Today, September 17, the Church celebrates the finding of the relics of Saint Ioasaf of Belgorod.translated

On September 17, the Orthodox Church commemorates the finding of the relics of Saint Ioasaf of Belgorod, who diligently cared for priests and laity. He was glorified on September 17, 1911.

Ioasaf, future saint of Belgorod land, was born on September 8, 1705 in the village of Priulki in Poltava Governorate into an ancient Little Russian family of Gorlenkys.

His father, Andrei Dmitrievich, was a colonel of the Pryulsky Cossack regiment, and his mother, Maria, was the daughter of Hetman of the Zaporozhian Host Danylo Apostol. In baptism, the boy was named Ioakim. From an early age, he was raised in piety and obedience. When Ioakim was seven years old, his father sent him to the Kiev Theological Academy.

In 1727, already at the Kiev-Brotherhood Monastery, he was tonsured with the name Ioasaf. That same year, he graduated from the Theological Academy.

Saint Ioasaf's main service was connected with Belgorod land, where he was consecrated as bishop on June 2, 1748.

Upon taking charge of the Belgorod Diocese, Bishop Ioasaf initiated extensive administrative, educational, and spiritual activities. In particular, he strictly supervised the piety of the clergy, the condition of churches, and the correctness of divine services.

The bishop required priests to be...