12 January is the feast day of Saint Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow, who reposed in 1563. An extraordinary figure of his age, Saint Macarius wove together many crucial threads in Russian Orthodox history through his ecclesiastical and public service. Neither martyr nor confessor, he peacefully departed this life in his twilight years, witnessing one of the most prosperous periods in Russian history, in good accord with the Tsar. His star shines brilliantly in the ecclesiastical firmament, although he may be less familiar to modern-day believers than other pre-Petrine saints. Metropolitan Macarius accomplished so much for the Church and brought about such profound change that the history of Russian Orthodoxy would be unthinkable without him. The period traditionally known as the “Age of Ivan the Terrible” could rightfully be called the “Macarian Era,” such was the scope of his creative work.
During his tenure and through his efforts, Russia gained its first native collection of saints’ lives and teachings — the Macarian Menologia (Cheti-Minei)[1]. Moscow’s first printing press emerged under his guidance. He crowned Ivan the Terrible as Russia’s first tsar (1547) and presided over the landmark Council of the Hundred Chapters (1551). His name is tied to the development of communal monastic rules in Russia and the canonisation of many Russian saints.
The future saint came from a devout family. Many of his ancestors and relatives embraced the monastic life, including Venerable Joseph of Volokolamsk, brother of Saint Macarius’s great-grandfather. The Moscow Dormition Cathedral’s commemorative synodikon lists his kin, including “Nun Natalia, Monk Akakiy, Monk Joasaph, Abbot Vassian, Archimandrite Kassian, Priest Ignatius, Monk Selivan, and Monk Macarius.” In time, his mother also took monastic vows, adopting the name Euphrosinia.
Sensing an early calling to monastic life, Michael (his baptismal name) left his native Moscow to become a monk at St Paphnutius Monastery in Borovsk. There, he spent 30 years undergoing rigorous spiritual training, “enduring a harsh life.” A devout ascetic and man of prayer, he diligently followed in the footsteps of his patron saint, Venerable Macarius the Great. Within the sacred walls of the monastery, he beheld the frescoes adorning the cathedral church, painted by the master Dionysius, and prayed before the icons of Venerable Andrei Rublev. Nurtured by their legacy, he later became an accomplished iconographer himself.
Monastery of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God, also known as the Holy Pafnutiev Borovsky Monastery, founded in 1444
Divine Providence elevated Monk Macarius to high ecclesiastical office: early in 1523, he became abbot of the Luzhetsky Monastery of the Nativity of the Theotokos, established by St Therapont of Mozhaisk. As archimandrite, he dedicated a chapel in the monastery’s cathedral to St Macarius of Egypt.
Shortly before his death, when he was already Metropolitan of Moscow, Saint Macarius made a donation to Luzhetsky Monastery. He bequeathed funds for memorial meals to be held for the monastery’s brethren on the feast day of his patron saint. However, Archimandrite Macarius’s time in Mozhaysk was brief. Three years later, he was called to Episcopal service.
On 4 March 1526, Archimandrite Macarius was consecrated as Archbishop of Novgorod the Great and Pskov. This was the oldest see of the Moscow Metropolia, which had been vacant for some 17 years. The chronicler wrote, “And when the saint ascended the archiepiscopal throne, there was great joy among the people, not only in Novgorod the Great but also in Pskov and everywhere. Bread became cheap, monasteries were eased in their taxes, the people had a great protector, and orphans found a provider.”
Novgorod the Great, Saint Sophia Cathedral, consecrated in 1052, one of the oldest churches of the Russian Orthodox Church
In his elevated position, Archbishop Macarius devoted himself to enlightening the northern peoples of Novgorod’s lands. He frequently dispatched priests and deacons to spread the Gospel among the Lapp, the Pomors, and other Finno-Ugric peoples. According to Archbishop Filaret (Gumilevsky), the hierarch’s missionary letter stands as “a true monument to Macarius’s apostolic labours in spreading Christ’s light among remaining pagans.” Venerable Trifon of Pechengy received from the saint the blessing for missionary work in the far north, along with sacred vessels, antimins, and books.
