Hierarch19th century

Meletios Bishop of Ryazan

29 October 1835 – 14 January 1900

Also known as Meletios Yakimov

A tireless missionary in Siberia and the Far East who later served as bishop of Ryazan, caring especially for the poor.

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January 27Old Calendar

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Commemorated as

Our Father among the Saints Meletios, Bishop of Ryazan, Enlightener of Siberia

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Missionary Work

Life

Meletios, Bishop of Ryazan, born Michael Yakimov in 1835, was one of the foremost Russian Orthodox missionaries of the nineteenth century. The son of a village priest, he was tonsured a monk in 1859 and spent nearly thirty-five years laboring in eastern Siberia, preaching the Gospel among the Buryat, Tungus, and Yakut peoples and helping to render Christian teaching into their languages.

He served successively as a vicar bishop in the Irkutsk Diocese, as Bishop of Yakutsk, and finally as Bishop of Ryazan and Zaraysk, continuing his missionary and charitable work to the end of his life. Renowned as the 'Apostle to the Yakuts,' he reposed in 1900 and was later numbered among the Synaxis of Siberian Saints. He is commemorated on January 14.

Troparion1 hymnReadHide

TroparionTone 4

In truth you were revealed to your flock as a rule of faith,
an image of humility and a teacher of abstinence;
your humility exalted you;
your poverty enriched you.
Hierarch Father Meletios,
entreat Christ our God
that our souls may be saved.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline6 momentsReadHide

29 October 1835Birth in the Viatka DioceseBorn Michael Koz'mich Yakimov, the son of a village priest; his father died when he was about a year old, and his mother raised the family in hardship.
1 February 1859Monastic tonsureAfter completing seminary and the Academy and serving as a novice, he was tonsured a monk with the name Meletios, and was ordained deacon the following month.
1862Mission at Lake BaikalSent to Posol'sk Monastery at Lake Baikal, he was ordained priest and began his work among the Buryat, Tungus, and Yakut peoples.
1889Bishop of YakutskAfter service as a vicar bishop in the Irkutsk Diocese, he was appointed to the Yakutsk Diocese, where the number of churches grew greatly and he organized relief for lepers.
1896Bishop of RyazanHe was named Bishop of Ryazan and Zaraysk, arriving in 1897, and continued his missionary and literary work there.
14 January 1900Repose at RyazanHe reposed after nearly thirty-five years of missionary labor and was buried in the cathedral at Ryazan.

Contributions & Legacy

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Early Life and Monastic Beginnings

The future bishop was born Michael Koz'mich Yakimov on October 29, 1835, in the Viatka Diocese, the son of a village priest. His father died when he was about a year old, and his mother raised the children in financial hardship. Despite poverty and fragile health he did well in his studies, completing seminary and then the Academy.

After his studies he sought to enter monastic life under Archimandrite Ambrose, serving as a novice for about a year before he was tonsured a monk with the name Meletios on February 1, 1859. He was ordained deacon the following month.

Missionary Labors in Siberia

In 1862 Meletios was sent to Posol'sk Monastery at Lake Baikal, where he was ordained priest and began the missionary work among the Buryat, Tungus, and Yakut peoples that would occupy most of his life. He worked with the scholar Nicholas Il'minsky to translate Christian teaching into the Buryat language, producing the first Christian text in that tongue, and under his leadership many thousands of the native peoples were baptized.

He was raised to the rank of archimandrite in 1874 and afterward served as a vicar bishop in the Irkutsk Diocese, overseeing the territories east of Lake Baikal. In 1889 he was appointed to the Yakutsk Diocese, where the number of churches and chapels increased greatly during his tenure; he founded a church brotherhood and organized relief for those suffering from leprosy, work that drew recognition even from the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury.

Bishop of Ryazan and Veneration

In 1896 Meletios was named Bishop of Ryazan and Zaraysk, arriving in his new see early in 1897. There he revived missions to the Old Ritualists and to Muslims and published extensively on missionary and historical subjects until the end of his life. He reposed on January 14, 1900, and was buried in the cathedral at Ryazan.

Honored as the 'Apostle to the Yakuts' and enlightener of the peoples of Siberia, Meletios was numbered among the Synaxis of Siberian Saints in 1983. His relics were uncovered in 1998 and translated to a monastery. He is commemorated on January 14.

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Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

Fellow enlightener: the great nineteenth-century apostle of Siberia and Alaska, in whose Yakutsk and Irkutsk missionary field Meletios also labored.

Innocentof Alaska

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Jan 14