The events of more than a thousand years ago are lost in the historical distance. The base of sources that has survived to this day does not allow us to adequately recreate the picture of the past, but the desire for this is fully justified, since this is the time of the beginning of Christianity in Rus', the dispensation of the Russian Church, the formation of Russian culture. Of great importance for the study of this time is the activity of the Primates of the Russian Church.
The list of Metropolitans of the Russian Church of the pre-Mongolian period with a brief description of their activities, compiled by the Polish researcher A. Poppe, is given in the book of the modern researcher Ya. while the Russian church tradition calls St. Michael (988–†992; commemorated Sept. 30) the first Metropolitan of Kiev. In the most ancient chronicles, the name of Metropolitan Michael is not mentioned, and this gives scientists a certain basis for skepticism. But in this case, the question is legitimate: are all the Kievan Metropolitans mentioned in the ancient chronicles? Some First Hierarchs lived at a time when writing in Rus' had already taken its first steps, but in the annals they were mentioned only once: Metropolitans John III (1090-1091), Joseph (1236-1240). It should be noted that the likelihood of finding in the foreseeable future Greek, Slavic or other sources that shed the necessary light on this issue is very unlikely. Therefore, it is necessary to proceed from the existing source base.
Some lists of the Charter of Prince Vladimir say that Metropolitan Michael was sent to Rus' by Patriarch Photius of Constantinople (877–886). In this regard, as the Greek historian V. Fidas suggests, “there were two groups of sources that told about the adoption of Christianity by Russia: one of them spoke about Prince Vladimir, but not about the Patriarch who sent a bishop to Russia, and in the other (more ancient ) - only about the Patriarch, who first sent a bishop to Russia (that is, about Photius), but not about the princes who received this bishop (that is, about Askold and Dir). The Russian chroniclers did not have exact information about the time of the life of Patriarch Photius, which contributed to the confusion of the sources of both groups. So there was a contamination of two versions of historical sources.
Research thought made efforts to search for historical analogues-contemporaries, named after the named Patriarch and Metropolitan. A. Poppe expressed such an assumption about the reasons for the appearance of the name of Metropolitan Michael. Under the year 988, in the Tale of Bygone Years, there is an instruction to Prince Vladimir, belonging to the Byzantine writer of the 9th century, Michael Sincellus. “The compilers of the Church Charter took this “Instruction” as written for the sake of Vladimir and, thus, concluded that the author of the Creed was also the first Russian Metropolitan.” An attempt to explain the presence of the name of Patriarch Photius in Russian sources is similar. In the 10th century, the Byzantine Church had Metropolitan Photius of Ephesus, who, together with the Archbishop of Kherson, “consecrated the first hierarchs of the Russian Church.” It must be said that these conjectures are original and interesting, but historically unconvincing.
The Greek researcher V. Fidas, having analyzed various historical evidence, says that St. Michael labored in Rus' in 989-991. At the origins of Christianity in Rus' is also the name of Patriarch Nicholas III of Constantinople Chrysoverg (979-991). He is known not only for the fact that he ordained Metropolitan Michael of Kyiv, but also for the fact that he ordained the venerable Simeon the New Theologian (†1021; commemorated March 12) to the rank of presbyter. Soon after his death, Patriarch Nicholas was canonized in Byzantium, but in Rus' this was reflected only in the Prologues of the 1st edition - Commemorated December 16.
The Nikon chronicle calls St. Michael the Sirin, but there is also a statement about his Bulgarian origin. O. M. Rapov considers the Syrian and Bulgarian factors in the Christianization of Kievan Rus and gives preference to the first. “The Syrian clergy had vast experience in the Christianization of many peoples, it also had connections with the Asia Minor Slavs, and therefore the participation of the Syrians in the baptism of Rus' cannot be completely ruled out.” We can say that we know little about the activities of Metropolitan Michael in Rus' and know absolutely nothing about his previous period of life.
Metropolitan Michael first arrived in Chersonese and then in Rus' as part of a retinue accompanying the Byzantine princess Anna, the future wife of Prince Vladimir. The baptism of the Kievan ruler took place in Chersonese. The grateful prince, having accepted holy Baptism and the Christian faith, “with the blessing of your father, the Metropolitan, set up a church in Korsun on Mount<…>this church stands to this day.” Giving thanks to Christ the Savior, he also honored Byzantium for the royal bride: The military campaign for the prince ended in peace with Byzantium and he returned to Rus' together with his Christian wife, prayer book-metropolitan, Orthodox shrines and the prospect of a blessed Christian future. M. V. Lomonosov says that the prince became "connected with the royal blood and with the faith of Christ." On the way from Korsun to Kerch, the Byzantine princess fell ill and received healing thanks to a prayerful appeal to St. Stephen of Surozh (VIII century; commemorated December 15) “and many gifts were given to the Church of the Holy One.”
In the Volyn edition of the Church Charter, Prince Vladimir says about himself: “... receiving with (high) that k (e) chance, dedicated to the former d ( ) neck and body, and abie healed from the then incurable illness that caused me, and glorified B ( og ) a, as if vouchsafe me to accept such a bl (a) g (o) d (a) be exalted (vy) sch (en) by Metropolitan Michael, and take his rightful Metropolitan from the Patriarch and from the whole Assembly, honored with a lampada and sakom, like the second Patriarch, with him the whole Row land died. This edition of the Charter has two types and has survived to this day in the lists of the late XV - late XVI centuries, but this text is even older. The publisher Ya. N. Shchapov writes: “The text of the Volyn edition of the Charter is part of the lists of the Vladmir-Volyn Pilots, dating back to one archetypal text of the Pilots, rewritten in 1286 in the city of Vladimir Volynsky”, on the eve of the tercentenary of the Baptism of Rus'. According to the researcher, initially the name of the Metropolitan was not in the text of the Charter and it appeared later. In the editions of the Charter of Prince Vladimir, which were created in Volhynia and Galicia in the XIII-XIV centuries, the name of Metropolitan Michael is called.
The main act of Prince Vladimir is the baptism of the Russian land. This sacred sacrament was performed by St. Michael with the clergy who arrived and with the clergy of the Ilyinsky temple in Kyiv, named earlier in the annals, as well as the St. Sophia church. “And there was great joy in people, and humility, and much love, and all who gather by faith and love for Christ God, and multiply by the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” In the subsequent time, a prayer tradition was established in the liturgical life of the Church: “In memory of this event, the Russian Church established the custom of an annual procession “to the water” on August 1, which was then combined with the feast of the Presenting of the precious trees of the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord.”
One can talk about the activities of St. Michael mostly hypothetically, linking with him some of the surviving bits of historical information. So, in Memory and praise of Prince Vladimir, Jacob says the following about his virtues: “And you set up three meals: the first Metropolitan with bishops, and with Chernorz, and with priests ...”. In this regard, we can quote from the Nikon chronicle: “Honour yours to him [Metropolitan Mikhail A. M.] Volodimer, and in harmony and love with him, I abide with him, and I rejoice all, and the glory of God exceeds. The chronicle speaks of the baptism by Metropolitan Michael of all the sons of Prince Vladimir, and immediately after birth he could baptize the holy passion-bearers Princes Boris and Gleb (†1015; commemorated July 24), that is, in infancy.
An important event was the laying of a large stone church in Kyiv, an important state event. Prince Vladimir speaks about this in the Charter: “Bless (ago) s (lo) veniye accept from Michael the Metropolitan of All Russia congress of the ts (e) rk (o) tithe s (vy) tyya B (garden) tsa and give her a tithe for of the whole Russian land in his reign for the tenth century, and for the tenth week of trading, and from the houses for every summer from all the profits and from the capture of the prince and from the herds and from the tithe to the wonderful Sp (a) su and s (vya) tei B (gardens) qi, cities and graveyards, villages and vineyards, lands and boards, lakes, rivers, volosts and tributes with all profits, the tenth in all kingdoms and reigns ”. This is also mentioned in the Tale of Bygone Years: “Then, Volodymyr, living in the law of the Christians, think about creating the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, and as if having died, decorate it with icons and entrust it to Nastas the Korsunian, and assign the priests of Korsun to serve in it, putting everything into it , hedgehog took in Korsun: icons, and loans, and crosses. Commentators on the Tale of Bygone Years also name other dates for the foundation of the Church of the Tithes, but in any case, Prince Vladimir discussed the issue of creating this temple with St. Michael. The first Russian martyrs, the Varangians Theodore and John, who suffered in 983 (commemorated July 12), lived on the site of the Church of the Tithes. Their courtyard was located - “where there is a church of the Holy Mother of God, to the south Vladimir did it.”
