Memorial Day of St. John of Shanghai and St. Francis — the only graduate of Karazin University who was canonized

2 july 2022 year

July 2 is the day of commemoration of St. Ioann of Shanghai and San Francisco, the only graduate of Karazin University who was canonized as a saint. On this day, 56 years ago, Bishop Ioann died in Seattle (USA).

The future ascetic of faith was born in the village of Adamivka, Izyum district, Kharkiv province. At baptism, he received the name Mykhailo. The Maksymovich family, to which the future saint belonged, was one of the oldest Ukrainian noble families, information about which has been recorded since the 17th century.

In the fund of rare editions of the central scientific library of the Karazin University there is a valuable exhibit - "Collection of the Maksymovich family". This book was published in Riga in 1897 in a small edition - only 30 copies. As the author notes, the publication was created "exclusively for family members, relatives, friends and good acquaintances" and was not intended for sale.

When the boy turned eleven years old, he was sent to study at the Cadet Corps in Poltava. In 1914, after graduating from the educational institution, he became a student of the Law Faculty of Kharkiv University.

After completing his studies at the university, Mykhailo and his family emigrated to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. In 1925, he graduated from the theological faculty in Belgrade, and in 1926 he accepted the monkhood.

In 1934, Father Ioann was consecrated as the Bishop of Shanghai. In this city, thanks to his request, a large cathedral was built in honor of the icon "Sister of Sinners", a shelter for orphans and children of poor parents was organized.

In 1962, the bishop moved to the United States, and in 1963 he became the bishop of San Francisco. Under his leadership, the largest Orthodox church in the USA was completed in San Francisco - "Joy of All Sorrowful".

During his life, the future saint took care, in particular, of the problems of refugees. In particular, there is a known case when Father Ioann did not leave the reception hall of the US State Department for several days in a row, until he obtained permission to enter the country for several thousand refugees from China. The bishop delivered his sermons in various languages, including Greek, French, English and Dutch.

For his modesty in everyday life, the French called him Barefoot Ioann, because he preferred to walk barefoot and wore his cassock to the holes. Often he even conducted church services barefoot, which caused great surprise among the priests.

Today, in the extremely difficult period of war, heroism and sacrifice of the Ukrainian people, it is especially important for us to turn to those lessons of the boundless desire for justice and the struggle for truth, which Saint Ioann gave us during his lifetime.

Honoring the memory of an outstanding graduate of the university, we believe in the victory of light!