Jonah Metropolitan of Moscow

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Saint Jonah (Иона in Russian) (died 1461?), was the Metropolitan bishop of Moscow, commencing 1448.

Since the late 1420s, Jonah had been living in the Simonov Monastery. He was close to Metropolitan Photius, who would make him Bishop of Ryazan and Murom. After Photius's death in 1431, Grand Prince Vasili II nominated Jonas for the post of Metropolitan. Due to Vasili's war with the appanage princes, Jonah did not leave for Constantinople until the end of 1435. However, before Jonas arrived the Patriarch of Constantinople had already chosen Isidore of Kiev to become the Metropolitan of Russia.

After Isidore had been condemned by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1441, for his support of Catholicism and the re-uniting of the Eastern and Western Churches, Vasili II confirmed Jonah' nomination for the metropolitan post, however, continuing internecine wars were to blame for the delay of his appointment. Jonah became Metropolitan only in 1448 and without the consent of the Patriarch of Constantinople. This signified the establishment of the autocephaly of the Russian Orthdox Church (Jonah received the Patriarch's benediction only after Constantinople's collapse in 1453). In 1451, Jonah took under his control the Lithuanian diocese.

Jonah was glorified as saint by the Russian Church.