Nino Baptist of Georgia Country: Georgia

Biography of Nina (Nino) the Georgian

Nina (also known as Nino) the Georgian, who is considered the baptizer of Georgia, passed away on January 14, 335 in Georgia. She was born into a devout Christian family. According to legend, her father Zabulon was a relative of the great martyr Saint George, and her mother Susanna was the sister of Jerusalem's patriarch Juvenal.

After her father decided to become a hermit and Susanna joined the diaconesses, twelve-year-old Nina was left alone. She was raised and educated by an elderly woman who hailed from Iberia, the ancient name for Georgia. It was this woman who supposedly told Nina about the country, which was still practicing paganism. Even at this young age, Nina allegedly decided that one day she would go to Georgia and baptize it.

The accounts of various sources diverge at this point. Some say that Nina prayed ardently to be chosen as the baptizer of Georgia, and one night, the Virgin Mary herself appeared to her in a dream, handing her a cross made of grapevine branches and blessing her for her noble deed. According to another version, it was the Roman Emperor Diocletian who was responsible. He unleashed such persecutions against Christians that they had to flee for their lives. Supposedly, Nina remembered the beautiful country her guardian had told her about and ran there, seeking refuge in a peasant's hut amidst the vineyards. The members of this peasant family became the first converted Georgians under Nina's influence.

According to legend, she prayed fervently for the childless couple to conceive, and through a miracle, the thankful parents immediately embraced Christianity. Rumors spread quickly about the strange newcomer who could perform miracles through prayer, and people started coming to Nina with their troubles and ailments. Finally, they brought Queen Nana, the wife of the Iberian king Mirian, to Nina on a stretcher. Nina successfully healed Nana, leading to the conversion of the entire royal family. By the order of Mirian, the first Christian church in Georgia was erected on the same spot where, according to Georgian Christian beliefs, the Robe of the Lord was buried.

In this regard, the legends of the life of Nina, the baptizer of Georgia, intertwine with another popular Christian legend about the fate of Jesus Christ's robe in which he was crucified. According to one version of events, after Jesus was raised on the cross, the Roman soldiers cast lots to divide his clothes, specifically his robe, which was given to him by his mother. Eleazar from Mtskheta, the ancient capital of Iberia, witnessed this scene. He bought the precious robe from a soldier and upon returning home, showed it to his sister Sidonia. Seeing such a relic, Sidonia fell lifeless, clutching the robe so tightly to her heart that it was impossible to remove it from the hands of the deceased. Sidonia had to be buried with the robe. Later, a huge cedar tree grew on that spot. Ever since, the family of Eleazar kept the tradition of knowing the location of the Robe of the Lord, which other Christians around the world were unaware of. One of Eleazar's descendants, whom Nina also baptized, revealed this secret to her. From that time on, Nina prayed exclusively under the mighty cedar tree.

Upon hearing this legend from her, King Mirian of Iberia decided to cut down the cedar tree and use its trunk as the central pillar in the first Christian church of Georgia, which was named Sveti-Tskhoveli. Today, it is the Mtskheta Patriarchal Cathedral. The church was built on the burial site of Sidonia, and the Robe of the Lord remains at the foundation of the cathedral. Another important Georgian church, dedicated to the great martyr Saint George, now stands on the spot where Nina the baptizer passed away. She was buried according to her own request next to a humble shack in the village of Budi, where she spent her final years. The cross made of grapevine branches, with which she baptized Georgia, is now kept in the Cathedral of Tbilisi.