Short Biography of Saint Acacius Serski (of Asvestochori, Thessaloniki)
He was born with the name Atanas in 1792 in the Bulgarian village of Novo Selo near Thessaloniki.
When he was nine years old, his family moved with him to the town of Syar,[1] where he was taken as a foster child by the local bey as an infant and became a Muslim.
His parents, embittered, returned and settled in Thessaloniki.[5] Slandered by his stepmother for wanting to rape her, Atanas was expelled by the bey at the age of 18 and went to live with his parents.
Realizing the sin of his apostasy, he repented and was tonsured a monk at the Hilendar Monastery on Mount Athos, where he was accepted back into the bosom of the church.
After a year, he withdrew to the Iveron Monastery, where the monks Euthymius and Ignatius had recently suffered. Upon learning of their martyrdom, Akakiy decided to follow their example and publicly declare his renunciation of Islam, even though he knew that he would be sentenced to death for it.
On April 1, he departed by ship from Mount Athos and arrived in Galata, a district of the capital Constantinople, on April 23. On April 29, Saturday, Akakiy appeared before the Turkish court, recounted his renunciation, and publicly cursed Muhammad, calling him a false prophet.
The Ottomans began to try to persuade him to remain in Islam with exhortations and torture, but Akakiy refused and was condemned. On May 1, 1816, he was beheaded at the place of his forehead called Parmak Kapi.[10] His body was bought for 800 groschen and taken to Mount Athos.
His holy relics were placed first in his cell, and then in the newly built church in honor of the martyrs Euthymius and Ignatius who had suffered before him. The head of Saint Akakiy is today in the Russian Athos monastery "Saint Panteleimon".
The Bulgarian saint Akakiy of Sersky is commemorated on Mount Athos on the day of his martyrdom, May 1, together with the martyrs Euthymius (March 21) and Ignatius (October 8), for which a common service of the three saints was composed.
Sant Acacius is not to be mistaken with Sant Acacious of Byzantium.
Saint Acacius (Greek: Ἅγιος Ἀκάκιος; died 303), also known as Agathius of Byzantium, Achatius, or Agathonas to Christian tradition, was a Cappadocian Greek centurion of the imperial army, martyred around 304.)
Biography Source:
https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/
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Life of the Holy Martyr Akakiy (Syarsky) according to Living of Saints
The Holy Martyr Akakiy (Acacius), in holy baptism Athanasius, was born in the Bulgarian village of Novo Selo (Greek: Neochori) nowadays Asvestochori, Thessaloniki near the city of Thessaloniki.
Due to poverty, his parents moved to the city of Serres.
When he was nine years old, they send him to learn the trade from a shoemaker.
But the shoemaker beat the boy so severely every day that once, on Good Friday, he could not stand it and ran away in tears into the street.
Unfortunately, two Turkish women met him, flattered him, took him into their home, fed him, and so bewitched him with their beautiful words that they convinced him to renounce Christ.
Then the city bey (local area governor) took him to himself, performed the rite of Mohammedan circumcision over him, adopted him, and loved him and his wife as his own son.
After Athanasius had lived in the Bey's house for nine years and had already grown to manhood, the Bey's mistress changed her love for him from maternal to carnal and – like Potiphar's wife – tried to entice him into sin.
The chaste youth – like the wonderful biblical Joseph – fled from her, but she, embittered, slandered him through her husband that he allegedly wanted to defile herself with her.
Believing his wife false accusations, the Bey expelled him from his home and granted him complete freedom to go wherever he wanted.
He went to his parents, who after his renunciation returned to Thessaloniki. They were very happy about his return and especially about his desire to return to the Church of Christ.
But his wise mother warned him that he who voluntarily renounced Christ must wash away the sin of his renunciation with his own blood. He took his mother's advice deeply to heart, withdrew to the Hilendar Monastery on Mount Athos, confessed to the priest of the Xenophon Skete, and was restored to Christianity through chrism. Hearing of the exploits of the recently martyred Athonite holy martyrs Euthymius and Ignatius, he went to their former mentor, Hieromonk Nicephorus, with a request to prepare him for martyrdom. The priest explained to Athanasius all the difficulty of this feat, but he agreed to take him under his guidance.
After a little hesitation, Athanasius quickly advanced in the spiritual life – he labored with love, and his eyes, from heartfelt tenderness, became springs of incessant tears.
Seeing his perfection in virtue and steadfastness in thought, the clergyman tonsured him into monasticism with the name Akakiy ( Acacius ) and after some time blessed him to set out on a martyr's journey, for which he gave him as a companion the same elder Gregory, who at one time accompanied the venerable martyrs Euthymius and Ignatius.
Soon after that, they left the Holy Mountain and went to Constantinople.
On the day of the journey itself, Akakiy partook of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, dressed as a Turk and, shedding tears, accepted the last blessing of the venerable Gregory for martyrdom.
Having arrived at the High Ottoman Gate, he threw off his green turban from his (a sign for belonging to Islamic faith) head and began to trample it with his feet, confessed Christ and cursed Muhammad.
Having failed to persuade him to remain a Mohammedan with exhortations, the judges ordered him to be beaten and thrown into prison.
The next day, Akakiy was brought before the vizier himself, but this also proved to be useless, which is why the sentence of beheading followed.
On the eve of the execution of the sentence, the holy martyr communed with the Holy Mysteries.
On May 1, 1816, the Turks beheaded the holy martyr Akakiy in a place called Parmak-kapi.
With money collected by Christians, the monk Gregory bought the body of the holy martyr from the soldiers-guards and took it to Mount Athos.
His holy relics were first placed in his cell, and then he was buried in the newly built church in honor of the holy martyrs Euthymius and Ignatius, who had suffered before him.
The head of Saint Akakiy is now in the Russian Athonite monastery “St. Panteleimon” on Holy Mount Athos.
On the day of his martyrdom, his memory on Mount Athos is honored together with that of the venerable martyrs Euthymius (March 21) and Ignatius (October 8), because a common service has been composed for the three saints, and there is no separate service for St. Acacius.
Source:
© Lives of the Saints. Synodal Publishing House, Sofia, 1991, edited by Parthenius, Bishop of Levkiy and Archimandrite Dr. Athanasius (Bonchev).
Let by the Holy Prayers of Saint Akakiy Serski God have mercy on everyone !
