.
After they had been beheaded, he himself was also put
to death in the same manner.
There now remained to poor Agatha of all the rela
tives only a little daughter, who to her great grief she
saw taken from her without being able to die with her.
We do not know what finally became of this desolate
mother, because these facts occurred in 1630, and after
this period we find no accurate accounts of what took
place in Japan.
CHAPTER XXXI.
EXTREME CRUELTIES EXERCISED IN THE KINGDOM OF
ARIMA THOMAS QUICH1BIOIE AND HIS COMPANIONS
REMARKABLE PUNISHMENT OF THE TYRANT.
1630.
BUGONDONO, the furious tyrant who persecuted the
faithful in the kingdom of Arima * with so much cruelty,
became more and more ferocious. He formed the plan
to have them conducted into the pagan temples so as to
force them to worship the false gods. Three hundred
of them showed an admirable constancy in the midst of
1 Chap. XXVII., page 401.
CHAP, xxxi.] TJiomas Quichibioie and others. 427
the torments to which they were subjected. Of this
number was a woman of high rank with her family. Her
daughter, aged thirteen, was tortured in a horrible man
ner. Among the means that were employed to make
her suffer was that of burying pointed reeds in her flesh;
she was then roasted with burning coals; and when the
executioners were tired of tormenting her, they would
leave her only to return to their horrible work.
The tyrant afterwards conceived the idea of exercising
a piece of diabolical cruelty against the fathers and the
mothers of those who withstood the tortures. He
gathered together a large number of the children of
those who refused to renounce Jesus Christ, and after
having skinned their hands, he placed upon them burning
coals, saying that if they withdrew their hands this
would be a sign of apostasy. There were some who
withdrew their hands, though they protested they did
not cease to be Christians; but many others bore with
out flinching this awful pain. They were thus tormented
before the eyes of their parents, the majority of whom
yielded through compassion for their children. There
were about fifty of them who remained firm in the faith.
These last were conducted to Ximabara, where they
were subjected to unheard-of trials. They were made
to sit on two stakes placed in the form of a cross in a
hole; then two boards hollowed out held them tightly
by the neck; so that only the head could be seen above,
whilst the body was in the hole. They remained in this
position night and day. Every day, among the tortures
that they had to suffer, a part of the neck was sawed
with a wooden saw, precautions being taken to prolong
their sufferings. A nobleman, named Thomas Quichi
bioie, bore this torment for seven days, at the end of
which, May 31, 1630, he had his head entirely cut off.
The example of his courage caused three of his com
panions to enter into themselves, as they had yielded
428 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART IT.
after resisting a long time. They deplored their un
faithfulness, and having again declared themselves
Christians, were beheaded soon after.
But here the vengeance of God burst forth against the
tyrant. He was at once seized with a burning fever,
which made him furious, and caused him to utter loud
cries. He sought everywhere for remedies, and several
were offered him. He desired to mix and to take them
all at once, saying that if each of the remedies could
heal him, he would be still more sure of being cured by
taking them all at once. Scarcely had he swallowed a
part of the medicine when all his teeth fell out, and he felt
as if there was a burning fire in his entrails. He thought
that he would have recourse to the waters of Mount
Ungen, of which salutary baths were made by tempering
them with cold water; but as soon as he was in the bath,
he cried out that he was all on fire, and that the sight of
the heads of all the Christians whom he had made to
die caused him an insupportable torture. He thus ex
pired in a transport of rage, in the month of December
of the year 1630.
CHAPTER XXXII.
LAST EFFORTS OF THE MISSIONARIES FATHER SEBASTIAN
VIEYRA END OF THE MISSION.
1632-34.
WE have reached the end of this history; but before
concluding it, it may be permitted to me to relate one
more fact that was glorious for the faith. Father Sebas
tian Vieyra, a Portuguese Jesuit, expelled from Japan
in 1614, came to Rome some years after, to render an
CH. xxxn.j FatherVieyra — Endoftke Mission. 429
account to the Holy Father of the state of his mission.
He then returned to Japan, into which he penetrated in
disguise in 1632. The governor of Nangasaki having
succeeded in capturing him, immediately gave informa
tion of this to the young emperor, who ordered that he
should be taken to Jedo for the purpose of obtaining
from him news from Europe. Having arrived at this
capital, he was visited by the lords of the court, and he
spoke to them freely about the truths of our faith. The
emperor wished to have in writing an abridgment of the
Christian doctrines. When these memoirs had been
carried to the court, and the reading of them had begun,
it was remarked that the emperor seemed as if wavering
and agitated by various thoughts, above all when the
article about the immortality of the soul was read. He
then said: "This bonze of Europe is a man of good
faith; he exposes with sincerity the mysteries of his re
ligion." He added: " If what he says of the immortality
of the soul be true, as it seems to be, what will become
of us, unhappy beings that we are?" The more the
reading continued, the more the emperor appeared to be
moved; but all the lights that he had on the truth of
our faith were soon obscured by the discourses of Oien-
dono, his uncle, who persuaded him that all that the
missionary had advanced was a tissue of lies, and that
it was something unworthy of a prince to abandon the
religion of his ancestors in order to embrace that of a
stranger, an emissary of the King of Spain, who aspired
to take possession of Japan as he had already done in
the case of the Philippine islands. The young prince,
imbued from his infancy with pagan maxims, yielded at
once to the reasons given by his uncle, and condemned
the holy missionary to the following torture: after he
had been led through the streets of the city in a most
ignominious way, he was suspended in a grave, his head
downwards and his hands tied behind his back; two
430 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
boards hollowed out held him tightly in 'the middle of
the body, depriving him entirely of light. He, however,
predicted that he would die only by fire. In fact, at the
end of three days, on finding him quite fresh, as if he
had not suffered at all, the executioners kindled a large
fire in the grave, and he thus consummated his martyr
dom, January 6, 1634.
It was about this time that all the missionaries having
been martyred or banished, with the exception of some
who concealed themselves, the mission ceased to exist
in Japan. Numerous spies were kept all along the coast,
with orders to be on the watch for strangers and to
oblige them as soon as discovered to trample on the
crucifix. It was, therefore, no longer possible for any
missionary to go there to keep alive the faith of the
Christians who still remained. Those who were still
devoting themselves to this heroic undertaking were
soon arrested and put to death. The ports remained
open only to the Protestant Hollanders, because the
latter declaring that they did not belong to the Catholic
Church, and rejecting the veneration of holy images, felt
no repugnance in stepping upon the crucifix. The last
missionary who died in Japan was Father Christopher
Ferreyra; though in 1633 out of fear for the torments
that were inflicted he had the misfortune to apostatize.
After having passed nineteen years in this sad state, he
acknowledged his sinfulness, again confessed Jesus
Christ, and courageously submitted to the sentence of
death, which was carried out in 1652.
To sum up, the mission of Japan lasted only eighty-
four years since St. Francis Xavier opened it in 1549,
and according to the best historians, this was eight
years after the discovery of the islands or of the sixty-
six kingdoms of which this empire is composed, and it
ceased, as we have said, about the year 1633. Never
theless, this last persecution did not entirely extinguish
CH. xxxii.] Father Vieyra — End of theMission. 431
the faith in Japan, where one could still count many
Christians; and even though at the present time there
are no more to be found, one may hope that, as the
faith has passed from Japan to China, so by an admira
ble substitution of grace, it will return from China to
Japan. It is certain that so many martyrs, who have
sacrificed their lives for Jesus Christ, will not cease to
intercede for the salvation of their countrymen, and we
are justified in entertaining the hope that one day, in
consideration of their merits, God will deliver from the
servitude of the devil these unhappy countries.1
1 At this moment the hope that our holy author has expressed is
being realized. In 1846, the Holy See having a presentiment of the
possibility, more or less proximate, of causing the light of faith to pene
trate again the empire of Japan, judged it opportune to create an apos
tolic vicariate for this country; but it was only nine years later that
three missionaries succeeded in establishing themselves at Nafa, in the
islands of Lou-Tchou, that are dependents of Japan. They began to
study the language of the country while awaiting the moment in which
it would be permitted them to go farther. Finally October 9, 1858, the
representative of France, having for interpreter one of the missionaries,
signed at Jedo a treaty of which article 4 is couched in the following
terms: " The French subjects in Japan shall have the right to the free
exercise of their religion; and to this end they may there erect, on the
ground destined for their residence, edifices suitable for their worship,
such as churches, chapels, cemeteries, etc. The Japanese government
has already abolished in the empire the use of practices that are injur
ious to Christianity."
By virtue of this treaty, the missionaries had the liberty of establish
ing themselves in the seven ports opened to commerce, and to exer-
ercise there their ministry in favor of strangers; they were not yet
allowed to do so in behalf of the natives. In 1860, one of them settled
at Hakodate, where the authorities received him with favor, and he was
preparing to erect with their co-operation a European-Japanese hospital.
