Hierarch, Metropolitan Demetrius of Rostov, Metropolitan

Hierarch Demetrius, born Daniil Savvich Tuptalo, was born in 1651 near Kiev into the family of a Cossack captain. He took monastic vows at a young age and was later elevated to hegumen, and then archimandrite, of several Little Russian monasteries. The chief work of his life was compiling the Great Menaion of Lives of the Saints — a collection of saints' lives arranged by day of the church year and gathered into 12 volumes; the hierarch labored on this colossal work, based on Greek, Latin, Polish, and Church Slavonic sources, for over twenty years. In 1702 he was appointed Metropolitan of Rostov and Yaroslavl. In his new see he zealously cared for the enlightenment of his flock, opened a Slavonic-Greek-Latin theological school for the children of clergy, and waged a determined struggle against the Old Believer schism that had spread in his diocese, denouncing its errors in special writings. He died on September 21, 1709. The hierarch's relics were found incorrupt on October 28, 1752, and glorified him with numerous miracles and healings. His memory is kept on September 21/October 4 (repose) and October 28/November 10 (finding of relics).