The Prince and the Metropolitan are making their first efforts to plant spiritual enlightenment in Rus':<…>young children<…>give in the school, learn to read and write ". The first missionary journeys around the country are undertaken. The chronicle describes missionary travels only to the regions northeast of Kyiv: Veliky Novgorod, Rostov and other cities, although, undoubtedly, Christianity was preached in the southern cities. Moreover, missionary efforts extend beyond Kievan Rus. The Book of Degrees says how Prince Vladimir “with the blessing of his father, the Most Reverend Metropolitan Michael<…>ambassador of the chosen philosopher named Mark the Macedonian to the blessings of the sratsin. The Nikon Chronicle also speaks of this. It can be said that the compiler of the akathist to St. Michael had both books at hand. He writes: “... by faith you were jealous, as if to the godless Hagarians, to the Bulgarians and Saracens, the husband of a certain Mark the Philosopher sent to preach and called people to Christ.” S. A. Ivanov considers this event "very plausible".
Undoubtedly, the first Metropolitan bore the name of the Archangel Michael, the veneration of which has been characteristic of Kyiv and the people of Kiev since antiquity. The beginning of St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery is associated in literature with the name of St. Michael, although later this assertion was not supported. Another thing is more obvious: the historical memory of the first Metropolitan, who worked in Kyiv, is preserved in his coat of arms, which depicts the heavenly patron of St. Michael - the Archangel Michael.
The activity of St. Michael in Kievan Rus did not last long. Under the year 992, the Nikon Chronicle says: “The same summer, the Most Reverend Michael, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus', reposed, having lived a strong life, and showed much work about the Lord in the newly baptized people, and keep the Orthodox faith, and teach everyone the understanding of God. And Volodimer shed a lot of grief about this and shed tears. The akathist says about this: “... even if it’s not forty years like Moses, but for four years then the people of the Kiev country brought children, not with perishable manna, but feeding this true Bread from heaven, which is Christ the Lord.” The Trinity edition of the Charter of Prince Vladimir, which has come down to us in the lists of the second quarter of the 16th-17th centuries, speaks of the works of the first Metropolitan, “even with divine Baptism, baptize the whole Russian land and many labors, O Lord, show in newly baptized people, and observe the Orthodox faith, and all teach prudence, and the flow of Christ is over, and I will fall into a blissful sleep in eternal rest, O Lord. The service describes the sadness of the death of the High Hierarch of the Russian land: “Many weeping and sobbing for the city of Kiev, your, father, departure to God, was created: but the Highest Jerusalem, receiving you into its bowels, rejoiced.”
With the development of scientific thought and book printing in the 17th century, the name of Metropolitan Michael began to appear in books and historical works. Russian thought of that time names five baptisms of Rus'. The “Synopsis”, published in Kiev, speaks of the first baptism under the Apostle Andrew, then under the Byzantine Patriarch Photius in 863 through the efforts of the Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius, in 886 sent by Patriarch Photius Metropolitan Michael, then under Princess Olga in 955. “Fifth, the Russians are completely and certainly baptized also from Constantinople, reigning the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir, autocrat of all Russia, into the kingdom of the Greek kings Basil and Constantine, the Patriarchal throne ruling Nikola Chrysoverg, the summer of the birth of Christ 988” . Then the next chapter deals with the activities of Metropolitan Michael. Elder Isidore (Snazin), who worked in the entourage of the Moscow Patriarch Joachim (1674–1690), speaks in the same way. He compiled a chronicle code published in the 31st volume of the Complete Collection of Russian Chronicles (M., 1968), which also speaks of the four baptisms of Rus', and then in detail about the baptism of Rus' under Prince Vladimir, about the primatial works of Metropolitan Michael.
The name of the Primate is found in the writing of Muscovite Rus'. In the table charter given after enthronement to the newly appointed Patriarch of Moscow Pitirim (1672–1673), a brief history of the hierarchy in Rus' is given and the first Kiev Metropolitan Michael is named. In the materials of the Moscow Council, which met on January 1, 1678, which stopped the veneration of Blessed Anna Kashinskaya († 1368; commemorated on October 2), ascetics are listed who are not venerated as saints. At the beginning it is called “Mikhail, Metropolitan of Novgorod” (!) And at the end of the list it says: “And other multitudes having lived sacredly are incorruptible in the caves of Kiev, in Velitsky Novegrad and in Vladimir Velitsia, princes and princesses (even, behind the multitude, they are not named) and troparia and canons are sung to none of these.”
His name is in the monument of hagiographic thought of the 17th century - in the Book, the verb description of the Russian saints. M. V. Tolstoy, commenting on the Book ..., names the places where the holy relics of the First Hierarch of the Russian land were located: “His relics were originally buried in the Church of the Tithes, but in 1103 they were transferred to the Anthony Cave, and from there in 1730 they were transferred to the Great Church of the Most Pure”. The name of the Kiev-Pechersk abbot, Archimandrite Feoktist, is called, during which the relics of the Saint were transferred to the monastery cave. However, Archimandrite Ambrose (Ornatsky) says that this transfer took place “after the invasion of the Tatars”. Thus, after his death, he was buried in the Church of the Tithes, which began to be built under him; at that time it was a cathedral in Rus'. Similarly, Metropolitan Peter (†1326; commemorated December 21) was buried in the unfinished Assumption Cathedral in 1326, with whom the rise of Moscow is associated. The stay of the holy relics in the caves was reflected in the hymnography: “We magnify the face of the Russian hierarchs and lecherous cathedrals: join the holy cave, shepherd of the original shepherd, honor your father with songs”; “Rejoice, zealous prayer book of the monastery of the Caves.” Archimandrite Ambrose (Ornatsky), who compiled a chronological list of Russian saints, places the name of St. Michael of Kyiv in the face of Russian saints of the tenth century.
Archbishop Filaret of Chernigov, referring to the handwritten Saints, says that the memory of Metropolitan Michael is happening on June 15. “Previously, his memory was also celebrated on September 2, together with the Monks Anthony and Theodosius of the Caves.” So the idea of the beginning of Christianity in Rus' was combined with the beginning of the church year: “The first, new summer, the beginning of the ascent, as to the first of you, blessed, and the first bishop of the Russian land, we bring the first song of the hilt.” Archbishop Sergius (Spassky) writes about the veneration of Saint Michael: Relics in the Kyiv Lavra in the cathedral church of the Assumption” . The transfer of the relics of Metropolitan Michael from the cave took place in 1730 on the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos by decree of Empress Anna Ioannovna. This caused the appearance of the second date of memory of the Saint - September 30. The transfer of the relics of Saint Michael was a recognition of his holiness and his canonization. “The Lavra took care of her under her last elected archimandrite Zosima Valkevich (1762–1786), known for his zeal for decorating Lavra shrines and glorifying the Caves saints. At the request of the Lavra, by decrees of the Holy Synod: June 15, 1762, May 18, 1775, and October 31, 1784, it is allowed to place in the books printed in the Lavra the names of St. and other reverend Caves<…>Saint Michael on September 30, to print both in the monthly Menaia, and as a special book for general use.
A researcher on the history of hymnography writes that the service to St. Michael was compiled “in its current form later than the beginning. 18th century." . I. Malyshevsky says that it was written in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. F. G. Spassky notes: “It must be admitted that this service is a later and successful forgery, an entry into the spirit of the writings of the authors of Kyiv services.” The service to St. Michael begins with the words: “First of you in the hierarchs, the Russian land crowns you with songs, Saint Michael, the most blessed saint of Christ. For the first time that Divine Baptism completely enlightened you, the first thing you brought the light of the Gospel into the darkness, the first thing you destroyed the idol requirements with the sign of the Cross, you surprised the unbelieving people. The saint is glorified as “chief bishop”, “wise worker”, “fragrant cypress”, etc.
