August 27th - St Phanourios
St Phanourios - In 1500 AD, in Rhodes, Greece, an icon of St Phanourios was uncovered in the ruins of an ancient church. All of the icons were in a state of decay or near ruin with the exception of one, which appeared as new and as fresh as though it had been painted the day before. It was the icon of St Phanourios. At the time, he was an unknown saint, but examining the icon further, it was inscribed with the name “Phanourios” in what appeared to be fresh lettering. Drawn around the saint were twelve additional icons showing how he endured such cruel tortures, ultimately ending in his martyrdom.
There was no literature available in the church prior to discovering his little church in Rhodes so not much is known about St. Phanourios' life other than the images of his martyrdom on his icon. St Phanourios, lost for centuries in the ruins of a church, became the patron saint of things lost. St. Phanourios has become well-known for assisting the faithful in revealing lost or hidden spiritual matters of the heart, objects, directing or revealing actions that should be taken, restoring health and similar situations. He is then honored by the faithful through a symbolic cake, called the "Phanouropita" which should be shared with others.
The Tradition of the Phanouropita (Fanouropita) - The tradition of the Phanouropita (St Phanourios cake) is a Greek and Cypriot tradition, but has been adopted in many regions throughout the Orthodox world. Phanouropita is simple, vegan cake with warm spices like cinnamon, cloves, and orange juice. It is typically made using either 7 or 9 ingredients (holy numbers in the Church). The faithful make this cake whenever the saint helps reveals a lost object, or anything else the person has sought to find, is found. It is also a tradition for each person to say a prayer for St. Phanourios’ mother when eating their slice of the cake. The cakes (pita) can also be brought to church to be blessed and shared with others. Another appropriate opportunity to make this cake is on his Feast Day August 27th. You can find the recipe below.