Already during his lifetime, Saint Hermogenes became famous as a shepherd, “who laid down his life for the sheep,” as “a strong stand against enemies... a denouncer of traitors and destroyers Christian faith».

Hieromartyr Hermogenes (Hermogen), Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', was born around 1530 into a family of Don Cossacks. In the world he bore the name Ermolai. The years of Hermogenes' youth and adulthood coincided with outstanding events national history: conquest of Kazan, Astrakhan, Siberia; the wedding of John IV to the All-Russian kingdom, the publication of the Code of Laws, the holding of the first zemstvo councils. Divided future Patriarch to the fullest extent is the sorrow of his Fatherland over the arbitrariness of Poland, which, having seized part of the original Russian lands, persecuted Orthodoxy there, trying to impose a church union under the leadership of Rome. These historical events had a deep influence on Hermogenes, preparing him to serve the Church and the Fatherland.

The service of the future Patriarch of the Church of Christ began in Kazan as a simple parish priest at the Gostinodvorsky Church in the name of St. Nicholas. According to contemporaries, the priest Ermolai even then was “a man highly adorned with wisdom, elegant in book teaching and renowned for the purity of his life.” In 1579, already being a presbyter, he witnessed the miraculous appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. God destined him to be the first to “take up from the earth” the priceless image, show it to the assembled people and then solemnly, with a procession of the cross, transfer it to the neighboring St. Nicholas Church.

Soon the priest Ermolai took monastic vows and was given the name Hermogenes. In all likelihood, the tonsure took place in the Chudov Monastery, which he later called votive. In 1587 he was appointed archimandrite of the Kazan Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery. On May 13, 1589, Bishop Hermogenes was consecrated bishop, and in the same year the newly elected Patriarch Job elevated him to the rank of Metropolitan of Kazan and Astrakhan. At this see, Saint Hermogenes carried out extensive, fruitful missionary work among pagans and Muslims (Tatars), leading them to Orthodox faith.

In 1592, under Saint Hermogenes, the relics of the Kazan Saint Herman were transferred from Moscow to Sviyazhsk. In 1594, Metropolitan Hermogenes compiled a service to the Mother of God in honor of Her Kazan Icon, as well as “The Legend of the Appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and those accomplished by her miraculous healings" His troparion “The Zealous Intercessor” is imbued with true inspiration and deep prayerful feeling. In 1595, with the direct participation of Saint Hermogenes, the discovery and discovery of the relics of Kazan wonderworkers took place: Saints Guria, the first Archbishop of Kazan (October 4/17, December 5/18, June 20/July 3), and Barsanuphius, Bishop of Tver (October 4/17), October 17, April 11/24/), biographies of which he subsequently created. At the request of Saint Hermogenes, a memorial Saturday was established after the Intercession of the Virgin Mary to commemorate all the soldiers who fell during the capture of Kazan, and all local sufferers for the Christian faith.

On July 3, 1606, in Moscow, by the Council of Russian Hierarchs, Saint Hermogenes was installed as Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. At this time he was over 70 years old.

The patriarchate of St. Hermogenes coincided with the difficult times of the Time of Troubles. With special inspiration, His Holiness the Patriarch opposed the traitors and enemies of the Fatherland who wanted to enslave the Russian people, introduce Uniateism and Catholicism in Russia, and eradicate Orthodoxy. When False Dmitry II approached Moscow in June 1608 and stopped in Tushino, Patriarch Hermogenes addressed the rebels and traitors with two messages in which he denounced them and exhorted them: “Remember against whom you are raising arms: is it not God who created you? Is it not your brothers? Are you ruining your Fatherland? I conjure you in the name of God, leave your undertaking while there is time, so as not to perish to the end... For God’s sake, know yourself and convert, make your parents, your wives and children, and all of us happy; and we will pray to God for you..."

Meanwhile, famine began in Moscow. The High Hierarch ordered the cellarer of the St. Sergius Monastery, Abraham Palitsyn, to open the monastery granaries with bread for the hungry.

Patriarch Hermogenes inspired the monks of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra to selflessly, heroically defend the monastery from the Polish-Lithuanian invaders. Their detachment of thousands besieged the Lavra in September 1608. The brutal siege lasted 16 months, but to no avail: in January 1610, the interventionists retreated in disgrace. At this time, Patriarch Hermogenes continued to send out his messages, in which he convinced the people that False Dmitry II was an impostor, and called on them to rise up in defense of the faith and the Fatherland.

In 1610, the impostor, nicknamed the “Tushino thief,” was killed by his entourage. By this time, after the boyar conspiracy and the overthrow of Tsar Vasily Shuisky (in July 1610), Moscow was occupied by Polish troops. Most of the boyars wanted to see the Polish prince Vladislav, son of Sigismund III, on the Russian throne. This was resolutely opposed by Patriarch Hermogenes, who performed special prayers in churches for election to the royal throne “from the blood of the Russian family.” To the boyars’ demand to write a special letter to the people calling on them to rely on the will of Sigismund, Patriarch Hermogenes responded with a decisive refusal and the threat of anathematization. He openly opposed foreign invaders, calling on the Russian people to defend their Motherland. With the blessing of Patriarch Hermogenes, the Kazan Icon was transferred from Kazan Holy Mother of God(most likely a copy of the original), which became the main shrine of the militia.

Muscovites, under the leadership of Kozma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, raised an uprising, in response to which the Poles set fire to the city and took refuge in the Kremlin. Together with Russian traitors, they forcibly removed the holy Patriarch Hermogenes from the Patriarchal Throne and took him into custody in the Chudov Monastery. On Easter Monday 1611, the Russian militia began a siege of the Kremlin that lasted several months. The Poles besieged in the Kremlin more than once sent envoys to the Patriarch demanding that he order the Russian militias to move away from the city, threatening him with the death penalty. The saint answered firmly: “Why are you threatening me? I fear only God. If all of you, Lithuanian people, leave the Moscow state, I will bless the Russian militia to leave Moscow, but if you stay here, I will bless everyone to stand against you and die for the Orthodox Faith.” Already from prison, the holy martyr Hermogenes addressed his last message to the Russian people, in which he called upon them to stand firmly in the faith and think only about how to “lay down your souls for the house of the Most Pure One and for the faith.” Patriarch Hermogenes blessed the Russian people for their liberation feat.

Saint Hermogenes languished in severe captivity for more than nine months. On February 17, 1612, he died a martyr from hunger and thirst.

The news of his death rallied the militia even more. A decisive battle was approaching. The almost desperate Russian army spent the last three days before it in fasting and prayer. And on October 27, 1612, the fierce resistance of the Polish-Lithuanian troops was finally broken.

The liberation of Russia, for which Saint Hermogenes stood with such indestructible courage, was successfully completed by the Russian people through his intercession. The body of the Holy Martyr Hermogenes was buried with due honor in the Chudov Monastery. The holiness of the Patriarchal feat, as well as his personality as a whole, was illuminated from above later - during the opening in 1652 of the shrine containing the relics of the saint. 40 years after his death, Patriarch Hermogenes lay as if alive, and in 1654 his incorruptible relics were transferred to the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.

