...continued fro part two.
Venerable George foresaw and accurately predicted his blessed end. Having been prepared for a long time, he awaited it with longing and desire, increasing his prayer, tears, and giving his last advice to his beloved spiritual children. Three days prior, the Mystery of the Divine and Holy Anointing Oil was celebrated. He partook of the Immaculate Mysteries for the last time, as a provision for eternal life. He forgave from the heart, blessed from the soul, and prayed for all. On November 4, 1959, the last words heard from his lips were: “Open the gate of compassion, blessed Theotokos.” The Theotokophile Saint invoked the compassion of the Mother of God and of men, the Lady of the world who is full of grace, the Unwedded Bride of Gennesaret, the Ever-Virgin Most Holy Theotokos. She opened the gate of salvation for him, so that her Son and God, the Heavenly Bridegroom, the Crown-Giving Christ, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the Universe, might welcome him.
An orphaned, mournful and inconsolable crowd followed him to his last residence, behind the sacred Temple of the Ascension, where he had served for about thirty years. His face was peaceful, cheerful and bright. His dead body was flexible, like that of the children of the Panagia, the Hagiorites. The two cypress trees next to his grave bowed down to adore him, as he had said. Many birds gathered at the time of his burial, without fear of the large crowd, to bid him farewell. Everyone was now certain that a saint was being buried. He asked to be buried with his vestments, his cross and his liturgical books, which he had brought from Georgia.
After his holy repose, the Saint made his presence manifest to many, as a friend, teacher, physician and father. At times, as a strict admonisher, regarding the neglect of his pledges. They saw light and fire at his grave, he appeared as a comforter in their dreams, in their lives, in their problems and various needs. He incensed the pilgrims, some sensed the fragrance and others heard him alive advising and blessing them, healing them from various illnesses to this day.
On February 9, 2006, after forty days of prayer by the nuns, under the blessing of the worthily-blessed and worthily-memorable Eldress Akylina, who according to Elder Paisios the Athonite could be viewed as the Eldress of all Eldresses, and with the joy of seeing her old dream come true for the Saint she had just met, the transfer of the grace-filled relics of our Venerable Father George the Wonderworker was carried out by order of the local archshepherd His Eminence Paul. During the exhumation, which took place 46 years after his blessed repose, his bones were found to be of a most beautiful, brownish-yellow color, exuding an indescribable fragrance, a sure proof of the grace of the venerable man, for whom the grace of the Holy Spirit also dwelt in his dry bones, which participated in his sanctification, according to Orthodox teaching.
The initiative of His Eminence Metropolitan Paul of Drama for the translation of the honorable relics of the Saint, was truly inspired and divinely motivated. The hidden Venerable George after about half a century was revealed by someone who draws his origin from the holy lands of Pontus, whom he venerates and whose memory he struggles worthily to keep current in many ways. Through the actions of the same monk-loving and saint-loving hierarch, the entire process for the recognition of the already existing holiness of our Venerable Father George Karslides by the faithful people was promoted by the all-august Ecumenical Patriarchate on March 18, 2008, upon the recommendation of the Sacred Synod of the Church of Greece of August 31, 2007.
With your patient love, allow me to mention, in parentheses, that the blessed hieromonk Ephraim Katounakiotis had heavenly information about the Saint’s holiness from very early on and had made his first icon with a halo. He even came here himself with tears to venerate his tomb. When he once met me, he embraced me with emotion, telling me: “Just because you wrote the life of Venerable George Karslides, half of your sins have been forgiven.” Pray for the many remaining ones. His book with his biography, which we wrote unworthily, is already circulating in thousands of copies, in repeated editions of the monastery, translations into several languages, and has had a positive response. The monastery of the Saint, his church, his tomb, and now his elaborate, silver larnax with his honorable relics are a place of reverent pilgrimage for many believers. A multitude of miracles are reported daily by name, to confirm the divine saying: “God is wondrous in His saints” or “the Lord has made wondrous the saints on earth.”
Here are the results of the long, patient, persistent, diligent ascetic struggle of Venerable George. He was purified, illumined, deified, saved, redeemed, sanctified, and works miracles. Holiness, my dear brethren, is the main goal. Holiness will save the world. The saints prolong the mercy of the All-Good God. We are all created for holiness. This is the main purpose of our life. The failure to achieve this constitutes the greatest tragedy of man. Venerable George also assured us that the Gospel is possible, achievable. The sufferings, the sorrows, the problems, the hardships, the migrations, the displacements, the imprisonments, the hardships, the illnesses, did not disappoint him, but matured him spiritually and cultivated him psychically and sanctified him exceedingly.
