Saint Macrina the Younger
The eldest of the Cappadocian family, teacher of the ascetic life to her brothers
- Rank
- Saint
- Kind
- Religious, Virgin
- Life
- ~327 – ~379
- Era
- 4th century
- Feast
- 19 July
- Countries
- Türkiye
Life story
Macrina was born around 327 at Caesarea in Cappadocia, in present-day Turkey, the eldest of ten children of Basil and Emmelia, a wealthy Christian family. According to the biography by her brother Gregory of Nyssa, her mother taught her to read the Scriptures from an early age. She was betrothed while young, but her fiancé died early, and she resolved not to marry.
After her father's death she moved with her mother to the family estate at Annisa in Pontus, on the banks of the Iris river. There they lived a life of prayer and shared labour with their former servants, turning the place into an ascetic community. She also helped raise her younger brothers, among them Basil the Great, later bishop of Caesarea, and Peter, later bishop of Sebaste. Gregory, bishop of Nyssa, recorded that she strongly influenced the paths her brothers took.
After her mother's death she continued to live at Annisa. She died on 19 July 379, a few months after Basil's death, with Gregory present. He wrote two works about her: the Life of Saint Macrina and the dialogue On the Soul and the Resurrection, in which she is the main speaker. These works are the principal sources for what is known about her.
Gregory reports that after her death she was buried in the same tomb as her parents, beside a chapel of the martyrs near Annisa. He describes her as simple, of few words and devoted to the Psalms through the day. She is honoured in both the Eastern and Western Churches.
Works and witness
- Eldest of ten children in a Cappadocian family
- Founded an ascetic community with her mother at Annisa in Pontus
- Helped educate her brothers Basil the Great and Peter
- Subject of Gregory of Nyssa's Life and of his dialogue On the Soul and the Resurrection
Saints from the same country
References
- Martyrologium Romanum
- Gregory of Nyssa, Life of Macrina
- Gregory of Nyssa, On the Soul and the Resurrection
Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.