The translation of relics of the Venerable Nikita, a recluse of Kiev-Cave’s Lavra, Bishop of Novgorod. In his young years he entered the Kiev-Caves Monastery, and soon after tonsuring wanted to go into seclusion. The abbot warned him about the prematureness of such a feat for the young monk, but he, relying on his own strength, did not listen. While in seclusion, Saint Nikita fell into temptation. The devil appeared to him in the form of an angel, and the inexperienced ascetic bowed to him. The demon gave him advice as if he had already supposedly achieved perfection: “Don’t pray, just read and teach others, and I will pray in your place,” and stood near the recluse, pretending to pray for him. The deluded monk Nikita surpassed everyone in his knowledge of the books of the Old Testament but did not want to talk or listen to the New Testament. The Kiev-Cave elders came to the seduced man and, after praying, drove the demon away from him. After this, the Monk Nikita, leaving the seclusion with the blessing of the elders, lived in strict fasting and prayer, most of all practicing obedience and humility. The merciful Lord, through the prayers of the holy elders, raised him from the depths of his fall to a high degree of spiritual perfection. In 1096, he was appointed bishop of Novgorod and for his holy life he was awarded by God with the gift of miracles. Once, during a drought, he brought down rain from the sky with prayer, another time, through his prayer, a fire in the city stopped. Saint Nikita ruled the Novgorod flock for 13 years and died peacefully in 1108 or 1109. His very first life is found in the letter of Polycarp to Akindinos of the 13th century. In 1547, he was glorified for church-wide veneration throughout the Russian Church. On the night of April 30, 1558, in a dream, a husband with a barely noticeable beard appeared to the Novgorod Saint Pimen, and said: “Peace be with you, beloved brother! Do not be afraid, I am your predecessor, the sixth bishop of Novgorod, Nikita. The time has come, and the Lord commands to open my relics to the people." Thus, his relics were translated for the veneration in the cathedral. In 1942, the Nazis drove over three thousand Novgorodians to Lithuania. In the autumn of the same year, to the Lithuanian town of Vekshni, where the Novgorodians were assigned to settle, a German military train brought five silver reliquaries with the relics of Novgorod saints. The rector of the local church, Archimandrite Alexy (Chernai), later a ROCOR clergyman, who arrived immediately, was the first to identify the shrine of St. Nikita. The entire Orthodox people who found themselves in that Lithuanian region greeted the holy relics with trepidation and inspiration. At the same time, Hierodeacon Hilarion, who was helping the rector of the temple put in order the relics of the saints, a man not very educated yet burning with faith, twice saw the same dream: Saint Nikita, dressed in a mantle, stood in the middle of the temple and read the canon of repentance. The hierodeacon, who entered the temple and saw the bishop, immediately fell at his feet and asked for a blessing. The saint blessed the Novgorodian with a gesture and said: “Pray for deliverance from the disasters coming to our homeland and people. The evil enemy is taking up arms. You must all accept the blessing before God’s service.” After these words the saint became invisible. Having learned about this, Metropolitan Sergii established a rule that before the start of each service, when the shrine of St. Nikitas is opened, the clergy should go out and venerate the right hand of St. Nikita, return to the altar and only then begin the liturgy. This tradition is still honored by the Novgorod priesthood. The relics of St. Nikita now rest in the St. Sophia Cathedral, and the priests of the cathedral always venerate them before the start of the service. |
