St Mena the Wonder Worker
On the 15th day of the Coptic month of Hathor we celebrate the life of St Mena.
Mena was born in Egypt in the year 285 AD in the city of Niceous, in the vicinity of Memphis. His father, Eudoxius, was a native of the city and was its Governor. His brother was envious of him and he brought charges against him before the Emperor. The Emperor transferred Mena to Afrikia and appointed him Governor over it. The people were pleased with him because he was merciful and God-fearing.
Before Mena was born, his mother Euphemia was barren. She went to a church on the feast of our Lady St Mary the Holy Theotokos. She saw the children in the church wearing their beautiful clothes with their parents and she heaved a heavy sigh and wept before the icon of St. Mary entreating her to intercede before her beloved Son, in order that He would give her a son. A voice came from the icon saying, "Amen." She rejoiced in what she had heard and realized that the Lord had heard her prayers. When she returned to her home and told her husband about it, he replied, "May God's Will be done."
The Lord gave them this saint and they called him Mena, according to the voice that his mother heard. When he grew, his parents taught him reading and writing and they raised him in the Christian faith. When he was eleven years old, his father departed at a good old age. His mother departed three years later. Mena devoted his life to fasting, praying and living a Christian life. Because of everyone's love towards him and his father, they placed him in his father's position. In spite of that, he did not forsake his worshipping.
When Diocletian went back on his word to protect Christianity, he issued orders to worship idols, many were martyred in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Mena left his position and went to the desert, where he stayed many days worshipping God with all his heart.
One day he saw the heavens open and the martyrs wearing beautiful crowns. He heard a voice saying, "He who toils for the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ shall receive these crowns." He returned to the city over which he was Governor and confessed the Name of Jesus Christ as Lord. Knowing that he belonged to a noble family, they tried to dissuade him from his faith and promised him honors and precious gifts. When he did not change his mind, they threatened him and the Governor ordered him to be tortured. When the Governor failed to turn him away from his faith, he sent him to his brother so that he might influence him but he too failed. Finally, the Governor ordered his head to be cut off with a sword, his body to be cast in the fire and his ashes to be scattered in the wind. The body remained in the fire for three days and three nights, but was not harmed.
His sister came and gave the soldiers a lot of money and they let her take the body. She put it in a sack made of fern leaves and decided to go to Alexandria, as her brother had previously advised her. She embarked with her brother's body on one of the ships to Alexandria.
During their trip, sea creatures came out of the water and attacked the passengers aboard the ship. They were frightened and screamed with fear. The Saint's sister prayed to the Lord and asked for the intercession of her brother. While the passengers were in fear, fire went forth from her brother's body and burned the faces of the beasts. The creatures retreated immediately into the water and as they reappeared, the fire burned them again. They finally dived down and did not reappear.
When the ship arrived at the city of Alexandria, most of the people went out with the father, the Patriarch. They carried the holy body with reverence and honor and entered the city with a venerable celebration and placed it in the church, after they shrouded it in expensive shrouds. When the time of persecution ended, the angel of the Lord appeared to the honorable Patriarch, Anba Athanasius, the Apostolic. The...