Venerable (Monastic)12th century

Gerasimus of Vologda

12th century (reposed 1178)

Also known as Gerasim of Vologda

A monk tonsured at the Kiev Caves who travelled north and laboured as the first monastic settler and wonderworker of the Vologda region of Russia.

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Commemorated as

Our Venerable Father Gerasimus of Vologda, the First Wonderworker of Vologda

Life

Gerasimus of Vologda was a monastic of the Kievan Rus' who is venerated as the first saint and the first monastic settler of the Vologda region in northern Russia. Commemorated by the Orthodox Church on March 4, he is honored as the First Wonderworker of Vologda.

According to the tradition preserved in the synaxarion, Gerasimus was born in Kiev and received monastic tonsure at the Kiev Gniloe Dormition Monastery, having been drawn to the Caves where Saint Theodosius secluded himself during Great Lent. He took the name Gerasimus after the custom of naming a new monk for the saint commemorated on the day of his tonsure, and out of obedience to the brethren he accepted ordination as a hieromonk at the age of thirty.

In imitation of the desert fathers, Gerasimus was drawn northward into Rus' and, by the tradition, arrived at the River Vologda on August 19, 1147. There he became the first to establish monastic life in the region, founding a church and monastery dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity.

Kontakion & Troparion2 hymnsReadHide

KontakionTone 8

From your youth, O most wise one, you disdained worldly vanity and forsook corruptible treasures,
neither did you love perishable clothing,
but you received the Holy Angelic Schema with reverence and preserved it with a clear conscience, and with good works.
Even before your death you became a temple of the Holy Trinity because of your godly life,
and you enlightened the faithful who came to you;
therefore we all cry out to you: “Rejoice, Father Gerasimos, worthy of special reverence.”

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

TroparionTone 5

Equal in the image of the Bodiless Powers,
and of one mind with them, O Venerable Gerasimos,
you arrived alone at the Vologda River, foretelling that there would be a great city,
and in it a holy church, and that Hierarchs would appear there.
Therefore, you deigned to be buried near that city,
and after your death you were renowned for many miracles of healing.
Always pray for us, that we may receive mercy from God.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline5 momentsReadHide

Aug 19, 1147Arrival at the River VologdaBy tradition, Gerasimus arrived at the River Vologda and blessed the settlement on the right bank, foretelling that it would become a great city.
12th centuryFoundation of the Trinity monasteryHe built a church in honor of the Most Holy Trinity by the Kaisarova creek, said to be the first monastery in northern Russia dedicated to the Trinity.
Mar 4, 1178ReposeGerasimus reposed peacefully on the day of his monastic tonsure and the feast of Saint Gerasimus of the Jordan.
1649–1666Miracles recorded at his relicsApproximately thirty-seven miracles are reported to have been documented at the saint's relics during this period.
1841Local canonizationAfter formal canonization was reportedly declined in 1699, Gerasimus received local canonization.

Contributions & Legacy

3 contributionsReadHide

Monastic Foundation at Vologda

On reaching the River Vologda, Gerasimus blessed the small settlement on the right bank and, the tradition relates, foretold that it would become a great city. He withdrew into the surrounding forest, separated from the settlement by the Kaisarova creek, where he devoted himself to solitude, the contemplation of God, unceasing prayer, and manual labor.

There he built a church in honor of the Most Holy Trinity, which was also reckoned a monastery. By the account preserved in the sources, this became the first monastery in the north of Russia to be dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity, marking Gerasimus as the pioneer of organized monastic life in the Vologda region.

Repose

Gerasimus reposed peacefully on March 4, 1178, the same day as his monastic tonsure and the feast of his namesake, Saint Gerasimus of the Jordan. He is remembered as the first saint of Vologda and is commemorated on that date as the First Vologda Wonderworker.

Relics & Veneration

The sources relate that numerous miracles were recorded at the saint's relics in the seventeenth century; one account documents approximately thirty-seven miracles between 1649 and 1666. Although formal canonization was reportedly declined in 1699, local canonization is said to have followed in 1841.

By tradition his relics were subsequently lost when the stone church associated with him was demolished in the twentieth century, and a memorial chapel is reported to have been consecrated in 2013.

Related Saints2 saintsShowHide

Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

His namesake, the fifth-century Judean desert father; he received the name Gerasimus at his tonsure and, by tradition, reposed on March 4, the elder of the Jordan's feast.

Gerasimusof the Jordan

Monastic exemplar whose seclusion in the Caves during Great Lent drew Gerasimus to take tonsure at Kiev before he journeyed north to found monastic life at Vologda.

Theodosiusof the Kyiv Caves

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints