The Book of the Saints of the Ethiopian church/Tekemt

by Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Tekemt

Tekemt 1 (October 11)

On this day the holy woman Anastasia became a martyr. This woman was a fighter; she was a native of Rome and her parents were Christians. They brought her up in all honor, and trained her in a manner befitting her noble rank, and they taught her everything, which was beneficial for her soul and body, and also the doctrine of the Church. When she arrived at woman’s estate her parents wanted to give her in marriage, but she did not desire this thing, for from her youth up she had craved for the garb of the ascetic life; and she chose the spiritual fight which is the garb of the holy ascetic life. And she entered one of the nunneries where virgins were received in the city of Rome, and she put on the nun’s garb, which is the garb of angels. And she made her body to toil with the labor of constant prayer, and with strenuous contending, and with hunger, and with thirst, and with cutting out from her heart and soul every thought concerning this world. In those days she used to fast the whole of every second day throughout the whole year. And during the great fast of the Forty Days she did not eat except on the first Sabbath (Saturday) and on the first day of the week (Sunday) after the mid-day prayer. In those days her food was dry bread and salt, and during all the days of her life as a nun she never ate any food, which had been cooked by fire. Now there was another nunnery of virgins near her nunnery, and the day of the festival in the nunnery approached. On that day the abbess took certain virgins from the nunnery, and among them was this virgin Anastasia, and they went to celebrate the festival in the neighboring nunnery. As they were going along the road this holy virgin saw some soldiers of the Emperor Decius, and with them were certain Christians whom they were dragging along. And her heart became inflamed with spiritual love, and she cursed them, saying, “O men of sluggish hearts, and infidels, why do ye act thus towards those whom God hath created in His own form and image, and for whom He hath given Himself?” Having said these words the soldiers were wroth with her, and they seized her, and brought her before the governor. And the governor asked her, saying, “Is it true that thou art a Christian, and that thou worshippest Him that was crucified?” And she confessed Christ before the governor and did not deny Him. Then the governor tortured her with severe tortures; he heaped fire on her body, and then he hung her up head downwards, and had a fire lighted under her; but although she was suffering great torture she did not turn from her faith. And after this the governor commanded his soldiers to cut off her head with the sword; and those who were there marveled at the fortitude of her soul. And she prayed a long prayer, and she stretched out her head to the sword, and they cut off the head of Saint Anastasia, and she received a crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens.

And on this day also are commemorated Saint Haritan (Cheriton), and Susannah the virgin, and Mary the sister of Lazarus. Glory be to God forever. Amen.

Tekemt 2 (October 12)

On this day the great Saint Abba Severus, Archbishop of Antioch, came to the country of Egypt; now this took place in the days of the Emperor Eustathius, who was a wicked emperor. And the empress was a woman holding the right Faith, and she loved Abba Severus, and she placed in him very great confidence; but the emperor did not turn from his evil counsel and he wanted to kill Abba Severus. When the God-loving empress knew that the king wished to kill Abba Severus secretly, she besought the holy man to save himself, but he did not want to go away, and he said unto her, “I am ready to die for the sake of my Lord Jesus Christ.” And the empress urged him with many fervent entreaties, and certain God-loving brethren entreated him also, and he went forth from that city; and certain of the brethren who were with him fled to Lower Egypt. When the emperor had sought for him and had found him not, he sent soldiers to seek him out and to bring him to him. And God hid him from them, and they found him not, and yet he was nigh unto them, and he walked about in their midst and they did not see him when he was in that place wherein the soldiers of the emperor lived. When Abba Severus came to Egypt he went about secretly from place to place and from monastery to monastery, and God wrought by him great signs and wonders. One day he arrived in the desert of Scete, and he entered into the church of Saint Abba Macarius in the guise of a traveling monk, and at that moment the priest was offering the incense of sacrifice at the altar, and he was censing the people. Afterwards he read the Book of the Gospel, and then he lifted off the covering and looked for the Offering on the paten, but it was hidden from him and he could not find it. And he wept, “O my brethren, I know not whether this thing hath happened because of some sin of mine, or because of some sin of yours, but I cannot find the Offering on the paten, and It is hidden from me”; and the people wept because of this. And straightway the angel of the Lord appeared unto the priest, and said unto him, “This hath not happened because of thy sin, and this Offering hath not disappeared because of the sin of the people, but because thou hast acted stupidly, for thou hast dared to offer up incense and our Offering whilst the Archbishop Abba Severus is standing outside the sanctuary in a corner of the church.” And the priest said unto the angel, “Where is he?” And the angel pointed with his hand towards him, and he knew Abba Severus by the grace of the Holy Spirit. When the priest came to him Abba Severus commanded him to finish the service of the Offering. After this the priest brought Abba Severus to the sanctuary with great honor. And when the priest had gone up to the altar he found the Offering on the paten as before, and the priests marveled and praised God. After this Abba Severus went forth from that place and came to the city of Seha, and he dwelt there with a certain rich man who was a lover of God, and whose name was Dorotheus; and he lived with him until he died on the twenty-fourth day of the month of Yakatit.

And on this day are commemorated Takla Sama’et and Heriacus (Cyriacus?). Glory be to God Who is wonderous in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 3 (October 13)

On this day died the holy father Abba Simeon, the fifty-first archbishop of the city of Alexandria. This father was the son of one of the elders of the city of Alexandria, and his parents were Orthodox Christians. From his earliest childhood he sucked the milk of the Orthodox Faith, and he learned the doctrine of the Church. And he determined within himself to assume the monastic garb, and he went out from the city of Alexandria and departed to the desert of Scete, and he became a monk in the monastery of Abba Jacob, who was archbishop before him. And he dwelt with him many days, and he made his body to be emaciated through the strenuousness of his ascetic exercises, and by his excessive contending. And when Abba Macarius, the second of the name, was appointed archbishop, he received from Abba Jacob the story of his bold strife, and of the strenuousness of his ascetic practices, and he dwelt with him until Abba Jacob his father died. And he chose many priests, and the bishops and priests and deacons assembled together, and all the elders, and Divine Love moved them, and they made this holy father Abba Simeon archbishop because they saw the excellences of his natural disposition and character. When they saw that he had dwelt with the two archbishops who preceded him, they seized him, and they made him archbishop on the throne of Saint Mark, apostle and evangelist. In administering his see he followed the Divine path, and he was well pleasing unto God, and he protected his people in the keeping of the Law of the Right Faith. During the days of his rule the Church was quiet and at peace. And this father fell sick of a grievous disease in his foot, and he entreated God to give him rest from the pain thereof; he only remained in his office for five months and a half, and he died in peace.

And on this day the new Saint George became a martyr.

And on this day also are commemorated Nineveh and its people and its tribes, and Macarius, and Theophilus, and Eumara, and Gregory, bishop of Armenia, and Saint Theodora, the daughter of the Emperor Arcadius, the son of Theodosius the Great. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 4 (October 14)

On this day Saint Bacchus and his companion Saint Sergius became martyrs by the hands of the wicked Antiochus, governor of Syria. Now this took place when the Emperor Maximianus seized these saints, and tortured them with sever tortures after he had cast off their belts, for they were soldiers. After this he sent them to the country of Syria, to Antiochus the governor, who shut Saint Bacchus and Saint Sergius up in prison. And he commanded his soldiers to hang him up and to hack him with knives, and to hang stones about his neck, and to cast him into the River Euphrates; and they did to him according as the king commanded. And God protected the body of Saint Bacchus, and brought it through the sea to the coast. And there were near him two anchorites and ascetics, the name of the one being Mama, and that of the other Baba, and unto those brethren the angel of the Lord appeared and commanded them to go and carry away the body of Saint Bacchus. And they went according as the angel of the Lord commanded them, and they found the body of Saint Bacchus, and by the side of it were a lion and wolves protecting it. And these animals which were wont to eat only the flesh of men and animals had sat by it for one day and one night, and they had been commanded by God Most High to protect the body of Saint Bacchus. And these holy men took up the body of the saint with great honor, and they sang hymns before it until they came to their cave where they buried it. Salutation to Bacchus, and Baba, and Mama.

And on this day Saint Ananias, the preacher, one of the two and seventy disciples, became a martyr. This holy man was Bishop of Damascus, and it was he who baptized the Apostle Paul, our Lord having appeared to him on the road to Damascus, and it was he whom the Apostles appointed bishop, and who was sent by them to the city of Damascus. He had at first dwelt and preached in the house of Gabriel. And he healed very many sick people, and converted many to the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. After he had baptized Paul the Apostle Lucianus the governor seized him and flogged him with leather whips until his blood flowed down to the ground. And they beat his temples with iron rods, and they burnt his breast with torches of fire. After this they took him outside the city, and the governor ordered his soldiers to stone him, and they stoned him, and he delivered up his soul into the hand of God.

And on this day also are commemorated the righteous saints Romanus, and Gabra Krestos, and John the eunuch, and the consecration of the church of Senhar. Salutation to Gabra Krestos.

And on this day also is commemorated the death of the kings ‘Abreha and ‘Asbeha who reigned together over ‘Aksum in Ethiopia. Salutation to kings ‘Abreha and ‘Asbeha. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 5 (October 15)

On this day died the holy father Abba Paul, Archbishop of Constantinople. This holy man was a disciple of Abba Alexander, Archbishop of Constantinople, his predecessor, and when Abba Alexander died this father was appointed in his stead. When he had taken his seat on the archiepiscopal throne, he excommunicated the Arians and expelled them from Constantinople and from the whole district. When the Emperor Constantine died, his son Constantine reigned over Constantinople, and his brother reigned over the city of Rome; now this Constantine loved Arius, and he believed his polluted belief. When the emperor heard that Saint Abba Paul had excommunicated the Arians, and had exiled them from the city of Constantinople, he was exceedingly sorry, and he said unto Saint Paul, “Henceforward let the Arians alone, and excommunicate them not.” And the archbishop did not obey his words, and therefore Constantine was wroth with him, and he exiled him from the city of Constantinople, just as he had exiled Abba Athanasius from the city of Alexandria before him. And the two archbishops Paul and Athanasius foregathered in the city of Rome with Saint Abba Julius, the Archbishop of the city of Rome, who accorded them a splendid and a loving reception. And he wrote for them a letter to the Emperor Constantine, and he said concerning them, “They are learned, and righteous and Orthodox men, and it is meet for thee to receive them and to honor them.” When the Archbishops Abba Paul and Abba Athanasius had arrived in the city of Constantinople, and the emperor had read the letter of the Archbishop of the city of Rome, he was afraid of them, and he received them and placed them in their offices, and waited to deal with them for a few days, and after this he exiled them. And they returned to the city of Rome, to the Archbishop Abba Julius, and they told him how Constantine had treated them, and how he had exiled them a second time. And Julius took them and brought them to the Emperor Kuenseta (Constans), the brother of Constantine, and told him how his brother had treated them. And Kuenseta (Constans) wrote a letter to his brother, and commanded him to receive them, and he said unto him, “If thou dost not receive them there will be no peace betwixt thee and me, henceforward.” And the archbishop also wrote unto him a second letter, and Constantine accepted the letter of his brother Kuenseta (Constans) and the letter of the archbishop, and he set the two archbishops in their offices. When certain men slew the Emperor Kuenseta (Constans) in the city of Rome, his brother Constantine turned, and he exiled Saint Paul to the country of Armenia, and shut him up in prison there for a few days. Then the Emperor Constantine sent a letter to one of the followers of Arius, and he said unto him, “Kill Paul in the prison house.” And that man who was an infidel came to the holy man by night, and strangled him, and he died in peace; and all the days of his life were forty years.

And on this day died Saint Cyriacus the martyr and Hannah his mother; now he was condemned to death by Elianus (the Emperor Julian according to the Bodleian ms.) because he was a bishop. When he confessed Christ, Elianus commanded his soldiers to cut off his right hand, saying, “This is thy hand wherewith thou writest, and wherewith thou dost prevent men from worshipping idols”; and Saint Cyriacus said, “Thou hast done well, O thou dog lacking understanding.” When Elianus heard this he commanded his soldiers to boil some lead and to pour it into his mouth, and he made them lay him upon a red-hot iron bed. And they strewed over him red-hot burning coals, and they rubbed salted fat into him, and they beat his belly and his back with rods until his bones broke. And the righteous man endured these tortures patiently, and he prayed in the Hebrew tongue, saying. [Here follows a transcript into Ethiopic letter of fifteen words in which the saint beseeches Adonai, the God of Death, to keep death from him.] Then Elianus commanded them to release him, and he lay him down in the prison house. And Elianus made them bring Hannah, the mother of Cyriacus, and he commanded them to suspend her by her hair, and to scrape her with shards for three hours. And he also commanded them to burn her body with fiery torches, and whilst praying she delivered up her soul. Then Elianus commanded them to bring Saint Cyriacus, and to cast him into a large pit wherein were serpent and vipers, but none of them injured him. And when ‘Admon (Admonius), whom Hannah had saved for Christ, saw this he cursed the king and reviled his gods; and forthwith Elianus commanded them to cut off his head with the sword. And the holy man stretched out his neck, saying, “O God of Cyriacus, receive my soul”; and he finished his martyrdom. And Elianus commanded his soldiers to cast Saint Cyriacus into a vessel of boiling oil, and he also commanded them to drive a spear through his breast, and thus he ended his testimony and died in peace on the day of the Sabbath. Salutation of Cyriacus, who informed the Empress Helena concerning the place where the Cross was to be found; the knowledge of this place he had obtained from his father. Salutation to Hannah the martyr, and salutation to ‘Admon (Admonius).

And on this day are commemorated James the apostle, the son of Alphaeus, and “Adrawos, and ‘Awaras, and ‘Aldrakwos the martyrs, and ‘Endronos (‘Adronos?). Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 6 (October 16)

On this day died the holy and righteous woman Hannah, the prophetess - mother of Samuel the prophet. This holy woman was of the tribe of Levi, and Elkanah, the son of Tarhem (Jeroham) married her, now he had another wife whose name was Penana (Peninnah), but Hannah could not bear children because she was barren. And Peninnah was always reviling Hannah because of her failure to have children, and because she was barren. And Hannah wept and would neither eat nor drink, and Elkanah her husband tried to comfort her, but she would not receive comfort from him. And she went up into the house of God in the days of Eli the priest, and prayed and wept before God, and vowed a vow to God, saying, “O God, if thou wilt give me a son, I will dedicate him to Thee.” And Eli the priest was watching her as she stood praying, and making supplication silently, for she was praying in her heart; and Eli the priest thought that she was drunk with wine, and he was wroth with her, and he rebuked her and said unto her, “Why dost thou drink wine, and come hither to the house of God?” And she said unto him, “I have not been drinking wine at all, I am suffering, but in my heart, because I have no son.” And Eli the priest comforted her, and blessed her, saying, “Go in peace; the God of Israel shall grant thee thy petition”; and she believed his word, and she went to her husband, and she conceived and brought forth a son, and she called his name “Samuel,” which is, being interpreted, “God hath heard me.” And when she had taken him from the breasts, she took him up to the house of the Lord, even as she had vowed, and she brought him to Eli the priest, and made him to know that she was the woman who had prayed to God and entreated Him to give her a son. And she said, “Behold, God hath heard my petition and hath given me this son; and behold, I have brought him to God so that he may minister in His house all the days of his life.” Then she praised God in that well-known hymn of praise, which is the third of the hymns that are written at the end of the Psalms of David the prophet. And she lived after this and was well pleasing unto God, and she died in peace. Salutation to Hannah.

And on this day died Saint Abba Pantaleon of the cell. This holy man was the son of noble folk, who were among the great ones of Rome, and who sat on the right hand of the emperor. When his mother had weaned him she took him to a monastery where he grew up in wisdom and exhortation, and fasting and prayer. Then he traveled to the country of Ethiopia with Nine Saints in the days of ‘Al’ameda the king, the son of Sal’Adab the king, and they lived in Bet Katin. Then they separated, and Abba Pantaleon went up to the top of a little mountain, and he made himself a cell which was five cubits long, and two cubits wide, and three cubits deep; its roof was a single stone, and it had no door, but only a small opening. And he stood on his feet for a period of five and forty years, without sitting down, and without lying down to sleep. He ate and drank so little that his skin cleaved to his bones, and his eyelashes were worn away by his tears. And he continued to work innumerable miracles in healing the sick and in opening the eyes of the blind. One day he planted a tree at dawn and by the time the evening came it had grown very tall, and had dried up, and his disciple had prepared (?) it and burned it, and tied up the charcoal in his garment and taken it for the censer. When Caleb was going forth to wage war against another king, he came to Abba Pantaleon and embraced his cell, and told him his trouble. And Abba Pantaleon said, “Go in peace, for God is able to do all things, and He shall give thee victory over thy enemy”; and to return safely and in peace. When Caleb the king had come to the country of Saba, he made war on the people thereof, and he slew them all and conquered them, and there were not left any who were not scattered like leaves. And all those who saw Saint Abba Pantaleon testified concerning him, saying, “We saw Abba Pantaleon standing with us in battle, and he was overthrowing our enemies.” When Caleb the king returned, having conquered the King of Judah, he forsook his kingdom, and became a monk with Abba Pantaleon. When Saint Abba Pantaleon had finished his strife, our Lord Jesus Christ came to him and made a covenant with him concerning him that should call upon his name, and celebrate his commemoration, and write an account of his contending; and He said unto him, “It is now sufficient for thee; go to thy rest.” And straightway his bones broke and he died in peace and was buried in his cell. Salutation to Abba Pantaleon as the perfect man. Salutation, twofold, to Abba Pantaleon who caused the death of 5050 warriors in the battle. Salutation to Abba Pantaleon in his cell.

And on this day also the saints Rewak and Antonius, Bishop of Bana, became martyrs. Salutation to the same.

And on this day also is commemorated Habakkuk the prophet, the interpretation of which name is “Teacher.” This holy man was of the tribe of Simeon. Joseph begat Yosafet. He saw and prophesied before the Captivity that the King of Babylon and his soldiers would surround Jerusalem and destroy the Temple; and he wept much and groaned greatly because thereof. When Nebuchadnezzar the King of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it, this righteous man fled to the country of Mestirakina, and he departed seeking for the land of Ishmael. And when the captives returned from the city of the Chaldeans, that is to say, those who had gone thither from the city of Jerusalem and from Egypt, this righteous man was living in his own habitation, and was ministering unto those who were gathering in the harvest from the fields. When he had taken food to carry to the reapers, he spake unto the men of his house, saying, “I am obliged to go to a city which is afar, but I will return speedily. If I tarry, take some food for the reapers and carry it to them.” And as he was going along having with him the food which he was to carry to the reapers, straightway the angel of God seized him by the hair of his head, whilst the food was still with him, and brought him to the cave of the city of Babylon wherein Daniel the prophet lived, now he was lying down before the lions, and Habakkuk brought the food to him and he ate. Then the angel took him by his hand and brought him back to the land of Israel, and straightway he stood up by the side of the reapers who were still eating their meal. And he never told any man what had happened to him. He thought that the people would return speedily from the city of Babylon, but he died and was buried in the tomb of his fathers many years before the return of the people. This prophet prophesied to the men of the country of Judah, saying, “Ye will most certainly see the Gentiles despoiling the sanctuary.” and it came to pass even as he said. And he also prophesied and said unto them, “Ye shall afterwards see the glory of God.” And he also prophesied and said, “The sanctuary shall be rooted up, and shall be given unto an alien people.” And he said, “The covenant of the altar shall be rent and shall be split up into small fragments, and the top of two pillars shall be carried away, and none shall know whither they have gone. And the angel must take them into the place wherein is planted the wood of the Cross of their Lord, so that God may be known in the desert, and He shall judge those who war against them, the Serpent of olden time.” And everything has been fulfilled even as he prophesied. [See Habakkuk 2, 3.]

