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 SAlNT PARASKEVI
THE SACRED MARTYR AND WONDER WORKER OF CHRIST
July 26th, 180 A.D.
When the Archangel Gabriel healed Tobit of his blindness, he exclaimed, "It is good to hide the secret of a king, but it is glorious to reveal and preach the works of God" (Tobit 12:7). Indeed it is a perilous and terrible risk not to keep the secret of a king, but to remain silent about the works of God is a great loss for the soul. "And I," states St. Nicodemus, the biographer of St. Paraskevi, "am afraid to hide by silence the holy account that has reached me." Thus, the life and miracles of St. Paraskevi have been recorded and transmitted to us.
The blessed Holy Martyr Saint Paraskevi was born in Rome (circa 130 A.D.) during the reign of the pagan Emperor Adrian. Her parents, Agathon and Politia, were devout Christians even though belief in Christ was a crime against the state punishable by death. Agathon and Politia, who were of nobility, likewise ignored the disdain of their peers by championing the cause of the down trodden. In spite of their devotion to Christ and His teachings, Agathon and Politia secretly and painfully bore the cross of a childless marriage. Trusting in the great mercy and love of God, this Christian couple did not despair, nor did they cease praying for a child, which they vowed to rear in a God fearing manner. Lo the miracle! Late in life Agathon and Politia were blessed with a daughter. Because the child was born on Friday (Paraskevi in Greek), they named her Paraskevi.
Keeping their promise to God, Agathon and Politia were vigilant in exposing Paraskevi to the fullness of Christianity. The task was made considerably easier because the young girl had a natural penchant for learning. With the help of private tutors, Paraskevi became an ardent student of both Holy Scriptures and secular learning. However, the greatest influence in her life, according to her own testimony, was the Christ-like example of her parents.
Young Paraskevi developed into a cultured, sensitive and beautiful woman. It wasn’t long before some of the noblemen began to take notice of her, and to seek her hand in marriage. Paraskevi always managed, however, to find some excuse to politely refuse. Because inwardly she was convinced that she was destined for a more sublime mission in life.
 Paraskevi was orphaned of both parents when she was twenty years old. At this point in her life, that inner feeling, that she was destined for a higher calling, had crystallized into love and zeal for Christ. Her greatest desire was to become an apostle for Christ. To achieve her goal, Paraskevi distributed all her inheritance among the poor of Rome; entered a convent and was tonsured a nun. At the convent, Paraskevi distinguished herself in humility, love and spiritual fortitude. When she finally became proficient in prayer and sacrifice, the Abbess granted her leave so that she could fulfill her life’s ambition; to preach the love of God to all men. This was truly a precarious mission, because the pagan Roman Empire was extremely hostile toward Christianity. Even the most courageous of Christians were reluctant to openly admit that they were followers of Christ. Nevertheless, this did not daunt Paraskevi, nor did it dampen her zeal. As a matter of fact, she began her preaching mission right in Rome! The fervor of her kerygma, and the example of her commitment were such an inspiration, that great multitudes were converted on their very first encounter with the Saint. In spite of her great fame and legacy, Paraskevi managed to elude the authorities. Heartened by this, she decided to extend her ministry to Turkey.
It was in Turkey where Paraskevi experienced her first encounter with the law. One day, as she was preaching just beyond present day Istanbul, in the village of Therapia, the soldiers of Emperor Antonius Pius arrested her. The charge against the young missionary was that the blasphemous words which she uttered were the cause of all the ills that had recently befallen the empire. At her trial, the Emperor, infatuated by her beauty, begged Paraskevi to renounce Christ and worship the idols of Rome. Toentice her further, Antonius Pius offered to take her as his wife, and to give her half of his empire. Paraskevi’s reply was quick and resolute: “I have made my choice; no amount of wealth or deprivation can separate me from my love for Christ." Rebuffed and infuriated, Antonius Pius ordered that Paraskevi be imprisoned and beaten mercilessly until she died. The soldiers were astounded to discover that no matter what punishment and torture she received one day, the next morning she would be as refreshed and carefree as if nothing had happened. Fearing the wrath of the Emperor, the soldiers decided to report this strange phenomenon to him. Castigating the ineptness of his soldiers, Antonius Pius shouted another form of execution. This time he ordered the soldiers to take Paraskevi out to the spot where she was arrested and to prepare a cauldron of boiling water, tar and oil. He further stated that it would be his pleasure to personally supervise the scalding of that "blasphemous Paraskevi".
When Paraskevi was finally thrown into the boiling cauldron, she reacted as if the water were delightfully lukewarm. In utter disbelief, Antonius again began castigating the soldiers.
Softly and with a loving smile, Paraskevi reassured the Emperor that his soldiers had executed his command faithfully. She also stated, "My Lord and Master wills that I continue His work". Utterly enraged and oblivious of her words, Antonius yelled, "Sprinkle me with the oil and tar. I don’t believe what I see!" Obligingly, Paraskevi scooped some of the boiling mixture in her hands, and splashed it on the Emperor’s face.
Antonius squealed with pain and began yelling, "I’m blind! I can’t see!" Instinctively, he began imploring the Saint to have mercy and pity on him. "Restore my eyesight, and I shall believe", he begged. "Your God is surely the true God!"
Accepting his latter statement as a confession of faith, Paraskevi jumped out of the cauldron; rushed to a spring of water that was nearby, and scooped up fresh cool water onto Antonius’ face, invoked the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and sealed his eyes with the sign of the Precious and Life-saving Cross. Lo the miracle! The Emperor’s eyesight was restored immediately!
The miracle had such a profound effect on Antonius that he not only freed Paraskevi and ordered that all persecutions against Christians be stopped, but he himself was baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity.
