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

Vita Porphyrii episcopi Gazensis

IN THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY 26th LIFE OF THE HOLY PORPHYRY, BISHOP OF GAZA

1 It is good to behold with the eyes the struggles of holy men and their divine zeal and desire (for things seen become worthy of love), but nonetheless, narratives from those who know them precisely also bring no small benefit, entering into the souls of the hearers. Sight is more trustworthy than hearing, but hearing also persuades if the things said are by trustworthy people. If, therefore, the narration of beneficial things remained uncorrupted and falsehood were not sown into the truth, the writing of such things would be superfluous, since the truth, being always sown by succession into the ears of subsequent generations, would be sufficient for edification; but since time corrupts, either through forgetfulness or through malpractice, I have necessarily come to the present writing, so that through the length of time no forgetting should occur of such a holy man, I mean, of course, the devout Porphyry. For to remember his achievements becomes a protective remedy for those who hear.

2 For it is absurd for poets, tragedians, and other such writers to] expend their words on laughter and old wives' tales, while we overlook holy and memorable men being handed over to oblivion. For what penalty would I not rightly pay for not committing to writing the life of such a God-loving man, a life, a teacher of philosophy, who emulated the commonwealth in heaven? Let us record his wars and resistances, not only against the leaders and champions of idolatry, but also against a whole populace filled with all folly. For he was mindful of the sayings of the blessed Apostle, through which he says: “Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the terrible day, and having done all, to stand.” Having put on this panoply, the aforementioned Apostle entered into the contests; but also, having such and so great adversaries, Porphyry, who possessed a contest like the Apostle's, bound on an equal victory, and raised a trophy in the midst of the Gazans, the holy church of Christ now built by him. And it was not human nature that provided him the victory, but a will that drew upon divine grace; for having become a most ardent lover of Christ, he endured to suffer and do all things. For how many attacks of wars did such a man receive from his opponents, how many conspiracies and mockings did he endure.

3 But since it is not possible to tell everything concerning the celebrated man, both because they are many and seem unbelievable to the many, I will set forth a few things which I remembered, having lived with him for a very long time and enjoyed that blessed and awesome soul which lived as a citizen with the angels. Who, then, would not rightly praise this man who has received every form of virtue? I know, therefore, that no speech could do justice to the virtue of such a man; yet I must try, trusting in his holy prayers. I will write his eulogy not with boastful speech; for neither is it the custom for elegance of language to adorn the life of such men, but the virtue of their deeds magnifies even the phrasing itself. Therefore, I too, trusting in the holy prayers of the aforementioned brave man, approach this writing, asking through them for the grace and help from the Lord Jesus Christ to be able, on whatever pretext, to narrate the virtue of the holy man. And I ask those who encounter this writing not to disbelieve the things said; for as an eyewitness of the

Vita Porphyrii episcopi Gazensis

ΜΗΝΙ ΦΕΥΡΟΥΑΡΙΩ ˉˉΚˉ ϛ ΒΙΟΣ ΤΟΥ ΑΓΙΟΥ ΠΟΡΦΥΡΙΟΥ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΥ ΓΑΖΗΣ

1 Τῶν ἁγίων ἀνδρῶν τοὺς ἄθλους καὶ τὸν θεϊκὸν αὐτῶν ζῆλόν τε καὶ πόθον

καλόν ἐστι τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς θεωρεῖν (ὁρώμενα γὰρ ἀξιοφίλητα γίνεται), φέρει δὲ ὅμως ὠφέλειαν οὐ μετρίαν καὶ τὰ διηγήματα παρὰ τῶν ἀκριβῶς εἰδότων ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῶν ἀκουόντων ὑπεισερχόμενα. Πιστοτέρα μὲν ἀκοῆς ἡ θέα, πείθει δὲ καὶ ἀκοὴν ἐὰν ὑπὸ ἀξιοπίστων εἴη τὰ λεγόμενα. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἀρᾳδιούργητος ἔμενεν ἡ τῶν ὠφελίμων διήγησις καὶ μὴ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ τὸ ψεῦδος ἐνεσπείρετο, περιττὸν ἦν τὸ σύγγραμμα τῶν τοιούτων, ἱκανῆς οὔσης καὶ πρὸς οἰκοδομὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ἐκ διαδοχῆς ἀεὶ ἐνσπειρομένης ταῖς ἀκοαῖς τῶν ἐπιγινομένων ἀνθρώπων· ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὁ χρόνος παραφθείρει, εἴτε διὰ τῆς λήθης εἴτε διὰ τῆς ῥᾳδιουργίας, ἀναγκαίως ἐπὶ τὸ παρὸν σύγγραμμα ἐλήλυθα, ἵνα μὴ τῷ μακρῷ χρόνῳ λήθη τις γένηται τοιούτου ἁγίου ἀνδρός, λέγω δὴ Πορφυρίου τοῦ ὁσίου. Τὸ γὰρ μνημονεῦσαι τῶν αὐτοῦ κατορθωμάτων φάρμακον ἀλεξητήριον γίνεται τοῖς ἀκούουσιν.

