Faliraki is the primary seaside resort village on the Greek island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese. It is situated on Faliraki Bay, on the northeastern coast, about 14 km south of the town of Rhodes. Located in this village is a unique monastery dedicated to an Old Testament prophet that has few shrines in the world - the Holy Prophet Amos, who lived around 750 years before Christ.
The Monastery of the Prophet Amos is built over the ruins of a 5th or 6th century Christian basilica, which still contains fragments of both Byzantine and Post-Byzantine frescoes. The monastery complex with the church and its precincts were built in 1838. It annually celebrates on the feast of the Prophet Amos on June 15th. Today a pilgrim can also eat and refresh themselves at the Prophet Amos Cafe, which is located just outside the monastery.
According to local oral tradition, the Prophet Elias, whose monastery was at the top of the mountain, got into a feud with the Prophet Amos, and he threw a rock to destroy his monastery. But Amos stopped the rock by piercing it. It is said that this rock is preserved at the back of the monastery, and it was a custom for children to pass through the hole of this rock pierced by Amos if they wished to grow taller.
