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Saints Cyril and Methodius: 11th Century 
of the Evangelization of Greater Moravia 
Scott 369-371 (1963)</center>
 
February 14 is the Feast of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the two Christian missionary brothers who were named Co-Patrons of Europe by Pope John Paul II in 1980.
 
Saints Cyril (born Constantine c. 827) and Methodius (born Michael c. 815) were 9th-century Byzantine Greek brothers born in Thessalonica, Greece, to a prominent family. Methodius served as a civil official before becoming a monk, while Cyril was a scholar (known as "the Philosopher"). They were sent by the Patriarch of Constantinople to Moravia (part of the modern-day Czech Republic) to serve as missionaries and to preach Christianity. They developed the Glagolitic script (a precursor to Cyrillic), which allowed them to create distinct Slavic literature and liturgy, fostering literacy and cultural identity. They came to be known as the "Apostles to the Slavs" as they used the Glagolitic alphabet to translate the Bible and liturgical texts into Old Church Slavonic, heavily influencing Slavic culture and Christianity. For their efforts, they faced opposition from Latin clergy who favored the use of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew for scripture. But the use of the native language in liturgy was a foundation of their missionary success, and was supported by Pope Nicholas I.
 
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"Saints Cyril and Methodius holding the Cyrillic alphabet" 
Mural by Bulgarian iconographer Z. Zograf (1848) 
From Wikimedia Commons, in the Public Domain</center>
 
In 855 the brothers journeyed to Rome to discuss conflicts with Latin missionaries operating in the same territory. The brothers brought with them the relics of Pope Saint Clement I (ca. 88-99) who died in the Crimea as a Roman prisoner. The 600 lire stamp from the set below commemorating the 1100th anniversary of the death of Saint Methodius depicts the two brothers carrying the body of Pope Saint Clement I to Rome, still having an anchor attached to his neck as a symbol of martyrdom. In 869, while in Rome, Cyril died and was buried at the Basilica of Saint Clement. Methodius continued his missionary work until his death in 885. The monks are revered for their work by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches. It is fitting that in 1980, Pope John Paul II, the first Slavic pope, named them co-patrons of Europe (along with St. Benedict). 
 
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Saints Methodius: 11th Centenary Of Death 
Scott 752-754 (1985)</center>
 	 			 		
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1150th Anniversary: Mission of Saints Cyril and Methodius to Slavic Lands 
Joint issue with the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Slovakia 
Scott 1536 (2013) </center>
 
REFERNCES: 
<li>Anonymous, Vatican Notes, Volume 12, Number 6, p. 7, 1964, <a href='http://vaticanstamps.org/vaticannotes/idisplay2.php?p=074-07&r=0'>Saints Cyril and Methodius</a> 
<li>UFN, May 7, 1985, <a href='https://vaticanstamps.org/UFN/images/1985-2-03-1.jpg'>Eleventh Centenary of Death of St. Methodius</a> 
<li>James C. Hamilton, Vatican Notes, Volume 58, Number 346, pp. 4-5, 2010, <a href='http://vaticanstamps.org/vaticannotes/idisplay.php?p=58-346-04-05&r=0'>The Roman Basilica of San Clemente: Medieval Frescos Revealed in Stamps and Postal Cards</a> 
<li>Lou Giorgetti, Vatican Notes, Volume 71, Number 395, pp. 34-43, 2023, <a href='https://www.vaticanstamps.org/vaticannotes/idisplay.php?p=71-395-34-35&r=0'>Sts. Cyril and Methodius: Patrons of Europe</a> 
<li>Franciscan Media, Saint of the Day, February 14, <a href='https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saints-cyril-and-methodius/'>Saints Cyril and Methodius</a> 
<li>Wikipedia, <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyril_and_Methodius'>Cyril and Methodius</a> 
<li>Vatican Philatelic Society website, www.vaticanstamps.org, Stamp Database Search

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