Memoirs by Archimandrite Nektary (Chernobyl)

From: Subject: Memoirs by Archimandrite Nektary (Chernobyl) Date: Wed, 22 Nov 2006 06:09:54 -0600 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.kollekcia.ru/cgi-bin/nika.cgi?cs=windows-1251&q=russian&ch=http:%2F%2Fwww.roca.org%2Foa%2F155-156%2F155f.htm&fm=off X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2962 Memoirs by Archimandrite Nektary (Chernobyl)

Orthodox=20 America

Memoirs by Archimandrite Nektary = (Chernobyl)

As a young boy, still before the Revolution, I had a terrible dream: = the=20 south-west part of the sky was illumined by a bloody, glowing sunset, = like a=20 fire, and on this bloody sky was written in huge, shining letters the = word, "the=20 end."

At that time I did not attribute any particular meaning to this = dream. But I=20 never forgot it. It was so vivid and stunning that my entire life = afterwards was=20 colored by the presentiment that this dream would definitely be = fulfilled.

And so it did. It began in 1917, and with each passing year it became = increasingly evident that the world was coming to an end. In the = beginning old=20 Russia was destroyed, the Tsar was overthrown, the antitheistic regime = came to=20 power, and then began the annihilation of thousands of innocent people = and the=20 persecution of Christians on an unprecedented scale. Churches were blown = up,=20 monasteries were closed and blasphemously turned into the most = disreputable=20 places. All this was seen as the coming to power of the beast of the = apocalypse.=20

In recent years we see that the power of this beast is beginning to = spread=20 over the whole world. The process of apostasy, begun several centuries = ago, is=20 today approaching its final stage. We are entering the age of the = apocalypse.=20

And now the meaning of the dream I had so many years ago has finally = become=20 clear to me.

My Father

I was born in 1905, in the village of Utimovka, in the district of=20 Kremenchugsk, Poltava province. My name in the world was Peter. I had = two=20 brothers and a sister; I was the eldest.

My parents, Michael Ivanovich Chernobyl and Anna Longinova, were both = of=20 peasant stock, but my father, a capable and energetic man, taught = himself=20 gardening and agronomy and went to work for the railway, planting trees = and=20 flowers at train stations. Later he was invited to the district town of=20 Alexandria, in the Cherson province. The town was twenty-five kilometers = from=20 Cherson, on the river Berezovka, where it fell into the Ingulets. Up to = the time=20 of the Revolution, the town numbered about twenty thousand inhabitants. = Here it=20 was proposed to my father that he create on a vacant parcel of land an=20 agricultural nursery affiliated with the district pedagogical seminary. = It was a=20 sizeable plot, thirty hectares, and on it he laid out a flower garden, = an=20 orangerie, hotbeds, gardens, and fields for sowing. In this nursery, = students at=20 the seminary, future village school teachers, were given hands-on = training in=20 agricultural production, learned about farm management, sowed rye and = wheat,=20 planted vegetables. There they raised saplings for sale to the = surrounding=20 population. The work provided my father with a decent salary (fifty = rubles) for=20 that time, and my family lived comfortably, in a house near the nursery. =

Like most people of that pre-revolutionary time, my father was not=20 particularly religious. He went to church on major feasts, but he = frequently=20 skipped church on Sundays, and did not always keep the fasts. The rest = of the=20 family followed suit.

An abrupt change in my father's worldview came soon after the = Revolution,=20 when he became acquainted with a certain layman by the name of Ivan = Savich=20 Mironov. He was a family man, no longer young, a profound believer and = well=20 versed in patristic literature. His was a strong and unique personality, = and he=20 had a great influence on my father. He introduced him to many spiritual = books,=20 which changed completely my father's views.

Among these books were the Nomocanon and Great in Small. The former=20 (containing the statutes of the Orthodox Church) indicated to him the = path to=20 salvation, while Nilus's book, Great in Small, convinced him that we = have=20 already drawn close to the time of Antichrist. My father began = frequently to=20 reflect on the fact that the end of the world and the Last Judgment = might come=20 soon, and that he, meanwhile, was living so carelessly, without any = concern for=20 his soul.

And so it was that my father, who before had been so indifferent, = became an=20 ardent believer, an Orthodox zealot, and he devoted the rest of his life = to God=20 and the Church. He began to keep strictly the Orthodox canons, and did = not miss=20 any church services. In spite of the increasing persecution and his = prominent=20 position in the town, he openly went to church and took an active part = in church=20 life. My mother followed his example. My parents began to help orphans, = the=20 elderly and sick; they welcomed in our home pilgrims and monastics.

Our entire family became acquainted with the books, Nomokanon, Great = in=20 Small, and other spiritual books that Mironov gave us, and we = wholeheartedly=20 embraced the truth of Orthodoxy. And when we realized the terrible and = menacing=20 character of the Soviet regime, we all clung to the Church as to a ship = of=20 salvation.

From that time our family began attending church services on Sundays = and=20 feastdays without fail. In the mornings we all gathered together for = prayer, and=20 we did the same in the evening before going to bed. Our father manifest = the most=20 zeal. Often he would even get up at night to pray and make many = prostrations,=20 sometimes provoking demonic attacks.

Our family began strictly to keep the fasts. On Wednesdays and = Fridays,=20 according to the ancient practice, we did not eat until three o'clock in = the=20 afternoon, regardless of what hard work there was to do. On the eve of = Nativity=20 and on other strict fast days, none of us ate anything "until the first = star."=20 In addition, we daily read together the New Testament, a chapter each = day. Our=20 home became a kind of monastery.

I should mention that earlier my father had expressed a decided = sympathy for=20 leftist parties. In the 1905 Revolution, in defending the rights of the=20 peasants, he came into conflict with a local landowner, as a result of = which he=20 spent a month in jail. Now he became convinced that the leftist parties = were not=20 in fact on the side of truth, as had been his impression before; on the=20 contrary, they were directed against truth, and, principally, against = the truth=20 of God and against the Church. My father straightway abandoned his = former=20 leftist persuasions and became a convinced monarchist. He very quickly = grasped=20 the essence of the Soviet power, seeing in it an evident manifestation = of=20 antichristian principles. When, in the '20s, they instituted a = "five-day" and a=20 "six-day," workdays began falling often on Sundays. My father = categorically=20 refused to work on Sunday. He himself did not work, and he forbade the = workers=20 at the nursery (by this time the nursery had become government property) = to go=20 out to work. He was lectured several times on this account, and the = authorities=20 threateningly demanded that he submit to the decrees of the powers that = be, but=20 he replied that he would not work on Sundays or major Orthodox = feastdays, since=20 it was forbidden by the church canons.

