From the baptismal font to the bishop's pulpit
Archimandrite Isaac (Vinogradov), remembering the personality of St. Nicholas, Fr. Having received Holy Baptism with the name Theodosius, he grew up in a patriarchal family atmosphere. From a young age, love for Christ was instilled in Theodosius along with a love for church singing. The main credit for his pious upbringing lay with his father, who served as a psalm-reader in the temple and then took holy orders.
Respect and love for the parent remained in the soul of the saint until the death of his father. Already being a bishop, he could not come to his funeral, but sent a letter to his parental home with the following words: “Accept my gratitude for everything that you have done for me and allow me, by the grace of God, to bless your place with a loving filial hand with a holy blessing.” repose." The message was buried at the priest's bedside as the last parting word from a grateful son.
As Vladyka recalled, his father was strict in life, but his mother and grandmother, on the contrary, saturated young Theodosius with their feminine Christian love. One kind word from his mother was more important to him than any reward. Grandmother loved to read the lives of saints to her grandchildren. Moreover, she read these stories with such enthusiasm that the children imagined certain episodes of the life of the ascetics in their minds as if they themselves had witnessed them.
Archbishop Nicholas (Mogilevsky), prison photo. Photo: pstbi.ru
Such a special way of family life could not but influence the further development of Theodosius as a servant of the Church of Christ. At the age of 10 he entered the Ekaterinoslav Theological School, then the theological seminary in the same city.
After graduating from the seminary, the young man served as a psalm-reader, and then got a job at a church school, where he was warmly received by the students. But soon he faced the inevitable choice for a future priest: to marry or become a monk. Theodosius's soul gravitated more toward the second path.
To confirm his choice, he carefully studied the structure of various monasteries in order to choose a monastery for himself, according to his spiritual dispensation. Studying a book with descriptions of monasteries until late at night, he never made a final choice. Having prayed fervently to God, Theodosius went to bed, and when he got out of bed in the morning, he touched a book lying on the table. It fell to the floor and opened onto a page with a story about the Nile Hermitage of the Tver Diocese. So the Lord directed his child to the first place of monastic service. There, at the age of 30, he took monastic vows with the name Nicholas in honor of St. Nicholas of Myra. And a year later the young monk became a servant of the altar of the Lord.
After graduating from academic theological education at the Lavra of St. Sergius, he passed the obedience of an inspector at the Poltava and Chernigov theological schools. At this time, a revolution broke out in the country. The collapse of the old order came, the royal family was shot and the Church stood on the threshold of impending persecution. In Ukraine, the homeland of the future saint, the threat of church schism was growing. It is difficult to even imagine what Archimandrite Nikolai (Mogilevsky) was already experiencing in his soul when, by the decision of the All-Ukrainian Church Council of 1918, he was elected Bishop of Starodubsky, vicar of the Chernigov diocese. After all, becoming a bishop then meant entering into a direct, fierce struggle with the opponents of the Church.
Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan Nikolai (Mogilevsky). Photo: nikolsky.kz
Shortly before his episcopal consecration, Father Nicholas suffered a serious temptation. He fell ill with typhus and spent a long time in the hospital. Realizing that the Lord was preventing him from beginning archpastoral service because of the burden of unrepentant sins, he called his confessor into the chamber and made a general Confession. The illness subsided, and the priest who survived it, with even greater zeal and fear of God, began to fulfill his holy duty. “Confession educates a Christian” - this is the lesson the bishop later taught in his own life to his flock.
Hieroconfessor Nikolai (Mogilevsky; 1877–1955), Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan, is one of the great ascetics of our time, a man of holy life, a man of prayer, a shepherd of shepherds, who has gone through many trials in life. At the Jubilee Council of Bishops in 2000, Metropolitan Nicholas was canonized as new martyrs and confessors of the Russian Church.
Part 1.
Instructions of St. Nicholas (Mogilev).
Metropolitan Nicholas said: “Active love for neighbors is more pleasing to God than the most difficult ascetic deeds.”
He also said: “And if we go to church, fast, but at the same time we quarrel, envy, condemn, even slander each other and our spiritual fathers, then we will suffer double punishment for this.”
He urged: “Don’t miss the opportunity, never miss doing good.”
He taught: “The works of spiritual mercy are to comfort the grieving, to give good advice, to prevent from sin, to help the sinner return to the path of salvation.”
He also taught: “All alms, under the guise of a person, are accepted by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and we know this with absolute certainty.”
He explained: “Think, my friends, how simple and easy it is to receive mercy and forgiveness from the Lord: you showed mercy to your neighbor - the Lord showed you His rich mercy; You forgave your neighbor one sin, one offense, the Lord will forgive you for this greater and many of your sins.”
The Bishop explained: “Some say that humility is a sign of weakness of character, that a person should have his own dignity. But the highest manifestation of self-esteem is precisely humility.”
He also taught: “The richest, wisest, most educated people do not have the moral strength that the Lord gives to the humble. Who is God opposed to? Proud. But he gives grace to the humble.”
He consoled: “The Lord will always help you in any trouble, if you need to get rid of this trouble, and if you need to endure trouble, then you must endure it - everything is God’s will.”
A brief description of the life path of St. Nicholas of Alma-Ata.
A good seed of a good kind.
Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan Nikolai (Mogilevsky), in the world Theodosius Nikiforovich, was born on March 27, 1877 on the day of the bright holiday of Easter, in the family of the modest psalm-reader Nikifor and his wife Maria, in the village of Komissarovka, Ekaterinoslav province, Verkhnedneprovsky district. They named the child in honor of the holy martyr Theodosius. The father of the future metropolitan was a great connoisseur of church singing, instilled his love in his children, and formed a family choir from his children.
By the end of his life, Bishop Nicholas’s father had risen to the rank of archpriest and lived to see the day when his son became a bishop. He lived, but did not see him in this rank, since life circumstances did not allow the son to come to see his father. The bishop could not even come to his funeral.
Vladyka Nikolai always remembered his mother with great love: “Our mother was love itself. She never yelled at us, and if we did something wrong, which, of course, happened, she would look so pitifully that she would become terribly ashamed. And you immediately promise yourself to never offend her, never cause her anything unpleasant. Her one kind word was greater than any reward.”
Vladyka often remembered his grandfather, who was also a priest. “He lived in one parish for sixty years, without trying to move to a more profitable place. His father, my great-grandfather, a poor sexton, once told him: “My son, never chase money! If they ask you how much you need for the demand, you say: “A pretty penny.” And you will never know the need; the people themselves will appreciate your selflessness and support you.” This is what he did all his life. On Sunday, after mass, after drinking tea, he took the stole with him and got ready to leave. "Where are you going?" - asked mother. “To his friends,” he answered, and went to the sick, to the saddened, or to reconcile those who were quarreling. He was truly a father to his flock. This is how we grew up, brought up by rigor, work, love, stories about the lives of saints and the good example of our loved ones.”
At the age of ten, Theodosius entered the Ekaterinoslav Theological School, and six years later - the Ekaterinoslav Theological Seminary. There, for his perseverance, diligence and extraordinary abilities, he was always among the first students.
Youth. The beginning of service to the Church and people.
After graduating from the seminary, the young man faced a choice: get married or choose the monastic path. Before making a final decision, he serves as a psalm-reader for some time, and then, in order to find application for the knowledge he has gained, he goes to work as a teacher in a church school.
Vladyka also recalled: “After teaching, I had enough time, and I began to gather rural youth and teach them to sing folk and then church songs. We got interested. Boys began to come to the rehearsals, and girls followed them. In winter they gathered at school, and in summer in someone’s garden. Then they began to sing in the temple. Everyone really liked it. There were fewer fights in the village, and young boys began to reach for alcohol less often. Everything was going well. And I myself fell in love with the village in which I worked, I fell in love with the children, boys and girls, and all the villagers.”
First steps to monasticism.
