Holy 42 Martyrs of Amorium in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

These saints were the foremost men of the city of Amorium. When, during the reign of Theophilos, Amorium was captured by the Hagarenes, they were taken captive by them, because they were generals and commanders and members of the foremost class among the Romans. Yet they did not betray their faith in Christ — neither out of cowardice, nor out of love for this present life, nor out of softness, nor because of their long-lasting suffering. For the vigor of their souls was not weakened by their bodily injuries and their imprisonment; rather, having drawn up against the enemies with manly resolve and bravery of soul, and refusing to stoop to deny their faith in Christ, they gladly accepted the cutting off of their heads.

Just as a person rejoices when he has invested in this world in his new and indeed precious clothes, in the same way the Church also celebrates today, we are told by the Hymnographer of the saints, Saint Joseph, because she has clothed herself in the new garment of the blood of the new prize-winning martyrs. “The Church today celebrates mystically, having put on a new garment, like purple and fine linen, the blood of the new prize-winning martyrs” (doxastikon of Vespers). And this means, as is known, that martyrdom for our Church constitutes her glory and her boast, since in this way she stands precisely upon the footsteps of the first Martyr, the founder of the faith, Jesus Christ.

Therefore we are not surprised by the evaluations of our Church through her hymns, that the martyrdom of the saints, like that of those commemorated today, is their light and their beauty — something which of course completely overturns the evaluations of our world that has fallen into sin, which regards martyrdom and suffering only negatively. And rightly so: love of pleasure, as an expression of the essence of the sin of selfishness, constitutes its constant concern. “Having been made resplendent with the beauty of the radiant and steadfast contest, you were offered to Christ, who was slain, O martyrs, in the flesh” (Ode 1).

Saint Joseph moreover points out that this time of the martyric struggles is the time that reveals whether the faith of Christians is real or not. And he is right: in the time of peace, when everything goes well, it is very easy for someone to declare that he is a Christian. But where the truth of his faith will be manifested is when he is called to choose between this life and life with God. For then he will be forced to show what reigns within his heart, that is, what his true treasure is, according to the word of the Lord: “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Therefore the Forty-Two Holy Martyrs, although they possessed ranks and many reasons to be rooted in this world, showed that they regarded their ranks as “refuse,” rubbish, in order to have Christ living in their life. “The time of the contests revealed you to all as a faithful friend of God” (Ode 3). And we must extend this: the time of the contests is not only the time of martyrdom in an era of war and persecution of the faith, but also every time when the Christian faces sorrows and trials which bring him to the critical point where his conscience is judged, in the sense that he must remain steadfast in the will of God and not deviate and trample upon it in order supposedly to survive. From this point of view the time of struggles constitutes a blessing, because the opportunity is given for the real dispositions of people to be clarified.

The Hymnographer indeed troubles us also with one more thought. Referring to one of the martyrs, Saint Theodore, he says that while standing in the middle of the stadium he proclaimed with a free voice and with courage Christ who was incarnate for our sake. “Standing in the middle of the stadium, you proclaimed manfully with a free voice the saving Word, who for our sake became incarnate.” And his statement has particular significance, because it points out that freedom in a world dominated by the Evil One has as its price martyrdom and even death. The rulers of this world, most of them instruments of the world-ruler, the devil, are not inclined to listen to criticism and to be reproved for their actions and deeds. The only thing they seek and demand is the bending of the neck of the people, their enslavement, in order to carry out their lawless plans — that is, their own comfort and enjoyment. And this is not true only in times of tyranny, as someone might perhaps think. Unfortunately it is always true, even in the so-called times of freedom and democracy. And this is because this is how authority in each case functions. How much freedom, for example, exists in democratic parties, when the expression of an opinion contrary to that of the leader or of the ruling committee of the party most often results in his expulsion from the party? That is, you are free to disagree, but you can no longer be with us?

With our saints we breathe the real air of freedom. For with them we live with Him who is the true freedom, the Lord Jesus Christ. “For freedom Christ has set you free; stand firm and do not again be held in the yoke of slavery.” Let us also stand in this freedom. But we must decide always to be with Christ, incorporated into His living body, the Church. And we must be ready to endure any price for this persistence of ours. Martyrdom is the essential element of the person who wishes to remain a genuine and free human being.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.