Petar of Koriša


Petar Koriški was the first anachoretic saint of Old Serbia, who lived in a cave on Rusenica mountain, part of the Šar Mountains range, where he gained fame as an ascetic wonderworker among his people. The Serbian Orthodox Church now venerates him on 5 June.
He was born in Ujmir, a village south-west of Peć and died in Koriša, in the Serbian province of Kosovo. Petar and his sister, after the death of their parents, joined a monastic community and later both became hermits.It is said that Petar healed those who sought his help and his fame spread with the ensuing years, transforming into the "Cult of Petar of Koriša."
His rock-cut monastery is also known as the Hermitage of St. Peter of Koriša.
Petar Koriški was the only saint that was neither a state ruler or head of the Church, though an exception was made in his case by the Serbian Orthodox Church.
In the next century, Teodosije the Hilandarian popularized Petar in his 1310 realistic work titled "The Life of Petar of Koriša." Teodosije's narrative demonstrated the characteristics of a novel.