Saint Zosimas
The famed elder who thought he had nothing left to learn — until he met Mary of Egypt in the desert. A lesson that, however far you grow spiritually, humility is what keeps you standing.
- Commemoration
- April 4
- Repose
- † sec. V–VI
Life
He was an old monk, of chosen life, from a monastery near the Jordan. He had lived for more than fifty years in asceticism and had become famous for his holiness — so much so, that he had begun, without realizing it, to believe within himself that he had nothing more to learn from anyone. And here is the whole beauty of his story.
Following the custom of the monastery, he went out during Great Lent deep into the desert, to pray alone. And there, in that wasteland where he believed no one was more advanced than him, he came across a frail, sunburnt woman: Mary of Egypt. She, who had never read a book, called him by name, revealed his thoughts, and recounted to him a life of repentance higher than anything he had ever seen.
Zosimas fell to his knees. The famous elder understood, through that woman, how far he still was from true holiness. He brought her Holy Communion a year later, and then buried her body, aided — tradition says — by a lion that came from the desert. He was the one who passed on her story. Venerable Zosimas remains for us as a lesson: no matter how much you grow spiritually, humility is all that keeps you standing.
Venerable Father Zosimas, who learned humility exactly when you thought you had arrived, pray for me, that I may not exalt myself with anything I have, but remain small before God. Amen.
Prayer (in simple words)
Venerable Zosimas, you were a good and zealous man, and yet you almost lost yourself because of a single thought: that you had made it. Guard me too from this thought. Whenever I start believing myself better than others, remind me of you and the woman from the desert. Teach me to see in every person something I can learn from, and to keep my eyes pointing downwards, not upwards. Pray to God for me. Amen.
Akathist
Come, let us praise Zosima, the shoot of the desert, the angel of God and the glory of monks! Together with him let us also praise Saint Mary of Egypt, whose life was above nature, and now let us cry out to them: Glory to Him who strengthened you, Glory to Him who sanctified you, Glory to Him who through you grants healing to all!
Kontakion 1
To him who from childhood dedicated his life to Christ God and who found Saint Mary of Egypt in the desert, to the Venerable Saint Zosima we offer these hymns. And you, O Saint Zosima, blessed by the mercy of God, pray to Him for us who call upon you: Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Oikos 1
The angelic hosts and the Archangels in the Heavens marvelled at your pure way of life, O Saint Zosima, and we together with them glorify you:
- Rejoice, treasure of the desert;
- Rejoice, finder of truth;
- Rejoice, you who reveal the unknown;
- Rejoice, enlightener of Christians;
- Rejoice, humble in spirit;
- Rejoice, monk perfected;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 2
Entering from childhood the monastery on the bank of the river Jordan, you struggled there for 53 years, being a great lover of the desert life, of fasting and of prayer, and you were adorned with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, reaching a high spiritual measure: Alleluia!
Oikos 2
The news of your advanced life spread quickly, O Saint Zosima, and you became a renowned spiritual father sought for your spiritual counsels, for your skill in the fight against demons and for the love of Christ which dwelt in your heart, and we honour you:
- Rejoice, for you let no one depart from you unconsoled;
- Rejoice, for you straightened souls bent by suffering;
- Rejoice, for you soothed bodies prostrated by illness;
- Rejoice, for you led the souls of your disciples to the Throne of God;
- Rejoice, for being ordained a priest, you interceded for the forgiveness of sins;
- Rejoice, for you were like a flame of light in the darkness of the desert;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 3
The trials sent by God were proportionate to your spirituality, O holy hermit, and you were tempted with thoughts of vainglory, wondering if there would be found in the surroundings any man who would surpass you in good deeds, but immediately an angel appeared to you who rebuked you for your thought and told you that no one is perfect except the Lord our God, to whom the Seraphim sing: Alleluia!
Oikos 3
Moreover, the angel asked you to go to a monastery near the Jordan desert, and you did exactly that, obeying as a good monk and venerable intercessor.
- Rejoice, for you remained there for a good while;
- Rejoice, for you hid who you were;
- Rejoice, for you lived austerely, according to the custom of the place;
- Rejoice, for you came to know many perfected monks;
- Rejoice, for you submitted to complete obedience;
- Rejoice, for the monastery was hidden from men in the desert;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 4
In that monastery it was the custom that after the first Liturgy of Great Lent, after all had communed, each of the monks would depart alone into the desert beyond the river Jordan and live in strict fasting and prayers until Palm Sunday, which you also did, O Saint Zosima, giving glory to God: Alleluia!
