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The
story of saint Febronia
The ceiling of
the beautiful Cathedral located in Melapudur, Trichy is adorned with the
painting of countless number of martyrs and their heroic death. Anyone who has
a look at these painting will have a deep impact in their hearts and sure they
will shed tears, saluting the bravery and love, these young saints had for
Christ. One of the saints depicted in these paintings is Saint Febronia. Her
life and method of persecution, the torture she underwent is beyond words could
explain. This made a deep impact in my heart and I am sure the readers too will
be able to experience the pulse of this incident. The persecution she suffered
under Diocletian, her brave answers to this tyrant emperor, all stand as a role
model for the nuns who have offered their lives for Christ. This is the reason
the Roman Catholic Church has the statue of Febronia, placed among the statues
of 140 saints, at the entrance of the Vatican church in Rome. With this introduction
of this young saint, we will now move on to the story.
280 BC - Rome
Diocletian was the emperor of Rome during 280 BC. Though
he was a Christian by birth, he turned out to be a tyrant very soon. He hated
God just for his post as a ruler and became the handmaid of Satan. He killed
thousands of innocent people during his reign. He forbids Christianity in all
the provinces which were under his control. He destroyed the Christian
monasteries and convents.
During this situation, there was a place outside Rome
which was ruled by king Anthimo. He had a son, Lysimachus, at the age of five.
One day Anthimo called his son and taught him to fight with the sword. During
this training, one of the slaves dropped his sword by accident. Immediately
Anthimo commanded his son Lysimachus, “Lysimachus, come on, this is a good
chance, take your sword and cut off the head of that slave who has lost the
fight. This is the mark of bravery! The winner should kill the looser. Don’t
panic, come on go ahead and cut off his neck……”
But Lysimachus did not do as
his father commanded. Instead he did not kill the slave, but as a sign of his
victory, he placed his sword on the slave’s head. He gave his hand and helped
the slave to get up. Anthimo’s heart was worried regarding this incident. Once
the game was over, he called his son and hugged him and kissed him. He asked
his son, “My son, did I not tell you to cut off his head? Then why did you
disobey my order?”
Lysimachus replied calmly, “Dear father, the looser is not
our enemy, he is our slave. Moreover he is a brave soldier. If I had to fight
with him in the true way, I am sure that I would not have won the fight. This
is just a game, and he too missed his sword accidently just making me win the
fight. He was actually encouraging me in this way. Why should I punish him for
this act? Do you expect me to take his life for this petty issue? Above all I
am not ready to lose such a great and brave soldier.”
Anthimo replied, “My dear
son, you disobeyed me. First understand that this is a mistake and fault on
your side. Since you are still young and also since you are my son, I
forgive you this time. You have to be bound by me, my orders. First come
obedience and only then you can think of your own likes and dislikes.
Understood? Do not repeat this hereafter.”
That night Lysimachus was lying on his mother’s lap and
describing that day’s events. He told her about the sword fight and all that
happened. His mother was a secret Christian. So she told her son, “my dear son
Lysimachus! Army is different and life is different. Since you are a prince,
you have to get yourself equipped with the army techniques. This will be of
great help to you when you become a king. But do not forget to have sympathy in
your heart. It is human to do mistakes. So you should have the hart to forgive
and forget. Only then God will forgive all your mistakes. Do not kill anyone
unnecessarily. Especially do not harm women, old people, priests and nuns. Do
not trouble them in any way. Instead help them in all possible ways for they
take care of the orphans and needy. Follow this all through your life.”
During the same time, in the northern part of Mesopotamia
was the place called Nisibis. There was a convent in Nisibis and Bryena was its
head. She had a brother who came to her convent one day seeking refuge. He told
her the he and his family could not survive since the government was against
Christians. So he requested her to accommodate his wife and two year old
daughter in the convent. He was ready to go elsewhere and take care of his
living and once the situation was fine he will return and take them back with
him. But Bryena could not accommodate his wife, since as per the rules of the
convent only unmarried; virgins are allowed to stay there. So she comforted her
brother and said, “as per the convent rules, I can’t accommodate your wife, but
I will take care of your two year old daughter Febronia. May our Lord be with
you and guide you.” So her brother and his wife left Febronia under the care of
her aunt Bryena and took leave.
Twenty years later to the above mentioned incidents………..
303 BC – Rome
Anthimo was on his death bed. He called his brother
Selenos and his son Lysimachus and said, “Selinos, I am nearing my death. I
give my son Lysimachus in your hands. Treat him as your son and take care of
him hence forth in my place. I have arranged for his marriage with the daughter
of our senator, Pospour. After my death, introduce my son to our king
Diocletian and make him take over my position. I have already discussed this with
our king Diocletian and he has also agreed for the same. Promise me that you
will complete these entire tasks on my behalf. Will you do this for me?”
Selenos caught hold of his brothers hand and said, “Dear brother do not worry.
I will complete all that you have told me. I swear on out deity Jupiter that I
will fulfill all your desires.” Now Anthimo called his son Lysimachus and said,
“My dear son, I am nearing my death and hence forth your days as a king has
begun. You should keep up the name and fame of our family. I have taught you
enough of politics and how to be a king. Do not forget my teachings. Don’t
follow the Christian philosophies of forgive and forget policy. This policy
will never help you as a king. If you have identified your enemy, kill him even
though he is still far away. Otherwise you will have to lose your kingdom, your
family and yourself. My brother Selenos is well versed in all these tactics. He
has a thorough knowledge of this province and this world as a whole. You have
to treat him in the same way you would treat me and obey his commands. Your
actions should please our king Diocletian and my brother Selenos. Promise me
that you will abide by all that I told you just now.” So saying he stretched
out his hands to Lysimachus and he too promised to abide by all that his father
had told him.
Three days later, Anthimo died. Once the rituals were
completed, King Diocletian sent for Lysimachus and Selenos asking them to come
and meet him. Once they met, Diocletian started his interview with them. “Young
man, are you Lysimachus? Your appearance has the traces of your father. But I
heard that your character is like your mother. Is it true? Your mother is an
innocent woman who speaks of forgiveness and righteousness. But I hope you will
not be like her but you will be like your father. Am I right? Your father has
chosen the right person to guide you. Am I right Selenos?” asked the king.
Selenos, who was waiting for an opportunity to speak up immediately, fell down
at the feet of Diocletian and said, “I am grateful to be remembered by you.”
once again Diocletian spoke stating, “Lysimachus I have also heard of your
bravery. You excel in fighting with swords. Is it? A true warrior should be
like that. But you should give up the habit of forgiving your enemies. You
should do away with your enemies and that is a way an efficient ruler should
be. Haven’t your father taught you all this? Come on speak up Lysimachus.”
