Athenogenes (, d. 303 CE) or Saint Athenogenes of Pedachtoë was a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

, '' chorepiskopos'' (or "rural

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

"), and

Christian martyr In Christianity, a martyr is a person who was killed for their testimony for Jesus or faith in Jesus. In the years of the early church, stories depict this often occurring through death by sawing, stoning, crucifixion, burning at the stake, or ...

of the late 3rd or early 4th century CE, and the leader of a Christian community in the town of Pedachtoë.

Life

Athenogenes was said to have been born to a Christian family in the Black Sea Region of what is now

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, in an obscure village called "Epiklesoi", under the city of Sebastopolis (modern

Sulusaray Sulusaray or Çiftlik, in Antiquity and the early Middle Ages known as Sebastopolis () or Heracleopolis (), is a town in Tokat Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. It is the seat of Sulusaray District.Sivas Sivas is a city in central Turkey. It is the seat of Sivas Province and Sivas District.İl Beledi ...

). He was married and had a son, Patrophilos. He is presented as a

miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

-working holy man in his early

hagiographies A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

. The cult around this figure formed comparatively early, as he is described by people writing only a few decades after his death, such as

Basil of Caesarea Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great (330 – 1 or 2 January 379) was an early Roman Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia from 370 until his death in 379. He was an influential theologian who suppor ...

Martyrdom

The central myth of the cult developed from the 4th to 6th centuries, but takes place in the first or second year of the Diocletianic Persecution. The earliest known story of Athenogenes's martyrdom is that two Christian men, named Ariston (an '' anagnostes'') and Severianos (a '' psaltes''), who were from a small village near Pedachtoë, were arrested in Sebastea by Agricolaus (or Agricola or Agricolanus), the governor of the province of

Roman Armenia Roman Armenia refers to the rule of parts of Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), Greater Armenia by the Roman Empire from the 1st century AD to the end of Late Antiquity. While Armenia Minor had become a client state until it was incorporated into t ...

(and apparently the same person as the prosecutor in the story of the

Forty Martyrs of Sebaste The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste or the Holy Forty (Ancient/Katharevousa Greek and Ἅγιοι Τεσσαράκοντα; Demotic: Άγιοι Σαράντα) were a group of Roman soldiers in the Legio XII ''Fulminata'' (Armed with Lightning) whose m ...

), for the crimes of arson and the circulation of Christian literature critical of the

Tetrarchy The Tetrarchy was the system instituted by Roman emperor Diocletian in 293 AD to govern the ancient Roman Empire by dividing it between two emperors, the ''augusti'', and their junior colleagues and designated successors, the ''caesares''. I ...

. After Ariston refused to cooperate and was sentenced to

death by burning Death by burning is an execution, murder, or suicide method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a punishment for and warning agai ...

, Severianos declared under

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...

that Athenogenes was the author of the ''

libellus A ''libellus'' (plural ''libelli'') in the Roman Empire was any brief document written on individual pages (as opposed to scrolls or tablets), particularly official documents issued by governmental authorities. The term ''libellus'' has particul ...

'' they had been circulating, and the instigator of their crimes. Athenogenes was himself then arrested and brought to Sebastea, where both he and Severianos were questioned and ultimately sentenced to death by fire. Later versions of the tale change some details somewhat, for example by omitting the character of Severianos entirely. According to some traditions, ten of Athenogenes's disciples were also martyred with him.

Hagiography

The stories of his miracles are reminiscent of those of

Gregory Thaumaturgus Gregory Thaumaturgus or Gregory the Miracle-Worker (, ; ; ), also known as Gregory of Neocaesarea, was a Christian bishop of the 3rd century. He has been canonized as a saint in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Biography Gregory was born arou ...

(a Christian figure from the neighboring town of

Neocaesarea Niksar, historically known as Neocaesarea (Νεοκαισάρεια), is a city in Tokat Province, Turkey. It is the seat of Niksar District.dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

), as well as over water. Scholars believe, as with many stories in the hagiography

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

, that the author weaved in details from earlier tales of martyrs. The earliest version of his life that we have is a hagiography of Anysius titled ''Passion of Athenogenes of Pedachthoe'', and preserved in a 10th-century manuscript, Codex Sabaiticus 242, which is currently in the collection of the Patriarchal Library in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. Scholars date the composition of the story to around the 6th century CE. This account is considered unusual among hagiographies in that it gives what scholars say is a fairly realistic account of the court proceedings against Ariston, Severianos, and Athenogenes, and it is assumed this is likely constructed from some original transcript passed down rather than a purely literary creation. Scholars date the start of his trial to July 12, 303 CE, with some confidence, and his martydom five days later on July 17, though others believe these happened in 304. Some later writers have attributed to Athenogenes the creation of the "evening hymn", ''

Phos Hilaron ''Phos Hilaron'' () is an ancient Christian hymn originally written in Koine Greek. Often referred to in the Western Church by its Latin title ''Lumen Hilare'', it has been translated into English as ''O Gladsome Light''. It is one of the earlie ...

'', which it is said Athenogenes sang on the way to his death, though this is considered by modern scholars to be incorrect, and even in ancient times writers such as 4th-century theologian and bishop

denied it was written by him.

Monuments and relics

At the time the early hagiography was written, there was apparently a church on the site where Athenogenes had been killed. There was also a shrine to him in Pedachtoë, built atop the octagonal subterranean

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

Athenogenes had constructed to house the remains of some Christian martyrs, and to which, apparently, his own remains had been taken from Sebastea. 4th-century Armenian Christian leader

Gregory the Illuminator Gregory the Illuminator ( – ) was the founder and first official Catholicos of All Armenians, head of the Armenian Apostolic Church. He Christianization of Armenia, converted Armenia from Zoroastrianism in Armenia, Zoroastrianism to Chris ...

brought a

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

of Athenogenes from Pedachtoë to

Vagharshapat Vagharshapat ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Armenia, 5th-largest city in Armenia and the most populous municipal community of Armavir Province, located about west of the capital Yerevan, and north of the closed Turkish-Armenian border ...

, where it was installed in

Etchmiadzin Cathedral Etchmiadzin Cathedral is the Mother church#Church as a building, mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church, located in the city Dual naming, dually known as Etchmiadzin (Ejmiatsin) and Vagharshapat, Armenia. It is #Oldest cathedral, usuall ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Athenogenes of Pedachtoë Ancient Pontic Greeks 303 deaths 4th-century Christian martyrs 3rd-century births 4th-century bishops in Roman Anatolia 3rd-century bishops in Roman Anatolia 4th-century Christian saints 3rd-century Christian saints Byzantine saints Cappadocian Greeks Saints from Roman Anatolia