Russian liturgical thought did not honor the Apostle Andrew the First-Called with a special service (†62; commemorated December 30), but, as F. Spassky noted, in the service to St. Michael of Kiev “this omission” was “partially” corrected. The service to the Saint says that he “completed the First-Called Prophecy”; “Today the prophecy in the apostles of the First-Called is fulfilled, behold, on these mountains, grace and faith have multiplied.”
The primate is called the baptizer of Prince Vladimir: "... the first I brought to the knowledge of the Divine great in the princes of Vladimir." In turn, the Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince received the First Hierarch “like the dawn.” This thought is repeated in the service below: “And the great Prince Basil delighted in your fruits, welcomed you with love to rule the Russian land.” The initiative of the government and the Christian zeal of Metropolitan Michael were the key to the successful baptism of the Russian land.
The service to the saint is filled with gospel images. The Gospel parable tells how the father, rejoicing at the return of the prodigal son, said your servant: Wear the first garment and clothe him, and put a ring on his hand(Luke 15:22). In the Gospel, the ring means the restoration of lost sonship and dignity. In the service, this symbol shows the “sonship” of the Russian land acquired before God: “... the glorious city of Kiev smells fragrant and accepts the mark of adoption”, also the Russian land, “having received the adoption ring, rejoices”. “The gold ring of new grace, Bishop Michael, putting Russia on his hand, betrothed the bride to be pure of Christ, even from the language of the Church.” The next troparion in the canon, the Theotokos, begins with the words: “We call the golden ring Thee, the Pure Virgin, adorned like a precious adamant, the joining of the flesh of Christ.”
To glorify the feat of the Saint, the hymnographer uses Old Testament images. He draws a parallel between the feat of Joshua and Metropolitan Michael: “Fall the walls of Jericho, Joshua surrounded the kivot: fall and idols, with the cross to you, hierarch, I will come.” Saint Michael is also compared in the service with the prophet Moses: as the prophet with the rod of the cross “stopped<…>sea”, and the Kievan High Hierarch “having washed the people of the vision of God with water, brought thou to a haven”. Below in the service it says: “Moses the second of Russia appeared to you, Father, bringing mental grapes from Egyptian idolatry into the land I foresaw by prophecy.”
In the service, the glorious city of Kyiv and the mountains of Kyiv are repeatedly glorified. The city of Kyiv, having received holy Baptism, “wears, like a hryvnia of gold, the honest gospel of Christ. Even we kiss and glorify the Word of God.” The akathist notes the preaching of the Saint in Kyiv, as well as in Veliky Novgorod and Rostov. In the service to the venerable Pechersk ascetics, who rest in nearby caves, it is said: “We sing songs to the hierarchs of the Russian lands: from them the first Michael ...”. At the Council of the Russian Church in 1917-1918, a celebration was established in honor of all the saints who shone forth in the Russian land. The compiled service for the holiday says about Metropolitan Michael: “Shines, like a star in heaven, God’s Hierarch Michael, enlightening the Russian land with the light of knowledge of the Divine faith and the Lord, bringing new people, renewed by the bath of baptism.”
The fate of the relics of the first Metropolitan of the Russian land is very sad. About the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, where the relics of the Saint were kept, it is known that on November 3, 1941, it was “destroyed by an explosion”.
Saint Michael was sent to Rus' in the retinue of Princess Anna. Her royal dignity determined the high rank of the accompanying clergyman. It can be assumed that he was the vicar of the Patriarch and had the title of the Byzantine see. In the course of his missionary service, he undoubtedly wrote about his works to the Byzantine Patriarch. After his blissful death that soon followed (at least not earlier), when the question arose in Constantinople of sending a successor to him to Rus', one can make an assumption about the adoption of a synodal decision to open the Kiev diocese. In this case, Metropolitan Leonty, the successor of St. Michael, was the first official head of the new diocese. Since the formation of a diocesan structure began in Rus', this was the formation of a national Church within the Patriarchate of Constantinople. At the origins of this phenomenon is the name of St. Michael, whose work was continued by Metropolitan Leonty already at a new canonical level.
There were hierarchs in Rus' before, but now the active assistance of the princely power contributed to the success of the Christianization of the entire Russian people. It should also be noted that the name of Metropolitan Michael historically found itself in the shadow of Prince Vladimir, the baptizer of the Russian land, to whom, as an equal-to-the-apostles ascetic, hagiographic works were dedicated. The short duration of the service of the Primate also had a negative impact on the preservation of his name in historical memory. During his short service in Rus', St. Michael hardly learned the Russian language and therefore he did not have full-fledged communication with the people around him, and this also affected his memory in the subsequent time. Only later, in the 16th-17th centuries, did his name come out of oblivion, but many sources had already been lost by that time. The most extensive reference is made to Saint Michael in the Nikon Chronicle of Metropolitan Daniel (1522–1539) and the Book of Degrees, created in the era of Saint Macarius (1542–†1563; commemorated on December 30). It is necessary to cite an interesting thought by O. M. Rapov: “Practice shows that often late chronicles, the compilers of which tried to attract as many diverse sources as possible, contain more reliable historical materials than ancient chronicles” .
The modern liturgical tradition especially honors St. Michael. In the deacon's petition on the lithium, the face of the Moscow wonderworkers begins with the name of the first Metropolitan of Kyiv, Michael. In the year of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism, an exhibition was held in Moscow, at which the icon of St. Michael, painted at the beginning of the 20th century by M. I. Dikarev, was exhibited. “The face of St. Michael is traditionally depicted on the most common version of the icon of the Cathedral of the Saints of the Caves, known since the first half of the 18th century.” . The image of St. Michael received a certain reflection in the work of Russian artists. V. M. Vasnetsov depicts him in the murals of the Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv, in the subjects of the baptism of Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir in Chersonesos and the baptism of Rus', like other artists in similar subjects.
The Book of Degrees says about St. Michael: “Many labors about the Lord of the show, and destroy many idols, and convert many unfaithful people to the faith of Christ, and affirm the Orthodox faith in newly baptized people, and teach everyone the understanding of God.” The Russian Church glorifies its Primate in the akathist: "Rejoice, foundation of the Church of God in Russia." The poet of the 19th century speaks of the most important event in the life of the Russian people:
The banners shone with golden brocade,
The censer was smoking around,
He shone uplifted over the whole crowd
In the hands of the archpastor is a cross! .
List of abbreviations
Poppe A. V Shchapov Ya. N. State and Church in Ancient Rus' X-XIII centuries. M., 1989. S. 191–206; Same // Podskalski G. Christianity and Theological Literature in Kievan Rus (988–1237). Ed. 2. St. Petersburg, 1996, pp. 446–471.
For Metropolitan Michael, see Archimandrite Ambrose. History of the Russian hierarchy. Ed. 2. T. 1. Part 1. Kyiv, 1827. S. 81; Kalinnikov V. Metropolitans and Bishops under St. Vladimir // TKDA. Kyiv, 1888, vol. 2, no. 6, pp. 481–487; Michalin I. Saint Michael, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus' // ZhMP. 1987. No. 4. S. 8–9; Lives of the saints of the Russian Church, also Iberian and Slavic and locally venerated ascetics of piety. M., 1993. Month of September. pp. 559–560; A historical dictionary about the saints glorified in the Russian Church and about some ascetics of piety locally revered. M., 1990. S. 164–165; Metropolitan John of St. Petersburg and Ladoga. I sing to my God. Akathists. Portraits of Russian bishops. Diary entries. SPb., 1998, pp. 112–113; Russian saints and ascetics of Orthodoxy. Historical encyclopedia. M., 2010. S. 525; Metropolitan of Tashkent and Central Asia Vladimir. “A man wise in mind” // Shepherd. 2007. October. pp. 36–38; Archbishop Philaret (Gumilevsky). Russian saints honored by the whole Church or locally. St. Petersburg, 2008, pp. 340–341; Metropolitan Manuel (Lemeshevsky). Russian Orthodox Hierarchs: 882–1892. T. 2: John-Simeon II. M., 2003. S. 334–335; Archimandrite Nikon. Essays on the history of the Church of Ancient Rus'. Rostov-on-Don, 2009, pp. 136–140.
