Kozheozersky Monastery
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The Kozheozersky Monastery () is a
Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...
founded by Niphont of Kozheozero and Serapion of Kozheozero in the 1550s. The monastery is located on a peninsula in
Lake Kozhozero Lake Kozhozero () is a freshwater lake, located in the south of Onezhsky District of Arkhangelsk Oblast in Russia. It is one of the biggest lakes in Arkhangelsk Oblast and biggest one in Onezhsky District. The area of the lake is , and the area o ...
, in
Onezhsky District Onezhsky District () is an administrative district (raion), one of the administrative divisions of Arkhangelsk Oblast, twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.Law #65-5-OZ As a subdivisions of Russia#Municipal divisions, municipal division, it is ...
in the north-west of
Arkhangelsk Oblast Arkhangelsk Oblast ( rus, Архангельская область, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲskəjə ˈobɫəsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It includes the Arctic Ocean, Arctic archipelagos of Franz ...
,
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. Kozheozersky Monastery is one of the most remote monasteries in Russia; there are no roads leading to Kozhozero, and the only way to get to the monastery is by traversing on foot.


History

In the 16th century the valley of the
Onega River The Onega (; ) is a river in Kargopolsky, Plesetsky, and Onezhsky Districts of Arkhangelsk Oblast in Russia. The Onega connects Lake Lacha with the Onega Bay in the White Sea southwest of Arkhangelsk, flowing in the northern direction. The disc ...
was already populated, and the
ascetic Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their pra ...
monks were looking for remote places to get away from people. Niphont of Kozheozero, a monk in the Syryinsky Monastery close to the selo of
Chekuyevo Chekuyevo () is a rural locality (a selo) in Chekuyevskoye Rural Settlement of Onezhsky District, Arkhangelsk Oblast Arkhangelsk Oblast ( rus, Архангельская область, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲskəjə ˈobɫəsʲtʲ) is a federa ...
, in the lower course of the Onega, arrived to Lake Kozhozero. According to the tradition, this occurred in 1552. In 1557, Sergey, a baptized
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prince, arrived to Lalke Kozhozero and became a monk, taking the name Serapion. He later became the first
hegumen Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen (, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, or an archpriest in the Coptic Orthodox Church, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of ...
of the monastery. Since the lands around Lake Kozhozero were not suitable for agriculture, the monastery was initially poor. In 1585,
Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...
Feodor Ivanovich transferred lands around the lake to the monastery, and two churches were built. Serapion died in 1611. The next hegumen was Avraamy, who was the disciple of Serapion and died in 1634. The only saint ever living in the monastery was Nikodim of Khozyuga, who came to Kozhozero in 1607, and in 1609 left for a remote location from Kozheozersky Monastery.
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, the future patriarch of Moscow and reformer of Russian Orthodox Church, arrived to the monastery in 1641 and was the hegumen from 1643 to 1646. During his period, he solicited considerable investments from two tsars. In 1646, he left for Moscow for some business related to the monastery, and never returned, getting a new appointment. In 1670, the monastery served as a place for political exile. In the 17th century, it was growing and became rich, however, in the 18th century the financial state of the monastery deteriorated. In 1722 the last hegumen, Georgy, died, and subsequently the monastery was headed by a "builder" (). The first builder was Korniliy (1722-1738). In the beginning of the 1730s, a disastrous fire destroyed all wooden buildings of the monastery, and it was never able to recover. In 1758, the monastery was subordinated to Spaso-Kargopolsky Monastery in
Kargopol Kargopol () is a town and the administrative center of Kargopolsky District in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located on both sides of the Onega River, several miles north of Lake Lacha, in the southwestern corner of the oblast. Population: ...
, and in 1764, it was shut down. Between the 1650s and 1764, 346 monks in total lived in the monastery. Kozheozersky monastery was reopened in 1853. In 1764, former monastery buildings were turned into a village, and the village population was forcibly resettled in 1853. Until the 1880s, the monastery was poorly managed and remained in a difficult financial situation. The situation improved when Pitirim, formerly a monk in
Solovetsky Monastery The Solovetsky Monastery (, ) is a fortified monastery located on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea in northern Russia. It was one of the largest Christian citadels in northern Russia before it was converted into a Soviet Union, Soviet pris ...
, became a hegumen in 1885. He renewed the monastery buildings and built a road to the monastery. During the
Civil War in Russia The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...
, Kozheozersky Monastery was on the front line between Red and White armies. For some time, it remained on the territory subject to the White government in
Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near its mouth into the White Sea. The city spreads for over along the ...
, and a White Army detachment was stationed in the monastery. The front line was close to the selo of Chekuyevo. In the winter 1919/1920, the Red Army underwent a massive attack an, in particular, took the monastery over. The monastery was closed, the fate of the monks is unknown. For some time, the ruins of Kozheozersky monastery hosted resettled peasants. This settlement was known as Kozhposyolok. In 1954, Kozhposyolok was abandoned, and the monastery was repopulated in 1997 and consecrated in 1999. The only monk permanently residing in the monastery is the hegumen.


List of hegumens

* Nephon (1552 - ?) * Serapion (? - 1611) * Abraham (1611-1634) * Jonah (1634-1643) *
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(1643-1646) * Theodosius (1655-1662) * Paul (1663-1680) * Ananias (1693-1698) * Matthew (Spitsyn) (1707-1715)


References


External links

* * {{cite web, url=http://www.pravoslavie.ru/put/kozheozerskij.htm, script-title=ru:Самый труднодоступный монастырь России, last=Григорьева, first=Елена, date=31 October 2001, publisher=ПРАВОСЛАВИЕ.RU, language=Russian, accessdate=18 August 2011 Russian Orthodox monasteries in Russia Religious organizations established in the 1550s Christian monasteries established in the 16th century Buildings and structures in Arkhangelsk Oblast 1552 establishments in Russia Cultural heritage monuments in Arkhangelsk Oblast Objects of cultural heritage of Russia of regional significance Monasteries used as prisons