Brief Life of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious. George the Victorious - biography, photo
In Cappadocia, in a noble family of the pagan Gerontius and the Christian Polychronia. Mother raised George in the Christian faith. One day, falling ill with a fever, Gerontius, on the advice of his son, called on the name of Christ and was healed. From that moment on, he also became a Christian, and was soon honored to accept torment and death for his faith. This happened when George was 10 years old. The widowed Polychronia moved with her son to Palestine, where her homeland and rich possessions were.
Having entered the military service at the age of 18, George stood out among other soldiers with his mind, courage, physical strength, military posture and beauty. Having soon reached the rank of tribune, he showed such courage in battle that he drew attention to himself and became the favorite of the emperor Diocletian, a talented ruler, but a fanatical follower of the pagan Roman gods, who perpetrated one of the most severe persecutions of Christians. Not yet aware of George's Christianity, Diocletian honored him with the rank of committee and governor.
From the time George became convinced that the unrighteous plan of the emperor to exterminate Christians could not be canceled, he decided that the time had come that would serve to save his soul. He immediately distributed all his wealth, gold, silver and precious clothes to the poor, gave freedom to the slaves who were with him, and ordered those slaves who were in his Palestinian possessions that some of them be freed and others handed over to the poor. After that, he appeared at a meeting of the emperor and the patricians on the extermination of Christians and courageously denounced them for cruelty and injustice, declaring himself a Christian and throwing the crowd into confusion.
When the Great Martyr George was in prison, people came to him who believed in Christ from his miracles, gave gold to the guards, fell at the feet of the saint and instructed him in the holy faith. By invoking the name of Christ and the sign of the cross, the saint also healed the sick, who came to him in the dungeon in multitudes. Among them was the farmer Glycerius, whose ox was smashed to death, but was brought back to life through the prayer of St. George.
In the end, the emperor, seeing that George did not renounce Christ and was leading more and more people to faith in Him, decided to arrange the last test and invited him to become his co-ruler if he sacrificed to the pagan gods. George proceeded with the emperor to the temple, but instead of sacrificing, he expelled the demons that lived in the statues from there, which caused the idols to be crushed, and the assembled people attacked the saint in a rage. Then the emperor ordered to cut off his head with a sword. Thus the holy sufferer departed to Christ in Nicomedia on April 23rd.
Relics and veneration
The servant of George, who recorded all his exploits, also received from him a covenant to give his body to burial in the ancestral Palestinian possessions. The relics of St. George were laid in the Palestinian city of Lydda, in a temple that received his name, while his head was kept in Rome in a temple also dedicated to him. St. Demetrius of Rostov adds that his spear and banner were also preserved in the Roman temple. The right hand of the saint now resides on Mount Athos in the monastery of Xenophon in a silver reliquary.
Great Martyr George for courage and for the spiritual victory over the tormentors who could not force him to renounce Christianity, as well as for miraculous help to people in danger, began to be called the Victorious.
Saint George became famous for his great miracles, of which the most famous is his miracle of the serpent. According to legend, a snake lived in a lake near the city of Beirut, which often devoured the people of that area. Superstitious inhabitants, in order to quench the fury of the serpent, began regularly by lot to give him a young man or a girl to be eaten. Once the lot fell on the daughter of the ruler. She was taken to the shore of the lake and tied, where she began to expect the appearance of a monster in horror. When the beast began to approach her, a bright young man suddenly appeared on a white horse, struck the snake with a spear and saved the girl. This young man was St. George, who by his appearance stopped the sacrifices and converted to Christ the inhabitants of that country, who had previously been pagans.
The miracles of St. George served as a reason to venerate him as the patron of cattle breeding and the protector from predatory animals. George the Victorious has also long been revered as the patron of the army. "George's miracle about the serpent" is a favorite plot in the iconography of the saint, who is depicted riding a white horse, striking a serpent with a spear. This image also symbolizes the victory over the devil - the "ancient serpent" (Rev. 12, 3; 20, 2).
In Georgia
in the Arab countries
In Russia
In Russia, special veneration of the Great Martyr George spread from the first years after the adoption of Christianity. Blessed Prince Yaroslav the Wise, in holy baptism George, following the pious custom of Russian princes to found churches in honor of their guardian angels, laid the foundation for a temple and a male monastery in honor of the Great Martyr George. The temple was located in front of the gates of Hagia Sophia in Kyiv, Prince Yaroslav spent a lot of money on its construction, a large number of builders took part in the construction of the temple. On November 26, the temple was consecrated by St. Hilarion, Metropolitan of Kyiv, and an annual celebration was established in honor of this event. On "St. George's Day", as it began to be called, or on "autumn George" until the reign of Boris Godunov, peasants could freely move to another landowner.
The image of a horseman slaying a serpent, known on Russian coins from an early time, later became a symbol of Moscow and the Muscovite state.
In pre-revolutionary times, on the day of memory of St. George, the inhabitants of Russian villages for the first time after a cold winter drove their cattle to pasture, performing a prayer service to the holy great martyr with sprinkling houses and animals with holy water.
In England
Saint George has been the patron saint of England since the time of King Edmund III. The English flag is the George Cross. English literature has repeatedly turned to the image of St. George as the embodiment of "good old England", in particular in the famous ballad of Chesterton.
Prayers
Troparion, tone 4
Like a captive liberator / and a defender of the poor, / a weak doctor, / champion of kings, / victorious Great Martyr George, / pray to Christ God / / save our souls.
Ying troparion, the same voice
You fought a good feat, / passion-bearing of Christ, / by faith and tormentors you denounced wickedness, / but a sacrifice acceptable to God was offered to you.
Kontakion, tone 4(Similar: Ascended:)
Cultivated by God, you appeared / the most honest worker of piety, / having gathered the handles of virtues: / having sowed in tears, reap with joy, / having suffered the blood, you received Christ / and with prayers, holy forgive, yours / / all sins.
Kontakion from the Renovation Service of St. George's Church in Lydda, Tone 8(Similar to: Chosen One:)
To your chosen and speedy intercession / run, faithful, / we pray to be delivered, passion-bearing Christ, / from the temptations of enemies singing thee, / and all sorts of troubles and anger, let us call: // Rejoice, martyr George.
Troparion from the consecration service of the Church of the Great Martyr. George in Kyiv, tone 4
They blazed the ends of the world,/ God's miracles are harassed,/ and the earth is wounded up by your crown./ Christ's reinforcements of God more, the rejoicing of God/ passionate of the Holy Steel,/ Holy Steel. pray with faith and supplication to those who come to your holy temple / give the cleansing of sins, / / pacify the world and save our souls.
Kontakion from the consecration service of the Church of the Great Martyr. George in Kyiv, tone 2(Similar to: Solid:)
The divine and crowned Great Martyr of Christ George, / against the enemies of the victory of the overcoming, / having descended by faith into the consecrated temple, let us praise, / God be pleased to create him in his name, / One in the saints rest.
