Better Know a Saint: St. John The Hermit

In looking for today's saint, I came across a site whose owner has a very personal connection to St. John the Hermit. More about that later.

John the Hermit was born in Egypt and was part of a group of ascetics known for their healing skills. The original group of ascetics numbered 35. By the time the group had traveled to Cyprus, Turkey and finally Crete, their number had risen to 99, including John. What happened on the last leg of the voyage (around the year 1300) is most interesting.

A maritime storm made it impossible to berth in southern Crete as they had intended. As a result, they landed on Gavdos, the southernmost Greek island. The storm lasted 24 days - that's one stalled low pressure system! Upon reaching their final destination, the ascetics realized that something, make that someone, was missing: John. God made John invisible, and he had never boarded the boat.

Realizing they had left John in Gavdos, they called out for him from the beach. Hearing their call, John said a prayer, tossed his tunic into the sea and sailed to Crete in only three hours. Does this make John the first (and maybe only) surfer saint?

When he arrived in Azogires, John healed the residents of a prison. After getting their freedom, the grateful ex-prisoners built a church around the cave he lived in. This brings me back to the beginning, to a family that has a very personal connection with John the Hermit.

I'll just point you to Lucky's blog, Azogires - The Alpha Kafenion Tales and stories about Azogires and The Alpha Cafenion. He tells of the importance of John the Hermit to his family and the history of John in Azogires. After reading his blog, Crete is definitely added to my list of places to go.