An Eye-Witness Account of Miracles by St. Anthimos of Chios

St. Nikephoros the Leper with St. Anthimos of Chios

St. Nikephoros the Leper sent the following letter, which is a list of miracles of St. Anthimos of Chios, from Athens on 22 July 1961, to the Abbess of the Sacred Monastery of Panagias Voitheias.

I wanted to inform you of some miracles of our most-holy Father, as I remember them. But I know, Lady Eldress, that I went to Lovokomeio in Chios in 1914. Our holy Elder went in 1912. So in those two years I do not know how many he performed. Now I will write to you those that I saw with my own eyes.

First, the late Justina had fourteen demons, as confessed by the demons she had. Thirteen left, but one demon was bestowed by God for her humility. You may remember how sometimes she would run to the fields and mountains. Especially during the Liturgy the demon would try to drown her or throw her off a cliff.

At the same time Styliani Hatzigeorgiou and her sister Sevasti had demons and he healed them.

And another Tsikitridaina from Agio Mathaio, whose child is still alive. And a Cypriot who worked at the tanneries, whose name I don't remember, was possessed and healed.

Also, a young priest from Cyprus came who had the demon of pride and was healed. Indeed, the watch he had in his pocket he left as a souvenir with his name engraved on it, George Aspiotis.

Then was brought from Athens a young man, his name was John Diatsintos, who had the lord of demons, Beelzebub, as confessed by the same, and he was healed. Indeed, he later became a priest and his life ended at the Monastery of Fr. Matthew in Keratea.

Two brothers from Vrontados - they were teachers - Pantelis and George, were both possessed, and healed.

And another man from Vrontados, John, came from England possessed and was healed. And a daughter of his cousin, Angelica, who embraced the monastic life, was also healed. She also brought a daughter from Dafnona, whose name was Marouko, who while drying lime-twig in the river blasphemed and made room for Satan. He entered her and the demon barked like a bulldog within her, and she was healed.

Then was brought a daughter from the village of Leptopoda, whose name was Helen Moschouris, and she was healed.

From the same village came a certain Kalliopi N. Fasola, sister of Fr. Ambrose, Abbot of Myrsinidi Monastery, who had breast cancer, and she was healed.

They also brought a woman from the village of Volissos, whose name was Helen, her husbands name was John. They had spent 300 lira on doctors who told her that she had a nervous condition. She had a demon from magic and was healed.

A child named Panagiotis was completely blind, and he became well. His mothers name was Maria.

In a rich home within the country there had befallen a great rage. What kind of rage? Everything in the kitchen - bottles, glasses, vases, plates - were found in the morning thrown cluttered in the middle of the house. They put them back in place and again found them in the middle. This happened many times. A pious man enlightened them, saying: "Go get the young priest from Lovokomeio, he is the only person who has boldness before God as we see from his countless miracles. Bring him to the house that he may pray to God that this rage may end." So our holy Elder went to the home and prayed to God and the rage ended. But the landlord's name now I do not remember.

Then Mr. Rodokanakis, a senator of Chios, became sick and came near death. His son-in-law was the doctor Mr. Kountouras. He along with other doctors of the area were unable to find the source of his sickness. His daughter however, that is the wife of Mr. Kountouras, had great faith and reverence towards our holy Elder and she persuaded her husband Mr. Kountouras for our holy Elder to be sent for to go to the house, and he went. Once he arrived there was heard weeping and crying from the family, as well as many others. As he arrived he told them: "Stop, do not weep, Mr. Rodokanakis will become well and tomorrow will go to his office." Some of them laughed at him. He approached and crossed him, he blew on his face and - O the wonder! - at that moment he arose and came to his initial health. Since then Mr. Kountouras marveled at him and had great reverence for him, and he even appeared useful at the time when officials wanted to imprison him for some of the medical aid he performed, and God together with him acquitted him.

