[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

[Daily Orthodox Readings and Saints]

Scripture Readings and Saints for Sun Feb 17 2008

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Luke 24:12-35  (5th Matins Gospel)
12 But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the
linen cloths lying by themselves; and he departed, marveling to
himself at what had happened.
13 Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village
called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem.
14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened.
15 So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself
drew near and went with them.
16 But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.
17 And He said to them, "What kind of conversation is this that you
have with one another as you walk and are sad?"
18 Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, "Are
You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things
which happened there in these days?"
19 And He said to them, "What things?" So they said to Him, "The
things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed
and word before God and all the people,
20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be
condemned to death, and crucified Him.
21 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.
Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things
happened.
22 Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb
early, astonished us.
23 When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had
also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive.
24 And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it
just as the women had said; but Him they did not see.
25 Then He said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe
in all that the prophets have spoken!
26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter
into His glory?
27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them
in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
28 Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He
indicated that He would have gone farther.
29 But they constrained Him, saying, "Abide with us, for it is toward
evening, and the day is far spent." And He went in to stay with them.
30 Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took
bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
31 Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from
their sight.
32 And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us
while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the
Scriptures to us?"
33 So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found
the eleven and those who were with them gathered together,
34 saying, "The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!"
35 And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and
how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.
Scripture Reading 1 of 3


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2 Timothy 3:10-15  (Epistle)
10 But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life,
purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance,
11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at
Iconium, at Lystra-what persecutions I endured. And out of them all
the Lord delivered me.
12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer
persecution.
13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and
being deceived.
14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been
assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which
are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in
Christ Jesus.
Scripture Reading 2 of 3


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Luke 18:10-14  (Gospel)
10 Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other
a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You
that I am not like other men-extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even
as this tax collector.
12 'I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'
13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as
raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be
merciful to me a sinner!'
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than
the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who
humbles himself will be exalted.
Scripture Reading 3 of 3



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------ SAINTS/FEASTS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee _Beginning of the
Lenten Triodion_
The Sunday after the Sunday of Zacchaeus is devoted to the Publican
and the Pharisee. At Vespers the night before, the TRIODION (the
liturgical book used in the services of Great Lent) begins.
Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee who
scrupulously observed the requirements of religion: he prayed, fasted,
and contributed money to the Temple. These are very good things, and
should be imitated by anyone who loves God. We who may not fulfill
these requirements as well as the Pharisee did should not feel
entitled to criticize him for being faithful. His sin was in looking
down on the Publican and feeling justified because of his external
religious observances.
The second man was a Publican, a tax-collector who was despised by the
people. He, however, displayed humility, and this humility justified
him before God (Luke 18:14).
The lesson to be learned is that we possess neither the Pharisee's
religious piety, nor the Publican's repentance, through which we can
be saved. We are called to see ourselves as we really are in the light
of Christ's teaching, asking Him to be merciful to us, deliver us from
sin, and to lead us on the path of salvation.
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Greatmartyr Theodore the Tyro ("the Recruit")
The Holy Great Martyr Theodore the Recruit (Tyro) was a soldier in the
city of Alasium of the Pontine district (northeast province of Asia
Minor, stretching along the coast of the Euxine, i.e. the Black Sea),
under the command of a certain Brincus. They commanded him to offer
sacrifice to idols. St Theodore firmly confessed his faith in Christ
the Savior in a loud voice. The commander gave him several days to
think it over, during which time St Theodore prayed.
They charged him with setting a pagan temple on fire, and threw him
into prison to be starved to death. The Lord Jesus Christ appeared to
him there, comforting and encouraging him. Brought to the governor, St
Theodore boldly and fearlessly confessed his faith, for which he was
subjected to new torments and condemned to burning. The martyr
Theodore climbed onto the fire without hesitation, and with prayer and
gave up his holy soul to God.
