Macarius (Metropolitan of Moscow)

Born around 1482 in Moscow in a family of pious parents. At baptism, he was named in the name of Archangel Michael . It is known that his father was called Leonty. Michael's father, apparently, died shortly after the birth of his son. His mother subsequently received monastic tonsure with the name Euphrosyne .

Deciding to choose a monastic path for himself, he entered as a novice at the Nativity of the Virgin Paphnutievo-Borovsky Monastery . When she was tonsured, he was named after the famous Orthodox ascetic, the deserter of the Monk Makarius of Egypt . The future saint entered the monastery of St. Paphnutius when Joseph of Volotsk left him. Nevertheless, the influence of the Volotsk igumen on the future metropolitan is very great. The saint often quotes the "Enlightener", calling this work the "luminary of Orthodoxy" ^[1] .

In 1523 he became hegumen of the Luzhetsky Mother of God Monastery in Mozhaisk. In 1526, Macarius was ordained archbishop of Novgorod and Pskov . The Novgorod department by this time was widowed for 17 years. The long-standing absence of the diocesan ruler did not affect the state of her affairs in the best way. The necessary measures were aimed at implementing the decisions of the cathedrals of 1503-1504. It was forbidden to live in a monastery of monks and nuns. In convents, abbesses were replaced by abbess. Serving in convents was prescribed to white priests. Secular persons who lived at the monasteries were removed from there. Being a consistent supporter of a strong monastic economy, the new archbishop made considerable efforts to transfer Novgorod monasteries to an ostracious charter. As far back as 1528, only four out of 24 monasteries in the diocese were sociable, the rest were multiplicative. Saint Macarius, acting in conviction on the abbess of the monasteries, achieved that by the end of his ministry in the Novgorod diocese the number of cinnamon reached eighteen.

Macarius contributed to the compilation of the new Archbishop's Chronicles. Vladyka paid much attention to the restoration of ancient icons and churches, murals were renewed in the St. Sophia Cathedral . Here, in Novgorod, the first attempt was made to put together all the books "honored in the Russian land", the first edition of the famous " Makarevsky Minea ". The arch included both the lives of the saints , and didactic and theological works. In 1541, all 12 volumes of the vault were transferred to the library of St. Sophia Cathedral.

He was elevated to the metropolitan throne on March 19, 1542 by the boyar group of the princes of Shuisky , who ruled under the infant Ivan the Terrible . In this dignity, Macarius succeeded Metropolitan Joasaph, deposed by the Shuyskys. However, he soon, like his predecessor Joasaph, began to oppose the Shuiskys. Having a significant influence on the young king, he contributed to the removal of Shuiskys from power, which occurred in December 1543 . After that, Macarius had a great influence on the policies of Ivan the Terrible, entering the so-called “ Selected Rada ”. He married Ivan the Terrible to the kingdom ( 1547 ), promoted his marriage to Anastasia Zakharyina .

In 1542, at the behest of Macarius, the church of St. Nicholas was built.

In 1547 and 1549 he convened two Councils in Moscow, at which much work was done to canonize Russian saints. In connection with the glorification of new saints under the leadership of the Metropolitan, much work was done to compile the lives.

With him in 1551 the famous Stoglavy Local Cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church took place. Sympathizing with the Josephites who dominated the Stoglava Cathedral, he did not allow the adoption of the law on the secularization of monastic lands promoted by Archpriest Sylvester .

Makarii put a lot of effort into organizing book printing in Russia. With him, the first printing house was opened in Moscow for printing sacred and liturgical books.

After the fall of the Chosen One in 1560, Macarius, the only one of its members, was not persecuted.

On December 3, 1563, Metropolitan Makarii informed the sovereign that he was going to leave the metropolis out of weakness and "take it to a silent life" at the place of his tonsure at the Paphnutiev Monastery. The sovereign, along with the heir, appeared at the metropolitan courtyard and begged him not to leave the metropolis. Only on December 21, he agreed to remain in the department, but 10 days later, on the last day of 1563, Vladyka Makariy died. January 1, 1564 he was buried in the Assumption Cathedral .

He was canonized as a saint at the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1988 .

• Macarius (Veretennikov) . Moscow Metropolitan Macarius and his time. - M .: Publishing House of the Transfiguration of the Valaam Monastery, 1996.
• Macarius (Veretennikov) . Life and works of St. Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia. - M., 2002.
• Urushev D.A. Marvelous saint and shepherd // Truth and life. - 2006. - No. 5.
• Usachev A. S. Old Russian book writing of the era of Metropolitan Macarius: The book of the power of the royal genealogy (inaccessible link) : author. dis. ... Dr. ist. sciences. - M., 2010.
• Usachev A.S. From the history of Old Russian bookishness of the time of Metropolitan Makarios: Great Menaia of the Chate and the Degree Book // Ancient Russia. Questions of Medieval Studies . - 2007. - No. 4 (30). - S. 35-43.
• Usachev A.S. Power book and Old Russian book writing of the time of Metropolitan Makarii. - M .; SPb., 2009.

• Biography of Metropolitan Macarius on the IRLI RAS website
• St. Macarius on the site "Russian Orthodoxy"
• The site "Orthodoxy and Peace". Archimandrite Makarios (Veretennikov) . Notes on Metropolitan Macarius (Neopr.) . Date of treatment December 30, 2015.
• The Great Mineas of Chety collected by Macarius of Moscow on the website of the Tver diocese.