Category: Announcements

In the last chapter we began to see hagiographical elements appear in the depiction of the travels of Mar Aba: everywhere he goes he teaches people, converts heretics and pagans, and demonstrates his moral and spiritual virtues.   But of course hagiography is primarily a form of fiction, rather than history, and, although the genre irritates me deeply, it is foolish to complain that a text written for one purpose is not something written for another.

Nevertheless we can still gain useful information.  Doubtless Aba went to Alexandria to study, rather than to teach.  Similarly he must have followed the path of many before and since and visited the hermits in the Egyptian desert in search of spiritual wisdom.  His path to Constantinople via Athens and Corinth is likely enough — how one hates to have to read between the lines! — and the statement about the situation at Athens probably does reflect the events around the final closure of the Academy by Justinian.

But with chapter 8 it seems that we have reached pure fiction; the unedifying “miracles” that disfigure this kind of literature.

8.  In a holy nunnery the Superior had long been ill with lower abdominal pain and dysentery, and was near to death.  In the same nunnery was a heretic woman who was arrogant towards the Superior and embittered her with her blasphemies.  When the Superior, a large, excellent woman, heard of the learning and virtue of the blessed one, she believed that, if he would send her a blessing on her food, she would instantly be healed.  She sent to ask. 

Because she ate only peas, on which she lived, he sent her some, because she had nothing else.  When the Superior, who was near to death, ate the peas, she became well and immediately the dysentery stopped, although peas are harmful for this disease.  But the divine providence wills what it will.  And as through the blessed Moses with bitter wood, or through the prophet Elisha with salt, bitter water was made sweet, so did it here through this blessed one.

And the Superior pleaded with God, through the prayer of the blessed one, because of the blasphemy of that woman in the monastery, and in the night, she died, because she blasphemed God and the blessed one, because the Superior had recovered through his blessing. 

This continues the translation of chapters from the German translation of the anonymous saint’s Life of Mar Aba I, the Nestorian patriarch in Persia in the middle of the 6th century A.D., when Justinian was emperor of the Romans and Chosroes II was the King of Kings of Persia.

7.  When he came to Edessa, he was joined by a brother named Thomas, who had been instructed (in the faith) from a young age.  And thus he surpassed most people in his knowledge, which he acquired from the blessed one in the many years that he was with him.  After wandering about a lot teaching, because he had been instructed in the Greek language also by him, he went into the Egyptian desert and enlightened many with his teaching and virtues.  He went into distant lands with great effort and by difficult ways of travel.  In Alexandria he expounded the holy scriptures and converted many who held pagan opinions.  He refuted those who dealt in magic, and put down the heretics (αἱρεσιώτης), in which he put them in a state of admiration by his attractive conduct.  Everyone was amazed at his mortification and enlightened by his teaching.  From there he went to Athens, and chastised the Athenians who believed that they were something great because they had been busy from the start with pagan knowledge and he converted many to the knowledge of the truth by signs and wonders, which were done by him there and in Corinth.  We would like to recount a double miracle.

6. Then he went up to Nisibis, and joined the local holy school, and gained the opportunity to handle the divine scriptures, dearer than his life.  He learned the (Psalter) of David in a few days, and began with the contemplation of the divine scriptures.  He associated with the at-peace-in-God Ma’na, the bishop of Arzon, a godly man and teacher of truth, who mainly by his good manners and through his acumen and scholarship surpassed all who were around at that time and (even) most of his predecessors.  After Mar Ma’na became a bishop, he joined him and went with him and was entrusted with the authority to teach in the province of Arzon.  Everyone there profitted greatly from him, and he converted many heretics to the true faith. 

Afterwards he returned to Nisibis and made great strides every day, in dealing with the explanation (of the scriptures) and spiritual studies. 

Then he felt obliged to go even into the Roman empire, in order to see the longed-for places of the saints, to receive the blessing of their prayers and then about a man named Sergius, who had linked the Arian ideas with paganism, with whom he wanted to dispute and establish the true faith.

5.  As the blessed one saw the virtue of this student, and thought much about his words, he decided in his heart to go and learn at the Christian college, and fasted and prayed much. 

He was working for a respectable man named Chudaibod, the secretary of the Finance Director of the district of Beit Aramaye, and was then in Radan.  After the latter was called to Ctesiphon, the blessed one also went down with the secretary for whom he was working.  He fasted daily and prayed constantly at the stone church.^[1] 

The secretary heard, where he was, that the blessed was being instructed in Christianity and said one day, “Aba, have you become a messianist?”  He said, “Yes, I am a messianist.”  The secretary said, “I will say this and accuse you before the Finance Director, and you will be put in chains.”^[2]  The blessed one said, “Just say it; I am willing to allow myself to be chained and to die for the name of Christ.”  So spoke the saint, although he had not yet received the seal of baptism. 