Oikos 4
You took with you only a sheepskin and a few provisions, to pray in complete solitude and to weep for your sins, and after 12 days of prayer, while you were singing the prayers of the Sixth Hour, you saw an apparition like a human shadow and you were frightened, thinking it was deception and demonic temptation.
- Rejoice, for the shadow drew near;
- Rejoice, for you saw that it was a person;
- Rejoice, for that one was naked, burned and bleached by the sun;
- Rejoice, for he was estranged from the world;
- Rejoice, for you wanted to approach;
- Rejoice, for that person immediately withdrew;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 5
Pursuing that person to the ford of a dried-up river, you begged him with tears to stop, and then you heard the voice of a woman who asked you to throw her a garment so that she could cover herself, for her clothes had long since worn out, and doing so, you were deemed worthy of great joy, crying out to God: Alleluia!
Oikos 5
Taking your garment, the woman hermit asked you to bless her, O Saint Zosima, knowing in spirit that you were a priest and that through your hands the awesome Mysteries are sanctified on the altar, and then you prayed together.
- Rejoice, for you humbled yourself in your heart;
- Rejoice, for you felt the Holy Spirit who lived in that woman;
- Rejoice, for she had been sanctified even in life;
- Rejoice, for you saw her praying;
- Rejoice, for she prayed raised above the ground;
- Rejoice, for her experience moved you;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 6
Beholding the saint in the desert, you understood, O blessed Saint, that you had before you a person much more advanced spiritually than yourself, and understanding that this was the answer given by the angel to your thought of vainglory, you thanked God for His providence: Alleluia!
Oikos 6
The woman began to tell you her life, and you marvelled, O Saint Zosima, at all that soul had suffered to obtain the Kingdom of God.
- Rejoice, for she told you of her passionate life in youth;
- Rejoice, for going to Jerusalem, her soul repented;
- Rejoice, for she went into the desert to bewail her sins;
- Rejoice, for in the Jordan desert she had endured frost and heat for 17 years;
- Rejoice, for she ate only the greens of the desert;
- Rejoice, for she had no clothes for a long time;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 7
Without telling you her name, the sanctified woman asked you to come the following year, at the same time, to bring her the Holy Mysteries on Holy Thursday, telling you that you would not be able to leave the monastery earlier even if you wished, and you marvelled at the gift of foresight which God had bestowed upon the Saint and prayed: Alleluia!
Oikos 7
Truly the prophecy was fulfilled, for you lay sick the entire Great Lent the following year, and you could depart into the Jordan desert only on Holy Thursday, and we glorify you:
- Rejoice, for when the time came, you took the Holy Mysteries with you;
- Rejoice, for you waited for the woman on the bank of the river Jordan;
- Rejoice, for the hermit appeared walking upon the water;
- Rejoice, for her feet were not wet at all;
- Rejoice, for you communed her with the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ;
- Rejoice, for she tasted only a little lentil;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 8
You returned to the monastery, O Saint Zosima, and after another year you went again, as the woman had asked you, to the place where you had last met her, where you found her body and beside it, scratched on the ground, a request: "Bury, Abba Zosima, in this place, the body of the humble Mary. Give dust to dust and pray to the Lord for me, who reposed in the month of Pharmouthi in Egyptian, and in Greek April the first, on the very night of the saving Passion of Christ, after communion of the Divine Mystical Supper": Alleluia!
Oikos 8
You rejoiced that you had learned the name of the Saint and began to dig the grave alone, but you did not succeed because the ground was hardened. Suddenly, however, a lion appeared, and we pray with humility:
- Rejoice, for the lion bowed to you;
- Rejoice, for you asked him to dig the grave;
- Rejoice, for the lion immediately obeyed you;
- Rejoice, for you washed the saint's feet with tears;
- Rejoice, for you asked her to pray for all;
- Rejoice, for you then covered the body with earth;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 9
God, who knows human weaknesses, sent you help, a beast from the desert, O Saint Zosima, confirming that nothing remains unfulfilled of what He ordains for us, who sing to Him: Alleluia!
