Myrrh-Bearing Wives

On the second Sunday after Easter, the holy myrrh-bearing women are remembered and honored:Mary Magdalene, Mary of Cleopas, Salome, Joanna, Martha and Mary, Susanna and others.

The myrrh-bearers are the same women who, out of love for the Savior Jesus Christ, received Him in their homes, and later followed Him to the place of crucifixion on Golgotha. They were witnesses of Christ's suffering on the cross. It was they who hurried in the dark to the Holy Sepulcher to anoint the body of Christ with myrrh, as was the custom of the Jews. It was they, the myrrh-bearing women, who were the first to know that Christ had risen. For the first time after his death on the cross, the Savior appeared to a woman - Mary Magdalene.

Mary Magdalene

Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene, one of the myrrh-bearing women, was honored to be the first of people to see the Risen Lord Jesus Christ. She was born in the town of Magdala in Galilee.

According to Tradition, Mary Magdalene was young, beautiful and led a sinful life. From her youth she suffered from a serious illness—possession (Luke 8:2). Before the Coming of Christ the Savior into the world, there were especially many demoniacs: the enemy of the human race, foreseeing his imminent shame, rebelled against people with ferocious force. When the Lord cast out seven demons from her, she left everything and followed Him.

Saint Mary Magdalene followed Christ along with other wives healed by the Lord, showing touching concern for Him.

She was faithful to Him not only in the days of His glory, but also at the time of His extreme humiliation and reproach. She did not leave the Lord after His capture by the Jews, when the faith of His closest disciples began to waver. The fear that prompted the Apostle Peter to renounce was overcome by love in the soul of Mary Magdalene. Love turned out to be stronger than fear and death.

She stood at the Cross with Holy Mother of God and the Apostle John, experiencing the suffering of the Divine Teacher and communing with the great grief of the Mother of God. Holy Mary Magdalene accompanied the Most Pure Body of the Lord Jesus Christ when He was transferred to the tomb in the garden of Righteous Joseph of Arimathea, and was at His burial (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47). Having served the Lord during His earthly life, she wanted to serve Him after death, giving the last honors to His Body, anointing it, according to the custom of the Jews, with peace and aromas (Luke 23:56).

The risen Christ sent Saint Mary with a message from Him to the disciples, and the blessed wife, rejoicing, announced to the apostles about what she had seen - “Christ is risen!” As the first evangelist of Christ's resurrection, Saint Mary Magdalene is recognized by the Church as equal to the apostles. This gospel is the main event of her life, the beginning of her apostolic ministry.

According to legend, she preached the gospel not only in Jerusalem. Saint Mary Magdalene went to Rome and saw Emperor Tiberius (14-37). The emperor, known for his hardness of heart, listened to Saint Mary, who told him about the life, miracles and teachings of Christ, about His unrighteous condemnation by the Jews, and about the cowardice of Pilate. Then she presented him with a red egg with the words “Christ is risen!” This act of Saint Mary Magdalene is associated with the Easter custom of giving each other red eggs (an egg, a symbol of mysterious life, expresses faith in the coming general Resurrection).

Then Saint Mary went to Ephesus (Asia Minor). Here she helped the holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian in his preaching. Here, according to Church tradition, she reposed and was buried.

Saint Mary of Clopas

Saint Mary of Cleopas is one of the myrrh-bearing women, mentioned in the Gospel of John (John 19:25).

According to Church tradition, she was the wife of Cleopas and the daughter of the righteous Joseph the Betrothed from his first marriage. The Holy Virgin Mary lived with her, and they became friends like sisters. Righteous Joseph, upon the return of the holy family from Egypt to Nazareth, gave his daughter in marriage to his little brother Cleopas, therefore she is called Mary Cleopas, that is, the wife of Cleopas, the same one who met Jesus on the road to Emmaus.

Mary of Cleopas is the mother of two disciples of Jesus - James and Josiah (Matthew 27:56), as well as the holy martyr Simeon, an apostle from the 70.

