De sancta Droside martyre

Encomium on the holy great-martyr Drosida, and on the remembrance of death, I. The industrious shepherds, when after a long winter they see a bright ray and a warmer day, lead the sheep out of the fold and bring them to their customary pastures. Imitating them, this good shepherd has led this sacred flock and the spiritual flock of Christ to these spiritual pastures of the saints. The sheep standing at the manger are fed, but when they go out of the pens, they reap greater benefit from the fields, bending down with much delight, cropping the grass with their teeth, breathing pure air, and looking at the clear and bright ray, frolicking by lakes, springs, and rivers. The earth also brings them some delight, adorned everywhere with flowers. Not only in their case, but also in ours, this brings great benefit. For the table of spiritual foods was set for us fully within, but this going out to the saints has both a certain charm and a profit no less than the charm, not because we breathe pure air, but because we look at the achievements of these noble ones; not frolicking by rivers of water, but by rivers of graces; not bending down and cropping grass with our teeth, but gathering the virtues of the martyrs; not seeing the earth adorned with flowers, but seeing bodies teeming with spiritual graces.

Each of the martyria, then, provides no small profit to those who gather, but this one most of all: as soon as one sets foot on the threshold, a multitude of tombs immediately strikes the eyes from all sides, and wherever one looks, one sees coffins, monuments, and graves of the departed. This sight of the tombs contributes no small part to our philosophy. For the soul, through this vision, even if it is idle, is quickly restrained; even if it is earnest and aroused, it becomes more earnest; if one laments poverty, from this sight one immediately receives consolation; if one is proud of wealth, one is humbled and subdued. For the sight of the tombs compels each of the beholders to philosophize about his own end, even involuntarily, and persuades them to consider nothing of present things as secure, neither grievous nor pleasant; and one so persuaded will not easily be caught in the snare of sin. Therefore, a certain wise man advises, saying: "In all your words, remember your last things, and you will never sin"; and another speaks in harmony with this, counseling thus: "Prepare your works for the departure, and equip yourself for the road"—not speaking of the sensible road, but of the journey from here. For if we constantly and each day foresee the uncertain end, we will not quickly sin; for neither will the bright things of life puff us up, nor will the grievous things cast us down and disturb us, since both have an uncertain end.

For often the one who is alive today does not remain even until evening. Now, while we are spending time within the city, it is not very likely that we would ponder and philosophize about such things; but when we go out beyond the walls, and come to these tombs, and behold the multitude of the departed, it is absolutely necessary, both willingly and unwillingly, to receive these reflections from the sight, and having received them, to become more elevated, and to be freed from attachment to worldly affairs. Not only will we receive such reflections, but we will also have sufficient encouragement to hasten and prepare for our eternal homeland, and to arrange all our affairs for the journey there, knowing that whatever of our possessions we leave behind here will bring us loss when left. For just as a traveler journeying a long road and hastening to his own homeland has certainly lost and suffered damage from whatever he leaves behind in the inn, so also we, if we depart leaving behind any of our possessions here, suffer loss in all things; therefore it is necessary to send some things with us, and others before us, to that place. For the present life is a road, and it has nothing stable, but we pass through both its sorrows and its joys. For this reason especially I love this place, because not only during a gathering, but often even apart from a gathering, when I come here, I have continually remembered these words, as my eyes survey the tombs in great solitude and quiet, and convey my soul to the departed and to that state there.

2. For these reasons, then, I admire this noble father, because, having seized upon a calm day, he led us out here, with the blessed Droside, whose memory we celebrate, preceding and guiding us. For in addition to what has been said, there is another, greater profit to be reaped from this place. For when we pass by the other coffins and come to the tombs of the martyrs, our thought becomes loftier, our soul more vigorous, our zeal greater, our faith more fervent. Then, when we reflect upon the labors, the struggles, the prizes, the rewards, and the crowns of these saints, we find again another, greater occasion for humility. For even if someone has accomplished great things, he will consider that he has done nothing great, comparing his virtue to their contests; and if he has done nothing great or good, he will not despair of his own salvation, taking encouragement for a change to virtue from their courage, and reflecting within himself that it will perhaps happen to him also, if the love of God toward humanity deigns, to leap such leaps, and to ascend suddenly to heaven, and to attain that greatest freedom of speech; and these things, and many more besides, it is possible to depart from here having philosophized.

