René-Nicolas Ehni, Well-Known and Controversial French Author and Playright Who Converted to Greek Orthodoxy, Has Reposed

René-Nicolas Ehni was born on 29 April 1935, in Rixheim of the Alsace region of France, into a Jewish working class family. He lived as a child and teenager in Eschentzwiller, his schooling taking him to Colmar (in Saint-André) and Mulhouse (at the Lycée Lambert). The languages he spoke were Alsatian and he later learned French, German, and Greek.

His first vocation was to become an actor. He went to Paris, passed the entrance examination for the conservatory on rue Blanche in 1953, and started a small career acting in Paris theater before spending nearly three years in war in Algeria for his military service.

Rare Film Footage of Notable Russian Orthodox Thinkers at the St. Sergius Institute of Paris Between 1926 and 1934

While all the seminaries in Russia were closed, the Saint Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris stood as the only Russian seminary for the training of future Russian priests. The video shows many well-known Russian Orthodox thinkers from the Parisian School, the Russian Student Christian Movement, and the journal The Way. The film was done by the YMCA between 1926 and 1934. Among the notable figures you will see are:

Commemoration of the Appearance of Christ to Saint Martin of Tours

On February 13, the Russian Orthodox Church commemorates the appearance of Christ to Saint Martin of Tours.

From childhood, Saint Martin was known for his compassionate heart and great pity for the poor. When he was twenty-two years old, even before he was baptized, he began to give away all his possessions to those in need, and soon he was left with just one set of clothes and a knife.

Saint Martin, like many young men, had to serve in the army for several years. One day, while serving in Gaul, when the weather was very harsh and unusually cold, he met a man at the city gates of Amiens, almost naked, and begging for alms. Martin saw that people just walked past the man without taking any notice. Since Martin had already given away everything he owned, he had only his cloak and his uniform. No one else would help the beggar, so Martin felt that it was his responsibility to do something for him.

Recalling the Savior's words: "If anyone wishes to judge you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak as well" (Matthew 5:40), Martin drew his sword and cut his cloak in two. Giving half to the beggar, he wrapped himself in the other half. Seeing him in the torn cloak, those standing by began to laugh at his strange appearance. Others, who had more sense, regretted the fact that they had done nothing for the man, although they could have clothed the beggar without uncovering themselves as Saint Martin did.

That night, in his sleep, Martin saw Christ wearing half of his cloak, which he had given the beggar. The Lord told him to look at Him and to notice that it was the same garment. Then the Savior said to the Angels who surrounded Him, "Martin is still just a catechumen, but he has clothed me in this garment."

Saint Martin did not become puffed up with pride because of this vision. Instead, he saw this as a sign of God's goodness, which confirmed Christ's words: "Truly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of my brethren, you did it to me" (Matthew 25:40).

Because Saint Martin gave alms throughout his life, he was rewarded with the gift of working miracles, after being baptized at the age of eighteen. Let us follow his example so that we might be granted a small corner of Paradise.

The part of the claok kept by himself became the famous relic preserved in the oratory of the Merovingian kings of the Franks at the Marmoutier Abbey near Tours. During the Middle Ages, the supposed relic of Saint Martin's miraculous cloak (cappa Sancti Martini) was carried by the king even into battle, and used as a holy relic upon which oaths were sworn. The cloak is first attested to in the royal treasury in 679, when it was conserved at the palatium of Luzarches, a royal villa that was later ceded to the monks of Saint-Denis by Charlemagne, in 798/99. The structure in which the half-cloak was preserved was referred to as cappella (‘little cloak’), a term that came to be used widely for buildings that served to keep relics and from which the modern word ‘chapel’ is derived.

Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone
In signs and in miracles you were renowned throughout Gaul. By grace and adoption you are a light for the world, O Martin, blessed of God. Almsgiving and compassion filled your life with their splendors, teaching and wise counsel were your riches and treasures, which you dispense freely to those who honor you.

Kontakion in the Plagal of the Fourth Tone
As a devoted man of God, you proclaimed His mysteries, and as a seer of the Trinity, you shed your blessings on the Occident. By your prayers and entreaties, O adornment of Tours and glory of all the Church, preserve us, O Saint Martin, and save all who praise your memory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Incorrupt Right Foot of the Apostle Andrew in th Cathédral Saint-Sauveur in Aix-en-Provence

 

After the conquest of Constantinople in 1204 by the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, the relics of the Apostle Andrew ended up in Italy, in the Cathedral of Amalfi, and in the possession of King Charles of Andjou, who was also Earl of Provence.

