Almost a saint. How the Ural schema-abbot Sergius defeats chipping and banishes the iPhone

Day I. Please change your anger to mercy

In the middle of the Serovsky tract stands a huge worship cross: “Lord bless.” To his left is the exit towards the youngest and largest convent in the Urals, the Sredneuralsky convent, where the rebellious schema-abbot Sergius has entrenched himself, cursing the metropolitan, patriarch and secular authorities for defeatism before the coronavirus.

I turn off the Serovsky tract on foot - I asked the taxi driver to stop much in advance. Right next to the turn is a patrol booth. It is impossible to understand whether there is someone inside. A little further there is a railway carriage and tents hidden behind it with a sign “No entry without blessing”. At the majestic entrance gate, decorated with the image of the Virgin Mary, Spreader of the Loaves, there is also a trailer, with a Cossack visible inside.

Trying to ignore him as confidently as possible, I approach the gate, make the sign of the cross and bow from the waist, and go inside.

The monastery is greeted with construction. There are stacks of bricks and beams, bags of crushed stone, sand and gravel, and rows of various construction equipment everywhere. In addition to the three existing temples, two more are being built, a gigantic one and a smaller one, the first with domes already in place; in front of the second, the domes are still awaiting installation.

A four-story residential building, a livestock farm, a greenhouse, an apiary and a dozen cozy cozy houses hidden in the forest - apparently for VIP pilgrims. Somewhere in the residential building there is also a boarding school for orphans and a hospital for cancer patients.

On the main square there is a 15-meter cross, a statue of Jesus Christ and the “Sword of Repentance”, from the hilt of which Orthodox warriors and heroes fly out. Separately, at the very central point is a bust of Tsar Nicholas II.

Entrance to the territory of the Sredneuralsky convent. Photo: Pavel Lisitsyn / RIA Novosti

The inhabitants of this place - nuns, pilgrims, children - look serene. Only the Cossacks, unarmed, but obviously on patrol, remind of the state of siege. Schema-abbot Sergius walks through the grounds in a businesslike manner, immersed in conversation with a layman. I approach and he extends his sinewy hand for a kiss. I fall towards her.

- Hello, father...

- The service is already underway! - Sergius abruptly interrupts and moves his hand to the side, as if driving me away, - and points with a dry finger towards the Temple in Honor of the Holy Trinity. Prayer singing from it is heard throughout the monastery through speakers placed throughout the territory. The schema-monk doesn’t say a word to me anymore.

Inside the temple there are about a hundred people, mostly nuns, but there are also several Cossacks, making a bow from the waist after the sign of the cross, completely touching the ground with their fingers. It is not Sergius who serves Vespers, but Hieromonk John (Ivanov) and Priest Sergius Berestov, who are attached to the monastery. The line for anointing of oil is lined up along two icons and a shrine with relics - and everyone in line applies it, leaving lip stains on the protective screens.

The five-hour service ends with a religious procession with icons of the royal family and the prayer “To the Heavenly King” through the area around the temple. I fall out of the stream onto the central square and ask: I heard that signatures are being collected here in support of the priest, but what and to whom should I go? A monk from the neighboring St. John the Theologian men's monastery advises turning to the head of the monastery office, Mother Tatiana, and praying for the schema-abbot in the church.

I find my mother Tatyana at her workplace on the second floor of a residential building. She snaps coldly: “No. If someone collects signatures [in support of Father Sergius], it’s not a monastery.” Are you really unhappy with what is happening?

I meet a Cossack in camouflage and combat boots - he immediately dictates what should be written:

— Dear Patriarch, Metropolitan, I am a Christian in spirit, in will, I and my family are Christians. We communicate with Father Sergius several times and ask for clarification of the situation. Please change your anger to mercy. Why do you do this to him? He tells the whole truth. We ask that we be allowed to serve him, so that [we can] come to him, confess, and receive communion from his hands. Listen, brother, I'm sorry, God bless you.

Security guard at the entrance to the Sredneuralsky convent. Photo: Pavel Lisitsyn / RIA Novosti

I go around the territory of the monastery through the back forest path, and go back to the gate. A shabby blue “ten” drives out of them towards me, with a bearded Cossack inside.

— Did you come there from the highway on foot? - he asks, and I understand that they “led” me, apparently, from the very turn off the highway.

- Yes…

— Did Father Sergius give you his blessing to stay here?

“I didn’t have time to talk to him.”

“Then, unfortunately, you will have to leave.” Goodbye.

No. 18 (867) / May 3 '16

Conversations with the priest

In this topic:

Conversations with the priest

Archpriest Dimitry Vasilenkov: Victory Day

Conversations with the priest

Archimandrite Melchizedek (Artyukhin): The beauty of the female soul May 15 - the day of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women

You are building a temple in honor of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women, and soon you will have a patronal feast day. Tell us how the construction of the temple is going?

– The decision that a temple would be built in the Düsseldorf park in the Maryino district was made quite a long time ago. In February 2012, public hearings were held, and residents of the area spoke in favor of the construction of the temple. Then there were difficult periods. So, when we erected a worship cross, not everyone took it with enthusiasm - first of all, the residents who considered themselves non-Christians. There were also those who opposed construction in the park, although our site occupies only 5% of the park's area. Then, when the construction of the temporary temple began (all of 2014, starting in March, we were building a wooden temporary temple), I felt a change in attitude - there were no longer those who opposed it. On the contrary, people came and offered their help - someone could buy boards, someone wanted to participate in the purchase of the roof of the temple, someone donated funds for the dome, and someone came and simply painted and helped the workers. It was great to see that local people were involved. We did not have large patrons of the arts - people brought the funds that they could donate, and those who did not have the opportunity to help with funds came and helped on their own.

Have there been cases where obvious opponents of the construction of the temple later came with repentance and were subsequently zealous builders?

– I don’t remember such cases. But there was one case when a person at first expressed distrust and negative emotions that “there are so many temples, why is this necessary,” but then, when the temple was consecrated and people began to fill it, he came and said that he was wrong, because the temple is in demand. – You can often hear that “no one needs the construction of churches”, that “Moscow already has enough of them,” but in reality this is not the case - churches are needed, there is a need for them. – I can say that at the Easter service in 2015 there were more than 100 communicants, and the church can accommodate 120 – 140 people. We were able to close the doors only in the middle of the service; people stood on the street, on the platform, on the steps, wanting to hear and see the Easter service.

It turns out that the temple is in demand, local residents visit it and participate in the creation of the house of God.

– We built a two-story temple. We chose just such a project because it was a park area and we wanted to open a Sunday school right away. Thus, the temple itself is located on the second floor, and on the first there are two Sunday school classes. It turned out that the classes were filled within two weeks, and now the question arises of where to place the children, because more and more people want to go to Sunday school.

The temple opened in January 2015.

Question from a TV viewer from Diveevo: “Christ is Risen! Tell me, only in monasteries do women pray on the left side of the temple, and men on the right, or does this rule apply in any temple?”

– This is a pious tradition when in the temple men stand on the right side and women on the left. We know that it is not observed everywhere now, although it would be good if it were observed - such discipline helps to concentrate on prayer. You can often hear repentance at Confession, especially from young people and girls, that they spent half of the service looking at someone they liked, and they couldn’t get rid of this thought and concentrate on the service. Therefore, if we still pray in church and not look at each other, it would be correct to observe this tradition.

There is a tradition in the church when babies approach the Holy Chalice first, then men, then women. If there were a division in the temple into male and female sides, this problem would be solved by itself...

– This is not a disciplinary moment, but more of an educational one: children aged 5 – 10 years old observe that first very small babies are brought to the Chalice, then their fathers and grandfathers – the heads of families – come. This instills respect for elders. If such a practice were established in every parish, not necessarily in the monastery, it would be correct and good.

Question from a TV viewer from Yekaterinburg: “Elder Ambrose of Optina had the following advice: “Learn prudent and timely silence, after which there will be no repentance.” How to understand this and how to learn this, especially for a woman?”

– This advice is relevant for all Christians, not just women. It often happens that a person begins to regret what he speaks under the influence of emotions, especially destructive emotions - anger, malice, revenge. This advice from St. Ambrose of Optina allows a person to first calm down the emotions and passions that are raging in him, and speak only when they subside. Therefore, there will be no repentance that we could not endure something or were angry.

Why is the temple dedicated specifically to the myrrh-bearing women?

