This page does not concern St Cyprian (Thascius Caecilius Cyprianus), bishop of Carthage.

Cyprian (Киприан in Russian) (c.1336 — September 16, 1406), Metropolitan of Moscow (since 1381), Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia (since 1390).

Cyprian was a clergyman of Bulgarian or Serbian nationality. In 1373, the Patriarch of Constantinople Philotheus Kokkinos picked him for his devout lifestyle and excellent education and sent him to Lithuania and Russia on a mission to reconcile the princes of Lithuania and Tver with Metropolitan Alexius. In 1375, after the hostilities between Moscow and Lithuania had started all over again, the Lithuanian princes asked to appoint Cyprian their Metropolitan. Philotheus Kokkinos made Cyprian Metropolitan of Kiev, all Rus and Lithuania, so that he could unite both ecclesiastical provinces after the death of Alexius.

In 1378, Metropolitan Alexius died. As a result of the ensuing skirmishes and intrigues, Cyprian became Metropolitan of Moscow in 1381. One year later, however, he fled from Moscow due to the approaching armies of Tokhtamysh. Subsequently, he was removed from the Muscovy and replaced with Metropolitan Pimen (1382-1384). The latter was succeeded by Metropolitan Dionysius (1384-1385). In 1390, Cyprian was returned to Moscow by Vasili II, who he had always supported, and appointed Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia.

Cyprian is remembered as a wise and experienced keeper of the Church of God and a zealot of the unity of the Russian lands. In fact, he is mainly responsible for uniting the Church in all of the lands, even including those of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was an erudite person and a connoisseur of ecclesiastic rituals and literature, who especially cared for regulating the divine service and monastic lifestyle. Cyprian was the one who initiated the creation of the Троицкая летопись (Troitskaya letopis’, or Troitskaya Chronicle) and, probably, the Правосудие митрополичье (Pravosudiye metropolich’ye, or Metropolitan Justice). He also rewrote the Life of Metropolitan Peter, which had been written around 1327, and made it more rhetorical and well phrased. Cyprian corrected mistakes in biblical books and translated ecclesiastic works from Greek. This was a tantalizing effort, considering the fact that printing had not been invented yet.

Cyprian was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in the 15th century.