Hieromartyr Hermogenes Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

Days of remembrance: February 17 (March 02), May 12(25), October 5(18) (Cathedral of Moscow Saints)

Descended from the Don Cossacks. According to the testimony of the Patriarch himself, he was initially a priest in the city of Kazan at the Gostinodvorsky Church in the name of St. Nicholas (December 6 and May 9). He soon became a monk and from 1582 was the archimandrite of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery in Kazan. On May 13, 1589, he was consecrated bishop and became the first Metropolitan of Kazan.

During the service of the future Patriarch in Kazan, the appearance and discovery of the miraculous Kazan Icon of the Mother of God took place in 1579. While still a priest, he, with the blessing of the then Kazan bishop Jeremiah, transferred the newly appeared icon from the place of its discovery to the church in the name of St. Nicholas. Possessing an extraordinary literary talent, the saint himself composed in 1594 a legend about the appearance of the miraculous icon and the miracles performed by it. In the legend, he humbly writes about himself: “I then... although I was stony-hearted, I nevertheless shed tears and fell to the image of the Mother of God, and to the miraculous icon, and to the Eternal Child, the Savior Christ... And at the command of the Archbishop, I went with the other holy crosses I took the icon to the nearby church of St. Nicholas, who is called Tula...” In 1591, the saint gathered newly baptized Tatars to the cathedral and for several days instructed them in the Christian faith.

On January 9, 1592, Saint Hermogen sent a letter to Patriarch Job, in which he reported that in Kazan there was no special commemoration of the Orthodox soldiers who laid down their lives for the faith and Fatherland near Kazan, and asked to establish a specific day of remembrance of the soldiers. In response to Saint Hermogenes, the Patriarch sent a decree dated February 25, which ordered “for all Orthodox soldiers killed near Kazan and within Kazan, to perform a memorial service in Kazan and throughout the Kazan Metropolis and the Sabbath day after the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos and to include them in the big synodik, read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy." Saint Hermogen showed zeal for the faith and firmness in observing church traditions, and cared about enlightening the Kazan Tatars with the faith of Christ.

In 1595, with the active participation of the saint, the discovery and discovery of the relics of the Kazan miracle workers took place: Saints Guria, the first Archbishop of Kazan and Barsanuphius, Bishop of Tver. Tsar Theodore Ioannovich ordered the construction of a new stone church in the Kazan Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery on the site of the previous one where the saints were buried. When the coffins of the saints were found, Saint Hermogenes came with a council of clergy, ordered the coffins to be opened and, seeing the incorrupt relics and clothes of the saints, informed the Patriarch and the Tsar. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Job († 1605) and by order of the king, the relics of the newly-minted miracle workers were placed in the new church. Saint Hermogen himself compiled the lives of Saints Gurias and Barsanuphius, bishops of Kazan.

For his outstanding archpastoral works, Metropolitan Hermogenes was elected to the primatial see, and on July 3, 1606, he was elevated by the Council of Saints to the Patriarchal throne in the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. Metropolitan Isidore presented His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes with the staff of St. Peter, the Moscow Wonderworker († December 21, 1326), and the Tsar presented the new Patriarch with a panagia decorated with precious stones, a white hood and a staff. According to the ancient rite, His Holiness Patriarch Ermogen made a procession on a donkey around the walls of the Kremlin.

The activities of Patriarch Hermogen coincided with a difficult period for the Russian state - the invasion of the impostor False Dmitry and the Polish king Sigismund III. Patriarch Ermogen was not alone in this feat: he was imitated and helped by selfless Russian people. With special inspiration, His Holiness the Patriarch opposed the traitors and enemies of the Fatherland who wanted to enslave the Russian people, introduce Uniateism and Catholicism in Russia, and eradicate Orthodoxy. When the impostor approached Moscow and settled in Tushino, Patriarch Ermogen sent two messages to the rebellious traitors. In one of them he wrote: “...You forgot the vows of our Orthodox faith, in which we were born, baptized, raised and grew up, broke the kiss of the cross and the oath to stand until death for the House of the Most Holy Theotokos and for the Moscow state and fell to your falsely imaginary to the Tsar... My soul hurts, my heart hurts, and all my insides are tormented, all my limbs are shaking; I cry and cry out with sobs: have mercy, have mercy, brothers and children, your souls and your parents, departed and living... Look how our fatherland is being plundered and ruined by strangers, how holy icons and churches are being desecrated, how the blood of innocents is being shed, crying out to God. Remember against whom you take up arms: is it not God who created you? not on your brothers? Are you ruining your Fatherland?... I conjure you in the Name of God, leave your undertaking while there is time, so as not to perish to the end.”

In another letter, the High Hierarch urged: “...For God’s sake, know yourself and be converted, bring joy to your parents, wives and children, and all of us; and let us pray to God for you."

