The fate of some saints is amazing. To fulfill their destiny, they sometimes had to overcome enormous distances, settle in foreign lands and eventually become more revered in distant lands than even in their homeland. But there were even more wonderful cases when the saints of God found themselves far from home due to the fault of the elements. This is the life milestone of St. Anthony the Roman, who, according to a long-established unspoken church tradition, is called the “Russian Italian.” The holiday dedicated to honoring the memory of this ascetic is celebrated annually on August 16.
Arrival of the Venerable One in Russia
The Monk Anthony the Roman was born in Rome in 1067 into a family of wealthy citizens. His parents were Christians, therefore they raised their son in meekness and piety. Having entered his adolescence, Anthony became seriously interested in studying the theological works of the Eastern Church and patristic literature. When he was 17 years old, he lost his father and mother. It was this event that prompted the young man to change his life radically, and he made a firm decision to leave the Roman capital and then become a monk. There was another reason: at that time the Popes made every effort to convert the people to Latinism. Anthony did not see his own existence without Eastern Orthodoxy, his soul becoming attached to it.
The future saint did not think through his path to the smallest detail. He did not rely on himself, but completely surrendered his essence, life and destiny into the hands of the Creator. The young man distributed one part of the inheritance that he inherited from his loving parents to the poor and disadvantaged, put the other in a barrel and threw the last into the sea, and without a single penny of money he himself went on long journeys to the monasteries where monks lived and existed in accordance with the Orthodox faith. Christians. Anthony lived in one of the monasteries for 20 years, accepting the monastic feat. The persecution of the Orthodox by the Latins put an end to this: in connection with these events, the saint, and all the brethren of the monastery, had to wander. This went on for quite a long time until Anthony managed to find a huge boulder on the deserted sea coast. Here the saint stopped and spent a whole year on the stone, fasting and incessantly praying.
On September 5, 1105, a monstrous storm broke out in those places. As a result, the stone on which the ascetic stood was thrown by the wind into the depths of the sea. It was carried along the waves, then the boulder, together with the monk, ended up at the mouth of some river, and finally, on the eve of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, it washed up on the bank of the Volkhov River, which flowed near the village of Volkhovskoye, three miles from Novgorod.
Anthony the Roman: not a Roman saint at all
Estimated reading time: less than a minute.
On August 16, the Church celebrates the memory of St. Anthony the Roman . His name itself seems to hint at the connection of the saint with the Eternal City, but in fact the spiritual feat of Anthony the Roman, and everything that we know about him is connected... with the Novgorod land, and not at all with Italy.
The Monk Anthony lived in Veliky Novgorod at the end of the 11th and beginning of the 12th century. Today, almost in the very center of the city on the banks of the Volkhov, the buildings of the Anthony Monastery, founded by the monk, have been preserved. In addition, two important for Russian history, although very mysterious, documents are associated with the name of St. Anthony the Roman: the so-called “deed of sale” and the “spiritual testament” of St. Anthony. Their authenticity is questioned by a number of historians, but if the documents are genuine, they are among the earliest private documents in Russian found at the moment. The saint's documents are important for science primarily as another proof of the high level of culture, economy and general development of medieval Novgorod.
But we know little about the Venerable Anthony the Roman himself. Apparently, because he himself did not strive for worldly glory, and his spiritual feat was associated with prayer and monastic solitude.
An established tradition calls him a native of the city of Rome. It is believed that the saint chose the monastic path in his homeland, but his life occurred during a difficult era for the Church: not long before this, a great schism occurred, which marked the beginning of the division of the Christian world into Catholic and Orthodox. Being Orthodox, Anthony became a hermit for some time and prayed alone on a stone. And after some time he found himself far from his homeland - in Veliky Novgorod. Tradition says that he did not just come here in search of a new place for his monastic feat: during a storm, the stone on which the Monk Anthony was praying broke off, fell into the sea and miraculously carried the saint across the water to the place where he was destined to continue his spiritual feat .
Of course, science cannot confirm or refute these facts, but experts are also inclined to think that Anthony was not a native Novgorodian, but came to the city at least from Kyiv. However, the nickname “Roman” could be associated not only with a specific city, but also with the Holy Roman Empire, which then bordered the Novgorod lands.
A text compiled several centuries after his death tells us about the life of the saint. This text is most likely a retelling of an earlier document written by contemporaries of Saint Anthony the Roman, but the original source, alas, has not survived to this day.
In the 16th century, Novgorodians already widely revered the saint, primarily because of the miracles that took place at his grave. Thus, the new abbot of the Anthony Monastery, sent to it by Ivan the Terrible himself, Abbot Kirill, who, according to some information, was poisoned by ill-wishers shortly before, received healing from her.
The memory of the righteous life of the Monk Anthony and the miracles that occurred after the prayers addressed to him led to the fact that the monks of the monastery he founded began to petition for the canonization of the Monk Anthony of Rome. And at the very end of the 16th century he was officially canonized by the Orthodox Church.
Memorial Day of St. Anthony the Roman:
August 3 (16) and January 17 (30)
Troparion of St. Anthony
voice 4
Old Rome, your fatherland, having left / on a stone, like on a light ship, ascended / and on it, more than nature, as if incorporeal, you walked on the waters, / guided by the providence of the Divine mind, / the Great Novagrad reached / and, having created a monastery in it, / a body You offered yours in it, as a gift sanctified./ Thus we pray to you, Father Anthony // pray to Christ God, that he may save our souls.
