Our Venerable Father Macarius the Deacon, of the Far Caves of Kiev
Life
Macarius the Deacon was a monastic of the Far Caves (also called the Theodosius Caves) of the Kiev Caves Lavra, who lived during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. He was distinguished above all by his freedom from covetousness.
By tradition he was frequently ill as a child, and his parents vowed to offer their son to the Monastery of the Kiev Caves if he were restored to health. Brought into the monastery, he won the love of the brethren through his mildness and humility, and they taught him to read and to write.
On account of the piety of his life he was ordained to the diaconate, and the tradition holds that the Lord granted him the gift of wonderworking. His relics repose among the venerable fathers of the Far Caves.
Timeline 3 moments
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13th–14th centuryLife in the Kiev CavesMacarius lived as a monastic of the Far Caves of the Kiev Caves Lavra during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
ChildhoodA parents' vowBy tradition Macarius was often ill as a child, and his parents vowed to give him to the Monastery of the Kiev Caves should he recover his health.
In monastic lifeOrdination to the diaconateHaving earned the love of the brethren and been taught to read and write, he was ordained a deacon because of the piety of his life.
Contributions & Legacy
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Life and Character
Macarius was marked by great fervor for the temple of God; he read the Holy Scriptures continually and labored in fasting. His defining trait, by which he is remembered in the synaxarion, was a lack of covetousness.
He is commemorated on January 19 on account of his namesakes among the Macarii of the desert — Saint Macarius the Great of Egypt and Saint Macarius of Alexandria — whose feast falls on that day. He is listed among the venerable fathers of the Far Caves alongside Venerable Macarius the Faster of the Near Caves.
Historical Context
The Far Caves of the Kiev Caves Lavra housed the relics of numerous venerable fathers and remained a major center of Eastern Christianity in Eastern Europe through the medieval period. Macarius lived in a turbulent era for the monastery: the Mongol invasion of 1240 under Batu Khan severely disrupted monastic life, and the Golden Horde burned the complex again in 1416, with reconstruction following later in the fifteenth century.
Despite these disruptions the Lavra continued its hagiographic and monastic tradition; its chronicles record archimandrite Akindin II (1203–1232) as compiler of the Kiev Cave Patericon, which describes early Lavra monks.
Relics & Shrines
The relics of Macarius the Deacon repose among the assembly of venerable fathers in the Far Caves of Saint Theodosius at the Kiev Caves monastery.
The saints of the Far Caves are also collectively commemorated in the Synaxis of the Saints of the Far Caves on August 28.
Miracles & Traditions
Traditional Accounts: The tradition relates that Macarius was frequently ill as a child and was offered to the monastery in fulfillment of his parents' vow upon his recovery, and that the Lord granted him the gift of wonderworking. These details are preserved in the synaxarion rather than in independent historical record.
