Great not only by name (827 ) but also by life, Saint Maximus was born in the great imperial city of Constantinople. Descended from high-ranking and pious parents, he received a rigorous scholarly education. He thoroughly studied philosophy and theology, achieved the highest glory for his wisdom, and was respected even in the royal palace. Emperor Heraclius (828) , seeing his intelligence and righteous life, honored him, against his will, with the title of first secretary and included him among his advisers. Saint Maximus enjoyed the love and respect of the courtiers and was of great service to the entire royal city.
At this time, the Monothelite heresy arose, acknowledging in Christ our Lord only one will and one desire . This heresy developed from the earlier Eutychian heresy, which rashly recognized in Christ only one nature, contrary to the Orthodox confession, which requires the recognition in our Lord, the incarnate God, of two natures and two wills, two desires and actions, distinct for each nature, but united in the one Person of Christ. For Christ is God, not divided into two persons, but inseparably known in two natures. The defenders and disseminators of the Monothelite heresy were initially: Cyrus, Patriarch of Alexandria, Sergius of Constantinople, and even Emperor Heraclius himself, who was drawn into this heresy by them. Having convened local councils, Cyrus in Alexandria and Sergius in Constantinople, they confirmed this heresy, disseminated their decrees far and wide, and corrupted the entire East. Only Saint Sophronius , Patriarch of Jerusalem, resisted the heresy, refusing to accept its false teachings. Blessed Maximus, seeing that the heresy had penetrated into the royal palace and corrupted the emperor himself, began to fear that he, too, might fall into heresy, following the example of many. Therefore, he abandoned his rank and all worldly glory and went to a monastery located far from the city, called Chrysopolis , where he became a monk, preferring "to be at the threshold of the house of God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness" ( Psalm 83:11 ). There, after several years, he was elected abbot (abba) for his virtuous life.
Meanwhile, Patriarch Sergius persuaded Emperor Heraclius to write a confession of their erroneous faith. This latter, filled with the Monothelite heresy, the emperor called an "ekthesis," that is, an exposition , and he commanded everyone in his kingdom to believe in it. Consequently, the Church of Christ was torn apart by turmoil. Abba Maximus, seeing the turmoil enduring the churches in Constantinople and throughout the East, and how heretics multiplied and strengthened, while Orthodoxy was diminished and shaken by the storm of persecution, was grieved in spirit, sighed, and wept much. Having heard that this heresy had found no followers in the West and had been completely rejected, since Pope Severinus 834 had not accepted the royal "exposition," and his successor on the Roman throne, Pope John 835 , had anathematized this "exposition" at a council, Blessed Maximus left his monastery and went to the Western lands. He wanted to find refuge in Old Rome, since living in Jerusalem was impossible due to the Saracen attack on Palestine 836. He went to Rome, preferring to live with the Orthodox, who firmly preserved the faith. Heading there, he visited African bishops in the cities along his route and, conversing with them, confirmed them in the faith, teaching them how to avoid the treachery of their opponents and how to free themselves from their cunningly woven nets 837. To some, however, who were far away, he sent letters, instructing them in the orthodox faith and urging them to beware of heresy in every possible way.
At this time, Sergius, Patriarch of Constantinople, died, and was succeeded by Pyrrhus, an adherent of the same heresy . 838 Cyrus, Patriarch of Alexandria, also died, and then the Emperor himself. However, before his death, seeing that many great and holy bishops and divinely wise fathers not only rejected his exposition of faith but also anathematized it, the Emperor became deeply ashamed and publicly announced that this was not his confession, but that of the former Patriarch Sergius, who himself had written the "exposition" and merely persuaded the Emperor to sign it. When Emperor Heraclius died, his son Constantine succeeded him. 839 But he, too, after reigning only four months, died, secretly poisoned by his stepmother Martina, who, with the assistance of the Patriarch, 840 placed her son Heraklion on the throne. But six months later, all the dignitaries rebelled against Heraklion; seizing him, they cut off his nose, as well as that of his mother, Martina, and then drove them into ignominious exile. They elevated to the throne Constantine's son, Heraclius's grandson, named Constans, who later fathered Constantine, nicknamed Pogonatus . Upon Constans's accession, the then Patriarch of Constantinople, Pyrrhus, a supporter of Martina and, according to popular belief, the man who, along with her, had poisoned Heraclius's son, Constantine, the father of the newly installed Emperor Constans, became greatly alarmed and, voluntarily resigning his patriarchal office, fled into exile in Africa. After him, Paul, also a Monothelite heretic, occupied the Patriarchal throne of Constantinople . The emperor also became enamored of the same heresy and became its great champion and disseminator.
While the monk remained in Africa, Pyrrhus, Patriarch of Constantinople, arrived there. He had fled his throne and, going from city to city, was seducing the Orthodox into his heresy. He would have caused much harm to Christ's Church there had he not had an opponent in the person of the Venerable Maximus , with whom he would spend hours debating the faith. The African bishops were forced to gather in Carthage to hear the two men debate the faith, as this was the wish of the patrician Gregory , the ruler of that land. When the council was convened and the debates began, the God-wise Maximus defeated Pyrrhus, refuting his arguments on the basis of divine books and the dogmas of the holy fathers . He demonstrated that just as Christ God has two natures, so too must there be in Him two wills, two desires and actions—inseparable, however, in one person. Defeated in the dispute, Pyrrhus joined the Orthodox and was received by the Church with love and honor, with the title of patriarch. He also compiled a book of the Orthodox confession. He then went to Rome to see Pope Theodore, John's successor. The pope received him with honor as the Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople. When rumors spread in Constantinople that Pyrrhus had joined the Orthodox, the host of heretics was darkened by envy. Concocting a false narrative, they spread the rumor among the people that the African bishops and the pope had forced Pyrrhus, against his will, to join their unanimity. This rumor reached the emperor himself. The emperor immediately sent one of his dignitaries, a heretic named Olympias, to Italy to convert Pyrrhus back to the Monothelite confession. Olympius, arriving in Italy, stopped in the city of Ravenna in 845 and, summoning Pyrrhus from Rome, convinced him to return to his former heresy. Pyrrhus, like a dog returning to its own vomit, became worthy of anathema, which he and his fellow heretics subsequently condemned to anathema.
At the same time, Emperor Constans, at the instigation of the heretic Patriarch of Constantinople, Paul, wrote, like his grandfather Heraclius, who had composed an "exposition," his confession of faith, full of heresy, and, calling it a typos (model), sent it everywhere, commanding it to be believed . 846 This model of faith reached Rome when Pope Theodore was already on his deathbed. After his death, Blessed Martin succeeded him . The Emperor desired that the newly appointed pope also accept the typos of faith he had written, but the pope rejected it, saying:
“Even if the whole world wanted to accept this new teaching, contrary to Orthodoxy, I will not accept it and will not deviate from the Gospel and Apostolic teaching, as well as from the traditions of the Holy Fathers, even if I had to suffer death.