Metropolitan Macarius ordered the destruction of pagan shrines, with holy water to be sprinkled everywhere. He charged the clergy to root out pagan customs, educate the people, and encourage church attendance and the embrace of Christian traditions. Even the pagan priests, known as “arbuys,” were summoned “for instruction.”
In 1528, during his second year as hierarch and following the 1503 Moscow Council’s decree, Saint Macarius implemented the cenobitic rule in all Novgorod monasteries. Gathering the abbots, he “began teaching them as if from the Life-giving Trinity, through instruction from the highest Wisdom, how to arrange communal living.” Accepting his wise counsel, the abbots adopted communal rules, built stone or wooden churches, and introduced communal meals. The number of monks increased swiftly, as noted by chroniclers.
The saint took great care in constructing and adorning churches throughout his diocese, especially in Novgorod the Great. He beautified the Cathedral of Saint Sophia, where, under his blessing, images of the Holy Trinity and Saint Sophia, the Wisdom of God, were painted above the entrance “for the veneration of all Orthodox Christians.” Master craftsmen under his authority installed a new ambo and created ornate royal doors with richly decorated curtains. During Saint Macarius’s tenure, approximately 40 churches in Novgorod alone were built, reconstructed, or restored after fires. His episcopal workshop produced books, church vessels, and sacred implements for these temples.
Having mastered iconography at the Pafnutiev-Borovsky Monastery, the holy hierarch undertook a sacred task. The chronicles of 1529 tell how he restored the great treasure of Novgorod’s land — the icon of the Mother of God “The Sign.” Time had taken its toll, leaving the venerable icon in a sorry state. Upon completing this labour, he himself led a procession of the cross, bearing the icon to the Church of the Saviour on the Market Side, where it remained for the veneration of Novgorod’s faithful.
Icon of the Mother of God “The Sign”, 12th century, Veliky Novgorod, St. Sophia Cathedral
As archpastor, Saint Macarius poured out his strength in service to others. He personally buried those who perished in a prison fire and gathered funds to ransom compatriots from Tatar captivity. When plague and drought ravaged Veliky Novgorod, the archbishop summoned the clergy, delivered powerful sermons urging the people to repentance, and conducted special prayer services, including the washing of holy relics. He then sprinkled the surrounding area with this sanctified water, and, in short order, the plague and sickness abated.
Throughout his archpastoral ministry, Saint Macarius never abandoned his commitment to prayer. Even while travelling, he diligently observed the full cycle of daily prayers. Through his prayers, miracles occurred. He healed a relative of Saint Gennady of Novgorod. When he prayed at the relics of Venerable Varlaam of Khutyn, a candle ignited on its own and burned for nine weeks. Grand Prince Vasily III and his family journeyed to the Novgorod Sophia Cathedral to pray for an heir. In Moscow, there was a strong belief that it was Archbishop Macarius who, through his earnest supplications, obtained from God the son who would later become Tsar Ivan the Terrible.
During his tenure, a new chronicle was created in Veliky Novgorod by his blessing. Monk Dosifei Toporkov, nephew of Venerable Joseph of Volokolamsk, worked on the Sinai Paterikon, later included in the Great Menology. Later, Dosifei worked on the Volokolamsk Patericon and compiled the Chronograph. In 1540, Priest Agaphon of the Sophia Cathedral composed a new Paschal table for the next eight thousand years, which we continue to use to this very day. The arduous labours of this dedicated archpastor bore a rich harvest of good fruit (cf. Matthew 7:17), and his pious life earned him the deep love and respect of his Novgorod flock.
Saint Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow. Icon with scenes from his life and a depiction of the Council of a Hundred Chapters. Late 20th century, Church of the Holy Trinity in Trinity Sloboda, Moscow
Throughout his life and ministry, Metropolitan Macarius crossed paths with many ascetics and holy men, including several who were later numbered among the saints of the Russian Church. Among his older contemporaries was Saint Alexander of Svir, who, before his death, wrote a letter to Archbishop Macarius, entrusting his monastery to the archbishop’s care. Saint Macarius supported the Svir Monastery, making numerous donations. The monastery’s abbot, Hegumen Herodion, later described a miraculous vision in which Saint Alexander, already departed from this earthly life, and Saint Macarius, still living, visited the monastery together.