They brought a daughter from Viki, 18 years old. She died outside of the Lovokomeio. They brought her to our holy Elder to be healed, but the unfortunate one did not arrive on time. They pleaded with our holy Elder to allow her to be buried in our cemetery. After three years our holy Elder went to the cemetery and opened the grave of the daughter, and he saw the body was dissolved, but the right hand was completely incorrupt, and she had stretched out her hand. The nails of her hands had grown. Immediately he notified her relatives to come with no one else to Lovokomeio, and they came. He said to them: "What did this daughter do that her right hand did not corrupt?" They told him that they knew of nothing except the following: "She had a dispute with the priest of the village and as soon as he turned his back to leave, the daughter turned and blinded him. This is all we know." Then our holy Elder went to the cemetery and knelt at her tomb for three days pleading with God to dissolve her right hand. And - O the wonder! - on the third day her hand became dirt.

Up until here I have informed you of those things I know and have seen with my own eyes. Again, if I remember other things, I will write you. Know however, Lady Eldress, that he had the gift of foresight and the gift of prophecy and he knew the future, much of which he revealed to me. He did not want his gift to be revealed, to bring glory from people.

With spiritual love, the worthless Monk Nikephoros Tzanakakis

Source: Σίμωνος Μοναχού, Νικηφόρος ο Λεπρός, της καρτερίας αθλητής λαμπρός. Β΄έκδοση, εκδόσεις «ΑΓΙΟΣ ΣΤΕΦΑΝΟΣ», Αθήναι. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

I Knew St. Nikephoros the Leper (video)

According to His Eminence Metropolitan Savas of Pittsburgh, who shot the above video, this is a "Testimony from a parishioner of St. John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Church in Boardman, Ohio, following the Divine Liturgy on Monday, January 7, 2013, the Synaxis of St. John." Below I made a rough translation:

My name is Ioannis Simoudis, from Chios, from the parish of Saint Matthew Kofina, which is about 400 meters from the Leper Hospital of Chios. This is where St. Anthimos was when I was a young child. There, in the Church of Saint Lazarus, was a leper named Nikephoros, whom St. Anthimos brought from Egypt when he was young. He left because he was afraid they would take him to Spinalonga. An Archimandrite from Chios knew St. Anthimos and wrote him, and St. Anthimos brought him [Nikephoros] to Chios. Because Chios was under the Turks at that time, St. Anthimos had to pay, I believe, 98 gold pieces to allow him to bring him to the Leper Hospital in Chios. So St. Anthimos went to Smyrna and brought him.

When I was a young child my mother Markella would take me to the Leper Hospital, to Saint Lazarus Church, for services like the Paraklesis to the Panagia, during Great Lent, etc. As I was sitting next to him, he would sit there and I would see him bundled in his rags, his hands melted, his ears had fallen, half of his lip was missing. We weren't afraid at all, because at that time we did't know about this sickness.

I left Chios for America at 17, and I grew up and got married. I returned [to Chios] in 1999. I went into the Leper Hospital to the Church of Saint Lazarus. For years I had discussed with my wife about what happened to that venerable saint, Nikephoros. I couldn't find out anything. Eventually a woman from Chios said: "I will bring you a gift tomorrow." The next day she brought me a book of the Venerable Nikephoros the Leper. That same night in Chios I read it. When I returned back to America, my daughter, without telling me, took the book and brought it to the Poconos, where she had an enormous icon made of the Venerable Nikephoros the Leper. When I was going into surgery, and had this icon in the house, every day I would say certain prayers to St. Nikephoros: "Nikephoros, venerable ascetic, do not neglect me the spiritual paralytic. But you diverge beastly sickness and all sin and so raise us up." "You are a living icon of virtue, and similar, Father, to Job in patience. You endured sorrows and were well-pleasing to God, therefore posthumously you were fragrant." And I learned his whole story, and learned that in his last days they sent him to the Leper Hospital in Athens, at Saint Barbara's. And he went from no one visiting him while he was sick, to thousands waiting in line to see him at the Leper Hospital in Athens. He never complained nor said anything of his sickness. In the end, when his grave was opened, he was fragrant.

I was moved when I heard that he was declared a Saint, because he was in my heart all these years. I asked for him and wondered what happened to him, what happened to the Venerable Nikephoros. And in the end God allowed this knowledge to unfold. The book has also been translated into English to be published in Greece.