Saint Maximus, Abba of the Chrysopolis Monastery, was in Rome at the time in 847. He advised the blessed Pope Martin to convene a Local Council and condemn the imperial confession, known as the "typos," as heretical and contrary to the teachings of the Church of Christ. This was done in 848. The Pope, having summoned his one hundred and five bishops, among whom was Abba Maximus, submitted for discussion the errors of Cyrus, Sergius, Pyrrhus, and Paul, as well as the imperial heretical confession. He anathematized these false teachings and wrote to all believers everywhere, confirming them in Orthodoxy, clarifying heretical errors, and warning them to guard against them in every possible way. The emperor, hearing of this, was filled with anger and extraordinary fury and sent his deputy, Theodore Calliope, to Italy, instructing him to capture Pope Martin after accusing him of entering into an agreement with the Saracens, instructing them to invade the Greco-Roman kingdom and wage war against the emperor, and of unjustly upholding the faith handed down by the holy fathers, as well as blaspheming the Most Pure Mother of God. Arriving in Rome, the emperor's deputy publicly brought these accusations against the pope. Blessed Martin, innocent of any of the accusations, defended himself against the malicious slander.
"I have never entered into any agreement with the Saracens," he said, "but have only sent alms to the Orthodox brothers living among the Saracens in extreme poverty and squalor. Anyone who does not honor the Most Pure Mother of God, does not confess her, and does not worship her, may he be cursed in this age and in the age to come. It is not we, but those who think otherwise, who wrongly preserve the holy faith, handed down by the holy apostles and holy fathers."
The Tsar's viceroy, ignoring the Pope's defenses, found him guilty of everything, adding that he had ascended the throne illegally. He then secretly captured the Pope by night, using military force, and sent him to the Tsar. The Pope was imprisoned in Chersonesus, where he died in 849 .
A few days before the pope's capture, Saint Maximus was seized in Rome along with his disciple Anastasius and sent in chains to Constantinople. This was done by imperial command, for the emperor knew by whose advice and inspiration the council had been convened to condemn the Monothelites and his message. When the saint arrived by water in Byzantium, men sent by the emperor appeared before him, their very appearance betraying intense hostility. They shamelessly seized the saint, barefoot and naked, bound in chains, and dragged him through the streets, accompanied by his distressed disciple. Having brought him to a dark room, they locked him in alone, not allowing his disciple to accompany him, whom they confined separately in a dungeon. Several days later, the saint was brought for interrogation to the royal palace, before the full assembly of the Senate, but without the emperor at its head. When he entered, everyone's gaze, filled with malice and hostility, turned upon him. One of the dignitaries, the treasurer, was entrusted with conducting the interrogation . He was a man capable of prolific debate, eloquent, adept at presenting false accusations and twisting truth into untruth; and in distorting the truth, he was more adept than anyone else. What malice and shamelessness he displayed, what reproaches and insults he inflicted! He was not ashamed of the saint's venerable age, who was then over seventy years old; he was not embarrassed by the grace that shone in his eyes; he did not spare his meek and sedate, open and loving character, nor his rank as a saint. While the unjust accuser uttered many things against the innocent man that were in no way consistent with either truth or common sense, and in his verbosity revealed malicious cunning, insolence, and deceit, he thereby displayed the greatest shamelessness and folly in all his speeches. Naturally, he could not respond convincingly to the saint's persuasive, meek, and prudent objections, but instead displayed recklessness and inconsistency in his speeches, and therefore was defeated. Specifically, what was said and done then, what accusations were brought against the innocent man, how the deceitful men tried to present their falsehood as truth—all this was described in detail by a disciple of the Venerable Maximus , another Anastasius, who was apocrisiarius of the Roman Church in 851. We will cite here, from memory, a small portion of his extensive narrative.
As soon as the lawless accuser, a treasurer by rank, stood before the saint, he immediately began to revile him, the gentleman, with abusive language and threatening threats, calling him shameless, a traitor to his fatherland, an enemy of the king, and attributing to him every shameful and criminal offense. When the saint asked the accuser why he was making such accusations and what treason he was accusing him of, the dignitary leveled outrageous slander against him and produced knowingly false witnesses. He accused the saint of having betrayed many great cities to the barbarians: thus, having torn Alexandria, all of Egypt, and Pentapolis from his native lands , he annexed them to the Saracens, to whom he was friendly and well-disposed. The saint explained that the accusation against him was false and worthy of ridicule.
"What business is it of mine, a monk," he said, "to conquer cities? And could I, as a Christian, have any dealings with the Saracens? On the contrary, I have always desired only what was beneficial for Christian cities."
But the shameless slanderer turned to other kinds of lies, weaving them together like dreams, and, raising his voice to an indecent level, he shouted that Blessed Maximus had blasphemed the Eastern Emperor, calling the Western Emperors more worthy of honor. He also cited false witnesses. The saint, sighing heavily, said to this:
"I thank my God that I have been delivered into your hands and am suffering torture for my unjust sins, so that I may cleanse myself of the voluntary sins and vices of my life. But to briefly answer your false accusations, I will ask you first: did you hear the blasphemy against the Tsar you speak of from me, or did someone else tell you about it?"
They replied:
- We heard from others who heard it from your lips.
When the saint asked to call them so that they could testify personally, the accusers said that they were no longer alive.
The saint said to this:
"If you say that those who heard blasphemy from my lips are already dead, then why didn't you bring me to trial earlier, while they were still alive? Then you would have been spared unnecessary labor, and I would have suffered punishment for my obvious guilt. But one thing is certain: just as the slanders you leveled against me are false, so those who brought me to trial did not have God, who searches the hearts of men, before their eyes. May I not be worthy to see the coming of the Lord and cease to be called a Christian if I ever even conceived that false dream you invented, or told it to anyone, or heard it from anyone!"
Then they called a false witness named Gregory, who claimed to have heard Maximus's disciple Anastasius call the Tsar "priest" in Rome, a claim he had learned from his teacher, Maximus. Saint Maximus, confronting Gregory, courageously refuted his false slander. He said:
"When Gregory was in Rome, he spoke to us solely about unanimity, proposing that we accept a dogmatic treatise called the 'typos.' But we refused, preferring what was beneficial to our souls. What you are saying now, neither I know, nor did my disciple ever say—God is my witness! However, I remember what I said then, not to my disciple, but to Gregory himself: investigating and defining the dogmas of faith is the task of the clergy, not of the emperors, for it is theirs to anoint the emperor, to lay hands on him, to perform the sacrament of the Eucharist, to stand before the altar, and to perform all the other divine and greatest sacraments. This is what I said then and what I say now. Gregory himself will not refuse to recall these words of mine, and if he refused, he would be denying himself." For all this, let everyone either accuse or acquit me before the court.
