Icône de saint Thaddée d'Édesse aussi
appelé Addaï ou Judas le Zélote (xe siècle, monastère Sainte-Catherine du Sinaï).
Thaddeus
of Edessa. (Thaddeus of the Seventy Disciples). Encaustic painting. Fragment of
"Agar receivinh the Mandilion from Thaddeus", after 994. Saint
Catherine's Monastery, Mount Sinai Фаддей, апостол из 70-ти. Энкаустическая икона.
Верхняя
часть левой створки триптиха с утраченным средником. Часть композиции «Авгарь получает
Нерукотворный Образ от апостола Фаддея».
Saints Mari et Thaddée
Mar Addaï et Mar Mari,
évangélisateurs de la Mésopotamie et de la Perse... (Ier siècle)
Les origines de l'Église apostolique assyrienne de l'Orient remontent au siège de Séleucie-Ctésiphon, qui aurait été fondé par l'apôtre Saint Thomas, ainsi que par Saint Mari et Saint Thaddée (Addaï). (InfoCatho)
..."Le christianisme mésopotamien remonte au 1er siècle, par les missions des apôtres Barthélémy et Thomas vers l'Assyrie et Ninive où elle se développe après leur départ vers l'Arménie et l'Inde à partir de Ninive sous la direction de Addaï un des 72 et par les missions de l'apôtre Jude-Thaddée assisté d'Aggaï des 72 vers la Chaldée-Babylonie. C'est cependant leur disciple parthe Mari qui développe la mission autour de la capitale Séleucie-Ctésiphon et des principales villes non juives de la Mésopotamie du Sud. Ainsi 'les bienheureux Apôtres évangélisateurs de l'Orient Addaï et Mari' comme le rappelle la tradition liturgique organisent de concert le noyau de ce qui coordonnera la plupart des églises de l'Orient de l'empire romain..." (Irak: les drames des Assyro-Chaldéens d'hier à nos jours... Joseph Alichoran - 15 mars 2008)
Il y avait une colonie chrétienne à Edesse en Syrie au IIe siècle qui évangélisa la Mésopotamie et la Perse. Il est dit que saint Thomas, apôtre de l'Inde, envoya Addai qui convertit Aggai qui lui même convertit Mari, cette tradition est une combinaison des écrits d'Eusèbe et de la doctrine d'Addai...
Addai et Mari sont vénérés depuis les temps les plus reculés comme les évangélisateurs de la région du Tigre et de l'Euphrate et le sont encore par l'Église chaldéenne catholique en Irak et au Kurdistan.
"Lors de sa mission, l'Apôtre Thomas, avant de poursuivre son voyage vers l'Inde, laissa en Mésopotamie deux disciples, Mar Addaï et Mar Mari. De la prédication de l'Apôtre et de ses deux disciples surgit une Église qui, du Ier au IVe siècle, se diffusa grâce à l'apparition de communautés et de monastères sur tout le territoire oriental, dans la région qui s'étend de la Syrie actuelle jusqu'en Irak et en Iran. On n'a que de très rares données historiques concernant Mar Addaï. Originaire de Palestine, il serait, d'après la tradition, le premier des 72 disciples dont parle l'Évangile de Luc. Addaï fut le fondateur de l'Église d'Edesse entre le 1er et le IIe siècle, tandis que son disciple Mari aurait établi les fondements de l'Église en Perse. Les deux apôtres de l'Orient, Addaï et Mari, sont célébrés ensemble dans divers pays orientaux, à des dates qui varient selon les lieux." (5ème dimanche de la Résurrection - Commémoraison de Saint Addaï Apôtre - 6 mai 2012 - Mission chaldéenne en France)
...l'anaphore de
Addai et Mari est l'une des plus anciennes anaphores, remontant aux prémices de
l'Église... Elle est singulière du fait que, depuis des temps immémoriaux, elle
est utilisée sans récit de l'Institution... (Orientations pour l'admission à l'Eucharistie entre l'Église
chaldéenne et l'Église assyrienne d'Orient - Conseil pontifical pour l'Unité
des Chrétiens - 20 juillet 2001)
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/12655/Saints-Mari-et-Thaddee.html
Saint Mari (Mar Mari)
Apôtre de l’Orient
Le 9 août
Mar (Saint) Mari, Apôtre
de l’Orient (commémoration = pas de jeûne du vendredi aujourd'hui)
Si le nom Mar Mari (saint
Mari) a peu d'écho en Occident, La figure de Mar Mari a revêtu une grande
importance pour l'Église d'Orient. Aujourd'hui encore, la référence à cette
figure fondatrice marque la mémoire et les traditions des chrétiens d'Iraq,
d'Iran et diaspora - les chaldéens.
Lors de sa mission, l’Apôtre Thomas, avant de poursuivre son voyage vers
l’Inde, laissa en Mésopotamie deux disciples, Mar Addaï et Mar Mari.
Mar Mari est l'un des soixante-dix disciples du Christ, compagnon des apôtres
de Jérusalem. Il est envoyé vers la terre de Babel par Addaï, l'évangélisateur
d'Édesse ; son périple s'achève aux confins de la Perse, espace missionnaire de
l'apôtre Thomas.
Mar Mari et ses disciples implantent le christianisme dans les villes et
villages à l'Est de l'Euphrate, dans toute la vallée du fleuve Tigre. D'Édesse
et Nisibe, Mari se rend d'abord en Arzanène, puis dans le Beit Garmaï (région
de Kirkouk), puis descend vers Séleucie-Ctésiphon, et ensuite continue dans la
Mésène (Beth Maïsan), la Susiane (Beth Houzayé) et enfin le Fars (Beth
Parsayé). Souvent en conflit avec les adeptes de Zoroastre, il guérit,
exorcise, ressuscite des morts et prêche à tous (dans les cours royales, les
assemblées politiques …).
Mar Mari est mort en l’an 81, et son tombeau est situé à droite de l’autel de
la grande église de Dorqonie.
Son apostolat en Orient est comparé à celui de Pierre et de Paul en Occident.
Les Actes de Mar Mari (Apocryphes), rédigés en syriaque au VI-VIIe siècle en
Babylonie, rapportent en 34 séquences le périple missionnaire de Mari.
SOURCE : https://www.mission-chaldeenne.org/fr/saints/mar-mari-saint-mari
L’anaphore des apôtres
Addaï et Mari
Les apôtres Addaï et Mari
sont des personnages auxquels les traditions orientales reconnaissent deux des
soixante-douze disciples.
L'anaphore des apôtres
Addaï et Mari date du III° siècle, et elle est toujours en usage dans certaines
Eglises orientales, notamment l'Eglise assyrienne
d'Orient, qui n'est pas en pleine communion avec
l'Eglise catholique.
La plupart d'entre nous
sommes habitués à lier l'Eucharistie aux paroles du Christ « ceci
est mon corps... ceci est mon sang », comme cela est dit dans la
tradition apostolique qui
date environ de l'an 215 à Rome,
puis dans les prières eucharistiques romaines ou byzantines.
Pourtant, l'anaphore
d'Addaï et Mari ne comporte pas le récit de l'institution avec les paroles
du Christ,
cela ne doit pas nous étonner outre mesure, la Didachè (compilation qui date
sans doute de la fin du 1° siècle), aux chapitres 9 et 10, comporte aussi des
formules eucharistiques sans le récit de la cène.
Dans la Didachè ou dans
l'anaphore d' Addaï et Mari, la présence réelle du Christ est
liée à l'invocation de l'Esprit
Saint et au mémorial : l'Esprit
Saint nous rend présent à l'action que Dieu a faite un jour dans
l'histoire, car Dieu est au-delà de l'espace-temps.
Dans l'Anaphore d'Addaï
et Mari, le prêtre rend grâce au Seigneur (voici
un extrait) :
Car tu as revêtu notre
humanité pour nous vivifier par ta divinité ; tu as élevé notre humilité
et relevé notre chute ; tu as ressuscité notre mortalité...
L'assemblée répond :
"Amen".
Le diacre invite :
"priez en votre esprit".
Le prêtre fait alors
mémoire des pères justes et pieux, puis il prie pour les habitants de la terre,
et finalement sa prière devient un mémorial du Christ et
une invocation de l'Esprit
Saint (épiclèse):
Et nous aussi Seigneur,
tes serviteurs fragiles, faibles et infirmes, qui sommes rassemblés et nous
tenons devant toi en ce moment, nous avons reçu selon la tradition l'exemple
qui vient de toi, nous réjouissant, glorifiant, exaltant, commémorant et louant
et célébrant ce mystère grand et redoutable de la passion,
la mort et la résurrection de notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ.
Et vienne, Seigneur,
ton Esprit
Saint, et qu'il repose sur cette oblation de tes
serviteurs ; qu'il la bénisse et la sanctifie, afin qu'elle soit pour
nous, Seigneur,
le pardon des
fautes, la rémission des
péchés, en vue de la grande espérance de la résurrection d'entre les morts et
la vie nouvelle dans le royaume des
cieux, avec tous ceux qui ont été agréables à tes yeux.
Oecuménisme :
Le 26 octobre 2001,
le Conseil pontifical
pour la promotion de l'unité des chrétiens a publié les orientations pour
l'admission à l'Eucharistie entre l'Eglise chaldéenne
et l'Eglise assyrienne
d'Orient. L'accord prévoit que les fidèles de l'Eglise chaldéenne,
qui sont des catholiques, pourront, en cas de nécessité, participer à
l'eucharistie assyrienne et y communier.
Ce texte, d'apparence
banale, met fin à la définition des paroles de Jésus comme paroles de la
consécration.
L'introduction en
Occident de l'épiclèse (l'invocation de l'Esprit Saint) explique ce
rapprochement.
Marie :
Ainsi, la connaissance de
l'Eglise assyrienne
invite toute l'Eglise à
un recentrage sur le rôle de l'Esprit
Saint au moment de l'Eucharistie.
Ceci rappelle le mystère
fondateur de l'Incarnation,
l'œuvre du Saint Esprit dans le sein de Marie, quand le corps du Christ unit
l'humanité à la divinité.
F.Breynaert.
Cahiers Evangile n°140,
juin 2007, p. 63-74.
La légende d’Abgar et
Addaï
Cet apocryphe concerne
principalement un apôtre, Addaï, autre forme de Thaddée...
Doctrine de l'apôtre Addaï
Bien qu’il concerne principalement un apôtre, Addaï (autre forme de Thaddée),
cet apocryphe n’est pas dépourvu de rapport avec la famille de textes
précédente, en ce qui concerne les relations de Pilate et de Tibère : la «
Doctrine de l’apôtre Addaï » contient notamment une correspondance. Il s’agit
d’un écrit dont on peut situer la rédaction finale en syriaque à Édesse
(actuellement Urfa en Turquie), capitale de l’Osroène au Ve s. (EAC I, p.
1473-1525).
Il se présente aussi comme un document officiel, rédigé par un certain Laboubna
et placé dans les archives du monarque de ce royaume. La volonté de rattacher
les faits à l’histoire est très affirmée ; les événements sont datés avec
précision, situés sous Tibère et sous le roi Abgar (Abgar V), même si on peut
relever nombre d’invraisemblances, mêlées à des faits avérés.
Une délégation de plusieurs personnes, dont l’archiviste Hannan, se rend auprès
du gouverneur romain de Syrie-Palestine, puis à Jérusalem où elle est témoin de
ce que fait Jésus et des manigances des juifs contre lui. Informé de cela à son
retour, Abgar rédige une lettre à Jésus, lettre que Hannan porte à son
destinataire et qui invite celui-ci à le visiter à Édesse. Jésus répond
oralement qu’il ne peut honorer cette invitation car il remonte vers son Père,
mais qu’il enverra un de ses disciples qui guérira le roi de la maladie dont il
est affecté et convertira ses proches. De plus, sa ville sera bénie et aucun
ennemi ne pourra jamais s’en saisir. Hannan réalise aussi un portrait de Jésus.
Après l’ascension du Christ, Thomas envoie Addaï, l’un des soixante-dix, à
Abgar. Le roi se convertit et guérit de sa maladie. Addaï raconte tout ce qui
concerne le Christ, puis comment la femme du futur empereur Claude, convertie
par Pierre à Rome, est venue à Jérusalem afin de découvrir les lieux. Là, elle
fit rendre à Jacques la croix du Christ, que les juifs avaient accaparée, non
sans que celle-ci ait été identifiée miraculeusement. Elle fit construire un
édifice sur le lieu du Golgotha et du tombeau, afin qu’on y célèbre des
assemblées liturgiques. C’est après et à cause de leur attitude que Claude a
fait chasser les juifs de Rome. Sur l’ordre d’Abgar, Addaï prêche longuement à
l’ensemble des habitants d’Édesse qui se convertissent. L’Évangile se répand en
Mésopotamie, Addaï devient conseiller du roi. Abgar écrit à Tibère pour lui
rendre compte des faits et lui demander d’intervenir contre les juifs, ce que
lui-même n’est pas en mesure de faire. Tibère lui répond qu’il est déjà informé
par Pilate qu’il a démis de sa charge, après quoi il envoie tuer les princes
juifs, ce qu’apprenant, Abgar se réjouit beaucoup.
Avant sa mort, Addaï organise l’Église et prononce un discours. Il est enseveli
parmi les monarques d’Édesse où, selon sa volonté, on lui rend un culte. Mais
après la mort d’Abgar, l’un de ses fils, hostile à la foi chrétienne, fait
exécuter l’évêque successeur d’Addaï. Comme cet évêque n’a pas pu ordonner de
successeur, celui qui reprend la charge va se faire ordonner par Sérapion
d’Antioche, s’inscrivant ainsi dans une lignée qui remonte à Pierre lui-même et
au Seigneur.
L’Église d’Édesse
La « Doctrine d’Addaï » manifeste une claire volonté de faire remonter
l’origine de l’Église d’Édesse à Jésus lui-même, sans toutefois entrer en
contradiction avec les données évangéliques et avec la vraisemblance,
puisqu’elle ne va pas jusqu’à faire se déplacer le Seigneur dans cette ville.
Elle affirme aussi la légitimité de la dynastie royale, tout en assurant la
bénédiction et la protection divine de la ville elle-même. Elle fonde le culte
d’Addaï. En même temps, en dépit des erreurs évoquées, elle a le souci
d’insérer les faits dans leur contexte historique. C’est ainsi que ce royaume,
où la présence du christianisme est effectivement bien attestée dans la seconde
moitié du IIe s., devient chrétien dès le temps du Christ. Par ailleurs,
l’origine de la garde et de la vénération de la croix à Jérusalem est liée à
cette histoire.
Correspondance d’Abgar et de Jésus
La « Doctrine d’Addaï » intègre dans son récit des documents et des traditions
qui, sans remonter effectivement aux origines comme elle le prétend, existaient
avant sa rédaction. C’est ce qu’atteste Eusèbe de Césarée qui reproduit dans
son « Histoire ecclésiastique » (I, 13) la correspondance d’Abgar et de Jésus,
ainsi que le récit de la conversion d’Abgar, dont il affirme qu’ils figurent
dans les archives d’Édesse et qu’ils ont été traduits du syriaque en grec. Ici
Addaï est nommé Thaddée. La correspondance présente quelques variantes et la
lettre de Jésus ne contient pas la promesse de bénédiction et de protection de
la ville.
Plus tard, quand elle effectue son pèlerinage jusqu’à Édesse en 384, Égérie,
non seulement se recueille au martyrium de saint Thomas, mais se fait montrer
le palais d’Abgar et raconter par l’évêque comment la lettre du Seigneur servit
à repousser une attaque des Perses, conformément à la promesse du Christ dont
elle était porteuse (« Journal de voyage » 19, 2-19). Elle reçoit aussi une
copie de la correspondance d’Abgar et de Jésus, plus longue, précise-t-elle,
que celles dont elle disposait déjà dans sa patrie. Cette copie devait contenir
la promesse relative à la ville, absente de celle reproduite par Eusèbe.
L’écrit apocryphe « Correspondance d’Abgar et de Jésus », de même que le récit
de la conversion d’Abgar, existaient donc avant d’être repris dans l’apocryphe
« Doctrine d’Addaï ». La correspondance elle-même a circulé sous au moins deux
formes, la réponse orale de Jésus devenant une réponse écrite. Cette
correspondance fut traduite en grec et dans de nombreuses autres langues.
Actes de Thaddée
La légende d’Abgar et Addaï va connaître des développements et des
prolongements. Ainsi ceux qu’attestent les « Actes de Thaddée », texte grec du
VIIe ou du début du VIIIe s. (EAC II, p. 645-660). Ici, Thaddée, un des Douze
selon le texte, est originaire d’Édesse même. Annanias, courrier d’Abgar, est
envoyé porter la lettre à Jésus. Mais celui-ci répond en adressant au roi son
image qu’il a lui-même réalisée en se lavant la face et en s’essuyant d’un
linge où elle reste empreinte. C’est cette image qui guérit Abgar – qui l’adore
–, avant même que Thaddée n’arrive à Édesse. Après avoir fondé l’Église
d’Édesse, l’apôtre se rend à Beyrouth où il convertit aussi beaucoup de monde
et où il est enseveli par ses disciples. Ce document introduit dans la légende
d’Abgar le motif de l’image miraculeuse de Jésus, non faite de main d’homme,
dont la première attestation littéraire remonte à la fin du VIe s. L’image
elle-même sera transférée d’Édesse à Constantinople en 944.
Martyre de Thaddée arménien
Quant au « Martyre de Thaddée arménien », il rapporte que Thaddée reçut en lot
l’Arménie comme région de son activité (EAC II, p. 663-696). Il se rend à
Édesse où il guérit Abgar et convertit la ville (il n’est question ni de
correspondance avec Jésus, ni d’image du Seigneur). Tout de suite après, il va
en Arménie, sous le roi Sanatrouk. Il convertit nombre de personnes, y compris
Sandoukht, la fille du roi. Apprenant cela, le roi persécute les convertis, faisant
de nombreux martyrs. Le Seigneur apparaît à Thaddée ; il lui annonce son
martyre et fait que ses os seront bénis, et que les prières qui seront
prononcées à cet endroit seront exaucées. Après bien des conversions et des
martyres, Sandoukht, puis Thaddée, sont martyrisés à leur tour, leurs morts
respectives étant entourées de différents prodiges.
Le « Martyre de Thaddée » se présente comme l’œuvre de l’évêque Samuel, rédigée
pour être lue à l’occasion du mémorial de la mort de Thaddée et de sainte Sandoukht,
dont les dates sont indiquées. Ce texte affirme l’origine apostolique de
l’Église arménienne et sert à la commémoration liturgique de l’apôtre
fondateur, dont le culte est lui-même établi par le Christ. Il présente les
Arméniens comme un peuple élu et met en rapport l’origine de cette Église avec
la Syrie, fait qui correspond à la réalité historique.
Écrits arméniens et Actes de Mar Mari
Puisque la Tradition attribue aussi à Barthélémy l’évangélisation de l’Arménie,
des récits rapportent la venue de cet apôtre, l’un des Douze dans ces contrées.
Ils racontent comment celui-ci prit le relais de Thaddée, sous le même roi
Sanatrouk, et connut à son tour le martyre, accueilli dans une vision
spirituelle par son devancier.
La légende d’Abgar et d’Addaï a connu un autre prolongement dans les « Actes de
Mar Mari », un écrit syriaque du VIe-VIIe s. qui attribue à Mari
l’évangélisation de la Mésopotamie, jusqu’aux limites de l’activité apostolique
de Thomas, en particulier les Églises de Séleucie, de Ctésiphon et de Dorqonie
où repose son corps. Mari est présenté comme un disciple d’Addaï, envoyé en
Mésopotamie après que celui-ci ait évangélisé Édesse.
© Jean-Marc Prieur, SBEV / Éd. du Cerf, Cahier Évangile n° 148 (juin 2009),
"Les écrits apocryphes chrétiens", pages 46-48.
© Service Biblique
Catholique Évangile et Vie
SOURCE : https://sbev.bible/cahiers-evangile/la-legende-d%E2%80%99abgar-et-addai
Chers frères et sœurs
dans le Christ,
C’est avec émotion et
joie que je vous retrouve ici à Rome, représentants des diverses Eglises
chrétiennes en Irak, à un an de la visite,
pour moi inoubliable, dans votre pays. A travers vous, je désire étendre
mes salutations cordiales à tous les pasteurs et les fidèles de vos
communautés, faisant miennes les paroles de l’apôtre Paul : « A vous grâce et
paix de par Dieu » (Rm 1, 7).
