Venerable (Monastic) 6th century

Venerable Shio of Mgvime

6th century

Also known as Shio Mgvime · Shio of the Cave

One of the Thirteen Syrian (Assyrian) Fathers who brought monasticism to Georgia; he withdrew to a cave near Mtskheta and founded the great Shio-Mgvime Monastery.

Feast Day

February 9

Also May 9, Mar 3

Draft

Draft — pending review. Not yet verified for publication.

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Commemorated as

Our Venerable Father Shio of Mgvime, the Anchorite of Georgia

Come to them for

Missionary Work

Life

Shio of Mgvime was a sixth-century ascetic counted among the Thirteen Syrian Fathers, the monastic founders traditionally credited with establishing organized monasticism in the kingdom of Iberia (eastern Georgia). Sources describe him as an Antiochian by birth who, at the age of twenty, became a disciple of the hermit John of Zedazeni. After distributing his property and embracing the monastic life, he labored alongside his teacher before being sent into Georgia, where he settled near the old royal city of Mtskheta in the middle of the sixth century.

The Thirteen Syrian Fathers are remembered as ascetics who received their spiritual training at the Lavra of Saint Simeon the Stylite and at other monasteries of Syria and Mesopotamia. According to the synaxarion, they were Georgians by descent who returned to their native land to assist in its Christian enlightenment, arriving in Georgia in the mid-sixth century. Within this company, Shio is associated above all with the founding of the monastery that bears his name in the gorge at Mgvime.

Withdrawing from the wider monastic brotherhood, Shio sought greater solitude in the rocky country near Mtskheta and gathered disciples around his hermitage, the nucleus of the community later known as the Shio-Mgvime Monastery. He is venerated as having introduced a notably strict ascetic life to the Georgian Church, and is commemorated on several days in the Orthodox calendar.

Timeline 4 moments Read Hide

6th century Discipleship under John of Zedazeni At the age of twenty, Shio became a disciple of the hermit John of Zedazeni, having first distributed his possessions and entered the monastic life.
Mid-6th century Mission to Georgia Together with the Thirteen Syrian Fathers, Shio arrived in Georgia and settled in the region of Mtskheta to assist in the Christian enlightenment of the kingdom of Iberia.
6th century Founding of Shio-Mgvime Shio separated from the monastic brethren, withdrew to the caves of the Sarkineti (Sarkine) area near Mtskheta, and established the monastery that bears his name, building a church dedicated to John the Baptist.
Final years Reclusion and repose Shio spent his last years in total seclusion in a deep cave or pit he had dug for himself. He died at Mtskheta and was buried at the monastery.

Contributions & Legacy

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The Founding of Shio-Mgvime Monastery

According to the tradition recorded in the Orthodox synaxaria, Shio settled in the Sarkineti caves near Mtskheta, a harsh and waterless region said to have been inhabited by wild animals. There he built the first church of the community, dedicated to John the Baptist, and drew disciples who carved their cells into the surrounding rock.

The monastery is reported to have grown into a large community, said by tradition to have numbered nearly two thousand monks. Shio appointed his disciple Evagre (Evagrius) — described as a former military ruler who was converted through his encounter with the saint — as his successor in the office of abbot. A small cave associated with the site was, by later accounts, converted into a church around the ninth century.

Reclusion and Ascetic Life

Shio is remembered for an especially severe ascetic discipline, and is credited with introducing a strict form of monastic life to the Georgian Church. In his final years he withdrew into complete seclusion, entering a deep cave or pit that he had dug for himself, where the synaxarion relates that he spent fifteen years in prayer and fasting.

Traditional Accounts

The vita preserves several miracles attributed to Shio. By tradition he transformed a wolf that had been preying on the monastery's flocks into a guardian of its livestock, healed the injured eye of a nobleman, and directed the building of a church by means of smoke rising from burning coal and incense. As death approached, the synaxarion relates that he received the Holy Gifts, lifted up his hands, and prayed that the Lord receive the soul of his servant.

Relics & Shrines

Shio was buried at the Shio-Mgvime Monastery, which remained the principal shrine associated with him. By tradition, during a later Persian invasion the soldiers of Shah Abbas carried his relics away to Persia, but after a plague broke out the invaders, in fear, returned the holy relics to the monastery.

Notes

Also commemorated May 9. One of the Thirteen Syrian Fathers of Georgia.

Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org)