Alexander Svirsky (russian: Александр Свирский) or Alexander of Svir (1448–1533) was an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

, and hegumen of the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

. Amos (his baptismal name) was born to a

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

family in the Novgorod Republic, east of Ladoga. At the age of 19, he left home for the Valaam Monastery and became a monk and later a

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

. In 1506, Serapion,

Archbishop of Novgorod The Diocese of Novgorod (russian: Новгородская епархия) is one of the oldest offices in the Russian Orthodox Church. The medieval archbishops of Novgorod were among the most important figures in medieval Russian history and cul ...

, appointed him Hegumen of the Trinity monastery, which later became known as Alexander-Svirsky Monastery. Saint Alexander became known for his righteous life and contemplative miracles, including the appearances of the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

and the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

with the

Holy Child The Christ Child, also known as Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, Infant Jesus, the Divine Child, Child Jesus, the Holy Child, Santo Niño, and to some as Señor Noemi refers to Jesus Christ from his nativity to age 12. The four canonical gospels, ...

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

canonized Alexander Svirsky in the year of 1547. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

is commemorated on April 17 and August 30, according to the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar.

Relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

s of Saint Alexander were found on April 17 (27), 1641. According to the Vita of the saint, they were found incorruptible. On October 22, 1918, the coffin with the relics of Alexander Svirsky was opened. According to Soviet reports, instead of relics, a wax doll was supposedly found.Отчёт VIII-го Отдела Народного Комиссариата Юстиции Съезду Советов
// Революция и церковь : журнал. — № 9—12. — 1920. — С. 70—82. However, testimony of the monks present, as well as a later Soviet commission under the direction of Grigory Zinoviev, demonstrated that a human body instead of a wax figure was present in the coffin.For documents, see Милякова Л.: Отделение Церкви от государства и школы от Церкви в Советской России. Октябрь 1917-1918 г. Сборник документов. M., 2016, pp. 456-60.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Svirsky, Alexander 1448 births 1533 deaths Russian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church Incorrupt saints Russian monks 16th-century Christian saints People from medieval Novgorod