Zenaida and Philonella

Zenaida and Philonella were first century saints. They were sisters from Tarsus who were said to be cousins of the Apostle Paul, and their brother Jason was the bishop of their native city. They had been trained as doctors, and at that time, doctors only treated the wealthy. It was hard for the poor to get medical treatment. Zenaida and Philonella moved into the mountains in Greece and bought a cave with a spring. There they prayed constantly and set up a medical clinic. They became the first of a group of saints called “unmercenary healers,” saints who were doctors that didn’t charge for their services. Zenaida and Philonella believed that Christ is the ultimate Healer and that salvation is a process of healing. They offered those that came to them holistic healing: body, mind, and soul. Philonella specialized in women’s health and gynecology, while Zenaida focused on children’s health and psychiatric disorders. Zenaida is said to have believed there was a biological component to mental health, a revolutionary idea at that time. There are differing accounts of their deaths, with some accounts calling them martyrs and some saying they died of natural causes, but their lives had such an impact that they are still known today as “the friends of peace.” Their feast day is October 11th. 

When I was in the process of becoming Orthodox, I wanted to find a patron whose life I could try to emulate. I began reading stories of female saints and became frustrated that much of what we know of many of them is that they were virgins and martyrs. While chastity and being willing to die for our faith are beautiful and rich virtues, they didn’t resonate with me the way I was hoping my saint’s story would. I began to wonder if I was putting too much value on the story and decided to just accept as my patron the saint bearing my given name, St. Faith, a child martyr. The day before my Chrismation however, my godfather sent me the story of Zenaida and Philonella, and I immediately felt a deep love for them and desire to emulate their lives. As a grad student in school for counseling, I especially felt a kinship with Zenaida and took her as my patron. Because of Saint Zenaida, I chose to do my clinical work for my counseling program at a shelter for women and children experiencing homelessness. 

It’s funny: while writing this I’ve been in a bad mood. I’ve been letting little things get under my skin, shape my outlook, and make me incredibly irritable. I’ve been undisciplined and self-indulgent, and those things have not made me feel any peace but instead have caused stress and annoyance with myself and others. All day I’ve been telling myself I need to get into a centered mindset so I can write about Zenaida and Philonella and their holiness and what I love about them. 

Here’s the thing about holiness and healing though: they don’t come about simply by me willing them to be the case; they form in me when I offer myself and my brokenness to the Source of all holiness and healing. That is what Zenaida and Philonella did: they offered all that they had and all that they were to Christ, and through them He offered so many His healing. May we learn to surrender ourselves in the same way.