CONSTANTINOPLE

There are two additional documents that shed more light on what happened to Abba dioscorus
before Chalcedon and after Chalcedon, when he was exiled in Gangra. The first is a “history
of Dioscorus” written by his disciple Theopistus, who accompanied him from Egypt to
Constantinople, then to Chalcedon and finally to Gangra. The “History” is available online in
a French translation. I am grateful to our very own Deacon John Fayek for translating it into
English. The second is a “Panygeric on Macarius bishop of Tkow”. The author is St. Dioscorus
but it was written by St. Paphnutius, archimandarite of the monasteries of St. Pachomius, who
came to visit Pope Dioscorus in Gangra, told the Pope about the martyrdom of St. Macarius
of Tkow in Alexandria, and recorded for us the “Panegyric” (eulogy) that Pope Dioscorus gave
about the martyred bishop of Tkow.
Emperor Theodosius II died in July 450, one year after the second council of Ephesus,
which he called for to rid the Church of the many Nestorian bishops. His sister Pulcheria,
wasted no time. She broke her monastic vows, married a Nestorian military officer named
Marcian and made him emperor after her brother.
Marcian wasted no time, he brought back the Nestorian bishops deposed in the second
council of Ephesus and made them his counsellors.1 He even sent messengers to Egypt to bring
back Nestorius from his exile.2
He then sent letters to all the bishops telling them: “I order that all the bishops of every
country and of all directions meet and come near me to teach me what is right and true faith.”
When St. Dioscorus received the letter he revealed to Theopistus his disciple, a
revelation that he had already received:

This last week, one day that I was performing the night service according to my
custom and as I slept a little, I saw Saint Cyril standing before me, I threw
myself at his feet and he said to me: “Dioscorus, do you love me?” I replied,
“Yes, master, I love you very much, with all my soul, with all my body and with
all my mind.” He replied: “Do not depart from the canons and the chapters of
the true faith that I gave you and you have received from me, for many will
deviate at that time.” I said to him, “God will forsake us, O holy father, since
there will be heresiarchs again, yet behold, everyone knows God and the
orthodox faith.” He answered me, “You have heard me, believe me, behold,
from the root of righteous kings shall an evil thorn grow, instead of being a
virgin, we found that it was an unchaste, but you will be sent into exile.3

1
History of Dioscorus, chapter 1, (4)
2
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow XII
3
History of Dioscorus, chapter 1, (4)

1
 When my father read the emperor’s letter, he said to me as well as to the archdeacon
Peter, (who is now a priest): “Take our books and our luggage and let us go to the council to
make dogmas in Constantinople”. We prepared ships for our journey and when we went out
to go board them, all the people of Alexandria accompanied us and Pope Dioscorus made his
recommendations and said: “Your brother Timothy will succeed me, do not let a stranger who
does not share my faith enter my church.” Then he prayed to them all as they wept and
lamented, he blessed them and comforted them, and we went away from the city, about three
miles away. Then St. Dioscorus got up, prayed and said:4

Lord my God and the God of my fathers, You know that it is for the defence of
your faith that I must leave my country, my throne and my honours, be my guide
and my leader so that I do not stray of truth; be the pastor and support of your
spiritual flock for which you have made me pastor. I confide it to you, do not let
a wicked wolf tear your flock. You, Lord, who was with Mark the Evangelist
until he suffered martyrdom for your holy name, be with me and guide me. You,
Lord, who was with Denys5 until he anathematized Paul of Samosata, be with
me and save me from the impiety of our time. You, Lord, who was with St.
Theonas6 until he defeated Origen, be with me. Lord, You who were with Peter7
who won the crown of martyrdom by beheading, be with me. You who were
with the apostle Athanasius, our father, who suffered for the apostles, was
martyred thousands of times without bloodshed and was thrown into exile five
times, you who helped him in all his sufferings, be with me and help me. You
who were with my father Cyril until he anathemized Nestorius and all his
followers, be with me too. Hear, O Lord, the prayer of Dioscorus, your
unprofitable servant; do not make my sins fall on your people, but save your
people by shedding my blood.8

St. Dioscorus was accompanied by Theopistus and Peter9, and St. Macarius bishop of Tkow
with his disciple Pinution. Neither St. Macarius nor Pinution spoke Greek but only Coptic!

4
History of Dioscorus, chapter 1, (6)
5
Saint Dionysius 14th Pope of Alexandria
6
16th Pope of Alexandria
7
17th Pope of Alexandria
8
History of Dioscorus, chapter 1, (6)
9
Peter was then archdeacon, he became a priest under St. Timothy 26th Pope of
Alexandria and after his death he became the 27th Pope of Alexandria

2
 Theopistus questioned the wisdom of bringing a man who does not speak Greek to the
council but St. Dioscorus told him:

No, my son, do not utter words of this sort against God's just one. Believe me,
even if the whole world were full of heretics and demons, the prayers of this
man would reduce them to nothing, as if they were smoke. And if the whole
world, full of swords and spears, gathers against him, he will never be
overwhelmed by them. And I shall become like Joshua, the son of Nun, in order
that we might go out to war. And this holy elder, let him become like Moses and
pray over us in order that we might conquer our enemies, that is, the heretics.10

St. Dioscorus told Abba Paphnutius the archimandarite about a miracle St. Macarius
performed on the ship:

There was a sailor among those who were aboard our ship. By chance, he
happened to be the brother of the shipowner, and he had one (good) eye. And
the very eye in which he enjoyed the comfort of sight was inflamed. Severe pain
gnawed at it. He was wont to pass the entire night, tossing in the ship in torment
while holding his hands upon his head while being sorely tormented. And while
this holy man stood praying at night, the sailor passed him, not realizing where
he was going, since he had only one (good) eye, and it was closed because of the
pain. And when the holy man, Father Macarius, saw the man's affliction, he had
compassion on him and said to him: “come, my son, here is the path.” He drew
him to himself. He spoke to him in Egyptian, for that sailor was also an
Egyptian. He said to him: “My lord father, see my distress. For my sight is about
to be lost, and I will (have to) accept charity with my children.' Father Macarius
said to him: “Allow me to make the sign of the cross on it, my son.” Now he was
thinking that they were both diseased. And when he ignorantly made the sign
of the cross on the eye which was blind, he immediately cried out: “My lord
father, this is not the one which is diseased, but the one which is blind. When
your hand touched it, I saw.”When the holy elder saw the great wonder which
had occurred, he made the sign of the cross on the other diseased(eye) in the
name of Christ. And at once the pain m it ceased.11

And when we landed at Constantinople, Father Macarius followed us, dressed in his filthy
clothes. Peter said to him: “Father, put on your clean clothes, for we are going to meet the
emperor.” But he said: “The emperor's heart is ten thousand times filthier than my clothes.

10
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow I
11
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow III

3
Believe me, my son, were I to find other clothes in worse condition than these, I would put
them on and go inside to him. I will put on my good clothes when I am about to meet my king,
the Christ”.12
Our father Dioscorus tells us, to me and to Peter: “Let one of you come in with me and
the other with father Macarius, because his disciple cannot speak Greek, and carry with you
the book in which the chapters of our father Cyril are written.” At our entrance, the porter,
seeing that father Macarius was dressed in humble clothes, did not want to let him in; I told
him that it was a bishop from Egypt who was with us and they let him.13
And it happened (that), when we were taken inside, we sat down. And in there were
Mark of Ephesus, Juvenal of Jerusalem, Anatolius of Constantinople, Stephen of Antioch, and
the lowliest, I Dioscorus, as well as the emperor and she who is unworthy to be called by her
name, Pulcheria. There were 100 bishops in all. And Father Macarius came in with Pinution,
his brother. He sat over apart by himself.14
And when he came inside, he heard the blasphemies which the Nestorians were uttering
and wished from that time on to show contempt for the emperor and anathematize him, but
he did not find anyone who would dare to interpret for him what he was saying, since death
was sweet for him as for someone who is about to be invited for a breakfast or a wedding. For
he had resolved that if he dies for the Faith of the Son of God, it is a martyrdom for him.15
The emperor said to us. “Define the Faith for us that you may go to your homes.” I,
Dioscorus, said to him: “In what is the faith of our fathers lacking that we should add to it in
accord with your mind, emperor? And do you not say, ‘Our fathers who laid down the Faith
are orthodox, that is, Alexander, Athanasius, Theophilus, Cyril, Liberius, Innocent and
Celestine”?16 The emperor said yes!
Flavian17 who anticipated the emperor, answered: “Enough of you, O Dioscorus! The
ancient ways have passed on. Behold, new people exist”. I myself, Dioscorus, answered saying:
“If I were to add to the things which my fathers built up at the synods which they attended, and
if I destroyed these things, truly I would set myself up as a traitor”.18
Ibas, (another deposed bishop at the orders of emperor Theodosius II), then motioned

12
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow VI
13
History of Dioscorus chapter 7
14
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow VI
15
Ibid
16
Ibid XI
17
Archbishop of Constantinople, deposed by second Council of Ephesus
18
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow XI

4
to the emperor to order the Tome of Leo to be read. St. Dioscorus brought in some sayings
of Liberius19, bishop of Rome (352-366 AD), and Innocent, another bishop of Rome (378-417)
that contradict Leo. Ibas and Theodoret (bothr deposed bishops)then said to the emperor: “As
long as Dioscorus is seated, we cannot declare the letter of patriarch Leo.” Dioscorus replied:
“If the blasphemies of this ungodly are proclaimed before me, I will abandon the imperial city
under the anathemas and go away.” With these words the emperor dismissed them for that
day.20 And the God-loving Nicetas received us into his house, he and Luke, the God-loving
priest. But the heretics went into the palace.21
And again, I shall tell you about this other great miracle which occurred through him
(Abba macarius of Tkow). A lawyer named Peter was standing there at the time when we were
propounding doctrine. Now he was orthodox in his worship. But his wife had a leprous spot
coming out on her forehead, and it came down as far as her eyes. And when the lawyer
returned, he went inside at the time of return to his house. And he looked at the leprosy on
her forehead and cried out saying: O my sister, would that I were to ask this Egyptian elder to
come and pray over you, perhaps this leprosy would depart from you. For he caused the eyes
of Selphilus to see.. And with great faith, the wife answered, saying: “My Lord, was there not
any member (of his) which you touched at all”? He said to her: “Yes, my sister. I grasped his
hand and put it upon my head”. And with her great faith, she grasped the hand of her husband
and put it upon her forehead. At once, the leprosy on her rolled back like a covering. Its colour
became like the rest of her body. And when these things happened, the fame went out into the
entire city. And they were guarding him like an angel of God.22
While in Constantinople St. Dioscorus saw a vision which he related to his disciples
Theopistus and Peter in the presence of Abba Macarius:

I saw two very handsome men standing before me. One is bald, while the other
one has a great deal of hair on his head and a beautifully flourishing beard. The
latter said to me: “Dioscorus, have you not recognized who I am?” I said to him:
“No, my lord.” He said to me: “I am John, the son of Zechariah. My mother is
Elizabeth, the relative of Mary, the mother of the Lord. My brother whom you
see is Elisha the prophet, the one who poured water on the hand of Elijah, and
over whom the spirit of Elijah is doubled. The Saviour sent us to comfort you
and to summon this elder, the man of Tkow, that his body should rest beside our

19
Commemorated in our Synaxarium on the fourth day of the little month
20
History of Dioscorus chapter 7
21
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow XII
22
Ibid

5
 own.”23

When Abba Macarius heard this he said: “Who am I that my worthless body will come from
my city (Tkow) and dwell beside that of the forerunner of Christ and the prophet Elisha?”
And a child named Misael - now he was a eunuch was standing there when the heretics
were taken inside and he was listening to what they were saying to the emperor and the
empress. For they had settled with one another concerning the holy man, Father Macarius,
that he should never again do any mighty works in our midst, for he performed many signs
through the power of God who is with him. The emperor, through his advisors, ordered the
wicked heretics to adhere to the Tome of Leo and to what pertained to the holy synod of
Nicea, and to put it into practice among one another. He also ordered to take us to Chalcedon
and to set up a synod in that place.24
The emperor together with his Nestorian friends, whom he restored by imperial orders
decided that they will produce a new “creed”, a hybrid of the Nicaean creed and the Tome of
Leo, thus avoiding the two councils of Ephesus which were hated by the Nestorians. As we
shall see in the next paper, a committee of 12 bishops was entrusted by writing the new
“creed”, which was presented to the bishops with two choices: accept it and you can go back
to your seat or else accept exile and anathematisation. One hundred and sixty one bishops
accepted the new “creed”, the rest fled the council before the vote and maintained their
dioceses orthodox for a short time until the emperor and his soldiers either killed them or
drove them to exile.
There was a problem that they realized, the last thing they needed was a miracle
working elder from Egypt that is most likely going to anathematise the whole council and then
the bishops will be afraid to sign. They had to do something about this:

But the child, Misael, (son of Nicetas) came running. He said to his father: “My
father let this Egyptian elder who caused the eyes of Selphilus (the sailor on
the ship) to see flee and hide himself. Otherwise, the emperor has ordered to
kill him secretly and not to let anyone know.” And he also told us what the
heretics said to the emperor as well as the doctrine which the emperor laid down
with them. And when I heard these things, I wept profusely for the sake of
Father Macarius. However, I recalled the vision which I saw, when the holy
man, John the Baptist, and Elisha the prophet brought up the fact that his body
would rest beside their own.25

23
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow VI
24
Ibid XII
25
Ibid

6
 When we found a ship with our brothers from Tabennisi26 on board, I knew at once that
it was ordained by God that (he) go on board it with them. I called to one of them whose
name was Anubion and spoke with him about Father Macarius so that they might take him on
board with them. At once, I went with him, weeping and knowing that we would not see one
another again in the body. He said to me: “My father, do not weep any more over those who
are about to die in the Lord, for there will be no other good upon the earth unto the day when
the Lord will judge every soul”. We [arose and came] out upon the ship, while we wept with
a [troubled] heart, and I said:

I beseech you earnestly, O Macarius, the perfect man, do not forget my humble
person in your holy prayers, for I need your prayers constantly, especially now
that I am a lone sheep in the midst of wolves. I know that you will go to the Lord
before me. Embrace the feet of my father, Cyril, and say, “Dioscorus, your
humble son, is in the midst of young lions”. Also say to him, “This is the critical
time when I have need of you”. Say to all my holy fathers that this humble
Dioscorus did not destroy any of your faith but (that) I build upon it up to now.
Say to Athanasius, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horseman,
let your spirit be doubled upon me, for this is the crucial time when I have need
of the tongue of the elder, Alexander”27. Then say to my father, Cyril, “I have
need of you today, O whelp of the lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David,
who overcame the wicked Nestorius in war and caused him to be exiled to
Egypt's barbaric south”. Say to all my fathers, the confessors, “I am pouring out
my tears before your feet. Do not forget me but strengthen me in your faith”.
Behold, you see this mob of heretics. There is not a single person supporting me
save God alone. Write these words on the tablets of your heart. If they ask you
about my humble person, let them know everything which I have said to you.
Behold, I send you ahead of me. Greet all the saints.28

And I called the sailors of the ship: “Truly, my sons, you have been deemed worthy of a great
grace while this apostle was on board with you”. And Father Macarius said: “I beseech you,
my holy lord father let your holy prayers be with me until I pass from this life which is full of
suffering”. And he did not stop crying out to me until I ceased to hear his voice on the sea.
And I returned to the house of Luke, the priest, while giving glory to God over our separation
from one another.29

26
The district where the Pachomian monasteries were situated
27
19th Pope of Alexandria
28
Panegyric on Macarius of Tkow XIII
29
Ibid