Hieromartyr Hypatius the Wonderworker Bishop of Gangra

died c. 326

Also known as Hypatius of Gangra

Bishop of Gangra in Paphlagonia who took part in the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in 325. He was slain by heretics and is venerated as a wonderworker and healer.

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The Holy Hieromartyr Hypatius the Wonderworker, Bishop of Gangra

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Life

Hypatius was bishop of Gangra in Paphlagonia, in Asia Minor (the region of modern Cankiri, Turkey), in the early fourth century. He took part in the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in 325, at which the teaching of Arius was condemned, standing with the defenders of the Nicene faith.

Returning from Constantinople to his see in 326, he was set upon and killed by adherents of the Novatian schism. He is venerated as a hieromartyr and a wonderworker, his relics being long famed for miracles of healing, and is commemorated on March 31 (with a further commemoration on November 16).

Troparion2 hymnsReadHide

TroparionTone 4

In truth you were revealed to your flock as a rule of faith,
an image of humility and a teacher of abstinence;
your humility exalted you;
your poverty enriched you.
Hierarch Father Hypatius,
entreat Christ our God
that our souls may be saved.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

TroparionTone 4

By sharing in the ways of the Apostles,
you became a successor to their throne.
Through the practice of virtue,
you found the way to divine contemplation, O inspired one of God;
by teaching the word of truth without error,
you defended the Faith, even to the shedding of your blood.
Hieromartyr Hypatius, entreat Christ God to save our souls.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline2 momentsReadHide

325First Ecumenical Council at NicaeaAs bishop of Gangra in Paphlagonia, Hypatius took part in the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea, at which the heresy of Arius was anathematized. The accounts record that he supported the Nicene cause against Arianism, the Wikipedia account naming his support for Saint Athanasius the Great.
326Martyrdom near GangraWhile returning from Constantinople to Gangra in 326, he was attacked in a desolate place by followers of the schismatics Novatus and Felicissimus. According to the synaxarion they ran him through with swords and spears and threw him into a swamp, and a woman among the attackers struck him on the head with a stone, delivering the fatal blow. Local Christians recovered his body and buried it at Gangra.

Contributions & Legacy

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Bishop and Council Father

Hypatius governed the see of Gangra, the chief city of Paphlagonia in Asia Minor. His presence among the bishops gathered at Nicaea in 325 places him among the fathers of the First Ecumenical Council, which set forth the Creed against the Arian denial of the full divinity of the Son.

The Novatians, by whose followers he was later killed, were a rigorist sect that held that sins committed after baptism could not be forgiven; the accounts identify the woman who struck the fatal blow as an Arian.

Miracles & Traditions

Historically Documented: After his death the relics of Hypatius became famed for numerous miracles, the synaxarion noting in particular the casting out of demons and the healing of the sick, from which he is honored as a wonderworker and healer.

Traditional Accounts: A tradition relates that before he left Constantinople the saint overcame a serpent or dragon that had entered the imperial treasury. The Wikipedia account further relates that the woman who killed him went mad and struck herself with the same stone, and was healed only when brought to the saint's burial place. The synaxarion also records that Hypatius was especially venerated in the Russian land, and that the Ipatiev Monastery was built at Kostroma in 1330.

Related Saints3 saintsShowHide

Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

Fellow Council father: the great champion of the Nicene faith at the First Ecumenical Council (325), whose cause against Arianism Hypatius supported.

Athanasiusthe Great

Fellow Council father: a bishop numbered among the fathers of the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea (325) who defended the Nicene faith.

Spyridonthe Wonderworker

Fellow Council father: by tradition among the bishops gathered at the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea (325) against the heresy of Arius.

Nicholasthe Wonderworker

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints