Marina of Antioch helps in some ways. When is the marina's name day?

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Kontakion 1

Chosen by God from a pagan race, to the wise bride of Christ, the city of Antioch, the heavenly intercessor, let us write thanksgiving to you, your prayer books, the holy and long-suffering Great Martyr Marino. But you, having boldness towards the Lord, free us from all troubles, evils and illnesses, calling with love: Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Ikos 1

Creator of angels, knowing your good will, holy martyr, show you an invincible passion-bearer for the faith of Christ. You shone with the kindness of your body and the beauty of your soul in the house of your idolater father, and yet, enlightened by the light of grace, you came to know the true faith, having rejected your father’s wickedness. We, marveling at God’s look at you, in the tenderness of our hearts, call you: Rejoice, young lady, chosen by God; Rejoice, adorned from youth with a virtuous life. Rejoice, having despised the vanity of earthly life from your youth; Rejoice, thou who loves true wisdom. Rejoice, O virgin of virginity, brought back from the midst of pagan thorns; Rejoice, overshadowed by grace from above from a small age. Rejoice, you who have well preserved holy chastity and virginity; Rejoice, you who were named from above as the image of Christian virgins. Rejoice, you who loved Christ with all your heart; Rejoice, you who freely endured suffering for His name. Rejoice, blessed adornment to the Orthodox Church; Rejoice, for your name is glorified by Christians all over the world. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 2

Seeing the beauty of your face, people marvel, not knowing the beauty of your soul. But you, holy virgin, having rejected the turmoil of the world, you raised your mind to things above and desired to be adorned with the crown of martyrdom from your beloved Bridegroom Christ, joyfully singing to Him the song: Alleluia.

Ikos 2

Your mind, not yet enlightened by holy baptism, Saint Marino, enlighten the Lord, teaching you to glorify the One and True God, but your wicked parent denied you, but it is not possible to tear you away from the true faith, in which you remained unshakable. Likewise, strengthen us in the virtues of faith and love, who call you: Rejoice, you who acquired the angelic disposition from infancy; Rejoice, you who from your youth devoted yourself entirely to God. Rejoice, thou who has loved the fragrance of virtues from youth; Rejoice, you who have surprised many with the beauty of your soul and body. Rejoice, virgin, invisible helper to young virgins; Rejoice, kind of Christian decoration. Rejoice, thou who has comprehended the truths of the Kingdom of God; Rejoice, chosen from above for the feat of confessing Christ. Rejoice, you who have cultivated piety in yourself; Rejoice, you who have exposed the charm of idolatry. Rejoice, blessed one, persecuted by your earthly father for the faith of Christ; Rejoice, honorable daughter of the Heavenly Father. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 3

Girded with power from above, you were able to overcome temptation, when the persecutor of Christians, eparch Olimvrius, was surprised at your beauty and desired to take you as a wife, persuading you with sweet words to sacrifice to an idol. But you, having despised the glory of this world, confessed that you were a Christian and rejected the earthly bridegroom, the immortal Bridegroom, the Life-Giver of Christ, seeking. Marveling at your boldness, let us sing a song to the Lord who strengthened you: Alleluia.

Ikos 3

Having in your heart a firm faith in Christ, like a sheep to the slaughter, you were brought to the tormenting court, the glorious Marino, where you boldly preached the Almighty God of all before the people and, strengthened by the power of God, you put the wicked judges to shame. Accept therefore from our love the praises brought to you: Rejoice, you who have exposed polytheism by flattery; Rejoice, champion of the true faith. Rejoice, you who despised idolatry from your youth; Rejoice, you who loved true worship of God even to death. Rejoice, you who did not desire any other bridegroom besides the Heavenly One; Rejoice, having preserved the purity of your virginity. Rejoice, you who dispelled the plans of your tormentor Olymbria; Rejoice, you who were not afraid of his wrath. Rejoice, meek dove and sufferer for Christ’s sake; Rejoice, called by the Son of God into the wonderful light of His faith and grace. Rejoice, having become a vessel of the Holy Spirit by your virtuous life; Rejoice, bright star, kindled by God in Antioch. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 4

Possessed by a storm of rage, the insane tormentor commanded that your body be betrayed to fierce torments, then the enemy’s weapons will be exhausted and the earth will be sanctified with your blood. But you, having valiantly endured the torment of evil, looking to the future reward and being able to do everything in the Lord, with tenderness you cried out to Christ God who strengthened you: Alleluia.

Ikos 4

Having heard from you, the wicked tormentor, a courageous confession of the faith of Christ, imprison you in prison, where the prince of darkness himself appeared in the form of a serpent, although he would frighten you. But you, a pure virgin, strengthened by the invincible power of the Cross, have repelled the host of the devil himself and have received grace to drive away unclean spirits and crush the power of the enemy. For this reason, we, having heard how the devil was disgraced and overcome by the virgin, joyfully cry out to you: Rejoice, you who boldly stood before the unjust judge; Rejoice, you who professed to be a Christian. Rejoice, thou who has known the omnipotent power of the grace of Christ; Rejoice, you who were not afraid of the malice of the infidels. Rejoice, holy virgin, who put her tormentors to shame; Rejoice, stronger than strong men. Rejoice, you who endured the imprisonment of Christ for the sake of Christ; Rejoice, you who crushed the head of the devil by the power of the Cross. Rejoice, being in the flesh, having trampled upon the incorporeal enemy; Rejoice, conqueror of the wiles of the devil. Rejoice, true participant of Christ's Passion; Rejoice, for your reward is many in Heaven. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 5

You were like a more godly star, Marino, when, imprisoned in prison, you jubilantly glorified Christ, your Bridegroom. For this reason, the Lord honors you with a wondrous vision of the Cross and the dove and heals you from all wounds, bestowing joy and strengthening you for a new feat. We also pray: heal the sinful wounds of all who honor you and sing to God with love: Alleluia.

Ikos 5

Seeing the eparch Olimvriy Saint Marina brought out of prison, healthy and bright, he became enraged with anger and again gave her over to torment, ordering her to be nailed to a tree and her body to be burned with burning lamps. However, material fire cannot exhaust you, holy maiden, for you are illuminated by the fire of Divine love and like three youths, you have trampled this fire. Deliver the same unbearable eternal fire to all who honor you and sing like this: Rejoice, having established the triumph of the true faith with your blood; Rejoice, for the Lord Himself has looked down upon your suffering from above. Rejoice, thou who was granted a wondrous vision in prison; Rejoice, you who have beheld the honorable Cross of your Lord. Rejoice, you who bore the wounds of Christ on your body; Rejoice, healed from all those ulcers by the Lord. Rejoice, strengthened from above for the feat of martyrdom; Rejoice, illuminated by the Divine light. Rejoice, scorched by earthly fire for Christ's sake; Rejoice, you who kindle our hearts with the Divine fire. Rejoice, thou who conquered the fierce Veliira; Rejoice, for the powers of hell tremble at your glory. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 6

The preacher of miracles and the glory of God appeared to you, Great Martyr Marino, when the tormentor threw you into the water, commanding that you be drowned while bound. Then the Lord grant a sign to all the people: an indescribable light rose over the head of the martyr, a pillar of fire with a cross and a white dove with a golden crown appeared. And a voice came from above, saying: peace be with you, bride of Christ Marino, now you will receive an unfading crown from the hand of the Lord and rest in the Kingdom of Heaven. For this reason we glorify God, who gave you such grace, and we sing to Him: Alleluia.

Ikos 6

You shone like a luminous star, and with Divine grace you drove away the darkness of polytheism, Saint Marino, enlightening many people who saw the miracles of God revealed to you; then a great multitude of husbands and wives believed in Christ and suffered martyrdom, being baptized in their own blood. Enlighten us too, O Marino, darkened by the darkness of sin, and illumine with an unevening light those who glorify and sing thee like this: Rejoice, in suffering, like gold in a furnace, purified; Rejoice, the hardest adamant who appeared in your patience. Rejoice, thou who has trampled down the pagan ministry; Rejoice, you who preached the power of God before the wicked. Rejoice, you who have illuminated the souls of those gathered with the Divine light; Rejoice, you who have led many to a truer faith. Rejoice, devoted champion of the faith of Christ; Rejoice, guiding star to all those seeking salvation. Rejoice, you who through your suffering lead people to Christ; Rejoice, miracles to His preacher. Rejoice, you who burned with the fire of jealousy for the glory of God; Rejoice, immaculate dove, flying to the heavenly abodes. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, bride of Christ of all.

Kontakion 7

To those who would like us to glorify your deeds and miracles, O glorious great martyr, we remember the words of the psalmist of old, illuminated by the Spirit of the Lord, prophetically: we passed through fire and water, and brought us to rest. But you, Saint Marino, have fulfilled this deed, for you were tempted by fire and water, and having defeated the invisible enemy, you entered the palace of Heaven with Christ, your Bridegroom, singing to Him: Alleluia.

Ikos 7

Like a new light in the firmament of heaven, you shone forth to the entire Christian race, holy sufferer Marino, when, having had her head truncated, you gave up your soul to Christ, your Bridegroom. Likewise, we, reverently remembering your sufferings and deeds, call you with love: Rejoice, you who preserved faith, hope and love to the end; Rejoice, thou who art not afraid of bodily death. Rejoice, joyfully for the Head of the Church, Christ, who bowed her head to the sword; Rejoice, you who received the crown of glory from the hands of the Lord. Rejoice, because your torment is visible, many people have turned to God; Rejoice, for your death will enlighten the darkened minds. Rejoice, having entered through the fire and water of torment into heavenly peace; Rejoice, you pouring out streams of mercy to the faithful. Rejoice, you who performed many and great miracles in your Dormition; Rejoice, adorned with unfading colors in Heaven. Rejoice, wise virgin of the Gospel, possessing a burning lamp; Rejoice, numbered among the martyr's army. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 8

Having completed the earthly journey and passed the martyr's path, the passion-bearer Saint Marino, you have settled in the Kingdom of Light, and you have not abandoned the people who prayed to you with love, for you have received the grace to defeat the enemy of the human race and heal many ailments of our souls and bodies. With the same gratitude we glorify you and to God, who has exalted you, we sing the angelic song: Alleluia.

