Cave of St. Akakios

 

Akakios the Younger, also known as Akakios the New of Kafsokalyvia (1630s – 12 April 1730) was a Greek Orthodox Christian monk and ascetic who lived on Mount Athos.[2] His feast day is celebrated by the Eastern Orthodox Church on April 12.
He was born Anastasios sometime in the 1630s in Golitsa (now Agios Akakios (Άγιος Ακάκιος)), Karditsa. At the age of 23, he moved to Zagora, Volos and joined the Monastery of Sourvia. There, he received his tonsure and took on the monastic name of Akakios.
In the 1660s, Akakios moved to the southern tip of Mount Athos and lived as a hermit in the Cave of Maximos of Kafsokalyvia near the Skete of Kafsokalyvia. There, Akakios had many divine visions in which he was visited by Maximos of Kafsokalyvia.[4] He also spent time at the Monastery of Dionysiou and the Skete of Pantokratoros.
He was also a spiritual mentor to the Neomartyr saints Romanos (feast day: January 5), Pachomios (May 6), and Nikodimos (July 11).
Akakios practiced intense asceticism and was said to have eaten dry grass crushed with a piece of marble, rather than bread.[5] In his later years, he moved down from the higher cliffs to a cave near the Skete of Kafsokalyvia. Today, this cave is named after him.[3]
He died on April 12, 1730, and was said to have foretold his own death shortly before then.(wiki)

The Monk Photographer on Mt. Athos

15 years ago, the caretakers of the Vatopedi Monastery bought several digital cameras for the needs of the community. This is how the monk Theologos fell into the hands of his first camera. Since then, he has been photographing the life of Athonite ascetics, inspired classics of photojournalism Bresson and Nachtwey and daily updates the gallery on his website:
- Many years ago God led me to Mount Athos to save my soul, and on the path of my salvation, perhaps to document the monastic life to show it to those who live outside the Holy Mountain.
My photographic career began 15 years ago when our management decided to digitize some important artifacts from the monastery. Then we bought several digital SLR cameras. Since I was a computer head, the older monks told me to figure out the technology. My first camera was a Canon 350D.
I didn't have any knowledge. I just started shooting and reading everything I could find about photography. It also helped me a lot that I looked at the work of other photographers. I would mention James Nachtwey and Henri Cartier-Bresson as the photographers who influenced me the most.
Of course, I take up photography with the blessing of the abbot. Since I am a monk, I do not have any personal money - all my photographic equipment was purchased from donations.
They support me, but there are still some difficulties. Our goal is to become close to God and achieve personal perfection. Therefore, we must avoid any mundane things that can distract us from this goal.
This is why I shouldn't give photography more importance than it needs (in fact, this applies to everything). I have to be prepared to miss a good shot so as not to disturb the peace of those around me, especially when they are praying. And if I do cross this line, those around me should understand that I did it without meaning to and did not try to use others for my own interests.
About a worldly hobby
My only source of income as a photographer is my website: https://asceticexperience.com/. Donations keep my photography business and the site afloat. It's not really photographic, but rather healing. Every day we publish one picture or photo story with a small spiritual text. So in two or three minutes, readers receive a spiritual gift and replenish their vitality. Our site is visited by people from 127 countries, this is an outstanding indicator for an Orthodox monastic resource.
I have photo series that develop naturally as I document monastic events, services, obedience, daily spiritual life, nature and architecture. There are big holidays or, for example, harvesting that I need to cover. The nature of these events is unique to the eyes of outsiders - we are, after all, on Mount Athos.
About monastic specifics
One of the consequences of Adam's fall is our selfishness, our tendency to neglect others. By photographing other people, I discovered a whole world of beauty. Personality is an endless mystery that allows us to constantly improve. Those locked in their own uniqueness are doomed to monotony and hatred. Being a monk helps me a lot - I have the spiritual knowledge to deal with this reality.
We all must remain human. A professional is not someone who has expensive equipment. This is someone who is able to sacrifice himself. We shouldn't chase money and fame so much, even if we need them to a certain extent. During the time that is allotted to us, we need to learn to love. You can't waste it.
I understand perfectly well the great interest in my person, and I treat this with love. However, a monk should not promote himself - only God. Holy Mount Athos

Photo of Elder Athanasius, Mt. Athos

Elder Athanasius, brother of the Monk Joseph the Hesychast. The worms eat his legs. “It is better to suffer here on earth than to suffer in the next life,” said the elder.
He is supported by the arm of the recently deceased Archimandrite Efrem from St. Andrew's Skete, at that time a young monk.

