Soon the Lopari and Chud natives living on the island heard about him, and he had much suffering to endure from them: they burned down his hut and what damage they were able to, and not only once did they beat him, they chased him from the island and pursued him so as to kill him. He set up a cross, an hut, and "a small temple" – a chapel. Saint Lazar arrived alone at the blessed spot. And the resistance of the land-controller was removed: Sainted Vasilii himself once appeared to him in a "dream visage" and ordered him to bestow the island "to our friend Lazar", so as there "to extol the name of the Mother of God". The monk prayed fervently to the MostHoly Mother of God and to Saint John the Forerunner and he wept at the grave of Sainted Vasilii. From the chronicles is known, that at this time the Novgorodians were undertaking their first attempts to convert to the Christian faith the peoples inhabiting the White Sea coastal region.īut Saint Lazar was not able to get to this island at once – the controller of the island, the Novgorod merchant Ivan, for a long time would not permit him. Grieved by this, that he was deprived of both his guides (about the death of the Caesarea bishop the monk had learned of earlier through letters), the Monk Lazar considered returning to his native land, but soon in a dream the Novgorod sainted-hierarch appeared to him and directed him "to go northwards towards the sea, to Mucha Island in Lake Onega" (Murmansk Island in Lake Onega), and in a short while his first guide – the bishop of Caesarea, commanded him in a dream to go to that same place and found a monastery. For ten years the Monk Lazar faithfully served Saint Vasilii, and in 1352 upon the death of the holy arch-pastor, he "by his own hands dressed the holy body in the prepared clothing and shed many tears". Meeting the monk, the Novgorod hierarch bowed to the ground to his guest and blessed him to remain in a monastery built by him. 15 August), and to compile an account of Novgorod churches and monasteries. 10 February, 4 October, 3 June).The Monk Lazar was obliged to make for the Caesarea diocese a copy from the great Novgorod sacred-item – the Icon of Sophia, the Wisdom of God (Comm. In the year 1343 Bishop Basil, wanting to encourage the Russian Church with spiritual blessing, sent the Monk Lazar as a noted iconographer together with monks and gifts to the Novgorod Sainted-hierarch Vasilii (Basil) (Comm. Eight years later the monk was situated under the guidance of the Caesarea Bishop Basil. In his native city he accepted monasticism at the High-Mount monastery under the elder (starets) Athanasias Diskotes – builder of many a monastery. The Monk Lazar of Murmansk was a Greek by nationality, born at Constantinople.
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