Lives of all saints commemorated on July 12

The Holy Martyrs Proclus and Hilarion were natives of the village of Kallippi, near Ancyra, and they suffered during the time of a persecution under the emperor Trajan (98-117). Saint Proclus was put under arrest first. Brought before the governor Maximus, he fearlessly confessed his faith in Christ. The governor decided to compel the saint to submit himself to the emperor and offer sacrifice to the pagan gods. During his tortures, the martyr predicted to Maximus that soon he himself would be compelled to confess Christ as the true God. They forced the martyr to run after the chariot of the governor, heading towards the village Kallippi. Exhausted, Saint Proclus prayed that the Lord would halt the chariot. By the power of God the chariot halted, and no force could move it from the spot. The dignitary sitting in it became petrified. The martyr told him that he would remain unmoving until such time as he would sign a document with a confession of Christ. Only after this could the chariot continue on its way with the governor.

The humiliated pagan took fierce revenge on Saint Proclus. He commanded that Proclus be led out beyond the city, tied to a pillar and shot with arrows. The soldiers, leading Saint Proclus to execution, told him to give in and save his life, but the saint said that they should follow their orders.

Along the way to the place of execution, they met Hilarion, the nephew of Saint Proclus, who with tears embraced his uncle and also confessed himself a Christian. The soldiers seized him, and he was thrown into prison. The holy Martyr Proclus prayed for his tormentors and surrendered his soul to God beneath a hail of arrows.

Saint Hilarion was brought to trial and, with the same courage as Saint Proclus, confessed himself a Christian. After tortures he was sentenced to death. They tied the martyr’s hands and dragged him by his feet through the city, wounded and bloody, and then they beheaded him three days after the death of his uncle, the holy Martyr Proclus. Christians buried them together in a single grave.

Saint Michael lived during the reign of Emperor Constantine VI (913-959) until the reign of Basil II, the Bulgar-slayer (976 - 1025). He was born in Cappadocia to devout and wealthy parents, Eudókimos and Anastasó (Ἀναστασῶ). Eustáthios, his paternal grandfather, was a patrician; and his maternal grandfather, Adrálestos, held the rank of General of the East.

Manouḗl (the Saint's name in the world) was brought up in the east, but soon he realized the futility of worldly honors and goods. Around the year 925, he fled to Mount Kyminas (Όρος Κύμινας) in Bithynia. There he met a monk named John Heladites, an Elder of great virtue, and asked him if he might stay nearby. The Elder accepted him, but after a while, his father discovered where he was, and after many entreaties, he brought him home.

After a few months, however, and with this permission of his parents, he returned to his Elder, who received him with great joy. Soon he begged Father John to allow him to live alone in a cave, and the Elder blessed him to do this. For five days of the week he devoted himself to fasting, vigil, and prayer. On Saturday and Sunday he came to the monastery to participate in the Divine Services, and to partake of the Holy Mysteries.

After three years of probation, Manouḗl was tonsured as a monk with the name Michael. Later, after Elder John had reposed, Father Michael took the great inheritance he had received from his family and gave it away to the poor and the suffering.

Saint Michael was deemed worthy of ordination to the priesthood. From the Holy Scriptures, he showed how the priesthood ought to be combined with monasticism. He attained a high degree of dispassion, and he also received the gift of clairvoyance. He was very compassionate and kind toward people. He could not bear to let those who were in need or sorrow remain without help and consolation. By his ardent prayers, he performed many miracles.

Saint Michael also founded the famous Lavra of Kyminas, where many brethren received their spiritual formation. He had organized it as a cenobitic monastery, suffusing it with fraternal love. Many great ascetics passed through this Monastery, among whom was Saint Athanasios the Athonite (July 5), the founder of the Greatest Lavra (Μεγίστη Λαύρα) on the Holy Mountain. Kyminas Monastery was also renowned for its calligraphers, and for copying spiritual books.

Once the monastery was secure, Saint Michael went to an even more remote place, where he built a new monastery. By his efforts, the whole mountain of Kyminas was covered with monastic communities, where constant prayers were offered for the entire world before the Throne of the Most High.

At an advanced age, but still vigorous in faith and in spirit, Saint Michael surrendered his holy soul to God in the year 962.

The Holy Martyrs Theodore the Varangian and his son John lived at Kiev in the tenth century, when the Varangians, ancestors of the present day Swedes and Norwegians took an active role in the governance and military life of Rus. Merchants and soldiers, they opened up new trade routes to Byzantium and to the East, they took part in campaigns against Constantinople, and they constituted a significant part of the populace of ancient Kiev and the princely mercenary retinues. The chief trade route of Rus, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, was then called “the Way from the Varangians to the Greeks.”

The chieftains and organizers of the early Russian realm relied upon their Varangian retinues in their undertakings. Just like the Slavs, among whom they lived, many of the sea-faring newcomers under the influence of the Byzantine Church accepted holy Baptism. Kievan Rus stood between the pagan Scandinavians and the Orthodox Byzantines. Therefore, the spiritual life at Kiev was affected by the vivifying influence of the Christian Faith (under Saint Askold in the years 860-882, under Igor and Saint Olga in the years 940-950), and then by the destructive whirlwind of paganism, blowing down from the north from the Varangian Sea (under the reign of Oleg, killing Askold in 882; under the revolt of the Drevliani murdering Igor in 945; under Prince Svyatoslav, who refused to accept Baptism despite the insistence of his mother, Saint Olga).

When Svyatoslav was killed by the Pechenegs in 972 (other sources say in 970), the principality of Kiev was entrusted to his eldest son, Yaropolk. Oleg, the middle son, held the Drevlianian land, while Vladimir, the youngest son, held Novgorod. The reign of Yaropolk (970-978), just like that of his grandmother Olga, again became a time of predominating Christian influence in the spiritual life of Rus. Yaropolk himself, in the opinion of historians, confessed Christianity, although possibly of the Latin rite, and this did not correspond at all to the interests of the Scandinavian mercenary retinue. They were pagans, who were accustomed to consider Kiev a bulwark of their own influence in the Slavic lands. Their leaders strove to create discord between the brothers themselves. They incited a fratricidal war between Yaropolk and Oleg. After this when Oleg was killed, they supported Vladimir in a struggle against Yaropolk.

The future Baptizer of Rus started on his way as a convinced pagan and he relied upon the Varangians, especially those having come to him from over the sea, as his military force. His campaign against Kiev in 978, crowned with complete success, pursued not only military-political aims: it was also a religious campaign of Russo-Varangian paganism against the outgrowth of Kievan Christianity. On June 11, 978 Vladimir “sat on the throne of his father at Kiev,” and the hapless Yaropolk, invited by his brother for negotiations, was treacherously murdered when he arrived at the entrance hall by two Varangians who stabbed him with swords. In order to intimidate the Kievans, among whom were already many Christians both Russian and Varangian, to renew and strengthen with new idols, human sacrifices were made in the pagan sanctuary, a practice unknown to the Dniepr Slavs until then. The chronicles speak of Vladimir setting up idols: “And they brought them sacrifices, acclaiming them gods, and they brought to them their own sons and daughters, and these sacrifices went to the devils... both the Russian land and this hill were defiled with blood”.

The martyrdom of Saints Theodore and his son John may have taken place during this first period of the triumph of paganism at Kiev with Vladimir’s accession to power. In that case, the date might be July 12, 978. It is probable, however, that the exploit of the holy martyrs took place in the year 983, when the wave of pagan reaction rolled not only through Rus, but throughout all the Slavic-Germanic world. Almost simultaneously pagans rose up against Christ and the Church in Denmark, Germany, the Baltic Slavic principalities, and everywhere the unrest was accompanied by the destruction of churches, and by the killing of clergy and Christian confessors. This was the year Vladimir went on campaign against the Lithuanian tribe of the Yatvyagi, and gained victory over them. In recognition of this victory the Kievan pagan priests again decided to make a bloody sacrificial offering.

“Among the Kievans,” reports Saint Nestor the Chronicler, “lived a Varangian by the name of Theodore, who was in military service at Constantinople long before this, and was baptized there. His pagan name, preserved in the term ‘Turov pagan temple,’ was Tur (Scandinavian Thor) or Utor (Scandinavian Ottar), and this other signature is also found in the old manuscripts. Theodore had a son John, a devout and handsome youth, confessing Christianity like his father.”

“And the elders and boyars said: let us cast lots upon the boys and girls. Upon whichever one it falls, that one we shall slaughter in sacrifice to the gods.” The lots thrown by the pagan priests, evidently not by chance, fell upon the Christian John.

When the messengers told Theodore that his son “had been chosen by the gods themselves to be sacrificed to them,” the old warrior decisively answered: “This is not a god, but wood. Today it is, and tomorrow it rots. They do not eat, nor drink nor speak, but are crafted by human hands from wood. God however is One, and the Greeks serve and worship Him. He created heaven and earth, the stars and the moon, the sun and man, and foreordained him to live upon the earth. But these gods, what have they created? They themselves are made. I shall not give my son over to devils.”

This was a direct challenge by the Christian to the customs and beliefs of the pagans. An enraged crowd of pagans rushed at Theodore, smashed up his courtyard, and surrounded the house. Theodore, in the words of the chronicler, “stood at the entrance way with his son,” and with weapon in hand he bravely met the enemy. (The entrance way in old Russian houses as mentioned was set up on posts of a roofed gallery of the second storey, which was reached by a ladder). He calmly gazed upon the demon-possessed pagans and said: “If they are gods, let them send one of the gods to take my son.” Seeing that the brave and seasoned warriors Theodore and John could not be beaten in a fair fight, the besiegers knocked down the gallery posts. When they were broken, the crowd rushed upon the confessors and murdered them.

Already during the time of Saint Nestor, less than a hundred years after the confessor’s deed of the Varangians, the Russian Orthodox Church numbered them among the Saints. Theodore and John became the first martyrs for the holy Orthodox Faith in the Russian land. They were called the first “Russian citizens of the heavenly city” by the transcriber of the Kiev Caves Paterikon, the holy Bishop Simon of Suzdal (May 10). The last of the bloody pagan sacrifices at Kiev became the first holy Christian sacrifice with a co-suffering for Christ. The pathway “from the Varangians to the Greeks” became for Rus the pathway from paganism to Orthodoxy, from darkness to light.

On the place of the martyrdom of the Varangians, Saint Vladimir later built the Desyatin Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, consecrated on May 12, 996. The relics of Saint Olga were transferred into it in the year 1007.

Wondrous is God in His saints! Time does not spare stones and bronze, but the lower framework of the wooden house of the holy Varangrian martyrs, burned a thousand years before, has been preserved to our day. It was discovered in the year 1908 during the excavation of the altar of the Desyatin church at Kiev.

Saints Theodore and John are invoked by women who have miscarried.

No information available at this time.

Hosiomartyr Simon of Volomsk, in the world Simon, son of the peasant Michael from the vicinity of Volokolamsk, was born in the year 1586. At 24 years of age, after long pilgrimage through Orthodox monasteries, he received monastic tonsure at the Pinegsk Makariev monastery. In the year 1613 he settled in the Volomsk forest, 80 versts to the southwest of Ustiug at the River Kichmenga. Here he spent five years alone, away from people. He nourished himself with vegetables which he himself cultivated, and sometimes asked for bread in some settlement.

When lovers of the quiet life began to gather to him, Saint Simon, through a grant of Tsar Michael Theodoreovich and with the blessing of the Rostov Metropolitan Barlaam, built a temple in honor of the Cross of the Lord, and in 1620 was made head of the monastery he founded. A strict ascetic, serving as an example to all in virtue, love of toil, fasting and prayer, he was wickedly murdered in his own monastery on July 12, 1641. The body of the venerable Simon was buried on the left side of the church he built.

Veneration of the saint began in 1646 after grace-filled miracles at his relics were attested. His Life was written in the seventeenth century.

The Holy martyr Golinduc, in Baptism Mary, lived in Persia during the reign of Chosroes I the Elder. She was the wife of the chief magician of the Persian empire. Endowed with a lucid mind, Golinduc perceived the falseness of the pagan wisdom, and she pondered much about what the true Faith might be. When she learned of Christianity, she very much wanted to know what it taught. Soon through the providence of God, her wish was fulfilled. In sleep an angel showed Golinduc the place of torment for sinners and the paradise in which dwell the believers in Christ, the true God. After this dream she began fervently to pray to the true God, so that He might help her become a Christian. The angel of God directed Golinduc to a Christian priest, from whom she received holy Baptism with the name Mary.

After Baptism she left her magician-husband, and he complained to the emperor Chosroes. The emperor himself, and dignitaries sent by him, and illustrious women all urged Golinduc to return to her husband. For her decisive refusal the emperor sentenced her to be imprisoned for life. In prison Saint Mary-Golinduc spent 18 years.

During the reign of Chosroes’ successor, his son Ormisdas, there arrived in Persia an ambassador of the Byzantine emperor Mauricius, named Aristobulus. Having learned that for many years Mary the Christian was languishing in prison, Aristobulus repeatedly visited her in prison with the permission of the emperor and taught her to sing the Psalms of David. After the departure of Aristobulus, Ormisdas gave orders to present Saint Mary-Golinduc before him and for a long time he tortured her, subjecting her to all sorts of beatings and torments. But in all the torments through the intercession of God the saint was preserved unharmed. When they gave her over for defilement, the Lord made her invisible to the impious and preserved her purity. Finally the emperor gave orders to cut off the martyr’s head, but the Lord sheltered her from the hand of the executioner and brought her to Christians living in concealment.

When the persecution against Christians in Persia ceased during the reign of Chosroes II, who occupied the throne with the help of the Byzantine emperor Mauricius, Saint Mary-Golinduc began openly to preach the Christian Faith.

At the end of her life Saint Mary made pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where she prayed at the tomb of the Lord and other holy places. On the return journey she died (+ 591) in the church of the holy Martyr Sergius at Nisibis.

