Elder Chrysanthos of the Skete of St. Anna (+1981)

 Elder Chrysanthos of the Skete of St. Anna (1894 - May 29, 1981)

By Elder Moses of Mount Athos

[In 1924, when the change of the calendar took place in the Church of Greece, for well-known ecumenical purposes, not a single Bishop or Priest dared directly to oppose and distinguish their responsibilities. Twenty-eight laymen were the ones who did it. Their ally and the only person wearing a rasson was a young monk, the later famous Elder Chrysanthos the Hagiorite. From this union emerged and later grew the Old Calendar movement. - Nikolaos Mannis]

He was born as Christos Vrettaros in Piraeus to pious parents in 1894. His mother ended her life as Nun Melanie. He was baptized by Saint Nicholas Planas. In the holy font, at the moment of his baptism, a cross was formed, and that holy priest said that the one being baptized would become a priest and would please God. He grew up "in the training and instruction of the Lord." His ascetic great-grandmother, who was a candle-lighter, often took him to the chapel of Saint Elissaios in Monastiraki, Athens, to keep vigil with that devout and unforgettable congregation. He was also connected with the Metochion of the Ascension in Vyronas, Athens, and especially with the very virtuous Elder Ieronymos of Simonopetra († 1957), whom he loved dearly.

In 1911, he departed like a thirsty deer for Mount Athos and entered as a novice monk at Simonopetra, where he remained and struggled with an elder's mindset. Desiring greater ascetic struggles, he moved to the Skete of Saint Anne and was tonsured a monk by Elder Azarias († 1947) at the Cell of the Beheading of the Holy Forerunner. Following the guidance of his Elder, he later resided at the Cell of the Holy Trinity, where he was tonsured as a great schema monk. Elder Onouphrios († 1935) of a neighboring Cell would assist him spiritually, as would the admirable spiritual father Ignatios of Katounakia († 1927). He was considered a child-elder with seriousness, prudence, and constant self-reproach. The fathers of the skete entrusted him with two young monks for support. However, they fell ill with tuberculosis, and the Elder was compelled to accompany them to Athens for treatment.

Thus, he was forced to stay permanently in Athens. The change of the calendar created factions, divisions, schisms, and disturbances. The blessed Elder would say that many discussions about ecclesiastical matters "dry up the heart, and afterward, great struggle and many tears are needed for one to return to the state of prayer and divine love... They stopped discussing prayer, the lives of the Saints, and the blessings of the All-Good God, which soften the soul and elevate it to divine love, and instead engage with issues that should be examined by those who are in a higher spiritual state."

As a spiritual father, he was always willing and available, without any set schedule, day or night. His confessional-clinic was always open to everyone. He assisted, helped, saved, and guided many to monasticism and priesthood. There, in his humble dwelling, we also met him a few years before his repose, and he received us with great love and words of grace and wisdom. The world had in no way altered him. He remained always an integral ascetic of Agia Anna. He himself would say, "Even though I am far away, my breath and my dreams roam there."

His beloved spiritual children write about him: "Always silent and contemplative, mournful and tearful, without boldness and laughter, but also comforting and hopeful, with true love, without worldly courtesies and flattery, straightforward, simple as a child, calm, serious, and steadfast as a very experienced Elder. A blessing from God and the Garden of our Lady, Mount Athos, to the world. A marvelous and God-given combination in an Elderly figure, which captivates you and inspires respect, love, and a filial disposition for complete devotion to the trustworthy, experienced, and affectionate paternal hands." He foresaw and foretold his end: "On the Feast of the Holy Trinity, I will be above."

His earthly passage ended on May 29, 1981. His venerable remains were transported from Athens and buried in the cemetery of the Skete of Saint Anne, where he had begun his spiritual struggles as a young man. During the exhumation of his relics in 1985, "his relics bore the evident signs of his saintly life."

Sources - Bibliography

Chrysanthos Agiannanites, Hieromonk - Gerontikon Reminiscences and Narrations, Vol. 1, Molos Lokridos 2008.

Source: Monk Moses of Mount Athos, Great Gerontikon of Virtuous Athonite Elders of the twentieth century, Volume 2, 1956-1983, pages 1007 – 1010.

Greek source online: https://www.pemptousia.gr/2016/05/ieromonachos-chrisanthos-agiannanitis-1894-29-ma%CE%90ou-1981/