In the year 1542, the Russian Church faced the momentous task of selecting a new Metropolitan for the See of Moscow. By divine providence, the choice fell upon the esteemed Bishop of Novgorod. “By the grace of the Holy Spirit, through the election of the Holy Synod and the will of the Grand Prince Ivan Vasilyevich of all the Russias, Macarius, Archbishop of Great Novgorod and Pskov, was nominated to the Metropolitanate. On 16 March, a Thursday of the fourth week of Great Lent, he was elevated to the Metropolitan’s court, and on 19 March, the Sunday of the fourth week of Great Lent, he was installed upon the lofty throne of the Primacy of Great Russia,” reads the Nikon Chronicle.
At the time of his election, Saint Macarius was nearing sixty years of age. He would later reflect with humility, “I know not by what divine fortune I, unworthy as I am, was chosen not only by the entire council of the Russian Metropolitanate but also by the most pious and Christ-loving Tsar and Grand Prince Ivan Vasilyevich, sovereign of all Rus’.”
Sakkos of Metropolitan Macarius, 1549
Metropolitan Macarius’s work was remarkably diverse and fruitful, its full extent yet to be fully explored by scholars. Upon becoming Metropolitan, he guided the nation out of a deep internal political crisis. His first decisive action was to orchestrate the Tsar’s coronation.
This took place on 16 January 1547, in the Dormition Cathedral of Moscow. For the first time in history, a Metropolitan, rather than a Patriarch, crowned a Muscovite ruler: Tsar Ivan IV Vasilyevich. This event held immense significance. It occurred in Moscow, not Constantinople, further solidifying the Russian Church’s autonomy. During the coronation, the Metropolitan offered a prayer expressing the hope that the Tsar would become a steadfast guardian of the Church. He also implored God to grant the Tsar “a merciful eye towards the obedient” and the ability to “judge Your people with righteousness and save Your poor with justice.”
Metropolitan Macarius blesses the 16-year-old Ivan the Terrible during his coronation. Miniature from the Royal Book, 1560s
In 1552, Metropolitan Macarius blessed the Tsar’s campaign against Kazan and prophesied his victory. To commemorate this triumph, the magnificent Cathedral of the Intercession on the Moat, now known as Saint Basil’s Cathedral, was built in Moscow. Within this cathedral, a chapel was dedicated to the Lord’s Entry into Jerusalem. The head of the Russian Church himself consecrated this architectural marvel, a jewel of Russian artistry. Here, in Red Square, Saint Macarius instituted a tradition unique in the history of the Russian Church: a solemn procession on a donkey on Palm Sunday, mirroring the Gospel narrative.
After the Kazan victory, a large new diocese was established, ushering in missionary efforts under the leadership of the first Archbishop of Kazan, Saint Gurias, who later became Patriarch Hermogenes of Russia.
Throughout his service, Saint Macarius consecrated twenty-one bishops. He also oversaw the establishment of the Episcopal See of Polotsk.
Alongside Saint Macarius walked another holy man, Basil the Blessed, known to the people of Moscow as “the Naked One.” He would often join the congregation in the Dormition Cathedral, praying fervently during the services conducted by the Metropolitan. Later, as recounted in Saint Basil’s Life, it was Saint Macarius himself who conducted the blessed one’s funeral rites and laid him to rest.
Holy contemporaries: Saint Macarius and Saint Basil the Blessed
Saint Macarius’s profound spiritual wisdom is vividly illustrated by an account recorded by those who knew him. On one occasion, Tsar Ivan the Terrible requested that the Archbishop send him a book for the benefit of his soul. To the Tsar’s surprise, Saint Macarius sent him the “Order of Burial.” Understandably perplexed, the Tsar sought an explanation. Saint Macarius’s reply was both insightful and poignant: “I, your humble intercessor, have sent precisely what you requested, a book profitable for the soul. Indeed, there is no book more profitable; for if one reads it with careful attention, he will never sin again.”
