October: Day 30: Teaching 1: Holy Hieromartyr Zenobios and his sister Zenobia

 

 

October: Day 30: Teaching 1:
Holy Hieromartyr Zenobios and his sister Zenobia
 
(Are we Christians?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. Saint Zenobios and his sister Zenobia, whose memory is celebrated today, were born in the city of Aegae in Cilicia and received a Christian upbringing from their pious parents. Having reached adulthood, the brother and sister distributed all their property to the poor and led a truly God-pleasing life. The local inhabitants respected them so much that they wished to have Zenobios as their bishop, and this election took place.

Meanwhile, the persecution of Christians by Diocletian began. A royal official named Lysias was also sent to Cilicia with orders to turn the people away from the Christian faith and with the authority to mercilessly punish and exterminate Christians.

At that time, the Christian luminary who illuminated the entire area, Bishop Zenobios, already glorified by God for the gift of miracles, with which he attracted unbelievers and confirmed those he had drawn to the faith of Christ, could not hide. Lysias sent for this influential Christian and said to him: “I find it unnecessary to enter into long discussions with you and therefore in short words I offer you one of two things: life, if you acknowledge our gods, or death, if you do not worship them.”

“Life is not life without Christ, and death for Christ is not death, but immortal life, and therefore I choose death for Christ,” answered Zenobios.

He was subjected to torture.

Having learned of this, the bishop’s sister, Zenobia, hurried to the place where her brother was being tortured and fearlessly turned to Lysias: “I am also a Christian,” she said, “I, like my brother, confess the true God, Jesus Christ, and I wish to suffer for Him together with my brother.”

In vain did Lysias try to persuade Zenobia to renounce what he considered a delusion, in vain did he think to frighten her by presenting the shame and horror of execution before the eyes of all the people. Having finally lost hope of inducing her to renounce Jesus Christ, he ordered that she and her brother be subjected to torture by fire. But even amidst their cruel sufferings, the martyrs joyfully sang divine psalms. With joy they went to execution, confessing themselves Christians, and with gratitude to God they bowed their heads under the sword and gave up their souls to their Creator. This was in the year 285.

II. The Holy Hieromartyr Zenobios and his sister Zenobia were tortured because they confessed themselves to be Christians, for they were such not only in name, but also in reality.

Let us ask ourselves: Are we Christians? Do we imitate the saints who are now glorified in our Christian calling? Do not be offended, brethren, by such a question. I speak in general, I mean all Christians. The Apostle Paul said to the Christians of his time: "Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves" (2 Cor. 13:5). It is necessary to examine yourself, it is necessary to test your life. Students are tested, employees are tested, a merchant watches his business, and a rich man counts his capital. How can we, Christians, not watch ourselves, not examine ourselves, not test our lives? Do we not value our Christianity? Do we want only to be called Christians, and live somehow, as is customary and as we want? In that case, what benefit do we get from our Christianity? What is the purpose of being among Christians, and of being called Christians? So, it is obviously not superfluous, brethren, and not a useless question, and I repeat it: are we Christians? I know they will say to me: “How can we not be Christians?

a) We were baptized into Jesus Christ, confessing God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and always bear the cross of Christ: how can we not be Christians? - Indeed, we have been granted this great grace of God. We were baptized, entered the Church of Christ and became faithful. But do we remember this grace that we have received? Do we understand, do we value the dignity of the calling that we have entered into? Do we keep the vows that we made at baptism, i.e. to renounce the devil and his works and to put on Christ? For the most part - no and no. We bear the cross. Is this really enough for a Christian? But do we order our lives according to the example of the Lord crucified for us, do we fulfill the law of Christ?

b) They say: "We go to the holy church and pray to God: how can we not be Christians?" - Yes, we go to church, but how often, only when we should? We go to church, but do we do it the way we should? We must go to church, according to the words of the Holy Church, with faith, reverence and the fear of God; after all, the church is the house of God, where God Himself is invisibly present. We must also stand in church humbly, decently and reverently, as before the face of God. But is it so and is it always so? We pray, but are we attentive, fervent, contrite? How do we behave in church, how do we make the sign of the cross on ourselves, how do we bow? Is it not only out of habit, is it not out of custom alone? Let us not forget that our Savior the Lord more than once drove the unworthy out of the temple and for unworthy deeds. Let us not forget that prayer, according to the words of the prophet, is sometimes not for salvation, but for sin (Ps. 108:7).

