The Passion of the Holy Martyr Marina
Saint Marina was born in Antioch of Pisidia [Pisidia <unk> province of Asia Minor] of noble parents, but not of the faith, but of a pagan background. Her father, Edesius, was an idol priest; he gave his daughter to Marina, a nurse who had lost her mother in infancy and lived in a village fifteen yards from the city.
And when the daughter was grown, she was fair in body, and fairer still in spirit; and she was wise, and of good cheer.
Since the persecution of Christians was rising in those days, the hierarchs and clerics, teachers of the Word of God, hid in the deserts, in the caves of the mountains, for fear of the tormentors, who in the villages among the common people, <unk> hid under the guise of the poor, but wherever they could, they taught, albeit secretly, the holy faith and converted many from pagan error to Christ.
It happened to Marina, a twelve-year-old girl, to hear from one man the word of God about Christ Jesus, the true God, how He was incarnated by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Pure Virgin and born of Her, preserving Her virginity intact, how He performed many miracles, willingly suffered for the salvation of men, died, rose again, ascended to heaven and prepared eternal life and glory, and an eternal kingdom for those who believe in Him and love Him.
When she heard this, the wise girl, Marina, believed in Christ, and her heart was inflamed with divine love, so that she spoke and thought of nothing but Jesus Christ; or wherever she heard talk of the true God, her attention was there.
And she desired to shed her blood for Christ, and to be baptized with her, as with a baptism vessel, as she had heard of many holy martyrs of both sexes, who baptized with their blood those who gave their souls for the Lord: she wanted to imitate them.
When she was fifteen years old, she went out into the field to look after her father's sheep, which were there. At that time she happened to meet the persecutor of Christians who was going to Antioch in Pisidia.
Tell me, I pray thee, what thou art, young woman, whose daughter art thou, and what thy name is; for I see that thou art a good woman: if thou art a free woman, I will marry thee; but if thou art a bondwoman, I will buy thee, and take thee to me.
And the virgin, being more chaste than her beauty, answered softly, Whose daughter is she, and what is her name? And she hid not that she was a slave of Christ, and that she believed in the one God, the Creator of heaven and earth, and was united with Him in heart's love, and desired no other husband.
When the bishop heard that she was a Christian, he ordered his soldiers to take her back to the city, but respectfully: he loved her even more because of her virgin's wise words and hoped that soon he would turn her away from Christ and persuade her to marry him.
For I will not be ashamed of them, nor will I be ashamed of them; for I will not be ashamed of them, neither will I be ashamed of them.
Let not my faith be cast into the mire, lest the devil, the hater of good, rejoice in me, but send me help from the height of thy throne, grant me wisdom, open my lips, that I may answer without fear the questions of the tormentor, strengthened by thy power and endued with thy grace.
O my Lord, be gracious unto me in this hour; for behold, I am as a lamb among wolves, and as a bird among fowlers, and as a fish in a net. Come and deliver me from the devices of the enemy.
When he arrived in the city, the bishop, according to his wicked custom, first offered sacrifices to his wicked gods, gave solemn praise to his kings, took the Christians he found, and threw them into prison to keep them until they were tortured; and he entrusted the virgin Mary with the care of some noble women.
And they brought the damsel, and he gazed upon her exceeding beauty, and became more and more passionate toward her; and he spoke to her with cunning, saying,
All the gods know, fair maiden, how I pity thy youth, and spare thy youthful body, which is full of beauty. Therefore I beseech thee, hearken unto me, and offer a sacrifice unto the gods, and it shall be well with thee: thou shalt in a moment obtain much riches, thou shalt be rich, thou shalt be happier than all thy fellows, and thou shalt be honoured above all the women of this city.
I have learned to confess the Father, and his only begotten Son, and the Holy Spirit, one in the Trinity, the true and living God, and to worship and sacrifice to him always, and I will not worship and sacrifice to the gods I do not know: they are soulless, unfeeling, and do not know themselves, whether they are worshiped or dishonored. I will not give them the honor that is due to my Maker.
I beg you again, Marina, listen to me, almost invincible gods; they know well that if you obey my advice, you will at once in the eyes of all the citizens have great honor: I will take you as my wife, all will respect you as my beloved wife, and I will give you honor and glory, and you will bring me joy and delight in my life.
But if thou wilt not hearken unto me, and reject my love from thee, then know that thou shalt suffer many evils: thou shalt make me, though I will not, to torment thee, and to destroy thy beauty, thy health, and thy sweet life; thou shalt be tormented with cruel torments, and thou shalt perish with fire and iron.
Do not think, bishop, to change my faith in Christ for your unbelief, neither with graces nor threats, for I am a faithful servant of my Lord, who willingly suffered for me. If he suffered for me on the cross and died for me, not sparing his most holy body, received from the Virgin Mary, then I too must suffer and die for him, not sparing my sinful body and health.
