St Herman once answered my prayer of safety "upon the seas" - between Kodiak Harbor and Monks Lagoon. His intercession stilled in a wink-eye-instance the boiling waters under Ft. Peter's skiff. "We may not make it", Father, turning his head, shouted at me, "pray". I did. To you, Holy Herman. The water became as glass.
He practically single-handedly evangelized the entire subcontinent of Alaska before it was a state. Without the use of force he learned the customs of indigenous people throughout Alaska and taught them the Orthodox Christian faith. He was an austere ascetic, sleeping on the floor with a board for a blanket which he warmed on a woodstove, and used a brick wrapped in a shirt as a pillow. He grew vegetables in permafrost where no thing could ever grow, made biscuits for the local native children around Spruce Island where his hermitage was, and was beloved by all. When he died, a beam of light could be seen for miles around coming from his small shack, and many locals reported sightings of angels. The man lived a life most pleasing to God, entering the monastic vocation at age 16 and living a life of chastity, poverty, prayer, fasting, and love for Christ. He is one of North America's first and foremost Saints.
I did a little digging, he is apparently recognized by our Greek Orthodox Church and he is celebrated on August 9. Never knew about him as Herman (or Γερμανός in Greek) is not a name we give our children. Thank you for the info.
St Herman once answered my prayer of safety "upon the seas" - between Kodiak Harbor and Monks Lagoon. His intercession stilled in a wink-eye-instance the boiling waters under Ft. Peter's skiff.
"We may not make it", Father, turning his head, shouted at me, "pray". I did. To you, Holy Herman. The water became as glass.
Mary's beautiful voice ❤
Texan?
Is he really a Saint? When was he declared as such and by which Church?
He's a Saint in the Holy Orthodox Church. He was Russian, back when Alaska was part of the Russian Empire. ☦
He practically single-handedly evangelized the entire subcontinent of Alaska before it was a state. Without the use of force he learned the customs of indigenous people throughout Alaska and taught them the Orthodox Christian faith. He was an austere ascetic, sleeping on the floor with a board for a blanket which he warmed on a woodstove, and used a brick wrapped in a shirt as a pillow. He grew vegetables in permafrost where no thing could ever grow, made biscuits for the local native children around Spruce Island where his hermitage was, and was beloved by all. When he died, a beam of light could be seen for miles around coming from his small shack, and many locals reported sightings of angels. The man lived a life most pleasing to God, entering the monastic vocation at age 16 and living a life of chastity, poverty, prayer, fasting, and love for Christ. He is one of North America's first and foremost Saints.
I did a little digging, he is apparently recognized by our Greek Orthodox Church and he is celebrated on August 9. Never knew about him as Herman (or Γερμανός in Greek) is not a name we give our children. Thank you for the info.
His sanctity was recognized even while he was alive; truly Christ-like. He was officially glorified by the Orthodox Church in America in 1970.