/<r ,iniiiii' Stilntu' l mva />/ Translation Series Edltoi Alice MuryTalbol
Advisory Hoard John Dully Elizabeth A. Fisher Angela C. Hero Alexander P. Kazhdan Angeliki E. Laiou Henry Maguire Michael McCormick Ihor Sevcenko Denis F. Sullivan
HOLY WOMEN OF BYZANTIUM
TEN SAINTS' LIVES IN ENGLISH TRANSLATION
Edited by Alice-Mary Talbot
t:
Titles in Preparation
2. Byzantine Defenders of Images
3. St. Lazaros of Mt. Galesios
)ftrton0aks Research Library and Collection Washinaton i)(
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[p. 251]
The Life of the Blessed Elisabeth the Wonderworker
"Many daughters have wrought valiantly, many have obtained wealth."" saiil Solomon the most wise, prophetically proclaiming that, at various times, women as well as men would shine with the beauties of every type of virtue and share in the spiritual gifts of the divine spirit and marvclously work mirac ulous wonders and signs'" throughout the world. For scripture also show, countless and innumerable women, both under the <Mosaic> Law and aftei the advent of grace,19 transforming feminine frailty to manly resolution and. through self-discipline and painful ascetic practice, courageously overthrow ing the ancient conqueror2" of our foremother Eve and common enemy oi' I Inhuman race through the power of the Most High, and being crowned with Ihi shining trophies of victory.
One of these women is Elisabeth, renowned and famed for her miraclcH She came from the large city of Herakleia in Thrace, [p. 252] Her parents wei v not obscure or undistinguished, but well-born, wealthy, and full of virtue. I lei mother's name was Euphemia, and her father—who at that time wiin dishypatos21—was named Eunomianos. They both lived up to their name-. If a pious and God-pleasing manner," and their faithful meditation on tin Lord's law23 made them noteworthy and well known to all.
They made their residence near the aforementioned city <of Herakleia in a village we now call Abydenoi, though it was known in days of old | Thrakokrene. The couple—being godly and blameless like the righteous Job
11 Prov. 31:29 (phrases reversed).
18 Cf. Acts 6:8, 2 Cor. 12:12.
19 I.e., in both the Old and New Testaments.
-" I.e., Satan. Halkin has noted a parallel usage of 7rcEpvicmic, in Gregentios, lion with a Jew Named Herban (PG 86:664b).
:l A title of honor used in the Byzantine Empire from the 9th through 11 Iii ( The ODB (1:638) notes that in the 11th century the title was often conferred i ans, judges, etc.
22 Eunomianos means '"good law <keepcr>" and Euphemia "good reputBl "Cf. Ps. 1:2, 118:70. ' Cf. .lob 1:1.
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and emulating the hospitality of the patriarch Abraham25—gave liberally to all the needy the necessities of life. And so, also like Abraham,26 they received, as a result of their vow,27 fruit of the womb28 worthy of their own beauty and good works.
This is how it came about. After sixteen years of marriage had passed, ihcy still remained childless,29 and, being bereft of offspring, they of course grieved. They were sorely distressed, and they earnestly beseeched God, Who knows the hearts <of men>, to release them from the sorrow of childlessness and to give them a child as heir of their wealth and lineage. And the Lord, Who performs the desire of them that fear Him, graciously heard their supplication.1" and did not disregard the supplication intended to be well pleasing to I lim.
[p. 253] Now, it had been the custom of old in that place for the inhabitants from all the areas round about to come together every year on the feast ol I lie victorious martyr Glykeria31 and to celebrate for an entire week32 to-
"' Cf Gen. 18:1-8 (the hospitality of Abraham to the three men at the Oak of Mature).
" Isaac was born to the childless Abraham and Sarah when they were 100 and 90 ■ ■ .us old, respectively; cf. Gen. 17:15-19, 21:1-3. " See below, pp. 125-26.