The future ruler still dreamed of entering a monastery. “Only there, it seemed to me, was it possible to serve the Lord completely,” he recalled, “and I decided to prepare myself for this. The first thing I did was buy a thick book with a description of all Russian monasteries in order to choose which monastery to enter. I spent several days reading this wonderful book, studying the description of each monastery. But the more I read, the more difficult the choice became. One monastery seemed better than the other. But now, the reading is over, and I still haven’t made a choice. Late in the evening I put the book on the table, stood in front of the icons, and fervently prayed to the Lord: may He Himself direct me wherever He pleases. With that, I went to bed, not thinking about anything else. When I woke up in the morning, I thanked the Lord for the night’s rest, for the joy of awakening, and began to get dressed. I inadvertently touched a book about monasteries lying on the table. She fell, accelerating on some page. I picked it up and saw that it straightened up at the place where the description of the Nile Hermitage of the Tver Diocese began. “This is God’s instruction,” I thought, without any doubt, “so be it, I’m going to the Nilova Hermitage.” ... And after two years of serving as a teacher in a church school, in 1902, I went to this monastery.”
In 1903, Theodosius was enrolled in the Nilova Hermitage as a novice and, as a novice, went through various obediences - carrying water, chopping wood, baking bread. He did all this very willingly.
When Theodosius was appointed cashier on one of the two monastery ships, his soul was filled with unspeakable joy. The picturesque Lake Seliger, the silence and tranquility of these places filled his soul with gratitude to the Creator for the beauty of nature He created.
Acceptance of monasticism and holy orders.
Then Theodosius, having graduated from the seminary and had teaching experience, was appointed mentor at a preparatory school for monks who were preparing to take holy orders. On December 6, 1904, Theodosius’ dream came true. On the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas, monastic tonsure was performed on him. And since among the brethren of the monastery there was no monk with the name Nikolai, then, breaking the generally accepted custom of naming the newly tonsured with the same letter with which his name began, Theodosius was named Nikolai.
On May 27, 1905, on the day of remembrance of the patron saint of the desert, the Monk Nile of Stolobensky, Monk Nicholas was ordained to the rank of hierodeacon in the monastery church, and on October 9 of the same year his ordination as hieromonk took place. In the rank of hieromonk, Father Nikolai bore the obedience of the dean of the Nile Hermitage. He did not want to leave the monastery, but, from the ordinary novice to the archimandrite, everyone came to the conclusion that Father Nicholas should complete his education and enter the theological academy, and they almost forcibly sent him away to take the exams.
In 1907 he entered the Moscow Theological Academy. Having studied for four years under the patronage of St. Sergius of Radonezh, in 1911 Father Nikolai successfully graduated from the academy and received a candidate of theology degree for an essay on the topic “The Teaching of Ascetics about the Passions.”
Service in monasticism and in the field of spiritual education.
After graduating from the academy, Father Nikolai worked for several years in a row as an inspector at the academy, the Poltava Theological Seminary, and the Chernigov Theological Seminary. Subsequently, many hierarchs, who at that time were undergoing their training within the walls of the academy and seminaries, warmly remembered the very kind and wise inspector Father Nikolai.
In 1915, Father Nikolai was elevated to the rank of abbot, and in 1916 he was appointed rector of the Prince Vladimir Monastery in Irkutsk with elevation to the rank of archimandrite, as well as head of the Irkutsk teachers' missionary school. In 1917, he was appointed rector of the Chernigov Seminary and rector of the Yeletsky Assumption Monastery in Chernigov.
Wherever Father Nikolai worked, he showed himself only from the best side. The Lord gave him the opportunity to try himself in various fields in order to gain invaluable spiritual experience in caring for his flock, spiritual children, and the future clergy themselves. The Lord was clearly preparing Father Nicholas for the service of archpastor—shepherd of shepherds.
October 1917 was approaching, and behind it was the era of revolutionary terror. Remembering this time, Vladyka loved to talk about how he was saved from accidental death by the holy saint of God, the Great Martyr Varvara, who was especially revered by him. The “Reds” were rapidly advancing on Kyiv, there was shooting, shells were exploding. Father Nicholas with a handful of pilgrims in the Golden-Domed-Mikhailovsky Monastery served a prayer service at the shrine of the holy relics of the Great Martyr Barbara. During the prayer service, a six-inch shell hit the temple, destroying the main dome of the temple. “But all of us, including me,” the bishop recalled, “were saved by the prayers of the great martyr!”
Elevation to the rank of bishop.
At the All-Ukrainian Church Council in November 1918, a host of Orthodox bishops decided to make Archimandrite Nicholas (Mogilev) Bishop of Starodub, vicar of the Chernigov diocese.
The day of consecration was set - December 4, the day of celebration of the memory of the Great Martyr Barbara. But suddenly Father Nikolai fell ill with typhus. He spent about two months in the hospital at the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. The consecration was postponed. Almost eleven months later, on October 20, 1919, in Chernigov, Archimandrite Nikolai was consecrated Bishop of Starodubsky, vicar of the Chernigov diocese.
Subsequently, Bishop Nicholas said: “I thanked the Lord that the ordination took place after many of the bishops who gathered at the Council in 1918 had already emigrated abroad by the fall of 1919, and I was ordained not by twenty, but by two bishops who remained, despite to mortal danger, in their pulpits. Glory to Thee, Lord, that I did not end up in a schism, did not run away with others abroad, but remained in my homeland.”
The fight against the renovationists, arrests, exile, wanderings.
In 1923, Bishop Nikolai headed the Tula and Odoevsk dioceses. In his post, the bishop took an irreconcilable position towards the renovationists, denouncing them from the church pulpit and explaining to his flock the disastrousness of this path. As a result, arrest followed in 1924. The GPU authorities arrested and imprisoned the bishop in Butyrka prison. After staying there for two weeks, the bishop was released. In the Tula diocese the situation was very difficult - the renovationists captured most of the parishes. But with his small flock, Bishop Nicholas stubbornly fought against the enemies of Orthodoxy. The outcome of this struggle was the arrest of the bishop in May 1925. Bishop Nicholas spent more than two years in prison. After which in 1927 he was appointed to the Oryol department.
Bishop Nikolai served in Orel until his next arrest in July 1932. The Bishop was accused of being, with the assistance of five people from the Oryol clergy, “the leader and organizer of the counter-revolutionary church-monastic organization “Zelfs of the Church”, directing counter-revolutionary activities to the struggle against Soviet power and collective farm construction. To replenish the ranks, he organized two underground monasteries and conducted monastic vows.”
Vladyka recalled that time: “On July 27, 1932, I was arrested and sent to Voronezh, where the investigation was carried out... I must say that I ended up with a very good investigator. He did not insult me or beat me, as was the case with some of my fellow prisoners. “I now pray for him and will never forget his kindness, attention to me and extraordinary decency.”
Bishop Nikolai was sentenced to five years in prison. From Voronezh he was sent to Mordovia, from there to Chuvashia, and finally he ended up in Sarov. It was difficult for the bishop during the years of hardship, but the Lord did not abandon him.
During the entire five-year period of his stay in the camps, Vladyka Nikolai was helped by his spiritual daughter Vera Afanasyevna Fomushkina. Vladyka stayed in Sarov for quite a long time and he recalled about that time: “After the closure and destruction of the monastery, a forced labor camp was formed in its premises, and I ended up in it. When I crossed the threshold of this holy monastery, my heart was filled with such inexpressible joy that it was difficult to contain it. So the Lord brought me to the Sarov hermitage, I thought, to St. Seraphim, to whom during my life I repeatedly turned with fervent prayer. I kissed all the bars and all the windows in the monastery. In those days, the cell of St. Seraphim was still intact.” To serve the Liturgy in the camp, Vera Afanasyevna somehow managed to give the Bishop Cahors, prosphora, and even an antimension.
Free, but without a pulpit.
In 1937, Bishop Nikolai was released from the camp. But without receiving an appointment to the department, he lived first in the city of Yegoryevsk, and then in Kirzhach. During this period, at the call of the locum tenens of the patriarchal throne, Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky), he often came to Moscow to confess to Metropolitan Sergius and assist in the affairs of the Patriarchate. Subsequently, he recalled this period with great warmth: “I often and for a long time lived with Metropolitan Sergius, taking advantage of his fatherly affection and helping him.”
The beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
In 1941, Bishop Nikolai was elevated to the rank of archbishop. The news of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War found the Bishop before the service of the Divine Liturgy. “I was serving proskomedia,” the bishop recalled, “when one of my friends, in the silence of the altar, told me this terrible news. What could I say to the flock, who were waiting in tears not for my consolation, but for Christ’s? I just repeated what Saint Alexander Nevsky once said: “God is not in power, but in truth!”
Part 2.
Link to Kazakhstan.
A new test for Archbishop Nicholas - arrest on June 27, 1941 and six months of imprisonment in Saratov prison on charges of anti-Soviet activity. Then the bishop was exiled to Kazakhstan to the city of Aktobe, and from there three months later to the city of Chelkar, Aktobe region. Chelkar at that time was a small settlement of small adobe houses at a railway station in a remote semi-desert. In the summer, this desert seemed to be dying out from the scorching heat of the sun, and in the winter, an icy blizzard and biting frost were the masters in this endless and dull area.
This was a very difficult period in the life of Vladyka Nicholas.
He arrived at Chelkar station in a prisoner's carriage. The guards pushed him onto the platform in his underwear and a torn padded jacket. Twice a month he had to appear at the local NKVD office for a check-up. Nobody knew him in this place. At first, Vladyka lived in an old woman’s shed, where there was a cow and a pig. He was already 65 years old, no one hired him. He collected alms so as not to die of hunger. At the same time, the ruler did not grumble against God, but completely surrendered to His good will. From malnutrition and cold, his body was covered with boils. His strength was leaving him by leaps and bounds. And when the last of his strength dried up, the ruler lost consciousness. He woke up in the hospital, in a clean room, in a clean bed. It was light and warm, people were bending over the bishop. Joy overwhelmed him at the thought that he could lie for some time in a wonderful environment. His tormented heart and exhausted body were in great need of rest. The bishop recovered slowly, but as soon as he was able to get up, he immediately tried to benefit those around him. The hospitals fell in love with this kind old man. Everyone called him affectionately: “Grandfather.” And only one young doctor knew that after being discharged, this “grandfather” would again go begging and live next to a cow and a pig. The doctor felt sorry for “grandfather,” but he could not keep him in the hospital for long. There was a war going on, and every bed was accounted for.
When the day came to discharge the kind “grandfather,” the entire hospital came to say goodbye to him. At this time, the nanny came in and said: “Grandfather, they have come for you!” - “Who has arrived?” - everyone asked at once. It was the same Tatar who brought parcels - a couple of flat cakes, a few eggs and a few lumps of sugar. Vladyka knew that it was this Tatar who picked him up, half-dead, lying unconscious on the road, and took him to the hospital. The Tatar put the old man on the sleigh, sat down himself, and they drove off. The Vladyka could not speak because of his overwhelming feelings. “Glory to you, Lord!” — that was all he could mentally repeat. The Tatar brought him to his home and fed him. When the bishop’s soul calmed down a little, he asked: “Why did you treat me so mercifully?” He replied: “When I was going about my business, God told me: “Take this old man, he needs to be saved.”
A quiet life began for the ruler. Soon Vera Afanasyevna was able to come to Chelkar. When she arrived, everyone found out who this “grandfather” was. And again there were good believing hearts who responded to the call to help the bishop.
During the war years, the Soviet government needed the support of the Church and the persecution of believers softened. On September 8, 1943, a Council of Bishops took place, at which Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky) was elected Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
After these events, the spiritual life of distant Chelkar changed. Residents of the town began to bother about building a house of worship. After so many years of persecution, the bishop again began his pastoral service, began to preach, instruct, console, and instill hope in the souls of people. He sewed a canvas vestment with his own hands and served as a simple priest, performing the liturgy and all-night vigil as a priest, baptizing, crowning, and performing funeral services for the deceased and those killed at the front.
In October 1943, Patriarch Sergius sent a statement to the Council for the Affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church asking for an amnesty for clergy. Attached to the application was a list of twenty-six clergy, among whom was Archbishop Nicholas (Mogilev). Everyone named on this list, except for one Archbishop Nicholas, had in fact already been shot or died in the camps from hard labor, from hunger and hard work. But Vladyka Nicholas’s release from exile did not follow.
Exactly a year later, the bishop himself sent a statement to the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR, in which he asked to remove the title of free exile from him, to allow him to go to Russia and take the episcopal see there. Thus, to serve the Motherland in times of difficult trials for it. By the resolution of the Special Meeting at the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs of the USSR on May 19, 1945, Bishop Nikolai was released early.
Service at the Alma-Ata department.
During this period, the Church was deciding the issue of normalizing church life on the territory of Kazakhstan. The Alma-Ata See has been widowed since 1937, after the Right Reverend Archbishop of Alma-Ata Tikhon (Sharapov) was shot along with the clergy close to him. Since 1937, there has not been a single functioning Orthodox church in Almaty, and there have been only a few of them throughout Kazakhstan.
By decree of the Patriarch, Bishop Nikolai was appointed to Alma-Ata with the title Archbishop of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan and arrived in the capital of Kazakhstan on October 26, 1945 on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
The Bishop began to petition for the opening of the St. Nicholas Church, located in the center of the city, and soon the St. Nicholas Church was transferred to the community of believers. At that time, the temple presented an unsightly sight; it stood without crosses, with torn domes and a demolished bell tower. No iconostasis, no icons, walls stripped down to the wood. The brickwork is riddled with bullet holes.
The Bishop was very happy when he learned that the northern aisle of the temple was consecrated in honor of the Holy Great Martyr Barbara, who was especially revered by him. The community immediately began repairs. On Annunciation 1946, when there were still scaffoldings inside and outside the church, the first service was held there. St. Nicholas Church became the cathedral of the newly formed Kazakhstan diocese.
At that time, the bishop was already seventy years old
. Childlike simplicity, kindness, prayerfulness, fidelity to monastic vows and the very appearance of the elder endeared him to the hearts of people. Vladyka Nikolai was attentive to every person; he accepted everyone regardless of age, gender and nationality. And everyone came to him, because they knew that the bishop would always give good and practical advice, if necessary, he would help financially and with his kind words and love, he would comfort the burdened and suffering. When they told him that he was too overworked, he objected that only prayer, preaching and serving the flock gave him strength to live.
Maria Alekseevna Petrenko from Alma-Ata told how in the difficult post-war time, after the death of her husband at the front, she raised her children alone. The poor woman, who was also seriously ill, was tormented by thoughts of despondency and even thoughts of suicide. In this state, she unexpectedly found herself with the Bishop. He consoled her, helped her financially, and baptized her children. Maria Alekseevna recalled: “We often went to Vladyka. The bishop’s driver brought bread, sugar, and sweets to our home in a large basket. When there were major holidays, we knew that Vladyka would not forget us, that we too would have a holiday. And he never forgot about us. A lot of people came to the bishop, and he accepted from people everything that they brought to him, but immediately distributed to others, sometimes without even looking at what he was giving.”
Alexandra Andreevna Zubtsova said: “Vladika Nikolai is an exceptional person. He had such a beautiful face that can only be called a face. He always smiled and never refused anyone anything. And he always prayed for everyone who asked him about it. I prayed a lot at night. He had love for everyone: people, animals and even insects. In the courtyard of his house there was a kennel in which a dog named Kakvas lived. In the morning, when the bishop left the house, the dog greeted him with a joyful bark. They greeted each other, the lord gave him food, and Kakvas affectionately waved his tail, thereby expressing his love for the lord. Vladyka fed the ants: sometimes quietly, so that Vera’s mother would not see, he would take a sugar bowl from the table, hide it in his sleeve, go outside and sprinkle sugar near the house so that the ants would feed on it.”