Used materials
- St. Dimitri Rostovsky, Lives of the Saints:
GIORGIUS THE VICTORIOUS (284-303)
Great Martyr, Wonderworker
Memory: April 23 (May 6) on the day of death; November 3 (November 16) on the day of the renovation of St. George's Church in Lydda in the 4th century; November 10 (November 23) in memory of wheeling (Georgia); November 26 (December 9) on the day of the consecration of St. George's Church in Kyiv in 1051 (Russian "St. George's Day").
Martyr- the most ancient host of saints glorified by the Church for the martyrdom they accepted for faith.
The Church considered the sufferer a martyr only when there was a complete conviction that the person did not stumble during the martyr's feat, but completed it in unity with the Church, completely surrendering into the hands of the all-saving Providence of God. Naturally, suffered heretics or schismatics, as well as those who fell away because of a church schism or because of betrayal, or for non-church motives (not for faith in Christ) could not be ranked among the saints. The Church, as a rule, did not recognize Christians as martyrs who deliberately brought death to their defiant behavior. St. Gregory the Theologian (329-389) wrote: “The law of martyrdom: sparing the persecutors and the weak, do not go out on a feat without permission, but when you go out, do not retreat, because the first is impudence, and the second is cowardice.”
Great Martyr- a martyr, especially revered by the Church as having endured especially difficult and prolonged torments and, at the same time, showed extraordinary firmness in faith.
miracle worker- the epithet of a number of saints, especially famous for the gift of miracles, intercessors, who are resorted to in the hope of miraculous healing, etc. Miracle workers are not a special category of saints, since in principle all saints have the gift of miracles, and witnessed miracles are the main condition for canonization.
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GIORGE THE VICTORIOUS (SAINT GEORGE) - Christian saint, great martyr, miracle worker. He suffered during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (245-313), after eight days of severe torment in 303 he was beheaded.
According to Greek legends, George was born in Cappadocia, in a family of rich and pious parents who raised him in the Christian faith. As a child, he lost his father, who died martyred for the confession of Christ. George's mother moved with him to Palestine, since there was her homeland and rich possessions.
Having entered the military service, Giorgi stood out among other soldiers with his mind, courage, physical strength, military posture and beauty. Having soon reached the rank of tribune (in terms of duties, rights and honors, tribunes can be equated with modern colonels), he showed such courage in battle that he attracted the attention and became the favorite of Emperor Diocletian, a talented ruler, but a fanatical follower of the pagan Roman gods, who committed one of the most severe persecution of Christians. Diocletian honored him with the rank of comite (an important official in Roman society).
Giorgi was 20 years old when his mother died, and he received a rich inheritance. When the persecution of Christians began, George, being in Nicomedia (an ancient city in Asia Minor on the coast of the Sea of Marmara), distributed property to the poor, gave freedom to the slaves who were with him, and ordered those slaves who were in his Palestinian possessions to be alone of them were released, while others were given to the poor. After that, he appeared at a meeting of the emperor and the patricians on the extermination of Christians and courageously denounced them for cruelty and injustice, declaring himself a Christian and throwing the crowd into confusion.
After futile persuasion to renounce Christ, the emperor ordered the saint to be subjected to various torments and tortures.
- On the 1st day, they laid him on his back on the ground, put his feet in stocks, and put a heavy stone on his chest. But the saint courageously endured suffering and glorified the Lord.
- The next day he was tortured with a wheel studded with knives and swords. Diocletian considered him dead, but suddenly an angel appeared, and Giorgi greeted him, as the soldiers did, then the emperor realized that the martyr was still alive. They took him off the wheel and saw that all his wounds were healed.
- Then he was thrown into a pit where there was quicklime, but this did not harm the saint either.
- A day later, the bones in his arms and legs were broken, but in the morning they were whole again.
- He was forced to run in boots with sharp nails inside. All the next night he prayed, and in the morning he again appeared before the emperor.
- He was beaten with whips (ox sinews) so that the skin peeled off his back, but he rose healed.
- On the 7th day, he was forced to drink two bowls of potions prepared by the sorcerer Athanasius, from one of which he was supposed to lose his mind, and from the second - to die. But they didn't hurt him.
His healing after so many torments and tortures converted to Christ the previously announced praetors Anatoly and Protoleon, as well as, according to one legend, the Empress Alexandra, the wife of Diocletian. When the sorcerer Athanasius, called by the emperor Diocletian, offered Giorgi to resurrect the dead, the saint begged this sign from God and many people, including the former sorcerer himself, turned to Christ. Repeatedly the theomachist-emperor asked George by what "magic" he achieves contempt for torment and healing, but the great martyr answered firmly that he was saved only by invoking Christ and His power.
When the Great Martyr George was in prison, people came to him who believed in Christ from his miracles, gave gold to the guards, fell at the feet of the saint and instructed them in the holy faith. By invoking the name of Christ and the sign of the cross, the saint also healed the sick, who came to him in prison in multitudes. Among them was the farmer Glycerius, whose ox was smashed to death and was brought back to life through the prayer of St. George.
In the end, the emperor decided to arrange the last test - he invited Giorgi to make a sacrifice to the pagan gods. On the 8th day he was brought to the temple of Apollo. Giorgi stood up to his full height in front of the white stone statue, and everyone heard his speech: “Is it really for you that I go to the slaughter? And can you accept this sacrifice from me as a god? At the same time, Giorgi signed himself and the statue of Apollo with the sign of the cross - and by this he forced the demon that lived in it to declare himself a fallen angel. After that, all the idols in the temple were crushed. Enraged by this, the priests rushed to beat Giorgi. And the emperor's wife, Alexandra, who ran to the temple, threw herself at the feet of the great martyr and, sobbing, asked for forgiveness for the sins of her tyrant husband. Diocletian shouted in anger: “Cut off! Cut off the heads of both!
On the night before his death, the Savior appeared in a dream to Giorgi with a golden crown on his head and said that Paradise awaited him. Giorgi immediately called a servant who wrote down everything that was said (one of the apocrypha was written on behalf of this particular servant) and ordered him to take his body to Palestine after death.
On the 9th day, Giorgiy, having prayed for the last time, laid his head on the chopping block with a calm smile. Thus the holy sufferer departed to Christ in Nicomedia on April 23, 303 (304). Together with Giorgi, Empress Alexandra of Rome was martyred, named in her life as the wife of the emperor Diocletian (the real wife of the emperor, known from historical sources, was called Prisca).
For another eight years after the execution of Giorgi, the blood of Christian martyrs flowed in the empire. It seemed that Diocletian was obsessed with one crazy idea - to destroy all Christians, to wipe them off the face of the earth. Eight years of persecution claimed more lives than the bloodiest war in the history of Rome. But the church remained unshakable. And Diocletian admitted his defeat. He abdicated the throne, left the capital and went to his homeland. He hated the Christians, but despised the Romans. Subsequently, like Nero, he committed suicide. And the veneration of St. George, begun at the dawn of Christianity, continues to this day.