Saint Hermogenes, a tireless fighter for the purity of Orthodoxy and the unity of the Russian land, is of great national importance. His church and patriotic activities for several centuries have served for Russian people as a vivid example of fiery faith and love for his people. The Church activity of the High Hierarch is characterized by an attentive and strict attitude towards divine services. Under him, the following were published: the Gospel, Menaion Monthly: September, October, November and the first 20 days of December, and also in 1610 the “Great Church Charter” was printed. At the same time, Saint Hermogenes did not limit himself to blessing the publication of books, but carefully monitored the correctness of the texts. With the blessing of Saint Hermogenes, the service to the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called was translated from Greek into Russian and the celebration of his memory was restored in the Assumption Cathedral. Under the supervision of the High Hierarch, new presses were made for printing liturgical books and a new printing house was built, which was damaged during the fire of 1611, when Moscow was set on fire by the Poles. Concerned about the observance of the liturgical rite, Saint Hermogenes composed a “Message of discipline to all people, especially priests and deacons, on the correction of church singing.” The “Message” denounces the clergy for the unregulated performance of church services - polyphony, and the laity - for lack of reverence during divine services.

Possessing an outstanding mind, Saint Hermogenes worked a lot in monastery libraries, primarily in the rich library of the Moscow Chudov Monastery, where he copied the most valuable from ancient manuscripts historical information, forming the basis of chronicle records. In the writings of the Primate of the Russian Church and his archpastoral letters there are constantly references to Holy Bible and examples taken from history, which testify to a deep knowledge of the Word of God and erudition in church literature of that time. With this erudition, Patriarch Hermogenes combined his outstanding abilities as a preacher and teacher.

In 1913, the Russian Orthodox Church glorified Patriarch Hermogenes as a saint. His memory is celebrated on May 12/25 and February 17/March 1.

“The Legend of the Appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the miraculous healings that took place from it”;

“The message of punishment is to all people, especially to the priest and deacon about the correction of church singing.”

On National Unity Day, the whole country honors the memory of Russian soldiers under the leadership of Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and Nizhny Novgorod merchant Kuzma Minin, who spared neither money nor life to save the Russian state.

But, unfortunately, the name of a man, an outstanding patriot, statesman and religious figure, without whom the Russian state, almost completely broken and destroyed by its enemies, could not have been resurrected has been almost forgotten. It was he who, in the eyes of the Russian people during the period of kingdomlessness, was considered the head of the Russian state - “The First Man of the Russian Land,” since letters were sent on his behalf to the Russian people “to be faithful to Orthodoxy and not to swear allegiance to impostors and foreigners.” His name is Patriarch Hermogenes.

Coming from the common people, he was an ordinary parish priest all his life, and only in his old age - at the age of 53, he became a bishop, and then the Metropolitan of Kazan, where he was involved in converting the Tatars to Christianity. It was he who first established in his diocese the holiday of the capture of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible.

Being a deeply religious man, he could not help but notice how the arriving Poles were trampling on Orthodoxy - the basis of the Russian state. This forced him to say a holy word against the power of the impostor False Demetrius. On May 8, 1606, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, during the wedding with “Tsar Dmitry,” Marina issued an open challenge to Moscow: she refused to approach Communion and kept the king from doing so. Then the Kazan Metropolitan Hermogenes denounced the king and queen, arguing that the queen should convert to Orthodoxy. Without this, her marriage to Dimitri will be invalid. Following him, Joasaph, Archbishop of Kolomna, delivered a similar speech. Soon Hermogenes was sent to his diocese and imprisoned in a monastery, Joasaph was left alone due to his old age and was only removed from the archbishopric.

The saint's voice sounded sobering to many. Only a week passed after Marina’s wedding, and an uprising broke out in Moscow, organized by the boyars led by Vasily Shuisky. False Dmitry was killed. A new patriarch was needed. They remembered the disgraced prisoner Job, but he turned out to be completely weak - old, blind and sick. Job pointed to Metropolitan Hermogenes. Immediately the messengers galloped to Kazan, and already on July 3, 1606, Hermogenes, after sitting on guard for several days, was made patriarch. At that time he turned 75 years old.

The ashes from the ashes of False Dmitry, shot from a cannon towards Poland, had not yet scattered over the Execution Place, when rumors began to spread from the same side about a new miraculous salvation of Dmitry. Putivl, Chernigov, Starodub, Novgorod-Seversky, Belgorod again broke away from Moscow under the banner of Tsar Demetrius. Former slave Ivan Bolotnikov gathered all the dissatisfied and among them a large number of runaway peasants, slaves. He declared himself the commander of Tsar Dimitri and involved the nobles in the rebel flow mediocre, urban lower classes. Patriarch Hermogenes sent letters throughout Rus', certifying the true death of Tsarevich Demetrius, and blessed the transfer of his relics from Uglich to Moscow. But Bolotnikov’s uprising grew, and soon he set up camp near Moscow. However, there was no unity in the ranks of the rebels; the nobles could not accept slogans about beating the boyars, plundering estates and turning “thieves” into governors.

The noble detachments went over to Shuisky's side, Bolotnikov was defeated and fled to Kaluga, and at that moment Ermogen made an attempt to eliminate the schism. On his advice, the tsar turned to the former patriarch Job with a request to repent to the people for the sin of concealing the secret of the murder of Tsarevich Dimitri and to forgive the people for all the treason they had committed.

In those days, they turned to everyone: “I, humble Hermogenes, patriarch, and I, humble Job, former patriarch, and the entire Consecrated Cathedral, pray with sorrowful hearts to the most merciful God to have mercy on us all. And our humility prays to you too, noble princes, boyars, okolnichi, nobles, clerks, clerks, service people, guests, merchants and all Orthodox Christians! Move hard, with fasting and prayer and purity of soul and body... yes... God will give us all peace, love and joy and the Russian state will transform this obscene division into the former good unity and peaceful union.”

The rite of repentance took place in February 1607 in the same Assumption Cathedral. Patriarch Job repented, freed the people from the oath of allegiance to Tsar Boris, and asked the Orthodox for forgiveness. Muscovites cried and asked the saints for forgiveness.

The Patriarch, continuing the line to eliminate the rebellion, anathematized the Bolotnikovites. The rebels were soon defeated by the tsarist troops, Bolotnikov was captured and exiled.

In Starodub, on the Polish border, a new self-proclaimed Dimitri appeared - “Tsar of All Rus'”. The Cossacks and Donets came to the aid of False Dmitry. His campaign acquired an increasingly Polish character. On June 1, 1608, the impostor approached Moscow and set up camp in Tushino. By this time, many royal troops had gone over to his side, and many Moscow boyars and nobles had fled to Tushino. The Tushins captured Metropolitan Philaret in Rostov and threw him at the feet of the impostor. He declared him patriarch in place of Hermogenes. Now there are four patriarchs in Rus': the previously overthrown Job and Ignatius and two active ones - one in Tushino, the other in Moscow.

