Lord of Innocents. Vladyka Martyr Innokenty (Tikhonov) became the heavenly patron of Vinnitsa. Photos, letters and an eyewitness from Australia

Saint Innocent, the first Bishop of Irkutsk, was born at the end of the 17th century, in the province of Chernigov, into the family of the priest Kulchitsky, a descendant of an ancient Polish family. At Baptism, the boy was named John and brought up in the spirit of piety.After receiving his primary education at home, he continued his studies at the Kiev Theological Academy. Ivan studied very well. By the time he graduated from the academy, Ivan was tonsured a monk with the name Innokenty. The Chosen One of God took the tonsure in the Anthony Cave, near Kiev. After graduating from the academy, approximately in 1706-1708, the pious monk was sent to St. Petersburg, where at that time the Nevsky Monastery, the future Lavra, was just being founded, in order to serve here as an example of a good monastic life.

Sovereign Peter I decided to form a Russian Orthodox spiritual mission in Beijing, which, according to the plan of the tsar, was to be headed by a bishop. Metropolitan Filofey recommended Hieromonk Innokenty for this position. On the third week of Great Lent, March 5, 1721, on Sunday, in the Alexander Nevsky Trinity Cathedral, the consecration of a bishop was performed during the liturgy. Immediately after Pascha, Vladyka Innokenty, who was named Bishop of Belsky, left St. Petersburg for China. He was accompanied by two hieromonks, a hierodeacon and five choristers with three attendants.

For almost a year they got to Irkutsk, from there they moved further, beyond Baikal, and stopped in Selenginsk, bordering China. Bishop Innokenty remained in Selenginsk without a break for three years. The life of the saint was mournful. In order not to starve to death, the mission earned its livelihood by fishing or was hired to work for local owners and fed on that. “Where can I bow my head and finish the rest of my life…? I wander from yard to yard and go from house to house,” wrote the Saint. Somehow, Vladyka and his retinue settled down to live at the dacha of the Trinity Selenginsky Monastery. And in order not to eat monastic bread for nothing, he and his deacon painted icons for the church. Vladyka repaired his worn dress himself. He found consolation in prayers and divine services, which he performed in the old Selenga Cathedral. In Selenginsk, he made up for the lack of clergy beyond Baikal and ordained many to the priesthood. Only in March 1725 did Vladyka Innokenty receive an order to move to the Irkutsk Ascension Monastery and remain there until new orders.

In 1726, a new royal command came from St. Petersburg: to be an independent bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk. For a little more than four years he fed the Irkutsk flock, but he also used this short time by human standards with great benefit for salvation. As already mentioned, Vladyka Innokenty was not distinguished by the strength of his health, he especially suffered from headaches, but he did not leave his deeds, neither prayerful nor humility of the flesh. On his body he wore a hair shirt, over which there was always an elk-skin cassock and a leather belt with an iron buckle. The saint loved to pray in a cave behind the monastery fence, which was dug by the founder of the Ascension Monastery, Elder Gerasim. The saint also had a custom to go around the Ascension Church at night and pray to it from four sides.

Vladyka was very fond of doing things with his own hands. During the day, he helped pull the nets for those who were on fishing obedience, and at night he sewed shoes (cups) for students. With his own hands he planted two cedars in the monastery. The good shepherd not only worked with his hands, but never for a moment left the main thing - the preaching of the Word of God. He converted the pagans, who lived in large numbers around Irkutsk, to the Holy Church not only by their families, but also by entire camps. Thus, the whole settlement of Yasachnoe was formed from the newly baptized Buryats.

Saint Innocent was very fond of serving the Divine Liturgy. Until the last days of his life, he tried not to miss the opportunity here on earth to unite with Christ. Human infirmities greatly overcame the lord. The pain intensified, then let go. On Thursday, November 25, the sufferings of the saint became extraordinary. He asked the brethren and all the city's priests to pray for themselves and serve after the liturgy the paraklis. On Saturday, November 27, 1731, at seven o'clock in the morning, the Lord gave rest to the saint forever. The monastery bell announced his death, which followed in the presence of his confessor Hieromonk Kornily (Bobrovnikov), brethren and cell attendants.

The burial of the saint took place on December 5. The pinewood coffin was lined with black velvet. The most pure body of Vladyka was placed in a stone crypt under the altar of a wooden church in honor of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, erected in 1688 by Elder Isaiah. Thirty-three years after the death of the saint, during the repair of the Tikhvin Church, it was discovered that his body, robe and even the velvet on the coffin were not touched by decay, although the burial place itself was damp and musty. In the last days of September 1800, His Grace Veniamin, Bishop of Irkutsk, received a letter signed by 389 people with a request to open the honest and incorruptible relics of the saint for public veneration.

On December 1, 1804, the Holy Synod announced: “to announce the body of the first bishop of Irkutsk, Innokenty, for completely holy relics ... with the establishment of a celebration for him on November 26, on the day of memory of the repose of this saint.”

On February 9, the relics of the saint, with the greatest concourse of people, solemnly with a procession and the presentation of the miraculous icon of the Kazan Mother of God, were transferred from the Tikhvin Church to the Cathedral Ascension Church. Here the relics rested for fifty-five years, until the time when it was necessary to dismantle the Ascension Church due to dilapidation. For twelve years they lay in the Assumption Church of the Ascension Monastery and on October 15, 1872, they were returned to the vaults of the magnificent Church of the Ascension of the Lord, newly rebuilt in the old place. In memory of the first transfer of the relics of the saint, a religious procession was held annually in Irkutsk with the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. So it was until 1920, the time of the most severe persecution of Christians.

In 1921, the authorities committed an act of sacrilege: the relics of St. Innocent were opened for a "medical examination." For a long time the relics of the saint were considered irretrievably lost. In 1990, unknown relics were discovered in one of the back rooms of the Yaroslavl church of Nikola Nadein. With the help of their identification, an examination was carried out at the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Yaroslavl Medical Institute. The description of the relics made by the Yaroslavl doctors completely coincided with the data of the act drawn up in 1921 in Irkutsk.

On January 28, Sunday, a special Divine Liturgy was held in the Dormition Church on the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee.

And on Monday, the first of the three preparatory weeks of Great Lent began. These days, when the Orthodox are preparing for the approaching Great Lent, the Church remembers the parable of the Publican and the Pharisee. And the rector of the Assumption Church, Bishop Innokenty, mentioned her in his sermon:

-Today is the week of the publican and the Pharisee. On today's day, we read a passage in the Gospel, known to everyone who has been going to church for a long time, so I will not retell it in detail, but let's try together with you to think again about the meaning of this text. In this passage we are confronted with two people: one is a Pharisee, the other is a publican. The Pharisee was engaged in his pious and correct activities, thinking about how he could please God through the fulfillment of everything that is written in the law. True, there is still a question: did he fulfill and could still fulfill everything that was written in the Old Testament law. It was difficult and, in general, impossible for a person to do this, but nevertheless, for himself, he seemed like that. A publican is a person who was engaged in other activities, collecting taxes in favor of the Roman state, which, as you know, was an occupier for Israel and therefore the Israelis did not respect publicans and called them traitors, deceivers and other impartial words, and they did not communicate with them in the temple. And these two people in the temple, they behave in completely different ways, indicating their disposition towards God. One Pharisee, before starting to pray, looked at the publican, compared himself with him and began to rejoice before God and thank Him for the fact that he is not a Pharisee like this publican, contemptuously saying that, they say, I am not like that, like this one, and in general, I do everything in a way different from those, as it should be according to the law - and I fast, and I give a sacrifice. The publican did not have the opportunity to fully comply with religious requirements, perhaps due to the nature of his activity, but he humbly realized himself unworthy before God and therefore only stood and asked God for mercy, which he might be sent down from the Lord.

The two people in Christ's parable present you with two images, two examples of the religious consciousness of the relationship between man and God. Before we return to this topic about the publican and the Pharisee, let's also remember that from this Sunday in the temples we began to hear again the words of repentance about the first week before Lent. Words that make us think about our lives, about whether we have repentance before God and whether we are determined to change our lives. Remember, when in the Forerunner I went out to preach, the words addressed from them to the people were simple and clear enough: Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Repent, for this is the essence of the salvation of the human soul. And now, on this Sunday, we again hear these invocative words of repentance, so that we may be granted His blessing from the Lord. By the way, each of us needs to think about this. Repentance is not just our one desire, squeezing out of ourselves what we see in ourselves as sinful. Repentance is also a gift from the Lord, a gift from God.

And everything is explained simply - for the Orthodox Church, which is preparing for Great Lent, which begins with us very soon, in about a month, it is important for the Church that we set the right goal for ourselves, which the Lord has for us, and he desires our salvation . But he cannot save a person without his own will, if he does not have the will to repent, then how can he be delivered from sins. That is why the Church, before Great Lent, has established such specific periods of preparation so that we already now realize and see before us those goals that we will need to decide, first of all, in relation to ourselves and to our souls. We sing, we read, we think about whether we have the proper repentance before God.

But tell me, did the Pharisee have this repentance before God? On the one hand, when we read the conclusion of this parable, there is such a phrase in it that the publican left the temple more justified, but there is no complete rejection of the Pharisee. After all, he did everything that was attributed to him by law, as we said earlier. So why did he come out less justified than the publican who cried out: "God have mercy on me a sinner." Because the Pharisee did not have a real desire to repent, because a Pharisee or a person of a certain religious mood, one who wants to have a good life in his life, must perform a certain kind of action - rules. In fact, let's put it this way, there are rules and we most likely follow them. The only question is how do we treat these rules? We consider them to be all-sufficient, or is there something else besides these rules, which allows us with God to have peace, to have peace, to have forgiveness. Here is such a philosophy. Only external rules alone - they do not save a person. What was the Pharisee hoping for? What did the Old Testament Jews expect and hope for? They thought that there were such and everything had to be done: make sacrifices, leave certain percentages of their wealth in the temple, give small percentages to those in need. They thought, they say we are doing everything right, but what else is needed? God is now obligated to make sure that everything is fine with us. So that we have our own king, not Roman, but our own - Jewish. That's what the majority thought. Why does the Lord, in the person of the Pharisee, show that such reflections are detrimental to a person’s spiritual mood, because a person in such a state gradually becomes proud, unaccepting a different point of view, refusing to consider this point of view at all, considering himself right in everything. Agree that such a mood often happens with us - in our families, when some kind of discussion arises between husband and wife, or between children and parents. And often no one wants to understand and give in, and often everything ends in scandals and everyone remains with his own opinion. And all this again comes from the fact that in the soul of a person there is no belittling of oneself in the face of another person in order to understand him, at least understand and hear, so that you can try to find peace and unity between each other. In this regard, for us, this teaching about the publican and the Pharisee on the eve of the onset of Great Lent indicates that without internal condemnation of oneself, without humility of oneself before everything and everything, without internal humility, a person cannot find true repentance. He is with a secret pride, which will manifest itself in the fact that he - this person will gradually condemn everything and everything, criticize everyone except himself, he will not like everything, he will grumble at everything and little by little inside such a person will be hardening will come and for such a person, perhaps not to the full extent, the action of the Grace of God and the Grace of repentance will be closed. Such a person will not be given the grace of repentance until the consciousness of his humility comes. Here the publican, in this parable, came to the realization of his humility. He knew perfectly well nothing to be proud of. He may have had wealth, but not righteous wealth. Everyone knew that the publicans were stealing, but he came and condemned himself for this. He realized that it was impossible to live like this. You need to change, you need to change yourself, your attitude towards others, and God answers this person. He left the temple more justified because he condemned himself, he understood what he was sinful about.

For us, brothers and sisters, the time that is approaching Great Lent is a time, as you know, who has been going to church for many years, how blessed this time can be, because in this time, and when we celebrate bodily fasting, and when we pray a lot and perform other actions, we learn to humble ourselves, and at this time a person becomes most receptive to the action of the Grace of God. Well, the basis of this is the spirit of humility and the spirit of self-condemnation. Without this, there is simply no person, even in the world, you know perfectly well that a person will not critically examine himself, will not subject his actions to critical scrutiny. In the end, he will simply stop, his competitors will bypass. And the same is true in the spiritual life. It is important to be able to put yourself unhypocritically before the face of God as you are. And in this regard, he will present the truth before God, and if we do this, then we will suddenly find out that we have nothing to hope for except for the mercy of God. We truly know, and when we humble ourselves, then in the Grace of God we find true repentance.

Brothers and sisters, from today we begin to prepare for the time of Great Lent and the coming Week, the coming week, will also humble us in everyday life. We, for the most part, are used to fasting on Wednesday and Friday, and this week, fasting on Wednesday and Friday is canceled, although Wednesday and Friday, as sacred days of remembrance of the Savior, remain for us, but the fast is canceled. The Church ascribes by its charter not to fast these days so that we all learn to humble ourselves these days and not relying on our often imaginary deeds, with which we think to please the Lord and all the saints, so that our sins will be forgiven. This is important both fasting, and prayers, and standing, but something else is also important, connecting us with our fasting, that inner state that led the publican to greater justification in the face of the Lord. I wish all of you, dear brothers and sisters, to find a righteous disposition within yourself and embark on the path of humility, love for both God and neighbor. Amen!

Glorified in the saints, wondrous in miracles, revered by those near and far, the miracle worker Innokenty, the first bishop of Irkutsk, was born at the end of the 17th century in Little Russia, in the Chernigov province. According to legend, he was born in the family of the priest Kolchitsky (or Kulchitsky), a descendant of an ancient Polish family. This surname, together with the dignity of nobility, was received by the ancestors of the future saint from the Polish king Boleslav the Brave. At baptism, the boy was named John and brought up in the spirit of piety.

After receiving his primary education at home, he continued his studies at the Kiev Theological Academy. Ivan studied very well, he studied every subject thoroughly and there was not a single discipline that he would not master with success. With particular diligence, he studied literature, hoping later to strive in the preaching of the Word of God. By the time he graduated from the academy, Ivan was tonsured a monk with the name Innokenty. The Chosen One of God took the tonsure in the Anthony Cave, near Kiev.

After graduating from the academy, approximately in 1706-1708, the pious monk was requested to Moscow for the post of teacher and prefect at the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy, and from there he was taken to St. Petersburg, where at that time the Nevsky Monastery, the future Lavra, was just being founded. to serve here as an example of a good monastic life.

The appearance of an educated, pious monk became noticeable against the general background of the laborers, and the young monk soon attracted the attention of Emperor Peter I. Based on the opinion of the Siberian Metropolitan Philotheus (Leshchinsky), the sovereign confirmed his desire to form a Russian Orthodox spiritual mission in Beijing, which, according to plan of the king, the bishop was to lead. The Metropolitan recommended Hieromonk Innokenty for this position, a husband quite worthy of the Tsar's trust.

On the third week of Great Lent, March 5, 1721, on Sunday, in the Alexander Nevsky Trinity Cathedral, the consecration of Hieromonk Innokenty to the bishopric was performed during the liturgy. The Sacrament was performed in the presence of the All-Russian Autocrat by the members of the Holy Synod, Metropolitan Stefan (Yavorsky) of Ryazan and Archbishop Feofan (Prokopovich) of Novgorod.

Immediately on Pascha, on Bright Week, Vladyka Innokenty, named Bishop of Belsky, left St. Petersburg for the land of the unknown Khins. He was accompanied by two hieromonks, a hierodeacon and five choristers with three attendants. For almost a year they got to Irkutsk, from there they moved further, beyond Baikal, and stopped in Selenginsk, bordering China. Here the mission had to wait for the decision of Beijing officials on the right to enter.

At that time, the Jesuits gained unexpectedly great influence in Peking, who, under various pretexts, persuaded local officials to evade the acceptance of the Russian bishop. And a reason for refusal was found. In a letter asking for permission to enter, Bishop Innokenty was called "bogdo" - that is, "great", and among the Chinese such an appeal was accepted only to the emperor, and therefore it is impossible for two great persons to be in China at the same time.

In anticipation of new instructions from the Holy Synod, Bishop Innokenty remained in Selenginsk without a break for three years. The life of the saint was mournful. Not receiving a salary, but he was assigned 1,500 rubles a year, he supported himself and his retinue with alms from well-wishers. In order not to starve to death, the mission earned its livelihood by fishing or was hired to work for local owners and fed on that. Vladyka repaired his worn dress himself. He found consolation in prayers and divine services, which he performed in the old Selenga Cathedral.

“Where can I bow my head and finish the rest of my life, the Most Holy Governing Synod pleases? - he wrote to the Synod. - I humbly ask for a gracious decree on what to do: whether to sit in Selenginsk and wait for what I don’t know, or go back ... because the foxes have pits for repairs, but I still don’t have an imam where to lay my head. I wander more from yard to yard and from house to house moving.

Somehow, Vladyka and his retinue settled down to live at the dacha of the Trinity Selenginsky Monastery. And in order not to eat monastic bread for nothing, he and his deacon painted icons for the temple.

It was not without Divine Providence that the Chinese denied entry to the Bishop. His forced "sitting" in Selenginsk turned out to be very important for preaching the Word of God among the local Mongolian tribes. Using his episcopal right to ordain to the priesthood, the saint thereby made up for the lack of clergy beyond Baikal and saved the proteges from a long trip to the capital of Siberia - Tobolsk, to take the priesthood.

Only in March 1725 did Vladyka Innokenty receive an order to move to the Irkutsk Ascension Monastery and remain there until new orders. In the absence of Archimandrite Anthony Platkovsky, hegumen Pachomius managed the monastery. He gave the distinguished guest and his retinue a room on the eastern side of the monastery, on the banks of the Angara. Here, on the monastic lands, they were given plots for a garden, and thus life gained some stability, especially in the summer, when it was necessary to engage in gardening. Having learned about the residence of the bishop in the monastery, people began to flock to him in search of spiritual consolation. Children and foreigners especially aspired to the lord.