The servant Giorgi, who wrote down all his deeds, also received a covenant from the saint to give the body of the great martyr to burial in his ancestral Palestinian possessions. The relics of St. George were laid in the Palestinian city of Lida (now the city of Lod). A temple was built over his tomb, which belongs to the Jerusalem Orthodox Church. The head of the saint is kept in the Roman Basilica of San Giorgio in Velabro. Part of the relics of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious are kept in the reliquary temple of Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. The relic was preserved by the French king Louis IX the Saint (1214-1270), after which she repeatedly served at church festivities in honor of St. George. The right hand (right hand to the elbow) is kept in a silver shrine on Mount Athos, in the Xenophon Monastery (Greece).
The martyrdom of St. George was like the triumphal procession of a conqueror, and his death was like a crowning. Great Martyr George for courage and for the spiritual victory over the tormentors who could not force him to renounce Christianity, as well as for miraculous help to people in danger, began to be called the Victorious.
St. George became famous for his great miracles, of which the most famous is his miracle of the serpent. According to legend, a snake lived in a lake near the city of Beirut, which often devoured the people of that area. The superstitious people of that area, in order to quench the fury of the serpent, began regularly by lot to give him a young man or a girl to be eaten. As the legend says, when the lot fell to give the king's daughter to be torn to pieces by the monster, George appeared on horseback and pierced the snake with a spear, saving the princess from death. The appearance of the saint contributed to the cessation of pagan sacrifices and the conversion of local residents to Christianity. This legend was often interpreted allegorically: the princess is the church, the serpent is paganism. It was also seen as a victory over the devil, the “old serpent” (Rev. ; ).
The miracles of St. George served as a reason to venerate him as the patron of cattle breeding and the protector from predatory animals. George the Victorious has also long been revered as the patron saint of the army. The miracle of the serpent has become a favorite subject in the iconography of the saint, who is depicted riding a white horse slaying a serpent with a spear. This image also symbolizes the victory over the devil, the “ancient serpent” (Rev. 12:3; 20:2).
The earliest sources of apocryphal legends about St. George include: the Vienna Palimpsest (5th century), “The Martyrdom of George”, mentioned in the Decree of Pope Gelasius (early edition of the late 5th - early 6th centuries), “Acts of George” - Nessanian passages (VI century, found in 1937 in the Negev desert). Apocryphal hagiography refers the martyrdom of St. George to the reign of the legendary Persian king Dadian. These lives tell of his seven years of torment, threefold death and resurrection. For the fourth time, George dies beheaded by a sword, and heavenly punishment befalls his tormentors. The legends about St. George were expounded by Simeon Metaphrast (Byzantine writer and statesman of the 10th century), Andrew of Jerusalem, Gregory of Cyprus. The martyrdoms of St. George are known in Latin, Syriac, Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian and Arabic translations, which contain various details about the suffering suffered by George. One of the best texts of his life is found in the Slavic Menaion.
GIORGY THE VICTORIOUS AND GEORGIA
The Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious, together with the Mother of God, is considered the heavenly patron of Georgia and is the most revered saint among Georgians. In many languages, Georgia is called "Georgia", and at one time the version was widely spread that this name was given in honor of the Holy Victorious.
The veneration of St. George in Georgia began at the dawn of Christianity. According to the tradition preserved by the Georgian Orthodox Church, Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Nino, Enlightener of Georgia, was the cousin of Saint George. From her lips, the peoples of Georgia learned about the life and martyrdom of her great brother. She especially revered him, established to celebrate the day of his wheeling (November 23), and bequeathed to the newly converted Georgians to love the great saint. The first church in honor of St. George was built in Georgia already in 335 by the first Georgian Christian king Mirian on the burial site of St. Nino, and from the 9th century, the construction of churches in honor of George became massive.
St. George is considered the patron saint of warriors, farmers, shepherds and travelers. He is prayed for deliverance from demonic forces. In battles, he was often seen in reality among the Georgian army (Comm. 26 January and 18 September). Temples of St. George were built not only in cities and villages, but also on the tops of mountains. In the Middle Ages, in different parts of the country, 365 prayer houses were erected in the name of St. George, according to the number of days in a year. And the temples in the name of St. George and their ruins enjoyed special reverence among the peoples of Georgia. The rider, even if he pursued the enemy or was in a hurry to convey an important message, stopped his horse at full gallop in front of the church of St. George in order to make the sign of the cross and ask the saint for help. Some temples were erected by the army on a vow after the victory. Generals and kings participated in these works and carried stones for the construction of temples.
Most Georgian churches, especially rural ones, were built in his honor, so that every day in Georgia they celebrated the day of the Holy Great Martyr George, associated with any of the churches erected in his name, or with an icon, or with the miracle of the Victorious. 
The Orthodox Church of Georgia almost daily mentions St. George in prayers dedicated to the memorable events of his life or icons dedicated to him. The day of St. George (“Giorgoba”) is especially festively celebrated twice a year - November 23 (the day of the saint's wheeling, and is celebrated only in Georgia) and May 6 (the day of the martyrdom of the saint). Holiday services are held in all Orthodox churches of the country. St. George's Day is officially declared non-working in Georgia.
Giorgi Pobedonosets - a rider who slays a serpent, has become an integral part of the Georgian consciousness and the Orthodox faith, and is depicted on the state emblem of the country. The George cross adorns the Georgian flag. It first appeared on Georgian banners under the holy Queen Tamara (1165-1213).
HONORING THE HOLY GIORGE THE VICTORIOUS
In Islam, George (Jirjis, Girgis, El-Khudi) is one of the main non-Quranic figures and his legend is very similar to Greek and Latin. He lived at the same time as the Prophet Muhammad. Allah sent him to the ruler of Mosul with a call to accept the true faith, but the ruler ordered him to be executed. He was executed, but Allah resurrected him and sent him back to the ruler. He was executed a second time, then a third (they burned him and threw the ashes into the Tigris). He rose from the ashes, and the ruler and his entourage were exterminated.
The life of St. George was translated into Arabic at the beginning of the 8th century, and under the influence of Christian Arabs, the veneration of St. George penetrated into the circle of Muslim Arabs. The Arabic apocryphal text of the life of St. George is contained in the “History of the Prophets and Kings” (beginning of the 10th century), in which George is called a disciple of one of the apostles of the prophet Isa, whom the pagan king of Mosul tortured and executed, but George was resurrected by Allah every time.
The Greek historian of the 14th century, John Kantakouzenos, reports that in his time there were several temples erected by Muslims in honor of St. George. The 19th-century traveler Burkhard speaks of the same. Dean Stanley in the 19th century wrote that he saw a Muslim "chapel" on the seashore near the city of Sarafend (ancient Sarepta), which was dedicated to El-Khuder. There was no tomb inside it, but only a niche, which was a deviation from the Muslim canons and was explained, according to local peasants, by the fact that El-Khuder did not die, but flies all over the earth, and wherever he appears, people build similar "chapels" .
They note a great similarity of the legend with the story of the resurrecting Chaldean deity Tammuz, known from the “Book of Nabataean Agriculture”, whose holiday falls on approximately the same period, and this similarity was also pointed out by its ancient translator Ibn Vakhshiya. Researchers suggest that the special reverence that Saint George has in the East, and his extraordinary popularity, were explained by the fact that he was a Christian version of Tammuz, a dying and resurrecting god, similar to Adonis and Osiris.
