Saint Alypius the Stylite ( grc-gre, Ἀλύπιος ὁ Στυλίτης) was a seventh-century
ascetic saint. He is revered as a
monastic
Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religion, religious way of life in which one renounces world (theology), worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic ...
founder, an
intercessor for the infertile, and a protector of children. During his lifetime he was a much sought-after
starets
A starets (russian: стáрец, p=ˈstarʲɪt͡s; fem. ) is an elder of an Eastern Orthodox monastery who functions as venerated adviser and teacher. ''Elders'' or ''spiritual fathers'' are charismatic spiritual leaders whose wisdom stems from Go ...
(guide in the
Christian spiritual life).
Life
Alypius was born in the city of Hadrianopolis in
Paphlagonia
Paphlagonia (; el, Παφλαγονία, Paphlagonía, modern translit. ''Paflagonía''; tr, Paflagonya) was an ancient region on the Black Sea coast of north-central Anatolia, situated between Bithynia to the west and Pontus (region), Pontus t ...
. His mother, who had been
widow
A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died.
Terminology
The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can so ...
ed early, was very pious. She sent her son to be educated by the bishop Theodore, gave all of her livelihood to the poor, and herself became a
deaconess
The ministry of a deaconess is, in modern times, a usually non-ordained ministry for women in some Protestant, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Orthodox churches to provide pastoral care, especially for other women, and which may carry a limited l ...
and lived an
ascetic life.
["Venerable Alypius the Stylite of Adrianopolis", Orthodox Church in America]
/ref>
Alypius yearned to practice the life of a hermit, but Bishop Theodore would not give him permission to do so. Alypius built a church in honour of the Great Martyr
A great martyr (also spelled greatmartyr or great-martyr) or megalomartyr (from Byzantine Greek , , from , 'great' + , 'martyr'; cu, великомꙋ́ченикъ; ro, mare mucenic; ka, დიდმოწამე) is a classification of s ...
Saint Euphemia
Euphemia ( el, Εὐφημία; "well-spoken f), known as the All-praised in the Eastern Orthodox Church, was a virgin, who was martyred for her faith at Chalcedon in 303 AD.
According to tradition, Euphemia was arrested for refusing to offer ...
the All-Praised on the site of a dilapidated pagan temple.[ He erected a pillar beside the church and lived atop it for the majority of his adult life. Two ]monasteries
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
were built beside his pillar, one for monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
s and one for nun
A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...
s, and Saint Alypius served as spiritual director of both. It is claimed that, after standing upright for fifty-three years, Alypius found his feet no longer able to support him, but instead of descending from his pillar lay down on his side and spent the remaining fourteen years of his life in that position.[Thurston, Herbert. "Stylites (Pillar Saints)." The Catholic Encyclopedia]
Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 3 August 2018 Alypius died in 640, at the claimed age of 118.
Veneration
Alypius is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church
The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...
and those Eastern Catholic Churches
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...
which follow the Byzantine Rite, as well as the Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
on November 26.Saint Alipios the Stylite
Saint Barbara Greek Orthodox Church For those churches which follow the Julian Calendar
The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...
November 26 currently falls on December 9 of the modern Gregorian Calendar
The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...
. After his death his relics were interred in the Church of St. Euphemia which he had built.[ His head is preserved in the Monastery of Koutloumousiou on the Mount Athos.
Alypius is recognised as one of the three great stylite ascetics along with Simeon Stylites the Elder and ]Daniel the Stylite
Saint Daniel the Stylite ( el, Δανιὴλ ὁ στυλίτης, c. 409 – 493) is a Saint and stylite of the Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic Churches. He is commemorated on 11 December according to the liturgical calenda ...
. Herbert Thurston
Herbert Henry Charles Thurston (15 November 1856 – 3 November 1939) was an English priest of the Roman Catholic Church, a member of the Jesuit order, and a prolific scholar on liturgical, literary, historical, and spiritual matters. In ...
says of the Stylites that they did, in an age of terrible corruption and social decadence, impress the need of penance more than anything else could have done upon the minds and imagination of Eastern Christians.[
]
See also
*Foolishness for Christ
Foolishness for Christ ( el, διά Χριστόν σαλότητα, cu, оуродъ, юродъ) refers to behavior such as giving up all one's worldly possessions upon joining an ascetic order or religious life, or deliberately flouting socie ...
* God: Sole Satisfier
*Hermit
A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions.
Description
In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...
*Poustinia
A hermitage most authentically refers to a place where a hermit lives in seclusion from the world, or a building or settlement where a person or a group of people lived religiously, in seclusion. Particularly as a name or part of the name of prop ...
* Stylianos of Paphlagonia
References
External links
The Venerable Alypius the Stylite
''Prologue from Ochrid'' by St. Nikolaj Velimirović
Nikolaj Velimirović (Serbian Cyrillic: Николај Велимировић; – ) was bishop of the eparchies of Ohrid and Žiča (1920–1956) in the Serbian Orthodox Church. An influential theological writer and a highly gifted orat ...
, Serbian Orthodox Church
Venerable Alypius the Stylite of Adrianopolis
Orthodox icon
An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...
and synaxarion
Translation of The Life of Alypius the Stylite (BHG 65)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alypius the Stylite
Stylites
Greek hermits
Saints of medieval Greece
522 births
640 deaths
7th-century Christian saints
Longevity claims
People from Karabük Province