Holy Apostle Nathaniel of the Seventy
The Holy Apostle Nathaniel is commemorated on this day together with Apostles Luke (not the Evangelist) and Clement, all of whom are numbered among the Seventy. The Synaxarion of the Menaion identifies the Nathaniel commemorated on 22 April with Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, whom the Lord called a true Israelite in whom there is no guile, when Philip first brought him to Christ. Many Fathers of the Church, including Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Cyril of Alexandria and Saint Epiphanius of Cyprus, regard this Nathanael as the same person as the Apostle Bartholomew, son of Tholomai, who is numbered among the Twelve. After Pentecost he preached the Gospel together with Philip and laboured in many lands, suffering greatly for the name of Christ. The Apostles Luke and Clement, his companions in this commemoration, are also reckoned among the Seventy whom the Lord sent out two by two before His face. The Church honours them as fellow workers of the Twelve and as preachers of the Gospel to the nations.
Our Holy Father Theodore of Sykeon
613
He was born in Sykeon in Galatia in Asia Minor. (The Great Horologion says that he was born out of wedlock; the Prologue that his mother, Maria, was a rich widow; in either case, he was reared by his mother alone). At the age of ten, Theodore took up a life of strict asceticism, devoting himself to prayer, fasting and vigils. His mother planned for him to enter the military; but St George appeared to her in a dream, telling her that Theodore was to serve the King of Heaven rather than any earthly king. After this, Saint George appeared to Theodore many times, sometimes instructing him, sometimes saving him from danger. After a trip to the Holy Land, Theodore became a monk in Galatia — we should say “officially became a monk,” since he had been living as a monk from the age of ten. Once he had taken monastic vows, Theodore redoubled his ascetical labors, which exceeded those of any other monk of his time: for his asceticism, he was sometimes called the “Iron-eater.” Around 584 was ordained Bishop of Anastasiopolis in Galatia, much against his will. He served his flock faithfully for ten years, then begged to be relieved of his episcopal duties so that he might return to his beloved monastic life. Even during his lifetime, he was famed for his miracles and his authority to cast out demons. He departed this life in peace in 613.
Venerable Theodore the Sykeote, bishop of Anastasiopolis
613
Saint Theodore was born in the mid-sixth century in the village of Sykeon in Galatia in Asia Minor, into a pious family. When his mother Maria conceived him she had a vision of a bright star shining over her womb, and a clairvoyant elder explained this as the grace of God descending upon her child. When Theodore reached the age of six his mother gave him a golden belt, intending him for a military career, but the Holy Great Martyr George appeared to her in a dream and told her not to seek soldiering for the boy because he was destined to serve God. From childhood Theodore lived ascetically, fasting, praying and devoting himself to the Scriptures. He withdrew to a cave near a chapel of Saint George, who continued to guide and protect him through the years of his struggle. After receiving the gift of healing he was sought out by the sick and oppressed, and many were freed from sickness and from demonic possession by his prayers. About the year 584 he was reluctantly ordained Bishop of Anastasiopolis in Galatia, and shepherded that flock for some ten years before being permitted to return to a life of solitary prayer. He reposed in the year 613. The Church remembers him as a wonderworker, hierarch and faithful imitator of Saint George.
Venerable Vitalius the hermit, monk of Gaza
Saint Vitalius was a monk of the monastery of Abba Seridus near Gaza in Palestine. At the age of sixty he travelled to Alexandria during the patriarchate of Saint John the Merciful, and there he undertook an extraordinary and hidden ascetic struggle for the salvation of the city's prostitutes. He wrote down from memory the names of all the harlots of Alexandria and prayed for each of them by name. Working as a hired labourer by day, he gave the small wages he earned each evening to one of the women, saying, I beg you, take this money and do not sin with anyone tonight. He would remain in her room while she slept, spending the whole night reading the Psalms and praying for her conversion, and quietly leaving at dawn. He bound each woman by an oath not to reveal the purpose of his visits. The townspeople, ignorant of his secret labour, slandered him as a debaucher, but he bore the reproach in silence. By his prayers and example many women were rescued from sin: some entered monasteries, some married honestly, others found respectable work. Only after his death, when one of these women publicly testified to his holiness, did the city understand the saint's hidden charity. He is commemorated on 22 April and also on 11 January.
Holy Martyr Leonidas
202
He was the father of Origen, the great early Christian writer. For his constant faith in Christ, he was first deprived of all his property, then condemned to death. Origen wrote to his father in prison: “Father, do not worry about us, and do not flee from martyrdom on our account.”
Our Holy Father, the monk Vitalis
See his main commemoration on January 11.