Soon, God's righteous judgment was carried out on the Tushinsky thief: he suffered the same sad and inglorious fate as his predecessor; he was killed by his own confidants on December 11, 1610. But Moscow continued to remain in danger, since there were Poles and traitorous boyars loyal to Sigismund III in it. Letters sent by Patriarch Hermogenes to cities and villages excited the Russian people to liberate Moscow from their enemies and elect a legitimate Russian Tsar. Muscovites started an uprising, in response to which the Poles set the city on fire and took refuge in the Kremlin. Together with Russian traitors, they forcibly removed the holy Patriarch Hermogenes from the Patriarchal throne and placed him in custody in the Chudov Monastery. On Easter Monday 1611, the Russian militia approached Moscow and began a siege of the Kremlin that lasted several months. The Poles besieged in the Kremlin more than once sent envoys to the Patriarch demanding that he order the Russian militias to move away from the city, threatening him with the death penalty. The saint answered firmly: “Why are you threatening me? I fear only God. If all of you, Lithuanian people, leave the Moscow state, I will bless the Russian militia to leave Moscow, but if you stay here, I will bless everyone to stand against you and die for the Orthodox Faith.” Already from prison, the holy martyr Hermogenes addressed his last message to the Russian people, blessing the liberation war against the conquerors. But the Russian governors did not show unanimity and coherence at that time, so they could not take the Kremlin and free their High Hierarch. He languished in severe captivity for more than nine months and on February 17, 1612 he died a martyr’s death from hunger.

The liberation of Russia, for which Saint Hermogen stood with such indestructible courage, was successfully completed through his intercession by the Russian people. The body of the holy martyr Hermogenes was buried in the Chudov Monastery, and in 1654 it was transferred to the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. The glorification of Patriarch Hermogenes as a saint took place on May 12, 1913. His memory is also celebrated on February 17.

Hieromartyr Hermogen, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', glorified as a saint on May 12, 1913.

For three centuries, the memory of Patriarch Hermogenes as a martyr saint was passed on from generation to generation, and people's faith in him grew as an intercessor and prayer book for the Russian land at the Throne of the Almighty. In the difficult years of domestic disasters, the prayerful thoughts of the people turned to the memory of the Patriarch-Hero. Russian people went to his tomb with their personal sorrows, ailments and illnesses, reverently calling for help from St. Hermogenes, believing in him as a warm man of prayer and intercessor before the Lord. And the All-Merciful Lord rewarded this faith...

For the day of solemn glorification, which coincided with the 300th anniversary of the death of the holy martyr Hermogenes, believers from all over Russia began to flock to Moscow. Pilgrims rushed to venerate the relics of the holy Patriarch, located in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, where funeral services were served almost continuously. On the eve of the glorification, a religious procession was held, at the head of which they carried the icon of St. Hermogenes, and after it the cover from the tomb, on which the Saint is depicted full-length in a mantle and with a staff. Next to the icon of the Patriarch they carried the icon of his companion in spiritual and patriotic activities for the liberation of the Russian land from the Polish-Lithuanian invaders, St. Dionysius of Radonezh. On the bell tower of John the Great there was a huge inscription: “Rejoice, holy martyr Hermogenes, great intercessor of the Russian lands.” Hundreds of thousands of candles burned in the hands of believers, glorifying the saint of God. At the end of the procession at the shrine with the relics of the Patriarch, the reading of the Easter canon began with the addition of the canon to St. Hermogenes.

All-night vigils were held in the open air on all squares of the Kremlin. That night several healings took place through the grace-filled prayers of St. Hermogenes. For example, one patient came to the Assumption Cathedral on crutches, but felt healing after venerating the shrine containing the relics of the Saint. Another patient, who suffered severely from relaxation, was healed. He was brought on a towel to the shrine of the holy martyr Hermogenes, where he received complete healing. These and other similar healings, witnessed by numerous believers, became a significant confirmation of the holiness of the new Russian miracle worker;

On Sunday, May 12, at 10 a.m., the Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the Assumption Cathedral. His Beatitude Gregory, Patriarch of Antioch, arrived to celebrate the glorification of the new saint, leading the service. At the end of the liturgy, prayers to St. Hermogenes were served in all Moscow churches and a procession of the cross took place in the Moscow Kremlin, in which more than 20 bishops took part, accompanying the solemn procession by singing: “To St. Father Hermogenes, pray to God for us.” The service ended with a prayer to the holy martyr Hermogenes. From this day the liturgical veneration of St. Hermogenes began. Thus the desire of the Russian believers was fulfilled, through whose prayers the Russian Orthodox Church received the gracious Heavenly patron of our Fatherland.

The Holy Synod of the Russian Church established the days of celebration of the Hieromartyr Hermogenes, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus': February 17 - repose (information about his life and feat is placed on this day) and May 12 - glorification as a saint.

Saint Hermogenes, a tireless fighter for the purity of Orthodoxy and the unity of the Russian land, is of great national importance. His church and state-patriotic activities for several centuries serve as a vivid example of fiery faith and love for the Russian people. The Church activity of the High Hierarch is characterized by an attentive and strict attitude towards Divine services. Under him, the following were published: the Gospel, Menaions of the Months for September (1607), October (1609), November (1610) and the first twenty days of December, and also the “Great Supreme Charter” was printed in 1610. At the same time, Saint Hermogenes did not limit himself to blessing the publication, but carefully monitored the correctness of the texts. With the blessing of Saint Hermogenes, the service to the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called was translated from Greek into Russian and the celebration of his memory was restored in the Assumption Cathedral. Under the supervision of the High Hierarch, new presses were made for printing liturgical books and a new printing house was built, which was damaged during the fire of 1611, when Moscow was set on fire by the Poles. Concerned about the observance of the Divine service, Saint Hermogen composed a “Message of discipline to all people, especially priests and deacons, on the correction of church singing.” The “Message” denounces the clergy for the unregulated performance of church services - polyphony, and the laity for their irreverent attitude towards Divine services.

