Father Zacharias was a monastic priest who suffered from alcoholism.

Father Zacharias was a monastic priest who suffered from alcoholism. He lived in Asia Minor during the 1800s, when the region was ruled by Muslims. And one time, he got so drunk, he renounced his faith and accepted Islam in order to avoid being tortured. However, when he finally sobered up and realized what he’d done, he wept bitterly and repented. Then, he returned to the authorities who threatened him and said:

“I am an unbeliever in regards to your faith, and I disdain your disgusting religion. But I am not an unbeliever to my faith, but I believe in the true God who created the universe, my Lord Jesus Christ. And here, the sign of your delusion I trample and I am ready to die the most cruel death for my faith.”

As he said this, he took off the Turkish fez on his head, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it. But the Muslims figured Father Zacharias was just drunk again. So, they put him in prison and gave him time to rethink his decisions. When the priest-monk still hasn’t changed his mind, they tried to flatter him with gifts and a wife. But Father Zacharias still wouldn’t change his mind.

Finally, the Muslims began to torture him. And when he still wouldn’t change his mind, they told him they were going to behead him. But to their surprise, Father Zacharias ran to his death happily. So, at the public execution, they tried to scare him into changing his mind one last time. They bluffed the execution again and again.

But the flawed but faithful Christian kept his neck stuck out and remained patient. Eventually, they killed Father Zacharias. His body hung in the streets as a warning to other believers. Ironically, it actually became a sign of hope. The corpse would glow at night and heal the people who came to pray at it. Because of this, the body was soon removed. Nevertheless, today we remember this drunk priest-monk as a saint!

Saint Zacharias of Prousa pray for us addicts!

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