Life of St. Sergius

St. Sergius of Radonezh was born in Rostov in 1314. His parents were Rostov boyars Cyril and Mary, who later took the cloth. The miracles in the life of Sergius happened even before his birth: he shouted three times in the womb during the worship. At the age of seven he was made to learn how to read, which was hard for the boy. Bartholomew prayed that God granted him literacy. The Lord heard his prayers. He sent him an angel of the elder monk who blessed the child. After that the holy young man could read and understand everything written. Many different miracles were worked by the Reverend: he healed people, gave them children, advised and even raised from the dead. Before the invasion of Mamai, St. Sergius blessed the Prince Dmitry Donskoy. The wife of Ivan III, Sofia, went to St. Sergius to pray for the heir. A year later Sergius baptized her son Vasily. A half-century later the son of Vasily, Ivan IV the Terrible, was baptized there. St. Sergius died in 1392. In 1422 he was canonized as Reverend Sergius and the white-stone Holy Trinity Cathedral was laid above his grave.