Simon, Metropolitan of Moscow

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Simon (Симон in Russian) (? - 1512) was the Metropolitan of Moscow between 1495 and 1511.

Simon was a hegumen at the Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra. In 1495, he was elected Metropolitan of Moscow and soon won the respect of Ivan III. In 1501, Simon wrote a letter to the clergy of Perm, asking them to admonish their flock, knyaz, and ruling elite to eradicate idolatry and pagan beliefs among ordinary people. Simon was the one responsible for the convocation of the sobors in 1503 and 1504. The Sobor of 1503 decided not to charge anything for the ordaining procedures. The Sobor of 1504 condemned the Novgorod-Moscow heresy of the Sect of Skhariya the Jew, which repudiated some of the dogmas and rites of the Eastern Orthodoxy. As a result of this sobor, many sectarians were either executed or imprisoned. The same sobor also dealt with the issue of debauchery among the widowed clergymen and deacons.