She, along with other pious women, accompanied the Lord during His public ministry, was present at the cross during the Lord’s suffering and at His burial, went with other myrrh-bearing women after the Sabbath to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, and here for the first time, together with others, she heard joyful news from the angel about the resurrection of the Lord. When Jesus was carried into the tomb, she and Mary Magdalene sat opposite the entrance until they were driven away by Roman guards sent by Pilate.

Saint Joan the Myrrh-Bearer

Saint John the Myrrh-Bearer, the wife of Chuza, the steward of King Herod, by whose order the head of John the Baptist was cut off, was one of the wives who followed the Lord Jesus Christ during His preaching and served Him. Together with other wives, after the Savior's death on the Cross, Saint Joan came to the Tomb to anoint the Holy Body of the Lord with myrrh, and heard from the Angels the joyful news of His glorious Resurrection.

Righteous sisters Martha and Mary

The righteous sisters Martha and Mary, who believed in Christ even before His resurrection of their brother Lazarus, after the murder of the holy Archdeacon Stephen, the onset of persecution against the Church of Jerusalem and the expulsion of the righteous Lazarus from Jerusalem, helped their holy brother in preaching the Gospel in different countries. No information has been preserved about the time and place of their peaceful death.

Salome

Salome the Myrrh-Bearer - originally from Galilee, wife of the fisherman Zebedee, mother of the apostles James and John.

When they followed Christ, Salome joined the company of wives who served Him. When Jesus Christ, on the way to Jerusalem, taught His disciples about His impending suffering and death on the cross and His resurrection, Salome approached Him with her two sons and asked him to promise them special mercy. Christ asked what they desired; Salome asked that in his kingdom He would place one of them on the right hand and the other on the left. The other apostles began to be indignant, but Christ explained to them the true meaning of the kingdom of heaven, completely different from the kingdoms of this world (Matthew 20:20-28; Mark 10:35-45).

It is also known about Salome that she was present at the crucifixion and burial of the Savior and was among the myrrh-bearers who came to the tomb early in the morning to anoint the body of the Lord, learned from an angel about the resurrection of the Savior, and after the appearance of Christ to Mary Magdalene, before others, they were privileged to see the risen Lord ( Matthew 28:8-10; Mark 16:1).

About the holiday

The Holy Church honors many Christian women as saints. We see their images on the icons - the holy martyrs Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia, the holy venerable Mary of Egypt and many, many other holy martyrs and saints, the righteous and blessed, equal to the apostles and confessors.

Every woman on Earth is a myrrh-bearer in life - she brings peace to the world, her family, her home, she gives birth to children, and is a support to her husband. Orthodoxy exalts the woman-mother, the woman of all classes and nationalities.

Sin came into the world with woman. She was the first to be tempted and tempted her husband to fall away from the will of God. But the Savior was born from the Virgin. He had a Mother. To the remark of the iconoclast Tsar Theophilus: “A lot of evil has come into the world from women” Nun Cassia, the future creator of the canon of Holy Saturday “By the Wave of the Sea,” answered weightily: “The highest good happened through a woman.”

This holiday has been especially revered in Rus' since ancient times. Noble ladies, rich merchant women, poor peasant women led strictly pious lives and lived in faith. The main feature of Russian righteousness is the special, purely Russian type, chastity of Christian marriage as a great Sacrament. The only wife of the only husband - this is the life ideal of Orthodox Rus'.

Another feature of ancient Russian righteousness is a special "rank" of widowhood . Russian princesses did not marry a second time, although the Church did not prohibit second marriage. Many widows took monastic vows and entered a monastery after the burial of their husbands. The Russian wife has always been faithful, quiet, merciful, meekly patient, and all-forgiving. “Let your adornment be not the outward braiding of your hair, nor the golden ornaments or finery of clothing, but the innermost man of the heart in the imperishable beauty of a meek and quiet spirit, which is of great price in the sight of God.” (1 Peter 3:2-4).

The Week (Sunday) of the Myrrh-Bearing Women is a holiday for every Orthodox Christian, Orthodox Women's Day.