Ikos 8

All the heavenly powers rejoiced, praising God, who gave you, Saint Marino, such courage and unshakable firmness in confessing the faith of Christ. Thus, even after death, your honorable body, incorruptibly preserved, was appointed by God's will in the city of Antioch, exuding an abundance of miracles with faith to those who resort to your intercession and prayerfully cry out to you: Rejoice, gloriously exalted by the incorruptibility of your relics from God; Rejoice, for the demons tremble at your relics. Rejoice, for your honest relics in the city of Antioch were glorified by many miracles; Rejoice, for by these the great Constantinople has also been sanctified. Rejoice, for the Lord has preserved your honorable relics to this day in the lands of Italy; Rejoice, for God has been pleased to carry your right hand to Holy Mount Athos. Rejoice, intercessor of all Orthodox Christians; Rejoice, joy to us and eternal grace to the intercessor. Rejoice, glorious wonderworker; Rejoice, you who burn the arrows of the enemy with the fire of prayer. Rejoice, you who drive away troubles and sorrows from those who love you; Rejoice, you give ambulance to all who call upon you. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 9

All orthodox people of Russia preach your gracious help to our country, from ancient years to this day fathers and mothers name their daughters after you, and miracles have glorified in your image in our churches. Likewise, in honor of my duty, I sing to you to the miraculous God: Alleluia.

Ikos 9

The branches of this world will not be able to adequately praise your sufferings and virtues, Great Martyr Marino. In the same way, we, who are unworthy, wish to sing praises to the Lord and Giver of Life, who gave you the strength of the devil himself, not to be afraid and to defeat the tormentors, we pray to you, look at this sighing of our hearts and be our constant helper, granting all good things through your intercession to everyone who sings to you like this: Rejoice, a virgin shining with heavenly beauty; Rejoice, fragrant lily, increased by the grace of God. Rejoice, passion-bearer, who tore apart all the bonds and snares of the enemy; Rejoice, fruitful olive tree, abundantly flowing oil of mercy to us. Rejoice, temple of purity and purity; Rejoice, warm intercessor with the Heavenly Father for the salvation of sinners. Rejoice, comforter to those in prison and in bonds; Rejoice, O people who suffered for Christ, who showed the way to Heaven. Rejoice, you who have received power from the Lord over unclean spirits; Rejoice, you who teach us to run to Christ God in the adversity of the enemy. Rejoice, banisher of fierce ailments; Rejoice, healer of incurable diseases. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 10

To save everyone, the Lord deigns to preserve your holy relics, Great Martyr Marino, as a consolation to all the faithful, as if you have risen from the East, now in the countries of the West you have enlightened all who honor you and fall to your celibate relics, so that through your miracles and prayers people awaken from a life of sin to the life of the saints, praising their Creator and God: Alleluia.

Ikos 10

Through the wall of your prayers, Great Martyr Marino, preserve our Russian country, and guide all the faithful who live and strive in it along the right path to the Kingdom of Heaven, for you have been given the grace to pray for Orthodox people not only in the Greek land, but in all Christian countries. For this reason, accept from us with love the grateful doxology offered: Rejoice, for by you the name of Christ is glorified in the world; Rejoice, for through you the return of eternal blessings has been granted. Rejoice, for the Angels rejoice with you in Heaven; Rejoice, for men also praise you on earth. Rejoice, you who guide all Orthodox on the path of salvation; Rejoice, instructing sinners to repentance. Rejoice, glorified with love by the Russian people; Rejoice, O intercessor for our country before God and the Most Holy Theotokos. Rejoice, merciful God-given helper to Russian virgins and wives; Rejoice, fervent prayer book for all the people of our land. Rejoice, you who reward those who love you with holy love; Rejoice, praying with the Queen of Heaven and earth for the whole world. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 11

You offered singing to the One and True God, Marino, not just in words, but in a free sacrifice; Imitating Christ, who was crucified for us, you laid down your soul for the true faith and you flew like a dove into the heavenly abode with the wings of purity and Divine love. Now, rejoicing with the Angels and all the saints, you sing the victorious song to the Lover of Mankind: Alleluia.

Ikos 11

Having shone upon us like a multi-bright star, you drive away the demonic darkness with your prayers, O holy Great Martyr Marino; We also pray to you: enlighten our hearts, darkened by the passions, and grant us Divine grace, ask for forgiveness of sins from the All-Merciful God, as by faith, spiritual joy and love we call to you: Rejoice, bright star of the Church of Christ; Rejoice, lamp, illuminating the world. Rejoice, thou whose soul dwelleth in the unflickering light; Rejoice, for you have shone with grace more than the rays of the sun. Rejoice, for you enlighten souls with immaterial light; Rejoice, for you have guided those who have gone astray to the path of truth. Rejoice, before the Throne of the Lord there is an unquenchable lamp; Rejoice, you who illuminated the entire universe with the light of your deed. Rejoice, all-bright one, clothed in grace as with a robe of light; Rejoice, illuminated by the tri-radiant light. Rejoice, O Light, kindled by God; Rejoice, for you now see an indescribable light. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 12

The monastery of Vatopedi is filled with grace, having infinite treasure, thy right hand, great martyr Marino, from the non-myrrh Divine healing flows out to the world, and the demonstrators are driven away from the people who called on the name of your saint. Likewise, fill us, who brightly celebrate your memory, with grace with your prayers, so that we, together with the Holy Mountain, will sing miracles to the giver of God: Alleluia.

Ikos 12

Singing to God, who is wondrous in His saints, we please you, the bride of Christ and the great martyr Marino, we honor your suffering, we glorify your patience and invincible courage, we praise your martyrdom. For on earth, by the power of God, you defeated Satan, who appeared before your eyes; now, standing before the Throne of the King of Glory, pray for us, that the Lord will deliver from the work of the devil and from all troubles those who honor your holy memory and sing: Rejoice, glorified by the grace of God ; Rejoice, you who have made your abode in the house of the Heavenly Father. Rejoice in Christ, your Bridegroom, you who suffered; Rejoice, thou honored with the blessedness of the saints. Rejoice, decoration of Christian virgins; Rejoice, worthy inhabitant of the heavenly world. Rejoice, undaunted confessor of faith in Christ; Rejoice, rejoicing with the martyrs and all the saints. Rejoice, saint of God, participant in the lives of the great saints; Rejoice, for you will always triumph with all God’s chosen ones. Rejoice, you who stand before God with boldness in Heaven; Rejoice, wonderful helper to all Orthodox Christians. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 13

O precious and pure dove, holy great martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ, accept this small prayer from those who love you and with your favorable prayers to God, deliver from enemies visible and invisible, from all illnesses of mental and physical freedom and from eternal torment with your intercession, save, yes Let us be worthy with you in the villages of paradise to sing a victorious song to God: Alleluia.

(This kontakion is read three times, then ikos 1 and kontakion 1)

Life of the Great Martyr Marina (Margarita) of Antioch

Saint Marina was born in Antioch of Pisidia (in Asia Minor, now Turkey). Her father was a pagan priest. From her nurse Saint Marina learned about the Christian faith. At that time, Emperor Diocletian (284–305) initiated a persecution against Christians, so that many Christians were forced to hide in caves and deserts. When Marina was twelve years old, she received Baptism. Having learned about this, her father disowned her.

Once, at the age of fifteen, Marina was tending sheep. The ruler of that region (eparch) passed by, was fascinated by her beauty and proposed to her. Marina did not hide the fact that she was a Christian. Then the ruler gave her to the care of a noble woman, hoping that she would persuade the girl to renounce Christ. But Marina rejected this and refused to sacrifice to idols.

Then she was subjected to various tortures: they flogged her with rods, planed her body with tridents, drove nails into her, burned her with fire. At the sight of such suffering of the girl, the people cried with pity. The grace of God healed Marina from her wounds, but the tormentors did not come to their senses through a miracle. The next day they burned it again, then they began to drown it in a large barrel. During the torture, the earth shook, the shackles fell off Marina’s hands, and an extraordinary light shone above her head, in which a dove with a golden crown in its beak was circling. The amazed people began to praise God. The ruler ordered the execution of Marina and those who believed in Christ. That day, 15,000 people were beheaded along with her.

Eyewitness Theotimus described her suffering. The relics of the Great Martyr Marina were kept in Constantinople until the city was captured by the Crusaders in 1204. The Western Church honors Marina, calling her Margaret of Antioch. Many temples are dedicated to her name.

See also: " The Suffering of the Holy Great Martyr Marina"as presented by St. Demetrius of Rostov.

In Orthodoxy and Christianity in general, ancient Roman and ancient Greek names are very common. This is due to the fact that in the era of early Christianity, most of the flock consisted of people from the Greeks or Romans. And even those who came from other nations often took Greco-Roman names for themselves at baptism. We should also not forget that people who bore nicknames that were distinguished by national flavor (for example, Jews) chose a Greco-Roman analogue for it (for example, Saul-Paul). Another feature was that many Christians were baptized in honor of some other Christian who was noted for the holy life. Later they began to be called saints, and the days of veneration of their holy namesakes - name days. Therefore, even today in Russia, in the conditions of the cultural predominance of Orthodoxy, the overwhelming majority of the population bears not Russian, Slavic names, but Greco-Roman names. We will talk below about what days Marina should celebrate her name day (Angel Day).

Origin of the name

The name Marina is Greek in origin. Translated into Russian it means “sea”. Although in Greek it has a slightly deeper meaning, the nuances of which are lost in translation. The fact is that initially Marina was the name given to the goddess of love Aphrodite, because she was born from the foam of the sea. That is, here there is an indication of the element of the sea, which gives life in its excitement and chaos. Therefore, this name is not just a reference to the sea. It is a reflection of the cosmic principle of world order.

The name Marina in Orthodoxy

Being by origin an epithet of a pagan goddess, the name Marina, nevertheless, entered the orbit of Christianity. In fact, there are quite a lot of Saint Marinas if you look for them. There are locally revered, little-known saints, whose cult is limited to the narrow boundaries of the state, region, village, or even just one temple. Of all the well-known saints, Marina’s name day is timed to coincide with only two memorial dates. This is, firstly, Marina Beriyskaya, glorified along with her sister Kira. And secondly, this is the Antiochian ascetic Marina. Orthodox name days fall on the memorial date closest to your birthday.

Saint Marina of Beria

The area from which this girl came was in modern Macedonia. She was born of a noble family and did not need anything. Together with her sister named Kira, Marina was particularly religious. So when both reached adulthood, they decided to leave their father’s house and indulge in ascetic deeds. To do this, they retired to a small dugout outside the city and spent time in prayer and fasting. Tradition says that they ate food only once every forty days, that is, about 9 times a year. Perhaps this legend is somewhat exaggerated, because there was no one next to them who could see and witness this. But in any case, the girls spent a life full of hardships and extreme asceticism. And they broke their seclusion only twice - when they made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and to Isauria, to the tomb of Saint Thekla. Marina's name day in her honor is celebrated on March 13th.