In the mythology of a number of Muslim peoples there is a legend reminiscent of the Miracle of St. George about the serpent. Another notable miracle, reflected in the typical local iconography of the saint, is the miracle at Ramel. A certain Saracen shot at the icon of St. George from a bow, after which his arm swelled up and began to hurt unbearably, so that he was dying of pain. The Christian priest advised the Saracen to light a lamp before the icon of St. George at night, and in the morning to anoint his hand with oil from that lamp. The Saracen obeyed, and when the hand was miraculously healed, he believed in Christ. Other Saracens martyred him for this. This converted Saracen, even whose name has not come down to us, is depicted in the local version of the icon of the miracle of the serpent as a small figure with a lamp in his hands, sitting on the croup of a horse behind St. George. This image of St. George is common not only among the local Orthodox, but also among the Copts. He also migrated to Greece and the Balkans.
In Russia, St. George was revered from the first years of the adoption of Christianity under the name of Yuri or Egor. In the 1030s, Prince Yaroslav the Wise (baptized Giorgi), following the pious custom of Russian princes to found churches in honor of their guardian angels, laid the foundation for the men's monasteries of St. George in Kyiv and Novgorod (now St. Yuriev Monastery). The Church of St. George in Kyiv was located in front of the gates of Hagia Sophia, Prince Yaroslav spent a lot of money on its construction, a large number of builders took part in the construction of the temple. On November 26, 1051, the temple was consecrated by St. Hilarion, Metropolitan of Kyiv, and an annual celebration was established in honor of this event - "make a feast" of St. George on November 26 (December 9). In the Russian lands, the people revered Giorgi as the patron saint of warriors, farmers and cattle breeders. April 23 and November 26 (according to the old style) are known as the spring and autumn "St. George's Day". On the spring St. George's Day, for the first time after winter, the peasants drove their cattle to the fields, performing a prayer service to the holy great martyr with the sprinkling of houses and animals with holy water. On "St. George's Day" or "Autumn Giorgi", as it was called, before the reign of Boris Godunov, the peasants could freely move to another landowner. Images of St. George have been found on grand ducal coins and seals since ancient times. Over time, the image of St. George on a horse slaying a serpent became a symbol of Moscow and the Muscovite state.
Saint George has been the patron saint of England since the time of King Edmund III (XI century). The English flag is the George Cross.
On May 6 (April 23, old style), the Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious, born in the Lebanese mountains.
Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious: History
The Great Martyr George was the son of rich and pious parents who raised him in the Christian faith. He was born in the city of Beirut (in ancient times - Berit), at the foot of the Lebanese mountains.
Having entered the military service, the Great Martyr George stood out among other soldiers with his mind, courage, physical strength, military posture and beauty. Having soon reached the rank of commander, Saint George became the favorite of the emperor Diocletian. Diocletian was a talented ruler, but a fanatical follower of the Roman gods. Having set himself the goal of reviving the dying paganism in the Roman Empire, he went down in history as one of the most cruel persecutors of Christians.
Having once heard an inhuman verdict on the extermination of Christians at the trial, Saint George was inflamed with compassion for them. Foreseeing that he, too, would suffer, George distributed his property to the poor, set his slaves free, appeared to Diocletian and, declaring himself a Christian, denounced him of cruelty and injustice. George's speech was full of strong and convincing objections to the imperial order to persecute Christians.
After futile persuasion to renounce Christ, the emperor ordered the saint to be subjected to various torments. Saint George was imprisoned, where he was laid on his back on the ground, his feet were put in stocks, and a heavy stone was placed on his chest. But Saint George courageously endured suffering and glorified the Lord. Then the tormentors of George began to excel in cruelty. They beat the saint with ox sinews, wheeled him, threw him into quicklime, forced him to run in boots with sharp nails inside. The holy martyr endured everything patiently. In the end, the emperor ordered that the head of the saint be cut off with a sword. So the holy sufferer went to Christ in Nicomedia in the year 303.
Great Martyr George for courage and for spiritual victory over the tormentors who could not force him to renounce Christianity, as well as for miraculous help to people in danger - is also called the Victorious. The relics of St. George the Victorious were laid in the Palestinian city of Lydda, in a temple that bears his name, while his head was kept in Rome in a temple also dedicated to him.
On the icons, the Great Martyr George is depicted sitting on a white horse and striking a serpent with a spear. This image is based on tradition and refers to the posthumous miracles of the Holy Great Martyr George. They say that not far from the place where St. George was born in the city of Beirut, a snake lived in the lake, which often devoured the people of that area. What kind of animal it was - a boa constrictor, a crocodile or a large lizard - is unknown.
The superstitious inhabitants of that area, in order to quench the fury of the serpent, began regularly by lot to give him a young man or a girl to be eaten. Once the lot fell on the daughter of the ruler of that area. She was taken to the shore of the lake and tied, where she waited in horror for the appearance of a snake.
When the beast began to approach her, a bright young man suddenly appeared on a white horse, who struck the snake with a spear and saved the girl. This young man was the holy Great Martyr George. With such a miraculous phenomenon, he stopped the destruction of young men and women within the boundaries of Beirut and converted to Christ the inhabitants of that country, who had previously been pagans.
It can be assumed that the appearance of St. George on a horse to protect the inhabitants from a snake, as well as the miraculous revival of a farmer’s only ox described in his life, served as a reason for the veneration of St. George as the patron of cattle breeding and a protector from predatory animals.
In pre-revolutionary times, on the day of memory of St. George the Victorious, the inhabitants of Russian villages for the first time after a cold winter drove their cattle to pasture, performing a prayer service to the holy great martyr with sprinkling houses and animals with holy water. The Great Martyr George's Day is also popularly called "St. George's Day", on this day, until the reign of Boris Godunov, peasants could move to another landowner.
The Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious is the patron saint of the army. The image of George the Victorious on a horse symbolizes the victory over the devil - the "ancient serpent" (Rev. 12:3, 20:2), this image was included in the ancient coat of arms of the city of Moscow.
Troparion to the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious
Troparion: Like a captive liberator and a protector of the poor, a weak doctor, champion of kings, victorious Great Martyr George, pray to Christ God that our souls be saved.
Life of the Great Martyr George the Victorious
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George the Victorious- Christian saint, great martyr. George suffered during the persecution of Christians under the emperor Diocletian in 303, after eight days of severe torment he was beheaded. The Great Martyr George the Victorious is commemorated several times a year: May 6 (April 23, old style) - the death of the saint; November 16 (November 3, old style) - consecration of the Church of the Great Martyr George in Lida (IV century); November 23 (November 10, old style) - the suffering (wheeling) of the Great Martyr George; December 9 (November 26 old style) - the consecration of the Church of the Great Martyr George in Kyiv in 1051 (the celebration of the Russian Orthodox Church, popularly known as the autumn St. George's day).
Great Martyr George the Victorious. Icons
Already by the 6th century, two types of images of the Great Martyr George had formed: a martyr with a cross in his hand, in a tunic, over which a cloak, and a warrior in armor, with weapons in his hands, on foot or on horseback. George is depicted as a beardless young man, with thick curly hair reaching to his ears, sometimes with a crown on his head.