In 1547 and 1549, Tsar Ivan the Terrible and Saint Macarius convened two momentous Councils in Moscow, during which thirty-nine Russian saints were glorified. For instance, in 1549, Metropolitan Macarius elevated the Vilna Martyrs — Anthony, John, and Eustathius — to sainthood. These Councils, known to historians as the “Macarian” Councils, had a profound impact on the development of Old Russian literature, sparking a great literary renaissance.
In honour of these “new wonderworkers” — as the newly canonised saints and all Russian saints were then known — new Lives, panegyrics, and services were written under Metropolitan Macarius’s guidance. Copies of these works were widely distributed throughout the land. Manuscript collections containing these new writings became known as the “Book of New Wonderworkers.” This book, typologically novel for Russia, emerged alongside the Great Menaion Reader.
Historian E. E. Golubinsky notes that during the twenty-year tenure of Metropolitan Macarius, “almost a third more Lives of Saints were written than in the entire period from the Mongol invasion, and if we include new editions of earlier Lives, then almost twice as many.”
The domes of the churches of Cathedral Square in the Moscow Kremlin
In 1551, with Saint Macarius’s involvement, the celebrated Sobor, known as the Council of a Hundred Chapters, convened. This assembly addressed diverse facets of church life: moral, administrative, liturgical, economic, church order and discipline, iconography, and religious education. The Council has historically been referred to as the Hundred Chapters Council because its proceedings are documented in one hundred chapters.
At this Council, the Church adopted an extensive set of unified rules, building upon and enriching the previous councils of the Russian Church. The decrees of the Council remained in effect for approximately 150 years, until the Synodal period in the history of the Russian Church.
The Great Menaion Reader of Metropolitan Macarius
Saint Macarius stands as a remarkable scholar and organiser. He achieved the monumental task of compiling all the spiritual literature of Russia during his era. This grand endeavour took over twenty years of intense labour. The saint began his work while still in Veliky Novgorod, gathering the written spiritual heritage of the Russian Church.
This vast collection, named the Great Menaion Reader of Macarius, features spiritual texts translated from Greek and original works from early Slavic and Russian writings. For each day of the Orthodox calendar, it includes concise lives of saints, followed by detailed hagiographies, homilies, panegyrics, and patristic texts. At the end of the Menaion are compilations like the Golden Stream, The Bee, and The Pearl. Each of the 12 volumes contains up to 1,500 large-format sheets, written in two columns using semi-uncial script. Beyond this, Saint Macarius is linked with the creation of the Book of Degrees, the first systematic presentation of history in Rus’. Today, these manuscripts are housed in libraries in Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
Saint Macarius sparked a new era in Russian book culture. Under his oversight, the first printed books in the Russian state emerged, produced by Ivan Fyodorov, a deacon of the Church of Saint Nicholas Gostunsky in the Kremlin. The Apostle of 1564 (published posthumously) and two editions of the Book of Hours of 1565 declare in their afterwords that they were printed “with the blessing of His Eminence Macarius, Metropolitan of All Rus’.” These books served both liturgical functions and as tools for teaching literacy.
The printing house on Nikolskaya Street. 1645. Lithograph from the early 1850s from the album “Antiquities of the Russian State” based on a drawing by an unknown artist from the school of G. Quarenghi from the 1790s
At the heart of Metropolitan Macarius’s virtuous life was a daily commitment to asceticism, fasting, and fervent prayer. He remained faithful to his monastic vows throughout his life. An unknown contemporary recorded: “Metropolitan Macarius, dwelling immovably in Moscow and rightly proclaiming the true Word of God… due to his severe abstinence, could barely walk, yet he was meek, humble, and merciful in all things, utterly hating pride, cutting it off and forbidding it in others. He was found to be like a child in innocence, yet always perfect in mind.”
The depth of his spiritual life is also shown by instances of clairvoyance. The Metropolitan foresaw the troubles that the oprichnina would bring to Rus’ after his passing. As chronicled, in his final days, he prayed: “Oh, woe is me, a sinner, the most unworthy of men! How can I bear to see this? Iniquity and the division of the land are coming! Lord, spare us, spare us! Avert Your wrath! If You will not forgive us for our sins, let it not happen in my time, but after me! Do not, O Lord, let me see it!”
