- The
Holy Lance was said to have been passed to Saint Maurice
- (See the
amazing history of the Holy Lance here)
In the year of
Christ 286, a most remarkable affair occurred; a
legion of soldiers, consisting of six thousand six
hundred and sixty-six men, contained none but
Christians. This legion was called the Theban
Legion, because the men were Egyptian Christian
Copts who had been recruited from and
stationed in Thebias
in Upper Egypt.
The Theban Legion were quartered in the east until the emperor
Maximian ordered them to march to Gaul, to assist
him against the rebels of Burgundy. It was the custom of the Romans to move troops from extreme parts of the empire
to avoid the problem of Roman-trained soldiers participating in uprisings to
free their native lands.
It
should be noted here that the Egyptians or the Copts accepted
Christianity so very rapidly to the extent that the Romans had to exercise a
series of persecutions in an attempt to suppress the growth of a religion which
openly defied the divinity of the Emperor. The Roman Edict of 202 A.D. decreed that
Christian conversion should be stopped at all costs. The edict of 250 A.D.
decreed that every citizen should carry at all times a certificate issued by the
local authorities testifying that he had offered sacrifice to the gods. Those who refused to conform were tortured with unprecedented ferocity. Some
were beheaded, others were thrown to the lions and others were burnt alive. All
were subjected to even innovated veracious torture regardless of age or sex. The
Catechetical School of Alexandria was closed by order of the authorities, though
its members continued to meet in other secret places. At one time, the number of
bishops was restricted by the State to three. The consummation of the age of
persecution is considered by the Copts to be during the reign of Emperor
Diocletian (284-305). So severe was the mass execution and the savage torture of
the Copts that they took the day of DiocIetian's military election as Emperor to
mark the beginning of the era of the Coptic martyrs. That very day marked the
start of the Coptic Calendar known in the Western world as
Anno Martyrum (A.M.) or the year of the
Martyrs.
The
area around Thebes has always enjoyed a reputation for its
strong, almost fanatical, Christianity. The first monks in the
Christian tradition, known as "The Desert Fathers,"
contained a majority of Thebans, and Theban Christians celebrate
many martyrs who have refused to yield their faith to the many
persecutions in the first centuries of the church.
The
Theban Legion passed
through the Alps into Gaul, under the command of
Mauritius, Candidus, and Exupernis, their worthy
commanders, and at length joined the emperor.
About this time, Maximian ordered a general
sacrifice, at which the whole army was to assist;
and likewise he commanded that they should take
the oath of allegiance and swear, at the saame
time, to assist in the extirpation of Christianity
in Gaul. Alarmed at these orders, each individual
of the Theban Legion absolutely refused either to
sacrifice or take the oaths prescribed. This so
greatly enraged Maximian, that he ordered the
legion to be decimated, that is, every tenth man
to be selected from the rest, and put to the
sword. The names of the soldiers were written on
papers and placed in the caps of the centurions,
for 600 were destined to perish as examples. These
embraced their comrades, who encouraged them and
even envied their fate. The plain soon flowed with
the blood of the martyrs. The survivors
persisted in declaring themselves Christians, and
the butchery began again; the blood of another 600
reddened the waters of the Rhone. This second severity made no more
impression than the first had done; the soldiers
preserved their fortitude and their principles,
but by the advice of their officers they drew up a
loyal remonstrance to the emperor. This, it might
have been presumed, would have softened the
emperor, but it had a contrary effect: for,
enraged at their perseverance and unanimity, he
commanded that the whole legion should be put to
death, which was accordingly executed by the other
troops, who cut them to pieces with their swords,
September 22, 286. The Maximian period is
known as the Sixth Primitive Persecution in Fox's
Book of Martyrs. During
this persecution, raised by Maximinus, numberless
Christians were slain without trial, and buried
indiscriminately in heaps, sometimes fifty or
sixty being cast into a pit together, without the
least decency.
