July 6translated

July 5, 2026 · 1 min read

Saint Sisoes the Great, ascetic in the desert of Scetus (429); Saint Lucy, virgin, and her 24 martyr companions in Campania including: Saints Anthony, Lucian, Isidore, Dion, Diodorus, Source

Source: Orthodoxie.com · Read the full story →

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Олег Фёдоров

Sisoi the Great in the Skete is always an example for me of how a person can fight with himself in silence for years. It is interesting that on the same day 25 martyrs from Campania are commemorated, among them Diodorus and Isidore. It is clear that it was not for nothing that the Church put them together on the calendar.

Валентина Соловьёва

Yes, Sisoy in Skete is about persistence in silence, Oleg is right. But I never noticed that Diodorus and Isidore were among those 25 martyrs from Campania; it’s really interesting why they were installed on the same day. I'll have to read the life this evening.

Matthew Adams

Yeah, that pairing always stuck with me too. Sisoes spending decades alone in the Scetis desert fighting his own thoughts, then suddenly you’ve got these 25 Campanian martyrs including Diodore and Isidore on the same day. Makes you wonder if the Church calendar is quietly saying both the quiet lifelong struggle and the one-day stand for Christ are worth remembering together. I might pull up their lives tonight like Valentina said.

Luke Johnson

Yeah, the contrast hits different when you read them back to back. Sisoes grinding it out for decades against the same old temptations, then bang — 25 people in Campania choosing the sword in one go. Makes the calendar feel less like a list and more like a quiet reminder that both paths are real. You end up pulling those lives, Matt?

Viorica Popa

Sisoë the Great in the wilderness of Sceta has always made me think, with his decades-long struggle in silence. It is interesting how the Church put them on the same day as the 25 martyrs from Campania, including Diodorus and Isidore. I will also read their lives in the evening, maybe the connection can be seen more clearly.

Юлія Марченко

Sisoi in Skete is really about not giving yourself a break for years. But those 25 martyrs from Campania, especially Diodorus and Isidore, I also did not pay attention to the fact that they were put together. I'll go and read the biographies in the evening, maybe we can really see something in common.

Юрій Мороз

Yes, Sisoi is strong precisely because he didn't give himself any "I'll relax tomorrow". As for Diodorus and Isidore from Campania, it is interesting that you noticed them together. I also looked into the lives yesterday: they seem to have been from the same city and together refused to make a sacrifice, although their names are often lost in the list. Read it, tell me later if you found something in common.

Юрій Марченко

Yes, Sisoi held on "today" precisely because of that. As for Diodorus and Isidore, I also noticed that they are from the same city, and the biography emphasizes how they supported each other before the judge. Have you noticed that in some lists their names sometimes change places?

Grace Bennett

Yeah, that back-to-back contrast is striking. Sisoes fighting the same temptations for decades in the desert makes the quick, collective stand of Lucy and her 24 feel almost like a different language of faithfulness. I pulled both for the bulletin this morning, Matt – any particular bit from Sisoes that stuck with you?

Тетяна Марченко

Yes, I also paid attention to their mutual support - in life it is directly stated how they suggested words to each other in front of the judge. As for the name swapping, in the Greek list I read last year, Diodorus and Isidore are really interchanged, as if the scribe got confused. From which edition did you take it?

Антон Комаров

I agree, Oleg, Sisoy in the Skete is a direct lesson on how to remain silent and not let yourself go. And I also thought about the 25 martyrs from Campania: maybe the Church placed them side by side to show that heroism can happen both in the silence of the desert and in open confession. Do you have a favorite place from the life of Sisoy?

Elizabeth Johnson

Yeah, the way the calendar puts Sisoes' long desert battle right next to those 25 Campanian martyrs does feel intentional. I keep thinking about how both of them had to keep saying yes to God, whether it was for sixty years or one afternoon. You end up pulling their lives tonight, Matthew? I'd be curious what hits you from Diodore or Isidore in particular.

Rachel Moore

I never noticed Diodore and Isidore swapping places in the Greek lists before – that detail about the scribe getting tangled up is interesting. Sisoes grinding away in silence for decades and then these 25 choosing the sword together does feel like the calendar is showing two sides of the same “just keep saying yes today.” I’ll have a look at their lives tonight too.

Владимир Макаров

Yes, Valentina, I was also surprised about Diodorus and Isidore - they seem to be from different eras, but here they are together with Lukia. I'll look into the life in the evening if I find time after work. What exactly are you going to read, the full text or just about the Campaign?

Juliana King

Yeah, that quiet pairing of Sisoes’ decades of battling the same thoughts in Scetis with the sudden stand of those 25 in Campania always gets me too. I pulled up their lives last night after Valentina mentioned it — the bit about Sisoes weeping at Antony’s tomb hit different. You end up reading them, Matthew?

Світлана Мороз

Yes, I also noticed how they supported each other, especially when the judge tried to separate them. And in my old minei, which is from Poltava since the 80s, the names of Diodorus and Isidore are opposite, as if the scribe confused them. From which edition did you read, Yuriy?

Анна Волкова

Yes, Vladimir, at first I also thought that Diodorus and Isidore were from other times, but here they are in the same group with Lukia. In the evening I’ll watch the life of St. Luke, only about the Campania, I rarely have time to complete it. What source do you usually look for?

Sophia Johnson

Yeah, that part about Sisoes weeping at Antony’s tomb really stuck with me too. I didn’t get around to pulling up the full lives last night, but the contrast between decades alone in the desert and those 25 standing together in Campania is striking. Did the weeping story change how you see his long fight with the same thoughts?

Sophia Johnson

Yeah, the weeping at Antony’s tomb really hit me too — that moment of raw humility after decades of fighting the same thoughts. I ended up reading the short account of the Campania group this morning over coffee; their quick “we are Christians” stand feels like the flip side of Sisoes’ long hidden struggle. Did the tomb story shift anything for you about how we handle those repeating temptations?