Vita Porphyrii episcopi Gazensis

 I was a witness to the man's virtue, having lived with him and sailed with him and suffered hardships with him until the last day of his life here. An

 Thessaloniki, and after showing the written instruction, I divided the property with his brothers. And I sold to them the estates allotted to me for t

 he distributed, so that he himself was in need of daily food. Therefore he gave himself to the shoemaker's craft, washing and stitching hides, in all

 a letter to the aforementioned holy Praulius, the bishop of Jerusalem, to send the blessed Porphyry to him for the sake of a certain question of scrip

 16 And on that night, the blessed John sends for the Gazans and says to them: Be ready for the departure for today you receive your priest, a man who

 of the orthodox faith, whose life and works are written in the paradise of delight. So, having come to the aforementioned church, we made so many pray

 23 But when the idol-worshippers saw him being carried, and thinking he was dead, they were turned to madness because they thought it was an abominati

 of the ordinations of the deacons, both I and the God-loving Barochas, I being very unworthy, but he worthily and justly having received this gift.

 29 And she had a faithful nurse, who, being in great distress, made prayers in the houses of prayer on her behalf. Therefore, on one day as she was pr

 33 And the most holy Porphyry answered and said to him: I adjure you before the invisible God and our hope Jesus Christ, the Lord of all creation, and

 the Lord has revealed to my humble self. When you go up to Byzantium, first meet with the most holy bishop John and together with him make prayers to

 39 On the next day, the Cubicularius Amantius sent for us by two deans to go to the palace, and rising up in haste we went. We found him waiting for u

 her face was red and beauty was added to her appearance beyond what she had for the visible things make manifest the invisible things.

 Having gone away, we made the supplication, arranging many things on the charter, not only that the temples of the idols be destroyed, but also that p

 Next I will send for the quaestor and in your sight I will command him that in accordance with the power of your petition a divine letter be made in t

 my child, and many and great are the things that have been granted to us. And immediately the emperor ordered the prefects to bequeath to them from th

 the sign of the precious cross, and they themselves chanting. And the people of the two places mingled, and became no small crowd for those from the

 63 But after the tenth day, the wonderful Cynegius arrived, having with him the consular and the duke and a great military and civil force. But many o

 leave the outer one with the enclosure. And after it is burned, having cleansed the place, build a holy church there. And he also said this: I adjure

 inner doors, and having made a prayer they set the fire, and immediately the whole temple caught and was burned. As many of the soldiers and the forei

 that if they are not found worthy of the faith, having already become settled in evil, those born of them are able to be saved by associating with the

 the former Marneion, and he himself followed carrying the holy gospel and having the devout clergy around him, truly imitating Christ with the discipl

 the Lord, for the three children are alive. And when the holy bishop among the saints and the people heard, they rejoiced, and sending a large basket,

 they speak of astrology, so that they may sin without fear, as if the power to sin is not in us, but from the necessity of fate.

 being glorified, will strike your tongue and muzzle your mouth, so that it may not speak blasphemies.

 of those in need of his gifts. And in the days of the fasts of the holy Pascha he supplied to each poor person 10 obols for forty days. Having command

 the blessed one again, being moved to compunction, wept, having foreseen the faith she was about to have in Christ. And rising and saying the customar

 a tongue, Photine to her he entrusted Salaphtha, giving her the monastic habit, and committing them to God he sent them away in peace. And she undert

29 And she had a faithful nurse, who, being in great distress, made prayers in the houses of prayer on her behalf. Therefore, on one day as she was praying in the church with tears, the holy Porphyry entered around the ninth hour, and I with him, and he sees the old woman in agony beseeching God with tears, and stopping he asked her the cause. And when she saw him, she fell at his feet, begging him to pray to Christ on her behalf. And when the saint learned the woman's cause, he also wept; for he was exceedingly compassionate. And he says to the nurse: I hear about that house that it is given to idols and they can with difficulty be saved, but nevertheless with God all things are possible; for he saves through an occasion those who are about to perish. Go, therefore, and gather all the relatives and parents and the husband and say to them: Since there is here an excellent physician who can heal her, if he makes her escape such a danger, what will you grant him? They will certainly promise you many things. And tell them this also: If he heals her, give me your word beforehand that you will not transgress it nor go to another. Make them all raise their hands to heaven and give their word that they will do all that they have promised. And when they have done these things, say to the woman in labor in front of everyone: Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, heals you; believe in him and you shall live.

