Saint Anthony of the Caves

A Chapel and Monastic Skete was proposed in the United States in 2016 to honor the traditions associated with Russian Orthodoxy related to monastic life set forth by Anthony of the Caves. "Anthony of Kyiv was born c. 983 Liubech, Chernihiv Principality, Ukraine. He was a monk and the founder of the monastic tradition in Kievan Rus'. In his youth, he possessed a fear of God and dressed in monastic attire. As he matured he set off on a journey to Mount Athos, where he took to monastic life. He received a monastic tonsure with the name Anthony and set his life on a course of pleasing God and living an ascetic life on the path to virtue. He became known for his humility and obedience. In time, he came upon a cave that had been dug by the priest Hilarion (later to be Metropolitan of Kyiv), near the village of Berestovo. Here he began his struggle in prayer, vigil, work, and fasting, eating only a morsel a day and sometimes not eating for weeks. After twelve men had gathered with Anthony, the brethren dug a bigger cave, and within it made a church and cells for the monks.”