Gregoriou Monastery

General info

Phone: (+30) 23770 23 218

Fax: (+30) 23770 23 671

Call center: (+30) 23770 23 670

Representative Office (Karyes): (+30) 23770 23 274

Residence (Thessaloniki): (+30) 2310 209 663, (+30) 2310 662 820

Fax: (+30) 2310 650 317

E-mail: [email protected] || [email protected]

Dedication: Saint Nicolas

Date of foundation: 1310

Hierarchical position: 17/20

Holy Oversight: Hilandar, Xeropotamou, Agiou Pavlou, Gregoriou

Cenobitic from: 1840 (sigillion of Patriarch Anthimus IV)

Monks: 80 monastic, 6 living in subordinate monastic establishments

Subordinate establishments: 6 cells, 6 kathismas

Celebrations:

✔ 6/12 [19/12] Saint Nicolas (main temple celebration, great all-night vigil)

✔ 29/10 [11/11] Saint Anastasia the Roman

✔ 7/12 [20/12] Saint Gregory

✔ 20/5 [2/6] Translation of the relics of Saint Nicolas

✔ Bright Week Tuesday (Litany of the Patron Icon of the Monastery)

✔ The 3rd Sunday after Easter: Saint Gregory of Sinai and other saints

Relics: holy relics

Visit: main temple, cemetery temple, Mother of God kathisma

History and present days

Location

Walking on the slope, one comes across the Cell of Saint Artemios. It was built in 1870 by the monk Artemiοs. The vegetation is dense. A torrent descends the western slopes of the Antiathon (1,038 m high). Next to the mouth of the torrent there are the arsanas and the Gregoriou Monastery. The safe little cove of the monastery, as well as the verdant landscape together with the torrent, create a wonderful picture. However, the reality is quite different. During winter the torrent floods cause great damage to the monastic structures.

The passage from Simonopetra to the Gregoriou Monastery is a road from the highlands to the coastal area. The latter is built on a rock beside the sea, not much higher than the arsanas of Simonopetra. The 18th and 19th century engravings depict the monks fishing by a fishing line they throw from the windows of their cells. Even today, on the railings of the balconies of the workhouse next to the arsanas, one can see lines tied with a bell that warns the monks if a fish has been caught. The proximity of the monastery to the sea is relevant to the fact that it is dedicated to Saint Nicholas.

On September 21^st of 1853, in the middle of the night, there was a second and worse flood that completely took from us the arsanas, together with 4 boats. It destroyed us. It ruined the streets of the Monastery on both sides, the mill was blown up from its foundations, it destroyed the whole waterway, while the house was filled with sand. (Testimonies of the monks, Varlaam (Angiakos), The Holy Monastery of Saint Gregory in Mount Athos, 1921).

At the base of the rock where the monastery is built, under the north-western wing, there are remains of a building that must have been the original arsanas. It was probably abandoned at the end of the 17th-early 18th century. Next to it there is the present arsanas, which began to be used (or reused) when the newer arsanas, built on the left of the pier next to the mouth of the torrent, was destroyed by flooding. The arsanas has a nave on the ground floor, while on the first floor it houses the chapel of Saint Modestus, living quarters and storerooms. In the past there was also a space to accommodate crews seeking shelter in stormy weather. A built-in inscription informs the visitors that the church was renovated in June 1821. In 1991 the chapel of the holy martyrs Raphael, Nicholas and Irene was built next to the arsanas. Next to the newer structure to the left of the pier, there was the old stable, which was restored in 1987 and is now used as an additional guesthouse for pilgrims that arrive in great feasts.

A paved path leads from the arsanas to the monastery. The old workers' house (1850), on the left, is today used as a machine shop, a sewing room and a Byzantine music school.

History

The name of the monastery was taken from the name of its founder, Saint Gregory Palamas, a disciple of Saint Gregory of Sinai, who was its first abbot. Before the foundation of the monastery, he was a monk in a cave near the present-day Kathisma of Theotokos. Based on a manuscript preserved in the monastery, the foundation of the Gregoriou Monastery dates back to 1310. Written references are found in documents of 1347 and 1348. In the 3rd Typikon of Mount Athos (1394), the monastery is ranked in the 22^nd place among the 25 monasteries of that time.