Hieromonk John (Korunzhy) recalled: “Behold, the bishop finished his word, blessed everyone, leaves the church, and in the St. Nicholas Cathedral there are eighteen steps, and on all the steps on both sides there are beggars. The Lord goes and gives them money - to whom he will give a ruble, to whom he will give three rubles. And whoever he comes up to, he will put his hand on his head and say: “Go, work. God will send you work, work.” Then this man comes: “They didn’t give the rulers a job!”
Archimandrite Isaac (Vinogradov) recalled Vladyka Nicholas: “Vladyka never cared about any greatness inherent in his rank, his service; he knew how to perfectly light a censer, prepare his vestments, and, given the scarcity of such a substance as incense, he prepared it himself superbly. The bishop’s co-servants sometimes seemed to reproach him for the fact that he cared little about his life, about food and clothing. “But this is precisely what gives me that longevity, which is God’s reward on earth for the life I have lived,” answered the Bishop and always followed these rules of his – to attract less concern to yourself from those around you and to give more of your care to others.”
The bishop had an extraordinary zeal for the services, which he performed with the closest approximation to the monastic rules for a parish church. He always served reverently and was never in a hurry. And when it happened that the bishop was serving, and the choir hurried up the service, he would immediately look out of the altar and ask: “Who’s in a hurry to catch the train?” Everyone will feel ashamed, and the choir immediately slows down.
The Bishop attached great importance to confession.
He explained: “Unclean confession is the root of all our troubles. And why? Because the Lord wants everyone to be saved, so he saves us through all kinds of adversity. Only in adversity do we remember God, but in our prosperity we have no time for Him.”
Bishop Nicholas instructed: “At confession for Christians there should not be any circumstances that would justify the sin committed. Sin is sin. You committed it voluntarily, and, realizing your fall, free yourself from sin with sincere repentance.”
He also instructed: “Never become despondent if you fall again without standing in virtue. Have the courage to immediately rise up and fight sin again with repentance. The number of times you fall, the number of times you get up.”
His spiritual children greatly revered the bishop and considered him visionary. The Bishop knew everything about his spiritual children. “The Lord can see three meters through the ground,” said those who knew him.
After each liturgy, the bishop, standing on the pulpit, blessed everyone, despite the fact that on Sundays and holidays up to a thousand people or more were present in the church. But sometimes the bishop became completely weak, and a chair was placed for him. And already sitting in the chair, he blessed everyone to the last person. It was so touching that everyone, like children, came up to him with tears in their eyes and, having received the blessing, left filled with a feeling of love and joy.
The bishop also prayed with great zeal and tearful prayer at home. In his quiet cell, the bishop said prayer in those hours when his flock indulged in rest after the labors of the past day. It happened that sometimes believers had to walk down the street past his house late at night, and they, seeing the light in his cell, said: “The Bishop is praying for us all.”
Orthodox people believed that through the prayers of the ruler, Alma-Ata, once completely destroyed by earthquakes and mudflows, was protected by God's help from these terrible elements. And at the time when Vladyka Nikolai was at the Alma-Ata See, there was a belief among the people that while the Vladyka was alive and praying for his city, neither an earthquake nor any other disaster deserved for human sins would strike him for the sake of the holy prayers of his archpastor . And so it was.
The Kazakhstan diocese is infinitely vast in size. But the Bishop, despite his advanced years and increasing weakness and ill health over the years, tirelessly, with truly apostolic zeal, visited all its most distant corners, conducting services and comforting the believers with his edifying words, inspiring people everywhere with his fervent prayer. Often, when visiting distant parishes, due to a large crowd of people, the bishop served in the open air, and the people were ready to listen to him for hours and reluctantly go home, trying to prolong their communication with the bishop with some question.
The end of the earthly journey is approaching.
As time passed, the ruler’s strength gradually left him. With a request to bless him for retirement, for the sake of the staff, the bishop turned to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, but His Holiness did not satisfy his desire, answering that a bishop is an officer at a post who can only be replaced by death. And in February 1955, on the occasion of Archbishop Nicholas’s thirty-fifth anniversary in the bishopric, he was elevated to the rank of metropolitan.
In August 1955, there were sultry days of southern summer in Alma-Ata, the stuffiness of which was difficult to bear even for healthy people. The Bishop was tired of the solemn services held in St. Nicholas Cathedral on the patronal feast day of the Holy Great Martyr Panteleimon. But the next day, Wednesday, August 10, I wished to go to the temple in the morning - to the akathist of the Dormition of the Mother of God, and in the evening - to St. Nicholas. He, as always, read the akathists himself and anointed all the pilgrims with oil. These were his last visits to the temple.
On August 14, at four o'clock in the morning, the first severe heart attack occurred, which lasted three hours. Wanting to extend the days of the Bishop’s life, doctors advised him to change the climate, hoping that this would maintain his health, but the Bishop, feeling the inevitability of death, refused to move, saying: “Everyone here loves me so much, and I want to die in the arms of my spiritual children.” .
The prayerful mood did not leave the bishop throughout the days of his illness. Often, lying with his eyes closed, as if indifferent to everything that was happening around him, he raised his hand and crossed himself. Sometimes he fell asleep, but when he woke up he began to pray. I used to ask: “What time is it?” - and from afar he blessed his flock, who, according to his calculation, were leaving the temple at that time, or were standing in the temple during the service. At night, he especially loved to bless his spiritual children on all four sides.
Throughout his illness, Vladyka did not complain, was not irritated, loved to joke, and the doctors claimed that they had never met a shorter and more patient patient. On Sunday, October 23, after the last communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, when the nuns in the dining room began to sing “Eternal Council...”, the bishop from the bedroom, straining his voice, shouted to them: “Mothers, mothers, let’s put an end to this. Now we will begin the rite of burial of the bishop.” They stopped singing, but they couldn’t hold back their tears.
Holy death.
The bishop prayed especially intensely and loudly on the night of October 23-24. One could hear the words: “Lord, do not judge me according to my deeds, but deal with me according to your mercy!” He repeated many times with deep feeling: “Lord! I ask for mercy, not judgment!”
At five o'clock in the afternoon on October 25, those around them noticed the approach of the end. They began to read the funeral service, gave a lighted candle into the bishop’s hands, and with the last words of the canon for the exodus of the soul, the saint quietly and calmly breathed his last. It was sixteen hours and forty-five minutes when the bell rang for vespers in the St. Nicholas Cathedral on the eve of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, to which Vladyka himself loved to proclaim: “Rejoice, Good Goalkeeper, who opens the doors of heaven to the faithful!” Worth mentioning is the fact that exactly ten years before this, the bishop arrived in Alma-Ata and took over the administration of the Kazakhstan diocese.
Farewell of the flock to their archpastor.
On October 28, 1955, Bishop of Tashkent and Central Asia Ermogen (Golubev) with a host of clergy buried Bishop Nicholas in the St. Nicholas Cathedral of Alma-Ata.
Vladyka wished to be buried under the altar of St. Nicholas Cathedral in the lower Church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He asked Archimandrite Isaac (Vinogradov) and his close spiritual children about this, and even indicated a place for burial. But the secular authorities did not give permission for this. After the funeral service, the coffin with the bishop’s body was carried around the cathedral while the irmos “Helper and Patron” were chanted, after which the procession headed to the burial place - the city cemetery. The procession was extremely solemn. The coffin was carried in their arms the entire seven kilometers to the cemetery.
The whole city shook and began to move. The roofs, fences and trees along the route of the funeral procession were crowded with people - both believers and non-believers. According to police estimates, forty thousand people followed the coffin.
The people's living memory of their spiritual father.
The grave of Metropolitan Nicholas became a holy place for Orthodox believers. Once upon a time, his burial place was located in the city cemetery. Coming there even on a weekday, you could certainly find people praying there. And no matter what time of year people visited his grave, one could always see fresh bouquets of flowers left by the Bishop’s loving admirers.