30 And when the old woman heard the word of the blessed bishop, having received his instruction she ran to the house, and finding everyone weeping and the woman in extreme danger, she begged her parents and her husband not to lose heart; and she said that an excellent physician has sent me to you so that you may give me your word, that when she is healed you will not deny him. And when the parents and the husband heard, they said: If he wishes to take all our substance, we will not hesitate, only let us see our daughter alive. And the nurse said: Raise your hands to heaven and give me your word that you will not deny the physician. And they eagerly and with tears raised their hands, saying that all that is ours is his for all the time of our life; for what consolation will we have if she dies? For she was their only-begotten and gracious in her ways if any other woman was. And the nurse, having heard, said with a loud voice in front of everyone: The great priest Porphyry says: Jesus Christ, the son of the living God, heals you; believe in him and you shall live. And immediately the woman, crying out loudly, brought forth the infant alive.

31 And all who were found there, being astonished, cried out: Great is the God of the Christians, great is the priest Porphyry. And on the next day, the parents of the woman and her husband and all the relatives and close friends, going to the blessed Porphyry, fell at his feet, asking for the seal in Christ. And the blessed one, having sealed them and made them catechumens, dismissed them in peace, instructing them to devote themselves to the holy church, and after a short time, having catechized them, he baptized them with the woman and the infant; and they called his name Porphyry. And those who were enlightened on the occasion of the woman were sixty-four in number.

32 But as much as the idolaters saw the Christians increasing in number, they became enraged and did not permit them to hold civil offices, but treated them as wicked servants. And the blessed Porphyry, seeing again the great injustice toward the Christians and not bearing it, and seeing them being abused, goes out to Caesarea to the blessed John the archbishop and begs him with tears to grant him relief; for he said he was no longer able to bear the outrageous things being done by the Gazans. And the blessed John, having heard, urged him to be patient and to hold on to the episcopate.

29 Ὑπῆρχεν δὲ αὐτῇ τροφὸς πιστή, ἥτις ὑπεραλγοῦσα, δεήσεις ἐποιεῖτο ἐν τοῖς εὐκτηρίοις οἴκοις ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς. Ἐν μιᾷ οὖν ἡμέρᾳ αὐτῆς εὐχομένης ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ μετὰ δακρύων, εἰσῆλθεν ὁ ἐν ἁγίοις Πορφύριος περὶ τὴν ἐνάτην ὥραν, κἀγὼ δὲ ἅμα αὐτῷ, καὶ ὁρᾷ τὴν γραῦν κατώδυνον δεομένην τοῦ θεοῦ μετὰ δακρύων, καὶ στὰς ἐπηρώτα αὐτὴν τὴν αἰτίαν. Ἣ δὲ θεασαμένη αὐτὸν προσέπεσεν τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτοῦ παρακαλοῦσα αὐτὸν δεηθῆναι τῷ Χριστῷ ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς. Ὡς δὲ ἔγνω ὁ ἅγιος τῆς γυναικὸς τὴν αἰτίαν, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐδάκρυσεν· ἦν γὰρ καθ' ὑπερβολὴν εὔσπλαγχνος. Λέγει δὲ τῇ τροφῷ· Ἀκούω περὶ τοῦ οἴκου ἐκείνου ὅτι κατείδωλος τυγχάνει καὶ δυσχερῶς δύνανται σωθῆναι, ἀλλ' ὅμως τῷ θεῷ πάντα δυνατά· καὶ γὰρ διὰ προφάσεως σῴζει τοὺς μέλλοντας ἀπόλλυσθαι. Ἄπελθε οὖν καὶ συνάγαγε πάντας τοὺς συγγενεῖς καὶ γονεῖς καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα καὶ εἰπὲ αὐτοῖς· Ἐπειδὴ ἔστιν ἐνταῦθα ἰατρὸς ἄριστος δυνάμενος αὐτὴν θεραπεῦσαι, ἐὰν ποιήσῃ αὐτὴν διαφυγεῖν τὸν τοιοῦτον κίνδυνον, τί χαρίζεσθε αὐτῷ; Πάντως δὲ ἔχουσι πολλά σοι συντάξασθαι. Εἰπὲ δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ τοῦτο· Ἐὰν αὐτὴν θεραπεύσῃ, δότε μοι λόγον πρὸ τούτου ὅτι οὐ παραβαίνετε αὐτὸν οὔτε πρὸς ἄλλον ἀπέρχεσθε. Ποίησον πάντας αὐτοὺς ἀνατεῖναι τὰς χεῖρας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ δοῦναι λόγον ὅτι ποιοῦσιν πάντα ἃ ἐπηγγείλαντο. Καὶ ὅταν ταῦτα ποιήσωσιν, εἰπὲ τῇ λοχευομένῃ γυναικὶ ἐπὶ πάντων· Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος, ἰᾶταί σε· εἰς αὐτὸν πίστευσον καὶ ζήσῃ.

