Venerable Nicholas the Monk (IX)

The Venerable Nicholas the Monk served as a military commander in the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus I (802–811). He was sent to the war with the Bulgarians. On the eve of the battle a woman tried to seduce the saint, but the Lord’s chosen one courageously resisted her. In the bloody battle all of Nicholas’s fellow soldiers perished and he alone survived. It was revealed to the soldier in a heavenly vision that his life had been granted him for overcoming the temptation. After this he went to a monastery, put on the schema, and prayed without ceasing for the soldiers who had fallen in wars. Through his tireless labours the blessed one pleased the Lord and gained the gift of clairvoyance.