Eva Papadatos
October 7, 2014
The community of Kardamaina in Kos is shocked by the rumors that in recent days Saint John the Theologian appeared in the seaside village! Some believers are talking about a miracle, while rationalists maintain their reservations about the words of a Muslim who brought to the fore the appearance of the Saint on the stairs of the church that bears his name.
Speaking to Espresso, Father John Perantonakis, a parish priest of Kardamaina, said: "The Holy Apostle and Evangelist, the beloved friend of his Teacher, seems to have great sympathy for Kardamaina and he shows this by his frequent appearances. Besides those that are described in my book titled The Churches of Kardamaina, one other, a recent incident, makes us believe what I initially said.
On Tuesday 30 September at around 5:30 A.M. a Pakistani who is Muslim in his religion, named Ali, had just ended his shift at his job in an overnight store (a health and food shop). As he was accustomed, so also that morning when his shift ended, he went and sat on the stairs of the church to smoke a cigarette before going to bed."
Father John says that when Ali arrived at the stairs he saw an old man sitting there who was around 75-80 years in age, with one hand resting on one leg and the other hand in the form of a blessing, exactly as he appears in his veneration icon inside the church. "With white clothes, a small white beard and sparse white hairs, he asked the foreigner that approached: 'How are you, Ali?'"
The Response
Ali, who took this man to be a foreigner, responded: "Good. Who are you?" And the old man replied: "The Theologian."
"Ali, not knowing about the Theologian, and having heard from the old man, 'Thank you, Ali', went off at a distance of 25 meters to the place where he worked to speak with his employer about what he saw. But he did not go in, because his boss was busy. He immediately returned, but no one was found at the stairs. The next day he learned from his employer that no one in Kardamaina is named Theologos [Gr. for Theologian] and that Theologos was the name of the church next door."
According to the priest, the Theologian has appeared other times in Kardamaina: "There used to be an old chapel dedicated to Saint John, high up in a catacomb. It took two hours along a path to go there and two hours to return. Where the church is built today there used to be the house of a woman who lived there and would go that distance in a few minutes. She said that a power would take her there and bring her back.
Also, a child eight years ago saw an old man sitting in that place, who told him to leave so as not to be beaten. When the child returned with his father, he was gone."
Father John also said that when he spoke with the Muslim, he showed him an icon of Saint John the Theologian, and the Muslim confirmed that he resembled the old man sitting on the stairs of the church, in the same pose as depicted in the icon.
Also, the man who takes care of the chapel and lives in Antimacheia, told the priest that on that day he was anxious and woke up earlier than usual - at the same time as the occurrence - around 5:00 A.M., and when he went to the church he found the window open without signs of tampering (he remembered very well that he had secured it the night before).
Translated by John Sanidopoulos.