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Maximus the Greek

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[[Image:Maximusgreek.jpg|right|frame|Icon of Saint Maximus the Greek from the Annunciation Church of Yaroslavl.]]Our venerable father '''Maximus the Greek''', also known as '''Maximos the Greek''' or '''Maksim Grek''' (Russian: Максим Грек, c. 1475-1556), was a Greek [[monk]], publicist, writer, scholar, humanist, and translator active in Russia.<ref>Wieczynski (1976), p. 26.</ref> He is also called '''Maximos the Hagiorite''' (Greek: Μάξιμος ὁ Ἁγιορήτης).<ref>Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. (1993), p. 967.</ref> He is commemorated on [[January 21]].
==Assignment to Moscow==
Maximus' first major work in Russia was a translation of the [[Psalter]] together with the Russian translators (including the scholar Dmitry Gerasimov) and scriveners, which would be solemnly approved by the Russian [[clergy]] and the grand prince himself. After Basili III rejected his request to go home, Maximus continued to work on translations and would later create an inventory of the princely library and correct the books for [[Divine Liturgy|divine service]]. Observing the "defects" and injustices of the Muscovite life, which had been in direct opposition to his Christian ideals, Maximus began to expose them and criticize the authorities, attracting different people with similar views, such as [van Ivan Bersen-Beklemishev, Vassian Patrikeyev, and others. With regards to the question of monastic estates, which had already divided all of the Russian clergy into two antagonistic camps (the Possessors and the Non-Possessors), Maximus took sides with Nilus of Sora and his ''startsy'', who headed the Non-possessors camp.<ref>Golubinskii (1900), pp. 650ff.</ref> This would make him one of the worst enemies of the Josephinians, who stood for the right of the monasteries to own land. Maximus and his followers discussed freely the shortcomings of Russia's internal and foreign policies, criticized the lifestyle of the Russian clergy, exploitation of peasants, and the system of supporting local authorities by "milking" the peasants (the so called ''кормление'', or ''kormleniye'').
During this period of his life (1540), Maximus wrote a manuscript that contains the first reference in Old Russian to the existence of the New World.
==Maximus falls into disgrace==
Maximus' relations with Vassian Patrikeyev, Ivan Bersen-Beklemishev, and Ottoman Turkish ambassador Skinder, Metropolitan Daniel's hostility towards him, and Greek's own negative attitude towards Basili III's intention to divorce Solomonia Saburova decided his fate. The [[sobor]] of 1525 accused Maximus of nonconformism and [[heresy]] based on his views and translations of ecclesiastic books, disregarding his mediocre knowledge of Russian and obvious mistakes on the part of the Russian scriveners (his improper use of the imperfect tense was used to imply that he no longer believed the Holy Spirit was the Third Person of the Trinity but only had been temporarily). He was then exiled to the Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery and placed in a dungeon without the right to correspond. Maximus' "irritating" behavior at the [[monastery]], newly discovered mistakes in his translations, and old suspicions of his unscrupulous relations with the now dead Turkish ambassador were all used against him once again at a new sobor in 1531. Worn out by the harsh conditions of his imprisonment, Maximus acknowledged some minor mistakes in his translations and excessive wine drinking. Finally, the sobor banned him from receiving communion and exiled him to the Otroch Monastery in Tver, where he would spend his next twenty years. The Patriarchs of Antioch, Constantinople, and Jerusalem all attempted to negotiate Maximus' release with the Russian authorities, but to no avail. He himself pleaded with [[Ivan IV of Russia|Ivan the Terrible]] and [[Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow|Metropolitan Macarius]] for his freedom. Moscow was afraid of Maximus' ability to expose wrongdoings and criticize the powers that be and, therefore, was reluctant to let him go. In 1551 (according to other accounts, 1553), Maximus was transferred to the [[Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra]] at the solicitation of some boyars and [[Hegumen]] Artemiy of the [[lavra]]. That same year, the tsar visited Maximus during his [[pilgrimage]] to [[Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery]], who would advise the ruler to take care of the families of those soldiers who died in the process of annexation of Kazan instead of merely praying for the dead. In 1554, Maximus was invited to join a sobor, which would deal with the heresy of Matvei Bashkin, but he refused, being wary of getting entangled in this case. Maximus died in 1556 in Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, Sergiyev Posad.
==References==
[[Category:Saints]]
[[Category:Greek Saints]]
[[Category:Athonite Fathers]]
[[Category:16th-century saints]]

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