How different is this holiday from the so-called International Women's Day on March 8, established by feminist organizations in support of their fight for the so-called women's rights, or rather for the liberation of women from family, from children, from everything that makes up the meaning of life for a woman. Isn’t it time for us to return to the traditions of our people, restore the Orthodox understanding of the role of women in our lives and celebrate the wonderful holiday of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women more widely?

The little-known icon of the Myrrh-Bearer is mentioned quite rarely. The woman depicted here, John, whose name translates as “God's grace,” is described in the Gospel of Luke.

Joanna was one of the women who first learned about the Ascension of the Lord. Along with other wives, she approached the Holy Sepulcher to anoint his body with oil, but the voice of an angel told them the good news that he had risen.

Joanna was a respectable woman given in marriage to Chuzu, a courtier of King Herod. However, her life changed radically when The only son fell ill with a fatal fever, not uncommon in those days. His miraculous healing by Jesus was not accidental, because it was Joanna who secretly buried the head of the executed Baptist, violating the ban.

Joanna received her sight and saw that all the riches she possessed cannot be compared with true values, and the main grace is the Word of God, healing and guiding on the true path.

Description of the icon

John the Myrrh-Bearer is depicted facing the righteous, dressed in bright red clothes. In her left hand she holds a vessel with holy myrrh, and with her right hand she points to it, as if calling to the end to believe in the power of the Lord. Her face is soft and sincere, the saint seems to feel all the secrets of every restless soul and calls every Orthodox Christian to confession before himself and the Lord, the all-forgiving and merciful.

How does a miraculous image help?

The icon of St. John the Myrrh-Bearer has the power of healing. There are many known cases when she healed people from fatal illnesses and brought cripples back to their feet. They ask the image of Joanna for help in getting rid of evil and evil spirits, negative impact from the outside, love spells and black magic. They ask the Myrrh-Bearer for forgiveness of all sins, intercession and protection, guidance on the righteous path, comprehension of the true faith and resistance to demons that tempt the flesh and spirit.

Prayer before the icon

“Holy servant of God, Joanna the Myrrh-Bearer! Pray to the Lord God for me, the sinful servant (name). Helper, heal my sinful soul, direct my thoughts to the right and true path, and drive away from me unclean thoughts and tempting demons. Do not leave me in sin and do not allow the wicked to do their evil, directed at me and my family. Amen".

Date of veneration of the icon

Remembrance Day was established by the Orthodox Church on June 27 (July 10, new style) and on the third Sunday after Easter, on the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women. This holiday is moving, so it does not have an exact date.

Every Orthodox Christian can ask St. Joan for help. She is also the patroness of those who receive the sacrament of baptism under the names of Zhanna and Yana. Before the holy image, the most hidden corners of the soul open up, and even the hardest hearts receive God’s grace. Live in peace and don't forget to press the buttons and

10.07.2017 04:09

Image Mother of God revered by Orthodox Christians all over the world. The Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God is able to protect your...

The Pyukhtitsa Icon of the Mother of God is revered in almost all churches in the country. Prayer before this image can help...

She is mentioned much less often than Mary Magdalene, she is not reproached, like the mother of the sons of Zebedee, for inappropriate maternal intercession for her sons, so that they “sit on the right and left” of Christ coming on the Way of the Cross... In fact, only Luke talks about her, mentioning her twice (Luke 8:3; 24:10). Other evangelists are silent about the wife named Joanna. John, which means the grace of God, or “God took pity”...

In the Orthodox community, for some reason prejudices and prejudices are associated with her name. How many times have I been asked if this is an Orthodox name? How many times have they said that it is precisely from such a name that such girls get into trouble - because it’s worthless male names call non-nuns. When told that this was the name of the myrrh-bearer, they shook their heads in disbelief and tied the scarf tighter...

And vice versa - there is a persistent lack of recognition of this name in its Belarusian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Czech and other Slavic forms. Yes - Yana, Yanka, Yanya, Yanechka and Yanochka - all these are not “dog names,” as one pious nun once put it, but folk forms of the ancient Hebrew name John. After all, the name “Yuri” is not a dog’s name, although it comes from the name “George”!