Saint John was born the son of a nobleman during the reign of King Davit Kuropalates.

For his love of Christ he left his family and the world to be tonsured a monk. After informing the royal court of his decision, Saint John received a blessing from his spiritual father to travel to Greece, where he settled at a monastery on Mt. Olympus.

At that time, as a “sign of friendship,” the Byzantine emperor returned the Georgian lands he had conquered to King Davit Kuropalates, but as a “sign of dedication,” he demanded that children of the nobility be sent as surety. Among those sent to Byzantium was Saint John’s son, Ekvtime. Saint John begged the Byzantine emperor to release his son, and when Ekvtime was finally freed, John took him back with him to the Monastery of Saint Athanasius the Athonite (the Great Lavra).

At that time the famed Georgian military commander Tornike Eristavi came to visit Saint John. Tornike was soon tonsured a monk and given the new name John (the saint is commemorated as John-Tornike), and he settled at the Monastery of Saint Athanasius the Athonite as well.

Soon the Georgian faithful began to flock to the Monastery of Saint Athanasius, and John withdrew from the monastery to a more secluded place, where he constructed a cell and a church in honor of Saint John the Theologian. Two more churches were later built in that same area in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos and Saint John the Baptist. In such a way the celebrated Ivḗron Monastery of Mt. Athos was established, with Saint John as its first abbot.

After the repose of his faithful friend and assistant Saint John-Tornike, it became difficult for Saint John to continue to labor on the Holy Mountain. He and several of his disciples planned to leave Athos, but in the end they remained at the insistence of the Byzantine emperor.

John soon fell ill with gout and was bedridden for several years. Prior to his death he summoned his son, Ekvtime, confessed to him his sins, and designated him abbot of the Ivḗron Monastery. He told his son that Saint Giorgi (later “the Builder”) should succeed him as abbot, then blessed all the brothers and “fell asleep among the ranks of the righteous in the arms of his son.”

Saint Ekvtime robed the holy relics of his fleshly and spiritual father in costly linens and later erected a church in honor of the Archangels over his grave.

Saint Gabriel was a monk of the Ivḗron Monastery on Mt. Athos. In summer he would withdraw to the inaccessible cliffs, and in winter he would return to the monastery and observe a strict rule of silence. Clad in a coarse robe and eating nothing but roots and herbs, Saint Gabriel was truly a “heavenly man and an earthly angel.”

Once, at dusk, the monks of the monastery beheld a pillar of light shining forth upon the sea. The vision lasted for several days, and finally monks from every monastery on the Holy Mountain gathered and descended together to the sea.

They beheld an icon of the Mother of God shining brilliantly and floating upright upon the surface of the water. The fathers lowered a boat onto the water, hoping to bring the icon back with them to the shore, but each time their boat approached the icon, it drifted farther out to sea.

Finally the frustrated monks offered prayers and supplications to God in order to discern His will, and the Most Holy Theotokos appeared in a divine revelation and told them that the monk Gabriel alone was worthy to bring the icon bearing her image out from the sea. At the same time, she appeared to the God-fearing Gabriel and told him, “Enter onto the sea and walk out upon the waves with faith, and I will send my love and mercy upon all the monks of this monastery.”

The elders of Mt. Athos located the rocky dwelling of the hermit Gabriel not far from the Ivḗron Monastery. They brought Gabriel with them and went down to the sea with hymns and censing. Gabriel stepped out onto the water and, walking upon the waves as upon dry land, approached the icon. At the same time, the holy image drew nearer to him. Clutching the holy icon to his breast, Gabriel crossed back over the waves and delivered the icon safely to the shore. (The story of the miraculous Ivḗron Icon of the Theotokos is recounted in detail in the commemorations for February 12.)

Saint Gabriel reposed peacefully on Mt. Athos.

The Icon of the Mother of God “Of the Three Hands”: The wonderworking icon, before which Saint John of Damascus (December 4) received healing of his amputated hand, was given by him to the Lavra of Saint Savva the Sanctified. In the thirteenth century the icon was in Serbia, and afterwards it was miraculously transported to Athos to the Hilandar monastery. A more detailed account about the icon is located under June 28.

In Greek usage, this Icon is commemorated on June 28, where a more detailed account is to be found.

The account of the woman with an issue of blood, who had the unusual name of Veronica, may be found in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew (9:20-22), in Saint Mark's Gospel (5:25-34), and also in Saint Luke's Gospel (8:43-49).

The Synaxaristes of Saint Νikόdēmos of the Holy Mountain states that this Saint was from the city of Paneada. When the Lord healed her issue of blood, she was very grateful, because for twelve years she had "suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and nothing had helped, but instead she became worse" (Mark 5:26).