More and more Polish detachments approached Tushin, which became the striking force of the impostor. Soon the Tushins captured Marina and Yuri Mnishek, who were liberated in Yaroslavl. And the young Polish woman, having secretly married the new impostor, recognized him as the saved Tsar Demetrius.

The first attempts of cities to establish connections for a common rebuff to foreigners date back to this time. Ustyug residents convince Solvychegodsk residents not to kiss the cross to the “thief”; Belozersk residents urge “not to trample on the Christian faith... and to lay down their heads for each other, and not to surrender to the Polish and Lithuanian people.” The power of the “Tushino thief,” as False Dmitry II began to be called, was overthrown in Yuryev-Polsky, Balakhna, Gorokhovets, Vladimir and other cities. And from Moscow they were increasingly supported by the patriarch, since Tsar Vasily was losing influence in a disintegrating society.

In those days, he sent a message to all Orthodox residents of Tushino: “You have forgotten the vows of our Orthodox faith, in which we were born, baptized, raised and grown, you have broken the kiss of the cross and the oath to stand until death for the House of the Most Holy Theotokos and for the Moscow State and have fallen to the false - to your imaginary tsar... I cry and cry out with sobs: have mercy, have mercy, brothers and children, your souls and your parents... Look how our Fatherland is plundered and ruined by strangers, to what desecration the holy icons and churches are given over, how it is shed the blood of the innocent, crying out to God. Remember against whom you are raising your weapons: is it not against God, who created you? Is it not against your brothers? Is it not your own Fatherland that you are destroying?.. I conjure you in the Name of God, leave your undertaking while there is time , so as not to completely perish. Thanks to his admonitions, many cities returned to the rule of the legitimate sovereign - Vasily Shuisky.

In 1609 Poland was openly drawn into conflict with Russia. King Sigismund besieged Smolensk. He no longer counted on the impostor and was going to resolve the dispute with Moscow on his own. False Dmitry II was isolated, and soon fled to Kaluga. In January 1610, the Tushino embassy proposed to the king to release his son Vladislav to the Russian throne on the condition of the inviolability of Orthodoxy and the transfer of the prince to it. The same idea was expressed by the Moscow elite after the overthrow of Tsar Vasily Shuisky in July 1610. But this was vigorously opposed by the patriarch, who essentially from that time headed the Russian wing in the Troubles. He stood for the re-creation of the state on the basis of a national dynasty and was the first to propose 14-year-old Mikhail Romanov, the son of the long-suffering Filaret, as king.

When the initiators of the invitation to the prince Saltykov and other boyars approached the cross, Hermogenes told them: if Vladislav is baptized, then he blesses this step, but if there is deception, then his curse will fall on their heads. With this, the embassy departed for Sigismund, and the boyars, without waiting for an answer, allowed Zholkiewski into Moscow in October 1610. The patriarch turned out to be a seer: Sigismund was not going to fulfill his promises and laid claim to the Russian throne.

Orders went from Moscow to the ambassadors near Smolensk: to rely on the will of the king in everything. The first of them was presented to the patriarch for signature, but he exploded with indignation. Saltykov scolded the high priest and rushed at him with a knife, but he calmly replied: “I am not afraid of your knife - I am protected from it by the power of the Cross of Christ.” The letter arrived near Smolensk without the patriarch’s signature, and the ambassadors immediately realized what was going on. When the Poles began to insist on their agreement, the ambassadors objected to them: “Now we have become stateless, and our patriarch is a leader. Without a patriarch, it is now unsuitable to advise on such a great matter.” Thus, among the Russian people the idea arose that in the case of kingdomlessness, “the paoriarch is the initial man.” The news of the patriarch's imprisonment spread across the Russian land with lightning speed. From now on, he personified disobedience to the invaders, hope for the revival of the Fatherland.

And in captivity, the patriarch found the opportunity to transfer his fiery “sheets” to freedom. He wrote the latter in August 1611 to Nizhny Novgorod, where soon, instead of the First Militia, which had crumbled due to discord, the Second appeared under the leadership of Minin and Pozharsky: “Write to Kazan to Metropolitan Ephraim. Let him send a teacher’s Certificate to the regiments to the boyars and to the Cossack army ", so that they stand strong for the faith and do not accept Marinka's son as king. I do not bless. And in Vologda, write to the authorities about this and to the Ryazan ruler. Let him send a teacher's Certificate to the boyars to the regiments, so that they stop robbery, preserve brotherhood and, "As they promised to lay down their souls for the house of the Most Pure One and for the miracle workers and for the faith, they would have done so. And write to all cities that Marinkin’s son is by no means necessary for the kingdom. Speak in my name everywhere."

They stopped giving the patriarch food and kept him only on water and a rare piece of bread. He was sitting in the basement - a gray-haired, weak in body, but powerful in spirit, 80-year-old shepherd. On February 17, 1612, he died of hunger, and his letters went on and on from city to city, from land to land. And already in Nizhny Novgorod the words of Minin were heard: “If we want to help the Moscow state, then we will not spare anything.” The defenders of the Russian land and Orthodoxy came from all cities on horseback, in crowds and in arms. A few months later, they entered Moscow and cleared the way for the re-establishment of statehood, clearing the capital of foreigners and electing a new tsar - Mikhail Romanov. The day when Russian soldiers recaptured Moscow from the Poles, October 4, has now become a public holiday - “National Unity Day”.

The body of the holy martyr was buried in the Chudov Monastery, and in 1654 it was transferred to the Assumption Cathedral.

The Orthodox Church honors Patriarch Hermogenes for his heroic death "in Time of Troubles"- his canonization took place on May 12, 1913.

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Hieromartyr HERMOGENES, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, wonderworker (†1612)

Among the holy defenders of our Fatherland, the Hieromartyr Patriarch Hermogenes stands on a par with the blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky and Venerable Sergius Radonezh. The main feat of his life - firm opposition to the reign of a heterodox sovereign over Russia, an inspired preaching of the liberation of the country from foreign invaders - Patriarch Hermogen accomplished already in old age. He witnessed his words with martyrdom. This time is the most difficult in the history of Russian Orthodox Church, which was brought by circumstances almost to the edge of its existence, which is why they nicknamed him - Time of Troubles. In such times, the Lord found among His servants those who could strengthen the Orthodox Christian people, sending them hope and support in the person of the most zealous and devoted earthly servants to Him.

Only fragmentary information has reached us about the first half of the life of Saint Hermogenes. The year of his birth is determined on the basis of the testimony of the Poles, who claimed that in 1610 only the “octogenarian patriarch” opposed them. Therefore, this is 1530. There are suggestions that his homeland is Kazan. Its origin also remains a matter of debate. Some claim that he is from the family of princes Golitsyn, others from the Don Cossacks, others from the posad clergy. According to the testimony of the Patriarch himself, he was initially a priest in the city of Kazan at the Gostinodvorsky Church in the name of St. Nicholas.

It was to him, in 1579, then still presbyter Ermolai, that God destined to witness the miraculous appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, and to be the first to “take from the earth” the priceless image, and then solemnly, with a procession of the cross, bring it into the temple. At this time, 50-year-old Hermogenes was a priest of the Gostinnodvorsky Church in Kazan. Later, when he was already the Kazan Metropolitan, the saint drew up a written“The Legend of the Appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the miraculous healings that took place from it” . He also composed stichera and canons for the service on the day of the appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God; imbued with high religious inspiration, known to every Orthodox person, the troparion "Diligent Intercessor" also belongs to Saint Hermogenes.