Selenos spoke instead and said, “Great king, all that you have heard about my
son Lysimachus is true. He is a true and brave warrior. Since he is still
young, he is hesitant to speak up in your presence.” Diocletian said, “Is it
so? Then I think he will be readily willing to talk to our senator Posporus and
his daughter. Am I right?”, so saying he laughed aloud.
Selenos used this
opportunity and stated the topic stating, “Your highness, what you said is
true. We have already decided our senator’s daughter to be given in marriage to
Lysimachus. So I request you to proceed further in getting them married. This
was the wish of my brother and Lysimachus’s father.”
Diocletian replied, “I will definitely do this Selenos.
But before that, I have a great responsibility to be completed by you. I want
to avenge the insult I had at Antioch. The king of Persia, Basha, failed to
respect me and hence many times I had to wage war against his kingdom. Many
time I lost the battle and sometimes I won the battle. At last Basha
surrendered to me. He came to me with rich gifts as a peace offering and sought
peace between both the provinces. But I am not contended with this. I sought
the roman gods in Antioch and asked them to foretell the future and I was
startled with what they said. The chief apostle of Jesus Christ is Peter. He
set the first Christian headquarters in Antioch. Post this incident only all
the followers of Jesus were called as Christians. From that day onwards, all
the roman gods in Antioch lost their powers. So during the times when the roman
gods were powerless, I lost the battle with king Basha. But I became aware. So
I commanded the Christian monasteries and convents to be demolished. When this
was done, our roman gods got back their powers. Once they got back their powers
I won the battle. At the end of the war, Basha surrendered to me. But in order
to gain complete victory, I have to merge the entire Persian kingdom with our
kingdom and up to the time I achieve this I will not rest. When I was searching
the right person to complete this task, I was reminded of you. As I had already
promised your father, I will give you his position. Also I am going to send you
to Persia as my representative and fulfill the assignments I give you. Once you
complete your assignments and return, I will get you married to the girl whom
we have already decided for you.”
Selenos replied, “My Lord, we will not rest up to the
time we complete the task you have entrusted to us. But I request you to get
these two young hearts Lysimachus and the senator’s daughter married at the
earliest.”
This aroused the anger of Diocletian and he said angrily, “Selenos,
I know what I should do. You obey my orders immediately. Take as many soldiers
as you require and move on at once to Antioch. Start from Antioch and spread
all over Syria. I hate the Christians more than king Basha. Do not spare any
Christian. Kill all the Christians whether they are ordinary people, or
priests, or nuns, or children or anyone under the name of Christians. Also
demolish all the churches, monasteries, convents and even the houses of
Christians. Establish our roman empire on the eastern parts and return to me
and I will fulfill all that I promised you.” So saying he left the place
hastily and his wife received him with tears in her eyes and gave him wine to
calm down his anger.
Selenos precede further to complete the orders of the
emperor. Lysimachus sat down in the ship with the title of Roman governor. His
relative Primus also accompanied him in his journey. Lysimachus also appointed
one of his trustworthy slaves as his bodyguard. In order to prevent Lysimachus from
getting into any kind of activity against the Kings orders, Selenos had
appointed spies to keep watch on Lysimachus and his activities. So Selenos was
the active person behind Lysimachus.
Lysimachus was silent keeping in mind his
promise to his dead father, to obey and abide by the commands of his uncle
Selenos. But Lysimachus did not forget the teachings of his mother and his
promise to her. He planned along with Primus and helped the Christians to
escape from the attack of the roman soldiers. But if any Christian was
caught unknowingly, they had to undergo severe punishment. In this way
thousands of Christians were killed all over Syria. Since the number was so
huge, they did not have place to bury the dead people and the dead Christian
bodies lay on the streets being eaten by dogs and wolves.
Having done his hunting effectively in Syria, Selenos now
turned his attention towards Mesopotamia which was also called as Babylon (now
it is called as Iraq). This information was passed on secretly to all the Christians
in the city and hence they all escaped leaved the city deserted. Selenos tried
to find out the culprit who gave a warning to the people before hand but he was
not able to find out the black sheep. The cities of Turkey and Armina were
located in the northern part of Babylon. In the eastern part of Babylon was
Persia. Nisibis was a small town which was located at the junction of Turkey,
Armania and Persia. There was a convent in Nisibis. The head of this convent
was Bryena and Thomais was her helper who was of the same age as of Bryena.
Apart from these old ladies, there were fifty young nuns in the convent
who were under the control of Bryena. She had enough time to attend to the
needs of all the nuns in the convent. Of these fifty nuns, Bryena showed
special attention to two of them. She often said, “Though there are fifty
lilies in the garden of our Lord, still these two nuns are the special lilies
whom the Lord desires the most.”
These two special lilies were Rochala who was of the age
of twenty five and Febronia who was of the age of twenty. Of these two nuns,
the beauty of Febronia was beyond description and would capture the attention
of anyone who saw her. All the other nuns were proud to talk to and move with
Febronia. The great qualities of love and helping tendency of Febronia, made
anyone surrender to her. This was a reason the head of the convent used to keep
Febronia away from every one most of the times.
“Oh Dear Febronia!
Fair as a lily, pure and tender as dove,
Charming as a rose emitting the fragrance of love,
Like the river waters that sparkle in the noonday sun
Your face glows with the Lords presence our dear little
nun
Your humility and kindness, care and love,
Are unique gifts of the Lord from heaven above!
The beauty of your soul radiates signs of purity,
Your love for God and submission to his will proves your
true virginity
Oh Matchless beauty under the sky so blue
Gods great creation so true………”
Though Bryena felt proud of the matchless beauty of
Febronia, still she feared that this great beauty could put Febronia in great
danger. She feared that this beauty would make Febronia proud. Being concerned
about her niece’s salvation, she assigned her a stricter form of life than the
other nuns. After all she was brought up under her care from the age of two and
hence she prayed to God, “Lord have mercy on her. Help her to stand firm in
your love.”
According to their convent rule, the nuns put aside all their other
duties on Fridays and spent the whole day in prayer and the reading of the Holy
Scripture. The nuns used to take turns in prayer and reading the bible. But
when Febronia read the Holy Scripture, it was a pleasant experience. The
sweetness in her voice and her voice modulation while reading the Holy
Scripture brings heaven on earth. It was such a spiritual experience.
