Eldress Nantieznta of Sevastopol (Ukraine)
Eldress Nantieznta of Sevastopol (Ukraine) was a Spiritual Daughter of St. Luke the Surgeon of Simferopol (Ukraine). The following is an excerpt from an account by Father Nektarios Antonopoulos, the Abbot of the Holy Monastery of the Transfiguration of Christ (Sagmata, Greece) about his meetings with the Gerontissa (Eldress) Nantieznta on his trips to Simferopol.
In October 2003 we visited [Gerotissa Nantieznta] with a group of children from the Diocese of Thebes and Levadeia. […] Among the other incidents mentioned, the following two stories show what a great heart Gerontissa has.
[Gerontissa told us:] “A few years ago I went with my daughter to church. On the road we found a small, destitute child. We asked him where he was from and where he was staying. The child was abandoned, and he had neither parents nor home. I told him: “Do you want to come to stay with us?” He accepted, and so we took the boy home and kept him for three to four years. Later, some relatives of his from Vynitsa were found from very far from here, and they took the child with them. Unfortunately, now we have no contact with the child. They didn't take our phone number and haven't sent us a letter. Never mind, may things go well wit h the child, as God keeps him well. We could do this and we did.”
We admired her nobility. The soul which knows how to love, to offer and to sacrifice does not complain for any ingratitude, or require any permanent dependency from others.
The second incident is similar. [Gerontissa told us:] “One relative of ours was pregnant. Because she struggled financially, she decided to have an abortion. We entreated her not to do so. She was adamant. She said that she would not be able to raise it. I fell to her feet, and I begged her with tears, saying that she would be committing a crime, she would be killing a human being. She did not change her mind, and then I said that since she could not raise it , she should give it to me, I will adopt it and will raise it. This convinced her. The child was born and we brought her home. Today she is 14 years old.”
[The girl] appears to be a very good and willing girl, who lives as a gift of the love of her holy grandmother. The remarkable thing is that Gerontissa Nantieznta is not only not rich, but gets a pension of hunger [government subsidy for food]. Only six euro per month and a similar amount from her daughter. Thus little Anna grew up in Gerontissa's house. The money is not enough to live, but the Gerontissa is totally devoted to the will of God. We sat close to her for over an hour. Her smile was constant on her lips and her words were an outpouring of joy. We did not hear any complaints, only glorification of God. Her countenance was filled with love and kindness. Her eyes could see little, but the eyes of her soul were wide open. In her hands continuously spun the komposchini and every so often she would whisper the Jesus Prayer.