Holy Godbearing Father Spyridon the Wonderworker, Bishop of Tremithus Saint Spyridon of Tremithus was born towards the end of the third century on the island of Cyprus. He was a shepherd, and had a wife and children. He used all his substance for the needs of his neighbors and the homeless, for which the Lord…

St. Daniel the Stylite Saint Daniel the Stylite was born in the village of Bethara, near the city of Samosata in Mesopotamia. His mother Martha was childless for a long while and in her prayers she vowed that if she had a child, she would dedicate him to the Lord. Her prayers were heard, and…

Holy Martyrs Menas, Hermogenes and Eugraphius The Holy Martyrs Menas, Hermogenes, and Eugraphus suffered for their faith in Christ under the emperor Maximian (305-313).  Saint Menas was sent by the emperor from Athens to Alexandria to suppress the riots that had arisen between the Christians and the pagans. Distinguished for his gift of eloquence, Menas…

The Conception by Saint Anna of the Most Holy Mother of God The Gospels and other books of the New Testament do not mention anything about Saint Anna, the mother of the Theotokos. According to Tradition, the priest Matthan (Matthew 1:15), a resident of Bethlehem, had three daughters: Mary,1 Sobe (Sobḗ), and Anna. Mary was married…

St. Patapius Saint Patapios was born at Thebes into a pious Christian family. Reaching the age of maturity, he scorned the vanity of this world, and so he went into the Egyptian desert where he became known for his ascetic deeds. Though he wished to live in silence, people began coming to him for advice.…

St. Ambrose of Milan Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, was born in the year 340 into the family of the Roman prefect of Gaul (now France). Even in the saint’s childhood there appeared presentiments of his great future. Once, bees covered the face of the sleeping infant. They flew in and out of his mouth,…

Our Father Among the Saints Nicolas the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Myra Saint Nicholas, the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia is famed as a great saint pleasing unto God. He was born in the city of Patara in the region of Lycia (on the south coast of the Asia Minor peninsula), and was the only…

Our Venerable Godbearing Father Sabas the Sanctified Saint Savva the Sanctified was born in the fifth century at Cappadocia of pious Christian parents, John and Sophia, and his father was a military commander. Journeying to Alexandria on military matters, John and Sophia left their five-year-old son Savva in the care of an uncle. When the…

Holy Great Martyr Barbara The Holy Great Martyr Barbara lived and suffered during the reign of the emperor Maximian (305-311). Her father, the pagan Dioscorus, was a rich and illustrious man in the Syrian city of Heliopolis. After the death of his wife, he devoted himself to his only daughter. Seeing Barbara’s extraordinary beauty, Dioscorus…

Holy New Martyr Angelis of Chios Angelis was a devout Christian from Argos in the Peloponnese who was in practice as a physician at Kusadashi near Ephesus at the beginning of the 19th century. One day he entered into a discussion about the faith with a French traveller, whose insolent impiety made him so angry…