Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Adamnan's De Locis Sanctis (Author: Adamnan of Iona)
Chapter/toc 4
CONCERNING GEORGE THE CONFESSOR
The holy man Arculf, who told us all these things about the cross of
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the Lord, which he saw with his own eyes, and kissed, brought us
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another story concerning a confessor, George by name. This he learned
in the city of Constantinople from some well-informed citizens, who used
to tell it to him in the following terms: In the city of Diospolis, in a
certain house, the likeness of the confessor George is depicted set on a
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marble column. He was bound to the column and flogged during the
time of persecution. After the flogging, however, he was released from
his bonds and lived for many years. Now one day a hardhearted wretch,
an unbeliever, entered that house mounted on horseback, and on seeing
the marble column he questioned the inmates saying: ‘Whose image is
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this depicted on the marble column?’ They answered saying: ‘It is the
picture of the confessor George who was bound to this column and
flogged.’ On hearing this the stupid fellow became very angry with the
insensible object, and at the instigation of the devil struck at the likeness
of the holy confessor with his lance. And the lance of this adversary
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easily penetrated the column, passing through the outer surface in a
wondrous fashion as if it were a soft mass of snow. Its point stuck fast
in the interior and could not possibly be withdrawn, while the haft
which had struck against the marble likeness of the holy confessor was
broken off on the outside. Simultaneously the miserable fellow's horse
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too, on which he was mounted, fell dead under him on the pavement of
the house; and as he was falling himself he placed his hands against the
marble column, and his fingers sank into it as if it were fine dust or mud
and remained fast. When the unfortunate fellow perceived this, that
he was unable to withdraw the ten fingers of his two hands, which remained
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stuck fast in the marble likeness of the holy confessor, he did
penance and invoked the name of the eternal God and of the confessor,
begging with tears to be freed from the bond. The merciful God, who
does not wish the death of the sinner but that he be converted and live,
accepting this tearful repentance, released him not just from the visible
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marble bond of the moment, but absolved him also from the invisible
fetters of sin, mercifully succouring him now saved by faith. This clearly
shows the character and magnitude of the honour George, His confessor
amid tortures, has before the Lord. The figure, in a material
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naturally impenetrable, he rendered penetrable by his power, and likewise
the lance of the adversary, impenetrable by nature, he wondrously
made penetrable, and the fellow's weak fingers he powerfully made to
penetrate into that substance by nature impenetrable. At first when the
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fingers remained fast in the marble the hardened man was unable to
withdraw them; but he became instantly very frightened, and then
softened and penitent, and by the mercy of God he withdrew them.
Wonderful to relate, to this day there remain in the marble column the
prints of his ten fingers inserted up to the roots, and into their place the
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holy Arculf inserted his own ten fingers, they likewise penetrating up to
the roots. The blood of the wretch's horse too, whose thigh was broken
in two as he fell dead on the pavement, could not be cleansed or wiped
away by any means, but there it remains indelibly on the pavement of
the house up to our times.
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The holy Arculf gave us another true story also about this confessor
George, which he learned accurately in the above-mentioned city of
Constantinople from some well-informed and quite reliable narrators.
This was the tale they used to tell about the holy confessor: At a time
when many thousands from every quarter were coming together to
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form an expedition, a certain fellow, a layman, mounted on horseback,
entered the city of Diospolis. He approached the house where the abovementioned
marble column is, which has depicted on it the likeness of
the holy confessor George, and entering it began to address the image
as if George were present, saying: ‘I commend myself and my horse
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to thee, George the confessor, that by virtue of your prayers we may
both return safe from the expedition and reach this city, delivered from
all dangers of wars and pestilences and waters. And if, according to the
prayer of our littleness, the merciful God grant to thee our successful
return, I will bestow on thee as a gift this steed of mine, which I love
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exceedingly, assigning him in the presence of thy image.’ Speedily
terminating these remarks, this fellow left the house, mingled with his
other companions in the multitude of the army, and went off with the
expedition. Then after many and divers dangers of war, in which
thousands of unfortunate people perished, he got back safely to Diospolis
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mounted on that same beloved horse of his, having by God's grace
escaped all evil chances, since he commended himself, as mentioned
above, to George the servant of Christ. He joyously entered the house
where the image of the holy confessor was, bearing with him gold as the
price of his horse, and he addressed the holy George as if he were
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present, saying: ‘Holy confessor, I give thanks to the eternal God, who
by the steadfast prayer of your loftiness brought me back safe; and
because of that I give thee these twenty gold sovereigns as the price of
my horse, which thou hast conserved for me to this day since he was first
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commended to thee.’ While saying this he laid the said sum of gold before
the feet of the holy confessor's image, loving his horse more than the
gold. His devotions completed, he went out, mounted the beast in
question, and spurred him onward. But nothing would induce him to
move. Realizing this the fellow dismounted, went into the house again,
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and offered ten sovereigns more saying: ‘Holy confessor, thou wast indeed
a gentle protector to me as I rode amid the perils of the expedition; but
nevertheless, I see, in horse dealing thou art hard and greedy.’ With this
remark he added 10 sovereigns to the 20, and said to the holy confessor:
‘I am giving thee these sovereigns too that thou mayst be appeased and
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set my horse free to walk.’ Then he went out again, mounted the horse,
and urged him forward; but he kept standing as if fixed in that place, and
could not move even one foot. To cut the story short: after mounting and
dismounting fully four times, going into the house with 10 sovereigns,
coming back to the immovable horse, and again back to the house, he
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kept running from one point to the other, and all the time nothing could
succeed in moving his steed, until finally the collected sum of sovereigns
amounted to 60. Then he would repeat too the above-mentioned remarks
about the gentle kindness of the holy confessor and his safe guardianship
during the expedition, mentioning also his hardness, as it were, or
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even greed, in dealing. According to the story he would repeat such
language on his return to the house on each single occasion of the four.
On the final occasion he addressed the holy George as follows: ‘Holy
confessor, now I know thy will for certain, and accordingly I offer thee
as a gift the whole sum of gold thou askest, that is 60 sovereigns, and my
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steed too which I originally promised to donate to thee after the expedition,
I now donate bound as he is by invisible bonds, but soon, I believe,
to be released through thy honour before God.’ After these remarks he
went out of the house, and at that moment found his steed released. He
led him into the house and assigned him as a gift to the holy confessor in
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the presence of his image and he went away from there joyfully, magnifying
Christ. The clear conclusion from this is that whatsoever is consecrated
to the Lord, whether it be man or animal, according to what is written in
the book of Leviticus, can by no means be redeemed or changed. For if
anyone change it, both that which is changed and that for which it is
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changed shall be consecrated to the Lord and shall not be redeemed.
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