Vos terres sont des
terres de débuts : débuts des antiques civilisations du Moyen Orient, débuts de
l’histoire du salut, débuts de l’histoire de la vocation d’Abraham. Ce sont
aussi les terres des débuts chrétiens : des premières missions, grâce à la
prédication de l’apôtre Thomas, d’Addaï et Mari et de leurs disciples, non
seulement en Mésopotamie, mais jusqu’au lointain Orient. Mais ce sont aussi des
terres d’exilés : pensons à l’exil des juifs à Ninive, et à celui de Babylone,
dont nous parlent les prophètes Jérémie, Ezéchiel et Daniel, qui soutinrent
l’espérance du peuple déraciné de sa terre. Mais de nombreux chrétiens de votre
région ont également été contraints à l’exil : les persécutions et les guerres,
qui se sont succédé jusqu’à nos jours, ont contraint un grand nombre d’entre
eux à émigrer, en apportant en occident la lumière de l’orient chrétien.
Chers frères, si je
rappelle ces épisodes de l’histoire biblique et chrétienne de votre pays, c’est
parce qu’ils ne sont pas étrangers à la situation actuelle. Vos
communautés appartiennent à l’histoire la plus antique de l’Irak et ont connu
des moments véritablement tragiques, mais ont offert des témoignages courageux
de fidélité à l’Evangile. Je rends grâce à Dieu pour cela et je vous exprime ma
reconnaissance. Je m’incline devant la souffrance et le martyre de ceux qui ont
conservé la foi, même au prix de leur vie. De même que le sang du Christ, versé
par amour, a apporté la réconciliation et a fait fleurir l’Eglise, ainsi, que
le sang de ces nombreux martyrs de notre temps, appartenant à diverses
traditions mais unis dans le même sacrifice, soit une semence d’unité parmi les
chrétiens et marque un nouveau printemps de la foi.
Vos Eglises, à
travers les relations fraternelles qui existent entre elles, ont établi de
multiples liens de collaboration dans le domaine de la pastorale, de la
formation et du service aux pauvres. Il existe aujourd’hui une communion
enracinée entre les chrétiens du pays. Je voudrais vous encourager à poursuivre
cette voie afin que, à travers des initiatives concrètes, un dialogue constant
et ce qui compte le plus, l’amour fraternel, s’accomplissent des pas vers la
pleine unité. Au milieu d’un peuple qui a subi tant de déchirures et de
discordes, les chrétiens resplendissent comme un signe prophétique d’unité dans
la diversité.
Très chers amis, je
désire affirmer avec vous une fois de plus qu’il n’est pas possible d’imaginer
l’Irak sans les chrétiens. Cette conviction ne se base pas seulement sur un
fondement religieux, mais sur des preuves sociales et culturelles. Sans
les chrétiens, l’Irak ne serait plus l’Irak, parce que les chrétiens, avec d’autres
croyants, contribuent fortement à l’identité spécifique du pays : un lieu dans
lequel la coexistence, la tolérance et l’acceptation réciproque ont fleuri dès
les premiers siècles ; un lieu qui a la vocation de montrer, au Moyen-Orient et
dans le monde, la coexistence pacifique des différences. C’est pourquoi il faut
faire tout le possible afin que les chrétiens continuent de sentir que l’Irak
est leur maison, et qu’ils sont citoyens de plein droit, appelés à apporter
leur contribution à la terre où ils ont toujours vécu (cf. Déclaration
commune du Pape François et du catholicos-patriarche Mar Gewargis III, 9
novembre 2018, n. 6). Pour cela, chers frères, pasteurs du Peuple de Dieu,
soyez toujours dévoués et attentifs à assister et réconforter le troupeau.
Soyez proches des fidèles confiés à vos soins, en témoignant avant tout par
l’exemple et la conduite de vie évangélique de la proximité et de la tendresse
de Jésus Bon Pasteur.
Vous, chrétiens d’Irak,
qui depuis les temps apostoliques, vivez côte à côte avec d’autres religions,
avez, en particulier aujourd’hui, une autre vocation incontournable : vous
engager afin que les religions soient au service de la fraternité. En effet, «
les différentes religions, par leur valorisation de chaque personne humaine
comme créature appelée à être fils et fille de Dieu, offrent une contribution
précieuse à la construction de la fraternité et pour la défense de la justice
dans la société » (Lett. enc. Fratelli
tutti, n. 271). Vous savez bien que le dialogue interreligieux n’est
pas une question de pure courtoisie. Non, cela va au-delà. C’est un chemin de
fraternité tendu vers la paix, un chemin souvent fatigant mais que, en
particulier en ces temps, Dieu demande et bénit. C’est un parcours qui a besoin
de patience et de compréhension. Mais il nous fait croître comme chrétiens,
parce qu’il exige l’ouverture du cœur et l’engagement à être, concrètement, des
artisans de paix.
Se mettre en dialogue est
également le meilleur antidote à l’extrémisme, qui est un danger pour les
fidèles de toute religion et une grave menace à la paix. Il faut toutefois
œuvrer pour déraciner les causes sous-jacentes des fondamentalismes, de ces
extrémismes qui s’enracinent plus facilement dans des contextes de pauvreté
matérielle, culturelle et éducative, et qui sont alimentés par des situations
d’injustice et de précarité, comme celles laissées par les guerres. Et
combien de guerres, combien de conflits, combien d’interférences néfastes ont
frappé votre pays ! Celui-ci a besoin d’un développement autonome et cohérent,
sans que, comme cela s’est malheureusement trop souvent produit, il soit mis à
mal par des intérêts extérieurs. Votre pays possède sa dignité, sa liberté et
ne peut être réduit à un champ de bataille.
Chers frères et sœurs,
sachez que vous êtes dans mon cœur et dans les prières de très nombreuses
personnes. Ne vous découragez pas : alors que de nombreuses personnes, à divers
niveaux, menacent la paix, nous ne détachons pas notre regard de Jésus, Prince
de la paix, et nous ne nous laissons pas d’invoquer son Esprit, artisan
d’unité. Saint Ephrem dans la lignée de saint Cyprien, compara l’unité de
l’Eglise à la « tunique sans couture et intacte du Christ » (cf. Hymnes à
la crucifixion VI, 6). Bien qu’il ait été brutalement dépouillé de ses
vêtements, sa tunique demeura intacte. Dans l’histoire également, l’Esprit de
Jésus conserve l’unité des -croyants, malgré nos divisions. Demandons à la Très
Sainte-Trinité, modèle de la véritable unité qui n’est pas uniformité, de
renforcer la communion entre nous et entre nos Eglises. Nous pourrons ainsi
répondre à l’appel pressant du Seigneur afin que ses disciples « soient un »
(Jn 17, 21) !
Je vous remercie de tout
cœur d’être venus et je vous propose à présent de réciter ensemble la prière du
Seigneur, chacun dans sa langue.
Copyright © Dicastero per la Comunicazione - Libreria
Editrice Vaticana
Monastère
de Saint-Thaddée (en arménien : Սուրբ
Թադէոս ; en persan : قرهکلیسا, Ghareh
keliseh), monastère arménien, province iranienne d'Azerbaïdjan occidental,
Vue
de l'autel de l'église.
Inside
Qara Kelisa (the Black Church), West Azerbaïdjan, Iran.
Also
known as
Addal
Addeus
Thaddeus
Profile
One of the 72 original
disciples sent out to spread the faith. Addai was sent by Saint Thomas
the Apostle to heal King Abgar
the Black, a correspondent of Jesus’ who had fallen ill.
Addai stayed to evangelize,
and converted Abgar
and his people including Saint Aggai and Saint Mari. Known as
one of the great apostles to Syria and Persia.
early 2nd century
Additional
Information
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
books
Book of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Dictionary of Saints, by John Delaney
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
other
sites in english
MLA
Citation
“Saint Addai“. CatholicSaints.Info.
22 July 2020. Web. 6 April 2023.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saint-addai/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-addai/
Profile
Converted by and spiritual student of Saint Addai. Missionary around Nisibis, Nineveh, and along the Euphrates. Won many converts, destroyed pagan temples, and built churches, monasteries and convents. Known as one of the great apostles to Syria and Persia.
2nd century near Seleucia-Ctesiphion
Additional Information
Saints of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
books
Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
Dictionary of Saints, by John Delaney
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
MLA Citation
“Saint Mari“. CatholicSaints.Info. 22 July 2020. Web. 6 April 2023. <https://catholicsaints.info/saint-mari/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-mari/
ADDAI AND MARI, SS.
According to Syrian
Christian legend, Addai (Thaddeus) and Mari were two of the Lord's 72
Disciples, and were sent by Christ to establish the Church in Syria and Persia.
Addai is named in the Acta Edessena, partly preserved by Eusebius (Hist.
eccl. 1.13), which recounts the legends of Abgar and part of the
"Doctrine of Addai." The Doctrine is a fourth-century apocryphal
account of the founding of Christianity in Edessa; it gives the story of the
finding of the holy cross by Protonica, describes the Emperor Tiberius as
punishing Jews for the crucifixion of Christ, and mentions Palut as one of the
earliest bishops of Edessa. The Edessan portrait of Christ attributed in the
account to Ananias, the messenger of King Abgar V, must be later than 394 for
it is not mentioned by Aetheria in her Peregrinatio ad loca sancta.
Mari is considered the
disciple of Addai and one of the 72. He is said to have founded the Persian
Church in Kōē near Seleucia-Ctesiphon, and the monastery at Dair Qunnā.
The Acta S. Maris was written probably in the ninth century. The
Nestorians trace the foundation of their liturgy to SS. Addai and Mari.
Feast: Aug 5.
Bibliography: Labubnā bar
Sennāk, The Doctrine of Addai, ed. and tr. G. Phillips (London 1876).
H. Rahner, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche 1:136. J. Assfalg, ibid. 7:24.
A. Baumstark, Geschichte der syrischen Literatur (Bonn 1922). B. Botte,
"L'Anaphore Chaldéene des Apôtres," Orientalia Christiana
periodica 15 (1949) 259–276.
[F. X. Murphy]
New Catholic Encyclopedia
SOURCE : https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/addai-and-mari-ss
Saints of the Day
– Addai and Mari
Article
1st century (?). There was a Christian colony in
Edessa, Syria, by the 2nd century, and from there it appears the faith spread
to Mesopotamia and Persia. However, a local ecclesiastical tradition in these
latter areas attributes their evangelization to Saint Thomas, who is said to
have been the Apostle of India, and who sent Saint Addai who converted Saint
Aggai who converted Saint Mari. This story (recorded in Walsh) is a combination
of the narratives of Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical history and the Syriac The
doctrine of Addai (written about 400):
“At the time when our Lord was still incarnate upon
earth there reigned in Osroene a king called Abgar the Black, who lived at
Edessa. He suffered from some incurable disease and, having heard of the
miracles of healing of our Lord, he sent to Him a letter by the hand of his
secretary, Hannan. In it he addresses Christ as ‘the good Physician’ and asks
Him to come to Edessa and heal him. Hannan found our Lord in the house of
Gamaliel, and He replied to Abgar that, ‘I am about to return to my Father, all
for which I was sent into the world being finished. But when I shall have
ascended to Him I will send one of my disciples, who shall heal you of your
sickness and bring you and yours to eternal life.'” According to Eusebius our
Lord wrote out this message Himself and it was accordingly greatly reverenced
throughout Christendom during the middle ages. The Syriac document states that
Hannan also brought back to Abgar a portrait of our Lord which he had painted
(later, ‘not-made-by-human-hands’). This is the beginning of the legend of the
Mandylion (possibly the Holy Shroud), which is said to have been kept at Edessa
until it was taken to Constantinople in the 8th century.
After the Ascension, Thomas sent Addai (Thaddeus), one
of the 72 commissioned by Jesus, to the Abgar’s court. He lodged with a Jew,
named Tobias, and when he was presented to the king, he healed him and taught
him the faith. Addai converted Abgar and multitudes of his people, among other
the royal jeweller, Aggai, whom he made bishop and his successor, and Palut,
whom Addai ordained priest on his deathbed.
Eventually, Aggai was martyred and Palut went to
Antioch to be consecrated by Saint Serapion, who had been consecrated by Pope
Saint Zephyrinus at Rome. This seems improbably because Serapion died in 199
and Zephyrinus became bishop that same year. Confusion also seems to surround
Abgar. There was another Abgar who was a Christian king, probably the first, of
Edessa from about 179 to 213. Therefore, it is most unlikely that Serapion
consecrated a convert of one of the 72. So it seems that Addai was a missionary
to Edessa, who like many other saintly men was attached to the apostles to
emphasize the connection to Jesus – and isn’t that what we are here for, to
grow as close as possible to our Savior?
Saint Mari’s existence is even questioned. His acta
claim that he was a disciple of Saint Addai, who sent him to Nisibis, where he
preached before renewing the work of Jonas the prophet at Nineveh. He then travelled
down the Tigris River until he began “to smell the smell of the Apostle
Thomas,” and died near Seleucia- Ctesiphon after consecrating its bishop Papa
bar Aggai, who was indeed the first katholikos of the East Syrian churches – at
the beginning of the 4th century. We are told that wherever Mari went, he made
numerous converts, destroyed temples, built churches, and founded monasteries –
on a scale rarely found in sober history.
Nevertheless, even with all these historical problems,
Addai and Mari have been venerated since the earliest times as the evangelists
of the Tigris-Euphrates region, and still are by their successors, the Catholic
Chaldeans and the Nestorians of Iraq and Kurdistan (Benedictines, Delaney,
Walsh).
MLA Citation
Katherine I Rabenstein. Saints
of the Day, 1998. CatholicSaints.Info.
22 July 2020. Web. 6 April 2023.
<https://catholicsaints.info/saints-of-the-day-addai-and-mari/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saints-of-the-day-addai-and-mari/
1st century (?). There was a Christian
colony in Edessa, Syria, by the 2nd century, and from there it appears the
faith spread to Mesopotamia and Persia. However, a local ecclesiastical
tradition in these latter areas attributes their evangelization to Saint
Thomas, who is said to have been the Apostle of India, and who sent Saint
Addai who converted Saint Aggai who converted Saint Mari. This story (recorded
in Walsh) is a combination of the narratives of Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical
history and the Syriac The
doctrine of Addai (written about 400):
"At the time when
our Lord was still incarnate upon earth there reigned in Osroene a king called
Abgar the Black, who lived at Edessa. He suffered from some incurable disease
and, having heard of the miracles of healing of our Lord, he sent to Him a
letter by the hand of his secretary, Hannan. In it he addresses Christ as 'the
good Physician' and asks Him to come to Edessa and heal him. Hannan found our
Lord in the house of Gamaliel,
and He replied to Abgar that, 'I am about to return to my Father, all for which
I was sent into the world being finished. But when I shall have ascended to Him
I will send one of my disciples, who shall heal you of your sickness and bring
you and yours to eternal life.'"
According to Eusebius our
Lord wrote out this message Himself and it was accordingly greatly reverenced
throughout Christendom during the middle ages. The Syriac document states that
Hannan also brought back to Abgar a portrait of our Lord which he had painted
(later, 'not-made-by-human-hands'). This is the beginning of the legend of the
Mandylion (possibly the Holy Shroud), which is said to have been kept at Edessa
until it was taken to Constantinople in the 8th century.
After the Ascension,
Thomas sent Addai (Thaddeus), one of the 72 commissioned by Jesus, to the
Abgar's court. He lodged with a Jew, named Tobias, and when he was presented to
the king, he healed him and taught him the faith. Addai converted Abgar and
multitudes of his people, among other the royal jeweller, Aggai, whom he made
bishop and his successor, and Palut, whom Addai ordained priest on his
deathbed.
Eventually, Aggai was
martyred and Palut went to Antioch to be consecrated by Saint
Serapion, who had been consecrated by Pope
Saint Zephyrinus at Rome. This seems improbably because Serapion died
in 199 and Zephyrinus became bishop that same year. Confusion also seems to
surround Abgar. There was another Abgar who was a Christian king, probably the
first, of Edessa from about 179 to 213. Therefore, it is most unlikely that
Serapion consecrated a convert of one of the 72. So it seems that Addai was a
missionary to Edessa, who like many other saintly men was attached to the
apostles to emphasize the connection to Jesus--and isn't that what we are here
for, to grow as close as possible to our Savior?
Saint Mari's existence is
even questioned. His acta claim that he was a disciple of Saint
Addai, who sent him to Nisibis, where he preached before renewing the work of
Jonas the prophet at Nineveh. He then travelled down the Tigris River until he
began "to smell the smell of the Apostle Thomas," and died near
Seleucia- Ctesiphon after consecrating its bishop Papa bar Aggai, who was
indeed the first katholikos of the East Syrian churches--at the beginning of
the 4th century. We are told that wherever Mari went, he made numerous
converts, destroyed temples, built churches, and founded monasteries--on a
scale rarely found in sober history.
Nevertheless, even with all these historical problems, Addai and Mari have been venerated since the earliest times as the evangelists of the Tigris-Euphrates region, and still are by their successors, the Catholic Chaldeans and the Nestorians of Iraq and Kurdistan (Benedictines, Delaney, Walsh).
SOURCE : https://web.archive.org/web/20070609044215/http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0805.htm#mari
Sts. Addai and Mari (1st
century)
There was a Christian colony in Edessa, Syria, by the 2nd century, and from there it appears the faith spread to Mesopotamia and Persia. However, a local ecclesiastical tradition in these latter areas attributes their evangelization to Saint Thomas, who is said to have been the Apostle of India, and who sent Saint Addai who converted Saint Aggai who converted Saint Mari. This story (recorded in Walsh) is a combination of the narratives of Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical history and the Syriac The doctrine of Addai (written about 400):
"At the time when our Lord was still incarnate upon earth there reigned in Osroene a king called Abgar the Black, who lived at Edessa. He suffered from some incurable disease and, having heard of the miracles of healing of our Lord, he sent to Him a letter by the hand of his secretary, Hannanyo. In it he addresses Christ as 'the good Physician' and asks Him to come to Edessa and heal him. Hannanyo found our Lord in the house of Gamaliel, and He replied to Abgar that, 'I am about to return to my Father, all for which I was sent into the world being finished. But when I shall have ascended to Him I will send one of my disciples, who shall heal you of your sickness and bring you and yours to eternal life.'"
According to Eusebius our
Lord wrote out this message Himself and it was accordingly greatly reverenced
throughout Christendom during the middle ages. The Syriac document states that
Hannanyo also brought back to Abgar a portrait of our Lord which he had painted
(later, 'not-made-by-human-hands'). This is the beginning of the legend of the
Mandylion, which is said to have been kept at Edessa until it was taken to
Constantinople in the 8th century.
After the Ascension of
the Lord, Thomas the apostle sent Addai his brother and one of the 72
commissioned by Jesus, to the Abgar's court. He lodged with a Jew, named
Tobias, and when he was presented to the king, he healed him and taught him the
faith. Addai converted Abgar and multitudes of his people, among other the
royal jeweler, Aggai, whom he made bishop and his successor, and Palut, whom
Addai ordained priest on his deathbed.
Eventually, Aggai was
martyred and Palut went to Antioch to be consecrated by Saint Serapion. So it seems that Addai was a missionary to
Edessa, who like many other saintly men was attached to the apostles to
emphasize the connection to Jesus--and isn't that what we are here for, to grow
as close as possible to our Savior?
Saint Mari's existence is
even questioned. His acts claim that he was a disciple of Saint Addai, who sent
him to Nisibis, where he preached before renewing the work of Jonas the prophet
at Nineveh. He then traveled down the Tigris River until he began "to
smell the smell of the Apostle Thomas," and died near Seleucia- Ctesiphon
after consecrating its bishop Papa bar Aggai. We are told that wherever Mari
went, he made numerous converts, destroyed temples, built churches, and founded
monasteries--on a scale rarely found in sober history.
Nevertheless, even with
all these historical problems, Addai and Mari have been venerated since the
earliest times as the evangelists of the Tigris-Euphrates region.
SOURCE : http://soc-wus.org/ourchurch/Sts.%20adai%20and%20mari.htm
New Catholic
Dictionary – Saint Addai
Article
(Addeus, or Thaddeus)
Mentioned in the Syriac document, “Doctrine of Addai,” as one of the 72
disciples of Christ, who preached at Edessa, converting King Abgar V and a
great number of his people. The “Doctrine” is only a legend. No doubt there
were Christians in
Edessa before the end of the 2nd century but its first Christian king as Abgar
IX (179-214). Feast,
various dates.
MLA
Citation
“Saint Addai”. New Catholic Dictionary. CatholicSaints.Info. 27
July 2012.
Web. 6 April 2023. <http://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-addai/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/new-catholic-dictionary-saint-addai/
Saint Addal
St. Addal
Feastday: August 5
Death: 180
A disciple of Christ sent by St. Thomas to
the court of King Abgar the Black, the second century Osroene ruler. Legendary
accounts claim Abgar wrote to Christ asking Jesus to cure him of an
intolerable and incurable illness. Abgar's court was in Edessa in Asia Minor (modern
Turkey). Addal cured Abgar and converted the king and his people to the faith.
