My friend, Anthony Mathison, posted this on his Facebook page, and has granted permission for me to share it.
In leaving the seminary, I came to realize that I had changed a lot; and not just internally. During my formation I was instituted (the East would say, "ordained") into the office of Lector. It is an ancient order deriving from the readers, prophets, and evangelists of the 1st century Church. Nowadays, it involves reading or chanting the Scriptures at Holy Mass, catechizing those receiving sacraments, and (in the Roman tradition) offering the "preces" litany in the absence of the Deacon. The lector is also called upon to know the Bible well and to live it with integrity.
As I have exercised my ministry and studied its origins, I learned that many ancient martyrs were lectors. This was because copies of the Holy Bible were targeted by Roman authorities for destruction during the Great Persecutions. Rather than hand-over ("tradere"–whence we get the word "traitor") the sacred books, many lectors went to their deaths. Others were singled out because they taught the faithful, had memorized Christian proto-dogma, and were apologists for the Faith.
One martyr in particular caught my attention: St. Synesius of Rome. While listed in the Roman Martyrologium for Dec. 12th, he is not well-known in the West (despite being a Latin martyr). Instead, his exploits are preserved best by the Greek Menaion, where he is identified as "Synetus" (a variant of "Synesius," meaning "man of reason").
His story is captivating and exemplary of the early martyrs.
Synesius was ordained a lector by Pope St. Sixtus II (himself a martyr). One day, Synesius joined a crowd watching the Emperor Aurelian offering a sacrifices to the gods of the state. Being an apologist, he boldly argued against the practice directly to the emperor. Enraged, Aurelian had him flogged and thrown into prison. He was sentenced to death.
The next day, Synesius was taken out to be executed. The method: roasting alive on a gridiron (which seemed to be a popular way to execute Christians in the city of Rome). It is said that Synesius heard a voice from on high encouraging him and spurring him on to courageously accept martyrdom. With the voice came a sudden rainstorm, which extinguished the gridiron before Synesius could be cast upon it.
Still wishing to carry out his execution, the imperial commander ordered a narrow pit to be dug. Along the sides of the pit, sharp staves were ordered to be carved and entrenched. Their cruel mantrap ready, the executioners hurled Synesius into the pit. Expecting him to be shredded to pieces on the way down, they were astonished to see him unhurt and alive at the bottom of the pit.
Somewhat baffled, the executioners locked Synesius in the Pantheon; a temple in Rome dedicated to all the gods for twelve days. Perhaps they thought such exposure to be a fate worse than death for the idol-hating Christian. During his time there he apparently smashed the golden idol of Jupiter one night, and, it is said, an angel unlocked the door of the temple for him. Taking the shattered gold pieces of the idol with him, he distributed them to the widows, orphans, and poor on the streets of Rome. He then escaped into the Roman night.
That might have been the end of Synesius' story had he not again presented himself before Aurelian. It is said he burned for the grace of martyrdom, and so made another appearance before the pagan Emperor. Furious beyond words at what had taken place, Aurelian ordered Synesius to be summarily executed on the spot by decapitation by the sword. And so it was. Synesius the Lector lost his head and received the crown of martyrdom. His relics were gathered by the Christians, and his story was related by oral tradition before being recorded in the Roman martyrology and the Greek menaion.
In the Roman Martyrology, his entry is as follows:
"At Rome, the holy martyr Synesius, who was ordained lector in the time of the blessed Pope Xystus. Having converted many to Christ, he was accused before the emperor Aurelian, and being put to the sword, received the crown of martyrdom."
In the Greek Menaion, his entry is as follows (prologue):
"He boldly preached the truth of Christ as a young reader in Rome, and denounced the idolaters. He was beheaded for his outspokenness during the reign of Aurelian, towards the end of the third century."
St. Synesius of Rome, Lector and Martyr, pray for us!
As I have exercised my ministry and studied its origins, I learned that many ancient martyrs were lectors. This was because copies of the Holy Bible were targeted by Roman authorities for destruction during the Great Persecutions. Rather than hand-over ("tradere"–whence we get the word "traitor") the sacred books, many lectors went to their deaths. Others were singled out because they taught the faithful, had memorized Christian proto-dogma, and were apologists for the Faith.
One martyr in particular caught my attention: St. Synesius of Rome. While listed in the Roman Martyrologium for Dec. 12th, he is not well-known in the West (despite being a Latin martyr). Instead, his exploits are preserved best by the Greek Menaion, where he is identified as "Synetus" (a variant of "Synesius," meaning "man of reason").
His story is captivating and exemplary of the early martyrs.
Synesius was ordained a lector by Pope St. Sixtus II (himself a martyr). One day, Synesius joined a crowd watching the Emperor Aurelian offering a sacrifices to the gods of the state. Being an apologist, he boldly argued against the practice directly to the emperor. Enraged, Aurelian had him flogged and thrown into prison. He was sentenced to death.
The next day, Synesius was taken out to be executed. The method: roasting alive on a gridiron (which seemed to be a popular way to execute Christians in the city of Rome). It is said that Synesius heard a voice from on high encouraging him and spurring him on to courageously accept martyrdom. With the voice came a sudden rainstorm, which extinguished the gridiron before Synesius could be cast upon it.
Still wishing to carry out his execution, the imperial commander ordered a narrow pit to be dug. Along the sides of the pit, sharp staves were ordered to be carved and entrenched. Their cruel mantrap ready, the executioners hurled Synesius into the pit. Expecting him to be shredded to pieces on the way down, they were astonished to see him unhurt and alive at the bottom of the pit.
Somewhat baffled, the executioners locked Synesius in the Pantheon; a temple in Rome dedicated to all the gods for twelve days. Perhaps they thought such exposure to be a fate worse than death for the idol-hating Christian. During his time there he apparently smashed the golden idol of Jupiter one night, and, it is said, an angel unlocked the door of the temple for him. Taking the shattered gold pieces of the idol with him, he distributed them to the widows, orphans, and poor on the streets of Rome. He then escaped into the Roman night.
That might have been the end of Synesius' story had he not again presented himself before Aurelian. It is said he burned for the grace of martyrdom, and so made another appearance before the pagan Emperor. Furious beyond words at what had taken place, Aurelian ordered Synesius to be summarily executed on the spot by decapitation by the sword. And so it was. Synesius the Lector lost his head and received the crown of martyrdom. His relics were gathered by the Christians, and his story was related by oral tradition before being recorded in the Roman martyrology and the Greek menaion.
In the Roman Martyrology, his entry is as follows:
"At Rome, the holy martyr Synesius, who was ordained lector in the time of the blessed Pope Xystus. Having converted many to Christ, he was accused before the emperor Aurelian, and being put to the sword, received the crown of martyrdom."
In the Greek Menaion, his entry is as follows (prologue):
"He boldly preached the truth of Christ as a young reader in Rome, and denounced the idolaters. He was beheaded for his outspokenness during the reign of Aurelian, towards the end of the third century."
St. Synesius of Rome, Lector and Martyr, pray for us!
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