2 Ἄτοπον γάρ ἐστι ποιητὰς τραγῳδοποιοὺς καὶ ἄλλους τοιούτους συγγραφέας τὸ] εἰς γέλωτα καὶ γραώδεις μύθους καταναλῶσαι τοὺς λόγους, ἡμᾶς δὲ περιιδεῖν λήθῃ παραδιδομένους ἁγίους ἄνδρας καὶ ἀξιομνημονεύτους. Ποίαν γὰρ οὐκ ἂν δικαίως παράσχω δίκην μὴ παραδιδοὺς συγγραφῇ βίον τοιούτου θεοφιλοῦς ἀνδρός, βίον, φιλοσοφίας διδάσκαλον, τοῦ τὴν ἐν οὐρανῷ πολιτείαν ἐζηλωκότος; Πολέμους τε αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀντιστάσεις ἱστορήσωμεν οὐ μόνον πρὸς τοὺς τῆς εἰδωλομανίας ἀρχηγούς τε καὶ προμάχους, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς δῆμον ὁλόκληρον πάσης πεπληρωμένον ἀνοίας. Ἐμνημόνευε γὰρ τῶν τοῦ μακαρίου Ἀποστόλου ῥητῶν δι' ὧν φησιν· «Ἀναλάβετε τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἵνα δυνηθῆτε ἀντιστῆναι ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ φοβερᾷ καὶ ἅπαντα κατεργασάμενοι στῆναι. Ταύτην τὴν πανοπλίαν ἐνδυσάμενος, εἰς τοὺς ἀγῶνας εἰσῆλθεν ὁ εἰρημένος Ἀπόστολος· ἀλλὰ καὶ τοιούτους καὶ τηλικούτους ἔχων τοὺς ἀντιπάλους, ὁ τὴν ὁμοίαν ἅμιλλαν κεκτημένος τῷ Ἀποστόλῳ Πορφύριος, ἴσην καὶ τὴν νίκην ἀνεδήσατο, καὶ τρόπαιον ἤγειρεν εἰς τὸ μέσον τῆς Γαζαίων τὴν νυνὶ κτισθεῖσαν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἁγίαν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐκκλησίαν. Παρεῖχεν δὲ αὐτῷ τὴν νίκην οὐχ ἡ ἀνθρωπεία φύσις, ἀλλ' ἡ γνώμη τὴν θείαν χάριν ἐφελκομένη· ἐραστὴς γὰρ θερμότατος γενόμενος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, πάντα παθεῖν καὶ δρᾶσαι ἠνέσχετο. Πόσας γὰρ πολέμων προσβολὰς ὁ τοιοῦτος ἀνὴρ ὑπὸ τῶν δι' ἐναντίας ἐδέξατο, πόσας συσκευὰς καὶ μυκτηρισμοὺς ὑπέμεινεν.

3 Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ πάντα τὰ κατὰ τὸν ἀοίδιμον ἄνδρα οὐ δυνατὸν ἐξειπεῖν, πολλά τε ὄντα καὶ τοῖς πολλοῖς δοκοῦντα εἶναι ἄπιστα, βραχέα ἐκθήσομαι ἅτινα καὶ ἐμνημόνευσα συνοικήσας αὐτῷ πλεῖστον χρόνον καὶ ἀπολαύσας τῆς μακαρίας καὶ φοβερᾶς ἐκείνης ψυχῆς τῆς μετ' ἀγγέλων συμπολιτευομένης. Τοῦτον οὖν τὸν πᾶν εἶδος ἀρετῆς εἰληφότα, τίς οὐκ ἂν δικαίως ἐπαινέσειεν; Οἶδα μὲν οὖν ὡς τῆς ἀρετῆς τοιούτου ἀνδρὸς οὐδεὶς ἂν ἐφίκοιτο λόγος· ὅμως γε ἐγχειρητέον, θαρροῦντός μου ταῖς ἁγίαις αὐτοῦ εὐχαῖς. Συγγράψω δὲ τὴν ἐκείνου εὐφημίαν οὐ κομπῷ λόγῳ· οὔτε γὰρ ἡ καλλιλεξία τὸν βίον τῶν τοιούτων κοσμεῖν εἴωθεν, ἀλλ' ἡ ἀρετὴ τῶν ἔργων καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν φράσιν μεγαλύνει. Ὅθεν κἀγὼ θαρρῶν εἰς τὰς ἁγίας εὐχὰς τοῦ εἰρημένου ἀνδρείου ἀνδρὸς προσέρχομαι τῷδε τῷ συγγράμματι, αἰτούμενος δι' αὐτῶν τὴν παρὰ τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ χάριν τε καὶ βοήθειαν εἰς τὸ δυνηθῆναι, οἵᾳ δήποτε προφάσει, τὴν ἀρετὴν τοῦ ἁγίου ἀνδρὸς διηγήσασθαι. Αἰτῶ δὲ τοὺς ἐντυγχάνοντας τῷδε τῷ συγγράμματι μὴ ἀπιστεῖν τοῖς λεγομένοις· αὐτόπτης γὰρ τῆς