In the same year, Emperor Peter I died. The widow and heir to the throne, Catherine I, appointed Count Savva Vladislavovich Raguzinsky as Ambassador Extraordinary to China and obliged him to take Bishop Innokenty with him to Beijing, if, of course, the Chinese agreed.

Raguzinsky arrived in Irkutsk on April 5, 1726. Having met with Vladyka, he invited him to return to Selenginsk and wait for him there, while he himself stayed in Irkutsk for the necessary travel preparations. At this time, Archimandrite Anthony Platkovsky, who had previously been in Beijing with Ambassador Izmailov, returned to Irkutsk from Moscow. He really wanted to be the head of the mission there, and he tried to win over Count Raguzinsky. Archimandrite Anthony tried to use all the dexterity, cunning, helpfulness and hospitality, even slander and blasphemy against Bishop Innokenty. The result of these maneuvers of the archimandrite was a letter from Ambassador Raguzinsky to St. Petersburg, which said that he did not hope that the Chinese would accept Vladyka, and therefore found Archimandrite Anthony Platkovsky, head of the mission, capable of the post. The letter was sent by courier to Petersburg and was accepted there without verification. In March of the following year, Saint Innocent received a new decree - to move again to the Ascension Monastery. Archimandrite Anthony Platkovsky was appointed head of the mission in Beijing.

As soon as Vladyka managed to settle down in the Ascension Monastery, a new imperial command came from St. Petersburg: to be an independent bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchensk. By this decision, a new cathedra was formed, and with Bishop Innokenty, the independent dining of Irkutsk bishops began.

Having settled in a new place, Vladyka Innokenty faced the same problems as in Selenginsk. There was still nothing to live on, still there was no roof over their heads. The Consistory refused to pay him a salary on the grounds that he was supposedly appointed to live in China, and not in Irkutsk. At that time, Irkutsk had not yet grown to the limits of the Ascension Monastery, and Vladyka often had to travel along a bad road to the city and back. Being not a very healthy person and having a hard time moving, he asked the citizens of Irkutsk to give him a room for a while. There was not one among the Irkutsk people who would accept into his house the future prayer book and intercessor before the throne of God for the entire Irkutsk flock. Finally, in 1828, the provincial office took pity on the lord and gave him the house of the boyar son Dimitri Yelezov. Now a stone chapel has been erected on this place in memory of the saint's residence here.

For a little more than four years he fed the Irkutsk flock, but he also used this short time by human standards with great benefit for salvation. As already mentioned, Vladyka Innokenty was not distinguished by the strength of his health, he especially suffered from headaches, but he did not leave his deeds, neither prayerful nor humility of the flesh. On his body he wore a hair shirt, over which there was always an elk-skin cassock and a leather belt with an iron buckle. The saint loved to pray in a cave behind the monastery fence, which was dug by the founder of the Ascension Monastery, Elder Gerasim. The saint also had a custom to go around the Ascension Church at night and pray to it from four sides.

Vladyka was very fond of doing things with his own hands. During the day, he helped pull the nets for those who were on fishing obedience, and at night he sewed shoes (cups) for students. With his own hands he planted two cedars in the monastery.

The good shepherd not only worked with his hands, but for a moment did not leave the main thing - the preaching of the Word of God. He converted the pagans, who lived in large numbers around Irkutsk, to the holy Church not only by their families, but also by entire camps. Thus, the whole settlement of Yasachnoe was formed from the newly baptized Buryats.

It was his office to do justice, and he never shifted this unpleasant business to others. He always decided for himself, entered into all the circumstances of the case, quickly made decisions, covering with love the strict truth of the law.

Despite all the unfavorable conditions of communication with the city, the construction of the Cathedral of the Epiphany Cathedral was almost completely completed during his reign. At the Ascension Monastery, a Mongolian school was organized by Archimandrite Platkovsky. Saint Innocent not only supported this initiative, useful for the region, but also opened a Slavic-Russian school for all classes.

The first bishop of Irkutsk requested from the sovereign's treasury the maintenance for his successors and funds for the construction of the bishop's house. He also determined the boundaries of the diocese.

From the labors of the righteous, Vladyka loved to rest in the small village of Malaya Elanka, fifteen miles from the Ascension Convent. Novices, monks and peasants sent from the monastery to field work lived here. Helping on weekdays "those who labor and are burdened," he made sure that on Sundays and feast days no worries would distract them from the service of God. A chapel was organized in Malaya Elanka itself, and Vladyka more than once predicted that over time a temple would be erected in its place. This prophecy was fulfilled at the end of the 19th century. During his lifetime, Vladyka more than once amazed his contemporaries with his spiritual foresight.

Once, on the day of Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria (June 9), the inhabitants of the village of Feksky asked Vladyka to serve the Divine Liturgy with them. “Very well,” Vladyka replied, “let’s serve. But we will only go forward in the summer, and back in the winter. At that moment, the villagers did not understand the meaning of his words, but the next day after the Liturgy such snow fell that Vladyka had to return in a sleigh.

There was another amazing incident that confirmed everyone that Vladyka was truly a chosen vessel filled with the Holy Spirit. One day, while performing a procession around the city, it began to rain and everyone got wet to the skin. And not a single drop touched the hierarch's robes!

Such manifestations of God's grace on him won him the love and respect of the flock during his lifetime, and after his death became the basis for reverent veneration of his memory.

Saint Innocent was very fond of serving the Divine Liturgy. Until the last days of his life, he tried not to miss the opportunity here on earth to unite with Christ. He celebrated the Divine Liturgy for the last time on the day of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos and then on Sunday, October 3rd. After that, human infirmities chained the lord to a bed. The pain intensified, then let go. In moments of deterioration in health, Vladyka called the brethren together, thanked those who served him for their love and care, distributed some of his belongings as a keepsake, and promised to reward those who did not have enough gifts at the first strengthening of their strength. Vladyka was very grieved that he was leaving the Ascension Church in disrepair and more than once expressed that if they had given him a salary, he would have used the first thousand rubles to build a stone church.

