The Life of our Holy Father Patapius - December 8

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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ON DECEMBER 8th OUR HOLY ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH COMMEMORATES THE LIFE OF OUR HOLY FATHER PATAPIUS

In Egypt, there is a city named Thebes, situated alongside the Nile River. It was here that the blessed Patapius was born, the son of Christians who reared him in piety and the fear of the Lord. Reaching manhood, he came to despise the vanity of this world, so he forsook his home, parents, and friends to become a monk. He went into the desert, where he began to live for God alone, fasting, praying, and undertaking other ascetic labors. In time his place of seclusion became known, and many people began to visit him and extol his virtuous way of life. Grieving because his silence was lost and because he was praised by men, Patapius left Egypt and went to Constantinople. He built himself a hut next to the city wall near the Vlachernae quarter and lived as a recluse there. Patapius conversed in solitude, praying without ceasing. Guided by the Lord's hand, a Christian youth who was blind from birth found his way to the hut of our holy father. He entreated the blessed one to pray to the Lord for him, asking that he be granted to see the visible creation, and through things created come to know more perfectly the Maker of all. The venerable Patapius felt compassion for him and declared, "In the name of Jesus Christ, Who gives life to the dead and sight to the blind: see!" At that very moment, the blind youth opened his eyes. He could see clearly and began to glorify and thank God.

He performed many miracles i.e., a prominent citizen suffering from dropsy after blessing him with a cross and anointing him with oil was healed; a young man possessed by a cruel demon who had tormented him, the evil spirit went out of God's creature like smoke and was healed; He made the sign of the Cross over a woman who had sores on her breasts and was in great pain and was healed.

Having worked these and many miracles, our venerable father Patapius reached his end, departing in great old age unto the Lord Whom he had pleased throughout his life. Saint Patapius was reverently buried by the faithful in the Church of the Forerunner. Unto Christ our God, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, be glory and worship forever. Amen. (Source: The Great Collection of the Lives of the Saints)

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" -- Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

The Proselyte (Part V)

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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THE PROSELYTE (Part V)

Question: Is your conversion to Orthodoxy a total conversion or partial? Is it conditional? Is it selective? What kind of conversion is it? These are important and serious questions that should be answered by the one who is considering converting to Orthodox Christianity.

If one desires to be a member of the Body of Christ, the Orthodox Church, he or she must make a total commitment without conditions or to believe that he/she has an option to be selective and to approve or disapprove, accept or reject, like or dislike certain beliefs and traditions of Orthodoxy and to do it before they enter the Church. Otherwise it is not a true conversion but a false one.

How can a Christian of another tradition or a non-Christian become a member of the Body of Christ through deception? One enters the Holy Orthodox Church through either Baptism or Chrismation or both. Nevertheless it is through of the Mysteries (Sacraments) of the Church and not a handshake. If one is not sincere and truthful it means that he/she is willing to violate the Sacrament, Christ Himself, the Holy Spirit Himself, just to say 'I am now an Orthodox Christian'. Is this not a dishonest way for someone to enter the Holy Church of Christ? Is this not a sin?

For a convert to feel as a genuine member of the Church he/she must be obedient to her, to trust her, to believe her, and not to constantly question her integrity, or to analyze the faith, her dogmas and her traditions. If one has a doubt about her authenticity of Orthodoxy then, simply do not join. No one will compel you to join the Orthodox Church.

There are some important beliefs in Orthodox Christianity which Christians that come out of Protestantism find it very difficult to adhere to i.e., Theotokos (Mother of God), Saints, holy veneration of holy icons and holy relics, and is some cases the real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. If one cannot believe what the Orthodox Church teaches then one must never attempt it. Otherwise that person is not an Orthodox Christian but an imposter.

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The Theotokos and Ever Virgin Mary

Among all the Saints, Our Holy Orthodox Church reserves a special position of honor for the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is venerated as the most exalted among God's creatures, "more honorable than the Cherubim and incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim." (The Axion Esti which is chanted in the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom and other divine services). Orthodox Christians venerate or honor the Mother of God, but in no sense do the members of the Church regard her as a fourth person of the Trinity, nor do they assign to her worship due to God alone.

