Katounakia ( el, Σκήτη Κατουνάκια) is an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

skete A skete ( ) is a monastic community in Eastern Christianity that allows relative isolation for monks, but also allows for communal services and the safety of shared resources and protection. It is one of four types of early monastic orders, a ...

of the community of Mount Athos that is subordinate to the

Great Lavra The Monastery of Great Lavra ( el, Μονή Μεγίστης Λαύρας) is the first monastery built on Mount Athos. It is located on the southeastern foot of the Mount at an elevation of . The founding of the monastery in AD 963 by Athanasiu ...

. The skete is located between Little Saint Anne's Skete and

Karoulia Karoulia ( el, Καρούλια, lit=pulley) is an Eastern Orthodox skete of the community of Mount Athos that is subordinate to the Great Lavra. It is located on the southernmost shore of Mount Athos. Karoulia has 12 huts built in the 17th cent ...

. The skete consists of 22 cells in which about 35 monks live. The cell of Danieleon, which employs some of the best

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 ...

painters at

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; el, Ἄθως, ) is a mountain in the distal part of the eponymous Athos peninsula and site of an important centre of Eastern Orthodox monasticism in northeastern Greece. The mountain along with the respective part of the penins ...

, is located in the skete.

History

The name comes from the Greek word , meaning 'military camp' or a narrow, sheltered place. The settlement dates back to the beginning of the 18th century. In 1881, St. Daniel Katounakiotis of Smyrna built his hut in Katounakia, which was the foundation for the present-day hermitage of the brotherhood of the Danielaeans. Saint Daniel practiced the art of hagiography and handed it over to the brotherhood, which continues to practice it to this day. In 1903, it consisted of 19 Greek cells. Today, it consists of 22 hesychast cells, the oldest of which, the Annunciation and the Assumption, were established in 1852. Katounakia's largest cell, , belongs to the brotherhood of Athos icon painters and psalters. The cell was founded by and named after the monk Daniel Katounakiotis. The skete's chapel is dedicated to the Athonite fathers. Daniel Katounakiotis, the monks Ignatius the Blind (d. 1927), Callinicos the Hesychast (d. 1930; also known as Kallinakos the Vigilant), and Gerasimos Menaios (d. 1957) also lived in Katounakia during the 20th century. Elder Ephraim of Katounakia (d. 1998), who spent his entire life in strict asceticism in a cell at Katounakia, was canonized as a saint two decades after his death.

Relics and pilgrimage sites

In Katounakia, the cells, skulls, and other relics of

hesychast Hesychasm (; Greek: Ησυχασμός) is a contemplative monastic tradition in the Eastern Orthodox Church in which stillness (''hēsychia'') is sought through uninterrupted Jesus prayer. While rooted in early Christian monasticism, it took it ...

ascetics such as Daniel of Katounakia and Ephraim of Katounakia can be visited by pilgrims. The (Ιερά Μοναστική Κοινότης Δανιηλαίων; ''or'' Ιερά Ησυχαστήριον Δανιηλαίων‬), originally founded by Daniel of Katounakia, has a building in Katounakia ().

Notable people

* Daniel of Katounakia * Ephraim of Katounakia *

Joseph the Hesychast Saint Joseph the Hesychast ( el, Άγιος Ιωσήφ ο Ησυχαστής; born Francis Kottis, el, Φραγκίσκος Κόττης; Lefkes, Paros, February 12, 1897 – Mount Athos, August 15, 1959) was a Greek Orthodox monk and elder who ...

Paisios of Mount Athos Saint Paisios of Mount Athos ( el, Ὅσιος Παΐσιος ὁ Ἁγιορείτης, ; secular name: Arsenios Eznepidis ( el, Αρσένιος Εζνεπίδης); 1924–1994), was a well-known Greek Eastern Orthodox ascetic from Mount A ...

Notes

References

{{Mount Athos Sketes in Mount Athos Greek Orthodox monasteries Christian hermitages in Greece Great Lavra