Fr. Chrysanthos of Spinalonga, who communed lepers and consumed the Holy Communion

Sarantos Filippopoulos | July 27, 2024

 

 

We have referred many times through features on our website to the so-called unsung heroes—those who never saw the spotlight of publicity, who never appeared in newspaper headlines or news reports, likely because they didn’t fit the profile that the media constructs for the public.

And yet, these everyday heroes—simple people with whom we can identify and whom we can admire for their actions—are the ones who truly deserve to be honored, and whose work ought to be made known. This task is taken up by other ordinary people, the people themselves, who pass on their heroic deeds by word of mouth, hoping they will not be forgotten and will remain shining examples for all of us.

Our Association strives to highlight such stories, and today we present to you Hieromonk Chrysanthos, the priest of the lepers, who remained faithfully by their side not merely until the very end, but even long after!

Hieromonk Chrysanthos Koutsoulogiannakis lived on Spinalonga and served the lepers.

For ten whole years, the priest of Spinalonga communed the lepers and then consumed (drank) the remaining Holy Communion without contracting leprosy!

One of the historical details we learn about the “island of the living dead” is that the Hansen’s disease patients who lived on Spinalonga were angry with God, because their illness was a great and unbearable trial.

A priest from Ierapetra once dared to visit them and serve the Divine Liturgy in the church of Saint Panteleimon, which existed and was decaying on the island, together with its new inhabitants. They say that at the first Liturgy not a single soul attended.

The lepers listened stubbornly to the chanting from their cells—sometimes they drowned it out with their groans, other times with their curses. But the priest returned. At this second visit, one of the patients boldly stepped to the threshold of the church.

— “Father, I’ll stay for your Liturgy, but on one condition. At the end, you will commune me. And if your God is truly all-powerful, then afterward you will consume the remainder, and you won’t be afraid of my leprosy.”

The priest nodded in assent. The word spread through the nearby cells, and several began to gather at the side of the church, where there was a small breach in the wall, allowing a limited view of the sanctuary. The Hansen’s disease patients waited at the end of the Liturgy and saw the priest tearful and kneeling at the Holy Prothesis, consuming the remaining Gifts.

A month passed. The Hansen’s patients waited for him. They believed that this time he would come back as a patient, not as a priest. But the priest returned healthy and rosy-cheeked, and began once again, with renewed spirit, to ring the bell of the old chapel.

The miracle of Spinalonga that happened again and again

From that point on, and for at least ten years, Spinalonga had its priest. The Hansen’s disease patients rebuilt the church with their own hands, and at the same time, they rebuilt their faith. They communed regularly and always secretly watched their priest at the moment of the consumption, to be assured that the “miracle of Spinalonga” was happening again and again.

In 1957, with the discovery of antibiotics and the healing of the lepers, the leprosarium was closed and the island became deserted. Only the priest remained on the island until 1962, to commemorate the lepers for up to five years after their death. Behold, then, a modern silent hero, who was honored by no one for his work!

 

Greek source: https://www.ionikienotita.gr/?p=48337