St. Sergius of Radonezh is a hieromonk of the Russian Church, the founder of monasteries, among which the well - known Trinity-Sergius Lavra. It is not in vain that this saint is called the defender of the Russian land; he made every effort to unite it to decisively repulse the enemy conquerors. His name is associated with the emergence of the spiritual culture of Holy Russia, he became the founder of Russian old age, monasticism resumed with him, which was begun by the great ascetics Anthony and Theodosius of Kiev-Pechersk. In the XV century, Sergius of Radonezh was canonized. And before answering a question that excites many people about where the relics of Sergius of Radonezh are located, we will first plunge into the life story of this great saint.
Life
The God-bearing Father was born on May 3, 1314 in the pious peasant family of Cyril and Mary (who were also canonized) in Rostov. True, his name was Bartholomew then. The Lord Himself chose him to serve the people. Pregnant Mary, while serving in the church, suddenly three times from her womb she heard the cry of a baby, and the people around her heard it, as did the priest himself, who immediately realized that a true minister of the Orthodox faith would soon be born.
In the young adolescence, Bartholomew was sent to study at school, but a weak memory did not allow him to study well. Once, while walking in the oak forest, he saw an old monk who looked like an angel, and he blessed him with good study. Bartholomew devoted much time to reading the Holy Scriptures, he wanted to devote his life to God and become a monk, but, while his parents were alive, he gave himself a vow.
Soon, their entire family moved from Rostov to Radonezh, where after some time their parents appeared before the Lord. In 1337, Bartholomew distributed all his property and, together with his brother Stefan, who was already a monk of the Pokrovsky monastery, settled on the deserted hill Makovets. The brother soon could not stand the harsh life in the wilds and returned to the brethren back.
Bartholomew was left alone, then he was 23 years old. Once, hieromonk Mitrofan came to him and blessed him as a monk with the name Sergius.
About a pious monk very quickly learned in the district, and other monks reached for him. Together they began to build a small chapel in honor of the Holy Trinity. Then, with God's help, a monastery was built. Archimandrite Simon of Smolensk once specially drove in to them and left precious gifts to the brethren for the expansion of the monastery and the construction of a large church.
Holy Trinity St. Sergius Lavra
Since 1355, with the blessing of the Patriarch of Philotheus of Constantinople, an outgoing charter was adopted in the monastery of Father Sergius of Radonezh. Very soon, Holy Trinity Monastery became the center of Moscow lands, supported by the princes. It was here that Sergius of Radonezh blessed Dmitry Donskoy on the Battle of Kulikovo (September 21, 1380).
The Monk Sergius gave his soul to the Lord on September 25, 1392. He foresaw this and assembled the brethren in advance to bless his disciple, the clever and experienced Rev. Nikon, on Mother Superior.
St. Sergius of Radonezh played a huge role in the unification of Russia. He did the literally impossible - he reconciled the two warring religions at that time. He explained to Vedic Russians that faith in Jesus Christ and Western Christianity had nothing to do and that Christ did not teach the Crusades, the destruction of Vedic idols and the burning of heretics at the stake. He explained to everyone that now there is absolutely no time for enmity when such a perverted Christianity comes from the West. These pseudo-Christians, under the cover of the name of Christ, commit the most heinous crimes. St. Sergius of Radonezh was a real sadder of the Russian land, he always prayed for Russia, so that his dormant enemy would not conquer.
Strong walls of the monastery
In the famous Holy Trinity Monastery, the heirs of the royal throne, Vasily III and John the Terrible, were baptized. Soon, this monastery turned into a defensive fortress, which was surrounded by stone walls with 12 towers. Ivan the Terrible personally supervised the construction. All this later came in handy when defending against the troops of False Dmitry II.
