Demetrius of Rostov
Demetrius of Rostov (Russian: Димитрий Ростовский, romanized: Dmitri Rostovsky, Ukrainian: Димитрій Ростовський, romanized: Dymytrii Rostovskyi, secular name Daniil Savvich Tuptalo, Russian: Даниил Саввич Туптало, or Tuptalenko, Russian: Тупталенко, according to some sources; 11 December 1651 – 28 October 1709) was a leading opponent of the Caesaropapist reform of the Russian Orthodox church promoted by Theophan Prokopovich. He is representative of the strong Cossack Baroque influence upon the Russian Orthodox Church at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries.
Saint Demetrius of Rostov | |
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Icon of St. Demetrius of Rostov, late 17th-century | |
| Hierarch | |
| Born | 11 December 1651 Makariv, Cossack Hetmanate |
| Died | 28 October 1709 Rostov, Tsardom of Russia |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | 22 April 1757 by Russian Orthodox Church |
| Feast | 21 September (Uncovering of Relics) 28 October (Repose) 23 May (Synaxis of All Saints of Rostov) |
| Attributes | Vested as a bishop, right hand raised in blessing |
Demetrius is sometimes credited as composer or compiler of the first Russian opera, the lengthy Rostov Mysteries of 1705, though the exact nature of this work, as well as its place in history, is open to debate.
He is the author of several written works, out of which the most famous is The Lives of Saints (Четьи-Минеи). He was also involved in the creation of the forged document Synodic act on the heretic of Armenia, the monk Martin.