By Fr. George Dorbarakis
Saint Constantine is a scandal to many with regard to his sainthood. How is it possible, they claim, that an emperor who by necessity waged wars, gave orders for the destruction of his opponents, even of his own people whenever he thought they opposed him, could ultimately become a saint and be honored as a saint by the fullness of the Church? Yet the question must be broadened: how is it possible for the Apostle Paul to be a saint and to be regarded as the greatest of the apostles, when he too committed many violent acts in his life, so much so that even his name alone functioned among the first Christians as a synonym for threat and murder? And not only Paul, but many others among the saints of our faith as well. What do those who hesitate regarding the sanctity of Constantine the Great — and of the others who used violence — fail to understand or sufficiently take into account? The power of repentance, and even more, the will of God Himself. For — to focus on the Equal-to-the-Apostles Saint — whatever violent acts Constantine committed, he committed while he was not yet a Christian, or after his conversion and certainly before his definitive entrance into the faith through holy baptism, acting in ignorance, while God Himself gave abundant signs of His will that Constantine should be near Him.
Our Church had no hesitation at all: with her spiritual criteria, with her discernment to see what is from God and what is not, she not only accepted as genuine the conversion of the first ruler of the empire, but characterized him as a Saint and Equal-to-the-Apostles, both him and his mother Helen. Indeed, the hymnology of the feast continually emphasizes the divine signs of his special calling from God. First of all: the unique gift of seeing the Honorable Cross with the words “By this conquer,” before the decisive battle against Caesar Maxentius. “Having seen the sign of the Cross in heaven, you heard from there: ‘By this conquer your enemies.’” (Doxastikon of Vespers).
The Hymnographer considers this event a calling from God for Constantine to become a Christian, and compares it to the calling of the Apostle Paul, who was called by the risen Lord Himself while traveling to Damascus to arrest Christians. “Having seen the sign of Your Cross in heaven, and like Paul receiving the calling not from men, Your apostle among kings, O Lord” (Apolytikion). “You did not receive your calling from men, but like the divinely-inspired Paul you received it from above, O glorious Constantine, Equal-to-the-Apostles, from Christ God” (Lity).
Since Paul was not a king, however, the hymns of the Church also make another comparison: they compare Constantine to King David, in the sense that just as David was anointed with oil as king and chosen of God by the Prophet Samuel, so too was Constantine: “You became a new David in your way of life, receiving from above upon your head the oil of kingship. For the transcendent Word and Lord anointed you with His Spirit” (Kathisma of Orthros).
The Holy Hymnographer attempts to explain this calling, which constitutes something paradoxical, especially because for the first time a king with such authority turned in favor of Christianity: “O Constantine, you were the first Christian king to receive the scepter from God” (Aposticha of Vespers). What explanation then does he offer for the conversion of the one who possessed worldly authority? First, the fact that his mother was a Saint. From a Saint came forth a Saint. “Truly blessed was the womb and sanctified the body that carried you” (Aposticha of Vespers). But second, and most importantly, the fact that Almighty God Himself foresaw the good disposition of his heart, the obedience he would show to His calling. “The King of creation, foreseeing the obedience of your heart, O all-wise one, sought you out wisely, though you were held by irrationality” (Praises).
The hymns of our Church also refer, of course, to the fact that Saint Constantine helped the Church establish the Orthodox faith when the heretic Arius and those of like mind appeared and created a tremendous problem. Constantine made possible the convocation of the First Ecumenical Synod in Nicaea (325 A.D.), which definitively and irrevocably proclaimed the relationship of Jesus Christ to God His Father, dogmatizing His “consubstantiality” with Him. “You gathered in wondrous fashion the blessed choir of the God-bearing Fathers, and through them, O Constantine, you strengthened the wavering hearts of all the faithful to glorify Christ the Word as equal in honor and enthroned together with the Father” (Ode 6).
The hymnography of our Church certainly does not exalt only Saint Constantine. It equally exalts his holy mother Helen, noting concerning her, besides her sanctity, both her relationship with the Honorable Cross and her zeal for building holy churches, especially in the holy places. “In your conduct you were devoted to God, and in your divine deeds you were most admirable, O blessed one” (Ode 4). “Clothed in love and perfect compassion as in royal purple, you now dwell in the heavenly kingdoms” (Ode 5).
Her love for Christ made her especially connected with His Cross. Saint Helen, as is well known, was the one who undertook the effort to find the Cross. And indeed, through human efforts and divine guidance she found it. “Driven by longing and love for Christ, the mother of the sweetest branch, Constantine, hastened eagerly and came to holy Zion, to the holy place where our Savior willingly was crucified for our salvation. There, lifting up the Cross, she cried out with joy: Glory to Him Who granted me what I hoped for” (Aposticha of Vespers).
In history, of course, Saint Helen also remained renowned for the building of many churches, especially, as we said, in the holy places. The Holy Hymnographer not only notes her special love for these holy places, but also gives his illumined interpretation of her activity in constructing churches: the Saint could not help but love the places where Christ walked and suffered, since she had placed all her love and hope in Him, and she built churches because she herself had made her heart a temple of God. “Clinging to Christ and placing all your hope in Him, O all-revered one, you came to His holy places where the All-good One, having become incarnate, endured the immaculate Passion” (Ode 3). “Through divine deeds you built your heart into a temple of God, O Helen. And you built holy temples for Him where in the flesh He endured the immaculate Passion for our sake” (Ode 7).
If the detractors of Saint Constantine are not persuaded by all the divine signs mentioned above — his God-given calling, his holy life like David and Solomon, his concern for the Orthodox faith, even though at times he was misled out of ignorance by certain crafty individuals — then at least let them be persuaded by the divine signs after his death. The hymns of our Church point to this dimension as well: the tomb of Constantine, as also that of his holy mother, pours forth divine rays of all kinds of healings and strengthens the faith of the people. In other words, many miracles have occurred, occur, and will occur for all those who invoke with faith the holy names of these God-crowned and Equal-to-the-Apostles rulers. “The tomb where your sacred and honorable body rests, O Constantine, pours forth divine splendors and radiant rays of many kinds of healings to those who approach it, driving away darkness and enlightening with unfading light those who praise you” (Ode 9).
“Having completed your life in holiness, you now dwell with the saints, filled with sanctification and illumination. Therefore you continually pour forth rivers of healings and wash away the passions, O blessed Helen, watering our souls” (Ode 9).
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
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