By Fr. George Dorbarakis
Saint Tatiana was from Old Rome during the reign of Alexander (3rd century AD). Her father had served three times as consul of Rome, and according to the order of the Church she held the rank of Deaconess. Because she confessed her faith in Christ, she was brought before the emperor, and when she entered with him into the temple of the idols, by her prayer she shook the idols that were there and cast them to the ground. For this reason she was struck in the face and her head was shaved. Afterwards she was thrown into the fire and to the beasts, from which she emerged unharmed; finally the command was given and her head was cut off.
The hymns of our Church, in order to emphasize the holiness and the glorious end of Saint Tatiana in martyrdom, present to us in a vivid manner what took place at the moment of the beheading of her honorable head: it was the hour of her triumph. As happens in similar cases, angels welcomed her ascent into heaven with applause, while Christ the Almighty, with His all-powerful right hand, crowned the martyr who had struggled lawfully.
“After many tortures, the dread judge condemns you to death by the sword; at your ascent the heavenly hosts applauded, and Christ with His all-powerful right hand crowned you, O martyr, for you had contended lawfully.”
From that time on, according to the Holy Hymnographer who beholds her with the eyes of faith, the Saint “is together with the radiant choirs of martyrs, drawing much nearer to God than before, and she beholds what the angels behold. As a virgin she dwells in the bridal chamber of her Bridegroom Christ, and she too intercedes for us who praise her, that we may find our salvation.”
What was it that enabled the Saint to reach such a great height of glory and honor? Nothing other than what we observe in all the saints and martyrs of the faith: her ardent eros for the Lord, her heart set aflame with love for Him, which made her rise above every fear of torments and consider all earthly possessions as nothing.
“Neither sword nor fire nor beatings, neither afflictions nor hunger nor any kind of punishment weakened your eros for the Lord. With a heart ablaze you sought Him, casting aside as nothing all that is seen.”
Her martyrdom gains even greater value, and her love for Christ is revealed all the more clearly, when one considers that the Saint was a princess, the daughter of a consul of Rome — that is, a man holding the highest authority in the empire after the emperor himself — surrounded by wealth, honors, and great glory. And yet, like the Apostle Paul, she “counted all things as refuse, that she might gain Christ.” It is therefore natural that the Holy Hymnographer emphasizes this aspect as well:
“You utterly disregarded corruptible wealth, O martyr, for you eagerly sought the incorruptible and abiding wealth in the heavens.”
The hymnography of the Saint does not fail, of course, to remind us of the obvious: that if the Saint was able to overcome the attraction of wealth, glory, and the flesh, and even to reach martyrdom, it was because, beyond her own good will, she also had the all-powerful grace of God cooperating with her. And this is obvious, because we all know that human salvation is always the result of two factors: first and foremost God Himself, who strengthens the human person, and also the human person, who with good will responds to God’s call and strengthening.
“You quenched the foul stench of carnal-mindedness and the flame of sin, O Pure One, with the dew of the Divine Spirit who cooperated with you.”
And again:
“Toward tortures, pains, and manifold scourges you advanced fearlessly, O martyr, for you had cooperating with you the grace of the Savior Christ, who strengthened you.”
Thus the Saint, even before she reached martyrdom — which was the crowning ascent of her spiritual strength and beauty — was already adorned with all the virtues (“having been adorned with virtues, you were made even more beautiful by the beauties of martyrdom”), so much so that “her soul resembled a beautiful dwelling because of the beauty of her piety.” It is therefore no coincidence that our Church had graced her with the rank of Deaconess, that is, the first degree of the priesthood that then existed in the Church, whose work was to assist the bishop and the priests in philanthropy and the service of people’s various needs, and even in preaching. Her zeal for her ministry and for her martyrdom is likened to that of the first woman martyr and Equal-to-the-Apostles, Saint Thekla:
“Like Thekla before you, the first champion, you acquired her zeal, O ever-praised one.”
Saint Tatiana sets before us an example through her love for Christ and her martyric mindset. Among other things, she also shows us the path for overcoming every form of lawlessness in the world. Lawlessness and the multitude of evils in the world are overcome when a person remains steadfast in the faith of Christ, ready even to give his life for that faith.
“You dried up the torrents of lawlessness, O blessed one, by the streams of your blood.”
For “where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more.”
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.