Life and Martyrdom
The synaxarion describes Epimachus as an Egyptian ascetic who lived in seclusion. By one tradition he dwelt on Mount Pelousion (Pelusium), supporting himself by his own labor before withdrawing into a life of prayer.
On learning that Christians were being persecuted, he did not remain hidden but traveled to Alexandria, where he confronted pagan practice directly — destroying idols and confessing the Christian faith in the open. For this confession he was seized and subjected to severe torture, and was ultimately put to death, dying as a martyr.
Identity and Tradition
Some sources identify this saint with Epimachus of Pelusium, born at Pelusium (Farma) in Egypt, who is said to have lived an ascetical life on Mount Pelusium, working as a weaver alongside companions named Theodore and Callinicos before going out to confess Christ during persecution.
By that tradition his torture on the wheel was accompanied by reported miracles — a drop of his blood is said to have healed the eyes of a blind maiden — after which the governor ordered him beheaded. These accounts belong to the wider hagiographical tradition; the Eastern Orthodox commemoration centers on his confession at Alexandria and his death as a martyr.
Relics & Shrines
By tradition, Christians recovered his remains and bore them away with ceremony, and a church was later built to house his relics.
Veneration
He is commemorated on October 31 in the Eastern Orthodox Church, where on the same day he is named among Apostles of the Seventy (Stachys, Apelles, Amplias, Urban, Narcissus, and Aristobulus), the priestmartyr John Kochurov, and the 100,000 Martyrs of Tbilisi.
In the Coptic Orthodox tradition his feast falls on 14 Pashons.
