The 17-centuries-old monastery "Saint Athanasius the Great" protects the Bulgarian church and people

A great blessing and joy for all Orthodox Christians in Bulgaria is the Saint Athanasius Monastery near the town of Chirpan. It was founded by the saint himself in ‎the IV century (344), near an old Roman fortress, close to the then town of Beroe ‎‎(present-day Stara Zagora). Undoubtedly, this is the oldest monastery in all of ‎Europe, it became famous for many miracles and signs from Saint Athanasius, ‎whom the early church called "The Great", because of his zealous advocacy of the ‎true faith. The saint also brought monasticism to the European continent from ‎Egypt and is also known as a great protector of the purity of the Orthodox faith. ‎

After many vicissitudes, in its 17th-century history, the monastery near Chirpan ‎stands as a stronghold of our faith and continues to attract pilgrims due to the ‎prayerful intercession and patronage of St. Athanasius. Its uniqueness is also ‎complemented by the proximity of the fasting place preserved in the rocks, ‎where St. Athanasius retired in fasting and prayer, during his first journey ‎through the Bulgarian lands, connected with the Council of Serdica in 343-344, on the ‎territory of today's Sofia.‎

The monastery is located above the village of Zlatna Livada, on the right bank ‎of Stara Reka River, and falls within the territory of the Diocese of Stara Zagora. ‎With the blessing of Metropolitan Cyprian of Stara Zagora, we manage to learn ‎details of the monastery's old and more recent history, which abounds with evidence of the ‎sanctity of this ancient spiritual abode. ‎

To Saint Athanasius the Great, who during his lifetime was the Patriarch of ‎Alexandria, we owe the Creed written at the First Ecumenical Council, notes Priest Boris, abbot of the monastery, whose feast day is on May 2 - the ‎Dormition of St. Athanasius the Great. ‎

‎"In 344, at the end of January, the beginning of February, after participating in ‎the Council of Serdica the saint spent the night on the road, after which he ‎returned to the same place and stayed for four years," says Father Boris. "Evidence for this was discovered by the German historian Prof. Manfred Klaus ‎‎(ancient history professor). In 2016, the professor published his study and ‎described that from 344 to 348 Saint Athanasius was located between Nis and ‎Adrianople, i.e. on the territory of today's Bulgaria and it is here that he wrote ‎his famous work "On the Holy Spirit". We know that Saint Athanasius the ‎Great participated in the First Ecumenical Council in 325 at Nicaea. The British historian Sir Julian ‎Huxley describes the contribution of St. Athanasius to the development of ‎European Christian civilization, and his research dates back more than 40 ‎years. These testimonies of the two European scholars confirm the role of the ‎Saint in the history of Europe".‎

From the life of St. Athanasius the Great, we learn that at that time the local ‎population was made up of proto-Bulgarians, Goths, Moesi, etc., and leprosy ‎was rampant in Bulgarian lands. It is precisely with the healing of leprosy that the miracles performed by St. Athanasius are connected with:

‎"St. Athanasius blessed the water at a fountain and it acquired healing properties", we learn ‎more from Father Boris. "And in a miraculous way, everyone who washed there, ‎whether pagan or Christian, was suddenly cured of leprosy. Then St. ‎Athanasius ordered a monastery to be built near the ayasmo (a spring with healing water) - a small church ‎with adjacent small buildings around it. The Roman fortress that was in this ‎place was abandoned and everything became the property of the monastery. ‎Over the centuries, during the Greek and Turkish rule, the monastery was ‎destroyed many times. The masonry work of stones and mud even today arouses ‎admiration for the great masters who made it to last so many years.

Nowadays, ‎the monastery would not exist if it were not for Lyudmila Zhivkova. Her ‎Kingdom is Heavenly! The monastery was turned into a sheep pen. In the ‎summer the sheep would graze outside, and in the evening they were brought into the ‎church. Miraculously, St. Athanasius appeared in a dream to the local men in power, ‎and the daughter of the Todor Zhivkov (then head of the Communist Party), with her personal funds, in 1981 ‎managed to build and preserve the northwestern monastic wing, where the very ‎entrance of the monastery is. The building of the church is 210-230 years old, ‎but to our joy it remained for only a short time as a sheep pen. It has been renovated a little and strengthened because the roof beams have been eaten by woodworms, ‎but it is in its authentic appearance." ‎

‎One of the most recent miracles of the monastery is the presentation of the icon ‎of the saint, personally by the 115th successor, after Saint Athanasius, to the ‎patriarchal throne in Alexandria, Patriarch Peter VII (Papapetrou) of Alexandria (1997-‎2004). In 2003 ‎he brought to the village of Zlatna Livada an exact copy of the icon with the ‎image of the saint from Alexandria:‎

‎"In 2003, quite by chance in the Library of Alexandria in the Patriarchate, ‎during an inventory, old written monuments were found on parchment and ‎leather. They were not hidden, but were left behind the books, and in one of them a ‎description of this epic journey of St. Athanasius was found - how he left ‎Alexandria. It is also mentioned that he founded a monastery near the town of ‎Beroe, when in the 4th century our lands were the cradle of civilization. After ‎finding this document in Alexandria, in honour of St. Athanasius the Great, ‎Patriarch of Alexandria the Wonderworker, his 115th successor - Peter VII, in ‎‎2003 came to the monastery and brought a copy of the icon with the authentic ‎image of the saint from Alexandria. It now stands above the Lord's Chair in the ‎church here. The Patriarch of Alexandria is equal in rank to the Ecumenical ‎Patriarch, and after the discovery of the forgotten travelogue, the fact that he undertook such a journey from ‎Alexandria and came to the village of Zlatna livada, means that he had good reason to do so. Now we are in the process of acquiring a ‎part of the Holy Relics of St. Athanasius so that before the celebration of 1,700 ‎years from the foundation of the monastery here, in 2044, a part of his relics to be ‎with us. So, Bulgaria is a blessed country, our people are blessed by God and ‎will be so until the end of human history. We have the rare privilege of being ‎Bulgarians and we should be happy and grateful for what we have".‎

Read also:

Photos: atanasiymonastery.alpobg.com

Translated and published by Rositsa Petkova

Share

The 17-centuries-old monastery "Saint Athanasius the Great" protects the Bulgarian church and people

More from category

Bulgarians in Berlin celebrate the feast of St. Anthony the Great with special solemnity

Bulgarian Orthodox Church and BNR join forces to provide spiritual support to compatriots abroad

"Through the Doors of Time" – 190 years of innovative spirit inspiring the students of the Aprilov National High School

The Feast of St. Athanasius – between Christianity, rituals and beliefs