Some of the relics of the Apostle Andrew later ended up in Provence and today his right foot, which the Lord washed and wiped Himself, is preserved in the Cathedral of the Savior Christ (Cathédral Saint-Sauveur) in Aix-en-Provence.

The Only Case of a Stylite in the Western World

 

 

In 591 Saint Vulfilaic (also known as Wulphy, Walfroy, Wulflaicus), a monk of Lombardy, had a pillar erected for him at Treves, and stood upon it barefoot, enduring great hardship in the winter. The bishops therefore compelled him to come down and to live like other monks, telling him that the severity of the climate would not permit him to imitate the great Symeon of Antioch. He obeyed his superiors, but with tears and reluctance. He died around 600 and was buried in his hermitage, today known as Mont Saint-Walfroy. This is the only instance that we know of a stylite or pillar monk in the Western world. On July 7, 979, his relics were translated to Yvois. A broken slab is all that remains of the location of the tomb of Saint Vulfilaic at Mont Saint-Walfroy, destroyed by war and lost. He is commemorated annually on October 21st. 

 

Saint Autbert, Bishop of Avranches, Founder of the Monastery of Mont-St-Michel on the Normandy Coast (+ 720)

St. Aubert of Avranches (Feast Day - September 10)

Saint Aubert lived in Gaul during the reign of Childebert III (695-711) and died about 720. He was born of a noble family from Genetas, and received an extensive education. When the See of Avranches became vacant, Aubert, known for his wisdom and piety, was chosen bishop.

According to the accounts of the foundation of Mont-Saint-Michel, in 708 Aubert had retreated to Mont Tombe to pray. There he had a vision in which the Archangel Michael instructed him to build an oratory on the rocky tidal island at the mouth of the Couesnon. Aubert did not pay attention to this vision at first, doubting it was a true vision. The archangel appeared a second time, but still Aubert hesitated. In view of the condition of this rocky point, scarcely attached to the continent, covered with bushes and brambles, and only inhabited, besides the wild beasts, by some hermits, he judged it impossible, and at first thought of it as a trick of the devil. At last in exasperation Michael appeared to him again, this time poking him in his head and ordered him to complete the task. Upon awaking and feeling the hole in his head, it was confirmed for him that the vision was truly from God. After this the oratory was built, many miracles taking place in the process, and henceforth Mont Tombe came to be called Mont-Saint-Michel. It was dedicated on 16 October 709. Here Bishop Aubert at first established a chapter of twelve canons; then the Benedictines. Aubert's body was first buried in the oratory, then translated to the abbey on June 18, c. 1009.

Saint Amalia of Maubeuge (+ 690)

Saint Amalia of Maubeuge, also known as Amalberga, was born around 640 in Liege of the Walloon Region within present Belgium. She is said to have been the sister or niece of Pippin of Landen and married Count Witger, Duke of Lorraine. In her biography she is presented as the mother of three saints: Emebert, Reineldis and Gudula. Amalia joined the monastic community at Maubeuge Abbey after the birth of her youngest daughter Gudula, and when her husband Witger became a monk at Lobbes Abbey. She lived a virtuous and philanthropic life. Upon her venerable repose in 690, she was buried with her husband at Lobbes, and her children were buried there as well. In the fifteenth century her relics were transferred to Binche.

Saint Landry, Bishop of Paris (+ 661)

Saint Landry (Landericus) was chief clerk of the Royal Chancery. In 650, he succeeded Audobertus as Bishop of Paris. During the famine of 650-51, Bishop Landry sold all of his personal possessions, as well as some of the furniture and sacred vessels of the church, to feed the poor.

He is credited with building the first major hospital in the city, dedicating it to Saint Christopher (now the Hôtel-Dieu). It is located next to Notre Dame Cathedral.

In 653, Landry, with 23 other bishops, subscribed to the charter Clovis II gave to Saint-Denis Abbey, exempting it from episcopal jurisdiction. It is believed that he built the original Church of Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois, which became the parish church of the kings of France.

Holy Martyrs Killed in the Persecution in Lyon in 177 A.D.

Holy Martyrs of Lyon (Feast Day - July 25 and August 23);
Photo shows the Amphithéâtre des Trois-Gaules, in Lyon.
The pole in the arena is a memorial to the Christians killed during this persecution.