One of these was Addai, who became Addal's successor. Addal is also supposed to
have sent another disciple, Man, to various sites along the Tigris River. It is
known that Addal did missionary work around Edessa toward
the end of the second century. Both Addal and Man have
been venerated in the Syrian and Persian churches since that era. Addal is
recorded as a martyr for
the faith.
SOURCE : https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1123
St. Addal
Feastday: August 5
Death: 180
A disciple of Christ sent
by St. Thomas to the court of King Abgar the Black, the second century Osroene
ruler. Legendary accounts claim Abgar wrote to Christ asking Jesus to cure him
of an intolerable and incurable illness. Abgar's court was in Edessa in Asia
Minor (modern Turkey). Addal cured Abgar and converted the king and his people
to the faith. One of these was Addai, who became Addal's successor. Addal is
also supposed to have sent another disciple, Man, to various sites along the
Tigris River. It is known that Addal did missionary work around Edessa toward
the end of the second century. Both Addal and Man have been venerated in the
Syrian and Persian churches since that era. Addal is recorded as a martyr for
the faith.
Christian saint and one
of the seventy disciples of Jesus "Addai" redirects here. For other
uses, see Addai (given name) and Addai (surname). "Mar Addai"
redirects here. For the diocese, see Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of Mar Addai of
Toronto.
According to Eastern
Christian tradition, Thaddeus of Edessa (Syriac: ܡܪܝ ܐܕܝ, Mar
Addai or Mor Aday, sometimes Latinized Addeus) was one of the
seventy disciples of Jesus. He is possibly identical with Thaddaeus, one of the
Twelve Apostles.
Life
Abgar receiving the
Mandylion from Thaddeus (encaustic icon, Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount
Sinai).
Based on various Eastern
Christian traditions, Thaddaeus was a Jew born in Edessa, at the time a Syrian
city, (now in Turkey). He came to Jerusalem for a festival, and heard the
preachings of John the Baptist (St. John the Forerunner). After being baptized
by John the Baptist in the Jordan River, he remained in Palestine. He later met
and became a follower of Jesus. He was chosen to be one of the seventy
disciples, whom Jesus sent in pairs to preach in the cities and places.
After Pentecost and the
ascension of Jesus, Thaddeus started preaching the gospel in Mesopotamia, Syria
and Persia. Thaddaeus ordained priests in Edessa, converted many to
Christianity and built up the church there. He also went to Beirut to preach,
and founded a church there.
The Syriac liturgy
referred to as the Liturgy of Addai and Mari, originated around the year 200 AD
and is used by the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic
Church, and Chaldean Syrian Church and Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in India
founded by Thomas the Apostle.
His feast is celebrated
on August 5 in the Christian calendar.
SOURCE : https://santosepulcro.co.il/en/saints/st-addal/
POPE FRANCIS
Monday, 26 February 2022
Dear brothers in Christ,
It is with emotion and
joy that I meet you, representatives of the different Christian Churches in
Iraq, here in Rome again, one year after my unforgettable
visit to your country. Through you, I wish to extend my cordial greetings
to all the pastors and faithful of your communities, borrowing the words of the
Apostle Paul: “Grace to you and peace from God” (Rm 1:7).
Your lands are lands
of beginnings : beginnings of the ancient civilizations of the Middle
East, beginnings of the history of salvation, beginnings of the history of
Abraham’s vocation. They are also lands of Christian beginnings: of the first
missions, thanks to the preaching of the Apostle Thomas, of Addai and Mari and
their disciples, not only in Mesopotamia, but as far as the Far East. But they
are also lands of exiles: think of the exile of the Jews at Nineveh, and
that of Babylon, of which we are told by the prophets Jeremiah, Ezekiel and
Daniel, who sustained the hope of the people uprooted from their land. But many
Christians in your region have also been forced into exile: the persecutions
and wars that have followed one another up to the present day have forced many
of them to emigrate, bringing the light of the Christian East to the West.
Dear Brothers, if I
recall these episodes from the biblical and Christian history of your country,
it is because they are not foreign to the present situation. Your communities
belong to the most ancient history of Iraq and they have known truly tragic
moments, but they have offered courageous witnesses of fidelity to the Gospel.
For this I thank God and I express my gratitude to you. I bow before the
suffering and martyrdom of those who have preserved the faith, even at the expense
of their lives. Just as the blood of Christ, shed out of love, brought
reconciliation and made the Church flourish, may the blood of these many
martyrs of our time, belonging to different traditions but united in the same
sacrifice, be a seed of unity among Christians and a sign of a new springtime
of faith.
Your Churches, through
the fraternal relations which exist between them, have established many links
of collaboration in the field of pastoral care, formation and service to the
poorest. Today there is a deep-rooted communion among the country’s Christians.
I would like to encourage you to continue along this path, so that, through
concrete initiatives, constant dialogue and, what is most important, fraternal
love, progress may be made towards full unity. In the midst of a people that
has suffered so much division and discord, may Christians shine as a prophetic
sign of unity in diversity.
Dear friends, with you I
wish to state once again that it is not possible to imagine Iraq without
Christians. This conviction is based not only on religious foundations, but
also on social and cultural evidence. Iraq without Christians would no longer
be Iraq, because Christians, along with other believers, contribute strongly to
the country’s specific identity as a place where co-existence, tolerance and
mutual acceptance have flourished ever since the first centuries; a place that
has the vocation of demonstrating, in the Middle East and throughout the
world, peaceful coexistence in diversity. Therefore, no stone should be
left unturned in ensuring that Christians continue to feel that Iraq is their
home, and that they are citizens in their own right called to give
their contribution to the land where they have always lived (cf. Common
Statement of Pope Francis and the Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Gewargis III, 9
November 2018, no. 6). For this reason, dear Brothers, Pastors of the People of
God, always be devoted and diligent in caring for and comforting your flock. Be
close to the faithful entrusted to your care, bearing witness first and
foremost by example and with the conduct of evangelical life to the closeness
and tenderness of Jesus the Good Shepherd.
You, Christians of Iraq,
who from apostolic times have lived side by side with other religions, have,
today especially, another indispensable vocation: to make efforts to ensure
that religions may be at the service of fraternity. In fact, “the different religions,
based on their respect for each human person as a creature called to be a child
of God, contribute significantly to building fraternity and defending justice
in society” (Encyclical Letter Fratelli
Tutti, 271). You are well aware that interreligious dialogue is not a
matter of mere courtesy. No, it goes beyond that. It is not a matter of
negotiation or diplomacy. No, it goes beyond that. It is a path of brotherhood
towards peace, a path that is often arduous but which, especially in these
times, God asks for and blesses. It is a path that takes patience and
understanding. But it makes us grow as Christians, because it requires openness
of heart and the commitment to be, in a practical sense, peacemakers.
To engage in dialogue is
also the best antidote to extremism, which is a danger for the followers of any
religion and a grave threat to peace. However, it takes work to eradicate the
root causes of fundamentalism, of these forms of extremism that take root more
easily in contexts of material, cultural and educational poverty, and are
fuelled by situations of injustice and vulnerability, such as those left behind
by wars. And how many wars, how many conflicts, how many harmful interferences
have afflicted your country! It is in need of autonomous and cohesive
development, without being damaged by external interests, as has sadly happened
all too often. Your country has its own dignity, its own freedom, and cannot be
reduced to a battlefield.
Dear brothers in Christ,
know that you are in my heart and in the prayers of very many people. Do not be
discouraged: while so many, at various levels, threaten peace, let us not avert
our eyes from Jesus, Prince of Peace, and let us not tire of invoking his
Spirit, maker of unity. Saint Ephraim, following in the footsteps of Saint
Cyprian, compared the unity of the Church to Christ’s “incorruptible and
undivided tunic” (cf. Hymns on the Crucifixion, VI, 6). Although he was
brutally stripped of his garments, his tunic remained intact. In history too,
the Spirit of Jesus preserves the unity of believers, despite our divisions.
Let us ask the Most Holy Trinity, the model of true unity which is not
uniformity, to strengthen communion among us and among our Churches. In this
way we will be able to respond to the Lord’s heartfelt desire that his
disciples be “one” (Jn 17:21)!
I thank you most
sincerely for coming and I now propose that we pray the Lord’s Prayer together,
each in his own language.
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
MĀR MĀRI
MĀRMĀRI, the Christian
apostle, considered as the first missionary in the Arsacid Empire.
The Acts of
this saint were written (and are known only) in Syriac after the end of the
Sasanian period (cf. Abbeloos, 1885, pp. 42-138; Bedjan, 1890, pp. 45-94;
Raabe, 1893), i.e., in about the 8th century in Babylonia. The oldest
manuscript was found in a monastery in Alqosh, north of the Mosul plain
(Abbeloos, 1883, pp. 143-44). The author of the Acts of Mār Māri was
probably a monk from the monastery of Dorqonie, near Seleucia-Ctesiphon, where
the relics were kept (Jullien and Jullien, 2003b, pp. 16-17). The text relates
in 34 sequences the history of the Christianization of the Tigris valley and as
far east as Fārs. Mār Māri, considered as one of the Seventy, the disciples of
Christ referred to in the New Testament (Lk 10:1), is sent to the Babylonian
lands by Addaï, the apostle of Edessa - and the first five paragraphs are
devoted to the Doctrina Addaï (Jullien and Jullien, 2003a, pp. 13-17;
2003b, pp. 18-22; 2003c, pp. 41-46; cf. Desreumaux, 1997). The narrative
presents precise and reliable information, e.g., Iranian background (Chaumont,
1988, pp. 16-29; Jullien and Jullien, 2003c, pp. 5-24), gerousia assembly
in Hellenistic Seleucia (Cumont, 1893, pp. 373-78). From Edessa and Nisibis,
Māri travels through Arzanene, the region of the Zabs, Bēth-Garmay, and Bēth-Aramāyē,
and preaches in the Royal Towns. His mission ends in Mesene, Bēth-Huzāyē, and
Persia, at the boundaries of the missionary area of the apostle Thomas.
Through the Acts, we
can infer a re-reading of the Christian origins of the Syro-oriental Church. At
this time, Christians were confronted with Manichaean and Marcionite
proselytism (Jullien and Jullien, 2003c, pp. 72-102; cf. Fiey, 1970, pp.
183-88). Keys to interpretation enable us to discover the author’s deep
intentions; e.g., Māri appears as the antithesis of Māni. This account also
gives new details about the Dosthean baptist movement, established near Kaškar,
testified to essentially by Theodorus Bar Konaï (Hespel and Draguet, 1981, p.
345; Idem, 1982, p. 257; Jullien and Jullien, 2002, pp. 51-54). On the other
hand, this text justifies the claims of the Seleucia-Ctesiphon episcopal see to
its sovereignty and independence.
The Acts were probably used for liturgical purposes as they end with a commemorative celebration at the apostle’s shrine. The Anaphora of Addaï and Māri (Botte, 1965, pp. 89-106; Macomber, 1966, pp. 335-71; Gelston, 1992, pp. 29-41; Jammo, 1995, pp. 106-107) is explicitly mentioned under this name in the 11th century by Ebn al-Ṭayyeb (Hoenerbach and Spies, 1957, p. 93). In the Syro-oriental tradition, the apostle is generally presented at the head of the patriarchal lists of Seleucia-Ctesiphon (Nau, 1912, pp. 232-33; Elisha of Damascus, see Assemani, 1728, p. XVII; Māri ebn Sulaymān, see Gismondi, 1899, p. 3; ‘Awdišō’, see Mai, 1838, p. 154; Budge, The Book of the Bee, 1886, p. 103; Bar Hebraeus, see Abbeloos and Lamy, 1872, pp. 15-20; ‘Amr, see Gismondi, 1897, p. 1). At present, Mār Māri is still the historical and liturgical reference for the Christian communities of Iraq, Iran, and their diaspora, the Assyro-Chaldaeans.
Bibliography:
J.-B. Abbeloos, “Deux
manuscrits chaldéens inexplorés,” Le Muséon 2/1, 1883, pp. 143-44.
Idem, “Acta Sancti Maris
Assyriae Babyloniae ac Persidis Seculo I apostoli aramaice et latine,” Analecta
Bollandiana 4, 1885, pp. 42-138.
Idem and T. J.
Lamy, GregoriiBarhebraei Chronicon ecclesiasticum I, Louvain, 1872.
J. S. Assemani, Bibliotheca
Orientalis III/2, Rome, 1728.
J. Assfalg, Lexikon
für Theologie und Kirche VII, 1962, p. 24, s.v. "Māri”;
ibid. VI, new ed., 1997, p. 1318.
P. Bedjan, Acta
Martyrum et Sanctorum syriace I, Paris, 1890, pp. 45-94.
B. Botte, “Problèmes de
l’Anaphore syrienne des apôtres Addaï et Mari,” L’Orient Syrien 10/1,
1965, pp. 89-106.
E. A. W. Budge, The
Book of the Bee, Oxford, 1886.
M.-L. Chaumont, La
christianisation de l’empire iranien, CSCO 499, Subsidia 80, Louvain, 1988.
F. Cumont, “Notes sur un
passage des Actes de S. Mari,” Revue de l’instruction publique en Belgique 36,
1893, pp. 373-78.
A. Desreumaux, Histoire
du roi Abgar et de Jésus, Apocryphes 3, Turnhout, 1993.
Idem, “Doctrine de
l’apôtre Addaï,” in F. Bovon and P. Geoltrain, eds., Ecrits apocryphes
chrétiens, Paris, 1997, pp. 1473-1525.
J. M. Fiey, “Les
marcionites dans les textes historiques de l’Eglise de Perse,” Le Muséon 83,
1970, pp. 183-88.
A. Gelston, The
Eucharistic Prayer of Addaï and Mari, Oxford, 1992.
H. Gismondi, Maris,
Amri et Slibae De patriarchis nestorianorum commentaria, Pars altera,
Rome, 1897; ibid., Pars prior, Rome, 1899.
R. Hespel and R.
Draguet, Théodore Bar Koni. Livre des Scolies. Mimrè I-V, CSCO 431,
Script. Syr. 187, Louvain, 1981; ibid., CSCO 432, Script. Syr. 188, Louvain,
1982.
W. Hoenerbach and O.
Spies, Ibn aṭ-Ṭaiyib. Fiqh an- naṣrānīya, CSCO 168, Script. Ar. 19, Louvain,
1957.
S. Jammo, “Le Quddasha
des apôtres Addaï et Mari. Un lien avec l’époque apostolique,” Istina 40,
1995, pp. 106-20.
C. Jullien and F.
Jullien, “Une source inattendue sur le baptisme babylonien: les Actes de
Mār Māri,” Stud. Ir. 31/1, 2002, pp. 47-60.
Idem, Les Actes de
Mār Māri, CSCO 602, Script. Syr. 234, Louvain, 2003a; ibid., CSCO 603, Script.
Syr. 235, Louvain, 2003b.
Idem, Les Actes de
Mār Māri. Aux origines de l’Eglise de Perse, CSCO 604, Subsidia 114, Louvain,
2003c.
J. Kelaita, The
Liturgy of the Church of the East, Mosul, 1928.
W. F. Macomber, “The
Oldest Known Text of the Anaphora of the Apostles Addaï and Mari,” OCP 32,
1966, pp. 335-71.
Idem, “The Ancient Form
of the Anaphora of the Apostles,” in N. Garsoïan, T. Mathews and R.
Thomson, eds., East of Byzantium: Syria and Armenia in the Formative
Period, Washington DC, 1982, pp. 73-88.
A. Mai, Scriptorum
veterum nova collectio X, Rome, 1838.
F. Nau, La
Didascalie des douze apôtres, Paris, 1912.
R. Raabe, Die
Geschichte des Dominus Mâri, Leipzig, 1893.
V. Van Vossel, “Mari en
Kokhe,” Het christelijk Oesten 50, 1998, pp. 185-210.
(FLORENCE JULLIEN)
February 14, 2005
(Florence Jullien)
Originally Published:
July 20, 2005
Last Updated: July 20,
2005
SOURCE : https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/mar-mari
Liturgy of Addeus and
Maris
This is an Oriental
liturgy, sometimes assigned to the Syrian group because it is written in the
Syriac tongue; sometimes to the Persian group because it was used in
Mesopotamia and Persia.
It is known as the normal liturgy of the Nestorians, but probably
it had been in use before the rise of the Nestorian heresy. According to
tradition, it was composed by Addeus and Maris, who evangelized Edessa,
Seleucia-Ctesiphon and the surrounding country. This tradition is based on the
narrative contained in the " Doctrine of
Addai", a work generally ascribed to the second half of the third
century. The account states that King Abgar the Black, having heard of the
wonderful works of Christ,
besought Our Lord to
come and cure him of a serious malady, but that he obtained only the promise
that Our Lord would
send one of His disciples, a promise which was fulfilled after the ascension, when Thaddeus
(in Syriac, Addai), one of the seventy-two disciples, was sent by St. Thomas to Edessa to cure the
King. Addeus and his disciple Maris are said to have converted the King
and people of Edessa,
to have organized the Christian
Church there, and to have composed the liturgy which bears their
names. There seem to be no documents earlier than the " Doctrine of
Addai" to confirm this tradition. Although good historical
evidence concerning the foundation of the Church of Edessa is
wanting, still it is quite certain that Christianity was
introduced there at a very early date, since towards the
end of the second century the king was a Christian, and a bishop (Palouth) of
the see was consecrated by
Serapion of Antioch (190-203). It was only natural that the Edessans should
regard Addeus and Maris as the authors of their liturgy, since they already
regarded these men as the founders of their Church. The Nestorians attribute
the final redaction of the text of the Liturgy of Addeus and Maris to their
patriarch Jesuyab III who lived about the beginning of the seventh century.
After the condemnation of Nestorianism, the Nestorians retreated
into the Persian kingdom, and penetrated even into India and China, founding churches
and introducing their liturgy wherever the Syriac language was used. At the
present time this liturgy is used chiefly by the Nestorians, who reside
for the most part in Kurdistan. It is also used by the Chaldean Uniats of the
same region, but their liturgy has, of course, been purged of all traces
of Nestorian tenets.
Finally, it is in use among the Chaldean Uniats of Malabar, but it was very
much altered by the Synod of Diamper held in 1599.
Exposition of parts
The liturgy may be
divided conveniently into two parts: the Mass of the catechumens, extending
as far as the offertory, when the catechumens were
dismissed, and the Mass of the faithful, embracing all
from the offertory to the end. Or again, it may be divided into the preparation
for the sacrifice extending as far as the preface, and the anaphora or formula
for consecration corresponding
to the Roman canon. "The order of the Liturgy of the Apostles, composed by
Mar Addai and Mar Mari, the blessed Apostles" begins with the sign of the cross, after
which the verse "Glory
to God in the highest" etc. (Luke 2:14),
the Lord's Prayer,
and a prayer for
the priest on Sundays and feasts
of Our Lord, or
a doxology of
praise to the Trinity on saints' days and
ferials are recited. Several psalms are then said, together with the anthem of
the sanctuary (variable for Sundays and feasts
or Saints' days) and a prayer of praise
and adoration.
The deacon then invites
the people "to lift up their voices and glorify the living God", and
they respond by reciting the Trisagion. Then the priest says a prayer and blesses the reader
of the lessons. Ordinarily two lessons from the Old Testament are
read, but during Eastertide a lesson from the Acts of the Apostles is
substituted for the second Old Testament lesson.
After an anthem and a prayer the deacon reads the
third lesson (called the Apostle), which is taken from one of the epistles
of St. Paul.
The priest prepares
for the Gospel by reciting the appropriate prayers and
blessing the incense,
and after the alleluia is
sung he reads the Gospel. This is followed by its proper anthem, the
diaconal litany,
and a short prayer recited
by the priest,
after which the deacons invite
the people "to bow their heads for the imposition of hands and
receive the blessing" which the priest invokes upon
them. The Mass of the catechumens is
thus concluded, so the deacons admonish
those who have not received baptism to depart,
and the Mass of the faithful begins. The priest offers
the bread and wine, reciting the
prescribed prayers,
covers the chalice and paten with a large
veil, goes down from the altar and begins the anthem of the mysteries. The
recital of the Creed at this point is a late addition to the liturgy.
Having entered within the
arch, the priest makes
the prescribed inclinations to the altar, washes his hands and begins the
preparatory prayers for
the anaphora. He
recites an invitation to prayer corresponding
to the Roman Orate fratres, and then beseeches the Lord not to regard
his sins nor
those of the people, but in all mercy to account him worthy to celebrate the
mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ and worthily praise and worship the
Lord, after which he crosses himself and the people answer "Amen." At
this point on Sundays and
feasts of Our Lord the deacon seems to
have read the diptychs,
called by the Nestorians the
"Book of the Living and the Dead." The kiss of peace is
then given, and a prayer recited
for all classes of persons in
the church. The anaphora proper
begins with the preface. The deacon now invites
the people to pray,
and the priest recites
a secret prayer,
lifts the veil from the offerings, blesses the incense, and prays that
"the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the
fellowship of the Holy
Ghost be with us all now and ever world without end", and signs
the mysteries, and the people answer "Amen." The priest then begins
the preface with the words: "Lift up your minds." The preface
is followed by the sanctus and the anamnesis (commemoration of Christ). In present
usage the words of institution are here inserted, although they seem to have
little connection with the context. He pronounces a short doxology, and signs the
mysteries, and the people answer "Amen." After the deacon says "Pray in your minds. Peace be with
us," the priest recites
quietly the great intercession or memento. The epiclesis, or invocation of
the Holy Ghosts follows as a sort of continuation of the intercession.
