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Polyeuctus, Martyr

ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY THEN AND NOW: Holy Martyr Polyeuktos of Melitene in Armenia

Already by 377, there is a church in Melitene in Armenia dedicated to the memory of Polyeuctus. He came from a Greek family and was an officer in the Roman army. He was converted to faith in Christ by a Christian friend. Subsequently, the two were arrested, tortured, and condemned to death, possibly during the persecution of Decius, emperor from 249 to 251, or, as more generally accepted, in the year 259 under the emperor Valerian. In a way akin to Saint Job in the Old Testament, the Acts of Polyeuctus include entreaties from his wife (and son) for him to give up and give in to the torture, i.e. to renounce Christ, in order to escape martyrdom. But it is said that the more they did so, the more he urged his wife to abandon her idols and cling to Christ. Polyeuctus was eventually beheaded for his faith.

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Saturninus, Dativus, & Companions, Martyrs

Saints Saturninus, Dativus, and Companions (sometimes referred to as the forty-nine martyrs of Abitina) died under the persecution of Diocletian in 304. The emperor’s edict included the order to destroy all copies of the Scriptures with fire and to give up meeting together. Many Christians obeyed, but many more refused. Saturninus was a priest in Abitina, in North Africa. He and his congregation were arrested one Sunday by one of the local magistrates and a group of soldiers. All of the Christians–both women and men–were incredibly brave, speaking boldly of their faith in Christ. In particular, their interrogators were interested in getting a confession of their taking part in the assembly of Christians (the Mass, or Divine Service). One of them answered: “Sine dominico non possumus” – we cannot live without this thing of the Lord, referring to the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist. The martyrs were not executed but died in prison, either from prolonged exposure to harsh conditions or from the effects of the tortures they underwent.

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Apollonia of Alexandria, Virgin, Martyr

Apollonia (d. 249) was a consecrated virgin and deaconess living in Alexandria, Egypt. There were festivities taking place to commemorate the millennium of the founding of Rome, when an anti-Christian riot broke out. After killing two other Christians and pillaging still others’ houses, a mob also seized Apollonia since she was a leader in the local Christian community. Here is what Eusebius relates in his Ecclesiastical History: “But they also seized that most admirable virgin Apollonia, then in advanced life, and knocked out all her teeth, and crushed her jaws; and then kindling a fire before the city, they threatened to burn her alive unless she would repeat along with them their expressions of impiety. And although she seemed to deprecate her fate for a little, on being let go, she leaped eagerly into the fire and was consumed.” Thus, rather than renounce Christ, Apollonia died a martyr.

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Dorothy of Caesarea, Virgin, Martyr

(Feb. 6) Dorothy was a young Christian virgin from Caesarea, in modern-day Turkey, who lived during the time of the great persecution of Christians under the Roman emperor Diocletian. In the year 311, she was arrested by the governor for being a Christian, in response to which she steadfastly confessed her faith in Christ and was consequently tortured and condemned to death. According to tradition, on the way to her execution, one of the governor’s counselors was mocking her, telling her to send him apples and roses after she arrived in paradise (it was mid-winter in Caesarea). The tradition says that right before she was put to death, Dorothy prayed and when she opened her eyes, there was a little child beside her, holding apples and roses. She asked the child to take them to the counselor after her death, and upon receiving them, he repented and converted to faith in Christ.