The literary activity of the High Hierarch of the Russian Church is widely known. His pen includes: the story of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the service to this icon (1594); message to Patriarch Job containing information about the Kazan martyrs (1591); a collection that deals with issues of Divine services (1598); patriotic letters and appeals addressed to the Russian people (1606 – 1613) and other works.

Reviews from contemporaries testify to Patriarch Hermogenes as a man of outstanding intellect and erudition: “The Sovereign is of great intellect and sense and wise in mind,” “wonderful of great and many reasoning,” “greatly adorned with wisdom and elegant in book teaching,” “he constantly practices and all the books of the Old Law and the New Grace, and the statutes of the church and the rules of the law are outdated to the end.” Saint Hermogen worked a lot in monastery libraries, first of all, in the rich library of the Moscow Chudov Monastery, where he copied the most valuable historical information from ancient manuscripts, which served as the basis for chronicle records. In the 17th century, the “Resurrection Chronicle” was called the chronicler of His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes. In the writings of the Primate of the Russian Church and his archpastoral letters there are constantly references to the Holy Scriptures and examples taken from history, which testifies to a deep knowledge of the Word of God and erudition in the church literature of that time.

With this erudition, Patriarch Hermogenes combined his outstanding abilities as a preacher and teacher. Reviews from contemporaries characterize the moral image of the High Hierarch as “a pious man,” “a well-known pure life,” “a true shepherd of the flock of Christ,” “an unfalse stander in the Christian faith.”

These qualities of Saint Hermogenes manifested themselves with particular force during the Time of Troubles, when the Russian land suffered the misfortune of internal disorder, aggravated by the Polish-Lithuanian invasion. During this dark period, the High Hierarch of the Russian Church selflessly protected the Russian state, in word and deed defending the Orthodox faith from Latinism and the unity of our Fatherland from enemies internal and external. Saint Hermogen crowned his feat of saving the Motherland with his martyrdom, which turned into grace-filled, prayerful Heavenly intercession for our Fatherland at the Throne of the Holy Trinity.

Hieromartyr Ermogen, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', came from the Don Cossacks. According to the testimony of the Patriarch himself, he was a priest in the city of Kazan at the Kazan Gostinodvorsky Church in the name of St. Nicholas (December 6 and May 9). He soon became a monk and from 1582 was the archimandrite of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery in Kazan. On May 13, 1589, he was consecrated bishop and became the first Metropolitan of Kazan.

During the ministry of His Holiness the Patriarch in Kazan, the appearance and discovery of the miraculous Kazan Icon of the Mother of God took place in 1579. While still a priest, he, with the blessing of the then Kazan bishop Jeremiah, transferred the newly appeared icon from the place of its discovery to the church in the name of St. Nicholas. Possessing an extraordinary literary talent, the saint himself composed in 1594 a legend about the appearance of the miraculous icon and the miracles performed by it. In 1591, the saint gathered newly baptized Tatars to the cathedral and for several days instructed them in the faith.

In 1592, the relics of St. Herman, the second Kazan Archbishop (September 25, November 6, June 23), who died in Moscow on November 6, 1567, during a pestilence, and was buried near the church in the name of St. Nicholas, were transferred. With the blessing of Patriarch Job (1589 - 1605), Saint Hermogen performed their burial in the Sviyazhsk Dormition Monastery. On January 9, 1592, Saint Hermogen sent a letter to Patriarch Job, in which he reported that in Kazan there was no special commemoration of the Orthodox soldiers who laid down their lives for the faith and Fatherland near Kazan, and asked to establish a specific day of remembrance. At the same time, he reported on three martyrs who suffered in Kazan for the faith of Christ, one of whom was Russian, named John (January 24), originally from Nizhny Novgorod, captured by the Tatars, and the other two, Stephen and Peter (March 24), newly converted Tatars. The saint expressed regret that these martyrs were not included in the synodikon read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, and that eternal memory was not sung to them. In response to Saint Hermogenes, the Patriarch sent a decree dated February 25, which ordered “for all Orthodox soldiers killed near Kazan and within Kazan, to perform a memorial service in Kazan and throughout the Kazan Metropolis on the Saturday after the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos and to include them in the great synodik, read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy,” it was ordered that the three Kazan martyrs be included in the same synodik, and the day of their memory was entrusted to determine Saint Hermogenes. The saint announced a patriarchal decree for his diocese, adding that all churches and monasteries should serve liturgies and memorial services for the three Kazan martyrs and commemorate them at litias and liturgies on January 24. Saint Hermogen showed zeal for the faith and firmness in observing church traditions, and cared about enlightening the Kazan Tatars with the faith of Christ.

In 1595, with the active participation of the saint, the discovery and discovery of the relics of Kazan wonderworkers took place: Saints Guria, the first Archbishop of Kazan (October 4, December 5, June 20), and Barsanuphius, Bishop of Tver (October 4, April 11). Tsar Theodore Ioannovich (1584 - 1598) ordered the construction of a new stone church in the Kazan Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery on the site of the previous one, where the saints were buried. When the coffins of the saints were found, Saint Hermogenes came with a council of clergy, ordered the coffins to be opened and, seeing the incorrupt relics and clothes of the saints, informed the Patriarch and the Tsar. With the blessing of Patriarch Job and by order of the king, the relics of the newly-minted miracle workers were placed in the new temple. Saint Hermogen himself compiled the lives of Saints Gurias and Barsanuphius.

