Discipleship and the Khutyn Abbacy
St. Xenophon was formed in the monastic tradition of St. Barlaam of Khutyn, whose disciple he was. Following the death of Igumen Isidore in 1243, he became the third Superior of Khutyn Monastery, one of the principal monastic houses of the Novgorod region.
According to the hagiographic narrative, St. Barlaam initially sent Xenophon away on a raft with minimal provisions during a storm; after some time Xenophon returned seeking forgiveness and received a blessing to build a chapel. A church dedicated to St. Nicholas was later consecrated at the site, formalizing the monastic establishment.
Foundation on the Robeika
After leaving the abbacy of Khutyn, St. Xenophon founded a community on the banks of the River Robeika, not far from Novgorod. The foundation is identified in the sources as Holy Trinity Monastery, with one account placing his appointment as igumen of the new monastery in 1251.
He reposed at this monastery on June 28, 1262.
Sources and Historiography
The biographical record for St. Xenophon is limited; no information survives regarding his birth date. His original vita was lost, and when it was rewritten in the 18th century, his biographers confused St. Barlaam of Khutyn with St. Barlaam of Kiev, who lived roughly 200 years earlier — a confusion that also attached to his associate Anthony of Dymsk.
The only surviving copy of the vita emerged late in the 20th century. Research by A. G. Bobrov in 1997 questioned the previously accepted 13th-century founding date on the basis of textual evidence from the vita, proposing a different timeline. According to one account, before entering Khutyn, Xenophon took monastic vows at the Lisitsky Monastery under Barlaam.
Relics & Shrines
St. Xenophon's holy relics rested for many years in the monastery church on the Robeika, which later became a parish church. The sources preserve no further detail concerning the relics beyond their location, nor specific circumstances of his glorification.
Commemoration
St. Xenophon is honored on three occasions: June 28, the anniversary of his repose; January 26, the feast of his patron saint, Xenophon of Constantinople; and the third Sunday after Pentecost, the Synaxis of the Novgorod Saints.