He never received a paycheck during his lifetime. The decision to pay him a living and meet some of his needs came when he no longer needed anything earthly.

On Thursday, November 25, the sufferings of the saint became extraordinary. He asked the brethren and all the city's priests to pray for themselves and serve after the liturgy the paraklis. On Saturday, November 27, 1731, at seven o'clock in the morning, the Lord gave rest to the saint forever. The monastery bell announced his death, which followed in the presence of his confessor Hieromonk Kornily (Bobrovnikov), brethren and cell attendants. The deceased was clothed in his sackcloth, over which they put on a cassock of Chinese silk and a silk mantle. Vladyka's head was covered with a hood, in which he walked during his lifetime.

The death of Vladyka was reported to Vice-Governor Zholobov. The vice-governor, an exorbitantly mercenary and greedy man, decided to take advantage of the opportunity and took away not only all the property of the bishop, but also part of the monastery property. Having plundered the monastery in this way, he deprived the brethren not only of the opportunity to bury St. Innocent, but even the liturgy could not be performed for lack of wine. And only after a persistent request, Zholobov allocated three hundred rubles for the burial of the saint, forbidding him to continue to address him.

The burial of the saint took place on December 5. The pinewood coffin was lined with black velvet. The most pure body of Vladyka was placed in a stone crypt under the altar of a wooden church in honor of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, erected in 1688 by Elder Isaiah.

Soon after the death of the saint, the Lord revealed judgment on the offenders of the bishop. Archimandrite Anthony (Platkovsky), who had been dishonored to the last degree in Beijing by the Gentile Lang, who publicly and severely beat him, was taken in chains past the Ascension Convent to St. Petersburg. There awaited the unfortunate deprivation of dignity and imprisonment. The vice-governor Zholobov had his head cut off by the verdict of the criminal court in St. Petersburg.

But if some of the unbelievers still needed external convictions, the faithful flock kept their heartfelt hope that the Lord would not allow "his reverend to see corruption." Thirty-three years after the death of the saint, during the repair of the Tikhvin Church, it was discovered that his body, robe and even the velvet on the coffin were not touched by decay, although the burial place itself was damp and musty.

Two years later, the rector of the Ascension Monastery, Archimandrite Sinesy, the future lamp of the Siberian Church, glorified by the Lord in 1984, on the day of the temple feast of the Ascension of the Lord, witnessed the following miracle. The German governor Frauendorf was present at the meal after the Divine Liturgy. He had heard enough about the incorruptible remains of the saint and really wanted to see them. No matter how much Bishop Sophrony, who was also a future saint of God, rejected this desire of the Gentile, who was present at the feast, it was not possible to change the decision of the governor. Vladyka Sophrony, the Monk Sinesius and Frauendorf approached the grave crypt of the saint, but ... they could not see the coffin - it was covered with a thick, impenetrable layer of snow. After the departure of the governor, even traces of snow could not be found.

Seventeen years after this miracle, after numerous statements by individuals who survived the prayerful intercession of St. Innocent after praying at his honorable remains, there was one more confirmation that the relics of the saint were under the special protection of God.

On June 11, 1783, the Ascension Monastery caught fire in a strong wind. The whole of Irkutsk, young and old, ran to the fire, but it was not possible to extinguish it. The flames engulfed all the stone buildings of the monastery and, of course, the wooden Tikhvin Church, under which the relics of the saint rested. There was no hope left for the salvation of the incorruptible relics of the saint of God. Then the townspeople turned to Bishop Sophrony's successor, Bishop Michael (Mitkevich), who had arrived at the fire, with a request to try to get the relics out of the fire. “If the late Innocent pleased God,” he answered, “then for the sake of his imperishable relics, the Almighty Lord will save the church.” At the same moment, the fire lost its power over the church overshadowed by grace. By the grace of God, she stood until the beginning of the 20th century among the stone, newly built walls and buildings of the monastery, as an indisputable evidence of the miracle that happened to her. In the annals of Irkutsk, eyewitnesses of the fire recorded: “On the week of All Saints (June 11), 1783, at four in the afternoon, the Ascension Monastery burned down, namely, all the cells, three churches - two stone outside and inside without a trace; moreover, two bells were broken, while others were spoiled. There was great fear! Besides, the weather was great. And the holy images and what was in the churches: books, vestments, and so on, the entire fence and two cedars of the bishops burned down without a trace. Only the wooden church of the Tikhvin Mother of God remained, where the bishop was buried.”

Miracles from the relics of the saint multiplied. Faith in his intercession before the Lord was passed down from generation to generation. Many served memorial services at his grave and received what they asked for! The fame of the new intercessor multiplied among the Orthodox. The saint of God did not reject the prayers of worshipers either in Tula, or in Yakutsk, or in St. Petersburg. Written evidence of his intercession was sent from everywhere to the diocesan authorities. In the last days of September 1800, His Grace Veniamin, Bishop of Irkutsk, received a letter signed by 389 people with a request to open the honest and incorruptible relics of the saint for public veneration. The last requirement led Vladyka Benjamin into some bewilderment, the resolution of which was helped by a secret inspection of the Irkutsk Territory. Senators Rzhevsky and Levashov were here by royal command, and they also sent a letter to Bishop Veniamin. “As witnesses,” the senators wrote, “not only the incorruptibility of this body, as those who themselves smelled the fragrance, as personal witnesses of the stories of its many different miracles, we make it our duty to have from Your Eminence, who has ruled the diocese for ten years, all the information about the imperishable miracle worker for a report on our duties to the Sovereign Emperor.

