| Saint Behnam | |
|---|---|
| Died | c. 350 A.D. Nimrud, Iraq |
| Honored in | Syriac Christianity |
| Major shrine | Monastery of Mar Behnam and Mart Sara, Nimrud, Iraq |
| Feast | 10 December |
Saint Behnam (Syriac: ܡܪܝ ܒܗܢܡ) is a saint and martyr revered in Syriac Christian churches.
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According to Syriac tradition, he was born in the 4th century to Sencharib, an Assyrian pagan king of Athur. He met with Mattai the hermit who lived in a monastery during a hunting trip. He learnt about Christianity and brought his sister Sara to be healed of leprosy and they were both baptised alongside Behnam's forty companions.
Upon learning of his Children's conversion, king Sencharib persecuted them and finally killed his children and their forty companions on a hill in Nimrud. The king later regretted his deed and was himself baptised by Mar Mattai. He also built a monastery on the mount were Mar Mattai healed his daughter.
A shrine was built on the hill were Mar Behnam died by Persian merchant in the 6th century, this was later turned into a large monastery that came to be administered by the Jacobites until 1839 when it was passed to Syriac Catholics. The monastery is traditionally administered by a priest chosen from Bakhdida.
Other monasteries also exist in the name of the Saint, including some in Syria and Egypt.[1]
Saint Behnam and his sister Sara are honoured on 10 December by both the Syriac Orthodox and Syriac Catholic churches. He is also considered a martyr and a saint by both the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Church.