Saint Sophronius of Irkutsk. 19th century parsuna
“Warm the human world with works of preaching and the lamp of love, for only from love does love ignite and lead to all zeal for God,” with these words Saint Sophronius instructed the clergy and missionaries of Siberia in the mid-eighteenth century. Over the many years of service at the Irkutsk department, he became a real spiritual father for his flock. People themselves were drawn to Saint Sophrony - they came to him in thousands, multiplying the church family.
Bishop Sophrony - in the world Stefan Kristalevsky - headed the Irkutsk department in 1754. Before the arrival of the new bishop, the distant diocese remained without leadership for about seven years. This had a negative impact on the entire spiritual life of the Irkutsk land, and, of course, affected missionary activity among small nations. Going to Siberia, Saint Sophronius was aware that, in addition to enlightening Christian believers, he would have to bring pagans to the faith.
Already in the first year of his ministry, Saint Sophrony composed and sent a message to all parishes of the Irkutsk diocese. He instructed the clergy to “call idolaters to the knowledge of the True God; and teach those who have received Holy Baptism the faith and right dogmas.” Bishop Sophrony insisted that priests do not perform “formal baptisms” and always conduct catechetical work with newly converted Orthodox Christians, helping them strengthen in the faith.
Bishop Sophrony undertook long missionary trips to the most remote corners of the diocese. The bishop traveled to Nerchinsk, Kirensk, and twice to Yakutsk. Bishop Sophrony spent whole months on the road, not sparing himself. Everywhere he saw flaws that he tried to fight: lack of faith, apostasy or paganism.
It was difficult to bring pagans to the Church of Christ, since sometimes in the few churches in Siberia there was simply no one to serve, and some clergy did not even know how to write. The situation was so deplorable that Bishop Sophrony asked the Holy Synod to send trained priests to Siberia. The request remained unanswered. It became clear that the clergy needed to be trained locally. For this purpose, Saint Sophronius organized a school, the program of which was close to the seminary. The bishop personally supervised the education and training of future pastors. He also found time for teaching work - he taught Church Slavonic and Russian languages at school.
Over the seventeen years of service of Bishop Sophrony (Kristalevsky), the number of churches in Siberia more than tripled, parishes received trained priests, a network of parish schools was created, and missionary activity noticeably revived. Enlightening the pagans with the light of the Orthodox faith, Bishop Sophrony (Kristalevsky) also took care of the structure of the life of small peoples and culture, offered them monastery lands for settlement and tried in every possible way to isolate them from the influence of former superstitions.
Saint Sophrony (Kristalevsky) of Irkutsk and all Siberia was canonized at the Local Church Council in 1918.
Saint Sophrony (Kristalevsky) was born on the day of the Nativity of Christ in 1704 in Little Russia, where his father served in the Chernigov regiment. At Holy Baptism he was named in honor of the first martyr Archdeacon Stephen.After his father retired, the family settled in the town of Berezan, Pereyaslavsky district, Poltava province. Stefan spent his childhood here. The parents of the future saint were pious people, and the children received a worthy upbringing. Sister Stefan, named Pankratia in monasticism, later became a nun of the Corabievsky Monastery of the Pereyaslav diocese; the elder brother also accepted monasticism and became the abbot of the Spassky Zolotonosha Monastery.
Upon reaching school age, Stefan entered the Kyiv Theological Academy, which provided primary, secondary and higher education and was famous throughout Russia for its scientists.
He graduated from the Stefan Academy in 1727. By this time, he had already become a novice of the monastery, where his elder brother was laboring at that time. Three years later, on April 23, 1730, he took monastic vows with the name Sophronius in honor of Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem.
In 1732, in the Kiev St. Sophia Cathedral, he was ordained by Metropolitan Mitrofan of Corinth as a hierodeacon, and a few days later - as a hieromonk. After the consecration, Sophrony was appointed treasurer of the monastery, and two years later, by decree of His Grace Arseny (Berlo), Bishop of the Pereyaslav diocese, he was transferred to his bishop's house, where he served as housekeeper for eight years.
In 1735, Bishop Arseny sent him on business to St. Petersburg. During Hieromonk Sophrony's stay in St. Petersburg, the Holy Synod drew attention to him. And when the Synod received a petition about the need to replenish the brotherhood of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, Hieromonk Sophrony was among the 29 monks recalled from various monasteries in Russia.
On January 1, 1743, he was appointed treasurer of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, and two years later - its viceroy, which he remained for more than seven years. Summoning his fellow countryman, Hieromonk Sinesius (Ivanov), he appointed him the builder of the Novo-Sergievskaya hermitage, assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery (it was here that St. Ignatius Brianchaninov wrote his immortal creations a hundred years later).
Father Sophrony put a lot of work into improving the monastery and improving teaching at the seminary located here. Together with the rector, Archbishop Theodosius (Yankovsky), he took care of completing the monastery library. Under him, a two-story church was built: the upper one in the name of St. Theodore Yaroslavich, the elder brother of St. Alexander Nevsky, and the lower one in the name of St. John Chrysostom.
In 1750, the future saint took part in the transposition of the holy relics of the blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky into a new, silver shrine. There is no doubt that even then Hieromonk Sophrony had a great influence on the spiritual life of the capital. It is known that it was during these years that Empress Elizabeth and statesmen made large contributions to the monastery. The monastery was improved and flourished.
Empress Elizabeth, as a sign of her royal love and respect for Sophrony, personally embroidered for him an epitrachelion, a belt and armbands (embroidered on silver brocade and red velvet with colored silks, silver and gold). Later, with her own hands, the Empress embroidered a white sakkos (embroidered in gold and silver, all decorated with Seraphim) and presented it to Sophrony during his consecration as Bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk.
Sophrony all his life remembered the voice he heard the night after he was tonsured as a monk: “When you become a bishop, build a temple in the name of All Saints.” In St. Petersburg, it became clear to him that the voice was from God.
