Alexander of Cyprus, Praise of Barnabas the Apostle

Laudatio barnabae apostoli an encomium of alexander the monk for the holy apostle barnabas, at the prompting of the presbyter and key-holder of his ve

Boorish and violent. but when he saw the great works of wonders being done through the apostles and the multitude of the people being added daily to t

The lord ordained for himself. then paul recounted to them what had happened to him on the road, and that he had seen the lord and that he had spoken

To be circumcised and to keep the law. but when mark saw them honored by all and that after so many tortures and dangers they were strong and whole, c

Jesus christ, and to keep his commandments and to do them and to abstain from every evil thing for we must all appear before the judgment seat of chr

Being pleased, he knew it to be divinely inspired and having ordained mark, he sent him as most capable to alexandria, which is by egypt and libya an

To recall him from the abyss of impiety, but when they saw him contradicting and becoming more audacious against the orthodox faith, then they pronoun

Ruling city and to be judged by the ecumenical patriarch against those of antioch, he was numbed with fear, suspecting the machinations of knapheus n

And he permitted the patriarch to hold a hearing with the resident synod concerning the matters between the parties and to discuss the issue at hand.

The cypriots of constantia on the eleventh of the tenth month, mesori, but according to the asians, that is, according to the paphians, on the ninetee

our fathers desired to see; for behold, Jesus, a certain prophet from Nazareth of Galilee, is in the temple, magnificently working wonders, and as it seems to many, he is the Messiah who is to come." And when the admirable woman heard these things, and having left what was in her hands, she went down to the temple of God, and seeing the Lord and master of the temple, she fell at his feet, begging and saying: "Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, come to the house of your handmaiden and bless your household by your entrance." And the Lord consented to her request; whom, having arrived, she received rejoicing into her upper room. From that day, therefore, whenever the Lord came to Jerusalem, there he rested with his disciples, there he celebrated the Passover with his disciples, there he initiated the disciples through the participation in the secret mysteries. For a story came to us from the elders that the man carrying the jar of water, whom the Lord commanded the disciples to follow, was Mark, the son of this blessed Mary; and the Lord said "to such a man" providentially, as the fathers say, interpreting this passage, teaching us through the riddle that the Lord lodges with everyone who prepares himself.

In that same upper room, therefore, the Lord celebrated the Passover; in it he appeared to those with Thomas, having risen from the dead; there after the ascension the disciples went up, having come from the Mount of Olives with the rest of the brethren, being about one hundred and twenty in number, among whom were Barnabas and Mark; there the Holy Spirit descended in tongues of fire upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost; there now is established the great and most holy Zion, the mother of all churches.Then Barnabas followed the Lord, as he was returning from Jerusalem to Galilee; and with many from all directions coming to the Lord and believing in him, then he said to the disciples: "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few." Then he appointed the seventy disciples, of whom the great Barnabas happened to be first and leader and chief. But let no one, hearing that the apostles gave him this name, think ignorantly that he received this name without divine inspiration; for Peter gave him this name, through a revelation of the Holy Spirit, he who also received the theology of the Son through a revelation from the Father; and just as James and John were called sons of thunder because of their virtue, so also Barnabas was called son of encouragement because of his virtue, having become an encouragement to all through his exceeding holiness. And hearing the Lord teaching and saying: "Sell your possessions and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail," without any delay, immediately his remaining property, which was very valuable, from his parents—for they had departed this life—having sold it all, he distributed it to those in need, leaving for himself only that field for his own sustenance.

