St. Herman Studios Icon of St Paisios was born in Cappadocia in 1924 to pious Orthodox parents. At birth his name was given to him by the family's spiritual father Priest monk Arsenios, now St Arsenios of Cappadocia. St Arsenios gave the newborn his own name prophesying that he would one day become a monk. A week after his birth St Paisios and his family were driven out of Cappadocia by the Turks. St Arsenios guided St Paisios and his family 400 miles to Greece where they would settle. Growing up in Greece he would spend as much time as he could in nature, praying without ceasing. He would develop a skill in carpentry and worked as a carpenter until his mandatory military service. St Paisios joined the military in Greece at the height of World War 2. He was known throughout the war to put his life at risk in order to save his brother.
After the war had ended and his military service was over he desired greatly to become a monastic and join the Holy Mountain. He arrived on Mt Athos in 1950. He spent his time fulfilling his duties as a monk and keeping silent as much as he could, while practicing the art of prayer. St Paisios joined multiple different monasteries on the Holy Moutain. As St Paisios got older, his health started to decline, ultimately leading to having a portion of his lung removed. To have a greater chance of surviving after the surgery, St Paisios desperately needed blood. A local sisterhood from St John The Theologian got together and donated the blood that St Paisios needed in order to save him. St Paisios was forever grateful to them and after his recovery he helped the sisterhood build their monastery.
In 1968 after recovering from his surgery he moved to what would be his final home on the Holy Mountain, the hermitage Panagouda, which belongs to the Monastery of Koutloumousiou. It was here that St Paisios' fame as a man of God grew! He would receive visitors all day long from the sick and the suffering to people who were in need of his prayers. His strict ascetism receiving and praying for the suffering people that came to him made him prone to sickness. After leaving the Holy Mountain to receive treatment for his ailing health he was diagnosed with cancer which required immediate surgery. Post operation he moved to the sisterhood at St John The Theologian who loved and cared for him deeply. This is where he would spend the remainder of his days, having wished to be buried at St John The Theologian's Monastery in Souroti. On July 11th, 1994 St Paisios would receive Holy Communion for the last time. The next day he would give up his soul into Christ's hands.
St Paisios would go on to be canonized on January 13th, 2015, 21 years after his repose. Incredibly fast in the world of canonizing Saints, which is a testament to the life in Christ of St Paisios The Athonite!
