St Ignatius (Brianchaninov), Bishop of Stavropol (1867)
Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov), Bishop of Stavropol (1867), in the world Dmitry, was born on 6 February 1807 in the village of Pokrovskoye in the Vologda province, into a noble family. The saint’s father was called Alexander, and his mother Sophia. From early childhood little Dmitry loved to read spiritual books and to pray; he often went to church and attended the services. In 1822 his father took the sixteen-year-old Dmitry to St Petersburg, to the Main Engineering School. After finishing school Dmitry served in his speciality for about two years. All this time his cherished dream was to dedicate himself to the service of God, but a great test lay ahead of his resolve. When the Emperor Nicholas learned of Dmitry’s intention, he charged his brother Michael to dissuade his favourite pupil from leaving the service and becoming a monk. The nineteen-year-old Dmitry stood before the Grand Duke, who offered him service in the royal guard, but the future saint stood firm in his intention. Then, against his will, Dmitry was transferred to the Dinaburg engineering detachment. When the emperor’s brother visited him, he was convinced of his illness and allowed him to retire. Dmitry at once set out for his spiritual father, Father Leonid, in the Alexander-Svirsky monastery. Father Leonid moved from this monastery to the Ploshchansk hermitage, and Dmitry followed him there. A little later he went to the Optina hermitage to labour, and soon set out with his friend Chikhachov for the Novoezersk monastery, where they could not stay long, for both fell ill because of the harsh conditions there, and Dmitry had to return to his family.
When he had recovered a little, with the blessing of Stephen, Bishop of Vologda, the saint settled in the Semigorod hermitage, and then moved to the Dionysius-Glushitsky monastery.
In 1831 Bishop Stephen tonsured him a monk with the name Ignatius. In June of the same year he was ordained hierodeacon, and very shortly afterwards hieromonk.
In 1833 he was raised to the rank of hegumen. Father Ignatius’s labours became known in St Petersburg; he was summoned to the capital and appointed superior of the St Sergius hermitage, already in the rank of archimandrite.
In 1838 Archimandrite Ignatius was appointed dean of all the monasteries of the St Petersburg diocese. In spite of an outwardly busy life he remained inwardly an ascetic desert-dweller. In his solitary cell in the St Sergius hermitage Father Ignatius spent his nights in vigil, prayer and repentance.
In 1847 the archimandrite, gravely ill, went for treatment to the Nicholas-Babaevsky monastery.
Father Ignatius’s circle of acquaintances was quite wide: bishops, monks and simple lay people turned to him for advice. He was known in every level of society. He corresponded with the high aristocracy. Some 800 of his letters are known today.
The years passed. Father Ignatius’s bodily strength grew weaker and weaker; in 1857 Metropolitan Gregory of St Petersburg consecrated Archimandrite Ignatius bishop, and the Holy Synod entrusted him with the diocese of the Caucasus and the Black Sea. Shortly afterwards Bishop Ignatius went to Stavropol to take up the government of the diocese. He spent four years there and in that time managed to do a great deal for his flock. Because of grave illness, in 1861 Bishop Ignatius petitioned the Holy Synod to allow him to retire from the government of the diocese and go to the Babaevsky monastery.
Vladyka Ignatius spent the years of his solitary life in this remote monastery. He restored the almost ruined monastery and built a new church dedicated to the Iveron icon of the Mother of God.
Bishop Ignatius was also a prolific spiritual writer. His authority in the Orthodox world is very great.
On 16 April 1867 the bishop, weakened by illness, celebrated the Liturgy for the last time; after this he no longer left his cell at all, and on 30 April of the same year he reposed in prayer.
