Saint Kuksha of the Kiev Caves
Encyclopedia
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
) is a monk and martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
from the Kiev Pechersk Lavra
Kiev Pechersk Lavra
Kiev Pechersk Lavra or Kyiv Pechersk Lavra , also known as the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, is a historic Orthodox Christian monastery which gave its name to one of the city districts where it is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine....
(Kiev Monastery of the Caves). He has been canonized as a saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
in the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
for his work spreading Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
among the heathen East Slavic tribe of Vyatichi (of the Oka
Oka River
Oka is a river in central Russia, the largest right tributary of the Volga. It flows through the regions of Oryol, Tula, Kaluga, Moscow, Ryazan, Vladimir, and Nizhny Novgorod and is navigable over a large part of its total length, as far upstream as to the town of Kaluga. Its length exceeds...
basin in present-day Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
). This story is told of him:
Being a monk at Kiev Pechersk Lavra, he left to preach Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
to idol-worshippers Viatichi. He there performed numerous miracles. Impressed by his powers and rendered receptive by his preaching, the heathens began to convert and accept baptism. Priests of Viatichi, furious over the destruction of their idols, decapitated Kuksha and his pupil. On the day of Kuksha's death, his spiritual father Saint Pimen the Faster stood in the middle of the monastery church and loudly proclaimed: "Our brother Kuksha has been killed this day". Saint Pimen died the same day.
The memory of Saint Kuksha, his follower, and Saint Pimen the Faster is celebrated at the Lavra on the day of their death August 27 O.S. and September 27 O.S. The relics of Saint Kuksha are kept at St. Anthony Caves
Near Caves
The Near Caves or the Caves of Saint Anthony are historic caves and a network of tunnels of the medieval cave monastery of Kiev Pechersk Lavra in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine...
of the Lavra.