In view of the exemplary state of the nursery, the local authorities=20 tolerated my father's behavior for a time, but my father understood that = this=20 would not last, and at home he often prayed, "Lord, grant me to suffer = for Thy=20 Name's sake!"

Finally, in 1928, my father was arrested and sent to Siberia. In the = local=20 GPU he was told: "We know you are an irreplaceable worker, but because = of your=20 religion we can no longer tolerate you. We have to send you away!" My = father was=20 forced to walk more than a thousand kilometers through Siberia, in = temperatures=20 reaching sixty below, spending nights in freezing cold yurts. Conditions = were so=20 unbearably difficult that my father asked God to die. Finally, he was = brought to=20 civilization, to a small village on the island Kezhma, on the Angara = River.=20 There he lived some three years. The villagers treated him with love and = respect. They visited him and brought him food, and he conversed with = them on=20 spiritual subjects and read to them from the Scriptures. Whenever he = encountered=20 any of them, he would greet them with whatever feast it was. For this he = was=20 charged with "religious agitation" and was sentenced to ten years in the = isolated Krasnoyarsk prison.

At his arrest and during subsequent interrogations, my father showed = himself=20 to be fearless, although ordinarily he was very meek. And there in the = prison,=20 over the protests of the guards, my father would daily stand for prayer = at the=20 appointed times, fulfilling his rule. One of his fellow prisoners told = me that=20 being in the same cell with my father was for him a great consolation, = while=20 another said, "In the company of such a man as your father, one could = bear a=20 lifetime in prison." But my father's daily habit of prayer infuriated = the=20 employees of the GPU, and another ten years were added to his sentence. = In all,=20 he received twenty years. I visited him once, when he was in the prison = at=20 Karsnoyarsk. I never saw him again.

After my father's arrest, our family was evicted from its home near = the=20 nursery. My mother went to live with my sister in Sinelnikovo, while my = brothers=20 went to the Caucasus, where they found work as horticulturalists. After=20 Krushchev's amnesty, my father was released. He was by that time already = very=20 old. He went to live with my sister in Sinelnikovo, and there he died. =

Years of Revolution

My childhood was spent in the town of Alexandria, in the country, in = the=20 field and in the garden, for from an early age I was already helping my = father=20 with his work. Together with him I cultivated flowers in the = greenhouses,=20 planted vegetables, transplanted trees. In this way I learned from my = father to=20 work the earth. Following his wise advice, I also learned a number of = trades:=20 watchmaking, shoe repair, and carpentry. All this proved very useful in = the=20 years ahead.

On completing secondary school, I entered the pedagogical seminary = where my=20 father worked. By this time, many of the teachers and students there had = already=20 become spiritually corrupted. The Russian language = teacher was=20 a leftist. He was also the librarian, and when I requested a Bible, the = Lives of=20 Saints, or the magazine, Russian Pilgrim, = he said to=20 me: "You'd do better to read Shakespeare!"

After the February revolution, the seminary students began forming=20 revolutionary groups; they organized stormy political gatherings and = meetings=20 with placards, shouting, and seditious provocations. Some teachers went = with the=20 students to "May Day meetings," where they drank wine and sang = revolutionary=20 songs. Even a priest from our seminary attended these affairs. Seeing = such=20 corruption, I made haste to leave the seminary.

With the coming of the Bolsheviks to power, there immediately began = in the=20 city of Alexandria a period of utter terror. The Chekists seized people = at home=20 and on the streets, and these people disappeared forever; somewhere they = were=20 "finished off." The procurator appointed for our town was a former = cobbler by=20 the name of Makarov; his solution for all problems was to invoke "the = most=20 extreme punishment" - execution.

It seemed that everything in the city and in the outlying region was = engulfed=20 in a bloody chaos. In fact, everything was maneuvered by the Chekists in = a=20 definite, predetermined plan inspired by the powers of darkness. The = executions=20 were not random; people were marked for elimimination: those who were = the most=20 talented, the most worthy, everyone who in pre-revolutionary society = played a=20 significant role. It was noticed likewise that if there lived in some = village an=20 independent thinker, someone whom the Bolsheviks suspected of being = capable of=20 understanding the lie of their propaganda, he was seized and executed. = It was=20 evident that the Bolsheviks purposed to eliminate the best part, the = cream of=20 the Russian = populace.=20

It is well known that Lenin harbored an implacable hatred for the = Orthodox=20 Church, and he made no concessions on her behalf. Already in the first = year of=20 Soviet power, the execution of clergy began. In Kiev the Bolsheviks = tortured=20 Metropolitan Vladimir to death.

After the Revolution, groups of Bolsheviks and Komsomols began coming = into=20 our churches from time to time. They jeered at the believers, and = scoffed at the=20 icons. At first this was the extent of it, and for a while church life = continued=20 its usual course.

In 1922 and 1923, our city and others there in the Ukraine witnessed=20 astonishing signs from above: In many churches, icons and even entire=20 iconostases were miraculously renewed, as well as the paint on some = church=20 cupolas.

And this took place not only in churches but in private homes. In our = city=20 there lived a widow who had a darkened Kazan icon of the Mother of God.=20 Suddenly, before the widow's very eyes, this icon began to grow lighter = and soon=20 appeared like new. The people were amazed and began serving molebens = before=20 these renewed icons.

These signs were harbingers of the coming persecution of the Church, = and were=20 sent by God to strengthen people in their faith. As for partisans of the = GPU,=20 they reacted to these divine signs with malice and vexation. They came = to look=20 at the renewed icons, and grilled the priests for a rational = explanation,=20 suspecting that the priests had somehow fabricated the icons' renewal. =

Renovationism

In 1922 there arose in Russia the so-called "Living Church." This was = a=20 self-proclaimed group that rose up against the lawful Patriarch Tikhon = and=20 openly supported the Bolshevik regime. The Living Church permitted = married=20 bishops, the remarriage of clergy; it introduced a new church calendar = and other=20 innovations.

In our city there were four churches. In the center stood the = imposing old=20 Dormition Cathedral. There was also a stone church dedicated to the = Protection=20 of the Most Holy Mother of God, a cemetery church of All Saints, and a = wooden=20 church dedicated to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker. All the priests of = these=20 churches and their parishioners (many out of ignorance) joined the=20 Renovationists. However, my father and several of our acquaintances, = Mironov=20 among them, understood that Renovationism was not Orthodoxy, and they = stopped=20 receiving the Holy Mysteries in these renovationist churches.

There formed a group of Orthodox zealots, comprised of four families. = We=20 began seeking for a true Orthodox priest and, finally, we found him. = Twenty=20 kilometers from Alexandria, in the remote village of Ivanovka, there = lived at=20 that time Archpriest Nicholas Piskanovski; he had been among those who = had left=20 Western Ukraine when the First World War began.

With the rise of Renovationism, Fr. Nicholas Piskanovski, almost = alone of all=20 the priests in our district, remained faithful to Patriarch Tikhon. In = his=20 village church he openly denounced Renovationism. (Later he also came = out=20 against Sergianism, as a result of which he was arrested and sent to = Solovki,=20 where he became a father-confessor for the prisoner-clergy. Fr. Michael = Polsky=20 writes about him in the second volume of his book, New Russian Martyrs. = In 1934, in=20 exile, he was the personal secretary of Archbishop Seraphim of Uglich. = Fr.=20 Nicholas died in the mid-30s of tuberculosis. He was glorified by the Russian Church = Abroad in=20 1981 as one of Russia's New Martyrs and Confessors -note of the Russian editor..) = Fr.=20 Nicholas came to Alexandria and served in private apartments. = Occasionally we=20 would go to see him, to his village church. I remember how we once went = to see=20 him on Pascha to bless eggs. There was a terrible snowstorm and we = barely made=20 it. That was in 1923; I was eighteen. We continued in this way for a = year or=20 two. Finally, Bishop Onouphry of Elisavetgrad (Gagaliuk, martyred by the = godless=20 on 1 June 1938; his life appears in Russia's Catacomb Saints, Platina, = 1982 -=20 ed.), who had remained faithful to Patriarch Tikhon, sent to our city = Hieromonk=20 Barsanouphy (Yurchenko).

Father Barsanouphy

Once, on a feastday, my father and I attended services at the = Dormition=20 Cathedral (my father and other members of our group would occasionally = attend=20 services at the renovationist churches, although they did not commune = there),=20 where we saw an unfamiliar priest. He was of middle age, attractive, = tall, with=20 noble features, a full beard and glasses; he was dressed in monastic = garb and=20 held a prayer rope in his hand. After the service, we approached him and = asked=20 who he was and from where. We learned that he was a hieromonk, that his = name was=20 Fr. Barsanouphy (Yurchenko), and that he belonged to the Tikhonite = Church. We=20 were very happy to hear this, and Mironov straightway invited him to his = house.=20 Our entire group gathered for this first meeting with Fr Barsanouphy. He = told us=20 that he had been sent to our city in order to combat Renovationism. We=20 immediately decided to organize an Orthodox parish in the city, and to = appeal=20 for the return of one of the churches seized by the Renovationists. Soon = Fr.=20 Barsanouphy was arrested and imprisoned. We all took turns taking him = parcels of=20 foodstuffs, which, we discovered, he shared with his cell-mates.

Meanwhile, our petition had been approved. We were given the Holy = Protection=20 church, and, after his release from prison, Fr. Barsanouphy began to = serve=20 there. At the same time, he was appointed dean of the Alexandria = district.

Father Barsanouphy was meek, personable, affectionate, and attentive, = and=20 soon we all grew very fond of him. I myself became very attached to him, = and=20 regarded him as my spiritual father. At the pedagogical seminary I had = learned=20 to read on the cliros and had become familiar with the tones, for each = seminary=20 student was required to take his turn as acolyte, which we did in = rotation. Now=20 I began to assist Fr. Barsanouphy. During the Great Lent, there in the = Holy=20 Protection church I read the hours and the kathismatas, I sang on the = cliros -=20 in a word, I became a regular psalm-reader.

Although batiushka served in our parish church according to the = monastic=20 rule, his services were never tiring. You would come into the church on = a=20 weekday, and, hearing Batiushka's soft, measured voice before the altar, = your=20 soul would fill with tranquility and compunction.

Father Barsanouphy served with great attention and concentration, = wholly=20 giving himself over to prayer. He served daily, and did not allow any=20 abbreviation of the service.

In his sermons he called people to repentance; he exposed the = falsehood of=20 Renovationism. At the same time, he exhorted people not to develop = hatred=20 towards their wayward brethren, caught in the snares of renovationism, = but to=20 pray for them.

Soon word of the new and extraordinary batiushka spread through the = entire=20 area, and outsiders began coming to our Protection church. At first they = came=20 simply to observe and to listen. Later many of them joined the parish. = Village=20 priests also came to see Batiushka. In their discussions with him, they = became=20 convinced of the errors of the Renovationists and returned under the = omophorion=20 of Patriarch Tikhon. And so it was that from this small group of four = families,=20 there grew an entire parish, there arose a whole movement that caught up = the=20 entire district; almost all the priests of our district, together with = their=20 parishioners, broke away from the Renovationists.

Fr. Barsanouphy stood at the center of this movement; he united = everyone=20 spiritually, he drew everyone to himself; I became attached to him as to = my own=20 father.