Febronia’s fame spread to the world outside the convent also. Many young ladies
and children used to come to the convent on Fridays and Sundays to listen to
Febronia reading the Bible. Even though the outsiders allowed inside the
convent were only ladies and children, no one was allowed to see or talk in
person with Febronia. Febronia used to stand behind a screen and read out the Scripture
verses. Still no one was able to hinder her fame from being spread all over the
country.
One of the daughters of a senator wished to meet Febronia in person
and get her blessings. This young lady was of the age of twenty and she was a
pagan. She was a widow and her name was Hieria. She lost her husband within six
months of her married life. The sorrow of her husband’s loss made Hieria hate
this world and all the worldly pleasures. Her parents decided to get her
married to another person out of the love they had on their daughter. But
Hieria refused remarriage.
She thought that by meeting Febronia and developing a
good relationship with her, she will be able to overcome her sorrow. So she met
Bryena, the head of the convent, shared her tale of sorrow and asked her
permission to meet Febronia. Bryena also accepted her request and asked Hieria
to put on the nuns garments since only then Febronia would speak to her
(Febronia never saw or spoke in person to any outsiders).
When Hieria wore the
black garments, she could feel a different presence all over her body. She met
Febronia for the first time. Being taken up by the exceeding beauty of
Febronia, she said, “Febronia looks like Absaras.” Febronia approached Hieria
and fell down at her feet in respect. Though such practice was new to Hieria,
still she lifted up Febronia and embraced her with sisterly love and affection.
She thought Febronia should have surely been her sister in her previous birth
and said, “Febronia! My sister” Febronia replied, “Yes dear sister, we are
sisters in this birth too….. Where do you come from?”Hieria replied, “I am
coming from a far off place. I wanted to meet you in person. So I got the
permission from my convent head and also from your convent head and thus I got
this precious opportunity to meet you.”
As they were talking, the bell rang for the evening
worship. Every one entered the church to gather for worship. It was an
extraordinary worship. The songs which were being sung and the Holy Scripture
verses brought down the presence of the Lord from heaven to the church where
the worship was being conducted. The glory of the Lord surrounded the place and
only at the sound of the bell for dinner, the nuns realized that evening had
passed and night had crept in. Febronia and Hieria quickly finished their
dinner and returned to their room. That night these two young ladies did not
sleep.
Instead Febronia was reading the Holy Scripture verses and Hieria was
listening to it. They never felt tired or drowsy. Hieria felt that the life in
that convent is like life in heaven. She felt sorry about the life she had
lived so far. It was dawn and still these two young ladies were awake. When
Bryena saw this she said, “Did you ladies not sleep the whole night? It is
already a long time you are here Hieria. Your convent head must be waiting for
your return. So take leave now and come back later.” So saying she bid good bye
to Hieria. But Hieria had no wish to leave Febronia and that convent. Any way
she had to leave, but she never had a chance to meet Febronia later.
That day dawned with unpleasant and startling news. The
calling bell rang and Thomais attended the visitor at the entrance. A priest
was standing at the entrance and passed on important information hastily. He
said, “Thomais, urgent news. Our city has been captured by Lysimachus and his
uncle Selenos. These people massacred thousands of Christians all over Syria
and have now come here in search of Christians. So I have come here to inform
you to leave this convent as early as possible and run for your lives.” So
saying he ran and disappeared.
This information shook the entire convent and
many of the nuns screamed in fear of death. Febronia was down with fever at
this time. Two groups gathered, one group was with the aim of escaping from the
hands of those tyrants and the other group decided to die as witnesses of
Christ. Under the leadership of Ethireen a group came to Bryena. Bryena asked
Ethireea, “What have you decided?” She replied, “We do not have the strength to
fight against these cruel men of Satan. So we have decided to leave this
convent and hide our selves. So please do close down this convent and come
along with us. Once the situation comes back to normal, we can return to the
convent and continue our life for Christ.”
Bryena replied, “I am not a coward.
At the same time I will not object your wish. You are free to do as you wish.
All those who want to leave this convent are free to leave. All those who want
to live for Christ and give up their life for Christ and bear witness for him
can remain here with me. I do not compel any one. It should be from each ones
heart.” For this Ethireen replied, “I do accept all that you say. But at this
age it will be possible for you to live for Christ and die for him. But do
think of these fifty beautiful young virgins in this convent. Do you know what
will happen to them if they get caught in the hands of these cruel Roman
soldiers? This is the reason for my decision of leaving the convent. I expected
you to accept this decision of ours” Bryena replied, “Anyone who wishes to
leave can leave. But the two young ladies whom I consider above everything in
this convent, Rochala and Febronia will stand with me and die as witness for
Christ. Lord Jesus Christ will never forsake them. He will surely place them in
his garden as his precious lilies.” Rochala never spoke anything against these
words of Bryena. But as evening drew close, she came up to Bryena and said, “I
have decided to leave with the other nuns and run for my life.”
Febronia was shocked at this statement of her. She
understood that all the other nuns considered their life more than anything
else. When it comes to expressing true love for Christ, people often think of
their own convenience and comfort. Bryena could not believe her ears and said,
“Rochala, I am surprised that you too have lost faith in the almighty! I
expected you to stand for Christ till the end……” But Rochala replied, “I am
sorry mam” After this she left the convent and was not to be seen. Bryena
realized her stupidity in trusting people to this extent.
At this time Febronia, who was down with fever came and
said, “My dear mother, I will never desert you nor will I lose my faith in
Christ. Though so many of them have left to seek their own self pleasure and
safety, I will never leave. I have offered up my virginity to Christ. We lived
together and so we will die together for Christ and we will go up to heaven
together.”
At this statement Thomai said, “Oh please do not leave me when you
go to heaven. Take me also with you. Why did you forget me dear?” all the three
nuns hugged each other in joy. Febronia asked, “Who was the nun who came to
meet me yesterday? Her love has captured my heart. When she left she said that
‘If it is the will of God we shall die together for Christ. I pray to God to
grant us this privilege’” Bryena was surprised at this statement and said, “Oh
did she say so.
My dear Febronia, she is not a nun. She is a married woman. She
lost her husband during the very early days of her married life and so she lost
interest in life on the whole. She is the daughter of our senator. Though her
parents are interested to get her married once again, she refuses the same. She
sought the peace of being with you and so I too agreed. I thought it would be
handy to have some known people in the government official side. But I am
surprised that the girl who just came yesterday is ready to die for Christ,
where as those who had lived so many years for Christ are now running to save
their lives. But we have to wait and see the will of God in the life of this
girl Hieria for God would not have sent her to meet you without a purpose.”
