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he was taken up into the heavens. And having summoned Pilate, he said to him concerning Simon, "Is this the one whom you handed over to be crucified?" And Pilate, having examined him, said, "It is not he; for this man has long hair and is stout." And concerning Peter, he asked him, "Do you know this disciple of his?" And he said, "Yes. For they brought him to me, as his disciple, and I questioned him, and he denied it, saying he was not his disciple; and I released him." And so Nero, since Simon had lied and called himself Christ, which he was not, and since Peter was again 255 convicted by Pilate and had denied Christ, gave the order, and both were cast out of the palace. And they spent their time in Rome performing miracles in opposition to each other; and Simon the magician, when a great bull was brought, spoke a word into its ear, and immediately the bull died, and Simon was marveled at. But Peter, immediately praying in the presence of all, made the bull live again; and the same bull was returned to its own master. And all were praising Peter, saying that to make a dead thing live is a greater miracle. And they performed many other signs in opposition to each other, which have been recorded in the Acts of the holy apostles. But the apostle Peter through his prayer killed Simon the magician who wished to be taken up. For Simon said to Peter, "He said that Christ your god was taken up. Behold, I too am being taken up." And Peter saw him being lifted by magic into the air in the midst of the city of Rome; and Peter prayed and Simon the magician was brought down from the air to the ground in the public square and perished. And his remains lie there to this day where he fell, and it has a stone railing around it; and that place has been called the Simonion ever since. And when Nero the emperor heard that Simon had been killed by Peter, he was enraged; and he ordered him to be arrested and put to 256 death. And as soon as the holy Peter was seized, he handed over the vestment of the episcopate of Rome to one named Linus, his disciple; for he was following him when he was seized. And this same holy Peter was old in age, two-thirds of the way, bald in front, with short hair, completely gray on the head and beard, white-skinned, pale, with wine-colored eyes, a fine beard, a long nose, with meeting eyebrows, stooped, prudent, quick-tempered, changeable, timid, speaking by the holy spirit and working miracles. And after the holy Peter, the bishop, that is, patriarch, of Rome was one named Linus, as the wise Eusebius of Pamphilus chronicled. And the holy apostle Peter was martyred, being crucified upside down, as the apostle himself had made the prefect swear this, "Let me not be crucified as my Lord was." And the holy Peter was perfected in the consulate of Apronianus and Capito. Likewise, the same emperor Nero was also enraged against Pilate, and ordered him to be beheaded, saying, "Why did he hand over the Lord Christ to the Jews, a blameless man who performed mighty works?" For if his disciple performed such wonders, how powerful must he have been? And in his reign, the holy Paul also arrived immediately in Rome, having been sent from the land of Judaea to stand 257 trial; and he too was martyred, having his head cut off on the third day before the Kalends of July in the consulate of Nero and Lentulus. And the emperor Nero ordered that the bodies of the holy apostles not be given burial but remain unburied. And Paul was still living, in age short of stature, bald, with mixed gray head and beard, with a fine nose, with grayish-blue eyes, with meeting eyebrows, fair-skinned, with a fresh complexion, a fine beard, having a slightly smiling expression, prudent, of good character, affable, sweet, inspired by the holy spirit and healing. And he sent against Judaea and Jerusalem the

