According to the "Life" of the saint, Hossias Loukas (Holy Luke) settled in the area of Stiris and founded a monastic community in 946 A.D. After his death in 953, the rumor that his relic worked miracles brought great numbers of believers to be healed, and the original buildings gave way to more monumental structures.

The church of Hossias Loukas was built in the first half of the 10th century. The wisdom of the composition, the perfection of its execution, and the wealth and quality of the decorative materials used in the paved marble floors, the brilliant mosaics and wall-paintings, all make this monument one of the most important of its period.

My personal experience here was one of awe and silence. I was also quite impressed with the care that the buildings obviously receive from those who maintain it. There are very few monks left here, and they are cloistered and unseen by visitors. 

I lit a candle here for my parents. It was a practice I kept up in all the churches I visited in Greece.  My father's family had been Greek Orthodox originally, and learning as I did about the Orthodox Church on this trip meant more to me than I realized.