Thus, Paraskevi resumed her apostolic mission with greater zeal and faith. The calm, however, did not last long. Marcus Aurelius, Antonius’ successor, renewed the persecutions against the Christian Church. Paraskevi wasbeheaded in Rome on the 26th of July, in the year 180 A.D.
The GROTTO-SHRINE OF THE MIRACULOUS HEALING HOLY
WATERS OF SAINT PARASKEVI
 Since the day of the healing of the Emperor’s eyes, the spring at Therapia, Turkey, has been commonly known as the "Spring of St. Paraskevi". Subsequently, it was discovered that this water had been blessed with miraculous healing powers, especially in reference to eye disorders. For this reason, the Orthodox Church proclaimed this spring a Shrine of the Miraculous Healing Holy Water of St. Paraskevi, and the Saint herself, the "patron saint of the blind". In due time the faithful of the area erected a stone grotto over the Holy Spring. This grotto and Spring still exist today as a silent, but clear manifestation of the love and mercy of God. Even more humbling and sobering is the record of literally tens, of thousands of healings that have occurred over the years.
 The memory and presence of St. Paraskevi is very much alive on Eastern Long Island. Both our parish in Greenlawn, and the underground Grotto-Shrine, which is adjacent to the church, are dedicated to her memory. This constitutes a unique distinction because our Church and Shrine are the only Greek Orthodox houses of worship in the Americas that bear her name. Furthermore, our Grotto-Shrine is the only Greek Orthodox Shrine of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. The erection of the Grotto-Shrine in our parish is the result of a life-long love and devotion to St. Paraskevi by the Yakovou Family. John, the son, being nurtured in piety and devotion to St. Paraskevi by his mother, Anastasia, and being blessed with the material means, decided to share the joy and depth
of his spiritual experience with the community at large. This overflow of the heart and soul was translated into a visible reality with the construction of the Grotto-Shrine in the year 1969. Mr. Yakovou, the inspirer and sole benefactor of this spiritual jewel took great pains to ensure that our Grotto-Shrine would be an exact replica of the original Shrine at Therapia. On July 26, 1969. Archbishop Iakovos, personally brought a vial of Holy Water from the Shrine at Therapia, and consecrated the waters of our Grotto-Shrine by mixing the two.
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Since then, thousands of pilgrims have visited the Shrine; and have experienced the humbling privilege and joy of being in it. The stark simplicity of the interior, and the soft trickle of the water flowing from the mouth of the fountain create an atmosphere of serenity and purity. The inscription over the entrance, "Dedicated to my mother, Anastasia, who taught me to see", captures and conveys the mystique of the Grotto-Shrine. "Vision and sight", according to John Yakovou, "do not refer exclusively to physical blindness, but to the ability to see truth and to face it courageously." While most pilgrims are granted only this mystical experience, many have atso been granted the gift of physical vision. Hardly a week passes that some miraculous healing isn’t reported. There is no logical explanation, special pattern, unique procedure or formula, the healings occur at the will of God. Truly, "He works in strange and wondrous ways"; most often above our level of comprehension, but always with a definite purpose and goal. For example, it is highly significant that the healing of the Emperor would take place at Therapia, which is the Greek word for therapy.
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The message was loud and clear. Likewise, it was not merely coincidence that John Yakovou and the late Theodore Synod is proposed, almost three years before the erection of the Grotto-Shrine, the name Shrine Place as the most appropriate name for the street in front of our church. One pilgrim who received both the mystical experience and the physical vision was Cecile Lessner of Bethpage, Long Island. In May of 1973, Cecile, who is Jewish, was cured of an unchecked growth of cells in one of her retinas. She visited the Grotto-Shrine; took Holy Water, and rubbed her eyes daily for two weeks with the Holy Water. When she was admitted for surgery at the Nassau County Medical Center, her doctors were astounded to discover that the disorder had disappeared completely.
 On another occasion a member of the parish mailed a bottle of Holy Water to her mother in Greece, who was afflicted with cataracts. The mother’s eyesight was restored immediately after she anointed her eyes.
An even more dramatic healing occurred on September 14, 1975, to an elderly woman of the parish. This woman, who wished to remain anonymous, had been legally blind in the left eye for fifteen years as a result of a blood clot that burst. On the weekend of September 14th, she felt another clot forming in her eye. At the suggestion of her doctor, she began applying cold compresses to her eye. Shortly thereafter, a lady friend from the parish visited her, and suggested that she add Holy Water to the cold compresses. After a few applications, she felt intense heat emanating from her eye. Simultaneously the redness of the eye was disappearing. The next thing she realized was that she could see from that so called "legally blind" eye.
 Mary Costides of Astoria, New York, was scheduled for a cornea transplant. She too visited our Grotto-Shrine; prayed; took Holy Water, and rubbed her eyes with it daily for ten days. When she returned to the doctor in March of this year for further tests, he told her that, "at least for now, you have no need for an operation."
These are just a few of the miraculous healings we have witnessed. There have been numerous healings involving glaucoma, cataracts, detached retinas, and a whole host of other eye disorders. Other maladies such as bone marrow disease, skin cancer, lung cancer, and nervous disorders have also been cured. Pilgrims have come from far and near to venerate the Holy Icon of St. Paraskevi, and to partake of the Holy Water. Likewise, requests for Holy Water have come from throughout the United States, from both Orthodox and non-Orthodox.
The Shrine is open daily, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Every Thursday, evening a Paraclesis is chanted and names are read. Once a month a Divine Liturgy is celebrated. All visitors are welcome to participate in the services and to partake of the Holy Water and the blessings of Saint Paraskevi. |
