The Epic Histories (4.10), traditionally attributed to P'awstos, recount a vision in 378 of *Thekla (follower of the Apostle Paul, S00092), and other saints at Thekla's martyrium at Seleucia. The assembled saints depute *Sergios (soldier and martyr of Rusafa, S00023) and *Theodore (soldier and martyr of Amaseia and Euchaita, S00480) to kill the emperor Valens, a task they successfully undertake. Written in Armenia in the second half of the 5th c.
E00243
Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)
Epic Histories (Buzandaran Patmut'iwnk')
The Epic Histories, Book IV, Chapter 10
The events described below follow the election of Basil as bishop of Caesarea, followed by the Emperor Valens' persecutions of the Christians. Among others, Valens also ordered that Basil be bound and thrown into prison. However, all the people prayed that this wrath should be appeased.
Ապա խնդիր հրամայէր առնել թագաւորն Վաղէս, զի տեսցեն գտցեն այր մի ճարտար, որ կարող իցէ դնել գրով բանս դիմադարձութեան ընդդէմ հաւատոց քրիստոնէութեան: Եւ պատմեցին նմա, զի էր այր մի սոփեստէս ճարտար ի քաղաքի միոջ: Ապա առաքեաց կայսրն առ նա մագիստրիանոսս, զի երթիցեն փութով եւ անզբաղապէս զայրն առ նա ածցեն. եւ առեալ ածին փութապէս:
Իբրեւ գնացեալ գայր օթեւանս երկուս, դէպ եղեւ նոցա դիպել այլ քաղաքի միոջ. եւ արտաքոյ քաղաքին վկայանոց մի սուրբ տիկնոջն Թեկղի: Իբրեւ պատահեաց այնմ, էջ սոփեստէս, եւ իւր վանս ունէր ի ներքս ի վկայանոցի անդ. իսկ մագիստրիանոսքն ունէին վանս իւրեանց ի քաղաքին: Եւ իբրեւ կերաւ հաց սիփեստէսն, էարկ անկողին, եւ փակեաց զդուրս վկայանոցին. եւ ինքն ի նիստ եղեալ ի վերայ անկողնին, կամէր լինել ի կողմն. մինչ դեռ արթուն էր, աչօք բացօք տեսանէր, զի յանկարծ բացան դրունք վկայանոցին, եւ եղեւ ժողով մեծ բազմութեան վկայիցն, որ երեւեցան մեծապէս փառօք: Եւ ելանէր ընդ առաջ նոցա սուրբ տիկինն Թեկղէս զարդարեալ մեծապայծառ, զի նշոյլք որպէս ի լուսոյ հատանէին ի նմանէն. եւ առնէին միմեանց ողջոյն, եւ ասէր ցնոսա տիկինն Թեկղ` թէ Բարի' եկիք, սիրելիք բարեկամք, եւ վաստակաւորք Քրիստոսի: Տուեալք միմեանց ողջոյն, արկեալք զիւրաքանչիւր զաթոռն, նստէին կարգաւ: Ապա սկսանէին սուրբքն խօսել, եւ ասէին. Սուրբքն տեառն, որ չեւ են հրաժարեալ յերկրէս, դեռ եւս աստէն ի նեղութեան են, են որք ի կապանս են. են որք ի փիւղակէս են, են որք յաքսորս, եւ են որք յայլ բռնութեան են, ի զրպարտութեան, ի հարկս եւ ի խոշտանգանս չարչարանաց: Եւ մեք փութապէս ժողովեցաք, զի մի' անտեսութեամբ անփոյթ արասցուք նախանձախնդիր լինել տեառն հաւատացելոց: Վասն զի մանաւանդ բազում մշակք տեառն խափանեալ կան, բազում անդք ի դերեւ ելին, եւ բազում այգիք խոպանացան. պարտ է մեզ զխափանիչս մշակացն զՎաղէս խափանել, զի ամենայն մշակ ի գործ իւր կանխեսցէ: Եւ քաջ մշակն Բասիլիոս յիւրմէ գործոյն կայր խափանեալ: Արդ եկայք առաքեսցուք ի մէնջ երկուս, որք երթիցեն վճարիցեն ի կենաց զչարագործն Վաղէս: Ապա միում անուն էր ի Սարգիս ի նոցանէ, եւ միւսումն Թէոդորոս. արձակէին զնոսա, դնէին ժամ եւ ասէին. Ի սոյն ժամ եկեսջիք դուք եւ մեք:
Եւ զայս ամենայն լուեալ սոփեստէսն, որ էր վկայանոցին, եւ տեսեալ զայս տեսիլ աչօք բացօք, եւ կայր զարմացեալ, եւ անքուն լինէր մինչեւ յառաւօտն զցայգն: Եւ ընդ այգգս այգոյն եկին հասին մագիստրիանոսքն, եւ ասեն ցսոփեստէսն. Արի գնասցուք զճանապարհս: Եւ խօթապատճառս լինէր, եւ ոչ կարէր ի տեղւոյն խաղալ: Իբրեւ սկսան նոքա ստիպել զնա, իսկ նա թալանայր, հանէր զոգին, ոգի զոգւով ածէր, եւ ոչ կարէր բանիցն տալ պատասխանի մինչեւ յերեկոյ: Ապա իբրեւ երեկոյ եղեւ, թողին զնա մագիստրիանոսքն ի վկայանոցին, եւ գնացին ի քաղաքն ի վանս իւրեանց: Եւ սոտեստէսն փակէր զդուրս վկայանոցին, եւ ի կողմն եղեալ յիւրում տեղւոջն, յանկարծակի դարձեալ երեւեցաւ նմա, զի բացան դրունք վկայանոցին, եկին կուտեցան, եւ լի եղեւ վկայանոցն նոքիւն վկայիւք: Եւ ելանէին միմեանց ընդ առաջ մեծաւ ուրախութեամբ, եւ տային միմեանց ողջոյն. ապա արկանէին զաթոռս իւրաքանչիւր կարգաւ յօրինեալ բոլորէին կարգէին ի նստել: Ապա գային սուրբքն Սարգիս եւ Թէոդորոս երկոքեան ի գործոյն` յոր առաքեալ էին, եւ մտանէին ի ժողովս սրբոցն: Ապա հայեցան բազմութիւն ժողովոյ վկայիցն, եթէ Ո'րպէս յոր գործ երթեալ էիք` վճարեցէք: Պատասխանի տուեալ ասէին, թէ Էր իսկ յորժամ ի ձէնջ գնացաք, սպանաք զթշնամին ճշմարտութեանն զՎաղէս. եւ ի սոյն ժամ առ ձեզ դարձեալ` եկեալ եմք աւասիկ առ ձեզ: Եւ յարուցեալ գոհանային ամենայն բազմութիւն ժողովոյն զտեառնէ մերմէ Յիսուսէ Քրիստոսէ. եւ ինքեանք մեկնեցան յիւրաքանչիւր տեղիս: Եւ յահի մեծի լինէր սոփեստէսն մինչեւ յայգ յառաւօտն:
'Then King Vales gave an order for an expert to be sought and found who would be able to confront the Christian faith in writing. And he was told that there was a skilled sophist in a certain city. And so, the emperor sent his magistrianoi to him so that they might hasten to go and bring the man to him without delay, and they hurriedly fetched him.
When they had traveled for two stages, they happened to chance on another city at the martyrium of the holy lady Thekla [which lay] outside the city. When they arrived there the sophist got down and chose the inside of the martyrium for his lodging, while the magistrianoi lodged in the city. When the sophist had eaten, he made his bed, locked the doors of the martyrium, sat down on the bed, and intended to lie down [to sleep]. [But], while he was still awake, he saw with open eyes that the doors of the martyrium had suddenly opened and there was assembled a great multitude of martyrs who appeared in great glory. And the holy lady Thekla went to meet them adorned in such brilliance that radiance like light seemed to emanate from her. They greeted each other, and the lady Thekla said to them: "Welcome, dear friends and labourers of Christ." After mutual greetings, each brought himself a seat and they sat down according to rank. Then the saints began to converse and said: "The saints of the Lord who have not yet departed from this earth are still oppressed here: some are in bonds, some in prison, some in exile, and some suffer other violence through unjust exactions and excruciating torments. Therefore, we have hastened to assemble together so that we should not be carelessly neglectful of seeking redress for those who believe in the Lord, especially because many of the Lord's workers are impeded, many fields left untended, and many vineyards deserted. We must restrain Vales, who impedes the workers, so that every labourer may be vigilant in his task. And the valiant labourer Basil is likewise impeded in his task. Therefore, come, let us arise and send two from amongst us who shall go and deprive the evil Vales of life." Then they sent out one from among them whose name was *Sargis [= Sergios, soldier and martyr of Rusafa, S00023] and another named *Theodoros [= Theodore, soldier and martyr of Amaseia and Euchaita, S00480], and they set a time limit for them, and said, "Come [back] at this same time, and so shall we." Then they rose up and separated.
