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

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

43 She says then to the most holy bishops: Pray, fathers, that according to your word, God willing, I may give birth to a male child, and if this happens, I promise you to do all that you ask. And another thing which you have not asked I am about to do, Christ assenting; for I shall build a holy church in Gaza in the very center of the city. Go therefore in peace and be at rest, praying continually for me that I may give birth with loving-kindness; for this is the ninth month and it is near to being fulfilled. The bishops therefore, having taken their leave and committed her to God, went out of the palace. And there was prayer that she might bear a male child; for we believed the word of the holy Procopius the hermit. And day by day we would go to the most holy Archbishop John and enjoy his holy words, which were sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. And the ever-memorable cubicularius Amantius would come to us continually, sometimes bringing replies from the empress, and sometimes for the sake of a meeting.

44 After a few days the empress gave birth to a male child, and they called his name Theodosius, after the name of his own grandfather, Theodosius the Spaniard, who reigned with Gratian; and the new Theodosius who was born was born in the purple, for which reason he was also proclaimed emperor from his confinement. And there was great joy in the city, and some were sent to the cities announcing the good news, and there were gifts and largesses. And the lady, as soon as she had given birth and risen from the childbed chair, sent Amantius to us, saying to us through him: I thank Christ that through your holy prayers God has granted me a son. Pray therefore, fathers, for his life and for me, the humble one, that I may fulfill those things which I promised you, again with Christ himself willing, through your holy prayers.

45 When the seven days of her confinement were completed, she summoned us, and met us at the door of the cubiculum, carrying the infant in the purple. And she bowed her head, saying: Bless, fathers, me and the child whom the Lord granted me through your holy prayers. And she handed over the infant that they might seal it. And the holy bishops sealed both her and the child with the seal of Christ and, having made a prayer, sat down. After they had spoken many words filled with compunction, the lady said to them: Do you know, fathers, what I have planned to do concerning your matter? And my lord Porphyry answered and said: Whatever you have planned, you have planned according to God; for in this very night it was revealed to my lowliness through a vision; for I seemed to be in Gaza, and to be standing in the idol-temple there called the Marneion, and your piety seemed to hand me a gospel, and to say to me: Take it and read. And opening it, I found the passage in which the Lord Christ says to Peter: ‘You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.’ And you, lady, answered and said: ‘Peace be with you, be strong and be brave.’ And at this I awoke, and from this I am persuaded that the Son of God will cooperate with your purpose. But tell us, lady, what you have planned.

46 And the empress answered and said: If it please Christ, in a few days the child will be deemed worthy of holy baptism. Go, therefore, and prepare a petition, and set down in it whatever you wish, and when the infant comes out from the precious baptism, give the petition to the one holding him, and I will instruct him beforehand what to do, and I hope in the Son of God that he will manage the whole matter according to the will of his compassion. And we, having received such instructions, and having blessed both her and the infant many times, went out and

πρόσωπον αὐτῆς ἐρυθρὸν καὶ προσετέθη τῇ ὄψει κάλλος ὑπὲρ ὃ εἶχεν· τὰ γὰρ τῶν ἀδήλων φανεροῖ τὰ φαινόμενα.

43 Λέγει οὖν τοῖς ὁσιωτάτοις ἐπισκόποις· Εὔξασθε, πατέρες, ἵνα κατὰ τὸ ῥῆμα ὑμῶν, θεοῦ θέλοντος, γεννήσω τὸν ἄρρενα, καὶ ἐὰν τοῦτο γένηται, ἐπαγγέλλομαι ὑμῖν πάντα ὅσα αἰτεῖτε ποιεῖν. Καὶ ἄλλο δὲ ὃ οὐκ αἰτήσασθε μέλλω ποιεῖν, Χριστοῦ ἐπινεύοντος· ἁγίαν γὰρ ἐκκλησίαν κτίζω ἐν Γάζῃ εἰς τὸ μεσώτατον τῆς πόλεως. Ἀπέλθατε οὖν μετ' εἰρήνης καὶ ἡσυχάσατε εὐχόμενοι συνεχῶς ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ ἵνα μετὰ φιλανθρωπίας τέκω· οὗτος γάρ ἐστιν ὁ μὴν ὁ ἔνατος καὶ ἐγγύς ἐστι τοῦ πληρῶσαι. Συνταξάμενοι οὖν οἱ ἐπίσκοποι καὶ παραθέμενοι αὐτὴν τῷ θεῷ ἐξῆλθον τοῦ παλατίου. Ἦν δὲ εὐχὴ ἵνα τέκῃ τὸν ἄρρενα· ἐπιστεύομεν γὰρ τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ ὁσίου Προκοπίου τοῦ ἀναχωρητοῦ. Καὶ καθ' ἡμέραν ἐπορευόμεθα πρὸς τὸν ἁγιώτατον Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀρχιεπίσκοπον καὶ ἀπελαύομεν τῶν ἁγίων αὐτοῦ λόγων τῶν γλυκυτέρων ὑπὲρ μέλι καὶ κηρίον. Ἤρχετο δὲ συνεχῶς πρὸς ἡμᾶς καὶ ὁ ἀείμνηστος Ἀμάντιος ὁ κουβικουλάριος, ποτὲ μὲν φέρων ἀποκρίσεις τῆς βασιλίσσης, ποτὲ δὲ καὶ χάριν συντυχίας.