She had heard of Christ, and decided to go to Him, believing that she would be healed merely by touching His garment. When she did this, the Savior felt that power had gone forth from Him. Turning to the crowd, He asked who had touched His garment. His disciples were puzzled by the question, since many people were pressing Him on all sides. Saint Veronica came forward and fell down before Him in fear and trembling, and admitted what she had done. The Lord said, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your affliction" (Mark 5:34).

In her gratitude, she made a statue of Him and placed it in front of her house, where everyone could venerate it. A healing plant grew at the base of the statue, which was able to cure various diseases.

Later, Saint Veronica became a member of the early Church. After living a life of holiness, she surrendered her soul to God.

Roman Catholics venerate a saint named Veronica, who is said to have wiped the Savior's face with her veil as He carried His Cross to Golgotha. She is not the saint who is commemorated by the Orthodox Church. That cloth was called the "Veronica," or true image (from vera and iconica) of Christ's face. Saint Gregory of Tours uses this word (Vita Patrum chapter 12) for an image (see the Greek word εικόνα). This incident, is not mentioned in the Gospels.

Some uninformed iconographers confuse these two women and depict our Saint Veronica holding a cloth with the imprint of Christ's face, which is not in accordance with Orthodox Tradition. On August 16, the Orthodox Church commemorates the Image not made by hands, the cloth which Christ sent to King Abgar with the imprint of His Face.

Saint Serapion (Σεραπίων) lived in Alexandria during the reign of Emperor Severus (222-235). He was a devout man who did whatever was beneficial. He was arrested by the archon Aquila, and when he was asked what religion he followed, he confessed courageously that he believed in Christ and honored Him.

The archon was furious when he heard the Saint's reply, and so he was thrown into a fire and was burnt alive, thereby receiving the incorruptible crown of martyrdom from the Lord.

Venerable Father Paisios (Paϊsios) of the Holy Mountain was born to devout parents, Pródromos (Prodromos) and Eulampίa Enzepίde (Enzepίdē), at Pharasa (Phárasa) in Cappadocia on July 25, 1924. Shortly before the family left for Greece because of the exchange of populations,¹ he was baptized by Saint Arsenios of Cappadocia (November 10). His godfather wanted to name the child Christos, after his grandfather, but Archimandrite Arsenios, the parish priest, refused saying, "Not so! He shall be called Arsenios. You shall have many other children, but I am a monk; I will have no children. I want him to be a reminder of me."

Archimandrite Arsenios, a man who lived a most holy life, also foretold that he was leaving a monk in his place. He gave the child a special blessing, and so, like Elijah and Elisha,² grace passed from the Spiritual Father to his child. He also predicted that he himself would not live more than forty days after he arrived in Greece. Forty days after their arrival in Greece, Saint Arsenios went to the Lord and was buried on the island of Kephalonia (Kephaloniá).

In Greece, the family of little Arsenios settled in Konitsa in Epeiros, where he spent his childhood and youth. Nurtured with stories about the wondrous life of Saint Arsenios, the boy, at the age of five, declared that he would become a monk. When he learned to read, he was loved by those who had not been taught. He went into the forest to study and pray in silence. Delighting in the Lives of the Saints, he tried to imitate their ascetical contests with fervent zeal and astonishing exactness. At the same time, he cultivated the virtues of humility and love.

After completing his studies, Arsenios did not wish to continue with his education, preferring to imitate Christ, and so he learned the trade of a carpenter, which he practiced with diligence and skill.

At the age of fifteen, he was deemed worthy of seeing the Lord, because of one philotimo³ thought, by which he repelled a demonic assault and a temptation toward impiety. From that time, the fire of God's love increased in him even more, as well as a longing for the monastic life.

Times of turmoil and upheaval followed for Greece, because of foreign occupation and civil war (1945-1949). However, he was both a citizen and a soldier during his service, displaying unparalleled courage and self-sacrifice. Sometimes he volunteered to take the place of married men with families, who were about to be sent to the Front. He was willing to give every moment, and even his life, to save others. In fact, he was often in the line of fire. Not only did he protect many soldiers by his fervent prayers, but he also guarded himself in a miraculous way.

For most of his military service Arsenios served as a radio operator. He said that they all felt secure only when they communicated with their Division every hour. "When our communication was limited to every two hours," he revealed later, "we felt a bit insecure. Sometimes, when we could be in touch with them just twice a day, we felt uncomfortable, lonely, and lost. The same thing applies to our prayers. The more we pray, the more we feel secure, on a spiritual basis, of course."

After all these things, he wanted to embrace the angelic life of monasticism, which gives wings of divine love.⁴ Thus, he went to the Holy Mountain seeking a guide to a life of godly silence. However, he did not manage to fulfill his desire right away. At the same time, people found themselves in great economic difficulty when they called on him for help. Thus, he returned to Konitsa and worked as a carpenter. In 1953, at the age of 29, he forsook the world and went to the Holy Mountain.

