The history of Russia in the first half of the 14th century is inextricably linked with the names of two outstanding personalities - its secular ruler, Grand Duke John I Kalita and Metropolitan Theognost of Kyiv, whom Patriarch Isaiah of Constantinople appointed as head of the Moscow Metropolis.
Protege of the Patriarch of Constantinople
No documentary information has been preserved about the birth and early years of the life of the venerable archpastor. It is only known that he was a Greek by origin, and even in his youth he took monastic vows, which can be judged not from biographical data, which are very scarce, but from his own words that one can occupy the highest church post only after passing in all the fullness of a long monastic prowess.
The earliest chronicle information about him dates back to 1328, and they are connected with the relocation of Metropolitan Theognost to Moscow, where he was sent by Patriarch Isaiah of Constantinople. It is known that at that time Byzantium was rapidly approaching its decline, and, paying special attention to personnel policy, the primateChurch, who was also the Ecumenical Patriarch, tried to stop this process.
The role of the Metropolitan in the construction of Moscow churches
Arriving in the capital of the Moscow Principality and taking the chair of the former head of the Russian Church, St. Peter, Metropolitan Theognost carried out his activities in close cooperation with the then ruling Grand Duke John I Kalita, who carried out large-scale temple construction both on the territory of the Kremlin and beyond outside of it. In this regard, the metropolitan was entrusted with the duty to monitor compliance with the canonical requirements for all religious buildings being built, whether it be a cathedral or a modest chapel.
During the first years of his activity, Metropolitan Theognost of Moscow had a chance to consecrate three white-stone churches that were included in the treasury of Russian architecture. Among them were: the Cathedral of the Savior on Bor, which became the core of the future Transfiguration Monastery of the Savior, the Archangel Cathedral, erected in gratitude to the Lord for deliverance from the famine that befell the capital in 1330, and the Church of St. John of the Ladder, which became famous for the famous bell tower erected near it two centuries later Ivan the Great.
Concerns about the reconciliation of warring princes
Caught in the thick of the political struggle for the centralization of the Muscovite state, which sometimes turned into an open military confrontation between the princes, Metropolitan Theognost could not but become an active participant in it. So, thanks to his intervention in 1329, it was possible to concludean alliance between Moscow and Pskov, whose inhabitants enjoyed the widest possible rights of internal self-determination. This helped to avoid unnecessary bloodshed at the time.
In 1331, thanks to his efforts, the conflict with another center of democracy of those years, Novgorod, was successfully resolved. The reason for the turmoil was the desire of the Novgorodians to have not only political, but also ecclesiastical independence from Moscow. However, this time the success of the Metropolitan was largely facilitated by the army sent by the Grand Duke under the walls of the rebellious city and cooled the ardor of its inhabitants.
Victim of Khan's greed
Like most major political and religious figures who lived during the period of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, Metropolitan Theognost was forced to periodically visit the Horde. He made such trips twice, and both times they were accompanied by severe mental and physical suffering.
Evil tongues reported to Khan Dzhanibek that the head of the Russian church receives huge incomes from his dioceses and, thus, has significant funds. The Tatar ruler demanded that part of the we alth be given to him and subjected the objecting bishop to severe tortures. Only a fair amount of self-control then allowed Theognost to stay alive and prevent the devastation of the church treasury.
Archipastoral Cares of the Venerable Metropolitan
Despite all the troubles of the vain world, the main area of activity of Metropolitan Theognost has always been hisarchpastoral ministry aimed at centralizing and streamlining church authority. In this regard, he did a lot of work to liquidate independently established metropolitan areas, such as Lithuanian, Galician and a number of others.
At the initiative of Theognost, his predecessor in the Moscow cathedra, Metropolitan Peter, was canonized and glorified as a saint, and an outstanding literary monument of that era, the Siysk Gospel, which is stored today in the collections of the library of the Academy of Sciences of Russia, was compiled.
The end of the earthly life of the saint
In 1353, the capital of the Moscow Principality found itself in the center of a terrible disaster - an epidemic of plague, which often visited Ancient Russia and took many lives with it. This time, one of her victims was Metropolitan Theognost, whose death followed on March 11 and became an irreparable loss for the church he leads.
A few days later, his burial took place in the altar of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, and almost a century later, according to the chronicle, during repairs, the relics were determined to be incorrupt. This fact, as well as the miracles repeatedly manifested through prayers at the grave of the righteous man, became the reason for the canonization of Metropolitan Theognost and glorification in the guise of saints with the annual celebration of memory on March 14.
