In the church of St. Nicholas there are fragments of the relics of the Holy Martyr Vlasius, bishop of Armenia of the IV century. He was born in Sebastia and studied medicine in his youth. The locals loved him so much for his compassion for the sick and poor that they petitioned for his consecration as a bishop. After his episcopal consecration, Vlasius often went to pray in a cave on Mount Argus, and wild animals even came to him there, attracted by the blessed warmth of his pure soul.
It so happened that Emperor Licinius (311-324) sent the ruler of Cappadocia and Lesser Armenia, Agricola, to Sebastia to massacre Christians. Agricola seized many Christians and kept them in prison, while his men caught wild animals that were supposed to tear these prisoners to pieces in the arena. Agricola's soldiers combed the surrounding mountains and forests in search of animals. One day, hunting on the slope of Mount Argus, they came across a cave in which Saint Vlasius prayed, and were amazed to see him surrounded by lions, bears, wolves and many other animals. The soldiers entered the cave cautiously, but the Saint was immersed in prayer and did not notice them. They returned to the city to report what they had seen to the ruler. Agricola told them to go back with reinforcements to capture the Saint. When they returned to the cave and told the Bishop that they had come to take him into custody, he replied: “Please, my children. I have been waiting for your arrival for a long time. Let's go in the name of the Lord.”
On the way to the ruler, they met a woman with a child: her only child had choked on a bone and now lay dying at her feet. The woman recognized the Bishop. She begged him for help, and he laid his hands on the boy and healed him.
They went on, and they met another poor woman; a wolf had just taken away her only possession, a pig. The saint calmed her down and, calling the wolf, told him to bring the pig back, and the wolf obeyed. When, some time later, Saint Vlasius found himself on the verge of starvation in prison, this woman slaughtered a pig and brought him meat cooked with a lot of beans in a cauldron. A tradition has come down to our days: on February 11, on the day of memory of the Holy Martyr Vlasius, the Orthodox eat pork and beans in memory of this miracle.
When the Saint came to the city, the ruler greeted him with the words: “I am glad to see you, O Vlasius, glorious friend of the immortal gods.” “God bless you, O ruler,” replied Vlasius, —But do not call those wretched spirits gods who cannot bring you any benefit.” Agricola failed to flatter the Bishop into renouncing Christ, and he ordered him to be tortured. At first he was severely beaten, then his body was whittled with a sheep comb with sharp teeth.
Simultaneously with Saint Vlasius, Christian women with their children appeared before the ruler. Agricola told them that they could save themselves and the children by sacrificing to the gods. The women pretended to agree and wished to wash the idols in the lake so that their sacrifice would be more pure. The ruler did not object. The women came to the river and threw the idols into the water, and they drowned.
The enraged emperor ordered the women to be killed in front of their children, and the Bishop to be drowned where the idols lay at the bottom. But Saint Vlasius crossed himself and walked on the water. The soldiers who tried to capture him drowned. He returned to the shore in a blaze of heavenly light, and the ruler, having learned about the miracle, ordered him to be beheaded to be sure of his death. It happened in 316.
The name of the holy Martyr Vlasius is found in all ancient church calendars, and in Europe he is considered the patron saint of sheep carders and people suffering from throat diseases. A fragment of his relics is still in the Dionysiate monastery on Mount Athos. Saint Vlasius has been especially revered in Armenia for centuries.