October 18/5 – Saints of Moscowtranslated

Great is the role of Saints Peter, Alexy, Jonah, Macarius, Philip and Hermogenes, miracle workers of Moscow and all Russia, in the rise of the Moscow principality and the construction of the Moscow kingdom. Without exaggeration, the life of each of them can be called a feat.

Metropolitan Peter supported the Moscow prince Ivan Kalita in the struggle for the great reign and “de facto” transferred the see of the head of the Russian Church from Vladimir to Moscow, contributing to the rise of the Moscow principality (1324). He came up with the idea of ​​constructing the first stone building of the Assumption Cathedral. “If you calm my old age and erect here a church worthy of the Mother of God, then you will be more glorious than all other princes, and your family will be magnified, my bones will remain in this city, the Saints will want to dwell in it, and its hands will rise against the lash of our enemies.” — His appeal to Prince Ivan Kalita sounds so prophetic.

Saint Alexy (1354-1378), after the death of Prince Simeon Ivanovich the Proud, was the mentor of Prince Dmitry Ivanovich (St. Dmitry Donskoy) and the de facto head of state. By maintaining peaceful relations with the Horde and continuing Ivan Kalita’s policy of gathering Russian lands around Moscow, he thereby prepared material and...