Spyridon (saint)

St. Spyridon, fresco in Semen Monastery (Bulgaria), 14th century century

St. Spyridon (Corfu)

St. Spyridon Orthodox Cathedral, Seattle (USA)

Spyridon , different spelling Spiridon ( ancient Greek Σπυρίδων Τριμυθούντος , * around 270; † 350 ) is a saint of the Eastern and Latin Churches . He is considered the patron saint of Corfu . His feast day is December 12th .

Life

Legend has it that Spyridon was born to poor people in Trimythontos , Cyprus . At first he lived as a shepherd and was married. After the death of his wife, he devoted his life to the Church and was ordained bishop of his hometown. During the persecution of Christians under Emperor Maximian , he was arrested and exiled.

According to tradition, Spyridon took part in the Council of Nicaea after 325 (his name is not documented in the files) and there advocated the doctrine of the essential equality of Jesus with God the Father.

Spyridon is said to have worked numerous miracles during his lifetime. When his grave was opened after Cyprus had been conquered by the Saracens to bring the remains to Constantinople, his body had not decayed and smelled of basil , which was taken as evidence of his holiness.

Worship in Corfu

After the fall of Constantinople in 1453 , the Corfiot priest Giorgios Kalochairetis brought the body to Corfu and bequeathed the relic to his three children. As a dowry from his granddaughter Asimia, the relic passed into the possession of the Bulgari family, who upgraded their private church to a place of pilgrimage for the homage of Spyridon. To build the new city wall, the Bulgarian Church was demolished in the 16th century. A new church was built for the saint in the center of the city of Corfu, which bears his name and where he is venerated to this day.

The coffin with the body of the saint is in a separate room to the right of the church chancel. It is opened temporarily and then allows the worship of the saint's feet and, through a viewing window, a view of his head.

Four times a year the Shrine of Spiridons is carried in a large procession through the streets of Corfu:

• on Palm Sunday to remember that the Holy Corfiots the front of the plague kept in 1630;
• since 1550 on Holy Saturday, when the saint saved the Corfiots from famine;
• August 11, to remember that the saint averted the months-long siege of the Turks in 1716;
• on the 1st Sunday of November to remember that the saint also saved the Corfiots from the plague in 1673.

Patronage

A large number of churches are dedicated to the saint in Greece and Cyprus. In addition, there are churches with this patronage in various European countries and in North America. a .:

• Trinity and St Spyridon Church , Trieste , Serbian Orthodox Church in Italy
• Church of St. Spyridon , Petrinja , Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia
• Church of St. Spyridon , Peroj , Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia

In Germany there is a Serbian Orthodox monk community who subordinate their skis to the patronage of the saint:

• Skite of St. Spyridon , Serbian Orthodox monastic community in Geilnau , Rhineland-Palatinate

swell

• Socrates Scholasticus , historia ecclesiastica 1.12
• Rufinus of Aquileia , Eusebii historia ecclesiastica 10.5
• Sozomenos , historia ecclesiastica 1.11

literature

• Klaus-Peter Todt:  Spyridon (saint). In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 10, Bautz, Herzberg 1995, ISBN 3-88309-062-X , Sp. 1080-1083.
• Iera Moni Pantokratoros Sotiros Christou / Monastery of Pantokrator, Corfu (ed.): The life and miracles of Saint Spyridon . Mydonia, Thessaloniki 2005 (German edition).

Web links

Commons : Spyridon (saint)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Biography. Retrieved December 20, 2009 . 
• Spyridon worship in Corfu. Retrieved April 9, 2015 . 
• Spyridon Thaumaturgos (from Trimythunt / Trimithon) in the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints , accessed on December 20, 2009