Metropolitan Michael, who occupied the Kyiv cathedra in the late 1179s, A. Poppe calls "lost historiography." - Poppe A. V. Metropolitans of Kyiv and All Rus' // Shchapov Ya. N. State and Church in Ancient Rus'. P. 199. See also: Golubinsky E. E. History of the Russian Church. T. 1. Part 1. M., 1997. S. 288.
Old Russian princely statutes of the XI-XV centuries. / Ed. prepared Ya. N. Shchapov. M., 1976. S. 15, 16, 21, 42, 46, 54, 76.
P. Greek church historian about the first Metropolitans of All Rus' // ZhMP. 1982. No. 5. P. 47. See also: Golubinsky E. E. History of the Russian Church. T. 1. Part 1. S. 278–281; Rapov O. M. Russian Church in the 9th - the first third of the 12th century. Acceptance of Christianity. M., 1988. S. 282.
Poppe A.V. Metropolitans of Kyiv and All Rus' (988-1305) // Ibid. P. 192. See also: Pavlov A.S. A guess about the origin of the ancient Russian tradition, which calls the first Russian Metropolitan Mikhail Sirin // Readings in the historical society of Nestor the Chronicler. Book. 11. Dep. 2. Kyiv, 1896. S. 22–26; Archpriest P. Lebedintsev. Notes to the “Guess” by A. S. Pavlov // Readings in the historical society of Nestor the Chronicler. Book. 11. Dep. 2. P. 27–33.
There. P. 47. He calls the year 991 the date of the arrival in Rus' of the successor of St. Michael, Metropolitan Leont (Ibid.). E. E. Golubinsky also names the date of the arrival of Metropolitan “Leon” in Rus' in 991, but he considers him the first Metropolitan of Kyiv. - Golubinsky E. E. History of the Russian Church. T. 1. Part 1. S. 281.
Loseva O. V. Periodization of Old Russian Monthly Books of the 11th–14th centuries. // Ancient Rus'. Questions of medieval studies. M., 2001. No. 4. S. 18, 19.
Patericon of the land of Bulgaria. September-January. M., 2008. S. 22–25. See also: Rapov O. M. Russian Church in the 9th - the first third of the 12th century. S. 135; Solovyov S. I. Essays in eighteen books. Book. 1: History of Russia since ancient times. M., 1988. T. 1–2. P. 178. With the blessing of the Bulgarian Patriarch Maxim, the celebration of All the Saints who shone in Bulgaria was established, and the name of St. Michael is found in the compiled list of saints (Mineya May. M., 1987. Part 3. S. 428), although in the service it not mentioned.
Rapov O. M. Russian Church in the 9th - the first third of the 12th century. P. 137. For some aspects and connections between Princess Anna and Bulgaria, see . Poppe A.V.“And from the Bulgarian Boris and Gleb” // From Ancient Rus' to Russia of the New Age. Collection of articles: To the 70th anniversary of Anna Leonidovna Khoroshkevich. M., 2003. S. 72–76.
There is also another version in the sources. In the Tale of Bygone Years, however, we read: "The Bishop of Korsun from the priesthood of the queen, announcing, baptize Volodymyr." - Tale of Bygone Years. SPb., 1996. S. 187. See also: PSRL. T. 9. S. 54.
There. P. 68. Less extensively about Metropolitan Michael, without mentioning the sakkos and the offering of the lamp, it is said in other editions of the Charter of Prince Vladimir, preserved in manuscripts of the 15th-17th centuries; see: ibid. pp. 14, 16, 21, 41, 42, 46, 54, 73; Russian legislation of the X-XX centuries. T. 2: Legislation of the period of formation and strengthening of the Russian centralized state. M., 1985. S. 336.
Updated: 24.12.2016 - 23:16
About the homeland of Stefan of Surozh, heresies and life of Surozh of the VIII century. St. Stephen the Confessor, Archbishop of Sourozh, was from Cappadocia, the land of the great saints, and studied in Constantinople. The main factor characterizing Christianity in Cappadocia was the many cave monasteries and simply secluded cells in the mountain ranges, where a huge number of hermits lived. This land was incredibly convenient for such a method of asceticism, which influenced the whole life of St. Stephen of Surozh.
The church fathers who perpetuated the name of Cappadocia for Christian teaching were three of its natives: Basil the Great (Bishop of Caesarea of Cappadocia), Gregory of Nyssa (Bishop of Nissa, Basil's younger brother) and Gregory the Theologian (Bishop of Sasim). All of them lived in the 4th century and are known for having developed the doctrine of the consubstantial Trinity, introduced the feast of the Nativity of Christ into culture, and created a cenobitic monastic charter. Of the most famous Cappadocian saints, four members of the family of St. Basil should also be mentioned: his younger brother - St. Peter, Bishop of Sebastia, sisters - Blessed Macrina and Righteous Theozva - the deaconess, as well as their mother, Blessed Emilia. Cappadocia is the birthplace of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious and his distant relative, the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Nina, Enlightener of Georgia. From here came the Monk Savva the Sanctified - the founder of the Great Lavra in Palestine and Simeon the Stylite. In the majestic host of Orthodox Cappadocian martyrs, forty soldiers who had suffered in the Sebastian Lake shone. The Great Martyr Mercury was beheaded in Caesarea in Cappadocia. Already after the death of this valiant warrior of Christ, a miracle happened with his participation, through the prayers of St. Basil the Great. The Archbishop of Caesarea zealously appealed to the Most Holy Theotokos with a request to deliver Christians from the persecution of Emperor Julian the Apostate. And suddenly, the Great Martyr Mercury, depicted on the icon next to the image of the Queen of Heaven, became invisible for a moment, and then again appeared with a bloodied spear. And it was at this moment that the god-fighting emperor in the battle with the Persians was mortally wounded by an unknown warrior.
Despite the fact that in the 8th century, instead of the monks of Cappadocia who completely retired from life, priority was given to those who carried obedience in cenobitic monasteries, helped the poor and sick and communicated with the flock, St. exploits for 30 years. And only by special revelation did Patriarch German ordain the ascetic Stefan as bishop of the city of Sourozh. This happened in 724, when a bishop died in the city of Surozh, and the inhabitants of the city came to Constantinople to Patriarch Herman with a request to appoint a third bishop who could skillfully manage the Church, since all kinds of heresies arose and multiplied in their city. And since "heresy is also a spiritual substance that cannot be broken with iron, burned with fire or drowned," but only eradicated, for this a very strong archpastor in Sourozh city was needed.
One of the religions in Sourozh was paganism. God Veles was especially revered in Sourozh as the patron of cattle breeding, it was a kind of "cattle god". God Stribog, according to their concepts, commanded the winds. And the Toad (frog-bacotage) in the dry summer of Surozh was considered a sacred animal, the deity of rain. The gods of rain were among the most important deities among the pagans of Sourozh, for the harvest in Sourozh depended on them. Numerous gifts were brought to them, especially on the eve of various field work. Sometimes, during a great drought, even human sacrifices were made, which was associated with a certain rite. So, Metropolitan Macarius wrote about the pagans in the 16th century: “These are their nasty prayer places: forests, and stones, and rivers, and swamps, springs, and mountains, and hills, the sun and the moon, and stars, and lakes. And, simply put, - everything that exists was worshiped as God, and honored, and sacrificed." Saint Stephen, in one of the dry periods, having taken the Holy Gospel, by his teaching managed to influence the pagans of the Sourozh land so much that their elder began to bow and kiss the Gospel; others followed him. St. Stephen distributed lighted candles to them and, with the singing of prayers, performed church processions - a procession around the crops and the settlement. That same night, God sent heavy rain.
There were other heresies that penetrated the famous city of the late Middle Ages along with trade and diplomatic relations through the Great Silk Road. The heretical disputes of the Monothelites about the will of Christ alone were replaced by disputes about icons.