The bishop gave the senators a letter for the sovereign and attached to it an extract on cases of miracles from the relics of the saint, more than a hundred in number. The sovereign demanded that the Synod consider the case, and by order of the Synod, the Kazan Vicar Bishop Justin arrived in Irkutsk. Vladyka Justin personally witnessed the relics of the saint, questioned under oath some witnesses of miracles, and together with Bishop Benjamin on March 5, 1801, reported to the Synod. This report contained a detailed description of the examination of the relics, carried out for greater reliability in the presence of secular persons - Governor Alexei Ivanovich Tolstoy with officials, the mayor of the merchant Pyotr Avdeev with many honorary citizens. All participants in the examination confirmed the actual preservation of the remains of the saint. The coffin and vestments of the saint were also in perfect incorruption. This is more than seventy years after the burial!

The report of Bishops Benjamin and Justin led the Holy Synod into deep thought. Two years later, the Synod sent Bishop Benjamin an inquiry about whether there were any changes in the body of Saint Innocent and whether there were any memorable events during this time.

His Grace Benjamin replied that there were still no changes in the state of the relics, the popular veneration of the saint continues and expands, that he himself, Bishop Benjamin, “convinced by his conscience to recognize the intercession of St. Innocent at the mercy of God respected.” But this letter had no effect either. The synod was silent for another year. Finally, a presentation was sent to the leading member of the Synod, Metropolitan Ambrose, and to Chief Procurator Golitsyn, from the Governor-General of Siberia, Selifontov, in which he, personally testifying to the incorruptibility of the relics of the saint, expressed his insistence and all of Siberia on the discovery of imperishable relics.

It was impossible to drag it any further, and on the first day of December 1804, the Holy Synod, with the highest permission, announced: the body of the first bishop of Irkutsk, Innokenty, should be read out for completely holy relics and, with due reverence, Bishop Benjamin of Irkutsk with other clergy should be placed in the church of the Irkutsk Ascension Monastery upstairs, or in another a worthy place, with the establishment of a celebration for him on November 26, on the day of commemoration of the repose of this saint. From now on, send all-night vigils and prayers to the saint and make the necessary additions to church books: “November 26 commemorates the repose of St. Innocent, the first Bishop of Irkutsk, the Wonderworker.”

The longed-for news of the discovery of the relics of St. Innocent in Irkutsk was received on January 19, 1805. On the next Sunday, literally two days later, a thanksgiving prayer service to the Lord God was publicly served. After that, preparations began for an extraordinary celebration.

On February 2, at the Meeting of the Lord, Bishop Benjamin received the holy relics from the crypt, placed them in the middle of the Tikhvin Church, and celebrated the Divine Liturgy before them. A week later, on February 9, the relics of the saint were solemnly transferred from the Tikhvin Church to the cathedral Ascension Church with a procession and the presentation of the miraculous icon of the Mother of God of Kazan, with a great gathering of people.

Here the relics rested for fifty-five years, until the time when it was necessary to dismantle the Ascension Church due to dilapidation. For twelve years they lay in the Assumption Church of the Ascension Monastery and on October 15, 1872, they were returned to the vaults of the magnificent Church of the Ascension of the Lord, newly rebuilt in the old place.

In memory of the first transfer of the relics of the saint, a religious procession was held annually in Irkutsk with the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. So it was until 1920, the time of the most severe persecution of Christians.

In the winter of 1920, the arrests of the inhabitants of the Ascension Monastery began. The abbot of the monastery, Bishop Zosima (Sidorovsky) of Irkutsk, was arrested and tortured. On February 1, prominent hierarchs of Siberia who had come to venerate the relics of St. Innokenty were arrested in the monastery: Bishop Gabriel of Barnaul (Voevodin, (1938), Bishop Petropavlovsk (Krasnoperov, (1921), Bishop Irinarch of Berezovsky (Sineokov-Andreevsky, (1933)).

In 1921, the authorities committed an act of sacrilege: the relics of St. Innocent were opened for a "medical examination." The new rector of the monastery, Bishop of Kirensky Boris (Shipuchin, (1937), addressing the clergy and parishioners, wrote: “Yesterday, January 11, the relics of St. Innocent were opened. Vestments and clothes were removed, the incorruptible body was naked and left open in the church. The church was locked "Services have been stopped. The monastery is guarded by the Red Army." Later, under heavy guard, the relics were taken away in an unknown direction...

The Irkutsk flock was orphaned. Together with the entire Russian Orthodox Church, she wept over her sins, humbly accepting God's allowance.

For a long time, the relics of the saint were considered irretrievably lost, but only the Lord “will not be completely angry, will not be at enmity for a century.” In 1990, unknown relics were discovered in one of the back rooms of the Yaroslavl church of Nikola Nadein. With the help of their identification, an examination was carried out at the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Yaroslavl Medical Institute. The description of the relics made by the Yaroslavl doctors completely (!) coincided with the data of the act drawn up in 1921 in Irkutsk. The relics of Saint Innocent, left for seventy years in a damp, unheated room, the Lord kept for the manifestation of the miracle of His mercy to us.

And now, relying on the intercession of the newly revealed saint of God, St. Innocent, we turn to him with prayers.

Troparion of Saint Innocent, Bishop of Irkutsk

The most luminous lamp of the Church, / illuminating this country with the rays of your kindness, / and healing many who flow to you with faith / glorifying God, / we pray to you, Saint Innocent, / protect this city with your prayers / from all troubles and sorrow.

Kontakion of St. Innocent, Bishop of Irkutsk

The integrity of the pastor of the same name, / a preacher of faith in the language of the Mongolians, / glory and adornment of the Irkutsk flock / praise with love, all faithfulness: / he is the guardian of the Siberian country / and a prayer book for our souls.

On February 22, the Church honors the memory of St. Innocent, the first Bishop of Irkutsk, glorified in the saints, wondrous in miracles.

Saint Innocent, Bishop of Irkutsk, in the world John, came from a noble family of the Kulchitskys. The exact date of his birth is unknown, it is 1680 or 1682. John received his primary education at home, then continued his studies at the Kiev Theological Academy. John studied with great success. By the time he graduated from the academy, he was tonsured a monk with the name Innocent.

After graduating from the academy, approximately in 1706-1708, the pious monk was summoned to Moscow for the post of teacher and prefect at the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy, and from there he was taken to St. Petersburg, where at that time the Nevsky Monastery, the future Lavra, was just being founded. to serve here as an example of a good monastic life.

