A miracle of Saint Menas

 

 

Among the many miracles of Saint Menas is also the one that took place in 1826 in Heraklion, Crete, a city that particularly honors the Saint. In 1821, after the outbreak of the great Greek Revolution against the Turks, the conquerors carried out the massacre of thousands of civilians in many areas. Among the first to pay with their blood for the revolution were the inhabitants of Crete. Among the thousands of victims were the Metropolitan of Crete, the Bishops of Chania, Knossos, Heraklion, Lambi, Sitia, and others who were slaughtered on June 24, 1821, in the courtyard of the Metropolitan Church of Heraklion. In fact, the officiating priest was slaughtered on the Holy Table! Five years later, in 1826, the Turks of Heraklion planned to carry out a massacre of Christians, again at the Metropolitan Church of Saint Menas, on April 18, Easter Sunday, during the Resurrection Divine Liturgy, to catch the Christians off guard. As a diversion, they set fire to various remote parts of the city, while armed mobs had gathered outside the church, waiting for the time of the Gospel reading to invade and begin the slaughter. But as soon as the reading began, a white-haired elderly horseman appeared, running around the temple, brandishing his sword, and chasing the would-be slaughterers who fled in panic. Thus, the long-suffering Christians of Heraklion were saved from the terrible danger. The Turks thought that the horseman was a Muslim notable sent by the city governor to prevent the massacre. When they complained to the Governor, he assured them that he knew nothing about it, and it was even found that the particular notable they had in mind  had not left his house at all. Then the Turks understood that it was a miracle of Saint Menas, they informed the Greeks about the event, and since then the Muslims held the Saint in high regard, even offering gifts at his temple. This miracle of Saint Menas was established to be honored in Heraklion on the Tuesday of the Bright Week when the relic of the Saint is displayed for veneration during the evening service.