Macarius | |
|---|---|
| Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia | |
 Metropolitan Macarius blessesIvan the Terrible during his coronation, miniature from theIllustrated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible | |
| Church | Russian Orthodox Church |
| See | Moscow |
| Installed | 1542 |
| Term ended | 1563 |
| Predecessor | Joasaphus |
| Successor | Athanasius |
Saint Macarius | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Modernicon of Saint Macarius of Moscow | |
| Metropolitan of Moscow | |
| Born | 1482 |
| Died | 12 January 1563 |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | 6 June 1988,Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius by1988 Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church (Patriarch Pimen I of Moscow) |
| Feast | 5 October 30 December |
| Attributes | Vested as abishop, holding aGospel Book |
| Patronage | Moscow |
Macarius (Russian:Мака́рий,romanized: Makary; 1482 – 12 January 1563) wasMetropolitan of Moscow and all Rus', theprimate of theRussian Orthodox Church, from 1542 to 1563. He was the tenth metropolitan in Moscow to be appointed without the approval of theEcumenical Patriarch of Constantinople as had been the norm.
Macarius was born in the region around Moscow. His parents' names (at least his mother's monastic names) are known because he dedicates theGreat Menaion Reader to them. Hissecular name is thought to have been Mikhail.[1]
In the late 15th century, Macarius became amonk at theSt. Paphnutius Monastery [ru] inBorovsk, where he would serve as areader,subdeacon,deacon, andpriest. It was here that Macarius mastered the art of icon painting. He is also known to have been a firm supporter ofJoseph Volotsky and his disciples. He was a notable Russian cleric, writer, andicon painter.
In 1523,Metropolitan Daniel raised Macarius to the rank ofarchmandrite of amonastery inMozhaisk. It was there that Macarius became acquainted with theGrand Prince of Moscow,Vasili III. He was one of a few clerics who supported Vasili III'sdivorce from the barrenSolomonia Saburova and blessed hissecond marriage withElena Glinskaya.
In 1526, Macarius was appointed as thearchbishop of Novgorod,[2] where he conducted pro-Muscovite policies. In 1533 and again in 1535, he sent the monk Ilya and others onmissionary work among theFinno-Ugric peoples along the Neva, Lakes Ladoga and Onega, and up into the Kola Peninsula. His successor in Novgorod, Feodosii, send missionaries to the same region a decade later.
In 1541, Macarius and his companions finished work on the first edition of their great work, theGreat Menaion Reader. This compilation of lives of the Russiansaints comprised 12 volumes arranged on monthly basis. He is also credited with beginning theStepennaya Kniga ("Book of Royal Degrees") which traced Ivan the Terrible's lineage back to a fictitious brother of Caesar Augustus named Prus.[3] He is also said to have painted the icons in the little iconostasis of theCathedral of Holy Wisdom in Novgorod.[4]
Having secured the support of a powerful prince,Andrey Shuisky, Macarius was elected Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia on 16 March 1542. DuringIvan IV's nonage and Shuiskys'regency, Macarius's relations with theBoyar Duma gradually worsened due to his constant "grief" over the disgrace of courtiers and church dignitaries. His independent-mindedness induced a number of attempts to dislodge him. In the summer of 1544, Macarius escaped a sure death in the fire raging in theMoscow Kremlin. Three years later, he took part in removing Ivan's maternal relatives, the Glinskys, from the Russian government.
Upon becoming one of the closest advisers of Ivan the Terrible, Macarius arranged hiscoronation on 16 January 1547. That year, he blessed the tsar's marriage withAnastasia Zakharyina-Yuriyeva. Macarius was an active participant at thezemsky sobors of 1547, 1549, and 1550, advocating conciliation between the opposing boyar groups.
During thesynod of 1542, Macarius achieved theexcommunication ofMaximus the Greek's associate Isaac Sobaka, archmandrite of theChudov Monastery. Curiously enough, Macarius would later correspond with the exiled Maximus the Greek and include some of his essays in his the Great Menaion Reader, rejecting, however, his appeals for pardon. During theStoglav Synod and other such synods, traditionally known as Macarius's synods in Russian historiography, Macarius carried out thecanonization of 39 all-Russian saints. In 1551, Macarius, together with the tsar, convened the Stoglav Sobor. He also blessed the Russian army before its departure toKazan in 1552.
During his Kazan campaign in 1559, Ivan the Terrible left Macarius in Moscow to "protect the tsardom", which made him a temporary head of state. In 1552 and 1554, Macarius completed the second and third editions of theGrand Menaion. During the church councils in 1553–1555, Macarius supported the accusations ofheresy, aimed at a boyar sonMatvei Bashkin,starets Artemiy, and monk Feodosiy Kosoy. However, he took the side ofSylvester, a monk at theCathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin, who had been accused bydiakIvan Viskovatyi in uncanonical wall-painting of the above-mentioned cathedral.
When the tsar was away fromMoscow, Macarius was in charge of diplomatic negotiations and dispatching messengers abroad with differentdeeds. The painting of theSaint Basil's Cathedral and the Kremlin'sGolden Chamber was carried out with his assistance. He also took part in compiling theChronicle of the Beginning of Tsardom of Tsar and Grand Prince Ivan Vasiliyevich, i.e., an officialchronicle of Ivan the Terrible's reign and theRegal Book, anilluminated manuscript about Ivan's reign and policies.
In his declining years, Macarius moved away from the affairs of the state. He supervised the creation of the Stepennaya kniga (or the Book of Generations), supportedIvan Fyodorov's book-printing, and renovatedicons. Metropolitan Macarius died on 12 January 1563 and was buried in theCathedral of the Dormition of theMoscow Kremlin. After his death, they wrote his life andA Tale of the Last Days of Metropolitan Macarius. Macarius wascanonized by theRussian Orthodox Church in 1988 (he, however, is found in lists of saints dating back to the 18th century).[5] His icon hangs in a niche over the archway of the entrance to the Russian State Archive of Ancient Documents in Moscow.
"Макарий, митрополит Всероссийский" .Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.| Preceded by | Metropolitan of Moscow and all Rus' | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Archbishop of Novgorod | Succeeded by Theodosius |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
