81

thrown to the wild beasts; 5.1.56 and after the scourgings, after the wild beasts, after the frying pan, lastly she was cast into a net and thrown before a bull, and having been sufficiently tossed by the animal, no longer even having a sense of what was happening because of the hope and holding fast to the things she believed and her communion with Christ, she too was sacrificed, with even the heathens themselves confessing that never among them had a woman suffered such and so many things. 5.1.57 "But not even so was their madness and cruelty to the saints sated. For like a savage beast, wild and barbarous tribes, once stirred up, were hard to stop, and their insolence took another particular turn upon the bodies; 5.1.58 for the fact that they had been defeated did not shame them because they lacked human reasoning, but rather it inflamed their rage like that of a wild beast, with both the governor and the populace showing a like unjust hatred toward us, so that the Scripture might be fulfilled: He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still. 5.1.59 For they even threw to the dogs those who had suffocated in the prison, carefully guarding them night and day lest any of them should be buried by us. And then they exposed the remains left by the beasts and by the fire, some torn, some charred, and the heads of the others along with their trunks, they likewise guarded unburied with a military watch for many days. 5.1.60 And some raged and gnashed their teeth at them, seeking to get some greater vengeance from them, while others laughed and jeered, at the same time magnifying their own idols and ascribing to them the punishment of these people. But those who were more reasonable and seemed to have a degree of sympathy reproached them greatly, saying: 'Where is their God, and what has that religion profited them, which they chose even before their own lives?' 5.1.61 So varied were their actions, but as for us, we were in great grief because we could not hide the bodies in the earth. For neither did night assist us in this, nor did money persuade, nor did entreaty prevail, but they kept watch in every way, as if they would gain some great thing if they did not obtain burial." 5.1.62 Next to this, after other things, they say: "So the bodies of the martyrs, having been exposed in every way and left in the open air for six days, were afterwards burnt and reduced to ashes by the lawless men, and were swept into the Rhone river which flowed nearby, so that not even a remnant of them might be seen on the earth any more. 5.1.63 And they did these things as if they were able to conquer God and take away their regeneration, so that, as they said, 'they might not have any hope of resurrection, trusting in which they introduce a strange and new religion to us and despise terrible things, going readily and with joy to their death. Now let us see if they will rise again, and if their God is able to help them and deliver them from our hands.'" 5.2.1 Such things happened to the churches of Christ under the aforesaid emperor, from which it is possible with reasonable inference to conjecture what was done in the other provinces. It is worthwhile to add to these from the same writing other words, by which the gentleness and love for humanity of the aforementioned martyrs is recorded in these very words: 5.2.2 "They became to such a degree zealous followers and imitators of Christ, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, so that, though they were in such glory and had borne witness not once or twice but many times, and had been taken up again from the wild beasts, and had the branding-irons and the weals and the wounds covering them, neither did they proclaim themselves martyrs, nor indeed did they permit us to address them by this name; but if ever any of us by letter or by word called them martyrs, they rebuked us sharply. 5.2.3 For they gladly yielded the title of martyrdom to Christ, the faithful and true martyr and the firstborn from the dead and the author of the life of God, and they remembered those who had departed

81

θηρία βεβλημένη· 5.1.56 καὶ μετὰ τὰς μάστιγας, μετὰ τὰ θηρία, μετὰ τὸ τήγανον, τοὔσχατον εἰς γυργαθὸν βληθεῖσα ταύρῳ παρεβλήθη, καὶ ἱκανῶς ἀναβληθεῖσα πρὸς τοῦ ζῴου μηδὲ αἴσθησιν ἔτι τῶν συμβαινόντων ἔχουσα διὰ τὴν ἐλπίδα καὶ ἐποχὴν τῶν πεπιστευμένων καὶ ὁμιλίαν πρὸς Χριστόν, ἐτύθη καὶ αὐτή, καὶ αὐτῶν ὁμολογούντων τῶν ἐθνῶν ὅτι μηδεπώποτε παρ' αὐτοῖς γυνὴ τοιαῦτα καὶ τοσαῦτα ἔπαθεν. 5.1.57 «ἀλλ' οὐδ' οὕτως κόρον ἐλάμβανεν αὐτῶν ἡ μανία καὶ ἡ πρὸς τοὺς ἁγίους ὠμότης. ὑπὸ γὰρ ἀγρίου θηρὸς ἄγρια καὶ βάρβαρα φῦλα ταραχθέντα δυσπαύστως εἶχεν, καὶ ἄλλην ἰδίαν ἀρχὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς σώμασιν ἐλάμβανεν ἡ ὕβρις αὐτῶν· 5.1.58 τὸ γὰρ νενικῆσθαι αὐτοὺς οὐκ ἐδυσώπει διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ἀνθρώπινον ἐπιλογισμόν, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἐξέκαιεν αὐτῶν τὴν ὀργὴν καθάπερ θηρίου, καὶ τοῦ ἡγεμόνος καὶ τοῦ δήμου τὸ ὅμοιον εἰς ἡμᾶς ἄδικον ἐπιδεικνυμένων μῖσος, ἵνα ἡ γραφὴ πληρωθῇ· ὁ ἄνομος ἀνομησάτω ἔτι, καὶ ὁ δίκαιος δικαιωθήτω ἔτι. 5.1.59 καὶ γὰρ τοὺς ἐναποπνιγέντας τῇ εἱρκτῇ παρέβαλλον κυσίν, ἐπιμελῶς παραφυλάσσοντες νύκτωρ καὶ μεθ' ἡμέραν μὴ κηδευθῇ τις ὑφ' ἡμῶν· καὶ τότε δὴ προθέντες τά τε τῶν θηρίων τά τε τοῦ πυρὸς λείψανα, πῇ μὲν ἐσπαραγμένα, πῇ δὲ ἠνθρακευμένα, καὶ τῶν λοιπῶν τὰς κεφαλὰς σὺν τοῖς ἀποτμήμασιν αὐτῶν ὡσαύτως ἀτάφους παρεφύλαττον μετὰ στρατιωτικῆς ἐπιμελείας ἡμέραις συχναῖς. 5.1.60 καὶ οἳ μὲν ἐνεβριμοῦντο καὶ ἔβρυχον τοὺς ὀδόντας ἐπ' αὐτοῖς, ζητοῦντές τινα περισσοτέραν ἐκδίκησιν παρ' αὐτῶν λαβεῖν, οἳ δὲ ἐνεγέλων καὶ ἐπετώθαζον, μεγαλύνοντες ἅμα τὰ εἴδωλα αὐτῶν καὶ ἐκείνοις προσάπτοντες τὴν τούτων τιμωρίαν, οἱ δὲ ἐπιεικέστεροι καὶ κατὰ ποσὸν συμπαθεῖν δοκοῦντες ὠνείδιζον πολύ, λέγοντες· «ποῦ ὁ θεὸς αὐτῶν καὶ τί αὐτοὺς ὤνησεν ἡ θρῃσκεία, ἣν καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἑαυτῶν εἵλαντο ψυχῆς;» 5.1.61 καὶ τὰ μὲν ἀπ' ἐκείνων τοιαύτην εἶχε τὴν ποικιλίαν, τὰ δὲ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἐν μεγάλῳ καθειστήκει πένθει διὰ τὸ μὴ δύνασθαι τὰ σώματα κρύψαι τῇ γῇ· οὔτε γὰρ νὺξ συνεβάλλετο ἡμῖν πρὸς τοῦτο οὔτε ἀργύρια ἔπειθεν οὔτε λιτανεία ἐδυσώπει, παντὶ δὲ τρόπῳ παρετήρουν, ὡς μέγα τι κερδανοῦντες, εἰ μὴ τύχοιεν ταφῆς». 5.1.62 τούτοις ἑξῆς μεθ' ἕτερά φασιν· «τὰ οὖν σώματα τῶν μαρτύρων παντοίως παραδειγματισθέντα καὶ αἰθριασθέντα ἐπὶ ἡμέρας ἕξ, μετέπειτα καέντα καὶ αἰθαλωθέντα ὑπὸ τῶν ἀνόμων κατεσαρώθη εἰς τὸν Ῥοδανὸν ποταμὸν πλησίον παραρρέοντα, ὅπως μηδὲ λείψανον αὐτῶν φαίνηται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἔτι. 5.1.63 καὶ ταῦτ' ἔπραττον ὡς δυνάμενοι νικῆσαι τὸν θεὸν καὶ ἀφελέσθαι αὐτῶν τὴν παλιγγενεσίαν, ἵνα, ὡς ἔλεγον ἐκεῖνοι, «μηδὲ ἐλπίδα σχῶσιν ἀναστάσεως, ἐφ' ᾗ πεποιθότες ξένην τινὰ καὶ καινὴν εἰσάγουσιν ἡμῖν θρῃσκείαν καὶ καταφρονοῦσι τῶν δεινῶν, ἕτοιμοι καὶ μετὰ χαρᾶς ἥκοντες ἐπὶ τὸν θάνατον· νῦν ἴδωμεν εἰ ἀναστήσονται καὶ εἰ δύναται βοηθῆσαι αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς αὐτῶν καὶ ἐξελέσθαι ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ἡμῶν». 5.2.1 Τοιαῦτα καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὸν δεδηλωμένον αὐτοκράτορα ταῖς Χριστοῦ συμβέβηκεν ἐκκλησίαις, ἀφ' ὧν καὶ τὰ ἐν ταῖς λοιπαῖς ἐπαρχίαις ἐνηργημένα εἰκότι λογισμῷ στοχάζεσθαι πάρεστιν. ἄξιον τούτοις ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς ἐπισυνάψαι γραφῆς λέξεις ἑτέρας, δι' ὧν τὸ ἐπιεικὲς καὶ φιλάνθρωπον τῶν δεδηλωμένων μαρτύρων ἀναγέγραπται τούτοις αὐτοῖς τοῖς ῥήμασιν· 5.2.2 «οἳ καὶ ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον ζηλωταὶ καὶ μιμηταὶ Χριστοῦ ἐγένοντο, ὃς ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ ὑπάρχων οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα θεῷ, ὥστε ἐν τοιαύτῃ δόξῃ ὑπάρχοντες καὶ οὐχ ἅπαξ οὐδὲ δὶς ἀλλὰ πολλάκις μαρτυρήσαντες καὶ ἐκ θηρίων αὖθις ἀναληφθέντες καὶ τὰ καυτήρια καὶ τοὺς μώλωπας καὶ τὰ τραύματα ἔχοντες περικείμενα, οὔτ' αὐτοὶ μάρτυρας ἑαυτοὺς ἀνεκήρυττον οὔτε μὴν ἡμῖν ἐπέτρεπον τούτῳ τῷ ὀνόματι προσαγορεύειν αὐτούς, ἀλλ' εἴ ποτέ τις ἡμῶν δι' ἐπιστολῆς ἢ διὰ λόγου μάρτυρας αὐτοὺς προσεῖπεν, ἐπέπλησσον πικρῶς. 5.2.3 ἡδέως γὰρ παρεχώρουν τὴν τῆς μαρτυρίας προσηγορίαν τῷ Χριστῷ, τῷ πιστῷ καὶ ἀληθινῷ μάρτυρι καὶ πρωτοτόκῳ τῶν νεκρῶν καὶ ἀρχηγῷ τῆς ζωῆς τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ ἐπεμιμνήσκοντο τῶν ἐξεληλυθότων