St. Malchus

Abridged frora St. Jerome.

WHILST St. Jerome in his younger days made some stay at Maronia, a village of Syria, about thirty miles distant from Antioch, he learnt that there dwelt in that neighborhood a religious man, now advanced in years, whose name was Malchus, and near him a decrepit old woman, both eminent servants of God, constant in the church, and wholly addicted to the exer cises of religion: of whom the neighbors published wonderful things and extolled their sanctity to the skies, which gave occasion to St. Jerome, in order to his own justification, to visit that holy man, and to learn from his own mouth the particulars of his history; which he afterwards published to the world in a small book, of which the following is an abstract.

Malchus was a native of the territory of Nisibis, a city of Mesopotamia, upon the confines of the Roman and Persian empires. Being the only child of his pa rents they looked upon him as the heir and support of their family, and therefore, when he was grown up, they pressed him to marry; but declaring himself quite averse to this state of life, he made known to them his desire of entering into religion, and of wholly dedicating himself to God. But as they ceased not t-till to importune him, both with flatteries and threats to part with the treasure of his virginal purity, which he valued above all the possessions of the world, in order to rid himself of their importunities, and to se cure his treasure, he took a resolution to withdraw himself entirely from house and home, parents and country. Accordingly, taking a trifling matter with him for his journey, he travelled westward, till at length he arrived at the desert of Chalcis in Syria. Here he found some servants of God leading a mo nastic life, and put himself under their direction, following the same institute as they did, living by the labor of his hands, and restraining the rebellions of flesh by rigorous fasting. In this course of life he continued for many years, till the common enemy, envying the progress he made in virtue, suggested to him, under specious pretexts, to leave the monastery, and to return to his own country to see whether his mother were yet alive (for he had heard of his father's death), and if she were, to comfort her in her widowhood, and after her decease to sell the estate, distribute part of the money to the poor, employ another part in building a monastery, and to reserve what remained for his own use; a design which he afterwards lamented, as a grievous transgression and infidelity to his religious engagements,

His Abbot was no sooner informed of his purposes, cban he remonstrated with him, in the strongest terms.

that the whole was a temptation of the devil, who, by such plausible pretences as these, had oftentimes imposed upon religious men, and drawn them back again into the world; alledging also several examples from Scripture, of the wiles and impostures of this wicked old serpent. When the abbot sawr that his remon strances were not hearkened to, he even cast himself down upon his knees, and earnestly entreated his disciple not to abandon him, nor fling himself away, nor to look back after setting his hand to the plough. But all in vain: Malchus imagined that his superior, in seeking to detain him, had more an eye to his own comfort and satisfaction, than to his advantage, and therefore would not be diverted from his design. When he set out upon his journey, his abbot follow ed him out of the monastery, bewailing him, as if he had been following his corpse to the grave; and at their last parting told him plainly, that the sheep which had left the fold must expect nothing but to fail an immediate prey to the wolves.

In his journey he was to go from Beroea to Edessa, by a road which borders upon an extensive wilderness, much infested by parties of the Saracens or Arabians, who ro\bed or carried off all they met with. This obliged the travellers who passed that way, to travel in large companies for their mutual defence; and it happened that there were at this time no less than about three-score and ten persons in company with

Malchus, young and old, men and women. But this precaution could not secure the fugitive, who was run ning away from his Lord, from being overtaken, or from meeting with captivity and slavery, instead of the possessions to which he imagined himself return ing. For behold a party of armed Saracens, some on horseback, others upon camels rushed suddenly upon them, made them prisoners, and then, by lot, divided their captives amongst them. Malchus happened to fall into the hands of the same master with a married woman, one of the company, whose husband fell to the lot of another: and both he, and the rest of the prisoners, now slaves, being set upon camels, were carried for many days through an immense wilderness, living in the mean time upon meat half raw and cam els' milk; till having passed over a great river, they came into the heart of the country. Here Malchus and his fellow captive were brought in, and being presented to their master's wife, were obliged, according to the manner of the custom of the country, to prostrate themselves and do reverence to their new mistress and her children. And now, instead of his mo nastic habit, or any other clothing, Malchus is obliged to go naked, as well on account of his condition of a slave, as by the violent heat reflected bv the sun-beams on those Arabian sands, which would not suffer him to wear any other covering than what modesty indispensably required. His office was to tend his master's sheep in the wilderness; in which it was his comfort to be generally alone, seldom seeing either his master, or any of his fellow-servants. He pleased himself also with the thought, that in his way of life he resembled some of the ancient Saints who had in like manner fed sheep in the wilderness. In the mean time his whole diet was new cheese and milk, and his whole employment continual prayer and singing of the psalms which he had learnt by heart in the monastery. He now became delighted with his captivity, and gave thanks to God for the wonderful dispositions of his merciful providence, in conducting him to find the monk again in the land of his slavery, which he was going to lose for ever in his own country.