Verses

For July 25th

To Sanctus, Maturus, Attalus.

Three drowned men were wrapped in linen as one,
The linen joined together was like three wreaths.

To Blandina.

Blandina was victorious in the contest with horses,
The King of all gave you a radiant crown.

Introduction

The persecution in Lyon in AD 177 was a persecution of Christians in Lugdunum, Roman Gaul (present-day Lyon, France), during the reign of Marcus Aurelius (161-180). An account of this persecution is a letter preserved in Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History (Bk. 5, Ch. 1). Gregory of Tours describes the persecution in De Gloria martyrum.

Lugdunum was an important Roman city in Gaul. Founded on the Rhone river in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, it served as the capital of the Roman province Gallia Lugdunensis. The emperor Claudius was born in Lugdunum. The first known Christian community established in Lugdunum some time in the 2nd century was led by a bishop named Pothinus from Asia Minor.

Saint Germain, Bishop of Paris (+ 576)

St. Germain of Paris (Feast Day - May 28)

Saint Germain was born near Autun in what is now France in 496 to noble Gallo-Roman parents. Germain studied at Avallon in Burgundy and at Luzy under the guidance of his cousin Scallion, who was a priest. At the age of 35, he was ordained by Saint Agrippinus of Autun and became abbot of the nearby Abbey of Saint Symphorian. He was known for his hardworking and austere nature; however, it was his generous almsgiving which caused his monks to fear that one day he would give away all the wealth of the abbey, resulting in their rebellion against him. While in Paris in 555, Sibelius, the Bishop of Paris, died, and King Childebert had him consecrated as the Bishop of Paris.

History and Authenticity of the Relic of the Crown of Thorns

By John Sanidopoulos

A few days ago a relic purported to be the Crown of Thorns placed on the head of Jesus during his Passion was saved from the great fire that engulfed Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. It, together with the Palatine Cross, are two relics of the Passion at Notre Dame that are considered its greatest treasures, and their preservation from the fire was a great relief to all the faithful. Many have wondered, however, how the Crown of Thorns arrived at Notre Dame in Paris from Jerusalem in the first place.

The True History of the Palatine Cross in Notre Dame Cathedral

By John Sanidopoulos

Among the most revered relics of the treasury of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is a reliquary cross that contains a small piece of the true Venerable and Life-Giving Cross of Christ. This reliquary is said to have been originally a gift of the Roman Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos (1391-1425), one of the last emperors of Byzantium, to Poland, and from Poland it went to France. However, based on more reliable evidence, it was likely made in memory of Emperor Manuel I Komnenos (1143–1180). The evidence shows that this relic went to Galician-Volhynian Rus’ probably with Princess Euphrosyne, daughter of Roman Emperor Isaac II Angelos (1185-1195; 1203-1204), who ca. 1200 became the second wife of the Grand Prince of Kiev Roman Mstislavovitch (1152-1205).

Eldress Mary Magdalene (Marie Madeleine Le Beller), Hermitess of Sinai (+ 2013)

The most-venerable Eldress Mary Magdalene, known in the world as Marie Madeleine Le Beller, was from Paris and went to the Holy Land on a pilgrimage and was baptized an Orthodox Christian when she was forty years old at the Jordan River in 1986. There she prayed to St. John Climacus, to show her the way of her salvation and the place for her solitary life of total dedication to God. She went to the Sinai desert, and lived near the cave of St. John Climacus in the Valley of Tholas (Wadi Et-Tlah) approximately 8km from Saint Katherine's Monastery at the foot of Mount Sinai (about a 100-minute hike from the monastery).

Saint Bathild, Queen of France and Nun of Chelles (+ 680)

St. Bathild of Chelles (Feast Day - January 30)

Saint Bathild was an Anglo-Saxon slave-girl who was sold by Danish raiders into the household of the chief officer of the Frankish imperial palace, Erchinoald, in the first half of the seventh century. Being physically beautiful and humble and obedient in soul, she quickly won the favor of the prince, and was nearly always in his presence, even bringing him drinks in his bedroom. She also served the older women in the household, washing their feet, dressing them and helping them in every way.

Miracles of Saint Stephen the Protomartyr in Sixth Century France

By St. Gregory of Tours

(Glory of the Martyrs, 33)

Stephen was the first deacon of the holy church and the first martyr at Jerusalem, as the sacred history of the apostles relates. He was stoned to death for the holy name of Christ whom he saw at the right hand [of God] in a spiritual vision of power; he begged the mercy [of God] for his persecutors.

