The venerable martyr and pure bride of the Heavenly King Christ God, Zlata, was from the town of Meglen. She was the daughter of a poor Christian and possessed fervent faith, virginity, chastity, and bodily beauty, for which she was worthy of the crown of martyrdom.
One of the local Turks, seeing her beauty, sought a way to possess her. He seized the saint and, trying to persuade her to convert to Islam, threatened her with torture. Zlata, calling upon the name of the Lord, boldly replied that she would never renounce Christ, even if she were to suffer thousands of torments.
The Agareni, unable to convince the saint, began to torture her. For three months they beat her, and despite the terrible suffering, she remained courageous, strengthened by her love for Christ. Upon learning of her sufferings, the igumen of the Holy Mountain monastery, Father Timothy, prayed for her.
Eventually, not satisfied with the tortures, the enemies hanged the saint on a tree and, surrounding her with daggers, tore her body apart. The venerable Zlata, having accepted a martyr's end, was worthy of the crown of virginity and martyrdom, rejoicing in the heavenly abodes with the wise virgins and martyrs.
Her relics were secretly buried by Christians with honor. Through the prayers of the saint, may we also be deemed worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen.
