Abraham of Cratia

Abraham of Kratia (c. 474 – c. 558) was a Christian monk from Byzantine Syria. He is recognized as a saint in the Christian church, with a feast day of December 6.

He was born at Emesa in Byzantine Syria. The community there was dispersed shortly later by nomadic raiders. Abraham himself fled to Constantinople. When he was only twenty-six years old, he was made the abbot of the monastery of Kratia in Bithynia. Some ten years later, he secretly left for Palestine seeking a quieter life. He was subsequently made to return to his monastery, where he also was shortly thereafter made the local bishop of Kratia. About 525, he again left for Palestine, and remained there for the rest of his life, living a life of religious contemplation. He died on December 6, which would later be his feast day, in a year after 543.

References

• Attwater, Donald and Catherine Rachel John. The Penguin Dictionary of Saints. 3rd edition. New York: Penguin Books, 1993. ISBN 0-14-051312-4.
• Holweck, F. G., A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints. St. Louis, MO: B. Herder Book Co. 1924.