Crypt of Santa Cristina in Carpignano Salentino

A gate and small baroque facade may mislead you into thinking there is not much to see at the Crypt of Santa Cristina (also known as the Crypt of Madonna delle Grazie) in Carpignano Salentina, but that would be wrong. Because once inside you'll descend some steps and enter two chambers carved out of limestone, where you'll discover that the Crypt of Santa Cristina is a big deal, after all. It contains the oldest Byzantine frescoes in Puglia, the most ancient inscription dates them to 959, signed by Teofilatto. Santa Cristina is also one of oldest place of worship in Puglia.

The Furnace in Which Saint Agatha Suffered Martyrdom by Fire

On the spot where Saint Agatha was burnt to death in a furnace, a pit filled with burning coals and shards, a small church had been built with a single nave. Still visible today through a port-hole, in the chapel on the right hand side, is the furnace which at the time of the persecutions was used for the tortures and was the place where Saint Agatha was burnt alive in her martyrdom. Having survived this torture, her breasts were cut off and she died in prison.

 

The Cave of Saint Elias the Cave-Dweller in Calabria

Saint Elias the Cave-Dweller (Sept. 11) lived with the hermit Cosma and his disciple Vitalio in a cave around the year 904. There he attracted a large following, so he decided to move to a larger cave where he could establish a monastery. He died in this place at ninety-six years old, after having lived for seventy-one years as a hermit. 960 is conventionally thought of as the year of his death, since the monastery founded by Elias had the title of “imperial monastery”, which was assigned by the Roman Emperor in Constantinople.

In the territory surrounding Melicuccà, whose name derives from the settlement founded by the inhabitants of the area among the large woods of Bagolari (in Greek "melikokkos"), in the heart of the Piana di Gioia Tauro, stands the ancient complex of hermit caves that hosted the ascetic path of Saint Elias in the early Middle Ages. The site represents some of the most important archaeological evidence from Byzantine Greek times in Southern Italy. Dating back to the 10th century, it preserves the remains of the monastery and of the annexed factories (cellar, mill, millstones, necropolis). In its heyday, the structure hosted over one hundred and fifty monks.

The Tomb and Relics of Saint Cyril the Apostle to the Slavs

A chapel on the right side of the nave of the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome is dedicated to Saints Cyril and Methodios. In this chapel rests the only surviving relics of Saint Cyril. The original tomb of the Saint is also in the basilica, with offerings there dedicated by all the Slavic nations, as well as other nations of the world.

At the request of the King of Moravia, the Roman Emperor Michael III in 863 sent the two brothers Cyril and Methodios from Thessaloniki to teach and preach Orthodox Christianity.

The Plague Column of Saint Agatha in Catania

 

Saint Agatha is the patron saint of Catania. On several occasions Saint Agatha has laid her hand benignly on the city to protect it also from the Plague. When the Plague began to spread in 1576 not far from Catania, the Senate decided to call on the intercession of their Patron. The relics were carried in procession along the streets of the city and, once they had reached the hospitals where had been taken those people stricken with the Plague, the sick immediately recovered and no further person was afflicted. 

 

Saint Thekla and the Bubonic Plague of 1630 in the Italian City of Este

The first Cathedral in Milan was originally dedicated to the early Christian martyr Saint Thekla and the beautiful Baroque church of Este, near Venice, is still the most important church in her name to be found in Europe. It was here that in the 1630s citizens prayed to Saint Thekla during a violent outbreak of bubonic plague that killed 50,000 people in Este and the surrounding area. Some years later, in 1758, Este’s priest, Marco Marchetti, commissioned a moving portrait of Saint Thekla from Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, a key exponent of Venetian Baroque painting.

 

The Relics of the Prophet Zechariah, Father of John the Baptist

We are informed through the Gospel of Luke and Orthodox tradition that Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was a High Priest of the Temple of Jerusalem. It was in the Temple that he was martyred in the days of Herod the Great.

According to the historian Sozoman, in the year 415 the incorrupt relics of Zechariah were discovered in a miraculous manner in the village of Caphar of Eleutheropolis in Palestine. Although he associated him with the Old Testament Prophet Zechariah, there are indications from his appearance in a dream that led to the discovery of the relics that he was a priest, since he was clad in a white stole. The Old Testament Prophet was not a priest, but the father of John the Baptist was. The discovery of the relics of the Prophet Zechariah is commemorated in the Orthodox Church on February 11.

The Crypt of Saint Marina in Miggiano

The Crypt of Santa Marina is situated under the 14th century homonymous chapel near the cemetery of Miggiano, accessible via a staircase placed to the right of the chapel, and it is one of the gems of Salento’s rock-cut architecture. 

This is a Basilian crypt dating to the 10th or 11th centuries and consists of three rooms. The first part still preserves the fresco depicting Santa Marina on the front wall. The space on the right side, once occupied by the apse, has been used as an ossuary and still preserves the ruins of a pedestal and a column. The smaller chamber accommodates a cycle of frescoes and Greek inscriptions. Each environment presents the typical steps which act as seats and in the apse are the remains of an altar and a column. 

The House of Saint Alexios the Man of God in Rome

On the Aventine Hill in Rome, the site of the house of Saint Alexios the Man of God can be found in the Basilica dei Santi Bonifacio ed Alessio. Once you enter the church the location of the house will be on the left side. If you look closely, there is a staircase above the altar, known as the Holy Steps. According to tradition, Saint Alexios the Man of God lived below this staircase at his parents house as an anonymous beggar for seventeen years till his death, upon which his identity was revealed to his parents. This is all that remains of the original house.

The Relics and Miracles of Saint Barsanuphios of Gaza in Oria, Italy

An anonymous Palestinian monk transferred the relics of Saint Barsanuphios of Gaza to the city of Oria in the province of Brindisi near Siponto in southern Italy in the year 850, and the local bishop Theodosius placed it in the current Church of San Francesco da Paola (which was built in 1580), where remains of the Crypt of Saint Barsanuphios can still be seen today. 

During the siege and capture of the city by the Saracens in 925/26, the relic was lost, but was again found in 1170 by the cleric Marco who received a vision of the Saint and indicated to him the relics, and they were placed in the Basilica of the city by Bishop Lupone on August 30 of the same year. 

The Early Christian Veneration of the Mother of God in Rome

By Prof. Constantine P. Haralambidis

Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki

The Third Ecumenical Synod in Ephesus of 431 marked a memorable milestone in the history of paying honor through adoration to the Theotokos. With the condemnation of Nestorius and the dogmatic proclamation of the Virgin Mary as the Theotokos, we can say a new wave began of God's people honoring through adoration and artistic manifestations the mother of the second person of the Holy Trinity.

The Two Earliest Images of Saint Sebastian the Martyr

Perhaps the earliest artistic representation of St. Sebastian is a sixth century mosaic in the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy. One of some twenty-six depicted martyrs, the figures are all identical in expression and lack any distinctive features.

The Veneration of Emperor Nikephoros Phokas on the Island of Crete and His Cross in Cortona, Italy

Nikephoros II Phokas was Roman Emperor from 963 to 969. His brilliant military exploits contributed to the resurgence of the Roman Empire during the tenth century. His administrative policy was less successful, as in order to finance these wars he increased taxes both on the people and on the Church, while maintaining unpopular positions and alienating many of his most powerful allies. These included his nephew John Tzimiskes, who would take the throne after killing Nikephoros in his sleep on 11 December 969.

Nikephoros joined the army at an early age. He was appointed the military governor of the Anatolikon Theme in 945 under Emperor Constantine VII. In 954 or 955, Nikephoros replaced his father, Bardas Phokas, as Domestic of the Schools, who consistently and disastrously lost battle after battle both to the Hamdanids and to the Abbasids, essentially taking charge of the eastern Roman army. From 955, the Hamdanids in Aleppo entered a period of unbroken decline until their destruction in 1002. In June 957 Nikephoros managed to capture and destroy Hadath. The Romans would continue to push their advantage against the Arabs until the collapse of the Hamdanids, however, from 960-961, the army turned its focus to the reconquest of Crete.