For the death of martyrs is an encouragement to the faithful, a freedom of speech for the Churches, a foundation of Christianity, a dissolution of death, a proof of resurrection, a mockery of demons, an accusation of the devil, a teaching of philosophy, an exhortation to contempt for present things, and a path to desire for future things, a consolation for the evils that beset us, and a pretext for endurance, a starting point for steadfastness, and the root, source, and mother of all good things. And if you wish, we will demonstrate each of these, and we will say how it is an encouragement to the faithful, a freedom of speech for the Churches, a proof of resurrection, and all the rest of which I have now spoken. Therefore, when contests and battles concerning doctrines are stirred up against us by Greeks, and they slander our faith, along with other things let us also put forward this against them—I mean the death of the martyrs—saying: Who persuaded these to despise the present life? For if Christ died and did not rise, who accomplished these things beyond nature? For it is not of human power to persuade so many myriads over so long a time—not only men, but also women and unwed virgins and small children—to despise the present life and to dare

beasts, to mock fire, to trample upon every form of punishment and torment, and to hasten toward the future life, they will not even need our refutations, but will question themselves and receive sufficient proof of what is said. For from the time Christ came, there have been both unbelieving emperors and believing ones, but of the unbelievers, the majority led the faithful to pits, pyres, precipices, seas, the madness of beasts, and manifold punishments and torments, striving in every way to uproot the faith from their souls, and they accomplished nothing, but went away mocked, while the believers were afflicted in every way, and the faith increased all the more. No pious emperor ever chose to punish and torment an unbelieving man, compelling him to abandon his error. Yet even so, it spontaneously decays and perishes, so that you may learn both the strength of truth and the weakness of falsehood, the latter perishing spontaneously with no one troubling it, while the former grows through those who hinder it and is raised to ineffable height. The reason is that Christ lives and works in the souls of the martyrs. Therefore, when they say that he did not rise, let us ask them: And who accomplished these things? The dead man, tell me? But so many have died, and no one has done such things. But was he a magician and sorcerer? Yet many magicians, sorcerers, and impostors have existed, and all have been silenced, and no trace of them remains anywhere, but their magic was extinguished along with their life.

The things of Christ increase every day, and quite reasonably so; for what happened did not happen by sorcery, but by divine power, and for this reason it is not dissolved. I do not, however, make proof of this power only from the fact that it increases, but also that it is for good, and for the salvation of our life. For after his coming, those who inhabit the earth have become from beasts human beings, or rather from human beings all angels, those who attend to him with truth. But the martyrs were deceived and misled, it is said, and for this reason they despised the present life. Then the first did not persuade the second, nor the second the third, but the more the persecutions advanced, the more this achievement also increased, and no one, in such a long time, perceived the deception. And where would this have any plausibility? But if they were deceived, how have the demons feared their dust? How do they flee even their tombs? For it is not because demons fear corpses that they suffer this. For behold, countless corpses everywhere on earth, and to those they attend, and one may see many demoniacs spending time in deserts and tombs; but where the bones of the martyrs are buried, they flee as from some fire and unbearable punishment, proclaiming with a clear voice the power that scourges them within.

3. That on the one hand the death of the martyrs is a proof of the weakness of the demons has been demonstrated from this; but that the matter is also an accusation of their insensibility is clear from the following. For when these—I mean the martyrs—subject to body and natural necessities, and having a great crowd of pains and torments surrounding them, and living a mortal life, and dwelling on earth, appear so much to despise the present life because of their love for God who made them; while those, both freed from flesh and from all this pain and torment, appear so insolent and ungrateful toward their benefactor, what defense will they have? What pardon? None from any quarter, since the virtue of these condemns the wickedness of those by a wide margin. For not only do men, the more zealous, condemn the more negligent, but already even the demons themselves are condemned by the zeal of these. And Paul indicated this, saying: "Do you not know that we shall judge angels?"—not, I suppose, worldly ones?—meaning the angels of the devil, the apostates. "And how shall we judge them?" he says. "Not by sitting and demanding accounts from them, but by our own zeal condemning their negligence." Which he also made clear, saying: "And if the world is judged among you"—he did not say "by you," but "through you." Just as when he says: "The men of Nineveh will rise up and condemn this generation," not as though the Ninevites were demanding an account from the then unbelieving Jews, but as their faith condemns the unbelief of these.