The first Catholic church which was restored in Japan, after two cen
turies and a half of absolute proscription, was solemnly blessed at
Yokohama, the residence of the Prefect Apostolic, on Sunday, January
12, 1862, in the presence of the minister of France and of a great con
course of resident strangers of every denomination and country. It
43 2 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Before concluding -I will here relate a very edifying
occurrence. Toward the end of the mission there was a
religious of the Order of St. Augustine, who to remain
unknown became a vender of chestnuts, and entered
under this disguise one of the vessels. As he asked too
much for his chestnuts some one gave him a blow on
the cheek; but he received this affront without the
slightest emotion, and continued quietly to offer his
chestnuts for sale. The idolaters, observing that such
meekness was not a virtue practised among them, sus
pected the vender of being a Christian, arrested him and
put him to death, after the religious had openly pro
fessed his faith. Wonderful power of the grace of Jesus
Christ, who gives to his servants the strength to practise
virtues unknown among pagans !
afterwards became the goal of continual visits of a multitude of Japan
ese, not only from the environs, but even from distant provinces, so
that the government, alarmed at this sympathetic concourse of people,
desired to oppose the mission with its usual violence. Notwithstanding
this obstacle, the grandest hopes were entertained. At the beginning
of the year 1863, M, Girard, the Prefect Apostolic, made a voyage to
Europe in the interest of his mission; he was accompanied by a young
Japanese, who received at Rome from the hands of the Cardinal Vicar
the sacraments of baptism, Eucharist, and confirmation. The Holy
Father with a heavenly joy blessed in the person of this convert the first
fruits of new Christianity in Japan. There are, at present, in Japan, 2
vicariates, 58 priests, 2 seminaries with 70 students, and 30,000 Catho
lics, out of an entire population of 34,000,000. The permission to
spread Christianity has brought, to the scandal of the heathen, the rival
gospels of American and English Protestants and Russo-Greeks, with
European infidelity.
According to a statement of the London Tablet of 1887, Southern
Japan possesses a bishop, thirty-two European missioners, fifty cate-
chists, thirteen nuns of the Holy Child Jesus, and fourteen Sisters of St.
Paul of Chartres. The mission comprises sixteen districts, eighty-seven
Christian settlements, forty-one churches or chapels, a seminary with
twelve pupils, nineteen schools with 608 pupils, six orphanages, seven
girls' schools, and three pharmacies; 1667 baptisms, of which 989 arc
adults, have been administered during 1885-86. — En,
Conclusion. 433
Conclusion.
WE here finish our history of the victories gained by
the martyrs, — a work the reading of which will specially
awaken in us two useful reflections:
The first reflection is that we should have great con
fidence in the intercession of the martyrs, who, while
offering to God the sacrifice of their lives, have acquired
great influence with him for obtaining for us the graces
that we desire. The faithful who wish to invoke them
can use the prayer that we have offered to their piety at
the beginning.1
The second reflection, more important than the first,
is, that if the martyrs have made themselves endeared to
us by so many sufferings that they endured for Jesus
Christ, and by the courage that they inspire in us to
suffer also for him, with how much greater reason should
we love this divine Master himself, who has deigned
to descend from heaven and expire in pain on a cross in
order to save us ! If the martyrs merit our compassion
and our love because they were innocent and holy, how
much greater compassion and love should we have for
Jesus Christ, who being innocence and holiness itself,
died on the infamous gibbet to expiate our iniquities !
Let us, therefore, love this King of the Martyrs, as St.
Augustine calls him; let us love this Good Pastor who
loved us so as to give his life for us, his sheep, and his
ungrateful sheep ! And if we have shown ingratitude
to him in the past, let us try, during the rest of our lives,
to please and to love him with all our strength. For
this purpose let us have our eyes constantly fixed on
1 Page 40.
28
434 The Martyrs of Japan. [PART n.
Jesus crucified; let us every day meditate for some time
on the sorrowful martyrdom that he suffered for us, a
martyrdom that comprised and surpassed immensely
the pains endured by all the martyrs. Then we shall
no longer have the melancholy courage to despise him,
as we have done heretofore. The mere sight of Jesus
crucified will make us love, at least out of gratitude, a
God who died for the love of us !
O Son of God, our Redeemer ! give us Thy love. O
Mary, Mother of God ! pray for us, and obtain for us
this love. Amen.
Hymns. 435
primus. J
On the Tomb of Alexander the Great.
BEHOLD the end of all the pomp of earth,—
All human greatness, beauty, noble birth ! —
Worms, rottenness, a little dust, a stone,
Close the brief scene of life for ev'ry one.
Who gives his heart to God alone is wise,
Dead to the world already ere he dies.
O thou that readest this ! thou, too, one day
Must die; — which lot dost thou prefer, I pray,
To die a slave, and then in bliss to reign, —
Or die a king, and pass to endless pain ?
Reflect, prepare; the present time flies fast;
Repentance comes too late when life is past.
1 We here give four hymns by St. Alphonsus that were recently dis
covered ; and as the original text is not easily found we quote it in full.
To these we add the lines that are sung during the missions. — ED.
456 Hymns.
n.
Eternal Maxims.
WHY serve the world, thy enemy,
And from thy thankless heart dethrone
That God whose love created thee —
To love and serve Himself alone ?
Slave of a tyrant thou dost live;
He promises, and breaks his word,
And for thy service nought can give
But bitter thorns as thy reward.
Remember, death will come one day;
His touch thy fragile life destroys;
Then, then, alas ! will fade away
Earth's cheating hopes and empty joys.
All worldly pleasures then will be
To thee but weariness and woe;
The scene of life must close for thee,
Thy part is played, and thou must go.
That body thou hast oft caress'd
Such noisome stench shall send around,
That all will fly the loathsome pest,
And hide the carrion in the ground.
Forth flies the spirit from this clay,
Alone before its God to stand;
The soul scarce yet has passed away,
The judge already is at hand.
Hymns. 437
Sinner ! sinner ! what wilt thou do,
Standing before the awful throne?
In vain for mercy wouldst thou sue, —
Stern Justice triumphs there alone.
Ah ! miserable, thoughtless one !
Say, what excuse thou darest bring-
Before that gaze of brightest sun,
The face of thy offended King.
What horror then the soul shall pierce,
When, spurned away by heavenly ire,
'Tis hurled into the torment fierce
Of never, never-ending fire !
Then shall be closed upon thy pain
The gates of hope and liberty;
Thou seekest death, — in vain, in vain;
It flies and mocks thy misery.
That moment when this life shall fail,
Or heaven or hell thy lot must be;
Eternal joys or endless wail,—
O moment ! O eternity !
Think, then, ere yet this life is o'er,
On that whereon thy ALL depends;
That EVERMORE Or NEVERMORE,
Eternity which never ends !
43 8 Hymns.
m.
Paraphrase on the Words of St. Aloysius.
Recede a me, Do mine.
Depart from me, O Lord !
(These words St. Aloysius pronounced when he saw himself obliged by obedience
to withdraw from the Blessed Sacrament.)
POOR heart, what art thou doing? say;
Seest not how thy good Master deigns
To bind thee with love's strongest chains,
And force thee here within to stay.
Where, O my soul, where wilt thou flee ?
How, thus transfixed with love's keen dart.
Canst thou from thy true life depart,
Who on that altar stays for thee ?
But ah ! my God, what meaneth this?
Thou bindest first with such a chain,
Then forcest me to go with pain
Away from Thee, my only bliss.
Must I then go? Yes, I obey;
But here my heart shall stay with Thee,
True to Thy love still may it be:
I go; then come with me away.
Alas ! I cannot tear away
My soul from Thee, its very life;
I start, I wait in saddest strife;
I cannot leave, I dare not stay.
Hymns. 439
Between the two, in doubts and fears,
I waver still from side to side;
While agitated, tost, and tried,
Love's target my poor heart appears.
What strife ! what tempest in my will !
Obedience bids me haste away;
Thy love then binds and makes me stay,
It ravishes and holds me still.
Thus, when the winds on ocean blow,
A ship among the billows lost
By raging storms is fiercely tost,
And dashed with fury to and fro.
With sighs and tears I moan and cry;
Lov'd Jesus, in Thy mercy sweet,
From this rude torment, I entreat
Ah ! set me free, and let me die.
In heaven, where love alone doth reign,
There, dearest Jesus, I shall be,
Close bound, united, tied to Thee,
And never part from Thee again.
IV.
Affections to Jesus and to Mary.
IN this sweet Sacrament, to Thee,
My God, be ceaseless praise !
And to the name of Jesus be
All love through endless days !
44° Hymns.
And blessed, too, be Mary's womb,
Which gave to us that Son,
More pure, more fair than lily-bloom-
Jesus, the Blessed One.
Come now, my loving Lord, to me,
Oh, corne into my heart;
Inflame it all with love of Thee,
And never thence depart.
And let this wretched heart be Thine-
Yes, Thine, dear God, alone !
And, Mary, may this soul of mine
Henceforth be all thv own !
V.
Lines Sung during the Missions.
LOVE God, who loveth thee,
For love itself is He ;
He bids the sinner weep;
He saith: Poor child, from sin depart;
Rest thee within thy Father's heart;
Turn to thy Shepherd, wandering sheep.
A messenger from God am I,
Pardon and grace I offer thee;
Perchance thine hour of death draws nigh:
For thy soul's sake, ah ! list to me.
Hymns. 441
The God of mercy calleth thee;
Turn not deaf ear and rebel heart:
If now His call rejected be
His grace He'll ne'er again impart.
Poor sinful one ! can'st thou remain
In God's disgrace, yet tremble not?
Depart from sin and pleasures vain
Ere hell becomes thy dreadful lot.
Long-suffering is thy Saviour dear,
But not forever will He wait;
If suddenly thy death draws near,
Say, sinner, what shall be thy fate?
