Saint Lazarus is the Patron of Cyprus, the poor and lepers.The Gospel according to St. John recounts how Our Lord called Lazarus forth from the grave back to life. Lazarus was brother to Mary and Martha, and all three were friends of the Lord. As Saint John’s Gospel tells, Mary and Martha sent word to Christ that their brother had fallen ill, and they bid Him to healLazarus. The Lord tarried for two days before journeying to his friends’ home in Bethany. By then, Lazarus had died and was already in the tomb for four days. Martha laments that Jesus did not arrive soon enough to heal her brother ("if you had been here, my brother would not have died"), but He declared, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die".

After weeping at the grave of Lazarus, the Lord then directed the mourners to roll away the stone of the tomb and commanded “Comeforth.” Lazarus returned to life and did so, albeit still wrapped in his grave-cloths. Lazarus later became the Bishop of Kition in Cyprus.According to tradition, Lazarus never smiled during the thirty years after his resurrection, worried by the sight of unredeemed souls he had seen during his four-day stay in Hell. The only exception was, when he saw someone stealing a pot, he smilingly said: "the clay steals the clay." Saint Lazarus’ Cross is similar to that of St. George, except that it is green on a white field. The green colour represents the life which the Lord returned Lazarus to after his death.

‍Saint Lazarus is commemorated on Lazarus Saturday, the day before Palm Sunday.