After visiting various Sketes (Skḗtēs) and Kalyves,⁵ the Saint finally followed the advice of a venerable Elder and joined the brotherhood of the Holy Monastery of Ἐsphigmenou, known at the time for its strictness. There he lived in the midst of everyone and engaged in severe asceticism, surpassing the others in his labors for the grace of Christ and his brethren. Then, on March 27, 1954, he was tonsured and received the name Averkios. But desiring a stricter life of asceticism, he received the Igoumen's blessing and went to live in the Holy Monastery of Philotheou, which was then idiorhythmic. Under the guidance of a hermit, they lived a very strict ascetical life. When his Elder reposed, he left and went to another hermit. This Elder would greet people he had never met by name, and that is what he did with Father Averkios. However, he did not permit Father to live with him. Instead, he told him to take care of another old and sick hermit, and then come back to him for Confession. In this way, Father Averkios prepared himself for the eremitic life, under the guidance of a wise monk, Elder Simeon.

On March 12, 1956 he was tonsured into the Small Schema and received the name Paisios (which means "child"), thanks to Metropolitan Paisios II of Caesarea, who was also his compatriot.

In August 1958, heeding divine counsel, he did not move to the desert, for which he was being prepared, but into the ruined Monastery of the Mother of God of Stomio, which is located near Konitsa. There he lived for four years, living an angelic life, struggling with temptation, working for the people of the region, saving many from the false teachings of Protestant sects who were active in their midst, and restored the Monastery with a great deal of labor.

In 1962, when the work of restoration and the danger from heterodox groups was ended, he left. The Saint pleaded fervently with God to remove the temptations which besieged him every day, and to show him the path he must follow. So, he accepted the invitation of a certain Hierodeacon to accompany him to the God-trodden Mount Sinai. In this waterless place, in the kelli⁶ of Saints Galaktion and Episteme (Epistḗmē) (November 5) near Saint Katherine's Monastery, living in solitude and in asceticism. One day, as he searched for matches to light his lamp in order to read, a light shone in his cell showing where the matches were. Father Paisios did not trust this, so he made the Sign of the Cross, and the light disappeared. At last he lived as he had wanted to live for years, alone and near God.

He was beloved by the Bedouins, giving them food and money which he earned by selling to the pilgrims wooden crosses that he made himself. The Arab children in the area often visited Father Paisios. He wished that he had something to give them, but when he brought his handiwork to the Monastery he asked for some cookies and was told that he had to bring more handiwork to obtain cookies. Father Paisios shortened his Prayer Rule and spent more time for his handiwork so that he might have cookies for the children. By this act of love, he discerned that he received even more grace from God.

Returning to Mount Athos in 1964, he did not cease his ascetical contests despite his bodily ailments, but maintained his former fervor in his soul. So, living as a stranger and a sojourner on the earth (Genesis 23:4, LXX), he became a citizen of the Heavens. He attained the heights and became a partaker of divine mysteries, with the blessing of the Mother of God. In addition, he conversed with the Saints who appeared before him, and he had a vision of his Guardian Angel. He also heard angelic hymns, and he shone with heavenly light.

In 1966 he became seriously ill and was admitted to the Center for Thoracic Diseases of Northern Greece (Papanikolaou Hospital). He had a major operation, which resulted in the partial removal of his lungs. Some young women who wished to become nuns donated their blood for his operation. When he recovered he helped them to establish their Convent at Sourote (Sourotḗ), and was able return to the Holy Mountain. He recuperated at the Holy Monastery of Saint John the Evangelist in Sourote in Thessaloniki, and returned to the Holy Mountain after his recovery.

In 1967, he moved to Katounákia, specifically to the Lavriote kelli of Hypatios (Vlachika), where he had a vision of the Uncreated Light. He also saw various Saints, the Mother of God, and even Christ Himself. On one occasion, he was visited by Saint Euphemίa, with whom he discussed certain Church matters.

On August 12, 1968, Saint Paisios came to the Holy Monastery of Stavronikita and lived alone in the kelli of the Holy Cross. There he was tonsured into the Great Schema by the Russian Elder Tikhon, who had the gift of tears. After the latter's repose, Father Paisios would visit the Elder's grave to ask him questions, and Father Tikhon would reply from the grave.

Saint Paisios became ill shortly afterward, and had to leave the Holy Mountain. Then he lived for a time in a monastery in northern Greece. As a consolation, he took with him the relics of Saint Arsenios, who had baptized him. Father Paisios did return to Mount Athos and settled in a cell.