Saint Marina of Antioch

This saint, in general, has two names - Marina and Margarita. Therefore, in this case, Marina’s name day can be celebrated together with the Margaritas. During her lifetime, this saint came from a pagan priestly family, but at the age of 12 she renounced her gods in order to become a Christian. Because of this, she lost all contact with her pagan father. When she turned fifteen, the ruler of the city wanted to take her as his wife, but she dared to refuse, since this implied a return to the fold of the pagan religion. For her refusal, as the life of the saint reports, she was tortured. But a light shone over the head of the ascetic, as a result of which many people believed. And the enraged ruler ordered the execution of the saint, and at the same time all the converted Christians. Life says that 15 thousand people were killed then - a fantastic figure for the population density of that time, and therefore undoubtedly overestimated. Nevertheless, Marina was executed, and Christians began to venerate her as a holy martyr. Marina's name day in memory of her is celebrated on July 30. And Margaret is called mainly in the Western Church.

Life of the Great Martyr Marina (Margarita) of Antioch

Saint Ma-ri-na was born in An-tio-khia Pi-si-dii-skaya (in Asia Minor, now Turkey). Her father was a pagan-priest. From her cor-mi-li-tsy, Saint Ma-ri-na learned about the Christian faith. At that time, the im-per-ra-tor Dio-kli-ti-an (284-305) launched a persecution against Christianity, so that many Christians But you wouldn't need to hide in caves and deserts. When Marina was half-twenty years old, she received Baptism. Having learned about this, her father renounced her.

Once, at the age of fifteen, Ma-ri-na was tending sheep. The governor of that region (eparch) drove by, was fascinated by her beauty and proposed to her. Ma-ri-na did not hide the fact that she was a chri-sti-an-ka. Then the ruler gave her to a noble woman for care, hoping that she would persuade the girl from speech from Christ. But Ma-ri-na rejected this and refused to sacrifice to the idols.

That's when she was subjected to various attacks: she was whipped with rods, her body was cut with tridents, she was driven into threw nails into it, burned it with fire. At the sight of such suffering de-vush-ki, the people cried with pity. The blessing of God saved Ma-ri from her wounds, but they didn’t get hurt by a miracle. The next day she was about-to-li-ga-li again, and then began to drink in a large barrel. During the torture, the earth trembled, the chains fell from Ma-rina’s hands, an unusually-veined cloud over her head a bright light, in which a go-lu-bi-tsa with a golden crown in its beak was circling. The newlywed people began to glorify God. The governor brought the execution of Ma-ri-nu and those who believed in Christ. That day, along with her, 15,000 people were beheaded.

Eyewitness Fe-o-tim described her suffering. The powers of the Ma-ri-ns were kept in Kon-stan-ti-no-po-le until the city was captured. -nos-tsa-mi in 1204. The Western Church honors Ma-ri-nu, calling her Mar-ga-ri-that An-tio-hii-skaya. Many temples are dedicated to her name.

See also: "" in the text of St. Di-mit-ria of Ro-stov.

Prayers

Troparion to the Great Martyr Marina of Antioch

Your Lamb, Jesus, Marina/ calls with a great voice:/ I love You, my Bridegroom,/ and, seeking You, I suffer,/ and I crucify myself, and I bury myself in Your baptism,/ and I suffer for Your paradise. God,/ let me reign in You,/ and I die for You, and I also live with You,/ but as a blameless sacrifice, accept me, sacrificed to You with love./ Through my prayers,// For You are merciful, save our souls.

Translation: Your Lamb, Jesus, Marina cries out loudly: “I love You, my Bridegroom, and, seeking You, I suffer, and I am crucified and buried with You in Your baptism, and I endure torment for You, that I may reign in You, and die for You, so that I may live with You; but, accept me as an immaculate sacrifice, offered to You with love!” Through her intercessions, as the Merciful One, save our souls.

Kontakion to the Great Martyr Marina of Antioch

Virginity is overflowing with kindnesses, maiden, / you were crowned with imperishable crowns, Marino, / you were stained with the blood of martyrdom, / miracles of enlightened healings, / / piously, you received honor to the martyr the years of your suffering.

Translation: You are adorned with perfection, maiden, you are crowned with an incorruptible crown, Marina, you are stained with the blood of martyrdom, enlightened by miracles of healing, martyr, you accepted the honors of the victory of your martyrdom.

Kontakion to the Great Martyr Marina of Antioch

Marina today crushes the head of the enemy,/ having received the crown of victory from Heaven./ For the prophets were not able to hold it,/ having tied it, she wounded it.// For this reason, the decoration appears to be a martyr, in coupe and praise.

Translation: Marina today crushes the head of the enemy (), having received the crown of victory from Heaven. She tied up and struck the one whom they could not stop. Therefore, it became an adornment, and at the same time their glory.

Canons and Akathists

Akathist to the Holy Great Martyr Marina

Kontakion 1

Ikos 1

Kontakion 2

Ikos 2

Kontakion 3

Ikos 3

Kontakion 4

Possessed by a storm of rage, the insane tormentor commanded that your body be betrayed to fierce torments, then the enemy’s weapons will be exhausted and the earth will be sanctified with your blood. But you, having endured the torment of evil, looking at the future reward and being able to do everything in the Lord, with tenderness you cried out to Christ God who strengthened you: Alleluia.

Ikos 4

Kontakion 5

Ikos 5

Seeing the eparch Olimvriy Saint Marina brought out of prison, healthy and bright, he became enraged with anger and again gave her over to torment, ordering her to be nailed to a tree and her body to be burned with burning lamps. However, material fire cannot exhaust you, holy maiden, for you are illuminated by the fire of Divine love and like three youths, you have trampled this fire. Deliver the same unbearable eternal fire to all who honor you and sing like this: Rejoice, having established the triumph of the true faith with your blood; Rejoice, for the Lord Himself has looked down upon your suffering from above. Rejoice, thou who was granted a wondrous vision in prison; Rejoice, you who have beheld the honorable Cross of your Lord. Rejoice, you who bore the wounds of Christ on your body; Rejoice, healed from all those ulcers by the Lord. Rejoice, strengthened from above for the feat of martyrdom; Rejoice, illuminated by the Divine light. Rejoice, scorched by earthly fire for Christ's sake; Rejoice, you who kindle our hearts with the Divine fire. Rejoice, thou who conquered the fierce Belial; Rejoice, for the powers of hell tremble at your glory. Rejoice, Great Martyr Marino, all-praised bride of Christ.

Kontakion 6

Ikos 6

Kontakion 7

Ikos 7

Kontakion 8

Ikos 8

Kontakion 9

Ikos 9

Kontakion 10

Ikos 10

Kontakion 11

Ikos 11

Kontakion 12

Ikos 12

Kontakion 13

(This kontakion is read three times, then ikos 1 and kontakion 1)

The Great Martyr Marina is one of the most revered saints of the Church of Christ. She is glorified and prayed to by Eastern and Western Christians. There are special reasons for this, for her glory and exploits surpass the glory of many great holy men and women of the Universal Church. It was God's will that the young maiden who "by the might of His might"(Eph. 6:10) amazed the world with the manifestation of the amazing power of faith, and to this day amazes everyone who gets to know him with her life.

Saint Marina’s love for God, her faith and boldness are so great that after the most severe torture, when the whole body of the sufferer was tormented by the tormentors, the fifteen-year-old girl begged God to subject her to an unheard-of test: she begged God to let her fight the devil and overcome him with the help of God.

And all this happened: the arrogant and crafty prince of this world was trampled under a maiden’s foot and was forced to reveal the truth about how he destroys human souls: from the very spirit of darkness, people learned how he takes possession of a person. The voice of the young bride of Christ has brought to us through many centuries a testimony of enormous, enduring significance. The testimony of the great martyr and her feat are especially important in our days for strengthening faith in the True God and strengthening Orthodox Christians in spiritual warfare.

We know about the exploits of the Great Martyr Marina from authentic ancient acts of martyrdom that have survived to this day. In addition, her suffering was described by an eyewitness to the events, Blessed Theotimus. Theotimus witnessed the glorious martyrdom of Saint Marina and her execution. He managed to buy court records from shorthand writers (tachygraphers) - verbatim records of the interrogations and sentence of Saint Marina. Using these most valuable documents, as well as from his personal memories, Theotimus dictated to the scribe Euthymius everything that he saw and heard about the holy martyr, so that his testimony became the basis for subsequent lives.

When compiling the life of the Great Martyr Marina, ancient Greek hagiographers in the 10th–11th centuries excluded the details of Saint Marina’s conversation with the devil, and for a millennium they were forgotten. Today the life of the great martyr reveals to us her truly great and unique feat. (This complete life of Saint Marina was published by the Tabernacle publishing house in Moscow: A. V. Bugaevsky, Abbot Vladimir (Zorin). The life and suffering of the holy great martyr Marina. The suffering and miracles of the holy great martyr Paraskeva. M., 1999. As the compilers of the life write, it was prepared based on Greek and Latin manuscripts that have survived to our time, including unique monuments from the turn of the 4th–5th centuries.) The open battle and victory of the Holy Virgin Marina over Satan is the only such evidence that has survived to our time.

The Great Martyr Marina accomplished her feat during the persecutions that took place during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (284–305) and his co-ruler Emperor Galerius (285–311). According to the testimony of ancient writers and many historians, this was the most severe and cruel persecution. But at the same time it became the last in the Roman Empire. It is not always clear to modern readers why Christianity and Christians were destroyed with such cruelty in Ancient Rome. Therefore, we preface the life of Saint Marina with a brief outline of the history of the last persecution of Christians in pagan Rome.

CHAPTER I

PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS DURING THE REIGN OF EMPEROR DIOCLETIAN (284–305)

On November 20, 284, the Roman army proclaimed Valerius Diocletian, a former freedman who had risen from a simple legionnaire to commander of the imperial protector guard, emperor. He ruled the empire for twenty-one years, after which he abdicated the throne in favor of heirs chosen by himself. Diocletian marked the end of his reign with a bloody massacre of Christians. “It was a terrible funeral feast, celebrated by paganism in itself, because it was the eve of the triumph of Christian society over pagan society.” (A.P. Lebedev. The era of persecution of Christians. M., 1994).

These persecutions seem to contradict Diocletian's previous policies. During the nineteen years of his reign, he did not touch Christians. Moreover, Christians occupied government positions, they were among the highest provincial officials and in the army. Even in the imperial family itself, Christians had powerful patrons. Prisca, the wife of Diocletian, and his daughter Valeria, the wife of Caesar Galerius, were so inclined towards Christianity that they avoided participating in the offering of pagan sacrifices, and only their state and social position kept them from accepting Christianity.