Soon (apparently after the death of his wife) he became a monk and from 1582 was the archimandrite of the Transfiguration Monastery in Kazan. On May 13, 1589, he was consecrated bishop and became the first Metropolitan of Kazan.

It was a difficult task to strengthen Orthodoxy among a population that had been Muslim since ancient times, and Hermogenes, with his wise and virtuous mentoring, sought to prevent the weakening of faith in areas where, deep down, people still retained an inclination towards Islam. Mosques were placed almost next to the Kazan Monastery, and this increased the likelihood that newly converted Christians, communicating with their Muslim acquaintances and loved ones, could turn away from the Christian faith, which extremely upset St. Hermogenes. Saint Hermogen remained firm in matters of faith and was actively involved in the Christianization of the Tatars and other peoples of the former Kazan Khanate. The following measure was also practiced: newly baptized peoples were resettled in Russian settlements, isolated from communication with Muslims.

When the Kazan Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery was being rebuilt - this was in 1595, while digging ditches for the foundation of a new stone church building, coffins with the relics of the first Kazan saints - Guria and Barsanuphius - were found. Saint Hermogenes opened the coffins, and everyone saw that the remains of the saints turned out to be incorrupt. The remains were placed in arks by Hermogenes himself and presented for worship above ground. This event had an inspirational effect on the saint himself, on those present, and on the entire newly converted flock! At the same time, Metropolitan Ermogen composed a service for the discovery of the holy relics of the saints.

For his outstanding archpastoral qualities, Metropolitan Hermogen was elected to the primatial see.

During these troubled times, the impostor False Dmitry was in power, posing as the miraculously saved youngest son of Ivan IV the Terrible, Tsarevich Dmitry. He swore allegiance to the Polish king Sigismund III and promised to introduce Catholicism in Russia. But on May 17, 1606, the boyar party of V. Shuisky raised an uprising in Moscow. False Dmitry was killed, his corpse lay on Red Square for several days, then it was burned, and his ashes were loaded into a cannon, firing in the direction from which he came. On May 25, 1606, Vasily Shuisky became king.

And already on July 3, 1606, under the new Tsar Vasily Shuisky, Metropolitan Ermogen was elevated by the Council of Saints to the Patriarchal throne in the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. Metropolitan Isidore presented the Patriarch with the staff of the saint Peter, and the king brought as a gift to the new Patriarch a panagia decorated precious stones, white hood and staff. According to the ancient rite, Patriarch Ermogen made a procession on a donkey ( Orthodox rite which took place in the Russian state on holiday Palm Sunday and symbolized the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem on a donkey)

Elected to the patriarchate at the age of 70, during the difficult time of the Time of Troubles, when Russia and the Russian Church were in extreme danger of enslavement and heterodox captivity, Saint Hermogen, in the words of Metropolitan Macarius (Bulgakov), “stood up for both more zealously, courageously and unshakably than anyone else.” "

With special inspiration, His Holiness the Patriarch opposed the traitors and enemies of the Fatherland, who wanted to introduce Uniateism and Catholicism in Russia and eradicate Orthodoxy, enslaving the Russian people.

The death of False Dmitry I was known reliably only to Moscow and the surrounding area. The Russian periphery did not have accurate information on this matter, and the desire to believe in a “legitimate”, “natural” tsar was very great. The chaos of turmoil continued. And in this chaos, a new false savior appeared - False Dmitry II. Prince Grigory Shakhovskoy and a number of other boyars joined him. A rumor was spread that Dmitry was not killed in Moscow, but managed to escape (he “miraculously” escaped a second time). Surrounded by Polish troops, Zaporozhye and Don Cossacks, and many other wandering people, False Dmitry II appeared within Russia in August 1607, and on June 1, 1608 he came close to Moscow, setting up a camp in Tushino. Many boyars from Moscow began to run to the Tushinsky thief, as this impostor was called then.

Fearing neither the shameless impostor False Dmitry, nor the powerful Polish king Sigismund, Saint Hermogen, in the face of traitors and enemies of the Fatherland, became the spiritual head of the entire Russian land.

Camp of False Dmitry II in Tushino

When the impostor False Dmitry II approached Moscow and settled in Tushino, Patriarch Ermogen sent two messages to the rebellious traitors. In one of them he wrote:

“...You forgot the vows of our Orthodox faith, in which we were born, baptized, raised and grew up, you broke the kiss of the cross and the oath to stand until death for the house of the Most Holy Theotokos and for the Moscow State and fell to your false imaginary Tsar... It hurts my soul, my heart is sick, and all my insides are tormented, all my limbs are shaking; I cry and cry out with sobs: have mercy, have mercy, brothers and children, your souls and your parents, departed and living... Look how our Fatherland is plundered and ruined by strangers, how holy icons and churches are desecrated, how the blood of innocents is shed, crying out to God. Remember against whom you take up arms: is it not God who created you? not on your brothers? Are you ruining your Fatherland?... I conjure you in the Name of God, leave your undertaking while there is time, so as not to completely perish.”

In another letter, the High Hierarch called: “For God’s sake, know yourself and convert, make your parents, your wives and children, and all of us happy; and we will pray to God for you...”

Soon, God's righteous judgment was carried out on the Tushinsky thief: he suffered the same sad and inglorious fate as his predecessor; he was killed by his own confidants on December 11, 1610. But Moscow continued to remain in danger, since there were Poles and traitorous boyars loyal to Sigismund III in it.

We will not describe all the twists and turns of this difficult time; they are sufficiently described. Let's talk about the main thing. Tsar Vasily Shuisky aroused strong boyar opposition against himself. Having called upon the Swedish king Charles IX, against whom Sigismund III had already fought, for help against the Poles, Shuisky put Russia in a state of “official” war with Poland. The Poles began open intervention. Big army Poles approached Moscow. The interventionists besieged the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, which they were never able to take during the 16-month siege.

Sigismund himself, who was besieging Smolensk, now demanded that his son, Prince Vladislav, be elevated to the Russian throne. Difficult negotiations took place with him, in which Metropolitan Filaret, the father of the future Tsar Mikhail Romanov, also participated. Patriarch Ermogen initially acted in favor of Shuisky. But when this tsar was finally overthrown in July 1610, the patriarch proposed 14-year-old Misha Romanov to the kingdom. However, the patriarch's voice was not heard then.

Ermogen had to give in to the boyar party that supported Vladislav under the pretext that Moscow did not have the strength to defend itself from Polish intervention. Reluctantly, the saint agreed to recognize Vladislav Sigismundovich as Russian Tsar, subject to his Orthodox baptism and the withdrawal of Polish troops from Russia. But the Moscow boyars, without reckoning with the patriarch, allowed the Poles into Moscow and sent a special embassy with a letter that Russia was surrendering itself “to the will” of the Polish king.

