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 0078 - ELDER HARALAMBOS KOMBOSKOINAS - ΓΕΡΩΝ ΧΑΡΑΛΑΜΠΟΣ ΚΟΜΠΟΣΧΟΙΝΑΣ Father Charalambos, the komboskoinas —the monk who made prayer ropes—used to tell us that he had been blessed to behold many things: the Panagia (the Most Holy Theotokos), holy angels, and that many miracles had happened to him. One day, we were going down to Stavronikita Monastery with other students, and we saw him lying in a ditch where the water ran alongside the road.  Vehicles were constantly passing by and raising clouds of dust, while he was sitting there making a prayer rope. His clothes—old and worn-out as they were—looked as though they were shining, as if they were made of silk; not a speck of dust seemed to touch him. He had a field where he grew broad beans. I remember one day when we went there, he had climbed into a hole in the field, put some grass inside it, and, because the poor man’s legs hurt, he had raised them slightly. He was constantly making prayer ropes and continually saying the J...
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0077 - A tribute to His Eminence Metropolitan of Kinsasa Nikiforos (Former Headmaster of Athonias Ecclesiastical Academy Mt Athos)

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  There comes a time when we all must say goodbye, in this life, to those that have made a significant impact upon us and have moulded us to whom we are today.  These people are considered by us as charismatic and life changing.  I must admit, that it has taken me at least 4 weeks to build the courage to write about him. It has been a difficult to come to terms that he is no longer there, to talk to, to exchange a text message with and to seek his advice.  His loss has been something that has affected me deeply, perhaps, due to being so sudden. There were so many more conversations to be had, so many more ways to help his mission work in Congo so many more spiritual discussions to be had at his beautiful monastic home the Cell of the Archangels in Mikra Agia Anna, Mt. Athos.  I guess these conversations can still take place, however, in the realm of prayer, asking from God to give rest to his saintly soul and grant to him, his deserved place, in the tents of the...
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0076 - The Land Border to Mount Athos (Coast of Ouranoupolis)

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 0076 - The Land Border to Mount Athos (Coast of Ouranoupolis) A short walk from the ruins of the Zygou Monastery, the border between Mount Athos and the rest of Halkidiki can be found.  Photo above - On approach to the coastline. 
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0075 - Zygou Monastery near Ouranoupolis

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0075 -  Zygou Monastery near Ouranoupolis   When you hear the words “Mount Athos”, your mind will be immediately drawn to Monasteries.  What isn't widely known is that the border of Mount Athos, extended much further beyond Ouranoupolis in the past.  Remnants of Monasteries and their dependancies can be found all around the Chalkidiki region.  One of those forgotten Monasteries from the Golden Age of the Peninsula (around the 10th Century) is the Monastery of Zygou. This religious and architectural heritage site stands 2 kms to the east of Ouranoupolis, walking distance to the border of Mount Athos.  Zygou Monastery is considered to be one of the oldest uninhabited ruins of an Athonite Monastery.   It was discovered by the group of archaeologists, coordinated by Ioakeim Papaggelos in 1984. A brief history of the Zygou Monastery.  The first reference regarding the Monastery dates back to the middle of the 10th century.  In the year 958 St...
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0074 - Ouranoupolis the entry point to the Holy Mountain.

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Ouranoupolis is a village with splendid charm and character, one of my favourite places to visit and spend time in before entering Agion Oros and when coming out. Lets look into the origins of this village in more detail. Very little is known about the ancient town of Ouranoupolis which gave it's name to the present day village.   It was certainly built around 300 B.C. by Alexarhos the brother of Macedonian king Cassandros.   The exact position of the ancient town is not known but it was certainly located on or close to the current village.   It was important enough to have struck it's own coinage. Some of these coins have been found in the area and three of them are exhibited in the British Museum.   It appears that ancient Ouranoupolis did not survive for very long. Monumental walls and possibly the remains of an ancient town have been discovered in the sea.   One Autumn in 1954 a Swedish underwater expedition believed to have found the...
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0073 - Cooking with Fr Epiphanios of Milopotamos at Holy Monastery of Iveron

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Upon my visit to the Holy Monastery of Iveron last year to partake in the great feast of The Dormition of Our Lady, I had the distinct pleasure of chatting with Elder Epiphanios of The Holy Cell of Milopotamos. The all night vigil is long and between liturgical commitments I set aside some time to seek out Elder Epiphanios. It didn't take long to find him, on my first walk to the back entrance to the kitchen, there he was, taking a much needed rest from the hot fire. We spent some time together, chatting about Australia and the Holy Mountain, food and wine also. It was a blessing to have spent some time with Elder Epiphanios after so many years.
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0072 - St Athanasios of Paros (Parios) +June 24th

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On the 24th of June we commemorated St. Athansios Parios a Saint with very close ties to Mount Athos and the Athonias Ecclesiastical Academy (Athoniada). Our venerable and God-bearing St. Athanasius Parios, known as "Master of the Greek Nation," was a hieromonk who was an eminent theologian, philosopher, educator, and hymnographer of the eighteenth century.  He was the second leader of the Kollyvades movement, succeeding Neophytos Kausokalyvites (1713-1784). He also wrote the lives of a number of saints. Neophytos Kausokalivytis In 1752, he traveled to Mount Athos and enrolled in the Athonias Academy, where he studied under Neophytos Kausokalyvites and Eugenios Voulgaris.  Evgenios Voulgaris At Mount Athos, he was ordained a priest by St. Marcarius of Corinth. He later studied at Corfu under Nikephoros Theotokis.  The Old Athonite Academy  Ruin...
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