But after the passion and the resurrection and the ascension of the Lord and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the divine Barnabas, being further inflamed with love for the Lord, sold even that field and, having received sufficient money, brought it all and laid it at the apostles' feet, leaving nothing at all for himself from it, stirring up all the disciples to similar virtue by his own example.And he spoke and disputed with Saul, wishing to bring him to the faith of the Lord. But Saul, supposedly relying on his strict conduct according to the law, mocked Barnabas as one who had been deceived, and blasphemed the Lord, calling him the son of the carpenter and an unlearned man and

ἐπεθύμουν ἰδεῖν οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν· ἰδοὺ γὰρ Ἰησοῦς τίς προφήτης ἀπὸΝαζαρὲτ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ, μεγαλοπρεπῶς θαυματουργῶν, καὶ ὡς τοῖς πολλοῖς δοκεῖ, αὐτός ἐστι Μεσσίας ὁ μέλλων ἔρχεσθαι." Ἀκούσασα δὲ ταῦτα ἡ θαυμασία γυνὴ καὶ καταλιποῦσα τὰ ἐν χερσί, κατέλαβε τὸν ναὸν τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ ἰδοῦσα τὸν κύριον καὶ δεσπότην τοῦ ναοῦ, ἔπεσεν εἰς τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ, δεομένη καὶ λέγουσα· "Κύριε, εἰ εὖρον χάριν ἐναντίον σου, δεῦρο εἰς τὸν οἶκον τῆς δούλης σου καὶ εὐλόγησον τῇ εἰσόδῳ σου τὰ οἰκετικά σου." Ὁ δὲ κύριος ἐπένευσε τῇ παρακλήσει· ὃν παραγενόμενον ὑπεδέξατο χαίρουσα εἰς τὸ ὑπερῶον αὐτῆς. Ἀπ' ἐκείνης οὖν τῆς ἡμέρας, ἡνίκα ἤρχετο ὁ κύριος εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, ἐκεῖ ἀνεπαύετο μετὰ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ, ἐκεῖ ἐποίησε τὸ Πάσχα μετὰ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ, ἐκεῖ ἐμυσταγώγησε τοὺς μαθητὰς διὰ τῆς μεταλήψεως τῶν ἀπορρήτων μυστηρίων. Λόγος γὰρ ἦλθεν εἰς ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ γερόντων ὅτι ὁ τὸ κεράμιον βαστάζων τοῦ ὕδατος, ᾧ κατακολουθῆσαι προσέταξεν ὁ κύριος τοῖς μαθηταῖς, Μάρκος ἦν, ὁ υἱὸς ταύτης τῆς μακαρίας Μαρίας· ὁ δὲ κύριος "πρὸς τὸν δεῖνα" εἶπεν οἰκονομικῶς, ὡς φασὶν οἱ πατέρες, ἑρμηνεύοντες τοῦτο τὸ χωρίον, διδάσκων ἡμᾶς διὰ τοῦ αἰνίγματος ὅτι παντὶ τῷ εὐτρεπίζοντι ἑαυτόν, παρ' αὐτῷ ὁ κύριος αὐλίζεται.

Ἐν αὐτῷ τοίνυν τῷ ὑπερώῳ ἐποίησεν ὁ κύριος τὸ Πάσχα· ἐν αὐτῷ ἐφάνη τοῖς περὶ τὸν Θωμᾶν, ἐγερθεὶς ἐκ νεκρῶν· ἐκεῖ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάληψιν ἀνῆλθον οἱ μαθηταί, ἐλθόντες ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄρους τῶν Ἐλαιῶν μετὰ τῶν λοιπῶν ἀδελφῶν, ὄντων τὸν ἀριθμὸν ὡς ἐκατὸν εἴκοσιν, ἐν οἷς ἦν Βαρνάβας καὶ Μάρκος· ἐκεῖ κατέβη τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐν πυρίναις γλώσσαις ἐπὶ τοὺς μαθητὰς ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς Πεντηκοστῆς· ἐκεῖ ἵδρυται νῦν ἡ μεγάλη καὶ ἁγιωτάτη Σιών, ἡ μήτηρ πασῶν τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν.Τότε δὲ Βαρνάβας ἠκολούθησε τῷ κυρίῳ, ὑποστρέφοντι ἀπὸ Ἱεροσολύμων εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν· πολλῶν δὲ παν ταχόθεν προσερχομένων τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν πι στευόντων, τότε εἶπε τοῖς μαθηταῖς· "Ὁ μὲν θερισμὸς πολύς, οἱ δὲ ἐργάται ὀλίγοι." Τότε ἀνέδειξε τοὺς ἑβδομήκοντα μαθητάς, ὧν πρῶτος καὶ ἔξαρχος καὶ κο ρυφαῖος ὁ μέγας Βαρνάβας ἐτύγχανεν. Ἀλλὰ μηδείς, ἀκούων ὅτι οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἐπέθηκαν αὐτῷ τὴν προση γορίαν ταύτην, οἰέσθω ἀμαθῶς ὅτι ἄνευ θείας ἐπιπνοίας τὴν προσηγορίαν ταύτην ἐδέξατο· Πέτρος γὰρ αὐτῷ ἐπέθηκε τὸ ὄνομα τοῦτο, δι' ἀποκαλύψεως τοῦ ἁγίουΠνεύματος, ὁ καὶ δι' ἀποκαλύψεως τοῦ Πατρὸς τὴν τοῦΥἱοῦ θεολογίαν δεξάμενος· καὶ ὥσπερ Ἰάκωβος καὶ Ἰωάννης υἱοὶ βροντῆς ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐκλήθησαν, οὕτω καὶ Βαρνάβας ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐκλήθη υἱὸς παρακλήσεως, πάντων παράκλησις γενόμενος δι' ὑπερβολὴν ἁγιότητος. Ἀκούσας δὲ τοῦ κυρίου διδάσκοντος καὶ λέγοντος· "Πωλήσατε τὰ ὑπάρχοντα ὑμῶν καὶ δότε ἐλεημοσύνην· ποιήσατε ἑαυτοῖς βαλλάντια μὴ παλαιούμενα, θησαυρὸν ἀνέκλειπτον ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς," μηδὲν μελλήσας, εὐθέως τὴν ὑπολειφθεῖσαν αὐτῷ οὐσίαν, πολύτιμον οὖσαν, ὑπὸ τῶν γονέων-ἦσαν γὰρ ὑπεξελθόντες τὸν βίον πᾶσαν καταπωλήσας, διένειμε τοῖς χρείαν ἔχουσι, κα ταλείψας ἑαυτῷ μόνον τὸν ἀγρὸν ἐκεῖνον εἰς ἰδίαν ἀποτροφήν.

Μετὰ δὲ τὸ πάθος καὶ τὴν ἀνάστασιν καὶ τὴν ἀνάληψιν τοῦ κυρίου καὶ τὴν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐπιφοίτησιν, ἐπὶ πλεῖον πυρωθεὶς ὁ θεῖος Βαρνάβας τῇ εἰς τὸν κύριον ἀγάπῃ καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν ἀγρὸν ἐκεῖνον ἀποδόμενος καὶ λαβὼν ἱκανὰ χρήματα, ἅπαντα ἐνέγκας παρὰ τοὺς πόδας τῶν ἀποστόλων ἔθηκε, μηδὲν τὸ σύνολον καταλείψας ἑαυτῷ ἐξ αὐτῶν, τῷ καθ' ἑαυτὸν ὑποδείγματι εἰς τὴν ὁμοίαν ἀρετὴν πάντας τοὺς μαθητὰς διεγείρων.Ἐλάλει δὲ καὶ συνεζήτει πρὸς τὸν Σαῦλον, βουλόμενος εἰς τὴν τοῦ κυρίου αὐτὸν πίστιν ἀγαγεῖν. Σαῦλος δὲ τῇ κατὰ τὸν νόμον ἀκριβεῖ πολιτείᾳ δῆθεν ἐπερειδόμενος, τοῦ μὲν Βαρνάβα κατεγέλα ὡς ἀπατηθέντος, τὸν δὲ κύριον ἐβλασφήμει, υἱὸν τοῦ τέκτονος αὐτὸν ἀποκαλῶν καὶ ἰδιώτην καὶ