A very important tradition of almost two centuries, maintains to this day the connection between Paralimni and Sotira, with the people of Paralimni going every year to the great celebration and trade fair of the Transfiguration of the Savior at Sotira in Famagusta every 5th and 6th of August. Nevertheless, although the custom has been maintained since the mid-19th century, few know its origin and the miracle with which the two communities are connected.
The miracle that saved Paralimni from the plague epidemic
As Savvas Prastitis states in the presentation entitled “Priest Gabriel Papakonstantis, a priestly figure at the end of the Ottoman Empire from Sotira Famagusta” presented at the 2nd Conference of the Cyprus Byzantine Society in January 2018, in the mid-19th century, Paralimni was plagued by a plague epidemic, which resulted in many people, especially children, dying daily.
Due to the absence of a priest, priest Gabriel Papakonstantis (born around 1790) would travel to Paralimni to bury the dead. One day, however, on his way to Paralimni, he became fearful of the possibility that the epidemic might spread to him and bring it to Sotira.
Then, according to tradition, a luminous figure dressed in white appeared before him and ordered him to go and perform the funeral, and it would be the last because the epidemic would stop. And indeed, that is how things happened.
The building of the solar pond by the residents of Paralimni and the custom that continues to this day
The residents of Paralimni attributed the event to the appearance of the Chrysosotira of Sotira, the "Master", as he is more widely known, and as a sign of gratitude they built the southern portico of the church ("solar") and probably also the outer wall of the church, which bears the date 1855 on its eastern lintel.
It is also noteworthy that every year on August 6, the day of the Transfiguration, the residents of Paralimni come en masse to Sotira to commemorate the feast. Also, another tradition that continues to this day is to come every Monday afternoon and take oil from the icon's lamp to crucify the little infants. This is done by residents of Paralimni and Deryneia.
The portable icon of Saint Charalambos
A particularly interesting item is a portable icon of Saint Charalambos, owned by priest Gabriel, dating from 1860. Saint Charalambos is associated in Orthodox popular piety with protection from plagues and epidemics. The scroll of the icon contains an invocation for deliverance from infectious disease, while the dedicatory inscription states that the icon belonged to “priest Gabriel”.
The image does not in itself prove that the miracle occurred or that the epidemic specifically affected Paralimni. However, it is a strong indication that this particular priest and the community of Sotira were experiencing a real fear of infectious disease at about the same time.
The old pilgrimage of the Paralimni people
The mass procession of the inhabitants of Paralimni to Sotira on the feast of the Transfiguration, on August 6, has been preserved to this day. Oral testimony by Markos Z. Kouzalis from Paralimni describes a procession with carts, carriages and animals through the lake of Paralimni to Sotira and explicitly connects the custom with the salvation of the village from the disease.
This is the testimony of Markos Kouzalis
When I was 5-6 years old, as I remember, all the residents of the community of Paralimni celebrated the feast of Chrysosoter on August 6 in Sotira. It was the neighboring village. The residents of our community on August 6 early in the morning, 6 a.m., would depart for the neighboring village of Sotira. With carts, carts (small carts) and donkeys, the young men, women and old men would go for the great feast of Chrysosoter. The young men and women would also decorate the carts and carts. They had the custom of competing with each other to see who would arrive first with the carts, carts and donkeys.
A large convoy was made from Paralimni to Sotira across the lake. This love, this habit of the residents of Paralimni for the church of Chrysosotira, was made from approximately 1900 AD until 1974 AD when the invasion took place.
Now I explain the reason my father Tziovanis G. Kouzalis had explained to me why there was all this influx of people from the community to the small church of Chrysosotiros in Sotira.
Around 1850 AD, a deadly disease, perhaps cholera or plague, was prevalent in our area with several victims. One of these victims was the priest of Paralimni. For all these victims, priest Papagavriel came to Paralimni from Sotira for the funeral. The dead in Paralimni had exceeded ten bodies. Of the many times that this pious priest came to perform this event, the priest's wife (presbyter) reacted. "You also have children and grandchildren." The priest thought about it very seriously and said to them, "Please, I will go for the last time and inform the residents of my neighboring village and let them do whatever they want." This blessed wife gave him her wish and at the same time prayed to the Virgin Mary to intervene and save her husband and the community of the neighboring village and the area. The next morning, Priest Papagavriel left for Paralimni for this macabre event.
