Sainted John, Archbishop of Novgorod
Commemorated on September 7
Sainted John,
Archbishop of Novgorod, was born at Novgorod of the pious parents Nikolai
and Christina. He passed his childhood in quiet and peaceful surroundings.
After the death of
the parents John and his brother Gabriel, having received a small inheritance,
decided to make on their inherited property a small monastery in honour of the
Annunciation (Blagoveschenie) of the MostHoly Mother of God. At first they
built a wooden church, but a short time later built also a stone church. Their
good intentions were not without difficulties. Before they finished
construction on the stone temple, the brothers totally exhausted their means.
Only their steadfast and living faith inspired them to continue what they had
started. They turned for help with it to the Queen of Heaven, on Whose account
this God-pleasing matter was begun. Through their unflagging prayer She
manifested to them Her mercy – She foretold in a dream, that everything
necessary for the completion of the temple would be provided. On the following
morning the brothers saw a splendid horse, loaded with two sacks of gold. No
one came by for it, and when the brothers took hold of the sacks, the horse
then vanished. Thus did the Mother of god send means for the monastery.
Upon completion of
the monastery construction, – here under the protection of the Mother of God, the
brothers took monastic vows. Saint John took the name of Ilia, and Saint
Gabriel – the name Gregory.
The chronicles speak
about Saint John being made bishop under the entries for the year 1162. His
first archpastoral missive was directed to the clergy of his diocese. It was
embued with an endearing concern about his flock, written in a spirit of
fatherly guidance: "It pleased God and the MostHoly Mother of God, through
your prayers, that I but a mere man, should not refrain from this high dignity,
of which I am unworthy. Wherein that ye yourselves have encouraged me to this
service, now hearken to me..." The saint spoke about the vocation of the
pastor – he is concerned about his sheep, he not only chastises but also heals
those that lead a sinful life. "At the beginning of my discourse I ask
you, be not strongly attached to this world, but rather be instructive to
people. Look first of all, that they not give themselves over to strong
drunkenness. Yet ye yourselves know, that through this most of all do not only
the simple people perish, but we also. When your spiritual children approach
you in repentance, then question them with mildness. It is not seemly to impose
harsh penances. Scorn not the reading of books, since if we do not make a start
of doing this, then what will distinguish us from the simple unschooled
people?... Do not impose penances upon orphans.... Let everything be seemly, in
that the yoke of Christ ought to be light..."
In the year 1165
Saint John was elevated to archbishop (from that time the Novgorod cathedra
became archbishopal).
The winter of 1170
was a very difficult time for Novgorod. Suzdal' forces with their allies laid
siege to the city for two days since the Novgorod people would not accept
prince Svyatoslav, and likewise the took the tribute-tax of the Dvina district
which was not subject to them.
In grief the Novgorod
people prayed God and the MostHoly Mother of God for the salvation of the city.
On the third night, while he was praying before an image of the Saviour, Saint
John heard a voice, ordering him to go to the church of the Saviour on Il'ina
street, to take the icon of the MostHoly Mother of God and put it up upon a
trident-hook. In the morning the saint told the assembly about the command and
sent the archdeacon with clergy to the Sophia church for the icon. Going into
the church, the archdeacon bowed down before the icon and wanted to take hold
of it, but the icon would not budge. The archdeacon returned to the archbishop
and told him about what happened. Then the saint with all the assembly went to
the Il'ina church and on their knees began to pray before the icon. They began
to sing a molieben canon, and at the 6th ode at the kondak " Mediatrix of
Christians" the icon itself moved from the place. The people with tears
cried out: "Lord, have mercy!" Then Saint John took the icon and
together with two deacons carried it on the trident-hook. The Novgorod people
in terror foresaw their doom, since the Suzdal' forces with their allies had
made their way ready for pillage. In the sixth hour of the evening there began
an assault, and the arrows fell like rain. Then by the Providence of God the
icon turned its visage towards the city, and from the eyes of the MostHoly
Mother of God there trickled down tears, which the saint gathered on his
phelon. A darkness like ashes covered over the Suzdal' forces, they became
unable to see and with terror they fell back. This occurred on 25 February
1170. Saint John established in honour of this a solemn feastday for Novgorod
– the Sign (Znamenie) of the MostHoly Mother of God (celebrated 27 November).
The Suzdal' army
wreaked great harm on the Novgorod region. Here also the archpastor did not
remain on the sidelines. He showed fatherly concern about devastated households
suffering hunger, and he distributed aid to hapless orphans. Just like other
Russian hierarchs, by prayer and by virtue he calmed and soothed the
internecine strife in much-suffering Rus'. Thus, in 1172 the archpastor himself
journeyed to Vladimir to reconcile the nobleborn prince Andrei Bogoliubsky with
the Novgorod people.