After he had spent some time in Ctesiphon, he returned to his home and after fasting and praying constantly, he entered into holy baptism in the village of ‘KD.^[3]  From then on he was more eager in fasting, prayer and virtuous works.  He left the secretary and his service, renounced the world, and decided to go into the desert and the mountains, there to live and to please God by his conduct.

1. ^[1]German “Kalkkirche”.↩
2. ^[2]It was illegal in the Sassanid realm for Zoroastrians to convert to Christianity, and the convert could be executed.↩
3. ^[3]This name is given in this unvocalised form in the BKV.↩

More from the Life of the Nestorian patriarch, Mar Aba I, ca. 550 AD.  The anonymous biographer has already explained that Mar Aba was originally a Persian pagan who held a senior administrative post.

3.  When the blessed one looked at the habit (σχῆμα), which was chaste and (not) colourful (?), he became doubtful whether he was perhaps not a Son of the Covenant, but a Marcionite or a Jew, and he asked him, “Are you a Jew?”  He said, “Yes”. Again he spoke, “Are you a Christian?” He said, “Yes”.  Again he spoke, “Do you worship the Messiah?” He said, “Yes”. 

The blessed one was very angry at this answer by the student and said, “How can you be Jew, Christian and Messianist (meschîchâjâ) ?”  For by “Christian” he meant, after the local custom, the Marcionites. 

The student said, “In private I am a Jew.  I worship the living God and believe in his Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Spirit.  I avoid idolatry and all uncleanness.  I am a Christian in truth, not like those the Marcionites lead astray and call themselves Christians.  Because “Christian” is a Greek word, which means in Syriac “Messianist”.  And if you ask me, “Do you worship the messiah?”, I worship him in truth and I avoid all evil for the sake of true life.”

 4.  When the blessed one heard this, he rejoiced in his spirit.  He recognised the wisdom and humility of the student, the disciple of Christ.  Again he got into the boat and sat down, and the student also got on.  And since the blessed one stopped despising the student, the wind also ceased; the waves of the Tigris calmed; they went across and came ashore.  As both  got out, the student said, “What did it cost you, that I came across with you?”  The blessed one wondered at his calm, and very much regretted insulting him.  He went to him and fell down before him, and said, “I ask you by the living and true God, forgive me for this sin committed against you.”  The student said, “The Lord has commanded us Christians, to retain anger against no-one, and never to return evil for evil.”  Then they drew near each other, greeted one another, and parted.

The story continues:

2.  When the blessed one sat in the boat to go across, the student also got in, to go across with him.  Then the saint saw his dress (σχῆμα), took him for a Son of the Covenant, beat him, and took the bag that he had with him and threw it ashore, and forced him to get out.  The student said nothing in reply, but got out and sat on the bank of the Tigris.  But once the blessed one and his companions had set out and had moved away a little distance from the shore, by the grace of God a violent wind blew against them; the Tigris became stormy like a zealous servant and its waves rose up against them, and it roared against the blessed one, because he had fought against the disciple of Christ and mocked him and prevented him from crossing.  Fear came over him, and he ordered the boat to return to the shore.  After he landed, the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  Then he got into the boat again, and the student also got in with him, and sat  down with him in the boat, and again the blessed one rose against him and forced him to go ashore.  And when they had gone a little way, the wind awoke again against this pagan audacity, that he did not recognised the Creator of All, and he was even more disturbed than before.  And again the blessed one and his companions returned to the shore and got out.  But the excellent student was sitting on the bank of the Tigris.

I thought that I would turn some of the German translation of the life of Mar Aba into English, since many of us find German hard to read.

1.  History of the wonderful and divine struggles of the holy witness Mar Aba, the Catholicos, the Patriarch of the East.

(Introduction: if we honour great men with statues, how much more then is it fitting to honour the witnesses to Christ, especially Mar Aba.)

Mar Aba was originally a pagan, and surpassed most heathens in his (zeal for) paganism.  He also was learned in Persian literature.  Because he was very learned in literature, the nobles of his area recognised that he was very learned and perceptive, and invited him to join them, and they considered that he was suitable for the civil service and gave him an official position.  And since the Blessed One listened to them, they made him an Arzabed; he went in and out with them, and was respected by many.  He was a hard, bitter pagan; he reviled the Christians and taunted the Sons of the Covenant.^[1]  But as he crossed the Tigris, Jesus threw his net over him and caught him in it.  For the Lord is accustomed to do as he did to the blessed Paul, when he went to Damascus to persecute his followers, to chain them and deliver them to death.  He transformed him from a persecutor into a persecuted; he was chained, suffered and died for him.  Similarly Jesus sent to the saint, as he went from the village of Chale to his home, and sat with others in a boat (κέρκουρος), a student (σχολάριος) as teacher, a mortified ascetic, a humble and gentle man, modest and humble in his appearance (σχῆμα), named Joseph, with the surname Moses.  On his rod he had the sweet and pleasant bait of the spiritual life, to entice the saint from death to life.

1. ^[1]This group (Syriac bnay qyāmâ) were a monastic-like group who combined asceticism with an politically and socially active life.  See also Wikipedia article.↩