And then something happened that was the decisive moment of all events and brought the whole country out of the chaos of turmoil, from circumstances that seemed completely hopeless. The patriarch did not sign the above-mentioned letter of surrender of Russia. And when boyar Saltykov rushed at him with a dagger, he replied: “I’m not afraid of your knife! I am protected from it by the power of the cross of Christ.” As a result, there was no agreement with Sigismund and no capitulation to him. This is what one protocol formality like a signature (in this case, its absence!) means at a decisive moment.

It gave spiritual and legal basis Russian cities to oppose the Poles in defense of the fatherland. Patriarch Hermogenes, through “fearless people,” sent messages to Russian cities and towns with calls not to obey the Poles and not to believe impostors. The inspired calls of the Patriarch were heard by the Russian people and stirred up the liberation movement.

The urban movement alarmed the Poles and their supporters. They demanded that Hermogenes write to all cities so that they would not go to liberate Moscow. With this, boyar Saltykov came to him again. “I will write,” replied Hermogenes, “... but only on the condition that you and all the traitors with you and the king’s people leave Moscow... I see the desecration of the true faith from heretics and from you, traitors, and the destruction of God’s holy churches and I can no longer hear Latin singing in Moscow.”

Hermogenes was imprisoned in the Chudov Monastery and began to starve. Already from prison, the holy martyr Hermogenes addressed his last message to the Russian people, blessing the liberation war against the conquerors.

Meanwhile, people's militias reached Moscow. At the suggestion of Patriarch Hermogenes, the Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos was brought from Kazan (most likely a copy of the original), which became the main shrine of the militia of Cosmas Minin Sukhorukov and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky. Before her, after a strict fast, the almost desperate Russian army, preparing for the final assault on Moscow. On October 22, 1612, the militia captured Kitai-Gorod, and on the 26th the Kremlin surrendered.

Patriarch Hermogenes did not live to see this have a bright day. He languished in severe captivity for more than nine months, and on January 17, 1612, he died a martyr in captivity in the Chudov Monastery.

There is a later legend that before his death, the patriarch sprouted oats in the dungeon and he was found dead kneeling among the green shoots.

The first to hastily enter the Assumption Cathedral in armor was his neighbor boyar, Prince Khvorostinin, who was in the militia, and excitedly asked: “Show me the grave of our father! Show me the grave of the leader of our glory!” And when they showed her to him, he fell to her and cried long and bitterly.

In 1652, the remains of the patriarch were transferred from the dilapidated tomb in the Chudov Monastery to the Great Assumption Cathedral, where they remain today. The glorification of the patriarch, which took place on May 12, 1913, coincided with the 300th anniversary of the death of the saint and the 300th anniversary of the House of Romanov (a few days before the arrival of royal family to Moscow).

Contemporaries testify to Patriarch Hermogenes as a man of outstanding intelligence and erudition: “The Sovereign is great in reason and sense and wise in mind,” “he is highly adorned with wisdom and elegant in book teaching,” he was called the adamant of faith.

Under him, the following were published: the Gospel, the Menaion of Menstruation, and the “Great Supreme Rule” was also printed. The Patriarch carefully monitored the correctness of the texts. With his blessing, the service to the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called was translated from Greek into Russian and the celebration of memory was restored in the Assumption Cathedral. Under the supervision of the high priest, new presses were made for printing liturgical books and a new printing house was built, which was damaged during the fire of Moscow in 1611.

Concerned about maintaining decorum, Saint Hermogen composed a “Message of discipline to all people, especially priests and deacons, on the correction of church singing.” The “Message” denounces the clergy for the unregulated performance of church services: polyphony, and the laity for their irreverent attitude towards divine services.

The name of the saint, hero, intercessor of the Russian Land, who for a long time was almost “one warrior in the field”, held, by the will of God, the most difficult defense against encroachments on honor, sovereignty and faith Orthodox Rus', will forever remain in memory as an example of unbending courage and fidelity to the oath he took to God and his people.

Hermogenes or Hermogenes?

In all publications until the moment of glorification in 1913, the patriarch is referred to as Hermogenes. But after glorification he becomes Hermogenes. This decision was made by the Holy Synod, because His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes himself signed the name Hermogenes.

And according to the American historian Gregory Freeze, the main reason is that Hermogenes was the name of the disgraced Bishop of Saratov, who actively opposed Chief Prosecutor Sabler and Grigory Rasputin. To avoid confusion and the name of the new saint not to be associated with the name of the disgraced bishop, the Synod restored the ancient spelling of the patriarch’s name - “Hermogenes”.

Troparion, tone 4
The day of a bright triumph has arrived, the city of Moscow rejoices, and with it Orthodox Rus' rejoices with songs and spiritual songs: today is a sacred triumph in the manifestation of the honest and multi-healing relics of the saint and wonderworker Hermogenes, like the unsetting sun, rising with radiant rays, dispelling the darkness of temptations and troubles from those who cry out truly: save us, as our intercessor, the great Hermogenes.

Kontakion, tone 6
We exhaust you with prison and hunger; you remained faithful even to death, blessed Hermogenes, driving away cowardice from the hearts of your people and calling everyone to a common feat. In the same way, you also overthrew the wicked revolt and established our country, and we all call to you: Rejoice, intercessor of the Russian land.

Prayer sschmch. Hermogen
Oh, great saint of Christ, our holy father Hermogenes! We earnestly flock to you, a warm prayer book and unashamed representative before God, asking for consolation and help in our needs and sorrows. In the ancient time of temptation, the enemy of wickedness invaded our country. The Lord has revealed to the Church His unshakable pillar and shepherd of goodness to the Russian people, laying down his soul for the sheep and driving away the fierce wolves. Now look down on us too, your unworthy child, who calls you with a tender soul and a contrite heart. Our strength has become impoverished within us, and the enemy’s trappings and snares have devastated us. Help us, our intercessor! Confirm us in the holy faith: teach us to always keep the commandments of God and all the traditions of the church, commanded to us from our father. Be our shepherd, the archpastor, a spiritual leader, a warrior, a doctor for the sick, a comforter for the sad, an intercessor for the persecuted, a mentor for the young, a compassionate father for all and a warm prayer book for everyone; for by your prayers we protect you, let us unceasingly sing and glorify the all-holy Name of the Life-Giving Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. A min.

Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK

for the Temple Life-Giving Trinity on Vorobyovy Gory

Patriarch Hermogenes of Moscow and All Rus' since 1606. Leader of the Russian Orthodox Church and active participant in political affairs; patriarch from 1606 to 1612.

It was he who inspired the popular uprising that put an end to the Time of Troubles. Hermogenes was glorified by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1913.

Life of Hermogenes

In the Holy Synod of 1589, which established the patriarchate in Moscow, Hermogenes was appointed metropolitan of the newly elected city of Kazan. He was a supporter of the policy of forced conversion to Christianity of the non-Russian peoples of the Volga region.

From 1605 to 1612, Hermogenes most actively supported the interests of the Orthodox Church, since he understood that the power of the church depended on the support of the tsar.