The titles given to the Ever-Mary by the Orthodox Church: Theotokos (Mother of God), Aeiparthenos (Ever-virgin) and Panagia (All-Holy) serve a theological purpose. Far from elevating her to a position as a fourth person of the Trinity, such titles seek to protect and proclaim the correct doctrine of Christ's Person. The Mother is venerated because of the Son and never apart from Him. Too often a refusal to honor the Theotokos goes hand in hand with an incomplete faith in the Incarnation, i.e., the mystery of God becoming man in the Person of Jesus Christ. Nicholas Cavasilas has written: "The Incarnation was not only the work of the Father, of His Power and His Spirit...but it was also work of the will, faith and consent of the Virgin...Just as God became incarnate voluntarily, so He wished that His Mother should bear Him freely and with her consent." Mary stands as the greatest example of man's free response to God's offer of salvation. She stands as an example of synergy, or cooperation between God and man. God does not force His will on Mary but waits for her free response which she grants with those beautiful words: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to your word" (St. Luke 1:38). Thus, Eve's disobedience is counterbalanced by Mary's obedience. She becomes the New Eve as Christ is the New Adam, lifting by her obedience the curse that the first Eve brought upon the human race by her disobedience.

In the words of the Greek Orthodox theologian, Dr. N.A. Nissiotis:

"As shown in the icon, Mary is never alone but always with Christ. Thus prayer to her is the prayer of the Church with her to the Incarnate Son. One should rather see in Mary, the 'Most Holy' (Panagia), the first and fullest of the Saints, leading them in a continuous intercessions to her Son. The worshiping Church is not praying to the Theotokos but praying with her to God. She is the animating power, the Leader of this continuous intercession of the Community of saints to the Trinitarian God."

The Holy Orthodox Church calls Mary "All=Holy"; it calls her "immaculate" or "spotless" in Greek, achrantos); and all Orthodox Christians are agreed in believing that our Lady was free from actual sin.

Orthodox Christians do not worship the Theotokos and the Saints; rather they venerate them. God alone is worshiped. The Saints are reverenced as reflections of the Christ image. It is God Who is glorified through His Saints.  They are praised for what our Lord has done in and through them.

For the first time she appears in the story of the Annunciation and naturally figures very prominently in the Birth stories of Saint Matthew's Gospel (Chapters 1 and 2), but especially in Saint Luke's Gospel (Chapters 1 and 2). But though she is mentioned several times during the years of Christ's Public Ministry, she remains in the background. She appears prominently at the foot of the Cross (Saint John's Gospel 19:25) to sorrowfully witness the Passion of her Son and be entrusted by the suffering Christ to His beloved Disciple John, later to become the Evangelist and Theologian. She witnessed the inception and growth of the infant Church in the Upper Room at Jerusalem under the action and guidance of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14). Her Divine Maternity and her virginity are clearly stated in the Gospels: she has really conceived and given birth to Jesus, the Son of God, without losing her virginity. Her perpetual virginity ("ever-virgin") was first asserted by Didymos the Blind (about 313-98 A.D.), the teacher of Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, and Jerome, who gave her the well-known name Ever-Virgin. Her supreme dignity as the Mother of God was praised by many famous Eastern and Western Holy Fathers. In the 8th century, Saint John of Damascus calls her 'mediator" and Saint Andrew of Crete calls her "mediator of grace."

The veneration of Mary received considerable impetus by her name 'Theotokos' being officially adopted by the Third Ecumenical Council in 431 A.D.

According to Metropolitan of Diokleia Kallistos Ware in his book "The Orthodox Church" states the following: "Orthodoxy...firmly believes in her Bodily Assumption. Like the rest of mankind Our Lady underwent physical death, but in her case the Resurrection (Translation) of the body occurred and her tomb was found empty. She has been passed beyond death and judgment, and lives already in the Age to Come. Yet she is not thereby utterly separated from the rest of humanity, for that same bodily glory which Mary enjoys now, all of us hope one day to share. However, the bodily Assumption (Translation) of Mary to heaven is not a dogma in the Orthodox Church."

Reverence for Saints is enhanced through the use and veneration of holy icons which are ever-present in Orthodox Christian churches and homes. The holy icon becomes a meeting place, an existential encounter, a window through which we look on the Saints not as shadowy figures from a remote past but as members of the same household of God. We feel free to call on them through prayer from family support as they intercede to God in our behalf. Saint Basil the Great writes, "I accept the saintly Apostles, Prophets, and Martyrs, and in my prayer to God I call upon them and through their prayer I receive mercy from our God Who loves all humanity" (Epistle to Amphilochios).

(To be continued)

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

The True Spirit of Fasting During the Preperation for the Holy Nativity of our Lord

Beloved in Christ God,
WHAT IS THE TRUE SPIRIT OF FASTING?

According to the Holy Scripture, Christians should fast in the following manner:

"Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face. so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly" (St. Matthew 6:16-18).

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"Let the husband render to his wife the affection due to her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control" (1 Corinthians 7:3-6).

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"For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master, he stands or fails. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand...He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord, and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks" (Romans 14:2-6).

Our Lord Jesus Christ Tempted In the Wilderness

"Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward when they had ended, He was hungry. And the devil said to Him, 'If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.' But Jesus answered him, saying, "it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God" (St. Luke 4:1-4).

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Please note: In order for fasting to be of any spiritual value and a benefit to you, it must be done according to the guidelines of the Holy Scripture and the Holy Tradition of the Church. It is a matter of fact that very few Orthodox Christians fast and to what extent. I have heard of people that have adopted unorthodox foreign practices of fasting where they may give up, as they say, chocolate or smoking. The whole spirit of fasting has been distorted or entirely lost. Others attempt to find ways of subverting fasting by looking for loopholes and shortcuts. This type of attitude is no less than outright mockery. 

It is better, to be honest, and avoid deceiving oneself and others. There are those who make a sincere effort but they are not totally successful. At least they make a good effort. Fasting is a form of spiritual discipline and a challenge. Fasting and prayer are inseparable partners.

According to Saint John Chrysostom, it is not what goes into the mouth that condemns one but what comes out of the mouth. Instead, "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good, for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers" (Ephesians 4:29).

May God bless all of you.

With agape,

+Father George

December 6 - Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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ON DECEMBER 6th OUR HOLY ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH COMMEMORATES SAINT NICHOLAS THE WONDERWORKER, ARCHBISHOP OF MYRA IN LYCIA

The great wonder-worker, swift helper of those in need, and fervent intercessor before God. Christ's holy hierarch (bishop) Nicholas, was born in Patara, a city in the Province of Lycia.  His parents were honorable, well-born, wealthy people and were Orthodox. Nicholas' father was named Theophanes and his mother Nonna who were adorned with every virtue. When their son was born, they gave him the name Nicholas, which means "victor of the nations," and truly, with God's help, he proved victorious over evil and became a benefactor of the whole world.

As the child grew, his understanding increased, and he was instructed in the rules of good conduct by his parents. The seed of Christian teaching sprang up in his heart as though in a fertile field, every day bearing the fruit of excellent conduct. He quickly achieved a profound understanding of their contents. He frequently spent the whole day and night in the church, reading sacred books and engaging in mental prayer to God.

The blessed one had an uncle who was also named Nicholas and was Bishop of Patara. Seeing his nephew advancing in the life of virtue and distancing himself from everything worldly, the uncle advised Nicholas' parents to dedicate the young man to God's service. They agreed with him, presenting their son to the Lord Who entrusted him to them. The Bishop took the young elder and elevated him to the sacred rank of presbyter (priest).  

As a priest Saint Nicholas added to his labors, always fasting and keeping vigil, praying without ceasing and striving to emulate the life of the bodiless powers although he was clothed in flesh. At that time his uncle, Bishop Nicholas, wished to visit Palestine and venerated the Holy Places there, and he entrusted the entire administration of the Church of Patara to his nephew. God's priest Nicholas gave to the Church's affairs the same close attention as did his uncle. While Saint Nicholas was administering the diocese, his parents departed this fleeting existence for life eternal. They left their wealth to their son, who distributed them among those who begged alms of him. And now the time has come to tell of one of his numerous deeds of compassion, as a testimony to his generosity.

There was a man living in Patara who was once wealthy and renowned, but his fortune waned. He fell into poverty and was scorned by those who before had regarded him highly. This man had three beautiful daughters, and when the necessities of life began to fail him, he decided to make his house a brothel and sell their bodies. Hearing of the father's poverty and learning by Divine revelation of his foul scheme, Nicholas felt pity for him and resolved to snatch him and his daughters from penury and sin as if from fire, by giving them generous alms. However, the Saint did not want to help the man openly, for two reasons. Firstly, obedient to the words of the Gospel, "Take heed that you do not your alms before them" (St. Matthew, Ch. 6), he sought to avoid praise of men. Secondly, since the man was once rich and had only recently fallen on bad times, Nicholas did not wish to humiliate him. Knowing how mortifying it is for someone who once enjoyed wealth and renown to accept alms (since he is reminded of his former prosperity), the Saint thought it best to obey Christ's words: "let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth". So great was Nicholas' desire to avoid praise that he attempted to hide even from those whom he assisted! He went at midnight to the man's home, threw a large bag of gold into the house through a window, and fled. The next morning, when he rose, the man found the bag and untied it. Seeing the gold, he became frightened, thinking it was an illusion since he knew of no one likely to aid him so generously. Ascribing his good fortune to providence, he thanked God unceasingly, glorifying the Lord Who cares for all men. Without delay, he married off his eldest daughter using the gold to provide her dowry. Learning what the man had done, the wondrous Nicholas was very pleased and prepared to assist the second daughter. He made ready another bag of gold, of the same value, and unknown to all went by night and threw it into the man's house through the same window. When the father rose the next morning and found the second bag, he was even more amazed than before, and falling to the floor, wept and cried, "O Merciful God, Who did purchase my salvation with Thy precious blood, Thou has ransomed my home and children from the snares of the enemy! I beseech Thee to reveal to me who it was that accomplished Thy will and served as minister of Thy kindness and love for man.

Thanking the Lord for his kindness, the man celebrated the wedding of his second daughter. He trusted that God would provide a lawful husband for his third child and again send him the money he needed. Because he wished to know who was bringing the gold, he did not sleep at night but watched in the hope of catching sight of his secret patron. It was not long before Christ's favorite came a third time, walking very quietly and again cast a bag of money through the window. The father heard it striking the floor and ran as fast as he could in pursuit of the Saint. When he caught up with him, he recognized Nicholas, who was known to all because of his virtuous life and noble ancestry. He fell at the holy priest's feet and kissed them, calling the Saint his helper and deliverer and the rescuer of souls. Only with the greatest difficulty did Nicholas succeed in raising him to his feet and compelling him to swear that he would tell no one what had occurred as long as his benefactor remained alive.  

From this story, it is evident what deep sympathy Saint Nicholas had for the poor. It would be impossible to tell every example of his generosity to beggars or to enumerate the hungry people he fed, the naked he clothed, or the debtors he delivered form usurers.

When he embraced a life of solitude and silence, thinking to live in that way until his death, a voice from on high came to him: 'Nicholas, set about your work among the people if you desire to receive a crown from Me.' Immediately after that, by God's wondrous providence, he was chosen as Archbishop of the city of Myra in Lycia. Merciful, wise and fearless, Saint Nicholas was a true shepherd to his flock. He was cast into prison during the persecutions of the pagan emperor Diocletian and Maximian, but even there continued to instruct the people in the Law of God. He was present at the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea in 325 A.D., and, in his zeal, struck Arius the heretic with his hand. For this act, he was removed from the Council and from his episcopal duties, until some of the chief hierarchs (bishops) had a vision of our Lord Christ and His Most Holy Mother showing their sympathy with Nicholas.