The first persecutor of icon veneration was Emperor Leo the Isaurian (717 741), a terrible ignoramus in church affairs. He decided that the destruction of the veneration of icons would return the empire, the areas it had lost, and that Jews and Mohammedans would draw closer to Christianity. The times of iconoclasm were terrible, mosaics and frescoes from the walls of temples were mercilessly destroyed, icons were burned. Thus, all the ancient icons of the Church of the Theotokos in Blachernae in Constantinople were destroyed. However, during this dark period, Christian art did not disappear completely, but continued to exist secretly in the Crimea, Surozh. The era of iconoclasm, marked by significant repressions, caused a large influx of emigrants from Constantinople and the central regions of Byzantium to Sourozh - supporters of icon veneration, hiding from oppression. Surozh became one of the few places where they could successfully hide. The land of Sourozh with its cave monasteries and remote mountain cells reminded St. Stephen a bit of his homeland of Cappadocia. Therefore, in the tract of the Red Stone (Kiziltash, surrounded by the mountains "Cleansing from sins" (Socharikon-Kaya), "Church" (Kilisa-Kaya) and the Ridge of the Monk-Priest (Papas-Tele), the Archpastor of the land of Sourozh Stefan founded a summer residence, where according to legend, he prayed in a cave with a healing spring.Stefan, the archpastor of the land of Sourozh, taught the Word of Christ not only in church, but also in houses and markets, so many pagan people were baptized.In five years, almost no pagans and religious vacillation remained in Sourozh .
Emperor Leo the Isaurian died on June 18, 741. The Church anathematized Leo: “The first worst iconoclast, even more Christoclast, a malevolent beast, a demonic servant, a tormentor, and not a king, Leo Isaurinus and his false patriarch Anastasius, a persecutor of Christ’s flock, and not a shepherd, and their mysteries are anathema.”
Secular laws in Sourozh during the time of St. Stephen of Sourozh were defined by the Eclogues, a code of Byzantine legislation that dealt with criminal law. So, for example, the XVII title of "Eklogi" determined the list of punishments imposed for various types of crimes. It is interesting that criminal offenses against the church and the state were placed in the same row. Such crimes included rebellion against the emperor, apostasy, violation of the sanctity of the altar, witchcraft, perjury, betrayal in the army, etc. in the latter case, such a criminal was subject to blinding. Adultery, murder, incest, homosexuality, rape, etc. were considered serious crimes against the person, family and marriage.
Primary education (then it was called differently), the basics of counting, literacy could be obtained in any Byzantine town, including Surozh, and, as a rule, free of charge. Therefore, the percentage of literate people, especially among the townspeople, was unusually high, literacy was almost universal.
A full-fledged education (let's call it conditionally “medium”) could be obtained at several episcopal sees and in several major monasteries. But to complete education, so to speak, to the university level, it was possible only in one place - in Constantinople, where they went. But when iconoclasm began, in the West they decided: you can’t go to heretics. This is also why the period of iconoclasm became an era of darkness.
By the 8th century, when Byzantine foreign trade (mainly luxury goods) was at its peak, industries were strictly divided into associations by type of activity, which were divided into guilds. There were at least 23 guilds in the capital alone. Their task was not so much to ensure the welfare of their members or local residents, but to assist the state in controlling the urban economy. One of the largest guilds in Surozh was the guild of pottery makers, winemakers and bakers. Bakers and vintners could be fined for changing the set price. The price of bread, like that of wine, varied according to the cost of raw materials, but was always calculated in such a way as to provide a profit to the state. Many artisans who were part of the guilds worked at home, where they were assisted by wives, hired workers and apprentices.
The villagers grew wheat and barley, but grapes brought the maximum income to the peasant economy. The land under it was valued at ten times the price of an arable field when sold. Grapes were cultivated by the townspeople - both in the city itself and in the suburbs. It was believed that even five vineyard modi (50-60 acres) could provide a modest income for a family. The demand for Roma wines far crossed the borders of the empire. Orchards were also famous in Surozh.
Surozhans bred horses, pigs, sheep and goats. A horse in a peasant economy was usually a rarity. For it they gave the price of three or four cows. A free peasant kept it only because he could not serve in the military without a horse. Horses were bred mainly in the estates of the nobility and imperial estates.
A serious role in the life of the coastal rural population of Surozh was played by various kinds of subsidiary trades: fishing, hunting, beekeeping; charcoal burning and firewood.
A lot of strength was taken from the peasant by state labor duties (hangars), especially such as transporting goods on their animals, clearing roads, repairing and building bridges and fortifications.
The whole family, including children, was busy servicing the household, whether it was a small peasant field, a workshop or a city merchant's shop. The working day began at dawn and lasted until sunset.
Byzantine coins resembled Roman ones: on one side was a portrait of the reigning emperor in a typical Roman style, and on the other, an inscription in Latin. A little later, part of the inscription was already written in Greek, and the rest in Latin, and the symbol of a certain city, the figure of the Archangel Michael or a cross was embossed on the reverse. Justinian was the first to express his deeply religious worldview by embossing a crucifixion scene on one side of his gold coins. Justinian II (685-695) minted on one side of his coins the image of the head of the crucified Christ, which may have been done in memory of the salvation by Heraclius (610-641) of a particle of the Holy Cross, which was with the Persians. Images of people ceased to appear on coins during the iconoclasm period (723-843), only occasionally a cross was beaten out on them until the middle of the 8th century.
Church creativity of the VIII century commemorating the event of the Nativity of Christ is represented by several songwriters. Saint Andrew of Crete (+713) wrote four stichera in Praise. Saint Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople (+740), who ordained St. Stephen, composed the first stichera on the Lord, crying out, a lithium stichera on And now, two stichera on the stichera, a slavnik on Praise. St. John of Damascus (+776) wrote four litia stichera, one stichera on the sticheron and one stichera on Praise, the second feast canon. The Monk Cosmas of Maium compiled the first feast canon, which was based on thoughts from the Conversation of St. Gregory the Theologian on the Nativity of Christ.
Holidays in Surozh were national and local, religious and political, professional and family, regular and extraordinary.
However, all strata, without exception, celebrated with particular solemnity the religious holidays officially established by the church (Christmas, baptism, Easter, Trinity, etc.). The days of such revered saints as St. George and St. Dimitri. In the monastery of St. George near Mount Ai-George, a grandiose feast was celebrated annually in honor of St. George. A fair was also organized in Surozh. All noble families and commoners went to the monastery on this day to worship the martyr. Most likely, the centuries-old veneration of St. George the Victorious in Sourozh was based on the pagan ancient Sourozh cult of Dazhdbog, who until the Byzantine period was considered the ancestor and patron of the Slavs in Sourozh Rus'. St. George the Victorious in Surozh displaced many ancient pagan beliefs. However, the people attributed to him those features that they had previously endowed with Dazhdbog and the gods of fertility, Yarilo and Yarovit and the deity of rain. It is no coincidence that the dates of veneration of the saint (April 23 and November 3) practically coincide with the celebration by the pagans of the beginning and completion of agricultural work, to which the aforementioned gods contributed in every possible way. In addition, it is generally accepted that George the Victorious is also the patron and protector of cattle breeding. George in translation means "farmer". But George turned out to be a "farmer" in the deepest sense - he sowed such seeds in souls that sprout thousands of years later. According to ancient legends, St. George, like Stefan of Surozh, came from a noble family of Christians in Kapodocia.
In addition, memorable events related to Surozh, the church, the monastery, etc. were noted.
The religious holiday required the parishioners to be present at the church service in the temple, and often participate in the solemn procession. After the official celebrations, the games began, followed by feasts. They prepared for the festive meal long before the holiday, stocked up food, saved money. Easter was celebrated after Lent. This holiday in Surozh was celebrated especially magnificently.
After the Arabs conquered Antioch in the 7th century, they tried to secretly take out the honest right hand of the holy prophet John the Baptist from there. According to contradictory data, she was secretly revealed to worship the inhabitants of Sourozh, which served as a holiday in Sourozh city, where a solemn service was performed. In addition to church holidays, they celebrated state holidays, annual ones (for example, May 11 - the day of the founding of Constantinople, the birthday of the emperor). On extraordinary, irregular holidays (the coronation of a basileus, his wedding, the birth of an heir) glorified the sovereign. The people led round dances on the streets, sang ritual songs and hymns in honor of the hero of the occasion.
