Died c. 450 Venerated in Eastern Orthodoxy | Feast January 24/February 6 Name Saint the | |
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Similar People Xenia of Saint Petersburg, Pope Leo I, Pope Clement I, Pope Sixtus III, Pope Honorius III | ||
Saint Xenia the Righteous of Rome was a saint of 5th century, honored by some Christian Churches, including Orthodox. Born with the name Eusebia to wealthy parents in Rome, she is said to have left Rome at the age of 17 to escape an unwelcome arranged marriage. She traveled to the island of Kos in the Aegean Sea, where she was given the name "Xenia" (stranger) and eventually became a deaconess revered for having the power to heal.
Of her is written that she "helped everyone: for the destitute, she was a benefactress; for the grief-stricken, a comforter; for sinners, a guide to repentance. She possessed a deep humility, accounting herself the worst and most sinful of all."
The Feast of St. Xenia is celebrated in the Orthodox church on January 24, the day on which she died. She is said to have foreseen her own death.