Venerable Cornelius of Komel

St. Cornelius of Komel was born in 1457 in Rostov into the noble boyar family of Kryukov. At twenty he took monastic vows at the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery; after long wanderings among Russian monasteries, he settled in 1497 in the Komel forest near Vologda. Disciples gathered around him; a wooden church was built in 1501, followed by a stone cathedral in 1515. Around this time Cornelius composed one of the earliest Russian monastic rules, blending the traditions of Sts. Nilus of Sora and Joseph of Volokolamsk and affirming communal non-possession. Around 1529, following a conflict with Grand Prince Vasily III, he withdrew temporarily, but soon returned to his monastery, spending his last years in seclusion. He reposed on May 19, 1537. His church-wide glorification was established in 1600 by Patriarch Job.