Alexandra of Nicomedia ( Roman
) is one of the most revered great martyrs. Little is known about the life of the saint; all the details of the empress’s life can only be learned from the life of St. George the Victorious, where information about the great martyr is briefly mentioned. Despite the lack of information, Alexandra of Rome is considered the patroness of not only women, but also men. According to the priest and theologian Pavel Florensky, she strives in the masculine spirit more than bearers of other names.
What is known about the life of the holy Queen of Rome
In 284, Diocles was proclaimed Roman emperor, calling himself Diocletian. The death of Emperor Cara and his son Numerian caused the concentration of power in the hands of former military leaders. Diocletian divided the empire into 4 provinces, leaving one under his control, and appointed Caesars in 3. To strengthen the alliance, marriage alliances were concluded with the daughters of the Caesars and the emperor.
Diocletian was an opponent of Christians, because he believed that this creed contributed to the collapse of the empire. He set the goal of reviving paganism in order to legitimize his power. By his order, Christian churches began to be destroyed in all provinces. Followers of Christ's teachings were forced to publicly get rid of books and make sacrifices in a pagan temple.
On the territory of the empire there was a law according to which Christians could not hold public office and were not subject to protection in court. Particularly cruel persecutions (torture, executions) were used in the lands controlled by Diocletian.
Unjustified cruelty caused internal protest not only among believers in Christ, but also among those raised in the pagan faith. This happened to the emperor’s favorite military leader George, his wife Alexandra and daughter Valeria.
George was born in the city of Beirut and was raised in the Christian faith. The spread of the new religion in the 2nd century AD was supported by the Roman rulers. The number of adherents of the faith grew. George became a military man. The brave, intelligent soldier was noticed by his commanders and received a promotion.
George distinguished himself in wars of conquest and suppression of uprisings on the borders of the empire. By order of Diocletian, the army became a tool for suppressing dissent. The detachments entered villages where Christians lived. If they refused to make a sacrifice before the pagan gods, people were subjected to torture and execution.
George could not clearly violate the order, but contributed to the salvation of his fellow believers. Traitors were found who denounced George to Diocletian. The commander was recalled to Nicomedia (the capital of the eastern Roman province) and interrogated. George did not deny that he believed in Christ and would not renounce the teaching. He made an angry appeal to the ruler, calling on him to stop the persecution of Christians.
The angry ruler ordered to subject him to severe torture:
- The saint was imprisoned, his legs and arms were chained, a heavy stone was placed on his chest, which pressed him to the ground and did not allow him to breathe. The Lord gave him strength to withstand the test.
- After being beaten with ox sinews, the bloody martyr was thrown into a ditch with quicklime so that it would corrode his flesh to the bone. Prayerful appeals to God again saved George from suffering.
Queen Alexandra grew up in a pagan family. Diocletian's desire to revive the worship of pagan gods did not outrage her. Rumors about the torture of one of their military leaders for their faith in Christ spread throughout Nicomedia. Alexandra was amazed by George’s courage, the strength of his faith and the support of the Lord. She witnessed how the martyr was pulled out unharmed from the quicklime.
Diocletian, seeing how impressed his wife was by the Christian’s miraculous salvation, ordered her to go to the palace. George's torment lasted 8 days. Queen Alexandra could not stand the imprisonment, came to the place of torture of the great martyr, fell at his feet and announced that she accepted the faith of Christ, rejecting the pagan gods.
The angry emperor ordered both their heads to be cut off. The execution was to take place outside Nicomedia. On the way, Alexandra felt tired and asked the guards for a short break. She sat down by a rock and died. The guards left the body of the Nicomedia Empress lying on the road and went further to the place of execution. The death of the queen on April 21, 303 is recorded in the act of martyrdom of St. George.
The Lord did not allow the new convert to die. Death was imaginary. Alexandra, together with her daughter Valeria, preached the covenants of God in Syria for another 10 years. In 313 they returned to Nicomedia, hoping for a change in attitude towards Christians on the part of the new emperor Licinius. The treacherous ruler ordered the heads of the mother and daughter to be cut off and the remains thrown into the sea.
About God and life by faith
True faith is manifested in all our behavior. It's like the sap of a living tree that reaches the farthest branches.
We know that when He denies us our request, then fulfilling it would be to our harm; when He does not lead us along the path we have planned, He is right; when He punishes or corrects us, He does it with love. We know that He does everything for our highest good.
Let others see from the example of your life that faith is more than doctrine or observance of rituals.
The remembrance of past mercies will support faith in God in the trials to come.
Do not lose heart, but calmly trust in the will of God, and, no matter what befalls you, endure everything for the glory of the Lord, since after winter comes summer, after night comes day, and after storm comes silence.