c) "We," they say, fast on certain days and times, as established by the Christian church: how can we not be Christians?" - Do we fast? But do we all and often? Many of today's Christians do not know any fasts, they have one continuous fast almost the entire year, breaking the rules of the church is almost not considered a sin. And those who observe fasts have not gone far along the path of Christian abstinence. Eating only lenten food does not mean fasting, and yet our fasting almost always consists only in the fact that we do not eat non-fasting, but we eat fasting food without simplicity and moderation, and do not at all care to abstain from whims and passions.

d) They say: “We fast, and some of us more than once a year: how can we not be Christians?” – Yes, indeed, many fast every year, some even several times a year, or during all the fasts. But how many of those do not fast at all, do not fast for two, three, five or more years? Let us fast, and fast often, but how do we fast? With sincere repentance, with full confession of sins? Do we wish with all our hearts to forsake sins, or at least resist sins? Do we beware of repeating previous sins after fasting? It is difficult, brethren, to say that all this is exactly so. But true, God-pleasing and soul-saving fasting certainly requires this. Otherwise, our fasting may be of no use to us, and what’s more: it may even – God forbid – lead to condemnation. The Apostle says: “He who eats" the Body of the Lord, "and drinks” the Blood of the Lord “unworthily eats and drinks judgment to himself” (1 Cor. 29).

d) They also say: “We celebrate Christian feasts: how can we not be Christians?” - That’s right, we celebrate, although not all and not always. How and with what zeal we celebrate – we won’t even talk about that. We attend church services for an hour or two, maybe even longer. And then? What happens during the day, what happens in the evening? With the church service, God’s feast decisively ends for us. The common people get drunk, indulge in merrymaking, often the most disorderly, while the rich and educated people for the most part amuse themselves with luxurious dinners, brilliant balls, and pagan performances. Will God not say to us, looking at our celebrations: “My soul hates your feasts” (Isaiah 1:14)?

e) "We are Christians"... And what is our life like? What is our behavior? What is all your concern? Do we know our faith, our Christian duties? What do we read in our homes? Mostly empty, useless, often seductive books, and perhaps only newspapers... And the Holy Scriptures? Oh, this reading is boring, difficult; this reading is strictly spiritual, so we think. What do we sing in our homes? Worldly songs, sensual, sinful... Or sacred, divine songs? These were perhaps sung sometime in the old days. What are our affairs? What are all our concerns, all our labors directed toward? Is it to serve God, to glorify Him with a pious and virtuous life? Is it not only to earthly, everyday needs? The Apostle also spoke of the Christians of his time: “They seek all things that are their own, and not those that are of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:21): what then should be said about us? Should we speak of our deeds, contrary to the law of God, which disgrace our holy faith! And if we also examine our thoughts, intentions, and movements of the heart, it will be clear that we live only in the flesh, are guided only by the law of our sinful nature, and not by the law of God. Where are the exploits against sin, where is the purity and innocence? But all this is necessary for every Christian. The Lord Himself demands this of us: “Be holy,” He says, “for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). But eternity rarely even comes to mind, we think little about what will happen to us after death. Judge for yourselves, brethren, what kind of Christians we are!

g) Perhaps they will say to me: “A Christian is a man, not an angel, it is impossible for him to be sinless; and the Lord, knowing the weakness of our nature, is merciful to us sinners.” – It is impossible for a Christian to be sinless... So what will the grace of Christ mean? What will the law of God mean, commanding us purity and innocence? They do not demand angelic purity from us; they command a purity that is peculiar only to man, such as, despite all our weaknesses, is possible by the grace of God, which is what thousands, millions of true Christians have justified in their lives.

"The Lord is merciful"... Yes, glory to His mercy! He has already shown us such great mercy, as great is His infinite goodness. But has He already departed from His truth? Has He already canceled eternal torment? And if He has not canceled it and will not cancel it, then for whom is it, if not for sinners, and especially sinners from among Christians? It would be good, by the mercy of God, to be in paradise, but what if, by His truth, for our sins we have to be in torment? (see "The Good Sower" by Archpriest V. Nordov).

III. Let us, my brethren, examine ourselves more often – are we Christians? And if we notice that we have strayed far from our Christianity, let us with all the strength of our soul and body take care to return to ourselves this great and saving calling. Amen.

Source: A Complete Annual Cycle of Short Teachings, Composed for Each Day of the Year. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.