Our Jesus is so sweet, so mild,
How canst thou turn from Him away?
Haste, then, with God be reconciled;
Poor sinner, make no vain delay.
How canst thou tranquil, joyous dwell;
Unmindful of eternity ?
And on the very brink of hell
Slight ev'ry grace God offers thee?
Ere long thy life must pass away;
Know'st thou the hour when thou shalt die?
Perchance ere dawns another day
Thou wilt behold eternity !
My son, while yet thou hast the povv'r
Reflect how soon thy life must end —
How on its last sad, solemn hour
Eternal pains or joys depend.
44 2 Hymns.
If thou pursue thy careless way,
He who is now despis'd by thee
Will meet thee on that dying day
And thy Eternal Judge will be.
Then, sinner, wilt thou trembling stand,
Recalling past iniquity,
Dreading to fall into His hand
Who wrathful stands in majesty.
They who so blindly risk'd their all,
Nor thought on hell's eternal fire,
Now after death too surely fall
Into th' abyss so dark and dire.
And when shall hell's sharp pains be o'er?
The insult to God's majesty
Has been so deep that evermore
Those pains shall last, eternally.
Think on that dread eternity
To which thou art hast'ning ever;
Think of that long futurity
Of pains that will leave thee never.
Canzoncine Spirituali. 443
CANZONCINE SPIRITUALI.1
Sopra la Sepoltura d' Alessandro il Grande.
Ecco dove finisce ogni grandezza,
Ogni pompa di terra, ogni bellezza:
Vermi, luto, vil pietra, o poca arena,
Chiudono al fin d'ognun' la breve scena.
Saggio chi, a Dio donando in vita il core,
Morto si trova al mondo, allorche more !
O tu che leggi ! ed ancor tu dovrai
Morire un di; dimmi, che far vorrai:
Morir da abietto, ed esser poi beato;
O morire da grande, e gir dannato ?
Pensa, e rimedia a tempo, ora che puoi;
Che tempo allor non vi sarii piu poi !
II.
Sopra le Massime Eterne.
PERCHE al mondo, al tuo nemico,
Vuoi servire, o tu cor mio !
E non servi al tuo buon Dio,
Che a servirlo ti creo ?
1 See note, page 435. The first three of these hymns are taken from
one of the volumes examined during the process of the canonization of
St. Alphonsus, and the first is mentioned in his Life, 1. i. ch. 3, either by
Father Tannoia or by Cardinal Villecourt. As to the fourth, it is sung
in Italy during the visits to the Blessed Sacrament as one of the hymns
of our saint, and there is no doubt that he is the author. — En.
444 Canzoncine Spiritual^
Vivi schiavo d' un tiranno
Che promette, e non attende,
E, a chi 1' serve, ingrato rende
Spine e fiele per merce.
Pens' almen che un di la morte
Dara fine alia tua vita,
Ed, oime ! per te finita
Ogni cosa allor sara.
Tutt' i beni allor del mondo
Ti sarann' d' affanno e pena,
In veder che la tua scena
Gia si chiude ancor per te.
Questo corpo che tant' ami,
Mandera tanto fetore,
Ch' alia puzza ed all' orrore
.Da te ognuno fuggira,
Partira da questa terra
L'alma sola, a render conto
Al gran Giudice, che pronto
Al suo uscir si trovera.
Che farai, tu peccatore,
Giunto innanzi al divin trono,
Quando allor, non pin perdono,
Ma giustizia vi sara?
Infelice, spensierato,
Va pensando che dirai,
Quando a vista gia sarai,
Dell' offeso tuo Signer.
Qual affanno sara poi
Da quel tron' esser cacciato
E in quel fuoco esser gittato
Che non mai piu finira !
Canzoncine Spiritual^ 445
Per te allor, d'ogni ristoro
Saran chiuse, oh Dio, le porte !
Cercherai per fin la morte,
E neppur potrai morir !
Delia morte al gran momento,
Avrai dunque o cielo o inferno,
O riposo o pianto eterno.
Oh momento ! oh eternita !
Mira dunque, finche in vita
Di tua sorte incerto stai,
Quel grand Sempre e quel gran Mai,
Che in eterno durera !
III.
Canzoncina di San Luigi Gonzaga.
Sopra quelle parole: " Recede a me, Domine, recede;" ch' egli prof
fer in doversi partire, per 1' ubbidienza avuta, dalla presenza del
Santissimo Sacramento.
Mio povero core, oh Dio, che farai ?
Non vedi, non senti, che '1 tuo buon Signore,
Con dolci pur troppo catene d' amore,
Ti stringe, ti forza qui seco a restar ?
E dove anderai, tu, anima mia?
Deh ! come tu, stando d' amor si ferita,
Partire potrai lontan dalla Vita,
Che su quell' altare per te se ne sta ?
Ma lascia ch' io parli: Oual tratto e mai questo?
Tu icco m' annodi con tante catene,
E poi mi costringi, o amato mio Bene !
Con duro precetto a partire da te !
446 Canzonctne Spirituali.
Vuoi dunque ch* io parta ? Si, voglio ubbidirti;
Ma sappi che resta qui teco il mio core:
Tu, pensa a serbarlo fedele al tuo amore;
E s' io da te parto, tu, vieni con me.
Ah ! no, che non posso vedermi diviso
Da te, mio Tesoro, mio Amore, mio Dio !
Pertanto la morte sospiro, desio,
Che teco m' unisca per sempre nel ciel.
IV.
Affetti verso Gesu Sacramentato.
SIA lodato, ogni momento,
II mio Dio nel Sacramento !
Sia per sempre il nome amato
Di Gesu sacramentato !
Benedetto ancora sia
II bel seno di Maria,
Che ci diede questo Figlio
Puro e bello piu che giglio !
Vieni, amante mio Signore !
Vieni, e infiammami d' amore.
Fa che sia questo cor mio
Tutto tuo, mio caro Dio !
Fa che sia quest' alma mia
Tutta tua, dolce Maria!
Japan and the Holy See. 447
APPENDIX.
Japan anb tljc ijolji
JUST three hundred years ago a strange embassy ar
rived in Rome. All the afternoon of March 20, 1585, the
streets were lined with eager crowds waiting to see the
entry of the ambassadors into the city. Night was fall
ing when they arrived — four young Japanese nobles,
their carriages escorted by the cavalry of the Pontifical
Army, with trumpets sounding and torches blazing be
fore them. The procession made its way to the Gesu,
where Claudius Acquaviva, the Father-General of the
Jesuits, with two hundred of his religious, was waiting
to welcome the envoys of Japan. They entered the
church, and there the Te Deutn was sung to thank God
for having brought them safely to Rome, after a long
journey of three years, one month, and two days, by
land and sea and through many storms and perils.
Then they withdrew to the rooms prepared for them,
and the crowds dispersed, talking no doubt of their first
impressions and of the solemn audience in which Greg
ory XIII. was to receive the ambassadors on the follow
ing day, while the better informed would tell what they
had read of Japan in the voyages of travellers or the
published letters of the missionaries in that far-off land.
It was said that the newly-arrived embassy repre
sented three independent kingdoms, ruled by Christian
kings in the island-empire of the East. Just as nowa
days there are explorers who call every African chief a
king, so in the sixteenth century merchants and mis
sionaries gave the title to the daimios or feudal lords of
1 From the Month, December, 1885, page 457, volume iv., by
permission of the Editor.
44 8 Appendix.
Japan. The error or exaggeration was not always very
serious, for in the stormy times that preceded the reign
of lyeyasu. and the rise of the Tokugawa dynasty, many
of the daimios were practically independent, even though
civil wars and frequent revolutions made their position
a precarious one. The embassy of 1585 represented the
Christian daimios of Bungo, Arima, and Omura. The
first of these three princes had more than thirty years
before received St. Francis Xavier as his guest. The
ambassadors were four young nobles, whose names — a
combination of the European and the Japanese style —
were Michael Cingina, Mancio Isto, Julian Nacaura, and
Martin Fara, They had sailed from Nangasaki, in Japan,
in 1582, and after a delay of nine months at Macao, and
half a year in India, they had reached Lisbon in August,
1584, Travelling through Portugal and Spain, they em
barked at Valencia for Leghorn, and after a brief visit
to the Grand Duke of Tuscany at Pisa, they had pro
ceeded to Rome.
The morning of the 2ist witnessed their solemn entry
into the city. Early in the day they left the Gesu, and
went out to a villa outside the Porta del Popolo, where
the ambassadors of the Catholic powers had assembled
to accompany them in the state procession through the
streets of the city. One of the ambassadors, Julian
Nacaura, had been very ill during the latter part of the
journey, and at the villa it was evident that he was far
too weak and fatigued to take his place with the rest in
the procession. One of the Roman nobles therefore
took him at once in his carriage to the Vatican, where
the Pope received him in private audience. This was
the first meeting between Gregory XIII. and one of his
Japanese children, and could lie have read the secrets of
the future, he might, have seen more than chance in the
circumstances which had thus brought the young noble
to his feet before his companions. In far-off years, still
Japan and the Holy See. 449
known only to God, the palm of martyrdom was waiting
for Nacaura.
