Venerable (Monastic) 6th century

Saint Evagrius of Shiomghvime

6th century

Also known as Evagre · Evagrius the Georgian

A Georgian nobleman who, drawn by the example of Saint Shio of Mgvime, abandoned the world to become his disciple and a monk in the wilderness.

Feast Day

February 4

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Life

Saint Evagrius (Georgian: Evagrisi) of Shiomghvime was a sixth-century Georgian nobleman who renounced his rank and worldly position to become a monastic disciple of Saint Shio of Mgvime. According to tradition he was born to God-fearing and pious parents who read the Holy Scriptures to him from his earliest childhood, and on reaching manhood he became ruler of Tsikhedidi.

His conversion to the monastic life is traced to a hunting expedition in the Sarkineti Mountains, where Saint Shio had established his hermitage. Tradition relates that Evagrius noticed a dove-like bird carrying food to the hermitage, and following it he discovered Shio's dwelling. The encounter led him to abandon his secular position and place himself under Shio's discipline in the wilderness.

He is commemorated on February 4 in the Orthodox Church, particularly within the Georgian tradition, where he is remembered as the disciple of Saint Shio of Mgvime. He remains an obscure figure in English-language Orthodox sources, with little detail of his later life or repose recorded.

Timeline 4 moments Read Hide

6th century Birth and early life Evagrius is born to pious parents who read the Holy Scriptures to him from childhood. On reaching manhood he becomes ruler of Tsikhedidi.
6th century Encounter with Saint Shio While hunting in the Sarkineti Mountains, Evagrius discovers Saint Shio's hermitage — by tradition guided by a dove-like bird carrying food to the hermit. The meeting leads him to abandon his secular position.
6th century Monastic conversion Evagrius becomes a disciple of Saint Shio at the Shio-Mgvime monastery on Sarkine mountain.
Feb 4 Commemoration Saint Evagrius is commemorated on February 4 in the Orthodox Church, especially in the Georgian tradition, as the disciple of Saint Shio.

Contributions & Legacy

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Monastic Context

Saint Evagrius's life is bound to the foundation he joined: the Shio-Mgvime monastery on Sarkine mountain in the Sarkineti Mountains. Its founder, Saint Shio of Mgvime (also called Simeon of Mgvime), was a sixth-century ascetic born in Antioch within the Byzantine Empire. At the age of twenty Shio became a disciple of John of Zedazeni, distributed his property, and took monastic vows.

Shio is counted among the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers, a group of monastic missionaries who came from Mesopotamia to Georgia in the sixth century to strengthen Christianity in the country. After separating from his community he settled in a small cave on Sarkine mountain and oversaw the construction of the first church there, dedicated to John the Baptist. He spent his final years in total seclusion within a cave some twelve meters deep, where he was eventually buried.

Shio introduced a strict ascetic life to the Georgian Church. By the end of the sixth century the monastery he founded housed approximately two thousand monks, making it the largest monastic community in Georgia. The earliest structure at the site, the cruciform Monastery of St. John the Baptist, dates to roughly the 560s–580s. It was into this rapidly growing wilderness community that Evagrius entered as a disciple.

Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Feb 4