The Church commemorates Martyrs Demetrius the philosopher, his wife Evanthia and their son Demetrianos and Saints Theodora of Alexandria († 491), Euphrosynus the Cook († 9th century), and Theodulus.
Saint Theodora came from Alexandria. She was adorned with physical beauty and was devoted to her pious husband. At some point, however, she made the mistake of betraying her husband and falling into adultery.
When she realized her mistake, she repented, and wearing men’s clothes she retired to a male monastery, so that her husband would not find her. Her new name was Theodoros. After two years of repentance, she found a baby outside the monastery door.
Someone slandered her for committing adultery with the woman who gave birth to the baby. Saint Theodora lived with the child for seven years outside the monastery in a hut, until the slander against her was revealed. The truth was revealed only when Theodora surrendered her soul to the Lord.
When her husband was informed of her death, he attended the funeral and remained in the monastery, having first distributed his possessions to the poor.
How much care is needed to avoid small mistakes, which can lead even militant people to big and insurmountable paths? Because of the wrong mentality man is in danger of being led to perdition instead of the Kingdom of Heaven, yet there is a way out through repentance and prayer to Jesus Christ.
With miraculous patience, the faithful Christian, with joy and devotion to the will of God, brings the cross of martyrdom in his daily struggle for redeeming time.
This is because he is aware of the Apostle Paul’s admonition “making the most of every opportunity because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5, 16), which means to always win and take advantage of the honorable and good times and opportunities of the present life because the days are full of temptations and spiritual dangers due to the sin that prevails.
Source: Church of Cyprus