It is possible to derive the greatest benefit for virtue and for contempt of present affairs from the martyrs. For when you see them despising all of life, even if you are the most insensible and sluggish of all, you will receive a most lofty mindset, and you will laugh at luxury, look down on wealth, and long for that other existence; and if you are in illnesses, you will take the greatest impetus for endurance from the sufferings of the martyrs; and if poverty oppresses you, or any other of the most grievous things, looking to the magnitude of the tortures imposed on them, you will have sufficient consolation for all the terrible things that have befallen you. For this reason especially I love the memories of the martyrs, and I love and embrace them all, but especially when women happen to be contending. For the weaker the vessel, the greater the grace, the more brilliant the trophy, the more illustrious the victory, not because of the weakness of the nature of the athletes, but because the enemy has now been captured by the very means by which he prevailed. Through a virgin, then, the devil formerly killed Adam; through a virgin afterwards Christ overcame the devil, and the sword which was sharpened by him against us, this cut off the head of the dragon, which also happened in the case of David. For just as then that righteous man, running, cut off the head of Goliath with the very barbarian sword, so also now: through a woman he prevailed, through a woman he has been defeated. This was a weapon for him before, this has now become an instrument of slaughter for him, this an invincible vessel. The former sinned and died; this one died, so that she might not sin.

That woman, puffed up by the hope of a cold promise, trampled upon the laws of God; this woman despised even her present life, so as not to abjure her faith in her benefactor. What apology, then, could there be for men who grow soft, and what pardon, when women act like men? When they strip themselves so nobly for the contests of piety? For neither nature, nor age, nor anything else could hinder, when zeal, and ardor, and burning faith are present; and through all these we draw down the grace of God, which indeed happened in the case of this blessed woman. For her body was weak, her nature easily assailed, and her age more immature, but grace, coming upon all these, concealed their weakness, because it found in her noble zeal, undivided faith, and a soul prepared for dangers. 4. For there is nothing, there is nothing more powerful than one who has the fear of God firmly rooted with great earnestness; but even if fire, or sword, or wild beasts, or anything else is threatened, he overlooks them all with great ease, just as this blessed Drosis did. For when the tyrant kindled the pyre—for he did not lead her to a pit, nor cut off her head, so that the brevity of the punishment might not make her contest easier—but wishing to strike down her spirit,

and to subdue her unenslaved soul by the sight of the pyre, he cast her into its midst. When, therefore, he had kindled the pyre, and the furnace was burning and rising to a great height, the blessed martyr, seeing these things, was herself kindled with zeal and boiled over with the fire of desire for Christ, remembering the three children and reasoning with herself that she shared in those contests and bore the same crowns as they. And just as those who are mad see nothing of what is before them as it is, but even if they see a sharpened sword, they easily somersault, or a pyre, or a pit, or a precipice, or a sea, or anything else, they fearlessly throw themselves against all—so too she, having gone mad with a madness not of that sort (far from it!), but with another madness more dignified than any sobriety, and dyed with the desire for Christ, saw nothing of what was before her, but, having transferred herself to heaven and moved her soul there, she laughed at all the terrors and considered the fire not fire, but dew.

For this reason I call that pyre a spring of purest waters, a marvelous bath, and a crucible. For just as gold in a crucible, so too the soul of that blessed woman was made purer through this pyre. For her flesh was melted, her bones were roasted, her sinews were burned, and the moisture of her body flowed away from every side; but the faith of her soul became stronger and brighter. And those who saw these things thought she was being destroyed, but she was rather being purified; and just as a layman standing and watching gold being melted and flowing down and mingling with the ashes thinks it has perished and been ruined, while the craftsman who knows these things precisely understands that it becomes purer in this way, and after the firing draws it up from all sides, collecting it bright—so too in her case, the unbelievers, seeing her flesh melting and flowing down, thought it was becoming ash and dust, but the faithful knew very precisely that, as it melted, it laid aside every stain and rose up brighter, having received incorruption. And in the pyre itself, before the resurrection, she prevailed over the opposing powers not by chance; for her flesh, dissolved by the fire and producing a sound, turned them back with great abundance. And just as a noble soldier, putting bronze armor on himself, frightens even the more cowardly of his opponents by the very sound of his armor, so too then the blessed Drosis by the sound of her skin put those powers to flight, and not only in this way, but also in another way no less than this.

For as soon as she set foot upon the pyre, smoke rose up into the height and, filling the air, choked all the demons flying in the air, drove away the devil, and cleansed the very nature of the air. For since it was being defiled by the smoke of the idols, another smoke counteracted it, purging the stain that arose in it from those. And the image of a spring would also be fitting for that pyre. For just as in a spring, having taken off her garment and brightening her body, so in that flame she laid aside her flesh more easily than any garment, and making her soul radiant, she hastened toward the bridegroom, with angels bearing torches for her. For if angels led that Lazarus, the one covered with sores, to the bosom of Abraham, much more did they escort this woman, taking her from the furnace as from some sacred bridal chamber and nuptial bedchamber, and leading her to the heavenly bridal chamber. And why did I also call that pyre a dye?

