The Presidential Library’s collections tell about the canonization of St. Seraphim of Sarov

On August 1 (July 19, according to the old style), the Orthodox celebrate the uncovering of the relics of St. Seraphim, the Wonderworker of Sarov. “My joy, hello, Christ is risen!” - this is how the elder met everyone who came to him, for everyone he found guidance, wise advice, and he himself performed spiritual feats unthinkable for the laity, was constantly in prayer. He became a saint for Orthodox Christians long before his official canonization in 1903.

The formation in spiritual life and how he treated the elder can even be judged by the love and trepidation according to the book The Sociable Sarov Monastery and the Memorable Monks Who Asceticed in It. It was compiled in the early 1860s by Hieromonk Abel, when just over thirty years had passed since the death of the "deeply revered, unforgettable elder". A portrait of the elder was also published here, according to which icons of the saint would later be painted. 

The book tells that “the ever-memorable ascetic hieromonk Seraphim” was born in Kursk on August 1 (July 19), 1759. He received the name Prokhor at baptism and experienced a miracle already in childhood.

The boy's father, merchant Isidor Moshnin, was engaged in contracts for the construction of church buildings. When Prokhor was only 3 years old, his father died, leaving the construction of a stone church in honor of St. Sergius of Radonezh unfinished. The mother of Prokhor continued the work of her husband. Once during the construction of this temple, she went to the top of the building, taking her son. The boy, who was then seven years old, began to play and, through negligence, fell from the height of the bell tower under construction to the ground. The mother ran downstairs in fear, thinking to find him already dead, but to her surprise and joy she saw that he was standing on the ground completely unharmed.

By the age of 18, the young man decided to go to the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, where he received from the elder Dositheus a blessing for monastic service in the "Sarov Desert". At first he performed various obediences, and in 1786 he was tonsured a monk and received the name Seraphim. In 1793, the Monk Seraphim was ordained to the rank of hieromonk.

“For love of perfect silence”, - he dreamed of a complete removal from the world and, having received a blessing from the rector, in 1794 he went to live in a “desert cell” located deep in the forest. He practically ate nothing, wore the same clothes both in winter and summer, prayed incessantly and read the Holy Scriptures, observed strict silence. Here he took on another feat - 1,000 days of pilgrimage - unceasing prayer, kneeling on a stone.

Such a case is known. Three people from neighboring peasants came to the elder and demanded money, saying that people go to him and carry money. But the elder answered them that he did not take anything from anyone. Then the robbers severely beat Seraphim, examined everything in the cell, but did not find anything. All wounded, with great difficulty Seraphim came to the monastery. The attackers were soon found, but the elder asked not to punish them. According to the book “The Sociable Sarov Monastery”, the fire soon destroyed their dwellings, and they themselves came with repentance for their villainy to Father Seraphim and with tears asked him for forgiveness and prayers. After this attack, the elder remained disabled, but returned back to his secluded cell and lived there until he became physically weak. But even after returning to the monastery, he continued his spiritual exploits, remaining silent for five years.

“After five years of silent life, Father Seraphim began to accept strangers, and no longer refused anyone who only wanted to receive a blessing from him and take advantage of his advice; wherefore the number of visitors increased from time to time; many of the distant places began to come to him, he blessed those who came and gave them brief teachings, depending on the spiritual needs of everyone”, - wrote hieromonk Abel. Seraphim's memory was firm, his mind bright, his conversation was so effective and comforting that everyone found spiritual benefit in it for himself, it warmed the heart, removed the "veil from the inner eyes".

At the request of the abbess of the Diveyevo Lavra, located not far from Sarov, he became the confessor of its monastery. And later, as the elder himself said, by the command of the Most Holy Theotokos, he founded a new community, where two Christmas churches and a mill were built for them. The elder predicted his death in advance, he said: “my death will be opened by fire.” And indeed, when he died, kneeling before the icons, the candle fell and the bench caught fire.

His words and glory of virtues swept everywhere, pilgrims from all over the country were drawn to the Sarov monastery to bow with reverence before his coffin. And the Diveyevo sisters, apparently, were the first to pray to the elder as a saint, and long before the official glorification they composed the first akathist to him. Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II, also came to pray to the deceased elder. In prayers, the spouses asked for the birth of an heir.

For the first time, the question of the canonization of the Sarov ascetic began to be raised from the end of the 1880s. However, the Synod was in no hurry with canonization, instructing to continue collecting information. It is not known how long this gathering would have dragged on if not for Archimandrite Seraphim (Chichagov), the future Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Hieromartyr (shot in 1937). Having gained access to the archives of the Diveyevo Monastery, he collected a lot of information about the life and miracles of Seraphim of Sarov and compiled the Chronicle of the Seraphim-Diveyevo Monastery, which he handed over to Nicholas II after a personal audience with the sovereign.

In July 1902, Church Gazette announced the start of preparations for official canonization. In addition to personal veneration of the elder Seraphim, Nicholas II sought in the canonization of the monk a solution to deep domestic political problems.

The Presidential Library’s collections contain a digitized issue of the magazine Atheist for 1930, which, oddly enough, can serve as a source for studying the history of the canonization of Seraphim of Sarov.

In January 1903, a commission headed by Metropolitan Vladimir of Moscow left for Sarov to extract and study the relics of Seraphim of Sarov. The magazine says that the commission found that the body of the reverend was given over to decay, but the bones and hair were preserved. It took a whole theological investigation, the result of which was the decision that the main condition for canonization is not the relics, but the miracles that are performed through them. Letters about "miracles" from all over Russia received a huge amount.

For the solemn official glorification of Seraphim as a saint, new hotels were built in Sarov and medical service points were organized. By July 30, 1903, thousands of pilgrims and clergy arrived in the city, and the emperor himself arrived in the evening. On August 1, Seraphim of Sarov was glorified in the rank of reverend.

In January 1904, on the eve of Memorial Day, the Akathist to our reverend and God-bearing father Seraphim, the wonderworker of Sarov, was performed for the first time. It is believed that the original text was compiled by the Diveyevo sisters, and the future Hieromartyr Seraphim (Chichagov) himself was involved in editing the final version. The first edition of this akathist has been digitized and is also available on the Presidential Library’s portal.

Once Seraphim of Sarov was asked: can modern people be saints, like the ancient Christians? They can, the elder answered, but they lack only one thing - determination.