Altruistic World Online Library

by **admin** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:00 pm

St. George & The Dragon
by paintedchurch.org

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

St George & the Dragon : Broughton, Bucks (CCT*) c.1470
Photo: T. Marshall

This incomplete but splendid example of St. George fighting the Dragon fills a large area of the south wall at Broughton. The roof was restored and made lower at some time after it was painted in the later 15th century and the head and shoulders of George himself have gone as a result. Medieval artists invariably painted horses well, but here the Dragon too is very stylishly rendered indeed as St. George thrusts his spear into its mouth. The saint bears his Red Cross on his shield; his elaborate armour helps to date the painting.

But in any case, probably only after the English victory at Azincourt (Agincourt) in 1415 would St. George, who from this point effectively becomes the patron saint of England,² be painted in such bravura fashion - one 14th century painting at Little Kimble in Buckinghamshire and even shows him simply standing with spear and shield. George was said to have appeared above the Azincourt battlefield to rally the English troops, whereas in sad fact, of course, the French defeat, in which a huge proportion of the French aristocracy was wiped out, had more to do with the sodden ground and the skill of the unencumbered English longbowmen.

But English medieval church painters, to their credit, concentrated on the original Legend of the Saint in which he defeats a poison-breathing dragon that has been terrorising the neighbourhood and people. The story is in the Golden Legend and Caxton translated and printed it. The Dragon, unappeased by regular offerings of sheep, was eventually given a human victim chosen by lot. She was the king’s daughter. It was at this point in the story that George attacked the Dragon and led it captive with the princess’s girdle. He promised to destroy it completely if king and people would believe in Jesus Christ and be converted, to which condition they agreed.

One of the most interesting features of this painting is the inclusion of the princess, who is shown as a small figure at the left, in front of some faded painted buildings, probably intended for the king’s palace. To the right of her is something that looks like a lamb. If it is, then specific Christian references to the Agnus Dei and the Virgin (the virginal princess went out to meet her fate dressed as a bride) cluster around the story. It is not far from here to the idea of St. George as ‘Our Lady’s knight’, an idea which has been amplified by the recent discovery of the painting on the orb of the banner-staff in the Wilton Diptych (National Gallery, London). The inscription there reads - ‘This [England] is your dowry, O holy Virgin, wherefore O Mary, may you rule over it’.³

by **admin** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:02 pm

St. George and the Dragon
by Thomas Percy, Reliques of Ancient English Poetry (1765). Percy's source: Richard Johnson, Seven Champions of Christendome (1597).

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

Of Hector's deeds did Homer sing;
And of the sack of stately Troy,
What griefs fair Helena did bring,
Which was sir Paris' only joy:
And by my pen I will recite
St. George's deeds, and English knight.

Against the Sarazens so rude
Fought he full long and many a day,
Where many gyants he subdu'd,
In honour of the Christian way:
And after many adventures past
To Egypt land he came at last.

Now, as the story plain doth tell,
Within that countrey there did rest
A dreadful dragon fierce and fell,
Whereby they were full sore opprest;
Who by his poisonous breath each day,
Did many of the city slay.

The grief whereof did grow so great
Throughout the limits of the land,
That they their wise-men did intreat
To shew their cunning out of hand;
What way they might this fiend destroy,
That did the countrey thus annoy.

The wise-men all before the king
This answer fram'd incontinent;
The dragon none to death might bring
By any means they could invent:
His skin more hard than brass was found,
That sword nor spear could pierce nor wound.

When this the people understood,
They cryed out most piteouslye,
The dragon's breath infects their blood,
That every day in heaps they dye:
Among them such a plague it bred,
The living scarce could bury the dead.

No means there were, as they could hear,
For to appease the dragon's rage,
But to present some virgin clear,
Whose blood his fury might asswage;
Each day he would a maiden eat,
For to allay his hunger great.

This thing by art the wise-men found,
Which truly must observed be;
Wherefore throughout the city round
A virgin pure of good degree
Was by the king's commission still
Taken up to serve the dragon's will.

Thus did the dragon every day
Untimely crop some virgin flowr,
Till all the maids were worn away,
And none were left him to devour:
Saving the king's fair daughter bright,
Her father's only heart's delight.

Then came the officers to the king
That heavy message to declare,
Which did his heart with sorrow sting;
"She is," quoth he, "my kingdom's heir:
0 let us all be poisoned here,
Ere she should die, that is my dear."

Then rose the people presently,
And to the king in rage they went;
They said his daughter dear should dye,
The dragon's fury to prevent:
"Our daughters all are dead," quoth they,
And have been made the dragon's prey:

And by their blood we rescued were,
And thou hast sav'd thy life thereby;
And now in sooth it is but faire,
For us thy daughter so should die."
"0 save my daughter," said the king;
And let ME feel the dragon's' sting."

Then fell fair Sabra on her knee,
And to her father dear did say,
"0 father, strive not thus for me,
But let me be the dragon's prey;
It may be, for my sake alone
This plague upon the land was thrown.

Tis better I should dye," she said,
Than all your subjects perish quite;
Perhaps the dragon here was laid,
For my offence to work his spite:
And after he hath suckt my gore,
Your land shall feel the grief no more."

"What hast thou done, my daughter dear,
For to deserve this heavy scourge ?
It is my fault, as may appear,
Which makes the gods our state to purge;
Then ought I die, to stint the strife,
And to preserve thy happy life."

Like mad-men, all the people cried,
"Thy death to us can do no good;
Our safety only doth abide
In making her the dragon's food."
"Lo! here I am, I come," quoth she,
"Therefore do what you will with me."

"Nay stay, dear daughter," quoth the queen,
"And as thou art a virgin bright,
That hast for vertue famous been,
So let me cloath thee all in white;
And crown thy head with flowers sweet,
An ornament for virgins meet."

And when she was attired so,
According to her mother's mind,
Unto the stake then did she go;
To which her tender limbs they bind
And being bound to stake a thrall
She bade farewell unto them all.

"Farewell, my father dear," quoth she,
"And my sweet mother meek and mild;
Take you no thought nor weep for me,
For you may have another child:
Since for my country's good I dye,
Death I receive most willinglye."

The king and queen and all their train
With weeping eyes went then their way,
And let their daughter there remain,
To be the hungry dragon's prey:
But as she did there weeping lye,
Behold St. George came riding by.

And seeing there a lady bright
So rudely tyed unto a stake,
As well became a valiant knight,
He straight to her his way did take
"Tell me, sweet maiden," then quoth he,
"What caitif thus abuseth thee?

And, lo! by Christ his cross I vow,
Which here is figured on my breast,
I will revenge it on his brow,
And break my lance upon his chest:"
And speaking thus whereas he stood,
The dragon issued from the wood.

The lady that did first espy
The dreadful dragon coming so,
Unto St. George aloud did cry,
And willed him away to go;
"Here comes that cursed fiend," quoth she;
"That soon will make an end of me."

St. George then looking round about,
The fiery dragon soon espy'd,
And like a knight of courage stout,
Against him did most fiercely ride;
And with such blows he did him greet,
he fell beneath his horse's feet.

For with his launce that was so strong,
As he came gaping in his face,
In at his mouth he thrust along;
For he could pierce no other place:
And thus within the lady's view
This mighty dragon straight he slew.

The savour of his poisoned breath
Could do this holy knight no harm.
Thus he the lady sav'd from death,
And home he led her by the arm;
Which when king Ptolemy did see,
There was great mirth and melody.

When as that valiant champion there
Had slain the dragon in the field,
To court he brought the lady fair,
Which to their hearts much joy did yield.
He in the court of Egypt staid
Till he most falsely was betray'd.

That lady dearly lov'd the knight,
He counted her his only joy;
But when their love was brought to light
It turn'd unto their great annoy:
Th' Morocco king was in the court,
Who to the orchard did resort,

Dayly to take the pleasant air,
For pleasure sake he us'd to walk,
Under a wall he oft did hear
St. George with lady Sabra talk:
Their love he shew'd unto the king,
Which to St. George great woe did bring.

Those kings together did devise
To make the Christian knight away,
With letters him in curteous wise
They straightway sent to Persia:
But wrote to the sophy him to kill,
And treacherously his blood to spill.

Thus they for good did him reward
With evil, and most subtilly
By much vile meanes they had regard
To work his death most cruelly;
Who, as through Persia land he rode,
With zeal destroy'd each idol god.

For which offence he straight was thrown
Into a dungeon dark and deep;
Where, when he thought his wrongs upon,
He bitterly did wail and weep:
Yet like a knight of courage stout,
At length his way he digged out.

Three grooms of the king of Persia
By night this valiant champion slew,
Though he had fasted many a day;
And then away from thence he flew
On the best steed the sophy had;
Which when he knew he was full mad.

Towards Christendom he made his flight,
But met a gyant by the way,
With whom in combat he did fight
Most valiantly a summer's day:
Who yet, for all his bats of steel,
Was forc'd the sting of death to feel.

Back o'er the seas with many bands
Of warlike souldiers soon he past,
Vowing upon those heathen lands
To work revenge; which at the last,
Ere thrice three years were gone and spent,
He wrought unto his heart's content.

Save onely Egypt land he spar'd
For Sabra bright her only sake,
And, ere for her he had regard,
He meant a tryal kind to make:
Mean while the king o'ercome in field
Unto Saint George did quickly yield.

Then straight Morocco's king he slew,
And took fair Sabra to his wife,
But meant to try if she were true
Ere with her he would lead his life:
And, tho' he had her in his train,
She did a virgin pure remain.

Toward England then that lovely dame
The brave St. George conducted strait,
An eunuch also with them came,
Who did upon the lady wait;
These three from Egypt went alone.
Now mark St. George's valour shown.

When as they in a forest were,
The lady did desire to rest;
Mean while St. George to kill a deer,
For their repast did think it best:
Leaving her with the eunuch there,
Whilst he did go to kill the deer.

But lo! all in his absence came
Two hungry lyons fierce and fell,
And tore the eunuch on the same
in pieces small, the truth to tell;
Down by the lady then they laid,
Whereby they shew'd, she was a maid.

But when he came from hunting back,
And did behold this heavy chance,
Then for his lovely virgin's sake
His courage strait he did advance,
And came into the lions' sight,
Who ran at him with all their might.

Their rage did him no whit dismay,
Who, like a stout and valiant knight,
Did both the hungry lyons slay
Within the lady Sabra's sight:
Who all this while sad and demure
There stood most like a virgin pure.

Now when St. George did surely know
This lady was a virgin true,
His heart was glad, that erst was woe,
And all his love did soon renew:
He set her on a palfrey steed,
And towards England came with speed.

Where being in short space arriv'd
Unto his native dwelling-place;
Therein with his dear love he livd,
And fortune did his nuptials grace:
They many years of joy did see,
And led their lives at Coventry.

by **admin** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:04 pm

St. George Dedicating Himself to the Virgin
by paintedchurch.org

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

St. George dedicating himself to the Virgin, Astbury, Cheshire (‡Chester) Later C.15
Photo: T. Marshall

A rare English sighting of St. George without the Dragon, but with some other very uncommon contextual details.¹ At the far left and shown left below, George kneels, accompanied by a priest in a white robe and a red-brown cowl, before an altar beside which the Virgin stands at the extreme left. She has almost disappeared, but something of two angels accompanying her, particularly their narrow, diagonally-angled wings, can still be seen. St. George has laid aside his shield for this act of dedication, and it stands, its red cross still detectable, to the right of the priest.

In the center of the painting and shown here below is George’s white horse, saddled and ready. The horizon(?) visible here may show buildings, but it is difficult to be sure.

The scene to the right (detail below) has George standing with a lance, with a kneeling female figure who is almost certainly the the princess in his story, and who is about to become the Dragon’s next victim unless George intervenes. A structure to the right of the princess may be intended for a stone doorway or tower.

It may be that this painting is meant, unusually, to be read from right to left, and that this depiction of the kneeling princess is intended to show her entreating George’s help in the beginning, after which George prays for the assistance of Christ and the Virgin before the combat. On the other hand, the princess may be kneeling in gratitude before her victorious champion. There may once have been other scenes, including the Dragon, painted elsewhere on this north wall, but there is nothing else left now.

There are, however, many other interesting medieval features at Astbury, including a fine stained glass panel showing St. Anne teaching the Virgin to read. The sculpted heads, especially those in the central aisle of the nave are superbly expressive (their expressions are, it must be said, exceptionally grave and serious - no amusing grotesques here). But this is the work of a remarkable craftsman creating images of what were obviously real people. The carved heads behind the altar are modern, but the medieval artist has clearly inspired the modern one.

