Polychronius

Holy Hieromartyr Polychronius was a priest of the fourth century. Our record calls him bishop of Babylon and gives his commemoration as 23 February, but the Greek source we rely on speaks of a priest martyred in the time of the emperor Constantius and commemorates him on 7 October, in the Church of Greece and of Cyprus. These data do not agree with each other.

According to the Greek source, he came from the province of Gamphanitis and was the son of a farmer. His father, Bardanios, took care of his Christian upbringing and taught him the truths of the faith. Soon Polychronius became a very able debater and put the pagans in difficulty in philosophical discussions about truth and religion. Then he went to Constantinople, where he became a deacon and afterwards a priest.

His first concern was to teach the doctrines of the faith to his parishioners. The saint, who also worked as a farmer in vineyards, performed many miracles, for example causing a spring of water to gush forth. When Constantius, who favoured Arianism, became emperor, Polychronius met constant opposition and threats. Despite the persecutions and exile imposed on him by the emperor, the saint remained unshaken in his principles.

Because of his courage and his faith in the teaching of Christ, the followers of Arius plotted and succeeded in killing him. One day, as the saint was serving, a group of Arians burst into the church and stabbed him many times upon the Holy Table. His memory is kept on 7 October in the Orthodox Church of Greece and of Cyprus. In Cyprus, on the day of his commemoration, a festival is held in the villages of Agios Nikolaos Lefkonikou and Melanarka in Karpasia.

The source adds that the calendar also holds a Venerable Polychronius, a disciple of Zebinas, who must not be confused with the hieromartyr and who is honoured on 23 February.