Febronia listened to these words silently. Bryena continued and said,
“Febronia, I was the one who brought you up since you were two years old. Now
listen to me carefully. This life on earth is uncertain and will come to an end
one day. But the life after death is eternity in heaven with Christ our Lord.
We are on the verge of death and I think tomorrow we may be out to death. Time
has come near. I remind you of a similar incident which took place in Syria
where many Christian men, women and children were killed.
In this incident, two
young ladies by name Lubey and Leonida were also killed. Lubey was beheaded and
Leonida was thrown into fire. Along with these young ladies a mother and her
daughter were also killed which is very remarkable. The girl was twelve years
of age and her name was Ethirobia. Ethirobia was sentenced to be killed by
shooting arrows at her. Once she received this death sentence, the judge who
gave this sentence asked her to run for her life. Since she was too small to
understand what was going on she started to run.
Seeing this her mother shouted
at her saying, “Stop Ethirobia. They are trying to fool you. They will kill you
at all cost. But before that they want to prove that you are a coward. So my
dear daughter, show them that you are a brave girl. Stop where you are facing
the arrows and die a heroic death. This made the girl realize what was
happening and she stood bravely facing the arrows and died a heroic death. This
aroused the anger of the judge and hence he commanded that girl’s mother also
to be killed in the same way.
Now I stand in the place of that mother who
imparted bravery and courage into her daughter’s heart.” So saying they
discussed many related issues that night. The next day dawned which was the
last day in the life of Febronia.
The rays of the sun were unusually red and this lit up
the entire sky which looked like a battle filled with bloodshed. Selenos had
come to meet Lysimachus to discuss certain official issues and this made
Lysimachus worry about the number of Christians he would probably kill that
day. He asked Selenos, “Good to see you uncle. Is there an emergency? You have
come all the way to see me. What is the issue uncle?”
Selenos replied, “Of
course it is an emergency Lysimachus. There is a convent in this city on top of
a small hill. I got the information that there are fifty nuns in that convent.
So go immediately and arrest all of them and bring them to me. Do not delay. I
will put them to death this very day. Ensure this information is kept as a
secret. There is a black sheep among us who is passing on such information to
the Christians and helping them to escape. If I get him red handed, then he will
know my true self.” Lysimachus pretended as if he was unaware of what Selenos
was saying and assured that he will help his uncle to find out the black sheep
as soon as possible.
Lysimachus immediately called his trusted army general
and brother Primus and told him, “My dear brother I hope you have understood my
heart and my thoughts. Though I am not a Christian, my mother is a Christian.
According to my promise to my mother, I will not harm any children, women, nuns
or any of the priestly community people. I fear that I will have to break my
promise today. So I request you to go on my behalf to the convent and warn the
nuns there to leave the place immediately and save their lives. If anyone is
still caught then it is their fate and I will not have a part in it.”
Febronia and the two other nuns were worshiping in the
morning when suddenly ten soldiers entered the convent by forcefully breaking
the doors. They had swords and wooden rods in their hands and asked the nuns to
come out. One of the soldiers rushed in and took his sword to kill the head of
the convent. Immediately Febronia said, “Do not harm these old women. Instead
kill me for they are like my mother and I can’t bear to see them being killed.”
By this time Primus came there and commanded the soldiers stating, “Stop every
one. Go and stand outside the convent and I will handle these ladies myself.”
After this command he looked at Febronia, this was the first time he looked at
this young nun whose beauty enchanted this young army general. He spoke to her
stating, “Did I not inform you well in advance to escape from this convent? Why
did you all stay back?”
Febronia replied, “My Lord, we wanted to die as
witnesses for our Lord Jesus Christ and hence we stayed back. The rest of the
nuns who wished to save their lives have already left.” Primus was a bit
confused at this statement and said, “This is utter foolishness. It is still
not late, better late than never. Come on run for your lives. I will handle the
situation. I have come here based on the orders of my brother Lysimachus who is
the general of this place. So please do run and save your lives. I will give
orders to my men and keep them busy. Use this opportunity and run away. Move
fast.”
But since Febronia and the other two old nuns refused to escape, he had
no other choice and he arrested them and brought them to the palace.
Lysimachus and Selenos stood at the entrance of the
palace gate. Selenos was greatly disappointed to see only three nuns being
brought arrested. So he asked in a loud voice, “Where are the other fifty nuns?
You have only brought three out of them?”
Primus replied, “My Lord I have
searched enough and more all over the convent and I could find only these three
nuns. The rest of them have escaped.” Selenos got furious at this and asked,
“Oh I see….. Who was the person who was quicker than us to come and give you
this information and helped you to escape? Why don’t you answer young lady?”
Febronia replied that she was not aware of the person who passed on the
information. Only then Selenos looked at Fabronia. He too was no exception to
be attracted by her awesome beauty and said, “Oh the queen of beauty is
standing before me…… what a pity I am no more a youngster to thirst for her……”
So Selenos asked the soldiers to take Fabronia and put her in prison and leave
the other two old ladies. He asked them to arrange for the usual torture
treatment and also asked the people to gather in the arena.
Once Selenos left the place, Lysimachus called Primus and
told him, “What have you done? Did you not understand what I told you?”
Primus
replied, “My dear brother, I did what you told me. But these three nuns refused
to escape and I had no other go but to arrest them.”
Lysimachus gave a deep
sigh and said, “Now even God will not be able to save that young girl. Let us
wait and watch.”
Primus asked, “Why should we wait and watch? You have the
power and authority with which you can very well release her. Why don’t you use
your powers?”
Lysimachus replied with sigh, “how is it possible Primus? Though
I am the rightful person vested with the power and authority, that power and
authority is to kill the Christians and not to save them. How can I not go
against the emperor’s command? Moreover I have already promised my father that
I will abide by my uncles decisions and treat him in the place of my own
father. So I can’t do anything on my own and so I am unable to help or save
that young girl.”
One of Seleno’s men overheard this conversation between
Lysimachus and Primus and tried to pass this on to Selenos. But he was caught
by the slave of Lysimachus. Since Lysimachus saved his life, the slave now
caught hold of the spy and took him to an isolated place. But before he could
get any further information from the spy, the spy had fainted.
The next day the trial began. When the people heard that
Febronia was brought for trial, almost everyone gathered in the arena. Many
women were weeping with their faces covered so that no one could find out they
were Christians. Febronia was brought with her hands and legs chained. There
was a long chain round her neck too which gave the appearance that she had
committed a great crime. She was made to stand in the centre of the arena. Once
Lysimachus and Selenos came the trial began.