For his outstanding archpastoral qualities, Metropolitan Hermogen was elected to the primate cathedral, and on July 3, 1606, he was elevated by the Council of Saints to the Patriarchal throne in the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. Metropolitan Isidore presented the Patriarch with the staff of St. Peter, the Moscow Wonderworker (October 5, December 21, August 24), and the Tsar presented the new Patriarch with a panagia decorated with precious stones, a white hood and a staff. According to the ancient rite, Patriarch Ermogen made the procession on a donkey.

The activities of Patriarch Hermogenes coincided with a difficult period for the Russian state - the invasion of the impostor False Demetrius and the Polish king Sigismund III. The High Hierarch devoted all his energies to serving the Church and the Fatherland. In this feat, Patriarch Ermogen was not alone: ​​his selfless compatriots imitated and helped him. With special inspiration, His Holiness the Patriarch opposed the traitors and enemies of the Fatherland, who wanted to introduce Uniateism and Catholicism in Russia and eradicate Orthodoxy, enslaving the Russian people. When the impostor approached Moscow and settled in Tushino, Patriarch Ermogen sent two messages to the rebellious traitors. In one of them he wrote: “...You forgot the vows of our Orthodox faith, in which we were born, baptized, raised and grew up, broke the kiss of the cross and the oath to stand until death for the house of the Most Holy Theotokos and for the Moscow state and fell to your falsely imaginary to the Tsar... My soul hurts, my heart hurts, and all my insides are tormented, all my limbs are shaking; I cry and cry out with sobs: have mercy, have mercy, brothers and children, your souls and your parents, departed and living... Look how our Fatherland is plundered and ruined by strangers, how holy icons and churches are desecrated, how the blood of innocents is shed, crying out to God. Remember against whom you take up arms: is it not God who created you? not on your brothers? Are you ruining your Fatherland?... I conjure you in the Name of God, leave your undertaking while there is time, so as not to perish to the end.” In another letter, the High Hierarch urged: “For God’s sake, know yourself and be converted, bring joy to your parents, your wives and children, and all of us; and we will pray to God for you...” Soon, God’s righteous judgment was carried out on the Tushinsky thief: he suffered the same sad and inglorious fate as his predecessor; he was killed by his own confidants on December 11, 1610. But Moscow continued to remain in danger, since there were Poles and traitorous boyars loyal to Sigismund III in it. Letters sent by Patriarch Hermogenes to cities and villages excited the Russian people to liberate Moscow from their enemies and elect a legitimate Russian Tsar. Muscovites started an uprising, in response to which the Poles set the city on fire and took refuge in the Kremlin. Together with Russian traitors, they forcibly removed the holy Patriarch Hermogenes from the Patriarchal throne and placed him in custody in the Chudov Monastery. On Easter Monday 1611, the Russian militia approached Moscow and began a siege of the Kremlin that lasted several months. The Poles besieged in the Kremlin more than once sent envoys to the Patriarch demanding that he order the Russian militias to move away from the city, threatening the death penalty. The saint answered firmly: “Why are you threatening me? I fear only God. If all of you, Lithuanian people, leave the Moscow state, I will bless the Russian militia to leave Moscow, if you stay here, I will bless everyone to stand against you and die for the Orthodox faith.” Already from prison, the holy martyr Hermogenes addressed his last message to the Russian people, blessing the liberation war against the conquerors. The Russian governors did not show coherence, so they were unable to take the Kremlin and free their High Hierarch. He languished in severe captivity for more than nine months, and on February 17, 1612, he died a martyr’s death from hunger.

The liberation of Russia, for which Saint Hermogenes stood with such indomitable courage, was successfully completed by the Russian people. The body of the holy martyr Hermogenes was buried in the Chudov Monastery, and in 1654 it was transferred to the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. The glorification of Patriarch Hermogenes as a saint took place on May 12, 1913.

Childhood and origins

Egromgen (Hermogen), in the world Ermolai, was born at the beginning of the sixteenth century. There is still debate about his pedigree. Some historians claim that he was from the family of the Shuisky princes, others from the Golitsyn family. There is a version that he came from the Don Cossacks.

His childhood and teenage years coincided with significant events for the country: the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the conquest of Kazan and Siberia. Before his eyes, some part of Russia was captured by the Poles, who were persecuting Orthodoxy.

All this left a deep imprint on the soul of young Ermolai. It burned with love and pity for its people, with a desire to help. Already in childhood, his life path was determined. As a teenager, he decided to devote his life to serving God. Ermolai left home for Kazan, where he entered a monastery.

Revolutions of Troubles

Historians are still arguing about the origins of the great Russian Troubles of the early 17th century. Among its deepest reasons, some call the creation by Ivan the Terrible of the oprichnina “anti-system” within the state, others talk about the depletion of the kingdom by wars with Lithuania and two terrible droughts under Boris Godunov. Still others point to the main reason - the derogation of moral guidelines and national unity caused by the unworthy behavior of the then state elite.

False Dmitry

The eventful concentrate of the Troubles seemed to spill out directly from the other world. The shadow of Tsarevich Dimitri, who was slaughtered in Uglich and later canonized, embodied in two large and a dozen small impostors, for eight years gathered under its banner crowds of deceived people, mixed with gangs of its own and foreign adventurers, in order to torment the country and bring it almost to destruction. The destruction consisted not only of extreme ruin, human devastation, and foreign intervention. It was in terrible disintegration of the moral bonds that form the body and soul of the state.

The contemporaries of Patriarch Hermogenes had something to lose their heads over. Today “Tsarevich Dimitri” is kissed on the cross as God’s anointed, and tomorrow they are called “a thief and a dog.” The former queen, nun Martha, either recognizes her miraculously resurrected son, or publicly repents of this recognition. Four kings succeed on the throne in one year, two of them are killed; the cities themselves decide who they recognize as rulers, while Catholic masses are celebrated in the Moscow Kremlin... Cannibalism, villainy, looting of churches, mass betrayal and apostasy... The Poles themselves were sometimes surprised at the atrocities of the “Orthodox” Cossacks in captured Russian villages and cities.

We will not retell known historical facts; we will only recall the key events of the Time of Troubles. When the first False Dmitry with his Polish retinue marched victoriously to the capital and sat on the throne of the Moscow kings, the voice of Metropolitan Hermogenes was not heard. Most likely, like most Russian people, the Metropolitan initially believed that the man who came from Poland was the son of Ivan the Terrible.

But when pseudo-Dmitry was going to make the Catholic Marina Mnishek the Russian queen, Saint Hermogenes could not remain silent. And the impostor also decided to “bless” the metropolitan by appointing him to a major government position in the Boyar Duma, called the “Senate” in the Polish manner. One can only guess how great the irritation of False Dmitry was when, instead of gratitude, the obstinate Metropolitan of Kazan, together with Bishop Joseph of Kolomna, dared to insist in writing on the mandatory baptism of the future Russian queen into Orthodoxy.

Patriarch Hermogenes Portrait of Shilov

The angry king ordered Hermogenes to be deprived of his dignity and sent to prison in Kazan. They did not have time to carry out the order: a day later, False Dmitry was overthrown by conspirators led by Prince Vasily Shuisky - and killed. Soon the boyar comrades at the execution site “called” Shuisky king.

Pastoral ministry

Upon reaching the required age, Ermogen accepted the rank of priest and served in Kazan in the Church of St. Nicholas. It was there that the priest was honored with the miracle of finding the icon of the Kazan Mother of God through a vision of a girl.

Then he took monastic vows at the Chudov Monastery. Later he became the archimandrite of the Transfiguration Monastery in Kazan. In 1589, Ermogen became a bishop and headed the Kazan Metropolis. He carried out educational work, converting the local people - the Tatars - to Christ.

Metropolitan Ermogen compiled a service to the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. The troparion “The Diligent Intercessor ,” written by him, is so heartfelt and touching that it is impossible to sing it without tears.

Kazan miracle

Almost nothing is known about the origin, childhood, youth and mature years of the saint. His life emerges from the fog of uncertainty after the tape has unwound to the middle. Everything that comes before consists of guesses, hypotheses, facts of dubious value and a colossal blank spot.

So, the saint was born no later than 1549. Another date, 1530, which wanders from reference book to reference book, is the result of an error.

Its origin has caused a long discussion among historians. Most likely, Hermogenes came from a provincial urban environment, that is, from poor nobles or townspeople. Subsequently, he joined the Cossacks, and then took holy orders and became a priest.

It is not even known how his parents christened the boy. But here there is much less disagreement between historians. Usually two names are given: Ermolai and Gregory, while the vast majority of the saint’s biographers give preference to the first option.

The first firmly known date in the biography of Hermogenes is 1579. Then the future patriarch, who had not yet accepted monasticism, served as a priest in the town church of Kazan, and God granted him an encounter with a great miracle. Many years later, Hermogenes, taking up his pen, spoke in detail about the events of that time.

Annunciation Cathedral of the Kazan Kremlin. Photo from the end of the 19th century.

At noon on June 23, 1579, near the church of St. Nicholas, called Tula, a fire started in the courtyard of the “royal warrior” Daniil Onuchin. Most of the settlement and the Transfiguration Monastery turned to ashes. The slow, difficult, sorrowful restoration of houses and temples began.

But along with the punishment came encouragement. The Mother of God icon miraculously revealed itself “... to the young daughter of a simple warrior skilled in military shooting, ten years old, named Matrona...” That same summer and in the same month she began to appear to Matrona, ordering her to go to the Kremlin and tell about icon “...to the archbishop and the governors, so that they go and take out the image from the bowels of the earth... and indicate the place where they can find an honest treasure...”.

The girl, out of confusion, reported the vision only to her mother, although the icon appeared to her more than once. Matrona asked her mother to tell the authorities about the miracle. She brought the girl to the governors. But the governors did not pay any attention to their words. Likewise, Archbishop Jeremiah “sent her away without any work.” This happened on July 8, 1579.

Patriarchate

In 1606, Ermogen became Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. He was about seventy years old. The years of his ministry included “troubled times.” The Patriarch boldly denounced the traitors to the Motherland, admonished them, and asked them to stop. In times of famine, he ordered the monastery's granaries to be opened to all those in need.

The Patriarch called on the inhabitants of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra to fight the Polish invaders. For sixteen months the enemies besieged the monastery without success. They left with nothing. Ermogen denounced False Dmitry, and then Sigismund, the Polish pretender to the Russian throne.

Hermogenes was a man of keen intelligence and well-read. He made an invaluable contribution to the development of Russian writing. Under him, the Menaion and the Gospel were published. He himself always monitored the correctness of the texts. He also blessed the translation of the service to St. Andrew the First-Called from Greek into Russian.

