E05715: John Malalas in his Chronographia mentions the martyrdom of *Gelasinos (mime and martyr of Heliopolis in Phoenicia, S02157) under Licinius (r. 311-324). Written in Greek at Antioch (Syria) or Constantinople, in the mid-6th c.

John Malalas, Chronographia, 12.50

Ἐν δὲ τῇ αὐτοῦ βασιλείᾳ ἐχαρίσατο ἐλευθερίαν τοῖς χριστιανοῖς εἰς τὸ μὴ κρύπτεσθαι αὐτούς, ἀλλὰ δημοσιεύειν. συνέβη δὲ ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τῆς αὐτοῦ βασιλείας ἐν Ἡλιουπόλει τῆς Φοινίκης μαρτυρῆσαι τὸν ἅγιον Γελάσινον· ἦν γὰρ μῖμος δεύτερος καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸ παιγνίδιν πανδήμου ἀγομένου· καὶ πλήθους θεωροῦντος ἔβαλον αὐτὸν εἰς βοῦττιν μεγάλην βαλανείου γέμουσαν ὕδατος χλιαροῦ, καταγελῶντες τοῦ χριστιανικοῦ δόγματος καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου βαπτίσματος. ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς Γελάσινος ὁ μῖμος βαπτισθεὶς καὶ ἀνελθὼν ἐκ τοῦ βουττίου καὶ φορέσας ἱμάτια λευκὰ οὐκέτι ἠνέσχετο θεατρίσαι λέγων ἐπὶ τοῦ δήμου, ὅτι· ‘χριστιανός εἰμι· εἶδον γὰρ δύναμιν θεοῦ φοβερὰν ἐν τῷ βαπτίζεσθαί με ἐν τῷ βουττίῳ καὶ χριστιανὸς ἀποθνήσκω.’ καὶ ἀκούσας ταῦτα ὁ δῆμος ὅλος ὁ θεωρῶν ἐν τῷ θεάτρῳ τῆς πόλεως ἐμάνη σφόδρα· καὶ ὁρμήσαντες ἐκ τῶν βάθρων εἰς τὴν θυμέλην ἐκράτησαν αὐτὸν καὶ σύραντες αὐτὸν ἔξω τοῦ θεάτρου, ὡς φορεῖ τὰ λευκὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ, λιθοβολήσαντες ἐφόνευσαν αὐτόν, καὶ οὕτως ἐτελειώθη ὁ δίκαιος. καὶ λαβόντες τὸ λείψανον αὐτοῦ οἱ ἐκ τοῦ γένους αὐτοῦ ἀπήγαγον αὐτὸ εἰς τὴν κώμην τὴν λεγομένην Μαριάμμην, ὅθεν ὑπῆρχεν, ἔξω οὖσαν Δαμασκοῦ τῆς πόλεως ἀπὸ ἑνὸς ἡμίσεος μιλίου. καὶ ἐκτίσθη αὐτῷ εὐκτήριος οἶκος.

‘In his reign he [Licinius] bestowed freedom on the Christians, so that they did not have to hide but could come out publicly. In the time of his reign there occurred the martyrdom of Saint Gelasinos at Helioupolis in Phoenice. He was second mime and came on to give a comic turn during a popular festival. In the presence of a crowd of spectators they threw him into a large bath-house tub full of warm water, mocking the Christian religion and holy baptism. When Gelasinos the mime was immersed and came out of the tub, he put on white robes and refused to continue performing, saying before the people, "I am a Christian, for I saw a tremendous vision of God while being immersed in the tub, and I will die a Christian". When they heard this, all the people watching in the city theatre became violently enraged. They rushed down from their seats to the stage, took hold of him and, dragging him out of the theatre, as he was wearing his white robes, they stoned him to death. That is how the righteous man died. Taking his corpse, his relatives conveyed it to the village known as Mariamme, where he came from, which was about half a mile outside the city of Damascus. A church was built in his honour.’

Text: Thurn 2000. Translation Jeffreys, Jeffreys, and Scott 1986, modified.