Monastic Martyrs Menas David, and John of Palestine
Three Palestinian monks who were shot with arrows by Arab raiders following the fall of Jerusalem, receiving the crown of martyrdom.
Life
Menas, David, and John were three monks of Palestine who, according to the synaxarion, were martyred in the seventh century by Arab raiders who shot them through with arrows. Their deaths are placed after the year 636, when Jerusalem fell to the Arab conquest, and they are honored together as monastic martyrs on April 12.
The surviving account is brief, preserving only their names, their monastic state in the Holy Land, the manner of their death, and its setting in the upheaval that followed the loss of Jerusalem. No further detail of their individual lives has come down in the tradition.
Kontakion & Troparion2 hymnsReadHide
As venerable and proven ascetics, as honorable and renowned martyrs,
and as models of the desert life, O most exalted Menas, David, and John,
we sing hymns of praise to you,
for you have trampled upon serpents.
Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).
O God of our Fathers,
always act with kindness towards us;
take not Your mercy from us,
but guide our lives in peace
through the prayers of the holy fathers Menas, David, and John.
Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).
Companions1 figureShowHide
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