Unsure of what to do, the accusers, relying on the power of false testimony, led the saint out of the assembly. Then they brought in his disciple, Anastasius. They tried to disconcert him with stern speeches and harsh threats, urging him to confirm the slander against his teacher. They forced him to testify that his teacher had treated Pyrrhus harshly in Rome when he debated the faith with him. Anastasius courageously maintained that his teacher not only had done no harm to Pyrrhus, but had even treated him with particular respect. For such frankness, they began to beat Anastasius on the neck, face, and head, thus wishing to defeat the truth with violence, and then sent him back to his former prison. After this, not content with the previous false accusation and biased interrogation, they again summoned Saint Maximus and attempted to overcome his steadfastness with new slander. The slander alleged that Saint Maximus was a follower of Origen's teachings and agreed with him in everything. The saint readily and freely refuted their false accusations as completely unsubstantiated. He described Origen as excommunicated from communion with Christ and Christians, and declared the followers of his teaching worthy of God's judgment. They then began to interrogate Saint Maximus again about Pyrrhus and the reasons why he had separated from the Patriarch of Constantinople and was unwilling to enter into communion with him. They tested the saint with other questions, urging him to accept the imperial "typos" and treat it with particular reverence, as the most perfect and binding dogmatic exposition of the faith. The saint objected, and they harassed him with many harsh reproaches. However, seeing themselves defeated by the Monk Maximus in all their disputes and entangled in their own nets, they dissolved the assembly and hastily went to the king to testify to the invincible courage of the Abba of Chrysopolis.
“Maxim,” they said, “is invincible in speech, and no one can convince him to become our like-minded person, even if someone were to torment him!”
After this, the saint was again imprisoned. A short time later, other interlocutors came to him, believing that by frequently challenging him and threatening him with threatening words, they would more quickly win him over to their faith. The newcomers claimed to have been sent by the patriarch and then began to question the saint:
"Which Church are you: Byzantine or Roman, Antiochian, Alexandrian, or Jerusalem? For all these churches and their subordinate regions are in communion. Therefore, if you belong to the Catholic Church, enter into communion with us immediately—unless you wish to suffer a harsh exile and experience something you do not expect."
To this the righteous man answered them very wisely:
"Christ the Lord called the Catholic Church that which holds the true and saving confession of faith. For this confession, He also called Peter blessed, and on it He promised to found the Universal Church . However, I wish to know the content of your confession, on the basis of which all churches, as you say, entered into communion. If it is not contrary to the truth, then I will not deviate from it."
The ambassadors answered him:
"Although we are not commissioned to speak with you about this, we will nevertheless say so. We confess in Christ two actions due to the difference of natures and one action due to the union of both natures in one Person."
The saint said to this:
– If you speak of two actions, that they became one action as a result of the union of natures in one Person, then this means that, in addition to those two actions, you also recognize a new, third action, the merged, or God-human.
“No,” the ambassadors answered, “we recognize two actions, but we speak of one because of their combination.”
The saint objected to this:
"You yourselves create a shaky faith and confess that God can exist without having being. For if you merge two actions into one, because of the union of natures in one Person, and then divide the single action into two, because of the difference of natures, then there will be neither unity nor duality of actions, since duality through union and unity through division are mutually exclusive. Moreover, these contrivances completely invalidate that in which the actions abide (i.e., the God-manhood) - even eliminate it altogether, as lacking such a manifestation proper to it by nature, which could neither be taken away from nature nor changed. Otherwise, nature, not revealing itself in actions akin to it, would, according to the understanding of the holy fathers, be deprived of all being . 856 But I cannot admit this, and I have not learned to believe so from the holy fathers. But you, as those who have authority, do with me what you see fit.
They, not knowing what to say to this, said that anyone who disobeyed them should be subject to anathema and accept the death that was appointed for him. The saint meekly and humbly replied:
– May the will of God be done in me for the glory of His holy name.
Then the ambassadors went to the patriarch and reported all that the saint had said. The emperor, having consulted with the patriarch, as Pilate had once done with the Jews, condemned the saint to exile in a small town in Thrace named Visium . They likewise sent his disciple Anastasius in exile to the distant outskirts of the Greek kingdom, to a very harsh place called Perveroia in the barbarian tongue . The same was done with another disciple of the saint, also Anastasius, who had once been an apocrisiarius in Rome and who later wrote the life of Saint Maximus. He was exiled to Mesembria , a city in Thrace.
At the same time, Blessed Martin, Pope of Rome, was brought to Constantinople and, after much suffering, exiled to Chersonesus in 860. Even before his exile, while he was in Constantinople, Paul, Patriarch of Constantinople, died. He was succeeded by the aforementioned Pyrrhus in 861 , but he too died four months later. Then Peter , a stubborn follower of the same Monothelite heresy, ascended the patriarchal throne in 862 .
Much time passed, and again, in the name of the Emperor and Patriarch Peter, venerable men were sent to Saint Maximus: Theodosius, Bishop of Caesarea in Bithynia 863 , and two consuls, Paul and Theodosius, to convert him to their view. They employed many and varied methods to convert the saint, sometimes flattering the saint, sometimes threatening, sometimes testing his faith, sometimes questioning him. When they arrived with the Bishop of Visium and ordered the saint to sit down, Bishop Theodosius addressed him with these words:
- How are you, sir, Abba Maximus?
He answered:
– Just as the Lord from the beginning foresaw and predetermined the circumstances of my life, preserved by His providence.
Theodosius objected to this:
– How so? Did God foresee and predetermine the actions of each of us from the beginning?
The saint answered:
– God foreknew our thoughts, words, and deeds, which depend on our will; He also foresaw and predetermined what would happen to us, but what is no longer in our power, but in His Divine will.
Bishop Theodosius asked:
– What is in our power and what is not in our power?
Saint Maximus replied:
“You know all this, my lord, and you only ask questions to test me, your slave.”
The bishop said to this:
– Truly I do not know this, and I want to understand what the difference is between what is in our power and what is not, and how one relates to Divine foreknowledge, and the other to predestination?
Saint Maximus replied:
All our good and bad deeds depend on our own free will; the punishments and misfortunes that befall us, as well as their opposites, are not in our control. Indeed, we have no control over the illness that debilitates us, nor over our health, but only over those conditions that cause illness or preserve health. Just as intemperance is the cause of illness, and abstinence is the condition of good health, so keeping God's commandments is the condition for attaining the Kingdom of Heaven, and failure to keep them is the cause of being cast into the fiery Gehenna.
The bishop said to him:
- Why do you torment yourself with this exile, committing a crime worthy of such a disaster?
“I pray to God,” answered the saint, “that He, punishing me with that calamity, forgive me the sins committed by transgressing His holy commandments.
The bishop objected to this:
– Isn’t it to test many that misfortunes happen?
"Saints are tempted," the monk replied, "so that their hidden virtues may be revealed to all, as was the case with Job and Joseph. And truly, Job was tempted to reveal his unknown courage, and Joseph was subjected to adversity so that his chastity and abstinence, which make a man holy, would become evident. And each of the saints, if they suffered involuntarily in this world, did so precisely so that, through the calamities permitted by God, they might vanquish the proud apostate, the devil—the serpent; the very patience of each saint was the result of temptation."
