Marina the Monk

Saint Marina the Monk

Marina (in red) being brought to a monastery by her father Eugenius. 14th century French manuscript.
Born Fifth[1] or Eighth[2] century
Venerated in Maronite Catholic, Albanian Orthodox Church and Coptic Orthodox churches.
Feast June 18[3]
July 17[4][5]
Mesra 15[6]

Marina, distinguished as Marina the Monk and also known as Pelagia and as Mary of Alexandria, was a Christian saint of Byzantine Syria, in the area now part of Lebanon.[7] Details of her life vary.[note 1]

Legend

Marina, born Mariam, was the daughter of wealthy Christian parents. Marina's mother died when she was very young and she was raised in devout Christian life by her father Eugenius. As her age of marriage drew near her father wished to retire to the Monastery of Qannoubine in the Kadisha Valley of Lebanon after he had found her a husband. When Marina learned of her father's plan she asked why he intended to save his own soul "and destroy mine". When asked by her father, "What shall I do with you? You are a woman", Marina answered that she would renounce women's clothing and live as a monk, in the body she was supposed to take. She then immediately shaved the hair from her head and changed her clothes. Her father, seeing his daughter's strong determination, gave all his possessions to the poor and traveled with her to the Kadisha Valley to live in monastic community life, sharing a cell with her under the name Marinus.[7]

After ten years of prayer, fasting and worship together her father died, leaving her alone. Marina increased her level of asceticism and continued to conceal the fact that she was a woman. The other monks attributed her soft voice to long periods of prayer and strict ascetic life. One day, the abbot of the monastery sent her with three other monks to attend to some business for the monastery. As the journey was long, they were forced to spend the night at an inn. Also lodging there was a soldier of the eastern Roman front. Upon seeing the beauty of the inn keeper's daughter the soldier defiled her virginity and impregnated her, instructing the daughter to say, "It was the monk, Father Marina, who has done this to me."[7]

After some time, it was discovered that the inn keeper's daughter was pregnant and, as was agreed, she told her father that Marina was to blame. On hearing the story, the man went furiously to the abbot of the monastery. The abbot calmed the man and told him that he would see to the matter. He called for Marina and reprimanded her severely. When she realized what was happening she fell to her knees and wept, confessing to the false accusation and asking forgiveness. The fact that there was no attempt to deny the fault made the abbot so furious that he told her to leave the monastery. She left at once and remained outside the gates as a beggar for quite a long time. When the inn keeper's daughter gave birth, he took the child and gave him to Marina. She fed the child with sheep's milk, provided by the local shepherds, and remained caring for him outside the monastery for ten years. Finally the monks convinced the abbot to allow Marina to return; he accepted but he also imposed heavy penalties upon her. She was to perform hard labour in cooking, cleaning and carrying water in addition to her regular monastic duties.[7]

At the age of forty, Marina became ill. Three days later she died. The abbot ordered that her body was cleaned, her cloths changed and that she was transferred to the church for funeral prayers. While cleaning and sewing her, the monks discovered that she was, in fact, a woman, and became very distressed. The monks informed the abbot, who came to her side and wept bitterly for the wrongs he had done. The abbot then called for the inn keeper and informed him that Marina was actually a woman. The inn keeper went to where the body lay and also wept for the pain and suffering which he had unjustly brought upon her. During the funeral prayers, one of the monks, who was blind in one eye, received full sight again after he touched the body. God also allowed a devil to torment the inn keeper's daughter and the soldier. This caused them to travel to where the saint was buried. There they both confessed their iniquity in front of everyone and asked for forgiveness.[7]

Veneration

Marina is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Albanian Orthodox Church[8] and the Coptic Orthodox Church.

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://vidiaquam.blogspot.com/2006/07/lebanese-saints.html
  2. ↑ http://saints.sqpn.com/saint-marina-of-bithynia/
  3. ↑ Roman Martyrology: "At Alexandria, the passion of St. Marina, virgin."
  4. ↑ Synaxarion: "Saint Marina the nun of Qannoubeen (North of Lebanon)"
  5. ↑ Martyrology: "At Venice, the translation of St. Marina, virgin." (See also: Church of San Marina, Venice (Italian))
  6. ↑ The Commemoration of the Departure of St. Mary Known as Marina, the Ascetic
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Hourani, Guita (2013). "The Vita of Saint Marina in the Maronite Tradition". Notre Dame University (Lebanon). Academia.edu. p. 22. Retrieved 2016-11-03.
  8. ↑ Robert Elsie, A Dictionary of Albanian Religion, Mythology, and Folk Culture (ISBN 0-8147-2214-8)
  1. ↑ "The availability of her story in Syriac, Coptic, Latin, Arabic, Ethiopic, French, High German, Greek, and Armenian made her known to believers in the East as well as in the West. Her local cult was transformed through these translations into a universal one and her hometown or country of origin became that of each of the towns or countries that adopted her venerable story. ... These manuscripts are silent about the place of Marina’s birth and life. However, Clugnet believes that the only origin of Saint Marina must be the one known to us according to tradition. According to him, since the only tradition about this saint is found among the Maronites of Lebanon, then Lebanon is to be considered the land of her birth. ... As to the century in which this saint has lived...Clugnet believes that it must have been the fifth century". (Hourani, p. 19-21)
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