“In 1641 from the Nativity of Christ, according to the command of the pious Tsar, they dismantled the dilapidated church in the name of our Reverend Father Alexander, where there was a tomb placed over his body... When they began to dig a ditch for the front wall, on the eastern side of the temple... found a coffin. The ground above him stood in the form of a cave, not supported by anything... The abbot was immediately shown the found coffin. He, going with the holy monks into the ditch, removed the top board from the coffin, and a strong fragrance from the relics of the monk spread everywhere, so that the whole place was filled with incense. There was no chopping at that time, and they saw the entire lying body of the venerable father Alexander, whole and unharmed, in a mantle and schema, wrapped in order, and the anallav on it was completely intact, part of the beard was visible from under the schema; both legs lay like those of someone who had recently died, the right foot up, and the left foot turned to the side, both shod in sandals. The fragrant myrrh spread throughout his body, like some growing flowers, and poured out like water. Seeing all this, those who were there were filled with horror and joy and glorified Almighty God, Who Glorifies His Saints...” (The Legend of the Finding of the Relics of Our Reverend Father Alexander, Abbot of Svir, Wonderworker).

I once read these lines and was amazed at the chronicler’s story, but I never thought that I myself would see the incorruptible body of Saint Alexander and be filled with horror and joy at the sight of the fragrant world. After all, the relics of the Svir miracle worker were considered lost; even their existence was questioned.

The fact is that once upon a time, it was from the shrine of St. Alexander that an all-Russian campaign to open the relics began, which was supposed to “expose the counter-revolutionary essence of the Orthodox Church and reveal the centuries-old deception of the people by the clergy.” A message then appeared in the Soviet press that on October 22, 1918, during the “registration” of the property of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery, “in a cast shrine weighing more than 20 pounds of silver, instead of the incorruptible relics of Alexander Svirsky, a wax doll was discovered.” (True, Archimandrite Eugene, who was present at the opening of the relics, testified against this conclusion, arguing that the authentic remains of the saint were found in the shrine, and not a doll at all, as the proprietors said, but a few days later he was shot, and therefore there was no one to refute the official version ).

Be that as it may, the Bolsheviks removed what was found in the shrine from the monastery. (Soon an “island” of the Gulag began operating there.)

80 years have passed. The abbot of the reviving Alexander-Svirsky monastery, Lukian (Kutsenko), blessed the nun Leonida (Safonova) to work in the archives to search for information about the relics of St. Alexander of Svirsky. In the world, nun Leonida, a nun of the Intercession-Tervenichsky Monastery, achieved the degree of candidate of biological sciences, worked as a senior researcher at the St. Petersburg Research Institute named after. Pasteur. First, she visited all the historical and ethnographic museums of the city, but the search did not yield any results. Unexpectedly, a document from the Central Historical Archive helped her. The document testified that the relics of the reverend underwent a medical examination in a subdivision of the People's Commissariat of Health in February 1919. Then it was decided to begin a survey of the city’s medical museums. Quite soon, the search led to the Military Medical Academy, where an anatomical museum has existed for more than 150 years. Back in the 40s, “an example of natural mummification” was demonstrated at lectures there.

Of course, this did not happen by chance: Saint Alexander was known as the “prayer book for kings.” Once upon a time, Ivan the Terrible prayed to the monk just before the capture of Kazan, and after the victory he declared him a “great and wondrous miracle worker” throughout Russia. Since then, every autocrat either came to venerate the relics or sent generous gifts to the monastery. All the Romanovs were admirers of the Monk Alexander. The first king of the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail Fedorovich, especially revered the saint. One of the first chapels erected by Peter I in the new capital of Russia was the chapel of Alexander Svirsky. The Emperor repeatedly visited the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery.

On December 30, 1997, nun Leonida saw the relics of St. Alexander for the first time at the Military Medical Academy of St. Petersburg. The examinations began. They took place first at the Military Medical Academy itself, then at the forensic medical service of St. Petersburg. During the first prayer invocation to the saint, myrrh was poured out on the relics. This happened in the X-ray room of the Forensic Medical Expert Service of St. Petersburg, in front of the SMES workers and nuns of the Intercession-Tervenichsky Monastery.

“The saint especially consoled us,” recalled nun Leonida. “After the first prayer call to him, after a prayer service was served before the relics in the forensic service, they began to flow myrrh. Myrrh was flowing especially strongly from my feet. Every wrinkle of the body was covered with peace. The saint seemed to answer us: “It’s me! I hear you.

The examinations lasted several months. The main difficulty, the nun recalled, was overcoming the atheistic attitude of some members of the expert commission. They had to constantly overcome themselves internally in order to understand that what was happening was the acquisition of a shrine, and not “mummified remains.” But in the end, experts decided that the remains found in the Military Medical Academy really belonged to Alexander Svirsky... The holy relics were transferred to the Church of the Holy Martyrs Faith, Nadezhda, Lyubov and their mother Sophia. Soon the myrrh-streaming became permanent. Thousands of St. Petersburg residents and pilgrims from other cities witnessed this miracle.

I have been to this temple twice. I can’t tell you almost anything about my first visit. I remember a strange small church, without a dome, surrounded by typical multi-story buildings, the singing of “Our Reverend Father Alexandra, pray to God for us,” and the line for the shrine. What I don't remember is Alexander himself. When the nun, who was wiping the glass of the tomb with a towel, made a sign to me with her hand: “Pray,” my heart began to pound, everything floated as if in a fog. A wave of inexplicable trembling threw me to my knees in front of the coffin. I kissed the cancer and walked away. That's all.

The second time I came to church two months later. It was time between prayer services, the mothers were washing the floor. There was almost no one in the temple, and I was able to stay at the shrine for quite a long time. What struck me most was the appearance of the reverend’s hand—it looked as if it had been carved from ivory. In front of me under the glass were not remains, not a skeleton, not bones - it was exactly incorruptible body. The body, which spent more than a century in damp earth (during which time the coffin almost completely rotted), three centuries in the tomb and 80 years in the museum of the Military Medical Academy. It immediately occurred to me that the Bolsheviks, who opened the tomb in 1918, could really imagine that Alexander’s body was sculpted from wax. The hand of a saint is the hand of a strong man: strong, knobby fingers, a wide wrist. Such a hand should have known well what an ax, hoe, and shovel are.

The saint's right foot rests on the arch of his left (this is what the chronicle draws attention to). Droplets of oily liquid were clearly visible on Alexander’s legs. Leaning towards the shrine, I felt an indescribable aroma. It was that same “fragrant myrrh.” Here I was again overtaken by that state of inner trembling that I experienced on my first visit to the temple. Just think, myrrh! I, who have difficulty distinguishing odors (the result of several years of smoking), clearly sensed an unearthly aroma, despite the fact that the temple smelled strongly of detergent and the lid of the shrine was tightly closed!

This fragrance was felt by everyone who entered the temple. And at times it became so strong that bees flocked to its smell! I learned from the candle maker that the nature of the myrrh flow changes during prayer services - sometimes it literally begins to flow down the saint’s feet. A friend of mine, a desk mate in my school past, treated my newborn daughter for cancer. When, a couple of hours later, he got home with her, his family were amazed - a persistent fragrance emanated from the child.

An absolutely amazing fact was also recorded. Some pilgrims who came in the summer and autumn of 1998 to venerate the relics of St. Alexander, approaching the shrine, asked to attach to it an icon of the saint, purchased right there in the temple. Soon these icons began to stream myrrh at home, during home prayers. Some noted a strong fragrance for several days.

Miracles at the relics of Alexander Svirsky:
1533-1998

The Monk Alexander was buried in 1533 in the waste hermitage, near the wooden Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord, on the right side of the altar. After 14 years, the Svir miracle worker was canonized (in our Church this is a rare case). A small wooden church was built over the saint's body. During the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich, it completely fell into disrepair, and the abbot of the monastery, Abbot Abraham, came up with the idea of ​​building a stone church over Alexander’s body. The king donated money for the construction of the church.

In the spring of 1641, the wooden church was dismantled, and soon the monks of the monastery began to witness unusual light phenomena. “On Thursday of Palm Week there was extraordinary thunder and lightning. Lightning fell to the ground and did not suddenly disappear, as usually happens, but fell to the ground and shone for a long time,” the chronicler wrote.

Workers were digging a ditch for the front wall of the future temple. Suddenly, in the altar area of ​​the old church (that is, in the middle of the altar), they came across a coffin. The ground above this coffin stood in the form of a cave, unsupported by anything. As soon as the abbot removed the top board of the coffin, all those present felt a strong fragrance from the relics. Looking inside, the monks saw the incorruptible body of the Monk Alexander. Thus, to the surprise of everyone, the coffin was found in a different place - east of the tomb of the saint.

Healings at the tomb of St. Alexander took place before, starting in 1533, the year of the saint’s death. Here are some of them.

One blind woman, named Anna, who begged for alms in the surrounding villages, came to the monastery on the day of the Descent of the Holy Spirit. Falling down to the coffin, she asked for healing for her eyes, and her vision immediately returned to her.

