martyrdom | Martyria

The Lives of the Saints No. II (XXII) / 2026 Saint Christina of Bolsena (Italy) Fr. Gheorghe Militaru

This article presents the life and martyrdom of the Great Martyr Christina (Cristina) of Bolsena, who was martyred in the year 295 AD, tracing the spread of her cult throughout Italy and Europe, from the mosaics of Ravenna to the Roman basilicas, with reference to hagiographic sources such as the Passio Sanctae Cristinae and the Oxyrhynchos papyrus, published by Lorenzo Cammelli in 1911.

The Words of the Fathers No. II (XXII) / 2026 A panegyric on Stephen, the First Martyr of Christ The Saint Ștefan Brâncoveanu

The Panegyric to Saint Stephen Brâncoveanu, composed by Stephen, son of Constantin Brâncoveanu, and printed by Antim Ivireanul in Bucharest in 1701, extols the life, martyrdom and virtue of Saint Stephen the Archdeacon, the first martyr of Christ, highlighting his courage, his love for his enemies and his prayers for those who stoned him. This translation, revised from Katharevousa Greek, updates Constantin Erbiceanu’s earlier versions from 1888 and 1891, offering the contemporary reader an accessible text following 135 years of evolution in the Romanian language.