And now it doesn’t matter whether a person knew Metropolitan Nicholas or not, all Orthodox Almaty residents consider themselves his spiritual children, and the Bishop himself - their father, intercessor and patron. And if someone has a misfortune or difficult circumstances arise, the very first advice that Almaty residents will give to a suffering person is: “Go to the Metropolitan.”
At the Jubilee Council of Bishops in August 2000, Metropolitan Nicholas (Mogilev) was canonized as a new martyr and confessor of the Russian Church as a confessor.
The relics of St. Nicholas were found on September 8, 2000. Now they are in the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Almaty.
In Aktobe in 2008, a temple was built and consecrated in honor of the holy confessor Nicholas, Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan.
Hiero-confessor Father Nicholas, pray to God for us!
The feat of confession
When Ukraine was nevertheless overwhelmed by the renovationist schism, Bishop Nicholas was transferred to serve in the Tula diocese. As an active fighter against renovationism, the bishop was arrested and then, freed, transferred to the Oryol See. In 1932, he was arrested again on charges of counter-revolutionary activities. He was soon acquitted. This course of events was largely due to the archpastor’s repeated open confession of his sincere faith in God in the face of representatives of the new government. His last conversation with the investigator remained in the memory of the Bishop for the rest of his life.
“I’m glad that I brought you at least some benefit with my investigation, that I was able to prove the correctness of your testimony, and this means a lot for you - now your article will be reclassified and given no more than five years, instead of the expected ten,” said the investigator.
- Why will they give me five years? – involuntarily burst out from the bishop’s lips.
“For your popularity,” replied the “servant of justice.” – People like you need to be isolated for a while so that people forget about your existence. You have too much authority among the people and your preaching is of great importance to the people. They are coming for you!
Then the archpastor could not contain his joy and said out loud:
- God! Glory to You! Glory to Thee, Lord! I, a sinner, served You as best I could!
Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan Nikolai (Mogilevsky). Photo: pravsobor.kz
The life of Bishop Nicholas developed in such a way that his elevation to a new level of church hierarchy coincided with turning points in Russian history. This happened in 1941, when the Nazi enemy treacherously invaded the Soviet Union. Shortly before the start of the war, on March 10, 1941, the saint was elevated to the rank of archbishop.
The news of the outbreak of hostilities overtook him during the Proskomedia on June 22, 1941. On this day, the memory of all the saints who shone in the Russian land was celebrated. Coming out to the flock with a word of sermon, he uttered a phrase once spoken by Saint Alexander Nevsky: “God is not in power, but in truth!” This short phrase surpassed in its power many other words that could have been uttered at such a moment. “Because of our sins, we then suffered a difficult trial, but the saints did not abandon us with their intercession. We turned to them, our fellow countrymen, for help, and this heavenly help appeared when it was difficult to expect,” the bishop later recalled.
Biography of St. Nicholas (Mogilev), Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan
Days of remembrance: October 12/25, as well as the first Sunday after January 25 (Cathedral of New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia).
Vladyka Nikolai is an exceptional person. He had such a beautiful face that can only be called a face. He always smiled and never refused anyone anything. And he always prayed for everyone.[1]
Hieroconfessor Nikolai (Mogilevsky), Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan. Memorial Days: October 12/25, as well as the first Sunday after January 25.
On April 9, 1877, on the day of Easter, a son was born into the family of the modest psalm-reader Nicephorus and his wife Maria. They named him Theodosius, in honor of St. Martyr Theodosius.
“Our father was strict,” Vladyka recalled, “he was very demanding about the order and execution of the work assigned to us.” He was a great connoisseur of church singing. He was especially passionate about public singing and instilled this love in his children. Bishop Nikolai recalled about his mother: “Our mother was love itself. She never yelled at us, and if we did something wrong, which, of course, happened, she would look so pitifully that she would become terribly ashamed.” His grandmother Pelagia was of great importance in the upbringing of Theodosius. “On the long winter evenings,” Vladyka recalled, “my grandmother would take us to the stove and endless stories would begin about the holy saints of God.” Vladyka often remembered his grandfather, who was also a priest.
In 1904, Theodosius’s cherished dream came true: on the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, in the Nilo-Stolobenskaya Hermitage, Theodosius was tonsured into a mantle with the name Nicholas. In May 1905, Monk Nicholas was ordained to the rank of hierodeacon, and on October 9 of the same year - to the rank of hieromonk. At the insistence of the brethren in 1907 Fr. Nikolai entered the Moscow Theological Academy, which he successfully graduated from 4 years later.
In October 1919, in Chernigov, Archimandrite Nikolai was consecrated Bishop of Starodubsky, vicar of the Chernigov diocese. The further ministry of Bishop Nicholas took place under the gracious patronage of St. Theodosius of Chernigov, whom Vladyka greatly revered.
In 1923, His Grace Nicholas was appointed Bishop of Kashira, vicar of the Tula diocese, the situation in which at that time was very difficult. The Renewalists captured the vast majority of parishes. But with his small flock, Bishop Nicholas stubbornly fought against the enemies of Orthodoxy. The outcome of this struggle was the arrest of Vladyka, which followed on May 8, 1925.
After spending more than two years in prison and being released, Bishop Nikolai was appointed to the Oryol See. Vladyka served in Orel until his next arrest. Here is what Vladyka himself said about that time: “On July 27, 1932, I was arrested and sent to Voronezh, where an investigation was carried out. There is no need to talk about living conditions, because in those years our whole country was in need.”
When the investigation came to an end, the investigator and I parted with each other with regret. He confidentially told me: “I’m glad that I brought you at least some benefit with my investigation, that I was able to prove the correctness of your testimony, and this means a lot for you - now your article will be reclassified and given no more than five years instead of the expected ten.” - Why will they give me five years? - I involuntarily burst out. - For your popularity. People like you need to be isolated for a while so that people forget about your existence. You have too much authority among the people and your preaching is of great importance to the people. They are coming for you! It was unexpected for me to hear an assessment of my service from the lips of a representative of this institution, but that is exactly how it was. - God! Glory to You! Glory to Thee, Lord! I, a sinner, served You as best I could! “That was all I could say for the joy that filled my heart.” Now no time will frighten me.”
Photos from the prison file of Archbishop Nicholas (Mogilevsky).
Recalling his wanderings through the camps, Vladyka talked a lot about Sarov, where he spent quite a long time: “After the closure and destruction of the monastery, a forced labor camp was formed in its premises, and I ended up in it. When I crossed the threshold of this holy monastery, my heart was filled with such inexpressible joy that it was difficult to contain it. “So the Lord brought me to the Sarov Hermitage,” I thought, “to St. Seraphim, to whom throughout my life I repeatedly turned with fervent prayer.”
I kissed all the bars and all the windows in the monastery. At that time, the cell of St. Seraphim was still intact. All the time that I was in Sarov, I believed that I was in obedience to the Monk Seraphim, through whose prayers the Lord sends us such consolation that we can serve the Liturgy in prison and partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.”
In 1941, Bishop Nikolai was elevated to the rank of archbishop.
The news of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War found Vladyka on the eve of his celebration of the Divine Liturgy.
“I was serving a proskomedia,” Vladyka recalled, “when one of my friends, in the silence of the altar, told me this terrible news. What could I say to the flock, who were waiting in tears not for my consolation, but for Christ’s? I just repeated what St. once said. Alexander Nevsky: “God is not in power, but in truth!”
That year, on June 22, the memory of all the Saints who shone in the Russian land was celebrated. I think this has a special meaning. Because of our sins, we then suffered a difficult trial, but the Holy Lands of Russia did not abandon us with their intercession. We turned to them, our fellow countrymen, for help, and this heavenly help appeared when it was hard to expect.”
And following this news, Archbishop Nicholas suffered a new test - on June 27, 1941, Vladyka was arrested and placed in prison in Saratov. Having stayed in Saratov for a total of six months, Vladyka Nikolai was sent to Kazakhstan, to the city of Aktobe, and from there, three months later, to the city of Chelkar, Aktobe region.
