Sylvester (; secular name: Simeon Agafonovich Medvedev; 6 February 1641 – 21 February 1691) was a Russian writer, poet, and theologian.
He was a student of
Simeon of Polotsk.
Life
Sylvester was born in
Kursk
Kursk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur (Kursk Oblast), Kur, Tuskar, and Seym (river), Seym rivers. It has a population of
Kursk ...
;
he was first a ''
podyachy
A ''podyachy'' or ''podyachiy'' (; from ) was an office (bureaucratic) profession, occupation in ''prikazes'' (local and upper governmental offices) and lesser local offices of Russia in the 15th to 18th centuries. The ''podyachyes'' were classifi ...
'' in Kursk and then
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.
In 1665, he entered the newly established
Slavic Greek Latin Academy
The Slavic Greek Latin Academy () was the first higher education establishment in Moscow.
History
Beginning
The academy's establishment may be viewed as a result of the incorporation of the Left-Bank Ukraine into Muscovy after the Treaty of Perey ...
of
Simeon of Polotsk (1629–1680) in the
Zaikonospassky Monastery
The Monastery of the Holy Mandylion or Zaikonospassky Monastery () is an Russian Orthodox Church, Orthodox monastery on the Nikolskaya Street in Kitai-gorod, Moscow, just one block away from the Moscow Kremlin, Kremlin.
It was founded in 1600 by ...
, where he learnt Latin, poetics and rhetoric.
After Simeon's death, Sylvester re-established the school. In 1687, the school and the printing press schools were merged to form the
Slavic Greek Latin Academy
The Slavic Greek Latin Academy () was the first higher education establishment in Moscow.
History
Beginning
The academy's establishment may be viewed as a result of the incorporation of the Left-Bank Ukraine into Muscovy after the Treaty of Perey ...
.
Sylvester supported
Sophia () during her regency and promoted the Roman Catholic understanding of the
Eucharist
The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...
,
which led to theological disputes during the 1680s.
In 1690, a ''sobor'' of the
Russian Orthodox Church
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 ...
condemned the views of the Westernizing party.
After Sophia's overthrow, Sylvester was executed for high treason against Tsar
Peter I. He was buried at the Zaikonospassky Monastery.
See also
*
Karion Istomin
Karion Istomin (; late 1640s – 26 May 1717) was a Russian poet, translator, and one of the first Russian enlighteners. He was a student of Sylvester Medvedev.
Life
Karion Istomin was born in Kursk. He was a celibate priest and then a hegumen a ...
References
Sources
*
{{Authority control
1641 births
1691 deaths
17th-century Russian poets
17th-century Russian writers
Russian monks
Russian theologians