The priest then
says a prayer for
peace and one of thanksgiving, and incenses himself
and the oblations, reciting the appropriate prayers in the
meantime. While the deacon recites
a hymn referring
to the Eucharist, the priest,
taking the Host in both hands, says a prayer alluding to
the life-giving power of this bread which came down from Heaven (in the
Chaldean Uniat liturgies the words
of institution are placed after the first part of this prayer), breaks the Host
into two parts, one of which he places on the paten, while with the
other he signs the chalice,
and after dipping it into the chalice signs the
other half of the Host, reciting meanwhile the proper prayers for the
consignation. Joining the parts together he says a prayer referring to
the ceremonies just completed, cleaves with his thumb the Host where it was
dipped in the chalice,
signs his forehead with his thumb, and recites a prayer of praise
to Christ and
to the Trinity. After kissing the
altar, he invokes a blessing upon all "The grace of Our Lord" etc., as
quoted above.
While the priest breaks the
Host, the deacon invites
the people to consider the meaning of these holy mysteries and to have the
proper dispositions for receiving them; to forgive the transgressions of
others, and then to beseech the Lord to forgive their own offences. The priest, continuing
this idea,
introduces the Lord's
Prayer (which all recite) and says a prayer that expands
the last two petitions. After a short doxology the priest gives the
Chalice to the deacon, blesses the people,
and then both distribute Communion. A special anthem is said during the
distribution. The deacon then
invites all who have received Communion to give thanks, and the priest recites
aloud a prayer of
thanksgiving and one of petition. Mass is concluded with a blessing pronounced
by the priest over
the people. The chief characteristic in this, as in the other Nestorian liturgies, is the
position of the general intercession or memento. It occurs, not after
the epiclesis as in the Syrian liturgies, but
immediately before it. It seems to be a continuation of the anamnesis. Of
minor differences, it might be noted that the Nestorians use one
large veil to cover paten and chalice; they use incense at the
preface; and they have two fractions of the Host, one symbolical recalling the
passion of Christ,
the other necessary for
the distribution of Communion.
Sources
Liturgia SS. Apostolorum
Addei et Maris in BRIGHTMAN, Liturgies Eastern and Western (Oxford, 1896), I;
BADGER, The Nestorians and their Rituals (London, 1852); ERMONI in Dict.
d'archéol. caret. (Paris, 1903), COI. 519, RENAUDOT, Liturgiarum Orientalium
Collectio (Frankfort, 1847), II; ASSEMANI, Bibliotheca Orientalis (Rome, 1728),
III; NEALE, History of the Holy Eastern Church (London, 1858), I.
Goggin,
John. "Liturgy of Addeus and Maris." The Catholic
Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1907. 5 Apr.
2023 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01136d.htm>.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01136d.htm
Doctrine of Addai
(Latin Doctrina
Addoei).
A Syriac document which
relates the legend of the conversion of Edessa. It begins with
the story of the letter of King Abgar to Christ and the
reply of the latter, with some variations from the account drawn by Eusebius (Church History I.13)
from the Edessene archives. The reply was not a letter, as Eusebius says, but
a verbal message, together with a portrait of Christ (not in Eusebius). After
the Ascension Judas
Thomas sent Addai, one of the seventy-two disciples, to Abgar. Addai (Thaddeus
in Eusebius)
healed the king of his sickness, and preached before him, relating the
discovery of the True
Cross by Protonice, wife of the Emperor Claudius; this, with all that
follows, is later than Eusebius, being founded
on the story of St. Helena. Addai then preaches to the people, who are
converted. The heathen altars
are thrown down, and the people are baptized. King Abgar
induces the Emperor
Tiberius to chastise the Jews for having
crucified the Saviour.
Churches are built by Addai, and he makes deacons and priests. On his
death-bed he appoints Aggai his successor, ordains the deacon Palut priest, and gives his
last admonitions. He was buried in the
sepulchre of the king's ancestors. Many years after his death, Aggai, who ordained holy priests for the
country, was martyred as
he taught in the church by a rebellious son of Abgar. His successor, Palut,
was obliged to
go to Antioch in order to get episcopal consecration, which he
received from Serapion, Bishop of Antioch, who
"himself also received the hand from Zephyrinus, Bishop of the city of Rome,
from the succession of the hand of the priesthood of Simon
Cephas, which he received from Our Lord, who was
there Bishop of Rome twenty-five
years, in the days of the Cæsar, who reigned there thirteen years"
(evidently Nero is
meant, who reigned from October, 54, to June, 68). The anxiety of the writer to
connect the Edessene succession with Rome is
interesting; its derivation from the Petrine See of Antioch does not suffice
him.
The doctrine of the
book is not unorthodox, though some expressions might be understood in an Apollinarian sense.
The mention of Holy Scripture must
be noticed: "They read in the Old Testament and
the New, and the Prophets, and the Acts of the Apostles,
every day they meditated on them"; "a large number of people
assembled day by day and came to the prayer of the
service, and to [the reading] of the Old and New Testament, of the
Diatessaron"; "But the Law and the Prophets and the Gospel, which ye
read every day before the people, and the Epistles of Paul, which Simon Peter
sent us from the city of Rome, and the Acts of
the twelve Apostles, which John, the son of Zebedee, sent us from Ephesus,
these books read ye in the Churches of Christ, and with these
read not any others, as there is not any other in which the truth that ye hold
is written, except these books, which retain you in the faith to which ye
have been called." The canon therefore excludes the Apocalypse and all
the Catholic
Epistles; in this it agrees with Aphraates, Theodore of Mopsuestia,
the Syriac stichometrical list of Cod. Sin. 10 (in Mrs. Lewis's Catalogue of
Sinai Manuscripts), and probably with Ephrem. The Syriac Church,
indeed, never accepted the Apocalypse and the four shorter Catholic Epistles; the
three longer were admitted at all events later than 400, at an uncertain date.
The Diatessaron was employed by the Syriac Church from its composition by Tatian c. 160 until
it was proscribed by the famous Bishop of Edessa, Rabbula (d.
435).
We seem to find firm
historical ground in the statement that Palut was consecrated bishop by Serapion,
who was Bishop of Antioch c. 191-212
and really a contemporary of Pope Zephyrinus. But
this shows that Addai, who made Palut a priest, was not one of
the seventy-two Disciples of Christ. The first Christian King
of Edessa was
in reality Abgar IX (179-214) who was converted soon after 201, and this date
tallies with that of Palut. It is possible that Palut was the first Bishop of Edessa; but it is surely
more likely that there was already a Church and a bishop under
the pagan kings
in so important a city. An early date for the Abgar
legend is sometimes based upon the promise in the message of Christ: "Thy
city shall be blessed,
and no enemy shall again become master of it forever." It is argued that
this could not have been invented after the sacking of the city under Trajan in 116; but
the writer might have passed over this event after a century and a half. The
confusion of dates can hardly have arisen before the latter half of the third
century, and the Edessene Acts used by Eusebius were
probably not very old when he wrote. The " Doctrine of Addai" is yet
later. The Finding of the Cross must be dated some time later than St. Helena;
the miraculous picture
of Christ was not seen by the Abbess Etheria when
she visited Edessa c.
385. Hence the date of
the work may be c. 400.
The " Doctrine of
Addai" was first published in Syriac in a fragmentary form by Cureton,
"Ancient Syriac documents" (London, 1864, a posthumous work), with a
translation; another translation in "Ante-Nicene Chr. Libr.", XX. The
full Syriac text was published by Phillips, with a translation (London, 1876).
An Armenian version
and (separately) a French translation,
by the Mechitarist Father
Leo Alishan, "Laboubnia, Lettre d'Abgar" (Venice, 1868).
Sources
The literature of the
subject (including the Abgar legend, the Finding of the Cross, the Greek legend
in the Acta Thaddæi, and the origins of the Church of Edessa) is very
large. The following works may be specially mentioned: LIPSIUS, Die
edessenische Abgarsage kritisch untersucht (Brunswick, 1880);
TIXERONT, Les origines de l'Église d'Edesse et la légende
d'Abgar (Paris, 1888); MARTIN, Les origines de l'Église d'Edesse et
des glises syriennes (extr. from Revue des sc. eccl., Paris. 1889);
BURKITT, Early Eastern Christianity (London, 1904); NESTLE, De
sancta cruce (Berlin, 1889); on the picture of Christ, VON DOBSCH
TZ, Christusbilder (Leipzig, 1899). Further references will be found
in BARDENHEWER, Gesch. der altkirchl. Litt., I, 458;
CHEVALIER, Répertoire, s.v. Abgar.
Chapman,
John. "Doctrine of Addai." The Catholic
Encyclopedia. Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1909. 5 Apr.
2023 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05088a.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Douglas J. Potter. Dedicated to
the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. May 1, 1909. Remy Lafort,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05088a.htm
THE DOCTRINE OF ADDAI,1 THE
APOSTLE
The Doctrine of Addai
(1876). English Translation
THE letter of king Abgar,2 the
son of king Ma'nu, and at what time he sent it to our Lord at Jerusalem; and at
what time Addai the Apostle came to him (Abgar) at Edessa;3 and
what he spake in the gospel of his preaching; and what he said and commanded,
when he went forth from, this world, to those who had received from him the
hand of the priesthood.
In the three hundred and
forty and third year of the kingdom of the Greeks,4 and
in the reign of our lord Tiberius, the Roman Emperor, and in the reign of king
Abgar, son of king Ma'nu, in the month of October, on the twelfth day, Abgar
Ukkama sent Marihab and Shamshagram,5 chiefs
and honoured persons of his kingdom, |2 and Hannan6 the
tabularius, the sharrir, with them, to the city which is called Eleutheropolis,
but in Aramaic Beth-gubrin,7 to
the honoured Sabinus, the son of Eustorgius, the deputy of our lord the emperor,
who ruled over Syria, Phoenicia, Palestine, and the whole country of
Mesopotamia. They brought him letters concerning the affairs of the kingdom;
and when they went to him, he received them with joy and honour, and they were
with him twenty and five days. He wrote for them a reply8 to
the letters, and sent them to Abgar the king. When they went forth from him,
they set out and came on the way towards Jerusalem; and they saw many men, who
came from a distance to see Christ, because the fame of his wonderful deeds had
gone forth to remote countries. When Marihab, Shamshagram, and Hannan, the
keeper of the archives, saw the men, they also came with them to Jerusalem.
When they entered |3 Jerusalem, they saw Christ, and
they rejoiced with the multitudes, who were joined to Him. But they saw also
the Jews, who were standing in groups, and were considering what they should do
to Him; for they were disturbed to see that a multitude of their people
confessed Him. And they were there in Jerusalem ten days, and Hannan, the keeper
of the archives, wrote down everything which he saw that Christ did; also the
rest of that done by Him, before they went thither. And they departed and came
to Edessa, and entered into the presence of Abgar the king, their lord, who had
sent them, and they gave him the reply of the letters, which they had brought
with them. After the letters were read, they began to recount before the king
all which they had seen and all which Christ had done in Jerusalem. And Hannan,
the keeper of the archives, read before him all which he had written and
brought with him; and when Abgar the king heard, he was astonished and
wondered, as also his princes, who stood before him. Abgar said to them: These
mighty works are not of men, but of God; because there is not any one who can
make the dead alive, but God only. And Abgar wished himself to pass over and go
to Palestine, and see with his own eyes all which Christ was doing; but because
he was not able to pass through the country of the Romans, which was not his,
lest this cause should call forth bitter enmity, he wrote a letter and sent it
to Christ by the hand of Hannan, the keeper of the archives. He went forth from
Edessa on the fourteenth day of Adar,9 and
entered Jerusalem on the twelfth day of Nisan,10 on
the fourth day of the week (Wednesday). And he found Christ at the house
of |4 Gamaliel, the chief priest11 of
the Jews. The letter was read before Him, which was written
thus:----"Abgar Ukkama, to Jesus, the Good Physician, who has appeared in
the country of Jerusalem. My Lord: Peace. I have heard of Thee and of Thy
healing, that it is not by medicines and roots Thou healest, but by Thy word
Thou openest the eyes of the blind, Thou makest the lame to walk,
cleansest the lepers, and makest the deaf to hear. And unclean spirits12 and
lunatics, and those tormented, them Thou healest by Thy word; Thou also raisest
the dead. And when I heard of these great wonders which Thou doest, I decided
in my mind that either Thou art God, who hast come down from heaven and doest
these things, or Thou art the Son of God, who doest all these things.
Therefore, I have written to request of Thee to come to me who adore Thee, and
to heal the disease which I have, as I believe in Thee. This also I have heard,
that the Jews murmur against Thee and persecute Thee, and even seek to crucify Thee,
and contemplate treating Thee cruelly. I possess one small and beautiful city,
and it is sufficient for both to dwell in it in quietness."
When Jesus received the
letter at the house of the chief priest of the Jews, He said to Hannan, the
keeper of the archives: "Go and say to thy lord, who hath sent thee to Me,
'Blessed art thou, who, although thou hast not seen Me, believest in Me, for it
is written of Me, Those who see Me will not believe in Me, and those who
see Me not, will believe in me.13 But
as to that which |5 thou hast written to Me, that I
should come to thee, that for which I was sent here is now finished, and I am
going up to my Father, who sent me, and when I have gone up to Him, I will send
to thee one of my disciples, who will cure the disease which thou hast, and
restore thee to health; and all who are with thee he will convert to
everlasting life. Thy city shall be blessed, and no enemy shall again become
master of it for ever.'"
When Hannan, the keeper
of the archives, saw that Jesus spake thus to him, by virtue of being the
king's painter, he took and painted a likeness of Jesus with choice paints, and
brought with him to Abgar the king, his master. And when Abgar the king saw the
likeness, he received it with great joy, and placed it with great honour in one
of his palatial houses. Hannan, the keeper of the archives, related to him
everything which he had heard from Jesus, as His words were put by him in
writing. After that Christ had ascended to heaven, Judas Thomas14 sent
to Abgar, Addai the Apostle, who was one of the seventy-two Apostles. And when
Addai came to the city of Edessa, he dwelt at the house of |6 Tobias,15 son
of Tobias the Jew, who was of Palestine. Through all the city a
report was heard of him, and one of the nobles of Abgar whose name was
Abdu,16 the
son of Abdu, one of those who sat with bended knees 17 before
Abgar, went and said concerning Addai: behold, a messenger has come, and dwells
here, he of whom Jesus sent to thee, "I send to Thee one of my
disciples." And when Abgar heard these words, and the mighty
acts which Addai did, and the wonderful cures which he effected, he thought for
certain in his mind: Truly this is he whom Jesus sent, saying, "When I
have ascended to heaven I will send to thee one of my disciples, and he will
cure thy disease." And Abgar sent and called for Tobias, and said to him,
I have heard that a certain powerful man has come, and dwells in thy house.
Bring him up to me; a good hope of recovery through him has been found for me.
Tobias went early on the next day and took Addai the Apostle, and brought him
up to Abgar, Addai himself knowing that by the power of God he was sent to him.
And when Addai came up and went to Abgar, his nobles standing with him, and in
going towards him, a wonderful vision was seen by Abgar in the face of Addai.
At the moment that Abgar saw the vision, he fell down and worshipped Addai.
Great astonishment seized all those who were standing before him, for they saw
not the vision which |7 was seen by Abgar. Then Abgar
said to Addai, "Of a truth thou art the disciple of Jesus, that mighty
one, the son of God, who sent to me saying I send thee one of my disciples for
healing and for life." Addai said to him, "Because that from the
beginning thou didst believe in Him who sent me to thee, therefore have I been
sent to thee, and if thou believest in Him, everything in which thou dost
believe thou shalt have." Abgar said to him, "So have I believed in
Him, that with respect to those Jews who crucified Him, I desire to take with
me an army, and to go and destroy them; but because the kingdom belongs to the
Romans, I was restrained by the covenant of peace, which was confirmed by me
with our lord the emperor Tiberius, like my forefathers." Addai said to
him, "Our Lord has fulfilled the will of His Father. And when He had completed
the will of His Parent, He was taken up to His Father, and sat with Him in
glory, with whom he was from eternity." Abgar said to him: "I also
believe in Him and in His Father." Addai said to him:18 "Because
that thou so believest, I place my hand on thee, in the name of Him in whom
thou believest."
At the moment that he
placed his hand upon him, he was cured of the plague of the disease, which he
had had for a long time.19 Abgar
wondered and was astonished, |8 that as it was
reported to him concerning Jesus, that which He did and cured; so also Addai
himself, without medicine of any kind, healed in the name of Jesus. And also
with respect to Abdu, the son of Abdu, he had the gout in his feet, and he too
brought his feet near him, and he (Addai) placed his hand upon them and healed
him; and he had not the gout again. And also in all the city he wrought great
cures, and showed wonderful mighty works in it. Abgar said to him: "Now
that every man knoweth that by the power of Jesus Christ thou doest these
wonderful works, and behold we are wondering at thy works, I require therefore
of thee, that thou wouldest recount to us concerning the coining of Christ, how
it was, and concerning His glorious power, and concerning those miracles which
we have heard that He did, which thou hast seen with the rest of thy
companions." Addai said to him: "I will not keep silent from
declaring this; for because of this I was sent here to speak and to teach every
one, who, like thee, is willing to believe. To-morrow assemble for me all the
city, that I may sow in it the Word of Life, by the preaching which I will
preach before you concerning the coming of Christ, how it was, and concerning
His glorious power, and concerning Him that sent Him, for what and how He sent
Him, and concerning His power and His wonderful works, and concerning the
glorious mysteries of His coming, which He spake in the world, and concerning
the certitude of His preaching, how and for what He abased Himself, and humbled
His exalted |9 divinity by the body, which He took,
and was crucified and descended to the house of the dead, and cleaved the wall
of partition, which had never been cleft, and gave life to the dead by being
Himself slain, and descended by Himself, and ascended with many to His glorious
Father, with whom He was from, eternity in one exalted divinity. And Abgar
commanded that they should deliver to Addai silver and gold. Addai said to him:
"How are we able to receive anything which is not ours? for, behold, that
which was ours we have forsaken, as we were commanded by our Lord to be without
purses and without scrips, and carrying crosses upon our shoulders, we were
commanded to preach His Gospel to the whole creation: the whole creation felt
and suffered by His crucifixion, which was for us, for the salvation of all
men. And he narrated before Abgar the king, and before his princes and his
nobles, and before Augustina, the mother of Abgar, and before Shalmath, the
daughter of Meherdath, the wife of Abgar,20 the
signs of our Lord and His wonders, and the glorious miracles which He wrought,
and His divine triumphs, and His ascension to His Father; and how they received
powers and authorities at the time that He ascended, by which same power he had
healed Abgar and Abdu, the son of Abdu, the second person of his kingdom; and
how he made them know that which would be revealed at the end of times, and in
the consummation of all creatures, and the resuscitation and resurrection,
which is about to be for all men, and the separation which is to be between the
sheep and |10 the goats, and between the faithful and
the unbelieving. And he said to them: "Because that the gate of life is
strait and the way of truth is narrow, therefore few are the believers of
truth, and in the power of unbelief is Satan's recreation. Because of this
there are many liars, who cause to err those who look on. For except that there
is a good end for faithful men, our Lord had not descended from heaven, and
come to the birth, and to the suffering of death, and also He had not sent us21 to
be His preachers and evangelists. Those things which we saw and heard from Him,
which He did and taught, we confidently preach before all men; for we would not
do any wrong with respect to the truth of His Gospel. And not these things
only; but also those which were done in His Name, after His ascension, we show
and preach.
I will tell before you
that which happened and was done in the presence of men, who, as you, believed
in Christ, that He is the Son of the living God. Protonice, the wife of the
Emperor Claudius,22 whom
Tiberius made second23 in
his kingdom, when he went to make war with the Spaniards, who had rebelled
against him, this woman, when Simon, one of the disciples, was in the city of
Rome, and she saw the signs and wonders, and |11 marvellous
works which he did in the name of Christ; denied the paganism of her fathers in
which she was brought up, and the idolatrous images which she had worshipped;
and she believed in Christ our Lord, and worshipped Him, and praised with those
who were joined unto Simon, and held Him in great honour. After this she wished
also to see Jerusalem, and those places in which the mighty works of our Lord
were done. So she arose promptly and descended from Rome to Jerusalem, she24 and
her two sons with her, and her one virgin daughter.
When she was entering
Jerusalem, the city went forth to meet her, and they received her with great
honour, as that which is due to the queen, the mistress of the great country of
the Romans. But James, who was made director and ruler in the church which was
built for us there, when he had heard for what purpose she had gone there,
arose and went to her. And he entered into her presence where she was dwelling,
in the royal great palace of king Herod. When she saw him, she received him
with great joy, as also she had Simon Peter. He also showed her cures and
mighty works as did Simon, and she said to him: "Show me Golgotha, on
which Christ was crucified, and the wood of His cross on which He was suspended
by the Jews, and the grave in which |12 He was
placed.'' James said to her: "These three things which thy Majesty wishes
to see are under the control of the Jews. They possess them, and permit us not
to go to pray there before Golgotha and the grave, and neither the wood of His
cross will they give us. And not only this, but they also severely
persecute us, that we may not publish and preach in the name of Christ, and
many times also they bind us in prison." When she heard these things, the
queen immediately commanded, and they brought before her Onias, the son of
Hannan the priest, and Gedalia, son of Caiaphas, and Judah the son of Ebed
Shalom, chiefs and rulers of the Jews. And she said to them: "Deliver up
Golgotha, and the grave, and the wood of the cross, to James, and those who
agree with him, and let no man forbid them to minister there according to the
custom of their ministry." And when she had so commanded the priests, she
arose to go and see these places, and she also delivered that place to James,
and those who were with him. Afterwards she entered the grave, and found in the
grave three crosses, one of our Lord, and two of those robbers, who were
crucified with Him, on His right hand and on His left. And at the time that she
entered into the grave----she and her children with her----at that instant her
virgin daughter fell down and died, without pain, without disease, and without
any cause of death. And when the queen saw that her daughter had died suddenly,
she kneeled and prayed within the grave, and said in her prayer: "God, who
gave Himself to death for all men, and was crucified in this place, and was
laid in this grave; and as God, who keepeth alive all, has risen, and made many
to rise with Him, lest the Jews, the crucifiers, should hear----and also the
erring heathens, whose |13 idols and graven images,
and the terrors of paganism, I have denied----and they see me, deride me, and
say that all this which has happened to her is because that she denied the
gods, which she did worship, and confessed Christ, whom she knew not, and went
to honour the place of His grave and His crucifixion; and if, O my Lord, I am
not worthy to be heard, because that I have worshipped creatures instead of
Thee; spare Thou, for the sake of Thy adorable Name, that it may not be
blasphemed in this place, as they blasphemed Thee at Thy crucifixion." She
said these things in her prayer, and, in the excitement of her supplication,
she repeated them before all those who were there. Her eldest son approached
her, and said to her: "Hear that which I shall say before thy Majesty. I
think thus in my mind and in my thought, that this death of this my sister,
which was sudden, was not for nought; but this is a wonderful work, in which
God will be praised, and not that His Name will be blasphemed, as those
thought, who heard it. Behold, we enter the grave and find in it three crosses,
and we know not which of them is the cross on which Christ was suspended. In
the death of this my sister, we may be able to see and to learn which is the
cross of Christ, for Christ is not neglectful of those who believe in Him, and
seek Him." And the queen Protonice----her soul was very sad at this
time----saw in her mind that her son spake these things wisely, justly and
rightly. And with her hands she took hold of one of the crosses and placed it
upon the dead body of her daughter, which lay before her, and she said in her
prayer: "O God, who hast shown wonderful works in this place, as we hear
and believe, if this cross, 0 Lord, be Thine, and on it Thy humanity was
suspended by the insolent, show the strong |14 and
mighty power of Thy divinity, which dwells in the humanity, and restore to life
this my daughter, that she may arise, and Thy Name be glorified in her. May her
soul return to her body, that Thy crucifiers may be confounded and Thy
worshippers may rejoice! And she waited a long time after she had spoken thus.
Afterwards she took that cross from the dead body of her daughter, and placed
another, and also said in her prayer:
"O God, by whose nod
worlds and creatures endure, and wishing the life of all men that they may be
turned to Him, and is not neglectful of the petition of those who seek Him, if
this cross be Thine, 0 Lord, show the power of Thy triumphs as Thou art
accustomed, and restore to life this my daughter, that she may arise, and the
heathens, worshipping Thy creatures instead of Thee, may be confounded, and the
faithful and the true may confess, that their mouth may be opened to Thy praise
before those who deny Thee!" And she waited a long time after these
things, and took the second cross from her daughter; and she took the third
cross and placed it upon her daughter. And as she was going to lift up her eyes
to heaven, and to open her mouth in prayer, at that moment, at that time, in
the twinkling of an eye, that, the cross touched the dead body of her daughter,
her daughter became alive, and she arose suddenly, and praised God, who had
restored her to life by His cross. But the queen Protonice, when she saw how
her daughter became alive, trembled, and was greatly alarmed, but though
alarmed she glorified Christ, and believed in Him, that He was the Son of the
living God. Her son said to her: "My lady, thou seest that if this had not
occurred to-day, it might have happened that they would have left this cross of
Christ, by which my |15 sister became alive, and have
taken and honoured that of one of those murderous thieves. Now, behold, we see
and rejoice, and Christ, who has done this thing, is glorified in her."25 And
she took the cross of Christ, and gave it to James, that it might be kept with
great honour. She also commanded that a great and splendid building should be
erected over Golgotha, on which He was crucified, and over the grave in which
He was placed, so that these places might be honoured; and that there should be
there a place of assembly for prayer, and a gathering for service.
But the queen, when she
saw the whole population of the city, which she had collected for the sight of
this work, she commanded that, without the covering of honour worn by queens,
her daughter should go with her unveiled to the palace of the king, in which
she dwelt, so that every one might see her and praise God. But the people of
the Jews and the Gentiles, who rejoiced at the beginning of this occurrence,
and were glad, became very sad at the end of it. For they would have been well
pleased if this had not occurred, for they saw on account of this many believed
in Christ; and especially when they saw that the miracles, which were done in
His Name after His ascension, were many more than those which were done before
His ascension. And the fame of this deed which was done went forth to |16 distant countries, and also to the Apostles, my
companions, who preached Christ. And there was rest in the churches of
Jerusalem, and the cities round about it; and those who saw not
this deed, with those who did see it, praised God. And when
the queen went up from Jerusalem to the city of Rome, every city which she
entered pressed to see the sight of her daughter. And when she had entered
Eome, she recounted before the Emperor Claudius those things which had
happened; and when the Emperor heard, he commanded that all the Jews should go
forth from the country of Italy. In all that country this deed was spoken of by
many, and also before Simon Peter this was recounted, which was done.
"Whatsoever also the Apostles, companions, did, we preach before every
man, that those who do not know may likewise hear those things which, by our
hand, Christ did openly, that our Lord might be glorified by every man. These
things which I repeat before you are told, that ye may know and understand how
great is the faith of Christ among those who truly join themselves to Him.
But James, the director
of the Church of Jerusalem, who with his own eyes saw the deed, gave a written
account, and sent it to the Apostles, my companions, in the cities of their
countries. And also the Apostles themselves gave written accounts, and made
known to James whatsoever that Christ had done by their hands, and these were
read before all the multitude of the people of the church.
But when Abgar the king
heard these things, he and Augustina, his mother, and Shalmath, the daughter of
Meherdath, and Paqûr26 and
Abdshemesh, and |17 Shamshagram, and Abdu, and Azzai
and Bar-kalba, with the rest of their companions, rejoiced exceedingly, and all
of them glorified God, and made their confession in Christ. Abgar the king said
to Addai: "I wish that everything which we have heard from thee to-day,
and the rest also of the other things, thou wouldst tell openly before all the
city, that every man may hear the preaching of the Gospel of Christ, which thou
teachest to us, that he may rest and be confirmed in the doctrine which thou
teachest to us, that many may understand that I believed rightly in Christ, in
the Letter which I sent to Him, and may know that He is God, the Son of God,
and thou art His true and faithful disciple, and that thou showest by works His
glorious power before those who wish to believe in Him. The day after, Abgar
commanded Abdu, the son of Abdu, who was healed of a sore disease of his feet,
to send a herald, that he may proclaim in all the city that the whole
population may be assembled, men and women, at the place which is called
Beththabara, the wide space of the house of Avida,27 the
son of Abd-nachad, that they might hear the doctrine of Addai the Apostle, and
how he taught, and in the name of whom he cured, and by what power he wrought
these miracles, and those wonders he did. For when he healed Abgar the king, it
was the nobles only who stood before him, and saw him, when he healed him by
the word of Christ, whom many physicians were not able to heal, but a stranger
cured him by the faith of Christ.
And when all the city
were assembled, men and women, as the king had commanded, Avida and Labbu,
and |18 Chaphsai, and Bar-Kalba, and Labubna,28 and
Chesrun,29 and
Shamshagram stood there, with their companions, who as they were princes and
nobles of the king, and commanders, and all the workmen and the artisans and
the Jews and Gentiles who were in this city, and strangers of the countries of
Soba and Harran, and the rest of the inhabitants of all this country of
Mesopotamia, all of them stood to hear the doctrine of Addai; concerning whom
they had heard; that he was the disciple of Jesus, who was crucified in
Jerusalem, and he effected cures in His name. And Addai began to speak to them
thus:
"Hear, all of you,
and understand that which I speak before you; that I am not a physician of
medicines and roots, of the art of the sons of men; but I am the disciple of
Jesus Christ, the Physician of troubled souls, and the Saviour of future life,
the Son of God, who came down from heaven, and was clothed with a body and
became man; and He gave Himself and was crucified for all men. And when He was
suspended on the wood, the sun He made dark in the firmament; and when He had
entered the grave, He arose and went forth from the grave with many. And those
who guarded the grave saw not how He went forth from the grave; but the angels
of heaven |19 were the preachers and publishers of
His resurrection, who if He had not wished, had not died, because that He is
the Lord of death, the exit of all things.30 And
except it had pleased Him,He had not again clothed Himself with a body, for He
is Himself the framer of the body. For the will which inclined Him to the birth
from a virgin, also made Him condescend to the suffering of death, and He
humbled the majesty of His exalted divinity, 31 who
was with His Father from eternity, He of whom Prophets of old spake in their
mysteries; and they represented images of His birth, and His suffering, and His
resurrection, and His ascension to His Father, and of His sitting at the right
hand. And, behold, He is worshipped by celestial spirits, and by the
inhabitants of the earth, He who is worshipped from eternity. For although His
was the appearance of men, His might, and His knowledge, and His power were of
God Himself; as He said to us, 32 Behold, now
is the son of man glorified, and God glorifies Himself in Him, by miracles and
by wonders, and by honour of being at the right hand. But His body is the pure
vestment of His glorious divinity, by which we are able to see His invisible
Lordship. This Jesus Christ, therefore, we preach and publish, and, with Him,
we praise His Father, and we extol and worship the Spirit of His |20 divinity, because that we were thus commanded by Him, to
baptize and absolve those who believe in the name of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit. Also the Prophets of old spake thus: that 'The Lord our God
and His Spirit hath sent us.'33 And
if I speak anything which is not written in the Prophets, the Jews, who are
standing among you and hear me, will not receive it; and if, again, I make
mention of the name of Christ over those who have sufferings and diseases, and
they are not healed by this glorious name, they, worshipping the work of their
hands, will not believe. If now these things be written, which we say, in the
Books of the Prophets,34 and
we are able to show the healing powers upon the sick, not a man will look on us
without discerning the faith35 which
we preach, that God was crucified for all men. If there be those who do not
wish to acquiesce in these words, let them draw near to us, and reveal to us what
is their mind, that as a disease of their mind we may apply healing medicine
for the cure of their wound. For although ye were not present at the time of
the suffering of Christ, yet because of the sun, which was dark, and ye saw it,
learn and understand concerning the great hororr there was at the time of the
crucifixion of |21 Him whose Gospel has flown over
all the earth, by the miracles which His disciples, my companions, are working
in all the earth. And those who were Hebrews, and knew only the Hebrew tongue
in which they were born, behold to day speak in all languages, that those who
are far off, as those who are nigh, might hear and believe that He is the same,
who confounded36 the
tongues of the impious in this district, which lies before us; He it is who to
day teaches through us the faith of truth and verity, by humble and wretched
men, who were from Galilee of Palestine. For I also, whom ye see, am from
Paneas,37 from
where the river Jordan goes forth. And I was chosen, with my companions, to be
a preacher38 of
this Gospel, by which, behold, the regions everywhere resound with the glorious
name of the adorable Christ. Let, therefore, no man of you harden his heart
against the truth and keep his mind at a distance from verity. Be ye not led
captive after thoughts destructively erroneous, which are full of the despair
of a bitter death.39 Be
ye not taken by the evil customs of the paganism of your fathers, and so keep
yourselves at a distance from the life of truth and verity, which are in
Christ. For those who believe in Him are those who are trusted before Him, who
descended to us by His favour, to make to cease from the earth the sacrifices
of heathenism, and the offerings |22 of idolatry;
that creatures should no longer be worshipped; but we should worship Him and
His Father, with His Holy Spirit.40 For
I, as my Lord commanded me, behold, I preach and I publish. And His silver on
the table, behold I cast before you, and the seed of His word I sow in the ears
of every man. Those who wish to receive, theirs is the good reward of
confession; and those who do not obey, against them I scatter the dust of my
feet, as my Lord commanded me. Turn ye, therefore, my beloved, from evil ways
and from hateful deeds, and turn yourselves to Him with a good and honest will,
as He turned Himself to you with His grace and His rich mercies. And be ye not
as the generations of old, which are passed, who, because that they hardened
their heart against the fear of God, received punishment openly; that they may
be chastised, and those who came after them may tremble and fear. For that for
which our Lord came into the world was altogether41 to
teach and show that at the end of created things is a resurrection for all men.
And at that time their acts of conduct will be represented on their own
persons, and their bodies become volumes for the written things of justice, and
there will not be he who knoweth not writing; because that every man shall read
the letters of his own book42 at
that day, and the account of his actions he taketh with the fingers of his
hands. Thus the unlettered will know the new writing of the new language, and
there is not he who will say to his fellow, Read me this, because that one
doctrine and one instruction shall reign over all men. |23
Let this thought,
therefore, be represented before your eyes, and let it not pass from your mind,
because that if it pass from your mind, it passeth not from Justice.43 Seek
mercies from God, that He may pardon the hateful infidelity of your paganism,
for ye have forsaken Him who created you upon the face of the earth, and makes
His rain to descend and His sun to rise upon you, and ye worship, instead of
Him, His works. For the idols and graven images of paganism, and whatsoever of
the creation in which ye have confidence and which ye worship, if there were in
them feeling and understanding, for the sake of which ye worship and honour
them, it would be right for them, which ye have engraven and established, and
have firmly fixed with nails that they be not shaken, to receive your favour.
For if the creatures were aware of your honours to them, they would cry, shouting
to you, not to worship your fellows, which like yourselves are made and
created; because that creatures made should not be worshipped; but that they
should worship their Creator, and they should glorify Him who created them. And
as His grace covers the wicked here,44 so
His justice shall be avenged on the infidels there. For I saw in this city that
it abounded greatly in paganism, which is against God. Who is this Nebo,45 an
idol made which ye worship, |24 and Bel,46 which
ye honour? Behold, there are those among you who adore Bath Nical,47 as
the inhabitants of Harran your neighbours, and Taratha,48 as
the people of Mabug, and the eagle, as the Arabians, also the sun and the
moon,as the rest of the inhabitants of Harran, who are as yourselves. |25 Be ye not led away captive by the rays of the luminaries
and the bright star; for every one who worships creatures is cursed before God.
For although there are among creatures such as are greater than their
companions, yet they are fellow-servants of their companions, as I have said to
you. For this is a bitter pain, for which there is not a cure, that things made
should worship things made, and creatures should glorify their fellows. For as
they are not able to stand by the power of themselves, but by the power of Him
who created them, so they are not able to be worshipped with Him, nor to be
honoured with Him; for it is a blasphemy against both parties, against the
creatures when they are worshipped, and against the Creator, when the
creatures, who are strangers to the nature of His existence, are made partakers
with Him. For all the prophecy of the Prophets, and the preaching of us who are
after the Prophets, is this, that creatures should not be worshipped with the
Creator, and that men should not bind themselves to the yoke of corrupt
paganism. It is not because of the creatures being seen, I say, that they
should not be worshipped; but everything which is made is a creature, whether
visible or invisible. This is a horrible wickedness, to place the glorious name
of divinity upon it. For not creatures, as you, we proclaim and worship; but
the Lord of creatures. The earthquake, which made them tremble at the Cross,
testifies that everything which is made depends on and exists by the power of
its Maker, who was before worlds and creatures, whose nature is incomprehensible,
in that His nature is invisible, and, with His Father, is sanctified in the
heights above, for that He is Lord and God from eternity. This is our doctrine
in every country and in every region. And so |26 have
we been commanded to preach to those who hear us, not violently, but by the
teaching of the truth and by the power of God. And the miracles which were done
in His name, testify concerning our faith, that it is true and to be believed.
Be obedient, therefore, to my words, and receive that which I have said, and am
saying before you; and that I may not require your death, behold, I warn you to
be very cautious. Receive my words fitly, and do not neglect. Draw nigh to me
ye my distant ones from Christ, and be near to Christ. And in the place Of erroneous
sacrifices and oblations, offer now to Him the sacrifices of thanksgiving.
What is this great altar
which ye have built in the midst of this city? and what are those going and
coming offering upon it to demons, and sacrificing on it to devils? But if ye
know not the Scriptures, doth not nature itself teach you, by its power of
sight, that your idols have eyes and see not? And ye 49 who
see with eyes in that ye do not understand, ye are also as they who see not and
hear not, and in vain you excite your voices, ineffective to deaf ears. For
they are not to be complained of for that which they do not hear, because that
by nature they are deaf and dumb. And the blame with which justice is involved
is yours, for ye do not wish to understand, even that which ye see. For the
thick darkness of error, which is spread over your mind, permits you not to
acquire the heavenly light, which is the understanding of knowledge. Flee,
therefore, from things made and created, as I have said unto you, that in name
only are they called gods, though they are not gods in their nature; and draw
near to Him, who in His nature is |27 God from
eternity and from everlasting, and is not made as your idols, and also not a
creature, and a work of art as the images in which ye make your boast. Because
that although He put on this body, He was God with His Father; for the works of
creation, which trembled when He was slain, and were terrified by the suffering
of His death, they testify that He is He who created the works of creation. For
it was not for a man the earth shook, but for Him who established the earth
upon the waters; and it was not for a man the sun became dark in the heavens,
but for Him who made the great lights. And it was not by a man the righteous
and the just were raised to life, but by Him who gave power over death from the
beginning. Nor was it by a man the vail of the temple of the Jews was rent from
the top to the bottom, but by Him who said to them, 'Behold, your house is left
desolate.'50 For,
behold, except they who crucified Him knew that He was the Son of God, they
would not have proclaimed the desolation of their city, also they would not
have brought down woes upon themselves. For even if they wished to neglect this
confession, the terrible commotions which were at that time would not have
permitted them. Behold also some of the children of the crucifiers have become
at this day preachers and evangelists, with the Apostles my companions, in all
the land of Palestine and among the Samaritans, and in all the country of the
Philistines. The idols of paganism also are despised, and the Cross of Christ
is honoured. Peoples and creatures also confess God, who became man. If truly
when Jesus our Lord was upon earth ye believed in Him that He is the Son of
God, and before that ye had heard the word of |28 His
preaching, confessed in Him that He is God; now that He has ascended to His
Father, and ye have seen the signs and wonders which are done in His name, and
the word of His Gospel ye have heard with your ears; not a man of you should
let himself doubt in his mind how the promise of His blessing which He sent to
you would have been established with you: "Blessed are ye who have
believed in me, although ye have not seen me; and because ye have so believed
in me the city in which ye dwell shall be blessed, and the enemy shall not
prevail against it for ever."51 Do
not, therefore, turn from His faith; for, behold, ye have heard and seen those
things which bear witness to His faith, that He is the adorable Son, and is the
glorious God, and is the triumphant King, and is the Omnipotent Power; and by
His true faith a man is able to acquire the eye of the true mind, and to
perceive that every one who worships creatures, the wrath of justice overtakes
him.