Despite the fact that Surozh was located on the outskirts of the Byzantine world, far from those political, religious and cultural processes that were seething in the central regions of the Roman Empire, various entertainments were common in the city - from games and sports competitions to simple walks in nature. Hunting was very popular among the nobility. The most popular sports competition for the nobility was the equestrian ball game - tsikany (by the name of the ball). During the game, two groups of horsemen, holding in their right hand a stick with a loop tightened with strings at the end (similar to a racket), tried to grab the ball and drive it to the designated place. Among the townspeople, such games as checkers, zatrik (chess) were also popular. One of the children's favorite games was a game called ampra. The players were divided into two groups, each of which had its own leader, composition and place surrounded by a moat. This is where the prisoners were kept. One group of players had to chase the other, and with the touch of a hand, the player was turned into a prisoner. The losing group was the one whose players were all captured. Petropolemos was a popular but dangerous game. She simulated military clashes. The game usually took place outside the city walls. Two groups of players were separated by a moat and threw stones at each other - with their hands or with a sling - stones. The victorious group triumphantly entered the city.
The tradition of building and using public baths has been introduced in Sourozh since the early Byzantine period. The popularity of baths was high throughout the entire period of Byzantine history in all cities and villages. They were considered very beneficial for the body. There were various medical recommendations for the use of baths. For example, according to the Medical Treatise, overweight people were supposed to rub their bodies with a mixture of lupine, dry citrus peel and crushed rosemary leaves after sweating. The thin ones had to use for this the pulp of melon, pumpkin with legume flour and dry crushed rose flowers. When bathing, we used herbs that increase perspiration - marjoram, mint, chamomile. At the baths there were gyms, which were so popular that even the patriarchs demanded that the baths be closed on Sunday. Public baths were an indispensable element of the urban landscape. But in the 8th century, new baths were built only on the private estates of wealthy people of Surozh. Baths gradually appear at churches, monasteries: often baths passed into their ownership along with private premises and estates bequeathed for religious needs.
The rules of burial in Sourozh, as well as throughout the Byzantine Empire, initially allowed burials to be made only outside the city. Rich people throughout the empire and quite often far from the noise of the capital - in Sourozh, founded new monasteries and temples for their burial. In addition, cemeteries were allowed to be built on the sites of former monasteries and other places of worship. This order of burial was preserved until the last times of the existence of Byzantium.
Today, not only the Russian city of Sourozh is the capital of Sourozh Rus on the Black Sea, where the Slavs lived from the 8th century BC. Forgotten, but also forgotten is the glory of the Byzantine Sourozh of the 8th century AD, which, being the outskirts of the empire, not only preserved the ancient cultural heritage, but was also one of the centers for the spread of Christianity for Holy Rus'.
It is not for us, the bearers of the glory of the city of God, that we need to look up to the world lying in sin and grumble at it, but we ourselves need to become a light for the world. » (Matthew 5:16). We are called to shine, but to shine not with our own light, not with our talent, not with our mind, not with our beauty, not with our eloquence, not with our learning, but with another light - the light of the Holy Spirit, the light of grace, the radiance of God. And we must strive with all our strength, with all our hearts, with all our faith, to imitate St. Stephen of Surozh, to become so transparent, so flexible in God’s hand, reflection of this light.
With the blessing of Archimandrite Mark
saint Stephen confessor, archbishop Surozhsky
December 15, O.S. / 28 December CT
According to St. Demetrius of Rostov
Our Reverend Father Stefan was born in Cappadocia the Great - from Christian parents who brought him up in good punishment. From childhood, he was distinguished by good temper, moving away from the usual children's amusements. At the age of seven, his parents gave him to learn to read and write; he proved capable of learning, and was soon well versed in the Divine Scriptures. When he was fifteen years old, he retired from his fatherland and came to Constantinople, wishing to complete his education there. This was during the reign of Theodosius Adramitene 1 and St. Patriarch German 2 . There St. Stefan continued to study diligently and, having learned the philosophical sciences, he surpassed the wisdom of many - even the teachers themselves - so that everyone marveled at his wisdom.
Hearing about Stephen, St. Herman, the Patriarch of Constantinople, called him and, having blessed him, asked what country he was from. Stefan told him everything about himself. Having fallen in love with his good manners, wisdom and humility, the patriarch left Stefan to live with him. Blessed Stefan lived for several years with the Patriarch, serving the holy Church and living in abstinence and a clear conscience. Then, secretly from everyone, he left Constantinople and, having come to a certain monastery, accepted monastic vows there and labored in the virtues. Then, desiring a quieter life, he withdrew from the monastery and, finding a solitary and unknown place, lived there for quite some time, working for God in fasting and prayers.
At that time, the bishop who was in the city of Sourozh 3 died, and now the inhabitants of Sourozh came to Constantinople to the most holy Patriarch German, asking for a bishop for Sourozh. And when there was a discussion about the appointment of a bishop, disagreement arose, since some wanted one thing, others wanted another. The people of Surozh asked the tsar and the most holy patriarch to give them a bishop who would be able to manage the church well, "for," they said, "heresies have multiplied in our city."
Once, when Saint Herman stood at prayer at night, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said:
Tomorrow we went to that deserted place where the chosen one of God Stephen lives: make him a bishop for Sourozh, for he can well shepherd the flock of Christ and lead heretics to the true faith. But I was sent to him from God, with a command that he should not disobey you in anything.
Oh, sir, - said the patriarch, - how can I find out the place where the chosen one of God Stephen lives?
Then the angel, taking one of the servants of the patriarch, showed him the whereabouts of the saint, and the servant, returning, told this to the patriarch.
To Saint Stephen, who at that time was praying to God in his hidden place, the same Angel of the Lord appeared in white clothes, and he was afraid of St. Stefan and in trembling fell from fear to the ground.
Taking the saint by the hand, the Angel calmed him, saying:
I am the Angel of the Lord and I was sent from Christ the Savior to proclaim joy to you and command you to go to the city of Sourozh so that you teach people the faith of Christ. Tomorrow the patriarch will call you and, consecrating you, will send you there as an archbishop, but you do not disobey him, so that you do not anger God.
Then, having taught him the world, the angel ascended to heaven.
The next day, the patriarch sent two presbyters with a servant - for Saint Stephen, and with great honor they brought him to the patriarch.
I was gladly greeted by Patriarch St. Stefan, and having consecrated him, made him archbishop of Surozh and released him on a ship to the diocese entrusted to him.
Arriving in the city of Surozh and taking the archbishop's throne, St. Stefan began to teach people from the Divine Scriptures and in the course of five years he baptized the entire city of Sourozh and all its environs.
At that time, Leo the Isaurian reigned in Constantinople and raised iconoclasm 4 , having been taught this by two Jews. First, he ordered the holy icons to be placed high, saying:
Who is clean, let him kiss them.
Then he ordered the icons to be lifted into the air, explaining that icons should not be nailed to the wall. And the accursed one undertook many other things against the veneration of St. icons. The holy Patriarch Herman exhorted him much to leave his evil undertaking, talking about it on the basis of the sacred books 5 . Enraged by the exhortations, the iconoclast openly revealed his poison, which he had hidden in his heart until then, and intensely began to cast out the holy icons, blaspheme and dishonor them.
Then Leo sent decrees throughout the city and to many surrounding places, so that everyone would do the same with the holy icons, and said:
If anyone resists me, I will torment him with various torments and put him to death.
In the reigning city then one could see various torments of Orthodox Christians. The wicked king sent Patriarch Germanus to prison, and instead of him appointed Anastasius, a Syrian patriarch, who was like-minded with him in his heresy.
Then the tsar and the patriarch sent their ambassadors to Sourozh to St. Archbishop Stefan with an evil command not to worship icons and the cross. Saint Stephen answered the ambassadors:
May this not be; I will not allow my people to deviate from the law of Christ: I do not listen to the commands of either the king or the accursed patriarch.
At night, he came to the ambassadors on the ship and together with them arrived in Constantinople.
Dressed in the clothes of his hierarchal dignity, St. Stephen appeared before the king. The king asked him:
The saint answered:
I am Archbishop Stefan of Sourozh.
