Orthodox Calendar, May 13 Virginmartyr Glyceria Saint Glyceria suffered as a martyr for her faith in Christ in the second century, during a persecution against Christians under the emperor Antoninus (138-161). She came from an illustrious family, and her father Macarius was a high-ranking Roman official. Later, the family moved to the Thracian city of…
Orthodox Calendar, May 12 Saint John the Wallachian He was born into a poor family in Oltenia during the time of Prince Matthew Basarab. In 1659, when he was fifteen years old, a band of Turks was attacking the Olt Valley from Ardeal and seizing many young people as slaves, including Saint John. The Turks…
Orthodox Calendar, May 11 Venerable Dionysius the Athonite of Colciu (1909–2004) St. Venerable Dionysius of Colciu was the abbot of the Cell of St. George at Colciu, belonging to Vatopedi Monastery on the Holy Mountain of Athos. He was a disciple of Venerable Antipa Dinescu, a strict ascetic and former abbot of Prodromou Skete, who…
Orthodox Calendar, May 10 Apostle Simon the Zealot Saint Simon, originally from Cana in Galilee, was acquainted with the Lord and His Mother. Tradition holds that he was the bridegroom at the wedding where Jesus performed His first miracle, turning water into wine. Witnessing this miracle, he became a fervent follower of Christ and earned…
Orthodox Calendar, May 9 Prophet Isaiah The Holy Prophet Isaiah lived 700 years before the birth of Christ, and was of royal lineage. Isaiah’s father Amos raised his son in the fear of God and in the law of the Lord. Having attained the age of maturity, the Prophet Isaiah entered into marriage with a…
Orthodox Calendar, May 8 Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian The Church commemorates Saint John on this day because of the annual pilgrimage to his grave. When Saint John was more than one hundred years old, he took seven of his disciples and went to a spot outside the city of Ephesus. There he told…
Orthodox Calendar, May 7 Apparition of the Sign of the Precious Cross Over Jerusalem (351) The Precious Cross appeared in the sky over Jerusalem on the morning of May 7, 351 during the reign of the emperor Constantius, the son of Saint Constantine (May 21).At that time the heresy of Arianism, which taught that Christ…
Orthodox Calendar, May 6 Righteous Job The righteous Job, whose name means “persecuted”, God’s faithful servant, was the perfect image of every virtue. The son of Zarah and Bossorha (Job 42), Job was a fifth-generation descendent of Abraham. He was a truthful, righteous, patient and pious man who abstained from every evil thing. Job was…
Orthodox Calendar, May 5 St Matrona of Hurezi Monastery Venerable Matrona, whose name in the world was Maria, was born on August 2, 1852, in Săliștea Sibiului, to devout parents named Nicolae and Stana. Shortly after her birth, her father, travelling with his flocks as far as the regions of the Holy Mountain, by divine…
Orthodox Calendar, May 4 St. Mavra of the Ceahlău Mountain Schema-nun Mavra of Mount Ceahlău lived toward the end of the seventeenth century, being a native of a village in the Bistrița Valley, not far from Ceahlău, in Moldavia, in present-day Romania. Having received the blessing of her parents, she departed at the age of…
Orthodox Calendar, May 3 Venerable Irodion of Lainici Saint Irodion was born in 1821 in Bucharest and received the name John at baptism. His parents gave him good education and taught him Christian behaviour ever since he was a child. At that time, at Cernica Monastery, nearby Bucharest, under the guidance of Saint abbot George,…
