Synaxarium

On this day, we commemorate the appearance of the bodies of the two saints John the Baptist and Elisha the Prophet, disciple of Elijah the Prophet, in the city of Alexandria. When Julian the Apostate intended to rebuild the temple of Jerusalem after it had been destroyed by Sabastianus and his son Titus, with the evil intention to nullify the Lord's word in the Gospel: "Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down" (Matthew 24:3), he supplied the Jews with money to rebuild it and entrusted the task to Alibius, who secretly called the Jews to assist him. Many men, women, elders, and youths gathered and began to dig the foundation with zeal, carrying dirt and stones, some with picks and others with the edges of their sandals. Saint Cyril, Bishop of Jerusalem, mocked their work.

When they finished raising the stones of the old foundation and intended to lay the new foundation, a great earthquake occurred, filling the pits with dust, scattering the building tools, and killing some of the workers. The Jews were not deterred and resumed work again. Then fiery balls came out of the earth and pelted the workers with stones they intended to use in the foundation, so they stopped building. Many believed because of this, especially since the prophecy of the Lord Jesus about the destruction of the temple from its foundation was fulfilled by their hands. This story was narrated by Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom, and briefly mentioned by the Jewish historian Ammianus in the fifth century.

But the Jews said to the king, "The reason for this is the presence of the bodies of the Christian leaders in this place, and they must be removed, or the temple will not be built." Julian ordered the bodies of the saints to be taken out and burned. When the bodies of Saint John the Baptist and Elisha the Prophet were brought out for burning, some believing soldiers gave silver and took the two bodies to Saint Athanasius, Pope of Alexandria. He rejoiced and placed them in a special place until a church could be built for them.

One day, Pope Athanasius was sitting in the garden with his secretary, Pope Theophilus, who succeeded him on the throne. He said to him, "If the Lord prolongs my days, I will build a church in this place in the name of these two saints, John the Baptist and Elisha the Prophet, and place their bodies there." When Pope Theophilus sat on the chair of the Markian preaching, he remembered what Pope Athanasius had said and transferred the two pure bodies there. While they were carrying the bodies, they passed by the house of a pagan woman who had been suffering from a difficult labor for four days. She heard the noise of the celebration, and when she learned the reason, she vowed, "O Saint John, if you save me from this hardship, I will become a Christian." She did not complete her vow until she gave birth to a son, whom she named John. Then she and her household were baptized. The two bodies were placed in the church, from which many miracles appeared. As for Julian the Apostate, his end was as follows:

He intended to wage war against Shapur, King of Persia. Saint Basil the Great, the founder of the liturgy, and some bishops met him and asked, "Why have you come?" Basil answered, "We have come to seek a shepherd." Julian mockingly asked, "And where did you leave the carpenter's son?" Basil proudly replied, "We left him to make you a coffin because you have lost all knowledge and understanding." Julian said, "I have read and memorized it." Basil replied, "But you did not understand it." Julian became angry and ordered their arrest to put them to death after his return. He said to them, "You will not return, or else God has not spoken through my mouth." Then he ordered their imprisonment. After he went to war, Saint Mercurius, the father of the two swords, appeared before an icon, praying for punishment for insulting his Lord Jesus. Mercurius disappeared from the icon and then returned with his sword dripping blood. In the war, Julian was struck by an arrow in his liver. Theodoritus, in his church history, said that when the apostate king was stabbed, he caught the flowing blood in his hands, scattered it toward the sky, and said, "You have overcome me, son of Mary." Thus, the prophecy of Saint Basil was fulfilled, and the church was saved from his evil. When Saint Macarius, Bishop of Edku, was martyred, they placed his body with the bodies of John the Baptist and Elisha the Prophet. May their prayers be with us, and to our Lord be glory forever. Amen.

On this day, the church commemorates the departure of Pope John XVIII, the 107th Patriarch. He was from the people of Fayoum and was originally named Joseph. He became a monk in the great monastery of Saint Anthony the Great on Mount Qara. When Pope Mark VII, his predecessor, passed away, the bishops, priests, and elders of the people unanimously agreed to choose him as patriarch. They brought him and ordained him patriarch in the Church of Saint Mercurius, Father of the Two Swords, in Old Cairo on the blessed Sunday, 15th of Baba, year 1486 of the Martyrs (October 23, 1769 AD). He was called Pope John XVIII, the 107th patriarch.

During his days, the Pope of Rome sought to attract the Eastern churches, especially the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt, to the Catholic doctrine. He published the Acts of the Council of Chalcedon and distributed them throughout the Eastern countries. This caused a schism in the church and a rejection of the faithfulness of Saint Pope Dioscorus, the 25th Patriarch. Then the Pope of Rome sent a delegate to Pope John with a letter inviting him to unite with him. Pope John handed the letter to Anba Yousab Al-Abh, Bishop of Girga, and tasked him with studying and responding to it. This great scholar and theologian refuted the claims of Rome and defended his church, its faithfulness, and beliefs with a glorious defense that immortalized his memory. As for the Acts of the Council of Chalcedon, they had the opposite effect of what Rome expected from their publication, as they confirmed the correctness of the beliefs of the Coptic Orthodox Church. The Bishop of Rome regretted publishing them in the East and collected and burned their copies.

Pope John endured many hardships and afflictions from the rulers of the country and the Ottoman governors. The Turkish commander confiscated the patriarchal treasury and took its money, forcing the Pope to hide from the oppression of these rulers who burdened the Christians with unjust decrees and increased taxes. Pope John cooperated with the teacher Ibrahim Al-Jawhari, head of the scribes of Egypt at that time, in rebuilding monasteries and churches. He also performed the holy chrism. He departed on the second day of the blessed month of Buona, year 1512 of the righteous martyrs (June 7, 1796 AD), after serving on the patriarchal throne for 26 years, 7 months, and 16 days. He was buried in the cemetery of the righteous patriarchs in the Church of Saint Mercurius, Father of the Two Swords. The throne remained vacant for three months and twenty-six days after him.

May the prayer of this saint be with us, and to our Lord be glory forever. Amen.