29 ВЕРЕСНЯ / SEP 29

Saint Kyriakos was born in Corinth to the priest John and his wife Eudokia. Because of his love for the Holy Scriptures, he desired a life of holiness. Before he was eighteen, the words of Christ, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24), inspired him to leave home and travel to Jerusalem.

After visiting the holy places, Kyriakos entered a monastery and later went to the wilderness Lavra of Saint Euthymios the Great. Saint Euthymios tonsured him as a monk and entrusted him to Saint Gerasimos, who taught him the ascetic life. Kyriakos prayed fervently, slept little, and ate only every other day. During Great Lent, he accompanied Saint Gerasimos into the wilderness, where they lived in complete solitude.

After Saint Gerasimos died, Kyriakos returned to the Lavra of Saint Euthymios and lived in a solitary cell. He spent many years in silence and prayer. Later, he withdrew to the Souka Monastery of Saint Chariton, where he humbly served the brethren. He was eventually ordained a priest and served as canonarch for eighteen years. In all, he spent thirty years at the monastery.

Saint Kyriakos was known for strict fasting, constant prayer, and his complete freedom from anger and evil. At the age of seventy, he went into the Natoufa wilderness with his disciple John. He lived on bitter herbs, which God made edible through his prayers. After healing a demon-possessed child, many people began coming to him for help. Seeking solitude, he moved to the Rouva wilderness, where he continued to heal the sick and those afflicted by demons.

Later, Saint Kyriakos lived in the remote Sousakim wilderness. During a time of hunger and illness, monks came to him asking for spiritual help, and he returned to the Souka Monastery. He strongly defended the Church against the heresy of Origenism and helped many return to the true faith.

The Most Holy Theotokos once appeared to Saint Kyriakos with Saints John the Baptist and John the Theologian, instructing him to preserve the true faith. She refused to enter his cell because it contained a book written by the heretic Nestorius.

In his old age, Saint Kyriakos again lived in the desert with his disciple John. A great lion served him and protected him from robbers. When their water supply dried up, Saint Kyriakos prayed, and God sent rain.

Saint Kyriakos returned to the monastery two years before his death and lived in Saint Chariton’s cave. He continued to pray and work until the end of his life. Before his repose, he blessed the brethren and peacefully fell asleep in the Lord, having lived for 109 years.