The Idol Temples John Destroyed in Phoenicia

When John was told that Phoenicia was still in the grip of the madness of the demons’ rites, he gathered certain monks who were on fire with divine zeal, armed them with imperial edicts, and sent them out against the shrines of the idols. The money needed to pay the craftsmen and their helpers who did the work of destruction John did not take from the imperial treasury. Instead he persuaded certain wealthy and faithful women to give generously, showing them how great a blessing their generosity would win. So the remaining shrines of the demons were utterly destroyed. [a]