To this Bishop Theodosius said:
“Truly, you speak well and instructively, and I would always like to talk with you about such things, but since I and my companions, the most honorable patricians, have come to you, despite the enormous distance, for another matter, we ask you: accept what we offer you, and bring joy to the whole universe.
"What exactly, my lord?" asked the saint. "And who am I, and where am I from, that my consent to your proposal could please the whole world?"
The bishop said:
“Just as the truths of my Lord Jesus Christ are immutable, so what I will tell you, as well as my co-workers, respected patricians, we heard directly from our patriarch and pious king.
“Tell me, my lords,” answered Saint Maximus, “what do you want and what have you heard?”
Then Theodosius began to speak:
– The Emperor and the Patriarch, first of all, want to know from you: why are you withdrawing from communication with the Throne of Constantinople?
Saint Maximus replied:
"You know the innovations adopted by the sixth indiction of the last cycle of 864. They began in Alexandria with the promulgation by Cyrus, then patriarch there, of nine chapters, approved and confirmed by the See of Constantinople. There were also other changes and additions (ekthesis and typos), distorting the conciliar definitions. These innovations were made by the first representatives of the Byzantine Church—Sergius, Pyrrhus, and Paul—and are known to all churches. This is the reason why I, your servant, do not enter into communion with the Church of Constantinople. Let these temptations introduced by the aforementioned men be eradicated from the Church—let those who introduced them be removed—and the path of salvation be cleared of obstacles, and you will then walk the smooth path of the Gospel, cleansed of all heresy!" When I see the Church of Constantinople as it once was, then I too will turn to it, as I was once its son, and enter into communion with it without any human persuasion. As long as heretical temptations and heretical bishops remain within it, no word or deed will persuade me to ever enter into communion with them.
“But what is so bad,” asked Bishop Theodosius, “in our confession that you do not want to have communion with us?”
Saint Maximus replied:
"You confess that the Savior's Divinity and humanity were of one nature. However, if we are to trust the Holy Fathers, who assert that he who has one nature also has one nature, then you confess the Holy Trinity not as a Trinity, but as a quaternity, as if the Incarnation were consubstantial with the Word and departed from the identity with human nature that we have and that the Most Pure Virgin Mary had. After departing from the identity akin to man, it seems as if a new essence were formed, consubstantial with the Word to the same extent that the Word is consubstantial with the Father and the Spirit; thus, it is no longer a Trinity, but a quaternity. Likewise, when you deny the existence of the Trinity and assert that the Divinity and humanity of Christ had one will, you diminish His free initiative in doing good. For if either nature lacks its own inherent action, then even if it wishes to benefit someone, it cannot, since the capacity to do good has been taken from it. For without the capacity to act and without the action proper to nature, nothing can produce or accomplish anything. On the other hand, by acknowledging the incarnation of Christ, you confess one will in two natures, but you thereby acknowledge that His Flesh, by its own will, was the creator of all ages and all creation, together with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; meanwhile, by nature, it itself was created. Or rather, the flesh by its own will is beginningless—for the will of God is beginningless, just as the Divinity has no beginning—while by its nature, the flesh was created in time. But to confess this is not only foolish but also impious, for you not only speak of one will in Christ, but call it Divine, and the Divine will cannot have either a beginning or an end, just as the Divinity itself cannot. You also deprive Christ the Lord of all the manifestations and qualities by which His Divinity and humanity are known when, by the ekthesis and typos, you demand that we speak of neither one nor two wills in Him, nor of His actions. This will is not one, because you divide it into two by the very subordination of the human will to the Divine; and they are not two, because you merge them into one.
When Saint Maximus said this and much more, as his disciple Anastasius reports in detail, Theodosius and the patricians began to recognize their error. However, the bishop said:
"Accept the tsar's typology not as a positive dogma of faith, but as a way to resolve dubious issues. He wrote it not as a law, but as an interpretation of faith."
Saint Maximus answered:
"If the typos is not a positive law affirming the unity of will and action of our Lord, then why have you exiled me to a land of barbarians and pagans who know no God? Why am I condemned to remain here in Visia? Why have my co-workers been banished: one to Pervera, the other to Mesembria?"
When they then remembered that Local Council which was convened in Rome by the blessed Pope Martin to condemn the Monothelites, Bishop Theodosius said:
“This council is of no importance, because it was not convened by the Tsar’s command.
The reverend replied:
"If only the decrees of councils convened by imperial command are upheld, then there can be no Orthodox faith. Remember the councils convened by imperial command against consubstantiality, which established the blasphemous teaching that the Son of God is not consubstantial with God the Father. Such were the councils: the first at Tyre, the second at Antioch, the third at Seleucia, the fourth at Constantinople under Eudoxius the Arian, the fifth at Nicaea, the sixth at Sirmium, and much later, the seventh at Ephesus under the presidency of Dioscorus. All these councils were convened by imperial command; however, they were all rejected and anathematized, since they drafted godless and ungodly creeds. Moreover, why do you not reject the council that condemned Paul of Samosata and anathematized him?" For at the head of this council stood Dionysius, Pope of Rome, Dionysius of Alexandria , and Gregory the Wonderworker , who presided over it. This council took place without royal command; yet it is firm and irrefutable. The Orthodox Church recognizes as true and holy only those councils that establish true and immutable dogmas. And truly, as your holiness knows and teaches others, the canons command that local councils be convened twice a year in every Christian country—both for the defense of our saving faith and for the correction of whatever requires correction; however, the church canons make no mention of royal commands.
After a lengthy conversation and a tense debate on both sides, the lips of Saint Maximus were filled with divine wisdom and eloquence, and his tongue, moved by the Holy Spirit, overcame his opponents. They sat silently for a long time, heads bowed and eyes cast down. Then they were moved and began to weep, after which they rose and bowed to the saint, as he did to them. After a shared prayer, they joyfully agreed with the true teaching of Saint Maximus and lovingly embraced it, promising to believe in accordance with it and hoping to convince the emperor to do the same. To confirm their promise, they kissed the Divine Gospel, the precious cross, and the holy icons of the Savior and the Most Holy Theotokos. Then, having conversed sufficiently on matters beneficial to the soul, they exchanged a kiss in the Lord and, wishing each other peace, returned—Bishop Theodosius and the patricians—to Byzantium. When they reported to the emperor all they had said and done, the emperor became very angry. Then Theodosius and the two patricians, fearing the emperor's wrath, again returned to heresy. Then the patrician Paul was again sent to Vizios with the task of bringing Saint Maximus to Constantinople, but with honor. When Saint Maximus arrived, he was ordered to live in the monastery of Saint Theodore . 865
The next morning, the emperor sent two patricians, Epiphanius and Troilus, to the saint. They arrived accompanied by many noblemen, a detachment of soldiers and servants, with pomp and vain grandeur. The aforementioned Bishop Theodosius also came with them. Saint Maximus awaited him, hoping for the fulfillment of his promise, which required not only him to truly believe, but also the emperor and all other representatives of the people to return to Orthodoxy. But Theodosius lied, preferring to please the emperor with an earthly and vain world rather than follow the Heavenly King and His Holy Church. When everyone had sat down and persuaded the saint to sit, the patrician Troilus began the conversation.