Agape Vespers. (Priests going up to the pews read the Gospel in many foreign languages) Primate of Mount Athos.

 

Tornado

Yesterday the rarest natural phenomenon hit the Holy Mountain - a tornado. It passed along the second "finger" of Halkidiki and did not directly affect Athos. There are no reports of any casualties at this time.

Most Holy Theotokos save us!

St. John the Baptist with his life. XVII century. Icon from the monastery of Pantokrator. Holy Mount Athos.

 

"The Elder Athos" Author: Constantine Xenopoulos

 

Fragment of the fresco "The Presentation of the Lord" by Manuil Panselin, 1290

Abbot Athanasius the Gregoriate, Mt. Athos

Know that to forgive the sins of those who are guilty before you is one of the greatest deeds of virtue - and silence will shine from everywhere around your mind.

Commemorating Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called (Dec. 13/Nov. 30)

Since ancient times, in the Russian monastery St. Panteleimon on Mount Athos, a great Christian shrine has been kept - the imperishable foot of the holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called, through whose prayers healings and miracles have repeatedly occurred

Fresco from the Monastery of Dionysiou Mt. Athos 16th century.

 

St. George of the Pantocrator Cell of St. George Faneromenu, Kapsala (+ 10/24/1982).

In 1980, burglars broke into the elder's cell, tied him up, blindfolded him and started looking for something to eat. They did not find any money but took his shroud embroidered in gold, gold coins from the time of Constantine Palaeologus which were hung up before the miraculous icon of Saint George, the censer, the Gospel and liturgical vessels. Before leaving, the villains beat the elder's face through a wet towel and then told him not to get up, but to lie tied up and sleep. Surprised, the elder replied to the villains, "What on earth are you saying? I have to go and read the service".

When the robbers left, Father Georgy managed to free himself and with his face black from the beatings reached Trigon's cell. The elder told the brethren what had happened - without a shadow of vindictiveness or desire for revenge - simply with amazement. He could not understand why St. George, the great martyr, had not revealed to him the robbers' attack. "If I had wanted to," the elder said, "I would have asked St. George, and he would have caught them, but I felt sorry for them.

The New Athos Paterik

Finding the relics of Elder Joseph of Vatopedi, Mt. Athos.

 

The greatest joy we know in life, is the joy we feel, when we give joy! - Athonite Elder Gabriel

 

Church in honor of the Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Russian Holy Mount Athos Monastery of St. Panteleimon

 

Repentance will save our Greece and the whole world! But with 500,000 abortions a year, do we have Repentance? - Elder Gabriel of Mount Athos.

 

The different color of the skulls

Ossuary of Esphigmenou Monastery. The different color of the skulls is clearly visible. White, as the Athonites say - begged, saved through the prayers of the Mother of God. And brown or the color of ripe wax are ascetics especially pleasing to God.

By the way, an interesting observation of the Athonite monks. In communal monasteries, most bones are white, brown or waxy are rare, and there are few black ones. But in the sketes, in idiorhythms, in the cells, the number of brown ones is much larger than usual, as well as black ones. Because walking the middle royal path of humble obedience in a skete and taking off into the desert is not always easy, but there are much fewer falls. And in a skete or desert, the stakes rise sharply.

Hieromonk Cleopa (Lyubochkin)

The story of an Athos monk who recovered....

The story of an Athos monk who recovered from the coronavirus

Recently, the world is gripped by a lot of unrest stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and associated vaccinations, from military preparations and much more. These topics are hotly debated on the Orthodox Internet. But at all times, a person on his life path is faced with the same problems. And especially when he dies and the soul is separated from the body.

