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Commemorated on November 18
Anastasius and his sister were Greek peasants living in Epirus
under Ottoman rule. One day a band of Turks came through their village, led by
Musa, the son of the local Pasha (Governor). Musa was struck by the beauty of
Anastasius' sister and tried to seize her, but Anastasius threw himself at the
Turks and fought them off long enough for his sister to escape. Musa's father
had Anastasius arrested and brought before him and, impressed by his courage,
attempted to convert him to Islam by many means: threats, beatings, and offers
of worldly honor; but Anastasius held firm and was cast into prison.
Musa was moved by the way that Anastasius bore all these trials and
temptations, and wanted to know more about the Faith that sustained him. Going
secretly to Anastasius' prison cell, he peered in and saw two young men of
shining appearance with the prisoner. They vanished as soon as Musa entered.
Anastasius told Musa that these were angels who guard and aid every Christian,
especially when they suffer for Christ. He also explained in a simple way the
Gospel of Jesus Christ, which enables His followers to set little value upon
worldly things. Musa, deeply moved, threw himself at Anastasius' feet and asked
to become a Christian. Anastasius told him to wait until the proper time,
because his conversion would cause his father to persecute all the Christians
under his power. A few days later, in 1750, Anastasius was beheaded by order of
the Pasha.
Soon after this, Musa visited the tomb of a holy Martyr and was granted a
vision of Anastasius, who appeared to him encircled in light and urged him to
continue on the road to Christ. Musa fled his father's domain to the Peleponnese
where he received direction in the Faith from an aged ascetic. He then traveled
to Venice to be baptized without fear of reprisal by the Turks. In time he
became a monk on Corfu, receiving the monastic name of Daniel. He lived there in
asceticism, but the desire grew in him to taste martyrdom for Christ, so he
traveled to Constantinople to declare his conversion to the Muslims. But the
Christians there dissuaded him, knowing that the conversion of such a prominent
Turk would, if it were known, lead to retaliation against Christians. Saint
Daniel returned to Corfu, where he founded a church in honor of St Anastasius
and reposed in peace.
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