The Syriac Martyrdom of *Bāboy (catholicos and martyr in Persia, S01576) recounts the martyrdom of Bāboy, catholicos of the Church of the East, in the city of Seleucia-Ctesiphon under Peroz I (r. 459-484).Written in Sasanian Persia during the late 5th c.
E04161
Literary - Hagiographical - Accounts of martyrdom
Persian martyrdom accounts
Martyrdom of *Bāboy
Summary:
The narrative introduces Bāboy as the head of the Christians in Persia during the reign of Peroz, who at a certain point was imprisoned for several years. After that, a brief exposition follows, on the bitter rivalry between the two factions of Christians in Persia, the followers of Bāboy and the followers of Barṣāwmā, bishop of Nisibis. (pp. 631-632 in Bedjan's edition)
As persecution of the Christians of Persia by Zoroastrians had considerably intensified, the catholicos decided to seek help and intercession from the Romans. With that purpose, he wrote a letter to the Roman emperor, in which he complained that 'God delivered us to a wicked kingdom' (cf. Daniel 3:32), and sent it, secretly, with a trusted envoy. (pp. 632-633)
On his way to Roman territory, the envoy stopped in the city of Nisibis. Some local Christians, supporters of Barṣāwmā, persuaded him to reveal the purpose of his mission. When they learned of the content of Bāboy's letter, they stole it from the envoy and sent it to Peroz. According to another version, related later, Barṣāwmā was involved in the affair personally, as he supposedly hosted the envoy and stole the letter. (p. 633)
When the king read the letter, he ordered one of his nobles to show it to Bāboy, asking whether the catholicos recognised the seal on the document as his own. Not able to deny it, Bāboy acknowledged the seal as his own. After that, the king ordered that the letter should be read in public, in front of the local Christians, who were much distressed by the catholicos' choice of words in referring to the Sasanian empire as the 'wicked kingdom'. While some Persian-speaking Christians tried to alleviate the situation by translating this phrase as 'non-Christian kingdom,' Peroz refused to accept their excuses. (pp. 633-634)
The king, then, ordered that Bāboy be hung on a stake, suspended by the finger which sealed the letter, until he died. The name of the martyred catholicos was added to the diptych of the Church of the East for liturgical commemoration. (p. 634)
Summary: S. Minov
Liturgical invocation
Non Liturgical ActivityComposing and translating saint-related texts
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesMonarchs and their family
Ecclesiastics - bishops
Zoroastrians
Source
The Martyrdom of Bāboy is an account of the arrest and execution of Bāboy, catholicos of the Church of the East, during the reign of Peroz I (r. 459-484), apparently in the city of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. The catholicos, who sent a letter on behalf of the persecuted Christians of Persia to the Roman emperor, was denounced to the shah by the rival Christian faction of Barṣāwmā, bishop of Nisibis. As a result, he was arrested and executed. Whereas the general claim of the Martyrdom, i.e. the execution of Bāboy for treason by the order of Peroz, stands the test of historical veracity, some of the narrative's details, especially the negative role of Barṣāwmā in the whole affair, may well reflect later agendas and factional struggles within the Church of the East.While it is difficult to establish the work's date with certainty, the second half of the 6th century seems to be the likely time of the Martyrdom's composition (see Gero 1981, pp. 107-109).
The Martyrdom is attested in at least one manuscript, Berlin, Königliche Bibliothek, or. oct. 1257 [= Assfalg 27], dated to the 19th century (see Assfalg 1963, pp. 56-59). It was edited by Bedjan 1890-1897.
Syriac text: Bedjan 1890-1897, vol. 2, pp. 631-634. Modern Arabic translation: Scher 1900-1906, vol. 2, pp. 380-384. For general information, see Fiey 2004, p. 53-54; Gero 1981, pp. 97-109.
Discussion
The Martyrdom bears witness to the cult of the martyred catholicos Bāboy, which apparently developed soon after his death, during the last decades of the 5th century in the capital city of Seleucia-Ctesiphon.Bibliography
Main editions and translations:Bedjan, P., Acta martyrum et sanctorum. 7 vols (Paris / Leipzig: Otto Harrassowitz, 1890-1897).
Scher, A., Kitāb sīrat ’ašhar šuhadā’ al-Mašriq al-qiddisīn. 2 vols (Mossoul: Imprimerie des pères dominicains, 1900-1906).
Further reading:
Assfalg, J., Syrische Handschriften: syrische, karšunische, christlich-palästinensische, neusyrische und mandäische Handschriften (Verzeichnis der orientalischen Handschriften in Deutschland 5; Stuttgart: Franz Steiner, 1963).
Fiey, J.-M., Saints syriaques (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam 6; Princeton, NJ: Darwin Press, 2004).
Gero, S., Barṣauma of Nisibis and Persian Christianity in the Fifth Century (CSCO 426, Subs. 63; Louvain: Peeters, 1981).
Sergey Minov
16/10/2017
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S01576 | Baboy/Bāboy, katholicos and martyr in Persia under Peroz I | ܒܒܘܝ | Certain |
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