Memorial Day of St. Anthony the Roman, Novgorod Wonderworker

On August 16, they celebrate the Day of Remembrance of St Anthony the Roman, who is also known as the Novgorod miracle worker Anthony was born in Rome at the beginning of the 11th century His parents were Orthodox Christians His family was not in need and was considered rich by those standards The parents' wealth did not corrupt them, and they raised Anthony to be a pious young man When the boy turned 17 years old, they died Having become an orphan, Anthony began studying his father's notes in Greek A few years later, he decided to take monastic vows in one of the desert monasteries, and before that the young man had to get rid of his parents’ inheritance Anthony distributed part of his fortune to the poor, and invested the rest of his wealth in a barrel, which he threw into the sea, so that through the efforts of the Lord it would fall into the hands of those who need it most Anthony became a monk and lived for more than 20 years in one of the desert monasteries, which he was forced to leave due to persecution by the Latins The brothers had to disperse throughout the world Anthony wandered for a long time until he finally found a stone on a deserted shore He considered this place the best for solitary prayer and fasting The miracle worker lived on the stone for a whole year, until one day a strong storm broke out She lifted the stone into the air along with Anthony and carried it to the sea The miracle worker surrendered to the will of the elements and only meekly awaited his fate Some time later, on the eve of a great holiday, not far from Novgorod, a stone was nailed to the bank of the small Volkhov River along with Anthony, who was holding a sedge branch in his hand It is with this branch that he is depicted on all icons This event was even officially attested in the Novgorod chronicles Anthony received the blessing of the local saint and began construction of a monastery on this very spot in the village of Volkhovskoye A year later, Russian fishermen caught from the river the same wooden barrel in which part of the wealth of Anthony’s family was preserved The Wonderworker used this money to purchase land for a new monastery Anthony was a strict but fair mentor He carefully monitored the expenses of the monastery and always distributed part of them to the poor, widows and orphans In the monastery, spiritual enlightenment was combined with hard work Even during the life of the miracle worker, stone construction began in the monastery The cathedral, built at that time, has survived to this day Anthony died at a very old age His relics were kept in a silver-bound shrine, along with a sprig of sedge After the 30s of the last century they disappeared without a trace No one knows where the relics of Anthony the Roman are now located