Monday marks 22 years since the repose of Saint Dionysius of Colciu, one of the great Romanian spiritual elders of Mount Athos.
Saint Dionysius was born on 22 September 1909 in Vorniceni, Romania, into a large, devout family, the youngest of eight children. At baptism, he received the name Dumitru.
His childhood was marked by hardship, as his father passed away when he was little more than one year old. Amid the difficulties caused by the First World War, he attended only a few years of primary school and two years of vocational training, though he distinguished himself through excellent academic results.
Life on Holy Mount Athos
Drawn to monastic life from childhood, he followed his elder brother, Gheorghie (later Ghimnazie), into the monastery in 1923. After a period spent in Romania, the two brothers departed for Mount Athos in 1926 together with two monks from Măgura Skete in Moldavia.
The brothers arrived on the Holy Mount Athos on 6 September 1926, when Dumitru was only 17 years old. After a brief pilgrimage through Athos, they attempted to settle at Prodromos Skete, but were not received.
Together with Schema-monk Sebastian, the two brothers borrowed a substantial sum of money with which they purchased the Cell of the Annunciation on the territory of Pantokrator Monastery. To repay the debt, they worked for three years at Iviron Monastery, a period marked by great hardship but also by important spiritual experiences.
In 1927, Dumitru was tonsured a monk with the name Dionysius, and in 1931, he was ordained hierodeacon. After the repose of Elder Sebastian, Fathers Dionysius and Gymnasius moved to the Cell of Saint Tikhon in Kapsala.
In 1937, they took over the Cell of Saint George at Colciu, which they rebuilt almost entirely from the foundations. In the same year, Dionysius was ordained hieromonk, and in 1945, he became a confessor.
The spiritual father of Colciu
For several decades, Saint Dionysius of Colciu lived a life of ascetic struggle and humility on Mount Athos, following the example of his brother. After the repose of Elder Ghedeon Chelaru in 1979, he became the head of the Cell of Saint George at Colciu.
Through his spiritual experience and wisdom, Elder Dionysius became one of the greatest Athonite spiritual fathers, offering guidance and support to Romanian and Greek monks, as well as to numerous pilgrims from around the world who came to Colciu.
He departed to eternal life on 11 May 2004 at the age of 95, after nearly eight decades spent on Mount Athos. The present King Charles III also attended his funeral service.
Canonisation
The Ecumenical Patriarchate approved during the Holy Synod session held on 30–31 August 2025, the canonisation of the Romanian venerable fathers Dionysius of Colciu and Petronius of Prodromos.
The feast day of Saint Dionysius of Colciu was established as 11 May.
The Greek-language liturgical texts for the saint’s service were prepared by the Romanian Patriarchate and submitted to the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Since 2022, Romanian hierarchs had also examined the Romanian-language versions of the services dedicated to the two Athonite saints.
Photo: Zoran Purger
