Theodosia

ON SAINT THEODOSIA,

A NUN AND MARTYR OF CONSTANTINOPLE.

A.D. DCCXXVI

PRELIMINARY COMMENTARY.

The cause and series of the Martyrdom from Ms. Synaxaria: an encomium by Constantine the Logothete written: his age and dignity.

Theodosia, Martyr at Constantinople (S.)

BY THE AUTHOR D. P.

The tenth year of Leo the Isaurian made grievous the sacred images' abolition, [The statue of the Saviour, in the gate of the Palace placed by Constantine the Great] which long ago he in mind decreed meditating, to effect at length consigned, removed the most holy Germanus the Patriarch, and in his place substituted the impious Anastasius. For soon as that idol of his over the throne of the Church he placed, of those to be removed the beginning he made from the vestibule of the Palace, which from the brazen statue of Christ there placed the name had received, that χάλκη it was called. That vestibule, by the testimony of Codinus in the book on the Origins of Constantinople the Great Constantine had founded, and in it the statue aforesaid had erected: which there stood years four hundred and fifteen *; by whose virtue a woman, with an issue of blood laboring, healed had been, and many other had been done miracles: and so placed it had been in the year CCCXV. But deceived Codinus his computation, or the copyists in the numbers transcribing erred; for it is established that before the year CCCXXVIII, Constantine did not apply his mind to Constantinople to be built.

[2] As to the matter itself regards, a witness of it we have, who then was living, Stephen of the great church of Constantinople the Deacon, when to be cast down had ordered Leo the Isaurian, in the life of S. Stephen the Younger, a memorable Martyrdom on that occasion having suffered, to be given by us XXVIII November, whence these receive. In these things through power acting of heresy the tyrant, attempted forthwith the Lord's of Christ our God image, above the royal doors placed, in that place which from it is called Holy Chalce to demolish and to fire to deliver: which also he did. But in the very demolition by zeal corroborated certain women venerable, generously rose up: and the ladders seized the demolisher of the sacred image the Spatharius cast down to the ground, and him tearing apart delivered to death; him attempting the spatharius slay the pious women, no then interposed delay running forth, they invaded the Patriarchal house, with stones attacking the impious Anastasius, and vociferating, O head most impure! o enemy of truth! Therefore the Prelature didst thou seize, that the most sacred statues thou shouldst overturn? Which contumely not bearing the profane that one, by flight himself withdrew from the sight of the religious women; and to the tyrant himself betaking, made that they all to death be delivered.

[3] and by the head are punished. Thus he, which nearly in the same words to read it is in that, which thence received Metaphrastes, of the same S. Stephen the Younger the Life, and which to find it is in Lipomanus and Surius, and also, among the works of S. John Damascene, on account of the vicinity of the argument about the cult of images, by the same S. John with excellent orations defended. From the things said moreover easy it is to correct Theophanes, about the attempted of the Lord's image subversion, nay even perfected, treating one year earlier than about S. Germanus's deposition and Anastasius's intrusion. Meanwhile to him to believe we can that of the said women by the punishment was not so repressed the zeal of the Orthodox, but that men several, by the womanly example stimulated, the same crime hindering afterward others variously are punished. attempted from the same image to ward off injury, or done to avenge; and truly it happened, that the Constantinopolitan people, on account of that new doctrine with the greatest grief stirred, both Leo himself resolved to invade, and many of the Emperor's retinue, who from the brazen gate the Lord's image were dislodging, to death gave: whereby it came about that on many, for piety's sake, by mutilation of members, by stripes, by exiles, by damages inflicted animadversion was made.

[4] Their leader S. Theodosia But however manfully the men acted, the excellent yet attempts' beginning to the women is to be ascribed: chiefly moreover to their leader the Saint, of whom to treat we have begun, Theodosia: whose name and life and death that we should not be ignorant of, brought about the religious of the Constantinopolitan citizens piety, who the from cruel slaughter withdrawn body, then indeed piously laid up; afterward however, restored to the Church peace, brought forth more religiously, perhaps in that very, in which the Nun had lived, monastery. Since moreover, the day, on which slaughtered cruelly she had been, had brought into oblivion of the savage persecution the long duration and the silence of the writers, it pleased to assume this XXIX day of May on which the Eastern all Church with most celebrated cult follows S. Theodosia, Martyr of Caesarea in Palestine, of whom we treated on the day 2 April.