¹St. Anietus’ church, St. Neot’s, Cornwall has a very full cycle of the Life of St. George in early 16th century stained glass (I have not seen it)

by **admin** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:35 pm

St. George, Patron Saint of Scouting
by pinetreeweb.com

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Two Drawings of Scouts in the role of Saint George.
From Baden-Powell, Scouting for Boys (1908)

SAINT GEORGE AND SCOUTING FOR BOYS

In Scouting for Boys, Baden-Powell wrote of chivalry and the knights of old. He tried to show Scouts a new path to chivalry and honor. Saint George was the Patron Saint of England, and of the Knights of the Garter, the oldest order of chivalry in Europe. They were familiar subjects to most English boys when B-P was writing. Here is what he wrote:

SAINT GEORGE AND UKRAINIAN SCOUTING

To this day, Saint George continues as the Patron Saint of Scouting in many lands. His place in English Scouting is part of a national tradition. But here is an example from a distant land, Ukraine in Eastern Europe.

The illustration and the story are from "Ukrainian Scouting," the newsletter of Plast-Scouting in Ukraine.

ST. GEORGE AND HUNGARIAN SCOUTING

Magyar Cserkészszövetség, the Hungarian Scout Association (HSA), observes Saint George's Day as do Scouts of many lands. The drawing below is from their home page.

Drawing of Sankt Gyorgy, Saint George, Patron Saint of Scouting

SAINT GEORGE IN RUSSIA

Saint George is the Patron Saint of Scouting. His feast day on April 23rd is celebrated by Scouts in many lands, including Russia. Icons of Saint George have been important in the Russian Orthodox Church since early times. These icons come from the Novgorod Icon Gallery of the Novgorod State University in Russia and date from the 12th to the 16th century.

by **admin** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:59 pm

Images of St. George Throughout the Ages: Eastern Icons
by David Woods

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Icon from Novgorod, Russia. c.1130-50

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. c.1170

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. Early 15th cent.

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. Early 15th cent

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. Early 14th cent.

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. Late 15th cent.

Icon from Novgorod, Russia. Early 16th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. 14th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. 15th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. Late 15th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. Early 16th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. 15th cent.

Icon from Ukraine. Early 16th cent.

Late 12th-century, mosaic on wood icon (136 x 65cm), from the Xenophontos Monastery. A companion piece depicts St. Demetrius in similar fashion. See the Treasures of Mt. Athos.

13th-century, wood-relief icon from the Byzantine Museum of Athens.

14th-century icon from The Zograph Monastery of St. George, Mt. Athos.

Painting of St. George, c.1500-20, at The Monastery of St. John, Patmos, Greece.

Early 16th-century tempera icon (37" x 27 9/16"), from Russia, Novgorod School, now in The Menil Collection, Houston, Texas.

Late 17th-century tempera icon (43 5/16" x 27 9/16"), from Greece, now in the Roger Cabal Collection, Paris.

Icon of St. George by Constantine Adrianopolites, dating 1746, from the Patriarchal Church of St. George, Constantinople.

Icon of St. George by Emmanuel Tzanes (1660-80), now housed in the Church of San Salvatore, Chania, Crete.

Marble relief plaque (70 x 65cm), dated 1820, from the Monastery of St.Paul, Mt. Athos. See the Treasures of Mt. Athos.

19th-century (?) icon from Church of St. George, Ain Bourdai, Lebanon. Now in Church of St. George, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

by **admin** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 3:35 am

St. George With the Princess
by paintedchurch.org

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

St George, with the Princess: Little Kimble, Buckinghamshire (Oxford) C.14
Photo: T. Marshall

This is the church of All Saints (there is also a church dedicated to St. Nicholas in Little Kimble), and it still retains many of the paintings of saints which would once have covered the walls. All are fine paintings by an anonymous but very accomplished 14th-century artist.

The elegantly posed saint, standing with shield and lance, rather than on horseback, wears the chainmail armour of the earlier fourteenth century. His white surcoat and the shield in his left hand bear his red cross, and this is repeated in the square ailletes he wears on his shoulders. Beside his right hand is another shield, very obscure now, but once bearing the three lions passant gardant of England. Below the figure, in Lombardic capitals, is an identifying inscription reading GEORGIUS.

There is no sign of the Dragon, although this might once have been shown somewhere near the saint’s right foot. The Princess, however, saved by George from becoming a propitiatory sacrifice to the Dragon, is painted at the upper right. Tristram described her as “holding in her right hand a ball from which hangs in festoon a long thread, its end held in her other hand.”¹. The enlarged detail shown at the right seems to bear this out, but it is much harder to be sure what the details of the ‘ball and thread’ imply. Spinning is an obvious possibility, although the posture seems wrong for that, but in any case, according to the story (more details of which are on the page for St. George at Broughton), the princess, when all had ended happily, led the Dragon by her girdle.

This is what is happening here, I think, and there may even be an element of deliberate mockery in the princess’s triumphantly graceful pose, grasping the ‘reins’ of her vanquished enemy.

The other paintings in the church, which include a St. Francis Preaching to the Birds and a Burial of St. Catherine, are equally skilled and show a similar eye for the telling details of narrative. Three hundred years after they were made, All Saints would become the parish church of the Buckinghamshire landowner John Hampden, who famously defied King Charles 1 over Ship Money.

by **admin** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 3:45 am

The Birth of St. George
by Thomas Percy, Reliques of Ancient English Poetry (1765). Percy's source: Richard Johnson, Seven Champions of Christendome (1597).

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

Listen, lords, in bower and hall,
I sing the wonderous birth
Of brave St. George, whose valorous arm
Rid monsters from the earth:

Distressed ladies to relieve
He travell'd many a day;
In honour of the Christian faith,
Which shall endure for aye.

In Coventry sometime did dwell
A knight of worthy fame,
High steward of this noble realme;
Lord Albert was his name.

He had to wife a princely dame,
Whose beauty did excell.
This virtuous lady, being with child,
In sudden sadness fell:

For thirty nights no sooner sleep
Had clos'd her wakeful eyes,
But, lo! a foul and fearful dream
Her fancy would surprize:

She dreamt a dragon fierce and fell
Conceiv'd within her womb;
Whose mortal fangs her body rent
Ere he to life could come.

All woe-begone, and sad was she;
She nourisht constant woe:
Yet strove to hide it from her lord,
Lest he should sorrow know.

In vain she strove, her tender lord,
Who watch'd her slightest look,
Discover'd soon her secret pain,
And soon that pain partook.

And when to him the fearful cause
She weeping did impart,
With kindest speech he strove to heal
The anguish of her heart.

Be comforted, my lady dear,
Those pearly drops refrain;
Betide me weal, betide me woe,
I'll try to ease thy pain.

And for this foul and fearful dream,
That causeth all thy woe,
Trust me I'll travel far away
But I'll the meaning knowe.

Then giving many a fond embrace,
And shedding many a teare,
To the weïrd lady of the woods
He purpos'd to repaire.

To the weïrd lady of the woods,
Full long and many a day,
Thro' lonely shades, and thickets rough
He winds his weary way.

At length he reach'd a dreary dell
With dismal yews o'erhung;
Where cypress spred it's mournful boughs,
And pois'nous nightshade sprung.

No chearful gleams here pierc'd the gloom,
He hears no chearful sound;
But shrill night-ravens' yelling scream,
And serpents hissing round.

The shriek of fiends, and damned ghosts
Ran howling thro' his ear:
A chilling horror froze his heart,
Tho' all unus'd to fear.

Three times he strives to win his way,
And pierce those sickly dews:
Three times to bear his trembling corse
His knocking knees refuse.

At length upon his beating breast
He signs the holy crosse;
And, rouzing up his wonted might,
He treads th' unhallow'd mosse.

Beneath a pendant craggry cliff,
All vaulted like a grave,
And opening in the solid rock,
He found the inchanted cave.

An iron gate clos'd up the mouth,
All hideous and forlorne;
And, fasten'd by a silver chain,
Near hung a brazed horne.

Then offering up a secret prayer,
Three times he blowes amaine:
Three times a deepe and hollow sound
Did answer him againe.

"Sir knight, thy lady beares a son,
Who, like a dragon bright,
Shall prove most dreadful to his foes,
And terrible in fight.

His name advanc'd in future times
On banners shall be worn:
But lo! thy lady's life must passe
Before he can be born."

All sore opprest with fear and doubt
Long time lord Albert stood;
At length he winds his doubtful way
Back thro' the dreary wood.

Eager to clasp his lovely dame
Then fast he travels back:
But when he reach'd his castle gate,
His gate was hung with black.

In every court and hall he found
A sullen silence reigne;
Save where, amid the lonely towers,
He heard her maidens' plaine;

And bitterly lament and weep,
With many a grievous grone:
Then sore his bleeding heart misgave,
His lady's life was gone.

With faultering step he enters in,
Yet half affraid to goe;
With trembling voice asks why they grieve,
Yet fears the cause to knowe.

"Three times the sun hath rose and set;"
They said, then stopt to weep:
"Since heaven hath laid thy lady deare
In death's eternal sleep.

For, ah! in travel sore she fell,
So sore that she must dye;
Unless some shrewd and cunning leech
Could ease her presentlye.

But when a cunning leech was fet,
Too soon declared he,
She, or her babe must lose its life;
Both saved could not be.

Now take my life, thy lady said,
My little infant save:
And 0 commend me to my lord,
When I am laid in grave.

0 tell him how that precious babe
Cost him a tender wife
And teach my son to lisp her name,
Who died to save his life.

Then calling still upon thy name,
And praying still for thee;
Without repining or complaint,
Her gentle soul did flee."

What tongue can paint lord Albret's woe,
The bitter tears he shed,
The bitter pangs that wrung his heart,
To find his lady dead?

He beat his breast: he tore his hair;
And shedding many a tear,
At length he askt to see his son;
The son that cost so dear.

New sorrowe seiz'd the damsells all:
At length they faultering say;
"Alas! my lord, how shall we tell?
Thy son is stoln away.

Fair as the sweetest flower of spring,
Such was his infant mien:
And on his little body stampt
Three wonderous marks were seen:

A blood-red cross was on his arm;
A dragon on his breast:
A little garter all of gold
Was round his leg exprest.

Three carefull nurses we provide
Our little lord to keep:
One gave him sucke, one gave him food,
And one did lull to sleep.

But lo! all in the dead of night,
We heard a fearful sound:
Loud thunder clapt; the castle shook;
And lightning flasht around.

Dead with affright at first we lay;
But rousing up anon,
We ran to see our little lord:
Our little lord was gone!

But how or where we could not tell;
For lying on the ground,
In deep and magic slumbers laid,
The nurses there we found."

"0 grief on grief!" lord Albret said:
No more his tongue cou'd say,
When falling in a deadly swoone,
Long time he lifeless lay.

At length restor'd to life and sense
He nourisht endless woe,
No future joy his heart could taste,
No future comfort know.

So withers on the mountain top
A fair and stately oake,
Whose vigorous arms are torne away,
By some rude thunder-stroke.

At length his castle irksome grew,
He loathes his wonted home;
His native country he forsakes
In foreign lands to roame.

There up and downe he wandered far,
Clad in a palmer's gown;
Till his brown locks grew white as wool,
His beard as thistle down.

At length, all wearied, down in death
He laid his reverend head.
Meantime amid the lonely wilds
His litttle son was bred.

There the weïrd lady of the woods
Had borne him far away,
And train'd him up in feates of armes,
And every martial play.

by **admin** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 4:23 am

The Golden Legend: St. George
Compiled by Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 First Edition Published 1470
ENGLISHED by WILLIAM CAXTON, First Edition 1483
VOLUME THREE
From the Temple Classics Edited by F.S. ELLIS First issue of this Edition, 1900 Reprinted 1922, 1931

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Of S. George, Martyr, and first the interpretation of his name.

George is said of geos, which is as much to say as earth, and orge that is tilling. So George is to say as tilling the earth, that is his flesh. And S. Austin saith, in libro de Trinitate that, good earth is in the height of the mountains, in the temperance of the valleys, and in the plain of the fields. The first is good for herbs being green, the second to vines, and the third to wheat and corn. Thus the blessed George was high in despising low things, and therefore he had verdure in himself, he was attemperate by discretion, and therefore he had wine of gladness, and within he was plane of humility, and thereby put he forth wheat of good works. Or George may be said of gerar, that is holy, and of gyon, that is a wrestler, that is an holy wrestler, for he wrestled with the dragon. Or George is said of gero, that is a pilgrim, and gir, that is detrenched out, and ys, that is a councillor. He was a pilgrim in the sight of the world, and he was cut and detrenched by the crown of martyrdom, and he was a good councillor in preaching. And his legend is numbered among other scriptures apocryphal in the council of Nicene, because his martyrdom hath no certain relation. For in the calendar of Bede it is said that he suffered martyrdom in Persia in the city of Diaspolin, and in other places it is read that he resteth in the city of Diaspolin which tofore was called Lidda, which is by the city of Joppa or Japh. And in another place it is said that he suffered death under Diocletian and Maximian, which that time were emperors. And in another place under Diocletian emperor of Persia, being present seventy kings of his empire. And it is said here that he suffered death under Dacian the provost, then Diocletian and Maximian being emperors.