And on this day also Saint Dionysius, Bishop of the city of Athens, became a martyr. This holy man was a native of Athens, and he excelled all the men thereof in honor (or glory), and in understanding, and in wisdom, and in learning; now he was one of the counselors in the Council of learned judges in the city of Athens. Paul the apostle taught him, and baptized him with Christian baptism, and made him Bishop of the city of Athens. And he composed many discourses, and among these was one for the eve of the Sabbath (Friday), which treated of the Crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. One day this holy man was sitting in the House of Wisdom of the city of Athens (now it was the day whereon the learned were to hold a meeting therein), and he was sitting upon the throne of state, for he was the chief of all the wise men, and the other wise men were assembling, and at the moment of noon the sun became dark, and the earth quaked, and all the people were terrified and feared greatly. And they asked Saint Dionysius and said unto him, “Master, make us to know what hath happened in the world.” And he took up a book about the world of nature, and he looked at the balance in his mind and understanding, and he enquired concerning the rising of the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and he found that they were all in a settled state, and that they had not moved from their courses. Similarly he looked at the great sea and saw that it was surrounding all the ends of the world, and he found that it too was in a state of peace and quietness. Then he took up an astrolabe and looked into it, and behold God, ‘El-Maknun, that is to say, the “Hidden,” the Creator of the heavens and the earth, came down from the heavens upon earth. And His own people rose up against Him, and crucified Him. And straightway he rent his garments and sorrowed with a great sorrow. And the councilors and the wise and learned noblemen asked him to reveal unto them what had appeared unto him in respect of the darkness which had taken place at noon, and concerning the earthquake; and he told them everything which had taken place; and when they heard this they feared with a great fear. And he commanded his disciple Josephus to write down everything that had happened during that hour, and the name of that day, and the name of that month, and the name of that year; and Josephus wrote down everything that happened according to the command of Dionysius. And he also wrote upon all the gates of their idols which were in their houses, “God ‘El-Maknun, that is to say, the ‘Hidden,’ hath come down from heaven.” After fourteen years the Apostle Paul came to the city of Athens, and he preached therein, by the help of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God - blessed be His Name! [And he preached how He came down] from heaven, and His Incarnation by our Lady Saint Mary the Virgin, and His Passion, and His Crucifixion, and His Resurrection, and His Ascension into heaven, and His second coming to judge the living and the dead. When the men of Athens heard the preaching of Saint Paul the Apostle, they marveled exceedingly and they ran and told Saint Dionysius about it. And they said unto him, “A certain man came into our city this day, and preached unto us a new god whom we do not know, and whom our fathers before us did not know.” And Dionysius sent a messenger who brought the Apostle Paul to him, and he said unto him, “Who is this new god whom thou hast preached in our city?” And the Apostle Paul answered and said unto him, “Whilst I was passing through the open spaces of your city I found written upon the doors of the houses of your idols the words, ‘God ‘El- Maknun,’ that is to say, the ‘Hidden God,’ hath come down from heaven; this is He of Whom I have preached unto you.” And straightway Saint Dionysius commanded his disciple [Josephus] to bring unto him that document which he had written fourteen years ago; and he brought it to him. And Dionysius asked the Apostle Paul, saying, “When was the sign of Him Whom thou preachest [made known]?’ And Saint Paul the Apostle answered and said unto him, “On Friday, in the month of Adar, which is the seventeenth day of the month Megabit, at noon, our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, and the sun became dark, and the earth quaked at that moment.” When they heard this they all believed on our Lord Jesus Christ, and they bowed down at the feet of the Apostle Paul, and he baptized them with Christian baptism, and he made Saint Dionysius bishop over them. Now this Saint Dionysius is he who translated the Ordinances of the Church. After this he went to the borders of the West in the days of the Apostles, and he performed many signs and wonders. And the Emperor Domitian, the infidel, seized him and inflicted severe tortures upon him, and then he cut off his holy head with the sword; and Dionysius received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of heaven. After they had cut off his head he walked to stadium holding his head in his hands. And the Emperor Domitian also cut off the heads of Josephus and Urianus, the disciples of Saint Dionysius. Salutation to Dionysius, the friend of ‘Entona (Antonius), Bishop of the city of Bana. Salutation to Josephus and Urianus.

On this day also ‘Entona (Antonius), Bishop of the city of Bana, became a martyr.

And on this day also is commemorated Enos, the son of Seth, who was the first to call upon God. He lived 190 years and begat Cainan; and all the days of his life were 620 years, and he died at the beginning of the Sabbath. Salutation to Hermolaus the priest, and to his brother Heracletus, and to his brother, the bishop, and to Pantaleon who, when he prayed whilst the king was cutting off their heads, caused an earthquake. Salutation to father Bestalota Mika’el, the blood of whose body was found to be liquid when it was translated to a second tomb. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 7 (October 17)

On this day died the holy father Abba Pawli of the city of Tamaw. This holy man became a monk and a fighter in his early years, and he dwelt in Debra ‘Ensena [near Asna] in Upper Egypt, and his disciple Ezekiel was with him, and this man became a witness to the excellences of his master, and to his ascetic combats. This holy man Abba Pawli contended strenuously because of his love for Christ, and he killed himself seven times. The first time he hung himself upon a tree head downwards, and he remained hanging there for forty days and forty nights until his blood flowed from his nose, and he yielded up his soul. And God raised him up from death by His power. The second time he cast himself into the waves of the sea, thinking that the large fish and the tiger-fish would assuredly devour him. Now the tiger-fish would not touch him at all, and he remained submerged in the water for many years and he died. And our Lord Jesus Christ raised him up from the dead a second time. The third time he cast himself into the sand and died, and our Lord raised him up. The fourth time he threw himself down from the top of a high hill and rolled down it, and the side of the hill was covered with stones as sharp as knives, and they pierced his temples and every part of his body, and he died straightway; and Ezekiel his disciple wept over him, and our Lord Jesus Christ came and comforted him. The fifth time he threw himself from the top of a high tree on to a large stone, which was as sharp as a sword, and he was split up into two pieces and died; and the Lord raised him up. The sixth time he tied his head to his feet and he remained in this position for forty days and forty nights, and died; and the Lord sent unto him an angel who raised him up and comforted him. In this manner this holy man tortured himself six times and died six times, and each time he died our Lord raised him up. The seventh time he stretched out his legs over a deep well, and stood there for forty days and forty nights and died there. And our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto him, and raised him up from the dead, and strengthened him, and said unto him, “O my beloved Pawli, hast thou not toiled enough and killed thyself often enough?” And Pawli said unto Him, “Leave me, O my Lord, to toil for Thy holy name’s sake, even as Thou Thyself hast toiled for the race of the children of men. Thou art God, and the Son of God, and Thou didst die for our sins; as for us we are not worthy that Thou shouldst toil for us”; and our Lord comforted him, and strengthened him, and went up into heaven. When the holy father Abba Besoy went to Debra ‘Ensena, he met Abba Pawli. And our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto Pawli and said unto him, “Thy body shall be with the body of Abba Besoy”; and when Saint Abba Pawli died, they placed his body with that of Abba Besoy, even as our Lord Jesus Christ had told him. When they wanted to carry the body of Saint Abba Besoy to Debra Scete, that is to say Debra Abba Mararius, they took the body and laid it in a ship, and left behind the body of Abba Pawli. And the ship stood still and would not move, but when they took the body of Abba Pawli and laid it with that of Abba Besoy in the ship. straightway the ship moved and brought them to Debra Scete, where the body of Saint Pawli and the body of Abba Besoy remain until this day in the Church of Abba Besoy.

And on this day also Minas, and Hasina [and Cyprian, and Justina] became martyrs. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 8 (October 18)

On this day Saint Metra the old man became a martyr, and many others were martyred with him. This saint was a native of Alexandria, and he was a believing Christian. When Decius the infidel reigned he established the worship of idols, and afflicted all Christian people, and his Edict came to the city of Alexandria, and he afflicted all the people thereof and poured out their blood. And Saint Metra was accused of being a Christian before the governor, and the governor had Saint Metra brought before him, and he held the matter to be serious. And Saint Metra confessed our Lord Jesus Christ, and proclaimed that He was God. And the governor said unto him, “Worship the gods and the idols, and I will give thee much money”; and Saint Metra did not trust his promise greatly, and he said unto him, “May thy promise and thy money go with thee to Sheol!” And the governor was wroth with him, and he said unto him, “I will punish thee with great severity”; but the saint was not afraid of his tortures, and he did not turn from his good counsel. On the contrary he said unto him, “I worship my Lord Jesus Christ, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and how could it be right for me to forsake Him and to worship idols which are made of stones and woods? They see not, and smell not, and walk not.” And the governor was wroth with him, and he commanded his soldiers to beat him very severely. Then he hung him up by his arms, and the soldiers slit his face and his temples with dry reeds, but our Lord Jesus Christ healed his wounds, and raised him up whole and unharmed. When the governor was tired of torturing him he commanded his soldiers to cut off his head, and they cut off his head with a sword outside the city, and he received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of heaven; and many people suffered martyrdom at the same time. Salutation to Metra.

And on this day Saint Bacchus and Saint Pelagia became martyrs.

And on this day also is commemorated Abba Hor the martyr.

And on this day also are commemorated Abba Bula, and Susannah, and her children the martyrs in the city of Semwah, and Saint Agathon the anchorite. Salutation to the brothers of Susannah, and to Hor, and to Agathon. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 9 (October 19)

On this day died the holy father Abba Liwaryos (Liberius), Archbishop of the city of Rome. This holy man was righteous, and excellent, and pure, and a monk from his earliest years, and he grew old in the Ordinances of the Church, in which he was learned; and he fulfilled all the Law and Doctrines of the Church. And the people chose him and appointed him Archbishop of the city of Rome, and he sat on the throne of Peter the Apostle. And having sat on the throne of Peter the Apostle, the chief of the Apostles, he followed a righteous course and was well pleasing unto God, the Most High. And he taught the people at all times, and he admonished those who transgressed the commandments of God, and turned them into the way of God. When Constantine the Less was dead the wicked Julian reigned after him, and this wicked Julian denied Christ and afflicted the Christian people. And he threatened Saint Basil, saying, “I am going to lay waste the churches of the Christians and destroy them,” but God destroyed Julian the infidel through the prayer of Saint Basil. It was then that God sent the honorable Saint Mercurius, the martyr, and he destroyed that serpent. Now Saint Basil stood before a picture of Saint Mercurius, and he said unto him, “This infidel told me that he would destroy the churches, therefore I beseech thee to kill him in the war”; and Saint Mercurius in the picture nodded his head as if to say, “Yea, I will.” This Julian the infidel was the son of the sister of his father Constantine, and he opened the temples of the idols and afflicted the Christian people, and tortured very many of them. And this Saint Liwaryos (Liberius) came from the city of Rome to the city of Caesarea, and he visited Saint Basil, and the two agreed together to go to the city of Antioch, and they visited Julian the infidel and turned him from his apostasy and error. Now these two men had known him from their youth, when they were fellow-learners in school with him; and they rose up and journeyed and arrived in the city of Antioch where the Emperor Julian was. And having stood up before him they wanted to speak to him and to turn him from his error. And he said to them, in mockery of our Lord Jesus Christ, “Where did ye leave the son of the carpenter?” And Saint Basil answered and said unto him, “We left Him making a coffin for thee, and when thou art dead they will bury thee therein in hell.” And Julian was wroth with them, and he commanded his soldiers to shut them up in prison; and they shut Saint Basil and Saint Liwaryos (Liberius) up in prison. And Saint Liwaryos (Liberius) saw a vision in his sleep, and in it he was in prison, and Saint Mercurius said unto him, “Verily I will not permit this infidel to utter blasphemies against my God.” And Saint Liwaryos (Liberius) woke from his sleep and told Saint Basil of the vision, which he had seen; and Saint Basil had also seen the same vision. Afterwards came the news of the killing of Julian the infidel, and after him Womanyos reigned, and he believed on our Lord Jesus Christ. And he brought the saints out of prison, and they departed, each of them, to his see. Now it was Saint Mercurius who killed Julian the infidel at the entreaty of Saint Basil. And Saint Liwaryos (Liberius) departed to the city of Rome, and he debated fiercely with the followers of Arius, and he excommunicated them and exiled them from his see. And he followed a righteous course, and was well pleasing unto God, and he died in peace, after ruling his see for six years. Salutation to Liwaryos (Liberius).

And on this day died Abba Athanasius, Archbishop of Antioch. This holy man was a monk, and anchorite, and one who served the Lord his God strenuously, and he was sincere and humble and perfect in all good works. And all the bishops came to him to make him archbishop, and they sent to the Maphrian (i.e., the head of the Jacobite Church), the Bishop of the city of Seleucia, saying, “Behold, our father the archbishop, Abba Michael, is dead, come quickly and speedily so that we may appoint an archbishop. We have chosen a righteous man who is suitable for this holy office, and we are all waiting for thee, for there is none save thee who can appoint him, according to the Ordinances of our Fathers.” And having waited for the arrival of the Maphrian, the bishop, now they had waited for a period of fifty days, they appointed Abba Athanasius, and they departed each to his seat. And the Maphrian came according as the bishops sent to him, and when he arrived at the city of ‘Amid (Diarbakr) on the frontiers of Syria, he met the bishops of Antioch, and they told him that having waited for his arrival fifty days they had appointed an archbishop. When the Maphrian heard this he was exceedingly wroth and said, “Is it thus that ye violate the law which is between us and you?” Having thus said he anathematized everyone who should mention the name of Abba Athanasius, whether at the service of the Offering or at the beginning of incense; having thus spoken he returned to his city. When Athanasius heard this thing he was exceedingly sorry, and he said unto his disciple, “O my son, be obedient unto me, and do what I say unto thee so that my soul may be blessed, I am going afar off for one year, and if my people seek for me tell them, ‘He is in his cell’; and do thou command them with my voice, bind and loose”; and his disciple said unto him, “I will.” And Abba Athanasius arrayed himself in poor raiment, and he traveled on foot until he came to the city of Seleucia, and he knocked at the gates of the bishop, and the gatekeeper said unto him, “What dost thou want?” And Athanasius said unto him, “I wish to receive the blessing of my father the bishop.” When the gatekeeper had told the bishop he brought Abba Athanasius, and the bishop said unto him, “Whence art thou?” And he said unto him, “I have come from the country of Syria, lacking daily bread and raiment, so that I may die under the shadow of thy prayer.” And the bishop said unto him, “Art thou a priest or a deacon?” And he said, “Neither.” Then the bishop called the steward and commanded him to place him with the monks. And Abba Athanasius performed every kind of household work, even to the drawing of water, and the carrying away of the dung of the horses and the mules, and the lighting of the fire, and there was no kind of work for the brethren which he did not perform. When he had finished the work in the bishop’s house he used to go to the houses of the monks, and draw water for them, and light fires, and clean the houses, and at length the brethren loved him dearly and regarded him as a heavenly angel, and then they entreated the bishop to make him a deacon. And on the first day of the week the bishop went into the church and called Abba Athanasius in order that he might appoint him a deacon, but Athanasius wept bitterly and said unto him, “Leave me, Father, I am a poor man, and I am not fit for this grade.” When the bishop seized him with vigor, Athanasius said unto him, “Forgive me, Father, for I am a deacon, but on account of my many sins I have abandoned ministration.” When the bishop heard this he marveled at his patient endurance; and for six months Athanasius continued to perform the duties of a deacon. When the bishop saw his great intelligence (or knowledge) he wished to appoint him to the work of a priest. And the first day of the week the bishop came into the church, and he called Athanasius and said unto him, “The Holy Ghost hath called thee this day; I am going to appoint thee a priest.” When Abba Athanasius heard him, he fell down at the feet of the Father in tears, and he entreated him to let him alone. When he knew that the bishop would not excuse him, he said unto him, “Have mercy upon me; I am a priest.” When the father and the monks heard this they rejoiced in him and honored him exceedingly. When the bishop saw the wisdom of his words and the zealousness of his ministration, he wished to make him a bishop of a city the bishop whereof was dead. And he summoned the archbishops, and the bishops, and the priests, and the deacons, and the monks, in order that they might appoint him on the first day of the week. And he called Abba Athanasius and said unto him, “ This day God hath called thee to the grade of the episcopate of such and such a see.” And when Athanasius knew that he would not excuse him, he wept bitterly and told them that he was Athanasius Archbishop of Antioch, and he related to them the history of his coming in secret. When the father heard these words from him he put off his crown and fell down upon the earth and became as one dead for a long time. Having raised himself up, he cried out to the bishops and the people, and said unto them, “O my brethren, tell me what I shall do, for at this moment I am afraid that fire will come down from heaven and consume me, and that the earth will open her mouth and swallow me up. Is it a desirable thing that Athanasius Archbishop of Antioch should serve the dung of horses like a slave?” When the bishops and the people heard these words they bowed low before him and kissed his hands and his feet. Then the bishop commanded the bishops to bring fine apparel of the priesthood, and the cross and the staff of the priesthood, and they seated him upon the throne, and the bishops carried him and his throne upon their shoulders, and they brought him into the church, and they carried him round about it thrice, saying, “Akseyos, Akseyos, Akseyos,” that is to say, “He is worthy, He is worthy, He is worthy.” Then he put on the vestments for the consecration of the Offering, and he consecrated the Offering, and administered it to them and he blessed their city. How great was the joy of the Persians! And on the following day the father brought a mule, and everything which was necessary for the journey, and he mounted Abba Athanasius upon it, and he departed to the city of Antioch with archbishop and bishops who traveled on foot. And Abba Athanasius said unto the Maphrian, “Do thou mount and let us travel together.” And the Maphrian said unto him, “Far be it from me, O Lord! Inasmuch as thou didst come on thy feet to my city I will go on my feet to thy city.” When the Bishops of Antioch heard that the Archbishop Abba Athanasius had arrived, they welcomed him and the Maphrian, the Bishop of Seleucia, and they restored Athanasius to his throne and they rejoiced with great joy. Then they set on their way the metropolitans and bishops, and they returned to their city in peace. And this father lived a beautiful life, and he tended his flock with righteousness and integrity, and he died in peace. Amen. Salutation to Athanasius, Archbishop of Antioch.

