Andrew of Meshchovsk

Blessed Andrew of Meshchovsk (1744-1812) was a fool for Christ in the town of Meshchovsk, in the Kaluga region. He is venerated by the faithful, without synodal canonization; he died on 28 June 1812.

He was born in 1744 in the village of Ovsyannikovo, Meshchovsk district, into a peasant family. From childhood he loved solitude, did not play with other children, and was quiet, meek and silent. After his mother's death he resolved to take upon himself the feat of folly for Christ. He wandered through the nearby villages almost naked, with a small axe and a whip. People, who thought him mad, insulted, humiliated and beat him, which he endured.

At thirty-⁠five he moved to Meshchovsk, where the widow E. Sukhova took him in, and in her house he lived until his death. What he was given he distributed to the poor, especially the soldiers in the prison, for whom he felt pity. He prayed zealously and loved to go to the Saint George Monastery in Meshchovsk. He had the gift of healing and of foresight, and shortly before his death he foretold the French invasion. He was buried in the east tower of the Saint George Monastery, on a place he had chosen himself. Veneration of him remained alive among the people of Meshchovsk, who served memorial services at the grave and took sand from it for the healing of various illnesses, especially of children.