Feast Day ~ March 21
Not many people would take the words of our Lord Jesus Christ so literally and have it impact their lives so dramatically as did the Apostles, who left all and followed Him [Mark 10:28-30]. Most Christians would be willing to give a portion of their income to the Church or even tithe the biblical standard of ten percent, but few would actually sell everything that they have and give to the poor [Mark 10:21] Among the saints, however, are some who did just that. St. Serapion, whose feast day is March 21, was such a follower of Christ.
An Egyptian by birth (sometime in the fourth century), Serapion went into the desert to live the life of a monk: he kept no money, he had no belongings, and he wore only a thin garment made of coarse linen called a sindon, thus earning himself the nickname “Sindonite”.
St. Serapion had a great missionary fervor and wanted to convert men to life in Christ, so he left the desert from time to time to seek out lost souls. Once, he sold himself into slavery in the service of a Greek actor. During his time of service, his humility and the persuasiveness of his teachings led the master and his family to ask for baptism so that they, too, could be Christians. Leaving acting behind, the master begged Serapion to remain in his household as a teacher and friend, but the saint refused the money he was offered and moved on to find other opportunities.
Again, he sold himself to be the slave of a wealthy widow who – in gratitude for the spiritual counsel and example she received from the slave – gave him a cloak, a tunic and a book of the Gospels. No sooner had Serapion left the service of the widow than he gave the cloak to a poor man and then the tunic to another. Left with no other garment than his thin sindon, he discovered another very needy person and sold the Gospel book to help that man in his distress. When asked why he had given up such a gift, Serapion replied, “This book seemed continually to cry to me, ‘Go and sell all that you have and give to the poor.’”
The monk traveled to Rome and entered the ship without paying for his passage. He was approached by the ship owners who, when they saw that Serapion had not eaten but given his food ration to others for several days, began to take care of him, giving them an opportunity to practice charity.
It is said that Serapion learned from St. Anthony, the father of monasticism, and was inspired by him to lead such an austere life. He was also a friend of St. Athanasius of Alexandria and joined him in the struggle against Arianism. St. Serapion was eventually made bishop of Thmuis in lower Egypt. Several written documents are attributed to him, including a letter on the death of St. Anthony and a Euchologion (or collection of prayers and liturgical rites) found in an 11-century manuscript on Mt. Athos and published in the late 19th century.
Returning to the desert in his later years, St. Serapion reposed in the Lord around the year 370, having given his life to Christ and His Church. May St. Serapion inspire us to be more intentional in following the commandments of Christ and may he intercede for us in our efforts.
Resources: Rev. Alban Butler, Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Saints; website of the Orthodox Church in America, OrthodoxWiki.