Meanwhile, the long procession had formed at the
villa, and came streaming in by the Porta del Popolo,
between the double hedge of a dense crowd. First to
the sound of trumpet and kettledrum rode the Papal
Guard, then came the Swiss troops, next officers of the
cardinals' households, clad in purple, and the foreign
ambassadors each with a brilliant train; then the Pope's
chamberlains, and then the three figures that all had
come to see — Cingina, Kara, and Isto. They were dressed
in the Japanese costume — flowing robes of silk, embroid
ered in gold and colors, with a rich pattern of birds and
flowers, each wearing the two swords that marked the
noble and the soldier of Japan. Isto rode first between
two archbishops, then came Fara and Cingina, each be
tween two bishops, After them rode Father Mesquita,
who acted as interpreter, and the procession was closed
by a long cavalcade of the Roman nobles.
As they crossed the bridge of St. Angelo the batteries
of the castle thundered out a salute, to which another
battery beyond the Vatican replied. Before the palace
the procession halted, and the three young nobles were
conducted to the hall of audience, where the Pope
awaited them, surrounded by cardinals, prelates, and
princes. As they kissed his feet the aged Pontiff stooped
down and raised them up, embracing them with tears in
his eyes, and then, speaking through Mesquita the inter
preter, they declared that they were come in their own
names and that of their princes to acknowledge the
Sovereign Pontiff as the Vicar of the Son of God on
earth, and to pay him the homage of the Christians of
Japan. Then they presented the letters with which they
were charged, and these were read aloud in an Italian
version. Then all were seated, and Father Gaspar Gon-
zales, a Portuguese Jesuit, pronounced a Latin dis-
29
450 Appendix.
course, dwelling on the importance of the event which
they were witnessing, and the high hopes it gave of a
bright future for the Church in the far East. He dwelt
especially upon the consolation that was to be found in
these new conquests of the faith, at a time when so many
of the old Catholic nations of Europe had revolted
against the Church, and he not unhappily compared the
present embassy to the Indian embassy to Rome under
Augustus.
''The city of Rome (he said) heretofore looked upon
herself as most fortunate, under the empire of Augustus,
because some people of the Indies, attracted by the fame
of their noble achievements, sent ambassadors to court
their alliance and friendship. Whole multitudes of peo
ple came from all parts of Italy to Rome, to have a sight
of this new kind of men, of those strange faces till then
unknown to the Romans, of their carriage and behavior.
They stared upon them like men come out of another
world. But if we compare the two embassies together
we shall find this of the Japanese far more noble, more
illustrious and glorious. The Indies, I grant, were far
remote; but how much more Japan, which lies seven
thousand leagues away, full three years' journey from
Rome. In the reign of Augustus the fame of the Roman
Empire had reached the Indies, but at the same time
they had neither felt the weight of its arms nor seen its
standards displayed. The Hindoos came to court the
friendship of the Romans, but not to yield them obedi
ence. They treated with them as their equals, they
asked their alliance, but they never offered to submit
themselves to their empire. But what is done here to
day is of a very different character. Three young princes
of the blood-royal come to prostrate themselves at the
feet of your Holiness, not as equals to court your alli
ance, but as faithful and dutiful subjects to render you
obedience, hoping only that you will cherish them as
Japan arid the Holy See. 45 i
your children. These, who never yet knew what it is to
yield to foreign powers, have now displayed in their
states the victorious standard of Jesus Christ, carried
thither by your Holiness's orders. . . . The Christian
religion thought that she had made a noble conquest
when, by the wise conduct of St. Gregory the Great, the
island of England, divided from all the rest of the
world, was brought to receive the law of Jesus Christ,
and submitted to the Roman Church. But if under the
great Pontiff she had the honor and satisfaction of see
ing the island subjugated to her obedience, she must
now weep and lament to see the same so miserably
separated from the body of the faithful by schism and
heresy. But behold for her comfort, under the wise and
prudent government of another Gregory, not one but
many islands, many kingdoms and nations, situated as it
were in another world, come this day to receive her laws,
so that, we may say, our former loss (though infinitely
great), is now repaired by these new conquests, which
ought to wipe away our tears and change the mourning
of the Church into a universal joy."
Monsignor Bocapaduli having replied in a gracious
speech on the part of his Holiness, and the princes hav
ing again kissed his feet, they withdrew into the palace
with the Pope. They dined with his nephew, the Car
dinal di San Sisto, and after dinner his Holiness sat
with them, speaking for a long time with them through
an interpreter on the state of affairs in Japan. A visit
to St. Peter's brought the ceremonial of the day to a
close.
The days that followed were passed in visits to the
seven churches, audiences given to the Ambassadors of
Spam, France, and the Republic of Venice, and visits to
the palaces of cardinals and nobles. In the midst of all
this, and less than three weeks after the audience at the
Vatican, Pope Gregory died, one of his last acts being
45 2 Appendix.
to send to inquire about the health of Julian Nacaura,
who was still ailing. The new Pope was Sixtus the
Fifth. Only two days after his election he gave audi
ence to the ambassadors, assured them of his good-will,
and received from them a written memorial on matters
concerning the church of Japan. They appeared among
the ambassadors of the Catholic powers on the day of
his coronation, and the same evening after vespers he
made them knights, girding them with the sword, and
placing chains of gold round their necks while the
ambassadors of France and Spain buckled the golden
spurs on their heels, and they swore to defend the
Catholic faith with their lives. Next morning they
assisted at the Pope's Mass and received Communion
from his hands. He gave them presents for their
princes and themselves, renewed and increased the
grants of money made by his predecessor for the semi
naries in Japan, gave them a large sum to provide for
their return journey, and letters calling on all princes
and governors to do what they could to assist them on
their way. A few days after they were received in a
final audience, and bade farewell to the Pope and to
Rome, which they quitted June 3, 1585.
They travelled through central Italy, visiting Assisi,
Loretto, and Bologna. At Venice they were entertained
as the guests of the Republic, and their portraits were
painted and hung in the great hall of the palace among
the portraits of the Doges, where they are still to be
seen. Then passing by Padua, Vicenza, Verona, Man
tua, and Milan, feted in every city in which they ap
peared, they arrived at Genoa, where a fleet of galleys
was waiting to carry them to Spain. They landed at
Barcelona on August 13, 1585, and on their way to Por
tugal they had a farewell audience with King Philip the
Second. On the 3oth of April in the following year they
embarked at Lisbon in the fleet for the Indies, taking
Japan and the Holy See. 453
with them a reinforcement of seventeen missionaries for
Japan. They did not reach Goa till the end of May,
1587, and as the fleet for the far East had already sailed,
they had to remain there till the April of 1588, when
they set out for Japan. They did not land there till
1590, eight years after their first departure for Europe.
On their return they found that in their absence great
changes had taken place in Japan. Hideyoshi, better
known by his title Taicosama, was practically lord of the
whole land, though he paid a nominal obedience to the
Mikado. He had defeated in battle many of the daimios,
and all acknowledged his over-lordship, which he ex
ercised as a kind of regent for the Mikado. The kings
of Bungo and Omura had died three years before, in
1587, and in the same year Taicosama had published an
edict of banishment against the Jesuits, and had made
efforts to induce some of the chief Christians to abjure
their religion. The missionaries hid themselves in the
domains of the Christian daimios, all of whom, with one
miserable exception, continued to profess their faith and
protect their Christian subjects. The one exception was
Constantine, the son and successor of Francis of Bungo,
who had the weakness outwardly to conform to the
edicts and published them in his dominions. Father
Valignani took advantage of the return of the envoys to
make an effort to appease Taicosama. It is not unlikely
that the embassy had indirectly contributed to exas
perate him against the Europeans, for lyeyasu, one of
his officers, and later on the founder of a persecuting
dynasty, represented it to him as having gone to Europe
to hand over the sovereignty of Japan to the foreigners
of the West. After much difficulty Valignani succeeded
in getting permission to come to Meaco as envoy of the
Governor of the Indies. He appeared at court, accom
panied by the four Japanese nobles, who laid before
Taicosama the rich presents sent to Japan by the Pope,
454 Appendix.
the King of Spain, and the Governor of the Indies, and
did homage to him as their lord. He seemed to be much
pleased with the embassy, the honors paid to him, and
the costly gifts of which he became the possessor. There
was a lull in the persecution; for a while the edicts were
not enforced; but before the year was out the fickle
tyrant was again urging on his lieutenants the strict exe
cution of his former proclamations against the Chris
tians. From that day, although there were intervals of
peace, the persecution had begun that all but destroyed
the Church of Japan.
Mancio Isto succeeded in winning back to the Chris
tian faith his cousin, Constantine of Bungo. Soon after
Mancio and his companions resolved to lay down the
double sword of the noble caste and devote themselves
to the consolation of the persecuted Christians, and the
conversion of their heathen brethren. All four entered
the novitiate of the Society of Jesus. A glorious fate
was in store for one of them. Long years after, in 1633,
when the persecution was at its height, and the long
night of desolation was fast closing in upon the church
of Japan, Nacaura, then a priest of more than sixty years
of age, was arrested and conducted to Nangasaki. As he
was led along the streets he reminded the people that he
was one of the princes who years ago had gone to Rome,
and told them he was now glad to die for the faith he
had then so openly professed before the world. He was
hung head downwards in the pit, and died after three
days of agony. Two young Japanese scholastics of the
Society of Jesus and two European missionaries endured
the same torments with him, and won the same triumph.
