Hi, everyone. Oftentimes in our lives as Christians and as we hear in so many stories, it takes a sudden jolt to bring us to our senses. All we have to do is look at Saul on the road to Damascus before he became St. Paul, or perhaps the parable of the prodigal son, which caused a quick and sudden return, and there are many, many others.

Well, today’s saint, on March 19, experienced something similar to that. His name is Panharios (Pancharius), and Panharios was born in the city of Vila in Germany. Now, he was raised a Christian, and he knew right from wrong, and although his life doesn’t really indicate to us how seriously he took it, we can assume that because it was a very devout Christian family that there was some sustenance and substance to his faith.

Well, at a fairly early age he left for Rome, as a young man might want to do, because he was someone who was tall and said to be very good-looking, and no doubt he would have found all sorts of pleasures in that city, which he indeed did. However, at that time—and this was probably the late 200s—the empire was run by two very anti-Christian emperors, Maximian and Diocletian. As it turns out, Panharios encountered Diocletian when he was in Rome, and Diocletian really took a liking to him, so much so that he eventually made him the first senator in the great Senate of Rome. Panharios spent a lot of time with Diocletian, and it is said that he became one mind with this brutal, brutal emperor.

As time went on, Panharios’s mother and sister heard about what had happened. In fact, it had been said that Panharios, because of his relationship with Diocletian, willingly denied our Lord Jesus Christ. His mother and sister were terrified at this. They couldn’t bring themselves to understand what had happened, so they wrote a letter to him together and encouraged him in two different things. It said one, remember that you must repent before the Lord, and that you must understand who he is and that he is the Son of God; and second, keep in mind the fearful judgment seat of the Lord for those who deny him. The letter was heartfelt, it was long, and when Panharios read it, he was absolutely stricken, perhaps as quickly as the great prophet-king David was stricken when he was confronted by his sin by the Prophet Nathan.

Well, Panharios immediately began to weep and wail, and his conscience just seared him, so much so that he could be heard by a lot of his servants and a lot of the people who were listening to him. So he decided that he would indeed return to our Lord Jesus Christ and he would live this absolute life of whatever the Lord was going to place on him because he had been living an absolute life of luxury and complete freedom from want.

Because of his turning-point that was so vocal and so loud, word got back to Diocletian very rapidly. He summoned Panharios to him, and he looked at him, and he said, “You know that I love you greatly. I would do anything for you. And yet I hear that perhaps you are a Nazarite?” And Panharios ‘fessed up and said, “Yes, yes, I am going to follow my Lord Jesus Christ. Everything that I have done in denying him has been completely wrong.” Now remember, in the time of Diocletian, paganism was rampant everywhere, and that Panharios, in embracing this faith of Diocletian, was one who himself was probably sacrificing to idols. So Diocletian was completely distraught about this, and he said, “Despite my love for you, you know that you are going to be punished for this if you don’t repent of what you’ve done right now. Even though I love you, your death is not going to be easy.” And Panharios knew that, and said, “I accept what you say.”

So Diocletian talked to his advisors and asked what they should do, and they told him, “Well, perhaps, because you have loved him so much and we don’t want his blood on your hands, let’s send him off to Nicomedia, to the governor of the province there, and let him deal with it.” Diocletian was pleased at this advice, so Panharios went off, and when he was presented to the governor of that region, he said that you can do whatever you want to me; it doesn’t matter. The governor said, “But it’s a shame, because you are a good-looking man. You have so much going for you.” And Panharios said, “It doesn’t matter. None of this is going to last; it’s all perishable. So do what you will. I’m not going to turn back from our Lord Jesus Christ.”

And so, not long after, the governor gave him his wish and beheaded the holy Martyr Panharios. May we, too, be that strong in our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and not be doubtful or [wavering], but understand that if we’ve been led off the pure and narrow path into some byways that we shouldn’t be on, then all we need to do is to turn to him and repent quickly, and he will accept us back into his grace as he did the great Panharios, who now reigns with our Lord Jesus Christ in heaven.