Since the 6th century, George has often been depicted with other martyred warriors - Theodore the Tyro, Theodore Stratilates and Demetrius of Thessalonica. The similarity of their appearances could also influence the association of these saints: both are young, beardless, with short hair reaching to the ears.
George Diasorite and Theodore Stratilat on horseback. OK. 1260s Monastery of St. Catherine, Sinai, Egypt A rare iconographic rendition - George the warrior sitting on a throne - arose no later than the end of the 12th century. The saint is represented frontally, sitting on a throne and holding a sword in front of him: he takes out the sword with his right hand, and holds the scabbard with his left. In the monumental painting, the holy warriors could be depicted on the faces of the domed pillars, on the girth arches, in the lower register of the naos, closer to the eastern part of the temple, and also in the narthex.
The iconography of the Great Martyr George came to Russia from Byzantium. In Russia, it has undergone some changes. The oldest surviving image is the half-length image of the Great Martyr George in the Dormition Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. The saint is depicted in chain mail, with a spear; his purple cloak reminds of the martyr's feat.
The image of the saint from the Assumption Cathedral is consonant with the hagiographic icon of the Great Martyr George of the 16th century from the Assumption Cathedral in Dmitrov. The saint on the middle of the icon is depicted full-length; in addition to the spear in his right hand, he has a sword, which he holds with his left hand, he also has a quiver with arrows and a shield. In the hallmarks are episodes of martyrdom of the saint.
The iconography of George on horseback is based on the Late Antique and Byzantine traditions of depicting the triumph of the emperor. There are several options: George the warrior on horseback (without a snake); George the Serpent Fighter (“The Miracle of the Great Martyr George of the Serpent”); George with a lad saved from captivity (“The Miracle of the Great Martyr George with a lad”).
The composition "Double Miracle" combined two of the most famous posthumous miracles of George - "The Miracle of the Serpent" and "The Miracle with the Boy": George is depicted on a horse (jumping, as a rule, from left to right), striking a snake, and behind the saint, on the croup of his horse , - a small figurine of a seated boy with a jug in his hand.
In Russia, the plot George's miracle about the serpent is widely known from the middle of the 12th century.
Until the end of the 15th century, there was a short version of this image: a horseman striking a serpent with a spear, with an image in the heavenly segment of the blessing right hand of the Lord. At the end of the 15th century, the iconography of the Miracle of St. George about the serpent was supplemented with a number of new details: for example, the figure of an angel, architectural details (the city that St. George saves from the serpent), and the image of the princess. But at the same time, there are quite a few icons in the former short version, but with various differences in details, including in the direction of the horse’s movement: not only the traditional left to right, but also in the opposite direction. Icons are known not only with the white color of the horse - the horse can be a black or bay color.
The iconography of the Miracle of George about the serpent was probably formed under the influence of ancient images of the Thracian horseman. In the western (Catholic) part of Europe, Saint George was usually depicted as a man in heavy armor and a helmet, with a thick spear, on a realistic horse, which, with physical exertion, spears a relatively realistic serpent with wings and paws. In the Eastern (Orthodox) lands, this emphasis on the earthly and material is absent: a not very muscular young man (without a beard), without heavy armor and a helmet, with a thin, obviously not physical, spear, on an unrealistic (spiritual) horse, without much physical exertion, pierces with a spear an unrealistic (symbolic) snake with wings and paws. Also, the Great Martyr George is depicted with selected saints.
Great Martyr George the Victorious. Paintings
The image of the Great Martyr George was repeatedly addressed by painters in their works. Most of the works are based on a traditional plot - the great martyr George, who strikes a snake with a spear. St. George on their canvases was depicted by such artists as Raphael Santi, Albrecht Dürer, Gustave Moreau, August Macke, V.A. Serov, M.V. Nesterov, V.M. Vasnetsov, V.V. Kandinsky and others.
Great Martyr George the Victorious. sculptures
Sculptural images of St. George are located in Moscow, in the village. Bolshereche of the Omsk region, in the city of Ivanovo, Krasnodar, Nizhny Novgorod, Ryazan, Crimea, in the village. Chastozerie Kurgan region, Yakutsk, Donetsk, Lvov (Ukraine), Bobruisk (Belarus), Zagreb (Croatia), Tbilisi (Georgia), Stockholm (Sweden), Melbourne (Australia), Sofia (Bulgaria), Berlin (Germany),
Temples in the name of George the Victorious
A large number of churches have been built in the name of Great Martyr George the Victorious, both in Russia and abroad. In Greece, about twenty churches were consecrated in honor of the saint, and about forty in Georgia. In addition, there are churches in honor of the Great Martyr George in Italy, Prague, Turkey, Ethiopia and other countries. In honor of the Great Martyr George, around the year 306, a church was consecrated in Thessaloniki (Greece). In Georgia, there is the monastery of St. George the Victorious, built in the first quarter of the 11th century. In the 5th century in Armenia in the village. Karashamb a church was built in honor of George the Victorious. In the IV century in Sofia (Bulgaria) the rotunda of St. George was built.
St. George's Church- one of the first monastery churches in Kyiv (XI century). It is mentioned in the Laurentian Chronicle, according to which the consecration of the temple took place no earlier than November 1051. The church was destroyed, possibly due to the general decline of the ancient part of Kyiv after the city was devastated by the hordes of Batu Khan in 1240. The temple was later renewed; destroyed in 1934.
A monastery in the Novgorod region is dedicated to Great Martyr George the Victorious. According to legend, the monastery was founded in 1030 by Prince Yaroslav the Wise. Yaroslav in holy baptism bore the name George, which in Russian usually had the form "Yuri", from which the name of the monastery came.
In 1119, the construction of the main monastery cathedral - St. George's - began. The initiator of the construction was the Grand Duke Mstislav I Vladimirovich. The construction of St. George's Cathedral lasted more than 10 years; before completion, its walls were covered with frescoes destroyed in the 19th century.
Consecrated in the name of Saint George Church at Yaroslav's Court in Veliky Novgorod. The first mention of a wooden church dates back to 1356. Residents of Lubyanitsa (Lubyanets) - a street that once passed through Torg (city market), built a church in stone. The temple was repeatedly burned and rebuilt again. In 1747, the upper vaults collapsed. In 1750-1754 the church was restored again.
In the name of George the Victorious, a church was consecrated in the village. Staraya Ladoga, Leningrad Region (built between 1180 and 1200). The temple was first mentioned in written sources only in 1445. In the 16th century, the church was rebuilt, but the interior remained unchanged. In 1683-1684 the church was restored.
In the name of the Great Martyr George the Victorious, a cathedral was consecrated in Yuryev-Polsky (Vladimir region, built in 1230-1234).
In Yuryev-Polsky there was the St. George Church of the Mikhailo-Arkhangelsky Monastery. The wooden St. George's Church from the village of Yegorye was transferred to the monastery in 1967-1968. This church is the only surviving building of the ancient St. George Monastery, the first mention of which dates back to 1565.
