Venerable Eugene and Macarius the Confessors, Presbyters of Antioch (+363)

The venerable Confessors Eugene and Macarius were presbyters of the church of Antioch. Once, in the reign of Julian the Apostate (361–363), they refused to take part in pagan orgies, for which they were brought before the tribunal. The presbyters fearlessly denounced the emperor for his apostasy and courageously endured cruel torments. The tortured fathers were put in fetters and exiled to the Arabian desert. Here they chose a mountain for their dwelling, but the local inhabitants advised them to leave the area at once, for it was the lair of a huge serpent. The saints destroyed the monster by the power of prayer. The confessors besought God to take their souls together. And the Lord heard the prayer of the blessed fathers, and in 363 they reposed at the same moment.