The Veneration of Saint Savvas the Sanctified in Georgia

The popularity of Saint Savvas the Sanctified in Georgia is reflected in the numerous depictions of him in works of art and the churches dedicated to him.

It is further reflected in the fact that his Life written by Cyril of Scythopolis was translated into Georgian as early as the late 6th or early 7th century, although the earliest Georgian manuscript dates to 864 (Sinai georg. MS 32, 33, 57). Sinai georg. MS 65 includes "Old Georgian Hymns" dedicated to Saint Savvas.

These seem to have been translated and composed and then brought to Georgia by Georgian authors who lived and labored at the Lavra of Savvas in Palestine since the 6th and 7th century, such as Martviri (6th-7th cent.) and Seity (late 8th cent.).

Saint Savvas the Sanctified, a Man of the People in Time of Famine and Plague

During the reign of Emperor Anastasios (491-518), a great famine visited the villages of Jerusalem, and there ensued much loss of life. With the passage of time, it spread into others areas of the Eastern Roman Empire and Constantinople. From this scourge, numerous homes were deserted and left uninhabited.

The various bureaus of the state and the emperor himself, in order to avoid a great loss of revenue, enacted a decree, whereby the unpaid taxes of the deceased were to be paid by their survivors. When the merciful Savvas heard of this unjust and absurd law, he journeyed “once more to Constantinople” to see the emperor, expressing his disapproval of it, demonstrating that the needy would be totally annihilated and that it was not in the best interests of the realm, but to its detriment and destruction. For it was utter injustice for those that were spared by two evils - the famine and the deadly plague - to be further tormented at the hands of the state by having to shoulder an unjust tax burden. Oppressed by the state and driven by necessity, they might attempt something that would be injurious to the realm.

Saint John the Hesychast: A Bishop Who Was Led By a Bright Star to the Lavra of Saint Savvas

When our Venerable Father John served as Bishop of Kolonia, he continued to live by the strict rules of a monk in regard to his asceticism, fasting and prayer. Having considered the hustle and bustle of this world, Saint John decided to leave the episcopacy, and went to the holy city of Jerusalem to serve God in silence, solitary prayer and asceticism. Therefore, after performing the divine service, he dismissed the presbyters and clerics who were with him, so that no one knew, he went to the sea dock, got into a ship and traveled to the holy city of Jerusalem. Arriving there, he went to the first hospital of the holy city, where there was a prayer house in the name of the holy great martyr George, and spent some time there as one of the beggars. Observing the commotion of the people, blessed John grieved greatly; and longing for a quiet and lonely place, he prayed to God with tears to show him a suitable, quiet and comfortable place for salvation. And one night, when he was fervently praying about it, he looked up and saw there suddenly appeared a brilliant star in the form of a cross; it was approaching him, and he heard a voice from the light of the star saying: "If you want to be saved, follow this light." - And he immediately followed it with joy, and was led by that star to the great Lavra of our Venerable and God-bearing Father Savvas, in the thirty-eighth year of his life, at the time of the patriarch Sallustius of Jerusalem.

 

 

On the Feast of Saint Savvas the Sanctified (Elder Joseph of Vatopaidi)

 

By Elder Joseph of Vatopaidi (+ 2009)

One of the great spiritual figures of monasticism, Saint Savvas, is honored today. Yet he is not well known here on the Holy Mountain. This great guiding light is a great consolation to us. In the way he lived we are able to find the most essential elements of our monastic capacity. We will refer to some of these.

He started his life with absolute devotion to the Lord, enforcing the prophetic verse: ‘Blessed is he who carries the yoke (of the Lord) from a young age’. Even though his parents were wealthy they placed no obstacles in his path towards monasticism. He arrived in the East to become a monk. He excelled as a novice and ended up in Palestine, where he joined the Lavra of Saint Euthymios. He became subordinate to some of the greatest fathers honoring the eastern region in his day and was proven to be not only a perfect monk but also a great reviver of monasticism.

John and Sophia, the Parents of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

 

By Cyril of Scythopolis

(Life of Savvas 1, 2, 9)

1. BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD

Savvas, who has become a citizen of the heavenly mother-city, had as his fatherland the country of Cappadocia and the village of Mutalasca, subject to the metropolis of Caesarea. This village was formerly unheard of because of its small size and lowly rank but has become well-known to everyone because of this godly youth who stemmed from it; likewise Ramathaim was formerly insignificant and contemptible but became famous throughout creation from the time it gave birth to Samuel, dedicated to God from infancy. Savvas had well-born Christian parents called John and Sophia, of whom he was born, as we know plainly from an accurate chronology of his life, in the seventeenth counsulship of Theodosius. Not long afterwards, when his father was sent to serve in Alexandria in the regiment called the Isaurians and emigrated from Cappadocia with his wife, this holy child, being about five years old, was by divine providence left behind with his parents' property in the village of Mutalasca just mentioned to live with his maternal uncle called Hermias, who had a wife of evil character. In consequence the boy became unhappy and fled to one Gregory, his uncle on his father's side, who lived about three miles away in a village called Scandus.

A Miraculous Appearance of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

 

 

Nikolobarbara: The Winter Celebration of St. Barbara, St. Savvas and St. Nicholas

In Greece, from December 4-6, 'Nikolobarbara' includes the feast days of St. Barbara, St. Savvas, and St. Nicholas. These days are considered to herald the onset of truly wintry cold weather, therefore homes are prepared for winter beforehand, such as preparing wood for the fire place. It is said also that the weather of these days will be the same weather as Christmas. Sayings that can be heard in various parts of Greece at this time are:

The Birthplace of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

About ten kilometers southeast from Caesarea in Cappadocia was the village of Moutalaski, today known as Talas. This is the village where Saint Savvas the Sanctified was born and raised. It had a majority Orthodox Christian population until the population exchange of 1923.

Saint Savvas lived with his father in this village until he was five years old, at which time his father had to go to Alexandria because he served as an officer in the army. He was left with his uncle Hermias and his aunt, but his aunt treated him terribly so he went to live with his uncle Gregory. This produced a violent clash between the two brothers over the care of their nephew and his estate, so Saint Savvas, being a devout Christian, entered the nearby Flavian Monastery (the Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner in Zintzintere) approximately three miles away when he was around eight years old. When he was eighteen his uncles resolved their differences and wanted to have their nephew married, but Saint Savvas fled his homeland for good and went to Jerusalem.

Probably the most notable figure of recent times to be born and raised in Moutalaski was Socrates Onassis, the father of Aristotle Onassis. Aristotle Onassis himself was born in Karatass, a suburb of Smyrna. Socrates went on to become a successful shipping entrepreneur, which Aristotle later became famous for. In Talas today one can visit a restaurant named Onassis.

Flavian Monastery, now occupied by the Turkish army

Venerable Aphrodisios the Sabaite

Venerable Aphrodosios the Sabaite (Feast Day - December 24)

Verses

The soul of Aphrodisios was exceedingly beautiful,
Having died he never tasted sexual lust.

In the Life of Savvas by Cyril of Scythopolis we read about the Venerable Aphrodisios (Ch. 44). There is written the following about him:

A brother of the monastery of blessed Theodosios, Asian by birth and called Aphrodisios, who had been given the office of muleteer, was able unassisted to lift from the ground the load for a mule, that is, twelve measures of corn, and place it on his shoulders; for in bodily size he surpassed all in the cenobium. It happened that once on the road he lost his temper, struck with his hand the face of the mule and broke it; when the animal instantly fell down dead, Aphrodisios lifted its load and the saddle onto his shoulders and returned to the monastery. Expelled by the great Theodosios for killing the animal, he went down to the Jordan and laid his offense before the holy John the Egyptian, who was then refulgent with virtues at Choziba. On being told by him, "If you want to be saved, go to our Abba Savvas and do what he tells you," he went to Savvas in haste, confessed his offense and begged to hear a word of salvation from him. Our father Savvas gave him a cell with the words, "Be content with your cell, do not visit any other cell or go outside the lavra, exercise control over your tongue and belly, and you will be saved." Accepting this command and not infringing it in any respect, Aphrodisios for thirty years neither went outside the lavra nor visited a cell, never possessed an earthen or copper pot, an oven or mattress, drank no wine or mixed drink, and did not possess two tunics. Instead, he slept in straw on a rush-mat and patchwork cloak and, getting palms from the steward, supplied the guest-master with ninety completed baskets each month. Taking the left-overs of the cooked food, whether greens or pulses or roughage, he would put them in a single bowl and take a little from the bowl each day, and was satisfied with this. If the food in the bowl began to smell or produced worms, he did not throw it away but simply added more cooked left-overs. His wailing throughout the night left his neighbors no peace.