The Messiah is called the Servant of God many times in the Old Testament. Service is not something base, it is Divine.
If our love is true and sincere, we always trust in heaven.
What is prayer? This is when we are close to Christ.
Religion makes some people stern and gloomy. But this is not Christian. The religion inspired by the word of Christ is sunny and joyful.
Joy is the hallmark of a Christian. A Christian should never become discouraged; he should never doubt that good will triumph over evil.
If the word of Christ lives in us, it will compel us to help others.
Veneration of the Great Martyr
Memorial Day of Alexandra of Rome - May 6 (April 23, old style). The day of death (April 21) of the queen was mentioned in the Divine Service Charter of the 10th century. In the Minology of the Byzantine Emperor Basil II (a collection of the most important Christian events with illustrations) there is a miniature depicting the execution of the Great Martyr. George and the death of Alexandra of Rome and a brief description of her life.
Theophan the Inscribed, a Byzantine monk canonized by the Orthodox Church, was the author of a canon in honor of Alexandra of Nicomedia. It was not included in the practice of Orthodox worship. The troparion about the Roman martyr is read during the service in honor of St. George.
The Roman queen was recognized as the heavenly patron of the Russian empresses, who accepted the name Alexander at baptism into Orthodoxy:
- Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas I. Years of life – 1798-1860. Before her marriage, Princess Friederike Louise Charlotte Wilhelmina of Prussia.
- Alexandra Fedorovna, wife of Nicholas II. Years of life: 1872-1918. German Princess of Hesse-Darmstadt.
In Armenia, on the territory of the Russian military base “Alexandropol” (named after Empress Alexandra Feodorovna), construction of a temple began in 1837. In 1842, it was consecrated in honor of the heavenly patroness - the holy martyr Alexandra. In 1918, the church was burned by Turkish soldiers. In 2008-2009, the temple was restored and consecrated.
In 1840, during the restoration of the Church of Joasaph in Izmailovo, one of the Thrones was reconsecrated in honor of Alexandra of Rome. In 1936 the temple was destroyed.
Relationships between people. Love, family
The life of humanity is a large common life of individual human creatures. It must be understood that the existence of one person separately from all other people is the same as if a person existed separately from the cells of his own body.
Each person has a sacred responsibility for the happiness and highest good of the other until the end of his life.
We must try to ensure that everything we do, our whole life, is for the benefit of other people. We must live in such a way that we do not harm anyone, so that our life serves as an example for others.
Trying to make your neighbors happy is the path to your own happiness.
Most arguments between people are pointless. They are caused either by the intervention of strangers, or by frivolous words, or by the action of unrepentant sins.
What people around us need most is just kindness.
Kind words always connect.
No one deserves a greater reward than peacemakers.
The possibilities of helping people simply by talking to them are almost endless. One who knows how to speak with conviction, knows how to speak the language of love, can inspire others to good and wonderful deeds, console their grief, cheer up those who are discouraged, enlighten those who are inexperienced - can help others in a thousand ways.
Adversity is a time when you need to support your neighbor.
There are many people in the world who have fallen into despair, and we must be able to tell them a word of hope or do a good deed that will lead them out of hopelessness and give them strength to return to a joyful, full life.
He who stops helping others becomes a burden to himself.
Every new friend who comes into our lives trusts us. The most correct concept of friendship is that it gives us the opportunity to serve, help, protect another. The moment we make a new friend is a sacred moment. This is another life entrusted to us so that we can be a blessing to it, bring beauty to it, be its refuge and protection.
Fill your days with love. Forget yourself and remember others. If someone needs your kindness, then show this kindness immediately, now... If your heart longs for words of encouragement, gratitude, support, say these words today.
One word covers everything - the word “love”. The word “love” contains a whole volume of thoughts about life and duty, and when we study it closely and carefully, each of them appears clearly and distinctly.
How sweet are the words of Truth, carried by the breath of love.
Only that life is worthy in which there is sacrificial love.
Jesus demands love not only as a wonderful feeling, but as a love that permeates all daily life, affecting relationships with all people.
There cannot be deep and sincere love where selfishness rules. Perfect love is perfect self-denial.
Life is too short to waste it fighting and arguing, especially within the sacred circle of family.
As long as you love, you forgive.
Marriage is a Divine rite. He was part of God's plan when He created man. This is the closest and most sacred connection on earth.
Love does not grow, does not become great and perfect suddenly and on its own, but requires time and constant care.
Love requires special delicacy. You can be sincere and devoted, and yet your speeches and actions may lack that tenderness that so captivates hearts... The closer the relationship, the more painful the heart is from a look, tone, gesture or word that speaks of irritability or is simply thoughtless.
Without purity it is impossible to imagine true femininity. Even in the midst of this world, mired in sins and vices, it is possible to maintain this holy purity.
You can tell what a woman is like by the home she creates.
A woman is endowed with the gift of sympathy, delicacy, and the ability to inspire. This makes her seem like a messenger of Christ with a mission to alleviate human suffering and sorrow.
How you treat women is the best way to test a man's nobility.
Parents should be what they want their children to be - not in words, but in deeds. They must teach their children by the example of their lives.
Childhood songs are never forgotten. Memories of them lie under the burden of years filled with worries, like delicate flowers under the snow in winter.
The importance of the environment is vital. We do not yet fully understand how much the atmosphere in the home where children grow up means for the development of their character. The very first place for us where we learn truth, honesty, love is our home - the most dear place for us in the world.
Iconography
Icon painters depict Saint Alexandra of Rome separately, in a plot with the Great Martyr George and the angel, Emperor Diocletian. On the icon the martyr is depicted in royal attire, with a cross in her right hand. The left hand is raised in a blessing gesture.
The icon painters' reference book "Erminia" contains a description of Alexandra during the execution of the Great Martyr George: the dead queen sits on a stone, an angel accepts her soul. In the confession story, the Roman emperor threatens Alexandra standing before him.
Prayer to Alexandra of Nicomedia
Oh, sacred woman, most courageous confessor and most glorious protector of people, glorious to Queen Alexandro! Mercifully look upon us, your faithful subjects, from this earthly life, nasty, adulterous and sinful, which you gloriously renounced in your life, bringing this little prayer to you! Do not abhor sinful ulcers, and especially the cowardice of us, your sinful servants, drawn to this fallen world! Pray to our Lord Jesus Christ to enlighten our minds with the light of the truth and love of Christ and to serve Him alone. Move the glorious Great Martyr George the Victorious to pray for us, unworthy and sinful, with whom you stand before the King of all, and be with him our glorious protector, so that with your glorious help we will be protected, we will be honored to escape all the troubles and misfortunes of this evil life and such, the snares having escaped it, reach the quiet haven of our salvation and, together with you, forever glorify the ineffable mercy of our King and Creator forever and ever. Amen.
Life. Pacification
Every day is life in miniature.
We often lose what is dear to us, chasing the unattainable.
How many opportunities we miss to do good without even realizing the value of what we missed!
Due to constant troubles and worries, we do not reveal even half of the good that is in us.
The meaning of life is not to do what you like, but to do what you should do with love.
Go forward, make mistakes, fall and get up again, just keep going.
Often more heavenly grace is required for ordinary things than for great ones.
No person is so poor that he can consider himself like that. Wisdom is for a person to allow the Lord to decide everything for him.
Everyone has their place, and everyone is important in their place. The smallest and most insignificant also have their places, and it is necessary that these small places be filled as well as the places occupied by the most important and significant individuals.
Never lose heart and never let others lose heart.
We are creators. Human lives are everywhere, like unfinished buildings, and everyone who passes by places a brick on the wall or adds some decoration. Everyone with whom we come into contact, who speaks even a word to us, who even influences us from afar, leaves in our character a touch of beauty or a sign of something bad.
We must remain in our place, do our duty, bear our burden, do God's will. This is the path to peace of mind.
The peace that the Lord gives us is peace of the soul - not external peace, not idleness. One can enjoy it to the fullest, and at the same time continuously work and endure suffering and pain. Some of the best Christians the world has ever known were the greatest sufferers, but at the same time, nothing could disturb their peace of mind.
Only those who have peace in their souls can do their jobs well. A restless mind is not suitable for good work.
Worry makes us weak.
An irritated mind cannot think clearly.
Peace is a Divine gift, but at the same time, we must learn it. Learn by taking upon yourself the yoke of Christ.
The kindest thing a teacher can do for his students is to teach them to lead a life of faith and courage - a life of winners.
Alexandra of Rome could have been Prisca, the wife of Diocletian
If Alexandra of Rome is indeed the wife of Diocletian, then her Roman name is Prisca. The emperor had no other wives.
The discrepancy in names is easy to explain: the woman could have been baptized, or after death the authors of the life gave her a Christian name.
255-315
Prisca (Alexandra of Rome) lived around these years.
She professed Christianity, like her daughter, Galeria Valeria. But both had to renounce their faith in order to save their lives.
When her husband abdicated power, Priiska began to be pursued by his successors - Maximin Daza and Licinius. Maximin wanted to marry Valeria and was refused. He was offended and sent the mother and daughter into exile.
In 315, mother and daughter were beheaded and then thrown into the sea.
