Meet St. Mena!

A Boy Blessed by Mary

In the bustling town of Niceous, Egypt, around 285 AD, a faithful woman named Euphemia dreamed of a child. She and her husband, Eudoxius, a kind governor, had no children, and her heart ached. Tradition says that during the Virgin Mary’s feast on 21 Toba, Euphemia knelt before a church icon, asking for the intercession and prayers of the Virgin Mary. One tale says a gentle voice from the icon’s Christ-child said, “Amen, Mena.” Euphemia’s sorrow turned to joy—she knew God had answered! Soon after, she gave birth to a son, naming him Mena, meaning “believer,” a nod to the holy promise.

Little Mena grew up wrapped in love and faith. His parents took him to priests who taught him Bible stories, and he learned them eagerly. One tale says that by age five, he prayed with such focus that neighbors called him a “tiny monk.” One tale says that when a storm threatened their home, young Mena clasped his mother’s hand and asked for the intercession and prayers of the Virgin Mary, and the winds calmed—a hint of the wonders he’d later bring. His birth wasn’t just a gift to Euphemia; it was God’s plan to raise a boy who’d shine for Jesus.

Mena’s blessed start was only the beginning. Through the Virgin Mary’s intercession, he was prepared for greatness, not in wealth or power, but in a faith that would face the might of Rome. From his cradle in Niceous, Mena carried God’s light, ready to grow into a flame that still inspires Coptic and Ethiopian prayers today.

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