March 5, 2022

Miracles of the Venerable Martyr Adrian of Poshekhonye

St. Adrian of Poshekhonye (Feast Day - March 5)

During the acquisition and transfer of the relics of the Venrable Martyr Adrian, by the will of God, many miraculous healings from various ailments and diseases took place. And in the time that followed, with faith, those who gathered to the tomb of the Saint received consolation in their sorrows and were healed of illnesses.

The most important of the miracles from the time of the uncovering of the relics were recorded by Adrian's Hermitage. Here are some of these miracles.

In 1627, when the relics of Saint Adrian were uncovered, the clerk Tomila Lugovsky from the Shagotsky volost named Constantine secretly took part of the relics and carried them to his house, thinking that this would serve him as a blessing. But he immediately fell into a serious illness. In his illness, he remembered that he had taken part of the relics of the monk secretly, without telling anyone. Having repented of his act, he sent the stolen part of the relics to Adrian's Hermitage and became healthy.

When the relics of the Monk Adrian were being carried to the hermitage he founded, a peasant named Marcian, who had suffered from complete blindness for fifteen years, went to the meeting of the relics at the village of Kobelevo and received his sight as if he had never been blind.

After the transfer of the relics in the Church of the Dormition, an unquenchable candle was placed on the candlestick at the shrine of the monk. At night, the candle fell on the cover of the relics and burned it while the cover remained intact. When the abbot Porfiry and the brethren came to church the next morning and saw what had happened, they glorified the Lord God, His Most Pure Mother, and the wonderworker Adrian.

In the Adrian Hermitage, the peasant Tomilo Borisov and the monastery attendant Arkhip, possessed by demons, acted outrageously, did not venerate the holy icons, while Arkhip also abused the holy cross. By force they were brought to the relics of Saint Adrian, and they received healing.

A peasant from the Shelshedom volost, named Martinian Zlochanya, was possessed by a demon, and suffered from paralysis of the whole body. His parents told him about miraculous healings from the relics of Saint Adrian. The sick man, hearing about this, said: “If the Monk Adrian heals me of my illness, I will not leave his monastery and stay there until my death.” His parents took him to the monastery, prayed and left him there. After some time, the sick man was healed and remained to live in the monastery. After living a considerable time, Zlochanya, however, wanted to go home, feeling completely healthy. But soon after he again fell ill with the same disease even more than before. Having come to his senses, Zlochanya again began to ask his parents to take him to Adrian's monastery, repeating his previous promise. Having received healing again, he did not leave the monastery and remained there until his death.

One wanderer, a beggar named Dionysius Lotosha, went to the surrounding villages for alms. Once he stopped with his retinue in one village in the Shelshedom volost, and, being in the bathhouse of one peasant, they did an indecent act. Dionysius lost his mind, fell into a frenzy and ran away from the bathhouse. Driven by a demon, he wanted to run past Adrian's Hermitage. The monastics, seeing the unfortunate man, seized him and took him to the church to the shrine of the monk. But the demoniac raged, and began to throw icons. Subjected to blows with rods, however, he escaped and fled to the Patrobol volost. There he was subjected to many beatings and wounds. Finally, late in the evening, sleep overcame him; he fell asleep in the forest near the village of Kuznechki in the monastery estate. In a dream, the Venerable Martyr Adrian appeared to him and showed him the way to the Monastery of the Most Pure Theotokos, to his relics. Waking up, the sick man felt healthy, was horrified by his nakedness, wept and sobbed. By chance, a God-loving woman met him and, seeing the unfortunate man, leaving her feminine modesty, with courageous firmness took off her outer clothes and dressed the naked man. Dionysius, having come to the monastery and sung a prayer service at the relics of the saint, was completely healed and lived for quite a long time, working for the monastery, and then returned home.

In the Adrian Hermitage of the village of Portuya, the townsman Yuri Kazarinov fell into such drunkenness that he went berserk and dishonored the holy icons. Pious people by force brought him to the relics of the monk. After falling asleep at the shrine, the sick man got up, felt healthy and promised to give up drunkenness. Having lived for quite a long time in a sober state, he again fell into drunkenness, believing that the time for a promise had passed. Tortured again by the demon, he was taken by his parents to the relics of Adrian. After the prayer, he again received healing and led a sober life until his death.

The Poshekhonsky military man Joseph Mikhailov Levashov fell into a serious illness of demon possession, shouted, rushed about and did not heed any divine words. His wife, Martha Vasilyeva of the Pavlov family, pitying her husband, ordered her people to take him to the relics of Saint Adrian. The sick man, furious, began to beat his wife and people, gnashing his teeth, so that they could hardly control him. Having attached the sick man to the relics and sprinkled him with holy water, they left him at the shrine for the night alone, so the brethren and all the others left the church. The sick man fell asleep. Waking up, he saw at the relics the Most Pure Mother of God, called Hodegetria, with the Eternal Child in her arms. In fear, the sick man began to sing: “Rejoicing Thou Full of Grace,” and so on until the end of that hymn, repeating it several times and shedding tears. A fragrance spread throughout the church. The brethren, hearing the singing in the church, entered there, and seeing Joseph well, were filled with joy at such a miracle. Joseph spoke about his healing and vision at the tomb. The brethren then began to serve prayers to the All-Merciful Savior, the Most Pure Theotokos, and the Venerable Wonderworker Adrian. Healed Joseph returned to his house healthy.

Under Abbot Elias, the Beloselsky Sovereign Kirill Vasiliev Khvostov inflicted violence on the Adrianov Monastery and brought the innocent under guilt. The abbot and the brethren gave double ransoms, but the headman did not stop harassing them. He thus fell into the disease of demonic possession. People brought him to the relics of the monk, prayers were served. Three days later, the sick man was healed, and after that he not only did not commit violence to the monastery, but also became its benefactor.

Under the same abbot Elias, the son of the peasant John Evstafiev suddenly lost his sight; he stopped seeing completely, and pus flowed from his eyes incessantly, so that the parents thought that the child's eyes had completely rotted. For treatment, they turned to sorcerers or healers, but there was no help. Finally, leaving the magicians, the parents brought the infant to the relics of Saint Adrian, served a moleben, and during Matins in the church the child regained his sight and became completely healthy.

Many other miraculous healings were performed at the relics of the Saint, both in those distant times and later.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.