The Angel of the Wilderness
Georgios N. Manolis, Theologian The life and activity of John the Baptist and Forerunner is an enduring testimony in Christ, culminating in his martyrdom for Him. Just as then, when he was active in the wilderness of the Jordan, so today his voice can be heard in the wilderness...
Saint Daniel the Stylite
Stylites (the Greek word style means pillar) In the early days of the Byzantine Empire, the love for God made many monks to choose strict and strange types of asceticism. So, some ascetics-saints were standing on a small platform on top of a pillaron for years in an amazing display...
Saint Spyridon the Wonder-Working Bishop of Trimythous
Saint Nikolaï Velimirović, ‘The Ochrid Prologue’, December The island of Cyprus was where this outstanding saint was born and also where he served the Church. He was born into a family of ordinary country folk and remained a simple and humble man throughout his life, until his demise. He...
Saint Anthimos, the Fool for Christ (+1867)
Saint Anthimos was from Sofia, Bulgaria, where he was a married, parish-priest. In 1841, after his wife reposed, he went to Mount Athos and was tonsured as a monk at Simonopetra Monastery. He began to act like a fool for Christ in order to hide his spirituality and closeness to...
Saint Nicholas, the Saint of the Seas
Alexandros Christodoulou Saint Nicholas was born at the south-east corner of Asia Minor, in the town of Patara, in the 3rd century (at the time of the persecutions of Diocletian and Maximian) of devout and rich parents, who had been childless for many years. From an early age it...
Syrian Saints: Barbara of Heliopolis & John of Damascus
James W. Lillie The Holy Great Martyr Barbara lived and suffered during the reign of the emperor Maximian (305-311). Her father, Dioskoros, was a rich pagan, a prominent citizen in Ilioupolis in Syria. After the death of his wife, he devoted himself to the upbringing of his only daughter....
Saint Andrew, Christ’s First-Called Disciple
Alexandros Christodoulou Andrew the Apostle was one of Christ’s twelve disciples. He came from Bethsaida, a town located on the western bank of Lake Tiberias. He worked in the family business run by his father, Jonah, which was based on the rich fishing to be had in the lake....
Contemporary Virtuous Romanians – Father Gheorghe Calciu
Father Gheorghe Calciu (November 23, 1925 – November 21, 2006) I spoke of Your testimonies before kings, and I was not ashamed (Psalm 118:46). Father Gheorghe Calciu was born in the Danube Delta, in Mahmudia, where the propitious blend between the land’s richness and the sky’s beauty reflected into the...
Saint Dimitrios The Myrrh-Yielder – 2
James W. Lillie Another point of interest is that the church of Saint Dimitrios, for 60 years (1430-1490) remained as part of the local Church, when almost all the other churches in Thessaloniki had been turned into mosques after the fall of the city to the Turks in 1430. This...
Saint Dimitrios The Myrrh-Yielder – 1
James W. Lillie Saint Dimitrios is the protector and patron saint of Thessaloniki, a saint from whose relics myrrh flows and also a Great Martyr. There are actually conflicting accounts in the sources, but the overwhelming view is that he was born and bred in Thessaloniki. As a young man,...
