Saint Telemachus (also Almachus or Almachius) was a

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedic ...

who, according to the Church historian

Theodoret Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus ( grc-gre, Θεοδώρητος Κύρρου; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pi ...

, tried to stop a

gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

ial fight in a Roman

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

, and was

stoned to death Stoning, or lapidation, is a method of capital punishment where a group throws stones at a person until the subject dies from blunt trauma. It has been attested as a form of punishment for grave misdeeds since ancient times. The Torah and Ta ...

by the crowd. The Christian Emperor Honorius, however, was impressed by the monk's

martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

and it spurred him to issue a historic ban on gladiatorial fights.

Frederick George Holweck Frederick George Holweck (born Friedrich Georg Holweck; 29 December 1856 – 15 February 1927) was a German-American Catholic parish priest and scholar, hagiographer and church historian. Monsignor Holweck contributed some articles to the ''Cat ...

gives the year of his death as 391.Holweck, F. G., ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints'' (St Louis: B. Herder Book Co., 1924) p. 51 Kath

Background

He is described as being an

ascetic Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

who came to Rome from the East. The story is found in the writings of

, Bishop of

Cyrrhus, Syria Cyrrhus (; el, Κύρρος ''Kyrrhos'') is a city in ancient Syria founded by Seleucus Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals. Other names for the city include Coricium, Corice, Hagioupolis, Nebi Huri ( ar, نبي هوري), and Khoros ...

. Although the site of Telemachus' martyrdom is often given as being the

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world ...

in Rome, Theodoret does not actually specify where it happened, saying merely that it happened in "the stadium". Later retellings of the story have differed from Theodoret's in a number of details.

Foxe's Book of Martyrs The ''Actes and Monuments'' (full title: ''Actes and Monuments of these Latter and Perillous Days, Touching Matters of the Church''), popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs, is a work of Protestant history and martyrology by Protestant Engli ...

claims that Telemachus was first stabbed to death by a gladiator, but that the sight of his death "turned the hearts of the people". In the version of the story told by Ronald Reagan in 1984, the entire crowd left in silence. There is also an alternate form of the story, in which Telemachus stood up in the amphitheatre and told the assembly to stop worshipping idols and offering sacrifices to the gods. Upon hearing this statement, the prefect of the city is said by this source to have ordered the gladiators to kill Telemachus, and they promptly did so.Burns, Paul. ''Butler's Lives of the Saints:New Full Edition.'' Collegeville, MN:The Liturgical Press, 1995. .

Notes

External links

Telemachus: The Monk Who Ended the Coliseum GamesJanuary 1, 404: Telemachus Martyred Attempting to Stop a Gladiator Fight , Church History Timelines
{{DEFAULTSORT:Telemachus 4th-century births 4th-century Romans 5th-century Romans Christian hagiography 5th-century Christian martyrs 5th-century Christian saints Year of death uncertain People executed by stoning