THE HOLY MARTYRS SPEUSIPPUS

January 16

From the Prologue

The three brothers, triplets, Speusippus, Eleusippus, Meleusippus all suffered for Christ in France during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161 A.D. -180A.D.). At first, only Leonilla was a Christian while her grandsons were heathens. After prolonged counseling on the part of their pious grandmother and of the local priest, these three brothers received baptism. Having been baptized and with youthful zeal, they began to live a devoted life for their Faith and with this passion destroyed all the idols in the whole vicinity. Accused and brought before the tribunal, they acknowledged their act and openly confessed their faith in Christ. The judge had them thrown into prison and summoned Leonilla, the grandmother, and directed that she, too, go to the prison and counsel her grandsons to deny Christ and to worship the idols. Without a word, Leonilla went to the prison, but instead of counseling her grandsons to deny the True Faith, she began to encourage them not to waver but to endure all torments to the end and to die for Christ. When the judge, again, questioned them and realized their even stronger steadfastness in the Faith, he condemned them to death. At first, all three of them were hanged on a tree where they hung "as strings on a gulsa"(*) after which, they were flogged and finally burned in fire. A certain woman, Jovilla, enthusiastic at the courage of these martyrs cried out: "I am a Christian also!" They immediately apprehended her who, together with the elderly Leonilla, was beheaded.]

(*) The Gusla is the Serb national musical instrument