– This is a very interesting story, which dates back to the day when public hearings were held regarding the placement of the temple on the territory of the Dusseldorf park. When I met Bishop Savva of the Resurrection, who was at these hearings, he asked me in whose honor it was planned to build a temple if the decision was positive. To this I replied: “How bless, Master.” Then Vladyka decided to ask the people. A lot of young girls and women came to that meeting, and when they were asked, for some reason they immediately started talking about myrrh-bearing women. Perhaps this happened partly because they themselves bore such names - Mary, Joanna. Perhaps this is due to the fact that in Moscow there was not yet a single church dedicated to the holy myrrh-bearing women, but this is how the name of this church was born, which was then approved by His Holiness the Patriarch. Vladyka Savva, Bishop of the Resurrection, performed a minor consecration, and thus the temple was consecrated in honor of the myrrh-bearing women.

Who were the myrrh-bearing women, and why does the Church honor them so highly?

– At almost every all-night vigil on Saturday, on the eve of Sunday, we hear the Sunday Gospel, telling about the events associated with the Resurrection of Christ. There are eight such passages, and most of them mention myrrh-bearing women.

These are women who, together with the apostles, followed Christ and did the work that falls on the shoulders of women - preparing food, cleaning, preparing a place to sleep. Often a person does not notice this, but in fact it is of great importance when the family is in order, the food is prepared on time and with love, when the children are well-groomed and have completed their homework. Often husbands come home late, and it all falls on women's shoulders. Likewise, the myrrh-bearing women in those early years tried to serve Christ in whatever way they could.

In the Church, the dominant role still belongs to men. From your words we can conclude that women in the parish are also in demand and, if desired, she will find work.

– It’s hard to say that the leading role belongs to a man. If we mean the rector of the temple, the priest, then this is true, but basically all the work is done by women. If we take, for example, a monastery, then more monks work there, but in ordinary urban and rural parishes all the work falls on the shoulders of women. The Day of Remembrance of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women is an Orthodox women's day; they are an example, a model for modern Orthodox Christians.

Your parish is the only one in Moscow named after the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women. Do your parishioners, the “myrrh-bearing women,” have any special responsibility in this regard?

– It’s difficult to say about special responsibility. It seems to me that those women who work for us feel this responsibility. It's nice to see them taking care of the temple. They probably feel some pride inside that they are working at the parish in honor of the patron saints of Christian women. But this pride is not sinful, not arrogance - pride in the fact that they have the opportunity to work for the glory of God and help decorate the temple, put it in order. In my opinion, this is a joy for every Christian.

Question from a TV viewer from the Belgorod region: “Christ is Risen! The Apostle Paul has very strict restrictions regarding women in almost all his epistles. In the Epistle to Timothy, he advises: “... turn away from women’s fables.” I understand that he was a monk, unmarried. What is the reason for this attitude towards women?

- Every person has weaknesses, and women too. Some of them like to talk a lot, some sometimes add something to these conversations, some condemn someone. I think the point was that in the Church, in the communication of believers, there should not be something that we can often see in ordinary worldly life, so that a woman would not try to bring her weaknesses into the Church. We can also read the following command: “Let a woman remain silent in the Church” (See: 1 Cor. 14:34). “Silent” - that is, does not spread rumors, gossip, or when a woman tries to teach, to impose her opinion, which may not even correspond to church experience and tradition. In this case, you can very carefully bring the words of the Apostle Paul to such a woman so that she calms down and sees that there are certain limits. In all other respects, I think the participation of women is very important.

Moreover, there are convents where almost everything, except for the performance of divine services, rests on the shoulders of mother nuns, who have the blessing to help even at the altar at certain moments. Of course, there is education there, when the nun silently fulfills the obedience that is entrusted to her, and in no way in the church there are any conversations, much less fables, as the Apostle Paul says about this. Therefore, I think this is such a warning.

In the small Church - in the family - is the woman also silent?

– In the Sacrament of Wedding the Epistle of the Apostle Paul is read, which says that “let the wife fear her husband” (See: Eph. 5:33). What is the Apostle Paul talking about here? That she should be afraid to offend him with something, so that love would not be destroyed, unity would be broken. If a woman is afraid of offending her husband, of offending her, then this is quite enough. Such a husband, seeing the humility and meekness of his wife, is unlikely to do any not very good deeds that will lead to his wife being afraid of him in the sense that we are afraid of hooligans or drunk people, inadequate ones.