(I., e.g.. Gen. 30:2, Lk. 1:42. '" I lie infertility of a saint's parents, a frequent commonplace in vitae (see, for ex-implc, llie Life of St. Thomai's, Chaps. 4-5), has its roots in the biblical motif of barren I'.iimls who at long last bear a holy child (e.g., Isaac, Samuel. John the Baptist). At Ihe same lime, sterility was a real problem in the Byzantine world, as suggested, for l \ainple. by the use of amulets; see J. Herrin and A. Kazhdan, ODB2.994, s.v. Infertil-ii s A recent Ph.D. dissertation at Catholic University (1994) by Efthalia Walsh, "Over-
........ig (iender: Virgins, Widows and Barren Women in the Writings of St. John Chry-
,> loin," discusses the dilemma that infertility posed for theologians, m < i I's. 144 (145): 19.
" Si (ilykeria was martyred at Herakleia in the 2d century under Antoninus Pius, 'ill Delehaye, 'Saints de Thrace et de Mesie," AnalBoll 31 (1912), 249-52; BHG <■ |'| 699m; lilld Nov. Auct., p. 82.
I his is a fairly early example of a saint's feast being celebrated for a full week. I'll amiably I lie actual leaslday was the culmination of the week's festivities. For discus-lllfl "I these festive celebrations, see S. Vryonis, "The Panegyris of the Byzantine llllt   in The By antinc Saint, ed. S. Ilackcl 11 Inivcrsily of Birmingham, 14th Spring mponium ol Byzantine Studies] (London, 1981), 196 226
45
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gether with those who lived in the city—this was done on the thirteenth of May. So the blessed <Elisabeth's> admirable parents came with everyone else and participated in processions and all-night do.xologies and visited the holy shrines throughout the city, shrines which contained the sacred relics of the forty holy women and Ammos the deacon33 and of many others. (The Life of the great Bishop Parthenios discusses at more length both these relics and the expensive and brilliant construction of the renowned churches.)34 And so, venerating these <saints>35 and giving them due honor, they feasted and celebrated with the populace, carrying with them <in procession> throughout the city the ever-venerated [p. 254] head of the martyr,30 who was beheaded foi the sake of Christ. While the divine liturgy was being celebrated by Leo.37 who was the bishop of the city at that time, in the church which is called Treasure and is dedicated to the Mother of God, <whenever> Eunomianos (the afore mentioned father of the blessed <Elisabeth>) gazed at <the head of St. (ily keria>, he noticed her sometimes smiling slightly as though happy and some times with a sad and gloomy expression. He considered this to be a visibli symbol of his trust in the martyr and he found his soul divided between happi ness and sadness.
33 These forty women together with the deacon Ammos (Ammon) were executed Herakleia in the early 4th century under the emperor Licinius; their feastday is I Sep tember. See BHG 2280-81; Delehaye, "Saints de Thrace," 194-97. 247-49.
34 Parthenios was a bishop of Lampsakos martyred in the early 4th century mull i Constantine I. As Halkin notes (p. 253 n. 4), neither the extant vita of Parthenios li his disciple Crispinus {BHG 1422; PU 114; 1348—65) nor the later version by Symi "" Metaphrastes {BHG 1423) discusses at any length the churches and shrines in Hi akleia. The vita by Crispinus, in fact, mentions only two by name: the martyrium <•! M Glykena (col. 1360d) and one which is called rata XfAac, (col. 1361a). Howevei ll 1 quite possible that Elisabeth's hagiographer had access to a longer vita of St. Part hi A ios, which has not survived.
35 An alternate interpretation would be that the veneration refers to the chin> In shrines rather than to the saints themselves.
1f Glykeria's head was normally kept at her church in a marble reliquary thnl hot an iambic inscription; the reliquary still cxisls in the church of St. George .m I n Dll (formerly Herakleia). Cf. Delehaye, "Saints de Thrace." 25(1
37 There is no evidence of an archbishop l.eo Ibi tin- sec of Herakleia in il" lh
century; il should be noted, however, thai the evident C is I'ninnienlary since il........
lists of bishops have several caps, particularly between >|V> and 518; el llalkm, ,*M a 2 Leo i of Herakleia was biihop from MO In Kid I to li from 126.1 to 1281 t \ I «t in Tsauu'n, Mclfi       ' 160 n 13)
After the service ended, the throng made fervent prayer in the church of the Theotokos called Katacheilas38 by the local inhabitants, and at about the sixth hour they all returned to the holy church of the martyr Glykeria. After the vespers hymn, the others left the church, but Eunomianos remained there alone with his wife Euphemia, fervently beseeching the victorious <martyr> Id release them from the bonds of their barrenness and to grant them, beyond all> hope, a child. They prayed long into the night, and finally lay down on the floor and went to sleep for a while.