In 1747, Bishop of Irkutsk Innocent II (Nerunovich) died. For six years the Irkutsk department was widowed. Finally, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, highly appreciating the spiritual and organizational qualities of the abbot of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery Sophrony, on February 23, 1753, proposed to the Holy Synod to appoint him to the Irkutsk See. On the one hand, he was being given a high honor; he was about to be consecrated as a bishop; on the other hand, he was awaiting a trip to uninhabited, harsh Siberia.
On April 18, 1753 (St. Sophrony was then already 50 years old), in the presence of the Empress and the entire court in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, Archimandrite Sophrony was ordained Bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk.
Saint Sophrony had to follow closely the ascetic path of the first Bishop of Irkutsk, Innocent (Kulchitsky).
Upon his arrival in Irkutsk, Saint Sophrony was faced with desolation in the dowager diocese. Many parishes were left without clergy at all, many churches were closed, so that even on great church holidays there were no services.
Already from the first orders of Bishop Sophrony it is clear that the clergy was subject to extortion, drunkenness and many other vices. From the first steps, the saint had to use both instructive and coercive measures.
He started with the clergy. They made every effort to free the clergy from the humiliating poverty in which they found themselves and from the corporal punishment to which the priests were subjected. Concern was also shown to raise the educational level of the clergy. With all severity, the saint led the fight for the morality of the clergy. The Bishop forbade drinking clerics from serving.
He transferred from the Ascension Monastery to the bishop's house a school founded in the twenties of the 18th century by Archimandrite Anthony (Platkovsky), after which he demanded that the dean send all illiterate clergy and their children for education and training. At first, the situation with priests was so deplorable that Saint Sophrony was forced to petition the Holy Synod to send trained clergy from Russia. But the petition remained unanswered. It was clear that the church clergy needed to be prepared on site. And for this we needed time and money, we needed trained teachers. The first teacher was the bishop himself, who taught Church Slavonic and Russian. Within a year, Latin and rhetoric were taught at school. The school program was close to the program of the theological seminaries of that time, and its graduates became trained clergy.
Strictly and demandingly treating the priests, Saint Sophronius at the same time cared for them in a fatherly manner. As a result of his petitions, Empress Elizabeth issued a decree according to which the clergy was spared cruel, immoral and humiliating corporal punishment, replaced by moderate penances or fines in favor of charitable institutions. In fact, the clergy left the control of secular authorities. By the same decree, the Irkutsk clergy was endowed with land, which saved many from poverty.
The saint did not ignore his flock. He undertakes months-long trips around the diocese - to Nerchinsk, Shilka, Kerensk, twice to Yakutsk and all the way to Kamchatka. Everywhere he sees drunkenness, robbery, lack of faith, apostasy or paganism, illiteracy and the absence of any schools. He devotes all his energy to educational and educational activities: he himself serves in parishes, delivers sermons, calling for the fight against vices and the fulfillment of Christian commandments. During the years of the administration of the diocese by Saint Sophronius, the number of churches increased three to four times, parishes received trained clergy, and a network of parish schools was created.
“Warm the human world with the deeds of preaching and the lamp of love, for only from love does love ignite and lead to all zeal for God,” - this is how Saint Sophronius instructed the Irkutsk clergy and missionaries, and this is how he lived himself.
The generosity of Saint Sophronius knew no bounds. He devoted himself entirely to the cause of charity - he did not eat a piece without sharing it with someone. His home and the entire Ascension Monastery were overcrowded with the sick, homeless, and orphans. And truly, from such love the hearts of his flock were inflamed: it was not he who was looking for people in need of Orthodox enlightenment, but they themselves, without distinction of tribes or faith, came to him in thousands and gave their souls and hearts, multiplying the flock of Christ.
The saint loved the statutory service very much, he himself often served and always took care of the splendor and solemnity of the service, which disposed the hearts of those praying to tenderness, instructing the clergy by his example in the beauty and sublimity of the service. This was also facilitated by the bishop’s holy vestments, which had never been seen by pilgrims before. At his consecration, he was the first of the Irkutsk bishops to be granted the privilege of performing divine services in the sakkos. Before this, bishops served in ordinary priestly vestments.
The saint conducted extensive missionary activity. He visited the pagans who inhabited Irkutsk, Yakutsk, Kamchatka, Transbaikalia, and sent missionaries to them, to whom he gave detailed instructions, written in his own hand. Enlightening the pagans with the light of the Orthodox faith, Saint Sophronius also took care of the organization of their life, the development of their settled way of life, and the cultural principles of agriculture. He settled them on monastery lands, trying in every possible way to isolate them from the influence of paganism. The saint built at his own expense and donated to the newly baptized Buryats an estate with a mill, mowing fields, arable land and a complete farm on the Kitoe River. Later, the village of Bishops arose here, where the name of St. Sophrony was sacredly revered.
With such vigorous activity, the Vladyka led an ascetic life: he slept on the floor, laying down a sheep or animal skin; spent most of the night in prayer; I ate strictly like a monk.
In 1770, anticipating his death, His Grace Sophrony asked the Holy Synod to retire him to his native Krasnogorsk monastery and to replace him with a younger bishop. But there was no answer to his request. In the spring of 1771, the saint became completely ill, and on March 30, the second day of Easter, at the age of 67, he departed to the Lord. The body of the deceased, dressed in sacred clothes, was in the Kazan chapel of the Irkutsk Epiphany Cathedral until October 8 - six months and ten days, until the order of the Holy Synod was received to commit him to earth. All this time, the saint’s body remained incorrupt - a sign that His Grace Sophrony pleased God. Even then they began to turn to him with prayer for help and intercession before the Lord - and many received healing of their ailments, physical and spiritual.
