Fabiola : or, The church of the catacombs - Digital Repository Services

tyrs lay burled, was ofeosen for thi purpose. Lydto was also
there, and she took with her the precious girdle of St. Polycarp,
to become the possessor of which had cost her eleven years of
slavery With anxious heart, she passed the Theatre of Flora,
ignorant of the shocking scenes that took place there, scenes that
often brought the blusl. to the most shameless countenances, and
she stands already at the entrance of the house of Ood.
How altered was Irenseusl Care and labor, not years, bad
furrowed his countenance, and had given him the appearance of
an aged man.
"It would be in vain to describe," commenced Irenams, "the
trouble that fell upon us in those latter days: The Christians in
Lyons were formally proscribed. They were hunted forth from
their dwellings and the blue heavens given to them as a shelter.
They were not allowed to appear in public places without being
put to shame, not even the refreshing comfort of a bath wa
granted to them. If any of the people ill-used one of us in
blind fury, the officers of justice had no ear for his troubles, on
the contrary, it was the officials themselves who led the Chris-
tians to the public places, and there asked them what their faith
was, and then without anything further, had them cast into
prison. On account of this treatment, one of the senators, urged
by a holy zeal, petitioned one day to speak in the hall of justice,
in defence of the Christians. He did it with that vivacity
which his feeling of justice and his youth dictated, and stood as
witness that the Christians were not guilty of the vices ascribed
to them. But the people interrupted the speaker with vehement
groans, and the Proconsul, who also sat in the Hall, asked the
defender if he himself were a Christian. Vettius, so he was called,
answered in the affirmative; he was immediately seized, on a
sign from the Proconsul, and sent to join the Christians already
in prison. On this the public judicial persecution commenced.
The following days the Proconsul ordered all the prisoners to
bo led bound before him. He addressed them in the most violent
language, upon the horrible crimes they had committed, and
threatened them with the most dreadful tortures if they did not
abjure Christianity. When the executioner placed before their
eyes the favorite instruments of torment, and explained the use
of them, some of the Christians began to tremble and grow pale.
The Proconsul profiting by their agitation, ordered incense to be
placed in their hands, and alas! many of them sacrificed to the
sods. The apostates were ten. This act filled us with unspeakable
grief. We suffered a further humiliation through some
slaves, who, with their Christian owners, had entered the
Church, although as yet they were not thoroughly instructed in
the doctrines. Frightened by the threatened punishments, they
not only related what they saw in the Christian assemblies, but
several of them hoped to gain their freedom by becoming false
witnesses. They were therefore, not ashamed to maintain before
tin; people, that they saw with their own eyes, how we, like
Thycstes eat the flesh of children, and practised vices that my
lips would refuse to utter. At this speech, some of the people
applauded, others were indignant and also those turned against
us, who, up to that time had some faith in our holy doctrine.
The torture was next applied to many of the prisoners "in the
most cruel manner, and not alone the torture but also red hot
irons, were pressed down upon the sufferers in great brutality,
until the bodies were no longer to be recognized. Others were
put into the stocks, and their feet stretched till the sinew* tore
asunder.
" So passed a portion ot the month of May. But more sor-
rowfully did it terminate I must now speak of the death of an
old man, who amply fulfilled the hopes of his great master, Poly-
carp, and as in life, so in death he trod in his holy footsteps.
Although the last events greatly affected him, still a youthful
vigor seemed to take possession of his aged limbs; this was but
lent to him, that he might leave behind him a remarkable exam-
ple. The city authorities sent armed soldiers for this old man,
and had him brought through the public streets from his dwelling.
An immense concourse of people, children, and the aged,
followed with ferocious crise, amidst cures and opprobrious lan-
LTD! A.
guage. When the Proooorol aked who wa> MM Ood of the
Christians he answered
' You will know God when you are worthy of it.'
"
The pagans no sooner heard this reply, than they set upon
the aged Bishop like wild beasts, and so inhumanly treated him
that he sunk to the ground. The Governor then saw that the
people were embittered, and that they were even arrogating to
themselves the office of judge, he therefore ordered Pothinua
to be carried back to prison. There we taw him for the last
time. He signed us with the sign of martyrdom, by pressing
his bleeding lips to our foreheads. Two days later the Church
of Lyons had to mourn her Bishop and one of her principal
pillars." At these words, the speaker thought of the loss be had
himself sustained by the death of his beloved and venerated
friend. All present participated in his grief, and loud sobbing
was heard in the assembly.
"Amongst the prisoners," continued he, "were some Roman
citizens, who claim protection from public contempt by privilege.
The Proconsul sent the information to Rome and begged
a command to retain as well the citizens as the other prisoners.
When we were informed of this, our hopes were raised, for we
trusted that it was still fresh in the Emperor's mind in what
situation his whole army had lately found themselves, and how
the prayers of the Christian Legion drew down the refreshing
rain from Heaven which saved them from a parching death.
How bitterly did the Emperor's commands deceive usl Marcus
Aurelius decided on the death of each one that persevered in the
confession of Christ. The Proconsul resolved that at the next
public sports, at which a great multitude was expected to as
semble, the prisoners should be brought forth, and that the
Roman citizens were to be beheaded, but that the others should
be reserved for the wild beasts.
" As we saw at this investigation those also appear who had
already declared that they would offer sacrifice to the gods, our
hearts beat in anxious expectation. Quite close to the judge's
seat we observed a doctor of Lyons, Alexander of Phrygia, who
was most beloved by the people. His presence there astonished
and perplexed us, for he was known to be a man of apostolic
spirit. While the apostates were questioned anew, if they abided
by their former declaration, some of them unhesitatingly acknowledged,
that they had been guilty of great injustice by
their apostasy, and were now firmly resolved to offer up their
lives for the Faith.
"
Alexander, who stood opposite to them, bowed his head in
a friendly manner, and showed by the motion of his whole body,
how ardently he wished them to remain firm in their good resolutions.
This was a great comfort to us, and but few, who
were never very much in earnest, remained apostates. So this
admirable Alexander saved many from destruction, not think-
ing of the danger in which he was placing himself. The people
had observed him, and were roused almost to madness, and the
Governor putting the question to him if he were a Christian,
Alexander answered in the affirmative, and immediately his sen-
tence was pronounced. He who loses his life in this manner it
sure to find it
" On the following day all met at the sports in the amphitheatre
; alas I it was a sport as in Nero's time. Two from Asia Minor
were to be led to death, Alexander and Attalus from Pergamus
who was formerly so vehemently persecuted. As he was placed
on a red hot iron stool because he was accused of being a cannibal
he turned to the spectators and said to them in the Latin lan-
guage: 'Behold this is what you may call consuming men, you
are guilty of this inhumanity, but we are no cannibals.' Alex-
ander next suffered. But now, dearest brethren, for an edifying
example of two youns; persons, one was a very youthful and
beautiful girl, named Blandina, she was a slave, and of so deli-
cate a constitution, that she caused in us the greatest anxiety
and yet this remarkable servant of God, had from the earliest
dawn till late in the evening, defied her tormentors, who re-
lieved each other at intervals, and when the savaees sent her
back to her prison, she spent her whole time in attending aud