Kontakion of St. Anthony the Roman
voice 2
Like a star, you shone from Rome, / and, having reached the God-saved Great Novagrad, / you created that monastery in it, / and, having built a church, / convened a multitude of monks. / With them, pray for us, who honor your memory, and we call to you: / Rejoice, reverend Father Anthony.
Kontakion of St. Anthony
voice 8
Roman upbringing, the Great Novugrad has a blessed prosperity, / for many of your labors and exploits in it pleased God. / For this reason, for the sake of miracles, you were vouchsafed gifts from Him, / and for many years your body was preserved incorruptible. / We, kissing this, joyfully cry out from our hearts you // rejoice, Father Anthony.
Prayer to St. Anthony the Roman
Our good shepherd and mentor, Reverend Father Anthony! You are still in the flesh, you are controlled by the divine beckoning, you left your fatherland and your family in ancient Rome, and from there you sanctified this through the waters miraculously, like a light ship, by your coming This city, and in it you erected the temple of the Mother of God, With your labors and exploits you have enlightened your abode, even the foundation of which you were, you have multiplied your children in it, and instruct them in the image of good deeds and teaching; Thus, with the incorruptibility of your relics and miracles, God glorify you with the radiance, He who is incorporeal with the incorporeal stands rejoicing, and, rejoicing, about those who flow to your miraculous race, and your relics are your lips and your heart’s forehead those who pray: you even now, because you have boldness towards the Master Christ , be a man of prayer and intercessor for these upcoming servants of yours, who bow to your honest image and ask for your merciful intercession. We pray to you, servant of Christ and saint, our head and heart bow to you; do not despise this poor prayer of ours, but look upon us mercifully, fulfilling my demands every time: to those who are sick, health, to those traveling along the way, prosperity, to those who sail, granting a quick and comfortable voyage: us from all Save any troubles that suddenly appear; May we all live pleasingly to God on earth through your prayers, and we will be heirs of the Heavenly Kingdom, worthy to glorify the All-Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
New life
Saint Anthony was discovered by local residents in the morning. The stranger stood on a stone and only bowed to all the people’s questions, because he did not know the Russian language. The boulder was the refuge of the ascetic for another three days and nights: all this time the servant of the Lord frantically prayed to God and asked him to reveal to him where he had ended up. Afterwards the man went to Novgorod. There, by the will of the Creator, he met a foreign blacksmith who spoke three languages - including Latin. This man told the monk where he found himself. Saint Anthony was indescribably surprised when he learned that the city he came to was Veliky Novgorod, that his stone stopped on the waters of the Volkhov River. After all, it takes six months to get from Rome to the Russian lands on foot, but by God’s providence he was brought here in just three days!
The blacksmith showed Anthony the Novgorod Cathedral, where Saint Nikita was the priest. The soul of the ascetic lit up with the fire of delight when he saw the decoration of the Orthodox church and the splendor of the church service. Afterwards, the monk returned to his stone on the river bank. But now he led a life not as secluded as before: local residents often began to visit him. They went to the saint for a blessing, and the ascetic learned the Russian language from the villagers.
After some time, Anthony again visited Veliky Novgorod and the main cathedral of the city. There he told Saint Nikita about his wonderful journey. Having heard Anthony's story, the saint wanted to leave the ascetic at the department. However, the monk refused and asked for a blessing to continue living on a stone by the river. A little more time passed, and Nikita himself paid a visit to Saint Anthony. He gave the ascetic the blessing to found a monastery at his place of residence in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The saint consecrated a wooden church that soon grew here.
A year has flown by. The monastery, erected by Saint Anthony, has already almost completely taken shape. Once the locals were fishing near the monastery. They caught a lot of fish, and in addition they pulled out a barrel that the ascetic had thrown into the sea many years ago in his homeland - the saint recognized it. At first the fishermen did not want to give what they found to the monk, but, in the end, by order of the judge, Anthony received his own property. The latter consisted mainly of church utensils. There was also some money there: the saint spent it on purchasing land around the monastery, as well as fishing and a village from the Novgorod mayors.
In 1117, the stone church of the monastery was founded. Two years later he was consecrated by Bishop John of Novgorod. Around 1125 the church was painted. At the same time, a stone meal appeared at the monastery. Later, a temple was erected near it in honor of the Presentation of the Lord.
Prayers
Our good shepherd and mentor, Rev. Father Anthony! You are still in the flesh, controlled by the Divine beckoning, you left the old Rome of your fatherland and your family, and from there you sanctified this city with miraculous waters on stones, like light ships, by your coming, and in it you erected the temple of the Mother of God, With your labors and exploits you enlightened your abode, even the foundation of your existence, you multiplied your children in it, instructing them in the image of good deeds and teaching; With this and the incorruptibility of your relics and miracles, God glorified you with radiance, He who is incorporeal and incorporeal before you rejoices, and rejoicing in those who flow to your miraculous race, and pray to your relics with your lips and kissing your heart: you even now, as if you have boldness towards the Lord Christ , be a prayer book and intercessor for these upcoming servants of yours, who bow to your honest image and ask for your merciful intercession. We pray to you, servant of Christ and saint, our heads and hearts bow to you; do not despise this poor prayer of ours, but look upon us mercifully, fulfilling our every need: health to those who are sick, prosperity to those traveling along the way, granting speedy and comfortable voyage to those sailing: save us from all troubles that suddenly find us; May we all live a godly life on earth through your prayers, and we will be heirs of the heavenly kingdom, worthy of glorifying the All-Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
