St Sergius
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Each country has a historic or religious landmark that throughout the centuries has served as a source of pride and inspiration to its people. For the Russians, it remains the Trinity Sergius Monastery. For more than five hundred years, pilgrims have come from all over Russia to pray at the grave of St Sergius, its founder.
One of Russia"s most beloved saints, St Sergius formulated a religious philosophy which helped weld fourteenth-century Russia into a unified state. To bring about the reconciliation of feuding Russian princes, St Sergius used neither threats nor coercion. Bareheaded, he would walk long distances to plead the cause of Russian unity with the rebellious princes. In politics, as well as in his, personal life, St Sergius was known for his humility and service to others.
Born of wealthy Rostov boyars who settled near Moscow after fleeing the Tartars, Sergius sought his salvation through prayer and meditation. Alone, but enjoying immense strength and robust health, St Sergius made a clearing in the forest - the present site of the Trinity Sergius Monastery. He built for himself a cell and a wooden chapel which he dedicated to the Holy Trinity. He also planted vegetables to sustain himself during his first winter. His sole companions were wild animals with whom he became friendly, particularly the legendary brown bear who appeared every evening at dinnertime. The world, however, did not accept St Sergius" wish to devote himself to solitary meditation; even the mighty came to his door in search of guidance.
When Metropolitan Alexis asked St Sergius to succeed him as metropolitan, the abbot refused but could not avoid being drawn into Russia"s political life. In 1380, Prince Dmitry Donskoy of Moscow came to seek St Sergius" blessing before leading his army against the formidable Tartar Khan Mamai. St Sergius blessed the prince but only after Dmitry"s reassurance that all peaceful negotiations had failed.
An astute judge of character, Sergius sensed the emotional crisis Dmitry would suffer on the eve of the attack. To prevent a change of heart, he dispatched into the Russian camp a messenger with a communion bread and encouragement for the grand prince. The battle of Kulikovo, the first major Russian victory against the Tartars, proved to the Russian people that united they could defeat their enemy.
As Russia rejoiced, St Sergius remained preoccupied with the monastery. He supervised the translation of Greek texts into Old Slavonic, established chronicles to record historic events, and laid foundation for one of the finest libraries in Russia. Nor was St Sergius" influence limited to Moscow alone. Inspired by their teacher, the Trinity monks left to found new monasteries in other parts of Russia, as far as the White Sea and the Arctic Circle. Thus, in the end, St Sergius" followers created one hundred and fifty monasteries, which also served as fortresses and cultural centres.
In 1612, barely recovered from the sixteen-month siege by thirty thousand Poles, the Trinity Sergius Monastery became the centre of Russian resistance to the Poles, who were then occupying the Kremlin. When two great Russian patriots, Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and burgher Kuzma Minin, succeeded in raising an army in Nizhny Novgorod, the monastery donated its gold to equip the new force.
Mikhail Romanov, who came to the Russian throne in 1613, showed his appreciation of the monastery"s patriotism by donating large sums of money towards its reconstruction and embellishment. The slow and tedious process of restoration began with the monastery walls and towers. According to an old monastery belief, Peter the Great used to shoot ducks in a nearby pond from one of these towers. The wealth of the monastery rivalled that of the tsar.