Life and Ascetic Labor
John was born on the outskirts of Vologda, in Russia, in the sixteenth century; the exact date of his birth is not recorded. In his early years he worked as a laborer at a local saltworks, where he served as a water-carrier, and he combined this heavy work with strict fasting and dedicated prayer.
After his time at Vologda he relocated to Rostov, in present-day Yaroslavl Oblast, where he began to practice holy foolishness for Christ as his spiritual path. His asceticism was severe and conspicuous: he wore chains hung with heavy iron crosses and bore on his head a heavy iron cap, from which he received the nickname 'John Big-Cap.' He endured the weather barefoot and nearly naked even through the harsh Russian winters.
Prophecy and Witness
John became renowned for prophetic gifts and for his willingness to speak the truth without fear to people of any rank, including Czar Boris Godunov. He warned of calamities that would befall Russia, foretelling the Time of Troubles and the Polish invasions, and declared that 'in Moscow will be many visible and invisible devils.'
By tradition, before his death in 1589 he removed his chains, performed ritual ablutions, and displayed gifts of healing. He himself appointed the place of his burial at the Pokrov church on the Rva in Moscow, later known as the Cathedral of Basil the Blessed (Saint Basil's Cathedral).
Relics & Shrines
John was buried, by his own designation, at the Pokrov church on the Rva in Moscow, later famous as the Cathedral of Basil the Blessed (Saint Basil's Cathedral). On June 12, 1672, his relics were uncovered beneath a chapel crypt at that cathedral.
