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→Events that followed the saint's martyrdom
==Events that followed the saint's martyrdom==
The execution of the sentence unleashed the mob feelings that was were brewing throughout the trial. They directed their actions toward stoning the body of the saint, which the king ordered to be hung upon a wood column just north of where the saint was martyred. Then their anger turned toward any Christian they could find in the area. Some non-Coptic Christians were also subjected to severe beating when they petioned the king for the body of the saint.
That night an intense light was viewed coming from the hung body of the saint. This was witnessed by Christians as well as Muslims who actually went to investigate and were shocked by the light's miraculous origin. One of them even testified to the glorious scene of the ascending to heaven of the saint's soul.
The body was hung from the day the saint was martyred on Thursday Pashons 4 ([[Coptic Calendar|Coptic month]]) night until early Monday, when the king ordered the discreet disposition of the body. This was accomplished by throwing it, wrapped in a sack filled with the stones that the saint was stoned with, in the River Nile. The king rather nervous edict was carried on as a result of the nightmares that he had experienced the previous two nights , when the saint appeared gloriously to him and threateningly ordered him to lower the body from where it was hanged.
==Source==
Adapted from a report by Hany N. Takla of [http://www.stshenouda.com/ St. Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society] on the Encomium of St. John of Phanidjoit written in Bohairic and dated 1210 AD (manuscript from ''Vatican Coptic Codex 69'', the Vatican Apostolic Library; acquired by the Vatican from the Coptic Monastery of [[Macarius the Great|Abu-Maqar]] in the 18th century) [http://www.stshenouda.com/newsltr/nl2_4.htm#StJohnPlL], [http://www.stshenouda.com/newsltr/nl3_1.htm#Martyrdom2]