The devil, who could not endure to be a witness to the great advantages our captive made of his present condition, by the help of his solitude, recollection, and continual prayer, contrived a dangerous stratagem for the robbing him at once both of his chastity and all his other virtues, which he sought to bring about in the following manner: The Saracen, finding that his flock increased under the hands of Malchus, that he served him honestly and with fidelity, took it into his head, doubtless by the suggestion of the enemy, to re ward him, and as it were, to fix him for ever in his service, by giving him the same married woman for a wife who was taken captive with him: — this he pro posed as an aci of friendship, or a favor which he was desirous to confer on him. But when Malchus re plied that this could not be, because he was a Christian, and therefore could not, by the law of God, marry a woman whose husband was still living, the barbarian, in a rage, drew his sword, and would have instantly killed him upon the spot, had he not hastened to take his fellow-captive by the arm, which his master mistook for a token of his consent to the marriage. When night arrived they went both together with a heavy heart into a ruinous cave, which served Malchus fot- his lodging, neither of them knowing the disposi tions of the other. Here Malchus casting himself upon the ground, grievously lamented his wretched condition, that after having in his younger days forsaken all his worldly pretensions, together with his country, parents, and estate, purely to preserve his virginity, he should now in a more advanced age, lose it in so illegal and wicked a manner: accusing himself withal of his sins, especially of his crime in quitting his monastery to return to his own country, to which he imputed his being now caught in this labyrinth, out of which he knew not how to extricate himself but by death: and this he was strongly inclined to choose, as the only means remaining, as he thought, to preserve his virtue. His fellow-captive, perceiving the excessive trouble and agitation of mind under which he lay, and hearing him talk of making himself a martyr of chastity, cast herself at his feet, and beg ged, for the sake of Jesus Christ, that he would not think of doing himself any harm; that, for her part, she abhorred the proposed marriage as much as him self, and would rather suffer death than consent to any unchastity: but why may we not live together, said she, as brother and sister, in perfect purity, whilst ou. master and mistress take us for man and wife? These words calmed the soul of Malchus, and made him esteem and admire the virtue of the woman, and love her the more; but, according to God, with a holy friendship, cemented by heavenly charity.

Pursuant to this proposal, they lived a long time together, in perfect chastity of mind and body, and were beloved by their master and mistress, who enter tained not the least suspicion, either of their not being married, nor of any danger of their making their es cape: so that Malchus was accustomed to be absent with his flock for a whole month together in the wilderness, at a great distance from his master's house. One day, whilst he was sitting alone, he began to consider the great advantages of a spiritual life that are found in well ordered religious communities: remembering in particular the helps and directions he had /eceived from the good abbot, his ghostly father, and regretted his leaving him: when behold, in the midst of his meditation, he perceives at a little distance a hillock of ants (a creature ] roposed to us by the wise man as a pattern of industry and wisdom), and was pleased to see the order and harmony which they ob served in their labors — that mutual help which they gave to each other, and how they ran to the assistance of such as fell under their burthens. This seemed to him a lively representation of a regular community; and joined to his foregoing considerations made him begin to be weary of his captivity, and long to return to his a&bot and his monastery. When he came home at night, the woman perceived him to be pensive and melancholy, and having learnt the reason, persuaded him to set off, offering at the same time to accompany him. Having concluded upon so doing, and watching a proper opportunity, he killed two large goats of his flock, made vessels of their skins, and prepared part of the meat to support them during their journey. On the next evening they set out, making the best of their way to a river about ten miles distant, which they crossed by the help of the vessels they had made of the skins of the goats. In crossing the river they lost some part of the meat they had carried with them, so that what remained was scarce sufficient to support them for three days, and as to drink, th'ey took plenty of water, not knowing when they should meet with more.

They made what haste they possibly could through the sandy deserts, looking back from time to time, with fear and trembling, to see if any one were in pur suit of them, travelling mostly by night, as well to avoid the meeting with any of the Saracen rovers, as on account of the excessive heat. They had been no\v three days upon their journey, when looking behind them; they saw at a distance two men riding on cam els, and hastening towards them, one of whom they concluded to be their master, who had discovered the way they had gone by their tracks in the sands, and now they expected nothing but certain death. There happening to be a den or cave at hand that reached 3 considerable way under ground, they ran thither for shelter; but fearing the serpents and other venomous creatures that usually resort to such places in order to avoid the heat of the sun, they would not venture to penetrate to the further end, lest in flying from death i i one shape, they should meet it in another. Where-f<. re discovering within, near the entrance of the den, a hole on their left hand, into which they had no so-jner trusted themselves, when behold their master, with one of their fellow servants, tracing them by their footsteps, quickly came up to the mouth of the cavern. The master having sent his servant in to drag them out, stood without, holding the camels, and waiting for them with his drawn sword. The servant passed bv the hole where they lay concealed, without being able to see them, on account of his being just come out of the light, and advancing forward made a great uproar, crying aloud: "Come forward, ye vti tains and receive your wages: come out, your mastei calls for you: come out, and die." Malchus and his companion saw him pass by tbem, and looking after him, perceived a lioness, roused by the noise, flying at him, and strangling him, and then drawing his bloody body further into the den. The master, ignorant of what had happened, finding that the servant did not come out, supposed that they, being two, might make resistance against one. lie came therefore in a great rage to the entrance of the ouve, with his sword in his hand, and raving at the cowardice of his servant, bejjan to enter in; but before he had passed the lurking hole where Malchus lay, he was suddenly seized by the beast before their eyes, and served in the same manner as his servant had been. Thus by an extraordinary providence were these servants of God delivered from the hands of those that sought their life: but they remained still in dread lest they should meet with no less cruel death from the furious beast that was so near them. In this fear they remained close, without making the least motion or noise, having no other means of defence or dependence but the providence of God, and a good conscience in point of chastity, which is respected even by lions. But it was not long before the lioness, finding herself discovered, and disturbed in her den, taking up her whelp (for si 3 had but cue), carried it out with her teeth, in ordei to ga

,ind seek for another lodging, and thus abandoned th« whole cave to themselves. The apprehension, how ever, of meeting with the beast, kept them close pris oners till the evening, when they ventured out, and found the two camels (who were of the kind which for their great swiftness are called dromedaries), and with them fresh provisions, of which they were in great need: and thus, after refreshing themselves with food, they mounted upon the camels, and continued their journey through the desert, and on the tenth day arrived at the Roman camp, on the confines of the empire. The commanding officer, after having heard their history, sent them to Sabinianus, the governor of Mesopotamia, who gave them the price of their camels, and so dismissed them.

And now Malchus would have returned to his good father, the abbot of his monastery, in the desert of Chalsis: but being informed that he was gone to sleep in the Lord, he turned his course towards Maronia, and there associated himself with the monks of that place: and as to his companion, he committed her to the care of the nuns that were there; ever loving her as if she had been, his sister, as he told St. Jerome, yet never trusting himself to her as a sister, or expos ing himself to danger by any familiarity with her. Here, as St. Jerome concludes his narration, we cannot pretend to add any further particulars of the acts of this servant of God, only that he continued to the end the saintly life he had begun, and crowned it with a happy death; so that he has deserved to have hia name recorded amongst the Saints of the Roman Mar tyrology, October 21.