Feast of Saint Modestos was celebrated at the Patriarchate of Jerusalem

On Saturday, 30 December 2023, the commemoration of Saint Modestos, Patriarch of Jerusalem was celebrated at the Holy Monastery of Saint Modestos, at the site on the hill of Abu Tor, separated from the hill of Saint Zion by the valley of Gehenom.

On this day, the whole Church, especially that of Jerusalem, remembers that Saint Modestos was distinguished in the 7th century. He started his monastic striving at the Holy Monastery of Abba Theodosius the Cenobiarch in the Judean Desert.

Successor to Patriarch Zacharias on the Throne of Jerusalem, he renovated Churches and monasteries and proved to be a helper of broken souls, overwhelmed by the fury of the Persian invasion in the year 614. He slept in the Lord as a holy man.

In his honour, in the Holy Monastery named after him, also known as Abou-Tor, Vespers was held in the afternoon by Archimandrites Christodoulos and Amfilochios and Hierodeacon Eulogios. The Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Saturday morning by His Eminence Archbishop Nektarios of Anthedona, with the chanting of Hierodeacon Simeon and the attendance of monks, nuns and faithful Christians from Jerusalem.

During the Divine Liturgy, Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem visited the Holy Monastery, accompanied by the Holy Sepulchre Fathers.

The Patriarchal and Episcopal entourages were offered refreshments by the dedicated monk Antiochos, who is in charge of the Monastery and defends it from the challenges of the ill-behaved people.

Source: Patriarchate of Jerusalem