Saints Alexander, John and Paul the Younger, Patriarchs of Constantinople
Date of celebration: 30/08
Saint Alexander Patriarch of Constantinople
He was, as they say, “apostolic charismasi shining”. Even as an elder, he was distinguished for his great piety, virtue and goodness. At the First Ecumenical Council, held in Nicaea, Bithynia, the then Patriarch elected him as his representative. And when Arius was condemned at this Synod, Alexander, although an old man of 70 years, agreed to tour Thrace, Macedonia, Thessaly and the rest of Greece, to teach and make known the correct doctrines of the decisions of the Synod of Nicaea. But while he was on this tour, the patriarch Mitrophanis passed away. However, he appointed Alexander as his successor, because, despite his old age, he had the appropriate resources to govern the archdiocese of the capital. Indeed, as a Patriarch, Alexander responded correctly to the difficult circumstances of the times. Then Arius had deceived King Constantine that he supposedly believed correctly. And the king ordered Alexander to let Arius partake of the Holy Communion. Alexander, sad, prayed to God and asked for His help. The Hierarch’s prayer was heard. And on the morning when Areios was to go in procession to the church, his body was found torn and worm-eaten! Saint Alexander died peacefully in 337 AD.
Saint John Patriarch of Constantinople
It is probably about John called Xiphilinus, who succeeded Patriarch Constantine III. He was born in 1006 AD. in Trebizond and distinguished himself for his great education and the great political offices he had occupied. But then he retired to a monastery in Bithynia, where he remained a monk for 10 years. From there he was invited to occupy the patriarchal throne. He was ordained a priest, and a week later – on January 1, 1064 AD. – bishop. John officiated and preached every day in the temples of the capital, repaired the icons of Hagia Sophia, and distributed free bread and wheat to the poor. He died in 1075 AD, and this is how one of his contemporaries describes him: “he appeared as a man first of all clean and pure and absolutely avoiding all bodily pollution. And then they ended in scorning money and possessions, and charity towards the poor, and imparting to none the faults of that infamous Merciful One, and all the other virtues he gathered, he was said to be abundantly adorned, but also very learned in speech, and excellent in all learning, compassionate and well-educated. ».
Saint Paul the Younger, Patriarch of Constantinople
We do not have clear and specific information about Patriarch Pavlos. Some think it is Paul III. He was patriarch in 687 – 693 AD. He presided over the Panthektis so-called Synod. Others think that it is about Patriarch Paul IV. He came from Cyprus and shone, according to Theophanis, in words and deeds. He ascended the throne in 780 AD. he resigned at the end of August 784 AD. and retired to the Monastery of Floros, where he lived as a simple monk only two or three months after his resignation. He belonged to the zealots of Orthodoxy and was distinguished for his mercy. (Before the 12th century AD, his memory was celebrated on September 2).
