Every year on the 12th of May, Kythira commemorates the death of Osios Theodoros, the patron saint of the island. It is a local festival that attracts many visitors to the small monastery of Agios Theodoros, south of Potamos.
Osios Theodoros was born at the end of the 9th century, in Koroni – a town on the Peloponnese. He was a very religious man and after periods of monastic life in Rome and Monemvasia, he decided to devote his life to God in solitude on the then deserted island of Kythira where he stayed in an early Christian church, Saint Sergius and Bacchus, on the site of the current monastery.
He died on May 12th, 922 and was buried in the church. According to centuries-old tradition, after the High Mass on May 12th, the relics of Osios Theodoros will be carried in a procession over the monastery grounds. A very special and colourful event! If you are on Kythira on Sunday May 12th, you mustn’t miss visiting the monastery and being part of this beautiful ceremony and tradition.