In
his letter to Fabian, the Bishop of Antioch, St. Dionysius of
Alexandria speaks of Christians who suffered martyrdom under the Emperor
Decius. Many were driven to flee into the desert where they suffered
hunger, exposure, and died prey to either wild beasts, or at the hand of
men just as wild. A good number were also sold into slavery.
St. Dionysius
particularly mentions a very old man, the Bishop of Nilopolis, by name
of Chaeremon who, with a companion, disappeared into the mountains of
Arabia. Though a search was carried out, not even their bodies were
found.
In the same letter St. Dionysius also mentions the name of
Ischyrion, the procurator of a magistrate of Egypt. When ordered by the
Egyptian official to sacrifice to the idols, Ischyrion refused so
steadfastly that neither abuse nor threats could make him change his
mind. The enraged magistrate then had him mutilated and impaled.
Photo by: Roland Unger
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