Venerable
Sergius of Radonezh (Сергий Радонежский,
Sergii Radonezhsky)—also translated as
Sergey Radonezhsky or
Serge of Radonezh was a spiritual leader and
monasticA monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
reformer of medieval
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Together with Venerable
Seraphim of SarovSaint Seraphim of Sarov , born Prokhor Moshnin , is one of the most renowned Russian monks and mystics in the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is generally considered the greatest of the nineteenth century Startsy , and arguably the first...
, he is a venerated
RussianThe Russian Orthodox Church ; or The Moscow Patriarchate , also known...
saintSaints, individuals of exceptional holiness, are significant in many religions, particularly Christianity.-General characteristics :Though the term is mostly used for Christians considered holy or virtuous, many religions use similar concepts to elevate people worthy of respect, e.g. see Hindu...
.
The date of his birth is unclear: it could be 1314, 1319, or 1322. As his medieval
LifeA biography is a description or account of someone's life and the times, which is usually published in the form of a book or essay, or in some other form, such as a film. An autobiography is a biography of a person's life written or told by that same person...
states, he was born to a
boyarA boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal Moscovian, Kievan Rusian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, and Moldavian aristocracies, second only to the ruling princes , from the 10th century through the 17th century.The rank has lived on as a surname in Russia and Finland, where it is...
family near Rostov Velikiy, where
Varnitsy Monastery now stands.
Venerable
Sergius of Radonezh (Сергий Радонежский,
Sergii Radonezhsky)—also translated as
Sergey Radonezhsky or
Serge of Radonezh was a spiritual leader and
monasticA monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
reformer of medieval
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Together with Venerable
Seraphim of SarovSaint Seraphim of Sarov , born Prokhor Moshnin , is one of the most renowned Russian monks and mystics in the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is generally considered the greatest of the nineteenth century Startsy , and arguably the first...
, he is a venerated
RussianThe Russian Orthodox Church ; or The Moscow Patriarchate , also known...
saintSaints, individuals of exceptional holiness, are significant in many religions, particularly Christianity.-General characteristics :Though the term is mostly used for Christians considered holy or virtuous, many religions use similar concepts to elevate people worthy of respect, e.g. see Hindu...
.
Early life
The date of his birth is unclear: it could be 1314, 1319, or 1322. As his medieval
LifeA biography is a description or account of someone's life and the times, which is usually published in the form of a book or essay, or in some other form, such as a film. An autobiography is a biography of a person's life written or told by that same person...
states, he was born to a
boyarA boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal Moscovian, Kievan Rusian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, and Moldavian aristocracies, second only to the ruling princes , from the 10th century through the 17th century.The rank has lived on as a surname in Russia and Finland, where it is...
family near Rostov Velikiy, where
Varnitsy Monastery now stands. He was originally
baptizedIn Christianity, baptism is the ritual act, with the use of water, by which one is admitted to membership of the Christian Church and, in the view of some, as a member of the particular Church in which the baptism is administered.The usual form of baptism among the earliest Christians was for the...
with the name Bartholomaeus. His parents Kirill and Maria became impoverished and moved to
RadonezhRadonezh , formerly known as Gorodok is a historic village in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located about from Sergiyev Posad.The old town of Radonezh is known to have existed since the first half of the 14th century, when it belonged to Ivan Kalita. In 1328, he settled there many captives from Rostov,...
together with their three sons: Stefan, Bartholomew (Varfolomei in Russian), and Peter. Although an intelligent boy, Bartholomew had great difficulty learning to read. His
Life states that a
staretsA starets is an elder of a Russian Orthodox monastery who functions as venerated adviser and teacher. Elders or spiritual fathers are charismatic spiritual leaders whose wisdom stems from God as obtained from ascetic experience...
met him one day and gave him a piece of
prosphoraA prosphoron is a small loaf of bread used in Orthodox Christian liturgies. The plural form is prosphora...
to eat, and from that day forward he was able to read. Orthodox Christians interpret the incident as being an
angelAngels are spiritual beings found in many religious traditions. They are broadly viewed as messengers of God, sent to do God's tasks. Traditions vary as to the precise nature and role of these messages and tasks...
ic visitation.
Becoming a monk
Upon his parents' death, Bartholomew went to
KhotkovoKhotkovo is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located some 60 km north-east of Moscow and 11 km south-west of Sergiyev Posad, on the Moscow – Yaroslavl railroad. Population: 20,600 ; 20,957 ; 23,343 ; 20,000 .Khotkovo was first attested in 1308. It was granted a town status in 1949...
near
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
, where his older brother Stefan was a monk. He persuaded Stefan to find a more secluded place to live the ascetic life. In the deep forest at Makovets hill they decided to build a small cell and a church dedicated in honor of the
TrinityThe Christian doctrine of the Trinity teaches the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead. The doctrine states that God is the Triune God, existing as three persons, or in the Greek hypostases, but one being. Each of the persons is understood as having the one...
. Thus started the history of the great Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra.
In time, Stefan moved to a
monasteryMonastery , a term derived from the Greek word μοναστήριον, neut. of μοναστήριος - monasterios denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer Monastery (plural: monasteries), a term derived from the Greek word μοναστήριον, neut. of μοναστήριος - monasterios...
in Moscow. Varfolomei took monastic vows, taking the name Sergius, and spent more than a year in the forest alone as a
hermitA hermit is a person who lives to some greater or lesser degree in seclusion from society....