This occurred in about the year 306 under the Romanus emperor Galerius
(305-311). Unharmed by the fire, the body of St Theodore was buried in
the city of Euchaita, not far from Amasium. His relics were afterwards
transferred to Constantinople, to a church dedicated to him. His head
is in Italy, in the city of Gaeto.
Later on, fifty years after the death of St Theodore, the emperor
Julian the Apostate (361-363), wanting to commit an outrage upon the
Christians, commanded the city-commander of Constantinople during the
first week of Great Lent to sprinkle all the food provisions in the
marketplaces with the blood offered to idols. St Theodore appeared in
a dream to Archbishop Eudoxius, ordering him to inform all the
Christians that no one should buy anything at the marketplaces, but
rather to eat cooked wheat with honey (kolyva).
In memory of this occurrence, the Orthodox Church annually celebrates
the holy Great Martyr Theodore the Recruit on the first Saturday of
Great Lent. On Friday evening, at the Divine Liturgy of the
Presanctified Gifts following the prayer at the ambo, the Canon to the
holy Great Martyr Theodore, composed by St John of Damascus, is sung.
After this, kolyva is blessed and distributed to the faithful. The
celebration of the Great Martyr Theodore on the first Saturday of
Great Lent was set by the Patriarch Nectarius of Constantinople
(381-397).
The Troparion to St Theodore is quite similar to the Troparion for the
Prophet Daniel and the Three Holy Youths (December 17, Sunday Before
Nativity). The Kontakion to St Theodore, who suffered martyrdom by
fire, reminds us that he also had faith as his breastplate (see I
Thessalonians 5:8).
We pray to St Theodore for the recovery of stolen articles.
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Hieromartyr Hermogenes the Patriarch of Moscow and
Wonderworker of All Russia
The Hieromartyr Hermogenes, Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus, was born
in Kazan around 1530), and was descended from the Don Cossacks.
According to the Patriarch's own testimony, he served as priest in
Kazan in a church dedicated to St Nicholas (December 6 and May 9),
near the Kazan bazaar. Soon he became a monk, and from 1582 was
archimandrite of the Savior-Transfiguration monastery at Kazan. On May
13, 1589 he was consecrated bishop and became the first Metropolitan
of Kazan.
While he was the priest at St Nicholas, the wonderworking Kazan Icon
of the Mother of God (July 8) was discovered in Kazan in 1579. With
the blessing of Archbishop Jeremiah of Kazan, he carried the
newly-appeared icon from the place of its discovery to the Church of
St Nicholas. Having remarkable literary talent, the saint in 1594
compiled an account describing the appearance of the wonderworking
icon and the miracles accomplished through it. In 1591 the saint
gathered newly-baptized Tatars into the cathedral church and for
several days he instructed them in the Faith.
The relics of St Germanus, the second archbishop of Kazan (September
25, November 6, and June 23), who died at Moscow on November 6, 1567
during a plague, were transfered and buried in St Nicholas Church in
1592. With the blessing of Patriarch Job (1589-1605), St Hermogenes
reburied the relics at the Sviyazhsk Dormition monastery.
On January 9, 1592 St Hermogenes addressed a letter to Patriarch Job,
in which he asked for permission to commemorate in his See of Kazan
those Orthodox soldiers who gave their lives for the Faith and the
nation in a battle against the Tatars. In the past, it was customary
to enter into the diptychs the names of all Orthodox warriors who had
fallen in battle, and to commemorate them.
At the same time he mentioned three martyrs who had suffered at Kazan
for their faith in Christ, one of whom was a Russian named John
(January 24) born at Nizhny Novgorod and captured by the Tatars. The
other two, Stephen and Peter (March 24), were newly-converted Tatars.
