Saint Blaise of

Amorium Amorium was a city in Phrygia, Asia Minor which was founded in the Hellenistic period, flourished under the Byzantine Empire, and declined after the Arab sack of 838. It was situated on the Byzantine military road from Constantinople to Cil ...

(

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: Βλάσιος ό Άμοριεύς) was a medieval monk from the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. He was born in the mid-9th century in

Amorion Amorium was a city in Phrygia, Asia Minor which was founded in the Hellenistic period, flourished under the Byzantine Empire, and declined after the Arab sack of 838. It was situated on the Byzantine military road from Constantinople to Cilici ...

, Anatolic Theme. He studied in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

and was ordained a deacon at

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia ( 'Holy Wisdom'; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque ( tr, Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi), is a mosque and major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The cathedral was originally built as a Greek Ortho ...

. On a pilgrimage to Rome, he was taken captive and sold to "

Scythians The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Eastern Iranian languages, Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved f ...

" (i.e.

Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely understo ...

) by his travel companion. According to his "Vita", his buyer was a Bulgar nobleman, who released him in the hope that Blaise would stay and provide guidance in how to life a Christian life. He made his way to Rome, where he became a monk for 18 years, during which he became famous for his piety. He went back to Constantinople to escape his growing reputation of holiness and was welcomed in the

Stoudios Monastery The Monastery of Stoudios, more fully Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner "at Stoudios" ( grc-gre, Μονή του Αγίου Ιωάννη του Προδρόμου εν τοις Στουδίου, Monē tou Hagiou Iōannē tou Prodromou en to ...

, and he later moved to

Athos Athos may refer to: Fictional or mythical characters * Athos (character), one of the title characters in the novel ''The Three Musketeers'' (1844) by Alexandre Dumas père * Athos (mythology), one of the Gigantes in Greek mythology * Athos Fadiga ...

. He died in 908 on a visit to Constantinople.

Notes

References

* BHG 278 = Βίος τοῦ ὁσίου πατρὸς ἡμῶν Βλασίου, ed. H. Delehaye, AASS. Nov. IV (1925), 657–669. *

Henri Grégoire Henri Jean-Baptiste Grégoire (; 4 December 1750 – 28 May 1831), often referred to as the Abbé Grégoire, was a French Catholic priest, Constitutional bishop of Blois and a revolutionary leader. He was an ardent slavery abolitionist and sup ...

, « La vie de Saint Blaise D'Amorium », ''Byzantion'', vol. V, 1929–1930, p. 391-414 (ISSN 0378-2506) * " Житие за Власий Аморийски // Vita Blasii Amoriensis" in ''ГРЪЦКИ ИЗВОРИ ЗА БЪЛГАРСКАТА ИСТОРИЯ FONTES GRAECI HISTORIAE BULGARICAE'' Vol. 5, Издание на Българската Академия на Науките, Sofija 1964, 14-1

* Michael MCCormick, Origins of the European Economy. Connections and Trade. 300-900 A.D. Cambridge University Press, 2001. Pages 202-208 (Part II, chapter 7, paragraph 3) {{DEFAULTSORT:Blaise of Amorion 9th-century births 908 deaths 10th-century Christian saints 9th-century Byzantine monks 10th-century Byzantine monks Byzantine saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church Saints from Anatolia Year of birth unknown People from Amorium Studite monks People associated with Mount Athos