St. Juliana Orthodox Saint History and Name Day Information
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Learning about the lives of the saints is an important part of being an Orthodox Christian. Most of these saints were alive during the early days of Christianity and some were even alive during the time of Christ. We learn about them because they are often looked at as excellent examples of how Christians should live their lives. Some are even named after these saints and those who are will celebrate their name day on the saint’s feast day.
Saint Juliana of Nicodemia is one of these saints. Her feast day is on December 21st of each year and those who celebrate their name day can be recognized on this day. Here’s more information about Saint Juliana:
About Saint Juliana
Saint Juliana, also known as Juliana of Nicodemia or The Holy Virgin Martyr Juliana of Nicomedia, was born to a wealthy family that were devoutly pagan. Her father was Africanus, a man who was known especially for his pagan religious beliefs. She was alive during the time when Maximianus and he was on of those Roman Emperors who was known for persecuting Christians.
Juliana didn’t share her family’s religious beliefs and instead secretly baptized as a Christian. When her father wanted her to marry a wealthy senator, Juliana turned him down since he had pagan religious beliefs. The man’s name was Elusius and she had been betrothed to him since she was very young. When the time came for them to wed, she didn’t honor this betrothal and instead refused him.
Her father wanted her to obey his wishes and marry Elusius and she kept refusing to enter into the marriage. Eventually, the senator begged her to marry him and he even said that he would let her practice as a Christian. She told Elusius that she would rather be sentenced to death. That is exactly what happened. She still refused and eventually she was beaten publicly and then sentenced to death.
Hymns of Saint Juliana
There are some hymns that can be found in the Orthodox Christian church service that celebrate Saint Juliana and these are usually sung on her feast day. Here are the details:
Apolytikion of Martyr Juliana of Nicomedia – Fourth Tone
O Lord Jesus, unto Thee Thy lamb doth cry with a great voice: O my Bridegroom, Thee I love; and seeking Thee, I now contest, and with Thy baptism am crucified and buried. I suffer for Thy sake, that I may reign with Thee; for Thy sake I die, that I may live in Thee: accept me offered out of longing to Thee as a spotless sacrifice. Lord, save our souls through her intercessions, since Thou art great in mercy.
Kontakion of Martyr Juliana of Nicomedia – First Tone
A comely virgin wast thou, O wise Juliana; and as thy soul was wounded with love for thy Maker thy body was also pierced through with comely martyric wounds, which adorned thee as the bride of Christ and His Martyr; now as thou dost dwell in the bridechambers of Heaven, thou prayest for all of us.
Saint Juliana’s feast day is celebrated each year on December 21st. Check the Name Day page for more information about other Orthodox Christian name days.
Source:
GoArch.org – Juliana of Nicodemia
OrthodoxWiki – Juliana of Nicodemia
Source for Photo Credit for Image Above
Categorized in: Ancient Greek History, Greek Orthodox Religious Information
This post was written by Greek Boston
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