Patriarch Hermogenes and the Time of Troubles

The missionary onslaught of the Catholic West on the Orthodox East began simultaneously with the fall of Rome from the Orthodox Church.
Already in 1204, taking advantage of the unrest in Byzantium, its Western allies, the crusaders, plundered the capital of the Empire and tried to destroy the Eastern Roman statehood. Forty years later, Rome predatorily rushed towards Rus', weakened by the Mongol-Tatar invasion. In the Catholic West, the Galician prince Daniil Romanovich was then trying to find support. The historical result of this was the loss of both Orthodoxy and Russianness by his land. Today Galician Rus' is a springboard for Catholic expansion to the East. Northeastern Rus' took a different path. Prince Alexander Nevsky, who stood at its head, even being a vassal of the Tatar Khan, understood that the main evil for Rus' was in the West, where the danger to Orthodoxy came from. And Alexander’s defense of Orthodoxy saved the historical future of Russia.

Three and a half centuries later, when open Catholic aggression descended on Rus', the new chosen one of God, Patriarch Hermogenes, became “a solid adamant and an unshakable pillar” for the Orthodox Faith and the Orthodox Kingdom.

The patriarchate of Hermogenes (1606-1612) fell on the period of the Time of Troubles. In those years, the country had neither state power nor a combat-ready army. All management structures, all class and economic ties were destroyed. Boyars and nobles, merchants and townspeople, peasants and serfs, military men and Cossacks - all were involved in an endless war for class, corporate and simply selfish interests. Everyone acted under the banner of “their” king against the “fake” one, changing their “kings” depending on the situation. There was a lot of choice. Vasily Shuisky, who was installed by the boyars as king after the murder of the Vatican agent False Dmitry, was opposed by False Dmitry II, who received the nickname “Tushinsky thief.” There were many small impostors: “Tsarevich August”, “Tsarevich Fedka”, “Tsarevich Lavrenty”, “princes”: Semyon, Vasily, Clementy, Broshka and Martynka. Armed gangs roamed throughout the country, terrorizing the population.

Human dignity and life were worth nothing. People sought salvation in cities. Villages and villages were destroyed and burned. The people were starving.

This terrible time for Russia dates back to the reign of Boris Godunov (1598-1605). Tsar Boris's desire to establish himself on the throne as the founder of a new dynasty ran counter to the interests of the boyar elite. In order to establish oligarchic rule in Russia, she fabricated a vile and blasphemous provocation: an impostor. Nearby was Poland, or more precisely, the Polish-Lithuanian state of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This rich state, which contained within its borders vast territories of western and southern Rus', was ruled by powerful nobility. Her lifestyle with eternal festive revelry and flashy luxury assimilated many noble Western Russian families, turning their representatives into Poles and Catholics. It was from Poland that the impostor “launched” in Moscow came to Godunov’s death, declaring himself the miraculously saved Tsarevich Dimitri. But, seeing him as their puppet, the Moscow boyars miscalculated: behind False Dmitry there were other puppeteers - much stronger ones. This is what the Pope wrote to the impostor: “Believe, you are destined by God, so that under your leadership the Muscovites will return to the bosom of their spiritual mother, who extends her arms to them. And you cannot thank the Lord for the mercies shown to you in any way more than by your diligence and zeal so that the peoples under your control accept the Catholic faith.”

In 1605, after the triumphal entry of False Demetrius into Moscow, the heroic defense of the Orthodox Kingdom by Saint Hermogen began. By that time he was the ruling bishop of the Kazan diocese, and since 1598 - metropolitan. The entire life of the saint before the Time of Troubles was connected with Kazan. Here (around 1530) he was born, here he began his ministry as a parish priest, and witnessed the appearance and discovery of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in 1579. Subsequently, being already a metropolitan, he compiled a legend about the appearance of this icon and the miracles performed from it.

Having reigned in Moscow, False Dmitry established a Senate in the Western style, and when the issue of the marriage of the “saved prince” to the daughter of his Polish benefactor Marina Mnishek was being decided there, Metropolitan Ermogen sharply opposed the marriage of the Russian Tsar to a Catholic woman. The saint could not have known then that the liar had already been secretly accepted into Latin by the papal nuncio, married to Marina according to the Latin rite, and made an oath promise to bring the Russian people into a union. At his direction, Archbishop Ignatius, a Greek who studied in Rome, was elevated to the patriarchal throne. Having easily found a common language with the impostor, this patriarch became an accomplice in the great deception, which was intended to circumvent the demand of the Russian bishops that the Catholic Marina be rebaptized. Saint Hermogenes turned to False Demetrius: “It is not proper for a Christian king to take an unbaptized woman and bring her into the holy church and build Roman churches. Don’t do this, king, because none of the previous kings did this, but you want to do it.” False Demetrius put Hermogenes into disgrace. The saint was exiled to Kazan. It was ordered to deprive him of his dignity and imprison him in a monastery, but the execution of this was prevented by the death of the impostor.

The boyar party realized that the new tsar was not its protege, and the population of Moscow clearly felt the spirit of Catholic and foreign occupation. On May 14, 1606, a group of boyars led by Prince Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky raised an uprising that destroyed the impostor. Vasily Shuisky became king. The bishops deprived the protege and accomplice of the impostor, Patriarch Ignatius, of the priesthood. The council appointed Metropolitan Hermogenes to the patriarchal see. There is information that the candidacy of Hermogenes was indicated by the first patriarch Job, who refused to return to the patriarchate due to blindness and old age. The valiant service of Hermogenes the Patriarch began, in which he devoted all his strength to the salvation of the Church and the Fatherland.

