{"id":80021,"date":"2021-05-15T10:37:40","date_gmt":"2021-05-15T07:37:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/evagelidis.com\/?post_type=product&p=80021"},"modified":"2025-06-09T23:43:15","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T20:43:15","slug":"icon-saint-george-5","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/evagelidis.com\/en\/product\/icon-saint-george-5\/","title":{"rendered":"Icon Saint George the Great Martyr"},"content":{"rendered":"

Icon Saint George<\/a> the Great Martyr silkscreen of excellent quality with \u201c\u201d vivid \u201c\u201d colors and gold acrylic background.<\/h3>\n

It is celebrated on 23 April each year. But if the feast falls before Easter, then it is celebrated on the next day of Easter (Monday of Justification). <\/p>\n

The popular Saint George the Great Martyr and Trophy Bearer was born around 275 AD in Cappadocia to Christian parents. His father, in fact, died a martyr’s death for Christ when George was ten years old. His mother then took him with her to her homeland of Palestine, where she had her farms. When he was 18 years old, he enlisted in the Roman army. Although young in age, he performed his military duties perfectly. Everyone admired him for his stature. Therefore, they quickly promoted him to higher offices and gave him the title of Count, and Diocletian held him in high esteem.<\/p>\n

Confessor<\/strong>
\nFrom the time of Emperor Decius until the time Diocletian ascended the throne in 283 AD, the Christian Church grew immensely because peace prevailed. The Christians took many public positions, built many large temples, various schools, and organized the administration and management of churches and charity.<\/p>\n

Diocletian initially worked on the organization of his state. He recruited generals as his assistants whom he named emperors and Caesars, and after succeeding in subduing the enemies of the state and stabilizing its borders, he turned to internal matters. Unfortunately, he turned against the Christian religion in order to rectify idolatry. So for this reason, he summoned his assistants Caesars in 303 AD and the generals to the capital of the eastern Roman state in three general assemblies. Among them was the 28-year-old George, who distinguished himself many times in the wars.<\/p>\n

So they all gathered together to make decisions about the extermination and annihilation of the Christian faith. Diocletian was the first to speak and he ordered everyone to take up the exterminating fight against Christianity. All promised to make every effort to eliminate the Christian religion from the Roman state. Then brave George stood up and said: \u201cWhy, King and princes, do you wish to shed righteous and holy blood and force the Christians to worship and adore idols?\u201d And he proclaimed the truth of the Christian religion and the Divinity of Christ. <\/p>\n

As soon as he finished, everyone was confused by this confession and tried to persuade him to repent for what he had said, thus soothing Diocletian as well. But George was firm and courageously proclaimed his Christian faith. <\/p>\n

In prison<\/strong>
\nEnraged, Diocletian ordered him to be locked up in prison and have his legs tied to the wood and, after lying on his back, to have a large and heavy stone placed on his chest.<\/p>\n

The next morning Diocletian ordered George to be brought before him for questioning. Again he remained steadfast in his confession and despite all the flattery and promises of the emperor he proclaimed his faith and spoke of the heavenly treasures. Diocletian was enraged by his words and ordered the executioners to tie the saint to a large wheel so that his body could be cut to pieces. He even mocked the Saint’s bravery and invited him to worship idols. George thanked God for having merited him to be tested and gladly accepted to undergo this terrible torture, which was splitting his whole body into small thin pieces, because around the wheel there were sharp irons, which looked like knives, stuck into the wheel. Indeed as soon as the wheel moved the sharp irons began to cut his body. Then there was a voice from heaven saying : \u201cDo not be afraid, George, for I am with you\u201d and immediately an angel released the Saint, untying him from the wheel and his whole overwhelmed body was healed. <\/p>\n

George, having acquired his wonderful stature, with an angelic aspect, presented himself to Diocletian, who had gone with others to make a sacrifice. As soon as they saw him they were all amazed and astonished. Some claimed that he was someone who resembled him, and others that he was a ghost. But while they were commenting on the event, two of his officers, Protolemy and Anatolius, appeared before the king with a thousand soldiers and confessed their faith in Christ. Diocletian was so angry that he became furious and ordered them to be killed, which was done immediately. <\/p>\n

Then he ordered a pit to be immediately filled with lime and water, and after throwing George into it, to leave him in it for three days and three nights so that his bones would dissolve.<\/p>\n

Indeed the executioners threw the Saint into the scalding lime and closed the mouth of the pit. After three days Diocletian sent soldiers to open the pit. But to their great surprise they found George standing in the lime and praying. The event impressed and caused admiration and excitement among the people, who cried out: \u201cGeorge’s God is great\u201d. Diocletian asked for an explanation from George, who learned the divination arts and how to use them. George then replied that the events were the result of divine grace and power, not magic and charm. <\/p>\n

Diocletian was furious and ordered that he be put in red-hot shoes with iron spikes and forced to walk. The Saint prayed and walked without harm. Again he ordered him to be imprisoned and thought of calling the princes to consider what they should do to George. And having beaten him so severely with whips, and smitten the whole body of the Saint, they presented him to Diocletian, who was astonished to see George shining like an Angel. He thought, therefore, that this phenomenon was due to his magical abilities. So he called the magician Athanasius (see April 23<\/a>) to solve George’s spell. <\/p>\n

Harmless from the poison<\/strong>
\nSo the magician Athanasius came, holding in his hands two clay vessels, where there was poison. In the first vessel the poison caused madness, while in the second the poison caused death. <\/p>\n

They immediately led the Saint to Diocletian and the magician Athanasius. The king ordered that he be given the first poison to drink. The Saint without hesitation drank the poison of the first vessel, after praying , saying: \u201cLord Jesus Christ, our God, who hath said even to the deadly drink, do them no harm, now admire thy mercies.\u201d And he suffered absolutely nothing! <\/p>\n

As soon as they saw that nothing at all had happened to him, the king ordered the magician to give him the second vessel. He drank that too without suffering the slightest harm. Then everyone was amazed at this miracle. Diocletian still insisted that in order that George might not die he had a spell of his own. The magician Athanasius, who knew how potent the poisons were, after kneeling before the martyr, confessed his faith in the true God. Then Diocletian ordered and killed Athanasius immediately. At that moment Diocletian’s wife Alexandra (see April 21<\/a>) arrived, and confessed her faith in the true God. And the cruel and heartless Diocletian ordered her to be imprisoned and the next day her head cut off. Alexandra, while praying in prison, surrendered her soul into the hands of God. <\/p>\n

The martyrdom of the Saint<\/strong>
\nSaint George was locked up in prison and at night he saw Christ in his dream, who announced to him that he would receive the crown of martyrdom and would deserve eternal life. At dawn the soldiers were ordered by Diocletian to present the Saint before him. Indeed the Saint marched full of joy towards the king, for he foresaw that his end had come. So when Diocletian saw him, he suggested that they go to the temple of Apollo to sacrifice to his idol. When the Saint entered the temple, he raised his hand and after making the sign of the cross, he ordered the idol to fall. Immediately it fell and was torn to pieces. <\/p>\n

The priest of the idols and the people were so angry that they cried out to the king to put George to death. Diocletian issued an order and cut off his head. <\/p>\n

The Saint’s faithful servant, Pasicrates, carrying out the Saint’s wish, received the Holy relic of the Martyr together with that of his mother, Saint Polychronia (see April 23<\/a>) and carried it to Lydda in Palestine. From there, as the sources attest, the Crusaders took the holy relics of St. Polychronia and carried them to the West. <\/p>\n