Our righteous Fathers Spyridon and Nicodemus, the Prosphora Bakers of the Kiev Caves.
Saint Spyridon entered the monastery of the Kiev Caves in 1139, when Saint Pimen the Faster was Abbot. Though Spyridon was an illiterate villager, he diligently gave himself up to learning to read once entering the monastery, and came to know the whole Psalter by heart, which he recited constantly whatever work he did. Saint Pimen assigned him the task of baking prosphora for the Divine Liturgy, which he carried out with out Saint Nicodemus for thirty years.
Once when Saint Spyridon lit the stove to bake the prosphora, the flames shot out and set the ceiling on fire. He covered the opening of the oven with his rasso, then ran to the well and after tying together the sleeves of his cassock filled it with water. The brethren who came back with him witnessed that his rasso was not burnt, and that the water did not seep out of his cassock, but remained in it till he had poured it all out and put out the fire.
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