In 1606, Hermogenes was summoned by False Dmitry I to take part in the Senate recently held in Moscow. There he learned about the tsar's intentions to marry a Catholic woman, Marina Mniszech, and firmly objected to such a union. After this he was exiled from the capital, and only a few months later he returned with great honors, when the false king was overthrown.

When Vasily IV was elected tsar, Hermogenes became the patriarch of Moscow. During the anti-feudal uprising of peasants led by I. I. Bolotnikov in 1606-1607. Hermogenes united the people of the church to fight the rebels, who were declared heretics and excommunicated.

In 1610, Shuisky was overthrown, Hermogenes proposed the candidacy of Mikhail Romanov for the throne of the Tsar instead of the Polish Prince Vladislav. But Vladislav still became king and Hermogenes demanded that he convert to the Orthodox faith. In the winter of 1610, Hermogenes protested the boyars' proposal to swear allegiance to the Polish king Sigismund III.

The feat of Patriarch Hermogenes

At the end of December 1610, Moscow was occupied by Polish feudal lords, then Hermogenes sent letters to the cities of Russia, calling for an uprising of the entire people against the Poles. He counted on the support of the armed units of P.P. Lyapunova.

When the volunteer army finally approached Moscow, he challenged the Polish invaders. Despite the fact that he was facing the death penalty, he cursed Catholics and supported Lyapunov. After this, he was arrested and thrown into the Chudovsky Monastery.

There he heard about a new volunteer army, assembled by Kuzma Minin and under the command of Prince Pozharsky, and blessed them both. Following this, the patriarch was beaten and died of hunger.

The Russian Orthodox Church in troubled times

IN early XVII V. spiritual expansion unfolded against Orthodox Rus' Catholic world, which took the form of Polish intervention led by self-proclaimed claimants to the Russian throne. They sought to impose on the Russian people not only foreign political domination, but also a religious yoke, which even the Mongol conquerors did not dare to do at one time.

The boyar aristocracy, which repeatedly violated the duty of public service for the sake of the triumph of its oligarchic interests, was ready to come to terms with the Polish prince Vladislav becoming the Russian throne, without even demanding from him firm guarantees of preservation Orthodox foundations spiritual and public life Rus'.

Finally, the Russian people, who had so often been deceived by their secular rulers, were increasingly drawn into a bloody civil strife that threatened to burden the conscience of millions of Russian people terrible sin fratricidal war and open up the dangerous prospect of complete ethnic disappearance.

It was at this tragic moment in Russian history, when the country began to lose the concept of national statehood and found itself on the verge of a historical catastrophe, that the Lord placed a holy man, His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes, at the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Temple of Hermogenes in Chertanovo

The construction of the Temple of Hermogenes began with the consecration of the stone that lay on that site by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' in the spring of 2012.

The new temple expresses the faith of the Russian people that Rus' will never give in to another faith, but will forever remain Orthodox, because in Orthodoxy is the salvation of Rus'.

That memory of Saint Hermogenes, which awakens in our people a bright, confident and holy love for the Motherland, also gives rise to the desire to peacefully organize the life of the state, and in years of danger - to defend the borders of the Motherland, like Hermogenes.

Can Hermogenes be called a patriot?

Hermogenes, who with his blood imprinted on the tablets of Russian history the image of the real Russian Patriarch. He saved his country and his people from the destruction that threatened them.

Delivered on patriarchal throne In 1606, during the short reign of the boyar protege Vasily Shuisky, Patriarch Hermogenes initially perceived his high priestly service not only as a church mission, but also as a national mission.

Well aware of the helplessness of the state and the political greed of the temporary boyar rulers who were fighting for power, Saint Hermogenes recognized in the intrusive Polish diplomacy the future death of both the Russian Church and the Russian state.

Based on the conviction inherent in all outstanding High Hierarchs of the Russian Church that in Russian Orthodoxy lies the possibility of the national prosperity of the Russian people, Patriarch Hermogenes, who was then imprisoned in Moscow captured by the Poles, his pastoral letters addressed the Russian people with an appeal - in the name of saving Orthodoxy, rise up to fight against foreign and heterodox invaders.

The Russian people everywhere responded to the patriotic call of St. Hermogenes, but were even more ignited in their struggle by the personal asceticism of the patriarch-martyr, managed to carry out the prayerful will of the archpastor and, in the name of preserving the Orthodox Church, defended the national independence of their Fatherland.

Kuvshinova Yulia

In 2012 - 2013, in the history of our state, very important dates: 400th anniversary of the liberation of Moscow from the Polish occupiers, 400th anniversary of the end of the Time of Troubles and the coming to the royal throne of the Romanov dynasty, 200th anniversary of the victory over Napoleon in the War of 1812. And here are less noticeable dates: the 400th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Hermogenes and the 100th anniversary of his glorification. It is now clear that Rus'’s emergence from the “hard times” of the Time of Troubles is connected not only with the names of Minin and Pozharsky and many other famous and unknown people, but, perhaps first of all, with the name of Patriarch Hermogenes, who called not to be afraid of death, “for We stand on the rock of truth and faith." In our work we tried to partially reflect the significance of Patriarch Hermogenes in the history of our country

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Report “Oh, Rus', rise up, write it off!” The feat of Patriarch Hermogenes

8th grade student

MBOU "Novoselskaya secondary school"

Head: Parusov M.N.

Teacher of Religions of Russia and Defense Industry

year 2013

1. INTRODUCTION

2013 marks the 400th anniversary of the end of the Time of Troubles. As historian Dmitry Volodikhin said, “the history of the Troubles has been studied for about 200 years, but historians have yet to learn about the Troubles in detail, since there are many documents that have not yet been studied.”

On March 3, 2012, the laying ceremony and consecration of the foundation of the monument to Patriarch Hermogenes took place. The monument will stand near the walls of the Moscow Kremlin in the Alesandrovsky Garden. We were interested in why exactly in the Alexander Garden? For every Russian, this place is associated with the memory of the Great Patriotic War, the Eternal Flame burns here. And now this place, as the deputy head of the Patriarchal Press Service Alexander Volkov said, “will also become a place of memory of the great saint.”

Even greater interest in the personality of Patriarch Hermogenes was aroused by the words His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the monument laying ceremony. His Holiness Pariarch said that Hermogenes “stands on a par with such historical figures, great and glorious men on whom the fate and salvation of our Motherland depended - Alexander Nevsky, Dimitry Donskoy, Mikhail Kutuzov, Georgy Zhukov."

But Patriarch Hermogenes was not a commander, he did not command armies and fronts, he did not besiege fortresses and did not take cities. His main weapons were the Cross and the Word. In our work, we tried to find out what His Holiness Hermogenes did if, 400 years later, they say about him, “Russia would not exist today if it had not been for the feat of Patriarch Hermogenes.”

2. MAIN SECTION

Pages of the life of Patriarch Hermogenes

Hieromartyr Hermogenes (Hermogen), Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', was born around 1530 into a family of Don Cossacks, and according to other sources, his ancestors were the princes Golitsyn. In the world he bore the name Ermolai. As a teenager, he went to Kazan and entered the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery. The founder of the monastery, Saint Barsanuphius, who was the archbishop of Tver, lived here in retirement. The elder took Ermolai under his leadership, taught him and strengthened him in faith and piety. Ermolai was ordained to the priesthood and assigned to the Church of St. Nicholas.

