My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
On the 17th of September Commemorates the Holy Martyrs Vera, Nada, and
Lubov (FAITH, HOPE AND AGAPE), (or in Greek Pistis, Elpis, and Agape) and their mother SOPHIA.
Kontakion Hymn of the Holy Martyrs. First Tone
SINCE Faith and Hope and Agape were in truth sacred branches of
Venerable Sophia, the namesake of wisdom, by grace they have
shown all men taht Greek wisdom is foolishness, and in contest
they proved to be prizewinning victors; wherefore, they received
a crown that never shall perish from Christ God, the Lord of All.
They lived and suffered in Rome in the time of the pagan Roman emperor Hadrian. The wise Sophia (as her name–Sophia, indicates) was left a widow and, as a Christian, steeped herself and her daughters in the Christian faith. At the time that Hadrian’s persecuting hand stretched out over the virtuous house of Sophia, Vera was TWELVE, Nada TEN and Agape NINE. The four of them were brought before the emperor, with their arms entwined ‘like a woven wreath’, humbly but firmly confessing their faith in Christ the Lord and refusing to offer sacrifice to the goddess Artemis. At the moment of their passion, the mother urged her valiant daughters to endure to the end: ‘YOUR HEAVENLY LOVER, JESUS CHRIST, IS ETERNAL HEALTH, INEXPRESSIBLE BEAUTY AND LIFE ETERNAL. When your bodies are slain by torture, He will clothe you in incorruption and the wounds on your bodies will shine in heaven like the stars.’ The torturers inflicted harsh torture on Vera, Nada and Agape one by one. They BEAT THEM, THEY STABBED THEM AND THEY THREW THEM INTO FIRE AND BOILING PITCH, AND FINALLY BEHEADED THEM ONE AFTER THE OTHER. Sophia took the dead bodies of her daughters out of the town and buried them, and stayed by their grave, in prayer for three days, and nights, then gave her soul to God, hastening to the heavenly company where the blessed souls of her daughters awaited her. [Resource: The Prologue from Ochrid]
__________
"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
+ + +
With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 