- Holy Hieromartyrs of Cherson: Basileus, Ephraim, Eugenios, Capito, Aetherios, Agathodoros, and Elpidios (4th c.)
- These seven holy Bishops give a vivid picture of the dangers endured
by those who traveled to proclaim the Gospel of Christ in the early
centuries of the Church. All seven were sent as missionary bishops to
Cherson on the Black Sea, and all seven died there as Martyrs. Hermon,
Bishop of Jerusalem, first sent Ephraim and Basileus; Basileus raised
the son of the prince of Cherson to life, after which many believed and
were baptized. The unbelievers, though, bound him by the feet and
dragged him through the streets until he died. Ephraim was beheaded
when he refused to make sacrifice to the idols. Eugenios, Agathodoros,
and Elpidios were then sent by the Bishop of Jerusalem; they were beaten
to death with rods and stones. Aetherius was sent during the reign of
Constantine the Great, and was able to govern the Church in freedom and
peace, and to build a church in Cherson. Capito, the last to be sent,
brought the Gospel to the fierce Scythians. To prove the power of his
God, they asked him to go into a burning furnace, saying that if he was
not consumed, they would believe. Putting all his trust in God, the
holy Bishop vested himself, made the sign of the Cross, and entered the
furnace. He stood in the flames, fervently praying, for an hour, and
came out untouched. The spectators cried out 'There is one God, the
great and powerful God of the Christians, who keeps His servant safe in
the burning furnace!', and all those in the town and the surrounding
countryside were baptized. This miracle was spoken of at the Council of
Nicea (325). Later, Scythian unbelievers captured Capito and drowned
him in the River Dnieper.
-
The Prologue says that Aetherios ended his life in peace; the Great Horologion, that he was drowned. All these holy missionaries labored around the beginning of the fourth century.
source: http://www.abbamoses.com
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