22 March 2026

In the Orthodox Calendar of Saints, ‘Our Holy Father John and Companions’ are remembered on 20 March. They were monks in the ancient  monastery of St. Sava in the Judean desert. It was attacked, pillaged and laid waste  on several occasions by Arabs.

During the eighth century when Constantine and his mother, Irene, jointly ruled the Byzantine Empire, the Arabs attacked again. On this occasion, the monks decided not to flee from their monastery but remained steadfast within its bounds.

‘We have fled from the world into this wilderness for the sake of our love for Christ, and it would be shameful if we fled from the wilderness out of fear of men.’ they argued. ‘If we are slain here, we will be slain because of our love for Christ, for whose sake we came here to live.’

Unlike the Arabs, they were unarmed. They waited for their hostile arrival. The Arabs slew some of the monks with arrows. Some were sealed off in the cave of St. Sava. A fire was lit at the entrance of the cave and the monks suffocated with the smoke.

Their martyrdom is celebrated annually. No-one could deny their heroism. But what about their wisdom? Were they wise to stand before an armed band unarmed? What good could they have continued to do for Christ and his Church?

Religious violence continues to infect our world –  Muslims and Jews, Muslims and Christians, Christians and Christians. It diminishes faith and can never be a witness to the love of God. Why do religious people do this to each other? Being right is not the highest motivation. Being good trumps it every time!