The educated monk was noticed by Emperor Peter I, who wanted to form a Russian Orthodox spiritual mission in Beijing, which, according to the plan of the emperor, was to be headed by a bishop.

On February 14, 1721, Hieromonk Innokenty was consecrated to the rank of bishop and assigned to the Peking Spiritual Mission to China.

Immediately after Pascha, Vladyka Innokenty, accompanied by several ministers, left St. Petersburg. For almost a year they got to Irkutsk, from there they moved further, beyond Baikal, and stopped in Selenginsk, bordering China. Here the mission had to wait for the decision of Beijing officials on the right to enter.

But the Chinese government denied a visa to "a clergyman, a great lord," as the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee inadvertently described him. Among the Chinese, the address “great” was accepted only for the emperor, and therefore it is impossible for two great persons to be in China at the same time.

The saint was forced to spend three years in Selenginsk near the Chinese border, enduring many hardships due to the uncertainty of his position. In order not to die of hunger, the Mission was engaged in fishing, hired to work for local residents. The bishop found consolation in prayers and divine services.

It was not without Divine Providence that the Chinese denied entry to the Bishop. His forced presence in Selenginsk turned out to be very important for preaching the Word of God among the local Mongolian tribes. Using his episcopal right to ordain to the priesthood, the saint thus made up for the lack of clergy beyond Baikal and saved the proteges from a long trip to the capital of Siberia, Tobolsk, to be ordained.

The diplomatic blunders of the Russian ambassador to China, Count Raguzinsky, and the intrigues of the Irkutsk archimandrite Anthony Platkovsky led to the appointment of Archimandrite Anthony to China, and St. Innocent, by decree of the Holy Synod in 1727, was named Bishop of Irkutsk and Nerchinsk and began to manage the newly formed diocese.

The proximity of the Chinese border, the vastness and underpopulation of the diocese, a large number of different nationalities (Buryats, Mongols, etc.) who were not enlightened by the faith of Christ, lack of roads and poverty - all this made the pastoral work of St. Innocent difficult and his life full of hardships. By a strange oversight of the Senate, he did not receive a salary until his death and suffered an extreme lack of funds. In these difficult conditions, the meager funds of the Irkutsk Ascension Monastery still supported two schools opened under it - Mongolian and Russian. The tireless cares of the saint were turned to their organization - the selection of worthy teachers, providing students with the necessary books, clothing, food.

The saint worked tirelessly to organize the diocese, to strengthen its spiritual life, as evidenced by his numerous sermons, pastoral epistles and prescriptions. In labors and hardships, Saint Innocent acquired spiritual firmness, humility, and insight.

For a little more than four years he ministered to the Irkutsk flock, but even this short time he used with great benefit for salvation. Vladyka Innokenty was not distinguished by strong health, he especially suffered from headaches, but he did not leave his deeds, neither prayerful nor humility of the flesh. The saint loved to pray in a cave behind the monastery fence, which was dug by the founder of the Ascension Monastery, Elder Gerasim. The saint also had a custom to go around the Ascension Church at night and pray to it from four sides.

Saint Innocent was very fond of serving the Divine Liturgy. Until the last days of his life, he tried not to miss the opportunity here on earth to unite with Christ.

In 1728, a drought began in the Baikal region in the spring. The diocese was threatened with starvation from the shortage of bread, which began as early as 1727. With the blessing of the saint, since May, in the churches of Irkutsk and the Irkutsk tithe, a prayer service for the end of the drought began to be added to each Liturgy, on Saturdays they sang an akathist to the Mother of God, and on Sundays a cathedral prayer service was served. "Prayers," said the saint, "should end on Ilyin's day." On July 20, a storm broke out in Irkutsk with such heavy rain that knee-deep water stood in the streets of the city - the drought stopped.

Through the labors of St. Innocent, the construction of a stone church in the Ascension monastery began to replace the wooden one, and the boundaries of the diocese were expanded, which included not only the Selenginsky, but also the Yakut and Ilimsky districts.

The saint, who was not distinguished by good health, under the influence of a harsh climate and adversity, early departed to the Lord. He reposed on the morning of November 27, 1731.

The death of Vladyka was reported to Vice-Governor Zholobov. This exorbitantly mercenary and greedy man took away not only all the property of the bishop, but also part of the monastery property. Thus, he deprived the brethren not only of the opportunity to bury St. Innocent, but even the Liturgy could not be celebrated for lack of wine. And only after a persistent request, Zholobov allocated three hundred rubles for the burial of the saint, forbidding him to continue to address him.

Soon after the death of the saint, the Lord revealed judgment on the offenders of the bishop. Archimandrite Anthony (Platkovsky), who had been dishonored to the last degree in Beijing by the Gentile Lang, who publicly and severely beat him, was taken in chains past the Ascension Convent to St. Petersburg. There awaited the unfortunate deprivation of dignity and imprisonment. Vice-Governor Zholobov was beheaded by a criminal court in St. Petersburg. Both of these events struck everyone, even the most inveterate in disbelief, with their providence.

In 1764, the body of the saint was found incorruptible during repair work in the Tikhvin monastery church. Many miracles took place not only in Irkutsk, but also in remote places in Siberia during a prayerful appeal to the saint. This prompted the Holy Synod to open the relics and glorify the saint in 1800. Since 1804, the celebration of his memory has been established throughout Russia.

And now, trusting in the intercession of the saint of God, Saint Innocent, revealed to us, we turn to him with prayers.

According to the websites:

Saint Innocent, Archbishop of Kherson and Tauride (in the world Ivan Alekseevich Borisov) was born on December 15, 1800, in the town of Yelets, Oryol Province, into the family of Alexy Borisov, priest of the Assumption Church.

The parents of Bishop Innokenty were simple people, of a good life. Father Alexei Borisov was educated at home. From the lower levels of the clergy, he rose to the rank of priest and tried in frequent sermons to convey to the parishioners the words of the fathers and teachers of the Church.