In 1979 he left Holy Cross and, looking for a kelli, went to the Panagouda kelli of Koutloumousίou Monastery, near Karyes. He worked hard to create a kelli with a "Confessor", where he stayed until the end of his life. From the time he settled in Panagouda, a large number of people visited him. In fact, it got so crowded that there were special markers showing the way to his cell, so that the monks would not be disturbed by so many visitors. He also received too many letters. As the Saint said, he became very upset by reading the letters, because he learned only about divorces and mental or physical illnesses. Despite his busy schedule, he continued his intense ascetical life, pausing to rest only two or three hours a day. But he continued to receive and help visitors. He also used to make small printed icons which he gave to them as a blessing.

To the daily fatigue of Saint Paisios, some health problems were added, which tormented him. In the final years of his life, the pains of various diseases such as colitis, which left him permanently dyspeptic, an inguinal hernia, and especially from the cancer with which he had been diagnosed. There was more and more of this, nevertheless, he was calm and did not complain at all. On the contrary, he continued to pray for everyone.

In the early 1980s he moved near Karyes, to a kelli at Koutloumousίou.

After 1993 he began to hemorrhage, for which he was hospitalized, saying that "everything will be done, it is convenient for me." In November of the same year, he left the Holy Mountain for the last time, and went to Sourote, to the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian for its Feast Day; and later for the Feast of Saint Arsenios (November 10). He stayed for a few days, but when he was preparing to leave, he fell ill and was taken to Theageneio, where he was diagnosed with a tumor in the large intestine.

He asked God to grant him bodily and spiritual health. On February 4, 1994, he underwent surgery. The disease was not halted, but it metastasized to the lungs and to the liver. The Saint announced his desire to return to the Holy Mountain on June 13, but a high fever and shortness of breath forced him to remain. At the end of June, his doctors announced that he had only two or three weeks to live at most. On Monday, July 11, 1994 (the Feast of Saint Euphemia), Father Paisios received Holy Communion for the last time, kneeling by his bed. In the last days of his life he decided not to take medicines or painkillers, despite the horrible pains of his sickness. He reposed on Tuesday, July 12, 1994 at 11:00 and was buried in the Holy Hesychasterion of Saint John the Theologian in Sourotei, Thessaloniki, next to Saint Arsenios of Cappadocia, whose Life was written by Saint Paisios.

On January 13, 2015, the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople met and decided to include Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain in the Hagiologion of the Orthodox Church. May his blessing be upon us.

¹ Under the terms of the Treaty of Lausanne, Greeks living in Asia Minor were forced to move to Greece, and Turks living in Greece had to return to Turkey.
² 4 Kings 2:15 (Septuagint).
³ According to Saint Paisios, philotimo is a reverent distribution of goodness, the love shown by humble persons, from which every trace of self (ego) has been rooted out. Their hearts are filled with gratitude toward God and to their fellow man; and out of spiritual sensitivity, they try to repay the slightest good which others do to them.
⁴ "Life is blessed for those in the wilderness, as they fly upon the wings of divine love" (Sunday Matins: Hymn of Degrees, Tone 5, First Antiphon).
⁵ Skete: Typically a settlement of hermits near a common church, known as the kyriakon. Kalyva: cells gathered around a church.
⁶ A monk's cell, or a monastic establishment consisting of a building with a chapel in it, and some land. Usually, a kelli was inhabited by three monks.

This Icon is kept in the Moldavian Theophany (now Prodromou)¹ Skete on Mount Athos, about an hour's walk from the Lavra of St. Athanasios.

In 1863, Igoumen Niphon, accompanied by several monks, went to Moldavia on the Monastery's business. Arriving at Iași, the capital of Moldavia, the Athonite monks decided to order an icon of the Mother of God for their Monastery, and began to look for a master, who would not only know his craft well, but at the same time he would lead a good life, have the fear of God, and who would be adorned with Christian piety. Soon they managed to find such a man at Iași, the aged painter, George Nikolaev (Iordache Nicolau), with whom they agreed that he should paint the icon only while fasting, before eating any food, and by himself, without the participation and assistance of others.

The old man, having agreed to these conditions, zealously set about his work. The work progressed quickly to its end: it remained only to paint the faces of the Mother of God and the Divine Child. But when the painter started to execute the last part of the work, he suffered a setback: he couldn't paint the faces correctly, despite all his efforts. He was upset and told the monks of his failure, and he even began to doubt himself, whether he had forgotten his art in his old age.