When, many years later, Vladyka was asked the question: “How did he react to this relocation? Was there any grumbling or resentment in his heart?” “The Bishop answered: “Everything is God’s will.” This means that it was necessary for me to endure this difficult test, which ended in great spiritual joy.
“And just think about what will happen if a person begins to spend his whole life in bliss and contentment, surrounded by loved ones and relatives? A life satiated with earthly goods leads to a hardening of the heart, a cooling of love for God and neighbor. A person from excesses becomes cruel, not understanding other people’s grief, other people’s misfortune.”
Vladyka was on his way to free exile, but in a prisoner's carriage. The train arrived at Chelkar station at night. The guards pushed Vladyka onto the platform in his underwear and a torn padded jacket. In his hands, the Vladyka had only a certificate with which he must appear at the local NKVD office twice a month for registration.
Vladyka sat out the rest of the night at the station. It's morning. I had to go somewhere. But how to go in winter like this? And there was nowhere to go. Vladyka had to turn to old women for help, and kind women’s hearts responded to his request. The old women gave him some a padded jacket, some a hat, some some patched felt boots. One old woman sheltered him in a barn where she had a cow and a pig. At this time, Vladyka was already 65 years old. His head was white, and his appearance involuntarily evoked compassion. Vladyka tried to get a job, but no one would hire him - he looked older than his years. He was forced to collect alms so as not to die of hunger.
Subsequently, when the spiritual children asked the Bishop: “Why didn’t you tell the old women who gave you clothes that you were a bishop? — The Bishop answered: “If the Lord sends the cross, He also gives strength to carry it, and He makes it easier. In such cases, one should not manifest one’s own will; one must completely surrender to the will of God. Going against the will of God is unworthy of a Christian, and after a person patiently endures the trials sent to him, the Lord sends spiritual joy.” — The Lord finished his explanation.
Thus, until the late autumn of 1942, Vladyka continued to eke out his miserable existence. His physical strength was running out. From malnutrition and cold, he developed thin legs, his body was covered with boils, and lice were infested from the dirt. Strength was leaving by leaps and bounds...
And then the moment came when the last of his strength dried up, and the Lord lost consciousness.
He woke up in the hospital, in a clean room, in a clean bed. It was light and warm, people were bending over the Vladyka. He closed his eyes, deciding that it was all his imagination. One of those bending down checked his pulse and said: “Well, almost normal!” Our grandfather woke up! Vladyka recovered slowly. And when I got out of bed, I immediately began to try to benefit those around me. To whom he will give water, to whom he will bring a vessel, to whom he will straighten the bed, to whom he will say a kind word. The hospital loved this kind old man. Everyone began to call him affectionately: “Grandfather.” But only one young doctor knew the tragedy of this “grandfather”, he knew that if he were discharged from the hospital, he would again go begging and live next to a cow and a pig.
And then the day came when the doctor was asked to discharge “grandfather” from the hospital. Vladyka Nikolai began to pray to the Lord, again surrendering himself to His will: “Wherever You, Lord, send me, there I will go!” And so, when everyone was about to say goodbye to the kind “grandfather,” the nanny came in and said: “Grandfather, they’ve come for you!” - Who arrived? - everyone asked at once. - Yes, the same Tatar who sometimes brought you parcels, don’t you remember? Of course, Vladyka could not forget how regularly, every ten days, he was given a couple of Tatar flatbreads, several eggs and several lumps of sugar from some Tatar he did not know. And Vladyka also knew that it was this Tatar who picked him up, half-dead, lying unconscious on the road, and took him to the hospital. Stunned, the Lord went to the exit. Indeed, a Tatar stood at the hospital doors with a whip in his hands. - Well, hello, tank! - he said to the Lord and smiled a good-natured smile. The Bishop also greeted him. They went out into the street, the Tatar put Vladyka in the sleigh, sat down himself, and they drove off. It was the end of winter 1943. - Why did you decide to take part in my life and treated me so graciously? “You don’t know me at all,” Vladyka asked. “We need to help each other,” the Tatar answered, “God said that I need to help you, I need to save your life.” - What did God tell you? — the Lord asked in amazement. “I don’t know how,” the Tatar answered, “when I was going about my business, God told me: “Take this old man, he needs to be saved.”
A quiet life began for the Lord. The Tatar had connections and was able to arrange it so that after some time Vera Afanasyevna Fomushkina, his spiritual daughter, came to Chelkar, who was also exiled, but to a different area. Vera Afanasyevna did not hide from those around her who the “grandfather” was, whom the Chelkarians cared for.
On October 10, 1944, Vladyka himself sent a “zealous request” to the People’s Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR, in which he asked to remove the title of “free exile” from him, to allow him to go to Russia “and there take up the episcopal see as appointed by the Patriarchal Synod. By the resolution of the Special Meeting at the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs of the USSR on May 19, 1945, Bishop Nikolai was released early. On July 5, 1945, by resolution of the Holy Synod, the Almaty and Kazakhstan diocese was formed, the administrator of which was appointed Archbishop Nikolai (Mogilev).
Saint Nicholas (Mogilevsky) during the service.
Vladyka arrived in Alma-Ata on October 26, 1945, on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
The Bishop had extraordinary zeal for the services, which he performed with the closest possible approximation to the monastic rules for a parish church. He always served reverently and was never in a hurry. And when it happened that Vladyka was serving, and the choir hurried up the service, he would immediately look out of the altar and ask: “Who’s in a hurry to catch the train?” Everyone will feel ashamed, and the choir immediately slows down.
From the memoirs of Valentina Pavlovna Khitailova, Yelets:
Vladyka himself often stood with us in the choir; he loved to sing early mass with the left choir. He set the tone himself. He had a velvety baritone, very soft and beautiful. When the Lord sang, he pierced the soul with his singing. Especially in Lent - he went to the pulpit and sang “I see Your palace, my Savior, adorned ...” - he sang sincerely, longingly. His voice flowed through the temple, there was deathly silence, you could only hear the censer bells ringing and people crying.
And the Vladyka himself always cried. His tears were especially visible on the velvet uniform of the guard in the evening electric light - like pearl threads the tears glittered on his sakkos. And what’s wonderful is that if we cry, we can neither sing nor read. And the Lord cries and shouts in a clear voice.
The Bishop also prayed with great zeal and tearful prayer at home, no longer wearing the bishop’s mantle, but the humble monastic robe. Mother Vera hung dry towels near the lectern every morning and every evening and took them away already wet, soaked in the tears of the Lord.
A zealous prayer book, Vladyka especially loved and revered the Mother of God. To the great spiritual consolation of his flock, on the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, Vladyka, for the first time in Alma-Ata, began to perform the wondrous rite of burial of the Shroud. When a misfortune happened to someone or someone fell ill, the Bishop first of all advised to confess as strictly as possible, take communion, and only after that begin to correct the situation in which the person found himself, or to treat the illness. “Unclean confession is the root of all our troubles.” And why? Because the Lord wants everyone to be saved, so He saves us through all kinds of adversity. Only in adversity do we remember God, but in our prosperity we have no time for Him.
On the days of Holy Easter and the Nativity of Christ, the doors of the Vladyka’s house were not closed. Everyone took Christ and praised the Lord! All! All! All! “On Easter,” the clergy members recall, “after the service in the church, we went home to Vladyka to congratulate him on the holiday. We used to sing all Easter, but it wasn’t enough for him, he kept asking: “Let’s sing some more... because we have such joy!” Like a little child, the Lord rejoiced at the Great Holidays.
At Christmas they went to him to praise Christ. He will give us gifts. And we were happy that our Master was so gracious, shining like a clear sun. Every wrinkle on his face shone.”
Being a true monk, Metropolitan Nicholas lived very modestly. According to the testimony of Alexandra Andreevna Zubtsova, “... he had a table, a hard bed (he slept on boards) and benches. There was a separate prayer room, where icons hung, a shelf with books and a desk.”
