Following in the footsteps of the saints, we enter a world where earth meets heaven, and human history is illuminated by the lives of those who chose to live out the Gospel to the full. The saints are not merely distant figures, shrouded in hagiographies and ancient icons, but living beacons who, in every age, have shown the world the transformative power of faith. Their lives, often woven from sacrifice, patience, love and witness, become for us a spiritual map, a sure path towards understanding our purpose in the world and towards an encounter with God.
Their footsteps are steps of light: they call us to discover the beauty of a life dedicated to goodness, truth and love. By looking to them, we learn that holiness is not a calling reserved for a select few, but a possibility open to every person who wishes to purify their life and elevate their soul. Thus, studying the lives of the saints becomes not merely an intellectual endeavour, but also a profoundly spiritual one, capable of kindling in the reader’s heart a longing for God.
With this deep motivation, we felt it was most fitting to begin our pilgrimage from the Italian Peninsula. Why Italy? Because, by following in the footsteps of the saints of Italy, we enter a realm where Christian history is uniquely interwoven with the culture, art and spirituality of a country which, over the centuries, has become the cradle of witnesses to the faith of rare beauty and depth. Italy, with its ancient catacombs, its ancient churches (basilicas), its martyred cities and the tranquillity of its monasteries stretching from the Alps to Sicily, has given the Church of Christ a multitude of saints who have illuminated the world through their lives.
From the martyrs of the early centuries – who sealed their faith with their blood in the arenas of Rome – to the great mystics, theologians, missionaries and pastors of later ages, the saints of Italy form an impressive spiritual mosaic. They were people of prayer and courage, of service and sacrifice, each leaving behind an example that continues to inspire entire generations. Exploring the lives of these saints is, in fact, a journey through the heart of universal Christianity: an encounter with living faith, with the wonders of Providence and with the transforming power of the Gospel put into practice. By following in their footsteps, we discover not only a country’s past, but also the universal call to holiness, which resounds from age to age and finds its echo in the heart of every believer.
Faced with the difficult choice of a starting point, we nevertheless decided to begin our pilgrimage in the footsteps of the saints with the Holy Great Martyr Christina (Christina), who was martyred in the year 295 AD in the town of Bolsena, situated on the shores of the lake of the same name in central Italy (Viterbo – Lazio). This is because the name Cristina is very common in Romania amongst many Orthodox women.
Saint Christina, through the power of her courageous witness, contributed to the conversion of the town of Volsinii (Bolsena) to Christianity.
Saint Christina of Bolsena is one of the most interesting and complex figures in early Christian hagiography. For this reason, in the past, some of the greatest scholars of early Christianity have studied her: from Giovanni Battista De Rossi to Ippolito Delehaye, right through to Mariano Armellini and Pio Paschini. All treated her with great interest, studying and researching her life and martyrdom in detail, but, above all, the extraordinary spread of her cult, beginning in the High Middle Ages, across various regions of Italy and Europe, as well as the artistic and monumental implications that this cult has generated.
The town of Bolsena, as is well known, was one of the ancient Etruscan cities that resisted the Roman armies and remained, for the longest time, tied to its own pagan religious traditions. Christianity had to struggle for a long time to win over the most conservative sections of the town’s society, and archaeological and historical discoveries fully confirm this. It is highly likely that, in this context, the presence of a Christian role model, such as Saint Christina, amongst the young Christian community in Bolsena, provided an important source of support for the spread of Christianity. Just as the Virgin Agnes of Rome had strengthened, through the example of her heroic martyrdom, which she ‘undertook’ at the age of just 12, the fragile Roman Christian community, weakened by the persecution of Emperor Decius (b. 201 – d. 251), so too did Saint Christina (date of martyrdom: AD 295), through the power of her courageous witness, contribute to the conversion of the town of Volsinii (Bolsena) to Christianity.
This is evidenced by the significant and very ancient monumental manifestations of the cult of Saint Christina, visible in the monuments of Bolsena, as well as by the early appearance (5th century) of her hagiography. The strength of the biographical evidence regarding the saint’s Bolsena origins is powerfully reinforced by the testimony of an unbroken local tradition, which identifies the grotto within the monumental complex at Bolsena as the ‘heart’ of the cult of Saint Christina and which regards this town – alone – as claiming ‘paternity’ of the saint. Saint Christina’s fame spread rapidly beyond Bolsena. In Ravenna, as early as the mid-6th century, the martyr was depicted in the splendid mosaics of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo. Some seventy years later, an oratory dedicated to her was built near the monumental Cathedral of St Paul in Rome. In Spain, probably also in the 6th century, in the village of Santa Cristina d’Aro, a church already bore her name. The early record (from Bolsena) and the large number of churches erected in honour of Saint Christina in various localities across Italy constitute the most eloquent evidence of the spread of the cult of the Holy Martyr Christina of Bolsena.
In the 5th century, the Life of Saint Christina (La Passio Sanctae Cristinae) was written, from which it is clear that a religious observance existed, namely the sacred representation of the ‘Mysteries of Saint Christina’ of Bolsena.
In the 5th century, the Life of Saint Christina (La Passio Sanctae Cristinae) was written, from which it is clear that a religious ceremony existed, namely the sacred representation of the ‘Mysteries of Saint Christina’ of Bolsena.
An eloquent testimony to the cult of Saint Christina is also provided by the iconographic documentation of the saint, which is very widespread in Italy: from the earliest depictions in the mosaics of Ravenna (5th–6th centuries), to the frescoes in many churches in Rome and Lazio, and even to the statuary monuments of our own day.