Joanna and John are definitely out of luck!

Poor Yanas are sometimes baptized with other names (by the way, they often choose the name “Nina”, as if the second half of the estate of the Polish version of the name Yana - “Yanina”), since they are strictly told that the name “Yana” is “non-Orthodox”.

The myrrh-bearer - the future myrrh-bearer Joanna - was a woman of high social status. She did not communicate with those poor and homeless people who followed Jesus Christ, with wives abandoned by their husbands who were forced to engage in prostitution. She was quite respectable - she was successfully married to Khuza, a courtier of King Herod. She was a “court lady,” as they would say in the century before last. We have everything - food, clothes, a full house, our only son is growing up... yes, girlfriends, get-togethers, of course, prayer - how could it be otherwise?

But grief came to the house. My son got sick. The fevers in Asia Minor are severe - he was already dying when his father ran in despair to a passing Preacher - all other means of the court doctors were tried. Chuza may not have known that the Forerunner was a close relative and close friend of Jesus of Nazareth, and therefore did not understand why the wandering beggar preacher did not want to go to the palace - after all, this was an honor for Him! Jesus does not go to the palace where His Forerunner was executed...

“Come before my son dies!” - shouts, begging Khuza, seeing that Jesus is in no hurry, and, moreover, as if reproaching, he says to him, the courtier, “you will not believe unless you see signs and wonders” (John 4:48). And the Savior, being above all personal revenge and all human malice, heals the son of a courtier - the son of a man of that well-fed and shameless world, a world that, for the sake of fun, took the life of His only close friend. He is generous, Jesus of Nazareth. He is unforgiving...

In hesitation and excitement is coming Khuza went home, feeling ashamed, and not understanding why, but the servants sent by Joanna, who was watching over the bed of the dying child, brought him the good news - “your son is healthy!”

And only then did they know - both Khuza and Joanna - who they turned to for help. Obviously, it became known to both their entourage and Herod himself. They remembered that Chuza’s wife, Joanna, often listened to the Baptist, that perhaps she secretly buried his head - which was not given to the disciples for burial.

There was a threat hanging over Khuza's house. Herod was quick to anger.

What could happen next? Frightened Khuza hastened to divorce his wife and drive her out of the house - so as not to incur the wrath of the Jewish king Herod? At that time it was easy for a Jewish man to divorce his wife - there could be any reason, even the simplest everyday reason - too much salt in the soup. And the woman, who previously had even a high social status, immediately lost it. It would be good if her parents were alive. And if not?

Did Khuza expel Joanna - fortunately, the example of the ruler Herod in how you can marry young and beautiful after expelling a hateful wife was before your eyes. Or did she herself leave, so as not to bring trouble into the house, did she go to her parents, who had at least some means of livelihood?

We do not know how she ended up in the crowd of simple, poor, almost destitute, sometimes with dubious past, women who followed Christ. She came to , because He is all that remains for her, He is the unforgiving Preacher who revived her son.

She was grateful to him, and if she was expelled from home and her healed son was taken away, who should she go to if not to his healer? No longer asking for anything, simply listening and heeding the new that was born in her soul - a former maid of honor, and now a poor wanderer, in the new world that was opening up to her, in the world of orphans, and widows, and abandoned women, and beggars - listening Preacher of the Kingdom of God for all the disadvantaged.

If earlier she thought that her husband’s well-being was a sign of God’s favor, now she saw that God in Christ is with the outcast and the unfortunate. Oh joy! She thought that she had lost everything, that God was angry with her, and she would not be a divorced, abandoned wife - but Jesus Christ said that God and His Kingdom do not shine in the luxury of palaces and royal chambers.

She found herself in a strange environment, but she was not accepted with gloating - “here, now you too will be in our shoes, former rich woman! You will find out what our poor peasant’s bread is and how we spend the night on the rocks, with a rock for a pillow!” They shared bread with her and said, “Don’t cry and don’t be afraid!”