44 Μετ' ὀλίγας δὲ ἡμέρας γεννᾷ ἡ βασίλισσα τὸν ἄρρενα, καὶ καλοῦσι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Θεοδόσιον εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ αὐτοῦ πάππου Θεοδοσίου τοῦ Σπάνου, τοῦ συμβασιλεύσαντος Γρατιανῷ· ὁ δὲ γεννηθεὶς νέος Θεοδόσιος ἐν τῇ πορφύρᾳ ἐτέχθη, ὅθεν καὶ ἀπὸ λοχείας βασιλεὺς ἀνηγορεύθη. Ἐγένετο δὲ πολλὴ χαρμοσύνη ἐν τῇ πόλει, καὶ ἐπέμφθησαν εὐαγγελιζόμενοί τινες εἰς τὰς πόλεις καὶ δωρεαὶ καὶ χαρίσματα. Ἡ δὲ δέσποινα, ᾗ μόνον ἔτεκεν καὶ ἀνέστη ἐκ τοῦ λοχηφόρου δίφρου, ἀπέστειλεν πρὸς ἡμᾶς Ἀμάντιον, λέγουσα ἡμῖν δι' αὐτοῦ· Εὐχαριστῶ τῷ Χριστῷ ὅτι διὰ τῶν ὑμῶν ὁσίων εὐχῶν ἐχαρίσατό μοι ὁ θεὸς τὸν υἱόν. Εὔξασθε οὖν, πατέρες, τῇ ζωῇ αὐτοῦ κἀμοὶ δὲ τῇ ταπεινῇ ἵνα ἐκεῖνα πληρώσω ἃ ἐπηγγειλάμην ὑμῖν, πάλιν αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χριστοῦ θέλοντος, διὰ τῶν ἁγίων ὑμῶν εὐχῶν.

45 Τῶν δὲ ἑπτὰ ἡμερῶν τῆς λοχείας πληρωθεισῶν, μεταπέμπεται ἡμᾶς, καὶ ἀπαντᾷ ἡμῖν εἰς τὴν θύραν τοῦ κουβουκλίου, βαστάζουσα καὶ τὸ βρέφος ἐν τῇ πορφύρᾳ. Ἔκλινεν δὲ τὴν κεφαλὴν εἰποῦσα· Εὐλογήσατε, πατέρες, ἐμὲ καὶ τὸ παιδίον ὃ ἐχαρίσατό μοι ὁ κύριος διὰ τῶν ὑμῶν ἁγίων εὐχῶν. Ἐπεδίδου δὲ καὶ τὸ βρέφος ἵνα αὐτὸ σφραγίσωσιν. Οἱ δὲ ὅσιοι ἐπίσκοποι καὶ αὐτὴν καὶ τὸ παιδίον ἐσφράγισαν τῇ τοῦ Χριστοῦ σφραγῖδι καὶ ποιήσαντες εὐχὴν ἐκάθισαν. Μετὰ δὲ τὸ λαλῆσαι αὐτοὺς πολλοὺς λόγους πεπληρωμένους κατανύξεως, λέγει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἡ δέσποινα· Οἴδατε, πατέρες, τί ἐβουλευσάμην ποιῆσαι περὶ τοῦ ὑμετέρου πράγματος; Ὁ δὲ ἐμὸς κύριος Πορφύριος ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν· Ὅσα ἐβουλεύσω, κατὰ θεὸν ἐβουλεύσω· καὶ γὰρ ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ ἀπεκαλύφθη τῇ ἐμῇ εὐτελείᾳ δι' ὁράματος· ἔδοξα γὰρ ἡμᾶς εἶναι ἐν Γάζῃ, ἑστάναι δὲ ἐν τῷ ἐκεῖσε εἰδωλείῳ τῷ καλουμένῳ Μαρνείῳ, καὶ τὴν σὴν εὐσέβειαν ἐπιδιδόναι μοι εὐαγγέλιον, καὶ λέγειν μοι· Λάβε ἀνάγνωθι. Ἐγὼ δὲ ἀναπτύξας εὗρον τὴν περικοπὴν ἐν ᾗ λέγει ὁ δεσπότης Χριστὸς τῷ Πέτρῳ· «Σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς». Σὺ δέ, δέσποινα, ἀποκριθεῖσα εἶπες· Εἰρήνη σοι, ἴσχυε καὶ ἀνδρίζου. Καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις διυπνίσθην, καὶ ἐκ τούτου πέπεισμαι ὅτι ἔχει ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ συνεργῆσαι τῇ σῇ προαιρέσει. Εἰπὲ δὲ ἡμῖν, δέσποινα, τί ἐβουλεύσω.

46 Ἡ δὲ βασίλισσα ἀποκριθεῖσα εἶπεν· Ἐὰν παραστῇ τῷ Χριστῷ, μετ' ὀλίγας ἡμέρας ἀξιοῦται τὸ παιδίον τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος. Ἀπελθόντες οὖν ποιήσατε ἱκεσίαν καὶ αἰτήσασθε τάξαντες ἐν αὐτῇ ὅσα δἂν βούλησθε, καὶ ὅταν ἐξέλθῃ τὸ βρέφος ἐκ τοῦ τιμίου βαπτίσματος, ἐπίδοτε τὴν ἱκεσίαν τῷ βαστάζοντι αὐτό, ἐγὼ δὲ προδιδάσκω αὐτὸν τί ποιῆσαι, καὶ ἐλπίζω εἰς τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ὅτι ὅλον τὸ πρᾶγμα ἔχει οἰκονομῆσαι κατὰ τὸ θέλημα τῆς αὐτοῦ εὐσπλαγχνίας. Ἡμεῖς δὲ λαβόντες τοιαύτας συνταγάς, πολλὰ εὐλογήσαντες αὐτήν τε καὶ τὸ βρέφος, ἐξήλθαμεν καὶ