Saint Neophytos Cave Monastery
Saint Neophytos spent most of his life alone in a cave. That was his choice, and he fought for it at every turn. Born in 1134 in the small mountain village of Kato Drys near Lefkara, he was the son of farmers, one of eight children. julipapasgardens.com He became a monk at 18, a hermit by 25, and spent over 60 years sealed inside a rock-cut cave above Paphos. Yet for all his devotion to solitude, Neophytos was one of the most outspoken and prolific writers Cyprus has ever produced. He wrote about politics, religion, natural disasters, the suffering of ordinary people, and the foreign rulers who oppressed them. His cave was small, but his voice reached far beyond it. Historical Background Neophytos grew up poor and illiterate. When his parents arranged a marriage for him, he refused and fled to the Monastery of Saint John Chrysostomos in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus. There, he learned to read and write for the first time. He was given the role of assistant sacristan, but what he really wanted was to be left alone. His superiors told him he was too young for that kind of life. In 1158, they let him travel to the Holy Land instead. He spent six months visiting monasteries and sacred sites in Jerusalem, but came back…
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