The Holy Virgin-Martyr Philothea of Arges, Protectress of Romania
Life
Philothea of Thrace, more commonly known in Romania as Philothea of Arges, was a thirteenth-century child-martyr born at Trnovo, the old capital of Bulgaria, around 1206. Her father was a farmer and her mother, who came from Wallachia, died during Philothea's childhood. Tradition records that she was killed by her own father after he discovered that she had been secretly giving away food to the poor.
Although she was Bulgarian by birth, Philothea's relics came to rest at the Monastery of Curtea de Arges in Romania, where she is venerated as the Protectress of Romania. She is commemorated on December 7 and is honored in both Romania and Bulgaria.
Timeline 3 moments
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c. 1206Birth at TrnovoPhilothea was born around 1206 at Trnovo, the old capital of Bulgaria, to a farmer father; her mother, who came from Wallachia, died while Philothea was still a child, after which her father remarried.
c. 1218Death by her father's handWhile carrying food to her father in the fields, the twelve-year-old girl shared portions with poor children she met. On discovering this, her father struck her with an axe and wounded her mortally.
after her deathTranslation of relics to Curtea de ArgesAccording to tradition her body became immovably heavy until the Archbishop of Trnovo named the Monastery of Curtea de Arges in Romania, whereupon the relics could be lifted and were carried there.
Contributions & Legacy
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Life and Death
The accounts agree that Philothea grew up in difficult domestic circumstances. After her mother's death her father remarried, and the synaxarion relates that she was often punished by her stepmother, who accused her of disobedience and of giving the family's possessions away to the poor.
As a young girl she would bring food to her father while he worked in the fields, sharing some of it with poor children she encountered. When her father learned of this practice he became enraged and struck the twelve-year-old with an axe, wounding her fatally in the leg. The sources note that he immediately regretted the act.
Relics and Veneration
By tradition, after her death her body could not be lifted in Bulgaria. The Archbishop of Trnovo named various monasteries in turn, and only when he named the Monastery of Curtea de Arges in Romania did the relics become light enough to move. They were translated there and remain at Curtea de Arges, where miraculous healings have been reported at her tomb.
Philothea is venerated in both Romania and Bulgaria and is titled the Protectress of Romania. Each year on December 7 a festal pilgrimage draws people from across Romania to Curtea de Arges, where her relics are carried in procession around the monastery courtyard with prayers for the sick.
