Hieromonk
Venerable Hilarion, born in 816 in Kakheti, came from the princely family of Vachnadze. From an early age, he showed a tendency towards asceticism, knowing the Gospel by heart at the age of 9 and taking monastic vows at 12. At 16, he moved to the David-Garedji desert, where he spent 10 years as a hermit, becoming well-known in Georgia. After being ordained a priest, he declined the episcopate and went to the Holy Land.
He spent 17 years in the Jordanian desert, where the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, calling him to return to Georgia. After the death of his father, he founded a monastery, tonsured his mother and sister, and then donated part of his estate to the monastery. After venerating the holy sites in Constantinople, he established a Georgian monastery on Mount Olympus.
He stayed there for five years, healing the sick through the power of prayer. After visiting Rome and Thessalonica, where healings also occurred, he remained in Thessalonica for three years. Forty days before his death, he was informed of it, received the Holy Mysteries, and peacefully departed to the Lord on November 19, 875.
His honorable relics were placed in a crypt, and after 40 days, healings occurred. In 882, the relics were transferred to Constantinople, where the saint appeared to the emperor in a dream, indicating that they should be laid in the newly established church in honor of the Holy Apostles. The Georgian Church canonized him in the 9th century, establishing his feast day on November 19.