And on this day also died Stephen, the son of Nikomion and brother of Basilides. This blessed man Stephen belonged to an honorable family, and his parents were among the nobles of Antioch; they were exceedingly rich in gold, and silver, and glorious apparel, and their slaves and handmaidens were innumerable. And Nikomion loved Christ exceedingly, and he gave alms to the poor and needy, and he was beloved by all men. And having begotten this holy man, he had him brought up carefully, and he taught him the Psalms of David, and the Books of the Old and New Testaments, and finally he was filled with the knowledge of the Holy Ghost. He learned to ride the horse, to hurl the spear, and to draw the bow with Victor and Claudius in the house of Saint Basilides, whose brother’s son he was, and because of this he was called the son of Basilides. All his kinsfolk were fearers of God, and they walked in all His commandments and judgments, and among them was none whose heart was not warmed by the flame of the love of Christ, and there was none who turned from His way either to the right hand or to the left. When God saw the strength of their love for Him, He wished to make them to inherit His kingdom and His righteousness, which He hath prepared for them before the world was created. Then Satan brought a man, a certain swineherd from the land of Egypt, and he belonged to men who occupy themselves with devices for war, and his name was ‘Agripada, and from his earliest youth the spirit of Satan dwelt in him. When he came to Antioch they made him master of the horse, and when the King of Antioch died the throne was empty. One day when the daughter of the king was walking about on the roof of her house, she saw him leaping about with his horse whilst the musicians played music on their instruments. Thereupon she lusted for him, and she married him, and finally she caused him to be made king, and she called him Diocletian. And O what violence, and O what wickedness were committed in his days after he had denied Christ! He worshipped idols and killed everyone who believed on Christ. He was an eater of the flesh of men, and a drinker of human blood, like the wild animals. He seized and scattered all the chosen people of the kingdom like rams who have no shepherd. Some of them were killed by means of stakes driven through them, and some of them he drove into exile, even to districts in Egypt, and they were fettered with iron chains, and gags were in their mouths. At length the whole country of Antioch was filled with weeping and lamentation, a man mourning for his wife, and a wife for her husband, a father mourning for his son or a son for his father, or brother for brother and friend for friend. At length the whole earth was filled with the blood of the saints, and their bodies were cast out into the streets of the city, and there was none to bury them except the watchmen of the city, to whom bribes had to be given secretly to bury them. And this Saint Stephen continued in prayer to God by day and by night that He would give him a crown of martyrdom. Now as a beginning to his iniquity Diocletian wrote an Edict which he sent into every part of his dominions, saying, “I Diocletian the Emperor, Lord of the World, hereby command that in every country of my dominions they close the churches, and open the houses of idols (i.e., temples), and worship my gods, for it is they who have given me victory in battle. Whosoever shall not worship them and bow down before them, his house shall be plundered and laid waste, and he shall be punished with every kind of punishment; none shall be spared, neither rich nor poor, nor great nor small.” Then the emperor assembled all his soldiers and all the nobles of his kingdom, and he commanded that this Edict should be proclaimed before the multitude. When Saint Stephen had heard the foul Edict his whole body burned with the fire of zeal, and he accounted Diocletian as nothing, and poured out blasphemies upon him, and he was greatly moved in his spirit and said, “What is this new act of violence which thou hast made manifest, O king, in this city, by writing this unclean and accursed Edict of Apollo (?)? For our Lord Jesus Christ shall defend everyone who believeth on Him.” Then Saint Stephen waxed strong and bold and he leaped upon the soldier who had the filthy Edict in his hand, and tore it out of it, now the emperor and all his nobles were looking on at him, and Stephen tore the Edict in pieces. And the emperor said unto him, “O Stephen, what hast thou done? Dost thou wish to bring destruction upon thyself?” Then the emperor drew the sword, which he had in his hand, and he hacked him down the middle, and he became two parts. And the head of Saint Stephen remained for a long time before the emperor, and it reviled him and told him what would come upon him in the later time, and how he would received alms in the gates of Antioch, and how his eyes would be made wholly blind, and how after this he would be destroyed. And the head cried out with a loud voice and repeated the names of all the saints of the city of Antioch who became martyrs. And the story of the head of Saint Stephen was heard in all the cities of Antioch, and many multitudes of people gathered together to see the head, which reviled the emperor and told him of his ruin. When the emperor saw that the head of the saint spoke of his destruction before the assembled multitude he was greatly ashamed, and he commanded his soldiers to take it away, and whilst they were doing so it continued to talk and would not be silent; and when they buried it in the earth it still uttered many words. And this head remained buried in the earth for three days, and all the people heard it talking to the emperor and reviling him, even as the head of John the Baptist reviled Herod in days of old; for Herod and Diocletian were alike in nature and disposition. Herod was led astray through fornication, and the drinking of wine, and at length he killed the Prophet John greater than whom there was none born of woman. Through the murder of the righteous man he acquired disgrace, and as for his wife, the earth swallowed her up; her daughter perished and he himself bred worms in his body, and he putrefied and he died in shame, wishing to hide his fornication. The head of Saint John reviled Herod boldly, and the head of Saint Stephen reviled Diocletian, who was wishing to prove boldly the greatness of his idols and their gods, and proclaimed boldly that there were devils in his gods. And the head prophesied to him that his kingdom should be broken and his eyes blinded, and that he should receive alms in the gates of the city, and that he should die in disgrace. When Diocletian saw that the head of Saint Stephen would not keep silent, he ordered them to cast it into a lead box and to seal the mouth thereof, and to throw it into the sea by night; and by this act the martyrdom of Saint Stephen was finished. Then the angel of God came down from heaven, and brought out the box of lead and laid it on the seashore. Whilst his mother was searching for his body by the will go God she came to the place where the box of lead was, and she took it from there and laid it up in her house until the days of persecution were passed; and she lighted a lamp at his grave which burned by day and by night. After the days of persecution were passed she built a fine church for him, and innumerable signs and miracles were wrought therein. Salutation to Stephen, the son of Basilides.

And on this day also, in the nine hundred and eighty-fifth year of the holy martyrs [(A.D. 1269) the Bodleian ms. has A.M. 388], in the reign of Iyob Kher, and in the days when Abba Cyril held office, a stupendous and marvelous thing happened in the world, which terrified those who beheld it, and those who heard thereof on that day. The sun became dark, and it became darker and darker until the day was like night, and the stars appeared, and men lighted lamps. And they feared with a great fear, and they begged for His compassion and mercy, which He promised them, and He multiplied His mercy on them. And He removed fear from them, and the light re-appeared, and the sun came forth according to its custom, and it lighted up the whole world, and men extinguished their lamps. And the period of the darkness of the sun was one hour, that is to say, from the half of the eighth hour to the half of the ninth. And additional praise must be given to God because He did not hasten to harm men for their sins, but He made haste to show His compassion and long-suffering towards them; and praise be also to our Lord Jesus Christ forever and ever. Amen.

And on this day also is commemorated Abba Simeon the Archbishop [or Bishop].

And on this day also Thomas the Apostle began to work like an artisan, and to preach in the country of India where-unto he went with ‘Abnes the merchant. And ‘Abnes went to salute Guendefor the king, and he told him concerning Thomas the carpenter whom he had brought with him. And the king rejoiced and said unto him, “What is thy trade?” And the apostle said, “I am a carpenter and an architect. And I can make walls of houses, and beds, and scales, and wheels (carts?), and ships, and oars, and royal palaces.” And the king rejoiced, and he took Thomas to a place where he was going to build a palace, and he said unto him, “When wilt thou have built [the house]” And the apostle said, “After two months, [I will begin on] the new moon of the month Khedar, and I will finish in the month of Miyazya”. And the king marveled and said unto him, “Every house is built in the summer, then how can this house be built in the winter?” Then the king gave him much money both for himself and for those who were to work with him, and having taken it, he gave it to the poor and needy, saying, “I give what belongs to the king to another king.” Then the king sent his minister to the apostle to learn if the palace was finished, and the apostle said unto him, “Thy palace is finished, but there remaineth the roof to put on.” And the king sent him money a second time, and he said unto him, “Finish quickly.” then when the king came and asked for the palace which Thomas had built, the apostle said unto him, “No palace hath been built; there are only the alms given to the poor of thy goods.” And the king was wroth, and he shut the apostle and the merchant up in prison until he could think out in what way he should kill them. That night Gadon the king’s brother fell sick and died, and the angels showed him the palace, which Thomas had built for Guendefor his brother. He said unto them, “Who is this palace for?” And the angels said unto him, “This is for the king, and the Apostle Thomas who is in the prison house hath built it for him.” When his soul returned to him Gadon told his brother this, and then they all vied with each other, and they went to the prison house and brought out the apostle and the merchant. And they believed on our Lord Christ, and were all baptized, both men and women, in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, and they received His Holy Body and His Honorable Blood. Then Thomas laid his hands upon them, and gave them the benediction, and departed from them. Salutation to India and salutation to the Merciful One.

On this day is commemorated David King of Ethiopia, who was called the “fan of the wicked and the wall of adamant.” Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 10 (October 20)

On this day fifty nuns, who were pure and holy virgins, together with their mother Sofia, became martyrs. These pure and holy women came from widely separated cities and districts, and they were gathered together by divine and spiritual love, and the desire to assume the garb of the ascetic life, which is the garb of the angels. They dwelt in one of the houses for virgins, which were in the city of Roha (Edessa), and they had as superior the holy Abbess Sofia who was filled with every kind of grace and with wisdom. And she trained them so perfectly in the duties and exercises of the spiritual life that they became like angels upon earth, and they fasted and prayed continually, and read the histories of the spiritual fighting of the monks. Among them were some who had dwelt in the nunnery for seven years. And some of them were novices. The infidel Emperor Julian passed by their house in the city of Roha (Edessa) on his way to make war on Sapor, the son of Sapor, the King of Persia, for he had heard that Sapor was coming to make war upon him. And Julian having gone against him and come back, he went to that nunnery wherein the virgins lived, and he asked [an officer] what the building was. And [the officer] said unto him, “This is a nunnery.” and Julian commanded his soldiers to go into that nunnery, and to kill everyone in it, and to carry off all the goods which were therein. And the soldiers of the infidel emperor went into the nunnery, and they beat the virgins with whips and cut off their heads with swords, and they plundered everything which was there. And because of this thing the Lord took vengeance upon him with the vengeance of His wrath, that is to say, Saint Mercurius the martyr speared him with his spear whilst he was engaged in fighting, and he cast him from his horse, and killed him. And Julian died an evil death, and he departed to the Sheol which is forever. And these holy virgins went into everlasting joy, and inherited the kingdom of heaven. Salutation to the virgins whose blood Mercurius avenged.

And on this day also a General Council of the Saints took place in the days of Victor, Archbishop of the city of Rome, and in the days of Demetrius, Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. Now the cause for the assembling of this Council was this: Christian people were baptized on the festival of baptism, on the twenty-first day of the month Ter (Jan. - Feb.), and from the following day they fasted until the twenty-second day of the month Yakatit (Feb. - March), that is to say, for forty days, and then they ate. And after thirty days they began, on the twenty-third day of Magabit (March - April), and kept the Octave of the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the festival of His Resurrection, for the Crucifixion of our Lord took place on the twenty-ninth day of Magabit. After Demetrius, Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, had been enthroned, God illumined the heart of a certain artisan, who knew not how to read or to write, with Divine grace, and he learned all the Laws of the Church, and he knew them by heart, and he interpreted them. Then by the Holy Spirit he compiled a table for reckoning the Epact, wherefrom men might know [the days of] the Fast, and the Resurrection; and he wrote in the Coptic and Greek (Rom) tongues. Then he made a copy of this table of Epact and sent it to Victor, Archbishop of the city of Rome, he read it and found it good and rejoiced therein exceedingly. And he sent and gathered together a large assembly containing fourteen bishops of his diocese, and many learned priests, and he read to them the calculation of the Epact, and they found it very good, and they rejoiced in it, and accepted it, and they wrote many copies of it and sent them into all countries. And the Holy Fast and the Festival of Easter have been regulated by that circulation from that day to this. And they departed to their countries praising the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, to Whom be glory and honor. Salutation to Demetrius and to the priests who made haste to assemble in order to make rules for times for keeping Lent and Easter.

On this day Paul and his three companions became martyrs. Salutation to Gabra Maryam. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 11 (October 20)

On this day died the pure and righteous woman Hannah, the mother of our Lady, the holy Virgin Mary, the God-bearer. This holy woman was a native of the city of Jerusalem, and she was the daughter of Matat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, of the sons of Aaron the priest, and of the tribe of Levi. Matat had three children, and the name of the eldest was Mary; the name of the second was Sofia, and the name of the third was Hannah. And Mary married and brought forth Salome, the midwife who received our Lady Mary when she brought forth Christ our God. And Sofia married and brought forth Elisabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, and this holy woman Hannah married the righteous man Joachim, who was of the tribe of Judah, and she brought forth our Lady Mary. Our Lady Mary and Salome and Elisabeth were sisters. Now the history of the strife of this holy woman Hannah we know of nothing whatsoever which we can record, but we know and we are convinced that she was the most honored of women because she was held to be worthy to become the mother of the mother of God in the flesh. And had she not possessed many virtues, and great righteousness, which was superior to the righteousness of every other woman, she would never have been worthy of this act of grace. Now this righteous woman was barren, and she used to pray and to entreat God continually to give her children, and God gave her a beautiful daughter, one to be revered, and she and all her people rejoiced, that is to say our Lady Mary. Therefore it is meet for us to honor her, and to celebrate a festival to her, because of the exalted gift, which God gave her. Salutation to thee O Hannah, thou ladder of the prayers of the righteous.

And on this day also are commemorated Saint Archelaus the martyr, and Elisa the abbot, and Saint Pachomius, and Minas the martyr, and his mother Urania, Salutation to Archelaus, Elisa, and Pachomius. Salutation to Minas a saint of the Church. Salutation to Urania whose apparel they stripped off and then they beat her on her back and belly. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 12 (October 22)

On this day is celebrated the commemorative feast of the glorious angel, Michael the archangel.

On this day God sent Michael to Samuel the prophet whilst he was in the sanctuary, and commanded him to go to the house of Jesse, the father of David, in Bethlehem to anoint his son David king over the children of Israel. And Samuel went to Jesse, and he said unto him, “Bring hither all thy sons”: and Jesse brought them [all] with the exception of David, who was tending the sheep in the fields. When Samuel raised the horn of oil of kings over the heads of the sons of Jesse, [he saw that] God was not pleased with them. And Samuel said unto Jesse, “Doth there not remain unto thee some other son?” And Jesse said unto him, “There remaineth the youth, the youngest of them, who is herding the sheep in the fields.” And Samuel said unto him, “Bring him hither”; and Jesse brought him. And straightway Samuel took up the horn of oil of kings, and anointed him, and God was pleased with him, and he reigned over the children of Israel.

And on this day also God sent Saint Michael the archangel to David the prophet, and he helped him and gave him strength to slay Goliath, the giant of the Philistines, and deliver the children of Israel. For this reason the doctors of the Church have commanded and ordained that the people shall keep a festival in honor of Saint Michael on the (twenty-second?) day of this month. Salutation to Saint Michael.

And on this day Saint Matthew the apostle and evangelist, one of the Twelve Apostles, became a martyr, after he had preached in the cities of the priests, and converted them to the knowledge of God. Now it happened that when he wished to go into the city of priests, he found a certain young man who said unto him, “Thou wilt not be able to go into this city unless thou shavest off the hair of thy head and thy beard, and carriest palm branches in thy hand.” And he did even as the young man commanded him, and as he was sorrowing because of this, straightway our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto him under a form, which he knew, that is to say, the form of the young man who had spoken unto him; and He encouraged and consoled him and then disappeared from him. When Saint Matthew had entered into the city, he made himself unseen by the people, like one of the priests. And he went to the temple of Apollo, and found the high priest, and talked with him concerning the gods, and Saint Matthew made him to know that they were not gods; and he wrought miracles and wonders before him, and light rose upon them, and a table came down to them from heaven. When Hermes the priest saw this wonderful thing he said unto Saint Matthew, “What is the name of your god?” And he said, “The Name of my God is Christ,” and straightway Hermes the priest believed on our Lord Jesus Christ, and many people believed with him. When the king of this city heard this thing he commanded his soldiers to burn them in the fire. And at the moment the son of the king died, and Saint Matthew made supplication to our Lord Christ, and he raised the king’s son from the dead; and straightway the king and all the men of the city believed. Then Saint Matthew appointed a bishop and priests over them, and he built a church for them, and he went forth from the city to the cities, which were outside, and he converted them and brought them to the knowledge of God. Before this Saint Thomas had been to the City of the Blessed, and he saw our Lord coming to them at all times, having with Him the souls of babes, which were in number eighteen thousand. And on the first day of every feast our Lord Christ cometh to them, and with Him are His angels. And these blessed ones are they to whom Simas the desert priest went, and he was witness of their strives, and of their marvelous works. After this Saint Matthew the apostle and evangelist went to the city of Jerusalem, and the land of Judah, and he wrote his Gospel in the Hebrew language. Then he went to the city, which is outside, and he found therein a certain man who was in prison; now Saint Matthew used to visit those who were shut up in prison. And the man had to pay back to his lord the money, which he had given him to trade therewith, together with a profit thereon, but he dropped it into the sea and lost it. And Saint Matthew the apostle said unto that man, “Go thou to such and such a place, and what thou findest therein take, and give to thy lord.” And the man went and he found a bag full of gold, and he took it and gave it to his master and was saved. And the story of Saint Matthew’s [act] was heard throughout the city, and many men believed on our Lord Jesus Christ. When Justus the governor of that city heard that many men believed on our Lord Christ, he was exceedingly wroth, and he ordered his soldiers to cut off the head of Saint Matthew, and to cast his body to the fowls of the air. And they cut off his head with a sword, and certain believing men came and took his holy body and laid it in a holy place. Salutation to Matthew whose voice compelled the deep to restore from its depths a certain man, the gold, which had sunk in it.