Near Tours there is an oratory that people long ago dedicated in Stephen's name and that I ordered to be enlarged a bit. When the reconstruction was completed, we moved the altar forward, exactly as it had been before. But while we were looking in its reliquary, we found none of the holy relics that tradition claimed [to be there]. I sent one of the abbots to fetch relics of Stephen for us from the oratory of the church house, but I forgot to give him the key for the reliquary, which was hanging on my belt. Once the abbot arrived, he removed the seal from the cupboard but found the reliquary locked. He was uncertain about what to do or how to act. If he returned to me, it would require much time to go and come back; if he brought the entire reliquary, he knew I would be annoyed, because in it were the relics of many saints; if he did nothing, he would not obey the order he had received. Why say more? When he took the reliquary hesitantly in his hand, the bolts clicked back and he saw that it was unlocked. He gave thanks, took the relics, and with great amazement brought them to me. At God's command I transferred them [to the altar] during the celebration of liturgy. Many days later I returned to Tours; there I found the reliquary just as I had left it, locked and again bolted.

Saint Abra, Daughter of Hilary of Poitiers (+ 360)

St. Abra of Poitiers (Feast Day - December 12)

Saint Abra was the daughter of Hilary of Poitiers, born around 343. She was born before her father converted to Christianity and was made a bishop. During her father's exile from Poitiers, she and her mother remained there. She is remembered for her work among the poor and spreading of Christianity in the area around Poitiers, France.

During this time, the son of the governor declared his love for Abra to her mother and sought her permission to marry. When Hilary heard that a marriage was being contrived for his daughter, he was incensed, for he had hoped that she would dedicate herself to virginity. He therefore wrote her a letter dissuading her from marriage and urging her towards the higher calling of a life of virginity, encouraging her to remain pure and far from the pleasures of the world.

Saint Tudwal, Bishop of Treguier (+ 564)

St. Tudwal (Feast Day - November 30)

Saint Tudwal, or Tugdual, is known as one of the Seven Patron Saints of Brittany. The Welsh monk Tudwal was one of the sons of King Hoel I Mawr (the Great). He traveled to Ireland from his father's home in Britain to learn the scriptures before becoming a hermit on Ynys Tudwal (St. Tudwal's Isle East) off the Lleyn Peninsula in North Wales. He later immigrated to Leon in Brittany and settled at Lan Pabu with some seventy-two followers. Here he established a large monastery under the patronage of his cousin, King Deroch of Domnonee.

Saint Quintianus, Bishop of Rodez (+ 525)

St. Quintianus of Rodez (Feast Day - November 13)

Saint Quintianus was a Bishop of Rodez and a Bishop of Clermont-Ferrand (Arvernes) in the sixth century, and participated in the Councils of Agde (508) and Orleans (511).

Tradition makes him a native of Africa and a priest of Carthage who fled to France due to the persecutions of the Vandals. At the death of Saint Amantius (Amans) in 487, Quintian succeeded him as Bishop of Rodez.

During the war between the Franks and the West Goths, he was a zealous supporter of Clovis I. To avoid the persecutions of the Arian Visigoths, he fled Rodez and proceeded to Auvergne, where he was hospitably received by Bishop Euphrasius.

Holy Hieromartyr Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons (+ 202)

St. Irenaeus of Lyons (Feast Day - August 23)

Verses

Irenaeus speedily flees the earth by the sword,
With eros going towards the heavens he longs for.

Saint Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, was born in the year 130 in the city of Smyrna of Asia Minor. He received there the finest education, studying poetics, philosophy, rhetoric, and the rest of the classical sciences considered necessary for a young man of the world.

Saint Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre (+ 448)

St. Germanus of Auxerre (Feast Day - July 31)

Saint Germanus was born at Auxerre around 389, the son of Rusticus and Germanilla, and his family was one of the noblest in Gaul in the latter portion of the fourth century. He received the very best education provided by the distinguished schools of Arles and Lyons, and then went to Rome, where he studied rhetoric and civil law. He practiced there before the tribunal of the prefect for some years with great success. His high birth and brilliant talents brought him into contact with the court, and he married Eustachia, a lady highly esteemed in imperial circles. The emperor Honorius sent him back to Gaul, appointing him one of the six dukes, entrusted with the government of the Gallic provinces. He resided at Auxerre.