While exploring the inexhaustible library and the voluminous archive of our monastery, a book printed in 1902 fell quite unexpectedly into our hands. It bore the title The Life and Acts of our Holy Father Joachim of Ithaca and was written by a physician from Ithaca named Panos D. Raftopoulos. Looking over this book, we realized that it was about the life of a contemporary saint—one unknown to us—who had reposed in 1868. But what was significant and worthy of our attention was that the saint whose life had been recorded was a brother of our own monastery of repentance…. The miraculous life of Saint Joachim “Papoulakis” (Little Grandfather)—as he was called by the Ithacans—is a clear proof that, even in these difficult days of ours, holy Athos continues to give the world the “good witness to Jesus Christ” (see Rev. 20:4)….
Studying the life of Saint Joachim, one easily recognizes his fervor for stillness, prayer, asceticism and painstaking diligence. One sees that at every suitable opportunity he “withdrew into the wilderness” (Luke 5:16), “alone with God alone,”to “discipline his body and bring it into subjection” (1 Cor. 9:27), devising ways of practicing “continuous violence against his nature,” as the Fathers say, while walking the “narrow and difficult way” (see Matt. 7:14) of the Lord. As a result, Divine Grace crowned his ascetic spirit, adorning him with divine gifts, especially the gifts of clairvoyance and prophecy. Our holy monastery considers it a special blessing that our venerable Elder Joseph, of blessed memory, took on the writing of this book.
Archimandrite Ephraim, Abbot of the Holy Great Monastery of Vatopedi