| 1755 |
St. Herman is born into a family of merchants in the
town of Serpukov, southeast of Moscow; his Christian and his family name
are unknown. |
|
1771 |
At the age of 16, he enters
the Monastery of St. Sergius, near St. Petersburg. |
|
1776-1777 |
Attracted by the spiritual
fame of Abbot Nazarios, St. Herman enters the ancient Valaamo Monastery
on Lake Ladoga in Russian Finland. |
|
1793 |
St. Herman volunteers to be
part of the mission to Russian America being recruited by Abbot Nazarios
at the direction of Gabriel, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg. |
|
12/25/1793 |
The eight monks from the
Valaamo, Koniev, and St. Alexander Nevsky Monasteries leave St.
Petersburg bound for Kodiak, Alaska. |
|
9/24/1794 |
The arrival in Kodiak of
the first formal Orthodox mission, known as the "Kodiak Mission." Their
journey is the longest missionary journey in the history of the Orthodox
Church. |
|
11/21/1794 |
Founding of the Holy
Resurrection Church in Kodiak. |
|
1795 |
Priest-monk Makarios is
sent to the Aleutian Islands; priest-monk Juvenal is sent into the
interior of the mainland. The same year, Juvenal is martyred on Lake
Iliamna. |
|
1796 |
Priest-monk Makarios
returns to St. Petersburg with some Aleuts in order to complain of the
brutality of the Russian traders and hunters towards the Aleut people. |
|
1799 |
The head of the Kodiak
Mission, Archimandrite Joasaf, returns to Irkutsk in Siberia and is
consecrated Bishop of Kodiak. Deacon-monk Steven and two unnamed cantors
accompany him; on the return trip they are joined by priest-monk
Makarios. They all perish in shipwreck on the high sea. A third cantor
is drowned at a later, undetermined date. The Kodiak Mission, five years
after its arrival, includes one priest; one deacon; and two monks. |
|
1800 |
The head of the Russian
establishment, Alexander Baranov, in a letter addressed to the "monk
steward Herman" forbids the missionaries to have any contacts with the
native peoples, blaming the missionaries for native unrest and accusing
them of trying to stir up a revolt of the natives against the Russians. |
|
1801 |
The missionaries attempt to
proclaim the oath of allegiance to the emperor against the wishes of
Baranov. At the end of a violent scene, in which St. Herman attempts to
intervene, Baranov orders them to their home and places them under
virtual house arrest, forbidding the natives to see them; for more than
a year, there are no public services in Kodiak. The missionaries send a
collective complaint to the Holy Synod in St. Petersburg. |
|
1804 |
Arrival of Father Gideon
from St. Petersburg, charged to oversee the Kodiak Mission and to
restore order. |
|
1806 |
The deacon-monk Nectarios
leaves America. |
|
1807 |
Father Gideon leaves
America. |
|
1808-1818 |
At some undetermined date
within this 10-year period, Father Herman leaves Kodiak and establishes
himself on Spruce Island, just off the Kodiak coast. |
|
1811 |
The Holy Synod in St.
Petersburg closes the Kodiak Diocese. The Bishop of Irkutsk is given
responsibility for Alaska, and missionaries henceforth depend directly
on him. |
|
1816 |
Arrival in Sitka of the
first priest, Father Alexis Sokolov. |
|
1816 |
Martyrdom
of Peter the Aleut in California at the instigation of Roman Catholic
missionaries. |
|
1819 |
Simeon Yanovsky, son-in-law
of Alexander Baranov and his successor as general manager of the Russian
American Company, a freethinker, meets Father Herman and is converted;
he becomes his spiritual son. |
|
1819 |
Epidemic at Kodiak; St.
Herman ministers to the sick and dying at great personal risk. |
|
1820 |
Formal closure of the
Kodiak Mission. |
|
1820 |
A 20-year-old Aleut woman,
Sophia Vlassov, becomes St. Herman's disciple and works at the school
which he establishes. |
|
1820 |
A priest sent out from
Irkutsk deals brutally with St. Herman, tearing up his cabin in search
of alleged treasure hoarded by the saint. A new period of persecution by
the Russians is begun. |
|
1823 |
Death of the monk Joasaf at
Kodiak. |
|
1824 |
Arrival in Unalaska of the
young priest, John Veniaminov. |
|
1824 |
Arrival in Kodiak of the
priest, Frumenti Mordovsky; departure of Father Athanasios |
|
1825 |
Arrival at Attu (Aleutian
Islands) of the first Aleut priest, James Netsvetov, one of the greatest
Orthodox missionaries in Alaska. |
|
1831 |
The administrator of the
colony, Ferdinand von Wrangell, meets St. Herman in Kodiak; the
persecution ends. |
|
1834 |
Father John Veniaminov is
transferred to Sitka and begins his mission among the Tlingit peoples,
whom he admires and respects. |
|
12/13/1837 |
St. Herman resposes on
Spruce Island, where he is buried by his faithful disciples. |
|
1867 |
Bishop Peter of Sitka
gathers information in the first formal inquiry into St. Herman's life. |
|
1894 |
The first official
biography of St. Herman is published by the Valaamo Monastery. |
|
1903 |
he Great Russian
Encyclopedia compares St. Herman to the desert fathers of the Church. |
|
1969 |
The Great Council of
Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America announces its intent to
canonize St. Herman. |
|
8/9/1970 |
St Herman is canonized in
ceremonies at the Church of the Holy Resurrection, Kodiak, Alaska. |
