The biography of Saint Barbara states that she was a beauty who lived in the city of Nicomedia in Asia Minor when Emperor Maximian was emperor. Dioscorus or Diosorus, was a fanatical pagan and her father. He had imprisoned her in a tower because he was afraid of suitors. Unknown how, she became a Christian. Her father, in order not to use the public baths and go outside the tower of her imprisonment, ordered to build baths in the tower where she lived. Theplan there had two windows but Saint Barbara, honoring the Holy Trinity, said to build three windows. Her father thus understood that she was a Christian and rushed to the tower chasing her to slaughter her.
Agia fled and escaped by fleeing to the mountains. But he was arrested and taken to the Roman Province. The Prefect, admiring her beauty, did everything he could to convince her, but she was adamant.So he subjected her to torture, more to save her from the wrath of her father who wanted her killed. Finally, the prefect decided to behead her, and in fact her father himself would carry out the sentence, since this was what he himself wanted. According to her biographer Simeon, “the father’s hand holds the sword and accepts the end”. But at the moment when his crime was ending, he was struck dead by lightning
INTROIT
Sound d’.
Varvaran, let us honor the saint; for the enemy is the snares
crushed, and like an ostrich sprang from them, help
and on the arms of the Cross the pansemnos.