The mother of Bishop Innocent Akilina was an illiterate woman, but intelligent and pious. The cross and prayer were the main foundation of her whole life, all her thoughts, actions and deeds. She had her own home pharmacy, which consisted of various herbs and flowers, dewy incense, blessed bread, oil from miraculous icons, Mother of God prosphora and similar sacred objects. She treated herself and her children with them. In the parental home, Ivan studied the Slavic alphabet, the Book of Hours and the Psalter and learned to write.

In 1819, Ivan Borisov completed the seminary course with excellent success and entered the Kiev Theological Academy. Here he devoted himself to the study of the sciences with such fervor that sometimes he spent whole nights reading a book. In obedience to an inner calling, he was most of all engaged in the compilation and processing of sermons.

In 1823, 23-year-old Ivan Alekseevich graduated from the full course of academic teaching as the first master and was assigned to the St. Nevsky Theological School. Here he took monastic vows with the name Innokenty and was ordained a hieromonk. In December 1824, Father Innokenty was appointed a bachelor of theological sciences at the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, and a few months later, its inspector and extraordinary professor. In March 1826 he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.

Father Innokenty usually taught his lectures by heart. He closely followed the current state and progress of the natural sciences, and in his views this knowledge not only did not contradict, but served theology in the best possible way.

In the properties of his loving soul, Archimandrite Innokenty drew the art of strengthening good sociability among professors and everywhere brought peace and tranquility. During the nine years of Father Innokenty's rectorship, the academic family thought the same thought with him, lived the same life with him. The father rector always treated the students of the Academy kindly and nobly. He was especially kind and considerate to them when some grief befell them, for example, a serious illness. To help the unfortunate man in this misfortune was then all his main concern for the rector. In this case, he sacrificed not only his means, but sometimes even his comforts of life.

Father Innokenty is especially famous for his extraordinary preaching talent. Subsequently, Vladyka Innokenty will be called the "Russian Chrysostom". As a preacher, he was distinguished by the fact that he acted primarily on the hearts of his listeners and captivated them with the clarity and simplicity of his words, subtle and witty convergence of objects, the art of discovering new and entertaining aspects in them and the ability to take his teachings as close as possible to various cases and circumstances. . Thus, Vladyka Innokenty created a new Russian school of preaching, far removed from any external showiness and dry learning.

In addition to sermons, Vladyka left many wonderful scientific works and translations, such as: “The Life of St. Cyprian", "Life of St. Apostle Paul”, “Monument of Faith”, “History of the Ecumenical Councils”, translation of “Helmsman's Book” and much more.

External nature for Father Innokenty was the second Bible, testifying to the Divine greatness of the Creator. He clearly pursued this view of nature in his sermons. “Look,” he said, “at the sea boiling with waves, or at a cloud dissected by lightning and thunder: is this not an image of the omnipotence of God? Look at the vault of heaven, dotted with stars, at the rising sun: is this not an image of the wisdom of God? Look at Spring, adorned with flowers, leading a choir of birds: is this not an image of the goodness of God? What prevents you, looking at your pictures, from ascending in thought to the perfections of your Creator? With such a view of Father Innokenty on nature, his special love for it and for the natural sciences is also understandable. The Imperial Academy of Sciences and various learned societies honored the literary merits of the preacher by accepting him as a member. His sermons were translated at one time into Greek, German, French and Polish.

In 1836, on November 21, in the Kazan Cathedral of St. Petersburg, on the day of the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, Archimandrite Innokenty was consecrated Bishop of Chigirinsky.

In March 1840, he was appointed to the chair of the bishop of the Vologda diocese. Here he remained for 9 months and then was transferred to the Kharkiv diocese. His ministry in Kharkov lasted about seven years. During this period, he restored the Akhtyrsky and Svyatogorsky monasteries, opened the St. Nicholas Convent. Vladyka came up with the idea of ​​establishing a solemn religious procession in Kharkov on the occasion of the transfer to the city from the Kuryazhsky Monastery of the miraculous icon of the Mother of God.

In 1845, Vladyka was elevated to the rank of archbishop. And after 3 years he was appointed to the Kherson-Tauride diocese, where the multi-tribal Orthodox flock was constantly subjected to the corrupting influence of the Tatars, Jews and German colonists.

Restoring ancient Christian monuments in Crimea, destroyed by the Tatars, and founding their own "Russian Athos" - this is the main thing that the archpastor wanted to achieve during his administration of the Kherson-Taurian diocese.

Desiring to preserve the ruins of ancient Kherson, glorified by the baptism of the Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia, Bishop Innokenty asked the Viceroy of the Caucasus for these ruins and tried to build there, in the middle of the desert, near the remains of the former cathedral church, a small church in the name of the Holy Princess Olga with a small room for the monks. Then he renovated the ancient temple carved by the hands of St. Clement in the Inkerman rock, consecrated it in memory of the two Hieromartyrs Clement and Martin, who suffered in Kherson, where they were sent to quarry work, and set up a small skete in the same rock. During his travels across the Crimea, Vladyka usually left his companions at the foot of the mountains, while he himself ascended to their summits to pray at the places where the ancient ascetics had feats.

In the last years of his hierarchship, Bishop Innokenty took the most lively archpastoral part in the disasters of the Crimean War and had an extremely beneficial influence on the soldiers.

The greatness of the spirit of St. Innocent was also revealed in his visits to the suffering warriors in the infirmaries, in which contagious typhus was rampant and where one could see all the heavy sorrow, all the suffering generated by the war. In battles, he went around the ranks of the troops, encouraging the heroes. And here the courageous shepherd-father was the comforting angel of the suffering.

At the coronation of Emperor Alexander II, Archbishop Innokenty was appointed a member of the Holy Synod.

Intense labors and worries broke the health of the glorious archpastor. Vladyka fell ill while in Sevastopol during the battle between the Russian troops and the enemy, and on his way back to Odessa he died in Kherson on May 25, 1857, on the bright feast of the Life-Giving Trinity.

Canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1997.