Just as a royal purple dye, produced in some marvelous vat, was sent to the king above and with great confidence set foot upon the vaults of heaven, so Christ himself, with an invisible hand, held the holy head of the martyr and, as if in water, baptized her in the fire. O marvelous pyre! What a treasure it held within: that dust and ash more precious than any gold, more fragrant than any perfume, more valuable than any stone! For as much as wealth and gold cannot accomplish, so much can the relics of martyrs accomplish. Gold has never driven away disease nor banished death, but the bones of martyrs have done both: some in the time of our ancestors, and some even in our own. And not only we, but also the righteous who lived before the coming of Christ knew how to philosophize with precision about this, when all the people left Egypt, some carrying gold, others silver, but Moses, instead of all wealth, took up the bones of Joseph and carried them, bringing with him a great treasure full of countless goods. But perhaps someone might say: And for what reason were they transferred from Egypt to Palestine? For it is necessary to examine such matters especially in the context of the memory of the martyrs.

For many who are precise about burial and who enjoin upon their relatives that, even if they happen to die elsewhere, those relatives should bring them home and bury them, and who are then mocked by us for this pettiness, have set forth this story against us. And when we say that it makes no difference whether one is buried at home or in a foreign land, they say: "Then why, if it makes no difference, did Moses take the bones of Joseph from Egypt and bring them to Palestine?" I will say something even greater: not only did Moses take them, but that man himself, when dying, gave the command. For this is the greater point: "For," he says, "God will visit you in his providence, and you shall carry up my bones." Why then did he say that, and why did the other obey? For what is said is indeed worthy of inquiry. What are you saying? The patriarch who despised even this present life and disregarded everything, for whom the world was not worthy, the stranger and sojourner, who daily contemplated the things in heaven, who looked toward the Jerusalem above—this man, while he lived, because of fear of God, was cast out of both his homeland and his freedom, and dwelt in a prison, and did not turn back to those plots; but when he was about to die, does he become so petty as to make such great effort for the transfer of his bones, and from such a distance orders his remains to be carried up? And who would say this? For what gain was there, or what benefit to the departed from the transfer of the bones? Why then did he give the command?

Not caring for the bones, but it is possible to say that he also feared the impiety of the Egyptians. For since he had accomplished many and great good deeds, and had become their nourisher and protector, and had found the greatest relief from the famine, and had disclosed and brought to light things that were hidden from no one, and had not only foretold the famine by interpreting dreams, but had also stored up sufficient remedy for it beforehand, and had filled the storehouses of Egypt in such a way that no one perceived his presence—so that after his death he might not be considered a god because of the magnitude of his beneficence, since those barbarians easily made gods out of men—he, removing all pretext for impiety, ordered that his bones be carried home. This, then, is one reason; but it is also possible to state another indisputable one, for it can be confirmed from the Scriptures themselves. What is this? He had heard from his father, who had learned from his grandfather a saying handed down to him, that the Egyptians would enslave and oppress them for many years. For your seed will be a sojourner in a foreign land, and they will enslave it.

and they will be oppressed for four hundred years, God said to Abraham. So that they might not, despairing at the length of time and unable to bear the hardship, give up hope of return and lose heart, he gave them a great pledge of hope by foretelling the recovery of the bones, so that they, reasoning among themselves that if the righteous man had not been strongly and precisely convinced that we shall all return, he would not have given orders about the bones, might have an indisputable proof and a firm hope of their return to the land that bore them. And that this is true, and that he foretold about his bones for this reason, not caring about burial but correcting their disbelief, listen to what Paul says: By faith Joseph, when dying, remembered the exodus of the sons of Israel and gave orders about his bones. What is "by faith"? It means he foresaw what would happen after many long years, and that his descendants would certainly recover their own land.

So in order to demonstrate this, he foretold both these things, and it was possible to see a wondrous and paradoxical thing at the exodus, the bones being carried. For Joseph, who had brought them down into Egypt, himself again led the way as they went up, anointing them for endurance and for hope of the future. For seeing those remains before their eyes, then recalling from that all that history, and reflecting among themselves that he was plotted against by his brothers, that he was thrown into a pit, that he was in danger of his life, that he dwelt in a prison, and all the other things that happened to him; then, that after all those things he became king and first of Egypt, and guardian and protector of so many, they had sufficient hopes for their deliverance from the evils that constantly beset them, being taught through the bones of the righteous man that none of those who trusted in God and awaited his alliance was ever abandoned. For even if some grievous and unwanted things intervene between the promises and fall in between, they will never be able to drive off those who hope from the end, but that which was foretold will certainly come to pass according to the decree from above, making those who await with endurance all that has been ordained by God more illustrious. For this reason he gave orders concerning his bones. Let us not, therefore, be so precise about burial at home, nor tremble at death, but at sin. For death did not give birth to sin, but sin gave birth to death for us; death has become the remedy for sin.

