Saint Athanasius, the Father of Orthodoxy

								

appear before authority, they approached with some uneasiness, and
there was a certain amount of scuffling among them which resulted in
the appearance of the would-be bishop in the forefront of the
group--and where should a bishop be if not at the head of his flock?
"What were you doing down there on the shore?" asked the Patriarch.
The boy's clear eyes looked at him with interest, but without a
vestige of fear.
"We were playing," he said. "It was the baptism of the catechumens. I
was the bishop, and they"--pointing to his companions--were the
catechumens."
"Are you a Christian?" asked Alexander.
"Yes," answered the boy proudly.
"And these?"
"Catechumens."
"What did you do?"
"I poured the water on them and said the words."
"What words?"
The boy repeated the formula in perfect Greek.
"Did you pour the water as you said the words?"
"Yes."
The Patriarch's face was troubled.
"It is a dangerous game to play at," he said. "What would you say if I
told you that you had really baptized them?"
The boy looked at him in amazement.
"But I am not a bishop," he said.
The Patriarch could not help smiling.
"Although the bishop usually does baptize the catechumens," he said,
"it is not necessary that it should be a bishop, not even necessary
that it should be a priest."
The boy-bishop looked grave, his companions frightened, the Patriarch
thoughtful.
"What is your name?" he asked suddenly, laying his hand on the ruddy
locks.
"Athanasius," answered the boy.
"What would you like to be?" he asked.
"A priest," was the prompt answer.
"A bishop perhaps?" asked Alexander with a smile; "you think it is an
easy and a glorious life?"
The boy's eyes looked straight into the Patriarch's.
"The blessed Peter was a martyr," he answered.
"You need much learning to be a priest."
"I love learning," said the boy.
Alexander noted the broad, intelligent brow, the keen eyes and the
clear-cut face before him. His heart went out to this frank and
fearless lad who loved the martyrs.
"Come to me this evening, and we will talk of this," he said, for his
guests were at last to be seen approaching, and his duty lay with
them.
That evening the boy and the Patriarch had much to say to each other
as they walked under the palm trees in the garden of the episcopal
palace. Alexander learned how Athanasius had been brought up in the
Christian Faith under the shadow of the great persecution, among those
who counted it the highest honor to shed their blood for Christ. He
had been well taught in the famous Greek schools of Alexandria and was
full of enthusiasm for the great Greek philosophers and poets. Strong
of will, noble of heart and keen of intellect, the boy was born to
something great--of that the Patriarch felt assured. The Church had
need of such men in these troublous times, when the dangers of heresy
had succeeded to those of persecution.
Alexander at once resolved to take Athanasius into his household and