And on this day also died the holy father, the pure virgin, the fighter of lusts, the vanquisher of natural appetites, Abba Demetrius the twelfth Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. This holy man was a man of the people (i.e., of lowly origin) and he knew not letters, and he used to work in a vineyard. His parents gave him a wife in his youth, and he lived with her until he was appointed archbishop--forty-eight years. Both husband and wife remained virgins, and no one knew about them except God, Who knoweth souls and hearts. When the time drew nigh for the death of Saint Julian the archbishop, the predecessor of Demetrius, the angel of the Lord appeared unto this holy man and told him that Demetrius was to be archbishop after him. And he gave him a sign concerning him, and said unto him, “Tomorrow a man shall come unto thee having a cluster of grapes with him; seize and pray over him, and appoint him archbishop.” When Saint Julian woke up from his sleep, he told the bishops and the priests who lived with him what he had seen, and what the angel of the Lord had said unto him concerning Demetrius the archbishop. When the morning had come this Saint Demetrius, the archbishop, found in the vineyard a cluster of grapes, which had ripened before their time, and he took it to Abba Julian the archbishop, so that he might be blessed by him. And Saint Julian took him by the hand, and said unto the bishops and priests, “This is he who shall be archbishop after me.” And they prayed over him, and they took him and bound him until Abba Julian died, whereupon they finished the prayers over him and made him archbishop. And he was full of heavenly grace, and he was versed in many kinds of learning, and he knew by heart all the Books of the Church and the interpretations thereof, and he read many abstruse works. It was he who regulated the reckoning of the Epact, for the Christians used to keep the festival of the Baptism, and on the following day [began] the fast of Forty Days. And at the octave of His Passion they celebrated the festival of the Passion of our Lord by itself, and this they did from the days of the Apostles until the days of this father. And this father proclaimed the reckoning of the Epact by the Holy Spirit, and he regulated the reckoning of the Holy Fast. And he sent out letters [concerning it] to the Archbishops of the city of Rome, and of the city of Ephesus, and of the city of Antioch, and of the city of Jerusalem, and they rejoiced thereat, and they ordered [the Holy Fast] even as it is at this day. And God was with this Father Demetrius because of his sincerity (or purity). He used always to look for our Lord Jesus Christ at the time of the consecration of the Offering as he was administering the Holy Mysteries to those who were meet for them; and he drove away sinners, and said unto them, “Go ye and repent, and afterwards come and ye shall receive the Holy Mysteries; ye shall not receive them whilst ye are in sin so that ye may not go into Gahanna.” And Saint Demetrius used to reveal their sins to the people, those that they committed in secret, and he would rebuke each one of them for the sins, which they committed. Because of this believers were afraid of him, and the members of his congregation did not commit sin because of their exceedingly great fear of him, and because they did not wish him to put them to shame before the congregation. And some of the people whom he used to rebuke for their sins would say among themselves, “This man is married, and his wife is with him at this present, why should he rebuke us especially? None but a virgin should be appointed to the throne of Mark the evangelist.” One night an angel of the Lord came to him and said unto him, “Demetrius, permit not thyself only to do as thou pleases, and permit not thy neighbor to be destroyed. Remember that our Lord Christ saith in the Holy Gospel, ‘The good shepherd giveth his life for his flock.’” And Demetrius said unto him, “What is it that thou wouldst say unto me, my lord?” And the angel said unto him, “Reveal the mystery which is between thyself and thy wife to the people.” On the following day the festival of Pentecost was celebrated, and this holy Father Demetrius consecrated the Offering, and he commanded the archdeacons to tell the priests and all the people who were there that they were not to leave the church, but to stay together therein; and the archdeacons did as the archbishop had commanded. When the priests and the people were assembled he commanded that much wood should be brought and that a fire should be made of it, and [when] they had done so, this Abba archbishop rose and stood up in the midst of the fire whilst all the people were looking on. And he prayed for a long time, and then he spread out his garment and took some of the fire with his hand and placed it in it. Then he called his wife, and she came unto him, and he said unto her, “Spread out thy woolen head-cloth,” and he cast some red-hot charcoal into it, and then he said unto her, “Stand up that we may pray.” And the red-hot charcoal continued to burn in the woolen head-cloth, and the cloth was not burned; and they remained in this position and prayed for a long time. After this the priests and the people asked him, saying, “We require thy holiness, O our father, to make us know what this mystery is.” And he said unto them, “I have not done this seeking for the vain praise of this world, but behold, I have lived with this woman for eight and forty years, until this day. Now this woman whom thou seest was the daughter of my father’s brother. Her relatives died and they left her, then a little girl in my father’s house, and I was brought up with her. When I was fifteen years of age my father gave her unto me in marriage. When we entered the marriage-chamber in our house, she said unto me, ‘Why have they given me in marriage to thee, seeing that I am thy sister?’ And I said unto her, ‘Dost thou wish us to live together in one house, and never to separate from each other, and to preserve our virginity undefiled, and that there shall be nothing between us?’ And she said, ‘Yea.’ And I have lived with her in one place for eight and forty years, and we have lain in the same bed on one bedstead. And the Lord God Who is judge between us, and Who knoweth what is hidden and the thoughts of hearts, He knoweth that I have never known her as a woman, and on her part she doth not know me as a man, but we have passed all these days just lying side by side. When we lift ourselves up we see as it were a face, which resembleth that of an eagle in our bed, between me and between her. And he layeth his left wing over her and his right wing over me, and this he doeth from the time we lie down until the morning, and then he disappeareth. Now do not think, O Christian people, that I have revealed this matter unto you because I am seeking the praise which men desire in this world, but God hath commanded me to reveal unto you this mystery, for He wisheth what is good for all men--the Christ, the Redeemer of all the world.” And in the days of this father certain evil men appeared whose names were Kalemos and ‘Aganos, and others with them, and they wrote a lying book; and Demetrius anathematized them and excommunicated them. And during the days of his office he taught and encouraged the Christian people, and all believers, every day regularly. When he was grown old and feeble they used to carry him on a litter, and set him down in the church, and he taught the people all day long from sunrise to sunset, and all the people pressed eagerly to hear his doctrine. And all the days of his life were one hundred and five (six?) years. Of these were fifteen during which he was unmarried, and eight and forty years passed before he was appointed archbishop, and he held office of archbishop for three and forty years; and he died in peace. Salutation to Demetrius.

And on this day also are commemorated the righteous men Peter, and Dionymus (or Diyonas), and the strife of Ya’ekob, and Abu Tefa, and Theodore. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 13 (October 23)

On this day Saint Ptolemachus and his brethren became martyrs. Salutation to Ptolemachus and his brethren. Salutation to Paul, the new Tawrasi.

And on this day also died the holy father Abba Zachariah the monk. The name of the father of this holy man was ‘Akaryos. And ‘Akaryos wished for the garb of the monk, and when he told his wife this thought, she agreed with what he said unto her. And he had two children, one boy and one little girl. And ‘Akaryos left the children with their mother, and he went to the desert of Scete, and he became a monk there under the direction of a certain holy old man who was a monk. After a few days there was a great famine in the city, and his wife took the two children and came to the desert of Scete to their father ‘Akaryos, and she told him of the tribulation which had come upon her through the famine. And she said unto her two children, “Go to your father,” and the two children wandered about for a little, and the girl returned to her mother. And ‘Akaryos said unto her, “Behold, God hath done what is right, and hath divided the two children between us; take thou the girl and I will take the boy.” And the woman took her daughter and departed, and ‘Akaryos took his son, who was this father Zachariah, and brought him to the holy old men, and they prayed over him, and they prophesied that he would become a perfect monk. And Zachariah was brought up with every kind of good work in the desert of Scete, and with every kind of virtue and righteous work. And his form was exceedingly handsome, and there were many murmurings in the desert because of him, and the monks said among themselves, “How is it possible for such an exceedingly handsome young man to dwell in the desert of Scete among monks?” And when Zachariah heard that the monks were murmuring because of him, he departed to the lake of Dabra Natrun, which is like unto salt. And none of the people knew him, and he stripped off his apparel, and plunged his body into the lake, and he remained under the salt water for many hours. And his body swelled and became discolored, and his flesh became full of sores like unto that of a man who is sick. Then he went forth from the lake and put on his apparel and came to his father ‘Akaryos; and when his father saw him he did not know him, but after a few days he recognized him and knew that he was his son. And he asked him and said unto him, “What is it that hath changed thine appearance?” And he told him everything that had happened and how he had submerged himself in the lake of Natrun, which is hambo (salt). And when the First Day of the week came, he went to the church to receive the Holy Mysteries with the brethren. And God shewed to Abba Isidore, priest of Scete, what Abba Zachariah had done, and when Abba Zachariah came to Abba Isidore to receive the Offering he looked at him and marveled at him, and he said unto the monks, “Zachariah received the Offering on the last First Day of the week like every other man, and now he hath become an angel of God.” And when the other monks knew what Zachariah had done they marveled exceedingly, and they ascribed blessing and praise to him. And this Father Zachariah possessed together with other excellences the virtue of humility, and his humility was so perfect that his father spake of it to the monks, and said unto them, “I have labored greatly, but I have never attained to the rule of this my son Zachariah.” This Zachariah lived a strenuous life and strove exceedingly for five and forty years; now when he came to the desert of Scete he was seven years of age. And all the days of his life were two and fifty years, and he was well pleasing unto God and he died in peace. Salutation to Zachariah.

And on this day also are commemorated ‘Eulana, and Eulacius (Eulochius?), and Theodore, and ‘Ablas and his brethren, and Nitolaus, and ‘Abela. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 14 (October 24)

On this day died the holy Apostle Philip who was one of the seventy-two disciples. This holy man was a native of the city of Caesarea of the Philistines, and when our Lord Jesus Christ passed through the city of Caesarea He taught therein. And when the holy man heard His doctrine, he believed in Him, and submitted to His commands, and followed Him straightway. And of those who followed Him our Lord chose seventy-two disciples, and sent them out to preach, and to heal the sick, and this man was among their number; and He chose [also] Twelve Apostles, [and] of their number were the seven deacons whom He appointed for them. And this holy man preached in the cities of Samaria and baptized [men therein] with Christian baptism. And he baptized Simon the magician, who perished when he wished to buy with money the gift of the Holy Spirit. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto this disciple Philip, and he commanded him to go by the way of the country of Gazu. And he rose up and went there, and he found the eunuch, the steward of Hendake (Candace), the Queen of Ethiopia, and he was reading in the Book of Isaiah the Prophet. And the words which he was reading said, “Like a sheep he came to his slaughter, and like a sheep that bleats not before him that will shear him” (Isaiah, 7 (53:7)); and this disciple Philip explained to him the meaning of the words which he was reading. And he said unto him, “This is a prophecy concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, Who suffered of His own free will for the salvation of man.” And the eunuch believed through Philip the disciple, and he asked him to baptize him, and Philip did so. After he had baptized him the angel of the Lord carried Philip the disciple to the city of ‘Azdad and he preached therein. And he departed to Asia, and there he preached the Gospel, and there were four sons who preached with him. And having converted many of the Jews and Samaritans, and other peoples, and brought them into the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, he died in peace. Salutation to Philip and to his four sons who prophesied.

And on this day also died the holy Father Moses, the man of God. This holy man was a native of the city of Byzantium; his father’s name was Euphemianus, and his mother’s name was Aglaias. And they were exceedingly rich, and their possessions were very many, and their slaves were more numerous than those of any others of their family, and they were arrayed in rich apparel, which was embroidered in gold, and they wore girdles of gold. And they feared God and performed His commandments, and they fasted every day until the ninth hour, and they only ate once in the day, and then it was with the poor and the needy. And they had no children, and they used to entreat God the Most High to give them a son, blessed and good, who should do God’s good pleasure. And God heard their petition and gave them a son who was very handsome in person, and the grace of God was upon him. And they rejoiced in him with a great joy, and they made great festival for the poor and needy, and they multiplied their well doing. And they called that son Moses, which being interpreted is “man of God”; for God heard their petition for him. And they brought him up very piously, and they taught him all kinds of learning and spiritual wisdom. When the child had grown up, his father Euphemianus said unto his wife Aglaias, “Behold our son Moses hath arrived at man’s estate, and it is meet that we should give him in marriage to a wife.” And his mother rejoiced at these words, and they betrothed him to a daughter of one of the nobles of the city of Byzantium, whose person was exceedingly beautiful. And they made a great feast to celebrate his marriage, and they decorated the church of God, that is to say Hagia Sofia in the city of Byzantium. And they made Moses to stand with his wife before the Tabernacle, and they crowned him with the holy crown of matrimony, and they received the Holy Mysteries and they came to their house in peace. And Euphemianus said unto his friend, “Tell the bridegroom to come into the marriage-chamber to his bride, and let him rejoice in her after the manner of men.” When Moses the man of God heard this word, he came into the marriage-chamber, and he saw the maiden, and he marveled at her person exceedingly, and he praised God, and blessed Him, and he thought within himself, saying, “Will not all this beauty of person pass away and decay and become dust?” And he entreated God to guide him into the path of the kingdom of the heavens. And he said unto the maiden, “Peace be unto thee, O my sister, thou noble maiden!” And he stripped himself of his glorious apparel and gave it unto her, and said unto her, “Have me in remembrance, O my noble sister, until we meet again before our Lord Jesus Christ.” And having said this unto her he went forth from her and he departed by road until he came to a city, which is on the seashore. And he went into the city, and sold all his raiment, and gave the price thereof to the poor and needy, and he dressed himself in rags like the beggars and he went from one place to another begging bread and eating it, until he came to the city of Roha (Edessa). And he went into the church in the city wherein is the picture of our Lord Jesus Christ which our Lord sent unto Eugyanos, the King of Roha (Edessa), and he prayed before the picture of our Lady Mariyam and was blessed by her. And he gave thanks unto God, the Most High, and he went out of the church and sat down with the poor and needy, and he lived upon the bread of charity. He fasted always until the evening, and he prayed by day and by night, and wept without ceasing. When his father and his mother came into the marriage-chamber, and did not find their son Moses, their joy was changed to sorrow. Then Euphemianus called his servants, and gave them much gold, and he said unto them, “Go ye into every city and country, two of you into each city, and give alms to the poor from that gold for the sake of my son Moses.” And two of his father’s servants came to Moses, and gave him alms with the [other] beggars. Now Saint Moses knew these servants, but they did not know him, and he said, “I give thanks unto Thee, O my Lord God, that Thou hast esteemed me fit for this great honor, that is for me to receive alms from the hands of my father’s servants for the love of Thy Name.” Now his father’s servants continued to go round about through many cities for many days [seeking him]. After they had returned to Euphemianus their lord, the father of Saint Moses, the man of God, they said unto him, “We have come into every city and we have not found thy son.” And Saint Moses, the man of God, was fasting two days at a time, and then three days at a time, until at length he did not eat at all except on the First Day of the week. After this our Lady Mariyam appeared unto one of the righteous elders among the priests of that church, and she said unto him, “Go outside the church, and say unto that man who is standing by the pillar, ‘Come, O man of God,’ and bring him into the sanctuary for his fasting, and his prayer, and his righteousness have ascended like the sweet-smelling incense into heaven.” And on the following day that priest came to him at the moment when they were offering up the Offering upon the altar, and asked him to come into the sanctuary. And Moses wept and entreated him, saying, “Forgive me, O my father! I am a sinner, and I am not worthy to stand in the holy place.” And the priest said unto him, “O man of God, come into the sanctuary, for I am sent unto thee”; and he told him how our Holy Lady the Virgin Mariyam had appeared unto him, and how she had spoken unto him concerning him. And Moses said unto him, “I am a sinful man, and the greatest sinner in all the world.” After this he rose up to go to the city of Tarses, which is the city of Paul the Apostle, and he said, “I will dwell herein until the day of my death.” Then he thought in his heart and said, “Verily this is the Will of our Lord Jesus Christ; the Name of the Lord is living. I will not hide myself from any man, and I will not separate myself from the gates of my father’s house, for who is there among the people here who will know me?” So he went to his father’s house. And as he was going along he saw his father and very many men following him, and Moses, the man of God, went and laid hold of the bridle of his father’s horse as he was sitting on it, and he said unto him, “O good and blessed man, may God forgive thee thy sins, and grant thee the petition of thy heart. Know now that I am a pilgrim and a stranger, if thou wishest to feed me with the broken meats of thy table, God the Merciful will magnify thy reward, if thou wilt have mercy upon my poverty and my wandering.” When Euphemianus heard these words he thought of the wandering of his son Moses, the man of God, and tears burst from his eyes and he groaned within himself. And he took Moses with him into the house, and he commanded his servants to give him a seat before the door of the house, and they did for him even as he had commanded, and he commanded one of his slaves to serve him. And Moses, the man of God, said unto that slave, “I entreat thee, O my brother, to bring me food and drink only on the First Day of the week, and then only bring me a part of a loaf of bread and a cup of water, after I have received the Holy Mysteries.” And he continued to lead this life of self-abnegation and strife for a period of twelve years, sitting at the door of his father’s house. And God wished to remove him from the toil of this world, and our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto him, and said unto him, “Blessed art thou, O Moses, My chosen one, for thou hast done My good pleasure, and thou hast loved sorrow far more than joy, and thou hast forsaken riches and sought after poverty. I, even I, say unto thee, that everyone who hath called upon thy name, or hath celebrated thy commemoration, or hath fed the hungry on the day of thy commemoration, or hath given the thirsty to drink, or hath clothed the naked, or hath written the book of thy strife, I will reward them with a splendid reward in the kingdom of the heavens; and in this world I will protect them from all evil, and I will not permit them to lack any good thing. And now, O my beloved Moses, thou man of God, after four days I will take thy soul from thy body, and I will set thee with the souls of the righteous, and of the prophets, and apostles, and martyrs.” And having said these words He gave him “peace,” and went up into heaven. When the holy man saw this vision he rejoiced and was exceedingly glad. And he said unto that slave who ministered unto him, “Bring hither to me paper and ink, and henceforward thou wilt have rest from labor for me”; and the slave marveled at his words and brought him the paper and ink. And Moses, the man of God, wrote the full history of his strife, from the beginning even unto the end thereof. On the fourth day he took the paper, which he had written in his hand, and he died on the First Day of the week, and his soul went up into the heavens, and the angels and the righteous, and the martyrs, and the prophets, and the apostles welcomed it, saying, “Hallelujah! Redeemer our God”, and they came into the heavens. And all the people were gathered together in the church at the time of the consecration [of the Offering], and they heard a voice above the altar crying out, and saying, “Blessed are the good servants who have performed the commandments and the ordinances of their Lord, for they are in joy for ever.” When the archbishops, and priests, and deacons, and bishops, and all the people heard this voice, great fear, and severe quaking fell upon them until the end of the consecration; and they received the Holy Mysteries. And afterwards the archbishops, and all the priests, and the people entreated our Lord Jesus Christ to reveal unto them this mystery. And straightway a voice was heard which said, “Rejoice with Moses, the man of God, in the house of Euphemianus, for behold, he hath delivered up his soul into the hand of God.” And when the archbishop heard this, he called Euphemianus and said unto him, “This great joy which dwelt in thy house; Why didst thou not inform me about him so that we might have visited him during his life and been blessed by him.” And Euphemianus answered and said unto him, “Thy holy prayer is certain. Thou must know, O holy father, that I did not know that the like of this man existed in my house.” And straightway the archbishops, and the priests, and all the people went to the house of Euphemianus, and they found Moses, the man of God, where he died with the paper in his hand. And the archbishop took the paper out of his hand, and he read it before all the people until he came to his name, which was Moses, the man of God, the son of Euphemianus and his mother Aglaias. When his father and his mother heard this they wept bitterly. Then the archbishop wrapped him in silk cloths, and they took him and carried him into the church and laid him in the sanctuary until all the people and the priests had been blessed by him. And immediately very many sick people came, the deaf and the blind, and they all received a blessing from his holy body, and they were all healed of their sicknesses. When the people became very many his father was afraid that they would overturn the body of the saint from his bier, and he commanded his servants to scatter money among the people. And the servants scattered much gold in order that they might leave the body of the saint, but they would not go after the gold, and no man ever returned afterwards to the gold. After this they laid the body of the saint in the great church of the Apostles Peter and Paul. And many miracles took place through his body, the blind were made to see, and the dumb became able to speak, and the sick were healed, and the lame walked, and the deaf heard, and the lepers were cleansed, and from those who were possessed of devils the devils went out. [Salutation to] Moses, whose name is written on a pillar of gold in the Jerusalem of the heavens.