See Fox's Book of Martyrs here.
|
The
Holy Lance was said to have been passed to Saint Maurice.
Down through the years it fell
into the hands of Mauritius (Saint Maurice), the head of a 3rd
century garrison of Roman soldiers called the Theban legion.
The Theban Legion was a Christian
legion of soldiers during the reign of Diocletian. A legion of
men consisting of 6,600 (some say: 6,666) soldiers were all
Christian. Called Theban legion because there were all
conscripted from Thebias in Upper Egypt; they were quartered in
the east until they were ordered them to march to Gaul.
A traveler on the highway that
leads from Geneva to Rome, will notice a small and a very old
Swiss town called "Saint Maurice" (now Saint-Moritz or Saint Maurice en
Valais or Saint Maurice d’Augaune) in Switzerland. This town was known
in the Roman times as "Aguanum", an important
communication center. It was there that a Coptic officer named
Maurice and 6600 of his fellow soldiers died for the sake of
Christ at the hands of the impious Emperor Maximian (285-305 AD).
The bodies of the martyrs of Aguanum were discovered and identified by Saint
Theodore the Bishop of Octudurm, who was in office at 350 AD. He built a
Basilica in their honour at Aguanum, the remains of which are visible untill
now. This later became the center of a monastery built about the year 515 AD
on the land donated by King Sigismund of Burgundy.
The story of these martyrs,
commonly known as the Theban Legion (Alkateeba alTeebia or
Alkateeba al-sa'eedia) has been preserved for us by Saint Eucher
(aka: Bishop Eucherius of Lyon), the bishop of Lyons, who died in
494 AD. The bishop starts the account of the martyrdom of these
valiant soldiers by the following introduction:
"Here is the story of the
passion of the holy Martyrs who have made Aguanum illustrious
with their blood. It is in honour of this heroic martyrdom that
we narrate with our pen the order of events as it came to our
ears. We often hear, do we not, a particular locality or city is
held in high honour because of one single martyr who died there,
and quite rightly, because in each case the saint gave his
precious soul to the most high God. How much more should this
sacred place, Aguanum, be reverenced, where so many thousands of
martyrs have been slain, with the sword, for the sake of Christ."
Saint Eucher mentions that in his time (he died 494 AD), many came from
diverse
provinces of the empire devoutly to honour these Saints, and to offer
presents of gold, silver and other things. He mentions that many miracles
were performed at their shrine such as casting out of devils and other kinds
of healing "which the might of the lord works there everyday through the
intercession of His saints."
This historic telling begins:
In the middle ages Saint Maurice was the patron saint of several of the
roman dynasties of Europe, and later on of the Holy Roman emperors. In
926, Henry I (919-936 AD), even ceded the present Swiss Canton (province) of
Aargua in return of the lance of the saints. Some emperors were also anointed
before the Altar of saint Maurice in saint Peter's Cathedral in Rome. The
sword of Saint Maurice, was last used in the coronation of the Austrian
Emperor Charles as King of Hungary in 1916.
Diocletian
(Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus)
Under "Maximinus Daia"
also known as Maximian,
who was an Emperor of the Roman Commonwealth (Empire) with
Diocletian as his colleague (co-Emporer), an uprising of the
Gauls known as "Bagaude" forced Maximian to march
against them with an army of which one unit was the Thebian
Legion composed of 6600 men, in the Spring of 285.. This unit had
been recruited from upper Egypt and consisted entirely of
Christians. They were good men and soldiers who, even under arms,
did not forget to render to God the things of God, and to Caesar
the things of Caesar. Diocletian and Maximian transferred
the Theban Legion, among other imperial units, to Gaul in an
effort to crush the revolt. Landing near Rome, the Theban Legion
marched through northern Italy, across the St. Bernard pass, and
encamped near the present-day town of St. Maurice.