And then—O unspeakable and terrible mysteries of God—the martyr most sweet (like her name)39 stood before the man in a dream and said to him, | p. 255] "Why, <my good> man, do you bring your sufferings to me and seek liom me that which only God can give you? However, if you will promise me In truth to acquire in yourself a broken heart and a humbled spirit*0 and never in exalt yourself over your neighbors, then the most generous Lord will speedily grant you through my <intercession> a girl child, and you shall call her ii.i me I -lisabeth, for she will be shown forth like the mother of the Forerunner 11id liaptist John." After he eagerly swore an oath to do these things, the saint made the sign of the cross over him, and left him.
• l:unomianos>, immediately waking from sleep, related to his wife the i lion lie had seen; she replied that she had beheld a similar <vision>. And in hi i manner, the archbishop, who was most beloved of God41 and was honored ■nil the gift of foresight, counseled both of them and advised the couple, Igrccing with the martyr of Christ. After the feast, he entertained them i" three clays. Then, blessing them, he dismissed them to return home in I.. ii< e
So the wife immediately conceived, and, after nine months had passed, III '• ivc birth to a baby girl just as the martyr had truly foretold. When forty 11   1 had gone by. Eunomianos took the child and her mother to the city.
ne sanctuary called Kara XiXac. in Crispinus' vita of St. Parthenios (PG mm I6| w (
1 ■  Si < llykeria (ytomrttiTn, = "most sweet"), i i Pi 50(5I):17.
IfcoeiMoTcnoc,, a standard epithet of archbishops; cf. I. and N. P. Sevcenko, The ' '■■urn Nicholas ofSton (Brookline, Mass., 1984), 135.
1« lln emtern rite, a "churching" ol mother and child occurs forty days after the
..............o< I        presentation In the Temple when he was
11   i>W). and the i hild inn) ihereal'lei he baptized
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Upon arriving at the church of the famed martyr and approaching her pure icon (located on the right side), he threw himself face first on the floor, giving thanks to her [p. 256] with a joyous heart and tears. Then, as he gazed upon the icon and suitably addressed his thanksgivings to it, he saw a sight both strange and remarkable, for her face blazed brighter than the sun and her lips gently moved. "The time has come, Eunomianos," she said, "to fulfill your vows to God." This instilled fear and trembling43 and great amazement in him. And so <he and his wife>. approaching the most blessed archbishop and giv ing him the customary greeting, beseeched him to give their child the seal in Christ.44 Whereupon, receiving45 the child, he baptized her and named ho Elisabeth, as the martyr had foretold. After praying at length for <her par ents>, he said to the child, "Through you, child, may the Lord be gracious In me, granting me remission of sins." Thereupon, they returned home rejoicing
The child increased in stature and favor.46 By the age of three, her fatlui was already teaching her the sacred letters.47 She showed herself to be so expert and able in these that she was able to recite the Lives of the saints <by heai i after a single hearing.48
When she had just turned twelve, her mother departed from earthly liIV.-
43 Cf. Ps. 54 (55):5, 1 Cor. 2:3.
44 Baptism and, especially, chrismation.
45 Literally, "having catechized" or "having given instruction." This may refer to thl first part of the baptismal service, where the convert (or sponsor) repudiates Satan and all his works and gives a profession of faith.
