Saint Helena

Born in Drepanum (Bithynia) around 250 AD of humble origins, Flavia Julia Helena was admired for her radiant soul and charity. Wed to General Constantius Chlorus, she gave birth to Constantine the Great, who granted religious freedom to Christians with the Edict of Milan. Embracing the Christian faith with fervent devotion in maturity, she was named Augusta Empress. In her seventies, guided by divine inspiration, she embarked on a sacred pilgrimage to Jerusalem. She ordered pagan temples built over Golgotha dismantled, excavated the holy sites, and discovered the wood of the True Cross, verified by the miraculous healing of a dying woman. She founded the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Church of the Nativity, dressing as a humble servant to feed the poor with her own hands.