Towards his spiritual children Fr. Barsanouphy was very gentle and = indulgent,=20 but he could be stern if that was called for, and would give strict = penances; he=20 was even known to exclude a person from Holy Communion for a whole year. = In=20 matters concerning the observance of the Orthodox canons, he was = unwavering.=20

Fr. Barsanouphy kept the fasts strictly. On Wednesdays and Fridays, = and=20 during the entire Great Lent, he ate nothing until evening, as specified = by the=20 typicon (it must be said that by that time far from all priests = fulfilled this).=20

At each service, he would give a wonderful sermon on the subject of = the feast=20 or on moral issues. I liked these sermons so much that I even began to = write=20 them down. Unfortunately, these notes disappeared after a search in my=20 apartment.

I felt a great inner attraction to Fr. Barsanouphy. Whenever I had = the=20 opportunity I tried to go see him. I frequently spent the night in his = quarters,=20 and sometimes spent the whole night in spiritual discussions, sitting = next to=20 his bed.

Unfortunately, I know little about Fr. Barsanouphy's life before his = arrival=20 in our city. I don't know where he was born, or even his name in the = world. I=20 know only that he came from a well-to-do family of the Elisavetgrad = district. He=20 was tonsured at the Kiev Caves Lavra, probably when still a youth. Later = he was=20 ordained to the priesthood and became a teacher at the seminary = affiliated with=20 the Biziukov monastery not far from Ekaterinoslav.

In 1918 the Bolsheviks began to despoil the monastery. They = threatened to=20 summarily execute all the monks unless they handed over the sum of = several=20 thousands of rubles. The brethren did not have such a sum, and the monks = were=20 put against a wall. "I felt then," Fr. Barsanouphy told me, "an = extraordinary=20 spiritual uplift - soon I would be in the Kingdom of Heaven. And I was = sorely=20 disappointed when a monk ran up with the necessary sum and the execution = was=20 stayed."

The monks were released, but they were told that, regardless, all the = monks=20 would soon be dispersed. Thereafter the brethren were never left in = peace:=20 Bolshevik detachments made frequent raids on the monastery. Finally, Fr. = Barsanouphy decided to run away.

For some time he hid in his brother's house, but he was discovered, = arrested=20 and imprisoned. He sat in a stuffy, damp cellar. His cassock = disintegrated from=20 the dampness, and there were so many lice in the cell that one could = rake them=20 up with one's hands.

After his release, he went to Elisavetgrad, to Bishop Onouphry, who = assigned=20 him to a nearby parish. The rise of Renovationism revealed him to be a = steadfast=20 champion of the truth of the Church and a fearless accuser of the=20 renovationists. For this reason Bishop Onouphry assigned him to be a = missionary=20 in the struggle against Renovationism in the Alexandria district. When = he came=20 to our city, he was about forty.

Later, he travelled from Alexandria to Moscow, to Patriarch Tikhon, = who=20 elevated him to the rank of hegumen. From Moscow Fr. Barsanouphy brought = back=20 with him a written encyclical against Renovationism from Patriarch = Tikhon=20 himself, which he read in church before all the parishioners. This = encyclical=20 strengthened us all in our stand for Orthodoxy.

The First Arrest

The renovationist priests in Alexandria openly supported the Soviet = regime;=20 one of them did not hide even his ties with the GPU. For this reason=20 Renovationism began losing ground among the people. Orthodoxy, by = contrast, was=20 gaining an increasing number of adherents. The renovationist cathedral = in the=20 middle of the city grew empty, while our Protection church was always = full;=20 people flocked there.

The renovationist priests despised Fr. Barsanouphy. They decided to = get rid=20 of him at any cost, and with this aim they made a secret agreement with = the=20 Soviets. The result was that on the eve of Palm Sunday, 1924, the = renovationist=20 bishop, Ioann, accompanied by his clergy, unexpectedly appeared in our = church=20 and presented an ukase, sent from Kharkov (the then capital of Ukraine) = to the=20 effect that from thenceforth the Protection church was to belong to the = Orthodox=20 and the Renovationists equally, with the right to serve in turn. The = Orthodox,=20 however, would have nothing to do with the Renovationists. They gathered = from=20 all over - there must have been nearly a thousand people - and, standing = like a=20 wall in front of the church, would not allow the renovationist bishop to = enter.=20

Neither detachments of militia, nor komsomols, nor even the mounted = militia=20 could disperse the crowd. Then, by order of the local authorities, the = fire=20 brigade was called, and, turning their hoses on the crowd, they = scattered the=20 people. Thereupon they summoned some locksmiths, who cut out the lock on = the=20 church doors.

The next day the renovationist bishop Ioann came to the church. The=20 renovationist clergy, on greeting the bishop, intoned, "Eis polla eti = despota!"=20 while the Orthodox stood to the side and escorted the bishop with cries = of "Wolf=20 in sheep's clothing!" Bishop Ioann served the entire Passion Week and = Pascha in=20 our church, but it was practically empty; the Orthodox refused to go = there.

Meanwhile, although I lived at some distance from Fr. Barsanouphy, I = came=20 almost every day to listen to his spiritual discourses. I liked him so = much that=20 I clung to him with all my soul.

Once, when I had stayed to spend the night at Fr. Barsanouphy's, = there was a=20 loud knock at the door in the middle of the night. Chekists. One of them = had in=20 his pocket "An Appeal to the People," an incendiary message fabricated = by the=20 GPU in order to frame Fr. Barsanouphy, whom they cast as its author. He=20 unnoticeably slipped the paper into the Horologion that lay on my bed (I = read=20 the Horologion before going to sleep, and used it as a pillow).

"You, " said the investigator to Fr. Barsanouphy, "are charged with = inciting=20 the people to revolt against the Soviet regime!"

"No," replied Fr. Barsanouphy calmly, "I didn't incite anyone. = Everything=20 happened simply as a matter of course."

The investigator approached my bed, opened the Horologion, and took = from it=20 the paper.

"And what is this?!" he cried triumphantly, and proceeded to read = aloud the=20 "Summons."

"This is a forgery," said Fr. Barsanouphy. "You yourselves wrote it = and=20 placed it in the book."

At this point I went up to the investigator and said to him,

"How could this be? This evening I was reading this book, and there = was no=20 paper in it."

Nevertheless, the Chekists took Fr. Barsanouphy away with them. They = did not=20 take me this time, but in two weeks they arrested me and several other = people,=20 including some women.