Until 1643 the Christians of Japan had patiently suf
fered all that their persecutors chose to inflict upon
them. But in that year the Christians of Arima, de
prived of the pastors who had so long preached patience
to them, and driven to desperation, took up arms and
Japan and the Holy See. 455
made a hopeless stand against the armies of the Shogun.
They threw themselves into the walled town of Shima-
bara, and held it for several months, till at length some
Dutch sailors landed with their cannon and breached
the walls, and the place was taken by storm. Thirty
thousand Christians perished in the massacre which fol
lowed; thousands were led to Nangasaki, and flung over
the cliffs of the Pappenberg into the sea, and an edict
was published forbidding all foreigners except the Dutch
to land in Japan. Soon after four merchants from the
Philippines, who endeavored to penetrate to Meaco as
ambassadors in order to negotiate a reopening of com
mercial relations with Japan, were seized and put to
death, with the greater part of their retinue. The power
of Spain and Portugal in the far East had fallen so low
that no attempt was made to exact reparation for this
outrage.
Then for more than two hundred years Japan was a
forbidden land, and it seemed that for once persecution
had been successful in crushing out Christianity. But
from time to time there came strange rumors that the
Japanese Christians, deprived as they were of altars,
priests, and sacrifice, were still here and there holding
fast to the faith that had been preached to their fathers
by St. Francis Xavier, and sealed by the blood of so
many martyrs. It was known that the persecuting edicts
were still placarded in town and village — why should
this be if the religion against which they were directed
were extinct? In 1829 it was reported that several
Christians had been crucified. So men hoped on, and
from time to time attempts were made to restore the
mission in Japan. The first priest who set foot in Japan
in the present century was the Abbe Forcade of the
Missions Etrangeres. He was unable to establish himself
in the country. He returned to France to be raised to
the archbishopric of Aix, and to lay down his life in help-
45 6 Appendix.
ing his cholera-stricken people in this present year 1885.
The actual rediscovery of the Japanese Christians was
the work of another missionary of the same Congrega
tion, the Abbe Petitjean. There is no need to tell again
in detail the well-known story of how, on March 17,
1865, some poor women from the interior came to him
in his church in the treaty port of Nangasaki and told
him that they were Christians, and that there were many
like them in the country villages at no great distance,
Thus the resurrection of the church of Japan began in
the very town which had seen the greatest number of
martyrdoms, and in the sanctuary erected to the honor
of the martyrs of Japan.
For a while all that could be done was to establish
European missionaries in the ports that were open to
foreigners, and send native catechists to help and in
struct the scattered groups of Christians. But three
years after the memorable meeting at Nangasaki the
Japanese revolution came like an earthquake to change
the whole face of the land. The last of the Shoguns,
the last ruler of the persecuting Tokugawa race, was de
posed, and the Mikado, whose dignity had been for three
centuries a mere name, was brought forth from his re
tirement, to mount the Imperial throne of Japan, guarded
by the soldiers and statesmen whose bold counsels and
ready swords had accomplished the revolution. Change
rapidly followed change — a freer communication with
foreigners, adoption of their arts and manners, the in
troduction of machinery, railways, arms of precision,
and even of European administrative institutions. It
was fondly hoped that with all this would come the
proclamation of religious liberty; but almost the first act
of the new government was to renew the old edicts
against the " evil sect," i.e., the Christians. The foreign
ambassadors protested, but for a long time all that they
could obtain was that the words "evil sect" should be
Japan and the Holy See. 457
omitted from the proclamations, as they implied an in
sult even to the foreign friends of Japan. Nor were the
edicts allowed to remain unexecuted. Thousands of
Christians were dragged from their homes and cast into
loathsome prisons, where many of them died; or they
were transported to distant parts of Japan, so as to be
cut off from communication with the missionaries in the
treaty ports. It was only in 1872 that the ambassadors
of France and England succeeded in obtaining the re
lease of the imprisoned Christians. Not until April,
1873, were the persecuting edicts taken down from the
notice-boards at the entrance to every village.
While it thus showed that the old persecuting spirit
was not extinct in Japan, the new government took
another reactionary step, in connection with the question
of the state religion. Since the sixth century there had
been two religions in Japan — the Shinto, or indigenous
religion, including the worship of the Kamis, local gods
of wood and mountain, and spirits of ancestors, especially
the ancestors of the Imperial family; and Buddhism in
troduced from India, through China and the Corea.
The two religions existed very peacefully side by side,
they even mingled with each other, for Buddhism is
very tolerant, and ever ready to adopt local beliefs and
customs into its worship. Thus in many temples the
emblems of the Shinto Kamis appeared beside those of
Buddhist genii and demi-gods, and the standing com
plaint of the bonzes against the Christian missionaries
before the great persecution had been that they despised
the "Kamis and Fotoquis" (Hotokis),, i.e., the gods of
both religions. Under the rule of the Tokugawa Sho-
guns, fro-.i their rise in the beginning of the seventeenth
century to their downfall in 1868, Buddhism had been in
the ascendant. But after the revolution all that had been
specially characteristic of the Shogun rule was viewed
with disfavor, and while the Mikado's Government
45 8 Appendix.
eagerly adopted European inventions and institutions,
in the matter of religion it proclaimed its adhesion to
the old indigenous worship, and ordered the Buddhist
bonzes to give up to the Shinto priests several temples
that had at some time belonged to them, or stood on a
site once devoted to the Shinto worship. In more than
one instance the bonzes, to save their temples from
Shinto profanation, set them on fire, and in this way they
destroyed some of the great temples founded by Taico-
sama and lyeyasu. The Shinto worship became the
state religion to the exclusion of Buddhism, but the
latter worship was tolerated on condition that the bonzes
acknowledged that they held their temples that were
left to them by the good-will of the state, and took an
oath of loyalty to the Mikado. In many of the provinces
this toleration was a simple necessity, for the Buddhist
bonzes were so numerous and powerful that the gov
ernment could not afford to begin a quarrel with them.
Meanwhile the new persecution of the Christians had
come to an end. It had not diminished their numbers
except by death, for it had proved as difficult to force
them to apostatize as it had been in the great persecu
tion centuries before. The Catholic mission came out
into the light of day, and set to work to reorganize what
was left of the old Church of Japan. Unfortunately the
Japanese learned from Englishmen, Americans, and
Russians what they had learned from the Dutch in the
seventeenth century, that all Christians did not teach
the same doctrine. English Episcopalians, American
Methodists, and Russian schismatics came to set up their
rival banners, and sought to wrest from the Church some
part of her hard-won inheritance in Japan. With these,
too, came professors of European arts and sciences for
the university established by the new government, and
they brought with them not a few standard works of the
agnostic and sceptical schools of thought, works which
Japan and the Holy See. 459
are now only too popular in a Japanese version among
the learned classes. But even though European and
American unbelief was thus represented in Japan, this
could not disguise the fact that Europe and America,
whose civilization Japan was striving so hard to imitate,
were the home of Christian peoples, and professed that
their civilization itself was in a large measure the fruits
of Christianity. Very soon after the revolution of 1868
Japanese thinkers began to ask openly why their coun
try should not, as a mere matter of policy, adopt the
European religion as well as European arts and learning.
On the other hand, the printing-presses poured out a
shower of pamphlets against the Western faith in all its
forms, and Japanese lecturers declaimed against it, re
newing many of the old calumnies of the days of perse
cution. In some places native Christians were attacked
and stoned by mobs led by these champions of the two
religions of Japan. The government in no way encour
aged these outrages. Its policy for many years had been
one of toleration, even though religious liberty was not
formally proclaimed. In the summer of last year (1884)
it took a very important step, probably induced by the
growing discredit into which Shintoism was falling as
an official religion, and the discontent of the chiefs of
Buddhism at the favors exclusively accorded to their
rivals. It published a decree by which the government,
as such, dissolved its connection with the Shinto religious
bodies, and authorized all the Japanese sects, whether
Buddhist, Shintoist, or a combination of the two, to
freely govern themselves and administer their own affairs
through a chief chosen by each out of their members,
and approved by the Minister of the Interior. Although
by this act the Shinto ceased to be the official reli
gion of Japan, it continues to be, especially through its
connection with ancestor worship, the religion of the
sovereign, the Mikado. Many state officials are bound
460 Appendix.
by their rank to accompany him in his public acts of
worship, and this still gives the religion of the Kamis
not a little influence as a public institution in Japan.
But at the same time it is so much a religion of mere
ceremony, that the real fight with Christianity remains in
the hands of Buddhism; and now Japanese writers them
selves are beginning publicly to acknowledge that sooner
or later Buddhism must give way to its antagonist, and
the cry for the adoption of Christianity as a political
measure is being renewed. The editor of the Missions
Catholiques of Lyons published some time ago long ex
tracts from articles translated from the native press of
Japan. They are so remarkable that we shall reproduce
portions of them here.
We have first a long article from the Ji-ji-chim-p6, a
journal which had formerly opposed Christianity, as
likely to be the source of internal troubles in Japan.
