The Monastery of Agios Minas is located in a verdant ravine in the area of “Tagala”, about 500m west of the village of Perichora Drama.
The history of the monastery begins around 1950. Heraklis Kioseoglou, a resident of Perichora village, was the son of the philanthropic priest Fr. Konstantinos Kioseoglou, who was vicar of Potamos Nevrokopi. He was an ascetic, simple, a lover of the Divine Liturgy, an excellent connoisseur of Byzantine music, as he had finished the music school in Fanari. He had spiritual communication with the then “monk of Sipsa” and now Agios Georgios Karslides. They never met, but the grace of the Holy Spirit united them spiritually. He spent the last years of his life in a small cell next to the church of Agios Athanasios of Alistratis. Before sleeping, he was informed of his end, and left an order to his son Herakles to build a chapel in Agios Minas.
Those years were difficult and the children were unable to fulfill their father’s wish. But St. Minas, with different visions, appeared to Heracles and reminded him. He was hesitant at first, but later began to think seriously about it. He saw many times in his sleep a lot of the world going towards the slope where the monastery was built. He would ask where they were going and they would answer him at St. Minas’ house.
Heracles built a small shrine in the place where he saw the Saint and went regularly to pray. After a short period of time he became seriously ill and was hospitalized in the hospital of Drama. There the doctors could not find the cause of his illness, so they advised his wife to take him to die at home. She advised him to go first to get the old man’s blessing in Sipsa and then return to their village.
So they went up to Sipsa, but Gerontas realized, with his gift of foresight, that Heracles was coming and went down the road to meet him, because he could not go uphill. When he saw him, he did not ask him about his health, but why the building of the church of St. Minas had not begun. He explained that he was very ill and naturally he was struggling financially.
The cause of your sickness, the old man replied, It is that you’re not building the church. As for the money, the Saint will take care of it.
He returned to the village with faith and hope and slowly began to recover. In that year, 1957, the teacher Charalambos Anastasiadis, brainchild of the elder Sipsa, who especially honored Agios Minas, was appointed to the area. So they both worked together with great appetite and self-denial and began building the church. They inspired the other villagers, even the school children, with their appetite and together they proceeded to complete the work they had started.
They worked with much effort and many difficulties because the place was rocky. St. Minas illuminated and guided them. Thus, without any special knowledge of architecture, completely empirically and in a short period of time, the small temple was finished.
As always happens in such cases, temptations during the building process were not lacking. When they reached the roof of the church and placed the mold, the teacher went up to look at something. But the cement gave way and he found himself lying on stones and irons, as he himself tells the story, writhing like a fish.
Heracles, frightened, not knowing what help to offer him, ran to bring him the Holy Water. In a little while, miraculously, the teacher came to him and when Heracles asked what they were going to do, he replied “and of course we will continue”. In the evening, when they returned home, there was not a trace of abrasion on his body to remind him of the morning’s adventure.
With various temptations and parallel miracles of the Saint, the temple was completed in a short period of time, and the first feast was held in his memory on 11 November. Many people gathered from the surrounding villages, who willingly contributed to the financial support of the work. The inhabitants of Alistrati, Fotolivos, Nikisiani, Perichora, Kallithea, Prosotsani, Petrousa, Xiropotamos, Drama and other villages saved some of their meagre income and with much love offered it to St. Minas, whom they loved so much.
Spiritual children of the Elder at his urging contributed to the work. The Elder, who himself loved the Saint very much, used to say to the pioneers Heracles and Charalambos “With my children you are building the Monastiraki”. He foresaw, with his prophetic gift, that this place would later become a monastery.
He often told them that the Saint was riding with his horse around the mountain. Indeed, many pilgrims, when they were awake in the church, would hear horse footsteps around. Even some children, in their ignorance, saw a horseman pass by and get lost in the woods. A family from Fotolivos, who were sleeping in the temple, heard horse footsteps in the evening. They were afraid to go out, but in the morning they saw horse footprints on the cement of the road.
The love, reverence and faith in the Holy Martyr Minas the Wonderworker, as our church calls him, was established with many miraculous events and healings of patients in the hearts of the faithful and his fame spread to the wider region.
The church functioned as a pilgrimage site until 1974. During that period, at the prompting of the then bishop, three sisters came to the area from a neighbouring monastery to found the monastery.
The conditions were very difficult and they had to work hard. In order to become a legal person of public law, Moni had to own some land. The land around Moni was the villagers’ vineyards.
The nuns decided to ask for the help of the then Prefect of Drama, Mr.Anestis Nicolaides, with the mediation of a priest who knew him, who went to the Prefecture to visit him and talk to him. The prefect’s response was negative. However, as soon as he left his office, the Saint intervened and changed his mind. He was distressed, regretful and anxious and returned home.
His wife saw him agitated and worried. But he urged her to get ready, for they had to visit the Monastery of St. Minas, to see how he could help the sisters. She has since become a great benefactor of the convent. He undertook all the procedures necessary for the foundation of the monastery. He ceded the fields around Moni to the sisterhood and gave the beneficiaries better fields on the plain. He took care of paving the road, built a water tank. He was eager to serve the monastery and found rest in the Sunday church service at Monastiri with his lovely wife, who abounded in sympathy with him.
The state recognized the establishment of the Women’s Parliamentary Monastery of Agios Minas Perichora as a Legal Entity by Ministerial Decision of 26-10-1976 with the first Abbess of the monastery being Filothei Asvesta from Nikisiani Kavala. The then Bishop of Zichnos and Nevrokopi, Mr. Spyridon Kyvetos, contributed to the orderly operation of the monastery with the appropriate actions.
Since then the brotherhood has been on the path of practice, with St. Minas as its companion. He intervened miraculously many times to strengthen the faith, to encourage the sisters in the trials and temptations of monastic life and to increase their love for our Lord. The goal of all is the salvation of mankind. Wishing that the Monastery may become a place where the weary and afflicted man may find peace and tranquillity of soul.
Every year on the 11th of November, the feast of Agios takes place. High Priestly Vespers and Holy Liturgy are held, where the present Metropolitan of Zichno and Nevrokopi, Mr. Ierotheos, who with his paternal love and his discreet presence, willingly participates in the spiritual work of the brotherhood, officiates.
The Holy Monastery of agios Minas of Perichora Dramas.
