Перенесение мощей святого великомученика Феодора Стратилата 3732

The Holy Great Martyr Theodore suffered for the name of Christ under the wicked Roman Emperor Licinius 3733, in the city of Heraclea 3734, where the saint was a commander; the time of his martyrdom was the eighth of February; Now the transfer of his venerable relics from the city of Heraclea to his native city of Euchaites 3735 is celebrated according to his order, for Saint Theodore gave the following testament to his servant Huar, who looked at the sufferings of the martyr and wrote them down: “Bury my body in Euchaites, on the estate of my parents.” Anyone wishing to receive more detailed information about this saint can read a detailed description of his suffering, placed under the eighth day of February. Here we will only recall the wondrous miracle that happened from his icon. Anastasius of Sinaiti and John of Damascus testify to this miracle. It was such a miracle. Four thousand paces from Damascus 3736 is a place called Karsata; here stood a church built in honor of the holy great martyr Theodore Stratilates. When the Saracens took possession of this place and settled here, many of them entered this church and desecrated it in every possible way; so, for example, they drove their cattle into the church, entered that church with their wives and children and committed vile, sinful carnal deeds here. On one of the walls of that church there was an image of the Holy Great Martyr Theodore, painted with paints. One day, when many Saracens had gathered in this church and were talking among themselves, one of them took a bow and arrow, aimed and shot at the image of the saint; the arrow pierced the saint’s right shoulder, and immediately blood flowed from the image as from a living person. Having seen such a great miracle, the Saracens were very amazed, however, they did not leave the church, but continued to live in it and perform unclean deeds here, according to their custom. In total, twenty Saracens lived in this church, and each of them had a wife and children; all of them died soon after the miraculous incident, being suddenly struck by a bitter death; those of the Saracens who lived outside the church remained healthy and unharmed at that time. Anastasius Sinaite says about this image of the saint that he himself saw it and that on the image there was a sign of the blood that flowed from the ulcer. The Lord performed this miracle for the wicked Saracens to intimidate, and for us, the faithful, to remind us that we must venerate the holy icons, for the miraculous grace of our God appears with them and through them acts. With true passion-bearing warfare, you were a good commander of the heavenly King, Theodora: for you fought wisely with the weapons of faith, and you defeated the demons of the regiment, and you appeared victorious as a sufferer. In the same way, we will always please you with faith. With the courage of your soul you embraced faith, and the word of God, like a spear in your hand, you defeated the enemy, the great martyrs of Theodora: praying with them to Christ God, do not stop for all of us. Stratilates from Greek. warrior, governor, this name is adopted by St. Theodore for the fact that he, being the commander of the earthly king, showed himself to be a true warrior of Christ, “the good commander of the Heavenly King,” as St. Church in tropar. Licinius ruled the eastern half of the Roman Empire from 307 to 324 - Martyrdom of St. Theodora dates back to 319. Heraclea was located in Pontus, the northern province of Asia Minor. The city of Euchaites was located in the northern part of Asia Minor, not far from Heraclea; now – the town of Marsivan. Damascus is the oldest Syrian city, mentioned in the Bible already in the story of Abraham (Gen. 14:15); was located northeast of Palestine, in a beautiful and fertile plain located at the eastern foot of Anti-Lebanon. In the history of the Christian Church, Damascus is remarkable as the place of the miraculous conversion of Saul to Christ (Acts 9:1-22). In 634 it was conquered by the Arabs, and in 1516 it was annexed to the Turkish Empire. You might be interested in: