Holy Martyrs, the Brothers Isaak and Ioseb the Georgians (†808)

Memory 16 (29) September

The holy martyrs Isaak and Ioseb the Georgians were born into a Muslim family, but their Georgian mother, a Christian, secretly raised them according to the Christian tradition. The brothers were so firmly dedicated to the Faith that they journeyed to Byzantium to request that Emperor Nicephorus I Phocas (802–811) permit them to settle in his capital. The pious ruler extended a warm welcome to the brothers, who were already well known and respected by the nobility of Theodosiopolis (Karnu).

Learning of the brothers’ intention, the emir of Theodosiopolis demanded to know the reason for their journey to Constantinople. The brothers answered him openly, citing their Christian Faith as the reason for their journey. Hearing this, the emir was infuriated, but he did not want to kill the brothers, since they were deeply respected by the people of his city. Instead he resolved to convert them from the Christian Faith.

Isaak and Ioseb’s elderly father tearfully pleaded with them to deny Christ, while the emir promised them every honor and reward for betrayingHim, and terrible suffering and death in the case of their refusal.

But the holy brothers answered the emir, saying, “Remember that the flesh is like grass and every glory of this earth is like a flower that grows in the grass. When the grass withers, the flower also dies (c.f. Isaiah 40:6–7). Your threats of torture and death are for us rather absurd, for neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:38–9).”

The young men’s boldness enraged the emir, and he ordered his servants to execute them.

Before the holy brothers gave up their souls, they knelt to the ground and prayed: “O Holy King and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, look down upon Thy servants with mercy and receive us as a holy sacrifice. Number us among Thy martyrs and make us worthy of the crown of righteousness, for every good and perfect gift is from above and comes down from Thee, the Father of lights (c.f. James 1:17)!” Then they bowed their necks beneath the sword.

The executioners chopped off their heads, leaving their bodies untouched. That night their holy remains shone with a radiant light. This miracle frightened the godless persecutors, and they ordered the local Christians to bury the holy martyrs’ remains. The local bishop and clergy committed their bodies to the earth with great reverence. A church was later erected over the place where Sts. Isaak and Ioseb were laid to rest.

O Holy Martyrs Isaak and Ioseb, remember us who honor your holy memory and intercede with Christ God for the remission of our sins!

Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze


For further information on the book THE LIVES OF THE GEORGIAN SAINTS by Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze contact St. Herman Press:
St. Herman Press, P.O. Box 70, Platina, CA 96076
http://www.stherman.com/catalog/chapter_five/Lives_of_the_georgian_saints.htm

10/5/2007

Venerable Abba Ioseb of Alaverdi (†570) Venerable Abba Ioseb of Alaverdi (†570)
Commemorated 15/28 September Venerable Abba Ioseb of Alaverdi (†570) Venerable Abba Ioseb of Alaverdi (†570)
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
Blessed Abba Ioseb of Alaverdi was a disciple and companion of St. Ioane of Zedazeni, who in the 6th century arrived in Georgia with twelve Syrian ascetics to spread the Christian Faith.With the blessing of his teacher, Fr. Ioseb settled in the village of Alaverdi in eastern Georgia. According to tradition, he carried with him a cross formed from the wood of the Life-giving Cross of our Savior.
The Lives of the Georgian Saints The Lives of the Georgian Saints
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze The Lives of the Georgian Saints The Lives of the Georgian Saints
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
Since the time of the ancient Greek historians, Georgia has been viewed as an enigma hidden behind impenetrable mountains and a complex language. Little has been written about this small country and its saints. Now, Pravoslavie.Ru presents the entire collection of the Lives of the Georgian saints which has been translated for the first time into English. These lives encompass the seventeen hundred years of Orthodox Christianity in Georgia. The stories of ascetics and bishops, warriors and noblemen are intertwined with the tumultuous history of the Georgian land.
Holy Martyrs Bidzina, Shalva, and Elizbar (†1661) Holy Martyrs Bidzina, Shalva, and Elizbar (†1661)
Commemorated September 18/October 1 Holy Martyrs Bidzina, Shalva, and Elizbar (†1661) Holy Martyrs Bidzina, Shalva, and Elizbar (†1661)
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
In the 17th century the Persian aggressors razed churches, monasteries, and fortresses and drove out thousands of Georgian families to resettle them in remote provinces of Persia. The deserted territories were settled by Turkic tribes from Central Asia. In the chronicle The Life of Kartli it is written: “The name of Christ was not allowed to be uttered, except in a handful of mountainous regions: Tusheti, Pshavi, and Khevsureti.”
See also
Holy Martyrs Metropolitan Nazar of Kutaisi-Gaenati, Priests German, Ieroteos and Simon, Archdeacon Besarion, and All the New Martyrs of the Totalitarian Regime (†1924) Holy Martyrs Metropolitan Nazar of Kutaisi-Gaenati, Priests German, Ieroteos and Simon, Archdeacon Besarion, and All the New Martyrs of the Totalitarian Regime (†1924)
Commemorated August 14/27 Holy Martyrs Metropolitan Nazar of Kutaisi-Gaenati, Priests German, Ieroteos and Simon, Archdeacon Besarion, and All the New Martyrs of the Totalitarian Regime (†1924) Holy Martyrs Metropolitan Nazar of Kutaisi-Gaenati, Priests German, Ieroteos and Simon, Archdeacon Besarion, and All the New Martyrs of the Totalitarian Regime (†1924)
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
Metropolitan Nazar of Kutaisi-Gaenati was born in 1872 in the village of Didi Jikhaishi in Imereti. His forefathers belonged to a long lineage of clergy, and the future metropolitan was nurtured in the Church from the earliest years of his youth. Holy Martyrs Killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos (13th century) Holy Martyrs Killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos (13th century)
Commemorated May 13/26 Holy Martyrs Killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos (13th century) Holy Martyrs Killed by the Latins at the Iveron Monastery on Mt. Athos (13th century)
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
Georgian monks began to settle on Mt. Athos in the middle of the 10th century, and a Georgian monastery, Iveron, was founded there not long after. At that time foreign armies were constantly invading Mt. Athos. In the 13th century the Crusaders stormed through the region, and between 1259 and 1306 the pope’s private army devastated Mt. Athos several times. Holy Martyr Sukia and His Sixteen Companions (ca. 100–130) Holy Martyr Sukia and His Sixteen Companions (ca. 100–130)
Commemorated April 15/28 Holy Martyr Sukia and His Sixteen Companions (ca. 100–130) Holy Martyr Sukia and His Sixteen Companions (ca. 100–130)
Archpriest Zakaria Machitadze
The holy martyrs Sukia, Andrea, Anastasi, Talale, Teodorite, Ivkirion, Iordane, Kodrate, Lukiane, Momnanos, Nerangios, Polievktos, Iakob, Poka, Domentian, Bictor, and Zosime were Georgian noble lords who served the Albanian government (in the southeastern Transcaucasus) in the 1st century a.d.

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