Memorial Day of the Venerable Lazarus and Athanasius of Murmansk

On March 21, the Orthodox Church celebrates the Day of Remembrance of Athanasius and Lazarus of Murmansk They both dedicated their lives to serving God and people, never once deviating from their sacred duty until the very end of their lives Therefore, the memory of them, who lived many centuries ago, has survived to this day Never in life would fate have connected these two people if the native of Constantinople, Lazarus, had not been sent to Russia to obtain a copy (a copy of the original) of the icon of Sophia the Wisdom of God Upon arrival in Novgorod, he lived for several years under the Archbishop of Novgorod, and when he passed away, he left for Fr Murmansk on Lake Onega Lazarus built a hut and a small chapel for himself until the pagans who lived there burned it down The monk took refuge from the angry crowd in a cave, but was unable to take with him the icon of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was dear to him Suddenly he noticed this icon on a tree, after which it fell in front of him He had a wondrous vision one more time, after which he erected a cross in that place One day, through the power of prayer, he restored sight to a blind child; he was the son of a pagan leader Believing in the power of the cross, the grateful father converted to Christianity From that moment another story began, the history of the Murom Assumption Monastery, which was founded by the Monk Lazar In 1391, the elder died and was buried near the cross, where he had a divine vision The Monk Athanasius became the abbot of the monastery in the 15th century and after three centuries the church ranked him among the saints After his death, he was buried there, in the monastery Now on this site is the Murom Assumption Monastery, one of the most ancient monasteries in Karelia March 21 is an occasion for Orthodox Christians to remember two reverend elders who abandoned worldly life, spending their entire lives in prayer Their exploits were mentioned more than once in the chronicles