At the age of 57, the Monk Nicodemus, exhausted by asceticism and publishing works, which would have been enough to fill an entire library, was crushed by such weakness that he could not be cured even with the help of good nutrition. Then he left the Kapsala monastery and decided to live for some time in the cell of his friends Skurteev, in Karei, and then with one of their neighbors, an icon painter monk. Here, in two years of work, he created the Synaxarion. After this, the Monk Nicodemus returned to his cell in the Kapsala monastery and wrote an extensive commentary on the festive canons (“Eorthodromium”) and the “New Ladder,” that is, an interpretation of the 75 sedate octoechos that are sung at Sunday matins. In The New Ladder all his theological knowledge and spiritual power were revealed. The saint finished this work already being completely weakened, having lost his teeth and almost deaf (1808).
At this time, new slander against Saint Athanasius of Paros and three other collivades led to their unjust condemnation by Patriarch Gregory V. The Monk Nicodemus could no longer come to their defense and limited himself to setting out the “Confession of Faith.”
His health condition worsened. Having revised “The New Ladder” for the last time, St. Nicodemus exclaimed: “Lord, take me away! I'm tired of this world! Gradually, half of his body became paralyzed. The saint repeated the Jesus Prayer out loud, asking forgiveness from the brethren for the fact that he could not do this to himself. Having confessed and received communion, he took in his hands the relics of Saints Macarius of Corinth and Parthenius Scurtheus and, kissing them with tears, said: “Why, holy fathers, have you left me an orphan? You have gone to heaven and are resting there for the sake of the virtues that you performed on earth, and are already enjoying the glory of our Lord. And I suffer because of my sins. I ask you, my fathers, beg our Lord to have mercy on me and make me worthy to be where you are!” At night he exclaimed: “I’m dying, dying, dying. But I ask you - give me communion!” After communion, an unearthly calm descended on St. Nicodemus. He crossed his arms on his chest and answered the monks who were worried about him: “I have accepted Christ into myself.
How can I not be calm!” At sunrise on July 14, 1809, he departed to the Lord. One of the assistants of the Monk Nicodemus exclaimed: “It would be better if thousands of other Christians died today than the Monk Nicodemus!”
His star has set, but its light continues to shine for the Church, and his books remain an inexhaustible source of teaching, comfort and encouragement to the fullness of life in Christ.
28
St. Pavel Xiropotamsky († 820, commemorated July 28)
The Monk Paul of Xiropotamia, in the world Procopius, was the son of the Constantinople Emperor Michael Kuropalates, who subsequently resigned his royal dignity and accepted monasticism in the monastery he built. Having received an excellent education, Procopius became one of the most learned people of his time. His Word on the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Church, the canon of the Forty Martyrs, the canon of the Honorable Cross and other works earned him well-deserved fame. But learning and an honorable position in the world did not captivate Procopius. Leaving everything worldly, exchanging rich clothes for beggar's rags, he went to the Holy Mountain, to the place of Xiropotamus, built himself a cell in the ruins of a ruined monastery, once founded by Queen Pulcheria in honor of the 40 martyrs, and received tonsure from the hermit Cosmas with the name Paul.
Out of humility, the Reverend did not reveal his learning to anyone. The fame of Paul's strict life quickly spread throughout the Holy Mountain. They began to call him Paul of Xiropotam, and the monastery where he labored continues to this day to be called Xiropotam (Dry Stream).
Emperor Romanus, a relative of Saint Paul, who had ascended the throne at that time, through the Prota of the Holy Mountain, begged the saint to come to Constantinople and arranged a magnificent meeting for him. The humble Paul, without betraying his monastic duty, appeared with a cross and in a torn cassock amid the court splendor and splendor. Saint Paul confirmed his glory as God's chosen one by miraculously healing the seriously ill Emperor Romanus by laying his hands on him. But the bustle of court life, promised by the grateful emperor, did not seduce the saint, and he returned to the Holy Mountain, asking the king for only one favor - to restore the Xiropotamian monastery.
Upon the resumption of the monastery and the consecration of the cathedral church, a part of the Venerable Tree of the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord, given to St. Paul by Emperor Roman, was placed on the holy throne.
Soon the Xiropotamian monastery was filled with many monks who wanted to entrust themselves to the leadership of the holy ascetic, but the Monk Paul, entrusting the management of the monastery to one of the brethren, withdrew into the remote desert. His strict silence was again broken by the disciples, who did not want to leave their elder. Then the Reverend asked the emperor for funds to build a new monastery. So the monastery was founded by Saint Paul in the name of the holy great martyr and victorious George. The first abbot of the new monastery was the Monk Paul himself, who brought there particles of the Venerable Tree of the Cross of the Lord.
Notified in advance by the Lord about his death, the saint called the brethren of the Xiropotamian and new St. George monasteries to him and gave them the last instruction. On the day of his death, the Monk Paul put on a mantle, read the prayer of St. Joannicius, which he repeated constantly: “My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my protection is the Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity, glory to Thee,” and partook of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. Saint Paul bequeathed to bury his body on the Pongose Peninsula (opposite the Holy Mountain).
But by the will of God, the ship washed up on the shores of Constantinople, where the Emperor and Patriarch reverently accepted the body of the saint and solemnly laid it in the Great Church. After the defeat of Constantinople by the crusaders, the relics of St. Paul were transferred to Venice.
31
Prmch. Dionysius of Vatopedi († 1822, commemorated July 31)
In 1822, the Vatopedi monk Dionysius was sent to the island of Crete, where he was tortured by the Turks for refusing to renounce the Orthodox faith.
Canonized by the Patriarchate of Constantinople. The name of the Venerable Martyr Dionysius was included in the monthbook of the Russian Orthodox Church by the determination of the Holy Synod of August 21, 2007. In the journals of the Holy Synod, the day of remembrance is indicated on July 18 (31), however, in the church calendar on the website of the Moscow Patriarchate, the memory is placed on July 31 / August 13