420

the Persians to rule as far as the sea." Alexander, having captured these men, and having stripped them of their arms and robes, and taken away their horses, scattered them into very many villages and compelled them to be farmers; for he did not judge it pious to kill them. But he himself, dividing his own troops into three parts, attacked the Persians in three ways. And great destruction befell the Persians, but very many of the Romans also perished, not so much at the hands of the enemy as in returning through the mountains of Armenia. For since these were harsh in winter, the feet of those marching, and of some the hands also, were mutilated by the cold, having turned black and died. Therefore Alexander was also blamed by the Romans. Whence from despondency or from the change of climates he became very ill. But having recovered and invading the Germans, he harassed them with javelin-throwers and archers. And he also sends ambassadors to them about agreements for money. Therefore the soldiers, being angry, looked toward apostasy. And they took a certain Maximinus, a Thracian by birth, who from boyhood was fated to be a shepherd and after this became a soldier, supposedly against his will, and named him emperor. But he, taking those who proclaimed him, went straight to where Alexander was staying. But when the latter learned these things, he called upon the soldiers with him for his support; and they promised it. And when Maximinus arrived, Alexander gathered the army and ordered it to engage with the forces of Maximinus. But they both reviled his mother and mocked her for avarice, and 3.123 they insulted him as a coward; and abandoning him, they departed. And he, seeing himself bereft of help, returned to his tent, and embracing his mother, he lamented. And Maximinus, sending a centurion, killed both him and his mother and those who were with them, and became master of the empire. But Mamaea, the mother of Alexander, laid claim to virtue and a reverent life. She, while living with her son in Antioch and having heard about Origen, summoned him from Alexandria; and having been instructed by him in the doctrine of the faith, she became most pious, as Eusebius relates and as certain other writers also say. Whence not only did the persecution against the Christians cease then, but those who revered Christ were also deemed worthy of the greatest honor. Then when Urbanus was presiding over the episcopate of the city of the Romans, Hippolytus also flourished, a most holy and most wise man, having become bishop of the port near Rome, who also wrote many treatises, having interpreted various parts of the divine scripture. And at that time Asclepiades was presiding over Antioch and guiding the church of the faithful there; and Sardianus over Jerusalem. And so Alexander, having ruled the Romans for ten years, was slain in the manner that has been told; and Maximinus succeeded to the rule. He immediately stirred up a persecution 3.124 against those named after Christ, and ordered the leaders of the churches to be slain as teachers and preachers of the mystery according to Christ. And it is said that he initiated the persecution out of anger toward Alexander, since the latter honored those who revered Christ. For he was furious against that emperor, because having been appointed general by him and having campaigned against the Persians and been most shamefully defeated, he experienced the imperial wrath. And there was also a second cause of the persecution, that many in Alexander's household had acknowledged Christ as God. When also Ambrose, a man fond of learning, who had roused Origen to the exegesis of the divine scripture and had lavishly supplied him with expenses and had provided him with seven stenographers who took turns writing at appointed times and no fewer copyists and maidens trained to write beautifully, is said to have been adorned with the crown of martyrdom, along with Protoctetus the presbyter. And this Maximinus, having become sole ruler, immediately wrote to the senate, declaring to it his proclamation by the armies. But he was harsh and cruel not only to Christians, but also to all his subjects.