[5] she is venerated 29 May. So her name inscribed is found in the Menaea printed, which nearly follows Maximus of Cythera ἐν βίοις Ἁγίων, where after the encomium of the aforesaid old Theodosia is added the Memory of the Holy Nun-Martyr Theodosia of Constantinople, with an allusion to the Ram's horn, with which her neck was broken, by a distich of this kind:

Κέρας κριοῦ κτεῖνάν σε, Θεοδοσία, Ὤφθη νέον σοι τῆς Ἀμαλθείας κέρας.

Another of Amalthea seemed, Theodosia, a horn This to thee, by which to Christ a victim fair thou fallest.

[6] The same memory, with a similar distich, is found in a Ms. Synaxarium of Chifflet: with a eulogy in the Ms. Synaxaria. where besides this of her life, martyrdom, and cult Eulogy is added, which from itself collated with the text of the Synaxarium of Clermont at XVIII July, thus sounds.

Ἄυτη ἦν ἐν τοῖς χρόνοις Θεοδοσίου [τοῦ Ἀτραμυτηνοῦ] γονέων εὐσεβῶν θυγάτηρ, ἐκ τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως· καὶ γενομένης ἑπταέτους ὁ πατὴρ ἐτελεύτησεν, ἡ δὲ μήτηρ λαβοῦσα τὴν παῖδα ἀπέκειρεν ἔν τινι τῶν ἐν Βυζαντίῳ μοναστηρίων· ἐ͂ιτα καὶ ἡ μήτηρ τελευτᾷ, καταλείψασα τῇ Μακαρίᾳ τὴν ὅλην περιουσίαν αὐτῆς. Ἡ δὲ ἐκ χρυσοῦ καὶ ἀργύρου τρεῖς ἁγίας εἰκόνας κατασκευάσασα [τοῦ Χριστοῦ], τῆς Θεοτόκου, καὶ τῆς ἁγίας Ἀναστασίας, τὰ λοιπὰ διένειμε τοῖς πτωχοῖς [καὶ ὀρφάνοις]. Μετὰ δέ τινα χρόνον Λέοντος τοῦ δυσσεβοῦς τῆς βασιλείας δραξαμένου, ὡς τοῦ εὐσεβεστάτου Θεοδοσίου ὑποχωρήσαντος, διὰ τὸ μὴ πείθεσθαι τοῖς ἀσεβέσιν αὐτοῦ δόγμασι τὸν μέγαν ἐν Πατριάρχαις Γερμανὸν [τοῦτον μετὰ ῥοπάλων καὶ ξιφῶν τοῦ Πατριαρχείου κατήνεγκε]· ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἁγίαν καὶ δεσποτικὴν εἰκόνα Χριστοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν, τὴν ἱδρυμένην ὑπεράνω τῶν πυλῶν, ἐν αἷσπερ [διὰ τὸν χαρακτῆρα] ἡ ἁγία Χαλκὴ λέγεται, ἔσπευδεν ὁ θηριώνυμος κατενεχκεῖν καὶ πυρὶ παραδοῦναι. Καὶ ἐν ᾧ ταῦτα ἐτελεῖτο, καὶ ὁ σπαθάριος ἦν ἐπὶ τῆς κλίμακος [μετὰ τῆς ἀξίνης], βουλόμενος τὴν ἁγίαν εἰκόνα καταβαλεῖν, εὐθὺς ἡ μακαρία Θεοδοσία μεθ᾽ ἑτέρων γυναικῶν εὐσεβῶν, τῆς κλίμακος δραξάμεναι, καὶ τὸν σπαθάριον τῇ γῇ προσρίψασαι, τῷ θανάτῳ παρέδωκαν· καὶ καταλαβοῦσαι τὸ πατριαρχεῖον, ἐλιθοβόλουν τὸν δυσσεβῆ Ἀναστάσιον τὸν φατριάρχην. Παραυτίκα οὖν αἱ μὲν λοιπαὶ τῶν γυναικῶν ἀπεκεφαλίσθησαν, τὴν δὲ Ἁγίαν ὠμός τις καὶ ἀπάνθρωπος ἕλκων δήμιος πρὸς τὸν Βοῦν, λαβὼν κέρας κριοῦ, καὶ μανιώδως κατὰ τὴν αὐχένα ἐλάσας, τὸν τοῦ μαρτυρίου στέφανον αὐτῇ προξένησε. Περὶ δὲ τῶν ἀπείρων θαυμάτων, τῶν καθ᾽ ἑκάστην δι᾽ αὐτῆς ἐνεργουμένων, ἔξεστι παντὶ τῷ βουλομένῳ μανθάνειν. Τελεῖται δὲ ἡ αὐτῆς σύναξις, ἐν τῇ μονῇ τοῦ Διοκράτους, ἔνθα κεῖται τὸ ἅγιον αὐτῆς λείψανον.