Why is there a distinction in the family - the responsibilities of husband and wife are different?

– Hierarchy is everywhere, even in the Heavenly Church – angels, Archangels, thrones, authorities, powers, principles. This is an institution of God. There is a hierarchy in the Church, and there is a hierarchy in the family. Man is designed in such a way that he must always know his assigned place. If the Lord has put you in charge of someone or something, you must understand the responsibility you bear. If you are entrusted and ordered to obey, then in submission, if a person accepts it with humility, he will bring more benefit than if he tried to resist it.

It's the same in the family. The Lord first created Adam, and from the deep part (from the rib) of Adam he created Eve, brought her to Adam and said that the wife is subordinate to her husband, for she was taken from her husband, and she will be his helper. When a woman understands that she is a helper, she receives great joy from this, because she already has quite a lot of responsibilities - giving birth and raising a child, maintaining order in the house and creating coziness that allows the family to be whole, allows love to remain in family.

We see that in nature there is a certain hierarchy - it is said: “There is another glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, another of the stars; and star differs from star in glory.” In any society, order, prosperity and growth exist where there is a clear hierarchy. As soon as it is violated, when two or three claim the place of leader (ruler), then disorder begins there. It's the same in the family. If a woman tries to take over and dominate, of course, a wise husband will arrange so that this does not happen, but sometimes this happens, and such families fall apart. The experience of several thousand years shows the immutability of God's commandments and those wishes that we see both in the Holy Scriptures and in the Holy Tradition of the Church.

Not all women understand their place in the family, in life, in society - how can this be explained and instilled in them?

– The answer to this question was given in the Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church. I am often asked whether an Orthodox Christian woman can be the head of a large enterprise or even head a state? I answer - it can, but subject to certain conditions: if the family does not suffer, if her husband is satisfied that his wife performs public or leadership functions, if the children are not abandoned due to the mother being more busy.

If a woman manages to do everything, she can be anyone she wants in public life. Unfortunately, it often happens that as a woman moves up the career ladder, she devotes less and less time to her family, and this is natural, because there are only 24 hours in a day. If the family suffers - the husband and children, then such leadership and leadership is not useful for either the woman or her family.

When a woman is a believer and her husband is an unbeliever, disagreements arise. How to overcome them?

– We read from the Apostle Paul that an unbelieving husband is sanctified by a believing wife (See: 1 Cor. 7:14). It is sanctified when a woman approaches the issue of faith in the family very wisely. Unfortunately, this doesn't happen often. When a person comes to faith, he wants everyone around him to be the same believers as he is, so that they see Christ in their lives. Reading the Gospel, attending divine services, participating in the sacraments of the Church, a person comes into contact with the shrine, and it inspires him so much that he wants to share it with everyone and, of course, with those closest to him. But it happens that loved ones are not ready to accept this. And if you make the mistake of acting assertively and thoughtlessly, then you can lead the situation to a not very good end. We must remember that humility and patience are virtues that the evil one cannot resist. They allow you to show all the beauty of the Christian way of life.

I know an example when one church-believing girl married a young man who was very good, kind, but an unbeliever. They merried. In the first year it was especially difficult for them - when she wanted to pray in the evening or in the morning, he dissuaded her, saying that it was a waste of time, that it was better to do something else. Several years passed, during which she never argued with him, only sometimes cried, because internally it was very difficult and painful for her. But she humbled herself and prayed that the Lord would lead her husband to faith. On Sunday, she tried to go to early Liturgy in order to return to the moment when her husband usually woke up, so that they could have breakfast together and build on their day. Seven years passed, and one Sunday her husband woke her up - he got up earlier than her and said: “Let's go to church.” The Lord heard her prayers, He opened the heart of her husband, who joined the church and became a deeply religious person.

How to find a middle ground so that there is no rivalry in the family, so that the spouses truly live in the Orthodox tradition?

“All families strive for this.” It is not clear that the husband is the head of the family. I know families of priests where the actual head of the family is a woman, but the husband-priest, who has a lot of worries in the temple, treats everything so wisely and with patience that there are no conflicts in the family. Mother understands that she is often wrong when she tries to take something into her own hands or make some important decision, and when she sees that the decision is wrong, then she repents and tries to become obedient to her husband again. Here it is important for the husband to show wisdom so that the dominance of his wife does not lead to discord. Through the patience and humility of a husband, the Lord can show a woman that she is wrong in this case.