The very first months of Vasily Shuisky’s reign revealed the weakness of his power. Tsar Vasily, who limited his power to a contractual obligation to the Moscow boyars who placed him on the throne, did not have the strength and authority to maintain a strong state order in the country. Rumors about the miraculous salvation of Tsar Demetrius spread in the provinces, and ferment grew.

The incorrupt relics of Tsarevich Dimitri were transferred to Moscow from Uglich with great triumph. Patriarch Ermogen established a church celebration of the prince three times a year: the day of birth, murder and transfer of relics. In addition, His Holiness the Patriarch ordered all churches to anathematize the impostor Grishka Otrepyev.

But it was not possible to drive out the spirit of impostor. The ghost of the supposedly saved prince continued to haunt the country, stirring up people to revolt and gathering them into gangs of thieves. Having barely suppressed the uprising led by Bolotnikov (the Patriarch betrayed him to the church curse), the Moscow government was faced with an even more terrible threat. False Dmitry II, who appeared on the southern borders, with the help of the Poles, gathered a huge motley army under his banner. The country was split. The impostor laid siege to the capital, camping in the village of Tushino near Moscow. In Moscow itself, supporters of the impostor attempted to overthrow Tsar Vasily. A crowd of rebels demanded that the Patriarch recognize his election as illegal. The firmness with which His Holiness the Patriarch spoke in defense of Shuisky allowed him to remain on the throne. But not for long…

The defeat in June 1610 of the Russian army sent against the Poles who besieged Smolensk by Tsar Vasily decided its fate. The Poles stood near Mozhaisk. Unrest began again in Moscow. Once again the Patriarch tried to defend the Tsar, convincing the crowd that “God will punish Russia for treason.” This time he failed to save Shuisky. Tsar Vasily was deposed and forcibly tonsured a monk. After his overthrow, when seven noble boyars became the helm of power, and they wanted to see Sigismund’s son, Prince Vladislav, on the throne, the Patriarch had to abandon his original plan to make the nephew of Ivan the Terrible’s first wife Anastasia, 14-year-old Misha Romanov, king. Agreeing to the candidacy of the prince, the Patriarch set the first and main condition for his election to be the adoption of Orthodoxy, and necessarily through the Sacrament of Baptism: “If the prince is baptized and is in the Orthodox faith, then I bless you; if he does not leave the Latin heresy, then the Orthodox faith will be violated throughout the entire Moscow state, and then may our blessing not be on you.”

Despite the protests of the Patriarch, the boyars allowed the army of Crown Hetman Zholkiewski into Moscow. King Sigismund demanded the surrender of Smolensk and made it clear that he expected to reign in Moscow himself and without any conditions. The boyars drew up a letter to the Moscow embassy near Smolensk, in which the Russian side agreed to rely on the royal will in everything. On December 5, 1610, they proposed to sign this document to Patriarch Hermogen. The saint refused and promised that if a non-Orthodox tsar appears in Moscow and does not withdraw Polish troops from the city, then he, the Patriarch, will begin to rouse Russian cities to resist and will bless the Orthodox people to go to Moscow and “suffer to death.” The very next day, in a church sermon, the Patriarch addressed the people with a call to stand for the Orthodox faith. After this, guards were assigned to him. The Patriarch declared himself as an open enemy of the Poles. And in the eyes of the Russian people, who found themselves in the face of a foreign yoke, His Holiness became the last hope.

The spontaneous movement for independence, which had long ago begun in the cities, began to take organized forms. This was greatly facilitated by the energetic Ryazan governor Prokopiy Lyapunov. There was correspondence between the cities discussing measures to protect the Faith and the Motherland. The Patriarch was appealed to as the spiritual center of resistance. He was often referred to in city correspondence. In one of these letters, the Yaroslavl residents wrote: “Hermogen stood for faith and Orthodoxy and ordered us all to stand until the end. If he had not done this wonderful deed, everything would have perished.”

When the one hundred thousand militia approached Moscow, the Russian traitors and Poles again approached the Patriarch, demanding that he order the militia to retreat. The Holy Lord was adamant and under the threat of death. His imprisonment became more and more painful. But the assault on Moscow failed. Prokopiy Lyapunov died, there was no unanimity among the governors. Much had to be started over again, but the liberation of Moscow was only a matter of time.

In August 1611, the Patriarch secretly released his last letter. In it, he, as before, called on people to serve Russia and lay down their souls for their faith. The saint suffered martyrdom from hunger on February 17/March 2, 1612. In November of the same year, a new militia led by the zemstvo elder

K. Minin and Prince. Dm. Pozharsky liberated Moscow. The Zemsky Sobor elevated Mikhail Romanov to the royal throne. Exhausted Russia rejoiced. God's wrath turned to mercy. But the Patriarch of All Rus', Ermogen, was already an invisible witness to this.

In 1913, when Russia celebrated the tercentenary of the House of Romanov, Patriarch Ermogen was canonized. In the basement of the Chudov Monastery, which was the place of imprisonment and martyrdom of the saint, it was decided to build a church and place his relics in it, but this was prevented by the revolution, and a decade later the entire Chudov Monastery was destroyed to the ground.

