By Fr. George Dorbarakis
1. "Having been made wise by grace, O divine Sophia, you practiced asceticism wisely in Kleisoura."
The Venerable and God-bearing Mother Sophia, the rag-clad yet Spirit-filled ascetic of Kleisoura, was born in Ardasia of Pontus in 1883. After following the path of the refugees, following the incursion of the Hagarenes against her homeland and the loss of her husband and child, she came to Anarrachi of Eordaia. She longed for the ascetic life, and so she built her first hermitage at the Monastery of Saint Mark in Florina, where she remained for two years.
At the urging, however, of the Most Holy Theotokos, she settled in Her monastery located in Kleisoura of Kastoria, where she struggled in a God-pleasing manner for a full forty-seven years. Without even a bed to rest her earthly body, she endured the cold of winter, sitting near the hearth in the courtyard of the monastery, opposite the south door of the katholikon, gazing at the serene image of the Theotokos above its lintel.
Living simply, clothed in rags, and sometimes even feigning foolishness, she passed through her life. Constantly engaged in the prayer of the heart, she reached the heights of deification. She attracted richly the grace of the All-Holy Spirit and was deemed worthy of both clairvoyant and healing gifts. Always cheerful and approachable, she received visitors to the monastery, teaching them repentance and goodness of character. She foresaw her end and reposed in the Lord in holiness on May 6, 1974.
Her holy relics, which were translated and emitted fragrance, are preserved in the Sacred Monastery of Kleisoura, offering healing to the faithful. She was enrolled among the saints of the Church on October 4, 2011.