It is no secret that raising children falls primarily on the shoulders of women. What is the main principle of raising children in order to raise them to be truly worthy sons of our Fatherland - both earthly and Heavenly?

– It is very important to try to give not only education to children, although this is also very important, but by your own example, the example of obedience to your husband, it is important to teach children those Christian virtues, without which it is difficult for a person to achieve salvation. This often happens, especially in large families, when a woman cannot work, is busy with housework, and husbands are forced to work 12 hours a day just to feed the family.

When children grow up, the question “who did most of the upbringing in the family?” they answer: “Our parents raised us together.” - “But dad mostly worked?” “Through this he showed us that we need to work.”

Children may rarely see their father, only on weekends and late at night, but if they see that he is working for the good of the family, then this is also upbringing. It cannot be said that in this case only the woman is involved in upbringing, although, of course, the part associated with studying and preparing for the holidays falls on the woman’s shoulders. She gets physically tired a lot more.

On the day of remembrance of the Myrrh-Bearing Women, there is a tradition of congratulating women; this day is considered Orthodox women's day. How will you congratulate the women in the church on this day?

“Even when we didn’t have a temple, on this day we gathered at the site of its construction. This year there will also be a Divine Liturgy, at the end of which our youth club “Skimen” is preparing a performance dedicated to the holy myrrh-bearing women.

I would like to congratulate the holy myrrh-bearing women on the day of remembrance, first of all, women - not only in the church, but also in the family, a lot of work really falls on their shoulders. I would like to wish them to try to joyfully perform the service that the Lord has entrusted to them. If we thank God for everything, if we try to accept every moment of life with joy, then the joy in our hearts will be the same as that of St. Seraphim of Sarov, who throughout the year greeted every person who came to him with the Easter words: “Christ is Risen ! I would like to wish that this joy will always be with you, even in difficult, difficult moments of life. When we remember the feat of the holy myrrh-bearing women, for whom it was also sometimes difficult, then our hearts will truly be joyful.

May the Lord send you strength, strength and more joy!

Christ is Risen!

Transcript: Nina Kirsanova

You can view or listen to the full version of the program on the website of the Soyuz TV channel.

In other rooms:

Satan's Electronic Camp

The founder and confessor of the Sredneuralsky convent, Schema-Abbot Sergius, is one of the notable figures of the Ural clergy. Schemanik is known as an energetic organizer of monasteries, an exorcist and an ideologist of the “Tsarebozhniki” - an Orthodox movement whose supporters are convinced of the special role of the murdered Tsar Nicholas II as the atonement of the sins of the Russian people. In 2021, followers of this movement became famous for their fight against the film Matilda.

Schema-abbot Sergius with Natalia Poklonskaya. Screenshot from video / Royal Cross Movement

After the annexation of Crimea, Sergius was called in the press the confessor of the ex-prosecutor of the peninsula, Natalya Poklonskaya, but she denies this. But in 2021, the schema monk will become known as a rebellious cleric who opposed secular and ecclesiastical authorities.

At the end of March, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' called on believers to refrain from visiting churches during the coronavirus epidemic. Later, on Easter, some regions closed churches to parishioners by order of the sanitary authorities. Father Sergius harshly criticized the “self-isolation regime” and other restrictions introduced due to the coronavirus epidemic. The schemamonk's sermons were published on YouTube.

In one of the videos, Sergius, sight-reading, urged parishioners not to be afraid to go out because of the “pseudo-pandemic” and cursed everyone involved in the closure of churches. According to the schema-monk, the epidemic was orchestrated by the world government, and Sweden and Austria did not isolate themselves, since “Jewish-Masonic capital” is located in these countries. The schema abbot also predicted the imminent arrival of the Antichrist and the mass chipization of the population, after which people will be assigned to the “electronic camp of Satan.”

Because of Sergius’s statements, a protocol was drawn up against the schema-monk on the dissemination of fake information (Part 9 of Article 13.15 of the Administrative Code). Also in the Sverdlovsk region, he saw signs of inciting hatred or enmity in the actions of the schema-abbot (Article 20.3.1 of the Administrative Code) and sent the inspection materials to the prosecutor's office.

The Yekaterinburg diocese publicly disowned Sergius’s statements and assured that they do not share his position. As a measure of influence, the church authorities imposed a ban on the clergyman from preaching and speaking publicly.