In 1608-1609, Sergiev Posad land rebuffed the powerful army of many thousands of Poles led by the governor Sapieha and Lisovsky. Then the Russian governors were Prince G. B. Grove-Dolgoruky and the nobleman Alexey Golokhvastov. They prayed incessantly and knew that Saint Sergius of Radonezh always helps them. They kept his relics like the apple of an eye. At the tomb of the holy elder, everyone kissed the cross and swore that they would never leave their monastery alive.
Icon of St. Sergius of Radonezh: what helps?
In any church you can always find the image of the Monk Elder Sergius. His icon gives us a deep look, full of humility and wisdom. May 3 / May 16, 2014, a great date was celebrated - the 700th anniversary of the birth of St. Sergius of Radonezh, who, during his lifetime, was considered a saint. He was respected by various rulers, princes, boyars and common people.
It is not for nothing that many are interested in the question: “Does the icon of St. Sergius of Radonezh help you?” People sincerely pray to the saint's face in order to receive protection and help in unpleasant life circumstances. And parents ask him for their children to study well, be well-mannered and kind and never fall under someone’s bad influence.
Prayer book help
The Monk Sergius of Radonezh leaves no one inconsolable: his relics possess the power that is capable of healing. Monks of the monastery described a huge number of miraculous healing cases.
He makes everyone think about his life and feel, but is he ready to lay down his life for the Fatherland, as our ancient ancestors did with the promptings of a holy seer?
The real charm of Russia from its enemies is St. Sergius of Radonezh. The relics to which hundreds of thousands of pilgrims come are miraculous and healing.
The holy elder peacefully departed to the Lord on September 25 / October 8, 1392. After three decades, the miraculous relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh were magnificently recovered, which were always kept in the monastery while it was safe.
Many are interested in the question of how to properly apply to relics. As usual, all are applied only to the silver ark, which contains the relics of St. Father Sergius, where a special sash is made at the level of the head, which is sometimes opened, then it is possible to attach to the covered head of the saint.
History of relics
I want to supplement the theme “Sergius of Radonezh: relics” with one amazing story of the grandson of the priest Pavel Florensky. On Lazarev Saturday before Easter 1919, the relics of the reverend were to be opened by the Soviet authorities. The safe preservation of the relics was called into question. This was found out by Father Pavel, who arranged a secret meeting with the governor of the monastery, Father Kronid, Count Yu. A. Olsufiev (member of the Monument Protection Commission), S. P. Mansurov and M. V. Shik, who later became priests. They secretly came to Trinity Cathedral, recited a prayer in front of a cancer with the relics of the saint, then with the help of a spear they separated the head of the saint and replaced it with the head of Prince Trubetskoy, who was once buried in the monastery. The head of St. Sergius was temporarily left to be kept in the sacristy. Count Olsufiev then placed the head of the reverend in the oak ark and began to keep it at home (Sergiev Posad, Valovaya St.). In 1928, fearing arrest, he buried the ark in his garden.
Successful operation
In 1933, after Pavel’s father was arrested, Olsufiev fled to Nizhny Novgorod, where he told this story to Pavel Alexandrovich Golubtsov (future bishop Sergius - Bishop of Novgorod), who soon managed to pick up the ark from the count’s garden and move it to Nikolo-Ugreshsky near Moscow monastery. There the ark was kept until the end of World War II. Returning from the war, Golubtsov handed over the ark with the shrine to Olsufiev’s adopted daughter, E.P. Vasilchikova, who secretly in 1946 gave the honest head of St. Sergius to Patriarch Alexy I. And he blessed to return it to Trinity-Sergius Lavra when it reopened.
Conclusion
Now you can fully answer the question: "Where are the relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh?" They are still stored in Holy Trinity Lavra. Almost every day, thousands of pilgrims come to pray for the holy relics. In the laurel near the relics, real miracles take place that do not go unnoticed and are recorded in detail so that everyone has faith and hope for healing.
In honor of Rev. Hegumen Sergius, a huge number of churches and monasteries were built in Moscow and the Moscow Region, in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, in the Arkhangelsk, Tula, Tyumen and other regions.