The blessed martyr Iakovos (James) was born in the village of Voevonades, which is not far from Kastoria and was baptized Ioannis. His parents, Martinos and Paraskevi, were poor but devout. Apart from Ioannis, they had another son and the parents divided what they had between them. Ioannis became involved with stock-breeding and did well for himself, though this caused his brother to envy him. He left him his sheep and went to Constantinople, where he engaged in sheep and meat trading, becoming a supplier to the Ottoman court. This trade made him rich. One day he heard from a leading Muslim that Patriarch Nifon has healed his wife of demonic possession. This brought Ioannis to the Patriarch, by whom he was instructed and to whom he confessed. In this way, he was admitted into the mysteries of faith in God and decided to distribute his wealth to the poor and go off to the Holy Mountain.

Once he’d visited all the monasteries, he settled at Doheiariou, where he was tonsured as Father Iakovos. He lived for three years at the Monastery of Doheiariou, in strict asceticism, unquestioning obedience and profound humility. From there he went, with his abbot’s blessing, to the small, dilapidated house of the Honorable Forerunner, not far from the Monastery of Iviron. He lived there for six years as a disciple of Elder Ignatios, struggling fiercely against the demons, repelling their assaults in the name of Christ and with the assistance of Our Most Holy Lady, the Mother of God.

After a revelation in a vision, Monk Markianos came to this house and became a disciple. Through his good offices, another monk was accepted into Elder Iakovos’ brotherhood: Father Theonas, who until then had been a monk of the Monastery of Pantokrator and who would go on to become Metropolitan of Thessaloniki. In 1517/1518, Iakovos went with his disciple to the Monastery of Vatopaidi to meet Metropolitan Makarios of Thessaloniki, who recognized his sanctity and was full of praise for him. A monk of the Monastery of Vatopaidi became a disciple of Elder Iakovos.

Following a request from the monks of the Holy Mountain, Iakovos was given authority by the Bishop of Ierissos to become a confessor, even though he wasn’t a priest. Even though he was only an ordinary monk, he confessed lay people, monks and even the clergy at the Monastery of Vatopaidi. Because he wanted to live in greater quietude, he abandoned the house of the Honorable Forerunner and withdrew with his six disciples to the desert of Mount Athos. He didn’t stay there long, because, after a revelation, he decided to leave the Holy Mountain and go to Aitolia. On the Friday of Bright Week, 1518, he left the Holy Mountain with his disciples. They passed through Thessaloniki, the fortifications of Petra on Olympus, and the Meteora, where they met Metropolitan Markos of Trikala. They then arrived at the Monastery of the Honorable Forerunner, in Dervekista, in Aitolia. They stayed there less than a year.

Iakovos’ good reputation played an important role in the fact that large numbers of Christians from all over came to him for confession and to get his blessing. The Bishop of Arta, Akakios initially welcomed Iakovos happily and sent him a friendly letter giving him permission to confess others. A little later, however, because of the miracles Iakovos performed and his gift of foresight, the bishop was deceived by some members of his close circle who denounced him to the Turkish governor of Trikala on charges of sedition. Eighteen soldiers were sent to arrest him.

He and his disciples had just had Holy Communion when the Turks entered the monastery. The saint welcomed them most warmly and left with them and his two disciples, Deacon Iakovos and Father Dionysios, offering no resistance. On the way, he healed one of the soldiers in the guard through his prayers. He was interrogated in Trikala, and, although no culpability was established, he and his two disciples were imprisoned. The governor was holding out for money from the Christians who held Iakovos in high esteem before releasing him. They spent forty days in prison.

From Trikala, the three went to Adrianoupolis and from there to Didymoteikho, where the sultan, Selim, was staying temporarily. At Didymoteikho they were tortured badly on the orders of Selim, whose imminent death the saint foretold. They were then taken back to Adrianouplis, where they were tortured for seventeen days. Strips of skin were cut from the saint’s flesh, his disciples were whipped, their legs were broken and their wounds were cauterized with lit torches. Finally, the decision was taken to hang them. At the place of execution, Saint Iakovos prayed, lifting his hands to the heavens and thanking Christ for counting him worthy of martyrdom. After he and his disciples had partaken of the sacraments, which he had hidden in the breast of his habit, he fell to the ground and his soul departed. His last words were: ‘Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit’. The Turks hanged his corpse and his two disciples on 1 November 1519.

Their relics were purchased by Christians and transferred to Arvanitohori, three miles from Adrianoupolis, where they were buried. Every Sunday and on feast days a bright light would shine from the graves of the saints.

After the martyrdom, Saint Theonas and other disciples gathered on the Holy Mountain and three years later, in 1522, they were able to fetch part of the relics of the New Martyrs to the Holy Monastery of Simonos Petras. When they left and went to the Monastery of Saint Anastasia (1522) just outside Thessaloniki, they took the relics with them and they are there to this day.

Source: pemptousia.com

 

 

ABOUT THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN NETWORK

Orthodox Christian Network (OCN) is a 501(c)3 and an official agency of the Assembly of Canonical Bishops of the United States of America . It is a recognized leader in the Orthodox Media field and has sustained consistent growth over twenty-two years. We have worked to create a community for both believers and non believers alike by sharing the timeless faith of Orthodoxy with the contemporary world through modern media. We are on a mission to inspire Orthodox Christians Worldwide. Click to signup to receive weekly newsletter. 

Join us in our Media Ministry Missions! Help us bring the Orthodox Faith to the fingertips of Orthodox Christians worldwide! Your gift today will helps us produce and provide unlimited access to Orthodox faith-inspiring programming, services and community. Don’t wait. Share the Love of Orthodoxy Today!

OCN has partnered with Pemptousia. A Contemporary post-modern man does not understand what man is.  Through its presence in the internet world, Pemptousia, with its spirit of respect for beauty that characterizes it, wishes to contribute to the presentation of a better meaning of life for man, to the search for the ontological dimension of man, and to the awareness of the unfathomable mystery of man who is always in Christ in the process of becoming, of man who is in the image of divine beauty. And the beauty of man springs from the beauty of the Triune God. In the end, “beauty will save the world”.


avatar

Pemptousia Partnership

Pemptousia and OCN have entered a strategic partnership to bring Orthodoxy Worldwide. Greek philosophers from Ionia considered held that there were four elements or essences (ousies) in nature: earth, water, fire and air. Aristotle added ether to this foursome, which would make it the fifth (pempto) essence, pemptousia, or quintessence. The incarnation of God the Word found fertile ground in man’s proclivity to beauty, to goodness, to truth and to the eternal. Orthodoxy has not functioned as some religion or sect. It was not the movement of the human spirit towards God but the revelation of the true God, Jesus Christ, to man. A basic precept of Orthodoxy is that of the person ­– the personhood of God and of man. Orthodoxy is not a religious philosophy or way of thinking but revelation and life standing on the foundations of divine experience; it is the transcendence of the created and the intimacy of the Uncreated. Orthodox theology is drawn to genuine beauty; it is the theology of the One “fairer than the sons of men”. So in "Pemptousia", we just want to declare this "fifth essence", the divine beaut in our life. Please note, not all Pemptousia articles have bylines. If the author is known, he or she is listed in the article above.

0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Avatar placeholder