Barypsabas

Holy Hieromartyr Barypsabas (Varipsav) was, according to tradition, a hermit and martyr of the early Church in the second century. He is called the keeper of the Blood of Christ. The Church commemorates him on 10 September by the old calendar, which is 23 September by the new.

According to tradition, he held a great sacred treasure: the Blood and water that flowed from the most pure side of our Lord Jesus Christ. A righteous man named Jacob, who had been present at the crucifixion of the Saviour, is said to have gathered the Blood and water in a vessel made from a gourd. To hide the holy treasure from the impious, Jacob filled the top of the vessel with oil, and healings and miracles came from its contents. After Jacob's death the vessel passed to two hermits. One of them, before his death, gave it to Barypsabas, perhaps a Syrian by birth, who later lived as an ascetic in the district of Katara Souchreon (in Greek Souchreon), thought to lie in Persia.

With the oil under which the holy treasure was always hidden, Barypsabas worked many miracles and healings. Evil men, out of greed, killed the saint of God by night, but the priceless treasure remained hidden from them. Before his death Barypsabas had handed the vessel to his disciple. The author of the Life of Barypsabas, published in the Acta Sanctorum, is not known. His martyrdom and his ascetic labour belong to the second century.