The holy healer Panteleimon was born in Nicomedia (Asia Minor). His father was a noble pagan Eustorgius. His parents gave him the name Pantoleon (lion in everything), because they wanted to raise a son fearless and courageous. His mother was a Christian and wanted to educate him in this religion, but she died early. Father gave his son to a pagan school. Then he studied medicine with the famous doctor Efrosin in the city. The young Pantoleon was once introduced to Emperor Maximian, who wanted to leave the young man as a court physician.
At that time, Christian priests Yermipp, Yermolai, and Hermocrates secretly lived in Nicomedia. They survived the persecution of 303, when two tens of thousands of Christians were burned. Yermolai somehow drew attention to the young man, invited him to himself and started a conversation about the
Christian religion. The future holy
healer Panteleimon began to often go to him. He listened with interest to the stories of Jesus Christ.
Once, a young man was returning from his teacher and saw that a dead child was lying on the road, and a snake that bit him was wriggling nearby. Pantoleon felt sorry for the child and he began to pray, as taught by Yermolai, and ask God for the resurrection of the dead and the death of the snake. As a doctor, he understood that it was no longer possible to help a child, but the Christian priest said that for the Lord the impossible does not exist. The future holy healer Panteleimon decided to himself, if his request is granted, he will accept Christianity. Then a miracle happened. The snake was torn to pieces, and the dead man came to life, to the great surprise of the young man.
After that, Yermolai christened the guy. The Christian Pantoleon then often had conversations with his father, urging him to accept his true faith. Once a blind man was brought to a young man, whom no one could cure. The future holy healer Panteleimon asked God to return his sight, and the blind man received his sight. The miracle that happened fully convinced Eustrogius, and he became a Christian.
After his father died, Pantoleon devoted himself to the sick, the poor and the wretched. He treated everyone who came to him for free, visited prisoners in prisons. All of his patients recovered. Man is an envious creature. Nicomedian doctors were no exception. They informed the emperor that Pantoleon converted to Christianity. Maximian began to persuade the doctor, whom he greatly appreciated in order to dispel the denunciation, to offer sacrifice to pagan idols. However, Pantoleon did not do this. In the eyes of the emperor, he cured the paralyzed in the name of Christ.
Maximian became angry, subjected his doctor to terrible agony, and ordered him executed. The holy great martyr and healer Panteleimon was hung on a tree. His body was torn with iron hooks, burned with candles, tortured with molten tin, pulled on a wheel. More than once God appeared to the martyr and strengthened his spirit. Pantolenone, despite the torture, remained unscathed. The emperor executed teacher Yermolai, and he himself was ordered to be torn to pieces by wild animals in the arena for the amusement of the crowd. However, the animals began to lick his legs. People began to scream and ask for mercy of the innocent, as well as praise Christ. Maximian ordered to kill all who did the last. The animals were destroyed too.
Then the emperor gave the order to chop off his doctor’s head. When he prayed before execution, one of the soldiers hit him with a sword, but the metal softened and looked like wax. At that moment, God appeared to the martyr and called him Panteleimon the most merciful.
With this name, he entered the Church Tradition. Soldiers and ordinary people saw all this. They refused to execute Panteleimon. But the great martyr ordered them to continue. When his head was chopped off, the olive to which he was tied blossomed. The body of the saint was thrown into the fire, but it remained unharmed. Many temples were erected in memory of the great martyr. There is a source of St. Panteleimon the healer. And not one. Many springs are named after him, the water of which has a healing power.