I spent close to three months in an isolation cell with=20 criminals-recidivists. The authorities would call me out for = interrogation,=20 accusing me of "insurgency" and threatening me with the firing squad if = I did=20 not sign a confession of guilt, but they got nothing out of me.

Finally, my case was closed and I was released. Fr. Barsanouphy had = been=20 released still earlier, also for lack of incriminating evidence.

Meanwhile, while we were in prison, our parishioners had gathered an = enormous=20 number of signatures and had sent representatives to Kharkov. Receiving = a denial=20 of their petition, they proceeded to Moscow, where they succeeded in = obtaining=20 the return of our church.

How elated I was when, on being released from prison, I came to = church on the=20 Feast of Transfiguration and saw Fr. Barsanouphy serving once again = before a=20 crowd of people in our Protection church!

Into the Catacombs (This section has been abbreviated)

Fr. Barsanouphy did not stay long in Alexandria. In 1925 or 1926 = Bishop=20 Onouphry transferred him to the town of Ol'viniopol (renamed by the = Soviets=20 Pervomaisk), on the South Bug River, to oppose Renovationism there. His = rapid=20 success evoked the ire of the local authorities, and he was arrested and = sent to=20 a prison in Kharkov. On one of my trips to the city to visit him, Bishop = Onouphry, who was also there in Kharkov under surveillance of the GPU, = tonsured=20 me a reader.

On 16/29 July 1927, Metropolitan Sergius (Staragorodsky) signed his=20 declaration of cooperation with the Soviet regime. /.../ Those hierarchs = and=20 priests who refused to recognize the Declaration (the overwhelming = majority)=20 were subject to persecution. Some of them, such as Archbishop Dimitri of = Gdov=20 and Bishop Basil of Poltava, were soon executed, while others were sent = to=20 concentration camps or exiled under extremely difficult conditions.

After his release from prison, Hieromonk Barsanouphy was forbidden to = leave=20 Kharkov. When the authorities closed the church belonging to the=20 "non-commemorators," Fr. Barsanouphy organized a catacomb group, which I = visited=20 on my trips to Kharkov from Pervomaisk.

Father Barsanouphy had a portable altar and an antimension, and he = secretly=20 served the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and great feasts in various private = homes,=20 usually on the outskirts of the city. When our people came to pray, they = would=20 use a secret knock. The services were held at night and ended as morning = was=20 breaking.

On weekdays, Fr. Barsanouphy gathered his group at his place for = spiritual=20 discussions. He would take some book - the Scriptures or some patristic = text,=20 read an excerpt, and then expound on it. Most often he commented on the = works of=20 Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov), who, more than other religious writers = of our=20 time, wrote about the age of apostasy and the forthcoming persecution of = Christians.

In early 1931, a massive arrest of Tikhonite bishops and priests = swept=20 Kharkov. Among those arrested was Fr. Barsanouphy.

The Second Arrest

All these years I lived in Pervomaisk. I lived in a private = apartment, alone,=20 like a monk; each day I read the entire cycle of services according to = the=20 monastic rule, although I was not yet tonsured.

At the end of 1931, the NKVD paid me a visit. In the course of their = search=20 they found a letter written by Bishop Seraphim of Uglich, protesting the = Sergianist Declaration. I was arrested and hauled off to the = investigative=20 prison there in Alexandria.

At the first interrogation, the examiner told me that I was being = charged=20 under statute 54, paragraphs 10 and 11, for "dissemination of = anti-soviet=20 propaganda," and for belonging to some "counterrevolutionary = organization." "You=20 are doomed," said the examiner. "The firing squad awaits you. However, = you can=20 mitigate your sentence by an honest confession."

I answered that I had nothing to confess, since I didn't belong to = any=20 counterrevolutionary organization, nor did I take part in any politics, = and I=20 refused to sign the incriminatory protocol. Then they subjected me to = various=20 tortures in the so-called "standing chamber."

There were other prisoners in this cell. Among them I recognized = Matushka=20 Nina, the wife of the priest Antony Kotovich, who had formerly served = together=20 with Father Barsanouphy in our Protection church. There was a sentry in = the=20 cell, and he did not permit us either to sit down or to sleep, day or = night. We=20 were given no food. And this continued for several days in a row.

It is hard to describe the sufferings of the people in this torture = chamber.=20 From enforced sleep deprivation some lost their minds. People were = brought to=20 such an excruciatingly unbearable state that they were ready to sign = anything in=20 order to be relieved of the torture. In such a state, it's possible they = didn't=20 even know what they were signing. Through these methods the NKVD was = able to=20 fabricate cases of groups of "subversives," "spies," and=20 "counterrevolutionaries."

From the "standing chamber" I was taken several times for = interrogation. The=20 examiner blasted me with expletives and yelled:

"I'll make you stand there until the Second Coming! Then again, we = might=20 think up something better for you. We'll hang you by your heels. Then =

He took out a revolver, put it close to my face, and threatened to = shoot me=20 then and there. Then he beat me with the handle of the revolver. I still = refused=20 to sign anything. I spent four or five days and nights in the "standing=20 chamber." Then I was given a few days' reprieve, and again I was sent to = the=20 chamber. This time I stood there without sleep for eleven days. Then = they threw=20 me into a cellar. The examiner came in after me with his revolver and = said,=20 "This your last place. Now we'll decided your fate. Tomorrow you'll be = shot." It=20 was February, there was a hard frost, the cellar was heaped with snow, = but I was=20 so exhausted and wanted so desperately to sleep that I collapsed onto = the snow=20 and immediately fell asleep. In the Poltava Detention Prison The next = day I was=20 taken to Poltava, where the district court was located. It was still = some time=20 before the trial took place, and the interrogations continued. As a rule = they=20 took place at night. At one of these nocturnal interrogations the = examiner said=20 to me: "In your Scriptures it is written, You should be obedient to all=20 authority. Why is it that you do not submit to the Soviet regime?" I was = silent.=20 Then the examiner asked me point-blank: "Do you agree with the worldview = of the=20 Soviet regime?" "No, I do not," I replied. "I understand that you are = against=20 the civil power," said the examiner, "but why are you against the = Church? Why=20 don't you recognize Metropolitan Sergius as the lawful head?" Without = waiting=20 for me to reply, he gave an answer himself. "Because you don't need the = Church;=20 you need politics! And counterrevolution! That's why you have chosen as = leaders=20 for yourselves such counterrevolutionaries as your Metropolitan Joseph = of=20 Petrograd and Dimitri of Gdov and other pernicious enemies of the Soviet = regime!" There in the Poltava detention prison we were fed poorly. We = were given=20 only 300 grams of bread a day, and the bread was half-baked and = glutinous. We=20 received hot water only once a day. For dinner we were given a gruel of = groats=20 that was often rotten and had maggots. One day, when I was sitting in = the=20 corridor in front of the examiner's room waiting to be called in for=20 interrogation, to my astonishment a Red Army soldier brought me a = sumptuous=20 meal. This was a great temptation, for it was Great Lent, and the food = was not=20 lenten. Repressing my feeling of hunger, I did not touch the plate and = gave it=20 to the other prisoners sitting with me in the corridor. When I entered = the=20 examiner's office, his first question was, "Well, did they give you a = treat? Was=20 it a good dinner?" This time he was inexplicably kind to me, speaking to = me as=20 to a friend, an equal. He said to me confidingly: "Look, we're not = really=20 against religion. We'll release you. Pray, serve, and just drop in here = from=20 time to time and..." It all became clear to me: the copious dinner, his = soft=20 manner... He simply wanted to recruit me as an informer. I voiced my = refusal.=20 The examiner abruptly changed his tone. "You'll regret this," he barked. = And=20 again came threats, beatings... Conditions in the Poltava prison were = very=20 difficult. A small cell, which in tsarist times had been designated for = one or=20 two prisoners, now held about twenty. Through the windows, which were = covered=20 nearly to the top by iron casings, the light barely entered the cell, = and only a=20 small patch of sky was visible. Fleas swarmed along the walls, and kept = the=20 prisoners from getting a decent night's sleep. The criminals occupied = the best=20 places, on the bunks, while the others were forced to sleep on the cold, = dank=20 floor. In a corner of the cell there stood a slop pail, and at night = everyone=20 would go there to relieve themselves, stepping over the heads of those = sleeping=20 on the floor. For a long time I slept next to this slop pail or under = the bunks.=20 The criminals bullied and sneered at the other prisoners; they were = known on=20 occasion to arrange a "black-out," i.e., they would cover a prisoner = with a=20 blanket and beat him, or they would dump the contents of the slop pail = on a=20 prisoner's head. The believers suffered not only from such "lessons" but = also=20 from the guards, who removed their crosses and confiscated their prayer = books. I=20 had a Bible that I happened upon in the prison, but during an inspection = it was=20 discovered by the guards and confiscated. My sole consolation was = prayer. I had=20 been a psalm-reader and knew by heart many of the church hymns, = stichera, and=20 kontakia, and this helped me immensely in the prison. In spite of the = constant=20 movement, the noise, the swearing, I would stand in a corner at the = appointed=20 times and sing all the church services; likewise, every day I would = fulfill my=20 prayer rule. This was for me a source of great strength and support. And = I have=20 to say that my regular prayers had a beneficial effect on the criminals. = They=20 were so amazed that, when I stood for prayer, some of them whispered in = a=20 respectful tone: "The father is praying. Be quiet and don't mess with = him." I=20 know that Fr. Barsanouphy prayed regularly when he was in prison. During = my=20 first internment in Alexandria, when Fr. Barsanouphy and I were in the = same=20 prison, although in different cells, when I was out in the exercise yard = I would=20 see him at the window of his cell, praying. In spite of the noise, the = foul=20 language, the thick tobacco smoke, he stood praying for hours, as if = oblivious=20 to his surroundings. From others I heard that his lengthy prayers so = impressed=20 his cell-mates that even the most hardened criminals became friendly and = sympathetic towards him. Some of them grew so attached to him that after = their=20 release they began corresponding with him. Among them were those who, = under Fr.=20 Barsanophy's influence, broke away from their criminal past and became = his=20 spiritual children. In the Temnikov Camps Finally I was given my = sentence: three=20 years (at that time they still gave such short terms) in the Temnikov = labor=20 camps in Mordovia. I was ordered to gather my things and, together with = other=20 prisoners, I was marched under escort through the city to the train = station. One=20 of the cars was fitted with iron cages, and several prisoners were = placed in=20 each cage. In front of the cages was a corridor along which walked a = guard. The=20 cages were so low that one could not stand erect, and so we were = compelled to=20 ride bent over for several hours until we reached Kharkov. From Kharkov = we were=20 taken further in ordinary heated box cars. In Temnikov we were quartered = in=20 wooden barracks. The barracks had three-tiered wooden plank beds. The = barracks=20 were not heated in winter, and we were given neither blankets nor = pillows. We=20 slept on the bare boards. There was no electricity; torches were used = which=20 emitted a foul odor. The walls concealed myriads of bedbugs that emerged = at=20 night and bit the prisoners. At first I worked cutting wood, but when = they=20 learned that I knew something about shoe repair, I was transferred to = the shop=20 to repair the prisoners' footwear. There was a stove in the shop and we = were fed=20 better there. The language used in the camp was foul in the extreme. And = it was=20 not only the ordinary criminals and guards who cursed habitually - "in = God, in=20 mother, in three tiers, and to the seventh heaven" - even intelligent = people=20 swore, intellectuals, professors. Everyone was caught up in obscenities. = Only=20 those who believed in God were able to preserve themselves from the sin = of=20 cursing. There in the camp we Orthodox clung to one another; we prayed = together,=20 and if there happened to be a priest among us who did not commemorate=20 Metropolitan Sergius, then on Pascha, on Nativity and on other great = feasts we=20 would gather secretly and read and sing the entire services. Among these = priests=20 was an abbot from one of the monasteries there in Kherson; I don't = remember his=20 name. Sometimes I would go alone to the swamp where, in the thick = growth, I=20 would perform my prayer rule and sing the church services. The = mosquitoes were=20 fierce, but one had to endure. In the Temnikov camps I came down with = dysentery=20 and was sent to the camp hospital, located some seven kilometers from = the camp.=20 When I returned to the camp, I met Fr. Barsanouphy, who had been sent = there to=20 finish out his sentence. This was quite unexpected, and I was so happy = to see=20 again my spiritual father. To my great joy, he was put in our barracks, = and now=20 we could, as before, pray together, do the services, and have spiritual=20 discussions. This contact with him was for me a great consolation. Each = time I=20 received his blessing, I experienced a feeling of joy, and if my heart = was=20 burdened with some grief or trouble, it was immediately relieved. And I = was not=20 the only one; other believing prisoners likewise received solace from = batiushka,=20 who was able to relieve their sorrows and difficulties. Everyone was = drawn to=20 his kindly manner and shining countenance. We were not together for = long. My=20 three-year stint was drawing to a close, while batiushka, who had = received five=20 years, remained in Temnikov. I never saw him again. Word had it that he = was=20 later transferred to a camp in Sarov. On the way to Sarov, the escort = guards,=20 who despised clergy, convinced the criminals to arrange a "black-out" = for Fr.=20 Barsanouphy. The criminals did so, and beat him until he was half-dead. = Fr.=20 Barsanouphy survived but became deformed as a result. He walked bent = over, like=20 Saint Seraphim of Sarov, and for the rest of his life he had to use = crutches. It=20 was hard to recognize in the humpbacked invalid the former tall and = well-built=20 Fr. Barsanouphy. Again in Pervomaisk I was released from Temnikov in = 1934. Not=20 long prior to that there was a famine in the Ukraine, as a result of = which=20 hundreds of thousands of people perished. The famine was deliberately = created by=20 Stalin in order to break the resistance of independent peasant farmers = and force=20 them onto the state farms. In passing villages and hamlets, I saw many = houses=20 boarded up, their yards overgrown with tall weeds. These were the homes = of=20 peasants who had died of starvation. I returned to Pervomaisk and = settled in the=20 very same apartment. Since I belonged to the clergy (I was a reader), = Fr.=20 Barsanouphy blessed me in his absence to nurture his spiritual children = there in=20 Pervomaisk. They would come to me, and sometimes I would go to them. I = would=20 read Fr. Barsanouphy's letters from the camp with his instructions and = counsels,=20 and occasionally I would myself, as far as I was able, answer their = questions=20 and offer spiritual advice. On Sundays and feastdays we would gather in = some=20 private home, in deep secrecy, and together we would read and sing = quietly the=20 church services. In 1934 I travelled to Krasnoyarsk, where my father was = serving=20 out his sentence. We were able to spend several days together. On my = return=20 journey I stopped in Sarov, where Fr. Barsanouphy was serving his = sentence. The=20 former Sarov Monastery had been turned into a labor camp. I was able to = make=20 contact with some of the prisoners, those under light escort, and = through them=20 Fr. Barsanouphy relayed to me a letter with counsels and instructions = for his=20 spiritual children in Pervomaisk. On my return, we all read this letter = together=20 in our catacomb group. Soon came the Feast of Nativity. We gathered = secretly in=20 the home of a certain slave of God by the name of Prokopy and held the = feastday=20 service. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Members of the NKVD, = revolvers=20 in hand, burst in and began a search. I managed to hide Fr. = Barsanouphy's=20 letters under a mat covering a bench, and they escaped detection. Nor = were any=20 other incriminating papers found. Nevertheless, Prokopy and I, and = several other=20 members of our group were arrested. Prokopy and I were taken to the = detention=20 center in Odessa and placed in a cell for especially dangerous = criminals.

