Archimandrite
The lives of the Venerable John and George are connected with the monastery of Bethany in Georgia, which existed during the time of Queen Tamara. Venerable John (Maisuradze) was born in South Ossetia and settled in Bethany in his youth, later living on the Holy Mountain of Athos. In the 1920s, he became the abbot of the monastery. In 1921, when only two monks remained in the monastery, John miraculously survived a shooting by the Chekists, returning to Bethany, where he never left the monastery again.
In 1924, monk George (Mkheidze) came to the monastery, a descendant of a princely family. He left his studies at a military academy, feeling a calling to monasticism, and led a hermitic lifestyle. George became known for his gift of mercy, giving his clothes to the poor. Before coming to Bethany, he lived in the Khir monastery, which was closed in 1924. His brothers were communists, and one of them, Peter, was a deputy to Beria. Both brothers died in 1938.
During the communist persecutions, thanks to Venerable John and George, Bethany remained a monastic community. Both lived within the walls of the monastery until their death, officially listed as “guards of a monument of architecture.” Venerable John reposed in 1957, and Venerable George in 1962, having received the great schema with the name John. Both elders are buried in Bethany.
