How the Iberians Received the Faith

It is said that during this reign the Iberians, a large and warlike barbarian nation, confessed Christ. They lived to the north, beyond Armenia. A Christian woman who had been taken captive led them to give up the religion of their fathers. She was very faithful and godly, and even among foreigners she did not let up on her usual round of religious duties. Fasting, praying night and day, and praising God were her delight. The barbarians asked her why she endured all this. She simply answered that this was the way the Son of God must be worshiped; but the name of the one to be worshiped, and the way of worshiping him, seemed strange to them. It happened that a boy of that country fell ill, and his mother, following the custom of the Iberians, carried him around from house to house, hoping that someone might be found who could cure the disease and bring the sufferer easy relief. When no one able to heal him could be found, the boy was brought to the captive, and she said, “As for medicines, I have neither experience nor knowledge, nor do I know how to apply ointments or plasters. But, woman, I believe that Christ, whom I worship, the true and great God, will be the Savior of your child.” Then she prayed for him at once and freed him from the disease, although just before it had been thought that he was about to die. A little later the wife of the governor of the nation was brought close to death by an incurable disease, and she too was saved in the same way. In this way the captive taught the knowledge of Christ, presenting him as the giver of health and as the Lord of life, of empire and of all things. The governor’s wife, convinced by her own experience, believed the captive’s words, embraced the Christian religion, and held the woman in great honor. [a]

The king, astonished at how quickly the cure had come and at the wonder and healing power of faith, learned the cause from his wife and ordered that the captive be rewarded with gifts. “She sets very little store by gifts,” said the queen, “whatever their value; the only thing she makes much of is the service she gives to her God. So if we wish to please her, or want to do what is safe and right, let us also worship God, who is mighty and a Savior, who at his will makes kings endure, casts down the high, brings the famous low, and saves those in terrible straits.” The queen went on reasoning in this excellent way, but the ruler of Iberia remained doubtful and unconvinced, for he was thinking about how new these things were, and he also respected the religion of his fathers. A little later he went into the woods with his attendants to hunt. All of a sudden thick clouds rose up and spread a heavy air everywhere, hiding the sky and the sun, and deep night and great darkness filled the wood. Each of the hunters, afraid for his own safety, ran off in a different direction. The king, wandering alone, thought of Christ, as people do in times of danger. He resolved that if he were delivered from his present danger, he would walk before God and worship him. At the very moment these thoughts were in his mind, the darkness cleared, the air became calm, the rays of the sun broke into the wood, and the king came out safely. He told his wife what had happened to him, sent for the captive, and ordered her to teach him how he ought to worship Christ. When she had given as much instruction as it was right for a woman to say and do, he called his subjects together and told them plainly of the divine mercies that had been granted to himself and his wife; and although he was not yet initiated, he set out the teachings of Christ to his people. The whole nation was persuaded to embrace Christianity, the men convinced by what the king told them, and the women by the queen and the captive.

Soon, with the agreement of the entire nation, they set about building a church with great zeal. When the outer walls were finished, machines were brought to raise the columns and set them on their pedestals. It is said that after the first and second columns had been raised in this way, they had great difficulty setting up the third, for neither skill nor strength was of any use, although many people were there helping to pull. When evening came, the captive stayed alone on the spot, and she remained there all night, pleading with God that the columns might be raised easily, especially since everyone else had gone away distressed at the failure. For the column was only half raised and stood there with one end so lodged in its foundation that it could not be moved down. It was God’s will that by this miracle, as well as by the earlier one, the Iberians should be still more firmly convinced about God. Early in the morning, when they came to the church, they saw a wonderful sight that seemed to them like a dream. The column, which the day before could not be moved, now stood upright, raised a little above its proper base. All who were there were struck with wonder and confessed with one voice that Christ alone is the true God. While they were all watching, the column slid down quietly of its own accord and settled onto its base as if set there by machinery. Then the other columns were raised easily, and the Iberians finished the building all the more eagerly. When the church had been built so quickly, the Iberians, on the captive’s advice, sent ambassadors to the emperor Constantine with proposals for alliance and treaties, asking that priests be sent to their nation. When they arrived, the ambassadors told what had happened and how the whole nation worshiped Christ with great care. The emperor of the Romans was delighted with the embassy, granted every request they made, and sent the ambassadors home. In this way the Iberians received the knowledge of Christ, and to this day they worship him carefully.