 Skhariyah belonged to the suite of the Gediminid Prince Michael Olelkovich, who came to Novgorod in 1471.The first convert in Novgorod was the priest Dionisy, who introduced to Skhariyah his colleague, the archpriest ("protopop") Aleksei.The latter was the most zealous of the new converts, and did successful missionary work among all classes, especially among the clergy.