This blessed priest, on the way, thought about his wife's words and in the middle of the lake he decided to return and not perform the funeral as he had promised his wife.
Suddenly a young man, possibly Chrysosotir, appeared to him and told him to perform this macabre event of the funeral for the last time and your neighbors will not need you again. There will be no more dead, I will cover them and help them. This priest, after the funeral, had mentioned it to the people of Paralimni that there would be no more dead after the intervention of Jesus Christ.
Indeed, the disease disappeared in the entire area and there was no other victim. The people of Paralimni built in their honor in Sotira the solar on top of an ancient small chapel of the 8th century. They used to take newborns to church on the 8th day and on the 40th day the posarantomata (sarantismata) and anointed the babies with oil of the Virgin Mary.
This is the reason why the people of Paralimni celebrated and still celebrate on August 6th the Feast of the Savior, and the entire community of Paralimni attends this small church for this celebration, with all its zeal.
All of this was told to me by my father, Tziovanis G. Kouzalis, born October 6, 1899.
They are also confirmed by the Priest of Sotira, (blessed) Father George Ioannou.
Markos Z. Kouzalis, Paralimni, March 18, 2020
The old church of the Transfiguration of the Savior
The Church of the Transfiguration in Sotira Famagusta is located within the old cemetery, near the center. The building, as it stands today, is the product of a series of interventions on the original core, the construction of which is usually placed in the 13th century. The frescoes, which originally adorned the interior of this single-nave domed church, are today preserved in fragments, mainly on the pilasters and the lintels of the arches that carry the dome. Despite the interesting architectural history of the church and the importance of the frescoes, which constitute a rare testimony of monumental painting in Cyprus in the second half of the 13th century, the Church of the Transfiguration (unlike some other monuments in the same area) has never been the subject of systematic investigation, while the relevant references in the scientific bibliography are occasional.
The research, on "The Church of the Transfiguration in Sotira Famagusta and its context: History - Architecture - Murals", was started on Monday, June 2, 2014 by the University of Cyprus. The two-year research program, scheduled to be completed on June 30, 2016, is conducted with the permission and in collaboration with the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus (responsible: George Filotheou, Archaeological Officer A '). The scientific supervisor of the program is the Assistant Professor of the Department of History and Archeology of the University of Cyprus, Maria G. Parani.
The purpose of this specific program is the systematic scientific study of the architecture and murals of this particularly important, but little studied, monument. More specifically, the program includes: the complete design and photographic recording of the monument and its decoration, the architectural study of the building, the clarification of its construction phases and the investigation of its initial function, the iconographic and stylistic analysis of its murals, the technical analysis of the murals, the identification of the source of the materials and the examination of the painter's technique, and finally the study of the historical, social and artistic contexts of the monument both within the area of Sotira, as well as within the broader context of Lusignan Cyprus and the Crusader East.
The study and publication of the church of the Transfiguration in Sotira Famagusta and in fact of its extremely important frescoes aspires to make this relatively unknown monument better known to the local and international scientific community. The ultimate goal is the fruitful contribution to the understanding of artistic production in Cyprus during the 13th century through the investigation of the dynamic encounter in Sotira of a living local Byzantine tradition with the Christian art of the Crusades.
An international scientific team will work for the realization of the research objectives of the program, in which, apart from Maria Parani and George Filotheou, the following will participate: Andreas Zisimos (Department of Geological Survey of Cyprus), Mat Immerzeel (Leiden Institute for Religious Studies / Paul van Moorsel Center), Ioanna Kakoulli (Materials Science and Engineering Department, University of California, Los Angeles), Athanasios Papageorgiou (former Director of the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus), Tassos Papakostas (King's College London), Maria Paschali (Courtauld Institute of Art, London) , and Philippe Trélat (Research Group of the History of the University of Rouen).
The Department of Antiquities of Cyprus has undertaken the photographic capture of the monument, while most of the costs for the analyzes will be covered by the Materials Science and Engineering Department, Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science - University of California, Los Angeles.
The research is funded by the "Anastasios G. Leventis" Foundation in the context of the Foundation's wider cooperation with the University of Cyprus to promote research, and the support of the Municipality of Sotira and the Holy Metropolis of Constantia-Famagusta is valuable in the whole effort.
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