And the king said:
Do you see this cathedral sitting with me in great honor? They burned and chopped down the icons: and you listen to me, and you will be in the same great honor with us.
Saint Stephen answered:
Yes, this will not happen. Even if you burned me, or cut me into pieces, or tortured me with some other torment, I am ready to endure everything for the icons and the Cross of the Lord.
Then the saint said to the king:
We found some prophecy in the books that a wicked king, an iconoclast, who burns holy icons, will appear in Constantinople. But may God not do this in your reign!
Did you find the name of that king? the king asked.
His name is Konop, - answered Stefan.
And the king said:
Fairly, Stefan, you found my name, for my father and mother called me Konop.
And Stephen said:
Oh king! May this not happen in your reign. If you do this, then you will be the forerunner of the Antichrist!
Hearing this from the saint, the accursed king beat his face, mouth and teeth with an iron glove, exclaiming:
How dare you call me a forerunner of the Antichrist?
And the king commanded to seize Stephen by the hair and beard, beat him, drag him along the ground and throw him into prison. Drawn by the tormentors, the saint sent thanks to God, and was cast into prison, where other saints were also. Then the king again ordered Stephen to be brought to him.
How the Bishop of Sourozh dared to call me that! he said. - Drag him here with a beating.
The saint appeared before the king with seven bishops. Holding in his hands the icon of the Lord, the Mother of God and John the Baptist, the king said to the saint:
Why did you call me the forerunner of the Antichrist?
The saint replied:
Because you do his works; I have already said it and I repeat it to you again.
Then the king spat on the icon, began to trample on it, and said to Stefan:
Do the same with this icon.
The saint, tearing up, said:
Enemy of God, unworthy of the kingdom! How did your foolish eyes not go blind and your lawless hands not wither? May God soon take away your kingdom and may it end your life.
Hearing this, the king in anger ordered that Saint Stephen be beaten. Then they tied him to the tail of a horse and dragged him into prison; the saint gave thanks to God. All the prisoners in the dungeon prayed to God, and, through the prayers of the saints, the impious king soon died and his son Constantine Copronymus reigned. His wife, hearing about the virtues and miracles of St. Stephen, asked her husband - Tsar Constantine - to release the saint to her throne. At the same time, a son was born to the king, and Saint Stephen baptized him. Having rewarded Stephen with gifts, the king with great honor released him to his flock. The good shepherd again received his throne, and for a long time he graciously pastured the flock of Christ entrusted to him. Then, foreseeing his departure to God, he appointed his cleric Filaret as archbishop for Surozh in his place and reposed to God into eternal life, the month of December on the 15th day 6 .
There was a man in Surozh, named Ephraim, who was blind from his mother's womb, whom St. Stephen helped with food, drink, and clothing. Hearing of the death of his benefactor, he wept, saying:
Who will take care of me now? Lead me, that I may kiss his holy feet.
And when he was brought to the body of the reposed Saint Stephen, he fell at his feet with weeping and sobbing - and immediately regained his sight. By this miracle, God announced about His saint that he was numbered with the saints to the ranks of miracle workers and confessors. The holy body of his saints and all the Sourozh people, with many tears, was honorably buried, to the glory of God glorified and extolled by all, forever. Amen.
Troparion, tone 4:
As a saint with the incorporeal one, he was a holy martyr Stefan: take the cross as a weapon, and standing firmly against the iconoclast and the Dukhobors, who do not bow to the pure image of Christ our God, and cut off all the heresy of the evil ones. For this sake, the reception of torment is a crown, you delivered your city Surozh from all hostility. And now we pray to you holy, yes, save us from all evil temptations, and troubles, and eternal torment.
Kontakion, tone 3:
Strengthened by the power of the Most High, Tsraev laid down the iconoclastic vacillation. Today Surozh and us faithful are presented with glory and wealth, your holy relics: they are bestowed from above by the angels of the ranks, with songs and singing they glorify thee, the great sacred Stefan.
________________________________________________________________________
1 Theodosius III Adramitene - Byzantine emperor from 715 to 716
2 St. Germanus was Patriarch of Constantinople from 715 to 730. His memory is celebrated on May 12
3 Surozh, or Sugdeya - an ancient Greek city on the southern coast of Crimea, now Sudak - a village in the Tauride province.
4 The Byzantine emperor Leo, whose family came from the Asia Minor region of Isauria, reigned from 717 to 741. He opposed icon veneration especially in 726. This caused a popular uprising against him.
5 At the same time, Patriarch Herman refused to sign the emperor's orders against icon veneration, saying that he could not introduce anything new in matters of faith without an ecumenical council.
6 St. Stephen died about the middle of the 8th century.
(From the Book of the Menaion (Lives of the Saints) by St. Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov)
Our Reverend Father Stefan was born in Cappadocia the Great - from Christian parents who brought him up in good punishment. From childhood, he was distinguished by good temper, moving away from the usual children's amusements. At the age of seven, his parents gave him to learn to read and write; he proved capable of learning, and was soon well versed in the Divine Scriptures.
When he was fifteen years old, he retired from his fatherland and came to Constantinople, wishing to complete his education there. This was during the reign of Theodosius Adramitene and St. Patriarch German. There St. Stefan continued to study diligently and, having learned the philosophical sciences, he surpassed the wisdom of many - even the teachers themselves - so that everyone marveled at his wisdom.
Hearing about Stephen, St. Herman, the Patriarch of Constantinople, called him and, having blessed him, asked what country he was from. Stefan told him everything about himself. Having fallen in love with his good manners, wisdom and humility, the patriarch left Stefan to live with him. Blessed Stefan lived for several years with the Patriarch, serving the holy Church and living in abstinence and a clear conscience. Then, secretly from everyone, he left Constantinople and, having come to a certain monastery, accepted monastic vows there and labored in the virtues.
Then, desiring a quieter life, he withdrew from the monastery and, finding a solitary and unknown place, lived there for quite some time, working for God in fasting and prayers.
At that time, the bishop, who was in the city of Sourozh, died, and now the inhabitants of Sourozh came to Constantinople to the most holy Patriarch German, asking for a bishop for Sourozh. And when there was a discussion about the appointment of a bishop, disagreement arose, since some wanted one thing, others wanted another. The people of Surozh asked the tsar and the most holy patriarch to give them a bishop who could manage the church well, “For,” they said, “heresies have multiplied in our city.”
Once, when Saint Herman stood at prayer at night, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said:
- Tomorrow we will go to that deserted place where the chosen one of God Stephen lives: make him a bishop for Sourozh, for he can well shepherd Christ's flock and lead heretics to the true faith. But I was sent to him from God, with a command that he should not disobey you in anything.
- Oh, sir, - said the patriarch, - how can I find out the place where the chosen one of God Stephen lives?
Then the Angel, taking one of the servants of the patriarch, showed him the whereabouts of the saint, and the servant, returning, told this to the patriarch.
To Saint Stephen, who at that time was praying to God in his hidden place, the same Angel of the Lord appeared in white clothes, and he was afraid of St. Stefan and in trembling fell from fear to the ground.
Taking the saint by the hand, the Angel calmed him, saying:
- I am the Angel of the Lord and I was sent from Christ the Savior to proclaim joy to you and command you to go to the city of Sourozh so that you teach people the faith of Christ. Tomorrow the patriarch will call you and, consecrating you, will send you there as an archbishop, but you do not disobey him, so that you do not anger God.
Then, having taught him the world, the angel ascended to heaven.
The next day, the patriarch sent two presbyters with a servant - for Saint Stephen, and with great honor they brought him to the patriarch. I was gladly greeted by Patriarch St. Stefan, and having consecrated him, made him archbishop of Surozh and released him on a ship to the diocese entrusted to him.
Arriving in the city of Surozh and taking the archbishop's throne, St. Stefan began to teach people from the Divine Scriptures and in the course of five years he baptized the entire city of Sourozh and all its environs.
At that time, Leo the Isaurian reigned in Constantinople and raised iconoclasm, having been taught this by two Jews. First, he ordered the holy icons to be placed high, saying:
Who is clean, let him kiss them.