“The Tsar, the ruler of the universe,” he began, “has sent us to you to proclaim what is pleasing to his royal power, established by God, but first tell us: will you fulfill the will of the sovereign or not?”
Saint Maximus replied:
"First, my lord, I will listen to what the sovereign commands me, and I will answer you accordingly. For how can I answer what I do not yet know?"
Troilus insisted, saying:
“We will not tell you what we have come with until you answer us whether you will obey the king.”
The holy man, seeing that the messengers were insistently demanding, looking at him angrily and questioning him with harsh words whether he would obey the royal will, answered:
“Since you do not want to tell me, your servant, what pleases our lord, the king, then I declare to you, in the presence of God Himself and His holy Angels, the following: if the king commands me something that has a temporary and transient meaning, moreover, not contrary to God and harmless for the eternal salvation of the soul, then I will willingly fulfill it.
When the saint said this, the patrician Troilus immediately stood up and wanted to leave, saying:
“I am leaving because I see that this husband will not fulfill the Tsar’s will.
But immediately a noise arose and great confusion arose among the multitude of people who had come there. Then Bishop Theodosius said:
“Announce to him the will of the sovereign and listen to his answer, for it is not good to leave without telling him anything and without listening to his answer.
After this, the patrician Epiphanius began to speak to the monk:
"This is what the Emperor commands to be announced to you: since the entire East and those in the West who are drawn into temptation, looking to you, are causing unrest and unrest, apostatizing from the faith and plotting, and are unwilling to have fellowship with us in matters of faith, may the Lord soften your heart with meekness, so that you may enter into communion with us, accepting the typos we have published. We, having received you with love, will lead you into the church with great honor and glory and place you beside us, where emperors usually stand, and together with you we will partake of the most pure and life-giving Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ. Then we will proclaim you our father, and there will be joy not only throughout our Christ-loving city, but throughout the entire Christian world." For we are firmly convinced that when you enter into communion with the Holy Church of Constantinople, then all who, for your sake and under your leadership, fell away from communion with us will also join us.
Saint Abba Maximus, turning to Bishop Theodosius, said with tears:
"We all, Vladyka, await the Great Day of Judgment. You remember what was recently spoken and promised before the Holy Gospel, the Life-giving Cross, and the holy icons of our Savior Jesus Christ and His Immaculate Mother, the Most Pure Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary."
The bishop, with his gaze downcast, said meekly:
“What can I do when the pious king wants something else?”
Abba Maximus answered him:
"Why then did you and those with you touch the Holy Gospel when you had no firm intention of fulfilling your promise? Truly, all the powers of heaven will not persuade me to do what you propose. For what answer will I give—not to God, but to my conscience—if, for the sake of empty glory and worthless human opinion, I reject the true faith, which saves those who love it?"
When the saint said this, everyone immediately rose, filled with anger and fury. Rushing toward him, they not only began cursing him with obscene language but also laid their hands on him. Grabbing him, they struck him with their fists, tormented him, dragged him back and forth across the floor, pushed and trampled him with their feet, each trying to reach him so they could strike him. They would certainly have killed the saint if Bishop Theodosius had not calmed their rage and calmed their unrest. When they stopped beating and tormenting the saint, they began spitting on him, covering the man of God from head to toe. A stench emanated from their vile spittle, which stained his entire garment.
Then the bishop said to them:
“It shouldn’t have been done; it was only necessary to listen to his answer and report it to the Tsar, for cases subject to church rules are judged differently.
With difficulty, the bishop persuaded them to stop making noise and sit down again. They sat down, still hurling harsh curses and insulting reproaches at the saint.
Then the patrician Epiphanius, breathing with rage, angrily addressed the saint:
"Tell us, you evil old man, possessed by a demon! Why do you speak such words? Do you consider us all, our city, and our king, heretics? Know that we are more Christian than you, and more Orthodox than you. We recognize in Jesus Christ, our Lord, a divine and human will and a rational soul, for every rational being always possesses both the power of volition, by its very nature, and the capacity for action. In general, movement is inherent in living beings, and will is inherent in the mind. We recognize the Lord as having the power of will not only in His divinity but also in His humanity, and we especially do not deny His two wills and twofold action."
Abba Maximus answered:
“If you believe as the Church of God teaches, and as befits a rational being, then why are you forcing me to accept a ‘typos’ that completely denies what you are saying now?
Epiphanius objected:
– The typology was written to clarify not entirely clear truths, so that the people would not be misled by the particular subtlety of their expression.
To this Abba Maximus replied:
“This is contrary to faith, and yet every person is sanctified by the correct confession of faith.
Then the patrician Troilus objected:
– The Typos does not deny the two wills in Christ, but only forces us to remain silent about them for the sake of the peace of the Church.
Abba Maximus said to this:
To remain silent about a word is to deny it, as the Holy Spirit says through the prophet: "There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard" ( Psalm 19:4 ). Therefore, if a word is not spoken, it is not a word at all.
Then Troilus said:
– Have whatever faith you want in your heart; no one can forbid you.
Saint Maximus objected:
But complete salvation depends not only on heartfelt faith, but also on its confession, for the Lord says: "Whoever denies Me before men, him I also will deny before My Father in heaven" ( Matthew 10:33 ). Likewise, the Divine Apostle teaches: "With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" ( Rom. 10:10 ). If God and the Divine prophets and apostles command us to confess with word and tongue the mystery of faith, which brings salvation to the whole world, then we cannot be forced into silence regarding confession, lest the salvation of men be diminished.
To this Epiphanius exclaimed in an angry voice:
– Did you sign the decrees of the Council that took place in Rome?
“I signed it,” the saint replied.
Then Epiphanius continued:
"How dare you sign and anathematize those who profess the faith, as befits rational beings and as the Catholic Church teaches? Truly, we will bring you to the city by our own judgment and place you bound in the square. We will gather all the comedians, the prostitutes, and all the people, and force them to slap you and spit in your face."
To this the Saint replied:
"So be it, as you have said. But if you maintain that we have anathematized those who acknowledge two natures united in our Lord, as well as two wills and two actions corresponding to each nature in Christ the Lord, who by divine nature is true God, and by human nature, true man, then read, my lord, the book containing the acts of this council, and if you find what we have said, do as you please. For I and my co-workers, and all who signed the acts of the council, have anathematized those who, like Arius and Apollinaris , acknowledge in the Lord one will and one action and do not confess our Lord and God as having two natures in which He abides, and also as having the power of will and action, through which He accomplishes our salvation."
