Quiz on Saints’ Lives

In the 1st century, Apostle Andrew the First-Called preached the Gospel across the lands of future Rus’, traveling from south to north. On the hills of Kyiv, he erected a cross and prophesied:
“God’s grace shall shine upon these hills. A great city will be founded here, and the Lord will raise up many churches within it.”
According to the ancient manuscript "Opoved", after passing through the future Smolensk lands, the apostle Andrew reached Ladoga, where he sailed by boat to Valaam. Along his entire path, he raised stone crosses in those harsh lands, baptizing the people and overthrowing idols.

The venerable Seraphim of Sarov greeted everyone with utmost warmth: "My joy, Christ is risen!" he would say, lovingly embracing pilgrims who came to him.

The conversion story of the holy Apostle Paul, who had previously had the Jewish name Saul, is miraculous. Saul, raised in Jewish law, hated and persecuted the Church of Christ, even obtaining authority from the Sanhedrin to hunt Christians. "Saul was ravaging the church, entering house after house; he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison" (Acts 8:3).  "Meanwhile, Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the Lord's disciples, went to the high priest and asked for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?' 'Who are you, Lord?' Saul asked. 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' he replied. 'Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.' The men traveling with Saul stood speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything" (Act.9:1-9).  
Thus, Christianity's fiercest persecutor became its tireless evangelist. Paul's life, deeds, words, and epistles all testify to him as a chosen vessel of God's grace. Neither sorrow, nor distress, nor persecution, nor hunger, nor nakedness, nor danger, nor sword, nor death could weaken his love for God.

Apostle Andrew is called "First-Called" because he was among Christ's first disciples, called personally by the Savior: "From that time Jesus began to preach, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.' As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and followed him" (Mt.4:17-20).

The memory of St. Nicholas of Myra is celebrated twice yearly: December 19 and May 22.

The Evangelists (good news bearers) are the authors of the four Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. In ancient times evangelists were also called preachers of the Gospels, and in Protestants - missionaries and preachers of the teachings of Jesus Christ.  
Matthew (symbol: Angel): A tax collector who preached in Ethiopia where he was martyred c. 60 AD.  (according to other sources he was executed in the Asia Minor city of Hierapolis).
Mark (his symbol is Leo) - nephew of the Apostle Barnabas, disciple of the Apostle Peter. He is considered the founder of the Church of Alexandria and its first bishop. He accepted martyrdom in 68.
Luke (sign - Taurus) - physician, iconographer, companion of the Apostle Paul. In addition to the Gospel is the author of the book of Apostolic Acts. He was martyred in the Greek Thebes.
John (symbol - eagle) - the younger brother of the apostle James, was a fisherman before being called by Jesus. In addition to the Gospel he wrote the Book of Revelation and three epistles, which were included in the New Testament. He was the only one of the apostles who died a natural death at an old age.

During the reign of the Roman emperor Decius, a famous magician and sorcerer named Cyprian lived in Antioch, who came from the city of Carthage. Originating from impious parents, he as a child was dedicated by them to the service of the pagan Apollo. When he was seven years old, he was given to sorcerers to be taught sorcery and demonic wisdom. When he reached the age of ten, he was sent by his parents to Mount Olympus, which the pagans called the dwelling place of the gods, but in fact there were countless idols in which demons dwelt. On this mountain Cyprian learnt all the wiles of the devil: he learnt various demonic transformations, learnt to change the properties of the air, to bring winds, to make thunder and rain, to disturb the waves of the sea, to harm gardens, vineyards and fields, to send diseases and plagues on people, and in general learnt pernicious wisdom and evil filled diabolical activity. In a vain attempt to seduce a Christian woman named Justina, Cyprian became convinced of the power of the sign of the cross, converted to Christianity, then martyred.

The Great Martyr Panteleimon is venerated in the Orthodox Church as a formidable saint, the patron saint of warriors. This aspect of veneration reveals his first name Pantoleon, which means ‘lion in all things’. The second name, given at Baptism, Panteleimon, that is, ‘all-merciful’, is revealed from the veneration of the great martyr as a healer. In Western Christians he is regarded as the patron saint of medical doctors. The connection of these two patronages of the saint is well seen from the fact that warriors, who receive wounds more often than others, are most in need of a doctor-healer. That is why Christians who are engaged in spiritual warfare also resort to this saint with a request to heal the sores of the soul.
The name of the holy Great Martyr and Healer Panteleimon is invoked when performing the Sacrament of Oil Consecration, the consecration of water, and in prayer for the sick one.

