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FOR THE GLORY OF THE FATHER,
SON AND HOLY SPIRIT
A History of Eastern Orthodox Saints
By
Michael James Fochios
Edited By Aristides Isidoros Cederakis
SAINT GEORGE - THE GREAT MARTYR
(pp.127-133)
(Celebrated April 23)
This great miracle worker and martyr lived in the latter part of the
third century A.D., during Diocletian's rule of the Roman Empire. He
originally came from the area of Cappadocia and was raised by very pious
parents.
When Diocletian started his persecutions against the Christians, Saint
George declared himself to be a Christian and thus denied the false idols.
He suffered many tortures because of his belief, but never considered
renouncing it.
The life of Saint George is a prime example of the life that each
Christian should follow to obtain salvation.
Saint George, the Great Martyr, was raised in the Christian religion.
His father, himself, martyred for his faith. After his father's death,
George's mother took him to Palestine where she had some farm land. At a
young age, he served in the Roman army under the Emperor Diocletian and
was commended many times for his excellent service to the Empire. From the
rule of the Emperor Decian, until 284 A.D., when Diocletian became
Emperor, the Christian Church went through a period of peace and
prosperity. During that time, the Christians obtained important positions
in the government, built many churches and schools, and organized the
authoritative structure of the Church. Diocletian gave many of his loyal
officers political positions so that he could have the military strength
of his Empire on his sided
After Diocletian had suppressed the barbarian tribes which were
attacking the Empire and after he had secured its borders, he began to
concentrate on the Empire's internal affairs. Diocletian believed that a
state religion could keep an Empire united. Since paganism was the state
religion, Diocletian focused his efforts toward the suppression of
Christianity.
During the year 303 A.D., Diocletian summoned his aides to meet in
Caesarea, a city of the Eastern Roman Empire. He held three general
meetings with his aides, instructing them to persecute the Christians.
Saint George, since he had shown his excellence while serving in the army,
was among these aides. Diocletian asked them to pledge their allegiance to
this cause by making pagan sacrifices as proof of their loyalty. All of
the aides pledged their loyalty, except for the Saint. He stood in front
of Diocletian and admitted his belief in Christianity, telling the monarch
of the Christian teachings and the Godliness of the Crucified Nazarene.
The Emperor ordered this Christian taken to prison and that a boulder be
placed on his chest as a form of torture. The next morning Diocletian
ordered that the prisoner be brought before him for questioning. George
stood steadfast and told Diocletian of his belief in the riches of the
Kingdom of Heaven. The Emperor then summoned the executioners to take the
Saint and have him bound to the rim of a wheel set with sharp spikes.
Diocletian admired the courage of the Saint and asked him to sacrifice to
the gods to save himself. He refused Diocletion's request and welcomed the
chance to martyr for Christ, as his father had done. After praying to God,
he heard a voice from heaven say, "Do not fear, George, I am with
you." With the help of Christ, the spiked wheel had no effect upon
Saint George. When the Saint appeared before Diocletian not only was he
unharmed, but an angelic aura had settled about him. Suddenly, two
officers of the Roman army, Anatolios and Protoleon, appeared before
Diocletian with two thousand soldiers. They admitted their belief in
Christ and Diocletian had them all executed.
He then ordered his soldiers to dig a pit and fill it with lime. The
Saint was then drenched with water and thrown into the pit. The water and
lime would slowly destroy the Saint's body. After three days, Diocletian
instructed the soldiers to clear the pit. To the surprise of the soldiers
and the Emperor, Saint George sat at the bottom of the pit unharmed.
Diocletian demanded to know what type of magic George had used to escape
his fate. George answered that he had not used any magic, but that he had
been saved by the power of God.
The Emperor then ordered that iron sandals be tied to the feet of the
Saint and that he be made to run. As he ran, he was beaten. One of
Diocletian's advisors, Magnentios, ordered George to perform a miracle.
They happened to pass by a tomb of a man who had been dead for many years.
Magnentios ordered George to resurrect this man to show the power of his
God. After praying for a long time, he rolled the rock away from the tomb
and resurrected the dead man. The by-standers praised the strength of
Christ. Diocletian asked the resurrected man who he was and when he had
died. He told Diocletian that he had lived before Christ had come on the
Earth, and because he was an idolater, he had burned in the fires of Hell
during all those years. Many idolaters were converted to Christianity
because of this great miracle.
Among the people who glorified God and Saint George at the tomb was a
farmer named Glecerios. Previously Saint George had resurrected this
farmer's oxen, his livelihood. Because the farmer was so outspoken, the
soldiers murdered him and thus he received the crown of martyrdom.
The next day, Diocletian met with his noblemen to determine Saint
George's fate. They decided to beat the Saint mercilessly. The Saint
nevertheless remained unharmed and retained his angelic appearance.
