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| St. Longinus the Gatekeeper of the Kiev Caves (Feast Day - October 16) |
Saint Longinus, the Gatekeeper of the Far Kiev Caves, made his monastic obedience at the Lavra of the Kiev Caves. His prayerful fervor and humble love for work were rewarded by the Lord. The venerable gatesman was granted the gift of discernment. He encouraged the people who came to the Lavra with good intent, but he denounced those inclined to wickedness and urged them to repentance.
Not only was he a gatekeeper of Lavra of the Kiev Caves, but he was also a gatekeeper of his own heart. No vain thought or passion entered, for he constantly turned his spiritual gaze toward the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven, which the gates of the monastery were an image of in his mind, considering every way he may enter therein. To enter this gate, the closest union with God possible is needed, as He said: "I am the gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture" (John 10:9). This divine communion with the Lord is what Longinus possessed.
He reposed in great old age and was buried in the Far Caves of Saint Theodosius. He lived in the latter half of the 13th and in the earlier part of the 14th century,