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Orthodox saint

St Nektarios of Aegina

St Nektarios of Aegina, Metropolitan of Pentapolis, the Wonderworker

Άγιος Νεκτάριος, Μητροπολίτης Πενταπόλεως, ο Θαυματουργός της Αιγίνης · Свѧти́тель Некта́рїй Эги́нскїй, митрополі́тъ Пентапо́льскїй · Святитель Нектарий Эгинский, митрополит Пентапольский

St Nektarios of Aegina is remembered on 9 November (22 November on the Old Calendar). Orthodox Christians pray to St Nektarios of Aegina for healing of cancer, healing of every illness, especially incurable ones and patience and forgiveness under false accusation.

Feast days

Feast
Repose
Kept on
9 November (22 November on the Old Calendar)
Next, New Calendar
Next, Old Calendar

The New Calendar is kept by the Greek, Antiochian, Romanian and Bulgarian churches, the OCA and most converts; the Old Calendar by the Russian, Serbian and Georgian churches, Jerusalem and Mount Athos, 13 days later on the civil calendar.

The life of St Nektarios of Aegina

Anastasius Kephalas was born in Thrace in 1846 to a poor family and worked as a boy in a Constantinople tobacco shop, writing sayings of the Fathers on the paper bags for his customers. Tonsured on Chios as Nektarios, he was ordained in Alexandria and consecrated Metropolitan of Pentapolis, but envious men slandered him and he was removed "for reasons known to the Patriarchate," left without home or income. He never defended himself, but quietly served as a preacher and as director of the Rizarios Seminary in Athens. On Aegina he restored the Holy Trinity Monastery with his own hands and became father to its nuns, telling them he was building a lighthouse whose light would shine to the world. He reposed on November 8, 1920, in a hospital in Athens, and his first miracle came within moments. Glorified in 1961, he is invoked everywhere, and Orthodox Christians pray to Saint Nektarios above all for the healing of cancer.

What the faithful ask of St Nektarios of Aegina

The faithful pray for

  • healing of cancer
  • healing of every illness, especially incurable ones
  • patience and forgiveness under false accusation
  • justice for the falsely accused
  • strength for the sick and their caregivers
  • relief from drought
  • deliverance from evil spirits

St Nektarios of Aegina protects

  • the sick with cancer
  • the slandered and humiliated
  • the island of Aegina
  • the possessed and tormented

Patron of

  • cancer patients
  • the sick
  • Aegina
  • the unjustly slandered
  • seminarians

Miracles

  1. Moments after he died in a hospital in Athens in 1920, his sweater was laid on the bed of a paralyzed man, who immediately got up, glorifying God.

    Source: Saint Nectarius Kephalas, Metropolitan of Pentapolis (OCA)

  2. When his grave was opened years later, his body was found whole and incorrupt.

    Source: Saint Nectarius Kephalas, Metropolitan of Pentapolis (OCA)

  3. He has often appeared to the sick, saying: 'Take oil from the lamp over my grave and you will be healed.'

    Source: Святитель Нектарий Эгинский (Азбука веры)

Where the traditions differ

New-Calendar churches (Greek, GOA, Antiochian, OCA) keep him on 9 Nov civil; Old-Calendar churches (Russia, Jerusalem, Athos) keep 9 Nov Julian = 22 Nov civil. Widely loved in Russia, where he is called 'Nektary of Aegina.'

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Name days

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Questions

When is the feast day of St Nektarios of Aegina?

Repose: 9 November (22 November on the Old Calendar).

What do Orthodox Christians pray to St Nektarios of Aegina for?

Orthodox Christians pray to St Nektarios of Aegina for healing of cancer, healing of every illness, especially incurable ones, patience and forgiveness under false accusation, justice for the falsely accused, strength for the sick and their caregivers and relief from drought.

What is St Nektarios of Aegina the patron saint of?

St Nektarios of Aegina is the patron of cancer patients, the sick, Aegina, the unjustly slandered and seminarians.

What does St Nektarios of Aegina protect from?

St Nektarios of Aegina protects the sick with cancer, the slandered and humiliated, the island of Aegina and the possessed and tormented.

Whose name day is on a feast of St Nektarios of Aegina?

The name day of Nektarios, Nectarios and Nektaria.

Sources

  1. Saint Nectarius Kephalas, Metropolitan of Pentapolis (OCA) (read 14 October 2026)
  2. Святитель Нектарий Эгинский (Азбука веры) (read 14 October 2026)
  3. St. Nektarios of Aegina (Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church) (read 14 October 2026)
  4. Молитвы об исцелении при онкологическом заболевании (Азбука веры) (read 14 October 2026)