Saint Nicholas of Myra the Miracle Worker, or, as his name has long been in Russia, Nicholas the Pleasant is one of the most revered Orthodox saints. He became famous as the patron saint of travelers, pilots, sailors, fishermen. He is also known as an intercessor for the unjustly offended, the patron saint of the poor, children and animals.
Childhood and the spiritual path.
The icon of St. Nicholas is in almost all Orthodox churches, and a huge number of churches are named after the saint. In the tradition of the Eastern Slavs, the veneration of Nicholas the Wonderworker is equal in value to the veneration of God himself. The plots of folk legends speak of the high veneration of St. Nicholas. They describe how he became master. He prayed so earnestly that the golden crown itself fell on his head.
According to tradition, as a baby, St. Nicholas refused mother's milk on Wednesdays and Fridays - during the days of Christian Lent.
From early childhood he was very religious, subsequently devoting his whole life to Christianity. He spent days in the temple, read books at night and prayed, and excelled in the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. The gift to work miracles was sent to him in his youth, so there are a huge number of legends around his name.
Nikolai's parents were very rich. After their death, he inherited a huge fortune, but gave it to charity.
Miracles and Acts
According to legend, when St. Nicholas was elected bishop in the city of Mira (the modern city of Demre, Turkey), where he continued his spiritual path, many inexplicable miraculous events took place.
Among the miraculous deeds of St. Nicholas in church literature, intercession for three husbands in the Worlds, the appearance before Constantine in Constantinople, the presence at the first ecumenical council are widely known.
It is no accident that St. Nicholas is considered the patron saint of sailors. As one of the legends of his biography says, while still young, on the way from Mira to Alexandria, he resurrected a dead sailor who fell into a storm and crashed to death. And on the way back to the world, he saved the sailor and took him with him to church.
In Russia, Nicholas the Wonderworker is also called the "Pleasant", since his deeds were pleasing to God.