Then Epiphanius' friends and the patricians, and all who came with them, began to speak among themselves:
"If we continue to listen to him, we'll never have to eat or drink again. So let's go and have lunch, and then report to the king and the patriarch what we've heard. You see that this wretched man has given himself over to Satan."
Then, rising, they went to dinner. It was the forefeast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, and the time for the all-night vigil was already approaching. After dinner, they headed back to the city, extremely dissatisfied.
The next day (September 14), early in the morning, the patrician Theodosius came to the Monk Maximus, took away all the books that the saint had, and said in the name of the king:
- Since you did not want honor, then go into exile, which you deserve.
The holy elder was immediately seized by soldiers and taken first to Selembria, where he remained for two days. During this time, a soldier from Selembria, having joined the army, spread rumors throughout the camp, inciting the people against the elder with the words: "A certain monk has come to us who blasphemes the Most Pure Theotokos." The commander of the army, summoning the most important clergy of the city of Selembria, as well as priests, deacons, and the most honored monks, sent them to Saint Maximus to inquire whether it was true what was said of him, that he blasphemes the Mother of God. When they arrived, the saint stood and bowed to the ground, honoring their rank. They also bowed to the saint, and then all sat down. Then one of those who had come, a very venerable elder, very meekly and respectfully asked Saint Maximus:
- Father, since some have been tempted regarding your holiness, claiming that you do not recognize our Lady, the Most Pure Virgin Theotokos, as the Mother of God, I conjure you by the Most Holy Consubstantial Trinity to tell us the truth and remove the temptation from our hearts, so that we too do not sin by thinking incorrectly about you.
The Venerable Maximus bowed to the ground in the form of a cross, and then, standing up, raised his hands to heaven and solemnly said with tears:
- Whoever does not confess Our Lady, the all-praised, most holy and immaculate Virgin, the most honorable of all rational beings, as the true Mother of God, who created heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them, let him be anathema from the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the consubstantial and supernatural Trinity, and from all the powers of heaven, from the face of the holy apostles and prophets, and the infinite multitude of martyrs, and from every righteous soul who has died in faith, now, always and forever and ever!
Hearing this, everyone shed tears and expressed their good wishes to him in the words:
– May God strengthen you, father, and may He grant you to complete your journey worthily and without hindrance!
After this, a multitude of soldiers gathered there to listen to the pious speeches of the fathers conversing among themselves. Then one of the army commander's confidants, seeing the large gathering of troops eagerly listening to the saint's words and censuring the government for exiling him, ordered the saint to be immediately removed from there and led two versts further , until those who were to take him to Pervera for exile were prepared. The clergy, moved by divine love, walked those two versts on foot, accompanying the saint. When the soldiers arrived to lead him into exile, the clergy carried the saint in their arms and placed him on a horse. Then they embraced him with tears and, bidding him farewell, returned to their city. The saint was then led to Pervera and imprisoned there.
Much time passed , and the emperor again sent for Saint Maximus and his two disciples to be brought from captivity to Constantinople. When they landed at the city by ship, at sunset, two guard captains appeared with ten soldiers and, leading them out of the ship, half-naked and barefoot, separated them and imprisoned each separately. Several days later, they were led to the imperial chamber. The two disciples were left in the courtyard under guard, while the elder was brought inside, where dignitaries and many of the most honored persons were sitting. The saint was placed among the seated rulers. Then the imperial treasurer, with irritation in his voice, addressed him:
- Are you a Christian?
The elder answered:
– By the grace of Christ, the God of all, I am a Christian.
The treasurer was filled with anger and said:
- You are not telling the truth.
The saint answered:
“You say that I am not a Christian, but God says that I remain a Christian.”
“But if you are a Christian,” the treasurer objected, “then why do you hate the Tsar?”
"How can this be seen?" asked the saint. "After all, hatred is a secret feeling of the soul, just like love."
"From your deeds," replied the treasurer, "it has become known to all that you are an enemy of the king and his kingdom. For you alone betrayed Egypt, Alexandria, Pentapolis, Tripolis, and Africa to the Saracens."
"Where is the reliable evidence of this?" asked the saint.
Then they brought in a certain John, who had once been Peter's sacellarius 869 - at the time when Peter was governor of African Numidia 870 . This John said:
"Twenty-two years ago, our lord the king's grandfather commanded blessed Peter to lead troops into Egypt against the Saracens. Peter, trusting you as God's servant, wrote to you, asking for helpful advice. But you wrote back to him that it was not pleasing to God to assist King Heraclius and his heirs."
Then the saint said to him:
“If you are telling the truth and have Peter’s letter to me and my letter to Peter, then show them; let them be read, and I will accept a fitting punishment according to the law.
John replied:
“I don’t have your letters, and I don’t even know if you wrote to each other, but everyone in the camp was talking about it then.
The saint objected:
"If the whole army was talking about it, then why are you the only one slandering me? Have you ever even seen me, or have I ever seen you?"
“No,” answered John. “I have never seen you.”
Then the saint, turning to the assembly, said:
Judge for yourself: is it fair to call such people as witnesses? It is written, "With what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with what measure you mete, it will be measured to you again" ( Matthew 7:2 ). From God, the righteous Judge of all.
Then they brought in Sergius Maguda. He said:
"Nine years ago, the blessed Abba Thomas, who had come from Rome, told me the following: He said Pope Theodore sent me to Gregory, the prefect of Africa, who had at that time seceded from the Greek Empire, to tell him not to fear the Greek armies, for the servant of God, Abba Maximus, had seen in a dream that choirs of angels stood in the heavens, both in the east and the west. Those in the east cried out, 'Constantine Augustus, you will conquer!' Those in the west cried out, 'Gregory Augustus, you will conquer!' The voice of the western choir was clearer and louder than that of the eastern."
When Maguda had stated this, the treasurer said to the saint:
- God brought you to this city to be burned by fire.
The saint replied:
– I thank God, who cleanses my voluntary sins with involuntary punishments. But “woe to the world because of offenses, for offenses must come; but woe to that man through whom the offense comes” ( Matthew 18:7 ). Truly, this should not be said before Christians, much less should those go unpunished who speak and think only what pleases people who live today and will not exist tomorrow. All this should have been announced at the time when Gregory was still alive. Then the patrician Peter, Abba Thomas, and the blessed Pope Theodore should have been summoned here; in the presence of all of them, I would have said to the patrician Peter: Tell me, my lord, have you ever written to me about what your sacellarius testifies to, or perhaps I wrote to you? Likewise, I would say to the blessed Pope: Tell me, lord, have I ever told you a dream? But even if the Pope had rebuked me regarding the dream, it would have been his fault, not mine, for a dream vision is an involuntary thing, and the law punishes only those actions that depend on the free will of a person.
At the same time, other slanders and unjust accusations were leveled against the innocent and holy man, especially regarding blasphemy against the emperor—that he and his disciples had denounced him in Rome. However, the saint, proving his innocence, refuted all these slanders in his meekness, with humble, wise, and inspired speeches.
