Agia Kyriaki in Kato Paphos, is one of the churches in the parish of the Anglican Church of Paphos

On July 7 the Greek Orthodox Church commemorates the Feast Day of Agia Kyriaki the Great Martyr.

But who was Agia Kyriaki?

Agia Kyriaki was the only child of Dorotheus and Eusebia. Since she was born on a Sunday (Kyriaki, in Greek), she was named Kyriaki.

One day a wealthy magistrate wished to betroth Kyriaki to his son. Not only was she young and beautiful, but her parents were wealthy, and the magistrate wished to control that wealth. The magistrate went to her parents to request her hand, but Saint Kyriaki told him that she wished to remain a virgin, for she had dedicated herself to Christ.

The magistrate was angered by her words, so he went to the emperor Diocletian to denounce the saint and her parents as Christians who mocked the idols, and refused to offer sacrifice to them.

Diocletian sent soldiers to arrest the family and have them brought before him. He asked them why they would not honour the gods which he himself honoured. They told him that these were false gods and that Christ was the one true God.

Dorotheus was beaten until the soldiers grew tired and were unable to continue. Since neither flattery nor torment had any effect, Diocletian sent Dorotheus and Eusebia to Melitene on the eastern border between Cappadocia and Armenia. Then he sent Saint Kyriaki to be interrogated by his son-in-law and co-ruler Maximian at Nicomedia.

Maximian urged her not to throw her life away, promising her wealth and marriage to one of Diocletian’s relatives if she would worship the pagan gods. Saint Kyriaki replied that she would never renounce Christ, nor did she desire worldly riches. Enraged by her bold answer, Maximian had her flogged. The soldiers who administered this punishment became tired, and had to be replaced three times.

Shamed by his failure to overcome a young woman, Maximian sent Saint Kyriaki to Hilarion, the eparch of Bithynia, at Chalcedon. He told Hilarion to either convert Kyriaki to paganism, or send her back to him.

Making the same promises and threats that Diocletian and Maximian had made before, Hilarion was no more successful than they were. Saint Kyriaki challenged him to do his worst, because Christ would help her to triumph. The saint was suspended by her hair for several hours, while soldiers burned her body with torches. Not only did she endure all this, she also seemed to become more courageous under torture. Finally, she was taken down and put into a prison cell.

That night Christ appeared to her and healed her wounds. When Hilarion saw her the next day, he declared that she had been healed by the gods because they pitied her. Then Hilarion urged her to go to the temple to give thanks to the gods. She told him that she had been healed by Christ, but agreed to go to the temple. The eparch rejoiced, thinking that he had defeated her.

In the temple, Saint Kyriaki prayed that God would destroy the soulless idols. Suddenly, there was a great earthquake which toppled the idols, shattering them to pieces. Everyone fled the temple in fear, leaving Hilarion behind. Instead of recognizing the power of Christ, the eparch blasphemed the true God as the destroyer of his pagan gods. He was struck by a bolt of lightning and died on the spot.

Saint Kyriaki was tortured again by Apollonius, who succeeded Hilarion as eparch. When she was cast into a fire, the flames were extinguished. When she was thrown to wild beasts, they became tame and gentle. Therefore, Apollonius sentenced her to death by the sword. She was permitted time to pray, so she asked God to receive her soul, and to remember those who honoured her martyrdom. This took place around 289 AD when she was 21 yrs old.

Just as Saint Kyriaki ended her prayer, angels took her soul before the soldiers could strike off her head. Pious Christians took her relics and buried them in a place of honour.

Even today, women ask Saint Kyriaki to pray to God, so they can remain firm and courageous in the struggle of everyday life and stay in the path of love of the Risen Christ despite any obstacles.

A troparion (hymn) dedicated to Saint Kyriaki is sung in the fifth Byzantine tone:

O virgin martyr Kyriaki,
You were a worthy sacrifice
When you offered your pure soul to God;
Wherefore Christ has glorified you,
And through you pours forth graces abundantly on all the faithful,
For He is the merciful Loving God!