. Soon, however, others monks started coming to him and building their own cells. After some time, they persuaded him to become their
hegumenHegumen, hegumenos, or ihumen is the title for the head of a monastery of the Eastern Orthodox Church or Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the one of abbot...
, or father superior, and he was ordained to the
priestA priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities. Their office or position is the priesthood, a term which may also apply to such persons collectively.Priests and priestesses...
hood. Following his example, all the monks had to live by their own labor. Over time, more and more monks and donations came to this place. Nearby, there appeared a
posadA posad was a settlement, often surrounded by bulwarks and a moat, by a town or a kremlin, but outside the town/kremlin, or by a monastery in the 10th to 15th centuries. Usually it was inhabited by craftsmen and merchants, known as posadskiye lyudi .In the Russian Empire a posad was a small...
, which grew into the town of Sergiev Posad, and other villages.
When the news of Sergius's life reached
patriarch-Current Ecumenical Patriarch:The current Ecumenical Patriarch is His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople.-General Introduction:...
Philotheus of Constantinople, he sent to him a monastic
charterA charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
. During the reign of St.
Dmitri DonskoiSaint Dmitriy Ivanovich Donskoy , or Dmitriy of the Don, sometimes referred to as Dmitriy I , son of Ivan II Krasnyi, reigned as the Prince of Moscow from 1359 and Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1363 to his death. He was the first prince of Moscow to openly challenge Tatar authority in Russia...
, his disciples started to spread his teaching across central and northern Russia. They settled intentionally in the most impracticable places and founded numerous monasteries, of which
BorisoglebskyBorisoglebsky , is an urban-type settlement in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located from Rostov and south-west of Yaroslavl, on the Ustye River. Population: 4,600 ....
,
FerapontovThe Ferapontov convent , in the Vologda region of Russia, is considered one of the purest examples of Russian medieval art, a reason given by UNESCO for its inscription on the World Heritage List....
,
Kirillo-BelozerskyKirillo-Belozersky Monastery , loosely translated in English as the St. Cyril-Belozhersk Monastery, used to be the largest monastery of Northern Russia. The monastery was dedicated to the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos, for which cause it was sometimes referred to as the Dormition...
and
VysotskyVysotsky Monastery is a walled Russian Orthodox monastery commanding the high left bank of the Nara River in Serpukhov, close to its confluence with the Oka. Its name stems from the Russian word for "heights"....
monasteries could be mentioned. St Sergius was also connected with the foundation of two monastic communities in Moscow - Andronikov and
SimonovSimonov monastery in Moscow was established in 1370 by monk Feodor, a nephew and disciple of St Sergius of Radonezh.The monastery land formerly belonged to Simeon Khovrin, a boyar of Greek extraction and progenitor of the great clan of Golovins. He took monastic vows in the cloister under the name...
monasteries. All in all, disciples of Sergius founded about 400 monasteries, thus greatly extending the geographical extent of his influence and authority. However, when the
Metropolitan AlexiusSaint Alexius was Metropolitan of Kiev and all Russia , and presided over the Moscow government during Dmitrii Donskoi's minority....
asked him to become his successor, Sergius declined, preferring to remain a simple monk.
As an ascetic, Sergius did not take part in the political life of the country. However, he blessed Dmitry Donskoy when he went to fight the Tatars in the signal
Battle of KulikovoThe Battle of Kulikovo was fought by the Tartaro-Mongols and the Russians. The battle took place on September 8, 1380 at the Kulikovo Field near the Don River and resulted in a Russian victory...
field—but only after he was certain Dmitry had pursued all peaceful means of resolving the conflict. Some historians interpreted his political stance as aspiring to make peace and unite Russian lands under the leadership of Moscow.
Sergius died on September 25, 1392, and was canonized in 1452. His incorrupt
relicA relic is an object or a personal item of religious significance, carefully preserved with an air of veneration as a tangible memorial. Relics are an important aspect of some forms of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Shamanism, and many other religions....
s were found in 1422 and placed in the new
Trinity CathedralThe Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is the most important Russian monastery and the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about 90 km to the north-east from Moscow by the road leading to Yaroslavl, and currently is home to...
of the
LavraIn Orthodox Christianity and certain other Eastern Christian communities Lavra or Laura originally meant a cluster of cells or caves for hermits, with a church and sometimes a refectory at the center...
which he founded. The church commemorates him on September 25, the day of his death, and on July 5, the day his relics were uncovered. See
September 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)Sep. 24 - Eastern Orthodox Church calendar - Sep. 26All fixed commemorations below celebrated on Oct. 8 by Old Calendarists-Saints:*Repose of Saint Sergius, Abbot and Wonderworker of Radonezh *Venerable Euphrosyne of Alexandria...
. Among the many affectionate titles given him, he has been referred to as the "Abbot of Russia" and "valiant voevod" of the Russian land.
The
Roman Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
recognizes officially Sergius as a saint, listing him in the
Martyrologium RomanumThe Roman Martyrology is the official Martyrology of the Roman Rite of the Roman Catholic Church. It provides an extensive but not exhaustive list of the saints recognized by the Church.-History:...
.
The ecumenical
Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint SergiusThe Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius is a religious organization founded in 1928 to facilitate contact between Eastern and Western Christians, specifically Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Christians. It is named for Saint Alban, the protomartyr of England, and Saint Sergius of Radonezh, an...
is named in part for him.
External links