Here followeth the Life of S. George Martyr.

S. George was a knight and born in Cappadocia. On a time he came in to the province of Libya, to a city which is said Silene. And by this city was a stagne or a pond like a sea, wherein was a dragon which envenomed all the country. And on a time the people were assembled for to slay him, and when they saw him they fled. And when he came nigh the city he venomed the people with his breath, and therefore the people of the city gave to him every day two sheep for to feed him, because he should do no harm to the people, and when the sheep failed there was taken a man and a sheep. Then was an ordinance made in the town that there should be taken the children and young people of them of the town by lot, and every each one as it fell, were he gentle or poor, should be delivered when the lot fell on him or her. So it happed that many of them of the town were then delivered, insomuch that the lot fell upon the king's daughter, whereof the king was sorry, and said unto the people: For the love of the gods take gold and silver and all that I have, and let me have my daughter. They said: How sir! ye have made and ordained the law, and our children be now dead, and ye would do the contrary. Your daughter shall be given, or else we shall burn you and your house.

When the king saw he might no more do, he began to weep, and said to his daughter: Now shall I never see thine espousals. Then returned he to the people and demanded eight days' respite, and they granted it to him. And when the eight days were passed they came to him and said: Thou seest that the city perisheth: Then did the king do array his daughter like as she should be wedded, and embraced her, kissed her and gave her hls benediction, and after, led her to the place where the dragon was.

When she was there S. George passed by, and when he saw the lady he demanded the lady what she made there and she said: Go ye your way fair young man, that ye perish not also. Then said he: Tell to me what have ye and why weep ye, and doubt ye of nothing. When she saw that he would know, she said to him how she was delivered to the dragon. Then said S. George: Fair daughter, doubt ye no thing hereof for I shall help thee in the name of Jesu Christ. She said: For God's sake, good knight, go your way, and abide not with me, for ye may not deliver me. Thus as they spake together the dragon appeared and came running to them, and S. George was upon his horse, and drew out his sword and garnished him with the sign of the cross, and rode hardily against the dragon which came towards him, and smote him with his spear and hurt him sore and threw him to the ground. And after said to the maid: Deliver to me your girdle, and bind it about the neck of the dragon and be not afeard. When she had done so the dragon followed her as it had been a meek beast and debonair. Then she led him into the city, and the people fled by mountains and valleys, and said: Alas! alas! we shall be all dead. Then S. George said to them: Ne doubt ye no thing, without more, believe ye in God, Jesu Christ, and do ye to be baptized and I shall slay the dragon. Then the king was baptized and all his people, and S. George slew the dragon and smote off his head, and commanded that he should be thrown in the fields, and they took four carts with oxen that drew him out of the city.

Then were there well fifteen thousand men baptized, without women and children, and the king did do make a church there of our Lady and of S. George, in the which yet sourdeth a fountain of living water, which healeth sick people that drink thereof. After this the king offered to S. George as much money as there might be numbered, but he refused all and commanded that it should be given to poor people for God's sake; and enjoined the king four things, that is, that he should have charge of the churches, and that he should honour the priests and hear their service diligently, and that he should have pity on the poor people, and after, kissed the king and departed.

Now it happed that in the time of Diocletian and Maximian, which were emperors, was so great persecution of christian men that within a month were martyred well twenty-two thousand, and therefore they had so great dread that some renied and forsook God and did sacrifice to the idols. When S. George saw this, he left the habit of a knight and sold all that he had, and gave it to the poor, and took the habit of a christian man, and went into the middle of the paynims and began to cry: All the gods of the paynims and gentiles be devils, my God made the heavens and is very God. Then said the provost to him: Of what presumption cometh this to thee, that thou sayest that our gods be devils? And say to us what thou art and what is thy name. He answered anon and said: I am named George, I am a gentleman, a knight of Cappadocia, and have left all for to serve the God of heaven. Then the provost enforced himself to draw him unto his faith by fair words, and when he might not bring him thereto he did do raise him on a gibbet; and so much beat him with great staves and broches of iron, that his body was all tobroken in pieces. And after he did do take brands of iron and join them to his sides, and his bowels which then appeared he did do frot with salt, and so sent him into prison, but our Lord appeared to him the of same night with great light and comforted him much sweetly. And by this great consolation he took to him so good heart that he doubted no torment that they might make him suffer. Then, when Dacian the provost saw that he might not surmount him, he called his enchanter and said to him: I see that these christian people doubt not our torments. The enchanter bound himself, upon his head to be smitten off, if he overcame not his crafts. Then he did take strong venom and meddled it with wine, and made invocation of the names of his false gods, and gave it to S. George to drink. S. George took it and made the sign of the cross on it, and anon drank it without grieving him any thing. Then the enchanter made it more stronger than it was tofore of venom, and gave it him to drink, and it grieved him nothing. When the enchanter saw that, he kneeled down at the feet of S. George and prayed him that he would make him christian. And when Dacian knew that he was become christian he made to smite off his head. And after, on the morn, he made S. George to be set between two wheels, which were full of swords, sharp and cutting on both sides, but anon the wheels were broken and S. George escaped without hurt. And then commanded Dacian that they should put him in a caldron full of molten lead, and when S. George entered therein, by the virtue of our Lord it seemed that he was in a bath well at ease. Then Dacian seeing this began to assuage his ire, and to flatter him by fair words, and said to him: George, the patience of our gods is over great unto thee which hast blasphemed them, and done to them great despite, then fair, and right sweet son, I pray thee that thou return to our law and make sacrifice to the idols, and leave thy folly, and I shall enhance thee to great honour and worship. Then began S. George to smile, and said to him: Wherefore saidst thou not to me thus at the beginning? I am ready to do as thou sayest. Then was Dacian glad and made to cry over all the town that all the people should assemble for to see George make sacrifice which so much had striven there against. Then was the city arrayed and feast kept throughout all the town, and all came to the temple for to see him.

When S. George was on his knees, and they supposed that he would have worshipped the idols, he prayed our Lord God of heaven that he would destroy the temple and the idol in the honour of his name, for to make the people to be converted. And anon the fire descended from heaven and burnt the temple, and the idols, and their priests, and sith the earth opened and swallowed all the cinders and ashes that were left. Then Dacian made him to be brought tofore him, and said to him: What be the evil deeds that thou hast done and also great untruth? Then said to him S. George: Ah, sir, believe it not, but come with me and see how I shall sacrifice. Then said Dacian to him: I see well thy fraud and thy barat, thou wilt make the earth to swallow me, like as thou hast the temple and my gods. Then said S. George: O caitiff, tell me how may thy gods help thee when they may not help themselves! Then was Dacian so angry that he said to his wife: I shall die for anger if I may not surmount and overcome this man. Then said she to him: Evil and cruel tyrant! ne seest thou not the great virtue of the christian people? I said to thee well that thou shouldst not do to them any harm, for their God fighteth for them, and know thou well that I will become christian. Then was Dacian much abashed and said to her: Wilt thou be christian? Then he took her by the hair, and did do beat her cruelly. Then demanded she of S. George: What may I become because I am not christened? Then answered the blessed George: Doubt thee nothing, fair daughter, for thou shalt be baptized in thy blood. Then began she to worship our Lord Jesu Christ, and so she died and went to heaven. On the morn Dacian gave his sentence that S. George should be drawn through all the city, and after, his head should be smitten off. Then made he his prayer to our Lord that all they that desired any boon might get it of our Lord God in his name, and a voice came from heaven which said that it which he had desired was granted; and after he had made his orison his head was smitten off, about the year of our Lord two hundred and eighty-seven. When Dacian went homeward from the place where he was beheaded towards his palace, fire fell down from heaven upon him and burnt him and all his servants.

Gregory of Tours telleth that there were some that bare certain relics of S. George, and came into a certain oratory in a hospital, and on the morning when they should depart they could not move the door till they had left there part of their relics. It is also found in the history of Antioch, that when the christian men went over sea to conquer Jerusalem, that one, a right fair young man, appeared to a priest of the host and counselled him that he should bear with him a little of the relics of S. George. for he was conductor of the battle, and so he did so much that he had some. And when it was so that they had assieged Jerusalem and durst not mount ne go up on the walls for the quarrels and defence of the Saracens, they saw appertly S. George which had white arms with a red cross, that went up tofore them on the walls, and they followed him, and so was Jerusalem taken by his help. And between Jerusalem and port Jaffa, by a town called Ramys, is a chapel of S. George which is now desolate and uncovered, and therein dwell christian Greeks. And in the said chapel lieth the body of S. George, but not the head. And there lie his father and mother and his uncle, not in the chapel but under the wall of the chapel; and the keepers will not suffer pilgrims to come therein, but if they pay two ducats, and therefore come but few therein, but offer without the chapel at an altar. And there is seven years and seven lents of pardon; and the body of S. George lieth in the middle of the quire or choir of the said chapel, and in his tomb is an hole that a man may put in his hand. And when a Saracen, being mad, is brought thither, and if he put his head in the hole he shall anon be made perfectly whole, and have his wit again.

This blessed and holy martyr S. George is patron of this realm of England and the cry of men of war. In the worship of whom is founded the noble order of the garter, and also a noble college in the castle of Windsor by kings of England, in which college is the heart of S. George, which Sigismund, the emperor of Almayne, brought and gave for a great and a precious relique to King Harry the fifth. And also the said Sigismund was a brother of the said garter, and also there is a piece of his head, which college is nobly endowed to the honour and worship of Almighty God and his blessed martyr S. George. Then let us pray unto him that he be special protector and defender of this realm.

by **admin** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 4:37 am

The Passion of St. George (Part 1)
(Translation From E.A.W. Budge (1888), 203-35)
by David Woods

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The Martyrdom of Saint George, the valiant martyr of our Lord Jesus Christ, who completed his strife on the 23rd of the month Pharmuthi, in the peace of God, Amen.

Now in times of old there arose a severe and terrible storm, and a great and mighty storm and persecution came upon the church. In all places the governors had gone astray, and they dragged the preachers of the truth to the altars of the idols, and compelled them all to offer sacrifices to the devilish idols. Thus also did the governor Dadianus, who had acquired dominion and had obtained the rule over the four quarters of the earth. When Dadianus had become chief, he sat upon the tribune, and wrote edicts to be proclaimed throughout the whole world; and these are the things that were written in them. "Inasmuch [p. 204] as a rumour has come to my ears that He to whom Mary gave birth is the God who is alone to be worshipped, and that Apollo and Poseidon and Hermes and Astarte and Zeus and Ezabel (sic) and Uranus and Scamandros and the other gods are not to be worshipped at all, but that Jesus Christ whom the Jews slew is to be worshipped, - I, therefore, write to every place, and to the governors of every land, and to all rulers under the authority of my government to come to me speedily that they may know the decision of my power." Then seventy governors from all parts of the world were gathered together there with so great and mighty a multitude, that the land could not contain them for their number. And Dadianus the governor sat upon the tribune and made them bring forth all the instruments of the torture chamber and lay them before him; and these were they. The brazen bed, the bone smashing choppers, the iron rods (?), the wheels with knives fixed to them, the wooden horses, the wooden [p. 205] gloves, the iron gloves, the tongue slitting knives, the tools for drawing out the teeth, the iron bone borers, the sharp saws, and other implements of cruel torture. And Dadianus swore an oath, saying, "If I find any people of doubtful mind and refusing to worship the gods, I will reverse the commands of my fathers and will torture them with bitter sufferings, I will break in the towers of their hearts, I will smash their heads, I will cut out their brains with sharp knives, I will saw off their shin bones, I will tear open their bodies, and I will cut off their limbs from their bodies." When the multitude heard these things they feared the tortures greatly, and those who wished to become martyrs [refrained] when they considered the numbers of tortures which they ran the risk of suffering; and three whole years went by without anyone daring to say, "I am a Christian."

