February: Day 5: Holy Martyr Agatha

February: Day 5:
Holy Martyr Agatha
 
(On Fidelity to Christ)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. The Holy Martyr Agatha, today being glorified, was a native of Sicily, the daughter of noble and rich parents, and was of extraordinary beauty. During the persecution by Decius, the governor of the island, hearing of her beauty and wealth, wanted to persuade her to renounce Christ and to commit to an unlawful marriage; but neither flattery nor tortures helped him in this. "It is easier to soften stone and melt iron than to convince this maiden," said Aphrodisia of Agatha, to whom she was given in order to persuade her to fulfill the governor's desire. "Let it be known to you," answered Saint Agatha to her seducers, "that all my thoughts are founded on stone, and no one can separate me from the love of Christ; but your flattering words are like the wind, your worldly amusements are like rain, and your threats are like rivers. All this rushes towards the temple of my soul, but it cannot shake it, for it stands on the rock, which is Christ, the Son of God.” After cruel tortures, when they led her to prison, she died peacefully in 251.

II. Saint Agatha serves as a wonderful example of unwavering fidelity to Christ.

a) We call him faithful who fulfills the duty of allegiance and obedience, the acknowledged obligation, the given oath, and even the simple word or promise given, without betrayal, without evasion, without weakening, without hypocrisy, actively, precisely, sincerely. He can be considered faithful unto death who remains faithful throughout his life until its end; but especially he should be considered faithful unto death who, meeting circumstances in which fidelity cannot be maintained otherwise than by sacrificing pleasures, advantages, honors, and life itself, is resolutely ready to sacrifice, and actually sacrifices pleasures, advantages, honors, and life itself, in order to maintain fidelity. I hope no one will dispute these concepts of fidelity.

b) Now, in order to determine our fidelity to Christ, proper and real, it is necessary to consider what duties we have to Him, and how we fulfill them. We are natural slaves to God and to Christ, by the sovereign right of the Creator over His creatures, the Almighty over all that enjoys His providence and government. But since we have broken this natural union with God by our unfaithfulness and disobedience; and since Christ wishes to exalt slaves to the rank of freemen, and even to the dignity of sons: therefore He called us voluntarily to enter into a new covenant with Him, and we entered into it by baptism, and accepted the duties connected with it. What are they? We renounced Satan and all his works, and united ourselves to Christ, confessing faith in Him and acknowledging Him as our King and God.

c) Are we faithful to the duties thus assumed? It seems that we shun the works of Satan; we do not rebel against God; we do not worship idolatry; we feel disgust for malice and depravity; we preserve faith in the Holy Trinity and in Christ the Savior; we continue to acknowledge Him as our King and God. What do you think? Have we not already stood the test of fidelity to Christ? Can we not already stretch out our hand to the Crowner and say: "Lord, it seems that we are faithful: grant us the crown of life!" No, brethren, it may happen that this self-examination, which seems so satisfactory because of the importance of the objects and the speciousness of the expressions, will turn out to be incomplete and unreliable if we continue to test ourselves not with a superficial, but with a penetrating glance, and if we begin to verify thought and word by deed and experience.

The truth will be better revealed if we ask ourselves: have we acquired fidelity to Christian duties until death, just as the holy ascetics and martyrs acquired it?

The Holy Martyrs listened to the death sentence for their loyalty to Christ with joy: with peaceful prayer they bowed their heads under the sword, or the stones thrown at them; neither the temptations of sensual pleasures, nor the sight of greed and human glory, nor threats, nor prison, nor confiscation of property, nor condemnation to hard labor, nor the various torments of inventive malice could shake their loyalty - this slow, indecisive death, against which it is more difficult to stand firm than against a decisive, instantaneous death.

Are people capable of enduring such experiences of fidelity, who, thinking to be faithful to Christ, are much more faithful to their capricious desires, their unaccountable habits and vain customs, their passions? For example, would he, who cannot bear a single day of voluntary confinement in his own house, not for some kind of torture of himself, but for useful work, for the care of his soul, for reflection on God, but feels an irresistible attraction, if not in the morning, then in the evening, to throw himself into the scattered circle of such people, or into a whirlwind of amusements, endure with good humor a long prison sentence for faith and truth? Would he be fearless and unwavering in guarding his faith and conscience, in the face of the threatening deprivations, suffering and death for this, who hesitates before the deprivation of rich food on the day of fasting, is afraid to die from abstinence, shows inattention to the guidance of the Mother Church, so as not to cause sorrow to his belly?

Or do we not need to be so concerned about strict tests of fidelity, because we do not live in times of martyrdom? But, brethren, the immortal Crowner demands fidelity unto death, and without that does not promise to give the crown of life: "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Rev. 2:10).

III. What then must we do? We must find a means of becoming faithful unto death and without martyrdom, and use such a means before death: for it will be too late to sow when the time has come to reap the fruits. Such a means the Apostle offers us when he says: "Mortify your members which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry" (Col. 3:5). Mortify carnal self-love and self-indulgence, not only in outward actions, but also in the secret movements of your heart, and this not only by your own wisdom, which the more self-confident it is, the less reliable it is, but by the unceasing turning of your heart to Christ, with a sincere desire to please Him, with the help of His grace. 

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