Elias (or Elijah, syr, ܐܠܝܐ, ''Eliya''; died after 659) was the metropolitan bishop of Merv in the

Church of the East The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...

. The ''

Chronicle of Khuzestan The ''Chronicle of Khuzestan'' (also spelled ''Khuzistan'') is an anonymous 7th-century Nestorian Christian chronicle. Written in Syriac, it covers the period from the reign of the Sasanian ruler Hormizd IV () to the fall of the Sasanian Empire ( ...

'' records how Elias converted some

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...

and their "kinglet" (MLKWNʾ) through preaching and miracles. He is said to have dispersed with the

sign of the cross Making the sign of the cross ( la, signum crucis), or blessing oneself or crossing oneself, is a ritual blessing made by members of some branches of Christianity. This blessing is made by the tracing of an upright cross or + across the body with ...

a storm conjured up by the kinglet's

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

s, thus proving the superiority of Christianity. Since the chronicle does not mention any event later than 652, the conversion of the Turks probably took place before this date., dates it to 644. Elias was present at the deathbed of the Patriarch

Ishoʿyahb III Ishoʿyahb III of Adiabene was List of Patriarchs of the Church of the East, Patriarch of the Church of the East from 649 to 659. Sources Brief accounts of Ishoʿyahb's patriarchate are given in the ''Ecclesiastical Chronicle'' of the Jacobite w ...

in 659. He probably died not long after. Elias wrote a short church history, described by

ʿAbdishoʿ bar Brikha Abdisho bar Berika or Ebedjesu ( syc, ܥܒܕܝܫܘܥ ܕܨܘܒܐ) (died 1318), also known as Mar Odisho or St. Odisho in English, was a Syriac writer. He was born in Nusaybin. Abdisho was first bishop of Shiggar (Sinjar) and the province of Bet 'Ar ...

around 1300 as comprising a single book. The 10th-century ''

Chronicle of Seert The ''Chronicle of Seert'', sometimes called the , is an ecclesiastical history written in Arabic by an anonymous Nestorian writer, at an unknown date between the ninth and the eleventh century. There are grounds for believing that it is the wor ...

'' cites it as a source twice, especially for the life of

Gregory of Nisibis Gregory of Kashkar (died c. 611) was the bishop of Kashkar and then from about 596 the Nisibis (East Syriac ecclesiastical province), metropolitan of Nisibis in the Church of the East. His hagiography treats him as a pivotal figure in the preservati ...

. Elias's high standing in the church would have given him access to official records and possibly also to court gossip. Pierre Nautin argued that this history was in fact the ''Chronicle of Khuzestan'', with additions made by an associate after Elias's death, including the account of the conversion of the Turks. The beginning of the ''Chronicle of Khuzestan'' is lost. According to ʿAbdishoʿ, Elias also wrote

antiphon An antiphon (Greek ἀντίφωνον, ἀντί "opposite" and φωνή "voice") is a short chant in Christian ritual, sung as a refrain. The texts of antiphons are the Psalms. Their form was favored by St Ambrose and they feature prominently ...

s, consolations, a commentary on the gospel readings and an account of the origins ('' ʿeltā'') of the responsive prayers at

nocturns Nocturns (Latin: ''nocturni'' or ''nocturna'') is a Christian canonical hour said in the nighttime. In the liturgy of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, nocturns refer to the sections into which the canonical hour of matins was divided fro ...

. Besides these litrugical writings, he wrote commentaries on the biblical books of ''

Proverbs A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic speech, formulaic language. A proverbial phra ...

'', ''

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

'', ''

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

'', ''

Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes (; hbo, קֹהֶלֶת, Qōheleṯ, grc, Ἐκκλησιαστής, Ekklēsiastēs) is one of the Ketuvim ("Writings") of the Hebrew Bible and part of the Wisdom literature of the Christian Old Testament. The title commonly use ...

'', '' Song of Songs'', ''

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

'', ''

Sirach The Book of Sirach () or Ecclesiasticus (; abbreviated Ecclus.) is a Jewish work, originally in Hebrew, of ethical teachings, from approximately 200 to 175 BC, written by the Judahite scribe Ben Sira of Jerusalem, on the inspiration of his fa ...

'', the

Twelve Minor Prophets The Minor Prophets or Twelve Prophets ( he, שנים עשר, ''Shneim Asar''; arc, תרי עשר, ''Trei Asar'', "Twelve") ( grc, δωδεκαπρόφητον, "the Twelve Prophets"), occasionally Book of the Twelve, is a collection of propheti ...

and the

Pauline epistles The Pauline epistles, also known as Epistles of Paul or Letters of Paul, are the thirteen books of the New Testament attributed to Paul the Apostle, although the authorship of some is in dispute. Among these epistles are some of the earliest extan ...

. Several of his letters were also known to ʿAbdishoʿ.

Notes

Sources

* * * * * {{refend 660s deaths Christians in the Sasanian Empire Christians of the Rashidun Caliphate Archbishops in Asia 7th-century bishops of the Church of the East Nestorians Syriac writers Bible commentators 7th-century historians