The church historian Eusebius exclaims: “The welfare of Christians strengthened over time under Diocletian, every day it gained strength and greatness, and no hatred constrained it, no evil demon was able to harm.” The famous historian Burckhardt, who studied this era, noted about Diocletian that “he would have remained for us one of the greatest Roman emperors, the savior of civilization and the state, the most thoughtful judge of the needs of his time, if he had died in 302, that is, on the eve of persecution.” (A.P. Lebedev. The era of persecution of Christians. M., 1994).

Indeed, the results of his reign are impressive. He restored the stability of the empire, reorganized the administrative system, doubled the size of the army, and regulated the financial situation. Numerous previously numerous riots and uprisings practically ceased. Taking control of the empire into his own hands, Diocletian wanted to restore the strength and greatness of the state and for many years carried out state reforms. One of the main principles of his reforms was the restoration of the Roman religion in all its former greatness and splendor. He was well aware that extensive government reforms needed internal strength to support, otherwise they would be external and artificial.

Diocletian himself was convinced that the pagan gods were calling on him to strengthen the shaken kingdom. Contemporaries say that long before his proclamation, he learned from one soothsayer about his appointment to be emperor. Therefore, Diocletian placed all his reforms in relation to the cult of the gods. This tyrant served the pagan religion with the same devotion with which Julian the Apostate later served. Diocletian looked at himself as the high priest of the ancient Roman religion, in this he saw the guarantee of the well-being and prosperity of the state.

Diocletian began the persecution of Christians with the awareness that a new religion, capable of trampling on the pagan gods, also threatened the inviolability of the empire. Therefore, Christians could not expect mercy from him.

Christian society, taking advantage of the long-term calm after the persecution of Emperor Valerian (253–259), increased in number, grew and became stronger, but at the same time began to lose its strength. This is how Eusebius writes about this: “From the fullness of freedom, the course of our Christian affairs has turned into slow and sluggish. We began to envy each other, quarrel with each other and, on occasion, hit each other with arrows of speech almost as well as with weapons. The primates began to attack the primates, the masses of Christians began to rebel against the masses, shameful hypocrisy and pretense reached the highest degree of evil.” (Eusebius. Church history. VIII. 2).

The pagans could not help but see all this. And yet the Christians themselves did not give any reasons to the authorities for persecution. On the contrary, they obeyed the voice of their shepherds and showed obedience to the pagan authority, rendering “Caesar’s things to Caesar.” During the reign of Diocletian, Christians served in the army, clearly realizing that this was the duty of true patriots of their earthly homeland. Moreover, Bishop Theon in a letter to Lucilian writes that the emperor himself entrusted the protection of his person to Christian soldiers. In Diocletian's army there was a whole legion (6000 soldiers), the so-called Thebaid legion, consisting of Christians. So the fight against Christianity became the final link in the reform program of the Roman state.

Diocletian first tried to organize the internal life of the empire, and then attacked the Christians. This decision becomes even more understandable when we learn about his personal negative experience of the influence of the Christian religion on the pagan cult. In one of the surviving documents, Emperor Constantine the Great recalled how the priests, returning from the oracle of Apollo in the Temple of the Branchidae, reported that the oracle was silent because it was “under the influence of what was happening on earth.” When Diocletian asked what this phrase meant, he was told: “Christians, of course.” There is evidence that even when the secret Christians accompanying the emperor mentally made the sign of the cross, the oracle was either silent or did not give the necessary answers.

In February 303, the first decree against Christians was announced, ordering the destruction of churches to the ground and the destruction of sacred books by fire; Christians were deprived of civil positions and the right to complain in courts, that is, they were left without the protection of laws and the right to vote in public affairs. Soon a second decree was issued with new demands regarding Christians. According to it, the heads of the churches “were imprisoned in chains” and, as Eusebius writes, “the dungeons, originally intended for murderers and villains, were filled everywhere with bishops, presbyters, deacons, and readers, so that there was no place left in them for those convicted of atrocities.” (Eusebius. Church history. VIII. 2. 6). Christians began to be accused of rebelling against the authorities, and the leaders of the churches were considered secret leaders and instigators of these uprisings.

Following this, fires broke out twice in the imperial palace. The pagans blamed the Christians for the arson. The emperor's suspicions of Christians increased, and he authorized the use of torture against all Christians suspected of treason. In the same year 303, a third decree followed, according to which all clergy, imprisoned in accordance with the requirements of the second decree, had to make pagan sacrifices under threat of torture if they refused. However, at the end of 303, an amnesty was declared, the reason for which was the twentieth anniversary of the reign of Diocletian: according to it, all prisoners were released from prison. Having firmly decided to destroy Christianity, Diocletian, although he allowed them to be given an amnesty, soon resumed persecution with even greater force, as soon as the holiday dedicated to his twenty-year reign ended.

In the next year 304, the last, fourth decree against Christians appeared. A contemporary describes its contents as follows: “Royal letters were sent, which contained a command to all (Christians) to make sacrifices and make libations to the gods.” (Eusebius. On the Palestinian martyrs. Ch. 3). This decree announced widespread persecution of Christians. Because of this last decree, most of the blood of Christians was shed, although it consisted of only two lines. The decree was in effect for eight years, until 311. It was a demand for submission to the state in matters of faith. But this was absolutely unacceptable for Christians. They were required to renounce their faith, required to make sacrifices and libations in front of the statues of pagan gods and the emperor. In case of refusal, torture and execution followed. The persecution was started on the personal initiative of the emperor, and therefore Diocletian went down in history as one of the greatest enemies of the Christian faith and the Church of Christ.

After Diocletian's departure, his son-in-law Galerius became emperor. He did not issue any new threatening decrees against Christians; the persecution continued on the basis of the previous decrees of Diocletian. But under the new rule, the persecution lost all purpose and became a senseless fanaticism. Christians were persecuted, tortured, and executed mainly because they were deprived of the protection of the laws.

Eusebius writes that in subsequent years in the east of the empire all Christians were invited to offer sacrifices; Christians were ordered to be included in lists and called by name to perform the rite of pagan sacrifice. Goods sold in markets were sprinkled with sacrificial libations. Even such a means was invented: some acts of Pilate were composed, in which Christ was described in very obscene terms. Lists from these sheets were nailed to poles, but this was not enough: school teachers were ordered to dictate these acts, and students to memorize them. Thus, they wanted to instill hatred of Christianity in the younger generation. (How similar all this is to what was done in our Fatherland during the times of fighting against God. The devil at all times uses the same proven methods: lies, violence, murder).

Diocletian's contemporary Christian historian Lactantius uses the words of the great Roman poet Virgil to describe this persecution: “If I had a hundred lips and an iron tongue, I could not count all the kinds of evils, I could not even name all the punishments.” The persecutions of Diocletian and Galerius were the most cruel and widespread - but these were the last persecutions that were undertaken with the conscious intention of completely exterminating Christians in the Roman Empire. However, their result was the strengthening of the Church, because those who renounced began to demand that they be readmitted into the community after the trials were left behind, and many pagans, amazed by the courage of Christians, found the true faith. By this time, among the population of the empire there was no longer such hostility towards Christians as before.

When the persecution reached its climax, horror seized many, it seemed that the Christian world was about to shake, but these persecutions became the agony of paganism, which ended with the triumph of Christianity. During the reign of Galerius, Rome made a concession to Christians by recognizing the Christian religion. The persecutor Galerius himself, taught by cruel experience, issued a decree in 311 ending the persecution. By signing such a decree, the emperor, and with him the pagan world, declared their complete powerlessness in the fight against Christianity. The decree ending the persecution read: “We first wanted Christians to return to the ancient laws and social institutions of the Romans. Christians were overwhelmed by such pretentiousness, enslaved by such madness that they did not want to follow the ancient rules. We allow Christians to practice their religion and build houses for their worship meetings." Christianity is “allowed” – “religia licita” - this is the formula of Galerius’ decree. Now the pagan emperor is waiting for prayers from Christians. The last words of the decree sound like this: “For such our indulgence, Christians must pray to their God for our health and public prosperity.”

Christian historians claim that the reason for this decree was the terrible, painful illness of Galerius, which brought him to the grave and in which the emperor saw the finger of God punishing him for the persecution of Christians.

These persecutions clearly showed that all measures against Christians, even torture and murder, were powerless, and therefore it was more prudent to stop the bloodshed that was destroying the citizens of the empire. Christians remained faithful to their religion, despite any threats, torture, or deprivation. Eusebius recalls that after the decree, the gates of the dungeons opened and the Christians imprisoned in them returned to their homes. They walked through towns and villages singing and rejoicing, joy shining in their eyes. Christians were also freed from forced labor. “Even the former murderers,” Eusebius writes about the pagans, “seeing this unexpected miracle, rejoiced at what had happened.” And two years later the famous Edict of Milan of Constantine the Great appeared. The light of the moon gave way to the light of the sun.

CHAPTER 2 CITY OF SAINT MARINA – ANTIOCH OF PISIDIA

Saint Marina was born in Antioch of Pisidia or Galatia. It was a border city between Phrygia and Pisidia. By the time of St. Apostle Paul the city was assigned to the Roman province of Galatia. It was located in the very heart of Asia Minor, in a low-water mountainous area northeast of the Taurus Mountains. Its former splendor is still evidenced by the majestic ruins of Roman temples, squares, the triumphal arch of Augustus, and the Roman aqueduct.

Founded by the Syrian ruler Seleucus I Nicator (312–280 BC) and named after his father, Antioch became a free city (with an elected administration) in 189 BC. In 24 BC the city became the capital of the Roman province. Residents with special status as citizens of Rome occupied a dominant position; local natives enjoyed fewer rights. The language of communication was Greek, the international language in the eastern part of the empire. In 11 BC, the city turned into a Roman colony - a place of settlement for veteran soldiers.

As a busy trading center with a well-developed leather industry, conveniently located on the trade route from Ephesus to the Cilician Gate, Antioch attracted numerous Jewish traders, who built a synagogue here. In addition, the city housed many civilian and military institutions.

Antioch was the center of worship of the fertility god Men, who was depicted as a warrior with a bull's head and wearing a Phrygian cap. Messianic expectations, which revived during the era of Emperor Octavian (the first bearer of the title Augustus; 31 BC - 14 AD) and made it possible to identify the god Men with the emperor, gave way after the death of Augustus to deep disappointment.