For everything which we
say before you, we say as we have received of the gift of our Lord, and we
teach and we show how to possess your life, and not destroy your spirits by the
error of paganism; because that the heavenly light hath risen upon creation,
and He it is, who hath chosen the ancient fathers and the just men and the
Prophets, and hath spoken with them by the revelation of the Holy Spirit. For
He is the God of the Jews, who crucified Him, and the erring Gentiles also
worship Him, though they know it not; because that there is no |29 other God in heaven and in earth, and behold confession
ascendeth up to Him from the four quarters of the earth. Behold now your ears
have heard that which was not heard by you before, and behold, again,
your eyes have seen that which was never seen by you before. Be ye
not therefore unjust to that which ye have heard and seen. Cause to pass from
you the rebellious mind of your fathers, and free yourselves from the yoke of
sin, which hath dominion over you by libations and sacrifices before graven
images. Let it be a care to you concerning your perishing lives, and concerning
the vain bowing of your head, and acquire the new mind which worships the Maker
and not the thing made, in which is represented the image of truth and verity,
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, when ye believe and are
baptized in the triple and glorious names. For this is our doctrine and our
preaching. For it is not in many things that the truth of Christ is believed.
And such of you as are willing to be obedient to Christ, know that many times I
have repeated my words before you, that ye might learn and understand
whatsoever ye hear. And we will rejoice in this, as a husbandman in his field
which is blessed; and our God is glorified by your repentance towards Him. And
as ye live in this, we also who counsel you thus will not be defrauded of the
blessed reward of this. And because I am confident that ye are a blessed land,
according to the will of the Lord Christ, therefore for the dust of my feet
which we have been commanded 52 to
shake off against the city that receiveth not our words; behold I shake off
to-day at the door of your ears the words of my lips, in which the |30 coming of Christ is represented, that which has been, and
that which is about to be, and the resurrection and resuscitation of all men,
and the separation which is to be between the faithful and unbelieving, and the
blessed promise of future joys which they who have believed in Christ and
worshipped His high Father, and confessed Him and the Spirit of His godhead,
shall receive. And now it is right for us to finish our present discourse, and
let those who have received the word of Christ remain with us, and also those
who wish to be associated, with us in prayer, and then let them go to their
homes."
And Addai the Apostle
rejoiced in this when he saw that the multitude of the population of the city
remained with him, and there were few who did not remain at that time; and
these same few, after a few days, received his words and believed in the gospel
of the preaching of Christ.
And when Addai the
Apostle had said these things before all the city of Edessa, and Abgar the king
saw that all the city rejoiced in his doctrine, men and women equally, and were
saying to him "Christ, who hath sent thee to us is true and
faithful," and he also greatly rejoiced at this, praising God, that
according to what he had heard from Hannan, his tabularius, concerning Christ,
so he had seen the marvellous mighty works which Addai the Apostle had done in
the name of Christ. And Abgar the king also said to Addai the Apostle, As I
sent to Christ by my letter to Him; and as He also sent to me and I have
received from thee thyself this day; so will I believe all the days of my life,
and in the same things continue, exulting, because I know that there is no
other power in the name of whom these signs and wonders are done, but by the
power of Christ, whom thou preachest in truth and verity. And now I will
worship Him, |31 I and Ma'nu,53 my
son, and Augustina, and Shalmath the queen. And now, wherever thou wishest,
build a church, a house of assembly for those who have believed, and shall
believe in thy words. And, as commanded thee by thy Lord, minister thou at
times with confidence. And those who are teachers with thee of this Gospel, I
am prepared to deliver to them large gifts, that they may not have any other
work with the ministry. Everything also which is required by thee for the
expenses of the house, I will give thee without taking account; thy word shall
be powerful and have rule in this city, and without another man, have thou
authority to enter into my presence in my royal palace of honour.
And when Abgar the king
went down to his royal palace, he rejoiced, he and his princes with him, Abdu
and Garmai, and Shamshagram, and Abubai, and Meherdath, with the rest of their
companions, at everything which their eyes had seen, and their ears had heard,
and in the joy of their heart they also praised God, who had turned their mind
to Him; they renounced the paganism in which they stood, and confessed the
Gospel of Christ. And when Addai had built a church, they offered in it vows
and offerings, they and the people of the city, and there they worshipped all
the days of their life.
And Avida 54 and
Bar-kalba who were chiefs and rulers, and clothed with royal headbands 55,
drew near to Addai, and they asked Addai concerning the |32 history
of Christ, to tell them how that He being God was seen by them, as man, and how
ye were able to see Him. And he satisfied them all concerning this, concerning
all which their eyes had seen, and concerning all which their ears had heard of
Him. And every thing which the Prophets had said of Him, he repeated before
them, and they received his words gladly and faithfully, and there was not a
man who rose up against him. For the glorious things which he did permitted not
a man to rise up against him.
Shavida and Ebednebo,
chiefs of the priests of this city, with Piroz 56 and
Dancu 57 their
companions, when they saw the signs which he did, ran and threw down the altars
upon which they sacrificed before Nebo and Bel their gods, except the great
altar, which was in the midst of the city, and they cried out and said, that
this is truly the disciple of the distinguished and glorious Master of whom we
heard all those things, which He did in the country of Palestine. And all who
believed in Christ, Addai received, and baptized them in the name of the
Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And those who were accustomed to
worship stones and stocks, sat at his feet, learning, and being corrected of
the plague of the foolishness of paganism. The Jews also, conversant with the
Law and the Prophets, who carried on |33 merchandise
in silks, 58 were
also persuaded and became disciples, and made confession in Christ, that He is
the Son of the living God. But neither Abgar the king, nor Addai the Apostle
pressed any man by force to believe in Christ; because without the force of
man, the force of the signs compelled many to believe in Him. And all this
country of Mesopotamia, and all the regions round about it received his
doctrine with love.
But Aggai made the
chains 59 and
headbands of the king, and Palut and Abshelama 60 and
Barsamya with the rest of the others their companions, adhered to Addai the
Apostle, and he received them and made them partakers with him in the ministry;
they read in the Old Testament 61 and
the New, and the Prophets, and the Acts of the Apostles, every day they
meditated on them. He commanded them cautiously, "Let your bodies be pure,
and let your persons be holy; as is right for men who stand before the altar of
God; and be ye indeed far |34 removed from false
swearing, and from wicked murder, and from false testimony, which is mixed with
adultery, and from sorcerers with respect to whom there are no mercies, and
from divinations, and soothsaying, and necromancers, and from fates, and
nativities, in which the erring Chaldees boast themselves; and from stars, and
the signs of the Zodiac, in which the foolish are confident. And keep at a
distance from you evil hypocrisy, and bribes, and gifts, by which the pure are
condemned. And with this ministry to which ye have been called, let there not be
for you another service; for the Lord Himself is the service of your ministry
all the days of your life. Be ye also diligent to deliver the sign of baptism,
and love ye not the gains of this world, but hearken ye to judgment with
justice and truth. And be ye not a stumbling block to the blind, that the name
of Him who opened the eyes of the blind, as we have seen, be not blasphemed
through you. Let all, therefore, who see you, perceive that ye perform all
which ye preach and teach. And they ministered with him in the church which
Addai had built by the word and command of Abgar the king, and they were
supplied from that which was the king's and his nobles; and some of them they
brought for the house of God, and some for the nourishment of the poor. But a large
multitude of people assembled day by day and came to the prayer of the service,
and to the reading of the Old and New Testament, of the
Diatessaron, 62 and
they believed in the revival of the dead, and |35 they
buried their dead in the hope of the resurrection. They also observed the
festivals of the Church in their times, and every day they were constant in the
vigils of the Church, and they likewise performed acts of charity to the sick
and those who were whole, according to the instruction of Addai to them. And in
places round about the city churches were built, and the hand of the priesthood
many received from him: So also orientals with the appearance of merchants
passed into the country of the Romans to see the signs which Addai did, and
those of them who became disciples, received from them 63 the
hand of the priesthood, and in their own country of the Assyrians they taught
the sons of their people, and houses of prayer they built there secretly,
because of the danger arising from the worshippers of fire and the adorers of
water.64
But Nersai,65 the
king of the Assyrians, when he had heard of these things which Addai the
Apostle had done, he sent to Abgar, the king; either send me the man who |36 hath done these signs with thee, that I may see him and
hear his discourse, or send me an account of all these things which
thou hast seen him do in thy city. And Abgar wrote to Nersai and made him
acquainted with the whole history of the affair of Addai from the beginning to
the end, and he left not any thing which he did not write to him.
But when Nersai heard
those things which were written to him, he wondered and was astonished. But
Abgar the king, because that he was not able to pass to the country of the
Romans, and to go to Palestine and slay the Jews, because that they had
crucified Christ, wrote a letter and sent to Tiberius Caesar, writing it thus:
"Abgar, the king, to our Lord Tiberius Caesar, peace. Knowing that not
anything is hidden from thy Majesty, I write and inform thy dread and great
sovereignty, that the Jews, who are under thy hand, who dwell in the country of
Palestine, assembled themselves together and crucified the Christ without any
fault worthy of death, when he was doing before them signs and
wonders, and showed them mighty works and signs; so |37 that
even the dead He raised to life for them. And at the time they crucified Him,
the sun became darkened and the earth shook, and all creatures trembled, and as
if of themselves, at this deed all creation quailed, and its inhabitants. And
now thy majesty knows what is right to command against the people of the Jews,
who did these things."
And Tiberius Caesar wrote
and sent to Abgar the king, and thus he wrote to him: "The letter of thy
fidelity to me, I have received, and it was read before me. With respect to
that which the Jews have done with the cross, Pilate the governor hath also
written, and informed Olbinus, 66 my
pro-consul, of these things which thou hast written to me. But because of the
war of the Spaniards who have rebelled against me is going on at this time,
therefore I have not been able to avenge this matter; but I am prepared, when I
have quietness, to make a charge legally against the Jews, who have not acted
legally. And because of this, as to Pilate, who was made by me governor there,
I have sent another in his place, and I have dismissed him with disgrace,
because that he departed from the law, and did the will of the Jews, and he
crucified Christ for the gratification of the Jews, who according to that which
I hear of them, instead of the cross of death, it was fitting that He should be
honoured, and it was right He should be worshipped by them, especially as they
saw with their eyes all which He did. But thou, according to thy fidelity to me
and thy true |38 compact and that of thy fathers,
hast done well to write to me thus."
And Abgar the king,
received Aristides,67 who
was sent to him by Tiberius Caesar, and he replied, sent him back with
honourable gifts, which were suitable for him, who had sent him to him. And he
departed from Edessa, and went to Ticnutha,68 where
was Claudius the second, from the king, and from there also he went to Artica,69 where
was Tiberius Caesar. But Gaius guarded the regions, which were round about the
Emperor. And Aristides himself also recounted before Tiberius the mighty works
which Addai did before Abgar the king. And when he had rest from the war, he
sent, slew some of the chiefs of the Jews, who were in Palestine. And when
Abgar the king heard, he greatly rejoiced at this, that the Jews had received
punishment, as it was right.
And some years after
Addai the Apostle had built the church in Edessa, and furnished it with
everything which was suitable for it, and had taught many of the population of
the city, also in the other villages, both those which were distant, and those
which were near, he built churches, and completed and ornamented them, and
appointed in them deacons and elders, and |39 taught
in them those who should read the Scriptures, and the orders of the ministry
within and without he taught. After all these things he became ill with the
disease, by which he departed from this world.70 And
he called Aggai before all the congregation of the church, and he brought him
near, and made him governor and ruler in his place. And concerning Palut, who
was a deacon, he made him an elder, and of Abshelama, who was a scribe, he made
him a deacon. And when the nobles and chiefs were assembled and stood by him,
Bar-kalba and 71 Bar-Zati,
and Marihab, the son of Barshemesh, and Sennac, son of Avida, and Peroz, son of
Patricius, with the rest of their companions, Addai the Apostle said to them:
"Ye know, and ye testify, all of you who hear me, that everything which I
have preached to you and taught you, and ye have heard from me, so have I
conducted myself among you, and ye have seen also in works, because that thus
our Lord commanded us that whatsoever we preach in words before the people, we
in work should do before every man. And according to the ordinances and laws
which were appointed in Jerusalem, and by which also the Apostles, my
companions, were governed, |40 so also ye, do not
turn aside from them, and do not take away anything from them, as I myself also
have been guided by them among you, and have not turned aside from them to the
right hand, or to the left, that I might not become strange to the promised
salvation, which is reserved for those who are guided by them. Take heed,
therefore, to this ministry which ye hold, and with fear and trembling abide ye
in it, and minister every day. Minister not in it with habits bringing
contempt, but with the prudence of faith; and the praises of Christ, let them
not cease from your mouth, and let not weariness in prayer at
the stated times draw near to you. Take heed to the truth, which ye
hold, and to the teaching of the truth, which ye have received, and to the
inheritance of salvation, which I commend to you, because before the
judgment-seat of Christ you will be sought out by Him, when He taketh account
with the pastors and superiors, and when He taketh His money from merchants
with the increase of gains. For He is the king's son, and goes to receive a
kingdom, and to return, and to come and make a resurrection for all men; and
then He sitteth on the throne of righteousness, and judgeth the dead and the
living, as He hath said to us. Let not the secret eye of your mind from the
height above be closed, that your offences may not multiply in the way in which
there are no offences; nor abominable error in its ways. Seek ye those that are
lost, and visit those that err, and rejoice ye in those that are found. Bind up
those that are bruised, and be ye watchful of the fatlings, because at your
hands will the sheep of Christ be required. Look ye not to passing honour, for
the shepherd that looketh to be honoured by his flock, badly, badly with
respect to him does his flock stand. Let your solicitude for the |41 young lambs be great, for their angels 72 behold
the face of the invisible Father, and be ye not a stone of stumbling before the
blind, but clearers 73 of
the way and the path in a difficult country, among the Jews, the crucifiers,
and the erring heathen; for with these two parties only is there war for you,
in order to show the truth of the faith, which ye hold; also when ye are quiet,
your modest and honourable appearance will be fighting for you with those who
hate truth and love falsehood. Be ye not smiters of the poor before the rich, for
the severe infliction of their poverty is sufficient for them. Be ye not
beguiled with the hateful cogitations of Satan, that ye be not stripped naked
of the faith that ye have put on,74 for
unbelief is easier than faith, as sin is easier than righteousness. Take heed,
therefore, of those that crucified, that ye be not friends to them, that ye be
not responsible with them whose hands are full of the blood of Christ; and ye
know, and ye bear witness, that everything which we say and teach of the
history of Christ, is written in the Book of the Prophets, and deposited with
them. And their words bear witness to our teaching concerning the judgment, and
suffering, and resurrection, and ascension of Christ; but they know not, that
when they rise against us they rise against the words of the Prophets, and as
in their lives they persecuted the Prophets, so also now, since their death,
they persecute the truth, which is written in the Prophets. Again, take ye heed
of the heathen, who worship the sun and the moon, and Bel and Nebo, and the
rest of those which they call gods, though they are not gods in their
nature. |42 Flee ye, therefore, from them, because
that they worship creatures and things made. And as reported to you before, the
whole object 75 for
which our Lord came into the world was that creatures might not again be
worshipped and honoured, because they exist by the nod of their Creator; and
when He wishes, He dissolves and makes them cease, and they are as though they
are not. For the will of Him, who created the creatures, freed men from the
yoke of the paganism of the creatures. For ye know that every one who worships
the servants of a king with the king, the death of the sword findeth him in his
worship. Be ye not searching for secret things, and inquiring after hidden
things, which are written in the holy books that ye possess. Be ye not judges
concerning the words of the Prophets. Remember and consider that by the Spirit
of God they are said; and he who accuses the Prophets, accuses and judges the
Spirit of God. May this be far from you I Because the ways of the Lord are
straight, and the righteous walk in them without stumbling; but the infidels
stumble in them; because that they have not the secret eye of the secret mind,
which has no need of questions in which there is no profit, but loss.76 Remember
the menacing judgment of the Prophets, and the word of our Lord, which defines
their words, that the Lord judgeth by fire, and all men are tried by it.
Wherefore, as wayfarers |43 and sojourners, who tarry
for a night and return early to their homes, so may you yourselves consider
concerning this world, that from here ye go forth to the places where the Son
went to prepare for every one worthy of them. As to kings of countries, their
armies go forth before them, and prepare for them a dwelling-house for their
honour; but this King of ours, behold, He is gone to prepare for His
worshippers blessed mansions 77 in
which they may dwell. For it was not in vain God created the children of men;
but that they might worship and glorify Him. here and there for ever. As He
passeth not away, so those glorifying Him cease not. Wherefore my death also,
with the disease of which I am bound and lie; as a sleep of the night, let it
be esteemed in your eyes. And remember that with the suffering of the Son,
Death, which snatches away the children of men, passed away and ceased; and
Satan, who causes many to sin and makes war with the true, that they may be
without truth. And as a husbandman who puts his hand to the ploughshare, if he
looks behind,78 the
furrows before him cannot be straight; so also ye who have been called to this
gift of the ministry, be ye cautious, that ye do not
trouble yourselves with the things of this world, lest by chance ye
be impeded as to that to which ye have been called.
As to princes and judges,
who have embraced this faith, be ye loving them, although do not simulate in
any thing, and if they sin, ye reprove them with justice. Ye shall show them
openly your rectitude, that they may be corrected so as not again to conduct
themselves after their own will. This solicitude ye shall have all the
days |44 of your life, that all of you may run after
honest things, as ye also counsel others with respect to them; for in these
things men find their life before God.
But the Law,79 and
the Prophets, and the Gospel, which ye read every day before the people, and
the Epistles of Paul, which Simon Peter sent us from the city of Rome, and the
Acts of the twelve Apostles, which John, the son of Zebedee, sent us from
Ephesus; these Books read ye in the churches of Christ, and with these read not
any others, as there is not any other in which the truth that ye hold is
written, except these books, which retain you in the faith to which ye have
been called. And our lord Abgar the king, and his honoured nobles, who have
heard that which I have spoken before you to day are sufficient to be for me
witnesses after my death, that I have diligently preached the doctrine of our
Lord before every man, and that I have not acquired anything with His word in
the world. For His word by which I have become rich was sufficient for me, and
I have made by it many rich; for it lifts me up in this way in which I go forth
before Christ, who has sent after me, that I should go by it to Him. For ye
know that which I have said to you, "That all the souls of men, which
depart from this body, die not; but they live and rise, and have mansions, and
a dwelling-place of rest, |45 for the understanding
and the intelligence of the soul do not cease, because the image of God is
represented in it, which dieth not. For it is not as the body without feeling
which perceives not the odious corruption which has come upon it. Eeward and
recompense it is not able to receive without it (the body); because that labour
was not its only, but also of the body in which it dwelt. But the rebellious
who know not God, they become penitent then to no purpose. Ye, indeed, who are
of Christ, whose glorious name is placed upon you, and ruleth, He will direct
you in the way of truth, in which, ye shall go and shall arrive at and attain
to that which is promised and kept for those who depart not from Him; but abide
according to what they were called to by our Lord.
And when Addai the
Apostle had said this word, he ceased and was silent. And Aggai, maker of the
king's chains, and Palut, and Abshelama, with the rest of their companions,
answered and said to Addai the Apostle, "Christ Himself has testified that
He sent thee to us, and thou hast taught us the true faith, and hast made us
possess the true life. As we have heard from thee and received, all this time
thou hast been with us, so we abide all the days of our life. And from the
worship of things made and created, which our fathers worshipped, we flee, and
with 80 the
Jews, the crucifiers we will not mix ourselves; and this inheritance, which we
have received from thee, we do not let go, but with it we will depart from this
world. And in the day of our Lord, before the judgment-seat of righteousness,
there will He return to us this inheritance as that thou hast said to us.
And when these things had
been said, Abgar the king, |46 arose, he and his
princes, and all the nobles of his kingdom, and he went to his own palace, when
all of them grieved over him, for he was dying. And he sent to him honourable
and costly garments, in which he should be buried; and when Addai saw them, he
sent word to him, that not in my life have I taken from thee anything, and I
will not falsify in me the word of Christ, which He said to me, "Receive
not anything from man, arid acquire not anything in this world."81 And
after three other days, that these things were said by Addai the Apostle, and
he had heard and received the testimony of the doctrine of his preaching from
the sons of his ministry, before all the nobles, he departed from this world,
and it was the fifth day of the week, in the fourteenth of the month Eyor.82 And
the whole city was in great sorrow and bitter pain; not only Christians
sorrowed for Him, but also Jews and Pagans, who were in this city. But king
Abgar more than any man sorrowed for him, he and the princes of his kingdom.
And in the grief of his |47 mind he despised and
forsook the honour of his kingdom on that day; and with mournful tears he wept
over him with every man. And all the people of the city, who saw him, wondered
at how much he suffered because of him. And with great and excellent honour he
carried and buried him, as one of the princes, when he dies, and he placed him
in a great sepulchre of ornamental sculpture, in which those of the house of
Aryu, the ancestors of the father of king Abgar, were placed. There he placed
him carefully with grief and great sorrow. And all the people of the church
went from time to time, and prayed there diligently, and the commemoration of
his death they made from year to year, according to the command and instruction
which was received by them from Addai the Apostle, and according to the word of
Aggai, who was himself the guide and ruler and the successor of his chair after
him, by the hand of the priesthood, which he had received from him before every
man.