The years of Hermogenes' youth and adulthood coincided with outstanding events in Russian history: the conquest of Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberia; the wedding of John IV to the All-Russian kingdom, the publication of the Code of Laws, the holding of the first zemstvo councils. The future Patriarch fully shared the grief of his Fatherland over the tyranny of Poland, which, having seized part of the original Russian lands, persecuted Orthodoxy there, trying to establish a church union under the leadership of Rome. These historical events had a profound influence on Hermogenes and prepared him for service to the Church and the Fatherland.

On July 8, 1579, the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God appeared. The Mother of God appeared in a dream to the nine-year-old daughter of the archer Onuchin Matryona and ordered her to announce to Archbishop Jeremiah and the city authorities that on the site of the Onuchin’s burned house, Her icon was hidden in the ground. The girl fulfilled the command. Residents rushed in crowds to the sacred place. Archbishop Jeremiah and the clergy performed procession, picked up the revealed icon and ordered it to be carried to the nearest church of St. Nicholas. The icon was carried by the Nikolsky priest, the future Patriarch Hermogenes, who was crying with emotion.

Soon Father Ermolai lost his wife and became a monk with the name Hermogenes. The new monk was distinguished by his piety and knew the Holy Scriptures, the works of the Holy Fathers and Church history well. Tsar Theodore Ioannovich, the son of Ivan the Terrible, elevated him to the rank of Metropolitan of Kazan. Vladyka walked 50 miles from Kazan to Sviyazhsk to meet the holy relics of St. Hermogenes, Archbishop of Kazan, which were transferred from Moscow. Soon, on October 4, 1595, the relics of Saints Guria and Barsanuphius of Kazan were discovered.

Metropolitan Hermogenes worked hard in Kazan, planting the Orthodox faith among the conquered Tatars and glorifying the Fatherland. The people revered him very much as a man of ascetic life and a great faster. But Kazan was only the beginning of the saint’s unforgettable service to the Russian land.

For the first time, his position was expressed throughout Russia when, on behalf of the Council, he spoke about the marriage of False Dmitry to Maria Mniszech as the Kazan Metropolitan. “It is not proper,” said the saint, “for an Orthodox Tsar to take an unbaptized woman and bring her into the holy church. Don’t do this, King: none of the previous Kings did this, but you want to do it.”

The impostor ordered Hermogenes to be deprived of his dignity and sent to prison in Kazan. However, punishment did not befall the strong-spirited saint. On the morning of May 17, 1606, when the said Tsar Dimitri was still sleeping, Prince Vasily Shuisky, with a sword and cross in his hands, rode a horse into the Kremlin through the Spassky Gate. The alarm sounded from the bell towers. Muscovites flocked to the Kremlin in droves. The false Dmitry jumped out of the window, but was immediately killed, and the place of his death is still shown near the Kremlin cathedrals. Marina managed to escape.

Through Three days after the death of the impostor, the boyars and Moscow people gathered at the Execution Place near the Kremlin walls and proclaimed Prince Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky Tsar, who had saved the Moscow state from the first False Demetrius. Tsar Vasily convened a spiritual council and proposed electing Metropolitan Hermogenes as All-Russian Patriarch. The impostor's protege Ignatius was deposed. On June 3, 1606, the archpastors elevated the Kazan saint to the rank of Patriarch. Meanwhile, the turmoil did not stop. A rumor spread again that the one who called himself Tsar Demetrius did not die on May 17, but fled from Moscow and was alive; someone else jumped out of the window. The dark people were confused. It became even worse than before. Robber gangs appeared. Ukraine became alarmed, as with the first impostor.

Patriarch Hermogenes ordered the relics of Tsarevich Dimitri to be transferred from Uglich to Moscow, and anathematized the impostor. Many came to their senses, but there were also many unreasonable people. The leaders of the rebels were the Putivl governor, Prince Grigory Shakhovskoy, and the slave Ivan Bolotnikov. The entire Seversk land rebelled. Shakhovskoy sent out decrees, attaching the stolen royal seal to them, and called on everyone to revolt against Vasily Shuisky.

At this time, Patriarch Hermogenes raised his voice against the instigators of the troubles. First, he sent Metropolitan Paphnutius of Krutitsa to exhort the rebels. And when this did not help, he sent letters to the cities. He sent the first letters on November 29 and 30, 1606. The High Hierarch wrote that traitors were spreading rumors that Demetrius was alive. The Patriarch denied these rumors and convinced the people to be faithful to Tsar Vasily Ivanovich. The patriarchal letters had a great influence on the people; people began to come to Moscow from the cities to serve in the royal service.

Patriarch Hermogenes remained faithful to the Orthodox faith and truth. The people turned their last hopes to the strong-willed and straightforward saint. If the Patriarch does not help to overcome the great devastation, the Russian people reasoned, then, then, it means there is no one to expect good from. Patriarch Hermogenes said that there was no other outcome than to assemble a national militia that would liberate Moscow and the entire state from the Poles, and then elect a Tsar. The people agreed with the Patriarch. The saint began to write letters, calling on Russian cities to take up arms to deliver holy Rus' from troubles.

Meanwhile, militias began to emerge from the cities. Up to one hundred thousand defenders of the Fatherland gathered in Moscow under the command of the Ryazan governor Prokopiy Lyapunov. The Kaluga residents marched under the command of Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy. Ataman Zarutsky and the Cossacks joined them. The mass of militiamen who went “to die for the holy churches of God and for the Christian faith” terrified the villains. The Polish leader Gonsevsky came to His Holiness Hermogenes and rudely said: “You are the first instigator of treason and all the indignation. According to your letter, the military men are going to Moscow!.. Write to them now so that they leave, otherwise we will order you to be put to death by an evil death.”

“Why are you threatening me? — the Patriarch answered fearlessly. “I fear the One God.” You promise me an evil death, and I hope to receive a crown through it. Leave all of you, Polish people, from the Moscow state, and then I will bless everyone to move away. And if you stay, it’s my blessing: everyone will stand and die for the Orthodox faith!”

Saltykov arrived for Gonsevsky and began to demand the same thing as Gonsevsky. Saint Hermogenes answered: “If you and all the traitors and Poles with you leave Moscow, then I will write for the militias to return, and then everything will be pacified... I bless all worthy Christian leaders to quench the sorrow of the Church and the Fatherland!”

At the same time, ambassadors from cities came to the Patriarch. The saint strengthened them in their love for the Fatherland and persuaded them to stand firmly for the Motherland and the true faith. The Russian land now did not want to listen to anyone except its high priest. Rus' gathered its strength and became terrible uninvited guests. The great old man, Patriarch Hermogenes, summoned the intimidated Russian people to fight against numerous villains. He sent letters to all cities, openly called on the people to arm themselves against the Poles, allowed Vladislav to take the oath, and urged everyone to gather and move towards Moscow.