That one ought not to fear death, but sin, listen to what the prophet says: “Precious before the Lord is the death of his saints”; and elsewhere, “The death of sinners is evil.” Do you see that those who attend to themselves can reap the greatest benefits from it, while those who are negligent and careless are the ones who receive the matter as a sentence of condemnation? I do not raise this argument idly, but because I often hear many speaking about modes of death, and being ashamed of some that are not reproachful, while not denouncing others that deserve the greatest censure. For this reason I wish to clarify this argument today as well. For this manner of philosophy is also timely on a day of martyrs. For I have heard many say, “So-and-so has died more ignobly than a dog, in a foreign land, with none of his relatives present, nor anyone to commit him to the earth, but barely covered by a few neighbors calling one another, from some sort of collection, and thus he was given over to burial.” So that these things may not distress us, it is necessary to correct this notion as well. For it is not this, to die more wretchedly than a dog, O man, but to die in sin is to die more wretchedly than a dog, not to die in

to end another’s life. Do not point out to me the one borne on a gilded bier, the one whom the whole city escorts, the one whom the populace acclaims, the one who has silken and gold-embroidered garments heaped up in great abundance; for this is nothing other than setting a more lavish table for the worm. Do not, therefore, show me that man, but show me that same man on that day when Christ sits high upon the tribunal, when he is brought in, summoned, and called to account for what he said, what he did, what he thought. For then none of this multitude will stand by him, nor will they rescue him from punishment and retribution; those shouts and acclamations will not stand by him, but he, bowed down, without freedom of speech, ashamed at the accusations of his deeds, will be led away, dragged by the evil powers to eternal punishments with the most terrible gnashing of teeth, thereafter weeping and lamenting in vain from the unbearable torments. And such are the things there; nor are the things here tolerable. For after those purchased acclamations in public, or those made from some fear, he will hear everyone accusing him, in the alleys and in the marketplace, in the house and in the taverns, and in other workshops, and on the road and in the countryside, and everywhere each passerby, with great fear, relating to his neighbor and saying what evils will befall him, what punishments will meet him, what tortures now await him.

What profit has he gained from his present life? What further benefit has he reaped from his greed? He has departed, leaving his wealth to others, while he himself, having taken his sins, lies buried, and many accusers from all sides grieve together with those who have been wronged, even those who have suffered no harm. For just as in the case of benefactors, even those who have suffered nothing rejoice with those who have suffered, and praise the one who did good, so in the case of those who are insulted, even those who have been wronged in no way grieve together with those who have suffered ill, and revile the one who did the deed. Therefore it is said: The death of sinners is evil, both because of the accusations here and because of the punishments there. This, then, is the one who dies more dishonorably than a dog, but in the case of the righteous it is not so; rather, even if in a desert, even if no one tends to him, even if no one is present when he ends his life, he departs having taken a sufficient shroud, his freedom of speech before God; he has a marvelous funeral, with angels present and guiding his soul, just as I have already shown in the case of Lazarus, leaving behind countless praisers of his own life; and even if he leaves children behind, all the inhabitants of the city will be their protectors and guardians, repaying them for the goodwill toward their father.

The one who has died in sins and acts of greed, even if he leaves children behind, has left them heirs of his own enmity, and has he not abandoned them among enemies? Even if he dies childless, through his buildings, through his other possessions which he obtained by plunder and greed, he leaves behind an undying accusation against himself. But the righteous man is not so; rather, even after departing he gains the greatest benefits, benefiting all the living by the memory of his own virtue and making them better, just as the wicked man is punished even by this. For not only while living, but also when dead, they harm many, leaving behind everywhere proofs of their own greed. Knowing these things, then, let us not lament those who die in a foreign land, but those who die in sins; let us not call blessed those who die at home or on their bed, but those who depart with virtue; and let us cultivate virtue and flee from vice. For virtue benefits both the living and the departed, while vice harms on both sides, disgracing them and leading them to undying punishments. May God, who deemed this blessed woman worthy to gather us together today and to strip for the contest, to wrestle, to conquer, and to be crowned, also deem us worthy, all together, on that day when we have completed this present life, to be able, in accordance with his commandments and laws, to come to the tents of this holy woman and to enjoy the undying goods. May it be that we all attain these things, by the grace and love for humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom glory to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.