The examination of the remains of Saint Sophronius was first made in 1833. When the floor of the Kazan chapel was rebuilt in 1854, the coffin and body of St. Sophrony were found incorrupt for the second time. In 1870, the incorruptibility of the saint’s relics was again attested. Since 1870, services were held at the tomb of Sophrony on Thursdays, his image was revered as a shrine - Blessed Sophrony became a locally revered saint already in the 19th century.
In 1909, the incorrupt relics of the saint were rediscovered - a fragrance emanated from them.
The fame of the blessed Bishop Sophronia spread more and more widely and was multiplied by miraculous signs from his relics. A petition was filed before the Holy Synod to canonize him and open his holy relics for veneration and honor. The Holy Synod established a special commission chaired by Archbishop Seraphim for a more thorough investigation of the miraculous signs. This commission examined 65 miracles that occurred through prayers to St. Sophronius. The commission presented a report. But on April 18, 1917, for an unknown reason, a fire broke out in the Irkutsk Epiphany Cathedral, destroying the tomb and incorruptible relics of St. Sophronius. One can see in this the Providence of God, because otherwise there would have been a desecration of the holy relics. It is noteworthy that this event, which coincided with the day of the saint’s consecration (April 18, 1753), not only did not diminish the veneration of the saint, but strengthened it even more. After the fire, the Orthodox community of Irkutsk made a petition for the glorification of St. Sophrony. He was canonized in April 1918 by the Holy Council of the Russian Orthodox Church. The first signature under the Definition of the Council was: “Humble Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.”
MIRACLES REVEALED BY THE LORD THROUGH THE RECENTS OF ST. SOPHRONIUS
The first miracle was revealed after the dormition of Saint Sophrony. All the time from his death - March 30 - until the funeral service and burial - October 8, i.e. For 6 months and 9 days, Saint Sophronius was in the tomb in the Kazan chapel. Despite such a long period, his body showed no signs of decay. After the burial of the revered archpastor, his memory was preserved among the pious people of Irkutsk. In the 70s of the last century, the incorruptible body of the saint was discovered a second time; it was completely intact and fragrant. The hand holding the cross and the prayer of permission was white as snow. A hundred years later, the saint’s mantle remained as strong as if it had been recently laid on. And all this despite the great dampness in the cave (in the summer, due to dampness, not only the walls of the cave, but also the coffin were wet, and drops of water hung). The number of those who came to the saint’s tomb, seeking his intercession before the Lord, was great.
And soon from the saint’s tomb miracles and healings of the sick began, who with faith turned to him for prayerful help. Even before the canonization of the saint, there were sixty-eight such miracles, only recorded and verified.
How much invisible, gracious help was given to those suffering in soul and body after prayer at the saint’s grave! His tomb in the Irkutsk Epiphany Cathedral served as a refuge for the mourners, an unquenchable altar for their prayers offered daily. Year after year the number of people praying at the saint’s tomb increased. Not only residents of Irkutsk and Transbaikalia, but also the suffering and sick from all over Siberia began to come to his grave.
In one family, during a trip from Irkutsk to the south, their 5-year-old daughter Vera fell ill with pneumonia. Moscow doctors have lost all hope for her recovery. The girl was already dying; The parents, in desperation, decided to resort to the help of their native Saint. A memorial service was celebrated for St. Sophronius and then his image, printed on atlas, was placed on the chest of a sick child. Mother, brothers and sisters prayed earnestly. The sick Vera, who was already breathing rarely, and the death agony had already begun, suddenly jumped to her feet, began to breathe freely, and from that moment, to the surprise of the doctors who treated her, she became completely healthy.
The growth of veneration of the saint was also facilitated by the results of repeated examinations of his holy relics, which took place: under Archbishop Meletius (during the opening of the floor in the Kazan chapel); under Archbishop Nile (also during the alteration of the cathedral floor); under the Archbishop of Parthenia, this time by a special commission (during major repairs); under Archbishop Benjamin.
On March 8, 1909, a special commission carried out an official examination of the remains of the saint, and the following was discovered: after one hundred thirty-eight years, despite the proximity to water (the Angara River flows nearby), despite the constant dampness in the cave and under the floors of the cathedral, especially in the summer , the coffin, robe and body of Saint Sophronius were preserved incorrupt. During the inspection, which lasted about two hours, some of those present felt the fragrance from the relics of the saint.
On June 19, 1909, the second official examination of the relics by the commission took place. And again everything was found in the same form and condition as during the 1909 inspection. The results of the inspection could not help but become public knowledge to the pious admirers of St. Sophronius and further inflamed faith in his holiness and hope for his speedy earthly glorification.
Prompted by reverent veneration of the memory of the saint, hierarchs, secular authorities, and the Orthodox believing people petitioned the Synod for the speedy glorification of Bishop Sophrony as a saint of God. In 1909, a Missionary Congress was held in Irkutsk, which by its resolution expressed a zealous desire to petition for the glorification of St. Sophronius before the Holy Synod. The following year, on March 19, Irkutsk Archbishop Tikhon (Donebin) addressed the Synod with his personal petition. In 1914, Archbishop Seraphim of Irkutsk made a detailed report to the Synod about the life and miracles emanating from the incorruptible relics of St. Sophrony. The same desire was expressed by the pastoral meeting of the clergy of Irkutsk. The City Duma and City Council, in their submission to the governor, also asked to support the petition.
The wish for the speedy glorification of the bishop was expressed by the 48th diocesan congress of the clergy of the Irkutsk diocese. However, the Lord judged the glorification of the saint to be timely only in 1918. But before this joyful and long-awaited event happened, the faith of the admirers of the memory of the saint was like gold. was put to the test. The holy relics of the saint continued to rest in the Kazan chapel of the Irkutsk Epiphany Cathedral until April 18, 1917. By God's permission, on this day, for an unknown reason, a fire broke out in the church, destroying the tomb and the incorruptible relics of St. Sophronius. It is significant that this event coincided with the day of the saint’s consecration, which was in 1753, and with the new holiday of the future godless government - May Day (April 18, old style), at that time already celebrated quite widely and in its own way - with drinking, fights and “red roosters”, as the fires were called then. But the grief of the loss of the relics of the saint not only did not diminish the veneration of his memory, as the evil one hoped for, observing the fruits of his activity from the sidelines, on the contrary. The believing children of the Church have united into a union of Orthodox Christians, which has the goal of protecting the inviolability of the holy places of Orthodoxy and protecting them from desecration by enemies of the Church.
