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  The Martyrdom of Saint Basilides (Wasilides) On this day, St. Basilides (Wasilides) who was a minister and counsellor for the Roman Empire, was martyred. He had many slaves and servants. Emperor Numerianus was the ruler, who was married to Basilides' sister, Patricia, and had a son called Yustus. Patricia was also the mother of Theodore El-Mishreke. Basilides had two sons: Awsabyos (Eusebyus) and Macarius. When the Persians waged war against Rome, Emperor Numerianus sent to them his son Yustus and Awsabyos, Basilides' son. Then he went to fight another enemy and was killed in that war. His kingdom was thus left vacant without a ruler. The people chose from among the soldiers a man called Agrippita, who was a shepherd, and they set him over the royal horses, stable. He was a mighty man in action, bold in his dealings. One of the emperor's daughters looked at him and took him as her husband. She made him emperor and called him, "Diocletian." Shortly aft...

  1. The Martyrdom of Saint Matruna. On this day St. Matruna, who was a maid-servant to a Jewish lady, was martyred. She was of Christian parents, and her mistress used to entice her to adopt the Hebrew religion, but she refused. Therefore her mistress used to humiliate her, ill treat her, and over-burden her with servitude. One day she accompanied her mistress to the Jewish temple, then she went to the Christians church. And when her mistress asked her where she had been and why she did not enter their assembly, the Saint replied, "God had departed far from the synagogue that is yours, how shall I enter it? Whereas the place that should be entered is the church which the Lord Christ has bought with His blood." Her mistress became angry at this and beat her harshly, then imprisoned her in a dark place where she spent four days without food or drink. She then took her out and beat her painfully, then she returned her to her imprisonment where she died. After her...

  The Martyrdom of St. Pisora the Bishop On this day, the holy father, the Bishop Abba Pisora, was martyred. He was the bishop of the God-loving city of Masil. When Diocletian returned to worshipping the idols and started persecuting the Christians, this holy man longed to shed his blood for the name of Christ. He gathered the people before the altar and commanded them with the commandments of the Lord, and then informed them that he wished to receive the crown of martyrdom for the sake of the name of Christ. They all wept, the young and the old, saying, "To whom will you leave us, Our Father, as orphans?" They wanted to prevent him from doing so, but when they could not, they let him go after he committed them to the Lord Christ. He left them bidding him farewell with much tears. Three bishops agreed to go with him; they were Pisikhos, Fanalikhos, and Theodore, and they all went together to the city of the governor and confessed the Lord Christ. He tortured the...

  1. The Departure of Isaiah the Prophet. On this day, the great Prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, was killed by the hand of Manasseh the King who sawed him with a wooden saw. This prophet prophesied in the days of five kings: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, and Manasseh. He prophesied to Ahaz saying, "Behold, the virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14) He also prophesied that, "His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace," (Isaiah 9:6), and the Lord will have mercy upon the world by offering Himself a sacrifice for all mankind as, "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him; and by His stripes we are healed..., and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah 53:5-6) He prophesied to Hezekiah and encouraged him when Sennacherib, King of Assyria, besieged Jeru...

  The Martyrdom of Saint Sophia On this day, St. Sophia, was martyred. She used to go to church with her Christian neighbors, so she became a believer in the Lord Christ. Longing to become Christian, she went to the Bishop of Manf. He baptized her in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Thereupon an accusation of becoming a Christian was brought against her before Claudianus, the Governor. The governor brought her, and questioned her. She confessed and did not deny her faith. He tortured her with many tortures. He whipped her, then burned her joints; however, she went on crying out, saying, "I am a Christian." The governor commanded to have her tongue cut off and then returned her to prison. He sent his wife to her to dissuade her, and promise her with many rewards. When she would not be dissuaded, he commanded to have her head cut off. She prayed a long prayer and asked God to forgive the governor and his soldiers for what they had done to he...

  1. A Council held in the city of Alexandria. On this day of the year 243 A.D., a holy synod convened in the city of Alexandria in the second year of the Papacy of St. Dionysius, the fourteenth Pope of Alexandria. This council was convened because certain people in the Arabian countries believed that the spirit dies with the body, and that on the day of the resurrection, it shall be raised up with it. They composed articles on this belief and sent them to certain people in Alexandria. When this reached Abba Dionysius he was exceedingly sorry, and he tried to return them from their erroneous opinion, but they would not hearken to him. Therefore, the council assembled, confronted them, and made manifest their perversion. They neither repented nor turned away from their false belief, the holy synod and the Pope excommunicated them. He wrote an article for them and said in it, "The love of God for mankind is exceedingly great, and the spirit neither dies nor perishes, ...

  1. The Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist. On this day, the forerunner and great prophet, St. John the Baptist, son of Zacharias the priest, was martyred by the order of King Herod. When St. John rebuked Herod because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Phillip whom he had taken as a wife, he said to him, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." (Mark:6:18) Herod seized the Saint and cast him into prison; however, he feared John. An opportune day came when Herod, on his birthday, gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers and the chief men of Galilee. And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced and pleased Herod. He promised her anything she might ask for, even as much as half of his kingdom. She went to her mother and asked her, "What shall I ask?" Her mother said, "Ask for the head of John the Baptist on a platter." When Herod heard this, he was exceedingly sorry. But because of his promise and those ...