Isaiah Saint

XI page → Kyivan Rus → Princely times

Saint Isaiah (birth date unknown, Kyiv area – 15.05.1090) – monk of the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery, Bishop of Rostov, wonderworker.

Isaiah was the Bishop of Rostov, known from early written Old Rus monuments. The first reference to him appears in The Life of Theodosius of Pechersk.

Isaiah’s name is mentioned also in chronicles; thus, The Tale of Bygone Years tells under the year of 6596 (1088) that the Bishop of Rostov Isaiah took part in the consecration of St. Michael’s Church at the Vsevolod (Vydubytsky) Monastery during the service of Metropolitan Ioann; under 6597 (1089) that he, together with Metropolitan Ioann consecrated the Church of the Holy Mother of God at the Pechersk Monastery. The Rostov area settled at that time by non-Slavic tribes only began to fall under the influence of Christianity, which encountered great difficulties. After the death of Isaiah the Rostov cathedra was closed until the mid-12 th c.

In 1164, Isaiah’s relics were found and transferred into the Near Caves of the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery. Canonized by the Orthodox Church in the late 15 th c. His feast day is celebrated on 28 May.