And on this day also died Saint Gabra Krestos, the son of Theodosius, Emperor of Constantine. Now Theodosius was a God-loving man and one who feared God, and his wife was a good and God-fearing woman, and her name was Markiza; and they were sorrowful because they had no son. And they went to Jerusalem, and they made vows, and they made supplication to God, and He heard them and gave them a son, and they called his name ‘Abd Almasih, that is to say, Gabra Krestos. And they taught him every kind of learning on the earth, and there was nothing, which he did not learn. Afterwards they married him to a princess of Rome, and they brought to him the bride, and they performed for him all the ceremonies, which are wont to be performed for the bridegroom and bride. And at midnight Gabra Krestos took the bride by the hand, and they made a covenant together, and then they recited the prayer of belief--”We believe in one God”--to the end thereof. Then he stripped off himself the marriage-garments, and dressed himself in coarse apparel, and he went to the bride and kissed her head, and he bade her farewell, saying unto her, “God be with thee, and deliver thee from every evil work of Satan.” And she wept and said unto him, “Whither goest thou? And to whom wilt thou leave me?” And he said unto her, “I have thee to God, and I am going to follow Christ, for my father’s kingdom is a transitory thing. Remember thou thine oath”; and straightway she was silent and remembered her oath. And he went forth by night whilst those who belonged to the marriage-chamber were sleeping, and he came to the sea-shore where he found certain men who were about to sail, and they took him with them. And when his father and his mother went into the marriage-chamber, and found only the bride and not the bridegroom, they said unto her, “Where is our son?” And she said unto them, “He came in to me in the night, and made me swear an oath, and made a covenant with me, and he kissed my head, and went away from me, and I have passed the night weeping.” When they heard her words, they fell down upon the ground, on their faces, and they groaned, and uttered loud cries of grief and lamentation. And the Emperor Theodosius sent out five hundred of his servants to seek his son, and he gave them much gold to distribute among the poor in alms. Now Gabra Krestos arrived in the country of Armenia after a journey of one year. And there was a church built in the name of our Lady Mariyam, and he lived there for five years fasting and keeping vigil. And two envoys, servants of his father, arrived there, and they searched for him but were unable to hear any news of him; and they gave alms to the poor, and Gabra Krestos himself received some of them. After he had dwelt there for five and twenty years, our holy Lady the Virgin Mariyam appeared unto certain priest, and she said unto him, “Take the man of God with thee, and let his habitation be inside [the church]”; and he did as she had commanded him. And Gabra Krestos said, “My Lady, why dost thou reveal my secret?” And he bade farewell to her picture (or image) and he departed by night and came to the seashore, where he found a ship in which he embarked. Now he wished to depart to another country, but by the Will of God he arrived at his father’s city, and he dwelt there of fifteen years and no man recognized him. And his father’s servants used to make sport of him; but Saint Gabra Krestos said, “[O God] punish not my father’s servants for their offence, but take me to Thyself”; and thus saying he died, and they buried him with honor. As they were burying him they found a paper grasped tightly in his hand and they were unable to remove it, and they prayed together to the God of heaven; and when they had prayed the paper was released from his hand, and they read it, and they knew that he was their son. Then they wept bitterly, and they buried him, and his tomb became a place where the sick were healed, and where the blind [were made to see], and where many miracles were wrought, and where countless acts of grace were performed. Salutation to Gabra Krestos, whose sores the dogs licked in the courtyard of his father’s house.

And on this day also is commemorated our holy Father Aragawi, who is surnamed Za- Mikael. This holy man became a guide to the servants of God on the road. And he went up to the holy Dabra Damo holding the tail of a serpent, and there he fought countless noble fights. And God graciously made a covenant with him concerning the man who should call upon his name, and the man who should celebrate his commemoration, and then he was hidden from the face of death by the grace of God. He established among his children the Rules for the Monastic Life, which he had learned in the house of his father Pachomius. Salutation to Za-Mikael who was surnamed “’Aragawi.”

And on this day also are commemorated Tarakwa the martyr, and those who were with him, and Damatius, and Emraya the martyr, and the four hundred and thirty-one martyrs who were with her. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 15 (October 25)

On this day the holy and honorable Bilamon became a martyr. This holy man was a native of Nicomedia; his father worshipped idols and his mother was a Christian. They taught him philosophy and he was well educated, and he passed under the care of a certain priest whose name was ‘Armalus (Harmalus?), and he taught him the true Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ and he baptized him with Christian baptism. And he fought a strenuous fight, and God wrought by his hand great miracles and wonders. And there came unto him a certain blind man so that he might work by his skill some salvation for his eyes, and Saint Bilamon made the sign of the Cross over the eyes of the blind man, saying, “In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” and his eyes were relieved straightway, and he could see with them as in former times, and he was healed. When the king heard the story of the blind man who was healed of his sickness, he had him brought into his presence, and he said unto him, “Who was it that healed thine eyes?” And he said unto the king, “Saint Bilamon healed me by laying his hand upon my eyes, and making the sign of the Cross, and saying, ‘In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,’ and straightway I saw the light.” And the man who had been blind and had been healed cried out before the king and said boldly, “I am a Christian.” And the king ordered his soldiers to cut off the head of the blind man, who had been healed, and straightway they cut off his head with the sword, and he received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of heaven. Then the king sent and had Saint Bilamon brought to him, and enquired of him concerning his Faith, and he confessed boldly before him and said unto him, “I am a Christian.” And the king tried to seduce him by means of much persuasion, and he promised him very many things, but the saint had no desire for any of the things, which he promised him. Then was the king wroth with him, and [he cried out] with a loud voice, saying, “If thou wilt not hearken unto my voice I will inflict upon thee severe torture.” And Saint Bilamon answered and said unto him, “I am not afraid of thy torture.” And straightway the king tortured him with severe tortures for many days, by applying one torture at a time, by beating, by suspension (i.e., crucifixion), by casting him into the sea, and into the fire. Whilst he was suffering these great tortures our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto him in the form of ‘Armalus (Harmalus?) the priest who baptized him, and he heard His voice, which was full of joy, saying, “O My chosen one Bilamon, I have made ready for thee and the heavenly joy which is for ever.” When the king’s soldiers heard this word of joy, they believed on our Lord Jesus Christ, to Whom be praise and glory! And they drew nigh unto the king, and they cried out, saying, “We believe on our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And straightway the king commanded his soldiers to cut off their heads with the sword, and they did so, and at the same time they cut off the head of Saint Bilamon, and they all received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. Salutation to Askir and Cyriacus. Salutation to Silas the disciple of Paul. Twofold salutation to the Apostles of the Father.

And on this day also five hundred and sixty people who formed the company of Saint Pantaleon became martyrs.

And on this day also died Salation, and ‘Atrakius, and Abba Yarpes (Iphrasius), and Andronicus, and Armolius (Hermolius), and Hermes, and Harmoktis, and the holy women Admania and Samata, and Father Isaiah, and Silas the disciple of Paul. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 16 (October 26)

On this day died the holy father, Abba Agathon, the thirty-ninth Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. And they chose this father to be archbishop, and they took him and bound him, and they appointed him Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, when Abba Benjamin, the archbishop who preceded him, died. And great tribulation came because of the Orthodox Faith. In his days there was a certain man whose name was Theodosius, a Melchite, and he went and came to the city of Damascus, to King Yazed, and he gave him presents and much money, and Yazed appointed him governor of Alexandria, and the North, and Mareotis. When he came to the city of Alexandria he afflicted our father Archbishop Agathon, and he levied tax upon him, and he took from [each of] his disciple's thirty-six gold dinars. And he compelled Agathon to give him money for the service of the emperor’s ships each year, and the archbishop gave seven hundred gold dinars each year. Now because of the evil of this man Theodosius, his fellow Melchite did not associate with him, for he hated him because of the evil, which he did to the Archbishop Abba Agathon. And our father the archbishop was not able to go out of his cell until God had destroyed that evil man. And in the days of this father the building of the holy church of the blessed Abba Macarius was completed. One night the angel of the Lord appeared unto this father, and he made known to him that in the country of the Fayyum there was a certain righteous monk whose name was John, and he belonged to the church of Saint Abba Macarius. And the angel commanded him to send and bring him to him so that he might help him in admonishing the people and in teaching them; and the angel said also unto him, “He shall be archbishop after thee.” And straightway Abba Agathon sent and brought the monk, and he delivered to him the work of the churches, and the ordering and teaching and admonishing of the people. And this Father Agathon died through overwork, and he held his office for fully nineteen years and he died in peace. Salutation to Abba Agathon.

And on this day also are commemorated Saint Abba Macrobius, and Saint Abba ‘Eblo (or Apollo), and Saint Abba Peter the disciple of Abba Isaiah the anchorite. Salutation to Macrobius, ‘Eblo, and Peter.

And on this day also are commemorated Paracu, and the five and forty righteous men of El-Derke, and Aaron the fighter, and Karbu, and ‘Analyu, and Abba Pawli, and Mark, and Gadel. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 17 (October 27)

On this day died Filias the martyr, bishop the country of Tamias, in the days of Kuelkuelianus. They brought Saint Filias in before the company of the governors, and Kuelkuelianus said unto him, “Sacrifice to the gods”; and Filias said, “I will not offer up sacrifice except to God, and to Him alone.” Kuelkuelianus said, “What kind of sacrifice doth God wish?” And Filias answered and said, “A pure heart and righteous judgment, and the word which is true; such are the sacrifices wherewith God is well pleased.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Did not Paul sacrifice?” and Filias said, “God forbid!” Kuelkuelianus said unto him, “Did not Moses sacrifice?” And Filias said, “Unto the Jews only was the command given that they should sacrifice in Jerusalem.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Dost thou strive on behalf of the soul or the body?” And Filias said, “On behalf of soul and body.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Will this body rise?” And Filias said, “Yea.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Hast thou no love for wife or brethren?” And Filias said, “The love of God is greater than every other love.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Who is God?” Filias raised his hand to heaven, and said, “God is He Who made the heavens and the earth and everything which is therein,” and he told him the story of His Birth, and His Crucifixion, and His Death, and His Resurrection and Ascension. Kuelkuelianus said, “Can God be crucified?” And Filias said, “Because of love for us He came into the world, and redeemed us by His Passion.” Kuelkuelianus said, “Dost thou not know that I would honor thee, and that I do not wish to harm thee, for I know concerning the abundance of thy wealth, and the honor of thy family. Now, sacrifice thou to the gods so that thou mayest not die an evil death.” And Filias said, “If thou dost wish to give me pleasure, give the order for my torturing and slaughter”; and Kuelkuelianus gave the order for him to be killed. As they were taking him away his brother came with the magnates of the city, and he besought him with many entreaties, grasping at his feet and kissing his hands as he did so, to submit to the governor and to offer up sacrifice. And Filias cursed them, saying, “Leave me, O ye who would lead me into error, I m going to bear the Cross of my God.” And when he arrived at the place where he was to receive his doom, he stretched out his hands towards the East, and he prayed unto our Lord Jesus Christ for a long time. And he committed himself to his people, and bade them farewell in peace, and then he was crowned. Salutation to Filias, who feared not the governor.

And on this day also is commemorated Saint Gregory, the brother of the blessed Basil.

And on this day also died Saint Dioscorus, the thirty-first Archbishop of the city of Alesancria, who was appointed after Abba John. This father was gentle in disposition, and his knowledge was glorious, and his work was good, and he was perfect in his days, but his family did not resemble him, and he was appointed archbishop by the Holy Ghost. And he wrote a General Epistle and sent it to the holy father and doctor of the Church, Abba Severus, Archbishop of the city of Antioch; and he wrote in that Epistle the Orthodox Faith of the Holy Three Who are equal in Godhead. Then he went on to speak about the Incarnation of the Son of God, and he said, “The Word of God took a body, perfect in all its operations, with a rational and understanding soul from our holy Lady the Virgin Mariyam. And He became therein One Son, and One Person, in inseparable unity, and He did not become two, but One, for the Holy Three were One God, before the Incarnation of the Son, and after the Incarnation of the Son there came not upon Him any addition to His Incarnation.” When his Epistle reached Saint Abba Severus, and he had read it, he rejoiced and was glad therein with an exceedingly great gladness. And he preached about it before the people of the city of Antioch, and they all rejoiced therein. Then Saint Abba Severus wrote to him, and accepted his Epistle, saying, in his letter, “I give thanks unto God Who hath chosen thee for this glorious and Orthodox Christian office,” and he commanded him not to turn aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, and that all his words and works should be performed according to the Orthodox Faith which our holy fathers had formulated, that is to say the Three Hundred and Eighteen bishops who assembled in Nicea, and according to what they had commanded in the Canon and the Law. And then he said in his letter, “Teach thy people continually, so that they may be strong in the Orthodox Faith, and let them discuss this matter very much.” And when the letter of Abba Severus reached Dioscorus, he rejoiced therein greatly, and he commanded that it should be read from the pulpit. And this father taught the people continually, and read to them the Holy Scriptures, and commanded all the priests in the cities to shepherd their flocks, and to protect the sheep, which had been committed to their charge. Having ended his good course, and pleased God, he died in peace. Salutation to Dioscorus the writer.

And on this day also died Stephen, Archdeacon and Protomartyr. Salutation to Stephen. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 18 (October 28)

On this day died the holy father, Theophilus, the twenty-third Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. He was appointed in the sixth year of the reign of Theodosius the Great. In his days lived John of the Golden Mouth (Chrysostom), of the city of Antioch, who translated the Gospel of John, the son of Zebedee, and he also translated the Book of Paul the apostle. He was appointed Archbishop of the city of Constantinople, when the days of this father were twenty-eight years, and he died in exile. And in the days of this father there lived also Epipahanius, Bishop of Cyprus; and in his days also died Abba Cyril, Bishop of Jerusalem; and in his days also rose up (i.e., awoke) the seven children after they had been asleep for three hundred and seventy-two years. And this holy father was a disciple of Athanasius, the apostolic Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, and this Saint Theophilus was brought up in the cell of Saint Athanasius, and he learned from him all spiritual doctrine. When Abba Timothy the archbishop died, this father was appointed in his place. And he was prudent, and observant, and he learned the Books of the Church by heart, and he understood the interpretation of the same. During the days of his office he wrote great discourses, and many works of exhortation concerning love (i.e., charity), and concerning the Resurrection and the punishment, which is prepared for sinners, and other treatises, which tend to edification. And Saint Abba Cyril was the son of the sister of this father, and he brought him up most carefully and piously. And he sent him to Abba Serapion so that he might instruct him carefully and thoroughly in spiritual matters, and father Abba Serapion taught him every kind of spiritual learning, and he learned by heart all the Books of the Church. When his education was complete Abba Theophilus sent and brought him to his cell. And used to make him read before him continually books concerning the people. When this father Abba Theophilus was with Abba Athanasius, he one day saw him lifting up his eyes to a hill, now he was [standing] before his cell, and he heard him say, “If I find good days I will clear away this hill, and I will build on the site thereof a church to Saint John the Baptist and Elias the prophet.” And when this Father Abba Theophilus was appointed Archbishop of Alexandria he remembered that hill concerning which he heard Abba Athanasius speak, and determined that he would do and carry out what he had heard Abba Athanasius say he would do. And in those days there was in the city of Rome a certain woman who was exceedingly rich; now her husband was dead, and he had left her much property, and she had two sons. And she took her two sons, and the money, which she had with her, and a picture of the angel Raphael, and she departed from the city of Rome to the city of Alexandria. And when she heard Abba Theophilus speaking about that hill, straightway she became moved by the zeal of the Spirit, and she spent much money and cleared away that hill, and there appeared underneath it a coffer which was covered over with a slab of stone whereon were written (or engraved) three characters which were O O O. As soon as Theophilus saw them he knew their mystery through the Holy Spirit, and he said, “Behold, the time hath arrived wherein this coffer should be brought to light, for the three characters upon it are O O O, and behold, they were gathered together at the same time. One O standeth for Theos, that is God; the second O standeth for the Emperor Theodosius, and the third O standeth for Theophilus the archbishop, that is to say a holy three (?).” And having said this he opened the coffer and found written inside it the date according to the Era of King Alexander, the son of Philip, the Macedonian, and it was seven hundred years, from the time when they closed [the coffer]. And the Archbishop Abba Theophilus sent to the Emperor Theodosius the Less, the son of the Emperor Arcadius, the son of Theodosius the Great, and he informed him about the coffer, and how he had opened it, and he said, “Come, that thou mayest see it.” And the emperor came to the city of Alexandria, and he looked at the coffer, and he gave half of the treasure inside it to the blessed Theophilus, and a half of it he placed in a ship and took to the city of Constantinople. And the blessed Theophilus built churches with the gold, which the emperor had given him. And he began to build first of all a church in the names of John the Baptist and Saint Elijah, and he translated their bodies and laid them in it, and this church is well known to this day in Demas. And at that time he also built a church in the name of our holy Lady the Virgin Mariyam, by the hands of the Melchites in the east of the city. And thirdly, he built a church in the name of the angel Raphael in Daset, and he built seven other churches; and then he appointed the sons of that widow bishops. When the emperor saw the love of the archbishop for building churches, he gave him all the houses of idols which were in the whole country of Egypt, and Theophilus pulled them down and built on their sites churches and lodging houses for strangers and pilgrims, and he endowed them with land and other property. And having followed in this good course of action, and pleased God, he departed to God and went to his rest from the toil of this world, after sitting upon the throne of Mark the evangelist eight and twenty years. When this father administered Christian baptism he used to see a rod of light before him making the sign of the Cross over the place of baptism. And this father and the Emperor Theodosius were cutting wood, and each of the two saw a vision on the same night wherein it seemed that one of them was to become emperor and the other archbishop; and it came to pass to them even as they had seen in the vision. In the first year wherein this father was made archbishop, the Emperor Theodosius commanded that each of them should write down their belief in books, and that they should bring them to the emperor, and they did as he had commanded and brought the books to the emperor. When they had drawn nigh unto him, the emperor rose up and prayed, and then he laid the books on the altar. And God revealed unto him that there was nothing in them about the Orthodox Faith except that they said and believed that “the Son with the Father and with the Holy Spirit is One God.” And the emperor commanded [his servants] to cast forth all the books wherein evil belief and words of doubt (or hypocritical words) were written, and the emperor expelled all those who were in doubt about their belief from his kingdom. And John of the Mouth of Gold multiplied his reading in the Books of ‘Awgaryos (Abgarus), and this father Theophilus sent a message to Epiphanius, Bishop of Cyprus, and to all his own bishops, ordering them to anathematize the Books of ‘Awgaryos (Abgarus), and they anathematized them even as did Theophilus the archbishop. When John of the Mouth of Gold heard that Abba Theophilus the Archbishop of the city of Alexandria had anathematized the Books of ‘Awgaryos (Abgrus), he abandoned them and never read them again. And [he died] the seven hundred and twenty-first year of King Alexander, the Two- horned (A.D. 410). Salutation to Theophilus who was worthy to sit upon the throne of Mark the evangelist.

And on this day also died Romanus the martyr in the days of Asclepianus, the governor who persecuted the Christians. This Romanus had been a monk from his earliest years, and he devoted himself strenuously to fasting and prayer. When he heard that the governor was persecuting the Christians, he came into the church, and he gathered together the priests and the deacons, and admonished them in the Faith of Christ, and strengthened them with his own confidence. When Asclepianus heard this he commanded that Romanus should be summoned, and when Romanus stood before him, he said unto him, “Is it true that thou art the son of Feyum?” Romanus said unto him, “What doth glory of kin profit me? My glory is Jesus Christ.” When Asclepianus heard this he commanded his soldiers to hang him up and to scrape his limbs piecemeal [and they did so], and when the governor saw his patient endurance, he commanded them to slit his cheeks so that he might not be able to talk. And Romanus said, “Behold, my God hath uncovered my mouth so that I may admonish thy madness. If thou wouldst know the truth of the matter, command thy servants to bring hither a child, and he will tell us whether it is right for us to worship God or the gods.” And the governor commanded them to bring a little child, and he said unto him, “Tell me is it right for us to worship God or the gods.” And the child said, “It is right for us to worship God Who created all the world with one word”; and having heard him the governor commanded them to hang up the child. When they had hung up the child his mother came to look at him, and the child said unto his mother, “Give me water, for I am thirsty.” And his mother said unto him, “Nay, O my son, thou must not drink water [here], but go to the water of life.” When the governor heard her words he commanded them to cut off the head of the child; [and they did so], and his mother came and took away his body. And the governor commanded them to cut out the tongue of Romanus at its roots so that he might not be able to argue with him. And Romanus having received by the grace of God a tongue of the Spirit, he wrote with his blood, saying, “Blessed are those who do not deny our Lord, for the Son will confess them before His Father.” When Asclepianus heard this he imagined that the tongue of Romanus had not been cut out, and he called to the prefect, and said unto him, “Why didst thou not cut out his tongue at its roots?” And the soldier said, “Command them to bring the soldiers and I will cut out his tongue before thee, and thou shalt say if he speaketh.” And straightway they brought the soldiers and they cut out his tongue, and he died forthwith. When the governor saw him he commanded the soldiers to bring him into the prison house, and there they hanged (or strangled) him; thus he finished his martyrdom. Salutation to Romanus the martyr.

And on this day also are commemorated John the martyr, and ‘Adrani, and ‘Artematewos, and Hephaestus, and Luderius, and ‘Asmanit, and his seven children. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 19 (October 29)

On this day died Saint Bartholomew and his wife. These saints were natives of the country of Fayyum, to the west of Egypt, and they were accused before the governor of being Christians. And the governor sent and had them brought to him, and he questioned them about their belief and they confessed our Lord Christ before him. And he commanded his soldiers to dig a deep pit and to throw the two into it, and to cast stones in on them; and the soldiers did as the governor had commanded them, and Bartholomew and his wife finished their strife; and received crowns of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. Salutation to Bartholomew and his wife who were buried alive [in the days of the Emperor Diocletian].

On this day also the holy General Council assembled in the church of the city of Antioch because of Paul of Samosata. This wretched man was a native of the city of Samidat, and was made Archbishop of Antioch. And Satan sowed bad seed in his heart, and he used to believe that Christ was a mere man whom God created, and that God chose Him so that by Him He might redeem the children of men, and that the source of Christ was Mariyam entirely, and that His Godhead was not one with His manhood, but that it descended upon Him, and that He dwelt therein by the Will of God, One Nature; and he would confess neither the Son nor the Holy Spirit. And this Council assembled in the city of Antioch because of him, and this assembling took place in the reign of the Emperor Valerius, when Dionysius was Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, and Dionysius was Archbishop of the city of Rome; and this Council assembled before the Council of Nicea five and forty years. Now Abba Dionysius, Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, was old, and he was not able to come with them into the Council, but he wrote a letter to the Council, saying, “Christ is the Word of God, and is His Son, and is equal with Him in Godhead and Nature. And the Trinity [containeth] Three distinct Persons, and one God and one Lord. And One [Person] of the Trinity, that is to say, the Son, became incarnate in the substance of a complete man, and there was with Him One Nature.” Then Dionysius testified concerning these things and adduced many testimonies from the Old and New Testaments. And Dionysius sent this letter with two priests and thirteen bishops assembled and they debated the matter with Paul the infidel. And they read out before him the letter of Dionysius, and they rebuked him with the words of Paul the apostle, who said, “Christ is the Word of God, and He is His Son, and the splendor of His glory, and the likeness of His glory, and the Substance of Godhead.” But he would not accept their words, and he would not turn from his infidelity, and they cut him off, and anathematized him and excommunicated him, and they excommunicated all those who believed his words, and drove them from their thrones. And the Council formulated Canons, and they are in the hands of the believers who perform their Laws and Precepts. Salutation to the two priests and thirteen bishops.

On this day also died Saint John of Dailam. The parents of this holy man belonged to the nobles of the city; his father’s name was Abraham, and his mother’s name was Sara, and they continued to pray fervently for many days because they had no children. One day two monks came to visit him, and they sojourned in his house, and they said unto him, “O Abraham, hast thou no children?” And he said unto them with tears, “O my fathers, I have not gotten a son. And now I have grown old, and as for my wife her days are past”; when the monks heard this they prayed over them, and blessed them and departed. After a few days Sara, the wife of Abraham, conceived and she brought forth a child of joy, and Abraham called his name John. When fourteen years had passed, and when the boy had finished all his instruction in the Books of the Church, those two same monks came into the school, and when John saw them he asked them to take him away with them. And they said, “We are afraid of thy father and we cannot take thee.” Whilst those monks were departing to their abode John prayed to God that He would direct the path which he had chosen, and he went out of the school and followed the monks, and whilst wishing to overtake them he came to a great river which he was afraid [to try] to cross by himself. Whilst he was there certain Arabs came with their camels, and John asked them to take him across the river, and they took him over with them; and by the Will of God he arrived in the monastery of these monks. Now the name of one of these monks was Abba Simon, and when he saw John he knew him, and he received him, and made him his disciple and Abba Simon had two other disciples besides John, but he loved John more than them. When Abba Simon knew that his departure was nigh, he said unto his children, “O my children, I will tell you what God hath shown me in respect of what shall happen unto you after my death. One of you a hyena shall seize, another of you shall be scattered in the earth, and of my third disciple the report shall go forth into all the world.” Then the old man looked in the face of John, and he said unto him, “Be strong, O my son, for the love of Christ, for He hath chosen thee to be a father unto many”; and thus saying the old man died. After three days one disciple went out into the world and married a wife, and where the second went is not known. And Saint John was sorrowful in his soul and he said, “I will go down and see what hath happened to my companion.” As he was going down a company of soldiers of Dailam met him, and they made him prisoner, and fettered him with two beautiful women, one on his right hand and one on his left. Whilst they were journeying along the road the men of Dailam lacked water both for themselves and for their beasts. And Saint John said unto them, “Masters, if I make water to spring forth for you will ye let me go?” And they said unto him, “Yea.” Then Saint John knelt upon the ground in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, and water gushed out upon them and they drank. And Saint John said unto them, “Perform to me what ye have covenanted,” and they said, “We will not let thee go; who shall we find like unto thee?” So they brought him to their city. And in those days a heavy plague descended upon Dailam, and the master of Saint John died, and his children, and all the men of his house, and there remained only his wife and her daughter. And the wife of Saint John’s master thought that he was a magician, and she shut up Saint John in his room, and set fire to the house so that she might burn him alive, but God delivered him. When the men of Dailam saw this they all believed through him, and they were baptized, men and women. Then John departed thence by another road. When he found that the men there worshipped trees, he exhorted them to turn from iniquity, and when they refused to do so he came by night among their trees, and prayed to God, and taking an axe [in his hand], he said, “In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost I will cut you down”; and straightway one thousand trees fell down at one stroke of the axe. When the men of the city saw this they believed, and were baptized together with their women and children. And once again he went to another city, and he found that the people there were worshippers in fire- temples. When John rebuked them, they were wroth, and they cast him into the fire three times, but he came forth unharmed. And he turned their water into blood, and they lacked water to drink, and they all believed in the God of Saint John, and forty thousand men were baptized. Then he built a church and performed countless signs and wonders, and he died in the country of Der’Eyan. Salutation to John of Dailam. Salutation to Abba Simon, who was enveloped by the Holy Ghost.

And on this day also are commemorated the righteous men of Al-Matra, who were slain with violence by the hands of evil men. [The Bodleian MS. says they were slain by King Yemraha.] Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 20 (October 30)

On this day died the great father of light, Abba John the Short. This holy man was a native of the city, which is called Tansa and is in Upper Egypt, and he had one brother. His parents were righteous people, and they feared God; they were not rich in the goods and possessions of this world, but they were rich in good works. When this holy man was eighteen years of age, the grace of God moved him to go to the desert of Scete, which [name] being interpreted means, “Balance of hearts.” And he wished to put on the garb of the monk. And he found a certain tried and strong old man, whose name was Abba Bamoy, of the city of Seha, dwelling in Scete, and Saint John bowed low before him and entreated him that he might dwell with him in Scete. And Saint Abba Bamoy wished to try him, and he said unto him, “O my son, it is not right for thee to live here, for this is a very hard desert, and those who dwell therein have to work with their hands, and they can only feed themselves by hard toil. And also over and above this there are very many fasts to be kept, and many prayers, both by day and by night, to be said, and a man must sleep on the bare ground naked without a bed (or cushion), and there is very great hardship in this desert. Nay, my son, go back into the world and live a life of comfort and ease like unto that of all other men.” And Abba John said unto him, “O my father, for God’s sake do not turn me back for I have come to be under thy authority and under the shadow of thy prayer. And if thou wilt accept me I believe that God will make thy heart will-disposed towards me.” Now Saint Abba Bamoy was wont never to do anything hastily, and he entreated God concerning Abba John so that He might reveal to him His works. And the angel of the Lord appeared and said unto him, “God saith unto thee; accept this brother, for he shall become a chosen vessel.” And when Abba Bamoy heard these words from the angel of God, he brought Abba John into the church, and he shaved off the hair of his head. Then he laid out the garb of the monk, and he stood and prayed over it for three days and three nights. Then the angel of the Lord appeared, and made the sign of the Cross over the raiment of monkhood, and Abba Bamoy put it upon Abba John. And Abba John devoted himself with the greatest zeal and diligence to the splendid works of the ascetic life. One day Abba Bamoy wished to try him, and he sent Abba John away from him, saying, “I cannot live with thee”; and Abba John stood for seven days outside the gates of the monastery, and every day Abba Bamoy went out to Abba John, and smote him with a stick, and Abba John bowed down before him and said, “Forgive me, O my father.” On the seventh day the old man Abba Bamoy went forth to go to the church, and he saw seven angels, and they had with them seven crowns which they were placing on the head of Abba John. And straightway Abba Bamoy took Abba John and brought him into his cell, and from that day onward he was held by him in honor and reverence. One day Abba Bamoy found a piece of dry wood and he gave it to Abba John and he said unto him, “Take this wood and plant it in the ground, and water it until it sprouteth and bringeth forth fruit.” And Abba John obeyed Abba Bamoy, and he took that piece of wood, and planted it, and watered it each day twice; now the water was far off, a distance of twelve stadia. And after three years that piece of wood sprouted, and grew into a large tree, and bore fruit, and the old man Abba Bamoy took some of the fruit thereof and carried it to all the aged monks, and he said unto them, “Take ye and eat of the fruit of obedience and humility.” When the monks saw this miracle they marveled exceedingly, and they praised God Who gives this virtue unto those who make themselves subject to His teachers. And Abba Bamoy fill sick of a very severe sickness, and he continued to suffer from this sickness for eighteen years, and though Abba John ministered unto him [all this time] he never once said unto him, “Thou hast done well,” for the old man Abba Bamoy had grown very old, and he used to try him exceedingly. And God tried him with such a severe sickness until at length he became like a piece of dry wood, so that he might become a chosen offering unto God. When Abba Bamoy was about to die, he gathered together the aged monks, and he seized the hand of Abba John and gave it unto them, saying, “Take him, and take care of this man, for he is an angel and not a man.” Then he said unto Abba John, “After I am dead I will live in the place wherein thou didst plant the tree which sprouted and bore fruit, for thou in that place didst become a holy and acceptable sacrifice before God. And many men shall be saved by thy hand, and thy memorial shall be there in that place before God for ever.” When Abba Bamoy had said this unto him, he opened his mouth and delivered up his soul into the hand of God. After this Abba John departed to that place [where the tree was] according as the old man Abba Bamoy had told him. And he strove boldly in the working of righteousness, for his name was exalted exceedingly; and after this he was appointed abbot over his church. And whilst the archbishop was laying his hand upon him at the time of his appointment, a voice came from heaven, and all the people heard it, saying, “Axios, Axios, Axios,” that is to say, “He is worthy, He is worthy, He is worthy.” And every time when Saint John consecrated the Offering, he would watch for those who were worthy to partake and those who were not worthy. Now Abba Theophilus, the archbishop, built a church to the Three Holy Children in the city of Alexandria, and he wished to bring thereto the bodies of the Three Children from the city of Babylon. And he asked Saint Abba John to go to the city of Babylon, and to bring the bodies of the Three Children from the city of Babylon, and after many requests Abba John went forth on behalf of the archbishop. And a cloud straightway carried him away and brought him to the city of Babylon, and he saw that city, and the rivers and the palaces thereof, and he saw the bodies of the Saints, the Three Children, and the body of King Nebuchadnezzar lying in their tombs. And Saint Abba John bowed low, and embraced the bodies of the saints with tears, and he cried out saying, “O my holy fathers, bless me!” And straightway he heard a voice from their bodies, saying, “The God of Israel hath blessed thee.” When Abba John had heard this voice he was filled with the Holy Spirit, and rejoiced in the spiritual blessing. And he said unto them (i.e., the bodies), “O my fathers, ye martyrs of Christ God, I tell you that our father the archbishop, Abba Theophilus, has built a church in your names in the city of Alexandria, and he hath sent me unto you and he beseeches you and your holy bodies to come and dwell in your church, so that there may be healing and salvation unto all those who believe in Christ in all the country of Egypt.” And the saints answered with one voice and said unto him, “God shall give thee the reward of thy labor in the life everlasting! But tell the archbishops that God hath commanded [us] not to remove our bodies from this place until the day of the Resurrection. Nevertheless because of his contendings, and his labor, and his perfect faith, let them suspend lamps, on the night of the day of the consecration of the church, whilst all the people and the priests are assembled therein, and we ourselves will come and we will make manifest the power of God and their blessing.” And Saint Abba John bowed low, and went forth from their presence rejoicing in God. When he had departed a short distance from them, a cloud took him up and brought him to the outskirts of the city of Alexandria, and he came in to the archbishop and told him what the saints had said; and the archbishop did even as the saints had told him. And when midnight had come on the night of the day of the consecration of the church, the Three Holy Children appeared in the church surrounded by brilliant light, and they lighted all the lamps, and they sent forth from themselves an exceedingly sweet odor. After this Abba John returned to Scete, and he contended in the working of righteousness by night and by day. One day a certain monk came into the cave of Abba John, and he found him lying down, and the angels of God were waving their wings over him, and each of them was saying to the other, “Let me lay my wing upon him.” After this the pagan Barbarians came to the desert of Scete to plunder the houses of the monks, and to slay the monks. After this Saint Abba John went to the monastery of Saint Abba Anthony in the desert of Kuelzem [by the Red Sea], not that he was afraid of death, but he said, “I go that a pagan may not come and kill me, and go to Sheol because of me; I do not wish to be in a state of ease and for that pagan to suffer punishment on my account. For he might testify against me before the Lord God, though he is my brother in nature, and form, and likeness.” And Abba John dwelt by the side of a village, and God brought him from it a certain man who was a believer, and he ministered unto him until the time of his death. When God wished to give him rest from the labor of this world, He sent unto him His righteous saints, Abba Anthony, and Abba Macarius, and Abba Pachomius, to comfort him and to inform him concerning his departure, and there was with them Abba Bamoy, his spiritual father. And they comforted him and said unto him, “Be strong in the Lord, and rejoice in the everlasting joy which God hath prepared. Be thou ready, for we will come to thee at dawn on the First Day of the week, and we will take thee with us into everlasting life, even as God hath commanded”; and they blessed him and disappeared. On the day of the Eve of the Sabbath Saint Abba John sent his attendant to the village, for he was sick with a little sickness. And when it was the time of cock-crow on the night of the holy First Day of the week, behold there came unto him many hosts of angels, and all the company of the saints, and when he saw them he rejoiced and bowed low and delivered up his soul into the hand of God. And the holy angels received the soul of the blessed Abba John, and they took it up with them into heaven. And at that moment his attendant came, and he saw his soul as they were carrying it up into heaven, and the holy angels were surrounding it, and were singing before it. And before all these, as it was shining brightly like the sun, one sang and praised the blessed man Abba John. And he stood still for the space of an hour as he marveled at what he saw. And straightway the angel of the Lord came unto him and told him the names of each one of the saints, and pointing with his finger at the saints he said unto [the attendant of] Abba John, “This is Abba Pachomius, this is Abba Macarius, this is Abba Bamoy, and this is Abba So-and-so.” And the attendant said unto the angel, “Who is this in front of them who is shining like the sun?” And the angel said unto him, “This is Abba Anthony, the father of all the monks.” When the attendant came to the cell he found Abba John on his knees, and he wept over him with a great weeping. And he made haste and went to the village, and told the men how that the saint was dead. Then the brethren came and made him ready for burial, and they bore away his body with great honor, and when they had brought him into the village, great wonders and miracles happened through his body. And then his sons, the monks, came and took up his body and they carried it to the desert of Scete and laid it in the church thereof, and it became a haven for everyone who took refuge therein. Salutation to Abba John.

And on this day also died Saint Elisa the prophet, whose name being interpreted is “Savior, protector and king.” This holy man was native of a village the name of which was Be’Elamon, of the tribe of Isaachar, and he prophesied many prophecies concerning the children of Israel. And he also prophesied saying, “God shall come down upon the earth and shall walk with men.” And he gave a sign of this, saying, “The sun shall set in Selom (Silo), and one of its two halves shall be separated from the other, and twelve oak trees shall be useful to the Lord, and submissive to the holy God, Who shall come down upon the earth, and by it the whole earth shall be saved.” When he finished his prophecy he died in peace and was buried in his own land. Salutation to Elisa the prophet who made the bitter water sweet and raised the axe out of the water by means of a splinter of wood. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 21 (October 31)

On this day is celebrated a festival of commemoration of our holy Lady the Virgin Mariyam. Salutation to thee, O Mariyam, on whom the Sun of Righteousness rose. Salutation unto thee, O garden of stacte and cassia.

And on this day also is commemorated the translation of the body of Saint Lazarus, whom our Lord raised from the dead. And one of the Christian emperors, having heard the history of the saint whilst he was in the island of Cyprus, translated his body to the city of Constantinople. When they wanted to translate it [the workmen] found the saint’s body buried under the earth and laid in a stone sarcophagus. And there was cut upon it in [letters of] gold the following: “This is the body of Saint Lazarus, the friend of our Lord Jesus Christ, whom He raised from the dead, after [he had lain] in the grave four days.” When they found the body they rejoiced with great joy, and they carried it to Constantinople, and the priest went out and received it with great honor, and with psalms, and hymns, and prayers, and incense; and they laid it in the sanctuary until they could build a church for it, and translated the body thither. And they made a great festival in honor thereof on this day. Salutation to the emperor who translated the body of Lazarus to Antioch (sic) from Cyprus.

And on this day also died the holy father Abba John, Archbishop of the holy city of Jerusalem in the days of the God-loving King David, (A.D. 1411-1413) the grandson of the King Sayf’Ar’Ad. Now this father was the son of Christian parents, who feared God, and they belonged to the city of Mesr (Cairo); and they reared the holy man [piously] and called him John. When he grew up they taught him Christian doctrine, and when he was fit to serve in the grade of deacon he was appointed a deacon. And having performed the duties of a deacon well and carefully, and was fit for the grade of priest, he was appointed priest. And he devoted himself strenuously to fasting and to prayer, and above all he gave himself to the fear of God and to the love of pilgrims; thereupon he became fit for the grade of apostleship. By the Will of God he was appointed bishop in the holy city of Jerusalem, and he fought a good fight therein, and he taught the people in humility and in the fear of God. And they loved him exceedingly because of his holiness, and his goodly figure, and his open countenance which was as that of an angel of God. After he had been seated on his throne for a few years. Satan brought a trial upon him and removed him from his people and from his city. And this was in the days when Abba Mark was archbishop of Alexandria. And the King of Mesr (Cairo), a Hanafite, forced him to send an embassy to the King of Ethiopia, who was in submission to him, concerning the Muslims who dwelt under his rule. Now there was in his days a king, whose name was Sayf’Ar’Ad, and he was also named Constantine, and he slew many of the Muslims who rebelled against him, and some of them he drove out of his country and they went to the King of Mesr (Cairo) and took refuge with him. And they said, “The King of Ethiopia hath made an end of the Muslims; some of them he hath slain, and some of them he hath made Christians.” When the King of Mesr (Cairo) heard thee words, his zeal for his religion rose up, and he compelled the archbishop to dispatch elders to [Ethiopia], and he told him that he held him as hostage for the obedience of the King of Ethiopia and the safety of the other Muslims who were in his kingdom. And our father the archbishop and his bishops agreed with the Government of Mesr (Cairo) concerning those who were to be sent to the King of Ethiopia, and they chose those fathers, those shining stars, because of their holiness, and learning, and wisdom, that is to say the honorable father Abba John, and the learned and prudent father Abba Cyril, Bishop of ‘Akhnas, and he forced them to go to the frontier of Ethiopia, and God-loving King Sayf’Ar’Ad, may God rest his soul! Amen, heard concerning them, and he rejoiced with exceeding great joy; and he sent his soldiers to them with presents and mules to receive them, and when they had come to the king he paid them exceedingly great honor. And after they had read to him the letter of our father the archbishop, they wished to return to their thrones, and to their peoples, and to their churches, but the lord king prevented them from departing because he loved their holiness, and because he loved their persons, and their priestly service, and their faces which were full of grace, for they were like unto [those of] the angels of God, and they shone like the sun; and the lord king loved them with a great love because of their holiness and their prayers. After a short time God wished, in His mercy, to remove this father Abba John from the labor of this transitory world, and He brought upon him a slight illness, and he died at a good old age, now his work was well-pleasing unto God, in the eleven hundred and sixth year of the Era of the Righteous Martyrs (A.D. 1390).