In mid-September 1563, while leading a cross procession, Saint Macarius fell gravely ill. By December, sensing his end drawing near, he wished to retire to his home monastery of Pafnutiev-Borovsky. Yet, the Tsar urged him to remain at his post. On Christmas, the saint could no longer read the Gospel himself, his strength waning. On 12 January 1564, he surrendered his soul to the Lord.
The Dormition Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, interior
A radiant glow emanated from the saint’s face in repose. It reflected “his pure, undefiled, spiritual, and merciful life, as well as his other virtues, appearing not as a dead man but as one who sleeps.” Five hierarchs conducted the funeral service in the presence of the Tsar and a vast throng of mourners. Afterward, a farewell patriarchal letter, written by Metropolitan Macarius near the end of his life, was read. In it, he asked for prayers and forgiveness and bestowed his final archpastoral blessing.
The Russian Church, profoundly influenced by Metropolitan Macarius, endured the oprichnina and the Time of Troubles, bearing the imprint of his guidance. He fortified and, in many ways, rebuilt the Church. The spiritual resilience and commitment to enlightenment instilled by Saint Macarius influenced the Church’s destiny until the era of Patriarch Nikon.
Reliquary with the relics of Saint Macarius in the Dormition Cathedral, Moscow
Veneration of the saint began immediately after his passing. On returning from the Lithuanian campaign in 1564, the Tsar venerated the icons of Saints Peter, Jonah, and Macarius, “kissing them with great love.” However, Macarius was officially canonised nearly 400 years later, in 1988, during the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, coinciding with the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus’.
Since 1993, the annual “Macarian Readings” academic conference has been held in Mozhaisk to honour Saint Macarius. In 2001, the Russian Orthodox Church established an order and medal named after Saint Macarius to honour those excelling in spiritual education and enlightenment. On his feast day, a Divine Liturgy is celebrated in the Dormition Cathedral of the Kremlin, followed by a prayer service at his tomb, which is adorned with a richly embroidered cover depicting the saint.
O great saint, first hierarch of the Russian Church, pastor and teacher of the city of Moscow, our blessed Father Macarius! We fall down before you with contrite hearts and fervently pray: beseech for us from the All-Merciful God the spirit of understanding and wisdom, that we may be adorned with true knowledge of God from the saving scriptures of the Holy Fathers and the wisdom of their works.
O saint of God, pray to the Lord for the peace of the whole world; preserve our country through your intercession in peace and tranquillity; keep all the people of our Fatherland in good relations with one another and show them to be free from internal strife; preserve every city and every village in goodness; keep the holy faith undefiled among the people.
Be a speedy helper to us all in our needs, that, nourished by thee, we may live peacefully and piously in this life, and be deemed worthy to receive eternal blessings in Heaven, glorifying and exalting the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and your merciful intercession, unto ages of ages. Amen.
Material prepared by the editors of obitel-minsk.ru
Photographs from the internet
Sources used:
1. Archimandrite Macarius (Veretennikov). Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow and the Church and Literary Activity of his Time. // Millennium of the Baptism of Rus’. International Church Scientific Conference “Theology and Spirituality”. Moscow 11–18 May 1987. — M.: Edition of the Moscow Patriarchate, 1989. — Vol. 2. — pp. 275–289.
2. Sinitsyna N. V. Russian Church during the period of autocephaly; establishment of the Patriarchate // PE. 2000. Vol.: ROC. p. 74).
3. Macarius (pravenc.ru)
4. Saint Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia: Memorial Day – 12th January | Pravmir (pravmir.ru) 12th January — Memorial Day of Saint Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia — Alexandrov Diocese (al-eparhiya.ru)
5. Sage and Politician - Orthodox magazine “Foma” (foma.ru) Saint Macarius, Metropolitan Of Moscow: filaretuos — LiveJournal
[1] Cheti-Minei (cheti — Old Russian: for reading, minei — from Greek μήν: month) – collections containing, unlike minei, not liturgical texts, but texts for reading, also arranged by months and days of the year and intended primarily for non-liturgical use.