Then he ordered the icons to be lifted into the air, explaining that icons should not be nailed to the wall. And the accursed one undertook many other things against the veneration of St. icons. The holy Patriarch Herman admonished him a lot to leave his evil undertaking, talking about this on the basis of sacred books. Enraged by the exhortations, the iconoclast openly revealed his poison, which he had hidden in his heart until then, and intensely began to cast out the holy icons, blaspheme and dishonor them.
Then Leo sent decrees throughout the city and to many surrounding places, so that everyone would do the same with the holy icons, and said:
- If anyone resists me, I will torment him with various torments and put him to death.
In the reigning city then one could see various torments of Orthodox Christians. The wicked king sent Patriarch Germanus to prison, and instead of him appointed Anastasius, a Syrian patriarch, who was like-minded with him in his heresy.
Then the tsar and the patriarch sent their ambassadors to Sourozh to St. Archbishop Stefan with an evil command not to worship icons and the cross. Saint Stephen answered the ambassadors:
- Yes, this will not happen; I will not allow my people to deviate from the law of Christ: I do not listen to the commands of either the king or the accursed patriarch.
At night, he came to the ambassadors on the ship and together with them arrived in Constantinople.
Dressed in the clothes of his hierarchal dignity, St. Stephen appeared before the king. The king asked him:
- Who are you?
The saint answered:
- I am Archbishop Stefan of Sourozh.
And the king said:
Do you see this cathedral sitting with me in great honor? They burned and chopped down the icons: and you listen to me, and you will be in the same great honor with us.
Saint Stephen answered:
- Yes, this will not happen. Even if you burned me, or cut me into pieces, or tortured me with some other torment, I am ready to endure everything for the icons and the Cross of the Lord.
Then the saint said to the king:
- We found some prophecy in the books that a wicked king, an iconoclast, who burns holy icons, will appear in Constantinople. But may God not do this in your reign!
- Did you find the name of that king? the king asked.
“His name is Konop,” Stefan answered. And the king said:
- It's fair, Stefan, you found my name, because my father and mother called me Konop.
And Stephen said:
- Oh, king! May this not happen in your reign. If you do this, then you will be the forerunner of the Antichrist!
Hearing this from the saint, the accursed king beat his face, mouth and teeth with an iron glove, exclaiming:
- How dare you call me the forerunner of the Antichrist?
And the king commanded to seize Stephen by the hair and beard, beat him, drag him along the ground and throw him into prison. Drawn by the tormentors, the saint sent thanks to God, and was cast into prison, where other saints were also. Then the king again ordered Stephen to be brought to him.
- How the Bishop of Sourozh dared to call me that! he said. - Drag him here with a beating.
The saint appeared before the king with seven bishops. Holding in his hands the icon of the Lord, the Mother of God and John the Baptist, the king said to the saint:
- Why did you call me the forerunner of the Antichrist?
The saint replied:
- Because you do his works; I have already said it and I repeat it to you again.
Then the king spat on the icon, began to trample on it, and said to Stefan:
- Do the same with this icon.
The saint, tearing up, said:
- Enemy of God, unworthy of the kingdom! How did your foolish eyes not go blind and your lawless hands not wither? May God soon take away your kingdom and may it end your life.
Hearing this, the king in anger ordered that Saint Stephen be beaten. Then they tied him to the tail of a horse and dragged him into prison; the saint gave thanks to God. All the prisoners in the dungeon prayed to God, and, through the prayers of the saints, the impious king soon died and his son Constantine Copronymus reigned.
His wife, hearing about the virtues and miracles of St. Stephen, asked her husband - Tsar Constantine - to release the saint to her throne. At the same time, a son was born to the king, and Saint Stephen baptized him. Having rewarded Stephen with gifts, the king with great honor released him to his flock. The good shepherd again received his throne, and for a long time he graciously pastured the flock of Christ entrusted to him. Then, foreseeing his departure to God, he appointed his cleric Filaret as archbishop for Surozh in his place and reposed to God into eternal life, the month of December on the 15th day.
There was a man in Surozh, named Ephraim, who was blind from his mother's womb, whom St. Stephen helped with food, drink, and clothing. Hearing of the death of his benefactor, he wept, saying:
Who will take care of me now? Lead me, that I may kiss his holy feet.
And when he was brought to the body of the reposed Saint Stephen, he fell at his feet with weeping and sobbing - and immediately regained his sight. By this miracle, God announced about His saint that he was numbered with the saints to the ranks of miracle workers and confessors. The holy body of his saints and all the Sourozh people, with many tears, was honorably buried, to the glory of God glorified and extolled by all, forever. Amen.
Modern icon image of St. Stephen of Surozh, located in our church.
They pray to St. Stephen in various everyday needs, for the multiplication of love, for preservation from troubles, and many others. etc., especially it helps in strengthening the Orthodox faith of our children, relatives and friends ...
St. Stephen of Surozh
heavenly patron of the southeastern Crimea!
PRAYER TO STEPHAN SOUROZH
Oh, sacred head, our strong prayer book and intercessor, our holy hierarch Father Stephen, hear us with faith and love calling on you. Remember us at the Throne of the Almighty and do not stop praying for us. Ask for your intercession from the Most Merciful Savior of our peace of the Church, his shepherd, God's zeal and strength, peace and salvation to our Orthodox country. Beg our Heavenly Father to give everyone a gift that is useful to everyone: true faith, firm hope, inexhaustible love, affirmation of our cities, peace of peace, deliverance from gladness and destruction, preservation from the invasion of a foreigner, good growth in faith for the young, comfort and strengthening for the old and weak, healing for the sick, mercy and intercession for orphans and widows, help for the needy. Do not disgrace us in our hope, make haste, like a father who loves children, and let us bear the good yoke of Christ in complacency and patience, and rule all of us in peace and repentance shamefully finish your life and the Kingdom of God, the heir to be, where you are now settling with the Angels and all the Saints , taking out praising God, glorified in the Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Saint Stephen was born at the end of the 7th century in Cappadocia into a family of pious parents. At the age of seven, Stephen was given away to be taught the divine scriptures.
18-year-old Stephen went to Constantinople to study "grammar and philosophy, rhetoric and sophistry." He achieved such success in the sciences that even teachers were surprised at his knowledge.
Hearing about Stefan, Patriarch Herman of Constantinople summoned him to his place, and for several years he lived under the patriarch and served in the church. Then he secretly left Constantinople and came to the monastery, where he received monastic vows. Soon, striving for silence, he settled in a deserted place, and lived there for several years in the exploits of fasting and prayer.
Around 730, a bishop reposed in Sourozh (now Sudak). This large trading city was inhabited by people of different faiths. Among them were many pagans and Muslims. The Surozh Christians asked Patriarch Herman to send a bishop who would strengthen Orthodoxy. During the prayer, an angel appeared to the patriarch and said that the holy hermit Stefan should be the bishop. The will of the Lord was also revealed to Stephen. Soon he was ordained a bishop and sailed to his diocese.
The new bishop preached not only in the church, but also in houses and on the streets. Stephen's missionary activity was not limited to Surozh, but included the surrounding territories and villages, where the bishop appointed many presbyters and clerics. Thus, in five years, Stefan baptized the entire city and surrounding villages.
At this time, the Byzantine emperor Leo III the Isaurian ordered the removal and destruction of icons. He deposed Patriarch Germanus, who refused to join the iconoclasts, and replaced him with Anastasius, who held the patriarchal see from 730 to 753. Saint Stephen arrived in Constantinople and denounced the emperor for iconoclasm. Leo the Isaurian tried by persuasion and threats to persuade the saint to the iconoclastic heresy, but to no avail. Saint Stephen answered the emperor: “Even if you burn me or cut me into pieces, I am ready to endure everything for the icons and the Cross of the Lord.” For these words, he was severely beaten, and then imprisoned for many years.
In 741, Emperor Leo III died and his son Constantine V ascended the throne. Through her intercession, Stephen of Surozh was released from prison. The Empress invited the saint to baptize her little son. After that, Stefan was put on a ship with honors and sailed to his diocese in Sourozh.
The Lord revealed to Saint Stephen the time of his death. He appointed himself a successor and peacefully reposed in the Lord on December 15, 750. At the tomb of the reposed saint, a blind man named Ephraim miraculously received his sight, to whom Saint Stephen did good during his lifetime.
