E05497: The Miracles of Saint Thekla recounts how *Thekla (follower of the Apostle Paul, S00092) healed him from a disease called anthrax, and how, later on, she removed from him the excommunication imposed on him by Basil, bishop of Seleucia. Written in Greek at Seleucia ad Calycadnum (southern Asia Minor) in the 470s.

Miracles of Saint Thekla, 12

The author recounts here a miracle performed by Thekla on behalf of himself. Once, he discovered that his index finger was afflicted with an illness called by physicians 'anthrax' or 'coal'. It was a burning-hot inflammation which caused pain that was severe and uncontrollable. He was afraid, since he knew that the disease often killed its victims, and the doctors, although they applied various medicines, were not able even to alleviate the pain. Thus, they decided to amputate the finger, in order to save the rest of the author's body.

Τοῦτο οὗτοι μὲν ἐβουλεύοντο, ἐγὼ δὲ μετὰ δέους καὶ δακρύων ὠνειροπόλουν. Νὺξ δὲ ἦν ἔτι, τὸ μέσον τῆς βουλῆς καὶ τῆς τομῆς. Μικρὸν δὲ ὅσον ἀποκαθευδήσας αὐτὸ τὸ περίορθρον καὶ καθ’ ὃν ἀπολήγει μὲν ἔτι καιρὸν ἡ νύξ, ἄρχεται δὲ ἡ ἡμέρα, ὡς καὶ δοκεῖν ἄμφω ἀνακεκρᾶσθαι, φωτὶ μὲν σκότος, σκότει δὲ φῶς, καὶ δὴ ὁρῶ σφῆκας πολλούς τε καὶ δεινοὺς καὶ τὰ κέντρα ἠρκότας καὶ ὥσπερ αἰχμὰς προτείνοντας κατ’ ἐμοῦ, ὁρῶ δὲ καὶ τὴν παρθένον ἐπεισελθοῦσαν οὗ ἐκάθευδον. Ἐδόκουν δὲ ἐν τῇ τῆς ἐκκλησίας αὐλῇ καθεύδειν τῇ καὶ τὴν φιάλην καὶ τὸ ἐπ’ αὐτῇ βλύζον ὕδωρ ἐχούσῃ καὶ τὴν πλάτανον ὑφ’ ᾗ καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ ῥεῖ, ἐπεισελθοῦσαν δὲ καὶ θεασαμένην τὸν κατ’ ἐμοῦ τῶν σφηκῶν πόλεμον, καὶ λαβομένην ἄκρου τοῦ ἱματίου τοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν μετὰ καὶ τοῦ λοιποῦ σκέποντος σώματος καὶ περιστρέψασαν τῇ χειρί, τὸν πολὺν ἐκεῖνον ὅμαδον τῶν σφηκῶν ἀποσοβῆσαί τε καὶ καθελεῖν καὶ συμπατῆσαι τοῖς ποσί, καὶ ἐμὲ πάντων ἐκείνων ἐλευθερῶσαι τῶν δεινῶν πολεμίων. Καὶ ἡ μὲν ὄψις ἡ γεγονυῖά μοι αὕτη· τῆς δὲ ἡμέρας ἤδη φανείσης καὶ ὑπολάμπειν ἀρχομένης, ἐγὼ μὲν ἀπηλλάγμην τῶν ἀγρίων ἐκείνων πόνων καὶ ἀλγηδόνων, ὡς καὶ μειδιᾶν καὶ γάννυσθαι ἐπὶ τῇ μακαρίᾳ ὄψει.

'They decided upon this course of action, while I, with fear and weeping, had a dream. It was still night, midway between their decision and the amputation. Having fallen asleep only a little before dawn (at the point when night is coming to an end and the day is beginning, so that both appear mixed together, dark with light, light with dark), I saw many terrible wasps brandishing their stingers, pointing them at me like spears. But next I saw the virgin entering the place where I was sleeping. (I seemed to be sleeping in the atrium of the church, which has a fountain and water gushing into it, as well as a plane tree under which the water flows.) After entering and witnessing the wasps' attack against me, taking the top part of her himation [i.e., cloak], which covered her head as well as the rest of her body, and swinging it around with her hand, she scared away the great swarm of wasps, destroyed them, trampled them with her feet, and set me free from all those terrible enemies. This is the vision which happened to me. But when daylight appeared and began to shine, I found I had been delivered from that fierce pain and suffering, so that I was even smiling and gladdened at the blessed vision.'

Then the doctors came with the knife in their hands to make the amputation, but then went away, astonished at the miracle and praising the martyr, although they perhaps were a little disappointed because of losing their payment for the surgery.

This miracle was followed by another one. The author and narrator recounts how Basil [bishop of Seleucia] was consecrated bishop and started to plot against him (the author), since he with some few others opposed this election which they considered profane and destructive. So Basil even fabricated a charge and excluded the narrator from the divine mysteries. The narrator had a premonitory vision of this trial: a black pygmy approached him while he was sleeping and held out to him a coin called a 'tremisis' , which also was black and dark. The narrator took this in his dream unwillingly. At this point the dream ceased, but the recipient considered it a bad omen. Basil indeed imposed upon him the sentence of excommunication. This verdict caused a great tumult in the city, since everyone was amazed at the shamelessness of the deed. The relatives and friends of the narrator were already preparing for battle against Basil and his ally Eubolos. But the narrator restrained them, thinking that a reasonable discussion would be a better solution. Then he again had a vision.

Δευτέρας γοῦν ἡμέρας ἤδη μοι οὔσης ἐπὶ τῇ ἀκοινωνησίᾳ καὶ τῆς νυκτὸς ἐπιλαβούσης, καὶ πολλὰ μὲν ἀποδακρυσαμένῳ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἐπιβοησαμένῳ τὴν μάρτυρα, μικρὸν δὲ καὶ ἀποκαθευδήσαντί μοι μετὰ τὰς λιτάς—πῶς εἴπω τὸ φρικτὸν ἐκεῖνο καὶ μακάριον θέαμα; —ἐφίσταταί μοι ἡ μάρτυς ἐν κορικῷ σχήματι καὶ τριβωνίῳ λευκῷ ἐκ τῶν μεταφρένων μὲν ἐπὶ τὰ στέρνα περιηγμένῳ, αὐτόθι δὲ λοιπὸν ἐμπεπορπημένῳ, καὶ λαβομένη μου τῆς δεξιᾶς χειρὸς ἐντίθησί μοι ὅπερ Βασίλειος οὐκ οἶδα εἰ καλῶς ἀφείλετο· «Ἔχε καὶ θάρρει, τέκνον—ἐπιφθεγξαμένη μοι—, καὶ ἴσθι δὲ ὡς ἐπὶ Μακεδονίαν ἐπείγομαι νῦν γυναικὶ κινδυνευούσῃ βοηθήσουσα.» Καὶ γὰρ ἐπ’ ἐκείνοις ταῦτα προσέθηκε. Καὶ ἡ μὲν ταῦτα εἰποῦσα ἀπέπτη—καὶ γὰρ ἐπειγομένῃ ἐῴκει—, ἐγὼ δὲ διαναστὰς τὴν μὲν χεῖρα ἐξαισίου τινὸς εὐωδίας εὗρον πεπληρωμένην, αὐτός τε οὖν ἀνεθάρρησα καὶ τοῖς παραγεγονόσι τῶν φίλων εἶπον εὐθὺς ὡς· «Σήμερον, κἂν μὴ βούληται, Βασίλειος λύσει τὴν ἀκοινωνησίαν.» Ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐγένετο· τῆς γὰρ τρίτης ἡμέρας ἐπιγενομένης, μεταπεμψάμενός με ὁ Βασίλειος λύει τὴν ἐπ’ ἐμοὶ ψῆφον, τῆς μάρτυρος καὶ ἄκοντα πρὸς τοῦτο συνωθούσης αὐτὸν ἀοράτως τε καὶ ᾗ νόμος αὐτῇ ποιεῖν.

'I was already in the second day of my excommunication and night was falling. After making many tearful entreaties to God, and crying out repeatedly to the martyr, I had barely fallen asleep after my prayers when – how should I describe that awesome and blessed night? – the martyr stood at my side in the dress of a girl, with a white tribonion [cloak] wrapped around her, from her back to her chest, then fastened there [at the shoulder] with a pin. And taking my right hand, she gave me that very thing of which Basil had wickedly deprived me. "Take this and be courageous, my child," she said to me, "and know that I am hastening now to Macedonia to help a woman in danger." For she added these last words to her speech [cf. Acts 16:9]. Having uttered them, she flew away – indeed, she seemed to be in a hurry. But I stood up and found my hand filled with an extraordinary fragrance. I took renewed courage and immediately said to my friends who were present: "Today, whether he wants to or not, Basil will revoke the excommunication." This is exactly what happened. When the third day arrived, Basil summoned me and revoked the sentence against me; the martyr, against Basil's will, invisibly pressured him to do this, as is her custom.'

Text: Dagron 1978. Translation: Johnson 2012. Summary: J. Doroszewska.