Ὁ Ἅγιος Μελέτιος γεννήθηκε περὶ τὸ 310 μ.Χ. στὴ Μελιτηνὴ τῆς Μικρᾶς Ἀρμενίας. Ἡ μαρτυρία περὶ τῆς πρώτης ἐμφανίσεώς του στὸ προσκήνιο τῆς ἱστορίας, λίγο μετὰ τὸ ἔτος 357 μ.Χ., τὸν καταδεικνύει ὡς ἀντίπαλο τῶν αἱρετικῶν Ὁμοιουσιανῶν καὶ ὀπαδὸ τοῦ Ἐπισκόπου Καισαρείας τῆς Παλαιστίνης Ἀκακίου, ὁ ὁποῖος διὰ Συνόδου, τὸ ἔτος 358 μ.Χ., ἐκλέγει τὸν Ἅγιο Μελέτιο ὡς Ἐπίσκοπο Σεβαστείας. Λόγω ὅμως τῆς σφοδρῆς ἀντιδράσεως τῶν ὀπαδῶν τοῦ προηγούμενου Ἐπισκόπου Σεβαστείας Εὐσταθίου, παραιτεῖται καὶ μεταβαίνει στὴ Βέροια τῆς Συρίας. Τὸ ἔτος 360 μ.Χ. ἐκλέγεται Πατριάρχης Ἀντιοχείας, μετατεθέντος τοῦ Πατριάρχου Εὐδοξίου στὸν πατριαρχικὸ θρόνο τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως. Ὅταν ὁ Ἅγιος ἔφθασε στὴν Ἀντιόχεια, ὅλοι οἱ πιστοὶ βγῆκαν στοὺς δρόμους, γιὰ νὰ τὸν ὑποδεχθοῦν καὶ νὰ λάβουν τὴν εὐλογία του. Στὴ νέα ὅμως ἕδρα ὁ Ἅγιος Μελέτιος παρέμεινε ἕνα μόνο μῆνα, ἀφοῦ οἱ αἱρετικοὶ Ἀρειανοὶ ἔπεισαν τὸν αὐτοκράτορα Κωνστάντιο (337 – 361 μ.Χ.) νὰ τὸν ἐξορίσει στὴν Ἀρμενία καὶ νὰ ἐκλέξει στὴν θέση του τὸν παλαιὸ συνεργάτη τοῦ Ἀρείου, Εὐζώιο. Τὰ ὀρθόδοξα φρονήματα τοῦ Ἁγίου, ὡς καὶ ἡ ἐξορία του καὶ ἡ ἀντικατάστασή του, συνετέλεσαν στὴ δημιουργία μεγάλης παρατάξεως ὀπαδῶν του, ποὺ ὀνομάσθηκαν «Μελετιανοί». Ὁ Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος ἑξαιρεῖ τὰ ἀποτελέσματα τῆς ἐπιδράσεως τοῦ Ἁγίου Μελετίου στοὺς πιστοὺς τῆς Ἀντιόχειας σὲ τόσο λίγο χρονικὸ διάστημα. Καὶ ἀναφέρει χαρακτηριστικὰ ὅτι ὁ Ἅγιος Μελέτιος θεμελίωσε τόσο καὶ ἐνέβαλε τέτοιο ζῆλο γιὰ τὴν πίστη στοὺς Χριστιανούς, ὥστε, παρὰ τὶς αἱρετικὲς δοξασίες καὶ τὶς δυσκολίες ποὺ ἀντιμετώπισαν ἀργότερα, ἡ διδασκαλία του παρέμεινε ἄσειστη. Ἐπίσης, ὁ ἱερὸς Χρυσόστομος διηγεῖται τὸ ἀκόλουθο ἐπεισόδιο, τὸ ὁποῖο συνέβη κατὰ τὴν ἀπομάκρυνση τοῦ Ἁγίου ἀπὸ τὴν Ἀντιόχεια:
Ὁ διοικητὴς τῆς πόλεως ὁδηγοῦσε ἔξω ἀπὸ τὴν Ἀντιόχεια μὲ ἅμαξα τὸν Ἅγιο, γιὰ νὰ τὸν θέσει στὸ δρόμο τῆς ἐξορίας. Τὰ πλήθη τῶν Ὀρθοδόξων τὸ πληροφορήθηκαν καὶ ἀμέσως ἔτρεξαν, γιὰ νὰ ζητήσουν τὴν εὐχή του. Στὴ θέα ὅμως τοῦ διοικητοῦ τόσο πολὺ ἀγανάκτησαν γιὰ τὴν ἄδικη ἐξορία τοῦ Ἁγίου, ὥστε ἄρχισαν νὰ λιθοβολοῦν τὸν ἀντιπρόσωπο τοῦ αὐτοκράτορα. Καὶ τότε ὁ Ἅγιος Μελέτιος, ἐπειδὴ δὲν μποροῦσε νὰ ἐμποδίσει μὲ λόγια τὴν παραφορὰ τοῦ λαοῦ, σηκώθηκε καὶ προστάτευσε μὲ τὸ σῶμα του τὸν διώκτη του.