Be not afraid of your threats, for I am ready to suffer and to die, but I will be strengthened by him in whom I trust, and what you tell me of marriage, honor, glory, and wealth, all this is abhorrent and disgusting to me. Shall I leave my immortal Bridegroom, Christ the King of Heaven, and marry a dog with a dying, dead soul?
When the bishop heard these bold words of St. Mary, he was offended, offended, and very angry, and immediately, changing love into enmity and hatred, he ordered the bride of Christ to be stripped of her clothes, ordered her to be laid on the ground and beaten with rods without mercy.
And all the people saw her, and they wept, and many wept; and the messenger cried, saying, O Marina, sacrifice unto the gods, and waste not thy beauty in vain, and lose not thy sweet life prematurely.
But the martyr, lifting up her spiritual eyes to God, prayed, asking for help from on high and strength in the agonizing struggle; she felt no pain in the torment sustained by the grace of Christ, as if the wounds were not on her, but on another's body. Some of the people said to her: "Young woman, why do you waste your beauty? Why do you not obey? See how cruel the judge is, he will destroy you, and the memory of you will disappear from the earth; we pity you.
And the saint answered them with a loud voice, saying, Ye cunning counsellors, ye wicked helpers, ye seek to tempt me: as the ancient serpent tempted Eve in the garden, so now ye counsel me to forsake my God: depart from me, ye lawless: tempt me not, for I am wholly devoted to Christ.
"This is the beginning of your torment, Marina, and if you persist in your disobedience, you will suffer even greater torments". The saint replied, "Do whatever you and your father the devil want. I do not pay attention to the torments, for I have Christ as my helper, who will soon put all your schemes to shame".
My enemies encompass me, and they plot evil against me; but look upon me, my Lord, and be gracious unto me, and send me thy living Spirit to help me.
Grant me to confess Thy holy name to the last breath, grant me the strength to face the devil and his servants, to overcome and shame them, grant me to be an example to those who love Thee and keep their virginity for Thy sake, to stand with them at Thy right hand in Thy just judgment.
And the saint prayed, and the cruel servants of the cruel tormentor, as if they were cannibals, thrashed the holy body with their trident, and the body fell to the ground in pieces of blood, so that the naked bones were seen.
"How long will you persist, Marina? Your body has already been torn apart. If only you would now agree to sacrifice to the gods, lest you perish completely".
"Oh, you filthy dog! You pig! You're eating human flesh! Do you feel sorry for me? I don't feel sorry for Christ, who didn't spare himself, but gave himself more than a little for me.
Then the bishop ordered the martyr to be taken from the nails and locked in a special dungeon, deep and dark, full of all kinds of evil terrors, where prisoners condemned to death were held.
O God, the Most High, all the heavenly forces are afraid of you, and all the rulers and authorities tremble before you, and all creatures are sustained, changed and renewed by your almighty power.
Look upon me, O Lord, and heal my flesh, which is wounded as a garment, and renew my soul, and preserve it for thy kingdom. Let me overcome and trample my enemy as the sand treads under foot, that I may wipe out his power with thy invincible help, and that thy holy name may be glorified in me for ever.
And it came to pass at night, and the saint ceased not to pray to God; and the devil dared to frighten the martyr with a dreamy terror; and God let him go, to the great glory of his beloved.
The serpent hissed terribly, and with its huge and thirsty mouth, it gave off an unbearable stench; it went around the martyr, causing her fear and terror; then it opened its filthy mouth, attacked the saint and grabbed her head, trying to swallow it.
But she did not despair or doubt, but, turning her whole mind to God, made the sign of the cross, and immediately saw that the serpent's womb was dissolved, and she herself was freed from it, and was whole and unharmed; and at the same time all that devilish and terrible ghost perished: the earth opened, swallowed up the serpent and all the serpents with him, and cast them into hell; and the holy martyr was illuminated by the light of heaven.
And she looked up, and behold, the roof of the dungeon was opened, and the sun-rays fell upon it from above; and she saw a great cross shining with an unspeakable light, and above the cross a dove white as snow, which spoke to her with a human voice, saying,
Rejoice, Mary, wise dove of Christ, for thou hast conquered the enemy, rejoice and be glad, daughter of Mount Zion, for thy day of rejoicing is come, when thou shalt go with the wise virgins to the chamber of the immortal Bridegroom, the King of heaven.
When the dove said these words, Marina was overcome with joy and sweetness, her torn body began to heal, and she felt her wounds heal, her sores covered her skin, pain and weakness disappeared, and she became again, as before, healthy and beautiful throughout her body.
I bless thee, Lord, and I praise thee, Lord my God, I praise thy name, that thou hast had mercy on me, visited me, healed my body, strengthened my soul, and delivered me not into the hands of mine enemies, but, having shown me their terrible appearance, cast them into the deepest abyss, and removed their terror from me. Now therefore, rejoicing and rejoicing in thee, God my Saviour, I beseech thee, good lover of men, grant me the baths of holy baptism, that I, washed with blood and water,
and thou art worthy to enter into thy heavenly palace with the holy virgins, thy brides; for thou art blessed for ever.
