Philotheou or Filotheou Monastery ( el, Μονή Φιλοθέου) 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 ...

monastery 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 whi ...

at the monastic state of Mount Athos in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. It stands on the north-eastern side of the peninsula.

History

It was founded by the Blessed Philotheus, in the end of the 10th century. The monastery ranks twelfth in the hierarchy of the Athonite monasteries. By the end of the 15th century, according to the Russian pilgrim Isaiah, the monastery was Albanian. In 1539-1540 the monastery was renovated with funds from the Georgian kings,

Levan of Kakheti Levan ( ka, ლევანი), also known as Leon ( ka, ლეონი) (1503–1574), was a Georgian monarch of the Bagrationi dynasty, who reigned as king of Kakheti in eastern Georgia from 1518/1520 to 1574. He presided over the most prospero ...

and his son

Alexander II of Kakheti Alexander II ( ka, ალექსანდრე II) (1527 – March 12, 1605) of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was a king of Kakheti in eastern Georgia from 1574 to 1605. In spite of a precarious international situation, he managed to retain relative ...

, frescos of whom are depicted in the

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the Lat ...

.Speros Vryonis, Jr., Henrik Birnbaum, Byzantine Studies: Essays on the Slavic World and the Eleventh Century, Aristide d Caratzas Pub, Jan 1, 1992, p. 93 The library holds 250 manuscripts, and 2500 printed books (of which 500 are in Russian and Romanian). The monastery contains 60 working monks.

References

External links

Philotheou monastery at the Mount Athos website
{{Authority control Christian monasteries established in the 10th century Monasteries on Mount Athos Greek Orthodox monasteries Byzantine monasteries in Greece