Agios Spyridon
Constructed in 1589 with thw contribution of the Corfiot community. It is the church which houses ever since the holy reliques of Agios Spyridon, Corfu’s patron saint .
The huge belltower of the church is predominant in Corfu Town and you will recognize it as you will be walking through the old town and the castles . The bell tower resembles a lot the bell tower of the Greek church of Venice ( San Giorgio dei Greci ).
You can admire the painted ceiling created by P. Aspiotis (19th century), the marble templon , the oil lamps, the portable icons and the luxurious reliquary , where the holy relique of the Saint is kept . The street leading to the church bears the same name and it is near the northern extremity of the Liston alley .
Brief history of the Saint
Spyridon and his holy relique : Agios Spyridon lived in Cyprus in the 4th century AD. He took part in the 1st ’ Ecumenical Council in 325 AD , where he held a miraculous part .
After his death, he was declared a Saint. His remains were taken to Constantinople about the end of the 7th century . After the fall of Constantinople by the Ottomans, the holy relique was moved initially to Arta and then to Corfu , where it was kept under the property of two families (Kalochaireti, Voulgari) until 1967.
Several miracles are mentioned during the lifetime of the Saint .
Additionally, many miracles have been reported about the period that his reliquary is in Corfu . The most important of these are celebrated to this day with processions and ceremonies
Particularly, in 1553 the Saint saved the island of famine . The procession on Easter Saturday commemorates this event . In 1630 he relieved the island of the plague . The procession on the Orthodox Palm Sunday commemorates this event . In 1673 he intervened once more, saving again Corfu of the plague . The procession on the first Sunday of November commemorates this miraculous intervention . Finally, in 1716 he relieved the island of the siege of the Turkish army . The procession on 11 August commemorates this event .
INNOVIMENTOR (Balkan-Mediterranean)