A special commission of clergy, laymen, representatives of the judiciary, medical experts and one chemist examined the ashes and bones of the saint, preserved after the fire, and reverently placed the remains in a special reliquary. A new period of the saint's earthly glory began.
Immediately after the fire, the number of his admirers increased many times over, and the number of funeral services increased, already in front of the reliquary. Signature sheets had previously circulated among pilgrims demanding the speedy glorification of the saint of God, but now their number has increased significantly. The number of statements about new miracles and signs that took place through the prayerful intercession of the saint increased, and many of those who experienced such a miraculous phenomenon testified about this at the Irkutsk diocesan congress in front of all those gathered. The congress received appeals from other dioceses supporting the desire of Irkutsk residents to glorify St. Sophrony. Appeals came not only from Siberia, but also from distant Tver, Kyiv and other dioceses. The Irkutsk diocesan congress decided to initiate a petition through His Eminence Archbishop John and elected representatives from the diocese to accelerate the process of universal glorification of the third Bishop of Irkutsk and canonize him. This petition was initiated before the Holy Synod and transferred from there to the council of the All-Russian Holy Council. In addition to the report of the Eminence John of Irkutsk, the Council was presented with all appeals and statements describing miracles verified by a special commission, sheets with signatures of over 18,000 people, reviews of the Council participants, doctors Klevezal and Volobuev about some of the most striking cases of miraculous healings through the prayers of the saint based on the display of data under oath. Having given praise to the wondrous Lord God in His saints, who was pleased to reveal the new lamp of the Russian Church as a new and great sign of His benefits to the Orthodox Church and the Russian people, and taking into account that all the preliminary acts required by the established customs of the Orthodox Russian Church regarding the canonization of saints of God have already fulfilled, the Council of Bishops found it timely to fulfill the pious desire of numerous devotees of the memory of the late Saint Sophronius in God. The acts of the Council determined: to glorify St. Sophrony, the third bishop of Irkutsk, numbering him among the saints of God, honored by the Orthodox Church; The sacred remains of the saint, collected in a reliquary, are placed in a reliquary.
The celebration of glorification itself, the dates of which, by the acts of the Council, was proposed to be determined by the Irkutsk bishop himself, in accordance with the opinion of the Patriarch and local conditions, was tentatively planned for June 30 - this was the opinion of the Right Reverend John, Archbishop of Irkutsk and Verkholensky. At the same time, the Patriarch and the Synod received a note from the clergy of the Irkutsk Cathedral with a request to postpone the celebration of the saint’s burial at least until October 8. The reasons given were really compelling.
In addition to fears of not meeting the time remaining until June 30, political and economic reasons seemed serious. The country was in a state of civil war; There were not enough basic things for worship: candles, flour, wine, wood oil; there were no icons of the saint; In addition, to organize the celebration it was necessary to obtain permission from the new authorities, and meanwhile “the new government in the person of the commissars finds the organization of the celebration inconvenient in the near future.” “Finally,” write the clergy of Irkutsk, “the situation in the city is currently extremely tense due to the movement of the White Army from the Far East. It’s hard to say what this will lead to in a month or two.”
It was difficult to object to such arguments, and the Patriarch agreed to postpone the date of glorification to a more favorable time. But God is not in power, but in truth. In a moment of disagreement about the time of glorification, Saint Sophronius himself appeared to Archbishop John and said to him: “Take courage!”, which inspired him to go against visible obstacles. The celebration took place on June 30. The peaceful singing of glory to the Lord and saint of God Sophrony was not disturbed by anything. It was preserved by the prayer of the saint himself before the Throne of the Most High.
At the same time, priest Tikhon Soldatov composed a service to the saint, and the troparion and kontakion, with the blessing of the Right Reverend John, were written by Archpriest Nikolai Ponomarev. The Akathist was prepared by Hieromonk Porfiry and reviewed by a group of bishops who were in Irkutsk “due to the circumstances of the time.” The same “circumstances of the time” transferred the reliquary and the reliquary with the holy remains to the Irkutsk church in the name of the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God, which belonged to the renovationists. Since 1937, after the closure of this temple, the shrine has been kept under wraps. Nowadays the name of Saint Sophrony, our zealous intercessor, the great ascetic of the Church, a tireless worker, “mentor of monks and interlocutor of angels,” is revered by the entire Orthodox world.
The saint is commemorated on March 30 (April 12, present day) - the day of his blessed death and June 30 (July 13, present day) - on the day of his solemn glorification in Irkutsk as a saint of God
Troparion, tone 1.
Speedy intercessor in troubles and sorrows, Father Hierarch of the Siberian country, Saint Sophrony, stand in Heaven with the First Hierarch of the Irkutsk Church and all the saints, imash the favor of the Lord of glory; look at the people flocking to the honorable remains of your holy relics, with faith and love tearfully asking for your help and intercession; Pray, You preached Him to the people of Siberia, to deliver me from the evils and slander of the enemy that are found, to enlighten people who have frozen their hearts in ancient times with unbelief, to grant confirmation of the faith of Christ, and to save our souls.
Kontakion, tone 3.
Shepherds to the Chief Christ, you worked, Saint Sophronius, in the spiritual pastures of our northern country, saving the pagans of Mongolia from delusion and filthiness and idolatry, you brought them to the light of the faith of Christ, and now with the Angels standing before the Master's throne, pray unceasingly for all of us, to deliver us from troubles and save our souls..
Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, was born in Damascus. From a young age he was distinguished by his piety and love of science. He especially succeeded in philosophy, for which they began to call him the Wise. But the future saint sought higher wisdom in monasteries, in conversations with desert dwellers. He arrived in Jerusalem, to the monastery of Saint Theodosius, and there he became close to hieromonk John Mosch. He became his spiritual son and surrendered to him in obedience. The righteous traveled together to monasteries, recording the lives and teachings of those who labored in them. Their famous book was later compiled from these notes "Limonar" or “The Spiritual Meadow”, which was highly appreciated by the Seventh Ecumenical Council.
Fleeing from the devastating raids of the Persians, Saints John and Sophronius left Palestine and retired to Antioch, and from there to Egypt. In Egypt, Saint Sophronius fell seriously ill. At that time he decided to become a monk and took monastic vows from the Monk John Moschus. After the recovery of Saint Sophronius, they both decided to remain in Alexandria. There they were lovingly received by the holy Patriarch John the Merciful, to whom they provided great assistance in the fight against the Monothelites. In Alexandria, Saint Sophronius's eyes hurt, and he resorted with prayer and faith to the unmercenary saints Cyrus and John, and in the church dedicated to them, he received healing. In gratitude, Saint Sophronius wrote the lives of the holy unmercenary healers.
When the barbarians began to threaten Alexandria, the holy Patriarch John, accompanied by Saints Sophronius and John, headed to Constantinople, but died on the way. Saints John and Sophronius with eleven other monks went to Rome. The Monk John died in Rome († 622). His body was transported by Saint Sophronius to Jerusalem and buried in the monastery of Saint Theodosius.
In 628, Patriarch Zechariah of Jerusalem (609 - 633) returned from Persian captivity. After his death, for two years the patriarchal throne was occupied by Saint Modest, and after the death of Saint Modest, Saint Sophronius was elected Patriarch. Saint Sophronius worked a lot for the good of the Jerusalem Church as its Primate (634 - 644).
At the end of his life, Saint Sophronius and his flock survived the two-year siege of Jerusalem by the Mohammedans. Exhausted by hunger, the Christians finally agreed to open the city gates on the condition that the enemy would spare the shrines. However, this condition was not fulfilled, and the holy Patriarch Sophrony died in deep sorrow over the desecration of Christian shrines.
The works of Patriarch Sophrony on dogma have reached us, as well as “Explanation of the Liturgy”, the Life of the Venerable Mary of Egypt, about 950 troparions, stichera from Easter to the Ascension. While still a hieromonk, Saint Sophronius revised and corrected the “Rules” of the monastery of St. Savva the Sanctified. The saint’s “Tripes” for the Holy Pentecost are also part of the modern Triodion.
The works of Patriarch Sophronius are collected in the volume Patrologia Graeca.
Troparion to Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, tone 8
Who moved with divine zeal / and spread the true commandments to the lips, / having legitimized the church foundations / and there betraying the existing monastic composition, / the wise Patriarch of Jerusalem Sophronius, / you brought into the light all-wise words, / in the image of those who are instructed, we call you: // Rejoice, bright one Orthodox praise.
Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk and All Siberia, miracle worker, known under the name Kristalevsky, was born in Little Russia, in the Chernigov regiment in 1704. His father, Nazariy Fedorov, was “a Polish-Lithuanian man, his Baltsy, Sophronia, was called Stefan,” in honor of the first martyr Archdeacon Stefan. He had two brothers and a sister, Pelageya. The name of one brother is Pavel, the name of the other, older brother is unknown, but there is information that he was later the abbot of the Krasnogorsk Zolotonosha Monastery.
Stefan's childhood years were spent in the town of Berezan, Pereyaslavsky district, Poltava province, where the family settled after his father was dismissed from service. As Stefan grew older, he entered the Kyiv Theological Academy, where at that time two other future saints were studying - Joasaph, Bishop of Belgorod (September 4 and December 10), and Paul, Metropolitan of Tobolsk.
Having received theological education, Stefan entered the Krasnogorsk Transfiguration Monastery (later renamed Pokrovsky, and since 1789 transformed into a convent), where his older brother was already asceticizing. On April 23, 1730, he took monastic vows with the name Sophronius, in honor of Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem (March 11).
On the night after being tonsured as a monk, the monk Sophrony heard a Voice in the Church of the Intercession: “ When you become a bishop, build a temple in the name of All Saints”, - foretelling his future service. Two years later, in 1732, he was called to Kyiv, where in the St. Sophia Cathedral he was ordained to the rank of hierodeacon, and then hieromonk. About the subsequent period of the life of Saint Sophronius, his form says the following: “ After his dedication in this Zolotonosha monastery, he was treasurer for two years, and then was taken by order of the Pereyaslav diocese of His Grace Arseny Berlov to his bishop's house, in which he was housekeeper for 8 years before being taken to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, from which in those years in 1735 he was sent to St. Petersburg for his episcopal affairs, for which he remained in intercession for two years».
These data quite specifically indicate the connection of the Saint with his native Pokrovsky monastery. While undergoing obedience to the ruling bishop in Pereyaslav, he often retired to his monastery, spending his days in silent contemplation and work, setting an example of monastic work for the brethren.
During Hieromonk Sophrony's stay on bishop's affairs at the Synod, special attention was paid to him. And when the need arose to replenish the brotherhood of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg, the future saint was summoned among the 29 monks summoned from various monasteries in Russia. A year later, he was appointed treasurer of the monastery, and in 1746 he was confirmed in the position of vicar of the monastery, which he held for more than seven years.
To help himself, he called his fellow countryman, a native of the city of Priluki, a hieromonk, and appointed him the builder of the New Sergius Hermitage, assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery. From that time on, the friendship of the two ascetics - Hieromonk Sophrony and Hieromonk Synesius - became increasingly stronger in their single pastoral work; they were already inseparable until their death on Siberian soil. During these years, Saint Sophronius put a lot of work into improving the monastery and improving teaching in the seminary located at it. Together with Archbishop Theodosius, he took care of the proper stocking of the monastery library.
Under him, a two-story church was built: the upper one, in the name of St. Theodore Yaroslavich, the elder brother of St. Alexander Nevsky, and the lower one, in the name of St. John Chrysostom.
In 1747, the Bishop of Irkutsk died. For six years, the Irkutsk diocese, the largest in territory, remained without spiritual guidance.
Finally, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna (1741–1761), by decree of February 23, 1753, recommended to the Holy Synod the pious abbot of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, Sophrony, as “ a person not only worthy of the episcopal rank, but also fully capable of justifying the desires and hopes of the empress and the Synod - to lift the burden of episcopal service in the distant outskirts and satisfy the needs of the flock in a harsh country, among wild nature and human tyranny».
On April 18, 1753, on the Sunday of Thomas, in the Great Assumption Cathedral, Hieromonk Sophrony was consecrated Bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk.
Anticipating a difficult ministry in the remote Siberian region, the newly ordained Saint did not immediately go to the Irkutsk diocese, but began to select educated and spiritually experienced employees. At this time, Saint Sophronius visited his first Krasnogorsk monastery. He also visited the shrines of Kyiv, where he asked the Kiev-Pechersk saints for a blessing for his service. The saint's constant companion was still Hieromonk Sinesius, who zealously shared his friend's life difficulties.
In Moscow, the Archbishop of Moscow and Nevsky Platon, who participated in the consecration of Hieromonk Sophrony, rendered great services to the saint. He gave him fatherly instructions for the upcoming feat, since he was well acquainted with the peculiarities of the Siberian spiritual life, warned him about the willfulness of the local authorities and advised him to select reliable assistants.
On March 20, 1754, the saint arrived in Irkutsk. First, he stopped by the Ascension Monastery, the place of residence of his predecessors, and prayed at the bishop’s grave, asking for his blessing for the upcoming feat.
Having become familiar with the state of affairs in the diocese, the saint began reforms in the Spiritual Consistory, monasteries and parishes, and turned to the Holy Synod with a request to send worthy people to serve in the priesthood in the Irkutsk diocese.
By the time of Saint Sophrony’s arrival, the Irkutsk monasteries already had a history of almost a century. The founders of these monasteries were filled with an ardent desire for a monastic, ascetic life. The insightful saint appointed pious, wise, active people, with great life and spiritual experience, as abbots of the monasteries. In 1754, His Grace Sophrony elevated his friend and associate Hieromonk Synesius to archimandrite of the Ascension Monastery. This memorable abbot served the monastery for thirty-three years before his blessed death. In September 1754, the Saint issued a decree, which noted concern for the training and education of the children of the clergy. The decree charged the clergy with the duty of teaching their children the Book of Hours, the Psalter, singing and the primer, and the teaching “ had to go with all diligence and extreme diligence, so that the children could fulfill the sexton and sexton duties according to their merits».
Carefully studying people and situations, in sermons and personal conversations, the saint tirelessly encouraged everyone to higher moral ideals. He paid special attention to the reverent and correct performance of Divine Services and the Sacraments by the clergy, and also monitored the moral purity of the laity, took care of the position of women in the family, and protected them from unfair treatment. The saint tried to establish the statutory Divine service everywhere, for which he summoned priests, deacons, sextons and sextons, who during the bishop's Divine service participated in the choir and served as subdeacons.
While traveling around the diocese, the saint noticed that due attention was not paid everywhere to church evangelism and censing, and therefore, by decrees, he restored the correct censing and evangelism.
Called to apostolic service in this region, Saint Sophrony realized that, in addition to enlightening Christian believers, he would have to bring idolaters, of whom there were very many in Siberia, to faith.
It was difficult to bring pagans to the Church of Christ, since sometimes there was no one to serve even in the churches, and even more so to engage in missionary activity. Knowing how the bishop's divine service has a beneficial effect on foreigners, the saint not only served reverently himself, but also demanded the same from all clergy.
Saint Sophronius took care of the way of life of small peoples and promoted the development of sedentism and culture in the local population, offered them monastery lands for settlement and tried in every possible way to isolate them from the influence of paganism. Numerous visitors constantly came to the saint and came from distant places for blessings.
Sophrony put a lot of effort into the construction of new temples and churches. On his initiative and with his participation, the Tikhvin Church, a house church in the name of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a new church above the gates of the Epiphany Cathedral, etc. were founded. He traveled a lot throughout the diocese: he made trips to Yakutsk, Transbaikalia, and conducted missionary activities.
But among many concerns, he did not forget about his inner, spiritual life and eternity and led an ascetic life. There is evidence of this from the cell attendant of St. Sophrony, who reports that the saint “ he ate the simplest food and in small quantities, served very often, spent most of the night in prayer, slept on the floor, either sheep's fur, deer or bear skin and a small simple pillow - that's all his bed for short sleep».
His ascetic spirit corresponded to the general rise of the Christian spirit in Russia due to the glorification of Saints Demetrius of Rostov (September 21), Theodosius of Chernigov (September 9) and especially after the discovery of the incorruptible relics of his predecessor, Saint Innocent of Irkutsk (February 9). This event gave Saint Sophronius great strength and inspired hope for the help of Saint Innocent in his work to organize the diocese.
Until the end of his days, Saint Sophrony retained his love for the Krasnogorsk Zolotonosha monastery, which nurtured him in the days of his youth. He constantly contributed to maintaining its splendor, sending the necessary funds for this.
Feeling his health deteriorating, Saint Sophronius submitted a petition to the Synod to retire him. But they delayed the answer from St. Petersburg, because it was difficult to immediately select a worthy successor.
