Athanasius Parios
Encyclopedia
Father Athanasios Parios was a Greek
hieromonk
who was a great and eminent theologian, philosopher, educator, and hymnographer of his time, and one of the "Teachers of the Nation" during the Modern Greek Enlightenment. He was the second leader of the Kollyvades movement, succeeding Neophytos Kausokalyvites (1713-1784). He also authored the lives
of various saint
s. Athanasios was born in Kostos, a small village of Paros
, in the year 1721/22 and died in Chios
in 1813. He is commemorated by the Greek Orthodox Church
on June 24.
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
hieromonk
Hieromonk
Hieromonk , also called a Priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholicism....
who was a great and eminent theologian, philosopher, educator, and hymnographer of his time, and one of the "Teachers of the Nation" during the Modern Greek Enlightenment. He was the second leader of the Kollyvades movement, succeeding Neophytos Kausokalyvites (1713-1784). He also authored the lives
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
of various saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
s. Athanasios was born in Kostos, a small village of Paros
Paros
Paros is an island of Greece in the central Aegean Sea. One of the Cyclades island group, it lies to the west of Naxos, from which it is separated by a channel about wide. It lies approximately south-east of Piraeus. The Municipality of Paros includes numerous uninhabited offshore islets...
, in the year 1721/22 and died in Chios
Chios
Chios is the fifth largest of the Greek islands, situated in the Aegean Sea, seven kilometres off the Asia Minor coast. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. The island is noted for its strong merchant shipping community, its unique mastic gum and its medieval villages...
in 1813. He is commemorated by the Greek Orthodox Church
Greek Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...
on June 24.
History
- On the island of Paros he received instruction in the "common letters." Desiring higher education, he left his parents and his native place and went to SmyrnaSmyrnaSmyrna was an ancient city located at a central and strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Thanks to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to prominence. The ancient city is located at two sites within modern İzmir, Turkey...
, to study at the Greek school of that city. The school was founded in 1717, and was later named the Evangelical School, and became famous. He resided in Smyrna for six years. - 1752 - Went to Mount AthosMount AthosMount Athos is a mountain and peninsula in Macedonia, Greece. A World Heritage Site, it is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the...
and enrolled in the Athonite AcademyAthonite AcademyThe Athonite or Athonias Academy is a Greek Orthodox educational institution founded at 1749 in Mount Athos, then in the Ottoman Empire and now in Greece. The school offered high level education, where ancient philosophy and modern physical science were taught...
, where he studied under Neophytos Kausokalyvites and Eugenios VoulgarisEugenios VoulgarisEugenios Voulgaris or Boulgaris or Vulgares was a Greek Orthodox educator, and bishop of Kherson . Writing copiously on theology, philosophy and the sciences, he disseminated western European thought throughout the Greek and eastern Christian world, and was a leading contributor to the Modern...
. He later studied at Corfu under Nikephoros Theotokis. - 1767-1770 - Taught at Thessaloniki, after which he returned to the Athonite School to become director.
- 1776 - Condemned as a heretic, defrocked, and excommunicated by Patriarch Sophronios II and the Holy Synod of Constantinople
- 1781 - Successfully defended himself before Patriarch Gabriel IV and the Holy Synod, and restored to communion and the priesthood
- 1788-1811 - Principle of the School in Chios.
- At the age of 90, he withdrew to the cell of St. George the Refston and died there on June 24, 1813.
Works
- 1785 - Antipapas, analyses the work of Mark the Eugenic
- 1797 - Paternal Teaching, written by Anthanasius but published under the name of Patriarch Anthimos of Jerusalem
- 1798 - Christian Apologys
- 1787 - Rhetoric Pragmatics and Metaphysics
- 1802 - A Response to the Irrational Zeal of the Philosophers Coming from Europe
- 1806 - Epitome, a theology textbook, which was a collaboration with Makarios of Corinth.
Relations
- Athanasios (d. September 8, 1774). Athanasios was from the village of Koliakia, near Thessaloniki, and was provided a good education, studying under Athanasios Parios in Thessaloniki. He later went to Mount Athos to the Vatopedi Monastery where he became a monk. Athanasius later was martyrMartyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
ed for Christ, not willing to convertConvertThe convert or try, in American football known as "point after", and Canadian football "Point after touchdown", is a one-scrimmage down played immediately after a touchdown during which the scoring team is allowed to attempt to score an extra one point by kicking the ball through the uprights , or...
to the Islamic faithIslamIslam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. He was hanged and buried near the Church of St. Paraskeve. - Minas Minoidis (d. France). Minas was a student of Athanasios Parios. He taught rhetoric and philosophy in Serres and Thessaloniki; he also taught ancient Greek and literature in Paris. He was an interpreter at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. Minas was militantly opposed to KoraisAdamantios KoraisAdamantios Korais or Coraïs was a humanist scholar credited with laying the foundations of Modern Greek literature and a major figure in the Greek Enlightenment. His activities paved the way for the Greek War of Independence and emergence of a purified form of the Greek language, known as...
' ideas on language, his most severe and unfair critic. He was a fervent supporter of the fight for Greek independence. He discovered the verse "Myths of Vavrios" in a Mount Athos manuscript. - Ierotheos Dendrinos and Christodoulos, Doctor of Philosophy.
- St. Nikephoros of ChiosNikephoros of ChiosFather Nikephoros of Chios is the spiritual son and disciple of Macarius of Corinth who was known for his holy life and character, being known as a saint even during his lifetime. His feast day is celebrated on May 1.-Life:St...
(May 1), was sent to the city of Chios to be educated in its schools by Gabriel Astrakaris. Nikephoros remained close to this priest throughout the period of his education, where he developed a love for learning, and a respect for those who taught others. He also met St. Athanasius Parios, who was the director of the school in the city of Chios.
External links
- St Athanasius Parios (OCAOCAThe Oca , is a starchy, edible tuber, grown in South America.OCA or Oca may also refer to:* Oca a tributary of the Ebro, Spain, having its source in the comarca of Montes de Oca.In business and politics:...
)
Further reading
- Saint Athanasios Parios (Modern Orthodox Saints, vol. 15) by Constantine Cavarnos. ISBN 1-884729-78-9
- St. Athanasios of Paros, together with St. Macarios of Corinth and St. Nicodemos the Hagiorite were the three great spiritual leaders of the 18th century in Greece and leaders of the "Kollyvades Movement." The is the first English-language life of St. Athanasios, theologian, hymnographer, writer of lives of saints and philosopher. Also contains reviews and selected passages from his writings, and a brief account of the life of St. Macarios of Corinth. 170pp.