Beloved brethren in Christ, we have a new, strong intercessor, friend and brother, let us call upon him. Be assured that he will assist us.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
Venerable George foresaw and accurately predicted his blessed end. Having been prepared for a long time, he awaited it with longing and desire, increasing his prayer, tears, and giving his last advice to his beloved spiritual children. Three days prior, the Mystery of the Divine and Holy Anointing Oil was celebrated. He partook of the Immaculate Mysteries for the last time, as a provision for eternal life. He forgave from the heart, blessed from the soul, and prayed for all. On November 4, 1959, the last words heard from his lips were: “Open the gate of compassion, blessed Theotokos.” The Theotokophile Saint invoked the compassion of the Mother of God and of men, the Lady of the world who is full of grace, the Unwedded Bride of Gennesaret, the Ever-Virgin Most Holy Theotokos. She opened the gate of salvation for him, so that her Son and God, the Heavenly Bridegroom, the Crown-Giving Christ, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the Universe, might welcome him.
An orphaned, mournful and inconsolable crowd followed him to his last residence, behind the sacred Temple of the Ascension, where he had served for about thirty years. His face was peaceful, cheerful and bright. His dead body was flexible, like that of the children of the Panagia, the Hagiorites. The two cypress trees next to his grave bowed down to adore him, as he had said. Many birds gathered at the time of his burial, without fear of the large crowd, to bid him farewell. Everyone was now certain that a saint was being buried. He asked to be buried with his vestments, his cross and his liturgical books, which he had brought from Georgia.
After his holy repose, the Saint made his presence manifest to many, as a friend, teacher, physician and father. At times, as a strict admonisher, regarding the neglect of his pledges. They saw light and fire at his grave, he appeared as a comforter in their dreams, in their lives, in their problems and various needs. He incensed the pilgrims, some sensed the fragrance and others heard him alive advising and blessing them, healing them from various illnesses to this day.
On February 9, 2006, after forty days of prayer by the nuns, under the blessing of the worthily-blessed and worthily-memorable Eldress Akylina, who according to Elder Paisios the Athonite could be viewed as the Eldress of all Eldresses, and with the joy of seeing her old dream come true for the Saint she had just met, the transfer of the grace-filled relics of our Venerable Father George the Wonderworker was carried out by order of the local archshepherd His Eminence Paul. During the exhumation, which took place 46 years after his blessed repose, his bones were found to be of a most beautiful, brownish-yellow color, exuding an indescribable fragrance, a sure proof of the grace of the venerable man, for whom the grace of the Holy Spirit also dwelt in his dry bones, which participated in his sanctification, according to Orthodox teaching.
The initiative of His Eminence Metropolitan Paul of Drama for the translation of the honorable relics of the Saint, was truly inspired and divinely motivated. The hidden Venerable George after about half a century was revealed by someone who draws his origin from the holy lands of Pontus, whom he venerates and whose memory he struggles worthily to keep current in many ways. Through the actions of the same monk-loving and saint-loving hierarch, the entire process for the recognition of the already existing holiness of our Venerable Father George Karslides by the faithful people was promoted by the all-august Ecumenical Patriarchate on March 18, 2008, upon the recommendation of the Sacred Synod of the Church of Greece of August 31, 2007.
With your patient love, allow me to mention, in parentheses, that the blessed hieromonk Ephraim Katounakiotis had heavenly information about the Saint’s holiness from very early on and had made his first icon with a halo. He even came here himself with tears to venerate his tomb. When he once met me, he embraced me with emotion, telling me: “Just because you wrote the life of Venerable George Karslides, half of your sins have been forgiven.” Pray for the many remaining ones. His book with his biography, which we wrote unworthily, is already circulating in thousands of copies, in repeated editions of the monastery, translations into several languages, and has had a positive response. The monastery of the Saint, his church, his tomb, and now his elaborate, silver larnax with his honorable relics are a place of reverent pilgrimage for many believers. A multitude of miracles are reported daily by name, to confirm the divine saying: “God is wondrous in His saints” or “the Lord has made wondrous the saints on earth.”
Here are the results of the long, patient, persistent, diligent ascetic struggle of Venerable George. He was purified, illumined, deified, saved, redeemed, sanctified, and works miracles. Holiness, my dear brethren, is the main goal. Holiness will save the world. The saints prolong the mercy of the All-Good God. We are all created for holiness. This is the main purpose of our life. The failure to achieve this constitutes the greatest tragedy of man. Venerable George also assured us that the Gospel is possible, achievable. The sufferings, the sorrows, the problems, the hardships, the migrations, the displacements, the imprisonments, the hardships, the illnesses, did not disappoint him, but matured him spiritually and cultivated him psychically and sanctified him exceedingly.
Beloved brethren in Christ, we have a new, strong intercessor, friend and brother, let us call upon him. Be assured that he will assist us.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