Diocletian was convinced that all of George's miracles were done by magic.
He, therefore, called upon Athanasius the Magician to break this magic.
Athanasius held two vials in his hands. If the Saint drank the first one,
he would go insane, if he drank the second one he would die. The Saint
took the first vial and prayed. He drank its contents and there was no
effect. Diocletian still believed that George was a magician; however,
Athanasius realized the strength of God and confessed his belief in the
Christian God. Athanasius was immediately executed by Diocletian's order.
After seeing the miracles of Saint George, Diocletian's wife, the Empress
Alexandra, also confessed her belief in Christ. Diocletian imprisoned her.
Saint George was returned to prison and dreamt that Christ told him that
he would receive the crown of martyrdom and life eternal.
Once again George appeared before Diocletian who ordered that Saint
George accompany him to the temple and sacrifice to the gods. When they
arrived at the temple, Saint George made the sign of the cross and the
idols were again destroyed. The people and the priests were furious and
demanded that Diocletian have the Saint executed. Saint George was taken
out of the city and as he turned his head toward the executioner, he was
beheaded.
In the history of our Church, we find a myth related to a dragon and
Saint George. This dragon threatened the idolaters in the area of Atalia.
The people were forced to live inside the walls of their city. This
prevented them from tending their fields and grazing their sheep. Every
year, they would sacrifice a young girl to the dragon. When Saint George
arrived in this area, the King's daughter was about to be sacrificed.
After subduing the dragon, Saint George placed a rope around its neck. He
then gave the rope to the princess so that she could lead the beast back
to the city. Thence, he slaughtered the terror and subsequently baptized
thousands of the city's inhabitants.
 It is from the icon of Saint George that this myth came about. The icon
depicts the Saint as an equestrian slaying the dragon with the princess in the background. The first iconographers of Saint George were probably
trying to depict Satan as the dragon and Saint George conquering evil.
Another explanation of this icon is that the artists were trying to depict
Diocletian as the dragon and Saint George conquering him. The princess in
the background could have been the Empress Alexandra who watched Saint
George as he triumphed. She could also symbolize Christianity, or the
Church itself. When the Crusaders journeyed through the Byzantine Empire,
they saw this icon and from its depiction they interpreted the legend
which they spread throughout western Europe.
The Miracles of Saint George
- A woman had bought a pillar for a church being dedicated to Saint
George in Rome. However, she had no means of transporting the pillar. One
night she dreamt of Saint George. He helped her to lift the pillar and
then throw it into the sea. Soon afterwards, the pillar was found in Rome
with instructions to place it on the right side of the church as the woman
had wished.
- In the city of Paflagonia in Pontus, many churches had been
dedicated to Saint George. Many families named their children George or
Georgia in honor of this great martyr. The following, miracle concerns one
particularly pious couple who had named their son George. The boy had been
raised with great faith. As was the law, when he became twenty years old,
he served in the army. During a battle with a barbaric tribe, many
Christian soldiers were either murdered, imprisoned, or enslaved. George
became a personal slave to one of the barbarian officers. His parents,
giving him up for dead, had mourned him for a year. They went to one of
the churches dedicated to Saint George and asked that he tell them what
had happened to their son. The Feast Day of Saint George was being
celebrated on the anniversary of the boy's disappearance. The parents
invited their relatives to dinner since they hoped that Saint George would
give them a sign concerning their son. That same evening, the barbarian
master was preparing for a dinner and ordered George to draw some water
with which to wash his master's feet. As he drew the water he cried and
prayed to Saint George to reunite him with his family. As he prepared to
return to his master, a horseman appeared before him on a white horse. It
was Saint George. The Saint put him on the horse and the boy found himself
in the house of his parents while they were eating. One may imagine the
happiness that filled that house. It is from this miracle that another
icon of Saint George is based. It depicts a boy on the back of the horse
with Saint George. This icon was first made in early Byzantium.
- In the same city of Paflagonia, some children were playing in the
courtyard of the Church of Saint George. One of the boys was being teased
by the others. He went to the icon of Saint George to ask for help. In
return, the boy promised to make the Saint a food called "sfouggato,"
a type of onion omelet. The boy returned to the courtyard and won a
wrestling match with several boys. He went home and made the "sfouggato"
and took it to the Saint's icon. Shortly afterwards, three young men
entered the church and saw the food. In jest, they said that the Saint
would not eat the food, so they decided to sit on the steps of the altar
and eat it themselves. When they tried to get up, they found themselves
stuck to the marble steps. Only after offering the Saint three gold
pieces, were they able to leave.
The icon of Saint George is rarely missing from the first row of icons
of the iconostasis. A town with several Greek Orthodox Churches normally
has one church named after this great martyr. His great honor is derived
not only from the miracles which have been attributed to him, but also
because many of his icons have performed miracles.