After the revolt was quelled, the
Emperor Maximian issued an order that the whole army should join
offering sacrifices for the Roman gods for the success of their
mission. Although these types of offerings were routine, this
offering was also tantamount to recognizing the emperor´s claim
to divinity. The order included killing Christians
(probably as a sacrifice to the Roman gods). Only the Thebian
Legion dared to refuse to comply with the orders. The legion
withdrew itself, encamped near Aguanum and refused to take part
in these rites.
Maximian was then resting in a
near-by place called Octudurum. When these news came to him , he
repeatedly commanded them to obey his rules and orders, and upon
their constant and unanimous refusal, he ordered that the legion
should be "decimated". Accordingly, every tenth man was
put to death. A second "decimation" was ordered unless
the men obeyed the order given but their was a great shout
through the legion camp: they all declared that they would never
allow themselves to carry out such a sacrilegious order. They had
always the horror of idolatry, they had been brought up as
christians and were instructed in the One Eternal God and were
ready to suffer extreme penalties rather than do any thing
contrary to their religion.
When Maximian heard this news, he
got angrier than ever. Like a savage beast, he ordered the second
decimation to be carried out, intending that the remainder should
be compelled to do what they hitherto refused. Yet they still
maintained their resolve. After the second decimation, Maximian
warned the remainder of the Theban legion that it was of no use
for them to trust in their number, for if they persisted in their
disobedience, not a man among them would be able to escape death.
The greatest mainstay of their
faith in this crisis was undoubtedly their captain (Commanding
Officer) Maurice, with his lieutenants Candid, the first
commanding officer, and "Exuperius" the "Compidoctor".
He fired the hearts of the soldiers with the fervor by his
encouragement. Maurice, calling attention to the example of their
faithful fellow soldiers, already martyrs, persuaded them all be
be ready to die in their turn for the sake of their baptismal vow
(The promise one makes at his baptismal to renounce satan and his
abominable service and to worship only God). He reminded them of
their comrades who had gone to heaven before them. At his words,
a glorious eagerness for martyrdom burned in the hearts of those
most blessed men.
Fired thus by the lead of their
officers, the Theban legion sent to Maximian (who was still
enraged) a reply as loyal as it is brave:
``Emperor, we are your soldiers
but also the soldiers of the true God. We owe you military
service and obedience, but we cannot renounce Him who is our
Creator and Master, and also yours even though you reject Him. In
all things which are not against His law, we most willingly obey
you, as we have done hitherto. We readily oppose your enemies
whoever they are, but we cannot stain our hands with the blood of
innocent people (Christians). We have taken an oath to God before
we took one to you, you cannot place any confidence in our second
oath if we violate the other (the first). You commanded us to
execute Christians, behold we are such. We confess God the Father
the creator of all things and His Son Jesus Christ, God. We have
seen our comrades slain with the sword, we do not weep for them
but rather rejoice at their honour. Neither this, nor any other
provocation have tempted us to revolt. Behold, we have arms in
our hands, but we do not resist, because we would rather die
innocent than live by any sin.''
When Maximian heard this, he
realized that these men were obstinately determined to remain in
their Christian faith, and he despaired of being able to turn
them from their constancy. He therefore decreed, in a final
sentence, that they should be rounded up, and the slaughter
completed. The troops sent to execute this order came to the
blessed legion and drew their swords upon those holy men who, for
love of life, did not refuse to die. They were all slain with the
sword. They never resisted in any way. Putting aside their
weapons, they offered their necks to the executioners. Neither
their numbers nor the strength of arms tempted them to uphold the
justice of their cause by force.
They kept just one thing in their
minds, that they were bearing witness to him who was lead to
death without protest, and who, like a lamb, opened not his
mouth; but that now,they them selves, sheep in the Lord's flock,
were to be massacred as it by ravaging wolves. Thus, by the
savage cruelty of this tyrant, that fellowship of the saints was
perfected. For they despised things present in hope of things to
come. So was slain that truly angelic legion of men who, we
trust, now praise the Lord God of Hosts, together with the
legions of Angels, in heaven forever. Not all the members of the
legion were at Aguanum at the time of the massacre. Others were
posted along the military highway linking Switzerland with
Germany and Italy. These were progressively and methodically
martyred wherever they were found. Some of the most celebrated
saints who were martyred are:
During their martyrdom, numerous
miracles happened, which undoubtedly largely contributed to the
massive conversion of the inhabitants of these regions to
Christianity. In Zurich for instance, the three beheaded saints
Felix, Regula and Exuperantius miraculously rose, carried their
heads on their own hands, walked to the top of a hill, where they
knelt, prayed and at last lay down. On the same spot, a large
cathedral was later erected. The three saints carrying their
heads on their hands appear on the coat of arms and seal of
Zurich until today. Saints Victor, Orsus and their comrads were
barbarously tortured by Hirtacus, the roman governor of Solothurn.
During this torture, several miracles occurred, e.g. the shackles
suddenly broke open, the fire was instantaneously extinguished,
etc. The lookers-on were thus filled with wonder and began to
admire the Theban legionaires, upon which the furious Hirtacus
ordered their immediate beheading. Without the slightest
resistance they offered the executors their necks. The bodies of
the beheaded Saints then shown in glaring brightness. The bodies
of the Saints which were thrown in the river Aar, advanced the
bank, stepped out, walked heads on hands, then knelt and prayed
at the spot where the Basilica of St. Peter later arose. The
bodies of the martyrs of Aguanum were discovered and identified
by Saint Theodore the Bishop of Octudurm, who was in office at
350 AD. He built a Basilica in their honour at Aguanum, the
remains of which are visible untill now. This later became the
center of a monastery built about the year 515 AD on the land
donated by King Sigismund of Burgundy.
Maurice and the Theban Legion
became still more important with the rise of the Kingdom of
Burgundy. The Burgundians moved into southeast Gaul, as Roman
allies, in 443 after crossing the Rhine in 406. Like the other
Eastern barbarian tribes, who had been evangelized by Ulfilas in
the fourth century, they were Arian rather than Catholic. They
remained Arian despite numerous attempts to convert them to
Catholic Christianity. Avitus, Catholic bishop of Vienne,
attempted to convert the Burgundian king Gundobad in the 490s.
Although tradition says that Gundobad favored the Catholic faith,
he refused baptism by Avitus because the monarch feared his Arian
nobles would revolt. His son Sigismund, however, was baptized a
Catholic around 500, approximately the same time in which Clovis,
king of the Franks, became Catholic. Since Burgundy was still
Arian, Sigismund had to find a way to balance his Catholic faith
with the political realities of an Arian society. While he tried
to placate Clovis by publicizing his Catholicism, he never sought
to establish Catholicism as the state faith. Since the Arians
never had any type of monastic establishment, Sigismund could
build a monastic base without offending his Arian bishops and
aristocracy. In 515, one year before he became king, Sigismund
enlarged and renovated the monastery of St. Maurice at Agaunum.
Although previously there had been some sort of hospice and
community to minister to pilgrims, Sigismund set out to build
something unique. Most monasteries originated and grew from
disciples attracted to some holy ascetic. That is, once the fame
of an ascetic grew, he would attract disciples to his cave or
hut. As the numbers grew, an informal community would spring up
with its own rules, while a method of worship typically evolved
over a period of time. The monastery of St. Maurice, however,
would be unique. It would not evolve, but spring up almost fully
developed. Between 515 and 521, Sigismund lavishly endowed its
foundation and ensured that it would flourish. He spent huge
amounts of money to build a sanctuary, and he transferred monks
from other Burgundian monasteries to ensure that the liturgy was
kept. The liturgy, known as the laus perennis (perpetual praise),
was imported from Constantinople and was distinctive to the
monastery of St. Maurice.
St Maurice's blood and ring, as well as the stone on which he was beheaded are
preserved in St-Maurice-en-Valais, Switzerland to this day.
