- Galatians 5:22-23 -
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things
there
is no law.
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LOVE - never fails
JOY - cometh
PEACE - rules
PATIENCE - waits
KINDNESS - tenders
GOODNESS - does
FAITHFULNESS - fights
GENTLENESS - bows
SELF-CONTROL - stops
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March 10th - The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste
The story of these martyrs unfolded in the city of Sebaste during the
reign of
Emperor Licinius in 320 AD. A garrison of Roman soldiers-40 in number-were
stationed in this remote Armenian town. They were bold, courageous
Catholic
Roman soldiers who preferred to die rather than renounce their Faith. Upon
hearing of this, the infuriated Emperor issued an edict, stating that
those
throughout the Empire who would not worship pagan gods would be tortured
and put
to death.
The 40 martyrs of Sebaste in Armenia were whipped, tortured and
imprisoned, but
would not relent. Finally, the governor Lysias devised an extraordinary
kind of
death which he hoped would shake their constancy. He ordered the soldiers
to be
placed in a pond of frozen water and left for a whole winter night.
In the morning the bodies of all were supposed to be carted off to be
incinerated. However, the youngest of the officials, whom the acts call
Melito,
was found alive. Seeing this, the pagan soldiers removed him from the cart
with
hope that he would apostatize when he came to himself.
The mother of Melito, who was present, understood their intention. Rich in
faith, this good Catholic approached her son, quite frozen and barely
breathing,
looking on her with languishing eyes. She exhorted him to persevere to the
end.
Then she returned his body to the cart with the corpses of his companions.
She
told him, "Go, go, my son, proceed to the end of this happy journey with
your
companions, that you might not be the last of them that present themselves
before God." She pronounced these words without a single tear, and with a
joyful
countenance she followed the cart to the fire.
After the bodies were burned, the ashes were to be dispersed in the wind
and
their bones thrown into the river, but God conserved them so that the
faithful
could gather them later and keep these precious relics.
Reflecting on these martyrs, St. Basil wrote:
"O sacred troop! O glorious company! O invincible battalion! Flowers of
the
Church, yes I repeat, human flowers! Stars that shine among the stars!
Martyrs
worthy of the praise of all the centuries! To you the doors of Paradise
were
opened, and from the palaces of Heaven the Angels, Prophets, Patriarchs
and all
Saints came out to witness your triumphal arrival. A sight worthy of the
Angelic
Army! Forty warriors in the very flower of their youth who have disdained
this
life, who have loved the Lord above parents, children, wives and
relatives. They
disregarded this temporal life that they might glorify God in their
members ..
"Having raised up the trophy of their victory against Hell, each one
received a
crown from the hand of Christ Jesus Our Lord, to Whom be glory and
dominion to
the ages of ages."
Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira: (died 1995)
It is embarrassing to make any comment after having heard the superb
eulogy made
by St. Basil. But since that is what I am supposed to do, let me consider
some
of the points of this selection.
You can see the marvelous thing that happened: forty officers arrived in
Heaven,
as St. Basil observed, as a marching Legion. Indifferent to the barriers
that
separate the finite and the infinite, the transitory and the eternal, with
their
armors, helmets, lances and shields, they crossed in cadenced steps
through the
terrible valley of death and presented themselves on the other side, in
Heaven.
St. Basil imagines them arriving at Heaven with every inhabitant coming to
see,
his model most probably being the triumphal procession into Rome of
victorious
generals who were acclaimed by the people and crowned with laurels by the
Emperor. Such processions used to be the moment of crowning glory for
generals.
St. Basil continued with this exquisite analogy of the 40 martyred
soldiers
right up to the crowns bestowed on them by Our Lord. With this, the summit
of
glory was achieved.
One of their members did not die with the others. The apex of glory for
him was
yet to come. You heard that the Roman soldiers, moved by a false
compassion,
wanted to keep him alive so they could again induce him to abjure the
Faith. You
saw that his mother, in a position more sublime than his own, offered her
son
for martyrdom. The mother returned him to the cart to be burned, and told
him to
not lose the opportunity to go to Heaven. Her holocaust has something of a
sacerdotal sacrifice. She placed the victim on the cart as if it were an
altar.
And she followed the cart without shedding a single tear and with a joyful
countenance until it reached the site where the bodies were to be burned
so that
she might see the body of the one to whom she gave life consumed by fire.
For
she knew that he would receive eternal life as a consequence of the good
formation she had given him.
It is almost impossible to imagine a more beautiful thing than this. The
only
thing one can envision that exceeds this is a similar episode. Another
Mother
immolating another Son at the Cross. Our Lady also followed Our Lord step
by
step until His martyrdom reached its end.
You find in this episode a manifestation of a heroism that is even more
precious
than the heroism of the soldier who offered himself. The mother who offers
her
son in this way gives proof of a grandeur of soul that is extremely rare
in
History.
It is also interesting that when St. Basil presented the highest merits of
these
martyrs, he did not say that they loved God more than the pleasures and
seductions of the world. It would have been very beautiful, but it was not
what
he did. What he said was that they had loved God more than their parents,
children and wives, who remained on earth mourning them because they had
chosen
to die rather than apostatize. Loving God more than their relatives, they
fulfilled those words of Our Lord: "Do not think that I am come to send
peace
upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword. For I am come to set
a man
at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother .. He
who
loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he that
loveth son
or daughter more than Me, is not worthy of Me." (Math 10:34-37)
Our Lord said this because at times we have to make such a choice, we have
to
break with our families to do the will of God. Even of it is very
difficult, we
should follow the words of Our Lord. This is the reason why St. Basil gave
the
greatest merit to this point when he eulogized the 40 martyrs of Sebaste.
I
consider this tribute of St. Basil a truly marvelous thing!
Let us ask the 40 martyrs of Sebaste to teach us to have the same spirit
they
had, loving God more than anyone else.
See Images at:
http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j064sdSebaste3-10.htm
Saint Quote:
In order to teach it is enough to know something. But to educate one must
be
something. True education consists in giving oneself as a living model, an
authentic lesson."
-Saint Alberto Hurtado Cuchaga
Bible Quote:
41. The men of Ninive shall rise in judgment with this generation, and
shall
condemn it: because they did penance at the preaching of Jonas. And behold
a
greater than Jonas here. 42. The queen of the south shall rise in judgment
with
this generation, and shall condemn it: because she came from the ends of
the
earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold a greater than Solomon
here.
(Matthew 12:41-42)
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Antiphon, Versicle and Prayer in honor of Immaculate Mary:
Ant. This is the rod in which was neither knot of original sin, nor rind
of
actual guilt.
V. In thy conception, O Virgin! thou wast immaculate,
R. Pray for us to the Father, whose Son thou didst bring forth.
Let us pray:
O God, Who, by the immaculate conception of the Virgin, didst prepare a
worthy habitation for Thy Son; we beseech Thee that, as in view of the
death of that Son, Thou didst preserve her from all stain of sin, so thou
wouldst enable us, being made pure by her intercession, to come unto
Thee. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
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