- Holy Martyrs Thyrsus, Leucis and Callinicus (250)
- These martyrs contested in Asia Minor
during the reign of Decius. Thyrsus and Leucis were executed after horrible torture for
confessing themselves as Christians and rebuking the Governor for his slaughter of their brethren.
Callinicus was a pagan priest, converted by witnessing the martyrdom and miracles of St Thyrsus;
he was beheaded.
- Holy Martyrs Philemon, Apollonius, Arian and those with them (3rd c.)
- "During the reign
of Diocletian (284-305), the Governor of Antinoe in the Thebaid of Upper Egypt was Arian, a
fierce persecutor who had sent many Christians to a violent death, among them Saints Timothy
and Maura (see May 3) and Saint Sabine (Mar. 16). When he had imprisoned thirty-seven
Christians for their confession of faith, one of them, named Apollonius, a reader of the Church,
lost his courage at the sight of the instruments of torture, and thought how he might escape
torments without denying Christ. He gave money to Philemon, a flute-player and a pagan, that
he might put on Apollonius' clothes and offer sacrifices before Arian, so that all would think
Apollonius to have done the Governor's will, and he might be released. Philemon agreed to this,
but when the time came to offer sacrifice, enlightened by divine grace, he declared himself a
Christian instead. He and Apollonius, who also confessed Christ when the fraud was exposed,
were both beheaded. Before beheading them, Arian had commanded that they be shot with
arrows, but while they remained unharmed, Arian himself was wounded by one of the arrows;
Saint Philemon foretold that after his martyrdom, Arian would be healed at his tomb. When this
came to pass, Arian, the persecutor who had slain so many servants of Christ, himself believed in
Christ and was baptized with four of his body-guards. Diocletian heard of this and had Arian and
his body-guards brought to him. For their confession of Christ, they were cast into the sea, and
received the crown of life everlasting." (Great Horologion)
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source: http://www.abbamoses.com |