Now there was a young man whose name was George, the sun of truth and the glorious star betwixt heaven and earth; he was a tribune in the imperial army, and came from Cappadocia. And when he had served his time as tribune and acquired much wealth, he came to the governor Dadianus and wished to be made a count by him. When Saint George had come to the city and saw the frenzied idolatry of the governors and that they had forsaken God, he straightway decided to give up his rank of tribune, saying, "I will become a soldier of my Lord Jesus Christ the King of heaven." And when he had distributed all his wealth and given what he had to the poor, he rushed into the presence of the governors and cried out, saying, "Cease your frenzy, O governors, and proclaim not to be gods the things which are not gods; let the gods who have not made heaven and earth perish ! As for me, I will worship one God, the [p. 206] Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit." The dragon looked at him, and said, "Every person who has gone forth from the benevolent guidance of the gods perishes, and as for us, we worship things which are beneath the heavens, for the gods Fire and Sun appear to us as mighty beings; know now that thou hast not only despised us, but thou hast also despised the righteous gods. Offer sacrifice then to the gods and to Apollo who is the saviour of the whole world, and be convinced that the gods who thou humblest know those who honour and obey them, and know how to punish those who disobey them. And now, tell me from whence thou comest ? what is thy name ? and for what purpose hast thou come hither ?" Saint George answered, and said, "The chief name which I bear is Christian, I am by birth a Cappadocian, I was a soldier in a famous company, and I performed my duties of tribune satisfactorily in Palestine where it served. Who are the gods whom thou wouldst force me to worship, O king ?" The governor said to him, "I desire thee to worship Apollo who hung out the heavens, and Poseidon who made fast the earth." Saint George answered and said, "Neither for thy sake, O evil dragon, nor for that of the governors thy companions will I speak about the righteous ones and thy dead god, but for the sake of these multitudes here present. Whom wouldst thou compel me to worship, O king ? Peter the chosen one of the Apostles, or Apollo who corrupts the whole world ? To which of these would thou have me offer sacrifice ? to Elijah the Tishbite who was an angel upon earth and who walked upon earth and was taken up to the gates of heaven, or to Scamandros the sorcerer who worked enchantments by fire and who led many people astray, who com-[p. 207] mitted adultery with Timetia (Demeter ?), who begat Saar and Sarphat the ophani of the warrior of the city of Pontus, whose deeds were evil and who were cast into the abyss of the sea ? Tell me, O king, to which of these wouldst thou give judgement ? to Samuel who prayed to God, or to Poseidon the destroyer of the ships of the sea ? to Antaeus and Herakles, or to those of the Martyrs and Prophets who wear crowns ? Tell me, O king, to which of these wouldst thou give judgement ? to Jezebel the slayer of the prophets or to Mary the Virgin the mother of my Lord Jesus Christ ? Be ashamed, O king, for the things which thou worshippest are not gods, but deaf idols."

When Saint George had said these things, the governor was greatly enraged and commanded them to hang him upon the wooden horse, and to torture him until his bowels flowed out upon the ground. After these things four quaternions of soldiers [p. 208] laid him out and beat him with leather whips until the flesh of his body was torn in shreds; and they sprinkled salt upon him. And they brought hair sacks with which to excoriate his body until his blood ran like water; but he was patient under these sufferings.

And it came to pass that during that night the Lord appeared to Saint George, and said to him, "Be strong and of good cheer, beloved George, for I will strengthen thee to bear all these sufferings which they have brought upon thee. And I swear by Myself, and by the holy angels, that among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist, and that after thee there shall arise none like unto thee; for behold, I have made thee lord over these seventy governors, and whatsoever thou sayest shall happen unto them. Thou shalt die three times, and I will raise thee up again, but after the fourth time, I Myself will come upon a cloud, and will take thee away to [p. 209] the place of safe keeping which I have prepared for thee for thy holy dwelling; be strong and fear not, for I am with thee." And when He had embraced him He went up to heaven with His holy angels in great glory.

When it was morning the governor commanded, and they brought him before the tribune. Now Saint George was singing a Psalm, saying, "O God, hasten thou to my help, hasten thou to my defence." When he had come to the tribune, he cried out, saying, "O tribune, I and my Lord Jesus Christ have come to thee and thy stone Apollo." And they laid hold of him and tied him with four leather straps, and beat him with leather whips upon his back and belly; and they cast him back again into prison. And Dadianus the governor wrote a letter in which he thus said, "I write to the whole world, greeting. Let any enchanter or magician who can put an end to the magic of this Christian come hither to me, and I will give him much wealth and any territory that he shall ask for, and he shall be second in the kingdom." When this letter had been sent throughout the whole world, behold a man appeared whose name was Athanasius, and he came to the governor and said, "O king, live for ever ! There is nothing which I am not able to perform in thy presence." The governor rejoiced, and said, "What sign wilt thou work before me that I may know that thou art able to put an end to the magic of the Christians ?" Athanasius answered and said, "Let them bring me an ox." And when they had brought him he spake some words in his ears, and he was rent in twain. Athanasius said to Dadianus, "Let them bring me a pair of scales," and they brought them to him; and he threw the one half of the ox into one pan of the scales and the other half into the other, and they were exactly equal, and there was not the least difference between the weight of the two halves. And the governor commanded and they brought Saint George to the tribune, and he said to him, "O George, it is for thy sake that I have summoned this man into my domi-[p. 210] nions; thou must vanquish his magic or he will vanquish thine, thou must slay him or he will slay thee." Saint George looked at the magician and said, "Hasten, my brother, and do unto me speedily whatsoever thou wishest to do, for I see grace drawing nigh unto thee." And straightway Athanasius took a cup, and washed his face in it, and invoked the names of demons over the cup, and gave it to him to drink; and when he had drunk no evil happened to him at all. Athanasius answered and said to George, "My Lord, let me only give thee one other sign, and if no evil befall thee then I will believe upon Him Whom they crucified." Then he took another cup, and washed his face in it, and invoked the names of demons more evil than the first over it, and he gave him the cup to drink; and when the saint had drunk no evil happened to him. When Athanasius saw that no evil had happened to him, he said to him, "O Saint George, thou hast the cross of Jesus Christ the Son of God, who came into the world to save sinners; have mercy upon my soul, and give me the seal of Christ." When Dadianus saw what had happened he was greatly enraged, and commanded them to take the magician outside the city and to slay him with the sword; so he consummated his martyrdom, and was esteemed worthy of everlasting life. And the governor commanded them to throw Saint George into prison until he had decided what he should do with him.

[p. 211] When it was morning the governor commanded a huge wheel to be made with sharp nails and stakes fastened in it; and the wheel was made after the manner in which he commanded it to be made: the upper part of it was like the edge of a knife, and the lower part like a sharp two-edged sword. And the governor commanded them to bring Saint George out of prison and to throw him upon the instrument of torture. When Saint George turned and saw the shape of the cutting part of the machine, that the upper part of it was like the edge of a knife and the lower part a two-edged sword, he said within himself, "Verily, I shall never come forth alive from this instrument." But again, afterwards, he said within himself, "Woe to thee, O George, why hast thou allowed this thought to enter thy heart ? Consider the lot which has come to thee, and remember that the Jews crucified the Lord Himself." And after this he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "O Lord, the unchangeable God, the Ruler of eternity, to Whom belongeth victory, Thou Who givest grace to the martyrs, Whose glory and crown Thou art; Thou who, before Thou hadst created anything, yea, before Thou hadst created the heavens and the earth, didst rest upon the waters, and now Thou restest upon the whole race of man, and knowest Thou place of rest; Who hast spread out the heavens like a chamber, and at Whose command the clouds pour out rain in their season; Who rainest upon the just and the unjust; Who hast weighed the mountains in a balance and the hills in a pair of scales; Who bringest the wind out of Thy store houses; Who hast cast the rebellious angels into the abyss of hell, where they are punished by evil dragons, and fettered and chained with indissoluble bonds; O Thou the least of Whose commands it is impossible to alter; O Lord God Who, in the last days, didst [p. 212] send into the world Thy only begotten Son, Who took upon Himself flesh by the Virgin Mary, and became man, without anyone being able to understand how to find out the manhood of Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, begotten of Thee in very truth; Who did walk upon the face of the sea as upon dry land; Who did feed five thousand men with five loaves of bread, and they were satisfied; Who did rebuke the waves of the sea and their crests were bowed down; come now, O my Lord, come Jesus, and help my infirmity, for I am a sinner; let these sufferings be light upon me, for Thine is the glory, and Thy name is full of glory for ever, Amen."

When he had finished [his prayer and had said] "Amen", they threw him on the wheel, and set it to work; and immediately his body was broken into ten pieces. Then straightway Dadianus lifted up his voice, saying, "Be strong and know, O ye governors, that there is no god save Apollo and Hermes and Zeus and Athene and Scamandros and Hephaistos and Herakles and Poseidon, who work good on the three parts of the sea, and from whose hands kings receive power. Where is now the God of Saint George Whom they call "Jesus", Whom the Jews crucified and slew ? why has He not come and delivered him out of my hands ?" And the dragon of the abyss commanded them to throw his bones outside the city into a dry pit, saying within himself, "Lest the Christians find a bone of his, and build a martyrium over it, and bring up his blood against us."

Now it was the hour for eating, and the governor, together with the sixty-nine governors who were with him, went to eat. And while they were eating there came a great earthquake, and suddenly the sky became overcast with clouds, and there was so great a trembling that mountains split asunder suddenly, the earth shook, and the sea was lashed into billows, and the [p. 213] waves thereof rose to the height of fifteen cubits. And Michael blew with his trumpet, and behold the Lord Jesus came upon His chariot of the Cherubim, and stood on the edge of the pit. And he said to the archangel Michael, "Go down into the pit, and gather together the bones of my son George, for this valiant George thought in his heart, "I shall not escape from this instrument (into which I had allowed him to fall) this time"; that he may believe with all his heart, and know that I alone am able to deliver him." And Michael went down into the pit, and put together the holy body of Saint George: and the Lord took hold of his hand, saying, "O George my beloved, behold, the hand which formed Adam the first man is now about to create thee anew"; and the Lord breathed upon his face and filled him again with life, and He embraced him, and went up to heaven with His holy angels. And Saint George arose in haste from the dead, and went through the squares of the city looking for the governors, and he found them afterwards sitting in judgement. Then he ran into their presence, and said to them, "Do ye not know who I am ?" Dadianus the governor lifted his eyes guiltily, and said to the Saint, Who are thou then ?" The martyr of Christ replied, "I am George whom ye slew yesterday, because ye despiseed my God who could destroy you in a moment." Dadianus continued looking into the face of the Saint, and said to him, "Thou art not he, but his shade", and one said to him, "Perhaps it is some one like him". And Anatolius the general knew him, and said, "Of a truth this is George who has risen from the dead"; and he believed with all his company. Now the number of those [of the army] who believed upon Christ was three thousand and nine and one woman from the multitude. And Dadianus the governor commanded them all to be cast forth outside the city in a desert place, and to be divided into four divisions and to be slain. Thus they consummated their martyrdom at the ninth [p. 214] hour of the Sabbath day on the fifteenth day of Phamenoth, and went to Paradise in glory, and received pardon for their sins.

Then the governor commanded them to bring Saint George to the tribune; and he commanded them to bring an iron bed to which they might bind the righteous man. Then he made them melt lead until it was liquid, and bring a vessel in the shape of an iron ladle and thrust it [full of lead] into his mouth. Then they drove sixty nails through his head into the bed. And Dadianus made them bring a great stone chiselled out to fit his head, and they thrust his head in it, and made it fast with lead, and they rolled him down with the stone [from a high place] and severed his bones one from another; but he bore these tortures with fortitude. Then Dadianus commanded them to remove the stone from him, and to hang him up head downwards, and to tie a large stone to him, and to light a huge fire under him.

After these things the governor commanded to throw him into a bronze "bull" and to drive sharp nails into it: then he commanded them to bring a machine to revolve inside the "bull", that the body of the saint might be broken to pieces by the nails and his limbs become like the particles of dry summer dust; and Saint George bore all these things with fortitude. Then Dadianus commanded them to cast him into prison and to fasten him to the woodwork until he had decided what to do with him or how he should destroy him; now he was very handsome [p. 215] in appearance. And in that night the Lord appeared to him, saying, "Be patient, O George My chosen one, be of good cheer and be not dismayed, for I am with thee, and there shall be great joy in heaven for thy sake and for the sake of thy contest. Behold, thou hast died once and I raised thee up; thou shalt yet die twice and I will raise thee up again. But the fourth time I Myself will come in the clouds, and I will bring thee to the place of safety which I have prepared for thy body. It is I who give strength to thy holy body, and I will make thee to lie down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob; be not sad of heart for I am with thee. Thy martyrdom shall be consummated before these seventy governors, and thou shalt testify of Me before them. And they will torture thee for seven years for My name's sake, but be not sad of heart, but of good cheer." And the Lord saluted him, and went up to heaven with His holy angels, and the valiant martyr of Christ looked after Him, and continued looking until the day rose; and he rejoiced in the encouragement which the Lord had given him.

