Curiosities of Olden Times

Leontius, Bishop of Neapolis in Cyprus, whose Apology for Sacred Images was accepted and approved by the Second Council of Nic?a, was acquainted with this John the Deacon, and f

porary of Symeon, makes mention of him

f Symeon is

he name of one was John, and the name of the other was Symeon. John, a young man of two-and-twenty, was accompanied by his bride, a beau

the caravan proceed, whilst he and his comrade Symeon tarried behind. The two young men flung themselves from their horses on the coarse grass.

is that?"

e home of

s visible?" Sy

n the charms of a monastic life. "Let us cast lots," he said, "whether we shall follow the road to the co

each other. For, we are told, John feared lest the love Symeon bore to his old widowed mother woul

once to shear off their hair. The abbot hesitated, and spoke to each in private, urging a delay of a year, but Symeon boldly said, "My companion may wait, but I cannot. If you will not shear my head at once, I will go to some other monas

ars, and they have been inseparable night and day; he dearly loves her, and has been wont never to leave the old woman alo

es that on the morrow "they would be regenerated and cleansed from all sin." The young men, unaccustomed to monastic language, were alarmed, thinking that they were about

rambled in the desert to the east of the Dead Sea, till they lighted on a cave which had once been tenanted by a hermit, but was now without inhab

incessant prayer of Symeon; "O Lord, dry the tears of my young wife," was the supplication of John. At length Symeon had a dream in

but that he was resolved to serve God in the city. He felt there were souls to

wild ocean of sand? O my brother, I thought that death alone would have separated us, and now thou tearest thyself away of

in the desert, whilst I struggle in the world;

ought, bustle destroy. Above all, beware lest that modesty, which seclusion from women has fostered, fail thee in their society; and lest the body, was

ymeon gave no heed to the exhortation, answering, "Fear not for me

houlders, and Symeon promised to

d embraced, and after that John sorrowfully returned to his cell,

ly City, visiting the sacred

ble. But from this point his character changes. He simulated madness, his biogra

ians as a saint, and Cardinal Baronius with culpable neglig

t of this history with some detail, and draw a curtain of pious platitudes over the second act of the drama. They

ut how untrue to history, how mor

mall space as would suffice to give only the lives of those men whose memory is edifying and deserves imitation, never for a moment would it have entered into our heads to give and illustrate the life of

Salos, who became a fool for Christ. But God manifested his lofty wisdom by great miracles." 1st July is a mistake for 21st July, the day on which St. Symeon is venerated in the East. Baronius was misled by a

d was pleased with it, and did not trouble himself to conclude the somewhat lengthy manuscript. He therefore placed Symeon

turn to S

ed the gate of the city and passed before a boys' school. The attention of the children was at once diverted from their books, and, in spite of the expostulation of the

dles and extinguished several of them. Then, running up into the ambone, or pulpit, he threw nuts at the women in the congregation, and hit them in th

sale of cakes. In rushing from the church officials, he knocked over the stalls,[4] and the sellers beat him so unmercifull

place, and, being in want of a servant, hailed him, and s

and beans and peas to sell, but the hermit, who had

the house; "the abbot eats more than he sel

of smoking incense. Symeon looked about for a broken pot in which to put some cinders; but finding none, he took some lighted charcoal in the palm of his hand, and strewed a few grains of incense upon it. The mistress of the house, smelling the

ecuted satisfactorily when his appetite was not exacting. They speedily found that Silly Symeon drew customers to their house, for Symeon laid himself out to

Symeon for breaking the amphora, and, catching the stick out of his hand, cudgelled the poor monk with it, without listening to his explanation. On the morrow the serpent again entered the tavern, and went to the wine jars. Th

sing in it for bed. This he did, says Leontius, Bishop of Neapolis, in order to lower the high opinion entertained of him by his master.[8] After this, as may well be believed, the taverner told the tale over his cups with m

his proceedings. To this John, the saint related the events

when he met Symeon. "You will be all the better for a wash

he forthwith peeled off his clothes, wrapped

n your clothes again. I cannot walk with y

ollow." And stark naked, bearing his bundle "like a faggo

, one for women, the other for men. S

the Deacon in alarm; "th

od as the other"; and throwing down his bundle, he bounded into t

beat, scratched, pushed him, an

ath of the saint that the Jew related the circumstance. The Christians concluded that the two lovely forms with whom Symeon was enjoying a dip were angels. "To such a pass of purity and impassibility had the saint a

es of his association with very fallen

ats, then he tripped up the passers-by, and sent them sprawling; sometimes at the rising of the moon he would roll on the ground kicking. Sometimes he pretended to speak incoherently, for he sa

him, and said, "I will find out wheth

dministered to him a severe castigation with a leather strap. The Count, we are told, went away much scandalised. Salos wriggled off his housekeeper's bac

e of them had a cast in their eyes, he said, "My dears, l

r eyes ran after Symeon to have theirs kissed. The Deacon John invited him to dinner one day. Symeon went, and devoured raw bacon which was hanging up in the chimney, in

ire of Symeon in Emesa. On reaching Emesa they found the monk in the tavern, with a bowl of boiled pulse before him, eating as voraci

for forty days, and is soft enough, I warrant ye! As for your Origen, he can't eat pulse, for he is at the bottom of the sea. And now take this for your pains!" and he flung

earing his face with it. This highly amused a rustic, who mocked him. Symeon rushed at him, and threw the mustard in his eyes. The man cried with pain, and Symeon bade him wash the mustard out of his eyes with vin

n bread, cheesecakes, buns, fish, and wine of all sorts, dry and sweet, and, in short, whatsoever is to be found most dainty,"[13] had come from, which Symeon and his housekeeper were serving out to the beggars and their wives. But when Symeon assured him that these good things had come down straight from heaven in answer to prayer, the Deacon went away wondering and edified. In the same way Symeon always had his pockets full of money. We find him bribing a woman of bad

the Deacon asked the monk how it was that he never saw him having his hair cut, nor with his hair long. Symeon assured him that this was in answer to prayer. H

the wilderness, who probably did not find his old comrade m

nd was found dead one mornin

attempt it without a special call; yet his example ought to make us blush"-we should think so, indeed-"when we consider"-ah!-"with what an ill-will we suffer th