The Third Arrest - The White Sea Canal=20

I sat in a detention cell with a Jew who was a Trotsky sympathizer. = Although=20 he was a communist, he was not a bad fellow, and he shared with me the = content=20 of parcels he was sent.

One day, during my walk in the prison yard, Prokopy threw me a note = from the=20 window of his cell on the third floor. I wrote him a response, gluing it = together on all sides with doughy bread crumbs. The result was something = like a=20 dumpling. The next time I went for a walk, I tried to throw this = "dumpling" into=20 the window of Prokopy's cell, but I missed, and my dumpling fell back = onto the=20 ground. I tried a second time, and it fell onto a drainpipe. My = neighbor, the=20 Jew, jumped up and managed to rescue the dumpling from the drainpipe. My = third=20 attempt was successful.

I was frequently called in for interrogation. At that time, after = Kirov's=20 assassination, the NKVD examiners were particularly vicious. As a "c/r"=20 (counterrevolutionary) I was sentenced to five years' imprisonment. = Again we=20 were taken to the train station, again we were shoved into cages.

This time we were taken to a transit prison in Kiev. The prison had = been in=20 existence since before the Revolution, and it had a chapel. The = Bolsheviks put=20 prisoners in the chapel, and I spent there several days. From there I = was sent=20 to the White Sea Canal.

At first I was on general work detail, trundling wheelbarrows full of = sand.=20 However, on my documents, under "specialty," I had indicated that I was = a watch=20 repairman, and I was soon transferred to a workshop of precision = machinery. It=20 was a privileged place: there was no guard, and the workshop was located = outside=20 the prison compound in a building housing the administrative offices for = the=20 entire WSBC (White Sea-Baltic Canal) prison camp complex.

In this workshop we were given the most varied tasks: we repaired = measuring=20 instruments for ships and watches for those working on the canal; we had = an=20 optician's shop where we made and repaired eyeglasses for prisoners. = Sometimes I=20 was called to the home of one of the camp administrators to fix a wall = clock.=20

I had a separate room in the workshop, and there I was able to = perform my=20 prayer rule undisturbed. I hid my service books there; in the barracks = religious=20 literature was confiscated if it was discovered during an inspection. =

In 1936, a new "plot" was discovered "against leaders of the = Bolshevik=20 party," and repressions again intensified. Political prisoners were = executed at=20 the slightest provocation. I myself came very close to the firing squad. = This is=20 how it happened.

Besides our workshop, there were other so-called work stations = outside the=20 labor camp precincts. At the end of each workday, an escort guard was = supposed=20 to make the rounds of these work stations, gather the prisoners, and = conduct=20 them back to the camp. Sometimes he was lazy and ordered us to assemble=20 ourselves at a designated place. This was a violation of the rules, = which=20 strictly forbade any prisoner from walking outside the camp without a = guard. One=20 day, as I was walking alone to the train station, where the escort guard = was=20 waiting for us, I was seized by some guards and accused of "attempted = escape."=20 The punishment was execution.

The workshop supervisor (he was a hired worker) went to the chief=20 administrator of the camp to plead my case. When, however, the = administrator=20 learned that I was a "c/r" (counterrevolutionary), he dismissed any = thought of=20 pardon. Then the workshop supervisor went to Levshin. This Levshin was = markedly=20 different from the other Chekists. There in the camp, we "politicos" = were=20 considered non-people. Levshin, by contrast, was respectful, = considerate; he=20 would extend to us his hand. They say that he helped many prisoners who = were=20 clergy. I often repaired a watch for him, or a pair of glasses. When = Levshin=20 learned that I was threatened with execution, he closed my case and = thereby=20 saved my life. Subsequently, during a "purge" of the NKVD, Levshin was = dismissed=20 from his work and imprisoned.

My release came at the time of the Finnish war. It was dangerous for = me to=20 return to Pervomaisk, and I went to Donbass, to the town of Kramatorsk, = where=20 there lived a family I knew. These were people who shared my church = orientation,=20 who did not attend the Sergianist churches. I lived with them for a = time, and=20 then made my way to Kharkov. There I lived in hiding, without a permit; = I did=20 not appear before the NKVD for the required registration.

The German Occupation

From my youth I remember yet another ominous sign. It came several = days=20 before the beginning of the First World War. I was nine years old. In = broad=20 daylight there was a solar eclipse. It grew dark. Animals became = restless; birds=20 shrieked, oxen moaned. This eclipse foretold that dreadful catastrophe = which=20 soon befell Russia, for the war began and the insurgents took advantage = of a=20 weakened government to stage a rebellion and overthrow the monarchy. =

When news reached our city of Alexandria of the February Revolution = and the=20 overthrow of the Tsar, myopic people rejoiced and said, "Now we'll see = some=20 better living standards!" while more thoughtful people, Orthodox = (unfortunately,=20 there were not many of them), wept and said that now Russia had = perished.

I would submit that for us, Orthodox, the only divinely-established = form of=20 rule is monarchy joined with the true Church, while the Soviet rule, = whose aim=20 is to destroy the true Church, is a satanic power.

Therefore, it was my opinion that to work for such an anti-theistic = regime=20 meant strengthening it, and for this reason I never worked for a Soviet = company.=20 I earned a living by repairing small items for private people. There = were those=20 who refused not only to work in the Soviet system, but even to take a = Soviet=20 passport (the so-called "passportless"). But this was extreme, and = dangerous,=20 since one couldn't go anywhere at that time without a passport: on = trains and at=20 train stations there were frequent checks, and in border zones one = simply=20 couldn't live without a passport.

In 1941, when the war with the Germans began, I was of an age to be = mobilized=20 and sent to the front. I was required to appear before the war = commissariat, but=20 since I had just returned from the camps I had no desire to serve in the = army.=20 Furthermore, I did not want to defend the antitheistic Soviet regime, = which we=20 Orthodox regarded as a regime leading straight to the Antichrist.

I found a family that concealed me in the basement of their house, = and there=20 I hid until the coming of the Germans. During the German occupation I = opened a=20 watch-repair shop on the main street of Kharkov, and thereby managed to = feed=20 myself during this time of hunger.

In those years in Kharkov, I became closely acquainted with Fr. = Nicholas=20 Zagorovsky. For his open antipathy towards Sergianism, the Bolsheviks = imprisoned=20 Fr. Nicholas and later sent him into exile. At the end of his term, he = went to=20 live in Oboyan, near Kursk. With the coming of the Germans he returned = to=20 Kharkov and set up a house church in his apartment. I would come there = for=20 services together with other people, have confession and receive = communion. I=20 also knew his devoted cell-attendant, Ulyana Nozdrina, who did not = abandon him=20 even when he was exiled. She is now an elderly nun, Mother Magdalena, in = the=20 Lesna Convent in France (see below - ed.)

Fr. Nicholas' son-in-law was at that time the director of the Kharkov = Opera=20 Theater. When the Red Army approached Kharkov, Fr. Nicholas and I were=20 registered as theater employees, and we were evacuated together with the = actors.=20 En route our train was bombarded by Soviet planes.

For a period of time Fr. Nicholas and I lived in Zhitomir. There I = attended=20 services at the Russian=20 convent, where Vladika Leonty, the future archbishop of Chile and Peru,=20 sometimes came and served. Then we moved further west. Finally, we = reached=20 Peremyshl, in western Ukraine, where Fr. Nicholas (Hieromonk Seraphim in = monasticism - ed.) died and was buried. There in the western Ukraine, I = had a=20 terrible scare. One day some SS seized me. Because of my beard they = thought I=20 was a Jew and they wanted to shoot me on the spot. Fortunately, I had = with me a=20 document from the archbishop in Kharkov, attesting to the fact that I = was a=20 church reader.

Several times I was on the brink of death, but each time the Lord=20 miraculously saved me. On another occasion, when I was still in = Pervomaisk, I=20 was hurrying to church for the Nativity vigil. It was dark, and in = crossing the=20 river on the ice I didn't notice that I was heading towards a spot where = the ice=20 had melted. Just then I happened to feel in front of me with a stick, = and - I=20 became numb with fear: water! I was literally a hair's breadth from = death.=20 Again, the Lord had preserved me. (To be continued)

Translated from Pravoslavnaya Rus', 1998 #16, 17, 18, 19, = 20.

(Concluded in=20 Orthodox America, Issue 159-160)

Note: Archimandrite Nektary, now 93, is = currently=20 serving the monastic communities of the Church Abroad in the Holy Land = as=20 father-confessor. Not long ago he suffered a stroke. We hear that he is=20 recuperating, but prayers on his behalf would be appreciated. - ed. =

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