Childlike simplicity, kindness, prayerfulness, fidelity to monastic vows, and finally, the very appearance of an old man, endeared people’s hearts to the Lord. “The Lord in his white cassock, with snow-white locks of hair and a fabulous-looking beard, in the garden among the flowers, blissful, smiling, seemed to come from a completely different century, from ancient times, when there were no trams, no airplanes, no study of the stratosphere...” - This is how people who knew him described the Vladyka.
Saint Nicholas of Alma-Ata often said: “My friends, do not forget me, a sinner, in your prayers now and after death.” I do not forget you and will never forget you. If I gain boldness, if only the Lord accepts me into his shelter, if he forgives and has mercy, I will pray for you even after my transition to another life.
After each Liturgy, the Bishop, standing on the pulpit, blessed everyone, despite the fact that on Sundays and holidays there were up to a thousand people or more present in the church.
“Vladyka,” his children would sometimes say to him, “it’s difficult for you to bless for so long after the service.” They would give a general blessing and go home to rest. - Uh, you don’t know how much our Orthodox people love the bishop’s blessing and value it! - Vladyka answered and, after a pause, continued - yes, it happens that sometimes I am so tired that I think: “I will give a general blessing.” And behind this thought is another: “What if the Lord calls me to Himself today and asks how I parted with my flock?” This thought gives me strength, and I bless the people.
He loved everyone with an even, divine love, and he exuded this love for every person he met.
From the memoirs of Maria Alekseevna Petrenko, Alma-Ata:
“It was 1948. My life, like that of millions of other people, was very difficult during this difficult post-war period. My husband, father and brother died at the front. I have two children left. In addition, I was developing a serious condition in my left lung.
I cried a lot and became so depressed that I began to think about committing suicide. It seemed that I would cut everything off at once, and it would become easy for me. I never seriously thought about the essence of religion. And then one day in a dream I heard someone say to me: “You go to the Lord, he is kind. He will help you. And you need to baptize your children”... Now I don’t remember whether it was in reality or in a dream. My soul probably asked for help and, perhaps, my Guardian Angel seemed to be pushing me: go, seek and you will find!
I found out who the Lord is and where he lives. After work at 6 o’clock in the evening I came to the gate of house 45 on the street. Cavalry. An elderly woman opened the door for me and asked why I came. I said that I wanted to tell the Lord about myself.
When I saw the Lord, I began to shake, I felt that I could not say a single word. “Hello,” was all I could squeeze out. “Calm down, child,” the Lord said tenderly. He patted me on the head, sat me down on a chair and asked the woman to give me water. When I started drinking water, my teeth chattered on the edge of the glass. “Please, calm down, no need to cry, you should have come here a long time ago,” I again heard the elder’s gentle voice.
When I calmed down a little, I began to talk... I talked about my life, about my illness and about the terrible thing that I had planned. - Thank God! - he said, - it’s good that you came to me so easily! After my story, Vladyka explained to me what a great sin is suicide. “No matter how hard it is, you cannot end your life on your own, you need to turn to the Lord in prayer and He will always make the cross that is given to you easier.” Then he stood up and praised God: “Glory to Thee, Lord, glory to Thee for everything forever!” I stayed with the Bishop until 10 pm. It was hard for me to believe that all this was happening to me. And so I felt joyful and easy! Yes, indeed, I felt that God was with us!”
An interesting and very instructive incident occurred in July 1947, when Vladyka Nikolai was supposed to fly to Moscow for a meeting of the Session of the Holy Synod.
While boarding the plane, Vladyka and his companions stood at the ramp and blessed all passengers entering the plane. Vladyka always rode and flew in a cassock, despite the fact that he was often ridiculed for this.
And this time the passengers, noticing that they were being blessed by a clergyman, began to laugh at him, and sarcastic exclamations were heard: “Well, we’re not afraid to fly, the saint is flying with us!” Almost none of the passengers said a kind word. “But I didn’t listen to them,” Vladyka said upon his return, “I felt sorry for them.” After all, people do not even suspect that they are speaking blasphemy not from their own minds and understanding, but are fulfilling the evil will of the enemy of the human race. I calmly blessed everyone.
Everyone sat down and the plane took off. Some time passed and suddenly the pilots became worried. In the end, the senior pilot announced a danger - one engine was failing. The situation was threatening, a catastrophe was approaching. Panic began among the passengers. But the Lord said: “Let’s pray!” Not a single soul will perish! - and then added, - we’ll just get a little dirty in the mud. Vladyka stood up and began to pray. The excitement of the passengers did not subside. No one paid any attention to the Vladyka, but after a few minutes everyone began to calm down, get up from their seats and listen to his prayer. And he prayed to the Lord to save everyone who was flying on this plane. At this time the plane began to fall down. But, to the surprise of the pilots, who knew what this fall should be like, the plane did not fall as usual, but seemed to be gliding and quietly descending. The plane fell into some swampy but shallow lake. When the people calmed down a little from the fear they had experienced, they began to come up and thank the Lord. The senior pilot also came up: “A miracle happened, father,” he said, “forgive us for our ridicule!” “God will forgive,” answered the Lord. - Thank God and His Most Pure Mother, and place your hopes on St. Nicholas.
From the memoirs of Archpriest Valery Zakharov, rector of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Almaty:
Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan Joseph (Chernov).
In the 70s, Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov) of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan said the following words in one of his sermons: “We, Alma-Ata residents, live at the foot of the Tien Shan mountains. And, on the one hand, we are happy that the beauty of these mountains pleases the human eye, but, on the other hand, the mountains are fraught with the danger of earthquakes and mudflows. But Alma-Ata will never be demolished by a mudflow and will never be destroyed by an earthquake, because we have wonderful prayer books in the person of Metropolitan Nicholas and Schema-Archimandrite Sebastian.” Vladika Joseph said this, and I remember this exactly.
One of their visits to the city of Uralsk was vividly imprinted in the memory of senior subdeacon Ariy Ivanovich Bataev. “It was,” recalls Ariy Ivanovich, “in the summer of the early 50s. The Bishop performed divine services in the Archangel Michael Cathedral in the city of Uralsk. After the service, he began to talk with believers. The people complained to the Vladyka about the heat and drought in the Ural region, since not a single drop of rain had fallen on the ground since the snow had melted.
The Bishop said: “Let’s pray to the Heavenly King, maybe he will hear our prayer.” They began to perform the rite of prayer singing, sung during rainlessness. And a miracle happened - the sky, in which there was not a single cloud, darkened, became covered with thick clouds, and it wasn’t just rain, but a torrential downpour. The walls of the ancient Ural cathedral trembled from the terrible peals of thunder. The Bishop paused the prayer and said: “Orthodox! Isn’t this a miracle?!”
Having completed the prayer service and waited for the rain to subside, everyone went out into the courtyard and breathed in the fresh, clean air. The Bishop had to walk 200 meters from the temple to the abbot’s house, but after the rain the dusty road became a mess of mud. Then the people, filled with love and gratitude to the Lord, immediately lined this path with the clothes they had taken off.”
The prayerful mood did not leave Vladyka during all the days of his illness. On Sunday, October 23, after their last communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, when the nuns in the dining room sang “Eternal Council...”, the Bishop from the bedroom, straining his voice, shouted to them: “Mothers, mothers, let’s put an end to this. Now we will begin the rite of burial of the bishop.” They stopped singing, but they couldn’t hold back their tears. The Bishop prayed especially intensely and loudly on the night of October 23-24. One could hear the words: “Lord, do not judge me according to my deeds, but deal with me according to Your mercy!” He repeated many times with deep feeling: “Lord! I ask for mercy, not judgment!”
On Monday, October 24, on the eve of his death, Vladyka spoke a little more. He said something especially affectionate to everyone, as if saying goodbye. At about 5 o'clock in the evening he had a heart attack with acute pain, after which he no longer spoke and lay with his eyes closed. On Tuesday morning, he found the strength to cross himself several times while reading the Akathist to St. Barbara the Great Martyr at his bedside.
