From Selymbria to Alexandria and Athens
Nektarios was born in Selymbria, worked in Constantinople, and entered monastic life on Chios. He later studied in Athens and served in Alexandria as Metropolitan of Pentapolis. Removed from his position following accusations that the Orthodox Church in America’s account describes as false, he retained his episcopal rank. In Greece he worked as a preacher before directing the Rizarios Seminary in Athens from 1894 to 1908, combining teaching, worship, and writing.[1]
A bishop remembered through a monastery
At Holy Trinity, Nektarios served as confessor to a community led by the blind abbess Xenia. He died in Athens in 1920 and was buried at the monastery. The OCA’s life records accounts of healings associated with his death and subsequent veneration.[1]
The Orthodox Church in America’s historical survey places Nektarios among significant figures in the nineteenth-century Greek Church. His later association with Aegina became central to his wider reception. The monastery gives a geographical focus to a life that had also included Constantinople, Chios, Alexandria, and Athens.[2]
“Pentapolis” and “Aegina” therefore identify different relationships. The first is his episcopal title; the second is the island particularly associated with his later monastic work and veneration. The two names refer to the same person, not to separate saints or competing author attributions.
Immortality and the remembrance of the departed
On the Immortality of the Soul and Holy Memorials connects an argument about human life after death with the Church’s care for the departed. Nektarios’s preface explains that the work arose from his concern that people were neglecting the remembrance of their deceased families. He wanted to explain both the purpose of memorials and the grounds for the Church’s practice. The dedication to his parents and siblings gives that concern a personal setting.[3]
The treatise also grew out of his preaching. In the preface to the 1901 Athens edition, Nektarios recalls publishing an earlier version nine years before as part of a work on the ecumenical councils. He then circulated a separate printing in Euboea, Phthiotis, and Phocis, where he had served as preacher. For the new edition, he says that he revised and greatly enlarged the study. The book is therefore connected to a sustained effort to teach and answer objections, rather than simply a collection of devotional reflections.[3]
Part I considers the nature of the soul and presents a succession of arguments for immortality. Its subjects include the soul’s activities and desires, moral responsibility, divine goodness, religious life, and human society. In the argument from desire, for example, Nektarios points to a person’s capacity to restrain bodily appetites and sacrifice bodily comfort for an ideal. He takes this as evidence that the soul cannot be explained by the body alone. These are the author’s philosophical and theological arguments, which readers can follow step by step.[3]
Part II turns to holy memorials and the things that follow death. It asks why the Church prays for the departed, examines Holy Tradition, and gathers testimony from the Fathers, liturgies, confessions, and Scripture. Its discussion of tradition draws on Basil the Great’s account of practices handed down in the Church, including making the sign of the cross and facing east in prayer. That discussion explains why Nektarios considers inherited worship relevant to a theological argument.[3]
The chapter on annual memorials considers the Saturdays of Souls and brings prayer together with care for the poor. Among the texts it cites is the Apostolic Constitutions, with its instructions for commemorations and gifts made in memory of the departed. Later sections address judgment, the intermediate condition of souls, resurrection, and almsgiving. The book’s two subjects remain connected throughout: belief about life after death gives a reason for continuing to remember others in prayer and charity.[3]
The guide to death, resurrection, and memorial prayer introduces the wider doctrinal and liturgical setting. It compares Nektarios’s treatment with other forms of writing about death, including dialogue and sermons.
Books and where to begin
Start with the author’s address to his readers, then choose the part closest to your question. Part I suits readers interested in Nektarios’s understanding of the soul and his arguments for immortality. For memorial services and remembrance of deceased relatives, begin with Part II’s explanation of why the Church performs memorials, then follow its discussion of tradition and the annual commemorations. Reading a complete argument before consulting its supporting testimonies makes the longer chapters easier to follow.[3]
Our English edition follows the 1901 Athens text and includes the complete main treatise. It does not include the later appendix on repentance, confession, and care for the soul. Readers looking for those additional writings should distinguish them from the main work presented here.[3]
Related authors and places
Saint Gregory of Nyssa offers an earlier dialogue about the soul and resurrection. Grigory Dyachenko presents a different, collected treatment of death and judgment.