The saint expressed regret that these martyrs were not inserted into
the diptychs read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, and that "Memory
Eternal" was not sung for them. In answer to St Hermogenes, the
Patriarch issued a decree on February 25, which said: " to celebrate
at Kazan and throughout all the Kazan metropolitanate a panikhida for
all the Orthodox soldiers killed at Kazan and the environs of Kazan,
on the Saturday following the Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy
Theotokos (October 1), and to inscribe them in the great Synodikon
read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy," and also ordered that the three
Kazan martyrs be inscribed in the Synodikon, leaving it to St
Hermogenes to set the day of their memory. St Hermogenes circulated
the Patriarchal decree throughout his diocese, and required all the
churches and monasteries to serve Liturgies, Panikhidas and Lityas for
the three Kazan martyrs on January 24.
St Hermogenes displayed zeal in the faith and firmness in the
observance of Church traditions, and he devoted himself to the
enlightenment of Kazan Tatars with the faith of Christ.
In 1595, with the active participation of the St Hermogenes, the
relics of the Kazan Wonderworkers St Gurias, the first archbishop of
Kazan (October 4, December 5, June 20), and St Barsanuphius bishop of
Tver (October 4, April 11) were discovered and uncovered. Tsar
Theodore Ioannovich (1584-1598) had given orders to erect at the Kazan
Savior-Transfiguration monastery a new stone church on the site of the
first one, where the saints were buried.
When the graves of the saints were discovered, St Hermogenes came with
a gathering of clergy. He commanded the graves to be opened and, when
he saw the incorrupt relics and clothing of the saints, he notified
the Patriarch and the Tsar. With the blessing of Patriarch Job and by
order of the Tsar, the relics of the newly-appeared wonderworkers were
placed in the new church. St Hermogenes himself compiled the lives of
hierarchs Gurias and Barsanuphius.
Having been found worthy of the patriarchal throne, Metropolitan
Hermogenes was elected to the primatial See, and on July 3, 1606 he
was installed as Patriarch by the assembly of the holy hierarchs at
Moscow's Dormition cathedral. Metropolitan Isidore handed the
Patriarch the staff of the holy hierarch Peter, Moscow Wonderworker
(October 5, December 21, August 24), and the Tsar gave as a gift to
the new Patriarch a panagia, embellished with precious stones, a white
klobuk and staff. In the ancient manner, Patriarch Hermogenes made his
entrance riding upon a donkey.
The activity of Patriarch Hermogenes coincided with a difficult period
for the Russian state: the appearance of the false Tsarevich Demetrius
and the Polish king Sigismund III. The first hierarch devoted all his
powers to the service of the Church and the nation.
Patriarch Hermogenes was not alone in this exploit: his
self-sacrificing fellow-countrymen followed his example and assisted
him. With special inspiration His Holiness the Patriarch stood up
against the traitors and enemies of the nation, who wanted to spread
Uniatism and Western Catholicism throughout Russia and to wipe out
Orthodoxy, while enslaving the Russian nation.
When the imposter arrived at Moscow and settled himself at Tushino,
Patriarch Hermogenes sent two letters to the Russian traitors. In one
of them he wrote: "...You have forgotten the vows of our Orthodox
Faith, in which we are born, baptized, nourished and raised. You have
violated your oath and the kissing of the Cross to stand to the death
for the house of the Most Holy Theotokos and for the Moscow realm, but
have fallen for your false would-be Tsarevich ... My soul aches, my
heart is sickened, all within me agonizes, and all my frame shudders;
I weep and with sobbing I lament: Have mercy, have mercy, brethren and
children, on your own souls and your parents departed and living ...
Consider, how our nation is devastated and plundered by foreigners,
who offer insult to the holy icons and churches, and how innocent
blood is spilled, crying out to God. Think! Against whom do you take
up arms: is it not against God, Who has created you? Is it not against
your own brothers? Do you not devastate your own country?... I adjure
you in the name of God, give up your undertaking, there is yet time,
so that you do not perish in the end." In the second document the
saint appeals: "For the sake of God, come to your senses and turn
around, gladden your parents, your wives and children; and we stand to
pray God for you..."
Soon the righteous judgment of God fell upon the "Brigand of Tushino:
he was killed by his own close associates on December 11, 1610. But
Moscow continued to remain in peril, since the Poles and traitors,
loyal to Sigismund III remained in the city. The documents sent by
Patriarch Hermogenes throughout the cities and villages, exhorted the
Russian nation to liberate Moscow from the enemies and to choose a
lawful Russian Tsar.
The Muscovites rose up in rebellion, and the Poles burned the city,
shutting themselves up in the Kremlin. Together with Russian traitors
they forcefully seized Patriarch Hermogenes from the patriarchal
throne and imprisoned him in the Chudov monastery.
On Bright Monday in 1611, the Russian militia approached Moscow and
began the seige of the Kremlin, which continued for several months.
Besieged within the Kremlin, the Poles often sent messengers to the
Patriarch with the demand that he order the Russian militia to leave
the city, threatening him with execution if he refused.
The saint firmly replied, "What are your threats to me? I fear only
God. If all our enemies leave Moscow, I shall bless the Russian
militia to withdraw from Moscow; but if you remain here, I shall bless
all to stand against you and to die for the Orthodox Faith."
While still in prison, the hieromartyr Hermogenes sent a final epistle
to the Russian nation, blessing the liberating army to fight the
invaders. The Russian commanders could not come to an agreement over a
way to take the Kremlin and free the Patriarch. He languished more
than nine months in dreadful confinement, and on February 17, 1612 he
died a martyr's death from starvation.
The liberation of Russia, for which St Hermogenes stood with such
indestructible valor, was successfully achieved. The body of the
hieromartyr Hermogenes was buried in the Chudov monastery, but in 1654
was transferred to the Moscow Dormition cathedral. The glorification
of Patriarch Hermogenes as a saint occurred on May 12, 1913.
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Venerable Theodore the Silent of the Kiev Caves
Saint Theodore the Silent of the Caves chose the exploit of silence,
in order to dwell constantly in remembrance of God, and to safeguard
himself from temptation even by a word. He was glorified by the Lord
with the gift of wonderworking. His memory is celebrated also on
August 28.
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St Mariamne the sister of the Apostle Philip
Righteous Mariamne "The Apostolic Virgin" and sister of the holy
Apostle Philip (November 14), made a vow of virginity and became the
companion of her brother Philip and the holy Apostle Bartholomew (June
11), actively assisting them in their apostolic work.
The Church historian Nicephorus Callistus describes their successful
preaching in the Phrygian city of Hieropolis, where they were arrested
and locked up in prison. They put the Apostle Philip to death on a
cross, but St Mariamne and St Bartholomew were set free. St
Bartholomew went to preach the Gospel in India. St Mariamne, after
burying the body of St Philip, preached the Gospel at Lykaonia (Asia
Minor). She died there in peace.
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Uncovering of the relics of the Martyr Menas of Alexandria
The Holy Martyr Menas Kallikelados (Well Speaking), an Athenian, died
as a martyr with Sts Hermogenes and Eugraphus in about the year 313
(December 10). During the reign of Emperor Basil the Macedonian
(867-886), the military commander Marcian discovered the saint's
relics after St Menas appeared to a certain pious man in a dream to
reveal where they were.
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Icon of the Mother of God Weeping "Tikhvin" on Mt Athos
The Weeping Tikhvin Icon of Mt. Athos is to be found behind the altar
in the Prophet Elias Skete. On February 17, 1877 (Thursday of the
Second Week of Lent) seven monks remained in the church after the
Hours had been read. They were astonished to see tears flowing from
the right eye of the icon, and collecting on the frame. Then a single
large tear came from the left eye.
The monks wiped the tears from the icon's face, then left the church
and locked the doors behind them. Three hours later, they returned for
Vespers and saw traces of tears on the icon, and a single tear in the
left eye. Again they wiped the tears from the icon, but they did not
reappear.
Regarding this manifestation of tears as a sign of mercy from the
Mother of God, the monks established an annual commemoration of the
icon on February 17. The weeping Tikhvin Icon of Mt. Athos is not to
be confused with the original wonderworking Tikhvin Icon (June 26).
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St Joseph of Dionysiou
Saint Joseph was a monk of Dionysiou Monastery on Mt. Athos, where he
shone forth with the virtues of monastic life. He was an iconographer,
and he painted the icon of the holy Archangels on the iconostasis of
Dionysiou's main church.
In obedience to the instructions of Igumen Stephen, St Joseph traveled
to Constantinople with Eudocimus, who had apostasized from Orthodoxy
to become a Moslem. Eudocimus repented, and wished to wipe out his sin
through martyrdom.
When faced with torture and death, however, the unfortunate Eudocimus
denied Christ again, blaming Joseph for turning him from Islam.
St Joseph was arrested and threatened with death. In spite of many
tortures, he refused to convert to Islam. This holy martyr of Christ
was hanged on February 17, 1819, and so he obtained an incorruptible
crown of glory.
Some sources list his commemoration on February 17, while others list
him on September 14 or October 26.
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St Auxibius Bishop of Soli, Cyprus
Saint Auxibius was born at Rome in a rich family. He was raised with
his brother Tempstagoras, and from an early age he displayed
remarkable talents. In the schools of Rome he easily learned the
secular sciences. His parents wanted their son to marry. Learning of
this, the youth secretly left Rome and journeyed to the East.
Arriving upon the island of Cyprus, he settled in the environs of
Limnitis, not far from the city of Soli. By God's dispensation, he
encountered the holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark (September 27,
October 30, January 4, April 25), preaching the Word of God at Cyprus.
St Mark established Auxibius as bishop in the city of Soli, and
himself went to preach at Alexandria.
St Auxibius went toward the western gates of the city and settled near
the pagan temple of Zeus. Gradually he converted the local pagan
priest and other idol-worshippers to Christianity. Once, St Heraklides
(September 17) came to St Auxibius. He had been made a bishop in
Cyprus earlier by St Mark, and he consulted with St Auxibius to preach
the Gospel of ChriSt
One day, St Auxibius arrived at the marketplace and began to preach to
the people about Christ. Many, seeing the miracles and the signs
worked by the saint, believed in Christ. Among the converted were many
people from the surrounding villages. One man, by the name of
Auxinios, remained with St Auxibius and assisted him until the end of
his days.
After a certain while Tempstagoras, the brother of St Auxibius, came
from Rome. He was baptized with his wife, became a priest, and served
in one of the churches. St Auxibius guided his diocese for fifty years
and died peacefully in the year 102, leaving his disciple Auxinios
upon the cathedra.
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New Martyr Theodore
The Holy New Martyr Theodore was born of pious parents in Neochorion
near Constantinople in 1774. He worked in the palace of the Sultan,
where he converted to Islam.
When a plague broke out in Constantinople, he realized the gravity of
his sin and returned to Christianity. He went to Chios and then to
Mytilene, where he confessed Christ before the Moslem authorities. He
was imprisoned, tortured, then hanged by the Turks in 1795.
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St Theodosius the Bulgarian, with his disciple Romanos
Saint Theodosius the Bulgarian and his disciple Romanus. StTheodosius
began his exploit in the city of Viddino, at the Nikolaev monastery.
After the death of the igumen Job he settled near Trnovo, then the
capital city of Bulgaria, at the Holy Mountain monastery of the Most
Holy Theotokos in search of a spiritual guide.
He left the Holy Mountain monastery and for a long time went from
monastery to monastery. Finally, he learned about the desert monastery
called "Concealed" where in pursuit of asceticism St Gregory of Sinai
(August 8) had moved from Athos. St Theodosius found in him an
experienced guide of the contemplative life. St Gregory taught,
"Before death we lay in Hades; whoever does not recognize sincerely
that he is a sinner, and that the beasts and cattle are more pure, is
more wicked than the demons, having become their obedient slave."
The wilderness monastery of St Gregory of Sinai suffered often from
robbers. The abbot sent St Theodosius to the emperor Alexander with a
request to defend the monastery. The pious Bulgarian Tsar, at the
request of the ascetic, provided him with the means to surround the
monastery with strong walls with towers, and made the monastery secure
with land and cattle.