The Burial of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

By Cyril of Scythopolis

(Life of Savvas, Ch. 77)

So it was that our father Savvas, after fighting the good fight, completing the race, and keeping the faith, was adorned with the crown of righteousness. His death occurred on 5 December of the tenth indiction, in the year 6024 since the creation of the world, when time began to be measured by the course of the sun and in the year 524 since the Word of God became man from the Virgin and was born in the flesh, according to the chronologies composed by the holy fathers Hippolytus the Ancient, the disciple of the Apostles, Bishop Epiphanios of Cyprus, and Heron the philosopher and confessor. The chronology of his life in the flesh is as follows. He came to Palestine at the age of eighteen and lived seventeen years in the cenobium and passed fifty-nine years in the desert of the Great Lavra. He died in the ninety-fourth year of his life, in the second year after the consulship of Pampadius and Orestes and in the sixth year of the present divinely protected reign.

When Saint Savvas the Sanctified Shamed a Lion

By Cyril of Scythopolis

(Life of Savvas, Ch. 33)

When by the grace of God Savvas had in a short time enlarged the lavra, increased the community, founded the cenobium of Castellium, and become exarch of all the other lavras and anchorites, his disciples and accusers mentioned above, all the more envious at the founding of Castellium, induced others in the community and, now forty in number, were driven by some evil demon to foment sedition against him. Our father Savvas, gentle towards men although a fighter against demons, yielded to them and withdrew to the region of Scythopolis; he settled in a desert spot by the river called Gadaron, and stayed there for a short time in a cave where an enormous lion was wont to withdraw.

The Incorrupt Relic of Saint Savvas the Sanctified Placed in a New Reliquary (video and photos)

On Saturday night, September 30/October 13, 2018, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Holy Lavra of Saint Savvas the Sanctified according to the Typicon of the Lavra. The Liturgy was officiated by our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos with co-celebrants the His Eminence Metropolitan Nikolaos of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki and the Most Reverend Archbishops, Aristarchos of Constantina, Philoumenos of Pella, and the Most Reverend Metropolitan Joachim of Helenoupolis, Hagiotaphite Hieromonks, Arab-speaking Priests, as well as visiting Priests from other Churches, Archdeacon Mark and Deacon Demetrios.

Rare Photos and Video of the Return of the Relics of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

Rare Photos and Video of the Return of the Relics of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

13/26 October 1965

The translation of the Holy Relics of Venerable Savvas the Sanctified from the Church of Sant'Antonin, Venice, back to the Holy Lavra of Saint Savvas the Sanctified, was preceded by consultations between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Benedict I of Jerusalem. Saint Savvas' relics had been stolen by the Crusaders of the First Crusade (1096-1099), along with many other relics, and were brought to Venice and placed in the Church of Sant'Antonin. The delegation from the Patriarchate of Jerusalem in 1965 included Archbishop Vasilios of Jordan (later the Metropolitan of Caesarea); Archimandrite Theodosios - Abbot of Bethany; Archimandrite Seraphim Savvaitis - Abbot of the Holy Lavra of Saint Savvas the Sanctified; and Hierodeacon Kyriakos (later the Metropolitan of Nazareth). It is believed the sacred relic was returned due to the mutual lifting of the anathemas on the Mount of Olives in January of 164, but Elder Seraphim Savvaitis († 2003) had written in his memoirs that:

Why We Celebrate the Feast of Saint Anthony the Great on January 17th

By John Sanidopoulos

In the Synoptic Gospels we read that immediately after Jesus was baptized, He was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit in order to be tempted by the devil. The Lord spent forty days of complete abstinence in the desert, where He faced the temptations of the devil, and overcame them all.

In imitation of the Lord, Euthymios the Great in the early fifth century would annually leave his Palestinian monastery for the inner desert after the leavetaking of the feast of Holy Theophany, which was January 14th, in order to face the temptations of the devil, "sundered from all human intercourse and yearning to consort with God in solitude through prayer." He would return to his monastery from his sojourn in the desert on Palm Sunday, in order to celebrate Holy Week and Easter with his fellow monks and disciples. This is most likely the origins of the period of Great Lent, based on the forty day fast of the Lord following His baptism.

Saint Anthos of Palestine, Companion of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

St. Anthos of Palestine (Feast Day - December 12)

Verses

Suitably the Prophet David said,
As a flower of the field, so Anthos flourishes.

When Saint Savvas the Sanctified was living in asceticism in the desert of Rouba, there came to him and stayed with him a monk named Anthos, who had lived with Saint Theodosios in the Church of the Cathisma. While they were living in this desert, they were set upon by Saracens, six in number, barbarous in character and mischievous in intent.

The Lesson of Saint Savvas the Sanctified to a Young Disciple

One day Saint Savvas went to the Jordan River, accompanied by one of his youthful disciples. On the way, they met a group of lay folk that had in their company a most beautiful damsel. The Saint attempted to test his student, so he looked at the maiden and said to him: “It appears to me that the young maiden is blind, is that so?” And he answered: “No, Father, both her eyes are sound.”

Homily in Commemoration of Saint Savvas the Sanctified (St. Luke of Simferopol)

By St. Luke, Archbishop of Simferopol

(Delivered on December 5/18, 1947)

"And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with carousing, and drunkenness, and the cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth" (Luke 21:34-35).

"That day" is the day of the Dread Judgment. The Lord knew whereof we needed reminding. The Lord does not require that we not work, eat, or drink. We can even drink wine, only not to drunkenness. We can eat everything that the Lord has given us as food, only we should not overeat. For will one who has gorged himself and become overcome with wine watch and pray, in fulfillment of the Lord’s command (cf. Matthew 26:41)? He will sleep for a long time and, when he awakes, will again be surrounded by mundane cares and give himself over to gluttony and drunkenness.

5 Miracles of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

Below are some of the numerous miracles of Saint Savvas the Sanctified following his venerable repose on the 5th day of December, in the year 533.

1. The Hierodeacon Romulos

A certain hierodeacon named Romulos came from Gethsemane. Thieves broke into his house and stole a large amount of silver. He lamented its loss and went to the Church of Saint Theodore, who is reported to reveal the identity of thieves, and besought him to solve the mystery. After five days there, he saw at night the Martyr, who said to him, "Why do you lament?" And he told him the reason. Then Saint Theodore replied as if he were explaining, "I was not here. The blessed Savvas was translated and the martyrs were ordered to accompany his blessed soul to its place of rest." Saint Theodore then bade him to go to a certain location, also adding, "You shall find the thieves and the silver." And thus the vision proved trustworthy.

Synaxarion of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

On the fifth of this month [December], we commemorate our Venerable Father Savvas the Sanctified.

Verses

Of old your soul was joined to God from behind,

Now Savvas you stand before Him.

On the fifth Savvas was admitted into the divinely sweet chambers.

This Saint lived during the reign of the great Justinian (527-565), and was from the land of Cappadocia from the village known as Moutalaski. He was the son of pious parents named John and Sophia. Immediately therefore from the beginning of his life, he ran to the monastic citizenship, and he entered the Monastery known as Flavian.

The Miraculous Palm Tree of Saint Savvas the Sanctified

Archimandrite Eudokimos,

Sacred Monastery of Saint Savvas

Most revered pilgrims to the Holy Land and the Sacred Monastery of Saint Savvas the Sanctified, you are holding in your hands a precious blessing of a few leaves from the miraculous palm tree planted by Saint Savvas himself at his Lavra.

This tree of the Saint had dried up decades ago, but in a miraculous way sprouted anew at the same spot and continues to work numerous miracles, especially for sterile and pious couples.