The Venerable Andrew, Archbishop of Crete, nicknamed Jerusamlit, was born in the third quarter of the seventh century in the Middle East, in the city of Damascus, which then still belonged to the Eastern Roman Empire. It is known that his parents were devout Christians; the child Andrew himself remained mute until the age of seven. One day the gift of speech appeared to him after receiving the Holy Mysteries of Christ. This miraculous healing had a very strong influence on the spiritual disposition of the young man brought up in Christian piety. Without abandoning the knowledge of secular sciences, he carefully studied the works of the holy Fathers, becoming more and more inclined to a solitary monastic life. At the age of fourteen, Andrew withdrew to the famous Jordan Lavra of the Monk Sava the Sanctified, where, after a time of monastic testing, he was appointed notary (i.e. letter-writer). At the end of the 7th century, he wrote wonderful liturgical works: the Great Penitential Canon, the Canon of the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, the Stanzas for Ash Wednesday Vespers and for the first four days of Holy Week, verses for the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord, and other sacred hymns.

The prudent robber is one of the two robbers crucified on Golgotha next to Jesus Christ (according to tradition, at the right hand of the Savior).
Sincerely repenting during the tortures of the cross, the robber believed in the Divinity of the Savior and received from the Lord Jesus Christ the promise to be with Him in Paradise ‘now’. Thus the first person to enter paradise was the thief who repented.

Prince Vladimir, who baptized Rus', was the grandson of Saint Princess Olga the Equal-to-the-Apostles. It is difficult to say how much this influenced his choice. Perhaps, as an adult, he recalled some of his grandmother's teachings. In his youth, however, Vladimir was more likely to emulate his father, Prince Svyatoslav, and the renowned warriors of his retinue, who were pagans.
Most likely, the prince came to realize that the pagan religion, with its multitude of gods, demons, and other mythical beings, did not align well with his political ambitions. Vladimir sought to unify the lands around Kiev and centralize power. A crucial aspect of this centralization was a shift in worldview. Initially, the prince attempted to systematize the worship of pagan gods, but later resolved to adopt one of the monotheistic religions for his realm.
Of course, it cannot be said that Vladimir’s religious choice was entirely pragmatic. In any case, he now had to shape his own life according to the tenets of the faith he chose.
Having decided to embrace Christianity, Vladimir—following a somewhat unusual logic—concluded that he could not simply become Orthodox without first earning the right to this faith through military conquest. Thus, he marched on Chersonesus (also known as Korsun). After capturing the city, he sent envoys to the Byzantine emperors Basil and Constantine, delivering a message: "Prince Vladimir has taken Korsun. If the emperors do not agree to give their sister Anna in marriage to him, he will take Constantinople as well."
Their consent was given—on the condition that Vladimir be baptized. This was precisely what the prince had been waiting for.
The Byzantine princess set out to meet her betrothed in Korsun, but upon her arrival, Vladimir was suddenly stricken blind. He began to doubt, but the wise maiden explained that his blindness was temporary—a means for the Lord to reveal His ineffable glory to him.
The Bishop of Korsun baptized the prince. As soon as he laid his hand on Vladimir’s head and began to immerse him in the font, the prince’s sight was restored. "Now I have come to know the true God!" Vladimir exclaimed with joy. What was revealed to him at that moment remains an eternal mystery.
The prince’s retinue and boyars marveled at their ruler’s miraculous healing, and many of them, having believed, were also baptized.
Upon returning to Kiev, Vladimir dismissed all his previous wives and concubines.
Then came the momentous event—the Baptism of Rus'. The prince commanded all the inhabitants to gather in the Dnieper River on an appointed day. Hundreds entered the water, and Vladimir, along with priests, stood on the bank and baptized the Russian people. "And there was joy in heaven and on earth over so many souls being saved," the chronicle recounts.

Initially, having taken monastic tonsure, the Monk Sergius led a solitary hermit life. Monks flocked to the holy hermit in a remote hermitage, and so a monastery arose here, which is now called Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Sergius becomes the hegumen of the monastery. Translated from Greek this word means ‘leading’. The hegumen of a monastery, ideally, should be much more than just a leader. Rather, he should be something like a father to the monks. Loving, caring, subtle, attentive one, an example in everything. In real life, however, not everyone can achieve such an ideal result. Venerable Sergius of Radonezh was such a hegumen, and he was a father, and not only for the monks of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery founded by him, but for the whole Russian land. He was a man of the highest spiritual qualities and extraordinary modesty. It was him who became the force that united the disparate principalities and which mobilised the whole nation to defend its Fatherland.

This story is connected with the name of the Venerable Seraphim of Sarov, then Prokhor. One day, seven-year-old Prokhor climbed up an unfinished bell tower. Suddenly he stumbled and fell to the ground. His mother rushed to her son in shock, not expecting to see him alive. What the amazement and joy was for everyone when it turned out that the boy was unharmed! Thus it was revealed to his mother and family from his early age that God was miraculously protecting His chosen one.

