Orthodox Calendar October 8
Saint Pelagia the Penitent
Saint Pelagia lived in Antioch during the second half of the 5th century. Before her conversion to Christianity, she was a woman of loose morals and had amassed considerable wealth, which she used to adorn her body. She also had many servants who accompanied her on her walks through the city.
One day, she passed with her entourage in front of the Church of Saint Julian, where Saint Nonnus, Bishop of Edessa (November 10), was preaching to a large gathering. The Christians turned their heads so as not to look at the woman and her companions, but Saint Nonnus looked toward her, wept over her fate, and prayed to God to bring her to faith.
The next day, Pelagia returned to the church and listened to Saint Nonnus preach about the Last Judgment and the torments of hell. The bishop’s words touched the woman’s heart, awakening in her a love for Christ.
She wrote to the bishop, asking him not to despise her and to receive her so that she might speak with him. After falling at Saint Nonnus’s feet and publicly confessing her sins, Pelagia was baptized and entrusted to the care of a nun named Romana. Romana guided Saint Pelagia in the spiritual struggle she faced against the temptations that came after her baptism.
The saint gave all her wealth to the poor, freed her servants, and, dressed in men’s clothing, went to live a life of strict asceticism on the Mount of Olives in Palestine.
She remained secluded in a cell for many years, struggling to uproot the passions from her heart. Word of her spread among the hermits, who believed that she was a man. However, after her death, when the monks gathered for her burial, they learned the true story of Saint Pelagia from the deacon of Saint Nonnus.
Troparion — Tone 4
Like a fragrant rose growing from thorns, / you were revealed to the Church through your virtuous deeds / becoming a source of joy for the faithful. / You offered your life in sweet-smelling fragrance / To him who made you wonderful. / Entreat him to deliver us from every soul-destroying passion, / O righteous Pelagia!
Saint Thais of Egypt
She was raised by her mother in a spirit far removed from Christian piety, led a depraved and dissolute life. She was famed for her beauty, leading many on the path to perdition.
The account about the prodigal Thais spread throughout all Egypt and reached even Saint Paphnutius, a strict ascetic who had converted many to salvation. Paphnutius dressed himself in worldly attire and went to Thais, giving her money as though he wished to pay for her favors. He pretended to be afraid that someone would see them, so he asked her if there were a place they would not be discovered.
Thais said that they could lock the door and enjoy complete privacy. “But if you fear God,” she said, “there is no place where you can hide from Him.” Seeing that she knew about God and the punishment of the wicked, the Elder asked why she led a sinful life and enticed others to ruin their souls. He told her about the eternal punishment she would have to face for her own sins, and for the people who had been corrupted and destroyed by her.
The words of Saint Paphnutius so affected the sinner that she gathered up all her riches acquired through her shameful life, then set them afire in the city square. Then Saint Paphnutius shut her up in a small cell, where for three years she dwelt in seclusion. Turning toward the East, Thais constantly repeated the short prayer, “My Creator, have mercy on me!”
“From the moment I entered into the cell,” said Thais to the Elder before her death, “all my sins constantly were before my eyes, and I wept when I remembered them.”
Saint Paphnutius replied “It is for your tears, and not for the austerity of your seclusion, that the Lord has granted you mercy.”
Saint Thais was ill for three days, then fell asleep in the Lord. So this woman, who had been a harlot and a sinner, has entered the Kingdom of God before us (Mt. 21:31). Saint Paul the Simple (October 4) saw in a vision the place prepared for the penitent Thais in Paradise.
Troparion — Tone 4
O God of our fathers, / do not take your mercy from us, / but ever act towards us according to your kindness / and by the prayers of your Holy Thais, / guide our lives in peace!
