Saint Nektarios: The Saint of Our Century

by Sotos Chondropoulos

St. Nektarios was born in Silyvria of Thrace in October 1, 1846 and gave up his soul to the Lord in November 8, 1920 at an Athens hospital His baptismal name was Anastasios; the name Nektarios was given to him when he was ordained a deacon. In 1886, after the completion of his studies, he returns to Alexandria of Egypt where he is ordained Archpriest of the Metropolis of Pentapolis. His philanthropic deeds, the love of his flock and his saintly manners that begin to manifest themselves give rise to jealousy and slander. As a result, he is expelled from Alexandria; an unjust act that caused him great suffering. He arrives in Athens where he is treated with distrust while new tribulations, sorrows and afflictions start to invade his life. However, nothing can extinguish the fire that his burning heart has for love towards Jesus Christ and towards his fellow-men. During the last years of his life he established the convent in Aegina, where he was also entombed. Thus, his exemplary life left an unfading mark in the twentieth century; that of humility, perseverance, wise silence and hope. In other words, the mark of saintliness.

Genres: Biography, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Greece, Religion, Christianity, Biography Memoir

279 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Sotos Chondropoulos was born in Pireus in 1911. His originated from Arachova which is today's Karyes in Lakonia. He studied economics and worked in the private sector as an accountant in industry until he retired.
He first appeared in Literature in 1930, a young man, and he dealt with prose writing and especially with psychodescriptive narratives.
The state presented him with an author's retirement to honour his work which comprises of fifty books. The Metropolis of Nikea honoured him for his work in 1983 by giving him the gold medal of the Holy Fathers of A' and Z' Ecumenical Synods. In 1987 the Sociey of Christian Letters presented him with the award of the Institution "Georgios and Katingo Laimou".
He passed away on 27-8-1989, aged 78, surrendering his soul to those whom he lauded all his life; the Lord of Glory and His Saints.

Reviews

[Kristofer Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never heard of Saint Nektarios until I heard a talk by Fr. Josiah Trenham who remarked after reading it that he (Fr Josiah) was not a Christian. By this, he meant that he did not measure up to St. Nektarios.

St. Nektarios had a meteoric rise from humble beginnings to become a Bishop in Alexandria. However, jealous hierarchs conspired against him, turning the Patriarch of Alexandria's favor from him. He was removed from his position and sent into exile. All this was done in violation of the canons of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Yet St. Nektarios did not complain or try to justify himself, leaving it all in the hands of God. Instead, he sailed to Greece and accepted a humble posting. Yet the spurious charges followed him, and church politics conspired against him. Yet St. Nektarios did not complain or try to justify himself, leaving it all in the hands of God. He served the people faithfully and well and was eventually made the dean of a school for priests. Yet even there he was despised and rejected by many, but his love and self-sacrifice won him the love of the students, the staff, and the ordinary people.

Eventually, he founded a women's monastery, with the approval of the local bishop and received the metropolitan's blessing. He retired after thirty years to be a spiritual father to the nuns, his spiritual children. Yet even here, at the end of his life, scurrilous charges were brought against him, and the local bishop and metropolitan withdrew their support. Charges were brought to the authorities that the monastery was his personal seraglio and that the nun's babies had been thrown into a well. Yet St. Nektarios did not complain or try to justify himself, leaving it all in the hands of God. Eventually, a medical exam revealed the truth -- that the nun's were virgins.

Fr Nektarios died of prostate cancer. Shortly after he died, the hospital staff were removing his undergarments and carelessly tossed them onto the bed occupied by a paralytic. The man immediately got up and began walking. Everyone noticed that the body of Nektarios appeared to have beads of sweat, but the body was exuding a sweet fragrance. As he lay in state, the sweet fragrance filled the church. Eventually, he was buried. Some months later his grave was opened so they could provide a proper tomb, and his body was discovered to be incorrupt and still exuding a marvelous fragrance. It is said that the scent drifted down from the church into the town. After three years his tomb was reopened and his body was still incorrupt, forcing the hierarchy to admit the sanctity of the one whom they had despised and ill-treated for so long.

[Nabil Hourani · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in the French edition (my son gave it to me as a gift on Christmas). It is a well-written story of this priest, bishop, and monk, from his work in Egypt to the islands and land of Greece. The various short and focused chapters describe that very humble and righteous man-of-god who excelled despite human and evil saying and doings. I felt that this saintly story urged me to think about our purpose and actions in life. The gentle writing by Sotos would give you a peaceful and longing feeling. I recommend it.