And on this day died the great [prophet] Joel. This righteous man prophesied in the days of ‘Abya (Abijah) the son of Jeroboam, the son of Solomon the king. He taught the people, and admonished them, and prophesied concerning the dwelling of God of Zion, and concerning His Passion, and concerning the descent of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, upon the holy Apostles on the day of the festival of Pentecost. And he revealed that they would prophesy, their daughters, and their sons, and their old men, and their young men, and the women who dwelt with them. “And if there be a prophet who prophesies, I will pour out My Spirit upon all men” (Joel ii. 28); and I will not pour except [on] the Apostles. Now of this passage there are two interpretations; I, Because the holy Apostles were perfect in working righteousness he called them “men,” for he who is not perfect among men in doing the good pleasure of God is not called a “man”; II, From the Apostles the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all the believing saints from the time of their preaching to the day of the Resurrection. And this prophet prophesied also concerning the going forth of the Law of the Gospel from Zion, when he said, “A stream of water shall flow forth from the house of God, and it shall water the valley of Shittim” (Joel iii.18). And he made known that after the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ war should break out on the earth, and he spoke also concerning the day of the Resurrection. And he said, “The sun shall become dark, and the moon shall become like blood, and the light of the stars shall be hidden” (Joel ii. 31). Now this prophet prophesied more than a thousand years before the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. This righteous man belonged to the tribe of Reuben, and he arrived at a good old age, and he pleased God and died in peace, and was buried in the fields. Salutation to Joel the prophet, the son of Batuel, whose tongue was sharper than a razor.

And on this day our Lady Mariyam wrought a miracle and delivered Matthias from the prison house. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 22 (November 1)

On this day Saint Luke the evangelist, the physician, became a martyr. This holy man was one of the number of the seventy-two disciples whom the Holy Gospel mentioned; he ministered to the Apostles Peter and Paul and he wrote the histories of them. After the death of Peter and Paul, Luke preached in the country of Rome. And those who worshipped idols came to an agreement with the Jews, and they stood up before the Emperor Nero and they cried out concerning Luke the disciple, and they made accusations against him; and said, “He brings very many men under his teaching by means of his sorcery”; and the Emperor Nero commanded that they should bring Luke before him. And when the apostle knew that he was about to depart from this world, he found an old man who was a fisherman, and he gave him the books and the volumes which were with him, and he said unto him, “Take good care of these books, for they will be of benefit to thee, and will make thee to arrive on the road of God.” And when he had come to Nero, Emperor of Rome, he stood up before him. And the emperor said unto him, “How much longer wilt thou lead men into error by thy sorcery?” And Saint Luke answered and said unto him, “I am not a magician, but an Apostle of our Lord Christ, the Son of the Living God.” And the emperor commanded [his soldiers] to cut off his right hand, saying, “I cut off this hand which wrote books”; and straightway they cut off his hand. And Saint Luke said unto him, “Verily we do not fear the death of this world, but behold thou shalt at this moment see the power of my God Jesus Christ, to Whom be praise!” And the saint reached out his left hand, and took up in it the right hand, which had been cut off, and made it to cleave to its proper place, and it remained there firmly and became like unto the other; then he separated it from the wrist and it remained thus. And those who were there marveled, and the chief officer, and his wife and very many men believed in our Lord Christ; and they were in number two hundred and seven and seventy souls. And the emperor commanded his soldiers to cut off their heads, and the head of Saint Luke the apostle, and the soldiers cut them off and the saints received crowns of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. And they placed the body of Saint Luke the apostle in a hair sack. And they cast it into the sea, and by the Will of God the waves of the sea brought it to an island, and a certain man who was a believer found it, and he gave it honorable burial. This holy man wrote his Gospel for Theophilus, who was a Gentile, and he also wrote for him the “Acts of the Apostles.” Salutation to Luke whose tongue was true, and who wrote the Divine Gospel. Salutation to the company of martyrs who died with Saint Luke. Salutation to the old man Silas, who received Saint Luke’s books and preserved them in purity. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 23 (November 2)

On this day died Saint Abba Joseph, the fifty-second Archbishop of Alexandria. This man was the son of one of the elders of the city of Manuf, and he had very many possessions. When his parents died and left him an orphan a certain God-fearing man brought him up, and when he arrived at man’s estate he took his goods and gave them to the poor and the beggars. Then he went up into the desert of Scete, to the monastery of Saint Abba Macarius, and he became a monk under the direction of a certain holy old man. When Abba Mark the second was appointed archbishop, and he heard that the natural disposition and intelligence of this Saint Abba Joseph were good, he sent and had him brought unto him, and established him in his house. After many days Abba Joseph asked Abba Mark the archbishop, saying, “Let me depart to the desert of Scete,” and straightway Abba Mark made him a priest and sent him away to the desert of Scete. And he remained there many years, until the holy father Abba Simon the archbishop died, and the country of Egypt remained without an archbishop for many years. After the death of Abba Jacob, the bishops, made an agreement with a certain scribe in the king’s house, who had married and whose wife had died, now he had never been a monk, and the bishops took bribes from him, and they made an agreement with one-half of the men of the city of Alexandria, to appoint that scribe archbishop. And all the bishops rose up against him, and they said unto him, “This scheme which thou hast planned is not good, but bad, for the holy Canon saith that all those who shall either take or receive bribes in respect of appointments to the priesthood, are to be excommunicated. And more especially shall it be so in this case, for this man hath married twice, and he is wholly unsuited for the office of archbishop; and besides, up to the present none but a virgin hath been appointed to sit on the throne of Mark the evangelist.” And these men then joined with them in this good counsel, and they rose up and came into the church, and prayed to God and entreated Him to make clear unto them who were the best man for this office. And straightway God heard their petition, and He made them to remember this Abba Joseph, and they sent a letter ordering the monks to bring him from the desert of Scete. And those who had been sent prayed unto God and said, “We beseech Thee to reveal the matter unto us clearly; if Thou hast chosen this father Abba Joseph to be the archbishop, give us the following sign, that is to say, let us find the door of his cell open.” And when they came to his cell they found the door of his cell open, and they found Abba Joseph bidding farewell to a certain monk, and he was wishing to go into his cell and to shut the door. When he saw them he embraced them with a holy embrace, and received them with joy, and brought them into his house. When they came into his house they seized him and bound him, saying, “He is worthy, He is worthy, Abba Joseph is worthy of the archiepiscopate.” And he cried out and wept, and he said unto them, “I have committed very many sins, far more than any other man”; but they would not accept this excuse from him, but they took him to the city of Alexandria and appointed him archbishop. Having taken his seat upon the throne of Mark the apostle, he thought about the Church exceedingly, and with what remained of his own stipend he bought plots of ground, which had been dedicated to pious works, and endowed the churches with them. And he taught the people at all times, and he never neglected any one of them. Now, Satan was jealous of him, and he schemed schemes and brought sorrow upon him, and the immediate cause was that the Bishop of the city of Tenes (Tanis), and the Bishop of the city of Mesr (Cairo), behaved wrongly towards the people and oppressed them in the matter of dues and afflicted them, and Abba Joseph said unto them, “Forbear and do not afflict them.” And on several occasions he had entreated them to look upon their flocks with the eye of mercy, but they would not accept his behests, and they set them aside. And these holy bishops having afflicted their people [to excess], all the people came to the Archbishop Abba Joseph, and they all cried out before him, and said unto him, “If thou wilt not remove these bishops from over us we shall embrace another Faith.” And Abba Joseph fought very, very hard to make peace between them, but he was not able to do so. Then he brought all the bishops from all the land of Egypt, and when they were assembled, he told them how these two bishops had afflicted their people. And the archbishop sent and had those two bishops brought before him, and he wished to make peace between them and their people; but they would listen neither to his commands nor to those of his brother bishops. And straightway the archbishop said unto them before all the bishops, “I am innocent of your sins,” and the bishops were witnesses against the two bishops that they had transgressed the command of the Archbishop Abba Joseph. And they all wrote with their own hands to this effect; “It is meet for these two bishops to be cut off from their sees” and straightway the archbishop cut them from their sees. And when he had cut them off from their sees, these two bishops went to the King of Egypt, and made false accusations against this father Abba Joseph before him, and the king sent his brother and a company of soldiers to bring the archbishop to him. When he had come to him the king’s brother drew his sword and wanted to kill him, and when he was about to smite the archbishop with the sword, God thrust aside the hand of that nobleman, and his sword struck a pillar, and broke, and he was furiously angry. And another man drew his dagger and drove it into the side of the archbishop with all his might, and his apparel and his girdle were cut through, but the dagger did not enter the flesh of the archbishop. Then that nobleman knew that the archbishop was a righteous man, and that there was in him divine grace, which would preserve him from every evil, and from murder. And he brought him to the king his brother with great honor, and he told him what he had done to the archbishop, and how he had been smitten twice with the sword and had escaped unhurt. When the king heard this he marveled, and he was afraid of the archbishop and paid him honor, and then he asked him questions about the two bishops who had made accusations against him before him. And the archbishop told him what had happened in the matter of the bishops, and he proved to him that the accusations, which they had made against him, were falsehoods. And the king knew that those bishops were liars, and evil men, and accursed oppressors, and straightway he commanded [his soldiers] to slay them. And the archbishop said unto him, “Our Lord Christ in the Holy Gospel commanded us to do good in return for evil. These bishops made false accusations against me, but behold, God hath established it in thy heart that I am innocent of the false charges which they laid against me to thee; I therefore beseech thee to have mercy upon them, and to forgive them for God’s sake.” When the king saw the piety of the archbishop, he marveled exceedingly, and he paid him honor, and he had mercy upon those two bishops for his sake. And he wrote for him an authorization and gave it to him, and in it he ordered: “Neither officials nor bishops shall resist the archbishop, and they shall not disobey his command, and whatsoever he is pleased to do in his see he shall do, whether it be to remove a man from his office or to appoint a new one.” And in the days of this father the King of Ethiopia sent him a letter, saying, “I do homage to the throne of Mark the evangelist, whereon to sit thou art worthy, and by his grace my kingdom hath waxed strong. I beseech thee to have compassion upon me and to send unto us as bishop Abba John. There are certain men of our city who have gone astray from the light of the throne of Saint Mark the evangelist, and who have set their feet on the road, which is full of thorns, and they have driven out Abba John our bishop. Because of this great tribulation hath come upon our land and all our men are dying of the plague, and our beasts and cattle have perished, and God hath restrained the heavens so that they cannot rain upon our land, and our enemies have risen up against us and have conquered us, because we have not obeyed the commandments of God. And now, O holy Abuna, have mercy upon us and upon our folly. Send us our Bishop John so that he may entreat God, and pray for us, and deliver us from this tribulation through thy prayer and his own. And I will inform thee, O my father, what hath been the cause of this. I thy son was blessed by my father Abba John the bishop, and he bade me farewell as he set me on my way with my soldiers, and he blessed me and then returned and dwelt in his diocese. And we departed to the war, and we continued to fight for very many days, and our enemies conquered us, and they destroyed our soldiers, and we took to flight and returned to our own country, and we missed Abba John our bishop. And I enquired for him, and they told me that my wife, the queen, had driven him into exile because certain evil men had counseled her to do so, even as Queen Eudoxia had in days of old driven John of the Golden Mouth (Chrysostom) into exile, and that they had appointed another bishop who was their choice; they have transgressed the command of the holy Canon, and therefore our country is destroyed. And now have pity upon us and send Abba John to pray for us.” Now when they drove that bishop out of Ethiopia he went and dwelt in the monastery wherein he had become a monk, and that was the monastery of Saint Abba Moses of the desert of Scete. When Abba Joseph the archbishop had read the letter of the King of Ethiopia, he rejoiced exceedingly because of his confidence, and he sent quickly to the desert of Scete and brought back Abba John, and he comforted him, and encouraged him, and sent brave men with him to the country of Ethiopia. As soon as he arrived, the plague ceased, and rain fell from heaven, and the king rejoiced with very great joy at his arrival; and this father rebuked the wicked sinners and converted them to the Orthodox Faith. And he likewise encouraged all Christian people in the right and good Faith, which they had received from their fathers. And he used to interpret for them obscure passages in the Holy Scriptures, and declare their meaning unto them, and he preserved them by his teachings and prayers. And God made manifest through this holy father Abba Joseph great signs and wonders, and having finished his good and divine fight, and pleased God, he died in peace, having sat upon the throne of Mark the evangelist nineteen years. He lived the life of a monk for nine and thirty years, and he had lived ten years before he adopted the life of a monk; and all the days of his life were eight and sixty years.

And on this day also Saint Dionysius, Bishop of the city of Corinth, became a martyr in the days of Diocletian and Maximianus, the wicked emperors. They condemned this holy man to be tortured very severely, and when they were tired of torturing him they cut off his head with a sword, and he received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. Salutation to Archbishop Joseph of the city of Manuf, unto whom was given the knowledge of Letters. Salutation to Dionysius the Bishop of Corinth whose head was cut off.

And on this day also [are commemorated] the deaths of Tenkeyake (or Tayanke), and Theodosius, the Laos (Talawos), Taxis, and Josab (or Joseph), and the strife of Andrew, the martyrs. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 24 (November 3)

On this day died the fighter Abba Ablarius (Hilarius?) the monk and anchorite. This holy man was a native of the city of Gaza, and his parents were pagans, and they taught him all the various kinds of learning of the Greeks, and their philosophy, and he was very far superior in knowledge to many of his companions, and wisdom had a dwelling place in his soul. And he wished to make himself very strong in the learning of foreign peoples, but there was no one in his city who could teach him that learning, and who could fulfill for him all that he desired. And he rose up and went to the city of Alexandria, and he went into the place where all the doctors sat, and he learned from them many kinds of learning. And a divine zeal moved within him to learn the doctrine of the Church, and he enquired for the Books of the Church, and certain men gave them to him, and he read them and understood them. And Abba Iskander, Archbishop of the city of Alexandria, revealed and explained to him the meaning of what was obscure in the Books, and he made him to understand the belief on our Lord Jesus Christ. And Iskander baptized him with Christian baptism, and he fought a great fight, and he became a monk and devoted himself diligently to the path of the monastic life. Then he went to Saint Abba Anthony, and he dwelt with him for many days, learning from him the path of righteousness. When he heard that his parents according to the flesh were dead, he went to his city, and took the goods, which his parents had left him, and gave them to the poor and needy, and to the women who were with child. Then he entered one of the monasteries in the country of Syria, and he fought a great fight, and he devoted himself strenuously to fasting, and prayer, and bowings, and vigils, and he used to fast for six days and six nights at a time, and he used to feed himself on the grass of the desert. And his heart shone brightly, and God gave him the gift of prophecy and of working signs and wonders. After this he dwelt in that same monastery for many years, and it was in that monastery that Epiphanius became a monk. And the abbot received this Saint Ablarius (Hilarius?) and he taught him the rule of the ascetic life and the Law of the Church, and he prophesied of him that he would become the Bishop of Cyprus, which came to pass even as he had prophesied. Now the days of this father were eighty years; ten years he lived in the house of his father, and seven years in the city of Alexandria, and for three and sixty years he led the life of a monk and fought a great fight. And he pleased God and died at a good old age. And Saint John of the Golden Mouth (Chrysostom) praised this holy man, and Saint Basil in his writings also praised him. Salutation to Ablarius (Hilarius?) who drank seawater and ate grass. Salutation to Sabla Mariyam, who was famed for her fasting and self-abnegation.

And on this day also Saint Paul and his companion [Longinus], and the holy woman Zaina became martyrs. Salutation to Paul, Longinus, and Zaina.

And on this day also are commemorated Eusia (Ausia), and Constantine. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 25 (November 4)

On this day died Abba Bula, who was surnamed ‘Abib. The name of the father of this holy man was Abraham, and that of his mother was Harik, and they were natives of the country of Rome, and came from the borders of Lupi; and since there was a persecution in the days of the Emperor Maximianus they continued to fly from city to city. As they lacked a son they entreated God, with fasting and prayer, to give them a son. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto them in a dream, and gave them a vine cluster which was full of grapes, and when the blessed woman conceived, a large tree which was near their house blossomed, and on the leaves thereof were written in the language of Rome the following words: “Bula servant of God, and the saint of the God of Jacob, Who dwelleth in Zion.” And when the child was born they left him for some time without making him a Christian. Then our Lady Mariyam appeared unto the Archbishop of Rome, and commanded him to go to the house of Abraham and baptize the child; and when he arrived there he made him a Christian and called his name “Bula.” When the father and the mother of the child heard [this] they marveled because he had called the child by that name without their having told him the name. When the archbishop had prayed, bread for the Offering and a cup of wine came down from heaven, and he consecrated them and administered unto them the Holy Mysteries. When the boy was one year old he spoke plainly and said, “One is the Holy Father, One is the Holy Son, One is the Holy Ghost.” After a little [time] his father and his mother died, on the sixteenth day of the month of Hedar (Nov-Dec). When the boy was ten years of age there arrived a wicked governor who ordered [the people] to worship idols, and when Abba Bula heard about it, he went to the governor and cursed his filthy idols. When the governor saw the small stature of the boy he marveled greatly. And he commanded [his soldiers] to drive nails into him, and to scrape his body, and to strip off his skin, and to saw off his hands and his feet, and to beat his back with whips, and to cast him on the wheel among the sharp knives and spikes, and to drag him along the road of the city; [and they did so]. And Saint Michael came and saved him, and healed him. Then Bula went to another wicked governor and reviled him, and the governor was wroth with him and cut off his head with the sword, and he was crowned on the eighteenth day of the month of Miyazya (April-May). And Saint Michael came down from heaven and raised him up unharmed, and he took him into the desert, and he arrayed him in the garb of the monk, and put upon him a mark in appearance like the sign of the Cross, and he said unto him, “God hath commanded thee to be a companion of the Saints.” And Abba Bula went up into a dry (i.e., withered) tree, and he dwelt therein fighting incessantly, and whenever he remembered the Crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ and His Passion, he always cast himself down from the top of the tree. One day having cast himself down Satan was strong to kill him, and he died, but our Redeemer came straightway and raised him up, and he said unto him, “Thy name shall not be ‘Bula’ only, but ‘ ‘Abibha,’ for thou shalt become many fathers.” And Bula loved Christ more and more, and he was always beating his face, and cutting his flesh with knives, every member of him, and he beat his back with seven hundred stripes; through these acts he died three times and our Redeemer raised him up again. And on each occasion He showed him how he had been born of a virgin, and on other days He showed him how he was seized by the Jews and His Passion. And for this reason Bula lived without eating and without drinking for two and forty years, and he never lay on his side for six and sixty years. And he also kept his head fixed for twelve years and six months, until his brains perished. One day when he saw the Passion of our Lord, he place a sword upright before him and then fell upon it and died. And our Lady Mariyam came with angels to the place where his body was, and she said unto him, “Peace be unto thee, O my beloved”; and his body spoke and said unto her, “Peace be unto thee, O Queen of the world.” And she laid her hands upon his body and healed him. And when his days were ended, and it was time for him to depart from this world, our Lord Jesus Christ appeared unto him having in His hands shining crowns set with gems of various kinds, and shining raiment. And He said unto him, “Come unto Me, O My beloved ‘Abib, so that thou mayest enjoy never-ending pleasure. I swear unto thee by Myself that whosoever calleth upon thy name I will forgive him his sins. And whosoever commemorates thee, or show mercy on the poor, or clothes the naked, or feedeth the hungry, or gives drink to the thirsty man, or buildeth a shrine for thee, or writes the story of thy strife, or readeth it or heareth it, I will forgive his sins even to the tenth generation.” Having said this He kissed his mouth, and bearing him upon His breast carried him up into the air. And when he heard the praise of the angels, his soul tore itself away from his body, and entered the heavenly Jerusalem. Salutation to ‘Abib. Salutation to the twelve handmaidens, and to the three and forty men, and to the three hundred and sixty women, who under the influence of ‘Abib became martyrs.