In the name of the Great Martyr George, a temple was consecrated in Endov (Moscow). The temple has been known since 1612. The current church was built by parishioners in 1653.
In honor of St. George, a church was consecrated in Kolomenskoye (Moscow). The church was built in the 16th century as a bell tower in the form of a round two-tiered tower. In the 17th century, a brick one-story chamber was added to the bell tower from the west. At the same time, the bell tower was rebuilt into the church of St. George. In the middle of the 19th century, a large brick refectory was added to the church.
The famous Church of St. George on Red Hill in Moscow. According to different versions, St. George's Church was founded by the mother of Tsar Mikhail Romanov - Marfa. But the name of the church was recorded in the spiritual charter of the Grand Duke Vasily the Dark, and in 1462 it was designated stone. Probably, because of the fire, the temple burned down, and in its place, nun Martha built a new, wooden church. At the end of the twenties of the XVII century, the church burned down. In 1652-1657. the temple was restored on a hill where festivities took place on Krasnaya Gorka.
In the name of St. George, a church was consecrated in the city of Ivanteevka (Moscow Region). The first historical information about the temple dates back to 1573. Probably, the wooden church was built in 1520-1530. By the end of the 1590s, the church was rebuilt and served the parishioners until 1664, when the Birdyukin-Zaitsev brothers received permission to own the village and build a new wooden church.
The unique wooden church in the name of the great martyr George the Victorious is located in the village of Rodionovo in the Podporozhye district of the Leningrad region. The first mention of the church dates back to 1493 or 1543.
in with. Novokharitonovo (Moscow region, Ramensky district), in (Bryansk region, Starodubsky district), in (Romania, Tulcea district).
Great Martyr George the Victorious. folk traditions
In folk culture, the day of remembrance of the Great Martyr George was called Yegoriy the Brave - the protector of livestock, the “wolf shepherd”. In the popular consciousness, two images of the saint coexisted: one of them was close to the church cult of St. George - a snake fighter and a Christ-loving warrior, the other - to the cult of a cattle breeder and tiller, land owner, patron of cattle, opening spring field work. So, in folk legends and spiritual verses, the exploits of the holy warrior Yegory were sung, who withstood the tortures and promises of "the queen of Demyanishcha (Diocletianish)" and struck down "a fierce snake, a fierce fiery one."
Great Martyr George the Victorious has always been revered among the Russian people. Temples and even entire monasteries were erected in his honor. In the grand-ducal families, the name George was widespread, the day of the new celebration in the life of the people, under serf captivity, received economic and political significance. It was especially significant in the forest north of Russia, where the name of the saint, at the request of the laws of naming and hearing, first changed into Gyurgia, Yurgiy, Yurya - in written acts, and into Yegorya - in a living language, on the lips of all the common people. For the peasantry, sitting on the ground and depending on it in everything, the new autumn St. George's day until the end of the 16th century was that cherished day when the terms of employment ended for the workers and any peasant became free, with the right to transfer to any landowner. This right of passage was probably the merit of Prince Georgy Vladimirovich, who died on the river. City in the battle with the Tatars, but managed to initiate the Russian settlement of the north and provide it with strong protection in the form of cities (Vladimir, Nizhny, two Yurievs and others). People's memory surrounded the name of this prince with exceptional honor. To perpetuate the memory of the prince, legends were needed, he himself personified the hero, his exploits were equated with miracles, his name was correlated with the name of George the Victorious.
The Russian people attributed to Saint George deeds that were not mentioned in the Byzantine Menaion. If George always rode a gray horse with a spear in his hands and pierced a snake with it, then with the same spear, according to Russian legends, he also struck a wolf that ran out to meet him and grabbed his white horse's leg with his teeth. The wounded wolf spoke in a human voice: “Why are you hitting me if I want to eat?” “If you want to eat, ask me. There, take that horse, it will last you two days.” This legend strengthened the belief among the people that any cattle slaughtered by a wolf or crushed and carried away by a bear is doomed to them as a sacrifice by Yegoriy, the led leader and master of all forest animals. The same legend testified that Yegoriy spoke with the animals in human language. In Russia, a story was known about how Yegoriy ordered a snake to sting a shepherd, who sold a sheep to a poor widow, and in his defense referred to a wolf. When the guilty person repented, Saint George appeared to him, reproved him for a lie, but restored both his life and health to him.
Honoring Yegory not only as the master of beasts, but also of reptiles, the peasants turned to him in their prayers. One day a peasant named Glycerius was plowing a field. The old ox broke and fell. The owner sat down on the boundary and wept bitterly. But suddenly a young man approached him and asked: “What are you crying about, little man?” - “I had,” answered Glycerius, “one ox-breadwinner, but the Lord punished me for my sins, and another ox, in my poverty, I cannot buy.” “Do not cry,” the young man reassured him, “the Lord has heard your prayers. Take the “reverse” with you, take the ox that first catches your eye, and harness it to plow - this ox is yours. - "And whose are you?" the man asked him. - "I am Egory the Passion-bearer," the young man said and disappeared. On this widespread tradition were based touching rites, which could be observed in all Russian villages without exception on the spring day of the memory of St. George. Sometimes, in warmer places, this day coincided with the “pasture” of cattle in the field, while in the harsh forest provinces it was only “a round of cattle. In all cases, the rite of “bypass” was performed in the same way and consisted in the fact that the owners walked around with the image of St. George the Victorious all the livestock gathered in a heap in their yard, and then drove it into a common herd gathered at the chapels, where a water-blessing prayer service was served, after which the whole flock was sprinkled with holy water.
In the old Novgorod region, where, it used to be, cattle were grazed without shepherds, the owners themselves “bypassed” them in compliance with ancient customs. The owner for his cattle in the morning prepared a pie with a whole egg baked there. Even before sunrise, he put the cake in a sieve, took an icon, lit a wax candle, girded himself with a sash, plugged a willow in front of him, and an ax in the back. In this attire, in his yard, the owner walked around the cattle three times in the salting, and the hostess smoked incense from a pot of hot coals and looked to see that the doors were all locked this time. The pie was broken into as many pieces as there were heads of cattle in the household, and each was given a piece, and the willow was either thrown into the water of the river to float away, or stuck under the eaves. It was believed that willow saves during a thunderstorm from lightning.
