Mercury (saint)
Merkurios (μερκούριος, Latin form: Mercurius ) is the name of a legendary person who is venerated in the Orthodox Church as a great or megalo-martyr .
Nothing certain is known about the dates of life and historicity of Mercury, but the figure is widely attested in legends . There he is considered a soldier saint and is associated with the forty martyrs of Sebaste , who were executed in the 4th century in Lesser Armenia for their belief in Christianity . In the legends about the saints there is a tendency towards more and more cruel tortures . There are also the names Mercurius of Caesarea ( Mercure de Césarée ) and Markorios Abi Seffen (Arabic أبو سيفين, "the owner of two swords") according to a legend according to which the holy Archangel Michael is said to have given him a second sword. The Synaxarium Aethiopicum (around 1400, as a translation of older Egyptian texts) contains the name Marqoryos , for which the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints states that it is composed of the “originally Syrian 'Mār' (ܡܳܪ) and the 'Qoryos' (derived from the Greek Κύριος) ܩܘ̇ܪܝܘ̇ܣ) ”, both of which meant“ Lord ”and also referred to Christ and God. As a Greek name the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints listed Philopater “the one who loves the Father”; this is the name at birth and the saint was given the name Mercurius at baptism .
The Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints gives as dates of life without naming the sources:
The soldier and martyr was born in Cappadocia around 225 as the son of a Roman official who came from the Sketian Desert in Egypt and died around 251 in Caesarea, today's Kayseri . His parents became Christians, and Philopater was also baptized and was given the name Mercurius. At the age of 17 he became a soldier, distinguished himself in the fight against the Persians and, with the help of his Guardian Angel, won a brilliant victory, which brought him the attention of Emperor Decius . He was exposed as a Christian by envious people, tortured and executed because he refused to sacrifice to the goddess Artemis .
In the church history ( Historia Ecclesiastica ) of the church historian Sozomenos , who died around 450 , a vision is described according to which the Roman emperor Julian Apostata was killed by a spear throwing a battle in 363 at heavenly bidding. In the further rich legends the act of a Mār Qorios (Mr. Quorios) or Marqur is seen, which he carried out himself or brought about through prayer. The veneration of this figure as Mercurius is attested for the 5th century in Caesarea in Cappadocia.
Mercurios relics are in the Abbey of S. Sophia in Benevento , which were transferred there from Aeclanum in the Langobardian times . In the monastery of Pantokratoros on Mount Athos , part of the shield of Mercury is venerated as the main relic. The feast day or day of remembrance of St. Mercurius is November 24th in the Orthodox churches, November 21st in the Coptic Church, November 26th in the Armenian Church , and November 25th or 26th in the Latin Church .
literature
- Hans Reinhard Seeliger : Mercury . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 7 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1998, Sp. 145 f .
- Norman Hepburn Baynes: The Death of Julian the Apostate in a Christian Legend. In: Journal of Roman Studies 27 (1937), pp. 22-29.
- T. Orlandi: La leggenda di S. Mercurio e l'uccisione di Giuliano. In: T. Orlandi: Studi copti. Milano 1968, pp. 87-145.
- T. Orlandi: Passione e miracoli di S. Mercurio. Milan 1976.
- Alexandre Piankoff: St. Mercure Abu Seifein. In: Bulletin de la Societé d'archéologique copte 8 (1942), pp. 17-24.
- Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints : (Philopater) Mercurius
Individual evidence
- ↑ Heiligenlexikon.de: BiographienM / Mercurius
- ↑ Heiligenlexikon.de: BiographienM / Mercurius
- ↑ Sozomenos: Historia Eccelsiastica VI, 2, 3 et seq.
- ↑ Johannes Malalas : Chronographia XIII., 332ff; PG 97, 496-500.
- ↑ Hans Reinhard Seeliger: Merkurios . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 7 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1998, Sp. 145 f .