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St. Tikhon (''né'' Vasily Ivanovich Belavin; ''Russian:'' '''Василий Иванович Белавин''') was born on [[January 19]], 1865. His father was Ioann Belavin, a rural [[priest]] of the Toropetz district of the Pskov diocese. "From his early years he displayed a particular religious disposition, love for the Church as well as rare meekness and humility. ... From 1878 to 1883, Vasily studied at the [[Pskov]] Theological Seminary. ... His fellow students liked and respected him for his piety, brilliant progress in studies, and constant readiness to help comrades, who often turned to him for explanations of lessons, especially for help in drawing up and correcting numerous compositions. Vasily was called 'bishop' and 'patriarch' by his classmates." [http://www.oca.org/HSbiotikhon.asp?SID=7]
"Following graduation from the Pskov Seminary and St Petersburg Theological [[Academy]], he becomes an instructor first at Pskov Seminary (1888-91), then Kholm Seminary (1891-97), where he quickly became [[Rector]]. Just prior to his transfer to Kholm he was tonsured a monk with the name Tikhon and ordained." [http://ocaphoto.oca.org/MiscEventViewer.asp?EID=888&IID=14365]
==Life and work after ordination==
When the ungodly Bolshevik regime took control of the country, Church property was confiscated and the Russian Orthodox Church had to endure much repression. St. Tikhon openly condemned the killings of [[Nicholas II of Russia|Czar]]'s family in 1918 and protested against violent attacks by the Bolsheviks on the [[Church]]. At this time, he called Russian Orthodox Christians to unite and strengthen their practices. To avoid further persecution, he issued a message that clergy were not to make any political statements.
From 1922 to 1923, Patriarch Tikhon was imprisoned in [[Donskoy Monastery (Moscow)|Donskoy Monastery]] after he openly opposed the government's decree of being able to confiscate Church property. Thousands of Russian believers were shot. Upon being released, he assured the regime of his loyalty in an apparent attempt to relieve the harsh pressures on the Church. Despite his declaration of loyalty, he continued to enjoy the trust of the Orthodox community in Russia.
As persecution continued, he began to feel overwhelmed, and his strength and health declined. On Sunday [[April 5]], 1925 he served his last Liturgy. He died giving the Sign of the Cross, saying, "Glory to Thee, O [[Lord]], glory to Thee." He only crossed himself two times, dying before he could complete the third. After his death, he was considered a [[martyr]] for the faith.
{{succession|
before=[[Nicholas (Ziorov) of Warsaw|Nicholas (Ziorov)]]|
title=[[Orthodox_Church_in_America|Bishop of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska]]|
years=1898-1907|
after=[[Platon (Rozhdestvensky) of New York|Platon (Rozhdestvensky)]]}}
title=[[List of primates of Russia|Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia]]|
years=1917-1925|
after=[[Sergius I (Stragorodsky) of Moscow|Serguis Sergius I (Stragorodsky)]]}}
{{end box}}
[[Category:American Saints]]
[[Category:Bishops]]
[[Category:Bishops of Vilnius]]
[[Category:Bishops of Moscow]]
[[Category:Bishops of Lublin]]
[[Category:Bishops of Aleutian Islands]]
[[Category:Bishops of Yaroslavl]]
[[Category:19th-20th-century bishops]]
[[Category:Lithuanian Saints]]
[[Category:Missionaries]]
[[Category:Russian Saints]]
[[Category:Saints]]
[[Category:Modern Saints]]
[[Category:Metropolitans of the OCA]]
[[Category:20th-century saints]]
[[ro:Tihon de Moscova]]