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εἰς τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ἀνελήφθη. καὶ καλέσας τὸν Πιλᾶτον εἶπεν αὐτῷ περὶ τοῦ Σίμωνος ὅτι Οὗτός ἐστιν ὃν ἐξέδωκας εἰς τὸ σταυρωθῆναι; καὶ προσεσχηκὼς αὐτῷ ὁ Πιλᾶτος εἶπεν, Οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτός· οὗτος γὰρ καὶ καρηκομόων ἐστὶ καὶ περιπληθής. περὶ δὲ τοῦ Πέτρου ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτόν, Τοῦτον δὲ μαθητὴν αὐτοῦ οἶδας; ὁ δὲ εἶπε, Ναί. εἰσήγαγον γάρ μοι αὐτόν, ὡς μαθητὴν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπηρώτησα αὐτόν, καὶ ἠρνήσατο λέγων μὴ εἶναι αὐτοῦ μαθητής· καὶ ἀπέλυσα αὐτόν. καὶ λοιπὸν Νέρων, ὡς ψευσαμένου τοῦ Σίμωνος καὶ εἰπόντος ἑαυτὸν Χριστόν, ὅπερ οὐκ ἦν, καὶ τοῦ Πέτρου πάλιν 255 ἐλεγχθέντος ὑπὸ τοῦ Πιλάτου καὶ ἀρνησαμένου τὸν Χριστόν, ἐκέλευσε, καὶ ἐξεβλήθησαν ἀμφότεροι ἐκ τοῦ παλατίου. Καὶ διῆγον ἐν τῇ Ῥώμῃ ποιοῦντες θαύματα ἀπέναντι ἀλλήλων· καὶ ὁ μὲν Σίμων ὁ μάγος ἀχθέντος ταύρου μεγάλου εἶπεν εἰς τὸ ὠτίον αὐτοῦ λόγον, καὶ εὐθέως ὁ ταῦρος ἀπέθανε καὶ ἐθαυμάζετο ὁ Σίμων. ὁ δὲ Πέτρος εὐθέως εὐξάμενος ἐπὶ πάντων ἐποίησεν ἀναζῆσαι τὸν ταῦρον· καὶ ἀπεδόθη τῷ ἰδίῳ δεσπότῃ ὁ αὐτὸς ταῦρος. καὶ πάντες ἐπῄνουν τὸν Πέτρον, λέγοντες ὅτι τὸ ποιῆσαι τεθνεῶτα ζῆσαι μεῖζόν ἐστι θαῦμα. καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πολλὰ ἐποίησαν σημεῖα κατέναντι ἀλλήλων, ἅτινα ἐν ταῖς πράξεσι τῶν ἁγίων ἀποστόλων συγγέγραπται. ὁ δὲ ἀπόστολος Πέτρος δι' εὐχῆς αὐτοῦ ἐφόνευσε τὸν Σίμωνα τὸν μάγον θελήσαντα ἀναληφθῆναι. εἶπε γὰρ ὁ Σίμων τῷ Πέτρῳ ὅτι εἶπεν ὅτι Χριστὸς ὁ θεός σου ἀνελήφθη. ἰδοὺ κἀγὼ ἀναλαμβάνομαι. καὶ εἶδεν αὐτὸν ὁ Πέτρος κουφιζόμενον διὰ τῆς μαγείας εἰς τὸν ἀέρα ἐν μέσῳ τῆς πόλεως Ῥώμης· καὶ ηὔξατο ὁ Πέτρος καὶ κατηνέχθη Σίμων ὁ μάγος ἐκ τοῦ ἀέρος εἰς τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ τὴν πλατεῖαν καὶ ἐψόφησε. καὶ τὸ λείψανον αὐτοῦ κεῖται ἐκεῖ ἕως ἄρτι ὅπου ἔπεσε, καὶ ἔχει πέριξ κάγκελλον λίθινον· καὶ ἀκούει ὁ τόπος ἐκεῖνος ἔκτοτε τὸ Σιμώνιον. Ἀκούσας δὲ Νέρων ὁ βασιλεὺς ὅτι ἐφονεύθη ὑπὸ τοῦ Πέτρου ὁ Σίμων, ἠγανάκτησε· καὶ ἐκέλευσεν αὐτὸν συσχεθέντα ἀποθα 256 νεῖν. καὶ ἢ μόνον ἐκρατήθη ὁ ἅγιος Πέτρος, ἐπέδωκε τὸ ἔνδυμα τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς Ῥώμης Λίνῳ ὀνόματι, μαθητῇ αὐτοῦ· ἠκολούθει γὰρ αὐτῷ ὅτε ἐκρατήθη. ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς ἅγιος Πέτρος γέρων ὑπῆρχε τῇ ἡλικίᾳ διμοιριαῖος, ἀναφάλας, κονδόθριξ, ὁλοπόλιος τὴν κάραν καὶ τὸ γένειον, λευκός, ὑπόχλωρος, οἰνοπαὴς τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς, εὐπώγων, μακρόρινος, σύνοφρυς, ἀνακαθήμενος, φρόνιμος, ὀξύχολος, εὐμετάβλητος, δειλός, φθεγγόμενος ὑπὸ πνεύματος ἁγίου καὶ θαυματουργῶν. Καὶ ἐγένετο μετὰ τὸν ἅγιον Πέτρον τὸν ἐπίσκοπον, ἤτοι πατριάρχην, Ῥώμης ὀνόματι Λίνος, καθὼς ὁ σοφὸς Εὐσέβιος ὁ Παμφίλου ἐχρονογράφησεν. Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος Πέτρος ὁ ἀπόστολος ἐμαρτύρησε σταυρωθεὶς κατακέφαλα, τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἀποστόλου ὁρκώσαντος τοῦτο τὸν ἔπαρχον ὅτι Μὴ ὡς ὁ κύριός μου σταυρωθῶ. καὶ ἐτελειώθη ὁ ἅγιος Πέτρος ἐπὶ τῆς ὑπατείας Ἀπρωνιανοῦ καὶ Καπίτωνος. Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ κατὰ τοῦ Πιλάτου ἠγανάκτησεν ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεὺς Νέρων, καὶ ἐκέλευσεν αὐτὸν ἀποκεφαλισθῆναι, λέγων, ∆ιὰ τί ἐξέδωκε τὸν δεσπότην Χριστὸν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, ἄνδρα ἄμεμπτον καὶ δυνάμεις ποιοῦντα; εἰ γὰρ ὁ αὐτοῦ μαθητὴς τοιαῦτα θαυμάσια ἐποίει, ὁποῖος ὑπῆρχεν ἐκεῖνος δυνατός; Ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς αὐτοῦ βασιλείας κατέφθασεν εὐθέως ἐν τῇ Ῥώμῃ καὶ ὁ ἅγιος Παῦλος πεμφθεὶς ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας χώρας παραστά 257 σιμος· καὶ ἐμαρτύρησε καὶ αὐτὸς ἀποτμηθεὶς τὴν κεφαλὴν τῇ πρὸ γʹ καλανδῶν ἰουλίων ἐπὶ τῆς ὑπατείας Νέρωνος καὶ Λεντούλου. καὶ ἐκέλευσεν ὁ βασιλεὺς Νέρων τὰ σώματα τῶν ἁγίων ἀποστόλων ταφῇ μὴ παραδοθῆναι ἀλλ' ἄταφα μεῖναι. ὑπῆρχε δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ἔτι περιὼν τῇ ἡλικίᾳ κονδοειδής, φαλακρός, μιξοπόλιος τὴν κάραν καὶ τὸ γένειον, εὔρινος, ὑπόγλαυκος, σύνοφρυς, λευκόχρους, ἀνθηροπρόσωπος, εὐπώγων, ὑπογελῶντα ἔχων τὸν χαρακτῆρα, φρόνιμος, ἠθικός, εὐόμιλος, γλυκύς, ὑπὸ πνεύματος ἁγίου ἐνθουσιαζόμενος καὶ ἰώμενος. Ἔπεμψε δὲ κατὰ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ ὁ