4th century
Saint Febronia of Nisibis
Nun at Nisibis in Mesopotamia who was tortured and put to death in the persecution of Diocletian for refusing to renounce her faith.
Biography
Febronia, known for her beauty and the purity of her soul, chose monastic life at the age of seventeen in a monastery at Nisibis in Mesopotamia, where her aunt Bryene was abbess.
When a military unit under Selinus arrived at the monastery during the persecution of Christians, Febronia, who was ill, could not flee in time. Selinus, struck by her beauty, offered to spare her if she married his nephew Lysimachus, but she firmly refused.
After torture, Selinus killed her with a sword. According to tradition, Lysimachus was so moved by witnessing her suffering that he himself converted to Christianity.