Then his disciple Anastasius was brought in separately. They urged him to say something bad about his teacher, and when he refused to speak untruthfully about the righteous man, they beat him with their fists and then led him and his teacher, each separately, to their respective places in prison.
The following evening, the patrician Troilus and Sergius Euphrates, the head of the royal refectory, came to the monk in prison. They sat down and, forcing the monk to sit down, asked:
- Tell us, Abba, what conversation did you have in Africa and in Rome with Pyrrhus and with what arguments did you convince him to renounce his own dogma and accept your dogma?
The saint replied:
If I had my books with me, in which I wrote down the conversations and disputes that Pyrrhus and I had there, I would have told you everything in detail; but since the books have been taken from me, I will tell you what I can remember.
Then the saint told in order everything he could remember, adding in conclusion the following:
“I have no dogma of my own, but only the common one of the entire Catholic Church; I have not introduced a single new word into my confession by which it could be called my own.
Then the messengers asked him:
- Why don’t you enter into communication with the throne of Constantinople?
“No,” the saint answered.
“Why?” they asked.
"Because," the Saint replied, "the leaders of this Church rejected the decrees of the four holy councils, adopting as their rule the 'nine chapters' published in Alexandria, and then accepted the ekthesis compiled by Sergius, Patriarch of Constantinople, and finally the typos recently published. On the other hand, they rejected everything affirmed in the ekthesis in the typos and have repeatedly excommunicated themselves from the Church and exposed their own improprieties. Moreover, having excommunicated themselves from the Church, they were deposed and stripped of their priesthood at the Local Council recently held in Rome. What sacramental rites can they perform? Or what Spirit descends upon those they ordain?"
“So you alone will be saved,” they objected, “and everyone else will perish?”
The saint replied to this:
When all the people in Babylon worshiped the golden image, the three holy youths condemned no one to destruction. They cared not for what others did, but only for themselves, lest they fall away from true piety ( Daniel 3 ). Likewise, Daniel, thrown into the pit, condemned no one who, while fulfilling the law of Darius, refused to pray to God. He kept his duty in mind and preferred to die rather than sin and be tormented by his conscience for transgressing God's Law ( Daniel 14:31 ). And God forbid that I should condemn anyone or say that I alone will be saved. However, I would rather die than, having deviated in any way from the true faith, suffer the pangs of conscience.
"But what will you do," the messengers asked him, "when the Romans unite with the Byzantines? Yesterday, two apocrisiari arrived from Rome, and tomorrow, Sunday, they will receive Holy Communion with the Patriarch."
The reverend replied:
"Even if the entire universe were to partake of the patriarch's communion, I would not partake of it with him. For I know from the writings of the holy Apostle Paul that the Holy Spirit anathematizes even the angels if they were to preach the gospel differently, introducing anything new ( Gal. 1:8 )."
Then the messengers asked:
– Is it really absolutely necessary to confess in Christ two wills and two kinds of activity?
"It is absolutely necessary," the saint replied, "if we wish to think piously, for no being is devoid of natural activity. The Holy Fathers clearly state that no being can exist or be known without its own inherent activity. If this is not the case, and if nature is not revealed in activity, then how can we recognize Christ as true God by nature and true man?"
To this they told him:
“We see that this is the true truth, however, do not upset the king, who, for the sake of the peace of the Church, composed the typos not in order to deny any of the qualities recognized in Christ, but for the sake of the peace of the Church, commanding silence about those things that give rise to discord.
Then the man of God, prostrating himself on the ground, answered with tears:
"A good and God-loving king should not be upset by my unworthiness, for I do not wish to anger God by remaining silent about what He has commanded us to recognize and confess. For if, in the words of the Divine Apostle, He Himself appointed "in the Church, first, apostles, secondly, prophets, thirdly, teachers" ( 1 Cor. 12:28 ), then it is clear that He Himself speaks through them. From all of Holy Scripture, from the writings of the holy teachers, and from the decrees of the Councils, we learn that the incarnate Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, has the power to will and act according to both His Divinity and His humanity. For He is not at all lacking in those qualities by which He is known as God or as man, except for sin." If He is perfect in both natures and is not deprived of anything inherent in them, then, truly, he completely distorts the mystery of His incarnation who does not recognize in Him the very essence of both natures with their corresponding properties - natures through which and in which He abides.
When the saint had expounded this and much more, those present praised his wisdom and found nothing to object to. Sergius then said:
“You alone are upsetting everyone, precisely because because of you many do not want to have communion with the Church here.
Reverend Maximus objected:
"But who can claim that I ordered anyone not to have communion with the Byzantine Church?" To this Sergius replied:
"The very fact that you do not communicate with this Church is what most turns many away from communion with it." The man of God said to this:
"There is nothing more burdensome and sorrowful than the state when our conscience accuses us of something, and nothing is more precious than the peace and approval of our conscience." Then Troilus, noting that the "typos" of King Constans had been anathematized throughout the West, said to the saint:
"Is it good that the interpretation of our pious sovereign is so disgraced?" The saint replied:
– May God forgive those who inspired the emperor and allowed him to issue this decree!
Troilus asked:
- Who inspired it and who allowed it?
The saint replied:
"The Primates of the Church taught this, and the dignitaries allowed it, and thus the shame of this scandal falls upon the Tsar, who is innocent and free from all heresy. However, advise the Tsar to do as his grandfather, Irakli, of blessed memory, once did. When he learned that many Fathers in the West did not accept the 'exposition' of the faith, but rather denounced and condemned the heresy contained therein, he cleared himself of blame by sending his letters far and wide, asserting in them that the 'exposition' belonged not to him, but to the former Patriarch Sergius. Let the reigning Tsar do the same, and then he will be freed from all blame."
They were silent for a long time, shaking their heads, and then said:
“It is inconvenient and even impossible to do everything that you advise, Abba.
After talking for a while about various subjects, they said goodbye and parted on friendly terms.
A week after this conversation, on the following Saturday, the saint and both his disciples were again summoned to the royal chamber for questioning. His earlier disciple, Anastasius, was brought in first, while the other Anastasius, a former apocrisiarius of the Roman Church, was placed outside the chamber. When the first Anastasius was brought into the hall, where two patriarchs were seated among the members of the senate: Thomas, the Patriarch of Constantinople, and another, the slanderers immediately entered, bringing false accusations against Saint Maximus. Those present forced Anastasius to confirm the slanders leveled against his teacher. But he boldly denounced the lies, courageously denouncing them before the patriarchs and the senate. When asked whether he had anathematized the "typos," he replied that he had not only anathematized it but had also compiled a book against it. The dignitaries then asked:
- What then? Don't you admit that you acted badly?