The apostles Paul and Barnabas first visited Antioch during their first missionary journey (about 48 A.D.) and founded a Christian community there, which, having established itself, as usual, under the Jewish synagogue, had a strong influence on the entire area. This church consisted primarily of pagans who had converted to Christianity. In any case, the Apostle Paul had serious opponents among the Jews who settled in Antioch (Acts 14:19; 2 Tim 3:11). In its capital, Antioch, after a Saturday sermon in the local synagogue, almost all the townspeople became interested in Paul’s words. However, the leaders of the synagogue and the authorities of the city expelled Paul and Barnabas from their borders (Acts 13: 14-52). Although the Jews rejected the Gospel, the Pisidian people accepted it (Acts 13:49). The newly converted disciples of Paul and Barnabas were “filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.” From Antioch the Word of God spread “throughout the whole country” – Pisidia.

On his way back, the Apostle Paul again visited Antioch (Acts 14:21); he may have visited the city again at the beginning of his second journey (AD 51–52). It was in Antioch of Pisidia that the first temple was built in honor of the holy apostle.

The ruins of Pisidian Antioch, once located on several hills up to 1200 meters high, called Caesarea Antioch by the Romans, are now located near the modern Turkish city of Yalvaç. By the way, in the Archaeological Museum of Yalvacha there is a separate room, the historical information and exhibits of which are dedicated to the Apostle Paul.

In 713, Antioch of Pisidia was destroyed as a result of another attack by the Arabs and completely lost its military, political and commercial significance. Today only ruins remind of the former glory of the city, where stone roads and streets with columns were once carefully built and there were public buildings, water supply, and baths.

Many saints became famous on the Pisidian land: the martyr Porphyry of Antioch (Pisidian); holy martyrs Vianor and Silouan; Saint Kindey, Bishop of Pisidia; St. George the Confessor, Bishop of Antioch of Pisidia, and others, denounced the iconoclastic heresy. Among the glorified miraculous icons of the Mother of God are the Antioch and Pisidic icons.

CHAPTER 3 THE LIFE OF THE HOLY GREAT MARTYR MARINA

Saint Marina came from a noble family; her father Edesius was a pagan priest. Marina's mother died when the girl was twelve years old. After this, the father gave his only daughter to be raised by a nurse, who lived on his wife’s estate fifteen families (family is the Greek name for a Roman mile, equal to 1478.17 meters) from the city.

From her nurse, Marina first heard about Christ. The young maiden was beautiful in body and even more beautiful in soul. She took with all her heart what the nurse had sown, and looked for any opportunity to hear new testimonies about Christ. During the persecution that began then, many Christians hid in caves and small villages, but the preaching of Christianity did not stop. Marina managed to meet one of these Christian preachers. From him she learned about the saving teachings of Christ and eternal life. From then on, Marina thought only about learning more about Christ and learning to live according to His commandments. She grieved that she could not immediately receive baptism, since neither in the city nor in its environs, due to persecution, there was a single priest who could perform the Sacrament.

By the age of fifteen, love for Christ burned so much in her heart that she wanted only one thing - to partake of martyrdom and shed her blood in the name of this love. Marina openly confessed her faith before people and ridiculed the cult of idols, although she knew that she could share the fate of persecuted and tortured Christians. She was ready to accept torment and wanted to shed her blood for Christ in order to be baptized with it as with the baptismal font.

Soon Edesius learned with horror that his daughter had believed in Christ, and he renounced her. This was a difficult test for Marina, but she remained firm in her confession of faith and placed all her hopes in the Lord, asking for strength and blessings to serve Him.

For three years, the young maiden strengthened in faith and love for God. She heard about many holy martyrs who laid down their souls for the Lord, and she wanted to imitate them. In her prayers, which the descriptor of her feat preserved, there are the following words: “Lord, Lover of Mankind, You know my weakness and the weakness of human nature. Strengthen me against the adversary, so that I may trample him and glorify You forever. Amen". And the Lord heard this prayer, choosing a young virgin to glorify His name.

One day Marina and her friends went out of town to look at the sheep grazing in the field. At this time, the eparch (ruler) of the province Olimvrius was traveling along the road from Asia to the city of Antioch. According to the decrees of Emperor Diocletian, the eparch traveled around the Pisidian region to search for and execute Christians. Seeing Marina, he was fascinated by the beauty of the girl and decided to take her as his wife, if she was the daughter of a free citizen, and if she was a slave, then buy her from the owner and make her his concubine. Olimvriy ordered the soldiers to bring the girl to him.

Marina realized that the time had come for her to suffer for her faith and began to pray:
“Lord Jesus Christ, my God! do not leave me and do not let my soul perish! May my enemies not overcome me, may my hearing not be defiled by their crafty speeches, may my mind not yield to their nasty temptations, may my heart not be afraid of their terrible threats. Do not allow my faith to be cast into dirt and mire, so that the devil, who hates good, will not rejoice, but send me help from the height of Your Throne, give me wisdom, so that I may be strengthened by Your power and answer the questions of the tormentor without fear. Yes, my Lord, look upon me with mercy at this hour; Here I am now, like a sheep among wolves, like a bird among fowlers, like a fish in a net; come and deliver me from the wiles of the enemy!”

The soldiers returned to the ruler and reported that the girl was praying to Christ. Olimvriy ordered the girl to be brought to him and asked:
-What is your name, beauty, where is your homeland and what religion are you?

Marina told the eparch about herself and her origins. Having cast aside fear, she boldly declared that she believed in Christ, the One God, Creator of Heaven and earth, that she was united with Him with heartfelt love and did not desire any other groom.

Then Olimvriy ordered his servants to take the girl to the city, hoping to turn her away from Christ and persuade her to marry. Arriving in Antioch, Olymbrius, according to pagan custom, made sacrifices to the gods and solemnly praised the emperors holding the scepter of the Roman power.

The next day, the ruler ordered the city residents to gather in the main square. He himself arrived, accompanied by a detachment of spearmen, and sat down at the judge’s seat (tribunal). On his orders, Marina was brought in first for questioning. Olymvriy looked at the girl with voluptuousness, increasingly inflamed with carnal feelings for her. He invited her to make a sacrifice to the gods, promising to make her the richest and most noble of the women in the city.

When Marina refused, the eparch began to threaten:
“If you listen to my advice, then immediately in front of all the citizens you will receive a great honor: I will take you as my wife, everyone will respect you as my beloved wife, and I will give you honor and glory, and you will bring me joy and delight my life! If you do not listen to me and reject my love for you, then know that you will experience a lot of evil: you will force me, even though I don’t want it, to torment you and destroy your rare beauty, health and sweet life, you will be subjected to cruel, unbearable torment and you will die from fire and iron!

The saint answered:
- Do not hope, eparch, to change my faith in Christ to your unbelief - neither with caresses nor threats: I am a faithful servant of my Master, who suffered voluntarily for me. If He endured crucifixion on the Cross and death for me, not sparing His holy body, received from the Most Pure Virgin Mary, then I must suffer and die for Him, not sparing my sinful body and health in the least. Don’t think of scaring me with your threats: I am ready for all kinds of torment and death. He in whom I trust will strengthen me. And what you tell me about marriage, honor, fame and wealth, all this is disgusting and disgusting to me. Am I really going to leave my Immortal Bridegroom Christ, the King of Heaven, and marry you?.. Never!

Hearing such words, the eparch was offended, became angry and immediately ordered the soldiers to tear off the girl’s clothes, stretch her out on a bench and beat her with sticks. The executioners tied Marina and beat her for a long time, so that her body was torn from wounds and blood flowed to the ground. The herald repeated during the torture:
- Marina, make a sacrifice to the gods...

But the saint, strengthened by Divine grace, asked the Lord: “Do not forsake me, Lord Jesus Christ, send healing dew and heal my wounds. Help me, for for Your sake I endure this suffering.”

Many townspeople were filled with pity, watching how such a beautiful girl was cruelly tortured, and said to Marina:
“Fulfill the eparch’s command, and he will free you from deadly torture.” We see that you are an innocent child. Your God will forgive you, for you have already suffered a lot for Him.

Marina answered them reproachfully:
- Crafty advisors and evil helpers, you are trying to seduce me. Just as the ancient serpent gave Eve evil advice in paradise, so you now advise me to depart from my God. Let my body perish, but my soul will rest with the holy virgins who were ignorant of Christ. Many people will come to know the True God and Savior through me. But I don’t believe in your gods, deaf and dumb, and I won’t make sacrifices to them!

Addressing Olimvrius, Saint Marina said:
“Do the works of your father Satan, you shameless dog.” I will fulfill the commandments of my Lord the Bridegroom Christ. Seeing my feminine weakness, you hope in vain to break me by force. I am ready for any torment, for Christ helps me.

Marina’s words further wounded the pride of the rejected eparch, and he ordered the body of the martyr to be nailed to a pole with blades and planed with iron hooks. The executioners surrounded the lamb of Christ and began to tear her body with iron. The sufferer raised her eyes to heaven and turned to God: “My enemies surrounded me, plotting evil against me, but You, my Lord, look at me and have mercy on me, send me the help of Your Life-giving Spirit. May He make me wise to confess Your holy name until my last breath, may He give me the strength to courageously resist the devil and his servants, so that I may overcome and put them to shame; deign me to be an example for those who love You and preserve their virginity for Your sake, so that I may stand with them on the right side during Your righteous judgment!”

Meanwhile, the tormentors continued to torment the saint’s body. Even the eparch could not look at these bloody tortures: he covered his face with his cloak and turned away. Everyone present was amazed at Marina’s patience. Tired of their bloody work, the executioners left at seven o'clock, since according to Roman law it was forbidden to interrogate and torture prisoners after six o'clock in the evening.

The bishop turned to Marina again:
- How long will you persist, Marina? Now your body has already been torn to pieces; At least now agree to make a sacrifice to the gods, or tomorrow I will order you to be executed.

“You vile murderer,” answered Marina, “you devour human flesh and pretend to feel sorry for me!” I do not spare myself for the sake of Christ, who did not spare Himself, but gave himself up to great torment for me. If I listen to your crazy advice and spare my body, then how will my soul be crowned in the Kingdom of Heaven?

After these words, the eparch ordered Marina to be taken to a prison for those condemned to death. There were no other prisoners there. But that night she was visited by Theotimus, the future descriptor of the saint’s feat. (The Latin text of the life of the Codex Casinensis indicates that, along with Theotimus, Marina was visited by her nurse). He handed Marina bread and water through the window. This was providential, because Theotimus witnessed the duel between Saint Marina and the devil and was able to tell people about it.

In prison, Marina turned to God with prayer:
“God Most High, all the Heavenly Powers stand before You with fear, and all Principalities and Powers tremble before Your face, and every creation by Your almighty Power is preserved, changed and renewed. You are the Hope of the untrustworthy, the Father of the orphans and the Righteous Judge. You, Master, look down from the heavenly heights, from the throne of Your glory, upon me, Your humble, indecent and unworthy servant: I hope in You, I have come running to You and I suffer for Your name’s sake. Look, O Compassionate One, and heal my body, wounded like a torn robe, renew my soul and preserve it for Your Kingdom. Let me see the enemy of the human race fighting against me. Let him stand face to face with me. You are the Judge and Ruler of the living and the dead - so judge between me and the devil. Deliver me from destruction. Help me defeat him with Your invincible Power and send Satan to the underworld. You are God, Who keeps those who trust in You, Blessed forever. Amen".

The Lord fulfilled Saint Marina’s prayer and showed her the enemy of all people – the devil. The first time the devil appeared to Marina in prison, on the night after the first day of torture, when she was praying—as the Coptic version of the life clarifies—with her hands folded in a cross. After a strong earthquake, the dungeon building swayed. Suddenly, a motley-colored monster, similar to a dragon, appeared in front of Marina. Flames and thick smoke came out of his nostrils. The monster's teeth sparkled, and its tongue was bloody. There were many snakes wrapped around the dragon's neck.

The monster began to circle around Marina, hissing and whistling, filling the dungeon with an unbearable stench. The girl trembled with horror, but soon came to her senses, knelt down and turned to God:
“Invisible God, at Your sight the sea dries up and the abyss opens up. You have humbled the power of the serpent who hates goodness; You set the limits of hell and freed those imprisoned in it. Do not, Lord, allow the evil demon, the rabid, stinking monster, to overcome me now. Help me defeat this fiend of hell. May the sweetness and mercy of Your Holy Spirit descend upon me.”

Marina's words infuriated the monster. The dragon tried to swallow Marina, but the saint made the sign of the cross: the monster rushed and fell with a great noise, and its belly split open. The dragon lay dead on the floor of the dungeon, but Saint Marina remained safe and sound.

At that moment, Marina saw Satan himself - Beelzebub, who was sitting in the left corner of the dungeon and was black as night. The saint turned to God again:
“I sing and praise You, the Lord Almighty and Almighty Creator. “I will rejoice and be glad in Your mercy” (Ps. 30:8). O King of kings, rulers, powers and innumerable powers, You have exalted my cross. I thank You, Lord, for giving me, Your servant Marina, to see with my own eyes the enemy of the human race fighting against me, and to shame the unclean one. By the power of Your Holy Spirit, You strengthened my faith and trampled upon the impudent and arrogant demon who appeared in the form of a dragon.
Now You have shown me Satan himself. In order to overthrow the ruler of the world into the underworld, I call on You - the Holy, Immortal, Wise and Meek Christ. Thou art the Cornerstone, the refuge and stronghold of Thy servants; You are my indestructible Fortress and Hope for eternal life. You are my Rod and the Ladder, leading me to the Father. You are a Merciful and Humane-loving God, may Your name be glorified forever. Amen".

When the saint said “Amen,” the devil exclaimed:
- Shut up, Marina! It was I who sent my relative Rufus (Rufus (in Latin - “red-haired”) - a local pagan deity) in the form of a dragon to kill you, but you defeated him with your prayers, and now you want to destroy me too. Stop fighting with us. Have mercy and do not harm me, because I have shown great deeds.

Having recognized that in the form of a dragon Marina had defeated Rufus, her kinsman, the “prince of demons” began the second onslaught - physical. But Saint Marina strengthened herself with the sign of the cross and entered into battle with the devil. The peculiarity that distinguishes the Great Martyr Marina from other holy virgins and even husbands is that Marina, unlike people, offers active physical resistance to Satan. She not only prays, but also attacks the devil with all available means, and victory is on her side. Continuing to say prayers, Marina suddenly noticed a copper hammer lying in the corner of the dungeon. Grabbing it, she began to hit Satan on the head with it, holding him by the hair (or horns).

The devil fell to the ground and exclaimed:
- Woe is me, woe!

Marina put her right foot on his neck and, continuing to strike with the hammer, said:
- Depart from me, lawless father of Gehenna, for I am the lamb of the Crucified and Risen Christ, who created everything through His Wisdom.

Suddenly the roof over the prison opened, and an extraordinary bright heavenly light shone in the middle of the night, and in the middle of the prison a Cross appeared, reaching to the sky. Above the Cross the saint saw a snow-white dove, which said:
– Rejoice, Marina, who preserved body and soul immaculate for the Immortal Bridegroom and gloriously adorned virginity with martyrdom. Rejoice, blessed one, having cast down the vile demon by the power of the Life-giving Cross. Rejoice, good victorious one, you will bind until the end of the age another hated enemy - Satan. Rejoice, Marina, for an imperishable crown is prepared for you and the doors of heaven are open.

Marina felt unspeakable joy after these words. Her tormented body was healed. The ulcers covered the skin, the pain disappeared: she felt completely healthy and began to thank the Lord:
“I thank You, Lord, for visiting Your servant in prison. Glory to You, who has strengthened me with Your strength. Lord, who founded the earth on waters, let me wash myself in them, for holy Baptism is the bath of immortality. Receive me, baptized in blood, into Your bridal chamber along with the wise virgins.”

The conversation that Beelzebub enters into with the girl represents the third onslaught of Satan. Here, under the guise of frankness in the story of his atrocities, he again tries to entice her into the sins that the young girl is resisting.

When the dove rose to the sky, the saint turned to the demon:
“Tell me, unclean spirit, what is your name, where do you come from, and reveal to me your thoughts.” (The appearance of Beelzebub in visible form before Saint Marina, her confrontation with him and the forced “confession” of Satan is the most important part of the life of the great martyr and, in general, the only such text preserved in ancient lives. Bound by Saint Marina, Beelzebub was forced to reveal the secrets of the struggle that was being waged demons against the human race. Thanks to the Great Martyr Marina, Orthodox people can see the terrible danger that demons pose, realize the need to resist the temptations and temptations of the spirits of evil and gain faith that with God's help, every Christian can defeat the devil by the feat of life.)

“My name is Beelzebub,” he answered. “I ask you, Marina, take your foot off my neck, and I will open up to you.”

The saint took her foot off the demon, and he began to speak:
– Initially, God created me as a bright Angel and placed me at the head of the Angelic ranks. But because of my evil will, the Almighty deprived me of this good share. I was cast into darkness along with the army of apostate angels and became Satan. I am one of the rulers of the dark evil spirits opposing God. I am the prince of darkness, Beelzebub, leader of the demons. We demons are incorporeal, therefore we do not walk on the earth like people, but are instantly transported in any environment.

“I distort the ways of the Lord,” the demon continued, “with all my zeal I slander people, and people slander God, and therefore I am nicknamed the devil.” (“Devil” in Greek means “slanderer”). With the help of hostile air spirits, we incite anger in people, deprive them of reason and encourage them to lawlessness. We incline the people to slander, deceit, theft, murder, all kinds of atrocities and shameful vices. Demons strive to confuse and disturb every person, to oppose everyone at all times and in everything, to defeat people and rule over them.

We fight wherever we hear about righteous deeds. I make even saints doubt, I change their minds, I confuse their hearts, and at night, during sleep, I put desires in them. When they pray all night, I place my head in their heads and seduce their minds. I inspire the righteous with unclean thoughts: by accepting these thoughts, they become defiled and fall into sin. After the Fall, I instill timidity and despondency in their hearts. I, Beelzebub, have robbed a lot: I have taken away the fruits of labor from many saints, I have seduced many righteous people. The people defeated by me consign wisdom to oblivion and receive bitterness instead of sweetness, and the smell of rot instead of fragrance. I put a burning fire of passion into their hearts, and sin becomes a sharp sword that wounds souls.

I mock every person who strives for debauchery, darkening his mind, making him proud and arrogant. I try to catch all people in my net, but especially those like you - immaculate and pure virgins. Against them, called by the Creator to honor and glory, we use envy and malice. I attack virgins and figure out how to drag them into the abyss of apostasy and destruction with the passion of fornication.

I have tested many saints. But no one could ever defeat my kinsman Rufus - you alone defeated him. And no one has ever put their foot on my neck, but now you have brought me down. You were nothing to me - like dust and ashes, but after the prison was illuminated by the luminous cross, the Holy Spirit moved into you, and I see another likeness in you.

Great men submitted to me, and now I am trampled and disgraced by the youth of Christ, a weak by nature fifteen-year-old girl. If I had been overcome by a powerful husband, I would not have experienced such shame. This defeat is especially great because your father and all your ancestors obeyed me, following my will in everything. You, Marina, stood up to your family, opposed their faith and surpassed your weak nature, enduring the greatest tests. I am amazed at your wisdom. You have proven your superiority to me and won a great victory over me. I conjure you, Marina, by the mighty and glorious Throne, do not bind my will ahead of time...

Having revealed his true nature to Marina under duress, the father of lies Beelzebub decided, as is always his custom, to deceive the saint. The wise Marina immediately felt that the spirit of evil, having been forced to talk about its treachery and atrocities, began to mix fiction and nonsense into the truth. (For example, here is an excerpt from the ancient text of Beelzebub’s “confession”, in which he tried to deceive the saint: “Satanael took the daughter of Zeus as his wife, and so she became a perfect demon. Satanael mixed with her like an androgyne, and produced an egg from himself before birth , and from these eggs came evil demons... Since the time of Solomon, we have been preserved in vessels sealed with the seal of Satan. When the Babylonians came, we produced flames from the jugs. They, seeing the flames, decided that there was gold in the copper vessels, and opened them, in order to take possession of the treasure. So we freed ourselves and fled into the sky").

But here, too, Marina defeated the devil.
“Be quiet,” the saint said to the demon, “I won’t let you lie and say unnecessary things.” It was useful to learn about the secrets that you unwittingly revealed to me in your “confession.” But out of your devilish arrogance, you began to boast and replace the truth you hate with fiction. You are a liar and a deceiver.

Marina made the sign of the cross over the demon, - at this time the earth opened up and the holy virgin uttered the following words:
- Go into the hellish abyss until the Last Judgment, until you give an answer for the souls you destroyed.

The abyss swallowed Beelzebub, and Marina, kneeling down, began to pray, at the end of which the earth shook and closed.

After such visions and revelations, Marina spent the rest of the night in triumph and joy. A new day has come, which became the last in her earthly life.

In the morning, Bishop Olimvriy ordered the martyr to be brought from prison for interrogation. Almost half the city gathered to see how the life of a young Christian woman who did not submit to her tormentors would end. Seeing Marina with a bright face, completely healthy and unharmed, even without traces of yesterday’s torture, the eparch was amazed and perplexed how this could happen. The pagans who gathered at the spectacle were also surprised: some extolled the Power of Christ, while others considered it the result of witchcraft.

The eparch addressed Marina with the following words:
– You see, Marina, how our gods take care of you! They took pity on your youth and beauty and healed you of your wounds. You also need to make sacrifices to them in gratitude for the benefit received; and even more, you need to be an imitator and successor of your father: he served the gods in the rank of priest, and you need to become a priestess and serve them all your life.

“It is not fitting for me to leave my True and Living God and serve your false and dead gods; on the contrary, you need to know the One God of Heaven and believe in Him, seeing such His power on me: yesterday you tore me to pieces, and now He immediately made me healthy and unharmed! He is the Almighty Doctor of human souls and bodies!

But the eparch became even more embittered and ordered the martyr to be hung on the gate and burned with burning candles. Marina endured everything and prayed to God. When she was taken off the gate, barely alive, she said loudly:
"God! Thou hast vouchsafed me to pass through fire for Thy name, and thou hast vouchsafed me to pass through the water of holy baptism, and, washed from sins, lead me into Thy rest.”

The torturer, hearing that Marina mentioned water, said:
“She’s thirsty, you damned one, we need to give her something to drink,” after which he ordered to bring a huge vat of water and throw the saint into it upside down to drown her. While the executioners filled the vessel with water, the saint cried out to God with a prayer:
“Lord Jesus Christ, who leads you out of the shackles, looses the bonds of death and hell and raises you from the graves with the mania of Your Divine Power! Look upon Thy servant and break my bonds! And may this water be my desired holy baptism for birth into eternal life, so that, having put off the old man, I may put on the new and appear to You in a wedding garment in Your chamber!”

The soldiers threw Marina into a vat of water, but suddenly the earth shook and the ropes with which they had tied the martyr became untied. A pillar of light, on top of which was a Cross, shone above Marina’s head, and a white dove that she had seen before appeared and sat on top of the Cross. And again a voice was heard, which many of those gathered heard:
– Peace be with you, bride of Christ Marina, now you will receive the unfading crown of virtue from the hand of the Lord and rest in the Kingdom of Heaven along with the saints.

The gathered people began to glorify Christ, for many believed in Him after everything they had seen. Olimvrius was frightened and ordered to behead those people who publicly declared themselves Christians. On that day, soldiers executed 85 people outside the city. (Some lists of the life of St. Marina mention the number of executed from five to fifteen thousand people, except women and children. This figure is unlikely, since it is close to the total population of a large city of that time. Most likely, we are talking about the number of those who believed in Christ, and not about those executed for confessing their faith).
The eparch was afraid that with new tortures, Saint Marina would perform such miracles that would convert all the inhabitants of the city to Christ. He finally realized that neither caresses, nor threats, nor torment could turn Marina away from her faith in Christ, and therefore he ordered her head to be cut off. A speculator (a speculator is a warrior who carried out a court sentence) named Malchus, accompanied by soldiers, led Marina to execution outside the city. A crowd of townspeople followed the martyr. When everyone approached the place of execution, Malchus took out his sword from its sheath and turned to Marina:
– I see Christ surrounded by many Angels who have prepared to accompany you. Stretch your neck and after a blow with a sword you will go to the Kingdom of Heaven. Remember me there, for I also touched your holy maforium.

“If you see God,” said the martyr, “then you yourself are not far from the Kingdom of Heaven.” I ask you, brother, let me pray and say goodbye to the people.

“Pray to God and talk to people as much as you wish,” answered Malchus.

“My brothers and friends,” said Saint Marina, “pray to God for me, so that I may complete my earthly journey with dignity.” In my last hour, I ask all of you, old and young, to be steadfast in your confession of Christ. Then God will lead you to the knowledge of the truth, enlighten you with the light of His face, so that at the end of your life’s journey you will not be ashamed, but rejoice before Him.

Then Marina raised her hands to the sky and turned to the Lord:
“God Almighty, grant my request. Be merciful to everyone who, having heard about my martyrdom, will honor the memory of Your servant Marina and turn to me in prayers. Forgive their sins, for You know that we are flesh and blood. Help, Lord, them if they fall into temptation or find themselves in a difficult situation, or are judged and ask You in my name. Grant them, Lord, victory over the enemies who unrighteously attack them. Deliver from evil demons all Christians who called on my name on their deathbed, and may the demons not approach them. Let Your will be done in everything, both in Heaven and on earth forever and ever. Amen".

When Saint Marina finished the words of her prayer, the earth shook again. The people fell prostrate to the ground. The speculator Malchus, who had already drawn his sword to execute the martyr, dropped it out of fear. A bright cloud overshadowed the saint, and the Lord and the Angels appeared before her. Seeing the Savior, Marina trembled and fell at His feet.

“Here, Marina,” the Lord turned to His chosen one, “you are the head of My army, for you brought a multitude of people to Me.” Angels will take your soul to heaven, and your holy relics will remain on earth: from them many mercies and miracles will be performed. In every church, Angels will serve those who call on Me by your name.

Then Christ spread His hands over the saint and said:
“Blessed are you, Marina, for in your hour of death you intercede for sinners.” I will give them the courage to defeat the devil and, for the sake of your martyrdom and the memory of him, I will fulfill everything that you have now asked of Me. The evil spirit will not come close to the places where your relics will rest. May there be healing from all illnesses, forgiveness of sins, peace and love of the Father of Truth.

Marina ordered Malchus to carry out the execution and put her head under the sword. But he did not dare to carry out the eparch’s sentence. Then the saint sternly said to him:
“Do this, otherwise you will not have a part with me in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

The speculator raised his sword and cut off the head of the saint with one blow, saying:
- Lord, do not judge me for the blood of the holy virgin.

After the execution of Saint Marina, Malchus threw himself on his sword and fell near her body, becoming a funeral sacrifice for the great martyr.

Thus ended the martyrdom of Saint Marina. Her faithful admirer Theotimus anointed the body of the great martyr with aromas and incense and transferred them to the city of Antioch, to the house of a certain pious senator. At the relics of Saint Marina, healings of the sick and those possessed by evil spirits began immediately after this.

CHAPTER 4 REVERENCE OF THE HOLY GREAT MARTYR MARINA IN THE CHRISTIAN WORLD

The tradition of venerating Marina was established by the witness of her imprisonment and execution (304), and then by the saint’s hagiographer, Theotimus. Subsequently, her relics were placed in a stone tomb in a specially built prayer house - martyrium, where every year on the day of memory of the saint, the Divine Liturgy was served and then a meal was held in honor of the great martyr. The basis for recognizing Marina as a saint, as throughout the entire era of early Christianity, was not the formal canonization procedure, but the numerous miracles performed from her relics.

Throughout the entire time since the appearance of her life, the Holy Great Martyr Marina has been venerated in the Orthodox churches of the East (memory day - July 17 according to the Julian calendar), as well as in the Coptic Church. In Rome, the life of Saint Marina was recognized as apocryphal in 494 by Pope Gelasius I. For their part, Eastern Christian lives do not mention the actions of Gelasius; They call the saint herself, as the inscriptions on ancient icons say, with only one name - Marina. Given the great similarity between the Greek and Latin texts of the Lives, from a certain moment the saint began to be venerated in different parts of Europe under different names: closer to the south and east under the original name Marina, and in the West and North - as Margaret. In the Middle Ages in Western Europe, her veneration was resumed under the name of Margaret of Antioch.

In the 8th century, the Greek Empress Maria transferred part of the relics of Saint Marina to Constantinople. They were kept in the monastery of Pantepont (All-Seer of Christ) until the city was captured in 1204 by the crusaders. Another part of the saint’s relics was transferred in 908 from Antioch to Tuscany (Italy) and placed in the city of Montefiascone (now they are located in the Cathedral of St. Margaret, built in the 14th century).

It is also known that in 1213 a certain John de Borea took a silver casket containing the palm of a saint from one of the monasteries of Constantinople. These relics saved John from a storm on the sea route to Venice. The saint's reliquary was placed in the Venetian church of St. Liberal, after which the church itself was renamed in honor of St. Marina. Even in the 17th century, the relics remained there. The one who saw them remembers that there was a Greek inscription on the casket: “The relics of the Holy Great Martyr Marina.” In the 19th century, this shrine was moved to Venice to the Church of St. Thomas.

In the Catholic Church, Saint Marina (Margarita), until the adoption of a new calendar in 1969, was one of the so-called “Fourteen Holy Helpers” - ancient saints whose veneration dates back to the plague epidemic in the mid-14th century. In the West, she is revered as one of the three holy virgins, along with Saints Barbara and Catherine. In altar paintings she is depicted next to the Virgin Mary. According to legend, Saint Marina was especially revered by the crusaders during their campaigns, and she was one of the saints who appeared to Joan of Arc.

Particles of the relics of Saint Marina were dispersed throughout the Christian world. Orthodox Greeks have a special love for Saint Marina. In Greece, many churches were erected in honor of the great martyr; the venerable head of the saint is kept here. But, perhaps, nowhere is St. Marina revered as much as on Holy Mount Athos. Parts of her relics are among the shrines of most Athonite monasteries. Part of the saint’s hand is in the Xenophon monastery, the left hand with the hand is in the Iveron monastery, the right hand is in the Dochiar monastery, the leg is in the Philotheus monastery, one of the ribs is in the Russian Panteleimon monastery; large parts of her relics are in Hilandar and Esphigmen.

The life of the great martyr became the basis for the reverent veneration of her by the Holy Mountain residents, because the saint challenged the devil himself and, by the Power of God, defeated the prince of darkness. The practitioners of the Jesus Prayer, the Svyatogorsk monks, wage constant spiritual warfare against the spirits of darkness. For one and a half millennia, here on the Holy Mountain, by the grace of God, monks have resisted the devil and destroyed his plans with unceasing prayer. They prevent the devil and his servants from ruling the world, which is why the demons so fiercely hate the Holy Mountain dwellers and, in general, all those who choose the monastic path. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the foot of the Great Martyr Marina is located among the shrines of Athos: the same foot that trampled the devil himself.

In Zugdidi (Georgia) a part of the saint’s hand is kept. Particles of the relics of the great martyr are reverently kept in Russia: in the Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, in the Moscow Church of the Resurrection of Christ (Sokolniki) in a casket brought from the Holy Mountain in 1863 by the elder hieromonk Arseny.

In Russia, one of the most common and beloved female names by the people is the name of the Great Martyr Marina; it has long been perceived as a traditional Russian name. In the “Register of Ladies and Beautiful Maidens” from Russian folk pictures of the 18th century there are the following words: “Marina will say, feed.” And in poetry, her name rhymes perfectly with such native Russian words as mountain ash, plain.