The article begins by pointing out that the acknowl
edged superiority of the nations of Europe and America
is the result, not only of their political institutions, but
also of their religion. That with Europeans there is
always a prejudice against non-Christian peoples, that
such peoples are never really admitted as equals in the
commonwealth of nations, and shares in the benefits of
a recognized code of international law. All this points
to the probability that Japan would gain a better posi
tion among the nations by the adoption of Christianity,
and from this point of view the writer urges the gov
ernment to facilitate the introduction of Christianity as
the national religion. He goes on to say:
"As we have already pointed out, the influence of
Christianity makes itself felt in all the relations of the
peoples of the West with each other. It was Christianity
that established equality amongst men, and abolished
slavery — a thing never dreamed of even by the greatest
philosophers of Greece and Rome. European legisla-
Japan and the Holy See. 46 1
tion is also imbued with principles drawn from Chris
tianity. No doubt our ancient laws, based as they are
on the doctrines of Buddha and Confucius, do not differ
very greatly in their principles from those of Europe.
But for all that it is none the less true, that in prohibit
ing Christianity we keep ourselves separated from the
European nations. Besides, even if we do refuse free
dom to Christianity, that will not prevent its spreading
in Japan. It would be wiser, then, openly to grant its
freedom, and thus make its propagation lawful. To us
it appears evident, that things being what they are,
Christianity must succeed in Japan, and Buddhism must
disappear. We do not mean that Japan will immediately
become a part of Christendom, but the victory of Chris
tianity is only a matter of time, and it will come without
fail."
He then points out that Christianity has the material
elements of success on its side — alms freely given by
its professors in far-off lands to maintain teachers in
Japan, while the teachers themselves are well educated,
able, and zealous men. On the other hand, he says the
Buddhists, as a rule, content themselves with keeping
the existing temples open, and their teachers are badly
educated, and intellectually inferior to the Europeans.
Another paper, the Hon-tchi-chim-boun, writes as fol
lows:
"The tendency towards Christianity becomes more
marked every day, and is causing some alarm in the
Buddhist camp; priests and people are alike in consider
able anxiety, and they are holding meetings to devise
the means of preventing the spread of Christianity. In
various places disturbances have been caused by the
partisans of Buddhism, but it is not yet known who has
instigated them. It is supposed that it is the bonzes;
but it is a very mistaken policy for them to adopt. In
stead of acting in this way, they should try to bring out
462 Appendix.
what is good in Buddhism. They have not done so yet,
and theirconduct has brought discredit on their religion.
But instead of dwelling on these puerile proceedings,
which hardly deserve our attention, it seems to us more
interesting to make some remarks on the future of re
ligion in Japan. We have already stated our opinion
that politics and religion must be separated. -We there
fore hail with satisfaction the current report that the
government is on the point of abolishing the official
clergy, and giving up to the chief of each sect the
management of its religious affairs. Although we have
but scanty information on the subject, we believe that
it is well founded, and that we shall soon witness the
realization of what we have so long desired. A step in
advance in this direction would be the freedom of
funerals, that is, the right of having recourse to any
minister of religion in such cases, without being obliged
by the law, as heretofore, to go either to Buddhist or to
Shintoist priests."
These articles were written in the latter part of 1884,
before the Mikado's Government published its decree of
disestablishment. It is of course evident that both
writers are not very zealous either for Christianity or the
old religions of Japan, They look at the religious ques
tion merely from the politician's point of view. One of
them admits the advance made by Christianity, talks
slightingly of the Buddhists, and calls for complete free
dom of worship. The other goes farther: he hopes to
see Christianity the religion of Japan, with a view to
placing her on an equality with the nations of the West,
and he confidently predicts the victory of Christianity
over Buddhism.
Writings like these, which would not be published if
they did not echo the opinions of a considerable section
of the people, show that Japan is passing through a
serious religious crisis, and that matters have gone very
Japan and the Holy See. 463
far since the publication of the Shinto proclamations and
the renewal of the edicts of persecution in 1868. And
the past month has brought us news which shows that
the Holy See recognizes the importance of the crisis, and
is taking advantage of the change in public opinion to
forward the interests of the Church in Japan. An article
in the Osservatore Romano, and a letter from the Abbe
Midon, the pro-vicar apostolic for Northern Japan, pub
lished in the Missions Catholiqiies, gives an account of the
public reception by the Mikado of an envoy charged
with letters from the Sovereign Pontiff to the ruler of
Japan. On Saturday, the i2th of September, by previous
arrangement with the Japanese Government, Monsignor
Osouf, titular Bishop of Arsinoe, and Vicar Apostolic of
Northern Japan, was conveyed in one of the Mikado's
state-carriages to the palace of Tokio. He was accom
panied by the French ambassador and two of the mis
sionaries. Arrived at the palace, he was received by the
Minister of Foreign Affairs, the chief of the emperor's
household, and several other officials, including the chief
interpreter of the court. After an exchange of saluta
tions and some friendly conversation, Monsignor Osouf
and his companions were admitted to the hall of audi
ence. The Mikado received them standing, dressed in a
general's uniform, of European fashion. The last time
a European missionary came as an ambassador to a
ruler of Japan was nearly three hundred years ago, when
Valignani and the four Japanese ambassadors of Arima,
Bungo, and Omura, sought to appease the fury of the
persecutor Taicosama. What a change between now and
then! The race of the persecutors is gone, the Church
of Japan still lives. It has had its second spring, and
one of its prelates is received in friendly audience by the
ruler of New Japan.
Count Inouye, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, having
introduced Monsignor Osouf to the Mikado, the prelate
464 Appendix.
addressed to him a short speecq, in which he said that
the Sovereign Pontiff, Leo the Thirteenth, having heard
of the great progress accomplished in Japan under the
rule of the present emperor, desired to place himself on
the same terms of diplomatic intercourse with him which
already existed between the Holy See and the other
great powers. He had therefore resolved to address to
his Majesty a letter, which would express his apprecia
tion of the noble aspirations of the government of Japan,
and his personal regard for its sovereign. The Holy
Father, for this end, had summoned the speaker to
Rome, and confided to him the letter which now, thanks
to the friendly introduction of the French ambassador,
he was able to present in person. At the same time he
asked leave to express on his own part his homage to his
majesty, and his good wishes for his welfare and that of
the people of Japan.
With these words he handed to the emperor the letter
of Leo the Thirteenth, which was inclosed in an envelope
of white silk, embroidered with the Pontifical arms, and
tied with a cord of gold thread. The emperor glanced
at it, and handed it to an officer who stood by, and then
read in Japanese his own reply to the speech of Mgr.
Osouf. The chief interpreter translated it into very
good French. The Mikado began by saying that he felt
himself greatly honored by this friendly act of the Sove
reign Pontiff. He begged Mgr. Osouf to thank the Pope
on his behalf. He wished, he said, to advance on the
path of progress, and he would give to Christian subjects
the same protection that was enjoyed by all the rest.
Mgr. Osouf withdrew after presenting his companions
to the Mikado. Arrived in the antechamber, tea was
brought, — a necessary part of a visit in Japan, — and
Inouye, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, told Mgr. Osouf
that the Government was exceedingly pleased to estab
lish friendly relations with the Holy See, and that a
Japan and the Holy See. 465
special envoy of high rank would be sent to Rome, to
convey to Leo the Thirteenth the Mikado's reply to his
letter.
Thus Rome is to witness the arrival of another Japa
nese embassy to the Sovereign Pontiff. There is, of
course, an enormous difference between i 585 and 1885.
The envoy despatched from Tokio will probably not be
a Christian; he will not come to do homage to Leo
the Thirteenth as his spiritual father, but he will come
to give him a solemn assurance of what the four Japa
nese ambassadors could not promise to Gregory the
Thirteenth — freedom for the faith to be preached through
all Japan, wherever the people are willing to listen to it.
He will represent not feudal princes of this or that dis
trict, but a firmly established government ruling over
the whole of the island empire — a government not likely
to be overturned by a revolution, and certain not to re
tract the promise of freedom of worship which it has
made by the mouth of the sovereign and of his minis
ters. This is the significance of these new relations be
tween Japan and the Holy See.
Moreover, the step which Leo the Thirteenth has
taken will remove many causes of future difficulty and
danger. Valuable as is the protection of the Catholic
powers in the East, it is always open to the serious
drawback that non-Christian rulers are apt to suspect
those who have recourse to such protection of political
designs against their own government. No such sus
picion can attach to the communication carried on
through the accredited envoys of the Holy See, whose
objects can only be religious, and whose policy can have
nothing to do with schemes of territorial aggrandize
ment in Asia. There is no doubt, too, that the recep
tion of a Catholic prelate by the Mikado, and the de
spatch of a Japanese envoy to the Head of the Catholic
Church will raise the position of Catholics in public
30
466 Appendix.
estimation in every town in Japan where a Catholic con
gregation is to be found. With the esteem that is felt
in Japan for English and American science and letters,
there is danger of Anglicanism or Methodism being
taken as the type of Christianity. All the more reason,
then, to rejoice at what has been accomplished, as a
means of turning the thoughts of Japanese statesmen,
students, and journalists to Rome as the centre of that
world-wide Christendom to which the people of Europe
and America owe all that is best and noblest in their
culture, their manners, and their laws.
The Church of Japan is again a living reality, with its
bishops, churches, and seminaries, its European mission
aries, its native clergy, and its thousands of the faithful
sons of the martyrs. All that it needs is freedom to do
its work and enlarge its boundaries. This freedom is
now assured to it by the zeal of Leo the Thirteenth, and
the good-will of the Mikado and his government.
TABLE OF THE HOLY MARTYRS
ACCORDING TO THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY ARE GIVEN IN THE
CALENDAR.