During his final journey to Trnovo on an errand for the abbot to the
Tsar, a nobleman asked St Theodosius to take him along to the
monastery. The holy ascetic brought him to St Gregory of Sinai. This
was Romanus, who became the sincere and beloved disciple of St
Theodosius.
After the death of St Gregory of Sinai (November 27, 1347), St
Theodosius refused to become head of the monastery, and he left the
monastery with his disciple Romanus for solitary struggles. They
founded a monastery on a hill near Trnovo, afterwards called
Theodosiev.
St Theodosius was famous as a zealous defender of Orthodoxy against
many heresies, especially the Bogomils, Judaizers and Messalians.
Their false teachings were especially pernicious. The Patriarch and
the Tsar rendered great help to St Theodosius in the struggle with the
heretics. In addition to this, the holy ascetic translated Greek
writings into Slavonic.
In 1360, he became grievously ill. Wishing to see his friend St
Callistus once more, he went to him at Constantinople, entrusting the
direction of the monastery to his disciple Romanus.
St Theodosius died at Constantinople on February 17, 1362. His
disciple St Romanus became head of the monastery.
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St Romanus, the Disciple of St Theodosius the Bulgarian
The wilderness monastery of St Gregory of Sinai suffered often from
robbers. The abbot sent St Theodosius to the emperor Alexander with a
request to defend the monastery. The pious Bulgarian Tsar, at the
request of the ascetic, provided him with the means to surround the
monastery with strong walls with towers, and made the monastery secure
with land and cattle.
During his final journey to Trnovo on an errand for the abbot to the
Tsar, a nobleman asked St Theodosius to take him along to the
monastery. The holy ascetic brought him to St Gregory of Sinai. This
was Romanus, who became the sincere and beloved disciple of St
Theodosius.
After the death of St Gregory of Sinai (November 27, 1347), St
Theodosius refused to become head of the monastery, and he left the
monastery with his disciple Romanus for solitary struggles. They
founded a monastery on a hill near Trnovo, afterwards called
Theodosiev.
In 1360, St Theodosius became grievously ill. Wishing to see his
friend St Callistus once more, he went to him at Constantinople,
entrusting the direction of the monastery to his disciple Romanus.
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St Nicholas Kandaurov
No information available at this time.
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St Finan of Lindisfarne
No information available at this time.
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Hieromartyr Theodore of Atchara
Holy Hieromartyr Theodore of Atchara belongs to the glorious multitude
of Atcharan faithful who were martyred at the hands of the Ottomans.
St. Theodore was born in the late 18th century. At that time the
Ottoman invaders had nearly completed the forced Islamization of the
Atcharan region. They had already annihilated those who resisted the
conversion and were beginning to evict those who, in spite of their
apparent acceptance of Islam, continued to arouse suspicions. Some
abandoned their native region and fled to foreign lands.
St. Theodore was born to a family that had been forced into exile.
>From his childhood he watched his fellow countrymen, who had been
forcibly converted to Islam, secretly retain their Christian way of
life. It is unclear how the saints family settled in Trebizond (modern
Trabzon). It is known, however, that St. Theodore managed to free
himself from Islam, receive Christianity, and find refuge at a
Georgian monastery in Smyrna (now Izmir). There he was tonsured a monk
and later raised to the rank of _proigoumenos_ (deputy abbot). It is
also known that St. Theodore converted his nephew to Christianity
during that time.
In 1822 St. Theodore set out on a pilgrimage to Mt. Athos. But at the
same time the Ottomans were attempting to crush the Greek independence
movement, and the Holy Mountain was surrounded by Ottoman soldiers.
They captured the faithful pilgrim and killed him. Then they tossed
the holy martyrs body into the sea.
The Holy Synod of the Georgian Apostolic Orthodox Church canonized
Holy Martyr Theodore on October 17, 2002.
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