The information we have about the first period of its history is scattered in different texts. In 1497 it was deserted for an unknown reason, that could possibly be a pirate raid. In 1500 it was renovated from the ground by Stephen of Moldavia. His generous sponsorships and donations continued by his successors until 1720.

In 1574 the monastery took the 17^th place in the hierarchy of the Athonite institutions, which it still holds today. In 1761 a fire destroyed it completely and left it deserted. It was reconstructed thanks to the tireless efforts of the sacristan Joachim Vesmintarios, better known as Makrygenis (Long-bearded, it is said that his beard reached his knees), from a village of Akarnania. Joakim was a monk in the monastery. However, he soon retired to the Skete of Saint Anna for more peace and quiet. He took on the duties of sacristan [financial administrator of the monastic property] at the request of many Gregorian fathers. The financial costs of the reconstruction were covered by the sponsorships of the rulers of Moldavia and the Phanariots, as well as by fundraising. At that time the existing katholikon was also rebuilt with the personal work of the monks. Additionally, Joachim built (1785) from the foundation the Monastery of the Transfiguration on the island of Propontis.

Joachim died at the age of 105. His example was imitated by other hierarchs, such as the Metropolitan Gregory of Skopelos and the Metropolitan Damaskinos of Argyrokastro, who both retired to the monastery and became monks when they gave up their duties. Several abbots and monks are mentioned as co-founders of the monastery. Among them there are Joachim's neighbor Constantius, Dionysius from Polygyros, Gabriel and Efthymios from Kassandria, Christopher and Agathaggelos from the Parthenon of Sithonia, Cyprian from Arta and Simeon from Kastoria.

How and why was the Gregoriou Monastery honored in the name of Saint Nicholas? This was done to replace the Temple of Poseidon, which was then located in the small cove of the monastery, the only suitable for docking the sailing ships on the southwestern side. Today there is still a cave on the south-eastern side of the monastery, which bears the name of Poseidon's Dome. Indeed, the god of the sea of the Greeks in this picturesque location of Athos had to be replaced by the preeminent "Saint of the sea" of the Christians. (Varlaam (Angelakos), The Holy Monastery of Saint Gregory in Mount Athos, 1921.

The monastery was seriously damaged by the Ottoman troops that settled in Mount Athos during the period of 1821-30. Many of the monks left with holy relics and sacred vessels. They fled to the rebellious Greece. They ended up in Sifnos, from where they returned to the monastery. In 1820/21 and 1853 the monastery suffered extensive damage from floods, while in 1890 a fire burned down part of its forest. It stopped by the miraculous intervention of Saint Anastasia of Rome. In 1840 the monastery was converted into a commune thanks to the efforts (1830-40) of the scholar monk Gregory of Byzantium († 1841) and the support of his friend, Metropolitan Anthimos II of Ephesus.

The first abbot of the monastery was the monk Neophytos, a disciple of the abbot of the Esphigmenou Monastery Theodoritos, who was a monk in the Skete of Saint Anna. He was succeeded (1848-59) by Daniel from Zagora, who built the chapel of Saint Gregory next to the katholikon (1851). The monastery experienced a second period of great prosperity during the reign of Simeon from Tripoli (1849-1905), who came from the cenobitic monastery of Saint Paul and managed to cope with the monastery's enormous debt, thanks to the prudent management of the monastery’s structures in Wallachia. During his time the monastery doubled in size. There was also constructed the entire north wing with the new entrance.

The Gregoriou Monastery was in various periods of time home to the holy new martyrs Luke the Mytilenean († 1802), Gerasimos the New († 1812) and Ignatius the New († 1814). Additionally, Saint Akakios passed some time as a monk in the Kathisma of Theotokos, before settling in Kausokalivia.

Monastery Guide

Gregoriou Monastery, Athos

The main entrance has a marble facade (1896) supported by columns, as well as an icon of Saint Nicholas. It is located in the five-storey north wing, added in 1892 by the Abbot Simeon. This addition resulted in two separate courtyards.

The new courtyard is largely covered by vines. It has flowerbeds on two levels, while in its eastern corner there is a great palm tree. With the recent completion of the reconstruction of the new east wing, on the site where the defensive wall and the ruined tower used to be, the palm tree has become indistinguishable. In the middle of the upper floor of the north wing there is the Chapel of the Archangels. In the northwest corner there are the chapels of the Holy Unmercenaries and Saint Spyridon on two successive floors. There are no frescoes.

