Ηegumen / Abbot
Venerable Anthony of Leokhnovo, of Novgorod, was from the noble family of the Tver boyars of the Veniaminov family. He lived as a hermit in the Rublev wilderness, on the river Perekhod. Around 1556, he moved to the hermit Tarasiy on Leokhnovo, where he received monastic tonsure. The monastery, later named Leokhnovsky Monastery, was established in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord. The Venerable one lived to a ripe old age, having received the gift of clairvoyance.
In 1611, during the Swedish invasion, at the call of Metropolitan Isidore, he moved to Novgorod. He passed away on September 14, 1611, at the age of 85 and was buried near the church in honor of Saint Evangelist Luke. Before his death, he said that his body would rest in his wilderness abode. His disciple Gregory, returning to the devastated place, set up a cell with a chapel and remained there to live. The Venerable one appeared to him in a dream, asking for the transfer of his relics.
The incorrupt relics were found on July 13, 1620, and were transferred to the Leokhnovsky monastery. Upon the discovery of the relics, the blind man Joseph regained his sight, and many miracles occurred.
The memory of the Venerable Anthony was celebrated in the village of Leokhnovo and the Rublev wilderness. On the second Friday after the feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, the finding and transfer of the relics was commemorated. On the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, the coming of the Venerable one from the Rublev wilderness to Leokhnovo was commemorated. On October 17, the memory of the saint's repose was celebrated, which occurred on the feast of the Exaltation of the Precious Cross. In the Rublev wilderness, the memory of the consecration of the church in honor of the Venerable one was celebrated on August 30 (1873).
