Saints

This historic icon of the Apostle John the Theologian dates from the 15th century. It depicts him holding his Gospel while being overseen by an angelic visitor. St. John the Evangelist did not only author a Gospel, but was a much-beloved Apostle and...

This beautiful Byzantine icon depicts Saint Athanasia of Aegina, Greece, who lived in the 9th century. Besides serving as an advisor to the Byzantine empress, she was an abbess known for her healing of the sick and those who suffered demon possession...

Saint Boniface lived during the reign of Emperor Diocletian (286-305). He was the servant of a ranking Roman woman named Aglais, but in truth they were living together in a sinful union. Boniface drank heavily and lived in hedonism, yet he was...

Saint Stephen suffered during the iconoclasm of Emperor Leo the Isaurian (716-41). He defended the veneration of icons, and for this he was put on trial and imprisoned. In prison, he and over 300 other defenders of the icons organized a...

This 18th century icon shows the frontal depictions of the saints full-length. Blasius (or Blaise) is represented dressed as a bishop, with the Gospel book in his hands, martyrs Florus and Laurus are holding the crosses in their right hands.

This Bulgarian icon of the Apostle Andrew "the First-Called" was painted in the 19th century. It commemorates the life and ministry of this first-called disciple of Christ who later became one of the Apostles. According to Holy Tradition, after...

This beautiful example of Western iconography is part of the illuminated manuscript known as the Lindisfarne Gospel, which was produced in England in the early 8th century. We see Saint John writing his Gospel. The text at the top reads Imago...

Saint Matrona lived in the fifth century. After the death of her husband, she entered the monastic life and founded a women's monastery in Constantinople, which became known for its strict rule of life and the holiness of the women who lived there...

Saint Zacchaeus was a tax collector (publican). His encounter with the Lord is recorded in Luke 19, which resulted in Zacchaeus turning from his greed and following Christ. After the Ascension, he traveled with Saint Peter, becoming one of the Seventy...

When the Forerunner was beheaded by Herod, his head was placed on a platter and given to his daughter at the request of her mother. This 19th century Russian icon depicts the Forerunner's sacred head, which is commemorated on several feast days during...

According to Church tradition, after the bodily death of Mary the Theotokos, she was buried by the Apostles. But Thomas was delayed, and he desired to look upon her face one last time. When the tomb was opened, her body was gone (for Christ had already...

Gideon was appointed by God as one of the Judges of Israel during the Old Testament. His feast is celebrated on September 26, and he is also remembered among the Old Testament righteous on the Sunday of the Forefathers in December.

Saint Philoumenos was born in Morphou, Cyprus, in 1913. At the age of 14, he and his twin brother entered the monastic life in Cyprus, and at age 20 departed for Jerusalem. There, Fr. Philoumenos became a priest and was raised to the rank of...

The details of St. Simon's role alongside Christ are mostly unknown, but he is traditionally said to have joined Christ after witnessing the miracle at the wedding at Cana, Simon's place of birth. His going to Jesus by his own choice, without being...

Saint Tryphon (or Trypho) was born in the early 3rd century in Phrygia of Asia Minor. In his youth, he tended geese. He was a devout Christian, and was granted the power to work miracles and cast out demons. He was offered rewards, but always...

This unique 19th century Russian icon features a stylized church iconostasis. This is a great way to bring the church into the home as a centerpiece for prayer. Bottom Row: the Holy Doors and Deacon's Doors Second Row: the 12 Great Feasts with Pascha...

Saint Nilus (or Neilos/Neil/Nil) was a disciple of Saint John Chrysostom and one of his greatest defenders when he was persecuted by the Empress Eudoxia. About the time of Chrysostom's exile, Nilus and his son went to live at Mount Sinai. There he...

Saint Theodore was born out of wedlock in Sykeon of Galatia. When he was a child, his mother gave him a soldier's belt, and told him he would be a soldier. The Great Martyr George then appeared to her and told her that God had a different plan for her...

Jeremiel (sometimes called Ramiel) in the Hebrew language means God's Exaltation. One of the eight traditional archangels, he is depicted holding scales of justice, which relates to his traditional role as the angelic overseer of Hades, or...