1. The Icon of Saint George in the Holy Monastery of Zographos on Mount
Athos
In the year 919, three brothers-Moses, Aaron, and Vasilios-went to
Mount Athos to become monks. They built three tents in a large valley near
the river. They also built a small church near there, but were skeptical
about what saint to name the church after. They prepared the board on
which the icon of the patron saint of the church was to be painted,
however, they did not paint the icon because they could not decide to
which saint the church should be dedicated. When the monks went to the
church the next morning, they found that an icon of Saint George had been
painted on the board. The icon was painted in an ancient style. This
miracle showed the brothers that God wanted their church dedicated to
Saint George.
The institution which the brothers had established was named the
Monastery of Zographos, or the Monastery of the Painter because of the
icon's miraculous appearance.
The following is considered to be the history of this icon before its
appearance in the Monastery of Zographos. This icon was originally in the
Monastery of Phenol, located in Liana. From the time that Evstratios was
the abbot of this monastery, the icon had performed many miracles. One day
in the presence of the monks, the icon came off of the piece of wood on
which it had been painted and disappeared from their sight. The monks were
extremely saddened by this event and felt that God had forsaken them.
Then, the Abbot Evstratios saw Saint George before him and the Saint told
him not to weep for him for he was on Mount Athos. The abbot told the
other brothers of his vision. Evstratios left the monastery, and after
going to Jerusalem, he embarked on his journey to Mount Athos. After
searching in many of the monasteries for the icon, he finally came upon
the Monastery of Zographos. When he entered the church, he saw the icon
hanging without anything supporting it. Evstratios remained at that
monastery until his other brothers came to see the miracle.
That icon performed the following miracle. The Bishop Vothenon visited
the monastery and began to question the events without faith. Pointing to
the icon, he laughed and said, "Is this the miraculous icon?" He
placed his finger on the icon and there it stuck. To this day, visitors to
the monastery can still see the finger hanging on the icon.
2. The Miraculous Icon of Saint George Which Came by Sea From Arabia.
This icon was found in the harbor of the Monastery of Vatopedion. Later
it was discovered that the icon had originally come from Arabia. The
abbots of the different monasteries began to argue about whom the icon
belonged. They decided to place the icon on the back of a donkey. The
onager was left on the cross roads between Mount Athos and Salonika. It
was agreed that whichever monastery the donkey went to could rightfully
claim the icon. The donkey proceeded to the Monastery of Zographos. After
the donkey arrived there, it died. The icon was placed on the left pillar
of the church, opposite the other miraculous icon of Saint George.
3. The Third Icon of Saint George in the Monastery of Zographos
On the third pillar of the Church of Saint George of the Monastery of
Zographos hangs a third icon of the Saint. This icon had belonged to the
ruler of Moldavia (Rumania), Stephen. When ever he went into battle,
Stephen would carry this icon with him. After capturing Constantinople,
the Turks came to the land ruled by Stephen. He decided to fight the Turks
inside the walls of the city. He saw a vision of Saint George which told
him that the Saint would help him to be victorious. After the battle,
Stephen took the icon to the Monastery of Zographos and gave a great deal
of money for the purpose of beautifying this holy place.
4. The Miraculous Icon of Saint George in the Monastery of Xenophone on
Mount Athos
During the Iconoclast Period, several soldiers had taken an icon of
Saint George and thrown it into a fire with other icons. When the fire had
died, some bystanders saw that it had not consumed the icon of Saint
George, but had damaged only a small portion of it. One soldier ran his
sword into the face of the Saint. Blood emerged from this spot. The
soldiers were so frightened that they ran. Some Iconodules who witnessed
this miracle, took the icon to protect it from the soldiers in case they
returned. They took it to the shore and placed it into the water. Then
they prayed to the Saint to guide his icon to a place where it would
continue to perform miracles. The icon landed at the Monastery of
Xenophone on Mount Athos. The blood stains and the burnt clothing of the
Saint can still be seen on the icon.
Conclusion
It should be noted here that there is a theory that Saint George and
Saint Phanourios (August 27) are one and the same. This is so because
Saint George's birth was said to have occurred in the city of Phanouel and
because the tortures which the two Saints underwent were so similar. This
theory has not been completely proven.
The fame of Saint George spread all over the East, and the Crusaders
brought their devotion for the warrior Saint back to Europe. Through the
Crusaders, Saint George became the patron Saint of England. He is also the
patron Saint of Syria and Lebanon. The Emperor Constantine dedicated a
church to him not long after his martyrdom, and in later times, he became
an object of devotion for Christians and Moslems alike.
Saint George is the protector of Christians, and the patron of all who
fight for righteousness. His cheerful fortitude and unswerving loyalty
have inspired generations of Christians the world over.
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