On December 24, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church honors the memory of the Holy Venerable Martyr Eugenia.

St. Eugenia was a Roman, the daughter of noble pagan parents. Her father, Philip, was governor of Alexandria and all of Egypt. She was distinguished by glamorous education and beauty.

However, the girl became involved in Christianity, left her home and disguised as a man, went to a convent, where she was baptized, became a monk and after the death of the abbot was unanimously elected in his place.

She gained great fame by healing the poor through prayer. This is how she caught the attention of an evil woman, Melantia, whom she healed. Melantia wanted to seduce Eugenia because she thought she was a man. When she failed, she slandered her for allegedly trying to seduce her while disguised as a man but being a woman in reality.

Eugenia was arrested and forced to reveal her identity to the city's governor, her father. Her family rejoiced that she was alive, and everyone accepted her faith, for which Philip was fired. After his death, the relatives returned to Rome and lived in a mansion outside the city. Eugenia betrayed her faith to a noble girl, Vasila, for whom they were both condemned to suffering and beheaded on Christmas Day in 262 C.E.

Claudia buried her daughter in her mansion outside the city, and she herself passed away soon afterwards after she received a warning of her death, in a dream, by her daughter martyr Eugenia. Along with Eugenia, Prot and Yakint, who were with her, were also beheaded because they did not want to take part in a pagan sacrifice.

Name day is celebrated by: Evgeni, Evgenia, Women, Bistra, Noble, Noble, Malcho (from the phrase Malka Koleda [Little Christmas]), Malik, Malen, Malena, Malin.

/BGNES