Saint Romanos Melodos October 1 Romanos was born is Emesa, Syria, in the latter part of the fifth century. He entered the service of the Lord as deacon of the Orthodox Church of Beirut, Lebanon, a city of peace in that day. The liturgy of the Church is enhanced by the sound of a good voice, and in this, Romanos found himself at an extreme disadvantage. No matter how hard he tried, his voice was not only rasping, but atonal as well. He compensated for this shortcoming with his gift for composing sacred songs. Romanos was labeled a hymnographer without equal. In 486, Romanos was transferred to the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Constantinople. Whenever his voice was heard in the service, the congregation already knew that only the voice of Romanos could yield such an inferior monotone. One night the lovely vision of the Virgin Mary appeared before him in a dream. The Virgin Mary gently told Romanos not to despair, blessed him with her right hand, and she held forth in her left hand a short scroll. Romanos awoke in a state of the purest ecstasy. He went to the church and ascended the pulpit with the scroll in his hand, thereupon erupting into a glorious song of praise, known as the "kontakion", which then meant a sermon in verse. Today, "kontakion" is a synonym for an abbreviated hymn. Romanos could not believe his ears. His voice had been transformed from the raucous to the lyrical, and he expressed his joy in even more song, delighting in the sweet sound he was now able to produce. After some moments, Romanos retired to his room to offer prayers of thanksgiving to the Virgin Mary for generously granting him the gift he had earnestly prayed for. It was the same gift in which Romanos would sing the praises of the Lord for the remainder of his life. On the following Sunday, the service commenced as usual and when it came time for the voice of Romanos to be heard, the participants readied themselves for the customary cacophony that would ensue. However, when the thunderous tone rolled across the church like the sound of a heavenly angel, the dumfounded listeners stood spellbound. When he had finished, the bewildered priest directed him to continue and once again the resonant voice reverberated in the house of God. Then, it dawned on one and all that a miracle had transpired and they joined in prayer of thanks for this display of the power of God. Now hailed as the "Melodious One", Romanos died on the 1st of October in the year 510. With his last breath, Romanos offered his classic Christian hymn, "The Virgin today brings forth the all-powerful, and the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable. Angels give glory with shepherds, and the Magi journey with the Star, when for our sakes was born as a young child, he who is from eternity, God." Close Window