PAGANS AND GNOSTIeSof this story that occurs several times in the Qur'an says that Abraham
broke all except one of the idols and that his enemies consequently
prepared a building with a red-hot fire for him; but it was made cool,
and he was rescued with Lot.^52
Towards the end of the Sasanian period, the number of pagans
declined rapidly due to conversion to Christianity. The sites of pagan
temples or shrines were appropriated for churches and monasteries.
The breaking of idols, destruction of temples, and the building of
churches and monasteries in their place is a recurring theme in con-
temporary Christian hagiography. One cannot always be certain whether
real pagans were involved or whether the monk or saint in question
was being described in terms of what was expected of him. In any
case, these stories reflect one of the major transformations of this
period. As early as the fourth century, Ithalaha, a priest of Sharbel at
Irbil, converted to Christianity and undertook the conversion of the
pagans of Adiabene.^53 In the sixth century, the Nestorians were busy
converting Kurds in Margha and pagans in Adiabene and Arzon, where
a temple of idols is said to have been converted into a monastery
during the reign of Hurmizd IV.54 At about the same time, two villages
of idolaters in Beth Garme were converted by SabhrishO' (catholicos
596-604) of Lashom, the temples were destroyed, and churches were
built in their places.^55 Likewise, in the early seventh century, the mon-
astery of Beth 'Abhe is said to have been built on a site previously
occupied by a temple of idols.^56 In lower Iraq, Gregory of Kaskar
converted pagans in Maysan and Kaskar when he was bishop of Kas-
kar before 5.96. With typical vigor he smashed idols and converted
temples into churches; this provoked a resistance that was sometimes
so violent that he was prevented from entering a village. After he was
exiled from Nasibin following his brief tenure as metropolitan in 596,
he returned to the countryside around Kaskar and was successful in
converting the village of snake-worshipers noted above. Their con-
version was accomplished by the "miraculous" death of the snakes,
which was discovered by the village priest when he went to feed them.^57
52 Qur'an, 21:51-71; 26:69-104; 29:16-27; 37:83-100.
53 Peeters, "Passionaire d'Adiabene," pp. 277, 279.
54 Chabot, "Chastete," pp. 13, 237; Scher, "Histoire nestorienne," II(1), 173; II(2),
447,452.
55 Scher, "Histoire nestorienne," II(2), 631-32; V6iibus, School of Nisibis, p. 208.
56 Chabot, "Chastete," pp. 22, 244.
57 Scher, "Histoire nestorienne," II(2), 508, 512. Gregory may be suspected of having
a hand in this "miracle."