20th century
Saint Paisios of Mount Athos
Athonite monk (1924–1994) from Pharasa in Cappadocia, who was recognised as a saint by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 2015.
Biography
Paisios, born Arsenios Eznepides, was born in 1924 in Pharasa, Cappadocia, shortly before its Greek inhabitants relocated to Greece; he was baptized by Saint Arsenios of Cappadocia, who gave him his own name. His family settled in Konitsa, where he learned carpentry and later served as a radio operator in the army.
In 1954 he became a monk at Esphigmenou Monastery under the name Averkios, and later, at Philotheou Monastery, he received the great schema and the name Paisios. He lived as an ascetic on Mount Athos, at Sinai and at a ruined monastery near Konitsa, where he helped the local population.
He died in 1994 and was recognized as a saint by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 2015.