Lysimachus started the question, “Young lady what is your
name?” there was no reply from Febronia. Once again he repeated the question,
“Young lady what is your name? Won’t you reply to my question?”
Selenos was
angry at this silence of Febronia and said, “Lysimachus, this is not the way to
deal with her. Leave this place and I know how to handle her.”
Since Lysimachus
knew that he could not do anything further, and since he had promised his
mother that he will not do any harm to Christian women, children or nuns, he
thought this to be a best opportunity and left the place immediately. At that
time he saw a beautiful dove descend down from heaven. The dove came round
Febronia thrice and then sat down on her shoulder and then flew away. None of
the residents of the place had seen such a white dove ever before in that city.
But Selenos face became fierce and his eyes were red like fire. His very
appearance turned out to be very frightening. Lysimachus who watched both the
scenes closely said, “The war has started.”
Primus did not understand this
statement and asked him, “What do you mean by war? The trial has only
started….. I don’t understand this statement of yours.”
Lysimachus said,
“Primus it is right that you can’t understand. This war about which I am
speaking is not between Febronia and my uncle. It is between the truth and lie,
between justice and injustice. It is between light and forces of darkness.
Truth and lie are like the two sides of a coin. It is tossed in the air; only
one side will be seen. But which is the side which will face the ground and
which is the side which will win is the question now.”
Primus still could not
understand anything and asked Lysimachus to explain it clearly to him.
Lysimachus explained stating, “My dear brother did you notice my uncles eyes a
few minutes back? Did you see how red they turned out, which looked like
blazing fire? Then did you further notice that his entire appearance changed
and he looked so fierce. It is not my uncle but his deity,mars. This god is
known for its anger and now this god has taken control of my uncle. Similarly
the Holy Spirit, the Christian god, who is the giver of strength, has taken
control of Febronia. So now this is a battle between these two gods. But I pity
Febronia, for I don’t know what all torture awaits her.”
Selenos sat on the throne of judgment. He said, “Young
lady, since you stand here in your priesthood dress, I am giving you respect.
You better don’t lose it. Now answer my questions.”
Febronia answered, “I am a
Christian girl. Everyone calls me as Febronia.” He voice had authority in it
and was clear enough that everyone gathered clearly heard what she spoke. But
this only aroused the anger of Selenos.
He further said, “Febronia, mind your
words. Ensure that you give due respect in what you say. You are a criminal and
you practice the religion which is banned by the government. You know this very
well and still what made you to go against the government order? Are you aware
of the punishment for this crime?” Febronia was not disturbed by this but spoke
boldly saying, “Government will change from time to time and the people in
authority will also change in the course of time. I am not bothered about it.
According to me Jesus is the only true God. he is the only unchanging God. Even
if this heaven and earth may pass away, but he will remain forever. He is the
only person worthy of praise and worship. I have great respect for the king but
I can never treat him as God, nor can I offer praise and worship to the false
roman gods. I will never do this.”
These words added fuel to the burning anger
of Selenos. He tried to handle her softly and said,
“Febronia, I do not wish to
treat you harshly. Even now I am much concerned about your well being. You are
so beautiful and you are a bold woman. You speak with wisdom…. I am surprised
that a girl like you is not interested in this worldly life, that too at such a
young age. It is because you don’t know the happiness this world can give
you….. You are like a bird in a cage. Come out of your cage and enjoy the
pleasures of this world. Then you will understand what life is.”
Febronia
replied, “You have mistaken me…… though I am bird in a cage, I know about this
world for his world and all that is in it is created by my Lord almighty. Of
course it is a beautiful world and I too know that. Let us not waste time, go
ahead do what you wish. You can’t win me by your honey coated words.” This
reply was a great insult to Selenos.
With a sarcastic smile he said, “I pity
you young lady. Jesus died three hundred years ago. Don’t you think it is
foolishness to waste your life saying that you are the bride of Christ? Don’t
waste your life. Even now it is not too late. If you are willing I will get you
married to my son Lysimachus. Then you will not have to undergo these
sufferings. You will be a queen. What do you say?”
Febronia was not carried
away by these words of Selenos. She replied, “Thanks a lot for your great
ideas. I don’t have any wish of being a queen. You can be a person of authority
and power but you cannot flatter me with your words. I will never forsake my
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who is my bridegroom, my God almighty and my
Master. This is my final reply and do not waste your time anymore.”
Selenos lost his patience and in a stern voice said, “I
was patient with you all this time is just because you are a nun. But I think
you do not deserve any respect. I command you to denounce the name of Jesus and
worship Caesar and all the other roman Gods. This is my final warning. Come on,
go ahead and do it right now.”
Febronia was not at all disturbed by these words
and said, “You cannot frighten me with these words. I have already told you my
decision. I will never change my mind. You too don’t try to change my mind. I
have already offered my spirit, soul and body to Jesus and He is the person who
is ruling it.” Each and every word of Febronia was like sharp sword that
pierced the heart of Selenos and out of insult and fear of defeat, Selenos
shouted out saying, “How dare you try to advise me….. You will soon understand
what will happen if you disobey a king like me. I will not leave you until you
have obeyed my orders. I will torture you both in body and mind. Don’t dare to
face such a situation. Surrender right now and obey my orders. This is my final
chance to you. What do you say?”
Febronia replied, “You can do whatever you
want. As it is written in the Holy Scriptures, ‘and fear not them which kill
the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able
to destroy both soul and body in hell’ why are you still waiting. I am ready.
Go on and try all that is possible. Today you will know that my love for Jesus
is greater than all that is in this world.”
These words of Febronia set the heart of Selenos of fire
and thus some sparks came out of his mouth which said, “What guts you have……
you are just a woman…. A young girl… I will make you walk this arena naked…..in
front of all the crowd gathered here, you will be deprived of basic human
dignity…. Let this be your bridal march my dear who is the bride of so called
Jesus….. I will not stop here. If you still don’t obey me…. I will tear your
body to pieces…. Roast that soft sparkling skin in fire….. Be prepared you
fool…..” so saying he gave a loud arrogant laugh.
Febronia was still calm and
replied with serenity, “Selenos, God created man as man and woman. He created
them naked. I care the least about this punishment.”
Selenos could not bear any
longer and gave immediate orders to make her naked and come round the arena. So
the most pious, holy virgin Febronia, was made naked in front of the crowd and
she came round the arena. All those who were gathered in the arena closed their
eyes as she came walking around. People could not bear this injustice and
shouted out saying, “Stop this cruelty…. Don’t insult women….. She is a pious
woman…..stop this cruel act….”
