The holy martyrs Paul and his sister Juliana were executed under Emperor Aurelian in the Phoenician city of Ptolemaïs. Paul, making the sign of the cross, was seized and thrown into prison. At the trial, he openly confessed his faith in Christ and was subjected to cruel tortures. Juliana, seeing her brother's suffering, accused the emperor of injustice and was also subjected to torment. The martyrs were brutally tortured, but they did not break. Three soldiers who tortured the saints believed in Christ and were immediately executed. The emperor tried to seduce Juliana by offering her to become his wife, but she remained steadfast. After unsuccessful attempts to defile the saint, the emperor ordered the bodies of the martyrs to be burned. The people, witnessing the suffering of the innocent, began to murmur, and Aurelian ordered the martyrs to be beheaded immediately. Brother and sister went to execution with joyful faces, singing: 'For You have saved us, O Lord, from those who afflict us and have put to shame those who hate us' (Ps. 43:8).