Saint Sophronius spent the last days of his life in feat of prayer.
The light that shone forth in the good deeds of Saint Sophronius continues to testify to this day of the glory of the Heavenly Father, “mercifully strengthening His saints.” And now, not only in Siberia, at the site of the last exploits of Saint Sophrony, but also at the site of his first exploits, the holy memory of him is reverently preserved.
Day of Remembrance: Thursday, March 30 (old style) April 12, 2012 (new style) The second commemoration of Saint Sophronius is celebrated on June 30 (glorification, 1918).
Literature
- Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk and All Siberia, Wonderworker // Official Church Calendar
- Sophrony (Kristallevsky Stefan) // Irkutsk. Historical and local history dictionary
Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk.
Icon from the sacristy of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra
Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk and Wonderworker of All Siberia, known under the surname Kristalevsky, was born in Little Russia, in the Chernigov regiment in 1704. His father, Nazariy Fedorov, was a “pospolitan man, his Balti, Sophronia, was called Stefan,” in honor of the first martyr Archdeacon Stefan. He had two brothers and a sister, Pelageya. The name of one brother is Pavel, the name of the other, older one, is unknown, but there is information that he was subsequently the abbot of the Krasnogorsk Zolotonosha Monastery.
Stefan's childhood years were spent in the town of Berezan, Pereyaslavsky district, Poltava province, where the family settled after his father was dismissed from service. As Stefan grew older, he entered the Kyiv Theological Academy, where at that time two other future saints were studying - Joasaph, Bishop of Belgorod (September 4 and December 10), and Paul, Metropolitan of Tobolsk.
Saint Sophronius of Jerusalem
Having received theological education, Stefan entered the Krasnogorsk Transfiguration Monastery (later renamed Pokrovsky, and since 1789 transformed into a convent), where his older brother was already asceticizing. On April 23, 1730, he took monastic vows with the name Sophronius, in honor of Saint Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem (March 11).
On the night after being tonsured as a monk, the monk Sophrony heard a Voice in the Church of the Intercession: “When you become a bishop, build a temple in the name of All Saints,” which predicted his future service. Two years later, in 1732, he was summoned to Kyiv, where in the St. Sophia Cathedral he was ordained to the rank of hierodeacon, and then hieromonk. About the subsequent period of the life of Saint Sophrony, his form says the following: “After his dedication in this Zolotonosha monastery, he was treasurer for two years, and then was taken by order of the Pereyaslav diocese of the Most Reverend Arseny Berlov to his bishop’s house, in which he was a housekeeper for 8 years upon his capture in Alexandro- Nevsky Monastery, from which in those years in 1735 he was sent to St. Petersburg for his bishop’s affairs, for which he remained in intercession for two years.”
Saint Joasaph of Belgorod
These data quite specifically indicate the connection of the Saint with his native Pokrovsky monastery. While undergoing obedience to the ruling bishop in Pereyaslav, he often retired to his monastery, spending his days in silent contemplation and work, setting an example of monastic work for the brethren.
During Hieromonk Sophrony's stay on bishop's affairs at the Synod, special attention was paid to him. And when the need arose to replenish the brotherhood of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg, the future saint was summoned among the 29 monks summoned from various monasteries in Russia. A year later, he was appointed treasurer of the monastery, and in 1746 he was confirmed in the position of vicar of the monastery, which he held for more than seven years.
Saint John Chrysostom
To help him, he summoned his fellow countryman, a native of the city of Priluki, Hieromonk Synesius and appointed him the builder of the New Sergius Hermitage, assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery. From that time on, the friendship of the two ascetics - Hieromonk Sophrony and Hieromonk Synesius - became increasingly stronger in their single pastoral work; they were already inseparable until their death on Siberian soil. During these years, Saint Sophronius put a lot of work into improving the monastery and improving teaching in the seminary located at it. Together with Archbishop Theodosius, he took care of the proper stocking of the monastery library.
Under him, a two-story church was built: the upper one, in the name of St. Theodore Yaroslavich, the elder brother of St. Alexander Nevsky, and the lower one, in the name of St. John Chrysostom.
In 1747, Bishop of Irkutsk Innocent II (Nerunovich) died. For six years, the Irkutsk diocese, the largest in territory, remained without spiritual guidance.
Finally, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna (1741 - 1761), by decree of February 23, 1753, recommended to the Holy Synod the Synod of the pious abbot of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery Sophrony, as “a person not only worthy of the episcopal rank, but also fully capable of justifying the desire and hopes of the Empress and the Synod - to raise the burden of episcopal service on a distant outskirts and to meet the needs of the flock in a harsh country, among wild nature and human tyranny."
On April 18, 1753, on the Sunday of Thomas, in the Great Assumption Cathedral, Hieromonk Sophrony was consecrated Bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk.
Anticipating a difficult ministry in the remote Siberian region, the newly ordained Saint did not immediately go to the Irkutsk diocese, but began to select educated and spiritually experienced employees. At this time, Saint Sophronius visited his first Krasnogorsk monastery. He also visited the shrines of Kyiv, where he asked the Kiev-Pechersk saints for a blessing for his service. The saint's constant companion was still Hieromonk Sinesius, who zealously shared his friend's life difficulties.
In Moscow, the Archbishop of Moscow and Sevsk Platon, who participated in the consecration of Hieromonk Sophrony, rendered great services to the saint. He gave him fatherly instructions for the upcoming feat, since he was well acquainted with the peculiarities of the Siberian spiritual life, warned him about the willfulness of the local authorities and advised him to select reliable assistants.
On March 20, 1754, the saint arrived in Irkutsk. First, he stopped by the Ascension Monastery, the place of residence of his predecessors, and prayed at the grave of Bishop Innocent (Kulchitsky), asking for his blessing for the upcoming feat.
