Venerable (Monastic)20th century

Venerable Joseph of Optina

1837–1911

Also known as John Litovkin · Elder Joseph of Optina

A disciple of St Ambrose of Optina and himself one of the Optina elders, who carried on the eldership with deep humility and gentle, discerning counsel; he reposed in 1911.

May 9New Calendar

Feast Day

May 22Old Calendar

Suggest a correction Contribute

Icon galleryBrowse icons and imagery elsewhere

Commemorated as

Our Venerable Father Joseph, Elder of Optina

Life

Venerable Joseph of Optina (1837–1911), born John Litovkin, was a Russian monastic of the Optina Hermitage who served as cell-attendant to the Elder Ambrose for fifty years and, after Ambrose's repose, carried on the tradition of Optina eldership. He was numbered among the Optina Elders, the line of spiritual fathers whose discerning counsel drew pilgrims from across nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Russia.

Remembered for his marked humility and economy of speech, he frequently deferred to the words of his own elder rather than speaking on his own authority. He directed the nearby Shamordino convent established by Ambrose and led the Optina skete as its superior until ill health led him to retire. He reposed in 1911 and was glorified, together with the other Optina Elders, by the Moscow Patriarchate in 2000.

Troparion1 hymnReadHide

TroparionTone 8

By a flood of tears you made the desert fertile,
and your longing for God brought forth fruits in abundance.
By the radiance of miracles you illumined the whole universe!
O our holy father Joseph, pray to Christ our God to save our souls!

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

Timeline7 momentsReadHide

November 2, 1837Birth in Kharkov provinceBorn John Litovkin in the village of Gorodishcha, Kharkov province, the second of three sons of Euthymius and Maria, who are described as simple and pious people. He was a sickly child, nearsighted and hard of hearing in one ear. His father died when he was four, and his mother died in an 1848 cholera outbreak when he was eleven.
March 1, 1861Arrival at OptinaHe came to the Optina Hermitage, having been counseled to seek out the Optina elders rather than continue on toward Kiev. When he asked the Elder Ambrose for a blessing to travel onward, Ambrose directed him instead to remain.
June 1861Cell-attendant to Elder AmbroseAt the request of the skete's superior, Fr. Paphnutius, he became the cell-attendant of the Elder Ambrose, a service he would continue for fifty years.
1872Monastic tonsureHe was tonsured a rassophore on April 15, 1872, and tonsured a monk with the name Joseph on June 16, 1872. He was later ordained deacon and, on October 1, 1884, ordained priest; he was tonsured to the great schema on February 14, 1886.
1891Succeeds Elder AmbroseAfter Elder Ambrose reposed on October 10, 1891, monks and nuns increasingly sought Joseph's spiritual direction. He was appointed confessor near the end of 1893 and elected superior of the skete on January 25, 1894.
1905Retirement as superiorFeeling his strength failing, he requested release from the office of superior in May 1905, while continuing his work as a spiritual father.
May 9, 1911ReposeAfter developing a fever during the Paschal season and being diagnosed with malaria, he reposed on May 9, 1911. He was buried at the feet of his elder Ambrose in the monastery church of Saint Mary of Egypt.

Contributions & Legacy

2 contributionsReadHide

Eldership and Shamordino

The Shamordino convent, founded by Elder Ambrose roughly eight miles from Optina, came under Joseph's care as its spiritual director and confessor; he is recorded as visiting twice yearly during the Apostles' and Dormition Fasts.

As an elder he was noted for humility and sparse speech, often citing the counsel of Father Ambrose rather than speaking on his own authority. Sources describe him as devoted to the unceasing prayer of the heart and grounded in the Philokalia and patristic writings.

Glorification

The Moscow Patriarchate authorized local veneration of the Optina Elders on June 13, 1996, and glorified them for universal veneration on August 7, 2000.

Joseph is commemorated on May 9 and, together with the other Optina Elders, in the Synaxis of the Optina Elders on October 11.

Member ofReadHide

Synaxis of the Optina Elders

Commemorated together · Oct 11

Companions2 figuresShowHide

His elder, whom he served as cell-attendant for fifty years and whose tradition of Optina eldership he carried on.

Ambroseof Optina

Appointed to assist him in 1903 before succeeding to the direction of the skete.

Barsanuphiusof Optina

Related SaintsShowHide

Browse other saints who share his calling and place.

More Priests383 More Russia560 More Slavic Saints752 More Monastics1353

Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints