Born in 1745 in the bosom of a poor
family from Dimitsane in the Peloponnese, Saint Gregory received his
earliest education from his uncle who was a hieromonk, and then went to
live with him in Smyrna. Becoming a monk in the monastery on the island
of the Strophades, he completed his theological studies on Patmos. On
his return to Smyrna, Metropolitan Procopius, who showed him a fatherly
affection, made him archdeacon and then ordained him priest. When
Procopius was elevated to the Patriarchate in 1788, he consecrated
Gregory to succeed him.
For twelve years, the holy hierarch
governed the great and wealthy city of Smyrna, the metropolis of
Hellenism in Asia Minor, with wisdom and apostolic zeal. He had several
churches rebuilt there, founded schools and organized a system of
charity for the underprivileged. In 1797, he was elected Ecumenical
Patriarch and immediately undertook to enhance the patriarchal dignity
by having the Phanar palace rebuilt. He also founded a publishing house
in which he edited books in the vernacular, which contributed greatly to
the cultural and spiritual awakening of the Greek people. The holy
hierarch was vigilant about the strict observance of the ecclesiastical
canons and the moral rectitude of the clergy. In those troubled times,
when the Greeks, who had been held under the Ottoman yoke for almost
four centuries, were brewing up for a general uprising, the Patriarch,
aware of his pastoral responsibilities, exerted himself to temper the
warlike spirits while secretly nurturing national feeling.
After just a year and a half, he was
denounced to the Sultan by some bishops whom he had reprimanded for
their conduct, and was exiled to Chalcedon and then to the Monastery of
Iviron on the Holy Mountain. During this forced stay on Athos, the Saint
visited all the monasteries, preached the Word of God and was a model
of monastic life to all. He then gave his blessing to Saint Euthymius
(22 March) to go and offer himself for martyrdom, and expressed his joy
and pride at the news of the martyrdom of Saint Agathangelus (19 April),
thus showing that he considered death for love of Christ to be the
supreme goal and crown of the Christian life.
Recalled to the Patriarchate in 1806, he
was received with enthusiasm by the Christian people of Constantinople,
and courageously resumed his pastoral work and the raising of moral
standards among the clergy. But in 1808, a coup d’état brought
Sultan Mehmed II to power. He constrained Gregory to retire and withdraw
to the island of Prinkipos, and then again to Mount Athos, where he
resumed his patristic studies and his ascetic life, keeping himself
informed, meanwhile, of the situation in the Church and among the
people.
In 1818, he was contacted by members of
the ‘Friendly Society,’ a secret society that was preparing for
revolution by trying to bring together and co-ordinate the various
scattered forces. Gregory showed his support for the cause of liberty
with enthusiasm; but, judging that the time was not yet ripe, he advised
patience. A very short time later, he was recalled for the third time
to the Ecumenical throne and resumed his activity, especially
encouraging the foundation of schools in which the pupils could receive a
Hellenic formation. He also organized a ‘Mercy Fund,’ which received
funds from affluent Greeks for the aid of needy Christians.
As soon as a greatly-disorganized
insurrection of the Greeks from the Danube principalities began on 1
February 1821, there immediately followed terrible and bloody reprisals
in Constantinople and in the great centres of the Ottoman Empire. The
Turks massacred all the eminent men who had links with the
principalities and arrested four bishops. When the government had given
the order for all the eminent Greek families of Constantinople to
assemble at the Phanar, the Patriarch, in the hope of avoiding a
massacre, made himself answerable for their allegiance at the Sublime
Porte. Not content with this declaration, the Sultan forced Saint
Gregory to sign the excommunication of the leader of the insurrection,
Alexander Hypsilantes, and his companions.
On 31 March, a general revolt in the
Peloponnese was proclaimed, and three days later, on the Monday in Holy
Week, the Great Interpreter, representing the Greek community at the
Sultan’s court, was executed along with other eminent citizens.
Foreseeing what his fate would be and refusing suggestions that he flee,
the Patriarch said: ‘How could I abandon my flock? If I am Patriarch,
it is to save my people, not to give them over to the swords of the
Janissaries. My death will be of more use than my life, because through
it the Greeks will fight with the energy of despair, which often
produces victory. No; I will not become a laughing-stock for the world
by taking flight, so that they can point their finger at me and say:
“Look at the killer Patriarch!”’
On Easter Day, 10 April, Saint Gregory
celebrated the Liturgy of the Resurrection calmly and with great
solemnity, interrupted only by his tears. At the end of the ceremony,
the news of the revolution in the Peloponnese was confirmed to him. He
then replied: ‘May the Lord’s will, now and always, be done!’ Some hours
later, they came to tell him of his deposition, and the Janissaries
took him off to prison with no consideration for his person. Submitted
to interrogation and torture, he kept a majestic silence, that was only
broken when, on their urging him to renounce his faith, he said: ‘The
Patriarch of the Christians must die a Christian!’ Shortly afterwards,
as soon as a successor was elected by the Holy Synod, he was hanged at
the gateway of the Patriarchate, that has ever since remained closed in
commemoration of this wicked act. At the last moment, Saint Gregory
lifted his hands up to heaven, blessed the Christians who were present,
and said: ‘Lord Jesus Christ, receive my spirit!’ While the Turks and
the Jews were casting stones on the Patriarch’s corpse, the vizier who
had been charged with the execution sat smoking in front of it.
They left the body hanging for three
days, with the document containing the indictment round its neck.
Finally, the Jews bought the body for 800 piastres, dragged it through
the streets to gibes and cries of triumph, and threw it in the sea. In
spite of the heavy rock that was tied to it, the body floated and was
recovered by a Greek ship flying Russian colours, which took it to
Odessa. Venerated by the crowd for several days, the holy relics showed
no sign of corruption.
In 1871, on the occasion of the fiftieth
anniversary of the Greek Revolution, the body of the holy Patriarch was
translated to Athens and placed in the Metropolitan Cathedral with the
greatest solemnity.