What is this saint famous for? With your strong faith. Victor became a martyr for Christ. He was not afraid to defend his faith in front of the Gentiles. I was not afraid of terrible torment, patiently endured it. He was awarded a martyr's crown.
Let's talk in detail about the life and feat of St. Victor.
Who was he?
The martyr was a warrior. He served under the leadership of Sevastian. It was a pagan warlord. St. Victor served in his army. About his origin is known only that he was from Italy.
What did you suffer for?
The holy martyr Victor suffered for believing in Christ, for professing Christianity and refusing to offer sacrifice to pagan gods.
Day of Remembrance
When are Victor's birthday baptized in honor of Victor Damascus celebrated? November 24 is the day of remembrance of the martyr.
Icon
In front of the icon of St. Victor, they pray for healing. It helps with hand diseases, and also helps those who have problems with skin and eyesight.
The special cover of the holy martyr extends over men baptized in his honor. They pray to him, asking for protection from enemies and dangers. St. Victor also helps in finding reliable companions of life.
Temple
Where can I pray to my patron saint Victor? In Kotelniki (Moscow region) ten years ago a temple was built in honor of the martyr. Divine services are held in it, the temple itself is open daily. The main shrine is a particle of the relics of the martyr Victor.
The temple is located at: Kotelniki, Belaya Dacha microdistrict, 1st Pokrovsky passage, building 8.
Sunday liturgy in the temple begins at 8 o’clock. Confession - at 7.30.
The Life of St. Victor
As mentioned above, the future martyr was a warrior. He served under the governor of Sevastian. The Saint lived during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. And so, one day the ruler issued a decree stating that every Roman Christian should renounce his faith and sacrifice to the pagan gods. Those who refuse to obey, betray terrible torment.
Victor was a Christian. He openly professed his faith, fearing nothing and nobody. The decree reached the governor of Sebastian, he summoned St. Victor. The governor wanted to put pressure on his subordinate and force him to renounce Christ. But the conversation began from afar. He spoke about the decree and invited the future martyr to offer sacrifice to idols. But he refused. Then the governor reminded Victor that he was a warrior of the king and did not dare to disobey him. To which he replied that he was a warrior of the King of Heaven. And he will not renounce his faith. They can do whatever they want over his body. But his soul belongs to the Lord.
Sevastian was angry with Victor. He ordered the martyr to break his fingers and turn them out of the joints. However, the torture did not break the decisive mood of St. Victor. He bravely endured torment.
This angered the governor even more. He ordered to light the stove and throw the martyr into it. Victor spent three days in the furnace. When Sebastian decided to collect his ashes, he was very surprised to see the Holy alive and unharmed.
The governor should stop at this, understand the power of the Lord. But he did not stop. This time, Sevastian gave the order to poison Victor. And the magician had to do it. He cooked a piece of meat, stuffed it with poison and gave it to the martyr. The saint baptized a piece and ate it. The poison did not affect him. The sorcerer prepared another piece, filling it with the strongest poison. And he gave Victor with the words: "If you eat this meat and stay alive, I will leave the magic and believe in God."
Victor ate the offered piece. The poison did not hurt the saint. The shocked sorcerer burned his magic books and believed in God.
Sevastian was ready to tear his hair out of anger. He ordered the veins to be pulled out from the martyr. And then throw St. Victor into boiling oil. But, according to the Saint himself, this oil was for him, as for thirsty cold water. It did not hurt Victor.
Seeing that the Saint did not give up and continued to firmly believe in God, the governor gave the order for a new sophisticated torture. Now Viktor was hanged on a tree and burned his body with candles. The saint accepted this torture courageously. To aggravate his torment, Victor poured dust into his throat mixed with vinegar. He compared this mixture with honey.
Sebastian’s fury reached its climax. He ordered the saint to be gouged out. The warriors obeyed the order, and then hanged Victor upside down. So the martyr sagged for three days. On the fourth, the warriors returned for his body. Seeing Victor alive, they were horrified. The soldiers were blinded, but the Saint earnestly prayed to God that his tormentors could see. Instead of believing, they returned to the governor and told him about everything.
Sevastian was furious with anger. He ordered the skin to be stripped from Victor. And this torture was a turning point for the young martyr Stefanida. We will talk about it below.
How did St. Victor's life end? His head was cut off. Milk with blood leaked from the body of the martyr. Seeing this miracle, many were horrified and believed in the Lord.
Before his execution, Victor predicted his tormentors death, and the governor - captivity. It came true: the soldiers died twelve days later, as the saint prophesied. And Sevastian was captured twenty-four days after the execution of Victor.
Saint Stephenis
Speaking of St. Victor, one cannot fail to tell about another saint. The execution of Victor was the beginning of her martyrdom.
A young girl named Stefanida was a Christian. Despite her very young age (15 years), she was married to one of the soldiers of Sevastian for more than a year. There was a vision on the execution of Victor Stefanide. Two angels came down from heaven with two martyrs. One is bigger for Victor, and the second is smaller. He intended for Stefanida.
Seeing this, the girl began to glorify the martyr Victor with a loud voice. Her words reached the governor. He commanded to bring Stefanida. And he began to persuade him to renounce Christ, to regret his youth and beauty, to sacrifice to the pagan gods for the sake of his pardon.
Stefanida was adamant. She openly testified before the governor of her faith, exposing pagan gods. And then Sevastian ordered the girl to be executed. The execution method was scary. She was tied to two bowed palms. One foot to one, the second to the other. And let go of the palm trees. Stefanida was torn in two. So the young martyr got her crown, having suffered for the faith.
Conclusion
The main purpose of the article is to tell readers about the holy martyr Victor. Who he was during his life, how he got his crown. Recall the main aspects:
Victor, originally from Italy, served as a warrior during the reign of Marcus Aurelius.
Openly professed faith in Christ. He refused to make a sacrifice to idols, not afraid of terrible torture.
The martyr had to endure a red-hot oven, eat poisoned meat. Veins were torn out of it, the body was scorched by candles. They gouged out their eyes, watered with vinegar and dust. In the end, Victor was cut off his head.
St. Victor's Day is celebrated on November 24 (11).
- Young Stefanida suffered with it. The girl was only 15 years old. She was awarded the crown of martyrdom.