Saint Theosebia the Deaconess was the sister of Saints Basil the Great, Gregory, afterwards Bishop of Nyssa , and Peter, Bishop of Sebaste. She was a virgin and served the Holy Church as a deaconess, caring for the sick, distributing food to vagrants, raising orphans and preparing women for holy…
Blessed Maximus Makar'ev was a priest in the city of Tot'ma (Vologda Diocese) during the first half of the XVII century, and his father was a priest. Saint Maximus was also ordained to the priesthood, and for 45 years he voluntarily undertook the difficult spiritual exploit of foolishness for…
Saint Xenia lived during the eighteenth century, but little is known of her life or of her family. She passed most of her life in Petersburg during the reigns of the empresses Elizabeth and Catherine II. Xenia Grigorievna Petrova was the wife of an army officer, Major Andrew Petrov. After the…
At the end of the 11th century the Georgian Church underwent a trial of physically and spiritually catastrophic proportions. The Seljuk sultan, Jalal al-Dawlah Malik Shah (1073-1092), captured the village of Samshvilde, imprisoned its leader, Ioane Orbeliani, son of Liparit, ravaged Kvemo (Lower)…
Saint Peter, King of Bulgaria, was the son of the militant Bulgarian prince Simeon. Saint Peter was distinguished for his Christian piety, and he often turned to Saint John of Rila (August 18, October 19), asking his prayers, spiritual guidance and advice. King Peter concluded peace with Byzantium…
Blessed Nicholas of Pskov lived the life of a holy fool for more than three decades. Long before his repose, he acquired the grace of the Holy Spirit and was granted the gifts of wonderworking and of prophecy. During his lifetime, the residents of Pskov called him Mikula [Mikola, Nikola] the Fool,…
The wonderworking "Blessed Heaven" Icon of the Mother of God, is on the iconostasis of Moscow's Archangel Cathedral in the Kremlin, on the left side of the royal gates. The Most Holy Theotokos, holding the Pre-Eternal Child in her arms, is depicted in full stature and is surrounded by a bright red…
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The Transfer of the Relics of Holy Prince Vsevolod-Gabriel of Pskov (1834): See February 11.
Saint Isidora, Fool-for-Christ, struggled in the Tabenna monastery in Egypt during the sixth century. Taking upon herself the feat of folly, she acted like one insane, and did not eat food with the other sisters of the monastery. Many of them regarded her with contempt, but Isidora bore all this…
Saint Thais lived in Egypt in the fifth century. Left an orphan after the death of her wealthy parents, she led a pious life, distributing her wealth to the poor, and she gave shelter to pilgrims on her estate. She decided that she would never marry, but would devote her life to serving Christ.…
Blessed Christesia’s family was from Egrisi in western Georgia. From his youth Christesia longed for the divine services and the solitary life, but he was forced by his master to marry, and by this marriage he begot a son. Later, when both his wife and son had died, his master insisted that…
Saint Musa lived during the fifth century. She was distinguished for her pure life. Saint Gregory Dialogus included her story in his Dialogues, saying that he had heard these things from Musa’s brother Probus. The Most Holy Theotokos once appeared to Musa in a dream, surrounded by girls…
The Holy Prince Dovmont (Domant) of Pskov, prince of Nalshinaisk (Nalshensk), was a native of Lithuania, and at first he was a pagan. In 1265, escaping from internecine strife among the Lithuanian princes, he was forced to flee Lithuania and he arrived in Pskov with 300 families. The land of Pskov…
Many ancient Russian cities have their own patron Saint, whose name is associated with miraculous healings and the protection of their city from enemies. The patron Saint of Borovichi in the Novgorod region is the Righteous James, a Wonderworker and a Fool for Christ. Saint James is the patron…
Blessed John, the Fool-for-Christ and Wonderworker of Ustiug, was born in the village of Pukhovo, near Old Ustiug, of pious parents Savva and Maria. From his youth he distinguished himself by a strict life of fasting. On Wednesdays and Fridays he ate nothing, and on other days he ate only bread and…
In 1147 Saint Igor Ol’govich (September 19, June 5) was defeated and captured by Izyaslav Mstislavich, the grandson of Saint Vladimir (July 15). Izyaslav then replaced Saint Igor as Great Prince. The See of Kiev had been left vacant after the death of Metropolitan Michael in 1145, and…
Saint Augustine was born in the city of Thagaste in northern Africa. He was raised by his mother, Saint Monica (May 4), and he received his education at Carthage. In the capacity of professor of rhetoric, Augustine arrived at Milan, Italy where Saint Ambrose (December 7) was bishop. Under the…
Holy Prince Gleb of Vladimir, named George in holy Baptism, was a younger son of the holy Prince Andrew Bogoliubsky (July 4). Under the influence of his pious parents he grew up with a deep faith, and from twelve years of age he led a solitary spiritual life. The parents did not hinder their son…
Blessed John, Fool-for-Christ, Wonderworker of Moscow, was born on the outskirts of Vologda. In his youth he toiled at a saltworks, where he was a water-carrier. The saint combined strict fasting and prayer with his heavy work. Later he moved on to Rostov, where he began his exploit of holy…
Saint Olga, Equal of the Apostles, was the wife of the Kievan Great Prince Igor. The struggle of Christianity with paganism under Igor and Olga, who reigned after Oleg (+ 912), entered into a new phase. The Church of Christ in the years following the reign of Igor (+ 945) became a remarkable…
