ST. MACRINA OF PONTUS (JULY 19TH)

 

A Modern Icon of St. Macrina, From Uncut Mountain Church Supply

Edited by Bp. Joseph (Ancient Church of the West) 

HAGIOGRAPHY 

On July 19th, we celebrate St. Macrina (AD 327-379 AD), elder sister of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory of Nyssa. As the eldest of 10, she profoundly influenced her more famous brothers and her mother.

Betrothed at twelve, Macrina chose to remain single after her fiancé’s death, dedicating her life to Christ. Educated in Scriptures by her mother Emmelia, she taught her siblings, shaping their Christian faith. Gregory of Nyssa noted her role in humbling Basil upon his return from Athens, inspiring him to embrace monasticism.

After losing her father and brother, Macrina convinced her mother to renounce their wealth, forming a monastic community in Annesi, Pontus. In AD 379, she fell ill. Gregory found her weak but spiritually strong, leading to his work, "On the Soul and the Resurrection."

Just before her death, Macrina prayed:

“Lord, you have freed us from the fear of death. You have made the end of life here the beginning of true life for us. You compassionately gave paradise back to the man crucified with You: remember me also in Your Kingdom. Having committed sins in word, deed or thought because of the weakness of our nature, You who have power on earth to forgive sins, forgive me so that I may be refreshed. May I be found before You once I have put off my body, having no fault in the form of my soul. May my soul be received into Your hands, blameless and spotless, as an offering before You.”

HYMN TO ST. MACRINA

Tone 4

Thou didst illumine thy mind with the light of divine wisdom and lovingly desire the life of the angels; thou didst mortify thy body through asceticism and didst silence the passions of the flesh. Therefore, O holy Macrina, thou art worthy of everlasting life, and through thy prayers, grant the forgiveness of sins to those who honor thy holy memory.

COLLECT PRAYER

Almighty and everlasting God, who didst endue thy blessed servant St. Macrina with the spirit of wisdom and fortitude, and didst graciously inspire her to renounce the vanities of this world, that she might more closely follow thee: Grant us, we beseech thee, so to follow her example, that, forsaking all sinful desires, we may attain to the heavenly promises; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.