A story of faith and resilience
By Theo Kalomirakis
The tiny church of Aghia Paraskevi, located in the historic center of Athens, is just two blocks away from where I was born in Athens. It is overshadowed by the two big churches nearby, all three of them located in Aiolou Street that leads to the Acropolis: Panaghia Chrysospiliotisa is right next to it, and Aghia Irini, a few blocks down the street. The church was built during the Turkish occupation. It is a single-aisle vaulted Basilica without a narthex. Later, a small corridor was added to the north side, featuring a depiction of Golgotha. This chapel is dedicated to Aghia Paraskevi, whose feast day is celebrated on July 26 by the Orthodox Church. She is the Patron Saint of the Eyes. The frescoes inside are from 1930. Aghia Paraskevi is part of the Holy Monastery of Saint Meletios, located just outside Athens in Oinoi, near Mount Kitheron.
As a child, I often walked by Aghia Paraskevi, but I never looked inside. Now that I’m back in Greece after spending years in the United States, I’m starting to notice things I overlooked when I was younger. The other day, while I was on Aiolou Street, I spotted a small, charming, one-story house tucked behind the church. It seemed like it belonged to an island, not in the heart of modern Athens. I decided to stop and take a picture of the house and then explore the church’s interior.
I learned that a single nun lives in the house during the week and spends her weekends at the Saint Meletios Monastery in Mount Kitheron near Athens. When I entered the church, I saw her sitting quietly in a corner at the back. I asked if I could take her picture, but –of course–she kindly declined. However, she offered to share with her with her own words the story of the church’s Patron Saint.
The life of Saint Paraskevi
Saint Paraskevi was born in Rome in 117 AD and was tortured during the rule of Emperor Antoninus from 138 to 160 AD. Her parents were Christians who raised her in their faith. She was born on a Friday, which is how she received her name. As their only child, they had vowed to dedicate her to God. When Saint Paraskevi was just 20 years old, her parents passed away. She then gave away all her wealth to the poor and committed herself to spreading Christianity in Rome and its surroundings.
The pagan emperor Antonius strongly opposed her actions and ordered her persecution and arrest. He offered her all the riches in the world if she abandoned her faith and worshiped idols. When the Saint refused to give up her beliefs, he tortured her with a red-hot helmet. Despite this, she remained courageous and steadfast in her faith.
Antonius then ordered that she be placed in a cauldron of hot oil and tar. He couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw that she remained unharmed despite the torture. To test the heat of the cauldron, he leaned closer, but in an instant, he became blind. However, Saint Paraskevi restored his sight, and in that moment, he started believing in Christ.
Afterward, Anthonius stopped persecuting Christians. He freed Saint Paraskevi, and she started spreading the Gospel in many places on her way to Greece. When she arrived there, a pagan lord put her through terrible tortures. She bravely endured them but ultimately, she was beheaded.
It’s a wonderful story of faith and resilience that I discovered when, as we say at gr2me, curiosity led to discovery!
Theo Kalomirakis