This wonderful Saint was a defender of the Truth of God and was ever a spirited champion of justice among the people. On two occasions, he saved three men from underserved sentences of death. Merciful, trustworthy and loving right, he walked among the people like an Angel of God. People considered him a Saint even during his lifetime and invoked his aid when in torment or distress. He would appear both in dreams and in reality to those who called upon him for help, responding speedily to them, whether close at hand or far away. His face would shine with light as Moses' did aforetime, and his mere presence among people would bring solace, peace, and goodwill. In old age, he became ill and went to his rest in the Lord after a life full of labor and fruitful toil. He now enjoys eternal happiness in the Kingdom of Heaven continuing to help the faithful on earth by his miracles and to spread the glory of God. He entered into rest on December 6th 343 A.D. (Sources: The Great Collection of The Lives of the Saints and The Prologue from Ochrid)

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DIVINE SERVICES ON FRIDAY DECEMBER 6TH:

Orthros (Matins) at 9:00 a.m.
Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m.

The service of the Blessing of the Five Loaves of Bread, wheat, wine, and oil, immediately following the Divine Liturgy.

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

Saints in the Month of December

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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SAINT COMMEMORATED IN THE MONTH OF DECEMBER: HOLY AND GREAT MARTYR BARBARA, SAINT JOHN DAMASCENE, HOLY FATHER SAVA THE SANCTIFIED AND SAINT NICHOLAS, ARCHBISHOP OF LYCIA

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The Holy and Great Barbara.

This famous follower of Christ was betrothed to Him from her early years. Her father, Dioscorus, was a pagan in the city of Heliopolis in Egypt and was famed for his wealth and standing. Dioscorus shut up his only daughter, who was both intelligent and beautiful, in a high tower, surrounded her with all possible comforts, gave her a host of attendants, set up idols for worship and built her a bathroom with two windows. As she gazed through the windows of the tower upon the earth below and the starry sky above, Barbara's mind was opened by the grace of God, and she came to know Him as the one, True God and Creator, although she had no human teacher to bring her to the knowledge of Him. Once, when her father was away from the city, she came out of the tower and, by God's providence, met some Christians who told her about the True Christian faith. Barbara's heart was set on fire with love for Christ. She had a third window cut in the bathroom as a symbol of the Holy Trinity and traced a Cross with her finger on one wall of it, which etched itself deep in the stone as if cut by a chisel. A spring of water gushed forth from the bathroom floor from her footprint, and it later gave healing from sickness to many. When her father Dioscorus found out about his daughter's Christian faith, he beat her harshly and drove her from the tower, chasing after her to kill her, but a cliff opened and hid Barbara from her irate father. When she appeared again, Dioscorus took her to Marcian, the pagan governor of the city, but the Lord Himself appeared to her in the prison with many Angels, and healed her. A certain woman, Juliana, beheld this and conceived a desire for martyrdom herself. Both of them were fearfully tortured and taken around the city to be mocked, then their breasts were cut off and much blood flowed from them. They were finally led out to the place of execution, and Juliana was slain by soldiers while Saint Barbara was killed by her own father. On the same day, lightning struck Dioscorus's house, killing both him and Marcian. Saint Barbara suffered in 306 A.D., and her miracle-working holy relics are preserved in Kiev. Greatly glorified in the Kingdom of Christ, she has appeared many times down to our own days, sometimes alone and sometimes in the company of the Most Holy Mother of God, the Theotokos.

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Saint John Damascene

Saint John Damascene was first a minister of Caliph Abdul-Malek and then became a monk in the Monastery of Saint Sava the Sanctified. For his ardent advocacy of the veneration of icons, while still a courtier during the reign of the iconoclast emperor Leo the Isaurian, he was slandered by the emperor to the Caliph, who had his right hand cut off. Saint John fell down in prayer before the holy icon of the Most Holy Mother of God, and his hand was re-joined to his arm and miraculously healed by the Theotokos. When he beheld this miracle, the Caliph repented, but Saint John no longer desired to remain at court as a nobleman but to withdraw to a Monastery. There, he was from the beginning a model of humility and obedience, and of all the works of asceticism prescribed for monks. He wrote the hymns for the Parting of the Soul from the Body, put together the Octoechos, the Irmologion, the Menologiion, and the Paschal Canon, and wrote many theological works of an inspired profundity. A great monk, hymnographer and theologian, and a great warrior for the Truth of Christ. Saint John Damascenos is counted among the Great Holy Fathers of the Church. He entered peacefully into rest in about 749 A.D., being 75 years old.  (Source: The Prologue from Ochrid)

