Our Church celebrates today the memory of Saints Gregory the Dialogist, Pope of Rome, Symeon the New Theologian and Theophanes the Confessor.
Saint Symeon the New Theologian is a bright figure of the Church. He came from Paphlagonia and lived in the 10th century. His pious parents, Basil and Theophano, took care of his excellent education and completed his studies in Constantinople under the tutelage of his uncle, who held a high rank.
After the death of his uncle, he went to the renowned Monastery of Stoudios, where he was devoted to theological studies and became a disciple of the Abbot of the monastery, Symeon the Studite. Later he went to the Monastery of Saint Mamas, where he became a monk and then he was elected as the abbot of the monastery.
However, when he sought to impose the monastic rules of Basil the Great the monks reacted. So he resigned to pursue his theological studies exclusively. He was accused in an extremely unfair manner by Metropolitan Stefanos of Nicomedia. The saint was slandered and that cost him six years of suffering and hardship.
Eventually, he was ordered to go to the solitary chapel of St. Marina on the Asian shore of the Propontis (Sea of Marmara), where he fell asleep in the Lord at an old age.
Source: Church of Cyprus
