On December 1, 2013, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Patriarchate of Constantinople glorified as a saint, the Elder Porphyrios of Mount Athos, Greece. St. Porphrios is one of a number of contemporary holy men who sought God on the Holy Mount of Mount Athos and wer filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Mount Athos is a peninsula in northeastern Greece that is called “The Garden of the Theotokos”. This sacred ground has been reserved for the practice of the monastic life for over 1,000 years and is the home of 20 major monasteries and numerous small sketes and hermitages. This new saint of our Orthodox Church was born on February 7, 1906 in Greece and was baptized with the name of Evangelos. His parents were poor but pious farmers, his father serving as the village cantor who at times chanted the services with St. Nectarios. Due to their poverty, the Elder’s father was forced to emigrate to America to work on the construction of the Panama Canal. Read more...