My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ God,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
Miracles of Saint Demetrios the Great Martyr and
Wonder-worker.
Let us now, blessed Christians, listen to some of the miracles of the Saint, so that we may also appreciate the grace with which God honored him on account of the purity of his life and his martyric sacrifice.
After the repose of the Saint, it was God’s will to glorify him in all the world. He dispensed in His oeconomy to have fragrant myrrh flow from his holy body. Although boht natives and those from afar came and collected the myrrh, this in no way exhausted the supply. In fact, the greater the demand, the more the supply increased through the intercessions of the Saint and holy Martyr. This holy myrrh, filled with Divine grace and power, ushered in great healings. People, hence, from all over were coming with profound faith.
The Ascetic
There was a particular ascetic, who once lived on a certain mountain, named Holomontos. He heard the report that the holy relics of the Saint gushed forth holy myrrh abundantly from out of his tomb. He was not inclined to believe the reports, and was reasoning to himself that in that place there existed other Saints, who underwent greater martyric contests for the name of Christ, yet no myrrh flowed from their relics. "What kind of martyrdom, indeed, did he suffer, the ascetic wondered, "that he should be so glorified by God?" God, then, wished to make the truth known to the ascetic. So how did He dispense it?
One night, after the ascetic had read his service, he retired for the evening. He went to sleep, and it appeared to him that he found himself in Thessalonike, even inside the church of Saint Demetrios. He beheld a man before him who was holding the keys to the tomb of the Saint. "Open the tomb to me that I might offer veneration," the ascetic asked. The warden then opened up the tomb for him to enter. The ascetic went inside to the kouvouklion (edicule) to pay homage. While he was venerating the holy relics, he saw that fragrant myrrh covered the entire tomb and permeated the air with its scent. He turned to the warden and said, "If thou wilt, I beseech thee, let us dig here that we might see from whence the myrrh comes forth." It seemed to the ascetic then that tools were brought to him. They began to digging and continued, until they came to a great marble slab, which they lifted with great effort. Straightway, the body of the Saint appeared, radiant, bright, and beautiful. The holy myrrh emanated from the lance wounds of the Martyr. So much myrrh then overflowed fro the tomb that the warden and the ascetic were drenched. The ascetic, trembling, became frightened that he might drown, and so he cried out with a loud voice, "Saint Demetrios, help!" With that shout–O the wonder!–he came to himself and was roused from his sleep. He quickly observed that his garments were soaked with the fragrant holy myrrh.
The ascetic rose up and wasted no time leaving his philosophical retreat and making for Thessalonike. After he arrived, he was proclaiming the miracle of the Saint and kept glorifying God. He remained in the Saint’s church for a considerable number of days and then returned to his hermitage, saying, "Great, in truth, is Saint Demetrios!"
Healing of a Paralytic
Toward the eastern part of the city of Thessalonike, there is a very beautiful place that has delightful meadows, mild air, and many fruit-bearing trees. In that country place, there is also a very lovely spring where sweet and cool water flows from a rock sundered from time immemorial. In that picturesque and grace-filled place, a certain Christian nobleman was moved to raise up a church in the name of Saint Demetrios. He also built a number of cabins surrounding the church that were inhabited by monastics. In that church, on account of the wonderworking (miracle-working) of the Saint, the most marvelous water gushed forth. At that time, the Emperor at Constantinople dispatched one of his noblemen, giving him full authority and superintendence over the city of Thessalonike. The nobleman proved to be a righteous man in his judgments. He was also merciful, sympathetic, and prudent. It happened, however, that he took very ill, to the point that he was rendered paralyzed. In time, his flesh began to rot and dissolve like wax. The pain that he suffered was frightful, so that daily awaited death. Then, one night, there appeared to him Saint Demetrios, the physician without charge, who said to him, "Do you go to my church which is outside of the city and is called Peegee (Spring). Take the water from that fountain and wash thy hands, they feet, and all thy body, and thou shalt be cured immediately. I, who tell thee these things, am Demetrios who guards this city." The paralytic awakened and narrated to all the vision to which he was revealed. They lifted him then and lade him upon a bed which they carried to that fountain. In fact, dear Christians, one would be justified to call this fountain another Siloam as spoken of in the Holy Scripture. When he arrived the nobleman had his body washed in the name of the Saint. Straightway, he was completely healed. He rose up and walked into the city proclaiming and mangifying the miracle which came to pass for him. Since that nobleman received healing to all the members and joints of his body, the people from that hour named the fountain Armoumene, which is from the Greek word armos, meaning articulation of joint. [Source: The Great Synaxaristes of the Orthodox Church]
(To be continued)
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"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 