In the deaf black earth zone (Oryol province) they believed in St. George's dew, they tried on St. George's day as early as possible, before sunrise, when the dew had not yet dried up, to drive the cattle out of the yard, especially cows, so that they would not get sick and give more milk. In the same locality, they believed that the candles placed in the church to the image of George were saved from wolves, and whoever forgot to put it on, Yegoriy would take the cattle from him "to the wolf's teeth." Honoring Egoriev's holiday, the householders did not miss the opportunity to turn it into a "beer house". Long before that day, when calculating how many tubs of beer would come out, how much “zhidel” (lower grade beer) to make, the peasants thought about how there would be no “leakage” (when the wort does not run out of the vat) and talked about measures against such a failure. Teenagers licked ladles taken out of wort vats; they drank sludge or thick, which settled at the bottom of the vat. The women baked and washed the huts. The girls were preparing their clothes. When the beer was ready, every relative in the village was invited to "guest about the holiday." Egor's holiday began with the fact that each big road carried a must to the church, which in this case was called "eve". He was placed before the icon of St. George for the time of mass, and after mass they sacrificed the clergy. The first day they feasted with churchmen (in the Novgorod region), and then they went to drink at the houses of the peasants. Yegoriev's day in black earth Russia (for example, in the Chembarsky district of the Penza province) still retains traces of the veneration of Yegorye as the patron of fields and fruits of the earth. The people believed that George was given the keys to the sky and he unlocked it, giving power to the sun and will to the stars. Many still order masses and prayers to the saint, asking him to bless the fields and vegetable gardens. And to reinforce the meaning of the ancient belief, a special ceremony was observed: they chose the most handsome young man, decorated him with various greenery, put a round cake decorated with flowers on his head, and in a whole round dance the youth were led into the field. Here they walked around the sown fields three times, made a fire, shared and ate a ritual cake and sang an old sacred prayer-song in honor of George (“they call out”):
Yuri, get up early - unlock the ground,
Release the dew for a warm summer
Not a violent life -
On vigorous, on spiky.
The most famous miracle of St. George is the liberation of Princess Alexandra (in another version, Elisava) and the victory over the devil's serpent.
San Giorgio Schiavoni. St. George fights the dragon.
It happened in the vicinity of the Lebanese city of Lasia. The local king paid an annual tribute to the monstrous serpent that lived among the Lebanese mountains, in a deep lake: one person was given to him by lot to be eaten every year. One day, the lot fell to the daughter of the ruler himself, a chaste and beautiful girl, one of the few inhabitants of Lasia who believed in Christ. The princess was brought to the snake's lair, and she was already crying for a terrible death.
Suddenly, she saw a warrior on horseback, who, signing himself with the sign of the cross, struck a serpent with a spear, deprived of demonic power by the power of God.
Together with Alexandra, George appeared in the city, saved by him from a terrible tribute. The pagans took the victorious warrior for an unknown god and began to praise him, but George explained to them that he served the true God - Jesus Christ. Many townspeople led by the ruler, listening to the confession of the new faith, were baptized. On the main square a temple was built in honor of the Mother of God and George the Victorious. The saved princess took off her royal clothes and remained at the temple as a simple novice.
From this miracle originates the image of George the Victorious - the winner of evil, embodied in a snake - a monster. The combination of Christian holiness and military prowess made George a model of a medieval warrior-knight - defender and liberator.
This is how the Middle Ages saw George the Victorious. And against its background, the historical George the Victorious, a warrior who gave his life for his faith and conquered death, somehow got lost and faded.
In the rank of martyrs, the Church glorifies those who endured suffering for Christ and accepted a painful death with His name on their lips, without renouncing the faith. This is the largest rank of saints, numbering thousands of men and women, old people and children who suffered from pagans, godless authorities of various times, militant Gentiles. But among these saints there are especially revered - great martyrs. The sufferings that befell them were so great that the human mind cannot contain the power of patience and faith of such saints and only explains them with the help of God, as everything superhuman and incomprehensible.
Such a great martyr was George, a fine young man and a courageous warrior.
George was born in Cappadocia, an area in the very center of Asia Minor, which was part of the Roman Empire. This area from early Christian times was known for its cave monasteries and Christian ascetics, leading in this harsh land, where they had to endure the heat of the day and the night cold, droughts and winter frosts, ascetic and prayerful life.
George was born in the 3rd century (not later than 276) into a rich and noble family: his father, named Gerontius, was a Persian by birth, a high-ranking nobleman - a senator with the dignity of a stratilate *; mother Polychronia - a native of the Palestinian city of Lydda (modern city of Lod near Tel Aviv) - owned vast estates in her homeland. As often happened at that time, the couple adhered to different beliefs: Gerontius was a pagan, and Polychronia professed Christianity. Polychronia was engaged in raising his son, so George absorbed Christian traditions from childhood and grew up as a pious young man.
* Stratilat (Greek Στρατηλάτης) is a highly titled person in the Byzantine Empire, the commander-in-chief of the army, who sometimes combined with military activities the management of some part of the empire.
George from his youth was distinguished by physical strength, beauty and courage. He received an excellent education and could live in idleness and pleasure, spending his parental inheritance (his parents died before he came of age). However, the young man chose a different path for himself and entered the military service. In the Roman Empire, people were accepted into the army from the age of 17-18, and the usual term of service was 16 years.
The camp life of the future great martyr began under the emperor Diocletian, who became his sovereign, commander, benefactor and tormentor, who ordered his execution.
Diocletian (245-313) came from a poor family and began his military service as a simple soldier. He immediately distinguished himself in battles, since there were plenty of such opportunities in those days: the Roman state, torn apart by internal contradictions, also endured the raids of numerous barbarian tribes. Diocletian quickly went from soldier to commander, while gaining popularity among the troops thanks to his mind, physical strength, determination and courage. In 284, the soldiers proclaimed their commander emperor, expressing their love and trust to him, and at the same time, putting him before the most difficult task of managing the empire in one of the most difficult periods of its history.
Diocletian made Maximian, an old friend and comrade-in-arms, his co-ruler, and then they shared power with the young Caesars Galerius and Constantius, adopted as usual. This was necessary to cope with rebellions, wars and the difficulties of devastation in different parts of the state. Diocletian dealt with the affairs of Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and made the city of Nicomedia (now Ismid, in Turkey) his residence.
While Maximian suppressed uprisings within the empire and resisted the raids of the Germanic tribes, Diocletian moved with his army to the east - to the borders of Persia. Most likely, during these years the young man George entered the service in one of the legions of Diocletian, passing through his native land. Then the Roman army fought with the Sarmatian tribes on the Danube. The young warrior was distinguished by courage and strength, and Diocletian noticed and promoted such.
George especially distinguished himself in the war with the Persians in 296-297, when the Romans, in a dispute for the Armenian throne, defeated the Persian army and drove it beyond the Tigris, adding several more provinces to the empire. George, who served cohort of Invictors("invincible"), where they got for special military merits, was appointed a military tribune - the second commander in the legion after the legate, and later appointed committee- this was the name of the senior commander who accompanied the emperor on his travels. Since the committees constituted the retinue of the emperor and at the same time were his advisers, this position was considered very honorable.
Diocletian, an inveterate pagan, was quite tolerant of Christians for the first fifteen years of his reign. Most of his closest assistants, of course, were his like-minded adherents of traditional Roman cults. But Christians - soldiers and officials - could quite safely move up the career ladder and occupy the highest government posts.
The Romans generally showed great tolerance for the religions of other tribes and peoples. Various foreign cults were practiced freely throughout the empire, not only in the provinces, but also in Rome itself, where foreigners were required only to respect the Roman state cult and to practice their rites privately, without imposing them on others.
However, almost simultaneously with the advent of Christian preaching, the Roman religion was replenished with a new cult, which became the source of many troubles for Christians. This was cult of the Caesars.