The sophist who was in the martyrium heard all of this and saw this vision with open eyes, and he was amazed and remained sleepless until break of day. At early dawn, the magistrianoi came and said to the sophist: "Come, let us be on our way!" But he feigned sickness and could not budge from the spot. And when they began to compel him, he grew weak, sighed, and panted, and was unable to answer them until the evening. When the evening came, the magistrianoi left him in the martyrium and returned to their own lodgings in the city. Then the sophist locked the doors of the martyrium and lay down in his place. And suddenly he saw again the doors of the martyrium open, and the same martyrs come and assemble so that the martyrium was filled with them. They met one another with great joy and greeted one another; then they set down individual chairs, arranged them in order, and sat down. Then both Sargis and Theodoros came back from the task for which they had been sent and entered the assembly of the saints. And the multitude of assembled martyrs asked of them: "How did you carry out the task for which you went?" And answering they said: "As soon as we left you we killed the enemy of the truth Vales; we have returned at the same hour, and here we are come to you." Then the whole of the assembled multitude rose up and gave thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ, and they separated each to his own place. And the sophist remained terrified until break of day.
Text: Garsoïan 1984.
Translation: Garsoïan 1989, 130-132.
Burial site of a saint - tomb/grave
Cult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivityVisiting graves and shrines
Incubation
MiraclesApparition, vision, dream, revelation
Punishing miracle
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesOfficials
Monarchs and their family
Source
The History, traditionally attributed to a certain P‘awstos Buzandac'i (usually translated as 'Faustos of Byzantium') covers Armenian history from the later Arsacid dynasty (c. AD 330) to the partition of the Armenian kingdom between Byzantium and Iran (AD 387). The History is the earliest source covering this specific period of history, which was later treated by Movsēs Xorenac'i.As N. Garsoïan points out, despite the evident importance of the material contained in the History for the study of 4th century Armenia, it was never included into the received Armenian tradition, and medieval historians preferred to refer to Movsēs Xorenac‘i, the most authoritative source for later authors, as the sole authority for 4th century events. Łazar P'arpeci, for example, considered the information provided by P‘awstos as false and absurd, and so apparently did the rest of medieval scholarship.
Date and language
The authorship of the text has long been debated. The author claims to have been an eyewitness of the events he describes, but if this was indeed the case he could not have written in Armenian, as the Armenian script was only created in the 5th century. Thus, he was often considered a Greek historian, a supposition 'supported' by a misunderstanding of the word Buzand (in his name) as 'Byzantium' (see below). Other external evidence has also been cited to favour the idea that the work was originally written in Greek, and only later translated into Armenian. There has also been a theory in favour of a Syriac original, mostly advanced by Peeters and based on multiple Syriacisms in the text.
The most convincing theory, however, favours an Armenian original, and is mostly based on internal linguist evidence, such as the use of scriptural quotations that derive from the Armenian version of the Bible, various colloquialisms, and the spelling of proper names.
As to the date of the composition, the author’s own claim cannot be accepted as trustworthy as he is far too ignorant of 4th century events to be considered a contemporary; he presents 4th century historical events as filtered through folk memory, often projecting events of the 5th century into the previous century. Based on the Epic Histories' quotations from Koriwn (who wrote in the first half of the 5th century), and a reference to the Histories by Łazar P‘arpeci (writing at the very end of the 5th century), who places 'P‘awstos' immediately after Agathangelos, Garsoïan suggests convincingly that the date of composition was around 470, arguing that 'it is difficult to imagine a time more suitable for a work glorifying the role of the Mamikonean family in Armenian history than the generation immediately following the sparapet Vardan Mamikonean's heroic defense of Armenian Christianity in 451' (Garsoïan, Epic Histories, 11).
The author
The claim by some late antique and medieval sources that P‘awstos was Greek rests on a misunderstanding of the word Buzand, which was considered to mean 'Byzantium'. Medieval reception 'corrected' the form Buzand to Buzandac‘i ('from Byzantium') to support the Greek origin of the author. The actual title appended to the text is Buzandaran Patmut‘iwnk‘. A. Perikhanian has found a definitive solution to the problem, showing that the word buzand derived not from the toponym ('Byzantium') but from the Parthian bozand , 'a reciter of epic poems, a bard' , with the suffix –aran as an adjectival qualifier. The title can thus be translated as Bardic or Epic Histories. So, as N. Garsoïan has shown, the work generally titled History of Armenia and attributed to Faustos of Byzantium is in fact a compilation of tales assembled by an anonymous historian in the 5th century.
In our database the text will be consistently referred to as the Epic Histories.
The author’s agenda
From the perspective of the author’s representation of cultic practices, Garsoïan’s conclusion (as follows) is noteworthy: 'The author may have been a native of the southwestern district of Taron because of his unreserved devotion to the Mamikonean lords of the district and to its holy site Aštišat, which he invariable presents as the original centre of Armenian Christianity, as against the focus of the contemporary 'Agathangelos Cycle' on the northern city of Vałaršapat'/Dwin, and the nearby holy site of T'ordan' (Garsoïan, Epic Histories, 16). The author is a rigourous defender of Nicene orthodoxy and is thus strongly antagonistic toward the Armenian crown, which 'sought to conform with the Arianizing policy of the successors of Constantine through much of the fourth century' (Garsoïan, Epic Histories, 15).
Discussion
This story in the Epic Histories testifies to a popular practice associated with Thekla, namely the rite of incubation at her shrine and the belief that she resided within the chancel of her church. The apocryphal Acts of Paul and Thekla claimed that Thekla had not died but had disappeared into the rock or into the cave where she had retired. Her shrine in Seleucia became a major site of pilgrimage and the martyrium was transformed into a basilica by Emperor Zeno at the end of the fifth century.The Acts of Paul and Thekla were translated into Armenian in the first half of the fifth century from the Syriac version of the Greek original, which caused a rapid spread of the Thekla tradition in the Armenian milieu.
In this narrative, as discussed by Valentina Calzolari, Thekla is presented as a defender of Nicene Orthodoxy. Although this story preserved in the Epic Histories is indeed unique, it is a reflection of various traditions associated with the cult of Thekla. The anonymous Miracles of Thekla evokes the practice of incubation in Seleucia. Thekla is also presented as a new Athena due to her fondness for sophists and educated individuals. Finally, as Calzolari notes, Thekla is a saint exclusively confronting the Arians, with the Nicene creed been inscribed on the walls of her sanctuary and protected by her hand.
Although this specific story, featuring Valens and Thekla, is unique, a similar story was popular in the fifth and sixth centuries, featuring the emperor Julian and Basil. Sozomen does not specify the saint involved in Julian's killing however other elements, such as incubation and the vision, as well as the involvement of a philosopher who was notified of Julian's killing, are present in the narrative (E02781).
Malalas' account is shorter and identifies the saint as Merkourios, whereas the vision where Christ commands Merkourios to slay Julian was experienced by Basil of Caesarea (E02775).
The involvement of Thekla in the punishing miracle, however, is not unusual, since, according to the Miracles of Thekla, she was particularly ruthless in delivering death sentences for various reasons. E.g. E56646, E05648, E05709.
The choice of saints involved in the story (Thekla, Sergios (S00023) and Theodore (S00480)), essentially reflects the popularity of these saints in late antique Asia Minor, Syria as well as Caucasia. Over time, the cult of Sergius (Sargis) was particularly augmented in Armenia.
Bibliography
Edition:Buzandaran Patmut'iwn (The Epic Histories) also known as Patmut'iwn Hayoc' (History of Armenia) Attributed to P'awstos Buzandac'i, a facsimile reproduction of the 1883 St. Petersburg edition with an introduction by Nina G. Garsoïan (New York: Caravan Books, 1984).
Translation:
Garsoïan, N.G., The Epic Histories Attributed to P'awstos Buzand (Buzandaran Patmut'iwnk') (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1989).
Studies:
Baynes, N.H. “The Death of Julian the Apostate in a Christian Legend,” Journal of Roman Studies 27 (1937), 22-9; reprinted in Baynes, Byzantine Studies and Other Essays (London: University of London Athlone Press, 1955).
Calzolari, V., "The Legend of St Thecla in the Armenian Tradition: From Asia Minor to Tarragona through Armenia", in J.W. Barrier, J.N. Bremmer, T. Nicklas, A. Puigi Tarrech, eds., Thecla: Paul's Disciple and Saint in the East and West (Studies in Early Christian Apocrypha 12) (Leuven, Peeters, 2017), 285-305.
Calzolari, V., "The Reception of the Acts of Thecla in Armenia: Thecla as a Model of Representation for Holy Women in Ancient Armenian Literature", in G. Dabiri, F. Ruani (eds.), Thecla and Medieval Sainthood: The Acts of Paul and Thecla in Eastern and Western Hagiography (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022), 110-141.
Conybeare, F.C., The Apology and Acts of Apollonius and Other Monuments of Early Christianity (London, 1894), 49-60.
Khachatrian, L'Architecture arménienne du IVe au VIe siècle (Bibliotheque des cahiers archeologiques 7, Paris, 1971), 67-68.
Lipsius, R.A., Die apokryphen Apostolgeschichte und Apostollegenden 2/1 (Braunschweig, 1897), 424-467.
Peeters, P. "Un miracle des SS. Serge et Theodore et la Vie de S. Basile dans Fauste de Byzance," Analecta Bollandiana 39 (1921), 65-88.
Nikoloz Aleksidze
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00023 | Sergios, soldier and martyr of Rusafa | Uncertain | S00092 | Thekla, follower of the Apostle Paul | Certain | S00480 | Theodore, soldier and martyr of Amaseia and Euchaita | Uncertain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Nikoloz Aleksidze, Cult of Saints, E00243 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E00243