420

Πέρσαις αρχειν μέχρι θαλάσσης." τούτους συλλαβὼν ὁ ̓Αλέξανδρος, καὶ περιδύσας τὰ οπλα καὶ τὰς στολάς, ἀφελόμενός τε τοὺς ιππους, εἰς κώμας πλείστας διέσπειρε καὶ ἠνάγκαζε γεωργεῖν· κτεῖναι γὰρ αὐτοὺς οὐκ εκρινεν οσιον. αὐτὸς δὲ τὰ οἰκεῖα στρατεύματα εἰς τρεῖς διελὼν μοίρας τριχῇ τοῖς Πέρσαις προσέβαλε. καὶ πολὺς μὲν τῶν Περσῶν συμβέβηκεν ολεθρος, πλεῖστοι δὲ καὶ τῶν ̔Ρωμαίων ἐφθάρησαν, οὐ τοσοῦτον ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων οσον ἐν τῷ ἐπανιέναι διὰ τῶν τῆς ̓Αρμενίας ὀρῶν. δυσχειμέρων γὰρ οντων τούτων οἱ τῶν ὁδοιπορούντων πόδες, ἐνίων δὲ καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἐκ τοῦ ψύχους ἠκρωτηριάσθησαν μελανθεῖσαι καὶ νεκρωθεῖσαι. διὸ καὶ ἐν αἰτίᾳ ̔Ρωμαίοις γέγονεν ὁ ̓Αλέξανδρος. οθεν ἐξ ἀθυμίας η καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ἀέρων ἐναλλαγῆς σφόδρα ἐνόσησεν. ἀναρρωσθεὶς δὲ καὶ εἰς Γερμανοὺς ἐμβαλὼν δι' ἀκοντιστῶν καὶ τοξοτῶν ἐλύπει αὐτούς. στέλλει δὲ καὶ πρὸς αὐτοὺς πρέσβεις περὶ συμβάσεων ἐπὶ χρήμασι. διὸ χαλεπήναντες οἱ στρατιῶται πρὸς ἀποστασίαν ἀπεῖδον. καί τινα Μαξιμῖνον Θρᾷκα τὸ γένος, ἐκ παίδων δὲ ποιμαίνειν λαχόντα καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα στρατιώτην γενόμενον, ακοντα δῆθεν λαβόντες ὠνόμασαν αὐτοκράτορα. ὁ δὲ τοὺς ἀνειπόντας αὐτὸν παραλαβὼν ἀπῄει εὐθὺς οπου διέτριβεν ὁ ̓Αλέξανδρος. ταῦτα δ' ἐκεῖνος πυθόμενος τοὺς μετ' αὐτοῦ στρατιώτας εἰς ἀντίληψιν αὐτοῦ παρεκάλει· οἱ δὲ ἐπηγγέλλοντο. καὶ ἐπιστάντος τοῦ Μαξιμίνου συνήγαγε τὴν στρατιὰν ὁ ̓Αλέξανδρος καὶ συμβαλεῖν τοῖς τοῦ Μαξιμίνου ἐπέτρεπεν. οἱ δὲ τήν τε μητέρα αὐτοῦ ἐλοιδόρουν καὶ ἐπὶ φιλοχρηματίᾳ διέσυρον, καὶ εἰς 3.123 ἐκεῖνον ἐξύβριζον ὡς δειλόν· καὶ καταλιπόντες αὐτὸν ἀνεχώρουν. ὁ δὲ ερημον βοηθείας ὁρῶν ἑαυτόν, ἐπανῆλθεν εἰς τὴν σκηνήν, καὶ τῇ μητρὶ περιπλακεὶς ὠλοφύρετο. καὶ ὁ Μαξιμῖνος ἑκατόνταρχον στείλας καὶ αὐτὸν ἀνεῖλε καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ τοὺς οι συνῆσαν αὐτοῖς, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας γέγονεν ἐγκρατής. Μαμαία δὲ ἡ ̓Αλεξάνδρου μήτηρ ἀρετῆς ην ἀντιποιουμένη καὶ βίου σεμνοῦ. η ἐν ̓Αντιοχείᾳ συνδιάγουσα τῷ υἱῷ, καὶ περὶ ̓Ωριγένους πυθομένη, μετεπέμψατο ἐξ ̓Αλεξανδρείας αὐτόν· καὶ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τὸν λόγον κατηχηθεῖσα τῆς πίστεως, θεοσεβεστάτη γέγονεν, ὡς ὁ Εὐσέβιος ἱστορεῖ καὶ αλλοι δέ τινες τῶν συγγραφέων φασίν. οθεν οὐ μόνον ὁ κατὰ χριστιανῶν ἠρέμησε διωγμὸς τότε, ἀλλὰ καὶ τιμῆς ἠξίωντο μάλιστα οἱ σεβόμενοι τὸν Χριστόν. Τότε Οὐρβανοῦ τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς τῆς ̔Ρωμαίων πόλεως προεστῶτος καὶ ̔Ιππόλυτος ηνθει, ἀνὴρ ἱερώτατος καὶ σοφώτατος, ἐπίσκοπος τοῦ κατὰ ̔Ρώμην πόρτου γενόμενος, ος καὶ πολλὰ συγγράμματα συνεγράψατο, διάφορα τῆς θείας γραφῆς ἐξηγησάμενος. ̓Αντιοχείας δὲ ην τηνικαῦτα προεστηκὼς καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖ τῶν πιστῶν ἐκκλησίαν ἰθύνων ̓Ασκληπιάδης· καὶ Σαρδιανὸς ̔Ιεροσολύμων. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ̓Αλέξανδρος ετη ̔Ρωμαίων ἡγεμονεύσας δέκα, ον ειρηται τρόπον ἀνῄρητο· ὁ δὲ Μαξιμῖνος τὴν ἀρχὴν διεδέξατο. ος αὐτίκα καὶ διωγμὸν 3.124 κατὰ τῶν χριστωνύμων ἐπήγειρε, καὶ τοὺς τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν προεστῶτας ἀναιρεῖσθαι κεκέλευκεν ὡς διδασκάλους τοῦ κατὰ Χριστὸν μυστηρίου καὶ κήρυκας. λέγεται δὲ κατὰ μῆνιν τὴν πρὸς ̓Αλέξανδρον κινῆσαι τὸν διωγμόν, ὡς ἐκείνου τιμῶντος τοὺς σεβομένους Χριστόν. ἐμεμήνει γὰρ κατ' ἐκείνου τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος, οτι στρατηγὸς ὑπ' ἐκείνου προχειρισθεὶς καὶ κατὰ Περσῶν ἐκστρατεύσας καὶ αισχιστα ἡττηθεὶς ὀργῆς ἐπειράθη βασιλικῆς. ην δὲ τοῦ διωγμοῦ καὶ δεύτερον αιτιον, οτι πολλοὶ κατὰ τὸν ̓Αλεξάνδρου οικον ησαν τὸν Χριστὸν ἐπεγνωκότες θεόν. οτε καὶ ̓Αμβρόσιος φιλόλογος ἀνήρ, ος τὸν ̓Ωριγένην πρὸς ἐξήγησιν ἠρέθισε τῆς θείας γραφῆς καὶ δαψιλῆ αὐτῷ ἐχορήγει τὰ ἀναλώματα καὶ ταχυγράφους ἑπτὰ αὐτῷ παρεστήσατο ἀμοιβαδὸν τῇ γραφῇ χρωμένους κατὰ τεταγμένους καιροὺς καὶ βιβλιογράφους οὐχ ηττους κόρας τε καλλιγραφεῖν ἠσκημένας, τῷ τοῦ μαρτυρίου λέγεται κοσμηθῆναι στεφάνῳ, αμα Πρωτοκτήτῳ πρεσβυτέρῳ. Αὐταρχήσας δ' ουτος ὁ Μαξιμῖνος εὐθὺς ἐπέστειλε τῇ συγκλήτῳ, τὴν ἐκ τῶν στρατευμάτων ἀνάρρησιν ταύτῃ δηλῶν ἑαυτοῦ. οὐ μόνοις δὲ χριστιανοῖς βαρὺς ὑπῆρχε καὶ ἀπηνής, ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ὑπηκόοις.