The only church dedicated to a saint exists in the community of Arodes in the Akamas area and is celebrated today. It is the church of Agios Kalandionas, in the center of the community, the only church in the world that is dedicated to this saint, while another peculiarity is the two famous shrines in its courtyard that are associated with the well-known story of Agios Agapitikos and Agios Misitikos. A large number of believers rush every such day for its holy water, which is considered miraculous for skin diseases.
Agios Kalandionas celebrates every April 26 and in this context religious events were organized every year in the community. The president of the community of Arodes, Matthaios Stefanou, told "F" that for two days every year, vespers is held, while then the community receives the crowd of believers in the square, where the church is located.
Saint Kalandion is one of the saints of Paphos who are unknown in the wider Greek area, but also in other areas of Cyprus. According to the chronicler Leontios Machairas, he is one of the 300 Alaman saints who came to Cyprus during the 7th century, when the Saracens conquered Palestine and Syria. Saint Kalandion was a bishop in Antioch before arriving in Arodes and becoming an ascetic. He was declared a saint for his miracles and his church in Arodes was built in the 18th century.
According to Mr. Stefanou, the fact that Agios Kalandionas is the only church in the whole world dedicated to the saint, has become quite known in recent years to many of our compatriots, who rush to Arodes to see this remarkable event up close, but also to worship.
