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When the Saracens attacked the wall and battle was joined, the wretched man, running to the wall, was struck 1.797 by a stone from the mangonel, which crushed his head and face, and he received a recompense worthy of his impiety. However, the impious emperor Leo was not only in error concerning the relative veneration of the holy icons, but also concerning the intercessions of the all-pure Theotokos and of all the saints; and the all-defiled one also abhorred the relics of the saints, like his teachers, the Arabs. From this time, therefore, he shamelessly began to vex the blessed Germanus, whom he also summoned and began to bring up certain arguments with hypocrisy and to condemn all the emperors and priests before him as having committed idolatry in the veneration of the holy icons. But the great Germanus said, "Listen, O Emperor. When our Lord Jesus Christ appeared in the flesh, all idolatry was done away with, and every idolatrous statue vanished and was cast out, as the prophet Zechariah says that the Lord Sabaoth says, 'I will destroy the names of the idols from the land, and they shall be remembered no more.' However, we hear that the destruction of the holy icons is going to happen, but not in your reign." And when he pressed him to say in whose reign, the saint said, "In the reign of Conon." And he replied and said, "Indeed, that is I; for that is my baptismal name." And the great Germanus answered and said, "May it not be, my lord, that this God-hated evil be done in your reign." But the tyrant who fought against God, 1.798 hearing this, becoming exceedingly angry and roaring like a lion, called him an idolater and, striking him with his own hands, drove him from the palace. And having held a silention against the holy icons, he summoned the holy Germanus again, thinking to persuade him to sign. But he did not yield at all to the tyrant's flattery or threats. Rather, indeed, the blessed one reminded him of the agreements before his emperorship, how he had given God as his guarantor not to disturb any of the dogmas of the truth. But not even so was the miserable man ashamed; but rather he strove, if he might somehow catch him in his words, so that he might depose him from his throne as a factionist and not as a confessor. He found, therefore, for this purpose an ally, Anastasius, the syncellus of the saint, having arranged for him to be the successor to the throne. The blessed one, not being ignorant of him, as another Iscariot, wisely reminded him of matters concerning betrayal. And once, as he was entering the palace, Anastasius stepped on the back of the saint's robe; to whom the holy one said, "Do not hurry; the Diippion awaits you." And after 15 years, Constantine the persecutor, with his son-in-law Artabasdos along with his other enemies, after beating this man in the hippodrome, paraded him naked on a donkey, sitting backwards, through the Diippion, because he had excommunicated the emperor Constantine and crowned Artabasdos; and from this the prophecy of the most holy Germanus came to pass. In Byzantium, then, as a champion of the dogmas of piety, this sacred and divinely-inspired 1.799 Germanus flourished, fighting with beasts each day against the appropriately-named Leo and his partisans, while in elder Rome, there was Gregory, an apostolic man and co-enthroned with Peter the coryphaeus, who was called Dialogus on account of the divine works written by him. This saint, on account of Leo's unholy deeds, revolted, and having made a peace treaty with the Frank, he both forbade the taxes and anathematized Anastasius and those with him. And he very clearly rebuked the emperor through his many letters known to many. And in Damascus of Syria there was John, a monk and presbyter, the Chrysorrhoas, the son of Mansour, which is interpreted as Lentravos, whom the impious Manzer renamed with a Jewish mentality. This holy John was also named a melodist along with Cosmas, bishop of Maiuma, and Theophanes, brother of Theodore the Grapti, because they
