Saint Theoclia is an Egyptian

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

and saint from the 4th century AD. Saint Theoclia was the wife of Saint Justus. They were separated at

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

, at which point Saint Justus was sent to Ansena where he was eventually martyred, while Saint Theoclia was sent to Sa El Hagar. The governor of the city attempted to persuade her to renounce

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, but she refused. She was subsequently beaten until her flesh was torn, and then placed in prison. Her hagiography states that an angel appeared to her in prison, comforted her, and healed her wounds. Many prisoners who witnessed this miracle became Christian and were later martyred. Saint Theoclia was eventually beheaded on 11 Pashons.

References

Coptic Synexarion
Saints from Roman Egypt 4th-century Roman women 4th-century Egyptian women 4th-century Christian martyrs Late Ancient Christian female saints 4th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown Angelic visionaries {{Saint-stub