Saints Cyril and Methodius
Source: OCA Website
Feast Day May 11th
Saints Cyril and Methodius were brothers and Christian Missionaries in the 9th century. They brought Christianity to the Slavic people. They influenced the culture, religion, and written language of all slavic people. They received the title "Apostles to the Slavs". In this guide, I hope to share a little more information about these wonderful saints and I’ve included ways to participate in the feast with activity suggestions, link to a listen more about about the feast, reading suggestions and more!
Read more about their life and influence: In the 9th century, Saint Prince Rastislav (r. 846–870), the ruler of the Slav state of Moravia (now in the Czech Republic), sent a request to Byzantium asking for missionaries to bring the Christian Faith to his people in their own language. In response to Prince Rastislav’s request, two devout and well-educated brothers named Cyril and Methodius were sent as missionaries to Moravia. From an aristocratic family, these brothers had grown up in Thessalonica, where many Slavs lived, from whom they learned the Slavic language. Before arriving in Moravia in 863, Cyril had finished developing the first alphabet for the Slavic language. The brothers used this alphabet in translating Church books into the Slavic language, which came to be known as Old Church Slavonic. They taught the alphabet and literacy, introduced the use of Slavonic in the Church services, and began training men for the diaconate and priesthood as the first step in raising up a native clergy for the Moravian Church. In 867 the brothers traveled to Venice with some of their Moravian disciples, hoping to find a bishop to ordain these disciples as priests and deacons. In Venice they were sharply opposed by Latin clergy who insist that the services may only be celebrated in Latin, Greek, or Hebrew. In response, Cyril called this the “Three-Language Heresy”; he quoted 1 Corinthians 14 in defense of the use of the vernacular language in the Church services.
Source: St Elizabeth Convent Catalogue
St Cyril died early in 869, but before he died, he begged his brother to continue the holy work among the Slavs. Methodius promised to do so. Methodius was consecrated as Archbishop of Pannonia and Moravia, with full authorization to continue using Slavonic in the Church services. However, when Archbishop Methodius returned to Moravia, he was arrested and imprisoned by the Frankish-Germanic. In 873, when Pope John VIII (r. 872–882) learned what had happened to Archbishop Methodius, he demanded and managed to obtain his release. But the Roman Church was unwilling to give much direct support to Methodius, for fear of offending the expanding Frankish and Germanic powers. Despite repeated harassment by the German clergy, Methodius continued to promote Church life in the Slavonic language in Moravia for twelve more years, until his death in 885. Led by their many disciples, many Bulgarians embraced the Christian Faith and were delighted when Methodius’s disciples entered their land, bringing the services in Slavonic, which they much more readily understood than Greek. In 893, the Bulgarians officially adopted Slavonic as the official language of both their Church and State. Old Church Slavonic is this alphabet which continues to this day to serve the nations of Bulgaria, Serbia, Russia, Ukraine, and Byelorussia, as well as the Czech, Slovak, and Polish Orthodox Christians. Source: Orthodox Wiki
Fun Fact: This feast day is now celebrated as a public holiday in many Slavic countries which includes public processions with the cross and their icons.
Activities
Pray and Support a Missionary - Since Saints Cyril and Methodius were missionaries, you can connect and find a list of current missionaries serving all over the world HERE on OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center) and encourage them in their important work! This could be a wonderful opportunity to collect money to help support a missionary! You can donate to OCMC HERE
Write a Letter or Email to a Missionary - What a better way to honor these wonderful saints than to encourage those who are serving Christ to the ends of the earth! Connect with them HERE through OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center).
Listen to the Saint of the Day read aloud on Ancient Faith Radio HERE (2 mins)
Printables to learn more about St Methodius and Cyril on Teachers Pay Teachers (small fee) HERE
For Older Kids:
Listen to a Homily by Fr. John talks about Sts. Methodius and Cyril on Ancient Faith Radio (22 mins) HERE
Book Recommendations :
Saints Cyril and Methodius by Potamitis Publishing
101 Orthodox Saints (page 35) by Ancient Faith Publishing
Stories of the Saints by Carey Wallace (check your local library)
Saints Cyril and Methodius Illuminator to the Slavs by Jerry McCollough
Cyril and Methodius of Thessalonica sold by SVS Press