For a more comprehensive portrait of this martyr, whose life follows the classical pattern of the sufferings of the martyrs of the early centuries, with many shared devotional elements, the oldest text that has come down to us remains fundamental. This is a fragment of Egyptian papyrus, originating from Oxyrhynchus, first published in 1911 by Lorenzo Cammelli and dating from the 5th century. On one side, it contains a fragment from the life of Saint Paphnutius, and on the other, a fragment from the Passio Sanctae Cristinae. The fragment is faithfully translated in the Latin Acts of the saint, particularly in the Codex Farfense 29; the text concerning the martyr may date from the 9th–10th centuries. Here is the translation:
‘Draw near to the gods, that you may worship them. From now on, I shall no longer call you my daughter; and if you persist, I shall inflict upon you the most dreadful torments, from which even He who was crucified by the Jews and whom you venerate will be unable to save you.’
Then Saint Christina, looking up to heaven with a smile on her lips, said to Urban, her father: ‘O you who are full of every kind of cunning and a friend of evildoers, do you not know that the Son of the living God, the light of truth and the Saviour of the world, came down from heaven to atone for all wickedness and to save us? And now, in the name of Christ, the Saviour, I stand against you, to overcome your wrath and bring you to your death.”
Then her father, Urban, unable to bear his daughter’s ‘insults’, ordered that she be brought to the wheel, bound to it, and that a fire fuelled by oil be lit beneath it, so that the young woman might be burnt as quickly as possible.
Cristina was tied to the wheel, and as it turned, it shattered her body. But the blessed Cristina, raising her eyes to heaven, said:
‘I bless You, my God, Who art in heaven, and I thank You, Lord Jesus Christ; do not forsake me in this struggle, but stretch out Your hand over this fire and quench it, for it is burning me, so that the tyrant Urban may have no power over me.”
As Saint Christina spoke these words, the fire immediately receded from her and slew one thousand five hundred of the idolatrous persecutors, whilst Saint Christina lay stretched out upon the wheel as if upon a bed, and the angels ministered to her.
Then her father, Urban, ordered that she be untied from the wheel and brought before the court to be judged, as the chroniclers of the time recount:
‘[Christina] was so inflamed by the flames of divine love, even before receiving the first rites of baptism, that she was spoken of as one who scorned fanatical pagan superstition and was full of reverence for the divine will. Her father, the commander of the soldiers guarding the fortress of Bolsena, having educated his daughter in the liberal arts of the Sophists, erected for her on a hill a tall tower, built with great skill, in which the young woman, against her will, was imprisoned along with twelve maidservants, until she decided to offer a sacrifice to the gods of Rome’.
But once he realised that he was rightly despised by his only daughter and saw that the golden statues of Jupiter, Apollo and Venus had been smashed to pieces, her father, Urban, immediately devised, with cruelty, new forms of torment to inflict upon his daughter, acting more like a terrifying executioner and a cruel infanticide than a good father. Yet Cristina, her mind ever turned towards God, feared neither the cold horrors of prison nor the treacherous waves, with a millstone tied round her neck; her delicate body, torn by stakes, did not yield, nor was her beautiful face disfigured. The saint’s fair hair was then cut off and, thus left bald, she was shamefully dragged through the streets of the city, yet her heart and her faith did not waver. Neither the blazing flames of the furnace nor the venomous bites of the vipers, incited by the spells of the sorcerers of Bolsena, could frighten her. Saint Christina overcame all this with the help of Christ, preserving the great treasure of her virginity unblemished. Finally, pierced by two arrows and covered in crimson blood, she died a martyr for Christ.
According to local tradition, the people of Bolsena were greatly amazed by Saint Christina’s faith, seeing how angels from heaven came to nourish and comfort her in her sufferings whilst she was being tortured. Furthermore, over 3,000 inhabitants of Bolsena converted to the Christian faith upon witnessing Saint Christina’s martyrdom. After her torture, Saint Christina’s body was thrown into Lake Bolsena, with a stone tied to it. Thus, Saint Christina also received baptism in the name of Christ the Saviour, having confessed Him even unto blood. It is said that Saint Christina’s father died in great agony a few days after his daughter breathed her last in the arms of Christ the Bridegroom. All these events, for those who wish to delve deeper into their research, are described at length in Codex Vaticanus 5771.
Through the example of Saint Christina, God’s work is made visible in the fragility of a little girl who, in the face of trials, chose the truth and divine love.
We can conclude by bearing witness that, through the example of Saint Christina, God’s work is made visible in the fragility of a child who, in the face of trials, chose truth and divine love. Today, those who approach the lake with its clear waters and the ancient basilica built over her tomb discover that holiness does not belong to the past, but remains a living call. Thus, Bolsena continues to be a place of pilgrimage and spiritual renewal, and Saint Christina – a tireless witness to the faith that overcomes time, suffering and death. In the tranquil waters of Lake Bolsena, the ripples preserve her memory, and the life of Saint Christina continues to shine like an everlasting light. In this place steeped in history and grace, nature and faith come together, and the testimony of the young martyr becomes a bridge between earth and heaven. Bolsena is not merely a geographical location, but a living altar, where the believer’s soul can feel the vibration of her courage, purity and sacrifice.
Troparion of the Great Martyr Christina (Christina)
Thy lamb, O Jesus, Christina, cries out with a loud voice: ‘I love Thee, my Bridegroom, and in seeking Thee I suffer, and together I am crucified, and together I am buried with Thy Baptism; and I suffer for You, that I may reign in You; and I die for You, that I may live for You; but, as a blameless sacrifice, receive me, who lovingly offer myself to You! Through her prayers, as a Merciful One, save our souls! Amen!