The life of Acepsimus, Joseph and Aithalas
Not long after, two of his companions were arrested with him: the elderly priest Joseph and the younger deacon Aithalas, both of whom endured the same brutal questioning and confinement. The three were held for years, repeatedly beaten and pressed to recant, but none of them yielded.
Acepsimus died from his torments in prison after enduring years of confinement. Joseph was later stoned to death by fellow Christians compelled at threat of their own lives to take part, and Aithalas suffered the same fate soon after in a different town. Their acts were recorded close to the events themselves and have long been regarded among the more reliable of the Persian martyr narratives. Christians recovered and buried their remains in secret, and their memory has been kept by the Church for over sixteen centuries since as some of the last martyrs of Shapur's long persecution.