Revd Paul A. Carr, various sources and Greek City Times

A Brief History of the Site (Updated November 2026)

Kato Paphos (lower Paphos) was established toward the end of the 4th century BC by King Nicocles. Cyprus came under Egyptian control in the early 3rd century BC when Paphos became a military base, shipbuilding centre, and harbour. Throughout this time, the cult of Aphrodite was strong – Cyprus is the mythological birthplace of Aphrodite (the Greek goddess of love and beauty) which is why Cyprus is known as ‘The Island Of Love.’ Around 58 BC Cyprus came under Roman Rule and Paphos became the Roman capital of Cyprus.

This site is of great Christian significance because it is the place where, in 45 AD the Apostles Paul and Barnabas (who was a Cypriot) along with John Mark arrived in Paphos on Paul’s first missionary journey. We read about it in Acts 13:4-12:

4 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

6 They travelled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7 who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.

9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10 “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?

 11 Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12 When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

Sergius Paulus’s conversion made him one of the first (and the first known high-ranking Roman official) to embrace Christianity. Tradition holds that Cyprus thereby became the first Christian-ruled country, if not the first Christian country – but that’s open to debate!

Local tradition (not mentioned in Acts) adds that Paul was tied to a marble pillar and flogged 39 times for preaching. The short white marble pillar still standing amid the ruins is identified as Saint Paul’s Pillar. In 2 Corinthians 11:24–25, Paul referred to beatings he received on his journeys but didn’t mention specific locations, or indeed, Cyprus.

After the Council of Jerusalem (AD 49) Paul proposed revisiting the churches they had founded. You will know that a sharp disagreement arose over taking John Mark again (Acts 15:36-41). Paul and Barnabas parted ways and Barnabas sailed to Cyprus with John Mark. Interestingly, Barnabas is revered more in Cyprus more than Paul. Barnabas is venerated as the founder and patron Saint of the Church of Cyprus (feast day June 11).

He is buried near the ancient city of Salamis, at the site of the Monastery of Saint Barnabas, on the outskirts of Famagusta in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

A Brief History of Ayia Kyriaki Chrysopolitissa

Around 386 AD, a large seven-aisled basilica – the largest early Christian church in Cyprus – was built on this site. It measured roughly 53 × 38 m (about 1,600 m²), with granite and marble columns, rich mosaic floors and a colonnaded atrium with a central fountain. It served as the cathedral and seat of the Bishop of Paphos (then the senior bishop on the island).

Around or after 536 AD, following earthquake damage, the church was extensively renovated. Arab raids around 653 AD, combined with earthquakes, destroyed the Basilica. The site was largely abandoned for a time.

A smaller Byzantine church was later built among the ruins after Richard the Lionheart’s conquest (1191) and the establishment of Latin rule. Franciscans were active in Cyprus – Saint Francis is traditionally said to have visited around 1220. Around the late 13th century, they built a church to the north of the basilica ruins –  which was renovated in the mid-16th century.

The Present Ayia Kyriaki Church was built around 1500–1540 during the Venetian period and is dedicated to a 19 yr old female who was martyred for her faith. Ayia meaning Saint and Kyriaki meaning Sunday, often referred to ‘Our Lady of the Golden City’. After the Ottoman conquest (1570/71) it was used briefly as a mosque then became the Orthodox (Byzantine) cathedral of Kato Paphos.  It collapsed or fell into ruin around 1600.

In the 1980s the Orthodox Bishop of Paphos entrusted the then derelict church to the Latin Roman Catholic community (first Mass in 1985). The Anglicans were invited to share it from 1988. Service times can be found HERE. The Orthodox Church continues to use it for special occasions.

The Site Today

So today, this site and the church of Ayia Kyriaki, also referred to as the Church by Saint Paul’s Pillar, is a UNESCO world heritage site and has international archaeological and religious significance. The walkway was closed for several years, because of the dangerous state they were in, but they were repaired in 2025 and re-opened in February 2026 – without much fanfare, I have to say.

The site is free to visit and there are several information boards along the walkways – as well as QR Codes which will give you more information. You will be able to see the excavated basilica foundations and remaining columns, preserved mosaic floors, the ruins of the Gothic Franciscan church, Saint Paul’s Pillar and much more besides.