St. Ekvtime with his father, St. Ioane, on the left. Venerable Ekvtime of Mt. Athos was the son of St. Ioane of Mt. Athos, a military commander during the reign of King Davit Kuropalates, who abandoned the world to enter the monastic life. While St. Ioane was laboring on Mt. Olympus, the Byzantine emperor returned … [Read more…]
An Antiochian by birth, St. Shio of Mgvime was among the Thirteen Syrian Fathers who preached the Christian Faith in Georgia. His parents were pious nobles who provided their son with a sound education. When the twenty-year-old Shio heard about the great ascetic labors of St. Ioane of Zedazeni and his disciples who labored in … [Read more…]
The biographies of Sts. Mikael and Arsen the Georgians have unfortunately not been preserved. It is known that they were contemporaries of Patriarch Sergius of Jerusalem (843–859). The following entry is recorded in the synodicon[1] of Jerusalem’s Holy Cross Monastery: “Our Holy Fathers Mikael and Arsen, founders of Olympus.” The record indicates that Sts. Arsen … [Read more…]
Memory 17 (30) March Venerable Hieromartyr Gabriel the Lesser (†1802) Saint Gabriel the Lesser was a major figure in the eighteenth- century Georgian Church. Few details of his life are known, but it is evident that the education he received was quite good for the period. Striving toward the monastic life but still living … [Read more…]
Memory 10 (23) April In the 14th century, during the reign of King Bagrat V (1360–1394), Timur (Tamerlane) invaded Georgia seven times. His troops inflicted irreparable damage on the country, seizing centuries-old treasures and razing ancient churches and monasteries. Timur’s armies ravaged Kartli, then took the king, queen, and the entire royal court captive … [Read more…]
Memory 28 August (10 September) Saint Shushanik was the wife of the Georgian prince Varsken, the ruler[1] of Hereti. Having been raised in a pious Christian family, she was deeply penetrated with love and the fear of God. At that time Kartli was under heavy political pressure from Persia, and Prince Varsken visited the Persian … [Read more…]
Holy Queen Ketevan was the daughter of Ashotan Mukhran-Batoni, a prominent ruler from the Bagrationi royal family. The clever and pious Ketevan was married to Prince Davit, heir to the throne of Kakheti. Davit’s father, King Alexandre II (1574–1605), had two other sons, Giorgi and Constantine, but according to the law the throne belonged to … [Read more…]
Archimandrite Ioane (Basil Maisuradze in the world) was born in the town of Tskhinvali in Samachablo around 1882. He was raised in a peasant family and taught to perform all kinds of handiwork. Basil was barely in his teens when he helped Fr. Spiridon (Ketiladze), the main priest at Betania Monastery, to restore the monastery … [Read more…]
Memory 15 April (28 April) Saint Eprem the Great of Atsquri — one of the most important figures in the Georgian Church of the 8th and 9th centuries — was a disciple and companion of St. Grigol of Khandzta. On his way from Klarjeti in southern Georgia to Abkhazeti in the northwest, St. Grigol … [Read more…]
Saint Demetre the King, also called “the Devoted,” was a great-grandson of Holy Queen Tamar.God sent St. Demetre many tribulations during his childhood, thus encouraging him in the Faith from an early age. Demetre was still an infant when the Mongols killed his mother, the pious Queen Gvantsa. His father, King Davit V (1258–1269), died … [Read more…]