SAINT OF THE DAY: SAINTS OF THE DAY: The Sunday of the Fathers is the Sunday before the Nativity of the Lord (December 18-24). On this day the Church honors all those who were well-pleasing to God from all ages, from Adam to St. Joseph the Betrothed of the Most Holy Theotokos, those who are mentioned in the genealogy of Luke 3:23-38. The holy prophets and prophetesses are also remembered on this day, especially the Prophet Daniel and the three holy youths. The previous Sunday, the Sunday of the Forefathers, the Church commemorated all the righteous of the Old Testament who awaited the coming of Christ. This day remembers all those in the Old Testament who were related to Christ by blood and those who spoke of his birth as a man. 

Venerable Daniel the Hesychast is commemorated on December 18. Saint Daniel the Hesychast, the great wonderworker and instructor of monastics, was born in Moldavia at the beginning of the fifteenth century. When he was sixteen, he became a monk at the monastery of Saint Nicholas at Radauti and received the name, David. After many years of ascetical struggles, he became a chosen vessel of the Spirit and was ordained to the holy priesthood. He lived for some years at the monastery of Saint Laurence in the Civoul de Sus district. There he fulfilled his obediences during the day, and at night he kept vigil, prayed, and wove baskets. He received the Great Schema and the new name Daniel. Around 1450, he lived near the Neamts Monastery by Secu creek for fourteen years. In time, people discovered where he lived and came to visit him. Longing for solitude, he moved to northern Moldavia and chiseled out a cell for himself in the face of a cliff near Putna creek. Next to it, he carved out a small chapel for prayer. After his spiritual child, Saint Stephen the Great built the Putna Monastery, which was consecrated in 1470, Saint Daniel moved near the Voronets Monastery. Here too, he carved a small cell out of the rock under Soim (Falcon) Cliff and lived a God-pleasing life for the next twenty years. He guided many disciples in the principles of spiritual life, and he also had the gift of healing the sick of their physical infirmities. In 1488, when he was over eighty years old, Saint Daniel went to live at the Voronets Monastery, where he was chosen to be the ihumen. People from near and far visited him seeking his spiritual advice, or to confess their sins. He died in 1496 and was buried at the Voronets Monastery.