The painter increased his fasting and prayed with tears. Early one morning, after intensified fasting and fervent prayer, he entered his workroom to finish the task that had caused him so much grief and anxiety. Approaching the Icon and looking at it, he suddenly stopped, struck with amazement: from the canvas of the Icon the faces of the Mother of God and the Child looked at him, painted by an invisible hand and radiant with heavenly beauty and artistic expression. The painter was awestruck: the more he considered these faces, the more clearly he understood that a great and incomprehensible miracle of the Queen of Heaven had occurred, and that she had heard his humble and fervent prayers. Overcome with amazement, the artist did not dare to touch this Icon with his brush, but only covered it with varnish.

Rumors of this miracle quickly spread throughout the city, and many people gathered in the artist's home, so that the Athonite monks had great difficulty in moving the Icon from his house to their apartment. The miraculous event that had occurred was also made known to the local Metropolitan, His Grace Callinic (Miclescu), who at that time held the office of Metropolitan. He examined the Icon carefully and recognized the truth of the miracle. After that, a Moleben was served before the Icon, and only then were the people allowed to venerate the image of the Mother of God, which from that time began to be glorified by many miraculous signs.

A certain man had a large thorn in his eyes, and he could not see anything. He was brought in to venerate the Icon of the Mother of God and was given some Holy Water to drink, and to wash with it. He took some of it with him to his house. Three days later he received perfect sight, so that without the help of others he was able to come to give thanks to the Mother of God before her miraculous Icon for his healing.

A nobleman had a child who was unconscious for three days without any movement, so that only by the child's barely perceptible breath could one determine that a faint spark of life still remained. Despairing of saving his child from death by conventional medical means, the father turned to the Mother of God for help, praying fervently before her Icon. Taking some Holy Water to his house, he sprinkled the dying child and poured a few drops into his mouth. And a miracle occurred: the child had already died, but then he recovered.

Many other patients afflicted with various ailments received healing by praying before the Icon of the Mother of God. In view of the numerous miracles performed by the power of the Theotokos through her Holy Icon, not only did Orthodox Christians come to venerate her, but also schismatics, Armenians, and even Jews, for there was the case of a Jewish woman who received her gracious help, which was why she and her entire household were baptized.

The return of the Athonite monks with the Icon, from Iași to their Monastery on Athos, was also accompanied by many miracles.

When the monks arrived with the Icon in the city of Byrlad, the people's teacher in that city wished to receive the Holy Icon in his house, and for this purpose he sent people for it. The monks advised him to come to them if he wished to venerate the Icon, instead of bringing it to his home. But the teacher insisted on having his way. The monks decided to grant his wish. When two of them tried to lift the Icon, despite all their efforts, they could not do so. It took four monks to lift the icon, but only with great effort. When the Icon was brought to the carriage in order to put it in, a loud noise was heard, frightening everyone, both people and the horses. It turned out that the kiot containing the Icon had cracked. Then everyone knew that the Mother of God did not want to have her Icon brought to the teacher's house, and it was decided not to carry it to the teacher's home. Then a strange thing occurred: this time, two monks were able to lift the Icon without any difficulty.

A pious woman who lived outside the city of Byrlad beheld a vision in a dream telling her to go into the city to venerate the Icon. When she arrived, she recognized the very Icon that she had seen in the vision.

When the monks came to Galați there was a painter who, seeing a multitude of people flocking to venerate the Icon, began to mock it, urging people not to believe the miracle of how the faces had not been painted by any earthly artist. But when he gazed at the Icon of the Mother of God, the exression on her face seemed so fierce to him that he was struck with great horror. Then he became a zealous admirer of the wonderworking Icon.

By the time the monks arrived at their Skete on the Holy Mountain, there was a sick monk, who had not eaten any food for three weeks, nor did he speak. He was so weak that he did not move at all. Only by his breathing could anyone tell that he was still alive. When the monks arrived at the Skete, the patient seemed to awaken from a deep sleep and asked to be taken to venerate the Holy Icon. Presenting himself before the Icon, he turned to the Mother of God with this plea: "O Mother of God! You know my heart and you know my fate. If it would be good for me to live, then give me health. If, after I am healed of my illness, I do not behave better, then let me die: end my life here on earth, so that I do not suffer or endure torments there, in the grave." After praying this way, he returned to his cell, put on clean linen and his full monastic garb, and asked to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. He seemed to have a clear premonition of his approaching death. And, indeed, less than an hour after receiving Communion, he departed peacefully and quietly to the Lord.

In this Skete there were even more cases of healings by the Icon of the Mother of God. The monk Sergius was healed from weakness in all his members, and from deafness, and one of the masters who worked in the same Skete was subjected to torments by an unclean spirit; as soon as he was brought to the Icon of the Mother of God, he was freed from the excruciating power of the Enemy.

In addition to the recorded accounts, many other wonderful signs took place on Mount Athos from the Moldavian Icon of the Mother of God, which continues to work miracles up to the present day.

¹ The Romanian Skete of Saint John the Forerunner on Mount Athos.