18th century icon of Alexander Svirsky.
Alexander Svirsky (Russian : Александр Свирский ) or Alexander of Svir (1448–1533) was an Eastern Orthodox saint , monk , and hegumen of the Russian Orthodox Church .[ 1]
Amos (his baptismal name ) was born to a peasant family in the Novgorod Republic , east of Ladoga . At the age of 19, he left home for the Valaam Monastery and became a monk and later a hermit . In 1506, Serapion , Archbishop of Novgorod , appointed him Hegumen of the Trinity monastery, which later became known as Alexander-Svirsky Monastery .[ 2]
Saint Alexander became known for his righteous life and contemplative miracles, including the appearances of the Trinity and the Virgin Mary with the Holy Child . The Russian Orthodox Church canonized Alexander Svirsky in the year of 1547. His feast day is commemorated on April 17 and August 30,[ 3] according to the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar .
Relics of Saint Alexander were found on April 17 (27), 1641. According to the Vita of the saint, they were found incorruptible .[ 4]
On October 22, 1918, the coffin with the relics of Alexander Svirsky was opened. According to Soviet reports, instead of relics, a wax doll was supposedly found.[ 5] [ 6] [ 7] However, testimony of the monks present, as well as a later Soviet commission under the direction of Grigory Zinoviev , demonstrated that a human body instead of a wax figure was present in the coffin.[ 8] [ 9] [ 10]
^ "Venerable Alexander the Abbot of Svir" . oca.org . Retrieved March 13, 2018 .
^ (in Russian) Web-site of Alexander-Svirsky monastery
^ (in Russian) Orthodox church calendar, "Pravoslavie" web-site
^ Александр Свирский, преподобный — прославление // Смирнов С. И. Жития русских святых.
^ Кашеваров А. Н. Церковь и власть: Русская Православная Церковь в первые годы Советской власти . — М.: Изд-во СПбГТУ, 1999. — С. 222.
^ Отчёт VIII-го Отдела Народного Комиссариата Юстиции Съезду Советов // Революция и церковь : журнал. — № 9—12. — 1920. — С. 70—82.
^ Гидулянов, Павел Васильевич . / Отделение церкви от государства в С.С.С.Р. : полный сборник декретов, ведомственных распоряжений и определений Верхсуда Р.С.Ф.С.Р. и других советских социалистических республик: У.С.С.Р., Б.С.С.Р., З.С.Ф.С.Р., Узбекской и Туркменской / П. В. Гидулянов ; под ред. П. А. Красикова. - Изд. 3-е, вновь переработанное и дополненное узаконениями и распоряжениями по 15 мая 1926 г. - Москва : Юридическое издательство, 1926 (Типография МКХ им. Ф. Я. Лаврова). - II, 712 с. / С. 66
^ S.A. Smith, "Bones of Contention: Bolsheviks and the Struggle against Relics 1918–1930." Past & Present Vol. 204: 1, (2009): 156-57
^ МИХАИЛ ШКАРОВСКИЙ. АНТИРЕЛИГИОЗНАЯ КАМПАНИЯ ИЗЪЯТИЯ МОЩЕЙ В СОВЕТСКОЙ РОССИИ
^ For documents, see Милякова Л.: Отделение Церкви от государства и школы от Церкви в Советской России. Октябрь 1917-1918 г. Сборник документов. M., 2016, pp. 456-60.