St. Dimitrios Monastery دير مار متري Ιερά Μονή Αγίου Δημητρίου

The Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Dimitri is located within the grounds of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. The church is dedicated to Saint Demetrios of Thessalonica, also known as the Holy Great Martyr Demetrios the Myroblyte. Saint Demetrios is one of the most important military saints in Christian Orthodoxy, whose name Myroblyte which translates as “myrrh-streamer” refers to the miracle of the myrrh that streams from his grave. Saint Demetrios was born to a noble Greek Christian family in Thessaloniki, Macedonia, a part of the Roman empire, in 270CE. Saint Demetrios became a soldier and rose through the ranks of the pagan Roman army under Galerius Maximilian. During his military career, Saint Demetrios denounced the pagan rituals of the Roman army and encouraged other soldiers to adopt Christianity. His denunciations of paganism and evangelism eventually led to his arrest and imprisonment. While he was imprisoned, he was visited by a young Christian named Nestor, who asked for his blessing before engaging in combat with the gladiator giant Lyaeus who was fighting as the champion of paganism. Demetrios gave Nestor his blessing, and Nestor went to defeat Lyaeus in a battle that mirrored to the biblical story of David and Goliath. The Roman emperor, enraged by this defeat, had Nestor beheaded and Demetrios impaled in 306CE. Christians of the time buried Nestor and Demetrios where he had been imprisoned. Centuries later, a miraculous stream of myrrh began emanating from his tomb, leading to Saint Demetrios being known as the myrrh-streamer. His tomb and relics were later moved to Thessaloniki. The feast day of Saint Demetrios is celebrated in the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Dimitri every 26th of October/ 8th of November. During this Divine Liturgy the icon of Saint Demetrios within the church is decorated with flowers in celebration. The Church is only open during this Divine Liturgy. If visitors would like to enter the Church of Saint Dimitri throughout the year, arrangements should be made with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.