New Martyr Unknown

New Martyr Procopius of Varna

d. 1810

Also known as Procopius the New Martyr

A new martyr of Varna; no details of his life are preserved on the page.

Feast Day

June 25

Draft

Draft — pending review. Not yet verified for publication.

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Commemorated as

The Holy New Martyr Procopius of Varna

Life

Procopius of Varna is venerated as a new martyr of the Bulgarian Orthodox tradition who was put to death in 1810. By tradition he came from Varna, on the Black Sea coast, and as a young man embraced the monastic life on Mount Athos before a period of apostasy that he later sought to redeem through public confession of Christ and a martyr's death.

Because the saint is commemorated chiefly through brief synaxarial notices, the surviving account of his life is short and traditional in character. He is kept on June 25 and is honored particularly as a patron of Varna.

Timeline 4 moments Read Hide

c. age 20 Tonsured on Mount Athos By tradition, Procopius left Varna for Mount Athos around the age of twenty and entered the Skete of Saint John the Forerunner, placing himself under the guidance of an elder named Dionysios.
before 1810 Apostasy at Smyrna The account relates that he abandoned the monastic life, traveled to Smyrna, and in despair embraced Islam, after which the head Janissary of the city had him circumcised.
before 1810 Repentance and preparation Stricken in conscience, he confessed to a priest his wish to die for the Christian faith. The priest, fearing he might falter under torture, counseled a period of repentance and ascetic preparation; he is said to have spent fifteen days strengthening his resolve.
June 25, 1810 Confession and martyrdom On a Saturday he presented himself before the Ottoman court, set aside his Turkish headdress, put on his monastic hat, renounced Islam, and confessed Jesus Christ as true God. Remaining steadfast against the judge's attempts to dissuade him, he was beheaded.

Contributions & Legacy

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Traditional Accounts

The synaxarial tradition relates that at the place of execution none of the Ottoman executioners would step forward to strike the blow, so that a former Orthodox Christian who had converted to Islam was brought to behead him.

Sources for the saint are limited to brief synaxarial notices; the OCA record on which his database entry rests preserves no detail of his life, and the fuller narrative derives from later devotional accounts of the Athonite and Bulgarian tradition.

Notes

Honest stub; OCA gives no detail. Flagged for review.

Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints