April 7 marked the 86th anniversary of the repose of Saint Tikhon

Saint Tikhon of Moscow is one of the Church’s most beloved saints, not only because of his evident love of Christ and His People, but because of the example he offered as a suffering, yet ever faithful, servant of God in the midst of countless tribulations.

Inasmuch as he served as Bishop, and later Archbishop, of North America from 1898 until 1907, his legacy is perhaps best remembered for convening the first All-American Sobor in Mayfield, PA in 1907. He also is well remembered for imparting his blessing for the establishment of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk Monastery, South Canaan, PA. Many older parishes of the Orthodox Church in America were established during his episcopate, and they still recall with fondness his archpastoral visits.

After he returned to Russia in 1907 to serve the Diocese of Yaroslavl, and later the Church in Lithuania, his life was intimately linked with the dramatic events surrounding the Russian Revolution and its aftermath. It was in the midst of revolutionary forces sweeping across the Russian Empire that the All-Russian Church Council opened in Moscow in August 1917. Within weeks — and with the Revolution raging around them — the delegates to the Council reestablished the Patriarchal office and elected Archbishop Tikhon as Patriarch. In his new position, Patriarch Tikhon faced constant threats, the persecution of the Church, denunciation by some elements in the Russian Church and elsewhere, civil war, house arrests, famine, and endless internal and external challenges to the Church’s stability. On March 25/April 7, 1925, he fell asleep in the Lord, a Confessor for the Church during one of the most brutal periods in its history.

O Holy Father Tikhon, pray unto God for us!

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