Sophronios of Jerusalem

Patriarch of Jerusalem.

St. Sophronios, Patriarch of Jerusalem, was born in Damascus in the sixth century. A monk and a learned theologian, he traveled the monasteries of the East with his friend John Moschos, and as patriarch he stood firm against the Monothelite heresy, defending the fullness of both the divine and human wills in Christ.

It fell to him to shepherd the Holy City in its darkest hour, when Jerusalem passed under Arab rule in his old age, and he labored to protect his flock and the holy places. A hymnographer of great beauty, he is commemorated on March 11.

Feast day

On the New Calendar, Sophronios of Jerusalem is commemorated on March 11. Churches on the Old (Julian) Calendar keep the feast on March 24 of the civil calendar.

Who celebrates a name day

People with these names keep their name day on this feast:

Sofronios

Also commemorated on March 11

• Theodora of Arta

  Holy Woman, Θεοδώρα της Άρτας

  Saint Theodora, Queen of Arta, patroness of the city.

  Name days: Theodora

• Pionios and Sabina

  Hierarch, Πιόνιος

  Hieromartyr Pionios, presbyter of Smyrna, with the martyr Sabina and companions.

  Name days: Pionios, Sabina

• George the Newly-Appeared

  Venerable, Γεώργιος ο Νεοφανής

  Venerable George the Newly-Appeared of Diipion in Constantinople.

• Trophimos and Thallos

  Martyr, Τρόφιμος

  Holy Martyrs Trophimos and Thallos of Laodicea.

• Euthymios of Novgorod

  Hierarch, Ευθύμιος του Νόβγκοροντ

  Saint Euthymios the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Novgorod.

• Sophronios of Vratsa

  Hierarch, Σωφρόνιος Βράτσης

  Saint Sophronios, Bishop of Vratsa, teacher and enlightener of Bulgaria.

Icon: public domain image from Wikimedia Commons.