Icon of Sts. Cyril and Methodius - 00STCM02

Feast Day/Commemorated: May 12

Saints Cyril and Methodius, Equals of the Apostles and Enlighteners of the Slavs, originated from a distinguished and devout family in Thessalonica. Methodius, the eldest of seven brothers, initially pursued a military career, serving as governor of a Slavic principality, likely in Bulgaria, which provided him with fluency in the Slavic tongue. After a decade, he embraced monasticism on Mount Olympus in Asia Minor. His youngest brother, Constantine (later Cyril), distinguished himself as a brilliant scholar, studying under the finest teachers in Constantinople, including the future Patriarch Saint Photius. Possessing a keen intellect, he mastered numerous sciences and languages, earning him the epithet "Philosopher." Ordained to the priesthood, Constantine served as curator of the patriarchal library before seeking a monastic life, only to be recalled to Constantinople as an instructor in philosophy. His profound wisdom and faith led him to victory in debates against both iconoclastic heretics and Saracens on matters of the Holy Trinity.

Upon his return from these intellectual triumphs, Saint Constantine joined his brother Saint Methodius on Mount Olympus, dedicating himself to prayer and the study of the Church Fathers. Soon, both holy brothers were summoned by the emperor to preach the Gospel to the Khazars. En route, they prepared for their mission in Korsun, where they miraculously discovered the relics of the hieromartyr Clement, Pope of Rome. It was also in Korsun that Saint Constantine made a crucial discovery: a Gospel and Psalter written in Russian (Slavonic) letters, and a man who spoke the Slavic language, enabling him to learn to read and speak it. Armed with this knowledge, the brothers journeyed to the Khazars, where they successfully debated Jews and Muslims, proclaiming the Gospel. Upon their return, after again visiting Korsun and retrieving Saint Clement's relics, Saint Constantine remained in Constantinople, while Saint Methodius became abbot of the Polychronion monastery near Mount Olympus, resuming his ascetic life.

A pivotal moment arrived when Prince Rostislav of Moravia, facing pressure from German bishops, requested teachers who could preach in the Slavic language. The emperor entrusted this vital mission to Saint Constantine. With fervent fasting and prayer, Saint Constantine, aided by his brother Saint Methodius and disciples Gorazd, Clement, Savva, Naum, and Angelyar, embarked on the monumental task of creating a Slavonic alphabet. In the year 863, they completed the translation of essential liturgical books—the Gospel, Epistles, Psalter, and collected services—into the newly formalized Slavic tongue. Upon their arrival in Moravia, they were received with great honor and began conducting divine services in Slavonic. This unprecedented practice, however, incited the strong opposition of the German bishops, who maintained that divine services could only be celebrated in Hebrew, Greek, or Latin.

Saint Constantine eloquently refuted the German bishops' narrow view, citing scripture that calls for all nations and peoples to praise the Lord. Though humiliated, the German bishops continued their opposition by complaining to Rome. Consequently, the holy brothers were summoned to Rome to address the controversy. Bringing with them the cherished relics of Saint Clement, Saints Constantine and Methodius were met by Pope Adrian himself and his clergy, receiving a greeting of high honor. The Pope not only granted permission for divine services in the Slavonic language but also ordered the brothers' translated books to be placed in Latin churches, and the Liturgy to be served in Slavonic, thus legitimizing their sacred work. While in Rome, Saint Constantine fell gravely ill; recognizing his approaching death, he was tonsured into the monastic schema, receiving the name Cyril. He reposed peacefully on February 14, 869, at the age of forty-two, just fifty days after his tonsure.

Before his repose, Saint Cyril earnestly commanded his brother Methodius to continue their holy mission of enlightening the Slavic peoples. Although Methodius sought to bury his brother in their homeland, the Pope directed that Saint Cyril's relics be interred in the Church of Saint Clement in Rome, where they became a source of miracles. After Cyril's death, Pope Adrian consecrated Saint Methodius as Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia, restoring him to an ancient episcopal throne. However, Methodius's continued use of Slavonic liturgical books once again ignited the wrath of the German bishops, who imprisoned him for two and a half years. Freed by Pope John VIII, Saint Methodius resumed his tireless evangelism, baptizing prominent Slavic rulers like Prince Borivoi and Princess Ludmilla of Czechia. He faced a third persecution from German bishops for upholding the Orthodox teaching of the Holy Spirit's procession from the Father alone, but successfully defended the purity of the Faith before the Pope. In his final years in Velehrad, Saint Methodius, with the help of his disciples, translated almost the entire Old Testament, the Nomocanon, and the Paterikon into Slavonic. Designating his student Gorazd as his successor, Saint Methodius reposed on April 6, 885, at the age of sixty, his burial service chanted in Slavonic, Greek, and Latin, marking the culmination of his life's dedication to the Slavic enlightenment.

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