These there; the words which [ ] I enclosed from the Clermont one taken, where the end also thus diverse is found. Λαβὼν κέρας ἀπέσφαξεν αὐτήν. Οὕτως οὖν καλῶς ἀγωνισάμεναι εἰς χεῖρας Θεοῦ τὰ πνεύματα ἑαυτῶν παρέθεντο. Τελεῖται δὲ ἡ ταύτης σύναξις, ἐν τῇ ἁγίᾳ μονῇ τοῦ Σωτῆρος Χριστοῦ τοῦ Εὐεργήτου.

of pious parents a daughter, from the city of Constantinople; who when seven years old having lost her father, the mother took the daughter, and in one of the monasteries of Byzantium shore her hair; then died also herself, leaving to the daughter all her substance. She from gold and silver three for herself images procured, of Christ namely, of the most holy Mother of God, and of S. Anastasia, the rest distributed to the poor. After some indeed time, when the impious Leo had seized the empire, the most pious Theodosius withdrawing himself; the Great Patriarch Germanus, because he refused to the impious his dogma to adhere, [with swords and

clubs from the Patriarchate] he expelled, and the holy and Lordly image of our Lord, above the gate which, from the very statue, holy Brazen is called, placed, he attempted to cast down savage and to fire to deliver. But when this was being done, and the spatharius with an axe now was on the ladders; wishing the sacred effigy to remove; forthwith S. Theodosia and other pious women seized the ladders, and the cast down to the ground spatharius to death gave; and running into the Patriarchate, Anastasius the pseudo-Patriarch began to stone. Immediately therefore the rest indeed women by the head were punished, the Saint indeed a cruel certain and inhuman executioner dragging to the place called of the Ox, and a horn of a ram seizing, it into her neck furious drove, and to her of martyrdom the crown brought. Of the infinite furthermore miracles, which daily through her are done, to anyone to know wishing prompt it is to learn: is kept moreover her festivity in the monastery of Diocrates, where her holy relics rest.

[8] The same, but at XVIII July, when perhaps some elevation of the body translatively a memory is kept, Likewise 18 July. are had in the Ms. Synaxarium of Clermont, and other Mss. in the Library Ambrosian of Milan, and the Ducal of Savoy at Turin found: but in the Ambrosian Codex, for the time of Theodosius of Adramyttium, who to Leo the Empire yielded, is noted the time of Constantine Copronymus, by a manifest error: and the monastery, which elsewhere of Diocrates, there of Dexiocrates is called; so moreover indeed it ought to be called teaches Codinus, from whom Cange in his Constantinople Christian asserts, Dexiocrates this a Patrician to have been, and under Theodosius the Younger to have flourished, and a church together with moreover, the of miracles or of relics mention omitted, this is set the clause. Receiving a horn he slaughtered her. Thus therefore beautifully contending, their souls into God's hands they delivered: but her festivity is kept in the holy monastery of the Saviour Christ, called the Benefactor. Cange in his Constantinople Christian about this monastery widely treats, and teaches not far from Blachernae near the shore it was: with which seems to agree what follows the Encomium, when at num. 34 it says, near the shore there sat a contracted certain one, and thence taken up on shoulders he was to the tomb of the Saint, where he was cured. Perhaps of the companion women the bodies buried in the monastery of Dexiocrates were; and on account of the common of them with Theodosia passion, her too festivity there to be kept is judged.

[9] they perished with the first Acts. The aforetouched miracle, and others thenceforth in the Encomium narrated, in the century first XIII ending or XIV beginning were wrought: before which times it behooves long ago to have happened those, of which mention is made in the Synaxaria, and older some of her the Saint to have existed Acts, whence taken are the Synaxaria's Ms. Eulogies: which Acts only are not found. Of both the loss in whatever way will supply, Τοῦ σοφωτάτου μεγάλου Λογοθέτου Κυροῦ Κωνσταντίνου, τοῦ Ἀκροπολίτου, λόγος εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν ὁσιομάρτυρα Θεοδοσίαν: Of the most wise and great Logothete, Lord Constantine Acropolita, a sermon