Already from the 4th century, Saint Marina was revered as a deliverer from misfortunes and troubles, from unjust trials and lawless sentences. But a special area where her intercession has extraordinary power is protection from spirits of evil, from enemy attacks, from slander and slander. The Athonite Proskinitary (description of holy places) of 1701 says that the demoniac and mentally ill are healed from the relics of the Great Martyr Marina. Protecting from “slander, slander and attacks of enemies,” Saint Marina, who defeated the devil during her lifetime, most of all helps people overwhelmed by the spirits of evil; she also has mercy on those lying on their deathbed, driving away demons from them. Saint Marina provides healing for various illnesses, consoles those who mourn, helps in overcoming sinful habits and habits, saves from hunger, preserving crops from the elements: hail, hurricanes, drought, from attacks of locusts, caterpillars and other insects.

CONCLUSION

The name of the Holy Great Martyr Marina translated from Latin means “sea.” In ancient Latin lives and acts of martyrdom she is also called Margaret, and under this name she is revered by Western Christians. There is an assumption that Margarita is the nickname of Saint Marina, given to her for her beauty and nobility (from the Greek and Latin word “margarita”, that is, “pearl, pearl”).

The last prayer of the Great Martyr Marina was for those Christians who will turn to her in their difficult hour:

“God Almighty, grant my request. Be merciful to everyone who, having heard about my martyrdom, will honor the memory of your servant Marina and turn to me in prayers. Forgive their sins, for You know that we are flesh and blood. Help, Lord, them if they fall into temptation or find themselves in a difficult situation, or are judged and ask You in my name. Grant them, Lord, victory over the enemies who unrighteously attack them. Deliver from evil demons all Christians who called on my name on their deathbed, and may the demons not approach them. Let Your will be done in everything, both in Heaven and on earth forever and ever. Amen".

And now let us put into our hearts the words of the Savior, Who gave His chosen one great boldness and grace of help to all who turn to her:

“Blessed are you, Marina, for in your hour of death you intercede for sinners. I will give them the courage to defeat the devil and, for the sake of your martyrdom and the memory of him, I will fulfill everything that you have now asked of Me. The evil spirit will not come close to the places where your relics will rest. May there be healing from all illnesses, forgiveness of sins, peace and love of the Father of Truth.”

That is why the gracious power of the relics of the great martyr is so great - after all, according to the promise of the Lord Himself, the spirits of evil cannot approach them; Prayer to her drives away demons from those on their deathbed. Her powerful intercession helps the sick, mourning, and suffering to find joy, love, peace, and the fulfillment of what they ask for. These words of the Lord fill all Christians with joy that we have a wondrous intercessor before God, the holy virgin martyr Marina, who until the end of time will remain a quick helper and intercessor of all who honor her and turn to her with prayer. She defeated the devil during her lifetime, she helps all the faithful, all who love God and honor His chosen one, the Holy Great Martyr Marina, to defeat him.

The feat of Saint Marina is especially important for our days, as an example of standing in faith until death. Her prayer protects and protects the souls of the faithful, and first of all, Orthodox wives and virgins, from the actions of the devil. The devil and his servants know well that Russian women bear the main burden of confronting sin and destruction - the madness that engulfs the world. Therefore, demons and earthly servants of the devil strike at the very heart in order to destroy the conciliar unity of the people, which is held together by women’s love, the preservation of family and clan, and connections with previous generations. Appeal to St. Great Martyr Marina can help many Russian women to withstand what is said in the sticheron of the 6th song of the Canon of the Most Holy Theotokos: “sorrow will support me, I cannot stand demonic shooting...”. Saint Marina will help protect our women from “demonic shooting” - from attacks by the spirits of evil in heaven. Orthodox Christian women need to constantly pray to Saint Marina; it is good to have with you or wear on a chain an icon or amulet with her image. And, of course, constantly read Marina’s dying prayer and, if possible, an akathist dedicated to her.

The celebration in honor of the Holy Great Martyr Marina takes place once a year on July 17/30.

Holy Great Martyr Marina of Antioch

IN Martyr Marina is one of the most revered saints of the Church of Christ. She is glorified and prayed to by Eastern and Western Christians. There are special reasons for this, for her glory and exploits surpass the glory of many great holy men and women of the Universal Church.

God was pleased that the young maiden who " by the power of His might"(Eph. 6:10) amazed the world with the manifestation of the amazing power of faith, and to this day amazes everyone who gets to know him with her life. Saint Marina’s love for God, her faith and boldness are so great that after the most severe torture, when the whole body of the sufferer was tormented by the tormentors, the fifteen-year-old girl begged God to subject her to an unheard-of test: she begged God to let her fight the devil and overcome him with the help of God.

IN In Antioch, which was located in Asia Minor, a daughter was born into the family of the pagan priest Edessius. They named her Marina. The girl’s mother soon died, and the father gave the baby to be raised by a nurse who lived 15–20 kilometers from the city. Here, in the countryside, Marina was raised and grew up. The girl was modest and pious. She was twelve years old when the cruel persecution of Christians by Emperor Diocletian began. Then (303–305) the emperor ordered the destruction of churches, the burning of Christian books, and deprived Christians of all civil rights: positions, the right to vote in public meetings, and even the right to seek a fair trial. Soon Christians began to be arrested, imprisoned and required to worship idols. Refusal to obey the will of the ruler was followed by torture and execution of Christians. These were cruel times. Many Christians hid from persecution: some in the forests, some in distant villages, but even there people continued their preaching. From one of these Christians, Marina first heard about Jesus Christ. She not only believed, but also wanted to be baptized. And since there was no priest who could perform the sacrament over her, she hoped in the future to become like the Christians who were baptized with their own blood and shed it for Christ. Marina's desire to become a martyr outraged her father. Having learned that his daughter confessed Christ, he became angry and renounced her, saying that he no longer considered her his daughter. And Marina, like a simple shepherdess, began to guard his sheep. One day, Olimvrius, governor of the eastern regions of the Roman Empire, saw a girl in a field. He was heading to Antioch, the capital of Galatia, from the city of Asia. Olimvriy traveled around the territories subordinate to him to search for Christians. Fifteen-year-old Marina was so young and beautiful that the eparch stayed late to meet her.

She answered his questions reasonably and meekly and he liked her so much that the eparch even decided to marry her. He was not embarrassed by the fact that the girl declared herself a Christian. Olymbrius was a persecutor of Christians and believed that he knew how to cope with this obstacle. He arrested the girl and brought her under escort to Antioch, where she handed her over to the court. At the trial, the eparch persuaded Marina to make a sacrifice to the pagan gods and not only promised a generous reward, but also publicly invited her to become his wife. But in response, the girl only prayed and asked God to give her strength and courage to shame her enemies. And Olimvria declared that she believed in Christ and did not want any other groom. Then her long torment began. By order of the eparch, Marina was flogged for a long time, nailed to a board and her body was torn apart with tridents. The girl was thrown into prison overnight. Marina not only patiently endured the torment, but also did not stop praying. Under the cover of darkness in prison, the devil appeared to her in the guise of a serpent. He swallowed her up like the whale once swallowed Jonah. In the belly of the snake, the girl made the sign of the cross, which tore it into pieces. Coming out of the snake’s body, as life says, she received healing from her wounds. When they brought her to Olimvriy in the morning, she was completely healthy without signs of torture. Someone, seeing that there were no wounds left on the girl’s body, believed in Christ, someone considered it witchcraft. The eparch again convinced the girl to make sacrifices to idols. They were the ones who, in his opinion, healed her. But Marina laughed at her tormentor in response and continued to praise God. They burned her with fire, and she offered prayers to God: "God! Thou hast vouchsafed me to pass through fire for Thy name, and thou hast vouchsafed me to pass through the water of holy baptism, and, washed from sins, lead me into Thy rest.” Hearing the girl’s words, the eparch ordered her to be drowned in a barrel. When the executioners began to do this, the earth shook, the ropes that bound her hands fell off, and the girl not only did not drown, but came out healed, now without traces of burns. An even greater number of those who saw this believed in Christ and immediately began to praise Him. Confused by what had happened, enraged by his own powerlessness, Olimvriy ordered to cut with swords everyone who even mentioned Christ. Fifteen thousand people died then. The executioner also cut off the head of Saint Marina, who herself put her under a sharp sword. This happened on July 30th. A certain Theotimus was a witness to everything. He was present at the torment of the holy virgin and wrote down her life.

Marina or Margarita?

The relics of the Great Martyr Marina were placed by Theotimus in a stone tomb. Soon healings and other miracles began to occur among them. The demoniac and the mentally ill were especially often healed here. At the same time, Saint Marina began to be widely revered by Christians, although formal canonization had not yet occurred. But if among Eastern Christians and Copts the tradition of venerating Marina was never interrupted, then in Europe, in 494, Pope Gelasius I declared the life of the Great Martyr Marina apocryphal.

In the 8th century, the Byzantine Empress Maria transferred the relics of the saint to Constantinople. Until 1204, when the crusaders entered the monastery of Pantepont, the relics were kept there. Around the same time, in the early Middle Ages, the veneration of St. Marina was restored in Western Europe, with the only difference being that she was now called Margaret of Antioch.

The change of name from Marina to Margarita should not be confusing, because Margarita was just a nickname for Saint Marina. Her hagiographer Theotimus, describing the beauty and becoming of Marina in his life, calls the girl “Margarita,” that is, “pearl.” Naming a saint differently in the East and West took root in the era of the division of churches. Moreover, in Western Europe, Saint Marina (Margarita) began to be revered on a par with Saints Barbara and Catherine and was depicted trampling on the dragon.

Saint Marina is also revered in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Thus, in Greece, hundreds of Orthodox churches were erected in honor of the Great Martyr Marina, and on Athos, four monasteries at once contain particles of her relics.

Troparion to the Great Martyr Marina, voice 4

Your Lamb, Jesus, Marina/ calls with a great voice:/ I love You, my Bridegroom,/ and, seeking You, I suffer,/ and I am crucified, and I am buried in Your baptism,/ and I suffer for Your sake,/ for I reign in You,/ and I die for You, and I also live with You, / but as an immaculate sacrifice, accept me, sacrificed to You with love. / Through your prayers, / as You are merciful, save our souls.

Kontakion to the Great Martyr Marina, tone 3

Virginity is replete with kindnesses, O virgin,/ you were crowned with imperishable crowns, Marino,/ you were stained with the blood of martyrdom,/ miracles of enlightened healings,/ piously, O martyr, you received the honor of the victory of your suffering.

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