Ishoʿsabran ( Syriac: ܝܫܘܥܣܒܪܢ, ''Īšōʿsawrān''), born Mahanosh, was a

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

convert to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

who was martyred in the

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

in 620 or 621. He is commemorated as a saint in the

East Syriac The East Syriac Rite, or East Syrian Rite (also called the Edessan Rite, Assyrian Rite, Persian Rite, Chaldean Rite, Nestorian Rite, Babylonian Rite or Syro-Oriental Rite), is an Eastern Christian liturgical rite that employs the Divine Liturg ...

churches on the third Friday after

Annunciation The Annunciation (; ; also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord; ) is, according to the Gospel of Luke, the announcement made by the archangel Gabriel to Ma ...

.Jean Maurice Fiey, ''Saints Syriaques'' (Darwin Press, 2004), pp. 100–102. At least four persons named Ishoʿsabran appear in East Syriac

liturgical calendar The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year, ecclesiastical calendar, or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical days and seasons that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be obs ...

s, but only the martyr of 620/1 has a written

hagiography 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 ...

. This was written by

Ishoʿyahb of Adiabene Ishoʿyahb III of Adiabene was 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 writer Bar Hebraeus (thirteenth-century), and t ...

before he became patriarch in 649 based on the testimony of Ishoʿsabran's surviving companion, Ishoʿzka. In the words of

Jean Maurice Fiey Jean Maurice Fiey (30 March 1914 – 10 November 1995) was a French Dominican Father and prominent Church historian and Syriacist. Biography Fiey was born in Armentières on 30 March 1914, he entered the Dominican Order at an early age and rece ...

, this biography is "as much from a literary point of view as a critical point of view, one of the best productions of one of the best East Syriac writers." Born Mahanosh in the town of Qūr in

Adiabene Adiabene ( Greek: Αδιαβηνή, ) was an ancient kingdom in northern Mesopotamia, corresponding to the northwestern part of ancient Assyria. The size of the kingdom varied over time; initially encompassing an area between the Zab Rivers, it ...

and raised Zoroastrian, he was converted by the words of his already-converted wife and the local priest, Ishoʿ Raḥme. He was baptised in the monastery of Beth Shakūḥ, east of

Arbela Arbela may refer to: Places * Greco-Roman name of the city of Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq * Arbel, Israel * Irbid, Jordan * Arbela, Ohio, United States * Arbela Township, Michigan, United States * Arbela, Missouri, United States Other uses ...

, and took the name Ishoʿsabran. At first he practised his new religion secretly. After publicising his conversion, he was denounced by his brother to a local judge—since conversion from Zoroastrianism was illegal—and imprisoned in Ḥazza, capital of Adiabene. Ishoʿsabran was on trial before the governor when a fellow Christian, Yazdīn, a minister of Shah

Khosrow II Khosrow II (spelled Chosroes II in classical sources; and ''Khosrau''), commonly known as Khosrow Parviz (New Persian: , "Khosrow the Victorious"), is considered to be the last great Sasanian King of Kings (Shahanshah) of Iran, ruling from 590 ...

, happened to be passing through and procured his release. His brother died not long after his release and he decided to leave his wife and become a

mendicant A mendicant (from , "begging") is one who practices mendicancy, relying chiefly or exclusively on alms to survive. In principle, Mendicant orders, mendicant religious orders own little property, either individually or collectively, and in many i ...

in the mountains. He returned to Qūr to study the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

under Ishoʿzka, son of the priest Ishoʿ Raḥme. He intended to provoke his own persecution in the hopes of securing martyrdom. Ishoʿsabran founded a monastery two miles outside Qūr, which became renowned for its charity. Against the wishes of his own monks, he took in twenty

foundling Foundling or The Foundling may refer to: Places * Foundling hospital, an institution where abandoned children were cared for ** Foundling Hospital, Dublin, founded 1704 ** Foundling Hospital, Cork, founded 1737 ** Foundling Hospital, founded 17 ...

s. He also distributed food to the poor and widows during a famine. After almost two years, he was arrested at the instigation of the Magoi and taken under military escort to Arbela. Ishoʿsabran remained in prison for fifteen years, during which time the

Monophysites Monophysitism ( ) or monophysism ( ; from Greek , "solitary" and , "nature") is a Christological doctrine that states that there was only one nature—the divine—in the person of Jesus Christ, who was the incarnated Word. It is rejected as ...

attempted, unsuccessfully, to convert him to their creed. With several other notables from

Beth Garmai Beth Garmai, (, Middle Persian: ''Garamig''/''Garamīkān''/''Garmagān'', New Persian: ''Garmakan'', Kurdish: ''Germiyan/گەرمیان'', , Latin and Greek: ''Garamaea'') is a historical Assyrian region around the city of Kirkuk in northern ...

, he was brought before the shah. A further intervention by Yazdīn was unsuccessful. After six days of interrogation, he was tortured. With the others, he was brought to Beth Warda and crucified.

References

{{reflist Syrian Christian saints Year of birth unknown 620s deaths 7th-century Iranian people Converts to Christianity from Zoroastrianism Christians in the Sasanian Empire People executed by the Sasanian Empire People executed by crucifixion 7th-century Christian martyrs Persian saints Assyrian Church of the East saints