Saint James the Persian in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint James was a Christian of Christian parents, living in the city of Beth Lapat, in the land of the Persians, of an honorable and illustrious lineage, and greatly honored by King Yazdegerd. For this reason, namely, because the king of the Persians loved him very much, he distanced himself from the Christian faith and followed the king, thus leading to perdition by denying Christ. But when his mother and wife broke off their communion with him, because he preferred the love of the king to the love of Christ, and for temporary glory he chose eternal shame and condemnation – something they accused him of in letters they sent him – he was wounded in soul and distanced himself from the vain religion of the king, whereupon he began to weep for all the sins he had committed, as he had apostatized from Christ. For this reason, he was brought to trial, while the king was very unhappy with the event. The result was that he suffered a bitter death, with the division of the harmony of the body: the hands and feet and arms, little by little, so that only the head and the torso remained. Then they also removed his head with a knife.

November: Day 27: Teaching 4: Holy Martyr James the Persian

November: Day 27: Teaching 4:
Holy Martyr James the Persian
 
(What is the Reason for the Apostasy of Modern Christians?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. During the reign of the Persian King Yazdegerd, in the fourth century, there lived a good Christian named James, whose memory is celebrated today. He was rich and noble, and held an important position at the court of the king, who loved him very much. But suddenly Yazdegerd began to cruelly persecute Christians, demanding that they renounce Christ; and James could not resist the threats and the fear of losing all his privileges, and agreed to perform the pagan rite required by the king.

When James's mother and wife learned of this, they were deeply grieved, for they were both zealous Christians. They were not with James at the time, but wrote him a letter in which they severely reproached him for his apostasy.

This letter greatly perplexed and disturbed James. "If my mother and wife turn away from me," he thought, "what will become of me when the Lord comes to judge the living and the dead and rewards each according to his deeds?" Repentance and deep contrition awoke in the soul of the apostate. He shed hot tears, and thought continually of how to atone for his crime. Constant prayer and hope in the Lord encouraged James, and when, after some time, the king asked him about his faith, he firmly answered that he believed in Jesus Christ. The king began to threaten him with death. "This does not frighten me," answered the Christian; "death is only a temporary sleep from which all will rise."