Saint Ambrose of Optina (russian: link=no, Амвросий Оптинский; birth name: Aleksander Mikhaylovich Grenkov, russian: link=no, Александр Михайлович Гренков, December 5, 1812, Bolshaya Lipovitsa settlement, Tambov guberniya – October 23, 1891) was a '' starets'' and a

hieroschemamonk The degrees of Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic monasticism are the stages an Eastern Orthodox monk or nun passes through in their religious vocation. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the process of becoming a monk or nun is intentionally sl ...

Optina Monastery The Optina Pustyn (russian: Óптина пýстынь, literally ''Opta's hermitage'') is an Eastern Orthodox monastery for men near Kozelsk in Russia. In the 19th century, the Optina was the most important spiritual centre of the Russian Ortho ...

, canonized in the 1988 convention of the Local Council 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 ...

Biography

Aleksandr was born in the family of sexton Mikhail Fyodorovich Grenkov and Marfa Nikolayevna Grenkova. He was the sixth of eight children. At the age of 12 Aleksandr entered the Tambov clerical school and later the Tambov theological seminary. In 1835, shortly before the graduation, Aleksandr became severely ill and made a vow if he got well to become a monk. He recovered but delayed his decision and became a private teacher in a family of a landlord and later in the

Lipetsk Lipetsk ( rus, links=no, Липецк, p=ˈlʲipʲɪtsk), also romanized as Lipeck, is a city and the administrative center of Lipetsk Oblast, Russia, located on the banks of the Voronezh River in the Don basin, southeast of Moscow. Populatio ...

clerical school. During summer vacation, Aleksandr met a well-known elder Hilarion from the village of Troekurovo. The Elder advised: "Go to Optina and you will be experienced. You could go to Sarov too, but there are no more experienced elders there" (at that time, St.

Seraphim of Sarov Seraphim of Sarov (russian: Серафим Саровский; – ), born Prókhor Isídorovich Moshnín (Mashnín) �ро́хор Иси́дорович Мошни́н (Машни́н) is one of the most renowned Russian saints and is venerate ...

already reposed). And the Elder added: "They need you there". After this advice, in 1839, Aleksandr entered the

Kaluga Kaluga ( rus, Калу́га, p=kɐˈɫuɡə), a city and the administrative center of Kaluga Oblast in Russia, stands on the Oka River southwest of Moscow. Population: Kaluga's most famous resident, the space travel pioneer Konstantin Tsiol ...

guberniya when the monastery was in its spiritual heyday. His first guide was Starets (Elder) Leonid and then later Starets Makary, whom Ambrose shared a cell with. This gave him get help in his spiritual progress. Ambrose had a very lively humor and sociable character which conflicted with his more stoic spiritual discipline. Ambrose had many struggles with illness throughout his life building upon these struggles for insight into the human condition. Ambrose was

tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in ...

d as a

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 ...

, after only three years, in 1842. He was given the

religious name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for a religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholic Church, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should ...

Ambrose in honour of Saint Ambrose of Milan. In another three years Ambrose advanced and was ordained a

hieromonk A hieromonk ( el, Ἱερομόναχος, Ieromonachos; ka, მღვდელმონაზონი, tr; Slavonic: ''Ieromonakh'', ro, Ieromonah), also called a priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Eastern Orthodox Church and E ...

(priest). On the trip to Kaluga for ordination, Ambrose caught cold. Since then, his health became so poor that he almost could not serve as a priest. Due to illness Ambrose was forced into semi-reclusion for several years. This seclusion allowed him to concentrate on the mastering of the

Jesus Prayer The Jesus Prayer,; syr, ܨܠܘܬܐ ܕܝܫܘܥ, translit=slotho d-yeshu'; syr, label=Amharic, Geez and Tigrinya, እግዚኦ መሐረነ ክርስቶስ, translit=igizi'o meḥarene kirisitosi. "Note: We are still searching the Fathers for t ...

hesychasm Hesychasm (; Greek: Ησυχασμός) is a contemplative monastic tradition in the Eastern Orthodox Church in which stillness (''hēsychia'') is sought through uninterrupted Jesus prayer. While rooted in early Christian monasticism, it took it ...

and to experience the meaning of hesychia, the silence of the soul before God or

theoria Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

. Even though of a weak constitution Father Ambrose continued work assisting Elder Makary with the translation of the Holy Fathers, in particular, with the translation of

The Ladder of Divine Ascent ''The Ladder of Divine Ascent'' or ''Ladder of Paradise'' (Κλίμαξ; ''Scala'' or ''Climax Paradisi'') is an important ascetical treatise for monasticism in Eastern Christianity, written by John Climacus in AD; it was requested by John, Abb ...

. Father Ambrose maintained his correspondence and counsel to

pilgrim A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is on Pilgrimage, a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey (often on foot) to some place of special significance to the a ...

s, and later as a staretz (Elder) out of love for all people he counseled and any who sought him. When Elder Macarius died in September, 1860, Father Ambrose replaced him as the principal elder of the monastery. Elder Ambrose remained the principal staretz of Optina for 30 years. Ambrose was visited by countless people, and his love for every person was so strong that he would even see people when he had passed the point of exhaustion being forced to lay down. Even then he would not refuse to listen to people coming to him to seek his counsel. The staretz had the gift of being able to see into people's souls where no secret was hidden from him. There is abundant testimony to his clairvoyance and gift of healing which he tried to conceal. Known for his deep kindness and compassion, no one's question or counsel was refused. Being able to give wise advice to other people, Elder Ambrose, due to his humility, sought advice from others without relying on his own mind even having the gift of reasoning. After the death of Elder Macarius, having no one to turn to in his monastery, he turned first to his bishop Gregory. And over time, learning from some credible people about one hidden, wandering spiritual elder, elder Ambrose immediately tried to get close to him. He constantly wrote secret letters to this elder with the intention to do everything with the advice of another person in which he saw the expression of the will of God – not following own will.Living of Saint Ambrose of Optina. Archimandrite Agapitus. 2012 (Reprint of 1900 edition). Saint Ambrose founded

Shamordino Convent The Convent of Saint Ambrose of Optina, St. Ambrose and Our Lady of Kazan (Казанская Амвросиевская ставропигиальная женская пустынь) is a stauropegial Russian Orthodox convent in the village of Sh ...

in 1884. This

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

, which is near Optina, opened its doors to women who were poor, sickly, or even blind. Most convents were very poor and had to rely on the incomes of women who had a certain personal wealth in order to remain open. Saint Ambrose made it possible for any woman who wished to become a nun. After the death of the first abbess, Mother Sophia, Father Ambrose went there in June 1890 to put the convent's affairs in order. He was unable to return to Optina due to illness, and died in the Shamordino cloister on October 10, 1891, and was buried in the Optina "desert" ('' poustin''). His

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 were placed in the Vvedensky Church of the Monastery.

Cultural allusions

Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...

stated that in Elder Ambrose he had found a living example of the Christian ideal. Elder Nektary of '' The Brothers Karamazov'' referred to Ambrose as "an earthly angel and a heavenly man." Saint Ambrose is supposed to have been seen surrounded by the uncreated light more than once. In the Russian Orthodox tradition, this is the definitive sign of transfiguration and citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven to come, or paradise, similar to what has been attributed to Saint

. Ambrose was also a subject in ''Velikoe v malom i Antikhrist'' by

Serge Nilus Sergei Aleksandrovich Nilus (also ''Sergius'', and variants; russian: Серге́й Алекса́ндрович Ни́лус; – 14 January 1929) was a Russian religious writer and self-described mystic. His book ''Velikoe v malom i antik ...

Quotes

*"One should live without hypocrisy and behave in such a way as to set an example, then our actions will be right, otherwise they will turn out bad" (Russian: «Нужно жить нелицемерно и вести себя примерно, тогда дело наше будет верно, а иначе выйдет скверно») *"Live without cares, judge no-one, vex no-one, and honour everyone" («Жить - не тужить, никого не осуждать, никому не досаждать, и всем мое почтение») *"From kindness, people see things entirely differently." *"Do not be greatly disturbed by the arrangement of your fate. Have only the unwavering desire for salvation and, standing before God, await His help until the time comes."

Works

''Answer to those who are favorable to the Latin Church. Ответ благосклонным к Латинской Церкви (in Russian)''''Отечник. Христианский брак''

References

External links

Venerable Ambrose of Optina
Orthodox

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

and

synaxarion Synaxarion or Synexarion (plurals Synaxaria, Synexaria; el, Συναξάριον, from συνάγειν, ''synagein'', "to bring together"; cf. etymology of ''synaxis'' and ''synagogue''; Latin: ''Synaxarium'', ''Synexarium''; cop, ⲥⲩⲛⲁ ...