And he also by the hand
from which he received made priests and guides in all this country of
Mesopotamia. For they also, as of Addai the Apostle, thus took his word and
heard and received, as a good and faithful heir of the Apostle of the adorable
Christ. But silver and gold he took not from man, and the gifts of the princes
approached him not. For instead of gold and silver he enriched the Church of
Christ with the souls of the faithful. But all the chiefs 83 of
men and women |48 were modest and decorous, and they
were holy and pure, and they dwelt singly and modestly without spot, in
watchfulness of the ministry decorously, in their carefulness for the poor, in
their visitations to the sick; for their goings forth were full of praise from
those who saw, and their conversation was covered with glory from strangers; so
that even the priests of the temple of Nebo and Bel divided with them the
honour at all times, by their honourable aspect, by their truthful discourse,
by the confidence which they possessed, and by their freedom, which was not
enslaved to greediness, and was not in bondage under blame. For every one who
saw them ran to meet them, that he might honourably salute them; because even
the sight of them spread peace over the beholders. For their words of peace
were spread like nets over the rebellious, when they were entering the fold of
truth and verity. For there was no man who saw them, and was ashamed of them;
because they did not anything which was not just, and which was not becoming,
and in consequence of this their countenances were open in the preaching of
their doctrine to every man. For whatsoever they said to others and directed
them, they exhibited the same by works in themselves; and as to the hearers,
who saw that their works were with their words, many became their disciples
without persuasion, and confessed Christ the king, praising God who had turned
them to Him.
And years after the death
of Abgar the king, one of |49 his rebellious sons,84 who
was not obedient to the truth, arose and sent word to Aggai, when he was
sitting in the Church: "Make me headbands of gold, according to that which
thou didst make for my fathers of old." Aggai sent him word: "I
desert not the ministry of Christ, which has been committed to me by the
disciple of Christ, and make headbands of wickedness." 85 And
when he saw that he did not obey him, he sent, and broke his legs, as he was
sitting in the church and expounding. And as he was dying he made Palut and
Abshelama swear that in this house, for the sake of whose name, behold, I die,
place me and bury me. And as he made them swear, so they placed him within the
middle door of the church, between the men and the women. And there was great
and bitter sorrow in all the church, and in all the city, above the pain of
sorrow, which had been |50 in its interior, as the
sorrow, which had been when Addai the Apostle died.
And because that by the
breaking of his legs he died suddenly and quickly, he was not able to place the
hand upon Palut.86 Palut
himself went to Antioch, and received the hand of the priesthood from Serapion,
Bishop of Antioch. Serapion, Bishop of Antioch, himself also received the hand
from Zephyrinus, Bishop of the city of Rome,87 from
the succession of the hand of the priesthood of Simon Cephas, which he received
from our Lord, who was there Bishop of Rome twenty-five years, in the days of
the Caesar, who reigned there thirteen years.
And as is the custom in
the kingdom of Abgar the king, and in all kingdoms, that everything which the
king commands, and everything that is said before him is written down and
placed among the records, so also Labubna, the son of Sennac, the son of
Abshadar, the king's scribe, wrote these things of Addai the Apostle, from the
beginning to the end. Hannan also, the Tabu-larius, the king's Sharrir, set the
hand of witness, and placed it among the records of the writings of the kings,
where are put the commands and laws, and the contracts of those who
buy and sell are kept there with care, without any negligence.
THE END OP THE DOCTRINE
OF ADDAI THE APOSTLE.
[Footnotes numbered and
moved to end]
1. a Addai. According
to Eusebius, Addai was one of the seventy disciples of Christ. See also p. 5.
2. b Abgar. This
king is called here the son of Ma'nu. Of the twenty-nine kings of Edessa
mentioned by Assemani, in his edition of the Chronicon
Edessenum, Bibl. Or. tom. i. p. 417, ten bore the name of Abgar, and ten
that of Ma'nu. The meaning of Abgar in Syriac is lame. Lower down we
find Abgar called Ukkama. The latter word is a Syriac adjective,
signifying black, and it may have been used because his skin was of a
blackish hue. A previous king of Edessa was called Abgar the Red.
3. c Edessa
is called, in Syriac, Urhai.
4. d The
Seleucian era, which corresponds to B.C. 312-311.
5. e Marihab
and Shamshagram. In regard to many of the proper names in this book, it is
a matter of conjecture where the vowels should be inserted. In these two I have
followed the French translation of the Armenian version. The latter name
Cureton, in a note on Bardesanes, in his Spicilegium Syriacum, p. 77, calls
Shemashgram. In Greek it is written Samyige/ramoj or Samyike/ramoj.
6. a Hannan. This
name is written in Cureton's text according to the Greek form. Further on,
however, in the same text, we have Hanan. He is called in our
text tabularius, but in Cureton's tabellarius. The former
is more probably correct. Perhaps it and the following word, Sharrir, express,
the one in Latin and the other in Syriac, the same office, viz. that of keeper
of the archives. There is a passage in the Chronicle of Edessa, in which those
who were placed over the archives of a city were called the Sharrirs of that
city. Bibl. Or. tom. i. p. 393.
7. b Beth-gubrin.
"Ville connue déjà par Ptolémée, qui écrit Baitograbra_." ---- Lettre
d' Abgar, p. 11. It is still called Beit-jibrin.
8. c Reply. [Syriac]
usually signifies a copy; but here it seems rather to mean
a reply to the letters which were brought to Sabinus.
11. a The
word in Syriac is [Syriac], "the chief," a title of dignity among the
Jews.
12. b [Syriac], spirits. Some
adjective, signifying unclean, such as [Syriac] is perhaps to be
understood with this noun.
13. c From
the expression "it is written," one would infer that these words are
a quotation from the Old Testament; but they are not to be found in any part of
that sacred Book. Our Lord said to Thomas: "Blessed are they that have not
seen, and yet have believed." (St. John xx. 29.) The passage in this reply
is somewhat like these words. Although these words are not found in the Old
Testament, they are like passages there in sense. See Is. vi. 9; lii. 15.
14. a There
is a tradition preserved by Eusebius, see Smith's Dictionary of the Bible,
under 'Jude,' that the true name of Thomas (the twin) was Judas ('Iou&daj
o( kai\ Qwma~j). It is therefore probable that Judas is mentioned in the text to
certify that it was the Apostle Thomas, and not another Thomas, who sent Addai
to Edessa. See also Wright's Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles, p. [Syriac].
15. a Tobias. Moses
of Chorene calls Tobias Prince Juif, and says: "Qu'on dit être
de la race des Pacradouni." It appears, on the same authority, that he did
not abjure Judaism with his relations, but followed its laws up to the time
when he believed in Christ.
16. b Abdu. Moses
of Chorene says of Abdu that he was "Prince de la ville, très honoré dans
toute la maison du roi."
17. c With
a bending of the knees. The Syriac word is [Syriac], which, according to
Castle, means genuflexio, but he cites no instance in which the noun
occurs. The verb is found several times, but the noun is evidently very rare.
Castle himself got the word from Bar Bahul.
18. a Cureton's
text of this document begins here. It is taken from the Nitrian collection in
the British Museum, No. 14,654, at fol. 33. It is contained in one leaf only.
19. b A
long time. The time is not mentioned by Eusebius in his Eccle siastical
History. Moses of Chorene, bk. ii. chap. xxx. p. 217, Histoire
D'Arménie, says that Abgar suffered from a disease which he had caught in
Persia more than seven years before, and that he had obtained no remedy for it
from men.
20. a Moses
of Chorene speaks of Helena as the first wife of Abgar, that she was a pious
woman, and renounced idolatry. He says the tomb of Helena was a very remarkable
one, and was to be seen in his day before the gate of Jerusalem. Book II. c. 35,
ed. Le Vaillant de Florival.
21. a With
this word ends Cureton's text, p. [Syriac].
22. b "L'Histoire
detachée de la première invention de la Croix dit plus clairement que c'était
Claude qui alla centre les Espagnols pendant que Tibere était absent de Rome.
Cette guerre d'Espagne mentionnee ici et plus bas dans la lettre de Tibere a
Abgar n'est citée par aucun auteur Romain: cependant il est très probable que
notre auteur fait allusion aux intrigues et aux spoliations des biens des
hommes les plus riches d'Espagne et de Gaule, faites par l'ordre de Tibère (v.
Suétone, Tiber. 49; Tacite, Annal. vi. 19)."----Lettre d'Abgar, p. 19.
24. a A
leaf is missing in the MS. after fol. 7. It must have been lost at an early
date, and its place is now supplied by a rudely written leaf of the twelfth or
thirteenth century. It fills the gap in the Syriac text, caused by the loss of
the original. This leaf, having become loose, has been bound as fol. 54 of the
MS., in the middle of the Acts of St. John at Ephesus (see Wright's Apocryphal
Acts of the Apostles, p. 3); moreover, it has been reversed in binding, so that
what is really the recto now appears as the verso.
25. a This
story of the finding of the cross is the same in most of its details as that
which is told of the discovery of it by Helena, the mother of Constantine. It
is related of Helena, that on her arrival at Jerusalem, she resolved to lay the
foundation of a church, dedicated to the true God, on Mount Calvary. In
digging, some pieces of wood were discovered, which were recognised as
belonging to the cross of our Saviour. These pieces were sent by Helena to
Constantine.
26. a In
the French translation of the Armenian version this name is called Phocreas,
also Azzai is called Aghi. The orthography of proper names is often modified,
to adapt them to the language in which they appear.
27. a The
French translation has "Avité fils d'Abdékhil." Lower down, the same
name is called Avida.
28. a Labubna. In
the French, translation of the Armenian version, this name is written
Leboubnia. Moses of Chorene has made a change in the consonants; he calls
the name Ghéroupna. Whiston has written the name Lerubnas: "Lerubnas,
Apsadari scribas filius, omnes res gestas Abgari et Sanatrucis conscripsit,
atque in Tabulario Edesseno posuit," p. 146.
29. b Chesrun. There
is mention of this person in Moses of Chorene, lib. ii.: "Abgar s'étant
rendu dans sa ville d'Édesse, se ligua avec Arète, roi de Petra, et lui donna
des troupes auxiliaires, sous la conduite de Khosran Ardzrouni, pour faire la
guerre à Hérode." The name occurs again in p. 237 of the Second Book of
the same work.
30. a [Syriac],
being in apposition with [Syriac] seems to have the meaning given to it
above.
31. b The
word rendered divinity was not very much employed till after the
times of the Apostles, when Christianity had become to some extent a system,
and theological words had begun to be made use of to give it definiteness.
32. c The
words which immediately follow are evidently very similar to what we find in
St. John xiii. 31. There is very little variation between them and the passage
as it is read in the Peshitta version.
33. a This
is a quotation from Isaiah xlviii. 16. The plural
pronoun us for me is the only variation. This may he
because Addai is speaking in the context in the plural number, viz. "the
Prophets of old."
34. b The
sense seems to require Dolath instead of Vau, Beth, before the Syriac word for
Prophets. This suggestion is supported by the Armenian version.
35. c It
is here that Cureton's text recommences, p. [Syriac]. The said text, beginning
here and continuing to the end, is taken from a MS. different from that in
which the previous part of his text appears, viz. from a MS. of the Nitrian
collection in the British Museum, Cod. Add. 14,644.
36. a Il
fait allusion à la confusion, des langues au Sénaar dans la Baby-lonie, qui
n'est pas très loin de la contrée où prêchait S. Thaddée." Lettre d'Abgar.
37. b Paneas,
the same as Caesarea Philippi.
38. c Here
is found another break in Cureton's text, p. [Syriac].
39. d The
sense of this expression I apprehend to be, that erroneous thoughts only fill
the mind with despair of being able to escape a bitter death.
40. a The
text of Cureton is found to recommence at this place, p. [Syriac].
41. b [Syriac],
according to Pratten, is here equal to omnino. Page 15 of Syriac
Documents.
42. c Here
is found another break in Cureton's text. p. [Syriac].
43. a Justice.
[Syriac] is equal in sense to [Syriac]. The former word is not unfrequently found
in old Syriac MSS. See this word a little lower down.
44. b By here and there, understand
this world and the world to come.
45. c Nebo was
an idol of the Babylonians. Traces of this deity are observed in the proper
names, Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, &c. Nebo seems also to have been
worshipped in other places. In Isaiah xlvi. 1, we read that "Nebo
stoopeth." It is supposed that at Dibon, a city of Moab, was a temple to
Nebo. See Selden, "De Diis Syris." Syntagma II. chap. xii.
46. a Bel was
a Babylonian deity. Calmet thinks that the sun was worshipped under this name.
But worshipping the sun is mentioned lower down, and further it must, according
to Addai, have been an object of worship distinct from Bel. The worshippers of
Bel attributed to him the gift of healing diseases, and asserted that he ate
and drank. See the apocryphal story of the Bel and Dragon.
47. b Bath
Nical. It is here stated that this idol was worshipped in Harran. There
does not appear to be much known with any certainty about it. In the history of
Armenia, by Moses of Chorene, translated from the Armenian into French by P. E.
le Vaillant de Florival, liv. ii. c. 27, this goddess is called Pathincagh. One
has not heard of a god called Nical, and therefore it may be inferred
that Bath Nical was a goddess invested with the attribute or attributes implied
in the word [Syriac]. The sense of this word, however, is uncertain. The root
has been supposed to be the Hebrew [Hebrew] 'He was able.' If this be
correct, the distinguishing attribute of this goddess would accordingly
be power. It has also been suggested that, [Syriac] is an epithet of
Venus = [Syriac] = dolio&frwn Afrodi/th.
48. c Taratha. Jacob
of Serug, see Assemani, Bibliotheca Orient. I. 327, mentions this goddess with
others, viz. Nebo, Bel, Sin, Bel-shemin, Bar-Nemre, Gadlat, &c. It is
thought that Taratha, or Atargatis as she was also called, is considered to
have been a correlative of Dagon. Diodorus Siculus says (lib. ii.) that at
Askelon the goddess Derceto or Atargatis was worshipped under the figure of a
woman with the lower parts of a fish. (See Calmet's Dictionary of the Bible,
under Dagon.) Assemani, in a note at the foot of the page cited above, says:
"Tarata, Janus fortasse Syrorum nam Tara est Janua, unde faemininum Tarata, quod
faeminae specie illud idolum colerent. See the discourse of Jacob of Serug, on
the Fall of the Idols, published by M. l'Abbé Martin, in the Zeitschrift of the
German Oriental Society, note and translation, p. 131, for the year 1875. These
four divinities, in Whiston's Latin translation of Moses of Chorene, are
Nabogus, Belus, Bathnicalus and Tharatha.
49. a Here
Cureton's text commences, p. [Syriac].
51. a The
city in which ye dwell, &c. This is a quotation from the message of
our Lord to Abgar. See p. 5. The passage in this message seems to have given
rise to the notion very prevalent and mentioned by several Syriac writers, that
Edessa would be henceforth free from hostile invasion and be especially blessed
and protected by God.
53. a Abgar's
father bore the name of Ma'nu as well as his son; indeed it is said that he had
two sons of that name. This is probably the one who succeeded his father as
king. It was the name of many kings of Edessa. See note p. 1.
54. b Avida.
In Cureton's text it is [Syriac], evidently a mistake in the MS.
55. c Headlands, According
to our Syriac text [Syriac] of [Syriac] has no point to show whether it be a
Dolath or a Resh. In Cureton's text it is a Dolath, but elsewhere we find it a
Resh. As to the meaning of the word, see Dr. Payne Smith's note, cited by
Pratten, Syr. Documents, p. 22.
56. a Piroz. According
to Cureton, this is supposed to be the same name as that of Berosus.
57. b Dancu. Cureton
has [Syriac] Diku.
58. a Silks. So
the Syriac word is translated by Cureton. In Luke vii. 25, we have [Syriac]
rendered by soft raiment. See also Matt. xi. 8. It is probable from
what is here said and referred to by other writers, that the Jews of Edessa
carried on an extensive trade with people of other districts and countries.
59. b The
word [Syriac] is by some translated chains, and by
others silks or muslins. The former rendering is adopted by
Castle, and the latter by Moses of Chorene, and although the word is
translated chains by Dr. Cureton in a note p. 157, he seems to think
it might be more correctly rendered silks. I prefer the former
rendering, because in Numb. xxxi. 50, and Isaiah iii. 22, the former but not
the latter will suit the context.
60. c Abshelama. In
Cureton this name is read Barshelama.
61. d As
the Prophets are mentioned by themselves, the Old Testament here probably means
no more than the Pentateuch. Similarly, as the Acts of the Apostles are named
apart from the New Testament, the latter is probably intended to comprise only
the Gospels.
62. a Diatessaron. In
the text of Cureton is Ditornon. The reading of the MS., he remarks,
is not quite clear, and he is disposed to think that the word ought to
be Diatessaron. The reading of the St. Petersburgh MS., as we see, confirms
Dr. Cureton's supposition. The Diatessaron was that made by Tatian, and was, as
appears from sundry
testimonies, in general
use in the Syrian churches in the second century. It was a volume compiled from
the Four Gospels, and seems to have been publicly read at Edessa up to the
fourth century. Mention is made of it in Asseman. Bibl. Orient, tom. iii.
p. 12: The Gospel which Tatian compiled, and he called it the
Diatessaron, A commentary was written on this work by Ephraim Syrus, according
to what is affirmed by Barsalibe and Bar Hebraeus as recorded in Asseman. Bibl.
Orient, tom. I. pp. 57, 58. The former says that Ephraim illustrated the
Diatessaron with commentaries; and the latter, in speaking of Tatian's volume,
in his work [Syriac], says that the expression "In the beginning was the
word "was elucidated by Ephraim.
63. a According
to Cureton, him.
64. b Water. In
the MS. we have [Syriac] evidently by mistake for [Syriac]. In Cureton's text
the latter word is found.
65. c Nersai. Moses
of Chorene speaks of this king as le jeune Nerseh p. 229. In the same
page is a copy of the Letter which Abgar wrote to Nersai, viz., "Abgar roi
des Arméniens, à mon fils Narseh, salut; J'ai reçu ta lettre et tes hommages;
j'ai déchargé Béroze de ses fers, et lui ai remis ses offenses, si cela te fait
plaisir, donne lui le gouvernement de Ninive. Mais quant à ce que tu m'écris de
t'envoyer ce médecin qui fait des miracles et prêche un autre Dieu supérieur au
feu et à l'eau, afin que tu puisses le voir et l'entendre, je te dirai: Ce
n'était point un médecin selon l'art des hommes, c'était un disciple du fils de
Dieu, créateur du feu et de l'eau, il a été destiné, envoyé aux contrées de
l'Arménie. Mais un de ses principaux compagnons, nommé Simon, est envoyé dans
les contrées de la Perse. Cherche-le, et tu l'entendras, toi, ainsi que ton
père Ardachès. Il guérira tous vos maux et vous montrera le chemin de la
vie."
66. a Olbinus. It
is the opinion of Cureton that this name has been confounded with that of
Albinus, who was made governor of Judaea by Nero, A.D. 62. No person of the
name of Olbinus was governor of Judaea at the time mentioned in the document,
and the opinion referred to is most probably correct, and the mistake arose
from some confusion of the editor.
67. a Aristides. In
the Armenian version, this name is written Artidias, which in the
French translation is corrected according to the reading in the Syriac text.
68. b Ticnutha.
"Cureton lit, mais avec doute, Thicuntha au lieu
de Nuthicontha, noms tous deux inconnus dans la
géographie."----Lettre d'Abgar, p. 45.
69. c Artica. This
word may, by placing different vowels to it, be
pronounced Ortyka, which Cureton thinks was intended
for Ortygia, near to Syracuse, not far distant from Capreae, where
Tiberius resided.
70. a A
great difference is found here between the Syriac text and the Armenian
version. According to the former, Addai had gathered around him the nobles and
chiefs, in order that he might deliver unto them his farewell and dying
discourse, but in the latter it is said that "the Apostle Addai conceived
the thought of visiting the countries of the East and Assyria to preach
there," &c. One statement must be erroneous, and authority obliges us
to conclude that the error is in the Armenian version.
71. b And. We
have a vau in our MS. which is not in Cureton's text, nor is it
supported by the Armenian version; we think, therefore, that the reading should
be, not Bar-Kalba and Bar-Zati, but Bar Kalba, son of Zati.
73. b Lit.
"purgers of the way."
74. c Here
Cureton's text ends.
75. a In
p. 22, we find that that for which our Lord came into the world was altogether
to teach the resurrection of man. Here it is stated, that the whole object for
which our Lord came into the world was that creatures might not again be
worshipped. The author is speaking superlatively. In these days we should in
each case say a great object, &c.
76. b They
spend their time in useless and injurious questions.
79. a We
have already had mention of the Old Testament; and the New of the Diatessaron,
p. 34. Here we have the Holy Scriptures more particularly specified. The New
Testament is described as consisting of the Gospel, the Epistles of Paul and
the Acts of the Apostles. The two latter were probably not written at the time
that Addai was preaching Christianity in Edessa. If the Gospel mentioned be
that of St. Matthew, that might possibly have been then in existence.
80. a Here
Cureton's text recommences.
81. a These
words are not according to the letter, but are certainly in the spirit of the
instructions, which our Lord delivered to the twelve disciples at their
ordination, as we read them in Matt. x. 7-10. Anything like desire or anxiety
for the things of this world, the disciples of Christ were frequently and in
distinct and impressive language warned against by their Master.
82. b Eyor
is the Syriac word for the month of May. In Assemani, Bibl. Orient. tom. ii. p.
392, we find it stated, on the authority of Bar Hebraeus, "that Addai the
Apostle was slain on the 30th of July, and buried in the church, which he
himself had built in Edessa." This date, however, is contradicted in a
foot-note on the same page, in the following terms:----"Amrus Matthaei
filius historicus Nestorianus, qui Chronicon Maris ejusdem sectae scriptoris in
compendium redegit, Addaeum obiise refert, non die 30 Julii, sed 14 Maii. Et
quidem in pervetusto Kalendario Syriaco, quod ad calcem Codicis 32 in fine
hujus tomi subjicitur, die Maii 14, Addaeus decessisse dicitur."
83. a Chiefs. This
is the rendering in the Armenian version, and it seems to me that it is a sense
in accordance with the Syriac text. The Syriac noun, among other meanings,
signifies a prefect or chief. Every chief is the same as all
the chiefs, and so the noun may agree with the plural number of the verb
in the text. The expression thus considered refers to the most distinguished
persons of both sexes. Cureton states that it alludes to those who especially
belonged to the ministry of the church.
84. a It
appears that this rebellious son did not reign till years after the death of
Abgar. There must consequently have been another, who was the immediate
successor of Abgar; and the name of this successor was Ma'nu, who is said to
have reigned seven years, according to what is stated by Assemani, Bibl.
Orient, tom. i. p. 421. The successor of Ma'nu was his brother, also by name
Ma'nu, and he reigned fourteen years. Moses of Chorene, liv. II. ch. xxxiv.,
says of this prince: "Il ouvrit les temples des idoles, embrassa le culte
des païens. Il envoie dire à Attée, 'Fais moi une coiffure en toile tissée
d'or, comme celles que tu faisais autrefois pour mon père.' Il reçut cette
réponse d'Attée: 'Mes mains ne feront point de coiffure pour un prince indigne,
qui n' adore pas le Christ Dieu vivant.' Aussitôt, le roi d'ordonner à un de
ses gens d'armes de couper les pieds à Attée. Le soldat étant allé et ayant vu
le saint personnage assis dans la chaire doctorale, avec son glaive lui coupa
les jambes, et aussitôt le saint rendit l'esprit."
85. b Wickedness. In
Cureton's text the word is in the singular number.
86. a In
p. 39, it is said that Addai made Palut an Elder. It would seem, therefore,
that this whole paragraph, as Cureton observes, must have been introduced into
the text at a later period, and that too by some careless, ignorant person.
87. b In
Cureton's text the word is Rome, which is right. The name found in
our MS. is obviously a mistake.
Abgar
[of Edessa] receiving the Mandylion from Thaddeus, encaustic icon, Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount
Sinai
Энкаустическая
икона. Верхняя часть левой створки триптиха с утраченным средником. «Авгарь
получает Нерукотворный Образ от апостола Фаддея».
(http://www.sindone.info/BARI2.PDF)
The Legend of Abgar
The historian Eusebius records
a tradition (Church History I.12),
which he himself firmly believes, concerning a
correspondence that took place between Our Lord and the
local potentate at Edessa.
Three documents relate to this correspondence:
the letter of Abgar
to Our Lord;
Our Lord's answer;
a picture of Our Lord, painted from life.
This legend enjoyed great
popularity, both in the East and in the West, during the Middle Ages: Our Lord's letter
was copied on parchment, marble, and metal, and used as a talisman or an amulet. In the age
of Eusebius the
original letters, written in Syriac, were thought to
be kept in the archives of Edessa. At the present
day we possess not only a Syriac text, but an Armenian translation
as well, two independent Greek versions, shorter than the Syriac, and
several inscriptions on
stone, all of which are discussed in two articles in the "Dictionnaire
d'archéologie chrétienne et de liturgies" cols. 88
sq. and 1807 sq. The only two works to be consulted in regard to this literary
problem are the "Ecclesiastical History" of Eusebius, and the
"Teaching of Addaï," which professes to belong to the Apostolic age.
The legend, according to
these two works, runs as follows: Abgar, king of Edessa, afflicted with
an incurable sickness, has heard the fame of the power and miracles of Jesus and writes to
Him, praying Him
to come and heal him. Jesus declines,
but promises to send a messenger, endowed with His power, namely Thaddeus (or
Addaï), one of the seventy-two Disciples. The letters of Our Lord and of the
king of Edessa vary
in the version given in Eusebius and in
that of the "Teaching of Addaï." That which follows is taken from the
Teaching of Addaï," as being less accessible than the History of Eusebius:
Abgar Ouchama to Jesus, the Good
Physician Who has appeared in the country of Jerusalem, greeting:
I have heard of Thee, and
of Thy healing; that Thou dost not use medicines or roots, but by Thy word
openest (the eyes) of the blind, makest the lame to walk, cleansest the lepers, makest the deaf
to hear; how by Thy word (also) Thou healest (sick) spirits and those who are
tormented with lunatic demons, and how, again,
Thou raisest the dead to life. And, learning the wonders that Thou doest, it
was borne in upon me that (of two things, one): either Thou hast come down
from heaven, or
else Thou art the Son
of God, who bringest all these things to pass. Wherefore I write to Thee,
and pray that
thou wilt come to me, who adore Thee, and
heal all the ill that I suffer, according to the faith I have in
Thee. I also learn that the Jews murmur against
Thee, and persecute Thee,
that they seek to crucify Thee, and to destroy Thee. I possess but one small
city, but it is beautiful, and large enough for us two to live in peace.
When Jesus had received
the letter, in the house of the high priest of
the Jews, He
said to Hannan, the secretary, "Go thou, and say to thy master, who hath
sent thee to Me: 'Happy art thou who hast believed in Me, not having seen me,
for it is written of me that those who shall see me shall not believe in Me, and
that those who shall not see Me shall believe in Me. As
to that which thou hast written, that I should come to thee, (behold) all that
for which I was sent here below is finished, and I ascend again to My
Father who sent Me, and when I shall have ascended to Him I
will send thee one of My disciples, who shall heal all thy sufferings, and
shall give (thee) health again, and shall convert all who are
with thee unto life eternal. And thy city shall be blessed forever,
and the enemy shall never overcome it.'" According to Eusebius, it was not
Hannan who wrote answer, but Our Lord Himself.
A curious legendary
growth has sprung up from this imaginary occurrence. The nature of Abgar's
sickness has been gravely discussed, to the credit of various writers'
imaginations, some holding that it was gout, others leprosy; the former
saying that it had lasted seven years, the latter discovering that the sufferer
had contracted his disease during a stay in Persia. Other
chroniclers, again, maintain that the letter was written on parchment, though
some favour papyrus. The crucial passage in Our Lord's letter,
however, is that which promises the city of Edessa victory over
all enemies. It gave the little town a popularity which vanished on the day
that it fell into the hands of conquerors. It was a rude shock to those who
believed the legend; they were more ready to attribute the fall of the city
to God's anger against the
inhabitants than to admit the failure of a safeguard which was no less trusted
to at that time than in the past.
The fact related in the
correspondence has long since ceased to be of any historical value. The text is
borrowed in two places from that of the Gospel, which of itself is sufficient
to disprove the authenticity of
the letter. Moreover, the quotations are made not from the Gospels proper, but
from the famous concordance of Tatian, compiled in the
second century, and known as the "Diatessaron", thus fixing the date of the legend
as approximately the middle of the third century. In addition, however, to the
importance which it attained in the apocryphal cycle,
the correspondence of King Abgar also gained a place in liturgy. The decree, "De libris
non recipiendis", of the pseudo-Gelasius, places the letter among the
apocrypha, which may, possibly, be an allusion to its having been interpolated
among the officially sanctioned lessons of the liturgy.
The Syrian liturgies commemorate
the correspondence of Abgar during Lent. The Celtic liturgy
appears to have attached importance to the legend; the "Liber
Hymnorum", a manuscript preserved
at Trinity College,
Dublin (E. 4, 2), gives two collects on the lines of the letter to Abgar. Nor
is it by any means impossible that this letter, followed by various prayers, may have formed
a minor liturgical office
in certain churches.
The account given by Adda
contains a detail which may here be briefly referred to. Hannan, who wrote
at Our Lord's dictation,
was archivist at Edessa and painter to King
Abgar. He had been charged to paint a portrait
of Our Lord, a
task which he carried out, bringing back with him to Edessa a picture
which came an object of general veneration, but which, after a while, was said
to have been painted by Our Lord Himself.
Like the letter, the portrait was destined to be the nucleus of a legendary
growth; the "Holy Face of Edessa" was chiefly
famous in the Byzantine world. A bare indication, however, of this fact must
suffice here, since the legend of the Edessa portrait
forms part of the extremely difficult and obscure subject of the iconography
of Christ, and
of the pictures of miraculous origin
called acheiropoietoe ("made without hands").
Leclercq, Henri. "The
Legend of Abgar." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New
York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 5 Apr.
2023 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01042c.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Michael C. Tinkler.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil
Obstat. March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01042c.htm
Sant' Addai Primo
dei 70 discepoli, Apostolo di Edessa
I-II secelo
Nella chiesa
siro-occidentale si fa memoria il 1° ottobre di Addai, apostolo dell'oriente,
che la chiesa caldea ricorda la quinta domenica di Pasqua. I dati storici su di
lui sono molto scarni. Originario della Palestina, secondo la tradizione egli
sarebbe il primo dei 70 discepoli di cui parla il vangelo secondo Luca. Addai
fu il fondatore della chiesa di Edessa tra il I e il II secolo, mentre un suo
discepolo, Mari, avrebbe fondato la chiesa di Persia. I due apostoli
dell'oriente, Addai e Mari, sono ricordati insieme in varie regioni orientali,
in date che variano da una zona all'altra; la festa più importante è forse
quella che si celebra con una ricca liturgia in Iraq e in Kurdistan il 5 di
agosto.
Ti conoscano tutti gli abitanti della terra, poiché tu solo sei Dio, padre di
verità! Tu hai mandato il nostro Signore Gesù Cristo, tuo Figlio e tuo amato, e
lui, nostro Signore e nostro Dio, ci ha insegnato, per mezzo del suo Evangelo
vivificante, tutta la purezza e la santità dei profeti, degli apostoli, dei
martiri, dei confessori, dei vescovi, dei presbiteri, dei diaconi e di tutti i
figli della chiesa santa e cattolica, coloro che sono segnati dal santo
battesimo.
(dall'Anafora degli apostoli Addai e Mari)
Fonte : www.monasterodibose.it
SOURCE : https://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/98601
San Mari Vescovo
I-II sec.
Il secondo venerdì d'estate, la chiesa caldea e quella assira ricordano mar Mari, apostolo della Siria, della Mesopotamia e della Persia.
Le fonti che narrano la vita di Mari, discepolo di Addai, che sarebbe stato il primo dei settanta(due) discepoli inviati in missione da Gesù, sono tardive e contraddittorie. Con esse ciò che si vuole tuttavia ricordare e affermare è l'origine antichissima delle chiese siro-orientali.
Secondo la tradizione, Mari fu scelto da Addai per continuare la sua missione evangelizzatrice nell'oriente. Ricevuto tale mandato, egli percorse la Mesopotamia orientale, spingendosi a predicare sino ai contrafforti dell'altopiano dell'Iran.
A lui si deve la fondazione delle sedi episcopali di Nisibi, di Kaškar e l'evangelizzazione della regione di Seleucia-Ctesifonte.
Ad Addai e Mari è attribuita una delle più antiche anafore eucaristiche, tuttora in uso nelle liturgie siro-orientali.
I due apostoli sono ricordati insieme in varie regioni orientali, in date che
variano da una zona all'altra; la festa più importante è forse quella che si
celebra in Iraq e in Kurdistan il 5 di agosto, con una ricca liturgia propria.
Degno di gloria da tutte le bocche e di rendimento di grazie da tutte le lingue
è il Nome adorabile e glorioso del Padre, del Figlio e dello Spirito santo, che
creò il mondo con la sua grazia e i suoi abitanti con la sua misericordia;
salvò gli uomini con la sua compassione e fece grande grazia ai mortali.
Ti conoscano tutti gli abitanti della terra, poiché tu solo sei Dio, padre di verità!
Tu hai mandato il nostro Signore Gesù Cristo, tuo Figlio e tuo amato, e lui,
nostro Signore e nostro Dio, ci ha insegnato, per mezzo del suo Evangelo
vivificante, tutta la purezza e la santità dei profeti, degli apostoli, dei
martiri, dei confessori, dei vescovi, dei presbiteri, dei diaconi e di tutti i
figli della chiesa santa e cattolica, coloro che sono segnati dal santo
battesimo.
(Dall'Anafora degli apostoli Addai e Mari)
Fonte : www.monasterodibose.it
SOURCE : https://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/98864
Lunedì, 28 febbraio 2022
Cari Fratelli in Cristo,
con emozione e gioia vi
ritrovo qui a Roma, rappresentanti delle diverse Chiese cristiane in Iraq, a un
anno della visita,
per me indimenticabile, nel vostro Paese. Tramite voi, desidero estendere
il mio cordiale saluto a tutti i pastori e i fedeli delle vostre comunità,
facendo mie le parole dell’Apostolo Paolo: «Grazia a voi e pace da Dio» (Rm 1,7).
Le vostre terre
sono terre degli inizi: inizi delle antiche civiltà del Medio Oriente,
inizi della storia della salvezza, inizi della storia della vocazione di
Abramo. Sono anche terre degli inizi cristiani: delle prime missioni, grazie
alla predicazione dell’Apostolo Tommaso, di Addai e Mari e dei loro discepoli,
non solo in Mesopotamia, ma fino al lontano Oriente. Ma sono anche terre
di esuli: pensiamo all’esilio degli Ebrei a Ninive, e a quello di Babilonia, di
cui ci parlano i profeti Geremia, Ezechiele e Daniele, che sostennero la
speranza del popolo sradicato dalla sua terra. Ma anche molti cristiani della
vostra regione sono stati costretti all’esilio: le persecuzioni e le guerre,
che si sono succedute fino ai nostri giorni, hanno costretto molti di loro a
emigrare, portando in Occidente la luce dell’Oriente cristiano.
Cari Fratelli, se
richiamo questi episodi della storia biblica e cristiana del vostro Paese, è
perché non sono estranei alla situazione attuale. Le vostre comunità
appartengono alla storia più antica dell’Iraq e hanno conosciuto momenti
veramente tragici, ma hanno offerto coraggiose testimonianze di fedeltà al
Vangelo. Di questo ringrazio Dio ed esprimo a voi la mia riconoscenza. Mi
inchino davanti alla sofferenza e al martirio di coloro che hanno custodito la
fede, anche a prezzo della vita. Come il sangue di Cristo, versato per amore,
ha portato riconciliazione e ha fatto fiorire la Chiesa, così il sangue di
questi numerosi martiri del nostro tempo, appartenenti a diverse tradizioni ma
uniti nel medesimo sacrificio, sia seme di unità tra i cristiani e segni una
nuova primavera della fede.
Le vostre Chiese,
attraverso le relazioni fraterne che esistono tra loro, hanno stabilito
molteplici legami di collaborazione nel campo della pastorale, della formazione
e del servizio ai più poveri. Oggi esiste una radicata comunione tra i
cristiani del Paese. Vorrei incoraggiarvi a proseguire su questa strada,
affinché, mediante iniziative concrete, un dialogo costante e ciò che più
conta, l’amore fraterno, si compiano passi avanti verso la piena unità. In
mezzo a un popolo che ha patito tante lacerazioni e discordie, i cristiani
risplendano come un segno profetico di unità nella diversità.
Carissimi, con voi
desidero affermare ancora una volta che non è possibile immaginare l’Iraq senza
i cristiani. Questa convinzione non si basa solo su un fondamento religioso, ma
su evidenze sociali e culturali. L’Iraq senza i cristiani non sarebbe più
l’Iraq, perché i cristiani, insieme ad altri credenti, contribuiscono
fortemente all’identità specifica del Paese: un luogo in cui la convivenza, la
tolleranza e l’accettazione reciproca sono fioriti fin dai primi secoli; un
luogo che ha la vocazione di mostrare, in Medio Oriente e nel mondo, la pacifica
convivialità delle differenze. Nulla, perciò, deve essere lasciato intentato
affinché i cristiani continuino a sentire che l’Iraq è casa loro, e che
sono cittadini a pieno titolo, chiamati a dare il loro contributo alla
terra dove hanno sempre vissuto (cfr Dichiarazione
comune di Papa Francesco e del Catholicos-Patriarca Mar Gewargis III, 9
novembre 2018, n. 6). Per questo, cari Fratelli, Pastori del Popolo di Dio,
siate sempre dediti e solerti ad assistere e confortare il gregge. Siate vicini
ai fedeli affidati alle vostre cure, testimoniando anzitutto con l’esempio e
con la condotta di vita evangelica la prossimità e la tenerezza di Gesù Buon
Pastore.
Voi cristiani dell’Iraq,
che dai tempi apostolici vivete fianco a fianco con altre religioni, avete,
oggi specialmente, un’altra imprescindibile vocazione: impegnarvi affinché le
religioni siano a servizio della fraternità. Infatti, «le diverse religioni, a
partire dal riconoscimento del valore di ogni persona umana come creatura
chiamata ad essere figlio o figlia di Dio, offrono un prezioso apporto per la
costruzione della fraternità e per la difesa della giustizia nella società»
(Lett. enc. Fratelli
tutti, 271). Voi sapete bene che il dialogo interreligioso non è questione
di pura cortesia. No, va oltre. Non è questione di negoziazione o di
diplomazia. No, va oltre. È un cammino di fratellanza proteso alla pace, un
cammino spesso faticoso ma che, specialmente in questi tempi, Dio chiede e
benedice. È un percorso che ha bisogno di pazienza e comprensione. Ma ci fa
crescere come cristiani, perché richiede l’apertura del cuore e l’impegno ad
essere, concretamente, operatori di pace.
Porsi in dialogo è anche
il miglior antidoto all’estremismo, che è un pericolo per gli aderenti di ogni
religione e una grave minaccia alla pace. Occorre però lavorare per sradicare
le cause remote dei fondamentalismi, di questi estremismi che attecchiscono più
facilmente in contesti di povertà materiale, culturale ed educativa, e vengono
alimentati da situazioni di ingiustizia e di precarietà, come quelli lasciati
dalle guerre. E quante guerre, quanti conflitti, quante nefaste interferenze
hanno colpito il vostro Paese! Esso ha bisogno di uno sviluppo autonomo e
coeso, senza che, come troppe volte tristemente accaduto, venga danneggiato da
interessi esterni.Il vostro Paese ha la propria dignità, la propria libertà e
non può essere ridotto a un campo di guerra.
Cari Fratelli in Cristo,
sappiate che siete nel mio cuore e nelle preghiere di tantissime persone. Non
scoraggiatevi: mentre tanti, a vari livelli, minacciano la pace, noi non
distogliamo lo sguardo da Gesù, Principe della pace, e non stanchiamoci di
invocare il suo Spirito, artefice di unità. Sant’Efrem, sulla scia di san
Cipriano, paragonò l’unità della Chiesa alla “tunica inconsutile e indivisa” di
Cristo (cfr Inni alla crocifissione VI,6). Nonostante fosse stato
brutalmente spogliato delle vesti, la sua tunica rimase unita. Anche nella
storia lo Spirito di Gesù custodisce l’unità dei credenti, nonostante le nostre
divisioni. Chiediamo alla Santissima Trinità, modello della vera unità che non
è uniformità, di rafforzare la comunione tra di noi e tra le nostre Chiese. Potremo
così corrispondere all’accorato desiderio del Signore che i suoi discepoli
siano «una sola cosa» (Gv 17,21)!
Vi ringrazio di cuore per
essere venuti e vi propongo ora di recitare insieme la preghiera del Signore,
ognuno nella propria lingua.
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Anaphore des apôtres
Addaï et Mari : http://www.prexeucharistica.org/_pdf/AM/AM-Anaf-04-francese.pdf