Saint Stephen was the son of prince Saint Lazar of Serbia (June 15). In the terrible times of the Turkish Yoke Saint Stephen became the great benefactor of his enslaved countrymen. He built up the city, constructed churches and expended his treasury on the help of the needy. Saint Stephen exceeded…
Blessed Nicholas Kochanov, Novgorod Fool-for-Christ (+ 1392), was born at Novgorod into a rich and illustrious family. From his youthful years he loved piety, he went to church faithfully, and he loved fasting and prayer. Seeing his virtuous life, people began to praise him. Blessed Nicholas,…
Saint Basil the Blessed, Wonderworker of Moscow, was born in December 1468 on the portico of the Elokhov church in honor of the Vladimir Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos outside Moscow. His parents were commoners and sent their son to be trained as a cobbler. During Basil’s apprenticeship,…
Blessed Laurence, the Fool-for-Christ and Wonderworker of Kaluga, lived at the beginning of the XVI century at a distance of half a verst from old Kaluga, near a forest church dedicated to the Nativity of Christ, set upon a high hill. There was a long underground entrance from his dwelling place…
(New Monastery of the Transfiguration of the Savior) The original “All Blessed” (Pammakaristos) Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos is in Constantinople in the patriarchal cathedral. It is a mosaic icon dating from the middle of the eleventh century. In 1905, Patriarch Joachim III presented…
Blessed John the Merciful of Rostov (also known as “the Hairy”) struggled at Rostov in the exploit of holy foolishness, enduring much deprivation and sorrow. He did not have a permanent shelter, and at times took his rest at the house of his spiritual Father, a priest at the church of…
Saint Nikḗtas the Hidden lived at Constantinople and occupied the position of “chartolarium” (“letter-writer”). They call him “the Hidden,” because living in the world amid the bustle of the city, with secret exploits of faith, he attained spiritual perfection…
Blessed Andrew, Fool-for-Christ, was a Slav and lived in the tenth century at Constantinople. From his early years, he loved God’s Church and the Holy Scriptures. Once during a dream, the saint beheld a vision of two armies. In the one were men in radiant garb, in the other, black and…
Blessed Andrew of Totma, the Fool-for-Christ was born in the year 1638 in the village of Ust-Totma and chose to leave the world while still a child. With the blessing of Stephen, igumen of the Resurrection monastery in Galich, Andrew took upon himself the arduous calling of fool-for-Christ. He…
Saint Cleopatra and her son John came from the village of Edra near Mount Tabor in Palestine. She was a contemporary of the holy Martyr Varus and witnessed his voluntary suffering. After the execution, Saint Cleopatra brought the body of the holy martyr to her own country and buried him with…
Translation of the relics of Blessed James of Borovichi, Wonderworker of Novgorod Saint James took upon himself the arduous task of foolishness for Christ in his youth. Most of the details of his life are unknown, but the Lord glorified him after death. In the year 1540, on the third day of Pascha,…
Blessed Elesbaan1 was the Emperor of what is now Ethiopia, and lived when Arabia was ruled by Dunaan, an oppressor of Christians. The pious Elesbaan was unable to stand by while those who believed in Christ were being massacred. He declared war on Dunaan, but his first military campaign was not…
Saint Abramius the Hermit and Blessed Maria, his niece of Mesopotamia, lived the ascetic life in the village of Chidan, near the city of Edessa. They were contemporaries and fellow countrymen of Saint Ephraim the Syrian (January 28), who afterwards wrote about their life. Saint Abramius began his…
Blessed Simon of Yurievets was born in the city of Yurievets in the Povolzhsk or Volga region. Forsaken by his parents, the saint took upon himself the exploit of foolishness for Christ. Both winter and summer he went barefoot, dressed only in a shirt, so that his skin became blackened and withered…
Saint Maximus of Moscow, the Fool for Christ. Nothing is known about his parents, or the time and place of birth. Saint Maximus chose one of the most difficult and thorny paths to salvation, having taken upon himself the guise of a fool for the sake of Christ. Summer and winter Maximus walked about…
Blessed John the Merciful of Rostov (also known as “the Hairy”) struggled at Rostov in the exploit of holy foolishness, enduring much deprivation and sorrow. He did not have a permanent shelter, and at times took his rest at the house of his spiritual Father, a priest at the church of…
Holy Prince Yaropolk Izyaslavich, in Holy Baptism Peter, was the grandson of Yaroslav the Wise, and great-grandson of Saint Vladimir. He shared the sad fate of his father, the Kievan Great Prince Izyaslav, expelled by his brothers from Kiev. Yaropolk journeyed on various missions for his father to…
Blessed Procopius, Fool-for-Christ, of Vyatka, was the son of pious peasants. When Procopius reached age twenty, they wanted him to marry, but he secretly went to the city of Khlynov and took upon himself the feat of foolishness. The holy fool endured hunger, cold, mocking and insults. The Lord…
There are at least four distinct types of the “Blessed Womb” Icon. The Barlov Icon is a variant of the Hodēgḗtria Icon. It appeared on December 26, 1392, and it is in the Annunciation Cathedral in Moscow. The second example is similar to the “Milk-Giver” Icon (January…
Liuba Semyonova Sukhanovskaya was born in 1860 in the Ryazan region, in the city of Pronsk, into the family of Semyon and Maria Sukhanovsky, humble and God-fearing people. Later, her younger sister Olga was born. In 1874, the Sukhanovskys moved to Ryazan and settled in a house on the corner of…
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