In the same straight line with the entrance of the monastery, in the middle wing, there is the gate leading to the old courtyard. On its lintel there is a mosaic representation of the founder, surrounded by older frescoes. This gate is built into the three-storey middle wing (1500, restored in 1770 and 1976), which also houses the bell tower. It is an imposing five-storey building with a rectangular shape. On the highest level it has ten bells, together with some wooden and iron semantrons. The defensive tower was built in 1792. It was seated on the eastern wall. Its restoration and reuse are planned in the context of the reconstruction of the eastern wing, where the chapel of Saint John the Baptist is located. On the eastern side of the middle wing, there is a part of an older tower, which protected the old main entrance of the monastery.

The old courtyard is smaller, like the original core of the monastery (1310, 1770). The south wing was built in its present form in 1783. The west wing which faces the sea (1785) is a work of Joachim Makrygenis. It is four storeys high, with two storeys above the courtyard and two storeys below. In the eastern corner there are the chapels of the Life-giving Spring (2nd floor) and of Saint Dimitrios (3rd floor). Attached to the north side of the katholikon, with a separate entrance, there is the chapel of Saint Gregory (1851). In the lintel of the entrance there is a mosaic representation of the Pantokrator (1996). In the western part of the old courtyard there is the chapel of Saint Anastasia of Rome (1775, at the expense of Donna Rallous), an almost autonomous building with a small dome. The frescoes (1995) depict scenes from the martyrdom of the saint.

The katholikon is located in the center of the old part of the monastery. It follows the Athonite type of a crosslike building. Its external dimensions are 23,7 x 12,9 m, including a large central dome (height 11,3 m) and three smaller ones. Its construction began after the fire of 1761. There are three historical phases: 1761-1775 (main church and lity), 1840 (six-aisle church, according to the inscription on the northeastern facade), 1851 (addition of the chapel of Saint Gregory on the north side of the katholikon). The original frescoes of the exonarthex do not survive. The current frescoes were painted by the popular hagiographer Yannis Christidis (1980). The mosaic depiction of Christ as "The Land of the Living" is the work of Kriton Makrygiannis (1985). The roof of the lity is wooden and full of decorations. The frescoes are a work of the hieromonks Gabriel and Gregory from Kastoria. Τhey are of post-Byzantine style and show strong folk influences. They depict Old Testament figures, saints, as well as scenes and miracles from the life of Saint Nicholas. The folk influences are most visible in the costumes of the dancers in the act of "Praise the Lord". Notable is the modern ship with its boob gates and cannons in the depiction of the miracle of Saint Nicholas. The inner courtyard of the monastery

The frescoes of the nave follow the typical iconographic cycle. The full-length military saints bear heavy halos, similar to those in the katholikon of the Zografou Monastery. The immediacy and narrative quality of the representations is impressive. In the performance of the Last Supper, the devil is depicted seizing Judas. The carved giltwood iconostasis is richly decorated with scenes from the Old and New Testaments. There are depictions related to the despotic icons, the three miracles of Saint Nicholas, the Original sin (Theotokos Vrefokratousa), the sacrifice of Abraham (Christ Almighty) and the feast of Herod (Holy Baptist). In the right eastern column, there is a Byzantine icon of the Virgin Mary Hodegetria (40x32 cm) on a shrine (1880), a gift (1497) of Maria Asanina Palaeologina, mother of the voivode Vogdan of Moldavia. In the monastery she is known as Theotokos Palaeologina.

“Some people might consider the Athonite monasteries as prominent museums of the Orthodox Byzantine culture. For us, however, who walk 'in faith', the monasteries of Mount Athos are primarily places of repentance, prayer, exercise, purification, penance and divination.

The Athonite monasticism expresses the awesome mystery of the Living God as lived and expressed by the choirs of the Athonite fathers in the hermitages or communes, constantly forcing and crucifying themselves to gain the kingdom of heaven, continually weeping and mourning for the burden of human sinfulness, seeking and longing for God, crying out to him, and like a thirsty deer running after him…” (Archimandrite George, rector of St. Gregory's Church)

A small door in the southeast corner of the building complex leads to the cemetery. The cemetery church is dedicated to All Saints (1728). The frescoes (1739) are a work of the monks Mitrophanes and Nektarios Venieris. They depict the Pantokrator, the Crucifixion, the Assumption, the Last Judgment, as well as the Genesis, beginning with the Creation of Adam and ending with the Fall of man. The carved giltwood iconostasis is a piece of exceptional art. The stepped windows are particularly impressive. Below the temple there is the ossuary. The bones of the monks Simeon and James are kept in separate boxes. After the cemetery there is the beautiful garden of the monastery.

