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Venerable (Monastic) 15th century

Venerable Joasaph of Meteora

c. 1350 – c. 1422/23

Also known as John Uros · Joasaph the Former King

Of Serbian royal descent (John Uros), he renounced his throne to become a monk and, with St Athanasios, co-founded the Great Meteoron monastery in Thessaly (reposed c. 1423).

Feast Day
April 20
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Commemorated as

Our Venerable Father Joasaph of Meteora, the Former King and Second Founder of the Great Meteoron

Life

Joasaph of Meteora was a Serbian-Greek prince who renounced an imperial throne for the monastic life and became the second founder of the Great Meteoron monastery in Thessaly, continuing the work of his spiritual father, Saint Athanasios of Meteora. He is commemorated by the Orthodox Church on April 20, jointly with Saint Athanasios as the founders of the monastery.

Born around 1350 and baptized John (Ioannes), he was the son of Symeon Uros Palaiologos, ruler of Thessaly and Epirus, who bore the imperial title of emperor of the Serbs and Greeks. Through his father he descended from the Serbian royal house of Nemanja, and on his mother's side, Thomais, he was connected to ruling Greek lines; he was the last male of the Nemanjic line to hold the imperial title. After his father's death around 1370 he succeeded to the throne, but he soon set worldly rule aside.

Sources relate that his last official acts as king were two decrees issued in November 1372, after which he abdicated in favour of his relative, the Caesar Alexios Angelos Philanthropenos. Under the guidance of Saint Athanasios he withdrew to the Great Meteoron, was clothed in the monastic habit at about the age of twenty-two, and took the name Joasaph.

Timeline 6 moments Read Hide
  1. c. 1350 Birth Born and baptized John (Ioannes), son of Symeon Uros Palaiologos, ruler of Thessaly and Epirus, of the Serbian royal house of Nemanja.
  2. c. 1370 Succeeds to the throne On his father's death he succeeds as ruler of Thessaly, holding the imperial title of emperor of the Serbs and Greeks.
  3. 1372–1373 Abdication and tonsure After issuing two decrees in November 1372, he abdicates in favour of Alexios Angelos Philanthropenos and is tonsured a monk with the name Joasaph at the Great Meteoron.
  4. 1387/88 Rebuilds the katholikon As successor to Saint Athanasios, he enlarges and rebuilds the church of the Transfiguration at the Great Meteoron.
  5. c. 1394–1401 Withdrawal to Mount Athos After the Turkish conquest of Thessaly he withdraws, by tradition to the Monastery of Vatopaidi on Mount Athos, returning to Meteora around 1401.
  6. c. 1422/23 Repose Reposes at Meteora after years of ascetic seclusion; his relics are kept at the Monastery of the Transfiguration.

Contributions & Legacy

3 contributions Read Hide

From Throne to Monastery

Joasaph ruled Thessaly only briefly, from about 1370 to about 1373, holding the title emperor of the Serbs and Greeks though his authority extended only over that region. Rather than retain temporal power, he handed the government to his kinsman Alexios Angelos Philanthropenos and entered the monastic community that his father had supported at Meteora. He is documented under his monastic name Joasaph by 1381.

He joined the Great Meteoron, the monastery established on the great rock by Saint Athanasios, becoming his disciple. His sister, Maria Angelina, was a major benefactress of the monastery, and the two together provided for its building and adornment.

Second Founder of the Great Meteoron

On the repose of Saint Athanasios, Joasaph succeeded him as the head of the monastic community. In the year 1387/88 he enlarged and rebuilt the original katholikon, the church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, and he is remembered as a builder who endowed and expanded the monasteries of Meteora, contributing to the founding of the Hypsilotera monastery around 1389/90. By tradition he and his sister also constructed cells, water cisterns, and other structures for the community.

During his leadership the monasteries of Meteora reached the height of their early flourishing. For this work of continuation and expansion he is honored as the second founder of the Great Meteoron alongside Saint Athanasios.

Later Life and Repose

When the Turks took Thessaly in 1394, Joasaph withdrew for a time to Mount Athos, where, by tradition, he stayed at the Monastery of Vatopaidi for about seven years. He returned to Meteora around 1401 and lived out the remainder of his life in ascetic seclusion in a small cell. He reposed around 1422/23.

His relics are venerated at the Holy Monastery of the Transfiguration (the Great Meteoron), together with those of Saint Athanasios of Meteora.

His companions & kin
His spiritual father and the first founder of the Great Meteoron, with whom he is jointly commemorated as a founder of the monastery.
Athanasius of Meteora
His father, ruler of Thessaly and Epirus, who bore the imperial title of emperor of the Serbs and Greeks and supported the monastic settlement at Meteora.
Symeon Uros Palaiologos
His mother, of ruling Greek lineage, daughter of Despot Nikephoros II by the account of one source.
Thomais
His sister, a great benefactress and donatrix of the Great Meteoron monastery who assisted in its building.
Maria Angelina
Notes

Feast Apr 20 (and Dec 28). Co-founder with St Athanasios of Meteora (OS-1034).

Sources: GOARCH calendar; OCA / J. Sanidopoulos cross-check