Saint Seraphim of Sarov beeswax icon

The beeswax icon is hand-carved with great attention to details. St. Seraphim is depicted in monastic attire, in a prayerful pose characteristic of his iconography.

Seraphim of Sarov

Saint Seraphim of Sarov was a Russian saint of the 18th century; he is particularly revered in Greece, where fragments of his holy relics are kept.

Saint Seraphim, in the world Prokhor, was born in 1759 in the city of Kursk to a family of pious parents. From an early age, it was evident that this was a gifted child. At the age of ten, he fell seriously ill but was miraculously healed by the grace of the Mother of God. At a young age, Prokhor decided to become a monk at the Sarov monastery. In 1786, after eight years of novitiate, he took monastic vows adopting the name Seraphim.

He was ordained a hierodeacon and later a priest. Having an inclination towards seclusion, with the blessing of the abbot, the saint decided to retire to the forest five kilometers away from the monastery, where he lived in complete solitude for fifteen years, observing strict fasting, incessant prayer, and engaging in the study of the Word of God and physical labor.  He would stand on a rock with his hands raised to heaven, and prayed: "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner!". In 1810, he returned to the monastery, but even there he withdrew into seclusion, observing strict asceticism until 1825. Afterwards, he devoted himself to serving and comforting others. His greeting to pilgrims was, "Christ is Risen, my joy!".

Saint Seraphim reposed peacefully on January 2, 1833. The brethren found him dressed in white vestments, kneeling before an icon of the Mother of God, with his head uncovered and a bronze cross around his neck. At first, the monks even thought that he had simply fallen asleep.

The holy relics of Seraphim of Sarov are kept in the Saint Seraphim-Diveyevo Monastery. His memory is commemorated on January 2 (15) and July 19 (August 1).