The miraculous intervention of Saint Bessarion proved decisive and the town was finally free from the plague. The Christians knew they had to build a church in his honour, to ensure that no such disaster would visit them again. It took them a few decades but they were finally able to inaugurate the magnificent church in 1861-1862. Each 15 September the whole town honours the memory of Saint Bessarion with a magnificent procession of his Holy Image through the streets of Filippiada, as well as a two-day fair that attracts visitors from communities near and far.