The Russian writer Andrei Platonov wrote fairy tales. In them, even plants are related. There is a “grandson flower” and a “father flower”. The martyrdom of Saints Mocius and Anicetus is very easy to remember. Anicetus was a Roman soldier, and Photius was his nephew. One day, in the square in Nicomedia, where there used to be amusement rides, the pagan police began to set up instruments of execution for Christians. Anicetus protested; he stood up for Christians, and Mocius stood up for his uncle. This relay of intercession became the fulfillment of the commandment of the Lord Jesus about life “given for one’s friends” (John 15:13), according to the Gospel of John. Both are invoked in the sacrament of anointing and other prayers for healing.
Martyrs Mocius and Anicetus
On August 25, the Church honors the memory of the holy martyrs Mocius and Anicetus. These saints suffered for Christ around 305, during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (284-305). In the Orthodox tradition, they are venerated as healers and wonderworkers. Their names are invoked in prayers for the healing of the sick and even during the sacrament of anointing. This testifies to the special veneration they held in the ancient Church.
In the Greek tradition, the name of Mocius, companion of Saint Anicetus, is Photius. Whether the same saint or another martyr, Photius is also venerated by the Church as a non-mercenary saint and a miracle worker in the context of prayer for healing. The famous Byzantine reservoir, the Cistern of Saint Mocius, will remind visitors to Constantinople of the saint's name. The name of the Cistern comes from the fact that there was once a church nearby bearing the name of the holy martyr.
According to the place of their suffering, Mocius and Anicetus are called the martyrs of Nicomedia. This city is located in Bithynia, on the site of present-day Izmit in Turkey, about 100 km from the city of Byzantium, on the banks of the Bosphorus, where Constantinople was later founded in 330 by Constantine the Great. Under Diocletian and his successors, Nicomedia was the capital. As Christianity had spread to cities since the apostolic era, the number of those who suffered for Christ in Nicomedia was very large.
According to the story of the passion of the saints, Mocius and Anicetus were related. Anicetus was his uncle and Motius his nephew. As his name, meaning "invincible" in Greek, suggests, Anicetus was a Roman officer. Previously, little attention was paid to this, but modern scholars are surprised to find that Christ was very popular in the Roman army, even among pagans.
It is surprising that the Roman soldiers chose as their ideal not a demigod or a conquering hero, but the Great Sufferer. "Greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). This key quote for understanding the essence of John's Gospel is spoken in the context of the Last Supper. It underlines the voluntary nature of the Lord's suffering. Anticipating His crucifixion in the mysteries of his Body and Blood, Jesus announced that he would be crucified on the Cross not because of unfortunate circumstances, but that He would give his life for the salvation of the world loved by God (John 3:16).
We also know that, according to the belief of the Romans of the time, those who have suffered greatly without any guilt receive from above the gift of understanding the truth. Thus, the Gospel spread where it was not previously expected. To paraphrase Metallica, Jesus is the "Harvester of Sorrow." Thus, paradoxically and unexpectedly, Roman society at the time ripened for the harvest of the Gospel (John 4:35). Through an astonishing succession of miracles, signs, and, above all, through the omnipotent kenosis of the God of the Bible, the martyrs became the true apostles of Jesus.
One day, while walking through the city, Anicetus saw how, in the places where the usual attractions intended for popular entertainment, based on the principle of "bread and circuses," instruments of torture were installed. Upon learning of the impending persecution of Christians, he expressed his indignation but was arrested and subjected to prosecution and torture. His nephew Mocius defended his relative. After refusing to deny Christ and undergoing prolonged torment, the saints were thrown into the furnace. Their suffering was accompanied by an earthquake.
When the persecution ceased, the relics of Mocius and Anicetus were found and transferred to Constantinople, and a church was erected in their name. Many sick people were healed there. The sanctuary was the place of anointing with consecrated oil. It is probably this rite, associated with the cult of Mocius and Anicetus, which formed the structure of the Orthodox liturgy of the sacrament.
Although Anicetus was older than his nephew, in Orthodox liturgical calendars, contrary to chronology, they are listed in reverse order. This remarkable detail proves that there is no jealousy or competition in holiness (cf. Mk 10:37). As Saint Paul says in his letter to the Corinthians (cf. 1 Cor. 15:28), the earthly hierarchy will be removed by Christ himself in the Kingdom of the Father.