Inside this garden one can find the chapel of Saint Tryphon. In the southeast of the monastery, there is the Kathisma of the Athonite Fathers (19th century), as well as the Kathisma of the Virgin Mary (1765), next to the cave where Saint Gregory used to be a hermit. Higher up there are the ruins of the Kathisma of the Holy Apostles, whose church was completely renovated in 1997. In the north, one can find the Kathisma of Saint Stephen, where Chatzi-Georgios the Athonite used to live. The ruins of this church were found in 1995. The complex of cells has recently been rebuilt. At an altitude of 700 m in the forest, northeast of the monastery, there is the Kathisma of Saint John the Theologian, built in 1875 by Chatzi-Georgios. Near the boundaries with the Monastery of Simonopetra, there are the chapels of Saint George and Prophet Elijah.

The trapeza is located in the corner between the south and west wings. It was built in 1783 at the expense of Joachim Makrygenis. It was fully restored in 1993, while in 1995 it started to be decorated with frescoes. Interior of the Gregoriou Monastery

The library is very well organized. It suffered damage and losses during the fire of 1761. It was also looted by Turkish soldiers in 1821-30. It includes 297 manuscript codes (11 parchments) and 15,000 printed books (630 archetypes). The most important is the codex (8th century), which includes the work of Hermas the Shepherd. Also noteworthy is a manuscript of the Gospel with illustrations and decorative epigraphs (13th century). The monastery's archives contain sigils, firmans, a musical manuscript (1744), documents of the rulers of Moldavia and the Ottoman conquerors (1561).

In the sacristy there are kept post-Byzantine and modern icons. Particularly noteworthy is the icon of Saint Nicholas (15th century), which is located in the katholikon. The saint is depicted as a swarthy man with a wild beard and a wrinkled forehead. The icon (17th century) of Theotokos Galaktotrophousa is also remarkable. Among other valuable vessels, there is a particularly remarkable gold-embroidered epitaph (16th century) kept in the sacristy.

The structures of the Gregoriou Monastery include 6 cells in Karyes. The Cell of Saint Tryphon houses the monastery's representative office. In the 11th century it used to be one of the 80 monasteries of Mount Athos.

The monastery's metochia are located in Sithonia (village of Parthenon), Vlachia, Voulchista (near Kolindros), Attica (Kouvaras), Boeotia (Avlida), Chalkida (Theotokos Myrtidiotissa — Saint Nektarios), Arta (Holy Unmercenaries), Thessaloniki (Saint George, west of Rotonda, Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Efkarpia).

Holy Icons

Theotokos Palaeologina

Saint Nicholas

Holy relics

Icon of Gregoriou Monastery In the monastery it is located a piece of wood of the Holy Cross. There are also the relics of Saint Gregory of Sinai and a great part (shins, left foot, right hand with her skin) of the relics of Saint Anastasia of Rome, who is particularly venerated in the monastery.

Parts of the head of Saint Dionysius the Areopagite, Saint James the Persian, Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, the Samaritan woman, Saint Gregory the Illuminator, Saint Kirykos, Saint Modestus Bishop of Jerusalem, Saint Silouan the Athonite and the martyrs who were killed by the Ottomans in Daou of Penteli are also preserved in the monastery. Pilgrims have the opportunity to worship as well the relics of Saint Nicholas, Saint Gregory the Theologian, Saint Makrina, Saint Damianos of the Holy Unmercenaries, the Neo-Martyr Nicholas of Pantopolo, the Great Martyr George, Saint John the Chrysostom, Saint Basil the Great, Saint Stephen, Saint Andrew the Apostle, Saint Ignatius the Theophorus, Saint John the Merciful, Saint Theodore Stratilates, Saint Theodore Tiron, Saint Panteleimon, Saint Charalampus, Saint Nectarios of Pentapolis, Saint Barbara, Saint Kyriaki and Saint Ioulitis.