But already at the end of May, Sergius recorded a new video, which he called not a sermon, but “a conversation with the soul of the Russian people.” In the video, the schema-abbot called on other priests to open churches. “Serve as usual, without disinfecting the spoon or wiping it. How can Christ, the conqueror of death, transmit death?” cried the monk.

According to Sergius, coronavirus vaccines “will contain chips,” which will be fatal for most. However, the country’s security leadership will be implanted with chips “without fatal consequences.” “Artificial intelligence will act through chipped leaders without pity or compassion,” Sergius insists.

Immediately after the publication of the video, the diocese banned Sergius from performing services in churches, receiving communion and confessing. The church leadership also ordered the schema-monk not to leave the territory of the St. John the Theological Monastery, located on the other side of the convent, without permission.

The schema-abbot disobeyed again and continued to serve in the Sredneuralsky monastery. “You will have to kick us out of the monastery with the police and the National Guard,” he said in his new video. The schema-abbot turned to the “valiant Cossacks” for forceful support. The monastery was surrounded by “strongly built men” who only allowed pilgrims inside.

Schema-abbot Sergius with parishioners. Photo: Vladislav Lonshakov / Kommersant

Archpriest Georgiy Viktorov was also not allowed into the monastery: the diocese sent the priest to the monastery to perform canonical services, since Sergius’ services are officially considered graceless. Together with Viktorov, several nuns and Abbess Varvara (Krygina), the spiritual child of Father Sergius and, until recently, his active supporter, left the monastery.

“I will not leave the house of the Mother of God anywhere. My conscience does not denounce me, my heart is calm. They, that is, the hierarchy, Metropolitan Kirill, will have to take the monastery by storm,” Father Sergius said at the first meeting of the church court, which took place on June 15. He prepared his speech in advance: he accused the church leadership, the metropolitan and the patriarch of “betraying the faith” due to submission to the sanitary authorities and hastily left the court.

The second meeting was scheduled for June 26, but the schema-monk did not appear. The head of the department for relations between the Church and society and the media of the Yekaterinburg diocese, Maxim Minyalo, told reporters after him that the diocese hoped for the “best resolution” of the situation. “We urge him to take the path of repentance and leave the dangerous path on which he is today. This is the path of rejection from the Russian Orthodox Church,” the cleric said. The next meeting of the church court was scheduled for July 3.

“In my opinion, the behavior of the diocese in this situation is completely unmistakable, truly Christian, with a call to prayer,” says Oksana Ivanova, director of the Yekaterinburg “Museum of Holiness,” “After all, the diocese does not allow itself any harsh or negative assessments regarding the father Sergius. That’s why he, poor fellow, raises the level, raises, raises, the more he raises the degree, the more in all WhatsApp groups: “We pray, we pray, we pray for love and peace.”

According to Ivanova, by denying episcopacy, Sergius “denies himself,” since the church authorities made him a priest.

Day II. sin cart

On the second day, the monastery is greeted by the ringing of bells, absorbing all other sounds and space - I arrived at the very beginning of the service. The territory is almost empty, I meet only one of yesterday’s Cossacks - gray-haired and wearing combat boots. He silently shakes my hand, “kisses” me twice on both cheeks (not completely, maybe he’s afraid of the virus), and goes on on patrol. I'm going to the temple.

The service is even larger and more solemn than yesterday. The building is almost packed, but again it is not Sergius who serves. I leave the temple in search of him - and blessings to stay here for the night. I find two Cossacks, a fat one and a thin one, who just need to convey something important to him. They lead me deeper into the territory, behind the Church of the Kazan Mother of God, into a block of separate residential cottages.

The schema-monk is resting on a bench near his own solid two-story estate - somewhere inside it is the same “cell” of Sergius with a coffin and a portrait of Stalin. The Cossacks and their confessor are in no hurry to discuss important matters in the presence of a stranger, so they let me go ahead with my request.

Schema-abbot Sergius in his cell. Photo: URA.RU / TASS

“Father,” I grab his bony hand, “will you allow me to stay for night prayer?”

- Is she here today? - Sergius raises his eyebrow, and with the same movement of his hand he sends me away. - This is not for me. Go to Father John.