The Relics of Saint Natalia in Milan

The relics of Saint Natalia, commemorated on August 26th, are located in the Basilica of San Lorenzo Maggiore in Milan. Most people don't know of her relics being in this church because they are hidden under an altar which is open away from the crowd, but those who come to venerate her are mostly Orthodox faithful.

Holy Martyr Vitale of Ravenna

St. Vitale of Ravenna (Feast Day - July 23)

Verses

Apollinaris was cut down,
Vitale hastened at once to arrive.

Saint Vitale (Vitalius, Vitalis) was born in Milan, where he was a soldier and wealthy citizen. He was married to a woman named Valeria, and was the father of Milan’s patron saints, Gervasius and Protasius.

The Earliest Known Image of the Virgin Mary (Circa 150 AD)

The earliest known image of the Virgin Mary independent of the Magi episode, is a fresco dated about 150 AD in the Catacomb of Priscilla on the Via Salaria in Rome, that shows her nursing the infant Jesus on her lap. Situated in what was a quarry in Roman times, the Catacomb of Priscilla was used for underground Christian burials from the late second century through the fourth century. In the Orthodox Church, this type of image is known as a type of the Galaktotrophousa, or Milk-Feeder, which is celebrated on July 3rd.

Saint Tarasios the Wonderworker of Lycaonia

St. Tarasios of Lycaonia (Feast Day - May 7);
Photo shows altar in the Chapel of Saint Tarasios in Venice.

Verses

Accomplishing austere asceticism Tarasios,
You received the power for many miracles.
Maternaly Lycaonia cries out "Rejoice",
Venerable Spirit-bearer Tarasios.
On the seventh you entered the place of rest,
Venerable Tarasios, friend of peace.

Venerable Tarasios is commemorated on May 8th in Hippolyte Delehaye's Synaxarion, while the Lavra Codex I 70 f. 217b has him under May 7th with the following information about him:

The Relics of Sts. Chrysanthos and Daria in the Church of Santi Apostoli of Rome

After their martyrdom in Rome along the Via Salaria, Saints Chrysanthos and Daria were buried in the nearby Catacomba di Trasone. When the catacombs were abandoned in the ninth century, the relics of the two Saints were originally taken to Santi Apostoli. They are now claimed to be enshrined in several locations, most notably at the Cathedral of Reggio Emilia where a 2011 analysis found the human remains of an age and makeup corresponding to the documented origins.

Translation of the Relics of Saint Donatos of Euroea from Venice to Paramythia

Saint Donatos reposed in 387 and was buried near a church he built and a grave he prepared in the village of Glyki of Paramythia, which is in Epirus, Greece. For security reasons due to the invasion of various barbaric tribes, the sacred relic was transferred in 604 to Kerkyra, where it was kept in Kassiopi. The refugees from Paramythia accompanying the relic, including Bishop John of Euroea, were welcomed by Bishop Alkison of Kerkyra and hosted in the Castle of Kassiopi.

Saint John the Confessor, Abbot of Pantelleria Monastery

Verses

You were called O blessed John,
To be seen as a worthy house of divine grace.

We know almost nothing about the venerable John with certainty, except that he was a Confessor and Abbot of Pantelleria Monastery, otherwise known as the Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner. He seems to have founded this monastery, which has been identified with the island of Pantelleria off western Sicily. We have a typikon of this monastery in Slavonic, which is deemed to be the work of "Our Holy Father John the Priest, Abbot of Pantelleria." A steep hill rose from the sea to an extinct volcanic crater where John found a cave in what had become a typical Pantelleria garden. With another monk called Basil, there he founded a monastery where the Rule of Saint John was written, the one that was later adopted in Russia, which is why it has only come down to us in Slavonic.