The Pitcher Containing the Blood and Dirt of Saint Demetrios

One of the most important treasures of the Orthodox Church is kept in the Church of Saint Demetrios in Thessaloniki. It is an ancient pitcher made of ceramic which is claimed to contain the actual blood of Saint Demetrios that was mixed with the dirt from the ground on which his martyric blood was spilled. The blood and soil within the pitcher are dried up, but when mixed with water it is commonly referred to as holy myrrh, since the Saint is known as the Myrrhgusher.

The priest of the church, Archimandrite Damaskenos Petikas, says that the church acquired this important relic on October 23, 1985, and recounts that the pitcher was in the hands of the Savva family, a family of Thessaloniki that goes back centuries, who lived since the Byzantine era in a house below the Church of Saint Demetrios, near the current Church of Saint Nicholas. The house was completely destroyed by the great fire of August 1917 and then all the written evidence regarding the history of the family and the acquisition of the pitcher was also destroyed.

Saint Nestor of Thessaloniki Resource Page

St. Nestor the Martyr (Feast Day - October 27)

 

Verses

In decapitating both Lyaios and the brutal indignity of error,

Nestor is decapitated by the sword.

On the twenty-seventh diligent Nestor was beheaded.

 

Synaxarion of Saint Nestor the Martyr of Thessaloniki 

 

Saint Nestor the Martyr

 

Saint Nestor the Martyr of Thessaloniki  

 

Saint Nestor as a Model for our Lives

 

Saint Nestor, the Daring Disciple

 

Goliath and Lyaios

The Chapel of Saint Nestor, Patron Saint of Athletes, Next to the Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki

 

Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki Resource Page

 

 

 

Saint Nestor the Martyr

 By Archimandrite Demetrios Kavvadias

The Victorious Martyr of Christ Nestor is known to us from the life of Saint Demetrios. Thessaloniki is the place of origin of Saint Nestor.

The age at which he appears is young, in fact according to Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite it was "when the hairs of the beard begin to grow", while Saint Damaskinos the Studite mentions he was "around twenty years old". Dionysios from Fourna says he was "young and without a beard" and Photios Kontoglou says he was "young without a mustache and just beginning to grow a beard". The teacher of the Gospel, Michael Galanos, identifies his form as beautiful: "He therefore bent his blonde and beautiful head and gave his last breathe with the striking of the sword, in order that he may ascend even more beautiful, to be with the ruler of life, the source of immortal beauty." Scholars of his life therefore determine his age and form as directly related to his story, since the hagiography and the iconography around his person coincide.

Saint Demetrios and the Bitter Woman

It was around the beginning of the 20th century when in Aitoliko a pious and faithful woman suddenly became a widow. Helpless and sad as she was with her young son Demetrios she tried to move on with their lives. The pain was silent but unbearable.

Her son, Demetrios, however, soon fell ill and flew off to heaven. The blow to the mother was heavy. In such a short time she lost her husband and child.

The second may have been heavier and she could not overcome it. It was God's fault!

She had placed her last hopes and supplications in Him but what she asked of Him did not come true.

Testimony of a Man Who Spoke With Saint Demetrios and Was Healed By Him

I was invited to go to Sesklo, 16 km away from Velestino for a power of attorney contract.

The house was on the edge of the village.

I go in and the hostess tells me she was going to find witnesses.

In the meantime I ask the old woman if she wants to confess and she asks me:

"My child, are you of Christ?"

Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki: Epistle and Gospel Reading

Holy Great Martyr Demetrios the Myrrhgusher

October 26

Matins Gospel Reading

Gospel According to Luke 21:12-19

English

The Lord said to his disciples, "Beware of men who will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake. This will be a time for you to bear testimony. Settle it therefore in your minds, not to meditate beforehand how to answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death; you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives."

Saint Demetrios and Saint George, the Two Brave Young Lads of Christendom (Photios Kontoglou)

By Photios Kontoglou

Saint Demetrios, together with Saint George, are the two brave young lads of Christendom. They are down here on earth, and the two archangels Michael and Gabriel are in heaven.

In ancient times they were painted without arms, but in later years they were depicted armed with swords and spears and dressed in iron shirts. On one shoulder they have their helmet, on the other their shield, and in the middle are the straps that support the sheath of the sword.

Saint Nestor as a Model for our Lives

 

 

 By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

The martyr Nestor lived in the third century during the reigns of Diocletian and Maximian. He came from Thessaloniki and was connected with a genuine spiritual friendship with the great martyr Demetrios the Myrrhgusher. He was martyred at a young age, about eighteen years old. In that difficult period of persecution, the Church was to show forth an innumerable number of martyrs, and among them Nestor holds a prominent position.

At that time there was a giant barbarian named Lyaios, who was considered a common murderer, having killed many innocent people. However, Emperor Maximian rejoiced in him, bragged about him and boasted of his bravery and victories. For this reason, the arrogance of Lyaios had no limits, and he turned against everything, especially against the members of the Church. He said that Christians are weak, just like the God they worship, and that none of them dares to stand before him. Nestor, who loved Christ very much, wanted to battle with him, the arrogant one, and humiliate him with the power of Christ and the blessing of Saint Demetrios. So he went to the prison where Saint Demetrios was being held and confessed his thoughts to him. Saint Demetrios encouraged him and told him that he would defeat Lyaios and shed his blood for Christ. Then he entered the stadium without fear, shouted "God of Demetrios, help me!" and defeated Lyaios. Maximian, full of anger, ordered him to be killed, and the enraged crowd of idolaters shouted "death to the victor" instead of "crown to the victor", as was usually the case. Nestor, however, received the unfading crown of victory from the prize-giver Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

His life and conduct gives us the opportunity to highlight the following:

The Chapel of Saint Nestor, Patron Saint of Athletes, Next to the Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki

  

 

Next to the Kaftanzoglio stadium and specifically in front of the auxiliary stadium, on Agiou Dimitriou Street, there is a Chapel of the Holy Martyr Nestor. In the area where the Kaftanzoglio stadium of Thessaloniki is now built, there used to be the refugee cemeteries and in the place of the chapel that now honors the memory of Saint Nestor it was once dedicated to Saint Photini, whose holy water flowed at that point. 

 

The Church of Saint Demetrios Loumbardiaris on Philopappou Hill in Athens

Philopappou Hill, which is located across from the Acropolis, took its name from the Syrian philhellene consul Gaius Julius Antiochus Epiphanes Philopappos, who was exiled in Athens between 75-76 and 87-88 A.D. The Athenians, after his death, built a majestic monument on the top of the hill to honor his memory, known as the "Monument of Philopappou". Ancients called this the Hill of the Muses, as well, because of some temple that existed there.

The Byzantine Dimitria: When Thessaloniki Celebrated with the Entire Western World

The Dimitria, or the festival of Saint Demetrios, the patron saint of Thessaloniki, was an exceptional feast for the whole of the Western world. The satirical dialogue known as the Timarion, which was written in the 12th century, declares that the city attracted at this time "not only locals or those of one race, but people from all over Greece and of every ethnicity - Greeks from all over, various tribes of Bulgars from among those who lived between the Danube and Southern Russia, Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese and Celts who live beyond the Alps."

Holy Martyr Louppos of Thessaloniki, Servant of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrios

St. Louppos the Martyr (Feast Day - August 23)

Verses

Louppos was a servant, but by the sword,
He freely approached God as a friend.
On the twenty-third Louppos was struck with the edge of the sword.

The Holy Martyr Louppos was a faithful servant of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrios of Thessaloniki (Oct. 26). Being present at the death of his master, he soaked his own clothing (said to be his orarion, possibly indicating he was a deacon) with his blood and took the ring from his hand. With this clothing, the ring and the name of the Great Martyr Demetrios, Saint Louppos worked many miracles in Thessaloniki. He destroyed pagan idols, for which he was subjected to persecution by the pagans, but he was preserved unharmed by the power of God.

Saint Demetrios and Emperor Leo VI the Wise

By John Sanidopoulos

Although Emperor Basil I the Macedonian (867-886) renovated a Church of Saint Demetrios in the city of Constantinople that had probably existed since the early eighth century, transferring in some respects the veneration of the Great Martyr outside of Thessaloniki to the capital of the Roman Empire, there is no indication that he had a special devotion to the Saint, since it was only listed as one among many other churches he built or restored, with no further information if he was a personal patron.

Demetrios took on a new role in the imperial court in the next generation. Like his father, Emperor Leo VI the Wise (886-912) seems to have cultivated the patronage of a number of divine figures. Among these were the Prophet Elijah and the Holy Unmercenaries Kosmas and Damian. And despite the exclusive association of Saint Demetrios with Thessaloniki, Leo showed a keen interest in him. This may have to do with his ideas about the divine protection of the Roman army and the similarities between soldiers and martyrs. It would not be surprising therefore that he would set Saint Demetrios as a model for his his troops. Furthermore, Saint Demetrios became famous for protecting the city of Thessaloniki from all manner of calamities and enemies, furthering his status as a patron of the imperial army and expanding his veneration to the ever-besieged Constantinople.

Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki, Greater than Righteous Job (St. Gregory Palamas)

By St. Gregory Palamas

What we said of Job from the land of Uz could refer to Demetrios at that time, that "there was none like him in the earth" (Job 1:8). In fact, even Job himself, of whom it is written that there was none like him among men (Job 2:3 LXX), did not resemble Demetrios, who was holy in every way.

Job, in an earlier time, had certainly been blameless, righteous and God-fearing, just as Demetrios was later shown to be. But Job could not be praised for virginity, whereas virginity marked out Demetrios as victoriously crowned from his youth, superior to human nature, and a match for the angels who surround God. And whereas Job's body was severely wounded in his fight against evil (Job 2:8, 13), Demetrios struggled with evil to the point of shedding his last drop of blood.

Synaxarion of Saint Nestor the Martyr of Thessaloniki

St. Nestor the Martyr (Feast Day - October 27)

Verses

In cutting off both Lyaios and the brutal indignity of error,

Nestor is cut by the sword.

On the twenty-seventh diligent Nestor was beheaded.

Saint Nestor was very young, at around the time when the hairs of the beard begin to grow, and he had a pleasant and beautiful appearance. He was also well-known to the Holy Glorious Martyr Demetrios.

Synaxarion of the Holy and Glorious Great Martyr Demetrios of Thessaloniki

On the twenty-sixth of this month [October], we commemorate the holy and most-glorious Great Martyr and Wonderworker Demetrios the Myrrhgusher.

Verses

Lances, my Christ, pierced through Demetrios,

Emulating the passions of your lance-pierced side.

On the twenty-sixth spears pierced the side of Demetrios.

A 14th Century Byzantine Icon of St. Demetrios with a Vial of Myrrh from his Tomb

Sassoferrato is a small town in the province of Ancona in Italy and is built over the ancient city Sentinum. After the total destruction of Sentinum by the Goths and the Lombards around the year 1000, the inhabitants of the area built a new castle and turned it into a small town around the year 1200.

The icon of Saint Demetrios came to the Municipal Museum of Sassoferrato from the collection of the humanist Niccolò Perotti (1429 - 1480), who was born in Sassoferrato and was the student and friend of the Greek papal cardinal Bessarion, whom he accompanied on his mission to Bologna in the years 1450 - 1455. According to the historian Sergio Bettini, Bessarion was probably the one who gave the icon to Perotti, who later gave it to his hometown.

Commemoration of the Transfer of the Icon of St. Demetrios from Thessaloniki to Constantinople

Commemoration of the Transfer of the Icon of St. Demetrios
to Pantokratoros Monastery from Thessaloniki (Feast Day - October 26)

Verses

You will not be absent from the royal city,

Being transferred there through your icon O Martyr.

During the reign of Emperor Manuel Komnenos (1143-1180), when Joseph was Abbot of the sacred and royal Monastery of Pantokratoros in Constantinople, in March of 1149, the Emperor was on his way to war with Sicily. Having passed through Thessaloniki, the Abbot met with the Emperor in a village two days from the city called Dobrochouvista, two miles from Beroea, about a two day journey from Thessaloniki. Among other things, the Abbot reminded the Emperor of his ancestor's promise to give the miraculous icon that lay upon the tomb of Saint Demetrios in Thessaloniki to the Monastery of Pantokratoros.

The Three Adornments of Saint Demetrios

By Metropolitan Seraphim of Kastoria

When praising the Wonderworker, Myrrh-Gusher and Great Martyr Saint Demetrios, Saint Gregory Palamas describes him as:

The great miracle of the ecumene,

the great adornment of the Church

and the mightiest of all.

And not only this God-seeing Father of the Church, but many other writers in hagiographic texts and eulogies refer with particular respect and reverence to this martyric figure, who is the guardian, the champion and the savior of Thessaloniki.

The Holy Week Services of St. Demetrios the Myrrhgusher

The love and devotion towards St. Demetrios the Great Martyr and Myrrhgusher from the Orthodox faithful of Thessaloniki is truly immense. Though to some it may seem hyperbolic, St. Demetrios has worked countless wonders both for the city of Thessaloniki, and for all the Orthodox faithful throughout the world. In praise of Christ Who strengthened him in his martyrdom, and in honor and thanksgiving to this great Wonderworker, various hymnographers have composed hymns beyond those of the standard Menaia in praise of St. Demetrios.

Many of these hymns comprise the so-called "Holy Week of St. Demetrios". This is a collection of pre-festal hymns from various sources in honor of the Saint, and are generally modeled after and grouped correspondingly to the days of Holy Week (i.e. the Passion and Resurrection of Christ). Thus, they begin on October 19th ("Palm Sunday") and proceed to the feast of St. Demetrios on October 26th ("Pascha"). Many of the hymns have been written by St. Symeon of Thessaloniki (+ 1429), so we can see how this is an old and established tradition of this local Orthodox Church.