St. Gregory Thaumaturgus
By Ian R. Pajich
St. Gregory Thaumaturgus was really never known until he was really recognized for two miracles…. Those miracles that have made him famous are, moving a mountain and stopping the flood at Lycus, but that’s not where we will start. It all started in 213 in Neocearea, Pontus a city in southern Turkey a Roman province, near the Black Sea. A boy named Gregory has just been born into a wealthy pagan family. This boy Gregory would grow up and at age twenty he and his older brother went to study law in Ceasera, Palestine on the Israeli coast. Gregory and his brother Athendourus were going with their sister to join her husband in Ceasera. After going with their sister Gregory and Athendourus were going…show more content… He had marvelous powers of healing and converting people. St. Gregory’s powers were really amazing he moved a mountain that prevented the construction of a church. He stopped the flooding at Lycus. The Icus River had been flooding and destroying the crops. St. Gregory Thaumaturgus (Wonder- Worker) planted his staff in front of the river and his staff grew roots, and became a giant tree which stopped the flooding. He was doing beyond well of managing his flock in Neocaearea, but the new Roman Emperor Decius started the Decius persecution, and St. Gregory hid and went into exile for a two years. He came out of Exile in 252, but then he took the city of Neocaearea back into hiding because of plague which broke out during 252-254. When Gregory thought it was time to go back to the city, CHARGE!!! The Goths were raiding through Roman provinces, and eventually the Goths would sack Rome. Finally, when order was restored after the Goth invasion of Rome. He went to Rome or Roma in Italian to participate in the counsel of Rome 264-265 which fought against the heresies of, Somasta, Sabellism, and Trithesim. Finally he would lie on his death bed in Neocaearea and one of the people in his room told him, “There are only seventeen heretics left in the city.” He died in