While touring his Metropolis, Saint Athanasios the New, the Wonderworking Bishop of Christianopolis (+ 18th cent.; feast day May 17), arrived in Megalopolis.* There was the Church of the Transfiguration near which was a large lake full of frogs.
After Vespers, the Saint stayed there to spend the night in the open air, as he was accustomed to do in the summer to find peace.
Throughout the night, however, he was unable to close his eyes because the large number of frogs croaked, making a great noise. Therefore, he barely managed to close his eyes for a moment.
When on the next day after the celebration of the Divine Liturgy they asked him how he had spent the night sleeping outside, Saint Athanasios told them:
"What can I tell you, my children! These frogs, a bad year be upon them,** made so much noise last night that I hardly slept."
After this word of the Saint, the frogs immediately stopped croaking and complete silence reigned in the lake. This did not come as much of a surprise to the inhabitants of the area during the day, because frogs croak more at night.
However, since then, a deathly silence reigned in the lake, which created great wonder among the inhabitants of the area.
After two years, when the Saint returned to Megalopolis, he did not hear the frogs croaking, which surprised him.
Out of curiosity, he asked a priest after the Divine Liturgy:
"What happened to that multitude of frogs that used to be heard?"
And the Priest answered him:
"Master, since the day you said 'a bad year be upon them' after they did not let you sleep, they have not been heard from again!"
Then the Saint with a slight smile said:
"And the blessed ones heard me?"
As soon as he finished his sentence, all the frogs began to croak together, causing a great noise as before!
Notes:
* Christianopolis and Megalopolis are both in the Peloponnese of Greece.
After Vespers, the Saint stayed there to spend the night in the open air, as he was accustomed to do in the summer to find peace.
Throughout the night, however, he was unable to close his eyes because the large number of frogs croaked, making a great noise. Therefore, he barely managed to close his eyes for a moment.
When on the next day after the celebration of the Divine Liturgy they asked him how he had spent the night sleeping outside, Saint Athanasios told them:
"What can I tell you, my children! These frogs, a bad year be upon them,** made so much noise last night that I hardly slept."
After this word of the Saint, the frogs immediately stopped croaking and complete silence reigned in the lake. This did not come as much of a surprise to the inhabitants of the area during the day, because frogs croak more at night.
However, since then, a deathly silence reigned in the lake, which created great wonder among the inhabitants of the area.
After two years, when the Saint returned to Megalopolis, he did not hear the frogs croaking, which surprised him.
Out of curiosity, he asked a priest after the Divine Liturgy:
"What happened to that multitude of frogs that used to be heard?"
And the Priest answered him:
"Master, since the day you said 'a bad year be upon them' after they did not let you sleep, they have not been heard from again!"
Then the Saint with a slight smile said:
"And the blessed ones heard me?"
As soon as he finished his sentence, all the frogs began to croak together, causing a great noise as before!
Notes:
* Christianopolis and Megalopolis are both in the Peloponnese of Greece.
** The phrase "a bad year be upon them" (κακόν χρόνον νάχουν) is a Greek expression that is used as a curse to someone to have a bad year, or not to have things go well for them. However, it is more often used as an exclamatory expression that is spoken in the flow of speech, but does not mean the curse that is uttered.
