Icon of St. Nina of Georgia -21st c. - 00STNG01

Feast Day/Commemorated: January 14

Born in Cappadocia to honorable Christian parents, Nino (Nina) was left in the care of the devout woman Sara Niaphor in Jerusalem after her mother was ordained a deaconess and her father embraced a monastic life in the wilderness. Raised strictly in the Christian faith, the young Nino learned of Christ’s Robe, which was preserved in the pagan realm of Georgia, and felt a profound calling to travel there. Seeking the blessing of the Theotokos, she received a miraculous divine vision in a dream in which the Virgin Mary tasked her with preaching the Gospel to the Georgian people. Overwhelmed by the weight of the mission, Nino was bestowed a cross made of grapevines as a spiritual shield. She bound it with her own hair, obtained a solemn blessing from her uncle, Patriarch Juvenal, and set out to fulfill her divine mandate.

Her initial journey was fraught with extreme danger as she navigated the severe anti-Christian persecutions sweeping the region under Emperor Diocletian. After fleeing Rome for Armenia alongside Princess Rhipsimia, Gaiana, and a company of fifty virgins, Nino witnessed her companions face horrific martyrdom at the hands of King Tiridates after Rhipsimia refused his royal proposal. Spared for a distinct and greater purpose, Nino evaded capture by concealing herself among rose bushes before making her way into Georgia. Upon reaching the region, she encountered local shepherds near Lake Paravani, received divine confirmation to begin her ministry, and eventually traveled alongside pilgrims toward the prominent city of Mtskheta.

In Mtskheta, Saint Nino witnessed the local populace worshiping pagan idols, particularly the deity Armazi, and offered a fervent prayer asking God to reveal His sovereignty to the nation. In direct response to her prayer, a sudden violent storm arose, bringing powerful winds and hail that shattered the idol statues and scattered the terrified worshipers. Taking up residence beneath a bramble bush in the king's garden, Saint Nino began preaching, performing miracles, and gaining many converts—including the childless royal gardener and his wife, as well as the terminally ill Queen Nana, whom Nino miraculously healed.

Despite these wondrous conversions, King Mirian initially resisted the rising Christian movement and plotted to execute all believers, including his own wife. However, while hunting, the king was suddenly enveloped in a blinding, terrifying darkness that left him stranded and abandoned by his pagan gods. Desperate, Mirian prayed directly to the "God of Nino," vowing to build a church, embrace the faith, and submit to Nino's guidance if light were restored. The sun instantly returned, prompting the king to keep his vow, establish Christianity across Georgia, and honor Saint Nino's transformative ministry, which endured until her holy repose and burial in the village of Bodbe.

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