Constantine the Blessed | |
---|---|
Right-Believing | |
Born | c. 11th century Principality of Murom, Kievan Rus' |
Died | c. 1129 Principality of Murom, Kievan Rus' |
Venerated in | Eastern Orthodoxy |
Canonized | 1547, Makaryev Monastery, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Tsardom of Russia by Maxarius of Moscow |
Major shrine | Cathedral of the Annunciation, Murom, Russia |
Feast | 21 May |
Attributes | Clothed as Grand Prince, holding a three-bar cross in his right hand |
Patronage | Murom |
Constantine of Murom (Russian: Святой Блаженный Князь Константин) (11th century - 1129) known as Saint Constantine the Blessed was a direct descendant of Vladimir I of Kiev and the son of Prince Svyatoslav of Chernigov.
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Transcription
The most important walls in western history aren't even in the West. They surround the modern city of Istanbul, Constantinople as the Romans called it. And for a thousand years, the fate of Europe depended on them. Constantinople was designed to be the center of the world. When the frontiers of the Roman Empire began to crumble in the 4th Century, the capital was moved to the cultured, wealthy, and still stable East. There, at the crossroads between Europe and Asia, the hub of the major trade routes of the ancient world, the Emperor Constantine built his city. This was the city of libraries and universities, 20 times the size of London or Paris at the time. It contained the priceless knowledge of the classical world which was fading in the West. To protect this masterpiece from its many enemies, Constantine's successors built the finest defensive fortifications ever made. The first line of protection was a moat 60 feet wide and 22 feet deep, stretching all four miles from coast to coast. Pipes from inside the city could fill it at the first sight of the enemy, and a short wall protected archers who could fire at the soaked soldiers trying to swim across. Those who were lucky enough to clear the moat had to contend with an unceasing barrage from the 27 foot outer wall above. Arrows, spears, or far worse, Greek fire -- an ancient form of napalm that would ignite on contact and couldn't be extinguished by water -- would rain down on them. Squads of Roman defenders would carry portable flame throwers, spraying anyone trying to climb out of the moat. The terrified victims would leap back, only to find that they still burned underwater. At times, the Romans would also mount siphons onto the ramparts, and launch clay pots full of Greek fire from catapults at an invading army. The front lines would turn into an inferno, making it appear as if the earth itself was on fire. If, by some miracle, the outer wall was compromised, attackers would be faced with the final defense: the great inner wall. These walls were wide enough to have four men ride side by side, allowing troops to be rushed wherever they were needed. Attilla the Hun, destroyer of civilizations, who named himself the Scourge of God, took one look at them and turned around. The Avars battled the walls uselessly til their catapults ran out of rocks. The Turks tried to tunnel under them, but found the foundations too solid. The Arabs tried to starve the city into submission, but ran out of food themselves and had to resort to cannibalism. It took the guns of the modern world to finally bring them down. In 1453, the Turks brought their super weapon: a monster cannon that could fire a 15 hundred pound stone ball over a mile. Together with more than a hundred smaller guns, they kept up a steady bombardment day and night. A section of the old walls collapsed, but even in their death throes they proved formidable. The rubble absorbed the shock of the cannonballs better than the solid wall. It took a month and a half of continuous blasting to finally open a breach. The last Roman Emperor, Constantine the 11th, drew his sword and jumped into the gap to stop the onrushing horde, disappearing into legend. The city was taken, and the Roman Empire finally disappeared. But those broken walls had one last gift. As the survivors fled the doomed city, they brought with them their precious books and their ancient traditions. They traveled west to Italy, reintroduced the Greek language and learning to western Europe, and ignited the Renaissance. Thanks to Constantinople's walls, that pile of brick and marble that guarded them for so long, we still have our classical past.
Life
At Constantine's request, his father assigned him to rule the city of Murom, which at the time was inhabited by pagans, that he might spread Christianity in that region. According to the traditional account of his life, Constantine first sent his son Michael to Murom as his emissary, but the inhabitants threw him from the walls, so Constantine was obliged to take the city by force.[1] However, he made no headway in converting them to Christianity and at one point they became so angry that a mob made their way to his fortress intending to storm the place. According to legend, when he appeared before them bearing what is now known as the Murom-Ryazan icon of the Theotokos, they quieted down and bowed reverently before the holy image.[2] His son Fyodor, with his support, continued the missionary work in the surrounding countryside.
At the place of the murder of his son Michael, the wooden church of the Annunciation was reportedly founded by Prince Constantine in 1205.[3] A new cathedral was built on the site in 1553. It became a monastery under Ivan the Terrible and was ruined by the Poles during the Time of Troubles. In 1664 it was rebuilt by wealthy merchant and arts patron Tarasy Tsvetnov. The monastery features the relics of Constantin and his sons Mikhail and Fyodor. According to a legend recorded by local aristocrat and amateur historian Alexander Yepanchin, each midnight the monastery's gates disappear, and Constantine, Mikhail and Fyodor, clad in regal attire, ride out in a gilded carriage and head to the Cathedral of the Nativity of Mary, where they are met by Pyotr and Fevronia. After praying there, they guard and patrol the city.[4]
Mother of God, "The Star Most Bright"
The icon shows a full-length representation of the Mother of God with a star sending forth rays of light in the background. The origin of its name is connected with the poetic hymns in honor of the Theotokos. Standing on her right hand is the infant Jesus. At her feet are Murom saints: Constantine, Mikhail and Fyodor arrayed in princely robes and Peter, Fevronia and Uliania clad in monastic habits. In the bottom part of the icon is the following inscription: 'This Marvelous Image Is the Star Most Bright of the Most Holy Lady Mother of God Queen of Heaven."[5]
Canonization
On 1547 Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow canonized Constantine as a saint in the Monastery of Makaryev, He is commemorated in the Russian Orthodox Church on May 21.[6] His wife Irene is also venerated at Murom.[1]
References
- ^ a b Walsh, Michael J., "Constantine of Murom", A New Dictionary of Saints: East and West, Liturgical Press, 2007 ISBN 9780814631867
- ^ Murom-Ryazan icon of the Mother of God
- ^ "Venerable Constantine, (In baptism Yaroslav), with his children Michael and Theodore, Wonderworkers of Murom", Orthodox Church in America
- ^ Sukhov, Oleg, "Murom: Murom Still Lives in a Fairy Tale", The Moscow Times, November 25, 2012
- ^ Icon of Mother of God "The Star Most Bright"
- ^ (in Greek) Οἱ Ἅγιοι Κωνσταντίνος, Μιχαὴλ καὶ Θεόδωρος οἱ Πρίγκιπες καὶ Θαυματουργοί. 21 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.
Sources
- A reference in Russian Orthodox Calendar
- Life of the saint from the website of the Orthodox Church in America.