St. Sergius: Preaching Beyond Death
Dr Augustin Sokolovski
On July 18, the Orthodox Church commemorates St. Sergius of Radonezh. On this summer day in 1422, thirty years after the repose of St. Sergius (the number thirty traditionally recalls the years of Christ the Savior’s earthly life before the beginning of His public ministry), the saint’s holy relics were uncovered. Their discovery came at Sergius’ own command, conveyed through a vision.
Sergius lived his entire life in humility. This is no mere figure of speech, but an authentic description of his character. As his name gradually became known among his contemporaries, he sought ever more earnestly the silence and solitude that had always been the true desire of his heart.
In the Orthodox tradition, the Divine Liturgy is called to be a manifestation of glory. The splendor of Orthodox worship is expressed through majestic hymnody, richly woven liturgical texts, magnificent vestments, ritual gestures, processions, blessings, and—remarkably—through the almost complete absence of silence.
Yet there is another image of Orthodox worship, one that remains almost unknown. Several objects that belonged to St. Sergius are preserved in the museum of the Moscow Theological Academy, located within the Holy Trinity–St. Sergius Lavra in Sergiev Posad. Among them are a chalice, a paten, and liturgical vestments. Those who have visited the museum and seen these surviving objects from his lifetime have encountered a very different vision of the Divine Liturgy.
It is a liturgy of humility, a liturgy of solitude, a liturgy of powerlessness, a liturgy of withdrawal from the world. This humble liturgy—let us call it the Liturgy of St. Sergius—reveals itself in liturgical vestments almost utopian in their simplicity and in wooden Eucharistic vessels. It is present in the monastery conceived by its founder as a place of solitude, a city of angels, and a place of hiddenness. Sergius devoted his entire life to the pursuit of this biblical and profoundly Christian “utopianism.” For, in its literal sense, utopia means “no place”—and therefore the presence of something that simply does not exist in this world.
The Life of St. Sergius tells us that for many years the number of his disciples never exceeded twelve, as though he had fashioned his monastery after the pattern of the Last Supper. The icon of the Holy Trinity associated with the tradition of St. Sergius took as its prototype the Greek icon The Hospitality of Abraham, depicting the Patriarch Abraham and the three Angels. Once again, we find ourselves before a sacred meal.
The Life of St. Sergius also relates that Metropolitan Alexius (1292–1378), then the head of the Russian Church, wished to appoint Sergius as his successor. Sergius refused. On another occasion, his own brother attempted to seize authority in the monastery the saint had founded. Sergius simply left.
In a vision, the Most Holy Theotokos appeared to Sergius together with St. John the Theologian. Beside him stood his disciple Mikhei, a man who would likely have remained entirely unknown had it not been for this vision. It is as though Sergius himself, on the eve of so great a visitation, was reluctant to remain alone. Yet he chose to be accompanied not by a metropolitan or an experienced ascetic, but by a humble, simple, and timid monk.
The Life of St. Sergius was composed as a work of praise. Yet even the details that have come down to us often reveal the most unexpected and trustworthy truths. We are told that before his death Sergius did not wish to be buried inside the church, as befitted the founder of a monastery. Instead, he asked the brethren to bury him in the common monastic cemetery.
Testaments Betrayed is the title of a book by our contemporary, Milan Kundera (1929–2023). In it, the great writer reflects on the final wishes of poets and authors that were disregarded after their deaths for what was believed to be the greater good of humanity. Perhaps such actions can be justified, yet they carry a profound and singular tragedy. After death, a person no longer belongs to himself.
With the support of Metropolitan Cyprian, the successor of St. Alexius, the brethren buried St. Sergius not in the monastery cemetery, but in the church he himself had built.
According to the Gospel, Christ received Baptism and began His public ministry at the age of thirty. Thirty years after his own death, St. Sergius appeared in a vision and commanded that his holy relics be uncovered. Thus began his glorification among the saints. Sergius himself went forth to preach.
He appeared to a simple man who sincerely loved him, lived near the monastery, and often came to pray at his grave. We do not know whether this man had known Sergius during his lifetime. Perhaps he knew him only through the stories of his parents; perhaps he himself had been born in fulfillment of a vow, through the prayers of Sergius, like the biblical figures whose barrenness was overcome. We do not even know his name.
In the words of Andrei Platonov’s short story Yushka, “his parents had brought him into the world simply to live.” Yet it was to this man that Sergius appeared, saying:
“Tell the abbot that I am lonely beneath the earth. Water surrounds me on every side. Why have you left me here for so long?”