Helena’s Journey to the Holy Land

For she had resolved to pay the duties of devout piety to God, the King of kings, and felt bound to offer thanksgiving with prayers on behalf of her own son, now so mighty an emperor, and of his sons, her own grandchildren, the Caesars favored by God. So, though now advanced in years, yet gifted with uncommon wisdom, she had hurried with youthful eagerness to see this venerable land, and at the same time to visit the eastern provinces, cities, and peoples with a truly imperial care. As soon as she had paid due reverence to the ground the Savior’s feet had trodden, according to the prophetic word that says, “Let us worship at the place where his feet have stood,” she at once left the fruit of her piety as a legacy to future generations. [a]