At the beginning of the 17th century, the most formidable and dangerous onslaught of Catholicism on Russia in history was fraught with its fall into the abyss of historical oblivion. An agent of the Vatican had already sat on the Russian throne, and the papal nuncio literally reported about Patriarch Ignatius: “I agree to union.” But both this king and this patriarch disappeared overnight, and the great Hermogenes came to serve as high priest. Are those whom God sends random in history? The heroic service of Saint Hermogenes led Russia to revival and prosperity under the scepter of the Romanovs. It is significant that his church glorification occurred on the tercentenary of the dynasty.

At the end of this greatest period in the history of our Fatherland stands the holy martyr-Tsar, at the beginning - the holy martyr-Patriarch. Here is wisdom. The symphony of the authorities of the Orthodox Power is revealed mystically at the heights of Russian history. Whatever fate befalls Russia, and whatever happens to us, no one can take this away from us.

Martyrdom

When Minin and Pozharsky raised a popular uprising, the Poles burned the capital and hid in the Kremlin. They forcibly dragged the Patriarch to the Chudov Monastery and locked him in prison. When Russian troops began to lay siege to the Kremlin, the Poles asked the Patriarch to order them to leave, and threatened him with death. But Hermogenes replied that he was not afraid of anything or anyone except God.

The siege of the Kremlin lasted for several months. The Patriarch sent encouraging words of support to the Russian soldiers. But he himself could not stand it and died of hunger and thirst. This happened in February 1612.

The news of the death of the Patriarch inspired the soldiers to fight even harder, and soon the siege of the Kremlin was broken.

The feat of Patriarch Hermogenes

At the end of December 1610, Moscow was occupied by Polish feudal lords, then Hermogenes sent letters to the cities of Russia, calling for an uprising of the entire people against the Poles. He counted on the support of the armed units of P.P. Lyapunova.

When the volunteer army finally approached Moscow, he challenged the Polish invaders. Despite the fact that he was facing the death penalty, he cursed Catholics and supported Lyapunov. After this, he was arrested and thrown into the Chudovsky Monastery.

There he heard about a new volunteer army, assembled by Kuzma Minin and under the command of Prince Pozharsky, and blessed them both. Following this, the patriarch was beaten and died of hunger.

Glorification of the Saint

The body of the Patriarch was buried in the Chudov Monastery. Forty years later the relics were discovered. To the great surprise of everyone, the body did not decompose at all. The saint lay intact, as if he had just died.

The relics were transferred to the Assumption Cathedral, where they still rest in a shrine. However, canonization occurred only in 1913. The entire royal family was present at this important event.

A hundred years later, a monument to the Patriarch was erected in the Alexander Garden. Also, a monument to him was erected in Alametyevsk.

The touching story of the martyrdom of the Patriarch inspired creative people. He was sung in the poem “Courage” by Derzhavin, in Georgy Dmitriev’s opera “Saint Hermogenes” and other works.

How do prayers to a saint help?

Many believers line up to tell him what is eating them. Most often, petitions are of a varied nature, but it is worth knowing about what this saint helps with. Most often this is:

• healing from illnesses, both physical and spiritual;
• finding the right path;
• strengthening faith;
• protection of native lands from invaders.

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The prayer to the holy martyr looks like this.

“O great saint of Christ, our holy father Hermogenes! We earnestly flock to you, a warm prayer book and unashamed representative before God, asking for consolation and help in our needs and sorrows. In the ancient time of temptation, the enemy of wickedness invaded our country. The Lord has revealed to the Church His unshakable pillar and shepherd of goodness to the Russian people, laying down his soul for the sheep and driving away the fierce wolves. Now look down on us too, your unworthy child, who calls you with a tender soul and a contrite heart. Our strength has become impoverished within us, and the enemy’s trappings and snares have devastated us. Help us, our intercessor! Confirm us in the holy faith: teach us to always keep the commandments of God and all the traditions of the church, commanded to us from our father. Be our shepherd, the archpastor, a spiritual leader, a warrior, a doctor for the sick, a comforter for the sad, an intercessor for the persecuted, a mentor for the young, a compassionate father for all and a warm prayer book for everyone; for by your prayers we protect you, let us unceasingly sing and glorify the all-holy Name of the Life-Giving Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen."

Shrines in honor of the patriarch

There are many monasteries in Russia that bear his name:

• The first temple was built by the Russian Monarchical Union in the dungeon of the Chudov Monastery. Afterwards the consecration was performed by Metropolitan Macarius Nevsky.
• The next interesting building is the Church of Hermogenes the All-Russian Patriarch in Southern Tushino. This is a wooden structure that was built in 2014. It is considered temporary, as there are plans to build a stone church.
• But at the other end of the capital, an old idea has already been brought to life. This is a relatively young holy place, but it has already become a favorite among parishioners. We are talking about the temple of Patriarch Hermogenes in Chertanovo. The money for it was donated by parishioners. Those who wish to visit it can find all the information they need on the monastery website. And if something is not indicated, then all contact information is indicated there.

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Remember that it doesn’t matter whether you bow to the relics or simply light a candle in the temple with words of petition, what is important is the state of your soul. Open your heart and ask sincerely. Only such speeches reach Heaven and are rewarded with grace. Otherwise, everything will be in vain.

God bless you!

You will also be interested in watching a video story about the holy Patriarch Hermogenes: