Metropolitan Bishop
Saint Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, Apostle of Altai, was born on October 1, 1835, in the village of Shapkino, Vladimir province. His father, Andrei Ivanovich, served as a parish clerk, and his mother taught him to pray. In 1854, he graduated from the seminary and went to the Altai mission, where he served as a reader and taught in a school. In 1861, he took monastic vows with the name Macarius and was ordained as a hieromonk. He mastered the Altai language and dedicated many years to translating liturgical books.
In 1883, he became the Bishop of Biysk and head of the Altai mission, where the number of baptized increased to 19,216 people. In 1891, he was appointed Bishop of Tomsk, where he opened numerous parishes and schools. In 1912, he became the Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, actively engaging in catechization and denouncing the moral depravity of his contemporaries.
The saint foresaw the impending events in Russia and spoke of troubled times. In 1906, he was elevated to the rank of archbishop. After the February Revolution, he was slandered and refused to swear allegiance to the Provisional Government. He was exiled to the Nikolsky-Ugreshsky Monastery, where he spent his last years in illness but did not lose the ability to speak.
He died on February 16, 1926, in the village of Kotelniki, Moscow region. In 1957, his incorrupt remains were transferred to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. The venerable was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 2000, and his memory is celebrated on the Sunday before August 26 according to the old style.
