Tismana Monastery
Six centuries of unceasing prayer
The monastery was founded in 1377 a.d. by Saint Nikodemus, the Sanctified of Tismana. The cenobitic monastic centre preserved the Christian Orthodox faith throughout the centuries, keeping vigil and offering prayers to our Lord Jesus Christ, for the salvation of the Romanian people and the world. It served as an ancestral homeland for education, culture and spirituality.
The Saints of Tismana
Saint Nikodemus, the Sanctified of Tismana
- 1310-1406
- Founder Tismana Monastery
- Born in Prilep (Serbia) to a royal Wallachian family, he left his obedience as abbot of Hilandar Monastery in Mount Athos, to revive the cenobitic monasticism in Wallachia (Romania), building over ten monasteries in the southern region of Romania.
Saint Gersimos, martyr and confessor of faith
- 1912-1951
- The last abbot of Tismana Monastery, before it was transformed to nun's monastery. - Saint Gerasimos was martyred by the communist regim. He received the confession of his own torturer, assured him of God's love for him and of his own, minutes before the Saint was taken by the Lord.
Saint Antonina, the fool-for-Christ
-1923-2011
-She was known for living as a fool-for-Christ, spending forty years caring for the monastery pigs.
- She was canonised by the Romanian Orthodox Church in 2026
- She was recognised by the monastic community for her for her clairvoyance ("seeing with the Spirit") and quiet wonderworking.