When it was morning, the governor commanded them to bring Saint George to the tribune. When they had brought him, one of the seventy governors, whose name was Magnentius, said to him, "O George, I seek a sign at thy hands, and if thou do it before me, by our lord the Sun, and by the seventy gods, and by Artemis the saviour of the whole world, I will believe on thy God, and will worship Him nobly." Saint [p. 216] George said to him, "Say what thou wilt ask of me." Magnentius the governor said to him, "Behold there are seventy thrones here, a throne for each of us, and the legs of them are made of various kinds of wood, some fruit-bearing and some not. Now, if thou wilt make manifest that each wooden leg takes root and blossoms through thy prayer; and that each one made of the wood of a fruit-bearing tree gives fruit; and that each one made of the wood of a tree which does not bear fruit puts forth leaves [only]; by this I will believe on thy God." Then Saint George threw himself upon his face and prayed to God a long time, and sighed. And it came to pass that when he had finished his prayer and said "Amen", and was rising up, there was a great trembling and shaking, for the Spirit of God came upon the thrones, and they budded and the legs put forth roots and blossomed: those that were of fruit-bearing trees put forth fruit, and those that were not put forth leaves only. Then Magnentius the governor said to him, "A great god is Herakles who thus manifests his power in dry wood." Saint George answered and said, "Wilt thou compare this blind and dumb idol Herakles with the God who made the heavens and the earth, who made to exist that which did not exist and who can destroy thee with him speddily ?" Dadianus the governor answered and said to Saint George, "O excellent Galilean, I know how I will destroy thee." Then he commanded them to bring a huge saw, and they sawed him in two, and so he yielded up his spirit. And he commanded a large cauldron to be brought [p. 217] and to throw the two parts of the body of the holy man into it, together with lead, and pitch, and animal fat, and bitumen; and they heated them together until they melted, and the flames went up to a great height, and that which was melted flowed hither and thither by reason of the intensity of the flames which rose to a height of fifteen cubits. And they brought pieces from the cauldron to the king, saying, "This (wretched man) has come to an end and is burnt up." And Dadianus commanded them to bury the cauldron and the pieces of the saint which were in it in the earth, lest the Christians should find his remains and build a martyrium over them. When the attendants had finished burying the righteous man and were going away, there was a great trembling in the air and the earth shook to its foundations: and behold the Lord Jesus Christ came down from heaven with His holy angels, and stood over the place wherein the cauldron was buried. And He said to Zalathiel the angel, "Bring up hither the cauldron", and when he had brought it up he laid it down upon the ground. And the Lord, in Whom is might, answered [and said], "O George, my chosen one, arise ! For I am He that raised up Lazarus from the dead, and I now command thee to arise and come forth from the cauldron and stand upon thy feet; I am the Lord thy God." And straightway the nobly valiant man rose up in great power as one who had suffered no pain at all; and every one who saw him marvelled. The Lord said to him, "Be strong and of good cheer, George, my beloved, for there shall be a great joy to thee in heaven and upon earth, and before My Good Father, and before My angels on account of thy contest; be strong, for I am with thee." And He went up to heaven with his holy angels.

[p. 218]And Saint George arose and walked, and sent to the governor, saying, "Behold, I am going about the city, teaching." And the governor straightway commanded them to seize him and to bring him to him to the tribune; and as he was coming he cried out, saying, "O tribune, O tribune, I and my Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God come to thee and thy Apollo."

And behold, a woman whose name was Schollastike cried out to Saint George the martyr of Christ, saying, "O my lord George, my son was yoking his ox in the field, and the ox fell down and died. O my lord, help my poverty, for I know that my lord is able to do so through God." The saint said to her, "Take this staff from my hands, and go to the field and lay it upon the dead ox, and say, "Thus saith Saint George in the name of Jesus Christ, Arise and stand up";" and the woman did as he had told her, and the ox arose straightway. And the woman glorified God, saying, "Blessed is the hour in which thou didst come into this city, verily thou art a prophet and God hath visited His people."

And again Dadianus sent after the martyr. When he had come, Trakiali the governor spake to him, saying, "Concerning the dry wood which budded, we know not of a certainty whether it was thy God who made it bud, or our god. Now behold we have here a sepulchre cut in the rock on the road to the cemetery, and no man knoweth where it is, nor where the opening of it is: but if through thy prayers the bones of those [p. 219] who are buried therin rise, I swear by my lord the Sun, and by the Moon and by Artemis the mother of the gods, that I will believe upon thy God and become a Christian." The blessed George answered and said, "There come to me the words which I have heard in the Gospel, saying, If ye have faith like a grain of mustard seed ye shall say this to the mountain, Depart hence, [and it shall depart], and there shall be nothing impossible to you. But now arise, thou and Dadianus and the governors of Egypt, and open the door of the tomb and bring hither to me the rotten bones of those who are dead, together with their dust." Then the three governors went straightway to the place of the sepulchre and opened the door, but they found no bones at all of the dead; and they took up the bone dust which they found, and brought it to Saint George: and Saint George threw himself down upon his knees, and prayed for the space of an hour. When he had finished his prayer and said, "Amen", there was a mighty trembling, and flashes of lightning shone upon those bones. And there came forth immediately from them five men and nine women and three little children; and when the governors saw what had taken place, they marvelled. Then the governors cried out to one of those who had risen from the dead, and said to him, "What is thy name ?" And he that had risen from the dead answered and said, "My name is Boes." Dadianus said to him, "How many years is it since thou didst die ?", and he replied, "More than two hundred years." Dadianus said to him, "Had Christ come into the world at that time, or not ?", and he that had risen from the dead said, "I do not know, nor [p. 220] did I ever hear that He had come." Dadianus said to him, "On what god dost thou believe ?", and he that had risen from the dead said to him, "Do not force me, O governor, for I am ashamed to say what god I believed on. I believed on a god whom they called Apollo, a stupid, dumb, deaf and blind [idol]. When I left the evil living of this life, I went to live in a place in the river of fire, until I should go where the worm dieth not. Hast thou never heard of the Scriptures of the Christians which say, "Remember me in the day of terror in the place where there is no help, but disquiet and fear." There is no mercy there, neither can the judge be persuaded; but the work which every man hath done shall be laid before His eyes. Then the Judge will answer and say, "Show me each one his work that I may give him his wages, according to that which he hath done;" hear then, O king, and I will tell thee. Every man who lives on earth, and confesses Him whom they crucified, if he bears many sins in his body when he departs from this wicked world, will live in fetters on account of his sins, but on the Lord's day he will have rest because the Lord Jesus looks upon those who are punished on the Lord's day; but as for me, there is no rest at all given to me on the Lord's day because I did not confess Christ's godhead when I lived upon earth. Why then should we confess and worship idols and images which cannot move ?" Dadianus the governor answered and said to him, "Thy sense is destroyed through the length of the time of the tw hundred years." Then he that had risen from the dead looked upon Saint George [p. 221] the martyr of Christ, and said to him, "O my lord the holy martyr of Christ, we beseech thee to give us thy holy baptism of Christ, that we may not fall back again into the punishment in which we were." When Saint George saw their faith, he smote the earth with his foot, and water welled up, and he baptized them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And he said to them, "Depart in peace to Paradise," and they straightway disappeared and were not seen.

And Dadianus the governor was stupefied for a time. Then the governors who were with him said, "This man is a magician, and by his magic has made demons rise up before us, saying, "I have raised the dead"". Dadianus said, "I will now disgrace the whole race of Christians." And he commanded, saying, "Choose me a poor widow woman whose like for poverty there is not in the whole world." And they went round about through the city and found a poor widow, and they put the righteous man with her, wishing to disgrace the Christians. When they had brought the righteous man into the widow's house, he said to her, "Give me some bread for I am hungry." The poor widow woman answered and said to him, "Master, I have no bread in my house." Saint George said to her, "What god dost thou believe on, that thou hast no bread in thy house ?" The woman said to him, "I believe in Apollo and Herakles the mighty imperial gods." Saint George said to her, "Verily it is a just judgement of God that thou hast no bread in thy house." And the woman looked upon his face, and saw that it was like that of an angel of God, and she said within herself, "I will go and beg bread from my neighbours and acquaintances, that I may set it before the man of God, and peradventure by reason of [p. 222] his coming into my house I shall find favour in the sight of my neighbours." And it came to pass that when the poor widow woman had gone out the righteous man sat down by the foot of the wooden pillar in her house; and it straightway took root, and put forth leaves and became a large tree, and towered up fifteen cubits above the house. And behold Michael the archangel came with a table filled with all good things, and the saint ate and was comforted; and the table was filled with bread and every good thing. When the poor widow woman came into her house, and saw the great marvels, that is to say, the table set out within and filled with all good things, and the pillar of dry wood which had taken root, she said in her heart, "The God of the Christians hath remembered the poverty of the widow, and hath brought His martyr into my house to help me the wretched in spirit;" and she straightway threw herself down at the feet of the saint and worshipped him. Saint George answered and said to her, "Rise up and stand upon thy feet, for I am not the God of the Christians, but only His servant, and I endure sufferings for His holy name's sake." And again the woman said to him, "Master, if I have found favour before thee, let me venture to speak one word before thee." The holy man said, "Speak." The woman said to him, "Master, I have here a little boy who is blind, deaf, dumb, and lame, and I am ashamed to show him to my neighbours: if now thou wilt make him see and hear and speak, I will believe upon thy God." The righteous man answered and said, "Bring hither the child to me;" and she brought him from the third storey of [p. 223] her house, and laid him in the bosom of the righteous man. And Saint George prayed over him with his head bowed down over the child lying in his bosom, and he breathed upon him, and the scales fell from his eyes, and he saw straightway with his eyes. The woman said to the saint, "Master, I beseech thee to make him to speak, and to hear with his ears, and to stand up and walk upon his feet." Saint George said to her, "O woman, this is sufficient now, but when I need him to serve me in a matter, I will call him and he shall hear me, and shall go and serve me." And the woman was not able to answer him a word, for she saw that his face was like the face of an angel of God.

And the lawless and impious governor, Dadianus, and the sixty-nine governors who were with him, came out from their meal, and were walking about and enjoying themselves in the open spaces of the city. When the dragon of the abyss, that is to say, Dadianus the governor, saw the tree which had sprung up by means of the righteous man, he asked one of his rulers, "[Whence] is this new sight, this fig tree ?" And he told him, saying "This is the place into which George the mighty saint of the Galileans was cast."

Then the governor commanded to bring him and to set him before the public assembly, and he made them flog him without mercy until his flesh was cut to pieces, [and set fire under him] until his body was consumed through the intensity of the flame; and he made them put vessels of fire upon his head. After these things he made them hang him up to torture him, and they filled iron pots full of fire and placed them under him, [p. 224] until he yielded up his spirit. Then the governor commanded them to take his body and cast it away upon a high mountain, and the dragon said in his heart, "The birds of heaven will come and devour his flesh." When they had taken away the body of the blessed man to a mountain called Siris, the attendants cast it away there, and returned. Now when these devilish attendants had come away from the mountain a short distance, about thirty stadia, there came mighty thunders and lightnings so that the whole mountain shook. And behold the Lord came upon a cloud, and said to Saint George, "O excellent and chosen one, rise up from where thou liest;" and straightway the martyr of Christ arose. And he ran after the attendants, crying out after them, and saying, "Wait a little for me until I come up with you". When the attendants looked back, and saw the righteous man running after them, they glorified God, and threw themselves down at the feet of the saint, and besought him, saying, "Give us the seal of Christ," and the blessed and righteous Saint George baptised them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost. Then they came and stood before the lawless governor, and they all cried out, "We are Christians, openly;" and the kings were speechless with fear by reason of this thing. Then Dadianus commanded them to bring the attendants and to set them before him, and he made them crucify one of them who was called Klaudane and torture him; two others called Lasiri and Lasiriane [p. 225] they put to the sword, and Klekon they threw to the wild beasts.

After these things the governors commanded them to bring Saint George. And Dadianus the governor answered and said to him, "O George, I swear to thee by my Lord the Sun, and by the Moon, and by the Gods, and by their mother Artemis, that I will treat thee kindly like my beloved son, and that I will gladly give thee every thing that thou askest; only hearken to me as a father, and agree with me only so far as to worship the gods." Saint George answered and said to him, "I marvel at the words which thou hast just now spoken. I have been in thy power until this day, why hast thou not spoken them before ? Behold, thou hast put me to the torture for the past seven years, thou hast slain me thrice, I died three times, and three times did my Lord Jesus Christ raise me up; but I never heard these words before from thee until this present. Knowest thou not, O governor, that this race of Christians is one that loves victory, and that it fights against those that fight against it ? But now I rejoice that I can make thy mightiness glad, and I will offer sacrifice to thy great god Apollo whom thou lovest." When Dadianus the governor heard these things, he rejoiced greatly and took hold of the head of Saint George and kissed it. And the righteous man resisted him, saying, "Nay, nay, O governor, for it is not the custom of the Galileans to be thus treated unless they have first worshipped the gods; command that they put me in [p. 226] prison until tomorrow." The governor answered and said to him, "Far be it from me to punish thee henceforth; forgive me for all the sufferings that I have inflicted upon thee, for I wrought them on thee in ignorance. Accept me now as a father, and come, I will take thee into the interior of the palace where Queen Alexandra is resting in her chamber." When the governor had brought him in, he put him in the chamber with Queen Alexandra, and he shut the door upon them both and went out, for it was evening. Then Saint George bowed his knees, and began to pray to God, saying, "O God, my God, there is none like unto Thee among the gods; Thou art the God who doest marvellous things. Why do the heathen cry out and the people imagine vain things ? All the governors and rulers of the earth are gathered together, and they speak against God and against His Christ." Alexandra the Queen answered, and said to the saint, "O George, my master, I am listening unto thee attentively, and I like thy words. Who are these who "cry out" ? Who are these who "imagine [vain things]", and who is "Christ" ? Teach me, I pray thee, that I may know him." Saint George answered, saying, "If thou desirest to know Christ and His Words, O Queen Alexandra, listen. When God had created the heavens and the earth, He took a clod of earth and made a man like unto Him in His own form and likeness; thus he made flesh out of earth. Then again he created sinews in it, and He made the skin and the various other parts of the man, and the eyes, both seeing and unseeing (?), the tongue, the throat, the hands and every thing which is contained in man. Is not that which is within [us] of earth ? And the Lord Christ took upon Himself flesh from the holy Virgin Mary, and became man: He [p. 227] is the God who has raised me up from the dead, and it is for the sake of His Holy Name and of His Good Father, and the Holy Spirit that I have endured sufferings. For Adam's sake, O Queen Alexandra, God made the heavens, and created the sun and the shining moon and the stars and the rest of creation." The Queen answered and said to him, "Explain this matter to me." Saint George said to her, "The idolaters who are in the world today worship abominable things and not God, for they serve soulless idols fashioned by the hands of man, and despise God the creator of the universe." The Queen said to him, "Then are these gods, demons ?" Saint George said to her, "Yes, they are demons." The Queen said to him, "How did the Son of God come into the world ?" Saint George answered and said to her, "Hearken unto me, O Queen Alexandra. The Prophet David saith, "Thou that sittest upon the cherubim, appear, show Thy strength, and come to help us." And again he saith, "He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass", that is, the blessed Virgin Mary. And again the prophet Habakkuk cried out, saying, "O God, I heard the noise of Thee, and I was afraid. I considered Thy works and I was speechless." When the prophet Habakkuk spake these things, he spake truly, for he knew that Jesus Christ would come down into this world, and he feared. And he considered that it was God who would become man, that salvation might be ours, and that HE might deliver us from the hand of the devil, the enemy of all truth, who leadeth astray these seventy wicked governors." The Queen answered and said, "Verily thou speakest well, and hast persuaded me that Christ is the God of the universe; and now I [p. 228] beseech thee to pray for me, that all crafts and wiles of demons and idols may straightway flee awy from me." Saint George answered and said to her, "If thou believest on Jesus Christ who was crucified, no blemish of demons shall draw nigh thee at all." She said to him, "O George, my master, I believe, but I am afraid of the exceeding wicked governor, Dadianus, who devours flesh like a wild beast. Keep the matter secret, and tell no one until I wear the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of Christ; and now let me rest until the morning."

When the morning had come the governor commanded the herald to cry out through the whole city, saying, "Gather together, [O ye people,] to see this mighty Galilean worship Apollo." And the governor commanded them to bring Saint George into the courtyard of the temple where he was to offer sacrifice to Apollo; but Saint George said to the attendants who had come after him, "Go ye to the governor, and I, and the priests, and the ministers of the temple will go to Apollo, and worship him." And the herald continued to gather together with diligence the whole city, both small and great, to see the sight.

When the poor widow woman whose son Saint George had healed, saw this, she straightway uncovered her head and rent her clothes, and set out for the place where the saint was. And she said to him, "O thou who didst raise the dead; who didst make those blind from their birth to see; who didst make to appear those who were dried up and gone to dust; who didst make pieces of wood of fruit-bearing trees to blossom beautifully; who didst make the pillar of my house to take root and become a mighty tree, and didst cause a table to be filled with bread and all good things; who didst manifest forth multitudes of miracles and didst put the devil to shame; wilt thou now go to Apollo and worship [p. 229] him, and put to shame the whole race of Christians ?" When Saint George heard these things, he smiled upon her, and said, "Put down thy child out of thy arms", and she put him down. Saint George said to the little child, "In the name of my Lord Jesus Christ I wish thee to come and be my servant in this matter," and straightway the little boy heard with his ears, and came leaping towards Saint George. Saint George said to him, "Come, go into the temple of Apollo and say to his idol, "George the servant of Christ calleth thee." And the evil spirit which sojourned in the idol cried out within him, saying, "O Nazarene, thou drawest every one to thee, and thou hast sent this little boy to me to disgrace me;" and straightway the idol of Apollo leaped down from his pedestal and came to Saint George. And Saint George answered and said to him, "Art thou the god of the heathen ?" The demon who sojourned in the idol said, "Bear with me a little, and I will tell thee every thing before thou askest me;" and Saint George said to him, "Speak". And he began to speak and to declare everything, saying, "O master, and saint of God, thou art not ignorant that of old time God made a paradise in Eden, towards the east, and that God put in it the man He had made in His own likeness. And God said, "Let the angels come and worship him;" and straightway Michael and all his army of angels came and worshipped him. But I would not worship the man whom God [p. 230} had created, and I disputed the command of God, saying, "O righteous judge, whom the Cherubim full of eyes overshadow, how can I who am more excellent than this man, worship that which is inferior to me ?" Then God was very wroth with me, and He cast me forth from the glory with which I was surrounded, and He cast me forth from heaven like an eagle on a rock, and I was in fetters; and now I live in this idol, and I lead astray the children of men. And I fly and mount up to the firmament of heaven, and I hear the angels praising God, and when I hear the sentence pronounced that a man shall die and go forth from this world, I go to him and inflict sufferings upon him until he blasphemes God." Saint George answered and said to him, "Thou hast not spoken the truth, O creator of [p. 231] lies. Thou wast cast forth from heaven on account of thy pride in having prepared a throne for thyself to sit uon, and for having made thyself equal with Him that is more exalted than thou: and He drove thee suddenly forth from heaven, with all thy hosts, into the depths of the sea." When the spirit heard these things from him, he was speechless, and found not a word to say. And straightway Saint George smote the earth with his foot, and it opened its mouth, and he said to the idol, "Go down now into the abyss, O unclean spirit, and give speech to all the souls that thou hast destroyed;" and the unclean spirit went down straightway into the abyss together with the idol in which he dwelt. And Saint George smote the earth with his foot, and it closed up as it was before. After these things, Saint George unloosed his shoe-latchets, and went to the idol of Herakles, and pulled him down upon the ground, and broke him in pieces. And he said to the other idols, "Go down into the abyss, O gods of the heathen, For I have come against you in anger and wrath." When the priests and the ministers and the attendants who waited upon the idols saw the destruction of their gods, they laid hold of Saint George, and tied his hands behind him, and took him to the governor, and showed him everything that had happened to the gods and to Apollo, saying, "He has been thrown down into the abyss." And it came to pass that when Dadianus the governor heard these things, he was filled with fury, and said to Saint George, "O thou who art worthy of destruction, didst thou not say to me, "I will worship the glorious gods where thou dost worship them ?" and thou saidst that thou wouldst throw incense to them, and yet thou dost use works of magic in this manner; knowest thou not that thy life is in my hands ?" Saint George [p. 232] answered and said to him, "Go and bring Apollo hither to me, and I will worship him before thee." Dadianus said to him, "It has just been told me by the priests that he has gone down into the abyss, and now thou wishest to send me thither alive." Saint George answered and said to him, "If Apollo was the mighty god in whom thou didst trust to deliver thee in the evil day, how was it that he was unable to help himself, and was the first of all thy seventy gods to go to destruction ? When my Lord God cometh to change the heavens and the earth, what wilt thou and what will he in whom thou puttest thy trust do ?" Then the governor in great grief for the destruction of his god Apollo, went into the palace to Queen Alexandra, and said, "I suffer by reason of this race of Christians, and especially through this Galilean George." Queen Alexandra answered and said to the governor, "Have I not told thee many times to let alone this race of Christians ? for their God is the true God, and He will humble thee in thy pride." The governor answered and said to the Queen, "Woe is me, O Alexandra, for I fear that the magic of the Christians has entered into thee;" and he laid hold of the hair of her head, and dragged her along until he brought her to the sixty-nine governors who were with him, and he began to tell them everything that had happened. Then the governors commanded to bring her and to hang her upon the wooden horse to torture her, and she said never a word, but was looking up to heaven. And she looked in the face of Saint George, and said to him, "Pray for me while I suffer these tortures." Saint [p. 233] George answered and said to her, "Bear them patiently for a little, O Queen, that thou may receivest a crown from the jands of my Lord Jesus Christ." And she said to him, "O George, my master, what shall I do, for I have not received holy baptism by the pouring out of holy blood." And while they were taking her away to destroy her, she cried out, saying, "O my Lord, Jesus Christ, behold I have kept the door of my palace open [to Thee], and have not closed it, do thou, O Lord, not close the door of the paradise of joy against me." When Alexandra the Queen had said these things she nobly consummated her martyrdom on the fifteenth day of Pharmuthi at the third hour, and she received her incorruptible crown.

After these things the governors called Saint George and said to him, "Behold thou hast destroyed the Queen, and now we will gain the mastery over thee." And Magnentius one of the governors said, "Let us pass sentence of death upon hin," and the thing pleased them all. Then Dadianus the governor sat down and wrote his sentence of death, saying, "I give George the chief of the Galileans, who hath put the decrees of the governors behind his back, over to the sword; and know, O ye peoples, that we are innocent of his blood this day;" and the sixty-nine governors who were with him signed the writing. Then Saint George went to the place where he should receive his crown, [p. 234] rejoicing. When he had come to that spot, he said to the soldiers who were holding him, "Brethren, bear with me a little, that I may pray for the seventy governors who have tortured me during the last seven years." Then Saint George looked up to heaven, and said, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, who didst send fire from heaven by Saint Elijah to devour the two captains of fifty and their hundred soldiers, let now I pray Thee that same fire come down from Thee and devour these seventy governors and those round about them, that not one of them may be left; for Thine is the glory for ever and ever, Amen." And while he was praying there straightway came forth fire from heaven, and it devoured the seventy governors and their hosts, in number about five thousand. And again the saint asked the soldiers to wait a little longer, and he prayed, saying, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, I see a multitude here wishing to carry away my body, but my body will not suffice for the whole world. I beseech Thee to grant a favour to me, grant that my name may heal all those inflicted by unclean spirits, who shall remember thy servant George. O Lord my God, let every one who is greatly afraid in the place of judgement come forth in peace if he remembers my name; and do Thou write in the Book of Life the name of every one who shall write down my martyrdom and the sufferings which I have endured. If the heavens withhold their rain from the earth, and men make mention of the name of the God of George, I beseech Thee grant that Thy help may support them speedily. O God of truth, for the sake of whose holy name I have suffered these pains, remember all those who shall show kindness to the poor in my name, and forgive them the sins which they have com [p. 235]mitted." And when the saint had said these things in the fervour of his heart, behold the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him, saying, "Come up now into heaven, and rest thyself in the dwelling which I have prepared for thee in the kingdom of My Father which is in heaven. O excellent George, I will fulfil every thing which thou hast asked for, and many other things greater than these." Then Saint George said to the executioners, "Come now, and perform that which has been commanded you;" and he stretched out his neck, and they took off his holy head, and there came forth water and milk. And Jesus Christ took his blessed soul and embraced it and took it up to heaven with Him, and gave it as a gift to His Good Father and the Holy Spirit. Then straightway the earth shook to its foundations, and there were suddenly thunders and lightnings so that no man passed that place for mighty dread. Now all those who became martyrs through Saint George were eight thousand, six hundred and ninety-nine together with Alexandra the Queen. And Saint George consummated his martyrdom on the twenty-third day of the month Pharmuthi, on the Lord's day, at the ninth hour of the day. I Pasikrates the servant of Saint George was with my master until the end of his contest by the sentence of death of the impious governors. I have written down his holy martyrdom, and have added nothing thereto nor taken any thing therefrom; and my Lord Jesus Christ helped me, to Whom together with His Good Father and the Holy Spirit be glory for ever and ever, Amen.

by **admin** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 4:40 am

Part 1 of 2

The Passion of St. George (Part 2)
(Translation From E.A.W. Budge(1888), 236-74)
by David Woods

NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

These are the mighty deeds and miracles which God wrought by the hand of St. George after his martyrdom and after the coming of his body into Diospolis his native city, and after the building of his shrine, which was completed and consecrated on the seventh day of the month Athor, and after the laying of his body within it. Saint Theodosius, Bishop of Jerusalem, recited the mighty deeds and miracles which God wrought by Saint George, and the gracious acts which took place in his holy martyrium when he pronounced the following encomium on the day of his holy commemoration, which is the seventh day of Athor, when there was gathered together a great multitude of the orthodox to celebrate the festival of Saint George in his shrine and to praise our Lord Jesus Christ.