And then Joanna sold all the few jewels she was wearing, which she had saved for a rainy day, to “serve Jesus” - to feed simple flatbreads and the fish of those poor and hungry women who followed Him. She sold and completely mixed up with the crowd of these women - so much so that none of the evangelists, except Luke, who pitied the women for their hard lot and rejoiced that Jesus Christ brought them joy, noticed her. Was it not she - educated and courageous - who exclaimed from the crowd: “Blessed is the womb that bore You! How happy is Your Mother, the Preacher who speaks by the spirit of God!” And she no longer had a family or a son...

The Savior answered her, knowing the depth of her heart and the depth of her sorrows - just as He knew the depth of the heart and sorrow of everyone who came to Him and comes. Happiness has touched you too, and will touch you, daughter of Abraham - for the Son of Mary is coming to the great tribulation of the Cross. And therefore - an unprecedented, different joy, the joy of the future celebration of the Cross with tears in the eyes, the joy of God’s love is coming. God had mercy, took pity, God “does not tolerate seeing a person in pain,” He came to share them, do not grieve, the wife abandoned by everyone.

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it” (Luke 11:27-28).

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, found for her the warmth of Her maternal heart, as for a daughter in trouble, and wept with her for her abandoned son, and rejoiced that her son was healed, and wept again that she could no longer see John.

So they will soon cry together for the Son of Mary.

...A century of golden powder
Between the pillars of the sovereign pylon,
John, tricky, funny,
Unbowed by depth and height.

I'm not in a hurry to go there - there's dill there
A long sigh for Tire and Sidon,
Where on the dandelion lines
There was light from the palm of John's hand.

Every step now, it’s worth it...
Bookshelf, daring creature,
You are stuck in existence - like a fragment
The young mirror of expectation:

No matter how much you strike, it is the limit of childhood
Freezes in rain drips, -
Who, in an accidental misfortune, has befallen,
Whose longing for us in its darkness?..

(Tina Arsenyeva)

Enter the words you are interested in in the line below:

Myrrh-Bearing Women.

Wearers of the Myrrh.

  

“And it is not so surprising that they attached their hearts to the Lord Savior in those days when through the shroud of His humility and humiliation the Divine glory appeared in His miracles, when a sermon unheard of on earth was heard. But for our thoughts it is amazing to see them not wavering in their love for the Lord, when He, tormented, spat upon, was betrayed to death.”
(St. John Chrysostom)

Introduction.

Myrrh-bearing women are women who, on the night of the Resurrection of Christ, hurried to the Holy Sepulcher with peace in their hands to pour fragrant aromas on the Body of their Divine Teacher. We do not know exactly how many myrrh-bearers there were. The Gospel lists them by name, and only names a few women more specifically. All of them later became fiery preachers and worked equally with the other apostles. And Mary Magdalene was honored to be called equal to the apostles - having the same glory and bearing the same cross as the other male disciples.
Evangelists and Holy Tradition have preserved for us a number of names of the Myrrh-Bearing Women:
- Mary Magdalene;
- Martha and Mary – sisters of Lazarus;
- Joanna - rich and noble, the wife of Khyza, the housekeeper of King Herod;
- Mary of Cleopas - mother of James the Less and Josiah;
- Salome - wife of Zebedee, mother of the apostles James and John;
- Susanna is a pious woman who accompanied Christ and served Him.
The myrrh-bearing women stood at the foot of the cross of Christ, comforting the weeping Mother of God. And even when the Mother of God and Saint John the Theologian departed from the cross, the women did not depart from the Crucified Savior. Together with Nicodemus and Joseph, secret disciples of Christ, they took part in the burial of their teacher. And they saw how this burial was not completed by pouring aromas on the lifeless Body of the deceased.
They were worried about whether they would have time on Saturday evening, after the end of the holiday, to purchase myrrh and other aromas and complete what was unfinished: to pour the aromas on the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ. Three pious women: Mary Magdalene, Mary of Jacob and Salome (according to the Gospel of Mark), brought incense (mirror) to the tomb of Jesus Christ, on the third day after the crucifixion, to anoint His body. The enormous, pure faith of the holy women was rewarded. Approaching the grave, and remembering that the entrance to the burial chamber was blocked with a heavy stone, they saw that the cave was open. Overcoming their stupor, they looked inside and met an angel who told them that the One for whom the myrrh-bearing women were looking had risen and was waiting for them in Galilee. The disciples of Christ believed immediately and without any doubt. With this good news, they rushed to the city, to the apostles, who were sitting in the house and there experiencing the grief that had befallen them. The women’s faith was strengthened even more when, on the way back, they saw the risen Lord himself.
Mary Magdalene remained at the tomb. She had not yet fully realized the greatness of this moment, and when a man appeared in front of her, she thought that it was a gardener and began to ask him where the Teacher’s body had disappeared. The gardener called her by name, and did it as only the Teacher did. Christ Himself stood before her - alive, risen! The woman’s joy knew no bounds, as she saw with her own eyes the One whom she had inconsolably mourned along with other students just a couple of days ago.
Then the Lord appeared to the rest - the apostles, disciples, and His other companions, who were next to him throughout the three years of His preaching. But the first to learn the joyful news about the Resurrection of the Savior were the myrrh-bearers - women who were not afraid of either the persecution of the elders, or the possible rudeness of the Roman guards, who until the moment of the appearance of the angel guarded the tomb of the Savior, or other dangers that await a person at night. The students were motivated by love - the same love that the Lord taught them, and which knows no barriers, not even death.