The meaning of the word ‘forerunner’ is interpreted differently in different sources. It is a forerunner, a person who by his activity prepared the way for something or someone, an event or phenomenon that prepared the ground for other acts. John the Baptist was the son of the aged high priest Zechariah, who was desperate to have an heir, and his righteous wife Elizabeth. The biblical writings state that he was born six months earlier than Jesus. His birth and hir ministry to the Lord was announced by the angel Gabriel. His birth was also told by Isaiah and Malachi.

Tradition says that the Evangelist Luke was the first in the world to paint an icon of the Mother of God holding the Infant in his arms on a board from the table where Jesus Christ and His Immaculate Mother dined with the righteous Joseph. And then, having painted two more icons of the Most Holy Mother of God, wishing to know whether it pleased the Mother of God, brought them to Her. The Mother of God, seeing her image, said with her pure lips: ‘The grace of Him who was born of Me and Mine be with these icons.’
Several icons of the Mother of God are attributed to his authorship, including the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God (kept in the Tretyakov Gallery), the Czenstochowska Icon of the Mother of God, the Sumela Icon of the Mother of God (kept in a temple in the village of Kastanya, Greece) and the Kikkos ‘Mother of God’ or ‘Merciful’ (kept in the Monastery of Kikkos, in Cyprus), the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, as well as icons of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.
On church shrines Apostle Luke also depicted repentant sinners in various parables (The Prodigal Son, The Publican and the Pharisee, The Lost Sheep, The Lost Drachma, The Merciful Samaritan, etc.).

The Holy Fools are ascetics of the Orthodox Church who took upon themselves the feat of foolishness, i.e. external, seeming madness. For the sake of Christ the fools gave up not only all the benefits and comforts of earthly life, but also often the generally accepted norms of behavior in society. In winter and summer they went barefoot, and -many of them - without clothes at all. They often violated the requirements of morality, if we look at it as the fulfilment of certain ethical norms. Many of the holy fools, having the gift of clairvoyance, took the feat of foolishness out of a sense of deeply developed humility, so that people attributed their clairvoyance not to them, but to God. Therefore, they often spoke, using outwardly incoherent form, hints, allegories. Others were foolish to suffer humiliation and ignominy for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The feat of foolishness is one of the hardest feats that individuals undertook in the name of Christ for the salvation of their souls and service to their nearest and dearest for the purpose of their moral awakening. In Kievan Rus' there was not yet the feat of foolishness for Christ's sake as such. Although individual saints in a certain sense and fooled some certain time, but it was rather asceticism, taking at times forms very similar to foolishness. The first fool in the full sense of the word was in Russia Procopius of Ustyuga (d. 1302). Procopius, according to his hagiography, was a rich merchant ‘from western countries, with the Latin language, from the German land’. In Novgorod he was captivated by the beauty of Orthodox worship. Having accepted Orthodoxy, he gave away his possessions to the poor, ‘he accepted the life of a young man of Christ for the sake of Christ, and became a rebel’. When he began to be worshipped in Novgorod, he left Novgorod, went ‘to the eastern countries’, walked through towns and villages, impassable forests and swamps, received beatings and insults due to his foolishness, but prayed for his offenders. Righteous Procopius, a fool for Christ's sake, chose for his residence the city of Ustyug. His life was so severe that it could not be compared with the extremely ascetic monastic exploits.

The Orthodox Church glorifies Peter's steadfastness and Paul's reasoning and considers in the Apostle Peter the image of one who denied the Lord and repented, and in the Apostle Paul - the image of one who resisted the preaching of the Lord and then believed.
According to the Word of God, the Apostles occupy a special place in the Church - everyone must understand us as ministers of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God (1Cor.4:1).
Since the Acts of the Apostles mainly recounts the Writings of the Apostles Peter and Paul, the Church and the holy fathers, reverent at the name of each of the Apostles, call these two Apostles as the Chief Apostles.
The Church glorifies the Apostle Peter as the first of the Apostles to confess Jesus Christ as the Son of the living God; Paul as the one who labored more than others and was counted among the highest of the Apostles by the Holy Spirit (2Cor.2:5); the one - for his firmness, the other - for his luminous wisdom.
By calling the two apostles as chief, according to the primacy of order and labor, the Church insinuates that its head is Jesus Christ alone, and all the apostles are His ministers (Col.1:18).

