Saint Philothei of Athens (1522-1589)

St. Philothei lived in Turkish-occupied, sixteenth-century Athens. Her spiritual and social work was groundbreaking, especially for a woman of that era. It was accomplished within the Church and dedicated to the service of the Greek people as a continuation and expression of Orthodoxy and Romanity. On 19 February 1589, she passed into the ranks of the New Martyrs who, with their blood, paid for their dynamic missionary work during the years of the Turkish occupation.

As we leaf through the Synaxarion, the Spiritual Meadow, and the lives of the athletes of the Church, a complete army of righteous, heroes, martyrs, venerable ones, and saints come to mind. And the Church, which is “adorned in the blood of the martyrs as purple and fine linen,” praises martyrdom, raising up and extolling the spirit and sanctity of the martyrs as an example to the faithful, aimed at encouraging them to emulation and the praise of their spiritual strength.

The Crypt of Saint Philothei

Discovered accidentally in 1934 during quarrying, the Crypt of Saint Philothei is a small natural cave, converted into a chapel by Rigoula Venizelou. The daughter of a famous 16th-century family that lived in Athens during the Ottoman occupation, Venizelou died a martyr, and was later canonized with her monastic name Philothei. 

 

Saint Philothei would pray in this chapel, which was dedicated to the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple. Some maintain that the Saint used this as an escape tunnel for herself and her nuns. Some believe it was here that she was laid to rest after her martyrdom, which emitted a beautiful fragrance and led to the discovery that her relics remained incorrupt.

The Well of Saint Philothei in Athens

Saint Philothei offered incalculable help to the inhabitants of Athens, both spiritually and in their daily living needs. One of the vital needs to which she contributed was that of a water supply.

Athens is mostly dry and its water sources were very far away. This created a lot of problems for its residents, who had to travel long distances to transport and use water.

Saint Philothei Welcomes the Refugees from Asia Minor in 1922 in the Settlement of Psychiko

 

 

 

 

The Place Where Saint Philothei Was Martyred

On the night of October 2nd into October 3rd of 1588, during an all-night vigil in honor of the patron saint of Athens, Saint Dionysius the Areopagite, in the Metochion of the Holy Apostle Andrew in Patisia, five Turks on their horses entered the church, vandalizing the sacred place. The nuns in a panic ran away to hide. The Turks let them run away, they didn't care. All they wanted was Philothei Benizelou. Her crime: she offered asylum to Christian women fleeing their Turkish masters to preserve their faith and chastity. Philothei courageously stood up, and the Turks grabbed her with force and knocked her down to the floor. They kicked her, beat her with clubs and after binding her to a column they whipped her without mercy. Thinking that they killed her, they then fled. The nuns came to her aid. She was then taken to the Metochion of the Entrance of the Theotokos in Perissos, where a few months later, on 19 February 1589, she died from her injuries. Today the church where she was martyred still stands along with the column she was bound to and beaten.

An Encomium to the Theotokos (St. Philothei of Athens)

The following is an encomium, written by Saint Philothei of Athens in her childhood years to the Most Holy Theotokos. It was discovered by the Byzantinist Professor Nicholos Bees (1883-1958), in a manuscript of the Monastery of the Great Cave in Kalavryta, and published in an article in 1923:

Saint Philothei of Athens Resource Page

St. Philothei of Athens (Feast Day - February 19)

Verses

A scion of Athens is Philothei,
Who put on the cross as armor against the enemy.

Holy New Martyr Philothei of Athens (+ 1589) 

 

Saint Philothei of Athens (1522-1589)

 

Saint Philothei the Athenian as a Model for our Lives 

 

Saint Philothei of Athens in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church 

 

The Philanthropy of Saint Philothei the Athenian

An Encomium to the Theotokos (St. Philothei of Athens) 

 

The House of Saint Philothei 

 

The House of Saint Philothei Opens as a Museum in Athens

 

The Well of Saint Philothei in Athens

  

The Crypt of Saint Philothei

 

The Place Where Saint Philothei Was Martyred

  

Documentary Trailer: "Philothei the Athenian: The Revolution of a Woman" (2019) 

 

"Saint Philothei the Athenian" (A Theatrical Production)

 

Saint Philothei Welcomes the Refugees from Asia Minor in 1922 in the Settlement of Psychiko 

 

Synaxis of All Saints of Athens

The House of Saint Philothei Opens as a Museum in Athens

On Sunday, 19 February 2017, His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece inaugurated the House of Saint Philothei of Athens (or the house of Benizelos-Palaiologos) as a museum. The event was attended by several hierarchs of the Greek Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, as well as several government representatives.