"I will open my mouth in parables, I will declare the things which have been hidden from the beginning, which we have heard and known, and which our fathers have declared unto us." As [p. 237] the Holy Spirit spake by the mouth of David the righteous king, so also will I show forth to you the gifts and the miracles which came to pass through Saint George the mighty martyr of Christ, and what happened to him in the city of Tyre where he consummated [his martyrdom] under Dadianus, the lawless [governor] of the Persians. Now Tyre was the city of king Nebuchadnessar who was king of all the Chaldaeans, and he forsook his city Tyre, and went to Babylon, and built it in a beautiful manner, and fortified it, and made it his royal city. And it came to pass that when they had taken off the head of Saint George it was separated from the body from the ninth hour of the day until sunset; and Pasikrates the servant of Saint George stood by it weeping over it and watching it. and behold God put it into the heart of two of his fellow-servants to come to the city to visit their master, and to learn what had become of him; and [the people] told them, saying, "They have slain him today." And they went and rent their garments, and came to the body, and they found Pasikrates sitting and weeping; and they sat down and wept with him. After these things they rose up together and joined the head of the saint to his body, and it united with it as if it had never been severed at all. And they took the napkin which one of them had on him and wrapped his holy body smeared with blood in it; and they found a new sepulchre near to them outside the city, and they laid the body of the holy man in it until it was morning, and they sat outside the door. And it came to pass on the morrow that they rose up, and went into the city and bought incense and linen; and they brought them and put them around the body of Saint George; and they found that the head had joined on to the body [p. 238] as if he were alive and there was no mark of the sword stroke upon it at all. And the servants marvelled greatly, and believed with all their heart that God had received him to Himself, and that everything which He had promised him while he was alive should in truth be done for him. Then they spread incense over him, and carefully prepared him for burial according to the custom of the country, and they buried him in a sepulchre, and sealed it with seals, and they set Pasikrates outside to watch it. And the two other servants went into the city to labour for their living, and to obtain money wherewith to carry the body of the saint with them to their country. And it came to pass that after they had worked for two months the Lord sent to them there a merchant ship from Joppa laden with merchandise: and when they had sold the cargo the servants of Saint George spake with the sailors, and they agreed with them for a price to take them and the body of Saint George on board; and by the help of God they came to Joppa. When the sailors and the merchant heard that it was the body of Saint George of Melitene of Diospolis who had gone into the country of the Persians, they marvelled greatly at the manner of his martyrdom; and they all arose and worshipped him, and glorified God that they were esteemed worthy of carrying Saint George in their ship. And one of the sailors, Leontius of Jopaa, an acquaintance of Saint George, brought horses and laid the body upon them, and carried it into Saint George's own house [at Diospolis]; and when he arrived there he found Saint George's mother and sisters had gone to their rest. [p. 239] Then the report spread abroad that they had brought the body of Saint George who had been martyred, and whom they had not seen for the past seven years, into the house, and because they were Christians they threw themselves down and worshipped him, weeping and marvelling at the things which had taken place; and again they rejoiced and glorified God that they were worthy of such a gift. Then Pasikrates and the two other servants whose names were Lukios and Kirinneos told the people of the city everything that had happened to their master, and they all marvelled. And they laid the body of Saint George in his house for a week, and they all came and worshipped it. When the great day of the festival came they all assembled in the church, and the martyrdom of Saint George was read to all the believers, and they marvelled at him and especially at all that had happened to him, and they glorified God and His holy martyr. And behold when a certain wealthy nobleman of the city called Andrew, who was of the family of Saint George's mother, heard his martyrdom read, God opened his heart and he listened attentively to the passage [in the martyrdom] which says, "And the Lord appeared unto him, saying, I swear to thee by Myself that no harm shall befall any man who shall confess thy sufferings, for I know that he is flesh and blood. No evil shall happen to any man who is in any necessity whatsoever, whether he be in peril by fearful judgements, or by many waters, or on the mountains, or in any affliction, if he remembers My name and the name of My Father which is in heaven, and the Holy Spirit, and My servant George, and I will deliver him out of every trouble. I will write in the Book of Life the name [p. 240] of any one who shall write down thy martyrdom and thy mighty deeds, and shall manifest forth thy day and the sufferings which thou hast endured in My name. I will never allow to want any good thing in this world during his whole life, the man who shall make a book on thy sufferings and place it in faith in thy shrine; he shall be numbered with my saints. I am the Lord God, and that which I have said will I do. I will take into My kingdom whoever shall build a shrine in thy name, and I will never forsake him. I will cause mighty miracles to take place wheresoever thy body shall be laid; I will make the nations of the earth come to thy shrine and bring thee gifts; and I will gather together to thy shrine all the heathen of the earth, Jews, Samaritans, Persians, the children of Esau and even the barbarians, and they shall bring thee gifts."

When the believing and truly God-loving man Andrew heard of all these cures with which God would benefit the people through him, he received great joy like Jacob when he saw the face of his son Joseph the ruler in Egypt, and he rose up quickly and wrote down his martyrdom and put it in his house, saying, "I will set the memorial of my brother in my house, that his blessing and favour may abide with me forever." And he cried out among the whole multitude, saying, "My brethren, as we have suffered great tribulation for the sake of our brother who was slain with the sword, let us now rejoice exceedingly that he has received great honour in heaven, and verily, because he has thus received freedom of speech before God, he is able to entreat God on our behalf that He may show mercy and help to us in this world and in that which is to come. And now, my brethren, hearken unto me, and let us build a little shrine to his name, and let [p. 241] us lay his body in it, that his blessing and favour may abide with us forever." Then all the people answered with one voice, "Let be done what thou hast said. If thou wilt undertake the matter, we will undertake with thee, that the blessing of the saint may be with us and with our children, and that his blessing may abide in our city forever." And it came to pass that when he heard these things he rejoiced. And he rose up early in the morning, and brought his servants and labourers and the servants of Saint George, and he pulled down the walls and the dwelling of Saint George, and said, "I will not lay my brother's body in strange ground," and the rest of the people of the city helped him and laboured at the holy place. And he deposited the body of Saint George in the church, until they had cleared the ground and could bring it back again. And it came to pass that when they had cleared the place they laid the foundations, and he marked out with straw where the walls should be according to the size of the little shrine, and he built it as well as he could (i.e. according to his means).

The first miracle of Saint George

Now the first miracle which Saint George wrought was in respect of the building of the shrine in which they were to lay his body, in the peace of God, Amen. And it came to pass [p. 242] that Andrew, who had set himself to build the martyrium of Saint George, was lying on his bed one night and thinking within himself, saying, "I have erred in beginning this building, especially as up to this present I see no man who will help me; and I know not whether I can finish it or not. If I do not finish it, men will laugh at me, saying, "This man began to build, and was not able to finish", even as our Savior said." And while he was meditating these things in his heart upon his bed, slumber overtook him and he slept. And behold Saint George appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Andrew, Andrew, knowest thou me ?" and he said, "What is it, master ?" Saint George said to him, "Knowest thou not who I am ?" and Andrew said, "No." When Andrew knew him in his dream, he was astonished, and rose up and cast himself down at his feet and worshipped him, saying, "Art thou alive, O George, my master ?" Saint George said to him, "Thanks be to God, my body is with you, but I live in God by the Holy Spirit. And now I see that thou art downhearted about the shrine which thou hast undertaken to build in my name, in which to lay my body, and I have come to thee to show thee a little wealth belonging to my ancestors out of which thou may payest for the shrine. Be of good cheer, and be not faint of heart, for I will put it into the hearts of the people of this city to help thee. Arise and follow me and I will show thee a place in the room of my house, which thou hast pulled down, wherein thou didst lay my body before thou didst take it into the church." Then Andrew, in his dream, rose up, and followed him. And Saint George took him into the room of his house, and showed him the place and set a mark on it with his finger, [p. 243] and said to him, "Rise up early in the morning and come here, and dig down into this place one cubit, and thou shalt find the blessing which God hath set apart for thee." And when Andrew woke up from his vision he roused his wife, and told her everything which he had seen in his vision, and they marvelled greatly. His wife said to him, "Rise up now this very night, and let us light a lamp, and go to the place of which he told thee, and thou wilt see if we find the mark or not. If we find the mark as thou hast seen in thy vision, then of a certainty it is Saint George who has appeared to thee, and we may in truth believe that we shall find the money even as he hath shown thee." So they two arose, and lit a lamp which the woman carried, and Andrew took a spade in his hand and went to that place at midnight, and when he looked upon the ground he found the mark which the saint had made with his finger in the vision; and Andrew and his wife marvelled greatly, and believed with all their hearts that it was Saint George who had made it. Then the valiant Andrew bound a napkin round his loins, and took the spade in his hand and dug into the earth, and when he had gone down a little way he found a jar having its mouth sealed up with clay (?), and he dug it up and found it untouched. And Andrew and his wife threw themselves upon their faces, and worshipped God and Saint George; and they arose and lifted it up, and carried it into their house, glorfying God. And they made the light to burn brightly, and went into their storehouse that no one in the house might know of their matter, and the woman lighted him with the lamp while he uncovered the jar, [p. 244] which he found to be filled to the top with gold; and they arose and threw themselves upon their faces, and worshipped God and Saint George for the great favour that he had wrought for them. And the man brought out a measure of two hins of gold wherewith he might complete the building of the shrine, and he buried the remainder again, and kept it hid in his house. Now when the morning had come he wished to give a feast to all the city in the name of Saint George, saying within himself, "It is right to give the first-fruits to the Lord;" and he made a great feast for all the poor and infirm and widows and orphans in the city, and he stood up and ministered unto them and rejoiced with them all. And on the morrow he invited all the nobles of the city, and made another great feast for them in the name of Saint George, and he sat at meat with them, and rejoiced with them, because of the blessing which the Lord had vouchsafed to him. While they were eating he arose, and spake with them saying, "Since God hath put it into your hearts to help me, let each one of you give a little, according to his means, that we in our generation may do this great blessing which God hath considered our city worthy of, and build the martyrium of Saint George in our city." And they all answered him with one voice, saying, "We tell thee that we will act according to our power, and, by the will of God we will come to thee, and that which each one of us will find, according to his power, he shall bring to thee." And they all, from the least to the greatest did so each one according to his power, and they counted what came in in the name of Saint George and they found two thousand pounds in gold and one thousand silver satheri. After these [p. 245] things he came to the place where the shrine was to be built to the name of Saint George, and they laid the foundations in the name of God and of Saint George, and they built it well in three years; and they brought the holy martyr into the martyrium; and they brought the holy Bishop of Jerusalem andhe consecrated the shrine. And what a number of miracles took place then ! and what a multitude of unclean spirits came forth in the name of Saint George the holy martyr of our Lord Jesus Christ !