Mother of God.

Traditionally, the Blessed Virgin is not included among the myrrh-bearing women, but some interpreters believe that “Mary of Jacob” (Mark 16:1) and “the other Mary” (Matthew 28:1) are the Mother of Christ. The fact is that, after the death of her husband Joseph, She took care of his youngest children from his first marriage, and was quite legitimately considered the mother of Jacob. But even if the Mother of God was not among the myrrh-bearers, She is still considered the first to receive the news of the Resurrection of the Son - according to legend, an angel appeared to Her personally and told her the most important news in the world.
The Most Pure One lived for some time in Jerusalem in the house of the Apostle John the Theologian, to whom the Lord entrusted the care of His already middle-aged Mother on Calvary. After the apostles left for preaching, She also received the lot of missionary work. Initially, these were the lands of modern Georgia, but the Holy Virgin was never able to get there. The place of Her apostleship was Athos, where She ended up after a storm, on her way to visit Bishop Lazarus, who lived in Cyprus. For some time the Mother of God lived in Ephesus.
She died in Jerusalem and was buried there - in the Garden of Gethsemane. However, there is no body in Her tomb. Tradition says that the Son, on the third day after her death, raised Her to heavenly glory along with her body.

Why is Mary Magdalene recognized as “Equal to the Apostles”?

In the Orthodox Christian Church“Equal to the Apostles” are the co-workers and co-workers of the Apostles of Christ and those righteous Christians who especially zealously preached and affirmed the Christian faith. For such special merits they are compared in veneration with the Apostles. The word Apostle means “messenger”, who is given to carry out a certain task. Having chosen twelve from His disciples, Jesus Christ called them “apostles” (Luke 6:13) in order to send them to preach (Mark 3:14) and to heal all manner of illnesses and all manner of infirmities (Matthew 10:1-42) .
... Go to My brethren and say to them: I ascend to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God... (John 20:17)
Having said this, Christ became invisible. And the joyful, happy Mary Magdalene goes and proclaims everything (John 20:18) that happened to her to the Apostles of Christ, and with delight consoles their sorrow with wondrous words:
- Christ is risen!
That’s why, as an evangelist,” the first one sent from the Lord Himself who was accomplished Christ's Resurrection, Mary Magdalene is recognized as “Equal to the Apostles.”

Martha and Mary, sisters of Lazarus.

Information about these women is very scarce. Together with their brother, whom Christ Himself had once resurrected, they moved from Jerusalem to Cyprus, where they helped Lazarus carry out his episcopal ministry. Where, when and how the holy sisters died is unknown.