With the advent of imperial power in Rome, the idea of a new deity appeared: the genius of the emperor. But very soon the veneration of the genius of the emperors grew into a personal deification of the crowned bearers. At first, only the dead Caesars were deified. But gradually, under the influence of Eastern ideas, in Rome they got used to consider the living Caesar as a god, he was given the title "our god and ruler" and fell on his knees before him. Those who, out of negligence or disrespect, did not want to honor the emperor, were treated as if they were the greatest criminal. Therefore, even the Jews, who otherwise held fast to their religion, tried to get along with the emperors in this matter. When Caligula (12-41) reported to the Jews that they did not sufficiently express reverence for the sacred person of the emperor, they sent a deputation to him to say: “We offer sacrifices for you, and not simple sacrifices, but hecatombs (hundreds). We have done this three times already - on the occasion of your accession to the throne, on the occasion of your illness, for your recovery and for your victory.
This was not the language that Christians spoke to emperors. Instead of the kingdom of Caesar, they proclaimed the Kingdom of God. They had one Lord - Jesus, so it was impossible to worship both the Lord and Caesar at the same time. In the time of Nero, Christians were forbidden to use coins with the image of Caesar on them; all the more, there could be no compromises with the emperors, who demanded that the imperial person be titled "Lord and God." The refusal of Christians to make sacrifices to pagan gods and to deify Roman emperors was seen as a threat to established bonds between the people and the gods.
The pagan philosopher Celsus appealed to Christians with exhortations: “Is there anything bad in acquiring the favor of the ruler of people; after all, it is not without divine favor that power over the world is obtained? If you are required to swear an oath in the name of the emperor, there is nothing wrong; for everything you have in life you receive from the emperor.”
But Christians thought differently. Tertullian taught his brothers in faith: “Give your money to Caesar, and yourself to God. But if you give everything to Caesar, what will be left for God? I want to call the emperor lord, but only in the ordinary sense, if I am not forced to put him in the place of God as lord” (Apology, ch. 45).
Diocletian eventually also demanded divine honors for himself. And, of course, he immediately ran into the disobedience of the Christian population of the empire. Unfortunately, this meek and peaceful resistance of the followers of Christ coincided with growing difficulties within the country, which aroused open talk against the emperor, and was regarded as a rebellion.
In the winter of 302, the co-ruler Galerius pointed out to Diocletian the "source of discontent" - the Christians and offered to start persecuting the Gentiles.
The emperor turned for a prediction regarding his future to the temple of Delphic Apollo. The Pythia told him that she could not do the divination because she was hindered by those who destroy her power. The priests of the temple interpreted these words in such a way that Christians are to blame for everything, from whom all the troubles in the state occur. So the emperor's inner circle, secular and priestly, pushed him to make the main mistake in his life - to start persecuting those who believe in Christ, known in history as the Great Persecution.
On February 23, 303, Diocletian issued the first edict against Christians, which prescribed "destroy churches to the ground, burn sacred books and deprive Christians of honorary positions". Shortly thereafter, the imperial palace in Nicomedia was twice engulfed by fire. This coincidence was the reason for the unsubstantiated accusation of arson against Christians. Following this, two more decrees appeared - on the persecution of priests and on the obligatory sacrifice for all to pagan gods. Those who refused to sacrifice were subjected to imprisonment, torture and the death penalty. Thus began the persecution that took the lives of several thousand citizens of the Roman Empire - Romans, Greeks, people from barbarian peoples. The entire Christian population of the country, quite numerous, was divided into two parts: for the sake of deliverance from torment, some agreed to bring pagan sacrifices, while others confessed Christ to death, because they considered such sacrifices a denial of Christ, remembering His words: “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be zealous for one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Luke 16:13).
Saint George did not allow the thought of worshiping pagan idols, therefore he prepared for torment for the faith: he distributed gold, silver and all the rest of his wealth to the poor, gave freedom to his slaves and servants. Then he appeared in Nicomedia for advice to Diocletian, where all his military leaders and close associates gathered, and openly declared himself a Christian.
The assembly was amazed and looked at the emperor, who sat in silence, as if struck by thunder. Diocletian did not expect such an act from his devoted commander, a long-time comrade-in-arms. According to the Life of the saint, the following dialogue took place between him and the emperor:
“George,” said Diocletian, “I have always marveled at your nobility and courage, you received a high position from me for military merit. Out of love for you, as a father, I give you advice - do not doom your life to torment, make a sacrifice to the gods, and you will not lose your dignity and my favor.
“The kingdom that you are now enjoying,” answered George, “is impermanent, vain and transient, and its pleasures will perish along with it. No benefit is gained by those who are seduced by them. Believe in the true God, and He will give you the best kingdom - immortal. For his sake, no torment will frighten my soul.
The emperor became angry and ordered the guards to arrest George and throw him in jail. There he was spread out on the prison floor, they put stocks on his feet, and a heavy stone was placed on his chest, so that it was difficult to breathe and it was impossible to move.
The next day, Diocletian ordered that George be brought in for questioning:
Have you repented or will you show disobedience again?
“Do you really think that I will be exhausted from such a small torment? the saint replied. “You are more likely to get tired of tormenting me than I am to endure torment.
The enraged emperor gave the order to resort to torture in order to force George to renounce Christ. Once, during the years of the Roman Republic, torture was applied only to slaves in order to knock out testimony from them during a judicial investigation. But during the time of the Empire, the pagan society became so corrupt and hardened that torture was often applied to free citizens. The tortures of St. George were distinguished by special savagery and cruelty. The naked martyr was tied to a wheel, under which the tormentors laid boards with long nails. Rotating on a wheel, George's body was torn apart by these nails, but his mind and mouth prayed to God, loudly at first, then quieter and quieter...
Mikael van Coxey. Martyrdom of Saint George.
“He died, why didn’t the Christian God deliver him from death?” - said Diocletian, when the martyr was completely quiet, and with these words he left the place of execution.
This, apparently, exhausts the historical layer in the Life of St. George. Further, the hagiographer tells about the miraculous resurrection of the martyr and the ability he acquired from God to emerge unharmed from the most terrible torments and executions.
Apparently, the courage shown by George during the execution had a strong influence on the locals and even on the emperor's inner circle. The Life reports that in these days many people accepted Christianity, including the priest of the temple of Apollo named Athanasius, as well as the wife of Diocletian Alexander.
According to the Christian understanding of the martyrdom of George, it was a battle with the enemy of the human race, from which the holy passion-bearer, who courageously endured the most severe tortures that human flesh has ever been subjected to, emerged victorious, for which he was named Victorious.
George won his last victory - over death - on April 23, 303, on the day of Good Friday.
The great persecution ended the era of paganism. The tormentor of St. George, Diocletian, only two years after these events, was forced to resign as emperor under pressure from his own court environment, and spent the rest of his days on a distant estate growing cabbages. The persecution of Christians after his resignation began to subside and soon ceased altogether. Ten years after the death of George, Emperor Constantine issued a decree by which Christians were given back all their rights. On the blood of the martyrs, a new empire was created - the Christian one.