46 Cf. Lk. 2:52.
47 Literally, "turned her over to the learning of sacred letters," which may imply ilui she was entrusted to a tutor, although Lete also interprets the expression to mean Mi.h she was taught by her father. "Sacred letters" (iepct ypduiraTa), a phrase derived limn 2 Tim. 3:15, refers to the "primary cycle of elementary education which was begun ij about the age of six or seven and consisted of reading, writing and spelling baiM mainly on religious texts" (C. Galatariotou. The Making of a Saint. The Life. Times wn Sanctification of Neophytos the Recluse [Cambridge, 1991], 154 55). In the Life of St| David, Symeon, and George of Lesbos, "sacred letters" are defined as the propaldi It (i.e., elementary education) and the Psalms (ed. I. van den Gheyn, Anal Boll IX 11899] 214). Cf. also P. Lemerle, Byzantine Humanism (Canberra, 1986), 111; A Moll.iti "Schooling in the Iconoclast Centuries," in Iconoclasm, ed. A. Bryer and .1. I lerrin (Ull mingham, 1977), 88 90: and R. Browning, "Literacy in the Byzantine World," BMQ ■ 4 (1978). 48-49
48 Or "from simply listening to them."
Her father wanted to give her away in marriage,49 but the girl could not bear to hear of it at all, for she desired rather to be wedded to the immortal bridegroom, Christ. And, three years after this, her father Eunomianos also journeyed rejoicing to the Lord, and the blessed [Elisabeth], left alone, turned straightway to God, the Father of orphans. Since she desired the life of solitude and poverty [i.e., monasticism], she distributed among the poor the gold and silver that her parents had set aside for her, as well as her other property (which was considerable), and so through the hands of the needy offered <her lortune> to God; and she gave both her male and female slaves their freedom.
[p. 257] So, without looking back, she hastened to the Queen of Cities [Constantinople] and came to the sacred monastery of the holy great martyr (icorge, called "the Little Hill,"50 where her paternal aunt was the mother superior.51 When she arrived there, she bid the world adieu and clothed herself m the angelic garment52 and advanced with all her heart to the ascetic struggles. And soon she managed to attain every type of virtue, becoming filled to overflowing with all the spiritual gifts of the Spirit. She mortified <her> body and brought it into subjection5* by long fasts: like the great Moses54 and Elijah I he Tishbite,55 she would often endure the entire forty days <of Lent> without
''' In Byzantium, girls could be betrothed at age seven and married at twelve. For references to the pertinent legislation, see vita of Theodora of Thessalonike, below, note 31.
1 This convent of St. George does not correspond with any of the monasteries of '•l (icorge listed in Janin, EglisesCP, a work published before Halkin's edition of the uta of Elisabeth. Another vita of Elisabeth, by the monk Chariton (BHG 2122), locates iIn- convent of the "Little Hill" (whose dedication to St. George it omits) near the I istcrn of St. Mokios and states that it was also called xa uiKpa 'Pcouai'ou; cf. Criscuolo. Vila di Santa Elisabetta," 62. In the 10th century, however, the convent of to uncpa PtouatOD was dedicated to the Theotokos; cf. Janin, EglisesCP. 197. See also the vita of Si I liomai's. Chaps. 16 and 22, for more on this convent.
II was common for a young man or woman to enter a monastery directed by a irl.uiw. frequently an aunt or uncle: see, for example the vita of Theodora of Thessa-lonike, below, Chaps. 9. 20. See also A. Laiou. "Observations on the Life and Ideology »1 Byzantine Women." By:F9 (1985), 75-76, and A.-M. Talbot, "The Byzantine Family I lid Ihe Monastery" DOP 44 (1990). 121-23. 'I.e., the monastic habit
' Cf I < 'or, 9:27, The KJV translation reads "kept under" for "mortified." i >,'in 9 9 I Ki 11 Ki | 19:8,
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St. Athanasia of Aegina
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[p. 180]
The Life and Conduct of Our Blessed Mother, Athanasia, and a Partial Narration of Her Miracles14
1. Participating in the commemoration of the saints is an apostolic precept.1 It is also very laudable and an act of salvation to compile their Lives and sel them forth as a common benefit for any who wish <to read them>.16 So then I will try to compile the Life of the blessed Athanasia, narrating in my dis course a few facts about her, so that these not be consigned to the depths ol oblivion by time and thereby harm very many people. So then this praiseworthy woman, who bears the name of immortality,17 who lived her life admirably and showed herself to be a handmaiden of the Lord of all, was born of a fathl named Niketas, and a mother named Irene. They were of noble family1" and very God-fearing people who resided on the island of Aegina." Being born dj and reared by these <parents>, she truly earned her designation as a useM vessel20 of the all-holy Spirit. When she was seven years old, she learned tl psalter in a short time and eagerly studied all the Holy Scriptures.
