In the traditional Calendar,
this is the feast of Saint Cyprian the Magician and Saint Justina, virgin and martyr.
“At Nicomedia, the birthday
of the holy martyrs Cyprian, and Justina, virgin. Under the emperor Diocletian and the governor Eutholmius,
Justina suffered much for the faith of Christ and converted Cyprian, who, while
a magician, endeavored to bring her under the influence of his magical
practices. She afterwards suffered
martyrdom with him. Their bodies
being exposed to the beasts, were taken away in the night by some Christian
sailors, and carried to Rome. They
were subsequently taken into the Constantinian basilica, and deposited near the
baptistery.”
This meager account was
supplemented by several stories, which can be found in the Golden Legend.
Accordingly, Justina was a young woman of Antioch, whose father was a
pagan priest. By listening at the
window of a Christian priest as he read the Gospels, she was converted. Her parents also converted (which got
Dad tossed out of the Pagan Priests’ union.)
Enter the villain (boo!) – a
man called Cyprian, who, from the time his parents had dedicated him to the
devil at the age of seven years, had been practicing necromancy and the dark
arts. As you might guess, the
beauty and purity of Justina operated powerfully on Cyprian’s libido, and he
tried every trick in the book to have a one-night-stand with her.
When that didn’t work, he
moved to stronger measures. He
called up a demon – something perhaps of the caliber of Wormwood in The
Screwtape Letters – and begged him to find a way that he (Cyprian) could enjoy
her. Impiety gave him an ointment
and told him to smear it on Justina’s house. This would disable any Christian alarm systems, and allow
the demon to enter and subtly move her heart towards granting Cyprian’s
desires.
But is our heroine so
moved? Not she! Recognizing temptation when she felt
it, she made the Sign of the Cross, causing the demon to flee in terror. He returned to Cyprian and confessed
his failure, and was forthwith fired.
Cyprian, not discouraged by
one back-cast, called up a stronger demon, perhaps on the order of Uncle
Screwtape, and gave him the same commands. A demon of more parts than his unsuccessful subaltern, this
one didn’t need no stinkin’ ointments but went straight into Justina’s room and
hit her with all the weapons at his disposal. Once again recognizing that she was being tempted to
immorality, our heroine jumped into the foxhole of God’s protective love and
fired back with the Sign of the Cross, a direct hit which caused the demon to
retreat back to Cyprian.
The magician, finally
convinced that for a major job you should hire the best, now called up Lucifer
himself. The Father of Lies
promised that he would bring Justina (in a proper fever of lust) to Cyprian’s
house at midnight and forthwith transformed himself into the semblance of a pious
young woman, who came to Justina’s room and begged to live with her in holy chastity. That, of course, was the chink in our
heroine’s armor. Happy to find a
like-minded friend, Justina sat talking of God with Lucifera, until the Evil
One, in the same provocative voice he used in the Garden, posed the question:
“But did not God command that we should multiply and replenish the earth? How can we obey God’s word if we remain
virgins? Is that not disobedience
to God?”
The devil can quote
scripture to his own end, and our heroine nearly fell into that end. She actually started feeling that her
companion might be right, and if so… Widening the chink, Lucifer suggested all
sorts of evil thoughts, but in the nick of time Justina came to her right
senses and used her customary weapon.
At the Sign of the Cross, the devil fled.
He did not give up,
however. This time, he took on the
likeness of a really hot guy, the kind that Hollywood turns out, and relying on
his visible charms to overcome her resistance, didn’t bother with first,
second, or third base, but jumped straight into her bed for the home run. Why he thought this would work is
anybody’s guess, but Justina didn’t hesitate, and as she finished crossing
herself, the handsome bloke melted like wax. What a mess!
Now the Prince of Demons was
really mad! He smote the city with
a great pestilence which killed both men and beasts, and then let it be known
through his henchmen that the pestilence would stop if Justina would marry
Cyprian. Naturally a mob (albeit
sick and ailing) gathered at her father’s house and threatened to forcibly
carry her to the altar, but she prayed for God’s assistance, and the pestilence
stopped.
Meanwhile, Cyprian was still
waiting for the object of his desires to show up. Lucifer, at his wits end, was at an impasse. Mohammed would not go to the mountain… but
perhaps a pseudo-Mohammed would do?
He took on the form of Justina, and in this guise went to Cyprian’s
house, acting as if he couldn’t wait to engage in the Posturepedic Polka.
The magician was overjoyed! She was here at last and - glory be! - not only in a receptive mood, but hauling him down the hallway to his bedroom! He went to embrace ‘her’ saying,
“Welcome, Justina, fairest of all women” but even her name was so holy that as
it passed his lips, the devil vanished.
Well, you don’t send a boy
to do a man’s job. Cyprian decided
to take charge, whereupon he changed himself into a sparrow and flew to
Justina’s house. Each time he did
so, his magic failed him as he entered the house, and he regained his Cyprian-shape
(and was forced to retreat, discomfited).
Another young man with the same intent and bird characteristics, flew to
Justina’s bedroom window, but having landed on the narrow ledge of the blessed
house, regained his own manly form.
The ledge on which a sparrow could perch was too small for a man, and he
hung there until Justina, afraid that the idiot would kill himself if he fell,
caused a ladder to be set up next to him, and charitably warned him as he
climbed down not to do such a stupid thing again. (He didn’t.)
Cyprian couldn’t figure it
out. Every trick, every wile, every
bit of a necromancer’s art had been used, and Justina was still out of arm’s
reach. Calling back the Prince of
Demons, he asked what magic Justina possessed that kept her safe even from the
Head Devil himself? Lucifer had to
confess that it was no magic but God, and at the sign of the Crucified Christ,
all demons lose their powers and flee.
Cyprian now understood that there is One Who is more powerful than evil,
and immediately renounced the Devil and all his works. As he made the Sign of the Cross,
Lucifer departed. Cyprian also
departed in search of a bishop to baptize him.
Eventually, Cyprian and
Justina were taken to Nicomedia and condemned to death by the local magistrate
for refusing to sacrifice to idols.
After several torments, they were beheaded together.
Reflection.—If the errors and disorders
of St. Cyprian show the degeneracy of human nature corrupted by sin, and enslaved to vice,
his conversion displays the power of grace and
virtue to repair it. Let us beg of God to send us
grace to resist temptation, and to do His holy will in all things.
John Gilmary Shea, Pictorial Lives of the Saints, p. 411
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Artwork:
“Cyprian and Justina” (and
demons), from a 15th century edition of The Golden Legend. Wikipedia. In the upper right corner, Cyprian receives
the magic ointment from the demon; to his left, a more colorful demon is sent
packing by Justina making the Sign of the Cross. In the foreground, Justina protects herself from two
disabled men, possibly part of the mob that would have delivered her up to
Cyprian.