[Paisios Mendonsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book. Having not known much about the life of St. Nektarios, I decided to read this book because every time I saw his icon I was drawn to venerate it, and I was unsure of why until I read this story of his life. Recently even I was able to venerate a relic of this wonderful saint and ask him for his prayers on a specific issue, and unworthily I share that a little more than twelve hours after asking his prayers and venerating his relics, I received an answer. Truly God is wonderful in his saints

[Magda]

http://www.saint-nectarios-of-aegina....
http://www.saint-nectarios-of-aegina....
http://www.saint-nectarios-of-aegina....

[Fotini · Rating 5 out of 5]

5✨
A truly soul comforting friend

[Conor McCartney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful lessons on perseverance, love, humility, and compassion.

[Readius Maximus · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Priest, Father Josiah Trenham read this book and turned to his wife and said "honey I just found out what a Christian is and I am not one". Thus began his journey to being an Orthodox Priest.

A truly remarkable and beautiful Saint and a great testament to the truth of the ancient faith of Orthodoxy in the modern world. Born in 1846 and reposed in 1920.

His sweetness and humility is truly inspiring and he continues to touch and impact so many lives. I am deeply grateful for the life of this blessed Saint and his impact on my Priest and indirectly on my life as well.

If there were thousands of Saint Nektarios's in the world the world would be a very different place.

May all of us who read this book become a little more like this blessed Saint then we were before!

[Kakia · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a humble person! Even though I hear the voice of the author a bit too much, I can still see the character of this holy person emerging through the words: his total trust in God, his humility, his spiritual ascetism.

[Rebecca Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book!

[Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

The biography of an early 20th Century Greek saint written by a pious believer. His life was caught up in Greek Church intrigues and politics.

[Zachariah Brewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful telling of the life of a great saint. Some editorial issues with misspelling or typos, but all is forgiven due to an otherwise well written and prayerful hagiography of St. Nekarios.

[Hristos Dagres #2 · Rating 5 out of 5]

H ζωή και το έργο του μοναχού-επισκόπου Νεκταρίου, εξαιρετικά επιδραστικού διευθυντή της Ριζαρείου Σχολής, ιεροκήρυκα και ποιμένα που επέδρασε στις ζωές και τις συνειδήσεις χιλιάδων πιστών μέσα από το ασκητικό του παράδειγμα, τη φιλανθρωπία και την αμεσότητα του λόγου του.
Μεταξύ όλων, η ανέγερση του μοναστηριού της Αγ. Τριάδος στην Αίγινα ίσως να ήταν το κορυφαίο έργο του.

[Fifi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly a really good book about Greek Orthodox. It really goes into detail about Saint Nectarios life and everything that he went through. In some parts it got really sad, but it shows/explains how his faith is so much stronger than anything bad that will appear . I really like this book and I recommend it if you want to explore religion!

[George Istaphanous · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first learned about Saint Nektarios from his movie, the man of God. But after reading the book, I feel like the movie did not do him justice. But that is understandable, there are so many beautiful details in the book that you cannot possibly include in a two hour movie. Definitely worth the read.

[Mary Sak · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book. I wanted to learn about the life of St. Nektarios prior to the movie about his life called Man of God showing only on March 21st. If anyone is interested in checking it out, the movie is playing in Camp Hill AMC.

[John Bober · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent edifying recounting of his life. The “Man of God” movie and the book start at the same point in his life but at page 27 the book flashes back to his early life. The book also describes many of the miracles that occurred during his life and some of those after his repose.

[Trevor Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt the author’s voice spoke much more loudly than that of St Nektarios at most points. His life is very very inspiring nonetheless. The Man of God movie follows pretty much the exact same storyline if I remember correctly from watching it a while ago.

[Christina Z. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing! I always wanted to learn more about St. Nektarios. Spots Chondropoulos offers a poignant biography of an important Saint of the Orthodox church. If you want to learn more about St. Nektarios, you have to read this book.

[Marilena · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was truly inspiring and moving. It presents the life of a Saint who went through a very difficult life because everyone believed a lie, that he... but with his strong faith in Christ and his great gift of humility he truly surpassed them and...

[Joss Southgate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A life of a truly remarkable saint. If you want a deeper understanding of true humility and Christian love, including the love of our enemies, then you need to read this book.

[Anthony Birozes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible detailed description of a life of a modern day Saint. A must read for all Christians looking for a modern day witness of how to accept The will of God.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

10 STARS

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful saint. A good book to read when life is very challenging. A saint all Christians should be VERY familiar with.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

St. Nektarios Reilly lived such a beautiful life. He was so persecuted and had so many hardships and through it all he maintained unwavering faith in God. I pray that some day all his writings become available in English. What a treasure that would be! But for the time being this writing of his life is also something to be treasured - the simplicity of heart and love for the saint that the author and translator have shines through and makes even misspellings and grammatical errors endearing rather than exasperating.