“I can’t write, the Poles took everything, and my yard was plundered. And you, remembering God and the Most Pure Mother of God, and the Moscow miracle workers, stand together against your enemies.”

The Russian people spread the words of the Patriarch throughout the land. The people were inflamed in spirit and made a firm determination to sacrifice everything for their Motherland. In many places, residents kissed the cross to stand for Moscow and go against the Poles. Cities began to send letters to each other calling on them to rise up to save their native land. “And we, with the blessing and by order of His Holiness Hermogenes,” said one of these letters, “have gathered with all the people from Nizhny (Novgorod) and with roundabout people we are going to Moscow.”

Gonsevsky and the Russian traitors once again decided to influence the elder Patriarch. “If you don’t write to Lyapunov and his comrades so that they go away, you yourself will die an evil death,” they threatened. “You promise me an evil death,” the Patriarch calmly answered, “but I hope to receive a crown through it and have long wanted to suffer for the truth. “I will not write to the regiments stationed near Moscow,” the saint added, “I already told you, and you will not hear anything else from me.”

Then the Poles threw the Patriarch into the dungeon of the Chudov Monastery, kept the elder from hand to mouth and declared him deprived of the patriarchal rank.

Ataman Zarutsky tried to enthron the son of Marina Mnishek and the Tushino thief. Then, for the last time, Patriarch Hermogenes raised his authoritative voice from his imprisonment. On August 5, 1611, a certain Sviyazhenian Rodion Moseev entered the Kremlin and secretly made his way to Patriarch Hermogenes. The saint hastily compiled his last letter and sent it to Nizhny Novgorod, where the Russian people especially mourned the suffering that befell their homeland.

In this letter, the great elder sent blessings and permission to all those who rebelled for their homeland in this century and in the future for the fact that they stand firmly for the faith. “And don’t accept Marinka’s son as king: I don’t bless him. Speak my name everywhere!” - the holy elder taught. The last letter of the suffering Patriarch accomplished a great deed. When it was received in Nizhny Novgorod, the local elder, Kozma Zakharyevich Minin-Sukhoruky, appealed to the people: to pledge everything, wives and children, to spare nothing for the salvation of the Fatherland. And again a powerful militia grew up. It was compiled all winter in the north, as well as in the Volga region and on the Oka, and in the spring of 1612 it went to Moscow under the command of the valiant governor Prince Pozharsky and the great citizen Minin, and on October 23 of the same year Moscow was liberated from the Poles.

Even during the gathering of the second militia, Gonsevsky came to prison to the suffering Patriarch and demanded that the saint command that the Russian people not gather together and not go to the liberation of Moscow. "No! - Hermogenes said joyfully. “I bless them.” May God’s mercy be upon them, and may the traitors be cursed!”

After this, the Poles began to starve the great old man. The saint died as a martyr on February 17, 1612, having fulfilled to the end his holy duty of devotion to the Orthodox faith and Motherland. Forty years after his death, the body of His Holiness the Patriarch was transferred from the Chudov Monastery to the Kremlin Assumption Cathedral. There, the tomb of the Holy Patriarch Hermogenes is still located, as well as the tomb of Metropolitan Philaret, the parent of Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov.

3. CONCLUSION

Analyzing various sources telling about the Time of Troubles and the role of Patriarch Hermogenes, we came to the following conclusions.

1. Patriarch Hermogenes was an extraordinary person. N. Kostomarov writes:

“Hermogenes was an extremely stubborn, tough, rude, quarrelsome man... he was an overly strict man. But for all that it was a manstraightforward, honest, unwavering, sacredly servingyour beliefs, not your personal views».

1. Patriarch Hermogenes waspassionate defender of the Orthodox faith.

In a letter to King Sigismund, Hermogen writes about the Orthodox faith:“...which the prophets predicted, the apostles preached, and the saints confirmed. fathers, all Orthodox Christians observed, which flaunts, brightens and shines like the sun.”And he showed such a zealous attitude towards Orthodoxy while still in Kazan, and carried it with him until his death.

1. The people of Rus' knew about the fiery faith of the Patriarch and were confident that

in matters of faith, the Patriarch will not make any deals with anyone. Thus, among the letters sent by the leader of the first militia, Lyapunov, there was a Moscow letter. It said: “We have the holy Patriarch Hermogenesjust like a shepherd himself, he undoubtedly lays down his soul for his faith, and all Orthodox Christians will follow him, but they will only stand there in a vague way.”

1. It should be considered that Patriarch Hermogenes believed in the Russian people. About

This is evidenced by the numerous letters that he sent to different cities, his relations with the traitor boyars. When the first militia was approaching Moscow, the boyars led by Saltykov came to Hermogenes and Saltykov directly accused him: “You wrote in the cities; you see, they are going to Moscow. Write to them not to go.”

1. In such difficult times, Patriarch Hermogenes took upon himself

responsibility for the fate of the entire country. He did not follow the lead of the boyars, who told him: “It’s your business, holy father, look after church affairs, but you should not interfere in worldly affairs!” Hermogenes clearly showed the boyars that he would not deviate from the path of liberating the country from the invaders: “You promise me an evil death, but I hope through it to receive a crown and have long wished to suffer for the truth.”

6. “The feat of Patriarch Hermogenes,” writes G.P. Fedotov, “the last Moscow saint, canonized in our days, connects the confession of Philip with the national ministry of Peter, Alexy, Jonah. Saint Hermogenes was martyred as a confessor by the Polish-Russian authorities that occupied Moscow, but the content of his confession was not the word of truth, like Philip, but standing for the national freedom of Russia, with which the purity of Orthodoxy was associated.”

7. The life of the Holy Patriarch Hermogenes showed what great power

can have unity in the faith of the people and their archpastor. Thanks to this unity, the Troubles were overcome. “It was such a cruel time then God's Wrath that people did not expect salvation for themselves; Almost the entire Russian land was empty. ... then there was such a misfortune on Russian soil that had not happened since the beginning of the world,” N. Kostomarov writes about that time. The greatness of the feat of Patriarch Hermogenes as a guide to action in a terrible time for the state. And more than once again “fierce times” will come to Russian soil. And there were their “Hermogenes” in Rus', the people united around them, and for more than 1000 years Russia has stood on Earth.

8. In conclusion, I would like to quote the words of His Holiness the Patriarch

Kirill: “400 years later, we pray to Patriarch Hermogenes for the same thing that he asked God for: that the Lord would enlighten the minds and hearts of our people, that he would strengthen the Orthodox faith, that he would protect us from darkness, from the loss of life guidelines, from the good in in the consciousness of our contemporaries was confused with lies, and the feat of love for the fatherland with betrayal.”

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Illustrated encyclopedic Dictionary F. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron. Volume 6. G - Gi. - M.: Eksmo Publishing House, 2005. - 256 p.
2. Gordonova O. Oh, Rus', rise up, write it off! A magazine for the baptized but unenlightened Pokrov. No. 4, 2012.
3. Kostomarov N.I. Russian history in the biographies of its main figures: In 4 vols. T. 2 /Note, alphabet. decree. S. Oshevsky. - M.: TERRA, 1997. - 528 p.