Fasting 008: Fasting advice from Saint Theodosius of the Kiev Caves

Saint Theodosius of the Kiev Caves - or Fedos, as he called himself - lived in the 11th century and was the founder of cenobitic monasticism in the Kievan Rus. (Although, it must be noted that in the 11th century, Kievan Rus as such did not exist. Instead, there was a very loose confederation of various principalities.) Sometime in the 1060s, Iziaslav, the Grand Prince of Kiev, sought advice from Saint Theodosius, and two letters from the Saint to the Prince are extant.

Saint Theodosius of the Kiev Caves, 13th-century icon fragment

It is somewhat unclear why the exchange between Theodosius and Iziaslav was in writing. As the name suggests, the Monastery of the Kiev Caves is in Kiev; Iziaslav was the Grand Prince of Kiev and lived in the city and could have easily visited Theodosius in person. Perhaps, the written correspondence took place when the prince was away from Kiev due to a revolt in 1068. In 1069, Iziaslav, accompanied by King Boleslav II the Brave of Poland and the Polish army, returned to the throne of Kiev. One of the letters Theodosius wrote to Iziaslav - On the Latin Faith - is likely dated from that year - 1069.

Meal of Grand Prince Iziaslav, 15th-century illustration

Iziaslav was married to the Polish Princess Gertruda, a daughter of King Mieszko II Lambert. Naturally, Gertruda was Roman Catholic. She would have had to accept Orthodoxy in order to marry Iziaslav, but her Catholic upbringing in Poland and Saxony (her mother was from Saxony) likely created some discord between her and her husband. Whether Theodosius wanted to counter the influence of Gertruda’s Catholicism on Iziaslav, or that of King Boleslav II, who happened to be a nephew of both Iziaslav and Gertruda (Boleslav’s mother Dobronega and his father King Kazimierz I were Iziaslav’s aunt and Gertruda’s brother respectively) - the letter of Theodosius to Iziaslav On the Latin Faith warns the prince against close associations with the Latins.

Grand Duchess Dobronega