John.

Joanna was the wife of Chuza, one of the officials at the court of the ruler of Galilee, Herod Antipas. Joanna occupied a very high position and had great influence and connections. During the days of Christ’s preaching, Joanna took upon herself the lion’s share of the expenses of the apostolic community, taking care of food and everything necessary for the Lord and His disciples. There is a version that such generosity of such a noble lady is not accidental - according to a number of interpreters, the son of a courtier, healed by Christ (John 4: 46 - 54), was the child of Joanna, and the grateful woman after that served the Savior with everything she could.
The story of the head of John the Baptist is connected with her name. As you know, for his denunciations against Herod, the Forerunner was first arrested and then beheaded at the libel of Herodias, Herod’s concubine. After the wicked woman violated the head of the prophet she hated, she threw the head of John the Baptist into a landfill. Joanna, seeing all this and deeply grieving over the death of the Forerunner, secretly dug up the head at night, put it in an earthenware vessel and buried it on the Mount of Olives, in one of Herod’s estates.

Mary of Cleophas is the mother of James the less and Josiah.

Memorial Days: April 17, May 23
Righteous Mary is the wife of Cleopas or Alpheus, the younger brother of Joseph the Betrothed. She, along with other pious women, accompanied the Lord during His public ministry, was present at the cross during His suffering and burial, went with other myrrh-bearing women after the Sabbath to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, and here for the first time, together with others, heard joyful news from the Angel about the resurrection of the Lord (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40; Luke 24:4-11; John 19:25).
Almost nothing is known about her. She was one of Christ's relatives. According to one version, Mary was either the daughter or the wife of Cleopas, the brother of Joseph the Betrothed. Another version, very unlikely, says that this woman was the sister of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Susanna.

Susanna is the most mysterious of the myrrh-bearers. She served Christ from her estate, that is, apparently, she was quite wealthy. Nothing more is known about her. Only one evangelist, Luke, mentions Susanna, and only once: when he talks about the passage of the Lord Jesus Christ through cities and villages to preach and evangelize, then among the wives accompanying him he also names Susanna (Luke 8:3) as having served Christ from their estates.

Memory. Celebration.

The memory of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women is celebrated on the 3rd Sunday after Easter. The Orthodox Church celebrates this day as a holiday for all Christian women. This holiday is dedicated to ordinary women - disciples and followers of Christ, who relentlessly followed Him and did not abandon Him when most of the apostles fled. The Day of the Myrrh-Bearing Women in Orthodoxy is considered analogous to March 8. The Church praises the qualities of our mothers, spouses, sisters and friends: sacrifice, selflessness, fidelity, love and living faith, which can overcome everything. Faith and love, which are available only to feminine nature.

Troparion, tone 2.

When You descended to death, Immortal Life, then You killed hell with the radiance of the Divine. When You raised the dead from the underworld, all the Heavenly Powers cried out: “Giver of life, Christ our God, glory to You!”

Glory: Noble Joseph, I took down Your Most Pure Body from the Tree, wrapped it in a clean shroud and covered it with fragrant fragrances, and laid it in a new tomb, but You rose again on three days, Lord, granting great mercy to the world.

And now: An angel appeared to the myrrh-bearing women at the tomb, crying: peace is fitting for the dead, but Christ has appeared alien to corruption. But cry: the Lord is risen, grant great mercy to the world.

Kontakion, tone 2.

Thou didst command the myrrh-bearing women to rejoice, Thou didst quench the tears of the foremother Eve with Thy Resurrection, O Christ God, and Thou didst command Thy apostles to preach: The Savior is risen from the grave.

Materials used:
1.From websites:
- https://azbyka.ru/days/sv-susanna-mironosica
- http://days.pravoslavie.ru/Life/life6721.htm
- https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/
- http://www.pravmir.ru
- http://ruvera.ru
- http://philologist.livejournal.com/6547521.html
- http://naslednik.cerkov.ru/svyatyni-ikony/