Venerable Elias the Hermit of Egypt
fourth century
An Egyptian hermit who pursued asceticism for seventy-five years on a desolate mountain.
Our Venerable Father Elias the Hermit of Egypt
Life
Elias the Hermit, also called Elias of Egypt, was a fourth-century Egyptian ascetic numbered among the desert monastics of his era. According to the synaxarion, he became a monk and pursued the ascetic life for seventy-five years in a cave on a desolate mountain. He is commemorated on January 8.
The tradition relates that he attained a great age, living to one hundred and ten years. Beyond the duration of his ascetic labors and his longevity, the surviving accounts preserve little biographical detail, and the sources record no specific events or miracles from his life. He is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Kontakion & Troparion2 hymnsReadHide
(Podoben: “You sought the heights...”) Having divinely armed yourself with purity of soul
and firmly grasping unceasing prayer as a spear, you have slain the armies of the demons.
Therefore, we beseech you, O Father Elias:
“Always intercede for those who honor you. ”
Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).
(Podoben: “Come, let us worship the Word…”) With the streams of your tears, you cultivated the barrenness of the desert,
and by your sighings from the depths, your labors bore fruit a hundredfold,
and you became a luminary of the world, radiant with miracles,
O Elias our Father. Intercede with Christ God for the salvation of our souls.
Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).
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