But the senses of Selenos had already been made
dark and he felt proud of his authority and said, “What Febronia, hope you had
a grand march round the arena….. What do you say now…? Are you ready to listen
to my orders now?”
Febronia replied, “Selenos, I have not seen men in all my
life. I don’t even know how they will look. But today you have stripped me of
my garments and made me naked in front of all the women, men and children. But
don’t be happy that you have insulted me. If you think so then you are a fool.
You have in fact insulted your mother, your wife and your daughter and women as
a whole. Since I am the bride of Christ, he will judge you for this act of
yours.”
Selenos did not expect this reply said, “I think this was a cake walk
for you and so you seem to speak so boldly. Now you will know the pain of
disobeying me. Guards! Tie her up to that post and whip her so that he flesh
and skin are torn to pieces. Have no mercy and use all your strength. Also set
fire to her feet. Let her flesh be roasted till she learns to obey me. I will
teach her a lesson. ”
As Jesus was scourged at a pillar, four soldiers stood
round her and whipped her with all their might. The tender body of Febronia was
torn to pieces and flesh fell down on the ground at each whip. Blood gushed out
and ran down her body. At the same time her flesh was burnt from her feet up to
her hip. Without any traces of humanity.
Selenos shouted, “Stop! Stop! Turn her
to the other side of her body and repeat the same punishment. Now she will obey
me.” The punishment was fulfilled as ordered by Selenos. Now Selenos looked at
Febronbia and said, “I hope you would have changed your mind by now and obey
me. Am I right Febronia?”
Febronia stood there with a torn and burnt up body. She
had lost all her beauty, but her inner heart now glowed with the beauty of love
for Jesus Christ. Just like Lord Jesus as he was carrying the cross, she had no
beauty in her looks, she looked weak and disfigured. Veronica was there to wipe
the face of Jesus, but Febronia had none to come to her rescue. But the Lord
was with her and so she said, “I thank you for this punishment.”
Selenos
thought that she must have lost her senses to speak like this. He asked her,
“What did you say? Did you say thank you? Thank you for what?”
Febronia
replied, “Selenos, we usually meditate on the sufferings of Christ and a part
of it is where Jesus was tied to a pillar and whipped by the roman soldiers.
Now I understand physically and mentally the sufferings Jesus must have
underwent at that situation. I thank you for giving me this precious
opportunity. As we read in the Bible that, ‘think it not strange concerning the
fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto
you: but rejoice, in as much as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that,
when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy’ I am
happy that I had the privilege to take part in the sufferings of Christ. It is
all because of you. So I thank you for this.”
Selenos wondered how she was able to insult him amidst
such pain. He could not believe his eyes. Still he did not give up. His heart
was harder than the heart of Pharaoh during the time of Moses. So he said,
“Don’t be in a hurry young lady. I will now destroy you will power. So now he
ordered to comb her body from head to fool using a sharp iron nailed comb so
that he skin will be peeled off [I hope the readers will be able to feel in
your mind the pain of this punishment]. The punishment was executed both on the
front and back of her body.
Selenos enjoyed this sight and said, “Febronia
don’t waste your time. Come on you are not going to win. Give up your faith and
listen to me. I have the best physicians with me who will cure you easily. It
is not too late. What do you say?”
Febronia spoke up saying, “you insolent
fool. I am surprised that you are a great king, with so much of authority and
power, can’t understand this simple statement of mine. I am surprised how you
will be able to administer and rule this huge population. Please understand
that I am able to bear all this pain with the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ and
the power of the Holy Spirit. Your treatment is nothing before my master, the
great heavenly physician. Your treatment will help to save the life of a dying
man. But my master’s grace will raise even a dead man.”
As it is said, ‘do not cast your pearls in front of
swine’, Febronia’s words about Jesus and his greatness to Selenos was like
pearls thrown in front of swine. He could not understand nor was he interested
to understand. So he said, “Are you giving me advice. Now I will show you who I
am. Let me see what your heavenly physician is going to do. Soldiers, cut off
her breasts. We shall see what he master is going to do” immediately a physician
came with a knife and cut off Febronia’s right side breast and threw it before
the crowd.
The public gathered could not bear this and cried out, “please stop
this. Don’t punish her so severely” But this pleading voice of the public was
just unwanted noise to the ears of Selenos.
“Why do you delay to cut off her
left side breast? Do it right now”, screamed Selenos. The same was done and
Febronia underwent great pain this time. So she cried to the Lord saying, “Lord
have mercy on me. Give me the strength to bear all this. Do not forsake me and
help me overcome this trial.” The Lord heard her prayer.
At the same time
Selenos also heard this prayer and felt thrilled and said, “Oh now I see that
you started to feel the pain. What was the prayer you prayed just now? Are you
praying to a dead man Jesus? Ask him to come to your rescue….. Won’t he? Or
where is that Holy Spirit, the giver of strength? I can’t see any one. Call
them here. Ask them to come to your rescue……”
At this moment, Hieria came running from among the crowd
shouting, “Stop this governor. Just because you are vested with power and
authority, don’t go beyond your limits. There is a God Almighty above all the
powers of this earth. You are just a man…. Just a human being, who will live
today and will die any moment, God is watching everything and he will answer
for all that you are doing now. Are you aware of what you are doing? How dare
you make a young girl naked and cut off her breasts? I am surprised that your
mother too is a woman who nursed you at her breasts and you have forgotten
that. Did your wife not teach you the purity of a woman, the sanctity of a
woman’s breast? Shame on you tyrant! You are not worthy to be a human being. I
can’t call you as an animal also. Even animals do not hurt their own species
for food or anger. You are far below them….. You are not a human being at all….
You are a representative of all the evil that is in this world. Did you think
that there is no one to question you….?” So saying Hieria poured out all her
anger and in a way her speech was a representation of the mind of the crowd
gathered.
Selenos could not control his anger to accept insult after insult
from young girls. His heart burned in anger that he was not able to win small
girls with all his authority and power. So he said, “How dare you speak like
this to a person like me? You came to speak for Febronia, and now let me see
who will come to save you. Your punishment will give the grip of fear to all
those who think of rescuing Febronia. Soldiers come on and kill her along with
Febronia. I will not spare anyone who opposes me. I will execute the orders of
my great king Diocletian.”
These words did not bring the expected change in Hieria
and she spoke boldly stating, “I care the least for you and your king. You will
be cursed among all the generations on this earth. Right from the time you were
formed in your mother’s womb, up to this time your life will be a cursed one.