And on this day also died Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?), who was like the angels. The name of the father of this holy man Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) was ‘Amone, and he was a native of the city of Akhmim; the name of his mother was Musya. And both of them were righteous before God, and they walked in His way; and they were very charitable towards pilgrims and strangers. Now they had no son at all. And his mother Musya saw a vision one night, and she saw in it a shining man who had with him a tree, and he planted the tree in her house, and it took root and blossomed and bore fruit. And the shining being said unto her, “Whosoever shall eat of this tree shall live for ever.” And the mother of the holy man took some of the fruit thereof and ate it, and it was sweet in her mouth, and she said in her heart, “Shall I, I wonder, have fruit.” When she awoke from her sleep she told her husband what she had seen. And he told her that he had seen in his vision what his wife had seen in her vision, and they praised God many times. And they added to their works of righteousness and to their strivings, and they fasted for two days at a time and their food was bread and salt. When the mother of the holy man Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) conceived, she prayed many prayers and vanquished enemies. And every night she prostrated herself to the ground one thousand times, and every day five hundred times for a period of nine months, until she brought forth her son; and she called him “ ‘Ebloy (Apollo?).” After this she added to her works of goodness and righteousness. When Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) arrived at man’s estate he wished to assume the garb of the monk, and he continued to feel this wish until he found the mans of gratifying it. Now he had a friend whose name was ‘Abib, and taking him with him they went forth by night, and they departed and became monks in one of the monasteries of Upper Egypt; and they devoted themselves to the ascetic life and fought strenuously. After a few days ‘Abib died, on the twenty-fifth day of the month Tekemt (Oct-Nov). Thereupon Saint Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) departed to the monastery of Ablug, and many men were gathered together [there], and he taught them the fear of God and right worship. And on the day of the death of Abba ‘Abib, whilst they were performing the service of commemoration, Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) said unto them, “O brethren, whosoever shall pray this day in the name of Abba ‘Abib God will forgive him his sin, even as Christ promised him with this promise, in the following words: ‘O My chosen one ‘Abib, whosoever shall pray one prayer on the day of thy commemoration (now Saint ‘Abib had said to God, Forgive me all my sin), I will forgive him his sin for thy name’s sake.’ “ And it came to pass in that hour that one of the monks died, and whilst they were standing and were burying him, one of the brethren who were monks felt doubts about what Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) said. And straightway that dead man rose up, and he began to speak and to say unto them, “Why do ye doubt the words of Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?)? God did covenant this covenant with our father Abba ‘Abib on the day of his commemoration”; when the dead man had said these words he turned and lay down again. And the brethren, the monks, marveled and praised God. Now Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) lived very many years, and he built many monasteries, and had many children; and in his days lived Abba Macarius the Great. When Abba Macarius heard the report of him he rejoiced therein exceedingly, and he wrote to him letters comforting him and his sons, the monks, and encouraging him to continue in the work, which was well pleasing to God. Now whilst Abba Macarius was writing those letters in the desert of Scete, Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?), being in Upper Egypt, knew by the Holy Spirit that he was doing so. And he said unto the monks who were round about him, speaking unto them with the voice of God, “Be silent, O my brethren, for behold Abba Macarius is writing to us a letter of encouragement.” Having spoken these words in this manner, behold, straightway a certain monk came having with him the letter of Abba Macarius. And the monks went out and they received him with joy, and he read the letter before all the monks with joy and they rejoiced with a great joy. This holy man Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) went to the holy father Abba Ammonius, and he saw that holy woman, whose name was Yawahit, dwelling with him. And Christ having wished to give him rest from the labor of this world, he died straightway in peace on the fifth day of the month of Yakatit (Feb-Mar). Now we have written the history of Abba ‘Ebloy (Apollo?) side by side with that of his friend Abba ‘Abib.

And on this day also took place the consecration of the church of Saint Julius the martyr, of the city of ‘Akpahos (Acfaha). Now the saint became a martyr in the city of Tewa, according to what is written in the account of his strife. And this took place after the destruction of Diocletian the infidel, when Constantine was reigning, and a few days before he was baptized with Christian baptism. And when he had been baptized the horn of the Christian kingdom was exalted, and churches were built in the names of the holy martyrs whom the infidel emperors had slain. When the Emperor Constantine heard the report of this holy man Julius, and how God had raised him up and preserved him so that he might care for the bodies of the holy martyrs, both him and his servants, and carry their bodies and bury them, and write the history of their strifes, and how he became a martyr afterwards, he praised [God] for this holy man, for his fight was good. And the emperor sent very much money to Egypt, and he commanded [the people] to build a fine church in his honor, and to carry his body thither and to lay it therein; and they built a fine church in his honor even as the emperor commanded, and they translated the body of Saint Julius and laid it therein. And the Archbishop of Alexandria and his bishops consecrated it, and celebrated a festival even as do we this day. And many great signs and wonders were wrought by the body of Saint Julius. Salutation to the consecration of thy church, O Julius.

And on this day also are commemorated Abba ‘Abel and Dalila (Delilah), the virgin. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 26 (November 5)

On this day died Saint Timon, apostle and martyr. Out Lord chose this disciple and he was of the number of the Seventy-two disciples whom He chose and made known and sent forth; and He gave them power to heal the sick and to cast out Satan. And this holy man received the heavenly gift and the divine grace, and with it he healed the sick, and the Satan submitted unto him; and he ministered unto our Lord Jesus Christ as long as He dwelt in the body upon earth. After our Lord had ascended into heaven this holy man ministered unto the apostles continually, and until the gift of the Holy Spirit descended upon him and upon them on the day of the feast of Pentecost. After this the apostles elected him into the number of the seventy deacons whom they appointed; and the Book is a witness concerning them that they were filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom. After he had served the office of deacon for a few days, the apostles appointed him a priest, and then they laid hands upon him and appointed him Bishop in the city of Besra of the West, of the country of Belka. And he preached the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ therein, and he baptized very many Greeks and Jews. When the governor of the city heard this he seized Saint Timon, and tortured him severely and burnt him in the fire, and he received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. Salutation to Timon.

And on this day also are commemorated Saint James, the brother of our Lord, and Huras the martyr.

And on this day also died Philip and Sawgenas. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 27 (November 6)

On this day died the holy and blessed father Abba Macarius, Bishop of the city of Kaw. In this holy man were fulfilled the words of David the prophet, saying, “Blessed is the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, who hath not stood in the way of sinners, and who hath not sat in the seat of the scoffers, but whose pleasure is in the Law of God, and in that Law he doth meditate (or speak) day and night” (Psalm I). This holy man kept the commandment of God, and he traded with [his] talent and gained profit thereby. How many were the signs and great wonders, which God wrought by the hands of this holy man! Concerning him it is said that when he was in the city of Kaw, every time he took his seat upon the throne to teach the people he would weep continuously. And one of his disciples whom he loved exceedingly adjured him, saying, “Why dost thou weep continuously, my father?” And because of his disciple’s adjuration he answered and said, “I weep when I see the sins of the people and the evil of their works; even as oil is seen upon glass.” And on another occasion he saw our Lord Christ sitting upon the altar, and the angels bringing unto Him the works of each and every man. And he heard a voice, which said, “Bishop, why dost thou keep thyself invisible to the people? Why dost thou not rebuke them and teach them?” And the bishop said, “My Lord, they will not accept my words.” And He said unto him, “It is meet for a bishop to admonish the people and to teach them; and if they will not receive his words then their blood be upon their own heads.” For this reason the holy man was always weeping. Then [this father] was summoned to go with Saint Abba Dioscorus to the Council, which had been assembled by the Emperor Marcianus. And when he arrived at the royal palace the guard would not allow him to enter because of his mean attire, and the soldiers told Abba Dioscorus, who said unto them, “Bring him in, for he is a bishop.” When he had gone in and had heard their words concerning our Lord in their evil faith, how they separated His Godhead and assigned to Him Two Natures, this holy man became wroth with them, and he cursed the Emperor Marcianus in the Council. And he spoke to the emperor fearlessly, for he had delivered himself over to death for the True Faith; and [the emperor] exiled him and Dioscorus to the island of Gagra. And from this place Dioscorus sent him with a certain believing man to the city of Alexandria, and he prophesied to him, saying, “Needs must that thou shalt receive the crown of martyrdom.” When Saint Abba Macarius had arrived in the city of Alexandria, there reached him at this time a letter from the infidel Emperor Marcianus, and with it was a roll containing a copy of the wicked creed, which assigned to Christ Two Natures. Now Marcianus, the infidel emperor, had commanded his envoy and said unto him, “He who shall first write [his name] on this roll, and doth believe our belief, make him Archbishop of the city of Alexandria.” And there was in the city of Alexandria a certain man, an infidel, a high priest, whose name was ‘Abrotari, and he took that filthy roll and wished to write [his name] first on it. And Saint Abba Macarius said unto ‘Abrotari, “Remember the word which Abba Dioscorus spoke unto thee when he went from the city of Alexandria, saying, ‘Thou shalt have dominion over the Church after me’”; and ‘Abrotari remembered that word and did not wish to write [his name] on that filthy roll. And the envoy of the emperor made known to him that Bishop Abba Macarius did not believe in the faith of the Emperor Marcianus, and that he would not write [his name] on that filthy roll. When the emperor heard this, he rose up in wrath, and he sent and had Saint Abba Macarius beaten on his members secretly, and straightway Abba Macarius died, and received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of heaven. And believers carried away the saint’s body, and they placed it with the bodies of Saint John the Baptist and Elisa the prophet. Now Saint Abba Macarius had seen vision wherein these saints, John and Elisa, had said unto him, “Thy body shall be with ours.” And the body of Saint Abba Macarius was with the bodies of Abba Macarius the Great, and Abba Macarius the Alexandrian in the monastery of Scete. And this father Macarius went to Christ Whom he loved, and crowned himself with the crown of endurance. Many salutations to Macarius, who hated false belief. When the wife of the governor laid her hand on the face of this holy man she was cleansed of her leprosy and made whole.

On this day also are commemorated Paul of the Cell, and Julianus and his companions who became martyrs. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 28 (November 7)

On this day the great saints Marcianus and Mercurius became martyrs. These holy men were disciples of Saint Paul the martyr, Archbishop of the city of Constantine. When the Emperor Constantine, the son of Constantine the Great, reigned, the belief of the infidel Arius waxed strong and he made himself the enemy of Abba Paul, Archbishop of the city of Constantine, and he banished him to the country of Armenia, and strangled him and killed him there. And saints Marcianus and Mercurius wrote jointly on the day of the death of Saint Paul, and cursed the emperor, and they said of him that he believed the faith of Arius the infidel, and they anathematized Arius and the emperor. And a certain wicked man went and made accusations against them to the emperor, and said unto him, “They have cursed thee and they have cursed Arius.” Now the emperor was dwelling in a certain village, and he sent and had the saints brought to him, and he commanded [his soldiers] to slay them with the sword, and they slew them and buried them where they had been slain, and their bodies remained in that place until the days of John of the Golden Mouth (Chrysostom). And when John heard the history of them he sent and brought their honorable bodies into the city of Constantine; and he built a beautiful church for them, and he translated their bodies and laid them in it, and the people made a great feast as at this day. Salutation to Marcianus and Mercurius, disciples of Paul the archbishop.

And on this day also are commemorated Abba Maksu, and Macarius, and the death of Japheth the son of Noah, whom his father blessed, saying, “God shall make broad the land of Japheth.”

And on this day also died Saint Abba Yam’ata, who was one of the Nine Saints. Salutation to Yam’ata, whose body was buried in a rock on the top of a mountain. Salutation to Abraham, who separated himself from the Gentiles, and to Jacob, and to Isaac. [This paragraph is not in the Bodleian MS.] Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 29 (November 8)

On this day is celebrated the festival of the Birth of our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ, by the Lady of us all, the holy two-fold virgin Mary, the God-bearer, for ever and ever, Amen. Salutation to Thy birth O Flower Who blossomed without water.

And on this day also the great Saint Demetrius became a martyr. This holy man lived in the days of Maximianus the infidel, and he was a native of the city of Thessalonica; he was a Christian, and he learned various kinds of learning, but he held in more esteem than all of them the doctrine of the Church, the Holy Orthodox Faith. And he taught and preached continually in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he converted many pagans, and brought them into the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. And certain men made accusations against Saint Demetrius to the infidel emperor, who commanded [his soldiers] to bring him to him. And there came to the place where the emperor was a man who was strong in his body, and thick in his bones, and who vanquished every man by his strength, and he was a skilled fighting man and no one was able to vanquish him. And the emperor loved this man exceedingly, and boasted of his superiority over every other man, and said, “I will give much money to the man who shall vanquish him”; but there was no man who was able to do so. At that moment there rose up from among those who were there a certain man, a Christian, whose name was Bastius, and he came to Saint Demetrius and asked him to pray for him, and to make the sign of the Cross with his hand on his body. And Saint Demetrius prayed over him, and he made upon the body of that man the sign of the Cross, which makes invincible him that believed thereon. And that man went to the emperor and asked him to let him fight with that fighter of whom the emperor boasted. And the emperor commanded that Bastius should fight with him, and he thought that the mighty man would vanquish him just as he had vanquished every other man. When Bastius joined in fight with that mighty man, he vanquished him and threw him on the ground, and the emperor was very sorry for this and was ashamed, and he marveled, and said, “By what means did Bastius vanquish that mighty man?” And the emperor asked his soldiers concerning this, and they told him that the holy man Demetrius had prayed over him and had made the sign of the Cross upon his body. When the emperor heard this he was exceedingly wroth with Saint Demetrius, and he commanded his soldiers to beat him until he offered incense to the gods, and worshipped them, and they did as he commanded. And when Demetrius would not obey his command the emperor commanded the soldiers to thrust at him with spears until he died. And the soldiers told Demetrius about this command, and they thought that he would deny and abandon the Faith of Christ, and worship idols. And Saint Demetrius said unto them, “Do whatsoever ye please, for I will neither offer incense to nor worship the filthy gods; I will worship only our Lord [Jesus Christ], the Son of the Living God, Who is God in truth.” And straightway the soldiers drove spears into him until he died, and he delivered up his pure soul into the hands of Christ. And when they threw out the body of the saint certain believing Christians took it and laid it in a sarcophagus in their house, and it remained hidden among them until the end of the days of persecution. And God revealed it to the Christians, who brought out his body, which was with them, and they built a great church for him in the city of Thessalonica, and they laid the body of the saint therein, and to this day it works great signs and miracles. And each day there distills from it oil and unguent having an exceedingly sweet odor, and when those who are sick anoint themselves therewith in firm faith they become healed, especially on the day of his commemoration. On that day he distills the unguent in a larger quantity than on any other day, and it drips from the walls of the church and the pillars thereof, and the people collect it and pour it into their scent bottles. And this sign shall continue, and shall be found to exist until the end of the world; now the priests and the righteous men who have seen this wonderful thing testify concerning [the truth thereof]. Salutation to Demetrius who was stabbed to death with spears. Salutation to Sakter the martyr, the friend of Mar Demetrius (?), and salutation to his servant who was cut to pieces after him. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.

Tekemt 30 (November 9)

On this day died the holy father, the fighter who prayed always, Abraham the anchorite. This holy man was a native of the city of Manuf, and his parents feared God, and served Christ, and they were exceedingly rich in the possessions of this world. When he had grown to man’s estate, this holy man wished to put on the garb of the ascetic life. And he departed to the city of Akhmim in Upper Egypt, and he came to the saint and great man Abba Pachomius, who arrayed him in the garb of the monk, and he subjected his body to strenuous work and continuous ascetic practices, and he fought incessantly and served God. And he dwelt with Abba Pachomius in his own company for three and twenty years, and then Saint Abraham asked Abba Pachomius to allow him to dwell by himself in a cell (or cave); and Abba Pachomius having commanded, Abraham departed and went into a cell, and he made with his own hands curved hooks wherewith men caught fish. And our Lord Jesus Christ brought unto him a certain layman who used to take what his hands made and go and buy for him dried beans, which he would carry to him, and what was left of the payment for his handiwork he gave to the poor and needy. The food of this holy man Abraham each day in the evening was a handful of beans soaked in water with a little salt thrown upon them; and he dwelt in this cell and lived this life or self-abnegation for thirteen years. And the apparel, which he used to put on, was that in which he went forth from the monastery, and it was worn out in these days, for he had had it a very long time, and he covered his body with rags. After [each] two or three years he used to go up to the brethren the monks, and partake of the Holy Mysteries and then return to his cell. At the beginning of his dwelling in the cell the devils used to come to him and terrify him, and make him hear voices, and they made themselves like [beings of] the underworld; and Abraham used to drive them away just as a man drives away dogs. When his death drew nigh he sent that layman to the monastery of Saint Abba Pachomius, and he summoned Saint Theodore his disciple, and when he came to him [he bowed down] at his feet, and he embraced him and asked him to remember him and to pray over him. Then Saint Abraham rose up and prayed with Saint Theodore and he lay down with his face to the east, and he delivered up his soul into the hand of God. And Saint Theodore sent to the monastery, and the monks came and carried his body thereto, and they all prayed over him and were blessed by him, and they laid him with the bodies of the saints. Salutation to Abraham who dressed in rags and ate beans soaked in water.

And on this day also are commemorated Falibun, and Kayna, and the appearance of the head of John the Baptist, and Martes, and Mars, and Isaac [the king]. Salutation to Isaac the King. Here ends the blessed month of Tekemt by the good pleasure of God Most High, and by the Will of His Son Jesus Christ, and by the help of our holy Lady, the two-fold Virgin, Mary, the God-bearer. May the blessing of her prayers and the gift of her help, and the mercy of her beloved Son be with our King John, and with the Queen Sabla Wangel, and with his scribe Walda Haymanot, and may God have mercy upon us in the kingdom of the heavens, with all the martyrs, forever and ever! Amen and Amen. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.