Saint Tatiana lived in Rome in the early 3rd century. She was raised a Christian and served as a deaconess. After her prayers resulted in the miraculous destruction of various idols and pagan temples, she was arrested and brutally tortured. Her...

This historic Greek icon depicts the Apostle Luke the Evangelist. Renowned for his authorship of the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, his accounts feature some of the most distinctive and renowned stories of Christ’s Incarnation and the...

Saint Nicholas was born in the third century in the city of Patara. His wealthy Christian parents died when he was young, and he gave his inheritance to the poor. Devoting himself to the Church, Nicholas was eventually ordained Bishop of Myra...

Saint Ronan lived in the sixth century. A native of Ireland, he decided to leave everything behind and went on a pilgrimage to Brittany in modern western France. There he established a hermitage for monks, and like the Desert Fathers of old, he gained a...

This Saint Valentine lived in Silistria (modern Bulgaria) in the 3rd century. He was a soldier in the Roman army, and when he was 30 years old, he confessed his faith in Christ, together with his brother Pasikrates. They were tortured and martyred...

Saint Joseph lived in Syria in the 19th century. He was a priest who worked as a translator and editor of the Church Fathers' writings, desiring to bring their teachings to the faithful. In 1860, a wave of anti-Christian Druze riots swept through...

Saint Larisa (or Larissa) was one of the 26 Martyrs of Crimea slain by the Goths in the year 375. They are commemorated together on March 26.

Saint Raphael was born in Beirut in 1860. He spent the first decades of his life traveling throughout the Middle East and Russia, gaining knowledge and experience as a clergyman. Father Raphael was called to America and established a parish in...

Saint Sisoes lived in the fourth century, and he was a contemporary of Saint Anthony the Great. When Saint Anthony died, Sisoes went to live in his cave. His ascetic labor carried him to the heights of spiritual purity, and he was given the gift of...

This unique historic Byzantine icon of the 12th century depicts the Holy Michael in his role as defender of and intercessor for the church. Here, he greets a ‘lowly’ church warden (in comparison to the glorious archangel!) in response to...

Saint Cosmas was a native of Jerusalem. He was the foster brother of Saint John of Damascus, having been adopted by his parents. The brothers entered the monastery of Saint Sabbas, where Cosmas achieved the heights of grace through his ascetic labor...

Saint Katherine (also spelled Catherine) was a Great Martyr who suffered in the year 305 at the hands of Maximinus of Alexandria. She is commemorated in the Slavic churches on November 24, the date of her martyrdom. In the Byzantine churches, she is...

This historic Byzantine icon features Saint Kyriakos (or Cyriacus) the Hermit. Living in the 5th-6th centuries, he embraced ascetical living at an early age in the lived in the deserts in and near the Holy Land. He blessed fellow monks and visitors with...

Saint Rastislav was the second Prince of Great Moravia (today part of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary), reigning from 846 to 870. During his reign, he sought to free Moravia from the dominion of Eastern Francia under King Louis the...

This stunning historic Russian icon depicts Michael the Archangel in his role of “the Commander of Formidable Forces.” As captain of the bodiless hosts of heaven, he leads the charge against the evil one and his demonic forces. This icon...

Eight days after the Resurrection, we celebrate the "excellent unbelief of Thomas," in the words of one Vesperal hymn for the feast. This unbelief led the Lord to offer proof, which brings all of us to the knowledge of the risen Savior as Lord and God.

"I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is; you hold fast my name and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells." — Revelation 2:13 (RSV) Saint Antipas...

Saint Willibrord was the first missionary to the Low Countries, in particular the Frisians in the north of the Netherlands. Born in Northumbria (northern England) in 658, he entered the monastic life at a young age following the death of his mother. He...

Saint Mocius was a priest in Amphipolis of Thrace. One day, Mocius entered the temple of Dionysius and overturned the altar while the proconsul was offering a sacrifice. He was subjected to torture and finally beheaded in Byzantium in the year 288. He...

This historic icon of the Apostle Philip captures the humility and holiness of the renowned servant of Christ. Known for his missionary journeys and faithful service to the Church, he helped spread the Gospel into new regions after Pentecost...

The holy New Martyr Dionysios was a monk of Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos. In 1822, he was sent to Crete with the holy Belt of the Theotokos admidst an epidemic that was ravaging the island. A revolution had broken out on the island against the...