In the vicinity of the monastery on the Oyat River lived the peasant Ivan Iudin. This peasant, as the monastery chronicle relates, “had a son named Sozont, who was weak in his legs from birth and completely unable to walk or stand on his feet.” Ivan had no other sons. Having heard about the miracles that happened through prayers to Saint Alexander (among those healed was his daughter-in-law Matrona, who got rid of a terrible tumor on her head), Ivan took his son to the monastery, where he met with the abbot and asked to serve a prayer service. At the end of the prayer service, Sozont was placed on the saint’s shrine and sprinkled with holy water, after which “the youth stood firmly and straight on his feet, and walked back and forth.”

Not far from the monastery on the Segezha River lived the young man Afanasy, the servant of the boyar Andrei. He had a relaxed right hand with which he could not do anything. Having prayed at Alexander’s tomb and made three bows, this young man, as the chronicler writes, suddenly exclaimed: “Having the seven prayers of Father Alexander!” - and raised his right hand up. The monastery knew Athanasius and his illness well; At the sight of such an obvious healing, “the clergy and the entire multitude of people were filled with horror and joy.”

Near the monastery in the village of Chagunitsa lived Tatiana, Tikhon’s wife, who suffered from relaxation of all her limbs. “For two years she suffered very seriously from that illness, dying many times, so that she had no hope of staying alive.” Through prayers to Alexander, she received complete healing and served a thanksgiving prayer service at the shrine.

Nowadays, healings from relaxation (paralysis) also most often occur at the tomb of St. Alexander of Svirsky.

After the relics were found under the altar of the old church and transferred first to the Church of St. Nicholas, and then to the stone Transfiguration Cathedral, amazing healings continued to occur at the tomb, including from such a terrible illness as demon possession.

Here are several modern miracles recorded by the clergy of the Church of the Holy Martyrs Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia and published in the newspaper “Orthodox Petersburg” (No. 10, 1998).

Elena lived to be 50 years old with congenital paralysis of her right arm. Medical procedures did not help. After several prayers at the shrine, I was able to fold my fingers for the sign of the cross without outside help. The fingers are still hard to control, but now the woman can hold light objects in her hand.

Raisa suffered from stomach disease for five years. Having anointed the skin over the sore spot with myrrh from the relics, she received relief from the pain.

Alla spoke about getting rid of headaches after praying to the monk, applying to his relics and anointing with oil.

Nina suffered from pain in her spine and joints. She stood for six hours at prayer services, which continued continuously at the saint’s shrine. After returning home, I received relief from the pain.

Olga was bedridden with rapidly developing cancer. Friends were miraculously able to put her in a car and take her to the temple to venerate the relics, after which the patient not only got back on her feet, but also got a job.

The relics of Saint Alexander performed the following miracles: they shone with extraordinary light; came out of hiding; spread fragrance; streamed myrrh; healed the paralytic, the blind, the demon-possessed, and the sick; for five centuries they resisted decay. Who was this man so richly glorified by God?

Hegumen Alexander

In the life of Alexander Svirsky we will find many ascetic deeds, miracles, and manifestations of grace-filled power. But this saint is famous not only for his asceticism and miracles.

Alexander Svirsky was born in 1448, when many disciples of Sergius of Radonezh, the great saint, through whose works and prayers the veneration of the Holy Trinity was established in Rus', were still alive. And so in the Novgorod land a man was born who was awarded see Trinity. This has not happened to any mortal since the time of Abraham.

Under Sergius of Radonezh, who blessed Dmitry Donskoy for the Battle of Kulikovo, the liberation of Rus' from the Tatars began.

Under Alexander Svirsky, who prayed for Ivan III, after standing on the Ugra River, the Tatar yoke was finally overthrown.

Sergius restored the monastic community in Rus' and founded the Trinity Monastery near Moscow, which later became the famous Trinity-Sergius Lavra.

Alexander, with his monastic exploits, strengthened monasticism in the north of Rus' and founded the Trinity Monastery, which later became the famous Trinity Alexander-Svirsky Monastery - a place of pilgrimage for the royal Romanov dynasty.

He was born north of Novgorod, in the Olonets land, in a village called Mandera on the Oyat River. The north of Rus' found it more difficult to accept Christianity, and this region remained pagan for a long time. (However, there were also such centers of holiness and piety in it as the ancient Valaam Monastery.) The time of Alexander is the era of Vasily the Dark, Ivan III and Vasily III; Rus', which won the Kulikovo Field, united around Moscow.

The Novgorod region suffered little from the Tatar raids. Alexander's parents (after the holy baptism of Amos), Stefan and Vassa, did not live richly, but they did not go hungry. Even in the times of Kyiv, Novgorod was famous for its universal literacy; Amos’s parents also knew how to read Scripture. But he was not given literacy, despite a strong desire to master book wisdom and the efforts of the teacher. The life tells how one day, having arrived at the monastery, the youth fell on his knees before the image of the Mother of God. He prayed that the Blessed Virgin would give him reason to understand the Divine Scripture. Amos's prayer was heard, and he soon began to read and surpassed his peers in learning.

Childhood passes quietly and calmly; teaching, working with parents in the field. Amos grows up withdrawn and silent; he hardly plays with his peers. More and more often, his parents find him with a book, he tries to imitate the great ascetics: he fasts strictly, sleeps little, and in winter he goes without a hat and wears thin clothes. All this worries Stefan and Vassa. They try to dissuade him, but Amos answers them with the words of Scripture: “Brain will not place us before God.” Parents, seeing such firmness, humble themselves. However, they hope that, having matured, Amos will change: he will abandon these “extremes” and be like everyone else. And they begin to look for a bride for him. Meanwhile, their son meets two monks from Valaam. They stand on the river bank and sing psalms. Amos bows to the ground and comes up for a blessing. The surprised elders enter into conversation with the young man. Amos asks about monastic life, about monastic orders. “What should I do, holy fathers? - he exclaims. - How can one become worthy of this angelic life? My parents want to marry me; I would run away, but I know my father will find me and bring me home. And it will only be trouble for him and sadness for me.” The wise elders, having listened to the young man, answer him like this: “Child, natural love is the love of a father and mother. We can't take you with us; We do not have an order from the abbot to take children away from their parents. But we see that the love of God has already deeply penetrated your soul. And therefore, hurry up so that the evil spirits do not touch your heart.” The elders bless him to leave his parents' house and tell him how to get to Valaam.

That same day, the young man tells his parents that he is going to a neighboring village for some reason. They, suspecting nothing, let him go. Having stolen his parents' blessing, Amos comes to Valaam and takes monastic vows with the name Alexander. His parents know nothing about him and have been looking for him for three years.

Finally, Stefan learns from one of the wanderers that his son is in the Spasov Monastery. The father immediately goes to Valaam.

Twice the abbot comes to Alexander’s cell, persuading him to go to his father, and twice the young monk refuses. Meanwhile, Stefan threatens the abbot to commit suicide right at the gates of the monastery, “if they don’t show their son right away.” Finally, the tonsured man leaves the cell. His father rushes to him, hugs him, cries, whispers his dear name: “Amos. Amos. my son, let's go home."

Alexander gently removes him: “My Father, may you listen to my advice. Come home alone; distribute your property and go to a monastery.” And he adds: “If you do not do this, you will no longer see my face.”

Stefan storms off in anger. Alexander gets up to pray. What was going on at night in the souls of father and son? The next morning, Stefan comes to Alexander with a changed face: “I will do everything as you ordered,” he tells the young man. - You are right. You are not my son, but your father and teacher.”

Soon Stefan took monastic vows at the Ostrovsky Mother of God Monastery with the name Sergius. Alexander's mother Vassa also took on the monastic rank, taking the name Varvara.

The writer of the life - a student of the monk Herodion - says that on Valaam Alexander was sent to a bakery, where “he remained humbly, surpassing everyone with work; carried water and carried firewood from the forest on himself, tiring his body.” At night he left his cell and, “baring his body to the waist, stood there until the morning singing; so that his whole body was covered with many mosquitoes and midges.” He was the first to come to the monastery church, always standing in one place, concentrating on prayer, not even allowing himself to move his feet. Both during fasting and not during fasting, he consumed only bread and water, and then in small quantities. He wore such clothes that, in the words of the life writer, “barely covered his nakedness.”

Those in the monastery could not help but see these feats; There was already a rumor about Alexander as a great ascetic. But it was sad for the young monk to see that human glory was beginning to surround him—it was not what he was striving for. One day, while standing at prayer at night, the monk saw in the window of his cell an extraordinary light shining in the east. Having received the blessing of the abbot for the feat of living in the desert, Alexander left the monastery. He went east, to the then uninhabited places on the banks of the Svir River. There, in a beautiful forest replete with lakes, he saw a glow above one of the hills. This is where he settled. He was then 36 years old.

He sang psalms and worked. Grass served as his food. Alexander did not immediately get used to this food: at first he experienced such pain that he lay on the ground all day long, not having the strength to get up. For many years he had not seen a single human face. But “a city standing on the top of a mountain cannot hide, and having lit a candle, they do not put it under a bushel” (Matthew 5:14-15). One day a hunter, a certain nobleman Andrei Zavalishin, came to Alexander’s hut. Gradually, rumors about the great ascetic spread throughout the Novgorod land. Word reached John, another son of Stephen. He had been looking for his brother for many years, and now he came to Alexander. The hermit joyfully accepted him. Gradually the brethren gathered around the monk and a monastery was rebuilt.

But even after becoming abbot of the monastery, the monk took on more work than anyone else in the monastery. He cut down forests and built cells for the brethren, kneaded dough and baked bread, prepared firewood, and carried water. At night, when others were sleeping, he walked around the monastery. It often happened that in the room where wheat was usually ground, the abbot found the monks sleeping. Then he “took the part of the wheat prepared by everyone for grinding and, having ground it, put it in its original place, and he himself went to his cell.”

His fame thundered far beyond the borders of the Olonets region; people came to Alexander from all over Rus'. People who were possessed were brought to him, the sick were brought to him. They asked him for advice when they didn’t know what to do, they came for teaching and blessing. The small monastery grew.

One day, the monks decided to dig a ditch from one lake located on a hill to another, so that a channel would form and a mill could be built. Suddenly, water rushed into the channel with enormous force, threatening to flood the monastery itself. The abbot, as the chronicle testifies, said a prayer and, calling on the Name of Jesus Christ, “with his right hand he depicted a cross against the rushing water.” And immediately its flow stopped. On that channel the monks built a mill.

They said about Alexander that with his prayer he works wondrous miracles, foresees the secret and speaks of the future as if it were the present. Grand Duke Vasily Ioannovich asked for Alexander’s blessing and his prayers in order to receive “peace, health, salvation and prosperity and childbearing.” Meanwhile, Alexander still wore his old, patched cassock - all year round, even “when the ground was cracking from the severe frost.”

In 1507, the humble abbot received an amazing vision. One night, when the Monk Alexander, according to his custom, stood at prayer in the waste hermitage, a light that suddenly appeared and strongly illuminated the cell where he was praying. At that same moment he saw three men come in to him, dressed in white clothes. In appearance they were “beautiful and beautiful, shining brighter than the sun with an inexpressibly glorious bright light, and each of them had a staff in his hand.” Alexander was told that in this place he should found a church in the name of the Consubstantial Trinity.

The church was built - first wooden, and then stone. On August 30, 1533, Alexander Svirsky gave his last instructions to the brethren of the monastery. Then he said: “I am leaving you now, and I am commending you to Almighty God and His Most Pure Mother.” Everyone who was in the cell cried. One of the monks asked: “Father, where should we bury you?” Alexander responded like this: “Brothers, tie a rope around my sinful body and drag me into the depths of the swamp; there, having dug up the moss, trample it with your feet.” “Father, we cannot do this,” answered the monks. Then the monk said: “If you don’t do this, then bury me at the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord.” After this, having said a prayer and giving the brothers a final kiss, Alexander departed to the Lord, having only time to say: “In Your hands I commend my spirit.”

After death, as a student of the abbot wrote, “the face of the monk did not resemble the face of a deceased person, but shone, as in life.”

The sagacity of a saint

One day Alexander met a traveler in the forest. He, not suspecting that the abbot himself was in front of him, asked him if the abbot was healthy and if it was possible to see him. It was one of the local fishermen. A week before he had caught a large sturgeon; Fearing that the master would take the fish and not pay, he sold the catch to the merchants. But he found out about the caught sturgeon, and now the fisherman was in trouble.

“Our abbot is a very sinful man, deceitful and a drunkard, and you will not benefit from him,” said Alexander.

“I don’t know what you’re saying, father,” the fisherman was surprised. “I heard that he helps a lot of people.”

Then the monk, seeing his faith, said this:

“Man, go back to your house, because now you will not find the abbot in the monastery: he left on some business. When he returns, I will tell him about you. And now, child, go and put your fences in the river. When you catch a lot of fish, including sturgeon, then take it to the landowner: he will stop being angry.”

In great bewilderment, the fisherman walked away. He failed to find the abbot; whether it will be possible to find him the next day is unknown, and then this strange beggar monk, as if in mockery, advises him to “catch a new sturgeon.” But over the past three years, only one sturgeon has looked into his net!

But there is nothing to do. The fisherman returned home and put lines in the river and soon, along with many other fish, he pulled a huge sturgeon ashore! Then he realized that the monk he met in the forest was Abbot Alexander. He went to his master, honestly told about everything and handed over the caught fish. And indeed, he, extremely surprised, quickly changed his anger to mercy and paid him well.

The monk was not meek and kind with everyone.

On the day of the consecration of the Church of the Holy Trinity, Alexander, lifting the edge of his vestment, collected donations for the construction of the monastery. Everyone considered it a blessing to put something in a phelonion. In the crowd was a certain Gregory, a resident of the village of Pidmozero on the Svir River. Many, due to the large crowd of people, approached the abbot from behind. When Gregory, in turn, extended his hand from behind the monk’s back, he suddenly rolled up the phelonion. Frustrated, Grigory tried to deposit the money again, but Alexander silently retracted his hand. He didn’t accept the money a third time, and didn’t even look up at the giver.

Gregory was forced to step aside. In the evening, he begged a monk he knew to take him to the monk’s cell.

“Father, you do not know me or my family,” he said. “Why did you accept an offering from everyone, but rejected my gift?”

Alexander looked up at him: “Your hands are defiled. We were commanded to honor our fathers and mothers, but you insulted your mother, beat her... and never repented of it.”

Gregory fell to his knees in front of the elder.

“Go, child, and beg the one who gave birth to you,” said the abbot. “Ask her forgiveness and repent.”

One day, a wealthy Novgorod merchant, Bogdan Semenovich Koryukov, came to the monastery. The merchant grieved that he did not have an heir to whom he could pass on his property.

Here is Alexander’s answer: “Refuse resoimism (at these words the merchant trembled all over); forgive debtors their debts; give to the poor; help widows and orphans; donate to those in prison. With these good deeds you will appease God, and he will grant you sons and daughters and many years of life. Finally, you will be awarded the monastic rank, and upon your repose you will be buried by your children.”

The merchant fell to his knees: “I see, holy father, the grace has been given to you to see our secret deeds.”

Having made a generous donation to the monastery, the merchant returned to Novgorod and began to lead a godly life. Soon, as the monk predicted, several sons and daughters were born to him. Before his death, Bogdan Koryukov accepted the monastic rank and was honestly buried by his children.

Apparitions of Saint Alexander

Quite a lot is known about the appearances of St. Alexander. I'll talk about two. Some time after his death, the saint appeared to the monk Herodion, his successor as abbot, the author of his life. “Hegumen Herodion was a disciple of the Monk Alexander,” says the legend about the appearance. “He had great faith, love and obedience towards his teacher, for which the monk loved him greatly and revealed to him all the secrets while still alive, and after death he appeared to him, in fulfillment of his will.”

And here is what the abbot himself wrote:

“One night I, humble Herodion, stood in my cell, doing my usual rule, and in my poor prayer I dozed off, lay down on the bed to rest and soon fell asleep. Immediately, suddenly, a shining great light appeared in the window of the cell. I got up and leaned towards the window to see: what does this mean? And I saw the Reverend Father Alexander walking around the Church of the Holy Trinity and in his hands carrying the Life-giving Cross of the Lord...”

In this apparition, Saint Alexander indicated the place on the gates of the monastery where the monks were to build a church in the name of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker. “I spent that whole night until Matins without sleep, praying to God, and glorifying God and the great Saint Alexander in miracles,” wrote Herodion.

A record of another phenomenon appeared in the chronicles of the monastery in August 1673. Then the royal warrior Mokiy Lvov, a resident of Gorodets (which is near Bezhetsk), came to the Holy Trinity Alexander-Svirsky Monastery to venerate the relics of the saint. From his words, the monastery chronicler recorded the following story:

“I was in military service in the regiment of boyar Vasily Sheremetev. During the campaign against the godless Tatars, we had to be near the city of Konotop, where the godless Tatars unexpectedly attacked us, took many of us and took us to their land. We, thirteen people, were given to one Murza, with whom we stayed for about thirteen years. During the day we did all kinds of hard work, and spent the night in prison, shackled in iron chains. One night we cried a lot, praying to God and calling on all the saints for help. And then great fear and bewilderment fell upon us: we saw a great light in the prison that shone around us. When we came to our senses, we saw a handsome man with gray hair and heard his voice:

“Call the Monk Alexander of Svirsky for help, he will save you from trouble.” Having said this, the one who appeared became invisible.

Two days later, Greek merchants came and bought us from that Murza, and then brought us to Constantinople, from where we safely arrived in the God-protected reigning city of Moscow, and everyone dispersed to their places of residence, through the prayers of the great miracle worker, Reverend Father Alexander.”

The Monk Alexander of Svirsky has a special place in the host of Russian saints. He lived in dense forests on the Svir River, now in the Lodeynopolsky district of the Leningrad region. They knew him as a prophet and seer, and glorified him as a healer. He was especially blessed by God: the saint became the only person who saw God in the Holy Trinity after the Nativity of Christ (that is, in New Testament times: the biblical books of the Old Testament tell about the appearance of the Trinity in the form of three Angels to the forefather Abraham). After his death, the righteous man was glorified by God: the relics of Saint Alexander of Svirsky were preserved almost like the body of a living person, they exude many miracles and are even called the “White Robes of the Transfiguration,” that is, the saint was transformed like Christ.

The Russian land has become famous for many saints, but most of all the saints. This is the rank of saints who performed many ascetic deeds for the sake of Christ: after all, in Russia there are many dense forests, abandoned places, where monks went to pray in silence and solitude for the whole world: they died for the world in order to be resurrected for Christ, to grow in spiritual life . And surprisingly, the Lord God glorified many of them during their lifetime: even in impenetrable thickets people found righteous people, and when they healed them with their prayers and helped them in all their needs, they told others. Thus, princes and noble people gathered around the saints, who were enlightened by their wisdom. The saints blessed feats of arms and reconciled those at war, helped people and themselves grew in abstinence, fasting and prayer.

How the icon and relics of St. Alexander of Svir help, how the saint achieved such a transformation and what to pray to him for, you will find out in this article.

Life of Alexander Svirsky

Saint Alexander of Svirsky was born on June 15, 1448 and was named Amos - in honor of the Old Testament prophet, whose memory is celebrated on this day. This indicates the fear of God and piety of his parents, much information about whom has not been preserved: their names were Stefan and Vasilisa or Vassa. They were elderly peasants in the village of Mandrogi or Mandery, which is located near the confluence of the Oyat River into Lake Ladoga. It is known that Saint Alexander had two adult brothers or sisters who lived separately, and the parents asked God for a younger son as a consolation in their old age. Indeed, after much prayer, the birth of the saint was preceded by the voice of God Himself, who called on the good spouses to rejoice over the future birth of a son, who would be a consolation not only for them, but also for the Church of God.

From birth, the saint showed himself to be God's chosen one: he did not play much with other children, deliberately chose simpler clothes, fasted, severely limiting himself in food, and most importantly, he was kind to everyone and sinless. By the time he came of age, his parents decided to marry him, but he himself had already decided on his desire to devote his life to God as a monk. With the monks of the Valaam Transfiguration Monastery passing by the village (this is also the spiritual pearl of the Ladoga lands, an ancient monastery of ascetics, located on a lonely island in the middle of the huge Ladoga), he went straight to one of the Valaam monasteries, where the monks lived in groups of two or three people. According to legend, one of his guides there was an Angel of God.

The future Alexander Svirsky - Amos - led a novice life on the rocks of Valaam for seven years. He carried out all the difficult assignments of the abbot of the monastery, like many monks today: during the day he worked, carrying water and cleaning the barnyard, serving in the temple, and at night he tried to strive in prayer, not to sleep, in order to mortify his sinful desires. The night vigils in the forest on Valaam were especially difficult: the Karelian lands are famous for the midge and its bites are real torture.

In 1474, the monk Alexander was born - Amos died for the world. By God's providence, it was at this time that his parents - and at one time Amos left home secretly - learned about his whereabouts and tonsure and they themselves went to certain northern monasteries, taking tonsure with the name Sergius and Varvara. It is interesting that here and in many episodes the life of St. Alexander echoes the life of St. Sergius of Radonezh - Hegumen of the Russian Land, this great saint also worked and prayed a lot in the deep forests, his parents also took monastic vows.

After tonsure, the monk settled on a small island in the Valaam archipelago, setting up a cell right in a mountain crevice. Here today stands a beautiful monastery in the name of St. Alexander of Svirsky with a tall white church. Already the fame of these exploits spread not only throughout Valaam, but also throughout the surrounding villages. People, pilgrims to the monastery, began to come to the ascetic. In 1485, the monk, fleeing from glory and seeking silence, left Valaam. He chose a place in a deep forest, on the shore of a small lake, later called Saint, and set up a tiny cell, where he lived alone for about ten years, eating herbs, mushrooms and berries. He suffered from cold, often in these places, hunger, illness and demonic temptations, but he prayed to the Lord for all people and grew spiritually. God supported his prayerful fervor. It is known about the miraculous healing of the saint: once the monk could not get out of bed, moreover, raise his head and read a prayer. However, he lay on his bed and sang psalms he knew by heart. Suddenly an Angel appeared to him: he put his hand on the ascetic’s head, crossed him and delivered him from his illness.

In 1493, God revealed the saint to people: the nobleman Andrei Zavalishin came to his cell, hunting a deer and several times seeing the light over the place of the saint’s feat. Alexander Svirsky wanted to hide, but the hunter begged him to tell about himself with a promise not to reveal the hermit’s place of prayer to anyone. This story became the basis for the beginning of the life of the monk. The saint became the spiritual mentor of Andrei, who after some time himself became a monk at the Valaam monastery, becoming a monk with the name Adrian and eventually becoming famous among the monks. This former hunter became the founder of his own Ondrusovo monastery. The future Saint Andrian may have sinned by not keeping his word to the ascetic - but it was thanks to him that the monks of the future monastery began to gather to the Monk Alexander.

Saint Alexander had to accept and instruct the brethren who came to him, who wanted a strict life, and over time, at God’s command, erect a church in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity, founding a monastery of the same name. It has survived to this day, several tens of kilometers from the city of Olonets. However, the monk realized his desire for solitude in his “retreat desert”, at a distance of about a kilometer from the main monastery near Lake Roshchinskoye.

It is known that it was in the “waste desert”, which over time turned into the Alexander-Svirsky monastery named after the saint, that the saint suffered both the most terrible temptations and the greatest grace of God. At first, demons appeared to him in the form of terrible animals and many snakes, which had never been in those places. With strong faith and strong prayer, the saint drove out monsters.

And in 1508 the Lord appeared to Saint Alexander. By that time, 23 years had passed since the saint’s settlement on Svir. The desert lit up brightly at night and Three entered the saint’s cell, whose faces shone brighter than the Sun. The saint fell before God in a bow to the ground, but the Lord raised him by the hand. Tradition retells to us God's words addressed to the saint: to firmly believe in God, hoping for His mercy and not being afraid; build a temple and monastery. The saint even objected to the Creator, speaking of his unworthiness, but the Lord Himself raised him from his knees and commanded him to build a church: “You see, my beloved man, God speaking to you in Three Persons - therefore, build a church in the name of the Trinity Consubstantial, Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. I leave you in peace and give you my grace (peace).” After these words, the Angels spread their wings and ascended to Heaven, and the saint began to think about where to build a temple. After some time, since the saint did not begin construction, but continued to think about the site of the temple, praying, an Angel again appeared to him, this time praying in monastic clothes with his hands raised - he blessed the site of the future temple.

It is important to note, firstly, that this appearance of God in the Holy Trinity to a Russian saint is unique in the history of our Church. And secondly, these phenomena and the entire life of the Monk Alexander show us how humility, constant hope only in God, avoidance of people and their glory exalt a person who considers himself the most unworthy.

Alexander-Svirsky Monastery - two monasteries founded by Saint Alexander

So, in 1508, the monk built a wooden Trinity Church on the site blessed by him, and in 1526 it was already rebuilt into a stone one. The monk himself did not have the priestly rank, considering himself out of humility unworthy, but the brethren of the monastery, not being able to beg him, wrote to Saint Serapion, Bishop of Novgorod, their ruling bishop - and only with his blessing was Saint Alexander ordained a priest in Novgorod and, finally , became abbot of the monastery he created.

His life after accepting the high rank of authority did not change: he did all the menial work of the monastery, wore rags, slept on the bare floor. The monk brought hand millstones from Valaam to the Svir region - an innovation of that time, thus becoming also an educator for the local residents. Threshing grain on them was not an easy task; the monks obviously avoided this work as hard and unknown, and the saint himself secretly, at night, ground on millstones.

Towards the end of his life, the saint decided to erect another temple - this time in honor of the Mother of God, Pokrovsky. The brethren laid the foundation of the church. One day, the Mother of God appeared above the foundation of the temple: the Monk Alexander felt an imminent appearance, called the cell attendant to pray together and in front of the cell, on the stones of the future temple, they saw the Mother of God with the Child of God, sitting on a throne on the altar, surrounded by many shining Heavenly Forces - Angelic An army. The Most Holy Lady Herself addressed the Monk Alexander, showing him a vision of many future ascetics of piety who would shine in his monastery, also saying that both She and Her Divine Son were helping Alexander in his labors.

He showed the humility that exalted the saint even before his death. He considered himself unworthy of even a simple burial: he said to tie his body with a rope and drag it into the swamp. Of course, the brethren rebelled against such humility, and the monk agreed to be buried in his favorite waste hermitage - by that time (the year was 1533) there was already a church here in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord. At the age of 85, the monk departed to the heavenly monasteries. The day of his death - August 30 (September 12) became the first day of his memory.

The monasteries, founded by the saint at a short distance from each other, exist to this day - they are more than five centuries old. By the time of the revolutionary upheavals and persecutions of the twentieth century, it was the center of the spiritual, cultural and industrial life of the region: the monasteries ran several factories, had a pier, a farm, vegetable gardens, and a barnyard. After the revolution, the monasteries were destroyed, and a psycho-neurological boarding school was established in the Trinity Monastery.

However, today both monasteries have been revived and are operating. Some of the ancient frescoes of the monastery churches have been preserved, the economy is being rebuilt, and pilgrims are coming. You can visit the monastery at any time and take part in its revival: remember the promise of the Mother of God Herself that She will reward everyone who helps this monastery.

Miracles of Alexander Svirsky

During his life and after death, the humble northern saint performed many miracles, which still happen today through prayers to him. He healed the blind and paralyzed, drove out demons from people possessed and corrupted by sorcerers.

Once, through the prayer of the saint, as if by the blessing of Christ Himself, a huge fish was caught: the fisherman was persecuted by an unrighteous judge for selling fish, but, having given the fish caught through the prayer of Alexander Svirsky to pay off his debt, he got rid of persecution.

