Church of Holy Hieromartyr Hermogenes, Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus, the Wonderworker in Zyuzino
Hieromartyr Hermogen (German), Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus’, born around 1530 and bearing the secular name Yermolai, is one of the key figures in Russian history. He was a direct participant in the discovery of the miracle-working Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in 1579. After taking monastic vows with the name Hermogen in 1587, he was consecrated as a bishop and elevated to the rank of Metropolitan of Kazan and Astrakhan on May 13, 1589, and from 1602, Metropolitan of Kazan and Sviyazhsk. He authored the 1594 service to the Mother of God in honor of the Kazan Icon, as well as the “Tale of the Appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the Miraculous Healings That Occurred from It.” Through his active involvement, the incorrupt relics of the Kazan wonderworkers-Saints Gurias, the first Archbishop of Kazan, and Varsonofy, Bishop of Tver-were discovered in 1595. On July 3, 1606, a Council of Russian hierarchs appointed Saint Hermogen as Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus’. His patriarchate, which coincided with the Time of Troubles, was a period of steadfast defense of faith and fatherland: he made an invaluable contribution to preserving the Orthodox Church and Russian statehood. While imprisoned from December 1610, the patriarch sent out missives calling for resistance against the Polish intervention and blessed both people’s militias striving to liberate Moscow. On February 17, 1612, the saint died a martyr’s death in captivity from starvation and thirst. He was glorified as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church on May 12 (25), 1913. His feast days are celebrated on February 17 (repose) and May 12 (glorification). The memory of Hieromartyr Hermogen is kept alive among the faithful, as evidenced by contemporary church life: for instance, on December 6, 2014, a temporary church in honor of Saint Luke was consecrated, and on March 4, 2023, the baptismal chapel in honor of Saint Sergius of Radonezh in the under-construction church dedicated to Hieromartyr Hermogen was consecrated. On the territory of this church complex, the Sunday school “Istok” has been operating in a separate building since the autumn of 2015, and on February 11, 2024, Bishop Panteleimon (Shatov) performed the minor consecration rite for the church. Active missionary and catechetical work is carried out here: besides Sunday school classes, creative clubs in drawing, handicrafts, and choral singing are organized, and regular discussions with adults on the basics of the Orthodox faith are held.
Address: Moscow, Simferopol Boulevard, vl. 28