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προσβαλόντων τῶν Σαρακηνῶν τῷ τείχει καὶ πολέ μου κροτηθέντος, δραμὼν εἰς τὸ τεῖχος ὁ ταλαίπωρος βάλλεται 1.797 τῷ ἐκ τοῦ μαγγανικοῦ λίθῳ, ὃς συνέτριψεν αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον, ἄξιον τῆς αὐτοῦ δυσσεβείας κομισάμενος τὸ ἀνταπόδομα. Ὁ μέντοι βασιλεὺς Λέων οὐ μόνον περὶ τὴν σχετικὴν τῶν σεπτῶν εἰκόνων ὁ δυσσεβὴς ἐσφάλλετο προσκύνησιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τῶν πρεσβειῶν τῆς πανάγνου θεοτόκου καὶ πάντων τῶν ἁγίων· καὶ τὰ λείψανα δὲ τῶν ἁγίων ὁ παμμίαρος, ὡς οἱ διδά σκαλοι αὐτοῦ Ἄραβες, ἐβδελύττετο. ἐκ τοῦδε τοίνυν τοῦ χρόνου ἀναιδῶς τῷ μακαρίῳ Γερμανῷ προσετρίβετο, ὃν καὶ μεταστειλά μενος ἤρξατο λόγους τινὰς κινεῖν μεθ' ὑπουλίας καὶ καταγινώσκειν πάντων τῶν πρὸ αὐτοῦ βασιλέων καὶ ἱερέων ὡς εἰδωλολατρησάν των ἐν τῇ προσκυνήσει τῶν ἁγίων εἰκόνων. ὁ δὲ μέγας ἔφη Γερ μανός "ἄκουσον βασιλεῦ. τοῦ κυρίου ὑμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ διὰ σαρκὸς ἐπιφανέντος πᾶσα εἰδωλολατρία ἐκποδὼν γέγονε καὶ πᾶν ἄγαλμα εἰδωλικὸν ἠφάνισται καὶ ἐξωστράκισται, ὥς φησιν ὁ προ φήτης Ζαχαρίας ὅτι λέγει κύριος Σαβαώθ, ἐξολοθρεύσω τὰ ὀνό ματα τῶν εἰδώλων ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, καὶ οὐκέτι αὐτῶν ἔσται μνεία. πλὴν τὴν καθαίρεσιν τῶν ἱερῶν εἰκόνων ἀκούομεν μέλλειν ἔσεσθαι, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐπὶ τῆς σῆς βασιλείας." τοῦ δὲ βιασαμένου εἰπεῖν ἐπὶ ποίας, ἔφη ὁ ἅγιος ἐπὶ Κόνωνος. ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς ἔφη "ὄντως ἐγώ εἰμι· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ βαπτιστικόν μου." καὶ ὁ μέγας Γερμανὸς ὑπολαβὼν ἔφη "μὴ γένοιτο, δέσποτα, ἐπὶ τῆς σῆς βασιλείας πραχθῆναι τὸ θεοστυγὲς τοῦτο κακόν." ὁ δὲ θεομάχος 1.798 τύραννος τοῦτο ἀκούσας, σφόδρα χαλεπήνας καὶ λεόντειον βρύξας, εἰδωλολάτρην τε ἀποκαλέσας καὶ ταῖς ἰδίαις χερσὶ ῥαπίσας τῶν βασιλείων ἐξελαύνει. σιλέντιόν τε ποιήσας κατὰ τῶν ἁγίων εἰκό νων προσκαλεῖται πάλιν τὸν ἅγιον Γερμανόν, οἰόμενος πεῖσαι αὐ τὸν ὑπογράψαι. ὁ δὲ οὐδ' ὅλως εἶξε τῇ θωπείᾳ ἢ τῇ ἀπειλῇ τοῦ τυράννου. μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν ἀνέμνησεν αὐτὸν ὁ μακάριος τῶν πρὸ τῆς αὐτοκρατορίας συνθηκῶν, ὅπως αὐτὸν θεὸν ἐγγυητὴν δέδωκε μὴ παρασαλεῦσαί τι τῶν τῆς ἀληθείας δογμάτων. ἀλλ' οὐδ' οὕ τως ᾐσχύνθη ὁ ἄθλιος· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἠγωνίζετο, εἴ που αὐτὸν ἐν λόγοις συλλήψεται, ἵν' ὡς φατριαστὴν καὶ οὐχ ὡς ὁμολογητὴν καθέλῃ τοῦ θρόνου. εὗρεν οὖν εἰς τοῦτο σύμμαχον Ἀναστάσιον σύγκελλον τοῦ ἁγίου, συνταξάμενος αὐτὸν τοῦ θρόνου διάδοχον ἔσεσθαι. ὃν ὁ μακάριος οὐκ ἀγνοῶν, ὡς ἄλλον Ἰσκαριώτην, σοφῶς τὰ περὶ προδοσίας ἀνεμίμνησκε. καί ποτε εἰσερχομένου πρὸς τὰ βασίλεια, ἐπάτησεν ὁ Ἀναστάσιος τὰ ὀπίσθια τῆς στολῆς τοῦ ἁγίου· πρὸς ὃν ὁ ὅσιος ἔφη "μὴ σπεῦδε· τὸ ∆ίιππον ἐκδέχε ταί σε." μετὰ δὲ ἔτη ιεʹ Κωνσταντῖνος ὁ διώκτης μετὰ τοῦ γαμ βροῦ αὐτοῦ Ἀρταβάσδου σὺν ἄλλοις ἐχθροῖς αὐτοῦ τοῦτον τύψας ἐν τῷ ἱπποδρόμῳ, διὰ τοῦ ∆ιίππου γυμνὸν ἐπ' ὄνου καθίσας ἐξ ἀντιστρόφου ἐπόμπευσε διὰ τὸ ἀνασκάψαι μὲν τὸν βασιλέα Κων σταντῖνον, στέψαι δὲ τὸν Ἀρτάβασδον· κἀντεῦθεν ἡ πρόρρησις ἀπέβη τοῦ ὁσιωτάτου Γερμανοῦ. ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ Βυζαντίῳ πρό μαχος τῶν ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας δογμάτων ὁ ἱερὸς οὗτος καὶ θεσπέσιος 1.799 ἤκμαζε Γερμανός, θηριομαχῶν καθ' ἑκάστην πρὸς τὸν φερώνυμον Λέοντα καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ συνασπιστάς, ἐν δὲ τῇ πρεσβυτέρᾳ Ῥώμῃ Γρηγόριος ἀποστολικὸς ἀνὴρ καὶ Πέτρου τοῦ κορυφαίου σύνθρο νος, ὃς διὰ τὰ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γινόμενα θεῖα πονήματα ∆ιάλογος ἐκλήθη. οὗτος ὁ ἅγιος διὰ τὰς ἀνοσιουργίας Λέοντος ἀφηνίασε, καὶ πρὸς τὸν Φράγγον σπονδὴν εἰρηνικὴν ποιησάμενος τούς τε φόρους ἐκώλυσε καὶ Ἀναστάσιον καὶ τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ ἀνεθεμάτισε. τὸν δὲ βασιλέα δι' ἐπιστολῶν αὐτοῦ πολλῶν πολλοῖς ἐγνωσμένων ἀριδήλως ἐλέγχει. ἐν δὲ τῇ κατὰ Συρίαν ∆αμασκῷ Ἰωάννης μοναχὸς καὶ πρεσβύτερος, ὁ Χρυσορρόας ὁ τοῦ Μανσούρ, ὃ ἑρμηνεύεται Λέντραβος, ὅνπερ ὁ δυσσεβὴς Μανζὴρ Ἰουδαϊκῷ φρονήματι μετωνόμασεν. οὗτος ὁ ὅσιος Ἰωάννης καὶ μελῳδὸς ὠνομάσθη μετὰ Κοσμᾶ ἐπισκόπῳ τοῦ Μαϊουμᾶ καὶ Θεοφάνους ἀδελφοῦ Θεοδώρου τῶν γραπτῶν, διὰ τὸ αὐτοὺς