As the Most Holy Theotokos showed, the Monk Alexander raised several generations of saints: his instructions and prayers, filled with a humble and repentant spirit, they spread throughout Rus'. Among the disciples of St. Alexander there are many little-known saints, whose memory was revered before the revolution in small monasteries founded by them and destroyed during the years of Soviet power. The memory of all these ascetics is celebrated in the Cathedral of Saints who shone in the land of Karelian.

Already in 1545, several years after the death of the saint, the disciple and follower of the saint as rector of the monastery, Abbot Herodion, compiled his life, then the celebration of the memory of the saint on the day of his departure to the Lord and a service to him. Many miracles were performed at his grave, despite the short period by church standards.

At the same time, short prayers were written - the troparion and kontakion to Alexander of Svirsky, which are still sung on the days of the saint’s memory, and can also be memorized and read at any time in case of danger to life:

From your youth, you, God-wise, settled in the desert by spiritual desire, you only wanted to diligently walk in the footsteps of Christ, therefore even the Angelic armies, seeing you, were amazed at how you, a carnal man, wisely fought with invisible demonic forces, defeated the regiments of passions and demons through abstinence and became equal to the Angels on earth - Reverend Alexander, pray to Christ God to save our souls!
Like a bright shining star, you shone in the Russian countries, Father Alexander, moved into the desert and zealously desired to follow the path of the Lord, and having accepted that holy rule, bearing your cross, you killed your bodily desires and lusts with your labors and exploits, therefore we pray to you earnestly: save your disciples, whom you wisely gathered into your monastery, and the people who pray to you, so that we sing: Rejoice, O Saint Alexander, our father!

The relics of St. Alexander - a wonderful shrine

A century later, during the reconstruction of the Transfiguration Church in the “waste hermitage”, on April 17, 1641, the saint’s grave was opened: the ground above it rose like a vault, the dilapidated coffin revealed the luminous face of the saint, who remained as if asleep. The incorrupt relics of St. Alexander were placed in the middle of the temple: people prayerfully kissed the right hand (right, blessing hand) of the saint, prayed and received help from the saint. The relics remained in the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery until the beginning of the persecution of the Church.

Already in 1918, a “campaign to combat the remains” - holy relics - began. Both monasteries founded by the monk were plundered, and many monks were shot. But even these cruel people, atheists, were struck by the sight of the saint’s relics open and prepared for destruction and desecration: the Red Army soldiers were seized with horror, because the saint retained the same appearance as during burial, and a century later, when the relics were found, “as if he had fallen asleep.” Over time, a wax “blank” was placed in place of the relics, and they themselves were taken away. It is unknown how long they were transported and who made the decision about this, but after the return of the Church of the monasteries they were discovered at the St. Petersburg Military Medical Academy. According to legend, they were hidden from destruction by one of the museum employees.

Since 1998, the relics are again in the monastery, which is being reborn from the ruins through the prayers of the monk. The Alexander-Svirsky Monastery (this is the common name for both monasteries - Alexander and Holy Trinity) is located near the city of Lodeynoye Pole in the Leningrad region. The revered icons of the saint are located not only in this monastery, but also in the capital of the country: the Holy Trinity and Alexander Svirsky churches in Moscow.

The Church does not interfere with scientific research of the relics: all scientists are amazed at the preservation of human tissue in the relics of the monk, and no one is able to explain their phenomenon; in addition, the relics emit a pleasant smell to which bees fly; sometimes they exude myrrh - a fragrant liquid from the essential oils of plants also unknown on Earth (myrrh in the history of the Church was often exuded by miraculous icons and relics).

The days of memory of St. Alexander of Svirsky are established for veneration by the entire Church twice a year: September 12 (the day of the saint’s death - for all saints, the day of death is equated with the celebration of memory, because it is on this day that a person ascends to the Lord and finds peace and glory in His Kingdom) and April 17 is the day of the discovery of the relics of the saint in the 17th century.

The meaning of the icon of St. Alexander of Svirsky: how to recognize the saint

It is interesting that the Monk Alexander of Svirsky has a wide variety of types of iconography, that is, icons in different poses and different moments of life. Staying all his life far from the turbulent events of Russian history, in the thicket of the forests of the Russian North, the saint created the spiritual history of our country, having the great gifts of God. This is reflected in the icons of the saint.

One of his first icons was created immediately after the discovery of the relics of the ascetic, in the 17th century. Saint Alexander is depicted lying on it: the discovered relics were truly as if the saint had just fallen asleep.




Another image is associated with the relics of the saint - an all-Russian shrine: in the 19th century, when saints were depicted in an academic manner (that is, icons were essentially portraits, only with a signature in Church Slavonic and a halo above the head of the person depicted), an icon-portrait of the saint was painted " from life,” that is, from the relics as from a living person. It's hard to find now.




Another image shows Saint Alexander in schematic clothing. His right palm is open to those praying in front of the icon; in his left hand the saint holds a rolled up scroll - a symbol of contemplation of God, reflection on God and instructions left to his disciples. The Monk Alexander is easily recognizable by his curly gray hair, round face and the same round beard with curls.




The image of St. Alexander at the moment of the appearance of Three Bright Angels to him: God in the Holy Trinity is unique. Three Youths with blond hair in white shining robes are located on the left side of the icon and are shown walking with staffs in bright light, looking at the elder kneeling in awe on the right side of the icon. Each of them holds a staff in his hand. Near the saint there are spruce trees, moss and other signs of northern nature. Saint Alexander of Svirsky stretches out his right hand to the Lord, pressing the other to his chest and thereby expressing heartfelt tenderness, fear of God and prayerful fervor. The saint is dressed in dark clothes - a rough brown monastic robe, which symbolizes the sinfulness of human nature and its corruption in comparison with the Divine.




Another icon indicating the appearance of the Holy Trinity to St. Alexander is the image of him leaning on a staff, with the icon of the “Holy Trinity” in the famous iconography created by St. Andrei Rublev. The monk’s head is covered with the hood of the monastic schema as a sign of reverence, and his gaze is directed simultaneously in front of himself and deep into himself, as if through the person praying. This is the expression on the face inherent in the icons of many saints: as if the saint sees what is inaccessible to ordinary people, feels the Spirit of God within himself and listens to Him.




The last type of iconography of St. Alexander of Svir is an image first painted in the middle of the 16th century. This is a hagiographic icon, that is, around the image of the saint himself there are stamps on which various episodes from the life of the saint are depicted. You need to “read” such a picturesque life from left to right and from top to bottom. Unlike other icons, there are more than a hundred subjects: this iconography continued to develop in subsequent centuries. The very image of the monk, around whom the hallmarks are built, usually represents him in traditional monastic robes with a blessing gesture with his right hand and a scroll in his left hand.

How to pray to Alexander Svirsky

Like many saints, St. Alexander is asked for help in those areas of life where he labored, which are connected with his destiny.

• People always turn to saints in serious illnesses - pray to St. Alexander, himself healed by an Angel, for health and healing of any illness or injury, because there are many known cases of his miraculous help in illness.


• They pray to the monk for strengthening faith, love for God, and growth in virtues.


• A simple saint in life will especially help in situations of resentment, injustice, when pride is affected - pray to him for humility and peace.


• It is known that the saint’s parents prayed to give birth to a child, so you can ask him for deliverance from infertility and health. child and his choice of the right path in life.


• It is known that the saint helps to find an heir: people who dreamed of giving birth to a son often turned to him and received what they asked for.


• Those who are planning to take monastic vows and leave their parents’ home for a monastery pray to the saint for the right choice, admonition, and a calm departure without scandals with their parents.


• The parents of future monks themselves pray to him - for peace of mind, acceptance of the child’s choice, help for him.


• Pray sincerely, with faith in what you ask. Think about whether you may be to blame for the current situation if it is difficult for you. Repent of your sins.


• Pray at home or in church in front of an icon of the saint - it is quite rare if you do not live in the North-West of Russia, but it can be purchased in large church shops.


• If desired, light a candle before prayer, venerate the icon (cross yourself twice, kiss the saint’s hand, cross yourself again and bow). We wish you the blessing of the monk and inspiration by his example to pray!

The prayer to Alexander Svirsky for all needs can be read online in Russian using the text below:

Oh, holy chief of the Svirskaya monastery, earthly angel and heavenly man, reverend, bearing the Spirit of God within himself, our father Alexander, renowned saint of the Most Holy and Consubstantial Trinity, many mercies to the inhabitants of your monastery and to all who come and turn to you with faith and love, revealing!
Ask for us everything necessary for earthly life, especially what is necessary for eternal life and salvation!
Help with your intercession, saint of God, the rulers of our Russian country and the archpastors of the holy Orthodox Church of Christ, may the Lord keep us all in peace. Be to all of us, holy wonderworker, a quick helper in all sorrows and grief, especially in times of death, be a kind-hearted intercessor for us, so that during our ordeals we will not be betrayed to the power of the heavenly evil prince of this world, but will be rewarded with unhindered entry into the Heavenly Kingdom of God.
Our everlasting father and prayer book! Do not deceive our hopes, do not turn away from our humble prayer, but always intercede for us before the Throne of the Life-Giving Trinity, so that we, together with you and with all the saints, although unworthy of this, in the heavenly villages, glorify and magnify the mercy and grace of the Lord in the Most Holy Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Through the prayers of Saint Alexander of Svirsky, may the Lord protect you!

