[Saint George Karslides] had special reverence for and boldness towards the Honorable Forerunner, the protector of the monastic order, the prophet of justice, the preacher of truth.
Once the chanter, Hatzi-Anestis, was forced to chant the cherubic hymn a second time, because the Saint was serving the Divine Liturgy and did not make any movement to proceed towards the Great Entrance. One of his spiritual children heard the sweet song of a bird and wondered where it was coming from. In the end, he asked the chanter what had happened and he explained that what he had heard was the conversation of the Saint with Saint John the Forerunner, who together concelebrated the liturgy once again.
During the years of the Bulgarian occupation, Mother Argyro lived in the monastery near the Elder and took care of him. One night around 2:20am, there was a loud noise as if the wall of the church had fallen. She was afraid that the Bulgarians had come to kill the Elder, but she saw that the church was locked.
She went out into the yard, but the Elder was nowhere to be seen. She went to the corner of the fence and then saw something black coming towards her flying. When she approached and went down into the yard, she realized that it was the Elder. He was bathed in light and had a strong sweet fragrance about him.
As soon as he saw her, he scolded her for being outside in the middle of the night.
“But I was afraid that something bad might happen to you,” she replied.
“No, no, the Prophet Elias came with the Honorable Forerunner and they took me to perform the liturgy over at Prophet Elias,” he told her simply.
However, he admonished her not to reveal to anyone what she had seen that night until his death. This miraculous event was preserved, because Mother Argyro told it to the mother of Kyriaki Konstantinidos.
One afternoon, in the days prior to his death, he sent Eldress Argyro Diamantopoulos, who had served him patiently for years, to the temple to light the lamps. There she heard a sudden noise and returned somewhat disturbed to the Elder. He smiled at her discreetly and said to her: “Blessed Mother, Saint John the Forerunner has come to visit you, to give you his blessing, because you served me as your child. Saint John is my protector and guide for the other life.”
After the Divine Liturgy on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Savior, the Saint said with great devotion: “We had guests, Saint Nicholas and Saint John; a strict guest that Holy Forerunner.” When he censed him, his hand trembled.
The connection and intimacy of the Holy Father with the Saints is also beautifully seen from the following incident. A beloved and faithful spiritual child of his was spending the night in the monastery, in the cell adjacent to the Saint. He felt the presence of the Honorable Forerunner, who was blessing Saint George. The Holy Elder had been urging his spiritual son to seek the intercession and help of the Saint, for his spiritual progress and the salvation of his soul. In the morning, this man wanted to know more about this heavenly visit. It was enough for the Saint to just smile and he silently and discreetly departed.
Once, when Saint George was praying before the icon of the Honorable Forerunner, which was on the iconostasis, he saw it “sweating”, its entire surface covered with large drops. The Saint chanted the troparion of the Forerunner and then turned to his assistant and said to him: “The Honorable Forerunner is in a struggle and violence, he is going to help people in danger somewhere far away. Other saints also led him away.” At that time, the Greco-Italian war had begun.
Source: From the book of Monk Moses the Athonite, Venerable George of Drama, Edition Sacred Monastery of the Ascension of the Savior, Taxiarches (Sipsa) Drama. Translation by John Sanidopoulos.
Once the chanter, Hatzi-Anestis, was forced to chant the cherubic hymn a second time, because the Saint was serving the Divine Liturgy and did not make any movement to proceed towards the Great Entrance. One of his spiritual children heard the sweet song of a bird and wondered where it was coming from. In the end, he asked the chanter what had happened and he explained that what he had heard was the conversation of the Saint with Saint John the Forerunner, who together concelebrated the liturgy once again.
During the years of the Bulgarian occupation, Mother Argyro lived in the monastery near the Elder and took care of him. One night around 2:20am, there was a loud noise as if the wall of the church had fallen. She was afraid that the Bulgarians had come to kill the Elder, but she saw that the church was locked.
She went out into the yard, but the Elder was nowhere to be seen. She went to the corner of the fence and then saw something black coming towards her flying. When she approached and went down into the yard, she realized that it was the Elder. He was bathed in light and had a strong sweet fragrance about him.
As soon as he saw her, he scolded her for being outside in the middle of the night.
“But I was afraid that something bad might happen to you,” she replied.
“No, no, the Prophet Elias came with the Honorable Forerunner and they took me to perform the liturgy over at Prophet Elias,” he told her simply.
However, he admonished her not to reveal to anyone what she had seen that night until his death. This miraculous event was preserved, because Mother Argyro told it to the mother of Kyriaki Konstantinidos.
One afternoon, in the days prior to his death, he sent Eldress Argyro Diamantopoulos, who had served him patiently for years, to the temple to light the lamps. There she heard a sudden noise and returned somewhat disturbed to the Elder. He smiled at her discreetly and said to her: “Blessed Mother, Saint John the Forerunner has come to visit you, to give you his blessing, because you served me as your child. Saint John is my protector and guide for the other life.”
After the Divine Liturgy on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Savior, the Saint said with great devotion: “We had guests, Saint Nicholas and Saint John; a strict guest that Holy Forerunner.” When he censed him, his hand trembled.
The connection and intimacy of the Holy Father with the Saints is also beautifully seen from the following incident. A beloved and faithful spiritual child of his was spending the night in the monastery, in the cell adjacent to the Saint. He felt the presence of the Honorable Forerunner, who was blessing Saint George. The Holy Elder had been urging his spiritual son to seek the intercession and help of the Saint, for his spiritual progress and the salvation of his soul. In the morning, this man wanted to know more about this heavenly visit. It was enough for the Saint to just smile and he silently and discreetly departed.
Once, when Saint George was praying before the icon of the Honorable Forerunner, which was on the iconostasis, he saw it “sweating”, its entire surface covered with large drops. The Saint chanted the troparion of the Forerunner and then turned to his assistant and said to him: “The Honorable Forerunner is in a struggle and violence, he is going to help people in danger somewhere far away. Other saints also led him away.” At that time, the Greco-Italian war had begun.
Source: From the book of Monk Moses the Athonite, Venerable George of Drama, Edition Sacred Monastery of the Ascension of the Savior, Taxiarches (Sipsa) Drama. Translation by John Sanidopoulos.