The just Lord will avenge this cruelty of yours. But really your punishment
will be unbearable and that which a tyrant like you too would not have
imagined. Your death will be the worst kind of death.” In this way Hieria
cursed Selenos.
Immediately Selenos lost control of him and ordered Hieria to
be arrested and brought before him and commanded the soldiers to kill her in
the same way like Febronia.
Hieria was happy at his death sentence and said,
“Thanks a lot governor. Thanks a lot. I had already made up mind to die along
with this holy virgin Febronia. Febronia, do you remember that I had already
expressed this wish of mine to you when I met you in the convent? My wish is
going to come true now. I am happy for this.”
But this death sentence made
great chaos among the government officials and the situation of an outbreak of
a riot was felt. Lysimachus who noticed this came to his uncle and warned him
politely stating, “Uncle, this girl Hieria is not an ordinary girl. She is of
high rank. She is the daughter of our senator. So do not take hasty decisions
in her case. Her husband was also a senator. Also many of her relatives are in
great official posts at present. So think and act. If you still persist in
killing her then we will have to lose our posts. So leave her as of now. Do not
allow your concentration to get distracted from Febronia.”
Lysimachus said this in order to save at least Hieria
from his uncle. Selenos was not able to digest this great insult. He said in
his heart, “already one young girl has insulted me and I am not able to make
her obey me. Now one younger girl has insulted me so badly. Anyway this is not
the time to take revenge of her. I will deal with her once I finish the life of
Febronia.” So he showed all his anger on Febronia.
He roared out saying,
“Febronia what do you say now? Have you changed your mind? Where is your bridegroom
Jesus? Why has he not come yet to save you?” so saying he gave a sarcastic
laugh. Febronia calmly replied, “You do not have the spiritual eyes to see my
master. Even now I see my master standing in heaven, amidst the group angels,
with a crown in his hand which he is waiting to offer me for all the sufferings
I am undergoing for his name sake. Do not waste time. Send me to him as soon as
possible.” Selenos could not understand these words and he was not interested
in it either. He said, “Oh so your age is what gives you the strength to bear
all these torments. I will not give you the treatment which will be beyond all
that you had suffered so far.” So saying, he called the physician and asked him
to pull out all her teeth one by one.
The physician pulled out all her front
row teeth one by one and this lead to great blood loss and Febronia fell down
unconscious. At this point Selenos feared that Febronia would die without
obeying his orders, that is betray Jesus, which would mean she has won the
battle and that he had failed before a young little girl. So he wanted to find
out means to keep her alive for some more time so that he could further torture
her and at the end make her obey him and betray Jesus Christ.
So he shouted at
the physician saying, “Stop it man. How many teeth have you pulled out?” The
Physician replied, “Seventeen teeth my Lord. She is likely to get fits due to
heavy loss of blood.”
Selenos ordered the physician, “Stop her bleeding
immediately. I want her to be alive and suffer more. I will ensure she deny
Jesus and I will win in this trial.” So the physician uses certain medicinal
herbs and stopped the blood flow from her mouth.
After a few minutes Selenos
spoke again, “Febronia, these will be the last words you will be able to speak.
So accept defeat and deny Jesus. Don’t dream of winning.”
But Febronia said,
“Praise be to the name of Lord Jesus. Praise be to the king of kings. Amen.”
Immediately Selenos gave his orders stating, “Cut off her tongue. Let me see
how she will magnify her Lord further.”
Febronia did not hide he tongue. She
put forth her tongue and the physician cut it off from deep within. Immediately
Febronia fell unconscious on the ground. All the people gathered in the arena,
whether Christians or non Christians, were unable to bear witness to his horrid
spectacle and left the scene of torture cursing Selenos, Diocletian and his
gods.
But Selenos was not bothered about all this but keep on
thinking of further ways of torturing Febronia. His eyes were completely tied
up by the evil forces so that he had lost every bit of humanity. So he gave
another order, “Cut off her hands and legs.” So a big wooden plank was brought
and Febronia was made to lie on it. Both her hands were cut off. But when the
soldier swung his axe to cut off her left leg, he was not able to do so.
He
tried thrice and could not cut her left leg. But Febronia extended her right
leg to be cut off. At last her legs too were cut off. There lay her body
disfigured and mutilated. Febronia was a true follower of Jesus Christ for
Jesus willingly extended his hands and feet to be nailed on the cross and
Febronia extended her hands and legs to be cut off.
Lysimachus was deeply
affected by this horrible torture and tried to help her. So he called his uncle
and said, “Uncle, this is enough. There is no chance for her survival further.
Let her suffer. By the time we will go and have something to eat and relax. I
feel hungry. Do you want to join me?”
But Selenos said, “My dear son Lysimachus
I am not at all hungry. I don’t want to relax either. No one has insulted me so
badly in all my life. But today I am insulted by this small girl. Shame on me….
I can’t bear this my son. My heart is burning with vengeance and anger and I
will not leave this place until it is quenched with the defeat of this girl. So
you take leave. I will join you later.”
Lysimachus now understood that he could
not do anything more from his side for Febronia and so he left the place
leaving her in the hands of God. He said within his heart; let the Lord Almighty
take revenge on this tyrant, my uncle too.
Selenos lost all his hope of keeping Febronia alive
anymore and so he ordered her to be beheaded. Thus one of the soldiers caught
hold of her hair and cut off her head in one shot. All those who watched this
breathtaking cruel act were deeply filled with sorrow regarding the fate of
Febronia. Many ladies fell down unconscious and many others cursed Selenos.
As it is said, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good
soldier of Jesus Christ” Febronia stood as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. The
queen of beauty, who is the beloved of Jesus Christ, suffered the worst
torments but endured them with the love she had for her master. She stood as a
witness of Jesus Christ. The beautiful young girl lay there with her body
completely disfigured, but still her face did not lose its beauty. The glory of
the Lord could be seen in her face. Her face looked up at heaven where Jesus was
standing with arms wide open and saying, “Rise up, my love, my faith one, and
come away.
For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
the flowers
appear on the earth;
the time of the singing of birds is come,
and the voice of
the turtle is heard in our land;
o my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock,
in th secret places of the stairs,
let me see thy countenance,
let me hear thy
voice;
for sweet is thy voice,
and they countenance is comely.”
When Lysimachus heard that Febronia was beheaded, he
rushed into the arena and strengthened the security so that none of the public
will gather and take away her body pieces.
Selenos, who at last accepted his
defeat, stood there staring at the sky.