(Russian: Alexander-Svirsky Monastery; English: Alexander-Svirsky Monastery)

How to get there: from St. Petersburg by train, and from Petrozavodsk by train you can get to Lodeynoye Pole, from there by local bus you can get to the village of Staraya Sloboda (Svirskoye village).

Or: from St. Petersburg, from the 1st bus station, take a bus along the route "St. Petersburg - Pitkyaranta" or "St. Petersburg - Petrozavodsk", pass the city of Lodeynoye Pole and get off at the Svirskoye junction (249th km Murmansk highway), from there you can walk (5 km) or hitch a ride to the village of Staraya Sloboda.

Opening hours: visiting the monastery is possible daily from 8.00 am until the end of the evening service, until approximately 20:00. Inspection of the interior of the monastery by excursion groups of pilgrims and tourists is possible only during non-liturgical times, and is limited by the internal routine of the monastery. A visit to the temple where the Holy relics of St. Alexander of Svir are located is possible from Monday to Saturday from 10.00 to 17.00, and on Sunday from 12.00 to 17.00.

Holy Trinity Alexander Svirsky Monastery is an Orthodox male monastery in the Leningrad region, 21 km from the city of Lodeynoye Pole. Wherever you look, you are surrounded by snow-white walls of the monastery, a velvet-green strip of coniferous forest. Even during the life of its founder, the monastery developed as two connected to each other, but independently located complexes (departments): Trinity with fraternal cells, and Preobrazhensky - next to the cemetery. They are connected by a road running next to Lake Roshchinskoye.

The strengthening of the Orthodox faith in this region became possible thanks to the strict, pious ascetic lifestyle of the founder of the monastery. The holy monastery was founded in 1508 by the Venerable Alexander of Svir, a monk of the Valaam Monastery near the mouth of the Svir River.

Map of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery

The Monk Alexander was born on June 15, 1448, on the day of remembrance of the prophet Ammos, after whom he was named. When he turned 19, he learned about his parents’ intention to marry him and secretly left for Valaam. After seven years spent on Valaam as a novice, in 1474 Ammos took monastic vows with the name Alexander.

In better times, the monastery had 8 churches, a rich sacristy, expensively decorated icons, a rich book depository with ancient manuscripts, scrolls and books. Historians of the 19th century called the monastery the Northern Lavra, it controlled 27 monasteries and the desert of this region.

Before the revolution, a priceless shrine for all of Russia - the incorruptible relics of St. Alexander of Svirsky rested in the chapel of the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord, resting in a precious silver shrine donated by Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich. The shrine was made by craftsmen at the Armory Chamber in Moscow; the cover of the shrine has been preserved and is in the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. In addition, the monastery sacristy contained part of the staff of St. Alexander, found together with his relics in the coffin, the coffin itself, iron chains, a linen chasuble and armbands, as well as shrine covers sent as a gift from Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. Letters granted to the monastery from the Moscow kings were also kept here (most of the letters belonged to Boris Godunov).

In 1918, the monastery shared the fate of many Orthodox monasteries in Russia. The relics of St. Alexander were taken to the Military Medical Academy as an exhibit, the monks were dispersed, and some of them, led by their rector, Archimandrite Evgeniy (Trofimov), were shot. In 1918, in the western wall of the Trinity Cathedral, the brethren made a hiding place, which contained crayfish and part of the sacristy's belongings, which was later discovered. The Olonets Provincial Extraordinary Commission seized all the items and transported them to Petrozavodsk.

During the pogrom of the Svirsky Monastery, which was finally closed only in 1925, the relics of St. Alexander were disturbed. They took the relics out of the shrine and touched them. They wanted to take him with them, but the brethren begged him to leave, and they left him.
But the relics did not remain in the monastery for long. In December 1918 they were transported to Lodeynoye Pole. After this, the remains of the saint were put on display in the hospital chapel. All this was done for the “merciless fight against the enemies of the communist idea and socialist thought.”

The region of St. Alexander turned into “Svirlag”. During the Great Patriotic War, both monasteries suffered significant damage - the front line was not far away. In 1953, “Svirlag” was disbanded and a decree was issued to convert it into a mental hospital, and for hopeless patients. The camp guards and some of those unescorted took jobs as orderlies.

On September 22, 1998, the monastery was officially transferred to the St. Petersburg Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The second time the relics of St. Alexander of Svirsky were discovered in 1998, on July 28 of the same year, they were transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church and were first located in the courtyard of the Intercession-Tervinicheskiy Monastery in the Church of Saints Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia. On November 23, 1998, the relics of St. Alexander were finally transferred to their final resting place - to the Holy Trinity Alexander of Svirsky Monastery.

In the report, Metropolitan Vladimir of St. Petersburg and Ladoga was informed that myrrh flow had begun in the X-ray room in the SMES building during a prayer service. The flow of myrrh and the fragrance were so strong that bees from nowhere flocked to this smell of flower honey, they swarmed around the feet of the Reverend, crawled along the windowsill located next to the shrine. This fact caused great surprise among television operators who filmed this story for the NTV channel. The myrrh itself flowed down the Saint’s feet in streams, covering them, when dry, with another shiny oily layer. It was noted that in the evening hours, after the closing of the temple, when silence was restored there, after a large crowd of people, that blessed time came when, also, one could see the newly intensifying flow of myrrh - individual droplets of myrrh appeared between the fingers of the Reverend. Numerous pilgrims come to the Saint, at whose holy relics many miracles and healings are performed.

Scheme of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery

The monastery, as a single whole, developed in the 16th - 17th centuries, and consists of two independent ensembles - Trinity and Preobrazhensky. Until now, they are separated by special fences and have special names, based on the churches built in them. One of them is called Trinity, and the other, where the Venerable Hermitage was, is called Preobrazhensky.

The ancient buildings of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery have not survived - a consequence of the destruction of the monastery by the Poles and Swedes in 1618. The first stone building of the monastery that has survived to this day is the church in the name of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, begun during the lifetime of the Venerable Alexander himself. The church was heavily destroyed by the Swedes and Poles in 1618, and was practically rebuilt from the ruins on the old foundation in 1619 - 1620.

In the years 1647-1674, a three-tiered belfry was erected in the Trinity Monastery, placed on a wide quadrangular base and topped with three tents. On the third tier there was a “combat” clock, dismantled in the 19th century during the reconstruction of the belfry.

Trinity Cathedral, which is the center of the Trinity ensemble, is already the fourth, built on the spot where the Church in the name of the Holy Trinity was originally built by the Monk Alexander, at the behest of God.

The cathedral preserves paintings executed in 1715 by an artel of Kostroma craftsmen, under the leadership of Leonty Markov, and an iconostasis with icons from the late 17th century. The monastery archives mention the names of famous Tikhvin icon painters Gavrila Sazonov, Peter and Ivan Falileev, Ivan Ivanov, as well as the Tikhvin “icon painter” Herodion Sergiev. The walls and pillars of the Trinity Cathedral were painted by Herodion Sergiev and Ivan Ivanov. The frescoes were preserved, however, in the 1960s they were 50 centimeters behind the wall, and restorers nailed them with special gesso nails.

The Church of St. John of Damascus, or "Hospital", was built in 1716 north of Trinity Cathedral.

These churches are located in the Trinity part of the monastery, the cell buildings of which were adapted in the 60s of the twentieth century as hospital wards (designed by architect A. N. Naumova), and are still occupied by a psychiatric hospital.
The Transfiguration part, at present, completely belongs to the monastery, and on its territory, as before, the holy relics of St. Alexander of Svir rest in the Transfiguration Cathedral.

The current Transfiguration Cathedral was built in 1641, under Abbot Abraham, and the chapel in the name of St. Alexander of Svirsky - in 1716. In 1856 - 1857, engineer Gorting-Gortitsky replaced wooden floors with metal ones. At the same time, under the leadership of architect Tukhtarev, some door and window openings were expanded. In 1900, Archimandrite Agafangel built an extension to the western side of the cathedral with choirs for the brethren, decorated with turned wooden railings. The bell tower and Zakharyevskaya Church connected to it give the cathedral a special elegance.

The Church of the Holy Prophet Zechariah and Elizabeth was built in 1668 under Abbot Macarius. After the fire in 1784 and renovation in 1833, the church changed a lot. From the original cathedral, the window above the entrance of the southern facade has been preserved, having a frame of two columns with a triangular pediment.

There is a well in the monastery, which was dug by the hands of the Reverend. It has been restored, but at the moment you can’t drink water from it yet, because for many years there was a gas station next to it.

The courtyard of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery, today, is located in the Vesyoly village of the Nevsky district of the city of St. Petersburg.

Official website of the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery: www.svirskoe.ru

Many corners of the Russian land were sanctified by the presence of humble ascetics. Such is the northern Olonets land. Here, on the shore of Lake Roshchinskoye, stands the ancient Alexander-Svirsky Monastery.

The owner of these places is the Venerable Abbot Alexander of Svirsky; he dedicated his life to one goal: he wanted to contemplate the Lord with spiritual eyes and serve Him. And he received an answer to his aspirations: he was the only one of the Russian saints who in reality received the great and terrible visit of God the Trinity.

Reverend Alexander Svirsky was an ordinary child: his biography at the beginning of his life’s journey is similar to the biographies of ordinary boys living at that time. He was born in 1448 in the village of Mandera, Novgorod province.

The village was located on the banks of the northern Oyat River. He was the third, but very desirable child in the family. The pious parents Stefan and Vassa, looking at the calendar, chose a name for their son. The baby was named Amos, because the memory of this Old Testament prophet was celebrated on the day the boy was born.

Important! Folk signs: is it possible for a birthday?

The child received a Christian upbringing, grew up humble and pious, loved fasting and dreamed of doing all his deeds “in the name of the Lord.” The boy was not good at reading and writing. But the time that Alexander Svirsky spent in prayer was not in vain: his life tells that changes soon took place in his life. After some time, the opportunity presented itself to make my dream come true.

A meeting with monks from the island of Valaam changed his life. From them he learned about the Valaam Monastery, famous for its strict rules. The monks told the young man about the monastic ascetic life, and he became eager to become one of the brethren. It was decided to secretly leave my father's house. Under the cover of darkness, the young ascetic set off for the desired monastery. The abbot accepted Amos and gave him the task of working in various obediences to make sure whether the young man’s calling was true.

In 1474, after seven years of novitiate, the monk took monastic vows. On Valaam at that time there was a communal monastic rule, but the cherished desire of the young monk was solitary prayer. With the blessing of the abbot, he chooses a lonely island as the place of his ascetic labors. There no one could interfere with concentrated prayer work.

After several years of seclusion, the Monk Alexander of Svirsky, praying in his cell, heard the Divine voice and saw a light pointing to the southeast. He should have gone there, to the shore of the distant Holy Lake, to establish a monastery in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity. There the young ascetic will find his salvation. Having taken the blessing from the abbot of his monastery, he got ready to set off.

1. Obedient to the will of God, he went to the indicated place and chose a secluded island for his residence.
2. At some distance, on the shore of Lake Roshchinskoye, he set up a retreat (prayer hermitage), which became for him a new place for performing spiritual deeds.
3. One day, during the regular prayer rule that the monk performed in his cell, the Holy Trinity appeared to him in the form of three Angels in light robes.
4. The Lord looked upon the spiritual exploits of His servant and celebrated them with His visit. The monk received instructions to build a temple on this site in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity and create a monastery around it.

This event is shrouded in the greatest mystery, but the Monk Alexander of Svirsky did not doubt for a moment the truth of the voice of God. At the indicated place, the saint erected a wooden church, which was later built in stone. The brethren who had gathered by that time for prayerful deeds persuaded the ascetic to accept the priesthood, and then the abbess.

The saint spends the rest of his life in the labors of caring for the monastery, never ceasing to teach the brethren to do humble and godly deeds. Life tells that Alexander Svirsky could already perform miracles, so strong were his prayers to the Lord. During his life, the saint was awarded another vision: the Most Holy Theotokos herself came to consecrate the beginning of the construction of a church in the name of Her Intercession.

After the abbot's death in 1533, he was buried in the waste hermitage. And after 14 years, the icon of Alexander Svirsky was painted and the akathist approved. The monk was canonized. This is surprising, since it is the tradition of the church to glorify the righteous after a much longer period of time. But the miracles that occurred through the prayers of the saint became the decisive factor in favor of his speedy canonization.

Alexander-Svirsky Monastery

The example of the pious life of the ascetic served to spread Orthodoxy in the Olonets region, which was remote at that time. Ancient tribes lived here at that time. The monastery became for them a beacon of Orthodoxy.

People flocked here who wanted to become a monk in order to gain salvation through prayer and good deeds. The monastery expanded, new churches were opened, and the number of brethren increased.

It occupied a fairly large area, since it consisted of two parts - Troitskaya and Preobrazhenskaya, connected by a direct road.

Note! The great event of the appearance of the first abbot of the Holy Trinity Monastery is now reminded by the chapel erected on the spot where the miracle occurred.

Here numerous pilgrims can take sand with them with the blessing of St. Alexander of Svirsky. It is constantly replenished where traces of the presence of the Holy Trinity are forever imprinted. What does this shrine help with? Many who prayerfully apply it to a sore spot note significant relief. Orthodox Christians know that miraculous properties appear through sincere faith and prayer.

The Alexander-Svirsky Monastery has experienced a lot. They tried to destroy it and rob it more than once. But then the time of revival and prosperity came again.

During the period of its greatest prosperity, the monastery even bore the name of the Northern Lavra, since there were about 27 monasteries under its control. The monastery, through the prayers of its heavenly abbot (whose relics resided in the Transfiguration Church), was very rich and prosperous for a long time.

A very sad time came, and this greatest shrine left the monastery. In 1918, a terrible godless time began. The shrine was taken away, the monks were dispersed and shot, the churches were destroyed. And on the territory of the monastery at different times there were various organizations, including a psychiatric hospital.

But, by the grace of God, the hard times are over. The monastery came to life again. The monks returned to their ruined home. Construction began to boil, churches were re-consecrated and opened, cells were restored, parishioners and pilgrims began to flock. And most importantly: a precious shrine returned to the monastery - the relics of the saint, the eternal prayer book and guardian of the monastery. This joyful event took place on July 30, 1998.

Through the intercession of the holy abbot, the monastery is being revived and alive today. Again, countless miracles occur at the relics in response to tearful prayers and petitions. Thousands of cases of instant healings are recorded in synodics. Cases of help, evidence that the Monk Alexander Svirsky hears prayers and helps, are described in numerous videos.

Holy relics

The election of the holy abbot of the monastery is a reflection of great merits before the face of the Lord. All his prayers were answered. The Almighty also despises the work of any person and responds to requests.

For almost 500 years, the relics of St. Alexander of Svir have amazed everyone who has seen them, prayed or worked with them. It is not enough to say that they are imperishable. During all this time, they have retained their appearance. Pilgrims, kissing them, claim that they have the temperature of the human body. In other words, the saint is still alive.

Those who are familiar with St. Alexander of Svirsky and his life should definitely read the story of the second discovery of the relics or watch a video about it. Their fate is very difficult. It seemed that they were trying to erase the saint’s spiritual exploits from people’s memory forever.

They were first acquired back in 1641. Their extraordinary preservation even then surprised everyone who witnessed that event: the brethren of the monastery, Metropolitan Afoniy of Novgorod, the abbots of the Yuryev and Varlamo-Khutyn monasteries.

Note! The relics were placed in a beautiful silver shrine, donated by Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, and transferred to the Transfiguration Church of the monastery.

Almost immediately they began to flow myrrh and emitted a strong fragrance that did not stop for a minute. The relics rested in the shrine until 1918. After a detachment of security officers broke into the monastery, there was a danger of their destruction. But by the providence of God they were taken out and hidden in a small hospital chapel. Later they were taken to Petrograd and placed in the Museum of Anatomy of the Military Medical Academy. There they were relatively safe. So the Monk Alexander of Svirsky hid his holy relics for the time being, and few knew where they were. The saint was waiting for the terrible godless time to end so that he could return to his monastery.

The terrible times have passed. After all the ups and downs, in 1998, the destroyed monastery was again transferred to the Orthodox Church. He again needed the holy guidance and intercession of the heavenly abbot, St. Alexander of Svirsky, in the matter of revival. The brethren of the monastery prayed that the Lord would reveal where the holy relics were.

In 1997, unnamed relics were discovered in the museum hall. After an examination process, they were identified, and in 1998, the holy wonderworker Alexander again took his place at the northern wall, next to the altar.

What does it help with?

The list of cases and testimonies about the prayer help of a miracle worker is constantly growing. The miraculous icon of Alexander Svirsky was painted from the holy relics, and the people who prayed in front of it know from experience what the saint helps with.

They pray to him if they want to ask for help in:

• strengthening faith;
• healing from illnesses;
• the birth of a long-awaited child;
• choosing the right path in life.

Useful video

Let's sum it up

Today, the place near the relics is never empty. Prayers of thanksgiving to the patron saint are constantly served. Numerous pilgrims come, make their requests and aspirations, and take blessed sand with them. The holy wonderworker Reverend Alexander of Svirsky, as before, offers his prayers to the All-Merciful Lord.

The Monk Alexander of Svirsky was born on June 15, 1448, on the day of remembrance of the Prophet Amos, and at Baptism he was named after him. All his life, staying far from historical events, the Monk Alexander, the luminary of monasticism, in the depths of the forests of the Russian North, created a different, spiritual history, having been rewarded with the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit.

His parents, Stefan and Vassa (Vasilisa), were peasants in the Ladoga village of Mandera, on the banks of the Oyat River, a tributary of the Svir River. They had two children who were already grown up and living separately from their parents. But Stefan and Vassa wanted to have another son. They prayed earnestly and heard a voice from above: “Rejoice, good marriage, you will give birth to a son, in whose birth God will give consolation to His Churches.”

Amos grew up to be a special boy. He was always obedient and meek, avoided games, laughter and foul language, wore scanty clothes and exhausted himself with fasting so much that he worried his mother. Upon reaching adulthood, he once met with Valaam monks who came to Oyat to buy things necessary for the monastery and for other economic needs. By this time, Valaam was already known as a monastery of high piety and strictly ascetic life. After talking with them, the young man became interested in their story about the hermitage (two or three together) and hermit life of the monks. Knowing that his parents wanted to marry him, the young man at the age of 19 secretly went to Valaam. Under the guise of a companion, an Angel of God appeared to him and showed him the way to the island.

Amos lived in the monastery for seven years as a novice, leading a harsh life. He spent his days in labor, his nights in vigil and prayer. Sometimes naked to the waist, covered with mosquitoes and midges, he prayed in the forest until the morning birdsong.

In 1474 Amos took monastic vows with the name Alexander. A few years later, the parents accidentally learned from Karelians who came to Mandera where their son had disappeared. Following the example of their son, the parents soon also went to the monastery and took monastic vows with the names Sergius and Varvara. After their death, the Monk Alexander, with the blessing of the abbot of the monastery, settled on a secluded monastic island, where he built a cell in a cleft in the rock and continued his spiritual exploits.

The glory of his exploits spread far. Then the monk in 1485 left Valaam and, according to instructions from above, chose a place in the forest on the shore of a beautiful lake, which later became known as the Holy Lake. Here the monk built himself a hut (Subsequently, on this place, near the Holy Lake, 36 versts from the future city of Olonets and 6 versts from the Svir River, the venerable Alexander founded the monastery of the Life-Giving Trinity, and 130 fathoms from it, near Lake Roshchinsky, he built himself "waste desert", on the site of which the Alexander-Svirsky monastery later arose.) and lived alone for seven years, eating only what he collected in the forest. At this time, the saint experienced severe suffering from hunger, cold, illness and devilish temptations. But the Lord constantly supported the spiritual and physical strength of the righteous man. Once, when, suffering from painful illnesses, the monk not only could not get up from the ground, but also raise his head, he lay and sang psalms. And then a glorious husband appeared to him. Placing his hand on the sore spot, he marked the saint with the sign of the cross and healed him.

In 1493, while hunting for a deer, the neighboring owner Andrei Zavalishin accidentally came across the saint’s home. Struck by the appearance of the righteous man, Andrei told him about the light he had seen earlier over this place, and begged the monk to tell him about his life. From then on, Andrei began to often visit the Monk Alexander and, finally, according to his instructions, he himself retired to Valaam, where he took monastic vows with the name Adrian. Subsequently, he founded the Ondrusovo monastery and became famous for his holy life (comm. August 26 and May 17; † 1549).

Andrei Zavalishin could not keep silent about the ascetic, despite the promise given to him. The glory of the righteous man spread widely, and monks began to gather to him. Then the monk secluded himself from all the brethren and built himself a retreat hermitage 130 fathoms from the common dwelling. There he faced many temptations. The demons took on an animal form and whistled like a snake, forcing the saint to flee. But the saint’s prayer, like a fiery flame, scorched and scattered the demons.

In 1508, in the 23rd year of the saint’s stay in the reserved place, the Life-Giving Trinity appeared to him. The monk prayed at night in the waste hermitage. Suddenly a strong light shone, and the monk saw Three Men entering him, dressed in light, white clothes. Sanctified by Heavenly glory, They shone with purity, brighter than the sun. Each of them held a rod in His hand. The monk fell in fear, and, having come to his senses, bowed to the ground. Lifting him by the hand, the men said: “Trust, O blessed one, and do not be afraid.” The monk received orders to build a church and establish a monastery. He fell to his knees again, crying out about his unworthiness, but the Lord raised him up and commanded him to do what was specified. The monk asked in whose name the church should be. The Lord said: “Beloved, as you see Him speaking to you in Three Persons, so build a church in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Consubstantial Trinity. I leave you peace and I will give you My peace.” And immediately the Monk Alexander saw the Lord with outstretched wings, as if walking on the earth, and He became invisible. In the history of the Russian Orthodox Church, this Divine descent is known as the only one. After this phenomenon, the monk began to think about where to build a church. One day, while praying to God, he heard a voice from above. Looking up into the heights, the monk saw an Angel of God in a mantle and a doll, just as St. Pachomius the Great saw. The angel, standing in the air with outstretched wings and raised hands, said: “One is Holy, One is Lord Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father, amen.” And then he turned to the monk: “Alexander, on this place may a church be built in the Name of the Lord who appeared to you in Three Persons, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Indivisible Trinity.” And, having crossed the place three times, the Angel became invisible.

In the same year, the wooden Church of the Life-Giving Trinity was built (in 1526 a stone one was erected in its place). Immediately after the church was built, the brethren began to beg the monk to accept the priesthood. He refused for a long time, considering himself unworthy. Then the brethren began to pray to Saint Serapion, Archbishop of Novgorod († 1516; Comm. March 16), so that he would convince the monk to accept the rank. That same year the monk traveled to Novgorod and received dedication from the saint. Soon after, the brethren begged the monk to accept the abbess.

Having become abbot, the monk became even more humble than before. His clothes were all in patches, he slept on the bare floor. He prepared food himself, kneaded dough, baked bread. One day there was not enough firewood and the steward asked the abbot to send those of the monks who were idle to fetch firewood. “I am idle,” said the monk and began to chop wood. Another time he started carrying water the same way. And at night, when everyone was asleep, the monk often ground bread for others with hand millstones. At night, the monk walked around the cells and, if he heard vain conversations somewhere, knocked lightly on the door and left, and in the morning he instructed the brethren, imposing penance on the guilty.

Towards the end of his life, the Monk Alexander decided to build a stone church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. The foundation of the temple was laid. One evening, after performing an akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos, the monk sat down to rest in his cell and suddenly said to his cell attendant Athanasius: “Child, be sober and watchful, because at this hour there will be a wonderful and terrible visitation.” A voice like thunder was heard: “Behold, the Lord comes and she who gave birth to Him.” The monk hurried to the entrance of the cell, and a great light shone around him, spreading over the entire monastery brighter than the rays of the sun. Having looked, the monk saw above the foundation of the Church of the Intercession, sitting on the altar, like a queen on a throne, the Most Pure Mother of God. She held the Child Christ in Her arms, and many angelic ranks, shining with indescribable lightness, stood before Her. The monk fell, unable to bear the great light. The Mother of God said: “Arise, chosen one of My Son and God! For now I have come to visit you, My beloved, and to see the foundation of My church. And because I prayed for the disciples and your monastery, from now on it will abound for everyone; and not only with your life, but even after your departure I will remain constant from your monastery, generously giving everything you need. Look and observe carefully how many monks have gathered into your flock, who must be guided by you on the path of salvation in the Name of the Holy Trinity.” The monk stood up and saw many monks. The Mother of God said again: “My beloved, if anyone brings even one brick to build My church, in the Name of Jesus Christ, My Son and God, he will not lose his reward.” And She became invisible.

Before his death, the monk showed amazing humility. He called the brethren and commanded them: “Tie my sinful body at the feet with a rope and drag it into the swampy wilds and, burying it in the moss, trample it with your feet.” The brethren answered: “No, father, we cannot do this.” Then the monk indicated not to bury his body in the monastery, but in the waste hermitage, near the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Having lived 85 years, the saint departed to the Lord on August 30, 1533.

The Monk Alexander of Svirsky became famous for his wondrous miracles during his life and after his death. In 1545, the disciple and successor of the monk, Abbot Herodion, compiled his life. In 1547, local celebrations of the saint's memory began and a service to him was compiled. In 1641, on April 17, during the reconstruction of the Church of the Transfiguration, the incorrupt relics of St. Alexander of Svirsky were found and a church-wide celebration was established for him on two dates: the day of repose - August 30 and the day of glorification (discovery of the relics) - April 17. (About the Venerable Alexander Svirsky: Archbishop Pitirim. The Church as the implementation of the Trinitarian Economy - "Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate", 1975, N 1, p. 59. Volgin A. The Venerable Alexander Svirsky. - "Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate", 1978, N 8, p. . 73-76).

A whole host of students was instructed and educated by the Monk Alexander of Svirsky, as the Mother of God bequeathed to him. These are the venerables: Ignatius Ostrovsky (XVI), Leonid Ostrovsky (XVI), Cornelius Ostrovsky (XVI), Dionysius Ostrovsky (XVI), Afanasy Ostrovsky (XVI), Theodore Ostrovsky (XVI), Ferapont Ostrovsky (XVI). In addition to these saints, the disciples and interlocutors of St. Alexander of Svirsky are known, having separate days of remembrance: St. Athanasius of Syandem (XVI, commemorated January 18), St. Gennady Vazheozersky († January 8, 1516, commemorated February 9), St. Macarius of Oredezh († 1532, commemorated August 9), Rev. Adrian Ondrusovsky († August 26, 1549, commemorated May 17), Rev. Nikifor of Vazheozersky († 1557, commemorated February 9), Rev. Gennady of Kostroma and Lyubimograd († 1565, commemorated January 23). All these saints (except for St. Gennady of Kostroma) are depicted on the icon of the venerable fathers who shone in the land of Karelian (from the church of the Theological Seminary in the city of Kuopio, Finland). The celebration of the Synaxis of Saints who shone in the land of Karelian is celebrated by the Finnish Orthodox Church on Saturday between October 31 and November 6 (See about this: V. Rusak. Icon of the Reverend Fathers who shone in the land of Karelian. "Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate", 1974, No. 12 , pp. 16-21).