The icon was
initially found by a gang of Arabs, who were invading and pillaging the island
at the time, amongst the ruins of an ancient church. All the icons found in the
rubble were in a bad state of decay, except for St Phanourios’ which appeared
as if just painted that day. The gang saw it of no value and abandon it;
however, a group of monks who were hiding and watching from a distance
retrieved the icon. The monks were astonished by the icon’s state of
preservation. They yearned to learn more about the Saint, but the only
information they could obtain from the icon was his name, that he was a solider
and scenes which depicted his martyrdom.
The icon of St Phanourios has twelve
distinct frames. In each the Saint is shown enduring cruel forms of torture in
such a realism to suggest the artist must have been a witness.
St Phanourios is
showed being: (1) stoned, (2) on a rack, (3) being slashed, (4) behind bars,
(5) standing before a judge, (6) tied to a frame, (7) being burned with
candles, (8) tied to a post, (9) thrown to wild animals, (10) crushed by a
boulder, (11) holding hot coals, and (12) a demon hovering against a background
of flames.
Throughout his
tortures St Phanourios appears calm, peaceful and patient. This shows he was an
indestructible instrument of God and proof of his sainthood.
He is commemorated
on the day his icon was found, 27th August (New Calendar). The icon
pictured above is the actual icon that was discovered on that day.
Our need for St Phanourios
Found after being
lost for centuries, St Phanourios is the patron saint for the recovery of things lost. The faithful
pray to St Phanourios to assist them in revealing lost or hidden:
·
spiritual matters of the heart
·
material objects
·
directing or revealing actions that should
be taken
·
restoring health
St Phanourios today
Some contemporary
icons (left & middle) and the Church of St Phanourios, Rhodes (far right).
Orthodox Custom
As St Phanourios
has answered the prayers of many over the years, a custom has developed of
baking a Phanouropita ("Phanourios-Cake/Bread") as a thanks-offering
on the eve of the Saint’s name day. It is a Greek and Cypriot tradition and
still practiced today.
The cake is
offered at Verpers services and/or just before the Liturgy finishes on the
feast day of St Phanourios to be blessed by the priest with a special prayer.
Afterwards, the cake is cut up and shared with parishioners or the poor. However,
a Phanouropita can be made whenever someone needs St Phanourios’ help then
taken to church to be blessed and shared.
According to
custom, the number of ingredients should be either 7 or 9. Also, it is
customary that it be shared with at least 7 people.
Phanouropita Recipe
– 9 ingredients:
3 cups plain flour
1 cup sugar
¾ cup olive oil
¾ cup orange juice
½ cup brandy
½ cup raisins (or crushed walnuts)
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. clove powder
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1)
Beat
oil and sugar with electric beaters until dissolved and creamy yellow.
2)
Put
the baking powder into the orange juice and stir making sure there are no
clumps. Add it to the sugar and oil mix. Beat until combined.
3)
Then add
brandy, cinnamon and clove powder.
4)
Put
the beaters on low speed and gradually add the flour. Then fold in fruit or
walnuts.
5)
Grease
a pan with oil and dust with sugar and flour. Then pour in batter.
6)
Bake
in medium oven (fan-force 1800C) for about an hour or until inserting a
toothpick into the cake comes out clean. Leave to cool on a rack.
Sources
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