The bureaucracy of blessings is more complicated than I thought. When I return to the service, Father John and the line of confession to him are no longer there. But Father Sergiy Berestov remained. There was an hour-long queue - and I asked him for his blessing for night prayer.

- Do you want to pray? Of course, I bless you,” the priest smiles.

After the usual final religious procession with the royal family, I go to have a meal; other pilgrims are sitting at the table. “Well, are we going to have to fight them?” - one woman asks another. The second says that “they” deliberately plant “capsules with coronavirus” in churches in order to infect believers. It was not possible to find out who we were talking about.

While waiting for the night service, which starts at half past ten, I wander around the main square. Local children play on the railings of the church porch - they freeze at opposite ends and say: “I am a monument.”

On the other side of the square, three girls are pulling heavy wheelbarrows, larger than themselves, with boxes. They refuse help. A few meters later, one of the boxes falls out with a roar. "Sinful cart!" - one of the girls exclaims. “Let's take a break? Come on, shall we?” - the second one begs.

From the Ural summer - it’s 11 degrees Celsius outside - I go to take refuge in the dressing room of the refectory for nuns in the building of the Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. Prayer can also be heard from the refectory hall. Besides me, a benevolent-looking old woman with a stick is waiting for the night service.

Galina Petrovna is 84 years old, she is from Korkino, Chelyabinsk region. An active parishioner - she was in the church in her hometown on Easter, on Trinity, and takes communion every Sunday. I came to the Sredneuralsky Monastery on a bus pilgrimage tour from the Chelyabinsk region - there were 26 people in total. At night, the monastery places guests on the floor of the Church of the Spreader of the Loaves, on foam. Previously, in winter, they also provided blankets and pillows, but now they say no. But it's not scary. “Who should sleep here? At two the service will end, and at five in the morning it will be time to wake up. That’s it, lie down and relax,” says Galina.

Galina’s group was not allowed into the previous tour’s Mother of God-Tabynsky Monastery: “It’s the virus.” Father Sergius is another matter - he will always let you in.

There is no coronavirus, Galina believes: “If you catch a cold, that’s the virus for you. If you don't catch a cold, you'll be healthy. And [those] who are sick with tuberculosis or whatever are dying.” Father Sergius, she is sure, says everything correctly: “This is all politics, to close churches again, that’s what they want.”

- Why, are they going to judge the priest? — the old lady asks, “They told me something on the bus, but I didn’t understand anything.” After the trial, they will probably take over and close [the monastery]?

“I think he won’t just give up the monastery to anyone.” Will fight for him.

— This virus will pass. He won't be around forever. I heard on TV that they have extended it until the end of the month. And then that’s it.

We go up to the church. Soon Father John enters there and heads behind the chapel. His rare dry cough can be heard from there. The service begins. It goes on until two in the morning, about 30 people gather in the church. One of the nuns does not leave the large icon with the royal family, which occupies the entire wall - she selflessly crosses herself, bows and kisses it all night. The service ends with communion - from one spoon - and a sermon about the apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas, who destroyed the huge monster viper with the power of their prayers.

“I’ve known Father Sergius for 20 years,” parishioner Irina tells me. She is about 50, she works as a medical worker, lives in Yekaterinburg. She became a parishioner of Sergius when he “began to build a temple on Ganina Yama” in the early 2000s - and followed him when he founded the Sredneuralsky Convent in the middle of a bare forest. “Father Sergius is everything to us. We all support him. He is almost a saint. Without Father Sergius, we won’t go to church or serve here at all,” explains Irina.

Irina is especially impressed by Father Sergius’s lectures. She stayed on them more than once, spending the night on the floor of the temple on the foam. “This is a special service where demons are cast out. This, you know, this is a terrible act. If Father Sergius is not there, who will do this?” - asks the pilgrim. In her opinion, the schema-abbot is “a kind man, he loves everyone,” but the main thing about him is that he is a “seer”: “Father Sergius sees your past, future and present.”

From one temple I go to spend the night in another - the Spreader of the Loaves. Before this, I take some foam - strictly, as the monastery orders say, one in hand and until half past six in the morning. In the church there are dozens of people sleeping on the floor, you have to look at your feet and look for a place with extreme caution. I find it - under a large icon of the Mother of God.

Hieromonks

Hieromonk Bogolep (Pronin)

Monastery of the Roslavl Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery,

Cellarer of the Roslavl Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery