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Life of Saint Nicholas of Sion 15-18:
One day there came men from the village of Plakoma, who fell down before holy Nicholas and said: “O servant of God, on our land there is a sacred tree in which dwells the spirit of an unclean idol, that destroys both men and fields … we are unable to go unhindered about our business on account of it. May Your Holiness yield to our entreaties and deign to come with us and fell it, so that God, Lover of mankind, may through your prayers drive out the unclean spirit dwelling in that tree, and the fields and the district may be at peace and find respite. Being so strongly urged by the inhabitants of the village Plakoma, Nicholas, the servant of God, offered prayers, and came to the spot where the tree stood. Seeing the tree, holy Nicholas said: “Is this the sacred tree?” In response, the men of the aforementioned fields said to him: “Yes, Lord.” And Nicholas the servant of God said: “What are those gashes in the tree?” They said to him: “Some man of old came to fell the tree with two hatchets, and an axe. And as he began to fell it, the unclean spirit snatched away the blades, and slaughtered the man, so that his grave was found at the roots of the tree.” Offering prayers, the servant of God Nicholas - there being a crowd of nearly three hundred men, women and children to watch the workings of God, for none believed that such a tree, being sacred, was about to be felled - then the servant of God Nicholas knelt and prayed for two hours. And rising, he enjoined the men around saying: “In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and of Holy Sion, come here, try and cut it down.” When he was about to fell this sacred tree, the servant of God said: “Assemble with one accord up the slope on the north side.” For it was expected that the tree would fall to the west. The unclean spirit thought at that moment to frighten the crowd. And he made the tree lean toward the north, up the slope where the crowd stood watching so that they all screamed with fear in one voice, saying: “Servant of God, the tree is coming down on top of us, and we will perish.” The servant of God Nicholas made the sign of the cross over the tree, pushed it back with his two hands, and said to the sacred tree: “In the name of my Lor Jesus Christ I command you: turn back (in the other direction) and go down where God has ordained you.” Forthwith, the tree swayed back by the will of God and moved toward the west, where it crashed. From that time on, the unclean spirit was no longer seen within those parts. And they all glorified God, saying: “One is God, who gave power to this servant against the unclean spirits.”
Source (list of abbreviations)
Life of Saint Nicholas of Sion 15-18
Bibliography
| Maas 2000, 182-183 | Maas, Michael (ed.). Readings in Late Antiquity. A Sourcebook. London, New York: Routledge 2000. |
Amar Annus
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