Ἡ ἐξορία τοῦ Ἁγίου τερματίσθηκε στὶς ἀρχὲς τοῦ ἔτους 362 μ.Χ. διὰ τοῦ διατάγματος τοῦ νέου αὐτοκράτορα Ἰουλιανοῦ τοῦ Παραβάτου (361 – 363 μ.Χ) περὶ θρησκευτικῆς ἐλευθερίας ὅλων τῶν ὑπηκόων. Ὁ Ἅγιος ἐξορίστηκε καὶ πάλι τὴν ἄνοιξη τοῦ 365 μ.Χ. καὶ τὸ 371 μ.Χ. ἀπὸ τὸν αὐτοκράτορα Οὐάλη (364 – 378 μ.Χ.) στὴν περιοχὴ Γήτασα τῆς Ἀρμενίας, κοντὰ στὰ σύνορα τῆς Καππαδοκίας καὶ εἶχε συχνὴ ἐπαφὴ καὶ ἐπικοινωνία μὲ τὸν Μέγα Βασίλειο. Ἐπανῆλθε στὴν Ἀντιόχεια τὸ ἔτος 379 μ.Χ. Ἀμέσως συνεκάλεσε Σύνοδο, ἡ ὁποία ὁμολογοῦσε τὴν πίστη στὶς ἀποφάσεις τῆς Α’ Οἰκουμενικῆς Συνόδου καὶ καταδίκασε ὅλες τὶς αἱρέσεις.
Ὅταν ὁ αὐτοκράτορας Θεοδόσιος ὁ Μέγας (379 – 395 μ.Χ.), συνεκάλεσε στὴν Κωνσταντινούπολη, τὸ ἔτος 381 μ.Χ., τὴ Β’ Οἰκουμενικὴ Σύνοδο, ὁ Ἅγιος Μελέτιος κλήθηκε νὰ λάβει μέρος στὴ Σύνοδο καὶ μάλιστα ὡς πρόεδρος αὐτῆς. Δυστυχῶς ὁ Ἅγιος κοιμήθηκε, λόγω ἀσθένειας, πρὶν ὁλοκληρωθοῦν οἱ ἐργασίες τῆς Συνόδου. Στὴν κηδεία του συμμετεῖχε καὶ ὁ αὐτοκράτορας, τὸν δὲ ἐπικήδειο ἐξεφώνησε ὁ Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Νύσσης (+ 10 Ἰανουαρίου), ὁ ὁποῖος μίλησε γιὰ τὸν ἀπορφανισμὸ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τῆς Ἀντιόχειας, τῆς Συνόδου καὶ ὁλόκληρης τῆς Ἀνατολῆς, γιὰ τὴ γλυκύτητα καὶ τὴν ὑπομονὴ τοῦ Ἁγίου Μελετίου, ὡς καὶ γιὰ τοὺς διωγμοὺς τοὺς ὁποίους ὑπέστη. Τὸ ἱερὸ λείψανό του μεταφέρθηκε ἀργότερα μὲ μεγάλη πομπὴ στὴν Ἀντιόχεια καὶ ἐναπετέθη στὸν τάφο τοῦ Ἁγίου Μάρτυρος Βαβύλα, Ἐπισκόπου Ἀντιοχείας (+ 4 Σεπτεμβρίου), στὸν ὁμώνυμο ναό.
This holy Father, who was from Melitene of Armenia, was a blameless man, just, reverent, sincere, and most gentle. Consecrated Bishop of Sebastia in 357, he was later banished from his throne and departed for Beroea of Syria (this is the present-day Aleppo). After the Arian bishop of Antioch had been deposed, the Orthodox and the Arians each strove to have a man of like mind with themselves become the next Bishop of Antioch. Meletius was highly esteemed by all, and since the Arians believed him to share their own opinion, they had him raised to the throne of Antioch. As soon as he had taken the helm of the Church of Antioch, however, he began preaching the Son's consubstantiality with the Father. At this, the archdeacon, an Arian, put his hand over the bishop's mouth; Meletius then extended three fingers towards the people, closed them, and extended one only, showing by signs the equality and unity of the Trinity. The embarrassed archdeacon then seized his hand, but released his mouth, and Meletius spoke out even more forcibly in defense of the Council of Nicaea. Shortly after, he was banished by the Arian Emperor Constantius, son of Saint Constantine the Great. After the passage of time, he was recalled to his throne, but was banished again the third time by Valens. It was Saint Meletius who ordained Saint John Chrysostom reader and deacon in Antioch (see Nov. 13). He lived until the Second Ecumenical Council in 381 (which was convoked against Macedonius, Patriarch of Constantinople, the enemy of the Holy Spirit), over which he presided, being held in great honor as a zealot of the Faith and a venerable elder hierarch.
Some time before, when the Emperor Gratian had made the Spanish General Theodosius commander-in-chief of his armies in the war against the barbarians, Theodosius had a dream in which he saw Meletius, whom he had never met, putting upon him the imperial robe and crown. Because of Theodosius's victories, Gratian made him Emperor of the East in Valens' stead in 379. When, as Emperor, Saint Theodosius the Great convoked the Second Ecumenical Council in Constantinople two years later, he forbade that anyone should tell him who Meletius was; and as soon as he saw him, he recognized him, ran to him with joy, embraced him before all the other bishops, and told him of his dream.
While at the Council, Saint Meletius fell ill and reposed a short while after. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, among others, gave a moving oration at his funeral; bewailing the loss of him whom all loved as a father, he said, "Where is that sweet serenity of his eyes? Where that bright smile upon his lips? Where that kind right hand, with fingers outstretched to accompany the benediction of the mouth?" (PG 46:8-6). And he lamented, "Our Elias has been caught up, and no Elisseus is left behind in his place." (ibid., 860). The holy relics of Saint Meletius were returned to Antioch and were buried beside Saint Babylas the Martyr (see Sept. 4), in the Church dedicated to the Martyr which Meletius, in his zeal for the Martyr's glory, had helped build with his own hands.