One day while sitting and weaving at the loom by herself, she saw a slim ing star descend as far as her chest. It shed abundant light on her and thd
14 The title shows that the author has consciously added the posthumous miracles i" the end of the vita. Accounts of the ceremonial transfer of a saint's relics and his/lici posthumous miracles were sometimes preserved in separate works apart from the M proper, as in the vita of Theodora of Thessalonike, which follows (Life no. 7, in iIn volume).
15 a punning variation on Rom. 12:13.
16 The Greek phrase twv Xíav ejiaiveTÓv koi oxo-nipiov poses difficulties of intci |.....
tion. Carras ("Athanasia," 212) suggests an emendation to endive-raw ku\ cum,......
"of very praiseworthy and salvific acts," but the predicate genitive docs not work ttú with ocoTtipicov, and I suggest the reading was avxb Xioev (for trav Xíav) as the I UUJ translation of Surius seems to construe.
17 Athanasia in Greek means "immortality."
18 Eupatridai, i.e., the local aristocracy or, less ipeciflcally, "well-born." !» Aegina is an island in I lie Saroilic < lull soillhwesl ol Alliens
•'" 2 Tim 2:21.
disappeared from her sight. By this <light>, therefore, she was abundantly enlightened in her soul and came into an absolute hatred for the vanity of life.
She intended to enter into the monastic way of life, but her parents very forcibly joined her to a husband, though she was unwilling and adamantly t il used. After living with him for only sixteen days, she suddenly came into
• the state of> widowhood, [p. 181] For, when the barbarian Maurousioi21 ■wept into those parts, her husband went out to join battle and (by the judgments that <only> God knows) became a casualty of war.
2. After considerable time had passed and Athanasia was struggling Within herself and directing her mind toward the monastic life, suddenly an imperial edict was issued that unmarried women and widows should be given
.....larriage to foreign men.22 So because of this, her parents drove Athanasia
Into a second marriage, since she had not yet attained <her goal of> monastic life But even after this had happened, she maintained her habitual concern l"i her own salvation, applying herself tirelessly to the chanting of the psalms ind devoting herself with assiduity to reading <Scripture>, and accepting no I hange in her <previous> good <ways>, but adorned with meekness she shone hi a blessed fashion with humility of heart. Wherefore this praiseworthy
• i (man was much loved by all who knew her good ways. She so distinguished I" i .ill in almsgiving that her household goods did not suffice, even though ilnv were very abundant, for the generous distribution <to the poor> from hi i hand. She graciously received monks visiting from all over, and she plentifully provided widows and orphans and all the needy with the necessities ..i life,
()ncc after a famine arose and everyone was reduced to destitution, she nerously donated food not only to her fellow believers, but also compassion-
' Specifically North African Moors or Berbers, but here by a Byzantine literary Nil Innyrny Spanish or African Muslims. The raid probably occurred within a few years III i he i< inquest of Crete by the Arabs under Abu Hafs, ca. 823-828. The earliest pos-
Ihli dl.....)'. for the raid on Aegina is 805-807; see Christides, Conquest of Crete, 158.
\ Kazhdan has suggested a connection with the edict of Theophilos that is men-'<    il in 11 ii- Arts of the I'brly-lwo Martyrs of Amorion, ed. V. Vasil'evskij and P.
Ill urn. Skazan(Ja o42 amoryskichmucenikach (St. Petersburg, 1905), p. 27.5-7 [= Reg ..... I ' 'I   Hie i'OviKdi could be Christian non-Greeks, pagans or other foreigners.
