Saint Salib

Saint Salib (Arabic: قديس صليب; Coptic: ⲁⲃⲃⲁ ⲥⲁⲗⲓⲃ; Syriac: ܡܪ ܨܠܝܒ; Greek: Αγιος Πισταυρος) was a 16th-century Coptic or Arab Christian saint and martyr from the Mamluk era, who refused to convert to Islam while under trial, and got publicly executed under Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghuri by being crucified, placed on a camel and paraded through Cairo, finally having been beheaded with a scimitar.[1][2][3]

Saint

Salib
Recent Coptic Icon depicting Saint Salib crucified, on the camel, while holding his own beheaded head
New Martyr
Born29 November 1512
Mallawi, Minya, Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt
DiedCairo, Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt
Cause of deathStoning, Crucifixion, Beheading
Honored inOriental Orthodoxy
Eastern Orthodoxy
Major shrineHaret Zuweila Church of Mary
Feast29 November
AttributesRed shemagh, white thawb, scimitar, camel, chains, shackles


Biography

It is unclear whether Salib was the descendant of Arab converts or simply an Arabized Copt, most sources state that it was his parents that gave him the Arab language name Salib, yet still belonged to the semi-ethnoreligious Coptic Orthodox Church. Other sources attest him with the name Pistavros, though this is simply a Greek translation of the Arab name Salib with a Coptic language suffix. Two plausible explanations might be the following: simple cultural syncretism in the largely Arabized Mamluk Sultanate into which Salib was born, or an adoption from the Syriac cognate name Sliba, though if properly transliterated from Syriac, the name should be Saliba, not Salib.

Saint Salib wanted to live a life of celibacy and asceticism, however his parents went on to force him into marriage. Nevertheless, he agreed with his wife to remain virgins and live a chaste life.[4]

He went about consulting churches, monasteries and the desert Fathers (through writing and prayer) to learn from them about christ. He considered becoming a monk, but when his parents found him, they bound him with chains lest he goes away again, but to their surprise, the chains around his feet opened in front of their eyes with their locks broken.[4]

When under his parents custody, he loved to pray regularly during his stay. After one of his prayers, Virgin mary appeared to him in a dream to tell him that he was to be martyred soon.[4]

Saint Salib went on to preach courageously and publicly, which incited some unbelievers to convert, and others to tell the governor of Egypt of his doings. He was put on trial, first being promised material rewards to deny his faith and convert to Islam, when he refused, he was insulted by the attending crowd, then he was beaten and finally convicted to be stoned as a result of his declaration of faith, but when he was stoned, his wounds disappeared, and he did not die. Finally he was put in prison, but whenever the guard would put chains around his feet, they would immediately break free again.[4]

He was sent to the king Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghuri who, after failing to change his mind in a debate, sent him to the court judges again, who sentenced him to execution via crucifixion. He was nailed to a cross, put on a camel and paraded through the streets of Cairo, once everyone had seen him, he finally was beheaded with a scimitar.

Relics

Pope John XIII of Alexandria received his relics with great honor and carried them to various churches so that people may take his blessing.

He finally decided to place his body in the Haret Zuweila Church of the Virgin Mary, where it sits today.

References
  1. Armanios, Febe (2011). "Championing a Communal Ethos". Coptic Christianity in Ottoman Egypt. pp. 41–64. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199744848.003.0003. ISBN 978-0-19-974484-8.
  2. Armanios, Febe; Ergene, Bogac (January 2006). "A Christian Martyr under Mamluk Justice: The Trials of Salb (d. 1512) according to Coptic and Muslim Sources". The Muslim World. 96 (1): 115–144. doi:10.1111/j.1478-1913.2006.00120.x. INIST:17538511 ProQuest 216437990.
  3. "Our Relics". St. Mary and St. Shenouda's Coptic Orthodox Church (SMASS), South London.
  4. The Life Story Of The New Martyr Saint Pistavros. Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Mallawi. 1993. OCLC 68094567.
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