Having become familiar with the state of affairs in the diocese, the saint began reforms in the Spiritual Consistory, monasteries and parishes, and turned to the Holy Synod with a request to send worthy people to serve in the priesthood in the Irkutsk diocese.
By the time of Saint Sophrony’s arrival, the Irkutsk monasteries already had a history of almost a century. The founders of these monasteries were filled with an ardent desire for a monastic, ascetic life. The insightful saint appointed pious, wise, active people, with great life and spiritual experience, as abbots of the monasteries. In 1754, His Grace Sophrony elevated his friend and associate Hieromonk Synesius to archimandrite of the Ascension Monastery. This memorable abbot served the monastery for thirty-three years before his blessed death. In September 1754, the Saint issued a decree, which noted concern for the training and education of the children of the clergy. The decree charged the clergy with the duty of teaching their children the Book of Hours, the Psalter, singing and the primer, and the teaching “had to be done with all diligence and extreme diligence, so that the children could fulfill the sacristan and sexton duties according to their merits.”
Carefully studying people and situations, in sermons and personal conversations, the saint tirelessly encouraged everyone to higher moral ideals. He paid special attention to the reverent and correct performance of Divine services and the Sacraments by the clergy. and also monitored the moral purity of the laity, took care of the position of women in the family, and protected them from unfair treatment of them. The saint tried to establish the statutory Divine service everywhere, for which he summoned priests, deacons, sextons and sextons, who during the bishop's Divine service participated in the choir and served as subdeacons.
While traveling around the diocese, the saint noticed that due attention was not paid everywhere to church evangelism and censing, and therefore, by decrees, he restored the correct censing and evangelism.
Called to apostolic service in this region, Saint Sophrony realized that, in addition to enlightening Christian believers, he would have to bring idolaters, of whom there were very many in Siberia, to faith.
It was difficult to bring pagans to the Church of Christ, since sometimes there was no one to serve even in the churches, and even more so to engage in missionary activity. Knowing how the bishop's divine service has a beneficial effect on foreigners, the saint not only served reverently himself, but also demanded the same from all clergy.
Saint Sophronius took care of the way of life of small peoples and promoted the development of sedentism and culture in the local population, offered them monastery lands for settlement and tried in every possible way to isolate them from the influence of paganism. Numerous visitors constantly came to the saint and came from distant places for blessings.
But among many concerns, he did not forget about his inner, spiritual life and eternity and led an ascetic life. There is evidence of this from the cell attendant of St. Sophrony, who reports that the saint “ate the simplest food and in small quantities, served very often, spent most of the night in prayer, slept on the floor, whether sheep’s fur, deerskin or bearskin and a small simple pillow - that’s all his bed for a short sleep.”
Saints Nicholas the Wonderworker and Innocent of Irkutsk
His ascetic spirit corresponded to the general upsurge of the Christian spirit in Russia due to the glorification of Saints Demetrius of Rostov (September 21), Theodosius of Chernigov (September 9) and especially with the discovery of the incorruptible relics of his predecessor, Saint Innocent of Irkutsk (February 9). This event gave Saint Sophronius great strength and inspired hope for the help of Saint Innocent in his work to organize the diocese.
Until the end of his days, Saint Sophrony retained his love for the Krasnogorsk Zolotonosha monastery, which nurtured him in the days of his youth. He constantly contributed to maintaining its splendor, sending the necessary funds for this.
Feeling his health deteriorating, Saint Sophronius submitted a petition to the Synod to retire him. But they delayed the answer from St. Petersburg, because it was difficult to immediately select a worthy successor. Saint Sophronius spent the last days of his life in feat of prayer.
Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk and all Siberia, reposed before God on March 30, 1771, on the second day of Holy Easter. While they were awaiting the decision of the Holy Synod on burial, his body remained not buried for six months and during this time did not undergo decay. Even then, in view of this circumstance, and also knowing the strict ascetic life of Saint Sophrony, the flock began to venerate him as a saint of God. Repeatedly (in 1833, 1854, 1870, 1909) his relics were testified as incorruptible and exuding grace-filled miracles. The fire that happened on April 18, 1917 in the Epiphany Cathedral in Irkutsk left only the bones of the saint, but did not diminish, but, on the contrary, increased the reverent veneration of the saint by the believing people.
Saint Sophrony, Bishop of Irkutsk
The Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, in a resolution dated April 10/23, 1918, decided to glorify St. Sophrony, canonizing him among the saints of God. The very celebration of the canonization of Saint Sophronius took place on June 30. At the second session of the same Council, under the chairmanship of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon, the Service to Saint Sophronius was approved with a troparion compiled by Archbishop John, who ruled the Irkutsk diocese at that time, so that all believers had the opportunity to join the prayer to the holy saint with the voice of the Siberian churches, which highly honor the memory of their lamp and prayer book .
The light that shone forth in the good deeds of Saint Sophronius continues to testify to this day of the glory of the Heavenly Father, “mercifully strengthening His saints.” And now, not only in Siberia, at the site of the last exploits of Saint Sophrony, but also at the site of his first exploits, the holy memory of him is reverently preserved.
Greater of God, Holy Hierarch of Christ, good shepherd of the verbal flock, man of God, new miracle worker and vigilant prayer book to God for this country, Father Sophrony, look down from the heights of Heaven upon us, who with faith and love worship your image and the honest remains of holy relics, in our consolation for those who have escaped from the all-consuming fire. Look, Holy One of God, and see our disorder and strife, our tightness, sorrow and heart disease, from the deprivation of brotherly love that abides. Ask from Christ God for each of us the grace of humility, the knowledge of our sinfulness and self-reproach, and, listening to each of our conscience, let us stop condemning our neighbor, slandering and slandering, but, united to each other with love, we will be honored to live peacefully in humility the rest of our lives and improve our Christian life. death. Yes, having united in the future life with all the saints and with you, our shepherd, we will glorify the One in the Trinity, the glorified God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
July 13, 2019