January. PAGE
3. St. Gordius, centurion 167
12. St. Arcadius 121
20. St. Sebastian, officer 270
21. St. Fructuosus, bishop of Tarragona; SS. Augurius and
Eulogius, deacons 175
St. Agnes, virgin 189
22. St. Vincent, deacon 57
26. St. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna 66
27. St. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople 134
February. •
• I. St. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch. ... 49
St. Pionius, priest 141
3. St. Blase, bishop of Sebaste 250
4. SS. Phile'as, bishop of Thmuis, and Philoromus, tribune. ... 112
5. St. Agatha, virgin 131
18. St. Leo of Patara 204
24. SS. Lucius, Montanus, and their companions . 197
March.
7. SS. Perpetua and Felicitas of Carthage, with SS. Revocatus,
Saturninus, Secundulus, and Saturus 232
12. St. Peter of Nicomedia, chamberlain 261
22. St. Basil of Ancyra, priest 207
25. St. Irenaeus, bishop of Sirmium .... 178
468 Table of the Holy Martyrs.
April. PAGE
2. St. Appian 164
8. St. yEdesius, brother of St. Appian 164
13. St. Justin, the philosopher, and companions 123
14. SS. Valerian, Tiburtius, and Maximus 182
21. St. Simon, archbishop of Seleucia; SS. Usthazades and Pusi-
kius, and their companions ..... 193
22. SS. Epipodius and Alexander of Lyons 200
23. St. Adalbert, bishop of Prague 145
23. St. Vitalis of Ravenna 64
St. Theodora, virgin, and St. Didymus ... 70
St. Pollio, lector 163
30. SS. James, deacon; Marianus, lector; and companions 148
May.
3. St. Timothy, lector, and St. Maura, his wife 263
15. St. Peter of Lampsacus 219
St. Dionysia, virgin; SS. Andrew and Paul of Lampsacus. . . 116
18. St. Theodotus, vintner. . 92
29. St. Cyril, the child 219
June.
2. SS. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons; Sanctus, deacon; Alexander,
physician; Vettius Epagathus, Maturus, Attalus of
Pergamus; Biblis, Blandina, and their companions. .. 213
4. St. Quirinus, bishop of Siscia 247
16. St. Julitta, widow, and St. Quiricus, her son 54
17. SS. Nicander and Marcian, soldiers 223
22. St. Alban , , , 217
25. St. Febronia, virgin 118
St. Gallican, general 226
26. SS. John and Paul, officers 226
30. St. Basilides, soldier 221
July.
21. St. Victor, officer; Alexander, Felicianus, and Longinus, sol
diers of Marseilles , 257
27. SS. George, deacon; Aurelius, Natalia, Felix, Liliosa of
Corduba , 236
SS. Hermolaus, priest, and Pantaleon, physician 308
Table of the Holy Martyrs. 469
AugUSt. I'AGE
5. St. Afra, the penitent 82
6. St. Sixtus II., pope . 265
8. SS. Cyriacus, deacon; Largus and Smaragdus 272
9. St. Romanus, soldier . 265
10. St. Laurence, deacon 265
12. St. Euplius, deacon 90
13. St. Hippolytus, priest 293
17. St. Mammas 275
SS Liberatus, abbot; Boniface, deacon; Servus, Rusticus,
subdeacons; Rogatus, Septimus, and Maximus, re
ligious 301
21. SS. Bonosius and Maximilian, officers. . 298
25. St. Genesius, comedian. . 291
29. St. Seraphia, virgin 303
31. SS. Theodotus; Rufina, his mother; and Amya 275
September.
3. St. Sabina, widow 303
9. SS. Dorotheus and Gorgonius, chamberlains 261
19. SS. Januarius, bishop of Benevento; Socius, Proculus, Festus,
deacons; Didier, lector; Eutychius, Acutius 280
26. SS. Cyprian, magician; and Justina, virgin 306
October.
6. St. Faith, virgin 288
11. SS. Tarachus, Probus, and Andronicus 240
12. St. Felix, bishop of Abbir, and his companions 311
20. SS. Caprais, Primus, and Felician of Agen 288
22. SS. Philip, bishop of Heraclea; Severus and Hermes 74
28. SS. Anastasia and Cyril of Rome 254
November.
4. SS. Agricola and Vitalis of Bologna 62
9. St. Theodore of Amasea 229
10. SS. Trypho and Respicius 97
12. St. Theodorus of Studius, abbot 156
18. SS. Romanus, deacon, and Barulas, infant 100
22. St. Cecilia, virgin 182
24. St. Chrysogonus, priest 169
27. St. James, surnamed Intercisus So
470 Table of the Holy Martyrs.
December. I>AGE
5. St. Crispina IO5
6. SS. Dionysia; Majoricus, her son; and their companions 108
10. SS. Eulalia and Julia, virgins . 160
13. St. Lucy, virgin I52
25. St. Anastasia, widow !5o
30. St. Sabinus, bishop of Spoleto, and his companions 87
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
FOR PART I.
N.B. For several saints, the year of their victory, not being precisely known, is
given approximately; for some only the century is given.
Second Century.
YEAR 1'AGK
107. St. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, at Rome, December 20. ... 49
125. St. Seraphia, virgin. August 29; and St. Sabina, widow,
September 3 303
166. St. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, January 16 66
167. St. Justin the philosopher, and his companions, April 13. . . 123
171. St. Vitalis of Ravenna, April 27 64
177. SS. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons; Sanctus, deacon; Alex
ander, physician; Vettius Epagathus, Maturus, Attalus
of Pergamus, Bitlis, Blandina. and their companions.
June 2 213
178. SS. Epipodius and Alexander of Lyons, April 22 200
180. St. Symphorian of Autun, August 22 296
Third Century.
St. Arcadius, January 12 121
St. Gordius, centurion, January 3 167
St. Leo of Patara, February 18 204
203. SS. Perpetua and Felicitas of Carthage, with SS. Revocatus,
Saturninus, Secundulus, and Saturus, March 7 232
210. SS. Potamiena, virgin, June 28; Marcella, her mother, and
Basilides, soldier, June 30 221
232. SS. Valerian, Tiburtius, and Maximus, with St. Cecilia,
virgin, November 22 182
250. St. Pionius, priest, February i 141
SS. Lucius, Montanus, Flavian, and their companions,
February 24 ... 197
St. Peter of Lampsacus, May 15 219
472 Chronological Table.
VKAK PAGE
St. Dionysia, virgin, Andrew and Paul of Lampsacus, May 15 116
St. Cyril, child, May 29 , . . . 219
St. Hippolytus, priest, August 13 293
SS. Theodotus and Rufinus, parents of St. Mammas,
August 31 275
251. St. Agatha, virgin, February 5 131
SS. Trypho and Respicius, November 10. . . „ 97
258. SS. Sixtus II., Pope, August 6, and Romanus, soldier,
August 9, with St. Laurence, deacon, August 10. . . , .... 265
259. SS. Fructuosus, bishop of Tarragona, Augurius and Eulo-
gius, deacons, January 21 175
SS. James, deacon; Marianus, lector; and their companions,
April 30 , . . . 148
SS. Anastasia, virgin, and Cyril of Rome 254
275 St. Mammas, August 17 275
286. St. Genesius, comedian, August 25 , 291
287. SS. Marcus and Marcellianus, June 18. 270
288. St. Sebastian, officer, January 20 . 270
290. SS. Victor, officer; Alexander, Felicianus, Longinus, sol
diers, of Marseilles, July 21 257
SS. Faith, virgin, October 6; Caprais, Primus, and Felician,
October 20.. . . 288
Fourth Century.
303. St. Vincent, deacon, January 22 57
SS. Perpetua and Felicitas of Carthage, with SS. Revo-
catus, Saturninus, Secundulus, and Saturus, March 7 .... 232
SS. Cyriacus, deacon, Largus and Smaragdus, March 16... 272
St. Theodotus, vintner, May 18. 92
SS. Nicander and Marcian, soldiers, June 17 , . 223
St. Alban, June 22. . 0 „ 217
SS. Hermolaus, priest, and Pantaleon, physician, July 27.. 308
SS. Romanus, deacon, and Barulas, infant martyr, Novem
ber 17 100
St. Chrysogonus, priest, November 24 „ 169
St. Lucy, virgin, December 13 152
304. St. Agnes, virgin, January 21 189
St. Peter, chamberlain, March 12 „ , . . . 261
St. Irenaeus, bishop of Sirmium, March 25 178
SS. Theodora, virgin, and Didymus, April 28 70
Chronological Table. 473
YEAR I|A('K
St. Pollio. lector, April 28 163
SS. Julitta, widow, and Quiricus, her son, June 16 54
St. Febronia, virgin, June 25 118
St. Afra, penitent, August 5 82
St. Euplius, deacon, August 12 90
SS. Dorotheus and Gorgonius, chamberlains, September 9. 261
SS. Cyprian, magician, and Justina, virgin, September 26. . 306
SS. Taracus, Probus, and Andronicus, October n 240
SS Philip, bishop of Heraclea; Severus, priest; and Hermes,
deacon, October 22 74
SS. Agricola and Vitalis of Bologna, November 4 62
St. Crispina, December 5 106
SS. Eulalia and Julia, virgins, December 10 160
St. Anastasia, widow, December 25 169
St. Sabinus, bishop of Spoleto, and his companions, Decem
ber 30 87
305. SS. Januarius, bishop of Benevento, Sosius, Proculus, and
Festus, deacons; Didier, lector; Eutychius, Acutius,
September 19 280
306. SS. Phileas, bishop of Thmuis, and Philoromus, tribune,
February 4 112
SS. Appian, April 2, and yEdesius, April 8 164
St. Theodore of Amasea, November 9 229
SS. Timothy, lector, and Maura, his wife, December 19. ... 263
316. St. Blase, bishop of Sebaste, February 3 250
344. SS. Simeon, archbishop of Seleucia, Usthazades and Per-
sikius, and their companions, April 21 „ 193
362. St. Basil of Ancyra, priest, June 28 207
363. SS. Bonosius and Maximilian, officers, August 21 298
Fifth Century.
407. SS. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople, Septem
ber 4; Tigrius, priest, and Eutropius, lector, January 12.. 134
420. St. James, surnamed Intercisus, November 27 So
483. SS. Liberatus, abbot; Boniface, deacon; Servus, Rusticus,
subdeacons; Rogatus, Septimus, and Maximus, religious,
August 17 301
484. St. Felix of Abbir, and "his companions, October 12 311
SS. Dionysia, Majoricus, her son, and their companions,
December 6 and 16 . 108
474 Chronological Table.
Ninth Century.
YEAR
826. St. Theodore of Studius, abbot, November n. J56
852. SS. George, deacon; Aurelius, Natalia, Felix, Liliosa of
Corduba, July 17 236
868. St. Nicolas of Studius, abbot, February 4 I56
Tenth Century.
997- St. Adalbert, bishop of Prague, April 23 145
ALPHABETICAL INDEX
OF PART I.
A. PAGE
St. Acutius, with St. Januarius 280
St. Adalbert, bishop of Prague 145
$t. Afra, penitent 82
St. Agatha, virgin 131
St. Agnes, virgin 189
St. Agricola of Bologna 62
St. Alban 217
St. Alexander of Lyons, with St. Epipodius 200
St. Alexander, physician, with St. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons.. . . 213
St. Alexander, soldier, with St. Victor of Marseilles 257
St. Amya, with St. Mammas 275
St. Anastasia, virgin 254
St. Andrew of Lampsacus 1 16
St. Andronicus, with St. Tarachus 240
St. Appian 164
St. Attalus of Pergamus, with St. Pothinus 213
St. Augurius, deacon, with St. Fructuosus 175
St. Aurelius of Corduba, with St. Natalia, his wife 236
B
St. Barulas, infant martyr, with St. Romanus 100
St. Basil of Ancyra, priest 207
St. Basilides, soldier, with St. Potamiena 221
St. Biblis, with St. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons 213
St. Blaise, bishop of Sebaste 250
St. Blandina, with St. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons 213
St. Boniface, deacon, with St. Liberatus, abbot 301
St. Bonosius, officer, with St. Maximilian 298
C
St. Caprais, with St. Faith, virgin 288
St. Cecilia, virgin 182
St. Chrysogonus, priest, with St. Anastasia, widow 169
St. Crispina 106
St. Cyprian, magician, with St. Justina, virgin 306
476 A Iphabetica I Index.
I'AGE
St. Cyriacus, deacon 272
St. Cyril of Rome, with St. Anastasia, virgin 254
St. Cyril, child 219
D
St. Dionysia, virgin, of Lampsacus. 116
St. Dionysia, with St. Majoricus, her son 108
St. Didier, lector, with St. Januarius 280
St. Didymus, with St. Theodora, virgin 70
St. Dorotheus, chamberlain, with St. Gorgonius 261
E
St. Edesius, with St. Appian 164
St. Epipodius, with St. Alexander of Lyons 200
St. Eulalia, virgin 160
St Eulogius, deacon, with St. Fructuosus 175
St. Euplius, deacon 90
St. Eutropius, lector, with St. John Chrysostom 134
St. Eutychius, with St. Jan uarius 280
F
St. Febronia, virgin 121
St. Felicianus, soldier, with- St. Victor of Marseilles 257
St. Felician, with St. Faith, virgin 288
St. Felicitas of Carthage, with St. Perpetua 232
St. Felix, bishop of Abbir 311
St. Felix of Corduba, with St. Liliosa, his wife 236
St. Festus, deacon, with St. Januarius 280
St. Flavian, with St. Lucius 197
St. Faith, virgin of Agen 288
St. Fructuosus, bishop of Tarragona 175
G
St. Gallican, Roman general, with SS. John and Paul 226
St. Genesius, comedian , 291
St. George, deacon 236
St. Gordius, centurion 167
St. Gorgonius, chamberlain, with St. Dorotheus 261
H
St, Hermes, deacon, with St. Philip, bishop of Heraclea 74
St. Hermolaus, priest, with St. Pantaleon 308
St. Hippolytus, priest 293
A Iphabetical Index. 477
i
PAGE
St. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch 49
St. Iraenaus, bishop of Sirmium 178
J
St. James, deacon, with St. Marianus 152
St. James, surnamed Intercisus So
St. Januarius, bishop of Benevento 280
St. John, officer, with St. Paul, his brother 226
St. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople 134
St. Julia, virgin, with St. Eulalia i6<3
St. Julitta with St. Quiricus, her son 54
St. Justin, philosopher 123
St. Justina, virgin, with St. Cyprian. 306
L
St. Largus, with St. Cyriacus 272
St. Laurence, deacon, with St. Sixtus II., Pope 265
St. Leo of Patara 2cu
St. Liberatus, abbot, with his companions 301
St. Liliosa, with St. Felix of Corduba, her husband 236
St. Longinus, soldier, with St. Victor of Marseilles 257
St. Lucy, virgin 152
St. Lucius, with SS. Montanus and Flavian 197
M
St. Majoricus, with St. Dionysia, his mother , 108
St. Mammas 275
St. Marcus, with St. Marcellianus, his brother 270
St. Marcella, with St. Potamiena, her daughter 221
St. Marcellianus, with St. Marcus, his brother 270
St. Marcian, soldier, with St. Nicander 223
St. Marianus, lector, with St. James, deacon 148
St. Maturus, with St. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons 213
St. Maura, with St. Timothy, her husband 263
St. Maximus, with St. Cecilia 182
St. Maximus, religious, with St. Liberatus 301
St. Maximilian, officer, with St. Bonosius 298
N
St. Natalia, with St. Aurelius, her husband 236
St. Nicander, soldier, with St. Marcian 223
St. Nicholas of Studius, with St. Theodore 156
4 7 8 A Ipkabetical Index.
p
PAGE
St. Pantaleon, physician, with St. Hermolaus 308
St. Paul of Lampsacus, with St. Andrew 116
St. Paul, officer, with St. John, his brother 226
St. Perpetua, with St. Felicitas of Carthage 232
St. Phileas, bishop of Thmuis 112
St. Philip, bishop of Theraclea 74
St. Philoromus, tribune, with St. Phileas 112
St. Peter of Lampsacus 219
St. Peter, chamberlain 261
St. Pionius, priest 141
St. Pollio, lector 163
St. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna 66
St. Potamiena, virgin 221
St. Pothinus, bishop of Lyons 213
St. Primus, with St. Faith 288
St. Probus, with St. Tarachus 240
St. Proclus, deacon, with St. Januarius 280
St. Pusikius, with St. Simeon , 193
9
St. Quiricus, with St. Julitta, his mother 54
St. Quirinus, bishop of Siscia 247
R
St. Respicius, with St. Trypho 97
St. Revocatus, with SS. Felicitas of Carthage 232
St. Rogatus, religious, with St. Liberatus, abbot 301
St. Romanus, deacon 100
St. Romanus, soldier, with St. Laurence 265
St. Rufina, mother of St. Mammas 275
St. Rusticus, subdeacon, with St. Liberatus 301
S
St. Sabinus, bishop of Spoleto 87
St. Sabina, widow, with St. Seraphia 303
St. Sanctus, deacon, with St. Pothinus 213
St. Saturus, with St. Perpetua 232
St. Saturninus, with St. Perpetua 232
St Sebastian, officer 270
St. Secundulus, with St. Perpetua 232
Alphabetical Index. 479
PAGE
St. Septimus, religious, with St. Liberatus 301
St. Seraphia, virgin 303
St. Servus, subdeacon. with St. Liberatus 301
St. Simeon, archbishop of Seleucia 193
St. Sixtus II., Pope 265
St. Smaragdus, with St. Cyriacus 272
St. Sosius, deacon, with St. Januarius 280
St. Symphorian , 296
T
St. Tarachus, with SS. Probus and Andronicus 240
St. Theodora, virgin, with St. Didymus 70
St. Theodore of Amasea 229
St. Theodore of Studius, abbot 156
St. Theodotus, vintner . 92
St. Theodotus, father of St. Mammas 275
St. Tiburtius, brother-in-law of St. Cecilia 182
St. Tygrius, priest, with St. John Chrysostom 134
St. Timothy, lector 263
U
St. Usthazades, chamberlain, with St. Simeon. . 193
V
St. Valerian, husband of St. Cecilia 182
St. Vettius Epagathus, with St. Pothinus. . 213
St. Victor, officer 257
St. Vincent, deacon 57
St. Vitalis of Bologna 62
St. Vitalis of Ravenna 64
Liguorj , A.M.
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