"God forbid," Anastasius replied, "that I should consider evil what I have done well, according to the Church canon." When he was then asked about many other things, he answered how God had helped him. After this, he was led out and the venerable elder Maximus was brought in. Patrician Troilus addressed him with these words:
"Listen, Abba, tell the truth, and God will have mercy on you. For if we interrogate you legally and even one of the accusations against you proves true, you will be executed according to the law." The elder replied:
"I have already told you, and I will tell you again: it is as possible for at least one accusation to be justified as it is for Satan to become God. But since Satan is not God and cannot become Him, being an apostate, then those accusations that are completely false cannot become true. Therefore, do whatever you wish to do; but I, piously honoring God, do not fear offense.
To this Troilus objected:
- But didn’t you anathematize the type?
The elder answered:
– I have already said several times that I anathematized.
“But if you,” said Troilus, “anathematized the ‘typos’, then, consequently, the king as well?”
“I did not anathematize the Tsar,” the monk replied, “but only the charter that overthrew the Orthodox and church faith.”
"Where did you anathematize?" asked Troilus.
“At the Local Council in Rome,” answered Saint Maximus, “in the Church of the Savior and the Most Holy Theotokos.”
Then the chairman addressed him:
– Will you enter into fellowship with our church or not?
“No, I will not join,” answered the saint.
“Why?” asked the chairman.
“Because she,” the saint answered, “rejected the decrees of the Orthodox councils.”
“But if our church rejected the councils,” the chairman objected, “then how are they recorded in the monthly diptych 871 ?”
“What is the use,” answered the saint, “of naming and remembering them if the dogmas of those councils are rejected?”
“Can you,” asked the chairman, “clearly show that the present Church has rejected the dogmas of the former holy councils?”
“If you don’t get angry and command me,” the elder answered, “then I can easily show you.”
When everyone was silent, the treasurer turned to him:
– Why do you love the Romans so much and hate the Greeks?
The saint replied:
"We have a commandment from God—to hate no one. I love the Romans as those of the same faith as me, and the Greeks as those who speak the same language as me."
"How old are you?" asked the treasurer.
“Seventy-five,” answered the saint.
“And how many years,” continued the treasurer, “has your student been with you?”
“Thirty-seven,” answered the saint.
At this time one of the clerics exclaimed:
- May God reward you for everything you have done for blessed Pyrrhus.
The saint did not answer this cleric.
During these rather lengthy interrogations, none of the patriarchs present said anything. When word spread about the council held in Rome, a certain Demosthenes declared:
“This council is not true, because it was convened by Martin, the excommunicated pope.
The Venerable Maximus answered:
– Pope Martin was not excommunicated, but persecuted.
After this, having sent the saint away, they debated what to do with him. The inhuman torturers decided it would be too merciful to leave him to live as before, in captivity, and that it would be better to subject him to tortures worse than death. Therefore, they handed him over to the city governor. The prefect ordered Saint Maximus and his disciples to be taken to the praetorium . There, the lawless torturer, stripping the holy elder naked and throwing him to the ground, ordered him to be beaten with sharp ox thongs, unashamed of his age or venerable appearance—not even moved by the sight of his body, emaciated by ascetic struggles. The saint was beaten so cruelly that the ground was stained with his blood, and his body was so lacerated that not a single spot remained unharmed. Then the ferocious beast turned furiously on the saint's disciples and beat them equally. As they were being beaten, the herald cried out:
– Those who disobey the royal commands and remain disobedient deserve to endure such suffering.
Then they, barely alive, were thrown into prison.
The next morning, the holy and venerable man was brought back from prison to the court along with his first disciple, Anastasius. The saint was still alive and covered in wounds, so much so that it was impossible to look without compassion upon the venerable elder, holy faster, God-wise teacher, and confessor-theologian, covered in blood and bruised with deep wounds, with not a single undamaged spot from head to toe. However, the cruel torturers did not take pity on him, but became even more enraged. Having extracted his voluble tongue, which had poured forth rivers of wise teachings and drowned heretical speculations, they cut it out deep, right at the throat, without mercy, thus intending to silence the saint's theological lips. They did the same with his earlier disciple, Anastasius, and then locked them both back in prison. But the Lord God, Who once enabled infants to praise His holy name, and who likewise gave the mute the power of speech, granted these true and faithful servants of His, the Venerable Maximus the Confessor and Martyr, and his disciple, the Venerable Anastasius, the ability to speak even more clearly and clearly, even without a tongue, than before the cutting off of his tongue. Oh, how ashamed the accursed heretics were when they learned of this! Inflamed with even greater rage, they cut off his right hand and threw it to the ground. They likewise cut off the hand of his disciple, Saint Anastasius. They spared another of his disciples, also Anastasius, a former apocrisiarius of the Roman Church, since he occasionally served as secretary to the sovereigns.
After this, Saint Maximus and his disciple were led out of the praetorium and dragged throughout the city with mockery, displaying their severed tongues and hands to all the people and shouting and jeering in hideous voices. After such inhumane mockery and dishonorable abuse, all three were exiled, each separately, to distant exile, without any care, without food or clothing, naked and barefoot. They endured many hardships and sufferings on the journey. Saint Maximus, due to his grievous wounds, was unable to remain on a horse or in a cart. The soldiers wove a basket like a bed and, placing the grievously suffering elder in it, were able to carry him with great difficulty to his place of confinement. Having escorted him to the distant Scythian land, which in Europe is called Alania , they imprisoned him in the city of Shemari. His venerable disciple Anastasius, whose tongue and hand were cut off, died on the way, his body, which had suffered much, and his soul passed to God in immortal life.
Saint Maximus lived in his final exile, amidst severe suffering, for three more years. Confined to prison, he received neither the services necessary in his old age nor the loving care of anyone. When the Lord desired to put an end to his illnesses and sorrows and lead him from prison to the eternal expanse and joy of the Heavenly Kingdom, He first consoled him with a divine manifestation on earth, and then announced the hour of his death. The blessed sufferer was filled with great joy, and although always prepared for his end, he nevertheless began to diligently prepare for it. When the joyful hour of death arrived, he joyfully surrendered his soul into the hands of Christ God, Whom he had loved from his youth and for Whom he had suffered so much.
Thus, the confessor of Christ and martyr completed his life's journey in 874 and entered into the joy of his Lord. He was buried in the same city. After the saint's burial, three wondrous lamps were visible at his grave, shining with a flame of indescribable radiance and illuminating the place. The saint, who in life was the light of the world, did not cease to shine even after his death, and now illuminates all people with the example of his virtuous and much-suffering life and great zeal for God. The three lamps seen on the saint's tomb served as a clear sign that the holy servant of God had entered the radiant mansions of the Holy Trinity, the unfading Kingdom of God, where he shines with the righteous like the sun and delights in the contemplation of the Trinitarian light. After the death of Saint Maximus, another of his disciples, the apocrisiarius Anastasius, remained alive in separate confinement. He later wrote in particular detail about the life, exploits, and sufferings of his father and teacher. From this description, we have here, in abbreviated form, what is sufficient for our benefit and for the glorification of God, glorified in the saints—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, to Whom, even from us sinners, be honor, glory, and worship, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Source: https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/Dmitrij_Rostovskij/zhitija-svjatykh/70