The Orthodox Church commemorates today Saint Methodius, Bishop of Patara, who lived in the 6th century. He was a prolific writer, a genuine defender of Orthodoxy and was fighting against heresy. The Orthodox Church also commemorates Saint Nicholas Kabasilas.
Saint Nicholas Kabasilas was a prominent defender of the Orthodox faith and was in favour of the Hesychastic practice. He was canonised in 1983.
Saint Nicholas Kabasilas was born in 1322 and his uncle, Neilos Kabasilas, was archbishop of Thessalonica. He studied theology, rhetoric and the natural sciences in Thessaloniki and Constantinople, where he served as counsellor of the Emperor. He followed a monastic way of life and later distinguished himself through his prolific work about theology, worship, and interpretation of texts about religion.
His chief work is his On the Life in Christ (Περὶ τῆς ἐν Χριστῷ ζωῆς) and his Commentary on the Divine Liturgy, which are both considered as among the most important patristic texts. “The Body and Blood of Christ are to the Church true food and drink,” he said in his Commentary on the Divine Liturgy. When one receives Holy Communion, then it does not “turn into” human body, as is the case with ordinary foods. On the contrary, it is the human body itself that changes and is sanctified. Likewise, when iron comes in direct contact with fire then it turns into fire and not the other way round.
Source: Church of Cyprus