The second miracle of the holy martyr Saint George

And it came to pass when the holy Bishop had consecrated the shrine of Saint George and was bringing up the holy offering, a man came in who had an unclean spirit from his youth, and it used to bring him down to the ground, and inflict sufferings upon him and make him writhe and foam at the mouth; now this man came and stood among the congregation wishing to be blessed with the multitude. And it came to pass that when the Bishop pronounced the trisagion the spirit brought [p. 246] the man down upon the ground and made him writhe and foam at the mouth; then he rose up and stood before the multitude, and cried out, saying, "What hast thou to do with me, O saint of God ? I know who thou art, and that thou art not able to cast me forth from this man, for I am a lunatic, and thou hast no dominion over me, O George." And he began to blaspheme God and Saint George. And Saint George inflicted sufferings upon him and brought him to a pillar. Then Saint George tied his hands behind him, and dragged him up the pillar with his hands tied behind his back, until his head was on a level with the top of the pillar. And all who saw him marvelled and said, "We never saw anyone like this, for behold, his back, with his hands tied behind it, clung to the pillar without fastenings of rope, and his feet did not touch the ground, and he was dragged up the side of the pillar twice without any one touching him, and we have never seen such a miracle as this wrought by any of the martyrs." Now it was Saint George who held the body of the man to torture him, and every one who saw him marvelled at him, and glorified God and Saint George the valiant martyr of our Lord Jesus Christ. After these things Saint George set him free, and he fell down senseless to the ground from the top of the pillar, so that everyone said, "He is dead". And when the salutation of peace had been given they pressed round about him, and marvelled at him, for he was as one dead. And a certain man who had never walked, but was lame from his mother's womb, and who sat begging at the door of the shrine, came in at that moment with the multitude, crawling upon his hands and knees and dragging his feet after him. And he crawled in among the feet of the people until he came to the [p. 247] man who was possessed of a devil. And the man who was possessed of a devil put out his hand and took hold of the neck of the lame man and drew it to him, wishing to take it in his hand, and his legs gave a loud crack and became straight immediately. Then the people took away his neck out of the hands of him that was possessed of a devil, wishing to set him free, and said, "Go forth and depart," and he rose and stood up trembling, and his legs gained strength, and he went forth and departed. And those who knew him ran out after him, but no one could catch him until he came outside the courtyard of the shrine. Then the bishop commanded them to bring him, and the man who was possessed of a devil said, "Forgive me, O holy father, and I will tell thee what I have seen. From my youth up I have been possessed of a devil until to-day, but I never saw him with my eyes except to-day, when, as he was coming to me, I saw fire before me, and I was frightened and fell down on the ground, and I knew nothing until the devil had gone out from me. When the people came to lift me up, it came to pass that [the devil] came to me when I was senseless, and I saw Saint George come in by the altar, and he took hold of my hands and comforted me., and I then saw before my eyes that devil before me in the form of a man, and Saint George inflicted great sufferings uon him. And he took him and dragged him up to the top of the pillar, and he inflicted sufferings upon him, and at last the devil cried out with a loud noise, and swore an oath saying, "I will go out of this man and never return to him again." Then I saw Saint George take hold of him, and lift him up to the top of the pillar, and throw him down upon the [p. 248] pavement, and the devil uttered a loud cry through his nostrils, and came out, and departed. And I knew that I was relieved in my body, and I fell asleep and slumbered, and saw nothing until this lame man looked upon me. When I opened my eyes I saw Saint George holding my hands, and embracing the neack of the lame man, and he beckoned to me, saying, "Hold him tightly." And I held his neck and pulled, and Saint George held his legs and pulled, and his legs gave forth a loud noise; and Saint George let go his legs and beckoned to me to let go his neck, and the man rose up and went away running; and Saint George went up to heaven, and I looke after him." When the Bishop and the multitude who were standing round about him heard these things, they marvelled with a great astonishment, and glorified God and Saint George, saying, "Great are the mighty deeds and favours which God works through him." And the men who were healed became servants of the shrine of Saint George, and served him there day and night until the day of their death. And multitudes of men and women and children who were sick with divers diseases, and fevers, and burnings, and unclean spirits, were healed that day in the shrine of Saint George in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The third miracle of Saint George the holy martyr of Jesus Christ

And it came to pass that when the holy Bishop went into Jerusalem with all those that were with him, they spake of the signs and miracles which had happened through Saint George in the midst of the people. And behold a certain Jew, who [p. 249] was a sorcerer and a thief, and who made men fall asleep by his enchantments while he stole their goods, heard of the mighty deeds and miracles which Saint George wrought, but believed them not. And he said to the multitudes, "The Christians err in praying to this earthly being like ourselves, saying, "Help us, and heal our sicknesses;"" and many Christians strove with this man often, but he continued his great blasphemies after this manner. Now a certain feeble-hearted Christian heard him, and he was very angry and he rose up to contend with him, saying, "God will not allow thee to despise His holy martyr thus, and the saint will revenge himself upon thee and blot thee out;" and they cursed each other with many curses. After these things the Jews answered and said, "Come now and lay a wager with me, I will go into the shrine, and will plunder it and bring out its possessions here without any one knowing it, and I will see what George will do to me." The Christian answered and said, "Lay a wager with me for three pounds in gold. If thou carriest off anything from the shrine of Saint George and bringest it here, we will go into the shrine and make enquiries that we may know of a truth if thou hast carried off anything from the shrine. Then if thou work a month without any evil befalling thee, I will believe thee and will give thee three pounds in gold; but if thou art not able to steal anything from the shrine, and some evil befall thee, thou shalt give me three pounds in gold, and shalt become a Christian." So the matter was thus arranged between them, and they procured witnesses. Then the man who was a sorcerer arose and went into the shrine, and stole some things, and he came out while all were sleeping, and no one knew of the theft; and when he had come outside of the outer door of the shrine, he spake within himself, saying, "Be ashamed [p. 250] now, O Saint George, together with the man who laid a wager with me." And he took counsel with himself as he went along, saying, "I will sell these things for much money, and I will demand the three pounds in gold from the Christian, and I will make him forsake his faith and deny his baptism, and I will see what this dead man George will do unto me." Now as he was pondering these things going along, behold the valiant martyr Saint George came to him in the guise of a soldier, holding a large ox-hide leather whip in his hand, and he said to the man, "My brother, what art thou carrying ? show me." And the Jew was astonished and said, "Friend, I will hide nothing from thee. I have stolen a few things, and since God has led thee across my path, come, take thy portion with me that thou mayest tell no man." Saint George said to him, "Since it is thus, come, let us go into the shrine and divide the thing between us as thou sayest." When he had come to the door of the shrine, Saint George gave him a blow on the head with the whip, saying, "Dost thou know who I am ?" And the thief said to him, "Nay master, I am dead, I am dead, I know not who thou art." Saint George said to him, "I am George;" and when the thief heard this he trembled and fell down upon the ground. Then Saint George took hold of him and dragged him along saying, "Why sayest thou, "I am dead, I am dead", when thou art not dead ? and now come hither and I will make thee to know who I am." Then Saint George bound him in the shrine, and tied the things which he had stolen to him, and suspended him from a beam at the height of three cubits from the ground, and he gave him severe lashes with the whip which he held in hand. O what a number of miracles took place at that time ! and O what a number of cries did the thief utter ! And all those who were asleep woke [p. 251] up, and arose, and came to him wondering what had taken place. And they asked one another, saying, "Who has suspended this man ?" and they said, "Who could have reached up as far as this from the ground ?" and the thief confessed what he had done, and told every one what had hasppened to him. And they marvelled and said, "Let us fetch a ladder and let him down", but the steward answered, "As God liveth, no one shall let him down until he that suspended him lets him down;" so they left him tied up thus until it was morning, that everyone might see him. And the thief confessed that he had laid a wager with a Christian in Jersusalem, and he cried out, "O George my master, have mercy upon me and I will never put forth my hand to steal again from any man from this hour, but I will henceforth become a Christian, and I will never return to the working of magic as of old;" and he wept the whole of the day, being suspended from the beam, until the morning came and everyone saw him. When Saint George saw the fixedness of his intention, he had compassion upon him, and he came in the night and let him down; and the thief gave the things that he had stolen to the steward. And it came to pass that on the morrow he wrote a letter and sent it by the hands of a servant of the shrine to his wife and relatives in Jerusalem, and told them what had happened to him. He wished moreover to become a Christian, but shame would not allow him to enter Jerusalem. When his relatives had received and read the letter, they marvelled at the mighty things which had happened through Saint George. And when the Christian who had laid a wager with him heard it, he rejoiced greatly, and went and announced in all Jerusalem what had happeneed to the Jew in the shrine of Saint George; and all who heard glorified God. And his wife and children and all his [p. 252] neighbours and a multitude of Jews arose and came to him, and he told them everything that had happened to him, and they all feared greatly, and were baptized on that day in the shrine of Saint George in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost; and they glorified God for ever.

The fourth miracle of Saint George the holy martyr

Now the name of Saint George and the report that he wrought mighty deeds and signs, and miracles, and cures, and that he cast out devils spread abroad everywhere. And there was a certain man in the land of the Persians, called Nicanor, who was ruler over a third part of the Persians, and he had a son called Anatolius, whose body and face were covered in leprosy. And when he heard of the mighty deeds and miracles which God wrought by the hand of Saint George, he cried out with a cry, saying, "If God and Saint George heal the leprosy on the face of my son, I will dedicate a hundred pounds of gold to the shrine of Saint George and I and all my house will become Christians." and it came to pass that when he had thus vowed he rose up on the morning of the morrow and the face of his son was healed, and there was no trace of leprosy in it. When Nicanor the ruler of the Persians saw this great miracle which had taken place in his son, he rose up and took the gifts which he had vowed, and much money, and Anatolius his son and his brethren and the multitudes of Persians who came with him, and they rose up and embarked in ships and came to the shrine of Saint George, and they washed his son in the bath and anointed [p. 253] him with the oil in the lamp, and his whole body was healed straightway. And he made his gift, and was baptized with those who were with him in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and they glorified God and Saint George for the favour which had happened to them. And it came to pass that when they came to their own land they built a large church, and called it by the name of Saint George; and they sent to Antioch and brought the God-loving Bishop, and he consecrated the church in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost and Saint George. And a multitude of Persians received holy baptism on that day, men, women, and children. When many of them that were sick saw the young man that had been healed of his leprosy in the shrine of Saint George, they believed, and went into the shrine, and were healed straightway; and they glorified God and Saint George for ever.

The fifth miracle of Saint George the holy martyr

Now there were two Samaritans who were partners in business, and they wanted to buy one hundred pounds worth of merchandise. And they rose up and saddled their asses, and took their money with them, and they mounted them wishing to go into Damascus to buy their merchandise. And while they were travelling along the road and were talking with each other about the mighty deeds and miracles which Saint George wrought, the night fell upon them. And it came to pass that while they were talking and were yet two or three miles from the town, behold there came forth against them out of the wood, two hungry, roaring and ravening lions, as it is written, "He maketh darkness, and it is night in which all the beasts of the earth go about. [p. 253] The young lions roar and raven and seek their food." When the asses saw the wild beasts which were coming out against them, they ran away terror-stricken, and the men fell down off them half dead with fright. And the wild beasts stood still near the men wishing to devour them, but they did not pursue the animals, neither did they come up to the men; and they stood still near them and glared(?) upon them. Then the men spake with one another, saying, "If God and Saint George deliver us from themouths of these wild beasts we will give this hundred pounds in gold to Daint George's shrine, and become Christians." And it came to pass that when they had thus vowed their vow to God, that the Good God, who desires the salvation of all men, and who made the lions to be at peace with Daniel the prophet, inclined the hearts of these two lions, and they bowed down their heads, and turned into the woods and departed. And the men whose minds had thus been quieted knew that it was Saint George who had vouchsafed to them this gift, and they glorified God and His holy martyr. When they had gone along the road a little they found their asses grazing and unharmed, and they got upon them and came into the town; and they spake with each other and with the people of everything which had happened to them. And every one who heard marvelled at the mighty deeds and miracles of Saint George; and the men of the city spake to them, saying, "These wild beasts have destroyed several men, and multitudes of animals of this district, but glory be to Saint George who hath delivered you from this wrath." After these things the two merchants took counsel with each other, saying, "What we have vowed to the shrine of Saint George let us [p. 255] perform as a thanksgiving to the glory of God, and let us become Christians in very truth and not turn back. And as we have come so far let us go into Damascus, and buy our merchandise, that we may make a little profit wherewith to make a requital." When they had come to Damascus they saw some precious stones called diamonds which they bought for one hundred pounds in gold; and when they came into Jerusalem they sold them for two hundred pounds in gold before they reached their native city in Samaria. Then the men spake with each other saying, "Thanks be to God that Saint George hath considered us worthy of this great favour." And it came to pass that when they had come into their city they told their kinsfolk and all the people of the mighty deeds and miracles which God had done to them. And they arose and took the hundred pounds in gold which they had vowed to give to the shrine of Saint George, and they proclaimed throughout the city, saying, "Let him that loveth God come into the shrine of Saint George with us;" and numbers of men and women in Samaria came forth with them. When they had come into the holy shrine they gave in theirgift and saw the mighty miracles, and the many cures of the sick, and the many devils which were cast out, and they all rose up and received baptism in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. And one hundred and fifty-three souls became Christians that day in the shrine of Saint George in the peace of God, Amen. [p. 256]

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