PROCOPIO of SÁZAVA (PROKOP), saint. - B. at Chotouf in Bohemia, d. 25 March 1053.
Educated at Vyšehrad in Hungary, in the Slavic rite, he returned to Bohemia with the intention of contributing to the spread of Christianity and to the preservation of the Slavic liturgy in the Bohemian lands. At first a canon, he later withdrew among the Benedictines at Prague-Břevnov. In the hope of serving more effectively the cause of the Slavic liturgy and the ideas of s. Metodio, in 1009 or 1032 he founded a village in the valley of the Sázava River where, assisted by the duke of Bohemia Oldřich (1012-14), by Břetislav (1034-35), and by the bishop of Prague, Šebif (1030-67), the village developed around the church dedicated to s. Maria and s. Giovanni Battista, built by the village monks. After the death of s. P., his work endured, despite many obstacles, especially from the Latin current, until 1097. P. was canonized by Pope Innocenzo III on 4 July 1204. Feast day: 4 July.