Venerable Irenarchus the Recluse of Rostov
d. 1616
A recluse of Rostov who bore heavy chains and bonds as ascetic labor and foretold the deliverance of Russia in the Time of Troubles.
Our Venerable Father Irenarchus the Recluse of Rostov
Life
Irenarchus the Recluse was a Russian monk and ascetic of Rostov who reposed in the year 1616. He is commemorated on January 13.
By the accounts he was born in the village of Kondakovo and baptized with the name Elias. In his thirtieth year he was tonsured a monk at the Rostov monastery of Saints Boris and Gleb.
He took up a severe ascetic life as a recluse, bearing heavy chains and iron bonds as a labor of penance. Living through the upheavals of the Time of Troubles that afflicted Russia in the early seventeenth century, he is remembered for foretelling the land's deliverance from its invaders.