Our Lord had spoken to His disciples many times not only concerning His Passion, Cross, and Death, but also concerning the coming persecutions and afflictions that they themselves would endure. Since all these evils were near at hand, but the enjoyment of good things which they hoped to receive in their stead was yet to come, our Savior desired to give them full assurance, evidently and openly, concerning that glory which is prepared for those who endure to the end. Therefore, fulfilling that which He had promised shortly before, that "there be some standing here which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in His Kingdom" (Matt. 16:28), He took His three foremost disciples and ascended Mount Tabor, where He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as the light. Suddenly, together with this dread and marvelous effulgence of light, there appeared those pinnacles of the Prophets, Moses and Elias, who spoke with the Lord Jesus concerning His saving Passion which was about to take place. Standing before Him as reverent servants, they showed that He is the Lord of both the living and the dead, for Moses came forth from Hades, having died many centuries before, and Elias, as it were from heaven, whither he had been taken up while yet alive. After a little while a radiant cloud overshadowed them and out of the cloud they heard that same voice which had been heard at the Jordan at the Baptism of Christ, testifying to the Divinity of Jesus and saying: "This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well-pleased; hear ye Him" (Matt. 17: 5).

Such are the marvels, truly worthy of God, celebrated in this present feast, which is an image and prefiguring of the future state of the righteous, whose splendor the Lord spoke of, saying: "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun" (Matt. 13:43). It is because of this that the Kontakion of this Feast is said daily (when there is not a great feast) in the Service of the Typica in perpetual commemoration of the glory that will be the lot of the Saints. According to tradition, the Lord's Transfiguration came to pass forty days before His Crucifixion; this is why the Transfiguration is celebrated forty days before the Exaltation of the Cross.

This Martyr, who lived during the reign of Saint Constantine the Great, was a Persian by race and an idolater by religion. He was catechized by a certain Christian named Abarus. He went to Nisibis, a city of Mesopotamia, where he was baptized and donned the monastic habit in a certain monastery. He afterwards ascended a mountain and there endured in extreme ascetical struggles, working miracles for those that came to him, and converting many unbelievers. Julian the Apostate learned of these things as he was marching against the Persians in 363, and at his command the Saint and his two disciples were stoned to death, as they were chanting the Sixth Hour.

After Judas by transgression fell from his apostleship (Acts 1: 25), and hanging himself out of despair ended his life with a wretched and shameful death (Matt. 27: 5), then, that the number of the Twelve not be lacking, all the disciples gathered in one place after the Ascension of the Savior (the number of men and women being 120), and they chose two men from among them, Joseph, called Barsabas, who was also surnamed Justus, and Matthias, and they set them in the midst. Then they prayed to God and cast lots, "and the lot fell upon Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven Apostles" (Acts 1: 15-26). And thus, having taken the place of Judas, Matthias fulfilled the work of apostleship and the prophecy concerning Judas, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David: "And his bishopric let another take" (Ps. 108:7). After this, it is said, Matthias preached the Gospel in Ethiopia, and completed his life there in martyrdom.

This Saint, who was born in Spain, was the Archdeacon of the Church of Rome, caring for the sacred vessels of the Church and distributing money to the needy. About the year 257, a harsh persecution was raised up against the Christians by Valerian. Pope Sixtus, who was from Athens, was commanded to worship the idols, and refused; before his martyrdom by beheading, he committed to Laurence all the sacred vessels of the Church. When Laurence was arrested and brought before the Prefect, he was questioned concerning the treasures of the Church; he asked for three days' time to prepare them. He then proceeded to gather all the poor and needy, and presented them to the Prefect and said, "Behold the treasures of the Church." The Prefect became enraged at this and gave command that Laurence be racked, then scourged with scorpions (a whip furnished with sharp iron points - compare II Chron. 10:11), then stretched out on a red-hot iron grill. But the courageous athlete of Christ endured without groaning. After he had been burned on one side, he said, "My body is done on one side; turn me over on the other." And when this had taken place, the Martyr said to the tyrants, "My flesh is now well done, you may taste of it." And when he had said this, and had prayed for his slayers in imitation of Christ, he gave up his spirit on August 10, 258.

