The Holy Protomartyr and Equal of the Apostles Thekla was born in the
city of Iconium. She was the daughter of rich and illustrious parents,
and she was distinguished by extraordinary beauty. At eighteen years of
age they betrothed her to an eminent youth. But after she heard the
preaching of the holy Apostle Paul about the Savior, St Thekla with all
her heart came to love the Lord Jesus Christ, and she steadfastly
resolved not to enter into marriage, but rather to devote all her life
to preaching the Gospel.
St Thekla’s mother was opposed to her
daughter’s plans and insisted that she marry her betrothed. St Thekla’s
fiancé also complained to the prefect of the city about the Apostle
Paul, accusing him of turning his bride against him. The prefect locked
up St Paul in prison.
During the night St Thekla secretly ran
away from her house, and she bribed the prison guards, giving them all
her gold ornaments, and so made her way into the prison to the prisoner.
For three days she sat at the feet of the Apostle Paul, listening to
his fatherly precepts. Thekla’s disappearance was discovered, and
servants were sent out everywhere looking for her. Finally, they found
her in the prison and brought her home by force.
At his trial St
Paul was sentenced to banishment from the city. Again they urged St
Thekla to consent to the marriage, but she would not change her mind.
Neither the tears of her mother, nor her wrath, nor the threats of the
prefect could separate St Thekla from her love for the Heavenly
Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Her mother in a insane rage
demanded from the judges a death sentence against her unyielding
daughter, and St Thekla was sentenced to be burned. Without flinching,
the holy martyr went into the fire and made the Sign of the Cross over
herself. At this moment the Savior appeared to her, blessing her present
deed, and inexpressible joy filled her holy soul.
The flames of
the fire shot up high, but the martyr was surrounded by a light and the
flames did not touch her. Thunder boomed, and a strong downpour of rain
and hail extinguished the fire. The torturers scattered in fear. St
Thekla, kept safe by the Lord, left the city and with the help of a
certain Christian youth, searched for the Apostle Paul. The holy apostle
and his companions, among whom was St Barnabas, were hidden in a cave
not far from the city, praying fervently, that the Lord would strengthen
St Thekla in her sufferings.
After this, St Thekla went with
them preaching the Gospel in Antioch. In this city she was pursued by a
certain dignitary named Alexander, who was captivated by her beauty. St
Thekla refused his offer of marriage, and so she was condemned to death
for being a Christian. Twice they set loose hungry wild animals upon
her, but they would not touch the holy virgin. Instead, they lay down
meekly and licked her feet.
The Providence of God preserved the
holy martyr unharmed through all her torments. Finally, they tied her to
two oxen and began to chase her with red-hot rods, but the strong cords
broke asunder like cobwebs, and the oxen ran off, leaving St Thekla
unharmed. The people began shouting, “Great is the God of the
Christians!” The prefect himself became terrified, realizing that the
holy martyr was being kept safe by the Almighty God, Whom she served. He
then gave orders to set free the servant of God Thekla.
With the
blessing of the Apostle Paul, St Thekla then settled in a desolate
region of Isaurian Seleucia and dwelt there for many years, constantly
preaching the Word of God and healing the sick through her prayer. St
Thekla converted many pagans to Christ, and the Church appropriately
names her as “Equal- to-the-Apostles.” Even a pagan priest, trying to
assault her purity and punished for his impudence, was brought by her to
holy Baptism. More than once the Enemy of the race of man tried to
destroy St Thekla through people blinded by sin, but the power of God
always preserved this faithful servant of Christ.
When St Thekla
was already a ninety-year-old woman, pagan sorcerers became incensed at
her for treating the sick for free. They were unable to comprehend that
the saint was healing the sick by the power of the grace of Christ, and
they presumed that the virgin-goddess Artemis was her special helper.
Envious of St Thekla, they sent their followers to defile her. When they
came near her, St Thekla cried out for help to Christ the Savior, and a
rock split open and hid the holy virgin, the bride of Christ. Thus did
St Thekla offer up her holy soul to the Lord.
The holy Church
glorifies the Protomartyr Thekla as “ the glory of women and guide for
the suffering, opening up the way through every torment.” From of old
many churches were dedicated to her, one of which was built at
Constantinople by the holy Equal of the Apostles Constantine (May 21).
The Protomartyr Thekla, a prayerful intercessor for ascetics, is also
invoked during the tonsure of women into monasticism.
Source-Oca.Org
){kind=link}
0 comments:
Post a Comment