On 6 May, the Orthodox Feast of St. George the Victorious is celebrated almost all over the world. Since the time of Dmitry Donskoy, Saint George has been considered as the patron saint of Moscow, which is reflected in Moscow heraldry from the 14th to 15th centuries. Revered in many countries, this saint became a symbol of courage and fortitude for many centuries.
Practically up to the XV century his image, without any additions, was the coat of arms of Russia, and his image was embossed in ancient Russia on Moscow coins. This holy martyr began to be considered in Russia as the patron saint of princes, despite the fact that he is not a Russian saint. After the battle that took place on the Kulikovo Field, it was considered that George the Victorious is the patron saint of the city of Moscow.
It was on 6 May 1945 – on Easter Day, which coincided with the day of commemoration of the Great Martyr George, that the Lord granted the actual victory over fascism.

Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt was born on 19 October 1829 into the family of a poor priest, Iliya Mikhailovich Sergievand Feodora Vlyaevna Sergiev, in the village of Sura, Pinezhsky district, Arkhangelsk province. His father's family had been priests for 350 years. The boy was weak in health, often ill. His mother prayed for her son for a long time, and Vanya, seeing his mother praying, learnt soulful prayer by himself. His father from early childhood constantly took him to church and fostered in him a special love for the divine service.
John did not do well in school. He prayed a lot for the granting of reason to comprehend the learning, and the Lord heard him: one night, when John prayed especially fervently, divine grace overshadowed him, and, in his own words, ‘instantly, as if the veil fell from his eyes’. From that time he began to make great progress in his studies. After the parochial school he graduated from the Arkhangelsk Theological Seminary as the first in academic achievement and from the St. Petersburg Theological Academy with the degree of Candidate of Theology.

On 12 July is the feast of the memory of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul.

One day the workers who were building a new stone church in the Smolensk cemetery (St. Petersburg) began to notice that at night, during their absence, someone dragged whole masses of bricks to the top of the church under construction. For a long time the workers marvelled at this, for a long time they wondered where the bricks were coming from at the top of the church under construction. Finally, they decided to find out who could be this enthusiastic, tireless worker who carried bricks for them every night. It turned out that this tireless worker was the servant of God Blessed Xenia.

The apostle Paul gave us this instruction: "Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks for everything: for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus" (1Thes.5:16-18).

One deep night the Monk Sergius was singing the akathist in front of an icon of the Mother of God. Having completed the usual rule, he sat down to rest for a while, but suddenly he said to his disciple, named Micah: ‘Keep awake, child, for we shall have a miraculous visitation’. As soon as he had spoken these words, a voice was heard: ‘The Most Pure One is coming’. The Monk Sergius hastened from his cell into the hay, and suddenly a great light shone upon him, greater than that of the sun: he saw the Blessed Virgin, accompanied by the Apostles Peter and John, resplendent in ineffable glory. Unable to bear the marvellous light, the Monk Sergius fell to the ground, but the Blessed Mother touched him and inspired him with a gracious word: "Do not be afraid, My chosen one, I have come to visit you, because I have heard your prayer. Do not grieve any longer for your disciples or for this place. Your prayer has been heard: henceforth your dwelling shall abound in everything, and not only in the days of your life, but also after your departure to God, I will not depart from your dwelling, giving it all it needs and covering it in its necessities without scarcity." Having said this, the Most Holy Mother of God became invisible. The Monk Sergius remained in a kind of inexpressible rapture, and, having come to his senses little by little, he found his disciple lying as dead from fear, and lifted him up. Micah, throwing himself at the feet of the elder, asked: "Tell me, father, what was this marvellous vision? I almost had my soul cut from my body with fear!" But the Monk Sergius could not yet speak from the emotion of his spirit; only his face glowed with joy.  ‘Wait a little while,’ he said to his disciple, "until my spirit is calmed down by this marvellous vision. After a short time he ordered two reverent men from the brethren, Isaacius and Simon, to be summoned, and announced to them the common joy and hope. All together they made a prayer service to the Mother of God. The Monk Sergius spent the whole night without sleep, listening with his mind to the divine vision, meditating on the grace of heaven.

In the XVIII-XIX centuries, Saint Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky became one of the most revered national saints in Russia.
Peter the Great, who built the new capital of the country, St. Petersburg, on the lands conquered from the Swedes, saw a certain symbolic meaning in the fact that the city was founded near the place where in 1240 the Novgorod prince Alexander Yaroslavich defeated the same Swedes. Henceforth, the heavenly patronage of Alexander Nevsky was seen as a pledge of Russia's future final victory over its long-standing historical enemy.
In 1713 the Holy Trinity Alexander Nevsky Monastery (since 1797 - the Lavra) was founded on the left bank of the Neva River. On 30 August 1724, on the day of the three-year anniversary of the conclusion of the Peace of Nystadt, Peter the Great personally brought the relics of the holy prince Alexander Nevsky, which had arrived by boat from Vladimir, into the Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary built on the territory of the monastery.