Saint Eugenia the Martyr
of Rome.

Holy Martyr Eugenia was a Roman by birth; she lived at Alexandria, where her father Philip was sent by the emperor Commodus (180-192) to be Prefect of Egypt. As the privileged daughter of this powerful administrator, she enjoyed every advantage of the Roman aristocracy. Eugenia received a fine upbringing and was noted for her beauty and good disposition; many illustrious youths sought her hand, but she did not wish to marry anyone, for she was determined to preserve her virginity.

Providentially, she became acquainted with the Epistles of the Apostle Paul; she yearned with all her soul to become a Christian, but kept this a secret from her parents. This encounter with apostolic truth stirred her spirit toward God and away from the empty allure of pagan society.

At that time, Christians were banished from Alexandria by the command of the emperor; wishing to learn more about Christian teachings, she asked permission to visit one of the family estates outside the city, supposedly to enjoy the countryside; she left in the company of her two servants Protus and Hyacinthus, dressed in men's clothes. This act of renunciation—donning masculine garb to enter a monastic community otherwise closed to women—demonstrated her absolute commitment to the ascetic life.

She and her companions were baptized at a monastery by Bishop Elias, who learned about Eugenia in a vision; he blessed her to pursue asceticism at the monastery disguised as the monk Eugene. By her ascetic labors, Saint Eugenia acquired the gift of healing. Her sanctity became evident to all who knew her as the monk Eugene, and many sought her counsel and miracles.

Once, a rich young woman named Melanthia turned to her for help; seeing "Eugene," this woman burned with an impure passion, and when she was spurned, she falsely accused the saint of attempted rape; Saint Eugenia came to trial before the Prefect of Egypt (her father), and she was forced to reveal her secret. In a moment of divine providence, her father presided over her trial and witnessed the truth of her innocence and identity. Her parents and brothers rejoiced to find the one for whom they had long grieved; after a while they all accepted holy Baptism.

Philip, after being denounced by pagans, was dismissed from his post; the Alexandrian Christians chose him as their bishop; the new Prefect, fearing the wrath of the people, did not dare to execute Philip openly, but sent assassins to kill him; they inflicted wounds upon Saint Philip while he was praying, from which he died three days later. Following her father's martyrdom, Saint Eugenia traveled to Rome and continued with monastic life, bringing many young women to Christ.

In Rome, she was arrested and condemned to death by Gallienus (who reigned alongside Valerian in 253-260 and then alone in 260–268), who was angry with her for converting his niece Basilla to Christianity. They threw the holy martyr into the Tiber with a stone about her neck, but the stone became untied and she remained unharmed; she also remained unscathed in the fire; then they cast her into a pit, where she remained for ten days; during this time the Savior Himself appeared to her and said that she would enter into the heavenly Kingdom on the day He was born; when this radiant Feast came, the executioner put her to death with a sword.

Eugenia was ultimately beheaded on what tradition records as Christmas Day, making her feast one of the strangest coincidences in the liturgical calendar: the birth of Christ and the martyrdom of Eugenia on the same day; she is unique among the nine women of this article because she belongs to both the Eastern and Western traditions with equal strength—on the Orthodox calendar on December 24, on the Roman calendar on December 25.

Her cult had spread and she appeared in 5th century mosaics at the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna and 6th century ones at the Eufrasiana in Parenzo, along with being mentioned and celebrated by Avitus of Vienne and Venantius Fortunatus; her life also appeared in the Golden Legend in the 13th century. She became a model for countless women throughout Orthodox history who sought to reconcile their ascetic vocations with family expectations and ecclesial obedience.

Saint Eugenia the Martyr of Rome is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church as a holy virgin martyr whose life exemplifies radical renunciation of worldly privilege in pursuit of monastic asceticism and unwavering faith in Christ. Her father Philip was sent by the emperor Commodus (180-192) to be Prefect of Egypt, and she received a fine upbringing and was noted for her beauty and good disposition; many illustrious youths sought her hand, but she did not wish to marry anyone, for she was determined to preserve her virginity.

Providentially, she became acquainted with the Epistles of the Apostle Paul and yearned with all her soul to become a Christian, but kept this a secret from her parents. At that time, Christians were banished from Alexandria by the command of the emperor; wishing to learn more about Christian teachings, she asked permission to visit one of the family estates outside the city, supposedly to enjoy the countryside. She left in the company of her two servants Protus and Hyacinthus, dressed in men's clothes.

She and her companions were baptized at a monastery by Bishop Elias, who learned about Eugenia in a vision. By her ascetic labors, Saint Eugenia acquired the gift of healing. Once, a rich young woman named Melanthia turned to her for help; seeing "Eugene," this woman burned with an impure passion, and when she was spurned, she falsely accused the saint of attempted rape; Saint Eugenia came to trial before the Prefect of Egypt (her father), and she was forced to reveal her secret. Her parents and brothers rejoiced to find the one for whom they had long grieved; after a while they all accepted holy Baptism.

The Alexandrian Christians chose Philip as their bishop; the new Prefect, fearing the wrath of the people, did not dare to execute Philip openly, but sent assassins to kill him. Saint Claudia went to Rome with her sons, daughter, and her servants. Saint Eugenia traveled to Rome and continued with monastic life, bringing many young women to Christ.

The holy martyr was thrown into the Tiber River with a stone about her neck, but the stone became untied and she remained unharmed; they then cast her into a pit, where she remained for ten days; during this time, the Savior Himself appeared to her and said that she would enter into the heavenly Kingdom on the day He was born; when this radiant Feast came, the executioner put her to death with a sword. After her death, St. Eugenia appeared to her mother to tell her the day of her own death.