Lost in thought, he shouted, “You
Galilean, you have won at last” Then he behaved in a very strange manner, just
like an animal. His eyes became red, his face became fierce. All those who were
gathered there feared to see him. He raised strange noise which sounded like
those of various animals and suddenly banged his head against the huge pillars
of the roman palace. No one understood what he was doing or rather what was
happening to him. No one was even interested to ask him what was happening to
him. He kept on uttering one single word, “You Galilean, you have won at last”.
Then with all his strength he hit his head against the pillar. His head broke and
the brains splashed out. He met a very terrific end.
When Lysimachus heard
that, within a few seconds after the death of Febronia, Selenos also died, he
said loudly, “God has avenged the death of Febronia.” Then he raised his voice
and said, “Oh dear citizens, I request you all, whether you are a Christian or
not, to come and help in the burial of Febronia’s body in an orderly manner. I
also request all those hidden Christians to come out and I give assurance for
your life. The wicked tyrant Selenos is dead.” Hearing this announcement, all
the priests, nuns and Christians came back to their own monasteries and
convents and returned to their old life.
Lysimachus gathered all the remains,
the body parts of Febronia, including the mud on which her precious blood was
shed. He made a box out of the wood of Acacia, placed all that he had collected
and took the box to the convent where she had lived with great respect. Many
people gathered for her funeral.
Bryena, who was the convent head and the foster mother of
Febronia since she was two years of age, could not bear to see the mutilated
body of her. The thought that Febronia had died a heroic death standing as a
witness of Jesus Christ made her say, “I am proud of you my dear daughter
Febronia. But who is there hear after to sing praises to the Lord? Who will
conduct the worship? No voice, not even the sweet singing nightingale cannot
fill you place. Who else will read the Holy Scripture? No one can fill this
vacuum you have created in our lives. I can’t bear this loss Febronia, my dear
precious daughter…..” so saying she wept badly at the death of this sweet
daughter of hers. 
Febronia’s body was buried in that convent. The Bishop of
Nisibis, who had built a church dedicated to Febronia, came to the convent and
requested her relics. When they were prepared to lift the reliquary, the earth
and heaven shook, there was an earthquake followed by thunder. It seemed like
nature commanded that no one should touch the grave of Febronia. Still the
ruler along the priest and nuns and also with other religious people prayed to
God and thus Mother Nature calmed down. Then Febronia’s grave was excavated and
the box made of Acacia wood which contained her body was taken out.
The Bishop called Bryene and said, “You brought up Febronia.
So you alone have the right to touch the body of Febronia. Do not allow anyone
else to touch her body. Even Febronia will prefer that only. So you take out
the relics of Febronia out of the wooden body.”
The moment Bryene touched the
hand part of the relics of Febrionia, she felt that her hands got paralyzed.
Tears ran down her cheeks and she said, “My dear daughter Febronia, our Lord
wanted to give you the due glory and hence he has commanded a church to be
built and that your body should be kept in that church. That is the reason I
touched your relics and why do you punish me for that. I am your foster mother
and now do return my hands to me.”
After his prayer, once again Bryene’s hands
started to function normally. The king could not believe his eyes on seeing
this miracle. He said, “Dear mother, even if the entire body of Febronia could
not be brought to the church, ask her for any one of the relics to be kept in
the church. Do ask her consent.”
So Bryene asked Febronia, “Dear child, give me
any one of your relics to be kept in the church in memory of you.” Her request
was granted. So Bryene was given one teeth of Febronia and nothing else was
given to her. She gave this to the Bishop and the same was taken to the church.
A marble, Syriac reliquary, shaped like a four root molar tooth held the tooth
of Febronia and was kept in the altar.
Febronia’s friend, Hieria, the senator’s daughter sold
out all she had and gave it to the poor. She used all her gold jewels and
covered the coffin of Febronia and once again buried it in the convent. Once
the burial was over the evening time came for prayer. At this time, the inmates
of the convent saw Febronia sitting on the chair in the usual manner and she
appeared in a ball of light. But no one dared to approach her or talk to her.
They just simply gazed at her angelic countenance. But the convent head, Byrene
called her, “Dear child Febronia” and tried to hug her but she disappeared in a
flash of a second.
After few years, the Roman Catholic Church awarded
Febronia the title as a saint. Once again in 363 BC her grave was opened and
all her relics was taken to Constantine Naples. Then as an effort cultivating
the religious belief among the people, her relics were separated and taken to
many parts of the world. At present her graved in Nisibis is empty. 
Still I got
a photo of one of the hands of Febronia. St.Febronia’s feast is celebrated on
June 25th (304 BC)
Hieria along with her parents and relatives received
baptism and became Christians. Hieria refused remarriage and went the way of
Febronia and became a nun.
She got the same dress which Byrene offered her the
day she came to meet Febronia. This became her permanent dress. The head of the
convent said proudly, Febronia has chosen her dear friend Hieria as the right
person to take up her place in reading the Holy Scriptures. All the spectators
who saw the cruel martyrdom of Febronia became Christians. The Bible verse
which says, unless the grain falls to the ground and dies, it will not give
hundred fold benefits, came true in the life and death of St.Febronia.
The
entire life of Febronia was recorded clearly by the assistant convent head
Thomais who was an eyewitness of all that happened in Febronia’s life. Thus we
have got a clear history of this pure and courageous saint.
Lysimachus who succeeded Selenos established peace and
order in the country. Then he took his brother and friend Primus and went to a
monastery in the midst of a desert nearby and spent time in reading the Bible
and getting to know about Jesus Christ. Then their heads were shaved off and
they received the priesthood costume. The horses which brought them to that
place stood there with no one to attend to them.
Thus, the life of this great saint kindles the spirit of
living for Jesus in the hearts of all those who read this. Here is a small
tribute of mine for this great saint:
“You were made to stand naked before the crowd
Thus began your journey towards embracing the death
shroud
You were tied to a pillar and mercilessly whipped
But tears of joy rolled down your cheeks and silently
dripped
Your feet was set on fire which burnt your flesh within
Using a sharp iron comb they peeled off your skin
They cut off your breasts but could not touch your heart
Which was nailed to the feet of Jesus and would never
depart
One by one your teeth were removed
Though very painful, you stood firm in your faith unmoved
Though your soft little tongue was cut off and thrown
Still the praises of your heart reached His heavenly
throne
You stretched out your hands and legs and did not hold
them back
They cut off your head too….. But faith and courage you
did not lack
So brave and so bold, you stood firm in your faith and
love
Pray for us dear saint that we too will bear witness for
Christ from now.
Amen