A priest I know talked to an Athos monk who had been in an induced coma on a ventilator for two weeks. Recently, literally 2 days ago, he was disconnected from the apparatus and transferred from intensive care. And then he told my friend about what happened to him during his illness, when he was on mechanical ventilation. His appearance, as the priest said, has changed a lot. He was already a different person, it is clear that he experienced and felt a lot. The first thing he said: “Every man is dust, one cannot think of anything about himself, a man is nothing before God. And you have to understand that you are nothing ”. Second: “You can't blame anyone. Nobody at all. And it's even bad to talk about someone. Everyone knows this, but very few people can do it. "

But for some reason he got this experience during a serious illness. During his illness, he was conscious all the time. And all the time he saw demons around him, who mocked him, and the monk could not oppose anything to them. All the time, evil spirits listed his sins, even confessed ones, but still they remembered them. Then they simply began to slander, ascribe to him actions that he did not and could not do. And he was not able to object to something, there was a feeling that he was tied up and could not move anything, neither an arm nor a leg, could not even open his mouth. It was in such a state of complete humiliation that he spent all this time.

"But, could you pray?" asked my friend

"No. Even "Lord, have mercy!"" I couldn't say. Never once could I say: "Lord, have mercy."

And this is consistent with the teaching of the holy fathers, who say that a person must, before death, before the separation of soul and body, acquire the unceasing Jesus prayer, heartfelt. Then the soul, leaving the body, will pray. This skill is fixed for her, it is a natural state for her, and she will pray, even if she is separated from the body. As St. John Cassian said: “And only whose mind, having detached itself from the bonds of all passions, will be deeply pacified, and whose heart with all striving clings to God as the supreme good, can perfectly fulfill the apostolic commandment: pray ceaselessly” (“On Prayer”). If a person before death did not have time to acquire this heartfelt prayer, then he will endure what this monk endured. He had an initial stage, demons were not allowed to do anything with him, only slander him, mock him.

Conclusion: we must have time to acquire this very heartfelt prayer before death. And sorrows are sent to us, obviously, so that we begin to pray. If a person is doing well, he cannot pray. He usually prays formally. And when everything is bad for him or almost everything, then there is no other way then to turn with all his soul to God, and he begins to cry to Him and this cry should be our main work until death.

Deacon Pyotr Pakhomov, publicist

New Romanian church on Mt. Athos

 

After four years of construction, a new Church of St. Paisios the Athonite is set to be consecrated on Mt. Athos at the end of this month.
Construction on the church at the Annunciation Kellia of the Romanian Lacu Skete began in 2015, with the painting of the iconography beginning in 2017, reports the Basilica News Agency.

The consecration will be celebrated by His Eminence Metropolitan Paul of Drama on July 25.

St. Paisios was not chosen as the patron of the new church by chance, Fr. Paisie of the Annunciation Kellia commented. “The patron saint of the church was established especially because, in a spiritual line, we are the grandchildren of St. Paisios the Athonite. The abbot of the kellia, Hieromonk Ștefan Nuţescu is the spiritual son of the holy father Isaac of Lebanon, one of the closest disciples of St. Paisios,” he explained.

The brotherhood of the Romanian cell is responsible for making the life and teachings of the great Athonite saint known to the Romanian public through the translation of about 20 volumes from Greek.

The church will have the Prophet and King David as its secondary patron.

St. Paisios was canonized by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Constantinople on January 13, 2015, after which churches in his honor began to appear throughout the Orthodox world. The first Church of St. Paisios in Romania was built in the village of Săvădisla, Cluj County.

“This is, as far as we know, the third church erected on Mt. Athos in honor of St. Paisios the Athonite,” Fr. Paisie told the Basilica News Agency. The first church on Mt. Athos was consecrated earlier this year in the Kapsala area by His Eminence Metropolitan Panteleimon of Xanthi.

Procession to the Transfiguration of the Lord, on the patronal feast of the temple, located on the Top of the Holy Mount Athos.