Kyrillos of Ierapytnis at the celebratory Holy Parish Church of Agios Minas of Vainia Ierapetratranslated

With great splendor and in an overwhelming atmosphere, on the afternoon of Tuesday, November 10, 2026, the Grand Solemn High Priestly Vespers of the feast of Agios Minas was celebrated in the celebratory homonymous Holy Parish Church of Vainia Ierapetra. The service was officiated by the Most Reverend Metropolitan of Ierapytni and Sitia, Mr. Kyrillos, who blessed the bread during the service and preached the divine word.

In his short sermon, His Eminence Metropolitan Mr. Kyrillos, before the Dismissal, referred to the life, the glorious martyrdom as well as miracles of the multi-athletic Saint Minas that gave him the title of miracle worker, such as the miraculous appearance of the Saint Great Martyr Minas on the night of the Resurrection in 1826, who appeared in the streets around the Metropolitan Church of Saint Minas of Heraklion as an old man on horseback with his naked sword, saving the Christians of the city from the planned Ottoman conquerors. As he noted, he was a soldier from Egypt, at the time of the Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian, but he left the royal army because he could not bear to see the silent persecution of Christians and climbed the mountain "fasting himself clean and...