His All-Holiness Nephon II of Constantinople, also Nifon II, was the Patriarch of Constantinople for two periods, from 1486 to 1488 and then from 1497 to 1498. He was called again, a third time in 1502, but refused the invitation, choosing instead to return to Dionysiou Monastery where he reposed September 3 in 1508. He was born in Messinia on the Peloponnese peninsula of southern Greece. His mother Maria, was a noble Greek woman and his father Emmanuel, a rich Albanian nobleman. His worldly name was Nicholas.  He entered a monastic life as a monk at Epidaurus where he received the monastic name Nephon. He followed the monk Zacharias to the Monastery of the Theotokos at Ochrid and later moved to Mount Athos where he was ordained to the diaconate and priesthood.In 1482 he was consecrated as Metropolitan of Thessalonica following the death of Metropolitan Parthenios. At the end of 1486 he was elected to Patriarch of Constantinople.His tenures as patriarch were during difficult times as various groups sought to gain favor in the sultan's court. He tried to correct corrupt practices and abuses by the clergy.  Nephon was confronted by the many competing power groups within the church that made difficult his attempts to reorganize the patriarchate and that also resulted in his depositions and refusal of a third invitation.   In 1502, after refusing calls to ascend the patriarchal throne, he left the imperial city and returned to Mount Athos with his two disciples Makarios (who was martyed in 1527) and Joasaph (who was martyred in 1536). The hieromartyr James of Kastoria was also his disciple. At Mount Athos he concealed his episcopal rank and was assigned by the brethren to care for the community's animals. It was not long before his virtues attracted the brethren who soon discovered that he was formerly patriarch. The monks would flock to him to hear his counsel. Living as a simple monk, he taught with the example of his humility. God rewarded his humility, giving him the power to heal through his prayers. In this way the humble Nephon lived out the remainder of his days in peace. Nephon's holiness and virtue were recognized by all, and immediately after his death he was honored as a saint.  In fact, he was glorified only nine years later in 1517. His memory is celebrated on August 11. His holy relics are housed in a chapel dedicated in his honor in Dionysiou Monastery, while his skull and hand are in Romania where they were sent early in the 16th century as a blessing for the people of Wallachia.

recounted by St. Athanasios of Paros (✝1813)

After Corfu's deliverance from a siege by the Turks - owing to the protection of St. Spyridon the Wonderworker - on August 11, 1716, Andrea Pisani, the governor and captain-general of Corfu, wished to do something in order to thank the saint for his great benefaction concerning the aforementioned deliverance. He consulted a papist theologian, Francisco Frangipani, as to what he should do, what would be best and well-pleasing to the saint.

The theologian said that it would be a very good and holy deed to build a precious marble altar inside the Church of St. Spyridon, so that they could perform a Latin mass inside. And "Your excellency can hear the mass in your own language when you are present there," he said. The theologian's counsel pleased the governor, and he ordered that the materials be prepared at once. However, before the materials were made ready, it seemed appropriate to him to call the priests of that church (where the relics of the divine Spyridon were housed) and find out in what way they could be of assistance. As soon as they heard the unexpected news, they told him bluntly that this was a dangerous innovation, and they wished in no way to help him with his plan. The governor replied angrily that even if they were not willing to help, as the supreme authority he would do as he wished and would command that the materials be gathered outside the saint's church without fail. So there was gathered together asbestos, plaster, marble, and a slab from select marble, superbly crafted for an altar.

That night in a dream, the governor saw a man in a monastic habit saying to him, "Why are you bothering me, and why are you upsetting my children (i.e., the priests)? Know that what you are intending to do is not in your interest." At daybreak he called the theologian into his room (that is, the one who gave him the idea) and related to him the dream in detail. The theologian said, "As Christians, we are obliged in no way to believe dreams, nor are we to accept them at all as real. You should certainly consider this, my lord, to be an obvious temptation of the devil, with which the adversary troubles the good, in order to amuse himself and impede such a most-pious deed." The governor calmed down, fully convinced by the theologian's words. That night, the governor again saw the same monk in a dream threatening him harshly saying, "Know, most certainly, that if you bother my holy house, you will regret it, as it is of no profit." The ruler was terrified by this steadfast decree. He did not again wait for daybreak, but straightaway called for the theologian. He told him every detail about the vision, described his faint-heartedness and said that he was overcome by such fear, that he not dare go through with the task. Then the theologian speaking up and poising himself nobly, said, "My lord, know, that if you grow timid from doing this holy deed that you have decided upon, you will appear to people as not being of proper judgement, since you believe in dreams conjured up by the devil." The governor was filled with courage by these words and as day came on, which was the 11th of November 1718, he went to the church of the saint so as to venerate. He was accompanied by those of his court (along with the city's engineer) in order to measure the area according to length, width, and height for the construction of the altar. At that time, the oldest of the priests, Marinos Voulgaris Sakellarios, and the priest in charge, Spyridon Voulgaris (the great protopresbyter), stood before the governor and with humble voices begged him not to go through with such a modification, as it might not seem best to the saint. When he heard them, however, he flew into a rage, threatening that if they did not do as he wished and become silent, he would send them to Venice in chains, to be thrown into prison, never again to see the light of day. "I am not intending to do some unlawful deed," he said, "but to set up an altar, a holy and God-pleasing work!" The priests were cast into despair and terror-stricken by his threats, and with the other orthodox present - who were not few - they ran towards divine assistance. Opening the holy reliquary of our great father, they chanted a paraklesis, shedding abundant tears, hoping to hinder the governor's bad intention.