(To be continued)

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" -- Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

December 5 - Saint Savva the Sanctified

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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DECEMBER 5th OUR HOLY ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH COMMEMORATES OUR HOLY FATHER SAVVA THE SANCTIFIED

The unknown village of Mutalaska, in the providence of Cappadocia, became famous through this great light of the Orthodox Church, for Saint Savva was born there. He left the home of his parents, John and Sophia, at the age of eight and became a monk in a nearby Monastery called 'Flavian's'. After ten years, he moved to the Monasteries of Palestine, staying longest in the Monastery of Saint Efthimius (Euthymius) the Great (+ Jan. 20th) and Theoctistus. Efthymius, who had the gift of discernment, foretold that he would be a favor monk and leader of monks and that he would found a Monastery that would be greater than any other of that day. After Saint Efthimiu's death, Savva went into the desert, where he lived for five years as a hermit in a cave which an Angel of God showed him. After that, when he had become a perfected monk, he began by Divine Providence to gather around him many desirous of the spiritual life. They very quickly grew in number, so that Savva had to build both a church and many cells. Some Armenians also came to him, and he set aside a cave for them, and they celebrated the services there in their own language. When his father died, his aged mother Sophia came to him and he made her a nun and gave her a cell away from the Monastery, where she lived in asceticism till her death. This Holy Father endured many attacks from those close to him, from heretics and from demons. But he overcame them all in these ways: those close to him he won over by his goodness and forbearance, the heretics by an unshakeable confession of the Orthodox faith, and the demons with the sing of the Cross and the invocation of God's aid. He had a particularly severe battle with the demons on the mountain of Castellium, where he founded the second of his seven Monasteries. He and his neighbor, Theodosius the Great, are considered to be the greatest lights and pillars of Orthodoxy in the East, kings, and Patriarchs were brought to the right Faith by them, and these holy and wonderful men, strong in the power of God, served each and every man as an example of humility. Saint Savva entered into rest in 532 A.D. at the age of 94, after a life of great labor and great reward.

Among all his other great and good works, let this be remembered above all: that he compiled the first Order of Services for use in Monasteries, now known as the Jerusalem Typikon.

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FOR CONSIDERATION

A man may be great in some skill, as a statesman or a military leader, but no-one amongst men is greater than the man great in faith, hope and love. The greatness of the faith and hope in God held by Saint Savva the Sanctified is best shown by the following incident: One day the Monastery treasurer came to Savva and said he would not be able to sound the semandron the following Saturday and Sunday to summon the brethren for the common service and meal, because there was not a trace of flour in the Monastery, nor anything at all to eat or drink. The Saint replied without hesitation: 'I shall not cancel the Divine Liturgy because of a lack of flour. He Who commanded us not to be concerned for bodily things is faithful to His word, and is able to sustain us in a time of hunger.' And he placed some of the church vessels and vestments to be sold in the city, so that the divine services might not be foregone, nor the brothers' customary meal. But, before Saturday dawned, some men, moved by Divine Providence, brought thirty mules laden with wheat, wine, and oil to the Monastery. 'What do you say now, my brother?' Savva asked the treasurer. 'Shall we not strike the semandron and gather the fathers?' The treasurer was ashamed of his lack of faith and begged the Abbot's (Egoumenos) forgiveness. Saint Savva's biographer called him 'severe with demons, but mild with men.' Some monks rebelled against Saint Savva and were driven from the Monastery by order of Patriarch Elias. They built themselves huts on the bed of the Tekos River and lived there in dire straits without the bare necessities of life. Hearing that they were starving, Saint Savva loaded mules with flour and rook them to them himself. Seeing that they had no church, he built them one.  At first the monks received him with hatred, but afterward, they returned his love with love and repented of their former evil toward him.

[Semandron -- is a long piece of flat wood, shaped for resonance, which is struck rapidly with a mallet. It became widely used in place of a bell under Turkish rule, when Christians were forbidden to ring bells.]

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George