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Fellow enthusiasts of the esoteric might like to know that today is the feast of the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus. I hear you saying, ‘Who are the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus?’ Well, I’ll tell you.
The saints are Maximianus, Malchus, Martinianus, Dionysius, Joannes, Serapion and Constantinus. Legend has it that, accused of being Christians during the persecutions of the pagan Roman emperor Decius in around 250 AD, they were given time to recant their faith. They gave their worldly goods away to the poor and retired to a cave to pray and prepare for death and fell asleep. Upon their discovery, the emperor ordered the cave entrance to be sealed up. Thus condemned to die, the seven were regarded as martyrs.
By the time of Theodosius II (408-450) Christianity had become the major religion in the Roman Empire and, at some point in his reign, the landowner, Adolios, opened the cave with the idea of using it as a cattle pen. To his surprise he found the seven sleeping men who woke up believing that they had slept for only one day. Theodosius himself was called to see the seven resurrected men who later died praising God.
As the miracle became known, pilgrims were attracted to an early Christian catacomb near Ephesus which became known as the Grotto of the Seven Sleepers. During the Crusades bones thought to be relics of the Seven were taken to France and housed in the church of Saint Victoire in Marseilles. Inscriptions dedicated to the Seven Sleepers in the 5th and 6th centuries were discovered in the 1920s during an archaeological dig in the area.
We must take the legend at face value. However, over the years there have been a variety of stories from around the world involving miraculously long sleeps. Some of these myths have become woven into fiction and Washington Irving’s tale of Rip Van Winkle is just one example.
Enjoy the Feast of the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus!
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Fellow enthusiasts of the esoteric might like to know that today is the feast of the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus. I hear you saying, ‘Who are the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus?’ Well, I’ll tell you.
The saints are Maximianus, Malchus, Martinianus, Dionysius, Joannes, Serapion and Constantinus. Legend has it that, accused of being Christians during the persecutions of the pagan Roman emperor Decius in around 250 AD, they were given time to recant their faith. They gave their worldly goods away to the poor and retired to a cave to pray and prepare for death and fell asleep. Upon their discovery, the emperor ordered the cave entrance to be sealed up. Thus condemned to die, the seven were regarded as martyrs.
By the time of Theodosius II (408-450) Christianity had become the major religion in the Roman Empire and, at some point in his reign, the landowner, Adolios, opened the cave with the idea of using it as a cattle pen. To his surprise he found the seven sleeping men who woke up believing that they had slept for only one day. Theodosius himself was called to see the seven resurrected men who later died praising God.
As the miracle became known, pilgrims were attracted to an early Christian catacomb near Ephesus which became known as the Grotto of the Seven Sleepers. During the Crusades bones thought to be relics of the Seven were taken to France and housed in the church of Saint Victoire in Marseilles. Inscriptions dedicated to the Seven Sleepers in the 5th and 6th centuries were discovered in the 1920s during an archaeological dig in the area.
We must take the legend at face value. However, over the years there have been a variety of stories from around the world involving miraculously long sleeps. Some of these myths have become woven into fiction and Washington Irving’s tale of Rip Van Winkle is just one example.
Enjoy the Feast of the Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus!
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