The saint not only
shared in the adversity of his people, but most of all he concerned himself
about their spiritual enlightenment. Saint John devoted great attention to
spiritual conversations, which often occurred in the circle of the clergy and
the laypeople. There are preserved about 30 of his instructions: concerning
Baptism, Confession, the Holy Eucharist. The Guidance for Monks is filled with
spiritual grandeur: "Once having followed after Christ, monks as
actualisers of spiritual life by the cross ought to live in solitary places,
separate from worldly folk. Let them pilfer nothing for themself, nor not
wholly be dedicated to God. A monk ought always to be a monk, at every time and
at every place – both in sleep and in wakefulness they should preserve the
memory of death, and in flesh to be fleshless. Not for everyone does the
monastery serve as a doctoring for sensual-love, just as silence – is to
anger, and death – to greed for money, and the tomb – to avarice... Monastic
life and worldly life are incompatible, – just as they do not harness together
a camel and horse. The monk bends his neck beneathe the yoke of the Creator and
ought to pull the plow in the valley of humility, in order to multiply the fine
wheat by the warmth of the Life-bestowing Spirit and to sow the seed-grains of
the reason of God. The black-robed is not his own master; being like gods take
care not to rot in likeness to people, nor fall from the heights like the light-bearing
prince [i.e. of angels, Lucifer-satan]... for from human glory is begotten
haughty pride..."
The saint's spiritual
powers of grace were unusual. For his simplicity of soul and purity of heart
God gave him power against devils. One time, when the saint as was his custom
prayed by night, he heard in the wash-bowl something splashing the water. Seeing
that there was no one alongside him, the saint perceived, that this was the
doing of a devil trying to scare him. The saint made the sign of the cross over
the wash-bowl and restrained the devil. Soon the evil spirit could no longer
bear the prayer of the saint, which scorched it with fire, and it began to
implore to be released from the wash-bowl. The saint was agreeable, but set a
condition, that the devil carry him from Novgorod to Jerusalem to the Sepulchre
of the Lord, and back all in one night. The devil fulfilled the command of the
saint, but asked him to tell no one about his shaming.
In one of his
conversations the saint told his flock, that he knew a man, who by night
visited the Holy Land. The revenge of the evil spirit was not slow in coming.
It began to scatter about women's things in the cell of the saint. One time
when a large crowd of city-folk, stirred up by jealous and unvirtuous people,
had gathered at the cell of the monk, the devil appeared to them, looking like
a woman which ran out from the cell. The saint came out to the racket and
gently asked: "What has happened, my children, what is the noise all
about?" The unruly crowd, shouting various charges of perverse life
against the saint, dragged him to the River Volkhov. They put the saint on a
raft and released it down along the current of the river, reckoning to be rid
of it. But the raft, contrary to expectation, sailed against the current
straight to the men's Yur'ev monastery, situated three versts from Novgorod.
Seeing this, people took shame and with weeping and shouts they went along the
river-bank after the raft, beseeching the saint to forgive them and to return
to the city. The heart of the simple-souled archpastor was filled with thankful
joy, not only for himself but just as much for his flock: ""Lord,
hold this not in sin against them!" – he prayed and granted pardon to
all.
This occurrence
happened not long before the death of the saint. Sensing its approach, he put
off the hierarch's omophor and took the schema with the name John, – the same
name he had in his youth. As successor to himself he appointed his brother,
Sainted Gregory (Comm. 24 May). The saint died on 7 September 1186 and was put
in the portico of the Sophia church.
In 1439 through the
zeal of Sainted Evphymii repairs were being made at the Sophia cathedral; in
the portico chapel-temple of Saint John the Fore-Runner a stone suddenly came
loose and powerfully cracked the lid of the tomb standing there. Sainted Evphymii
gave orders to lift off the boards broken by the stone, and the temple was
filled with fragrance. In the tomb they beheld the undecayed relics of the
saint, but no one was able to identify whom this archpastor was. In his cell
Sainted Evphymii began fervently to pray God to reveal to him the name of this
saint. By night there appeared before him a man, clothed in hierarchical garb,
and said that he was Archbishop John, found worthy to serve the miracle of the
MostHoly Mother of God in honour of Her Sign (Znamenie). "I proclaim thee
the will of God, – continued the saint, – to make the memory of the
archbishops and princes lying here, on 4 October, and I shall pray Christ for
all Christians". His memory is celebrated likewise with the Assemblage
(Sobor) of Novgorod Sainted-hierarchs on 10 February; in 1630 a feastday was
also established on 1 December.
© 1996-2001 by translator Fr. S. Janos.