I’ve been reading through the German translation of various Acts of the Persian Martyrs,[1] with the aid of Google Translate. My main interest has been in the Life of the East Syriac Catholicos, Mar Aba I. But I have dabbled in some of the other, shorter, acts, which date mainly from the 4th century persecution. I can’t say how reliable the latter are: many of the accounts seem to have very little historical content.
But the Life of Mar Aba looks much more like a historical document, although it does have a couple of chapters of stock “miracles by Mar Aba” carried out at Constantinople, at which, I admit, I rather winced.
In fact it is sufficiently interesting that it really should be online in English. I have dropped an email to someone who possesses the relevant skills and might be interested in making a translation for us all.
In the meantime I need to think of some short, interesting Greek texts. A translator whom I have not used before has become available in this area, and I want to commission something. Does anyone have any suggestions? I’m thinking in terms of a sermon by Chrysostom, perhaps, at the moment, but I am in no way wedded to this.
The other big news is that I have ordered a new laptop, so I shall spend time with that this weekend.
- [1]Oskar Braun (tr), Ausgewählte Akten persischer Märtyrer, Bibliothek der Kirchenväter, series 1 vol 22, Kempten; München : J. Kösel, 1915, online here: Ausgewählte Akten persischer Märtyrer – (RTF) ↩