Oikos 9
You wept bitterly at the death of Saint Mary of Egypt, but you rejoiced that you had known in spirit her salvation and the unfading glory which the Lord Christ had shown her in the Heavens, and we honour you thus:
- Rejoice, for you performed the funeral service;
- Rejoice, for you buried Saint Mary of Egypt;
- Rejoice, giving glory to God for His revelations;
- Rejoice, you who open our paths to Holy Communion;
- Rejoice, for through you demonic plots are scattered;
- Rejoice, fierce fighter against the nests of demons;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 10
The history of the meeting between you, O Saint Zosima, and Saint Mary of Egypt was preserved by word of mouth among the monks until Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, wrote it down on paper to be known to all who worship God: Alleluia!
Oikos 10
Glorifying your life of 100 years, we pray to you, O holy hermit, to have mercy on us through your prayers to Christ God and we praise you:
- Rejoice, enlightener of those who wander;
- Rejoice, spiritual father of lonely souls;
- Rejoice, healer of acedia;
- Rejoice, for you heal us from vainglory;
- Rejoice, for you bring the right people into our path;
- Rejoice, you who intercede for spiritual meetings;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 11
With streams of your tears you watered the desert of the Jordan, O Saint Zosima, and you showed yourself a worthy wonderworker, bringing healings to those who with faith cry out to you and praise you to God: Alleluia!
Oikos 11
From the depth of your sigh you brought forth repentance, O Saint Zosima, and you made known to the world Saint Mary of Egypt, who left bodily pleasures to be sanctified in the harsh desert, and we call upon you:
- Rejoice, our father Zosima, warm-hearted;
- Rejoice, for you are a ray of light for us;
- Rejoice, for you are fully united with Christ;
- Rejoice, for you pray for us sinners;
- Rejoice, for you give strength to the weak;
- Rejoice, wise monk of the Jordan desert;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 12
You who were armed with purity of soul, O Venerable Saint Zosima, raise unceasing prayer to God, for you have received His blessing to ask of Him bodily and spiritual health for us, who glorify your holy memory: Alleluia!
Oikos 12
Overcoming the assaults of demons, you made the desert a Paradise on earth, O Saint Zosima, and destroying the nests of devils which dwelt in the wilderness, you showed yourself a great warrior of the Lord Christ. Look also upon us who are much tempted, and help us, O Saint, for we cry out to you with faith:
- Rejoice, you who sanctify our homes;
- Rejoice, for you drive away demons;
- Rejoice, for you heal illnesses and pains brought through sorcery;
- Rejoice, for you break curses;
- Rejoice, for you guard our mind from speaking spirits;
- Rejoice, for you teach us to be skilled in the spiritual warfare;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 13
O most venerable Saint Zosima, perfected monk and blessed hermit, receive these humble prayers and save us from deadly illnesses, loose the works of devils and of those who serve them, drive away the nests of demons from our homes and lands, and pray to God to forgive us our sins known and unknown, so that we may rejoice in His glory: Alleluia! (This Kontakion is said 3 times).
Oikos 1
The angelic hosts and the Archangels in the Heavens marvelled at your pure way of life, O Saint Zosima, and we together with them glorify you:
- Rejoice, treasure of the desert;
- Rejoice, finder of truth;
- Rejoice, you who reveal the unknown;
- Rejoice, enlightener of Christians;
- Rejoice, humble in spirit;
- Rejoice, monk perfected;
- Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Kontakion 1
To him who from childhood dedicated his life to Christ God and who found Saint Mary of Egypt in the desert, to the Venerable Saint Zosima we offer these hymns. And you, O Saint Zosima, blessed by the mercy of God, pray to Him for us who call upon you: Rejoice, O holy Venerable Zosima, deliver us from temptations and heal our sufferings!
Prayer:
O most honoured Saint Zosima, you received from God the revelation of the life of Saint Mary of Egypt, you communed her with the Most Pure Mysteries and gave her the burial that was fitting.
You who have obtained power before God, come also to us and deliver us from temptations, from illnesses, from afflictions, from loss, and protect us as your spiritual children, so that being saved from death we may live in peace and in the love of Christ, and afterwards delight in the Kingdom of God, which is glorified together with His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, now and to the ages of ages. Amen.
It is truly right to bless you, O Mother of God, ever blessed and most blameless and Mother of our God. More honourable than the Cherubim and incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim, who without corruption gave birth to God the Word, you, truly the Mother of God, we magnify.
Through the prayers of our holy Fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us. Amen.
Source: Doxologia.ro. Prayer text taken from public Orthodox sources; rights remain with their authors and translators. Devotional, non-commercial use. May be removed on request.