In such visions and revelations, and in such solemnity and joy, St. Mary spent the whole night until the day began and the time came for her last feat.
When the bishop saw her with a bright face, completely healthy and unharmed, even without the trace of yesterday's wounds, he was very surprised and silent in amazement, wondering how this martyr, wounded yesterday, had recovered completely in one night.
See, Marina, how our gods have taken care of you; they have had pity on your youth and beauty, and have healed your wounds. You should also offer sacrifices to them in gratitude for their favor; and more than that, you should be an imitator and successor of your father: he serves the gods as a priest, and you should become a priestess and serve them all your life.
"It is not for me to forsake the living God and serve your idols, the dead and the living. He is the healer of souls.
The cruel bishop ordered the saint to be tortured again, and she was hanged on the tree again, and candles were brought, and her breast and side were burned, and she went inward, and prayed in the depths of her heart to God, and endured in silence, and was burned as coals, and was torn as flesh to eat, and when she was taken from the tree, barely alive, she cried out,
O Lord, you have made me to pass through fire and through holy water in your name, and washed from my sins, you have made me to enter into your rest. And when the martyr heard that the martyr mentioned water, he said, "The martyr thirsts, give her a drink". And he ordered to bring a large jar of water and to cast into it the martyr bound, so that she might be immersed there and drowned. When the servants took her to beg for water, she cried out,
O Lord Jesus Christ, who bringest me out of the chains of death and hell, and by thy divine power bringest me up out of the grave, look upon thy servant, and break my bonds, and let this water be unto me the holy baptism of rebirth unto eternal life, that I may put off the old man, and put on the new, and appear unto thee in the wedding garment in thy chamber.
While the martyr was praying, the servants threw her into a barrel of water, immersed her in the water, and drowned her.
But suddenly the earth shook, and the cords that bound the martyr were loosed, and the servants, terrified, fled from the barrel; above the martyr's head shone rays of unspeakable light, and again appeared the white dove she had seen before, coming down from above like the sun with a golden crown in her mouth; it flew over the head of the martyr, touched her feet, and flew again into the heights.
This vision was seen not only by the saint, but also by some of those present, who were worthy of such a vision: many of the people were secret Christians, and it pleased them to see it, while the saint stood in the water, unbaptized, singing, praising and blessing the great name of the Most Holy Trinity, Father and Son and Holy Spirit.
And a pillar of fire was seen above the sanctuary, reaching unto heaven, and upon the pillar a cross, as of crystal, shining with bright light. And a dove flew and sat upon the cross. And there was a voice from heaven, and all heard it: Peace be unto thee, Mary, the bride of Christ!
On hearing this voice and seeing that the martyr had come out of the water healthy, without any trace of burns, unharmed and beautiful, immediately a great multitude of men and women believed in Christ, openly professed themselves to be Christians, and seemed ready to die for Christ.
And when he saw the multitude that followed Christ, he was afraid, and was at a loss what to do; and he was wroth, and brought forth an army with swords, and commanded to slay all that called upon the name of Christ.
And the slain of both sexes fell to fifteen thousand men, who, having been baptized with their blood and cleansed from all their sins, entered into the joy of their Lord, crowned with the martyr's crown.
And when she was brought forth to the place of execution, she asked those who led her to wait a little, and addressed the people who followed her, exhorting them all to know the One True God, the Creator of all things, and to avoid the devil's deception and the destruction of idolatry.
It was our Lord Jesus Christ who appeared from heaven with the holy angels of his bride, calling her to his rest, and stretching out his hands to take her soul. She, however, being inexpressibly glad, urged the executioner to carry out what was commanded to him.
Her relics were kept in Constantinople in the Pantheon Monastery until the Crusaders captured Constantinople in 1204. According to other accounts, her relics were transferred from Antioch in 908 to the West and placed in Monte Fiasco, in Tuscany; currently part of her relics (hand) is in the Monastery of Vatoped, on the Athon.]; and her soul was taken by the hands of the Lord and carried to the heavenly settlements.
And thus the martyrdom of the holy martyred Mary ended on the seventeenth of July, and her suffering was described by the eyewitness, the servant of God, Feotimus, who saw all the sufferings and was able to be a spectator of the visions that the saint had seen, and he conveyed it to the faithful for the benefit, in honor and memory of the beloved bride of Christ, Mary, and to the glory of Christ our Saviour, the Man-Lover, to whom be honor and glory, now and forever, with the Father and the Holy Spirit and from us.
Amen. Trooper, voice 3: The virginity is blessed with goodness, the incorruptible crown is crowned by the Virgin Mary: the blood of the martyrdom is shed, the miracles of healing are illuminated, the martyr has received the honor of the victory of your suffering.
On the same day, the funeral of St. Irenaeus, the abbot of Solovetsky.