Saint Behnam
Encyclopedia
Saint Behnam is a saint
and martyr
revered in Syriac Christian churches.
pagan king of Athur. He met with Mattai the hermit who lived in a monastery during a hunting trip. He learnt about Christianity and brought his sister Sara to be healed of leprosy
and they were both baptised alongside Behnam's forty companions.
Upon learning of his Children's conversion, king Sencharib persecuted them and finally killed his children and their forty companions on a hill in Nimrud
.
The king later regretted his deed and was himself baptised by Mar Mattai
. He also built a monastery on the mount were Mar Mattai healed his daughter.
.
Other monasteries also exist in the name of the Saint, including some in Syria and Egypt.
and the Chaldean Church.
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
and martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
revered in Syriac Christian churches.
Life according to Syriac tradition
According to Syriac tradition, he was born in the 4th century to Sencharib, an AssyrianAssyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
pagan king of Athur. He met with Mattai the hermit who lived in a monastery during a hunting trip. He learnt about Christianity and brought his sister Sara to be healed of leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
and they were both baptised alongside Behnam's forty companions.
Upon learning of his Children's conversion, king Sencharib persecuted them and finally killed his children and their forty companions on a hill in Nimrud
Nimrud
Nimrud is an ancient Assyrian city located south of Nineveh on the river Tigris in modern Ninawa Governorate Iraq. In ancient times the city was called Kalḫu. The Arabs called the city Nimrud after the Biblical Nimrod, a legendary hunting hero .The city covered an area of around . Ruins of the city...
.
The king later regretted his deed and was himself baptised by Mar Mattai
Mar Mattai
Mar Mattai sometimes rendered as Saint Matthew , was a monk who is revered as a Christian saint in Syriac Christian churches.-Life according to Syriac tradition:...
. He also built a monastery on the mount were Mar Mattai healed his daughter.
Monastery
A shrine was built on the hill were Mar Behnam died by Persian merchant in the 6th century, this was later turned into a large monastery that came to be administered by the Jacobites until 1839 when it was passed to Syriac Catholics. The monastery is traditionally administered by a priest chosen from BakhdidaBakhdida
Bakhdida , also known as Baghdeda, Qaraqosh, Karakosh or Al-Hamdaniya, is an Assyrian town in the northern Iraq Ninawa Governorate, located about 32 km southeast of the city of Mosul amid agricultural lands, close to the ruins of the ancient Assyrian cities Nimrud and Nineveh. It is connected...
.
Other monasteries also exist in the name of the Saint, including some in Syria and Egypt.
Feast
Saint Behnam and his sister Sara are honoured on 10 December by both the Syriac Orthodox and Syriac Catholic churches. He is also considered a martyr and a saint by both the Assyrian Church of the EastAssyrian Church of the East
The Assyrian Church of the East, officially the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East ʻIttā Qaddishtā w-Shlikhāitā Qattoliqi d-Madnĕkhā d-Āturāyē), is a Syriac Church historically centered in Mesopotamia. It is one of the churches that claim continuity with the historical...
and the Chaldean Church.