Hill i Aih.inasia's second husband eventually entered a monastery, he must have been ■1 in rii.in from birth Ol us Ilk- lesull of conversion. The purpose of the edict may,have 1 ■ • n i" encourage the assimilation of foreigners
144 Cenobitic Nuns
ately distributed <food> to the so-called Athinganoi,23 who were then hard-pressed by the famine and approached her. For she fulfilled that saying of the Lord which states, "Be ye merciful as your heavenly Father; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust"2* Not only did she provide them food, but also clothed them with garments and comforted them with other gifts. On the Lord's day and [p. 182] on feast days, she lovingly assembled all the neighbor women25 <in her pres-ence> and read them the Holy Scriptures, gradually opening their minds and in a godly way directing them into a fear and desire of the Lord.
3. In this way, advancing according to God and blooming with virtues, just like a flower-laden meadow, she persuaded her spouse, who yielded to her many exhortations after some years of cohabitation, to withdraw from the world and everything in it and to enter into the sacred way of life of the monks. After <becoming a monk> and distinguishing himself in a blessed manner, he fell asleep in the Lord.
So the blessed woman, taking advantage of her freedom,26 totally dedi cated her entire self to God. For finding other very pious women, who had the same aim and were ardent in spirit, and joining with them in full unanini ity, she very soon withdrew from worldly confusion.27 Distributing to the pooi all that she possessed according to the commandment of the Lord,28 aloH| with the aforementioned honorable women she changed her worldly garb i<> gether with her way <of life>. And abiding quietly in one place at the invitatii hi of a virtuous and blessed man who tonsured them, after three or four yeais
23 Literally, "untouchables." They were heretics from Asia Minor who adopted i number of Jewish practices; see ODB 1:223 and J. Starr. "An Eastern Christian Seel The Athinganoi," H'ltiR 29 (1936), 93-106.
24 Lk. 6:36 and Mt. 5:45.
25 This may include the Athinganoi who at that time were close to her, since the tMl seems to imply that she was introducing them to the Christian scriptures.
26 Athanasia, now liberated from the bonds of marriage, is manumitted again hcl'on her death by the vision of angels who hand her papers of manumission from the slave i , of this world; see Chap. 12.
21 A reference to Athanasia's taking monastic vows and her formal founding 1,1 1 female monastic community. 2" Mk. 10:21.
St. Athanasia of Aegina 145
she unwillingly accepted the leadership of the assembled women,29 called first by them but in her mind considering herself the last, and fulfilling that saying of the Lord which states, "Let the one wishing to be first among you be the last of all and the servant of all"3"
4. So what account could explain, what tongue could present the loftiness of her great humility? For she would never allow <herself> to be served by anyone of them nor <allow> water to be poured over her hands <by anyone> during her entire lifetime, as all her fellow <nuns> assured everyone following her holy dormition [p. 183], after making inquiry of each other. Considering herself unworthy to be with them, let alone be served by them (even though she was mother superior) and engaging in great abstinence, she used to par-lake of a little bread and a modest amount of water after the ninth hour,31 refraining entirely from cheese and fish, but only on the feast of Easter tasting I hem with thanksgiving; and during the holy days of Lent, she used to eat every other day, subsisting on raw greens alone, not partaking of any drink whatsoever during all those sacred days. And for her rest,she partook of little ileep, not on her side, but leaning on a rock that was prepared for this purpose. Nol only during the holy and great Lent did she practice this discipline but also during the other two <Lents>, I mean that of the Holy Apostles and that of ('hristmas.32 Her bedding set on the ground was of fairly large stones, cov-ired above with a small goathair <cloth>,33 and leaning on this at the time of mm she watered it every night with tears, in the words of the prophet.34 For •.line the love of God abundantly inflamed her from within, she also used to lied abundant tears both in chanting the psalms and in prayers, so that one would be more likely to see a spring without streams of water than <to see> Without tears her holy eyes, which continually looked to Christ.
V Her inner garment was a goathair <shirt>, which irritated her flesh with lis roughness, and her outer <clothing> was a ragged garment of sheep
Athanasia accepts the office of mother superior. 10 CI Mk. 9:35. " Allct ! p.m.
I In- Casting period before the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul on 29 June and the i ' mír. period before Christmas.
' < ii "goatskin"? iiu- "prophet" is I)avid with reference to Ps, 6:6.