The Spanish flu arrived in Greece in October 1918 at the same time as World War I.
Venerable Nicanor – protector of all of Western Macedonia – performed his miracle by saving the people of the area. And from then on, the residents vowed that they would commemorate him on that very day.
It was the first days of November 1918 when the deadly flu hit the city of Kozani and claimed the lives of young and old, indiscriminately. The deaths reached 172.
Many people from Kozani decided to go along with priests to the monastery of Zavorda (it is called the “Holy Monastery of Venerable Nicanor” since 1927 ) located on Mount Kallistratos. There, they asked the monks if they could take the relics of Venerable Nicanor. The monks allowed them to translate provisionally the relics to the disease-stricken city.
As soon as they departed, the monks of the Holy Monastery kept vigil and the next day, on the 6th November, a procession of the icon took place. As a result, the deaths stopped and the residents rushed to the churches to thank the Venerable for performing that miracle.
They decided to honour Venerable Nicanor by building a church which would bear his name. The Municipality of Kozani granted a location on a hill for the construction of the church, which is still located there to this day.
In commemoration of the event, the residents of many villages in the prefecture of Kozani vowed that they would provisionally translate the relics of the Venerable every year on that day and that they would hold a procession of his icon. They also vowed that they would perform services to honour him in the local churches of their villages.