30 Ἀκούσασα δὲ ἡ γραῦς τὸν λόγον τοῦ μακαρίου ἐπισκόπου, λαβοῦσα παρ' αὐτοῦ παράθεσιν ἔδραμεν ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον, καὶ εὑροῦσα πάντας κλαίοντας καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα ἐν ἐσχάτῳ κινδύνῳ παρεκάλει τοὺς γονεῖς αὐτῆς καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα μὴ ἀθυμῆσαι· ἔλεγεν δὲ ὅτι Ἰατρὸς ἄριστος ἀπέστειλέν με πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἵνα παράσχητέ μοι λόγον, ὅτι ταύτης θεραπευομένης οὐκ ἀρνεῖσθε αὐτόν. Ἀκούσαντες δὲ οἱ γονεῖς καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ εἶπον· Ἐὰν βουληθῇ πᾶσαν ἡμῶν τὴν οὐσίαν λαβεῖν, οὐκ ὀκνήσομεν, μόνον ἴδωμεν τὴν θυγατέρα ἡμῶν ζῶσαν. Ἡ δὲ τροφὸς εἶπεν· Ἀνατείνατε τὰς χεῖρας ὑμῶν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ δότε μοι λόγον ὅτι οὐκ ἀρνεῖσθε τὸν ἰατρόν. Οἳ δὲ προθύμως καὶ μετὰ δακρύων ἀνέτειναν τὰς χεῖρας λέγοντες ὅτι Καὶ πάντα τὰ ἡμῶν αὐτῷ πάντα τὸν χρόνον τῆς ζωῆς ἡμῶν· ποίαν γὰρ παραμυθίαν μέλλομεν ἔχειν ταύτης τελευτώσης; Ἦν γὰρ αὐτοῖς μονογενὴς καὶ ἀστεία τοὺς τρόπους εἴπερ ἄλλη γυνή. Ἀκούσασα δὲ ἡ τροφὸς μεγάλῃ τῇ φωνῇ ἐπὶ πάντων εἶπεν· Λέγει ὁ μέγας ἱερεὺς Πορφύριος· Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος, ἰᾶταί σε· εἰς αὐτὸν πίστευσον καὶ ζήσῃ. Εὐθέως δὲ ἡ γυνὴ ὀλολύξασα μέγα κατήγαγεν τὸ βρέφος ζῶν.

31 Πάντες δὲ οἱ ἐκεῖ εὑρεθέντες ἐκπλαγέντες ἔκραξαν· Μέγας ὁ θεὸς τῶν Χριστιανῶν, μέγας ὁ ἱερεὺς Πορφύριος. Τῇ δὲ ἑξῆς οἱ γονεῖς τῆς γυναικὸς καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ καὶ πάντες οἱ συγγενεῖς καὶ οἱ γνήσιοι πορευθέντες πρὸς τὸν μακάριον Πορφύριον προσέπεσαν τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτοῦ αἰτούμενοι τὴν ἐν Χριστῷ σφραγῖδα. Ὁ δὲ μακάριος σφραγίσας αὐτοὺς καὶ ποιήσας κατηχουμένους ἀπέλυσεν ἐν εἰρήνῃ, παραγγείλας αὐτοῖς σχολάζειν τῇ ἁγίᾳ ἐκκλησίᾳ, καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον χρόνον κατηχήσας αὐτοὺς ἐβάπτισεν σὺν τῇ γυναικὶ καὶ τῷ βρέφει· ἐκάλεσαν δὲ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Πορφύριον. Ἦσαν δὲ οἱ φωτισθέντες διὰ τὴν πρόφασιν τῆς γυναικὸς τὸν ἀριθμὸν ἑξήκοντα τέσσαρες.

32 Ὅσον δὲ ἔβλεπον οἱ τῆς εἰδωλομανίας πληθυνομένους τοὺς Χριστιανούς, ἠγριαίνοντο καὶ οὐ συνεχώρουν αὐτοῖς μετελθεῖν πολιτικῶν ὀφφικίων, ἀλλ' ὡς κακοῖς οἰκέταις ἐχρῶντο αὐτοῖς. Ὁρῶν δὲ πάλιν ὁ μακάριος Πορφύριος τὴν πολλὴν ἀδικίαν τῶν Χριστιανῶν καὶ μὴ φέρων, βλέπων δὲ αὐτοὺς ἐπηρεαζομένους, ἐξέρχεται ἐπὶ Καισάρειαν πρὸς τὸν μακάριον Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀρχιεπίσκοπον καὶ παρακαλεῖ αὐτὸν μετὰ δακρύων ἄνεσιν παρασχεῖν αὐτῷ· μηκέτι γὰρ δύνασθαι φέρειν ἔλεγεν τὰ ἄτοπα τὰ γινόμενα ὑπὸ τῶν Γαζαίων. Ὁ δὲ μακάριος Ἰωάννης ἀκούσας παρεκάλει αὐτὸν μακροθυμῆσαι καὶ ἀντέχεσθαι τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς.