Virtues are formed by prayer. Prayer preserves temperance. Prayer suppresses anger. Prayer prevents emotions of pride and envy. Prayer draws into the soul the Holy Spirit, and raises man to Heaven.
~ Saint Ephrem
Saint Ephrem was born of a Christian family in Nisibis around the year 306. Ordained a deacon of Edessa in what is now Turkey, he vigorously combated the heresies of his time by writing poems and hymns about the Mysteries of Christ and the Blessed Virgin. He had a great devotion to Our Lady, and was in large part responsible for introducing hymns to public worship. He exercised his office as deacon throughout the country and in Edessa, where he founded a theological school. Despite his ascetic life he did not relax his ministries of preaching and writing books to confute the errors of the time.
Ephrem (or Eprhaim) the Syrian left us hundreds of hymns and poems on the faith that inflamed and inspired the whole Church, but we know few facts about his own inspiring life.
We do not know the exact date or year of his death but June 9, 373 is accepted by many. Ephrem related in his dying testament a childhood vision of his life that he gloriously fulfilled.
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