MARTYR HARALAMBOS OF MAGNESIA

On February 23, the Church commemorates the holy martyr Haralambos of Magnesia (89–202). To modern ears, the saint’s name sounds unusual. But under the old regime in the Russian Empire, it was quite popular. This is evidenced by the prevalence of the surname Kharlamov. Let us recall the great hockey player Valery Kharlamov (1948–1981), whose life story was recently made into a biopic. Haralambos translates from Greek as “shining with joy.” It can be both a testament to the pagan origins of its bearer and a reminder of Paul’s words in his First Epistle to the Thessalonians: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing” (1:5,16).

1 The saint suffered for Christ in the Asia Minor city of Antioch of Pisidia during the reign of Emperor Septimius Severus (193–211). In ancient times, there were about two dozen cities named “Antioch.” Antioch of Pisidia is located in the area of modern-day Antalya, Turkey, and is even mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles. There Paul preached in the synagogue (13:14) and delivered his famous sermon, which echoes Stephen’s speech in the Sanhedrin, whose murder he, then still Saul, tragically contributed to. Magnesia, where Haralambos was the head of the local Christian community, that is, in accordance with the practice of that time, was a bishop, was a suburb of Ephesus. Together with him, two soldiers and three women suffered for Christ, having witnessed his torment and ungrudging patience. The soldiers were named Porphyrius and Baptus, but the names of the women have not been passed down to us. The memory of all of them is celebrated together with Charalampius.

2 The martyrdom of Haralambos contains lengthy dialogues between the Roman authorities and the martyr, and the essence of his suffering is extremely clear. He preached Christ in the surrounding area, which resulted in many conversions. After being reported, he was arrested and brought to trial before the governor of the region. After much persuasion and torture, his clothes were torn off. This is how the pagans mocked the Christian teaching of rebirth and the rite of baptism. The saint was cruelly tortured. This led to the conversion of two executioners, Porphyrius and Baptus, to the faith in Christ. Three women who were present at the execution also converted. All five were immediately beheaded by the prefect. Their confession became their baptism by blood. At the time of his martyrdom Haralambos was 113 years old. Like the protomartyr Stephen in the Acts, at the moment of his execution he saw the Lord Jesus standing “at the right hand of the Father and God” (Acts 7:55-56).

3 The prefect Lucian, who judged the saint, was enraged by the saint’s steadfastness and tried to add to his torment with his own hands, but in the end, he lost his mind and sank into madness. The saint sincerely pitied him and healed him with his prayer. The combination of the names of the martyr and his executioner, Charalampius, “shining with joy,” and Lucian, “light-bearing,” has a special play on words. The martyr, in his extreme kindness, healed his killer, but, like the prince of darkness himself, he did not want to heal his own soul, remaining stubbornly a fanatical pagan. Light without holiness can make you like demons. Finally the skip was completely stripped from Haralambos’ living body. According to tradition, the Apostle Bartholomew once suffered in a similar way. Haralambos was granted the grace of intercession and healing from epidemics and contagious diseases. He was one of the most revered saints of Christian antiquity. His intercession for deliverance from disease was always sought in the Orthodox East.

4 In the Christian West, Haralambos was unknown until the seventeenth century. In 1668, an epidemic of plague struck France. The disease spread across various regions, raging at the intersections of trade routes and in cities. Prior to this, hundreds of thousands of people had died from this epidemic in Britain and Northern Europe. At this particular moment in history, by a remarkable coincidence, life of the holy martyr Haralambos was discovered in one of the royal libraries in Paris. Until then, the saint had been unknown. The editors of the text learned that at the moment of his martyrdom, the saint was given a promise that he would receive special grace from contagious diseases, plagues, and epidemics for all those who would turn to him. The life of Haralambos was printed in French in the same year.

5 In the preface, the publishers write that Saints Sebastian, Adrian, Anthony, and Roch have the gift of interceding with God for help in difficult illnesses, which has helped believers many times. Now the Lord has prepared another intercessor who can save us from the plague, the most terrible of all diseases. Many have already been healed after studying the life of Haralambos. The publishers thank God for His saving providence and urge readers to begin venerating this saint, who was previously completely unknown. Scientists may explain this in different ways, but it is historically known that Paris, where the life was soon published, stayed almost unaffected. Many believe that the plague epidemic of 1666–1670 was the last in France. Thus, more than 1,500 years after his martyrdom, Saint Charalambos finally came to be venerated throughout the Christian world.