By Ian Wilson (Rated PG13)
The daughter of a statesman and secretly Christian, Tatiana was born sometime in the early 3rd century AD. Her father raised her in the fear and admonition of the Lord, and once she had grown, she had decided never to marry, instead serving Christ and His church dutifully.
But these were dark times. Emperor Severus Alexander was on the Roman throne, and like his predecessors, he was not favorably disposed to Christians. Nor was his chief minister, Ulpian, who somehow got word that Tatiana was a Christian. The wicked Ulpian had the saintly lady arrested and brought to the temple of Apollo, attempting to force her to sacrifice to the false god. Instead, Tatiana prayed, and the idol of Apollo shattered with a terrible noise. Some witnesses claimed they saw a shadowy being fleeing from the statue.
Enraged, Ulpian ordered Tatiana to be tortured. Though her eyeballs were ripped from her skull and her body was severely beaten, Tatiana would not renounce Christ. Eight of her tormentors repented and believed the Gospel. Ulpian ordered all of them executed.
The next day, Tatiana was completely healed of the wounds she had received. The judge ordered her stripped and beaten again, so severely that the torturers had to be replaced. Indeed, it is said that angels defended her, turning the blows back on her tormentors.
Once again, Tatiana was totally healed by morning, and once again Ulpian ordered her beaten. This happened a fourth time, and by then Ulpian was beginning to lose patience. She was urged to make a sacrifice to Diana, but as happened at the temple of Apollo, the statue collapsed.
Tatiana was then dragged into the Colosseum to be fed to a hungry lion, but the massive cat simply kissed her feet. The guards then threw her into a fire, but the flame did not touch her. The next day, January 12, 230, Tatiana was beheaded with the sword alongside her father.
May we, like Tatiana, endure severe trials patiently with prayer and thanksgiving.
LogoSophia Magazine 
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