Saint Jonah or Saint Jonas (''Иона'' in

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

) (died 1461), was the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus' from 1448 to his death in 1461. Like his immediate predecessors, he permanently resided in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

, and was the last Moscow-based primate of the Russian Church to keep the traditional title with reference to Kiev. He was also the first Metropolitan in Moscow to be appointed without the approval of the

Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople ( Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of ...

as had been the norm.

Biography

Since the late 1420s, Jonah had been living in the

Simonov Monastery Simonov Monastery (russian: Симонов монастырь) in Moscow was established in 1370 by monk Feodor, a nephew and disciple of St Sergius of Radonezh. It became one of the richest and most famous monastery, comprising six major churches ...

in Moscow and was close to Metropolitan Photius, who make him

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

Ryazan Ryazan ( rus, Рязань, p=rʲɪˈzanʲ, a=ru-Ryazan.ogg) is the largest city and administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. The city is located on the banks of the Oka River in Central Russia, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 Cens ...

and

Murom Murom ( rus, Муром, p=ˈmurəm; Old Norse: ''Moramar'') is a historical city in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which sprawls along the left bank of the Oka River. Population: History In the 9th century AD, the city marked the easternmost settle ...

. After Photius's death in 1431,

Grand Prince Grand prince or great prince (feminine: grand princess or great princess) ( la, magnus princeps; Greek: ''megas archon''; russian: великий князь, velikiy knyaz) is a title of nobility ranked in honour below emperor, equal of king ...

Vasili II nominated Jonas for the post of Metropolitan, but the

Uniate The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...

Patriarch

Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

chose

Isidore Isidore ( ; also spelled Isador, Isadore and Isidor) is an English and French masculine given name. The name is derived from the Greek name ''Isídōros'' (Ἰσίδωρος) and can literally be translated to "gift of Isis." The name has survived ...

to become the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus'. After Isidore had been condemned and deposed by

Vasily II Vasily Vasiliyevich (russian: Василий Васильевич; 10 March 141527 March 1462), also known as Vasily II the Blind (Василий II Тёмный), was the Grand Prince of Moscow whose long reign (1425–1462) was plagued by th ...

and his bishops in Moscow in 1441, for his attempts to implement the decision on the Union of the Eastern and Western (Roman) Churches agreed upon at the Council of Florence-Ferrara, the metropolitan throne sat vacant for seven years. Jonah was elected by the bishops of the Moscow Rus' Metropolitan on 15 December 1448, without the consent of the Patriarch of Constantinople. While the failure to obtain the blessing from Constantinople was not intentional, this signified the beginning of the ''de facto'' independence ( autocephaly) of the Moscow (North-Eastern) part of the Russian Church. He fought a losing battle attempting to prevent the loss of his South-Western province: in 1458, the Uniate Patriarch Gregory Mammas of Constantinople appointed the Uniate bishop Gregory metropolitan of the newly established Uniate Kiev metropolitanate. The Patriarch gave the new Metropolitan the title of the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galich and All Rus'. The Polish-Lithuanian rulers, under whose domain Kiev then fell, supported Gregory. Jonah died on March 31, 1461 and was buried in the Cathedral of the Dormition in the Moscow Kremlin. He was

canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of s ...

by Macarius, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, at the Moscow Council of 1547.Golubinskii, ''Istoriia russkoi tserkvi'', vol. 2, pt. 1, p. 515.

References

{{authority control Jonah of Moscow 15th-century Christian saints Russian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church Metropolitans and Patriarchs of Moscow Russian saints Miracle workers Year of birth unknown