Eustathius of Mtskheta

Eustathius of Mtskheta
(icon by Mikhail Sabinin , 1882);
in the background the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral of Mtskheta

Eustathius of Mtskheta , Georg. ევსტათი მცხეთელი Evstat'i Mtskhet'eli , († around 550) is an Orthodox saint and martyr who is venerated especially in Georgia . After he converted from Zoroastrianism to Christianity , he was executed by the Persian military authorities. This is reported by the anonymous Passio of Eustathius of Mtskheta , one of the earliest works of Georgian literature, which is dated to the 6th century, first edited for print by Mikhail Sabinin (1882).

Thereafter, Eustathius, originally Gvirobandak , was a shoemaker and the son of a Persian Zoroastrian priest from Ganzak . After converting to Christianity, he fled in 541 to the already largely Christianized Caucasian Iberia , which at that time was under Persian rule. He settled in Mtskheta and married a Christian. The city's Persian shoemaker's guild denounced him and seven other Persian converts to the Sassanid Marzban . He had them captured, had their noses pierced and sentenced to death. After six months, however, he was removed from office and released as a "parting gift" for the local population. Four years later, the new Marzban Eustathius was imprisoned again. He gave an extensive confessional speech before the court in Tbilisi , which makes up almost half of the martyrs' report that has been handed down. Finally the Marzban had him beheaded, albeit reluctantly.

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b} Donald Rayfield (2000), The Literature of Georgia: A History , pp. 44-45, ISBN 0-7007-1163-5
2. ^ David Marshall Lang (1976), Lives and Legends of the Georgian Saints , pp. 95-99. Mowbrays: London and New York .