t around midnight on November 12th, the day on which the craftsmen expected to start their work, there was lightening and thunder - thunderbolts, one after the other. It was then that the guard of the governor's residence saw a monk approaching him holding a lit torch in his hand. The guard, according to procedure, asked him once, and then twice, "Who are you? Where are you going?" And seeing as he did not receive an answer, he lifted his musket in order to kill the visitor. But then the monk answered, "I am Spyridon." As soon as he said this he grabbed the guard by the arm and threw him with great force out into Spianada Square in the city of Corfu, close to the Church of the Crucifixion. There the guard found himself standing upright on both feet holding his gun as he had been before. Immediately following this, the saint lit the store house of the castle on fire. The extreme heat caused the buildings that were inside the governor's palace and everything around it to collapse. The governor was killed inside, his neck having been crushed between two beams in such a way that it was as though they had been placed there for that purpose. The theologian was found outside the walls of the citadel in a ditch, into which all the squalor of the city sewer drained and flowed, holding his private parts in his hand. He received a just foretaste of his reward for his excellent advice, and the grandeur of his polity (as a papist). Many others were also killed, both men and women, some belonging to the court and others not, about nine-hundred souls. Around that time two other fearsome signs also took place.

First: That same night, a large silver oil lamp that the governor had hung before the saint's relics as an offering fell to the ground and its base broke into pieces, in spite of having been hung with a very strong chain. None of the numerous other oil lamps fell or suffered anything similar. And what happened to the oil lamp (or rather, the base) is apparent still today, because it was again hung up in the same manner it was found as evidence of the incident.

Second: At the exact same moment (as was confirmed later by those who looked into the matter) a flaming arrow - a thunderbolt of lightening to be precise - struck the picture of the governor in Venice and burnt it up, without anything else in the house suffering any harm. His brothers and relatives immediately interpreted this as a bad omen concerning the governor.

The rest of the Latin laymen and clergy, or rather the "Prevedore" as they were called, the Latin bishop, other officials and private citizens, as many as lived in the city of Corfu (for it was the home of the bishop's palace and many others), these are who I call the rest, gave the command that the aforementioned building materials be taken from the Saint's church. They made use of the materials elsewhere, save the marble slab which had been cut for the altar. This was reverently taken to their so-called "duomo," that is the cathedral of their own metropolis, into the great altar. It can still be seen there today resting low on its side.

The soldier, who had been the guard at the castle on that day, was roused and crying out in a loud voice, declaring, "Saint Spyridon did these great and fearful things." And he would tell the whole story in great detail. Therefore, the Latins, not wanting to bear the shame, sent him away to Italy three days later.

This is the story of the frightful and monumental event that took place in the city of Corfu, owing to the most-divine Spyridon - quick to listen and patron of the city and of the whole Church. We must now consider carefully and in detail those circumstances,  which prove the event undeniable, so that the enemies of the truth cannot blather, saying that the arson at the store house was a coincidence, from which the governor and those around him died.

These Martyrs contested in Nicomedia about the year 288. When Diocletian stirred up his persecution of the Christians, Anicetus presented himself openly and said that all who worship idols are blind and senseless. He was beaten with rods so ruthlessly that his bones appeared from the rents and wounds in his flesh. As he was suffering further torments, his nephew Photius came and embraced him, calling him his father and his uncle. He was also put to many tortures with him. They were then imprisoned together for three years. Finally they were cast into a furnace, where they gave up their spirits, and their bodies were preserved unharmed. Saint Anicetus is one of the Holy Unmercenaries.