The Prologue of Ohrid: September 16th
1. The Holy and Great Martyr Euphemia.
Born in Chalcedon, her father was the senator Philophronus and her
mother's name was Theodorisia, both devout Christians. Euphemia was a
girl beautiful in both body and soul. When the Proconsul, Priscus,
celebrated a festival of sacrifice to Ares in Chalcedon, forty-nine
Christians absented themselves from the festivities and hid themselves.
But they were discovered and brought before Priscus, holy Euphemia
being among them. When the furious Priscus asked them why they had not
carried out the imperial command, they replied: 'Both the Emperor's
commands and yours must be obeyed if they are not contrary to the God
of heaven. If they are, they must not only not be obeyed; they must be
resisted.' Then Priscus put them to various tortures for nineteen days,
from day to day. On the twelfth day, he held Euphemia apart from the
others and began to flatter her beauty, hoping to bring her thus to
idolatry. When all his flattery proved fruitless, he ordered that she
be tortured. First, she was put on a wheel, but an angel of God
appeared and broke it. Then he had her thrown into a fiery furnace, but
she was preserved by God's power. Seeing this, two soldiers, Victor and
Sosthenes, came to faith in Christ, for which they were thrown to the
wild beasts and thus finished their earthly course with glory. After
that, Euphemia was thrown into a pit filled with water and all kinds of
poisonous reptiles, but she made the sign of the Cross over the water
as she went into the pit, and remained unharmed. She was finally thrown
to the wild beasts and, with a prayer of thanksgiving, gave her soul
into God's hands. Her parents buried her body. She suffered in the year
303, and entered into eternal joy. (St Euphemia is also commemorated on
July 11th).
2. Our Holy Father Dorotheus.
An Egyptian hermit of the fourth century, he lived in asceticism for
sixty years in a cell in the Thebaid. He was distinguished by a rare
love of labour and by wonderworking power. By day he built cells for
the new monks and by night plaited mats, never interrupting his prayer
and psalmody.
3. St Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev.
Born in Trnovo and given a Serbian upbringing on the Holy Mountain, he
devoted himself especially to the translation and writing of books. His
patron was Patriarch Philotheos of Constantinople, who came to know him
on the Holy Mountain, took him into his service and then sent him to
Kiev as Metropolitan. He lived through all this with greatness of soul
and, by his fruitful labours, brought much benefit to the Russian
Church, spending almost thirty years as Metropolitan. At the time of
his death, he wrote a Farewell which was read at his graveside. He
entered into rest on September 16th, 1406, and his wonderworking relics
are preserved in the Church of the Dormition in Moscow.
4. The Holy Martyr Ludmilla.
The grandmother of the Czech King Vatslav (Wenceslas) and wife of the
Czech Prince Borivoy, she was very zealous for the Christian faith and
was greatly instrumental in freeing the Church from paganism. Her
daughter-in-law hated her, and sent men to kill the aged Ludmilla in
Techino in 927. Vatslav buried her in the Church of St George in
Prague, and many miracles were wrought over her relics. Holy Vatslav, a
great zealot for the Orthodox faith, was murdered by his brother
Boleslav.