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Article: The seven.(The Last Word)
- Article from:
- Commonweal
- Article date:
- January 16, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Commonweal Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In the third century, according to legend, seven young Christian men from Ephesus refused the Roman Emperor Decius's command to sacrifice to idols. They had to flee the city and ended up hiding in a cave. Then, like the disciples in the garden, they fell asleep while praying. Having tracked the renegades down, Decius had the cave sealed.
More than three hundred years later, a local shepherd discovered the cave. Upon entering it, God awakened the youths, who thought they had slept for just a single night. One soon went into Ephesus to buy bread, but quickly discovered something significant had changed: Crosses now dotted the city. When he tried to pay for the bread ...