At 5 o'clock in the afternoon on October 25, those around them noticed that the end was approaching. They began to read the funeral service, gave a lighted candle into the hands of the Vladyka, and with the last words of the canon on the outcome of the soul, the saint quietly and calmly breathed his last. It was at 16:45 when the bell rang for vespers in the St. Nicholas Cathedral on the eve of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, to which Vladyka himself loved to proclaim: “ Rejoice, Good Goalkeeper, who opens the doors of heaven to the faithful!”
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On October 28, 1955, Bishop of Tashkent and Central Asia Ermogen (Golubev) with a host of clergy performed the funeral service for Vladyka Nicholas in the Cathedral of Alma-Ata. All the way from the temple to the cemetery (which is about 7 km), the coffin with precious remains was carried in their arms. According to police estimates, up to 40,000 people followed the coffin. The cemetery was so crowded with people that the clergy walking behind the coffin had difficulty reaching the grave. A litiya was served at the grave, and the Right Reverend Hermogenes interred the body of the deceased Saint.
When everything was completed and the grave mound rose, covered with wreaths, in the silence of the descending twilight, in the radiance of the moon, all those present sang the troparion to the Good Goalkeeper, who opens the doors of heaven to the faithful.
In 2000, at the Jubilee Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, the confessor of the Christian faith, miracle worker and prayer book for the lands of Rus' and Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Nicholas of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan was canonized.
The wanderings of the holy “grandfather”
The war years did not pass without a trace for the ruler. A new arrest, exile to Kazakhstan, then to the Aktobe region became new tests for the bishop of the strength of his faith. Many people were surprised at the saint’s confessional feat, asking him why he was so faithful to his spiritual principles. “Everything is God’s will,” answered the bishop. - “A life satiated with earthly goods leads to a hardening of the heart, to a cooling of love for God and neighbor.” How relevant these words are for us, today’s Christians, who are not ready to even sacrifice a little of their time to perform godly deeds!
Everything that happened to the bishop in the future is more like a fantastic story than a description of the life of a church hierarch. He arrived at his place of exile in a prisoner's carriage. In the middle of the winter night he was pushed onto the platform in his underwear and a torn quilted jacket without his belongings or means of subsistence. After spending the night at the station, the bishop set off on a journey into the unknown.
In a short period of time, he turned from a diocesan manager into a forgotten beggar. If it weren’t for the help of good-natured old women who donated old clothes to him, Vladyka Nikolai could have completely died from frostbite. With God's help, the bishop managed to find temporary shelter in a barn next to the pigs and cows. And all this happened in the life of a 65-year-old confessor, for whom devotion to Christ exceeded the desire for a quiet and serene life in the Renovation schism.
Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan Nikolai (Mogilevsky). Photo: pravsobor.kz
And again, when believers later learned about this event, they asked the saint in surprise why he, while in exile and living in poverty, did not tell anyone that he was an archbishop. Vladyka Nikolai answered with humility: “If the Lord sends the cross, He also gives strength to carry it, and He makes it easier. Going against the will of God is unworthy of a Christian, and after a person patiently endures the trials sent to him, the Lord sends spiritual joy.”
The extreme lifestyle nevertheless undermined the saint’s health. Exhausted and exhausted, he lost consciousness. I came to my senses while already in a hospital bed.
- Well, almost normal! Our grandfather has woken up!” the doctor bending over him said with joy. The bishop himself was delighted at this news, realizing that now there was someone to take care of him.
But Archbishop Nicholas was still not accustomed to constantly taking advantage of someone else's care. The Gospel Word reads: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). The saint was guided by the same principle in his life. The kind “grandfather” (as he continued to be called in the hospital) immediately began to try to benefit those around him. To whom he will give water, to whom he will bring a vessel, to whom he will straighten the bed, to whom he will say a kind word. No one then could even think that in front of them was a bishop. It seemed that at this time Christ Himself, with his hands, served for the benefit of the suffering.
The time has come for the merciful “grandfather” to be discharged. The path to nowhere again stretched out before him. But, remaining faithful to God, he prayed: “Where You, Lord, send me, there I will go!” Having finished the prayer, he entrusted his life to the Savior and Christ did not leave him.
When the bishop was about to leave the hospital, he learned that they had come for him. The visitor turned out to be a Tatar who picked him up in an unconscious state and then regularly brought him parcels to the hospital.
When Vladyka Nikolai sat down in the Tatar’s sleigh, he was overwhelmed with gratitude to God for such mercy. Arriving at the benefactor's house, he asked him about the reasons for such a compassionate attitude towards his unworthiness. To which the Tatar replied: “God said that I need to help you, I need to save your life.” To the saint’s surprised question about how he heard the voice of God, the Tatar replied: “I don’t know how, when I was going about my business, God told me: “Take this old man, he needs to be saved.”
This amazing example clearly shows us how a non-Christian can sometimes show more mercy to a Christian than his fellow believer. Such cases, paradoxically, continue to happen in modern life.
Cathedral in the name of St. Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia, wonderworker of Almaty
In the St. Nicholas Cathedral of Alma-Ata there is kept a great shrine - a reliquary decorated with enamels with the multi-healing relics of the Great Martyr Panteleimon - part of his venerable head. The venerable relics of the great martyr are a gift to the St. Nicholas Cathedral from Bishop Demetrius (Abashidze) of Turkestan and Tashkent, in the schema of Anthony, who was canonized at the meeting of the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church on June 14, 2011.
At the request of the Orthodox believers of the Turkestan diocese, Bishop of Turkestan and Tashkent Dimitri (Abashidze) in 1910 sent a request to the abbot of the Russian Panteleimon Monastery on Mount Athos to bless the inhabitants of Semirechye with a particle of the relics of the Great Martyr Panteleimon. Soon, part of the head of the healer Panteleimon, as well as particles of the relics of St. Gregory the Theologian and St. Niphon, Patriarch of Constantinople, were transferred by the Kinot of the holy Mount Athos to the Athos courtyard in Odessa, where they were met by the deacon of the St. Nicholas Church of the city of Verny, Stefan Ponomarev, sent from Bishop Demetrius.
On the day of the holiday of the healer Panteleimon, July 27 (August 9, new style), the shrines were solemnly greeted ten miles from the city of Verny with a religious procession. The great Athos gift - part of the head of the healer Panteleimon, particles of the relics of St. Gregory the Theologian and St. Niphon, Patriarch of Constantinople - was received from Father Stephen by the priest Alexander Skalsky, who led the procession. Near the city, at the Iveron-Seraphim convent, the shrine was honored by His Grace Bishop Dimitri with all the clergy. The Bishop, having read a prayer to the holy Great Martyr, raised the ark above his head and entered under the canopy prepared in the form of an elegant chapel, carried by the banner bearers. Troops accompanied the shrine and clergy in a long chain. The governor followed the shrine, and the military choir sang “How Glorious” all the way.
The procession arrived at St. Nicholas Cathedral. The Bishop entered the altar and placed the ark with the shrine on the holy throne. The Divine Liturgy began, after which His Eminence, raising the holy relics, proceeded in procession around the church to the cathedral square, where, in front of a huge crowd of people, he performed a prayer service with the blessing of water, read the akathist and then returned to the church with the relic. “This day,” said the headman of St. Nicholas Cathedral in his speech of gratitude, “will forever remain in the memory of our parish. It seems to us that now the whole universe shares our triumph and gives praise to the greatness of God.”
Priest Confessor Nikolai (Mogilevsky) of Alma-Ata
Kontakion 1
Chosen from the Eternal Bishop and the Church of the Creator, given to Kazakhstan as a fair intercessor and a wonderful intercessor, Saint Nicholas, gratifying your exploits and labors, the love you raised for the sake of the Lord, we praise our God, wondrous in His saints, who gave you the grace of His greatness and taught us the love of singing to you : Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Ikos 1
The Creator of angels and the Perfecter of salvation for men, having foreseen the fruitful purity of your soul and body, choosing you from the beginning to be the Angel and primate of the Church of Kazakhstan, so that in the midst of a multi-rebellious storm of atheism, he will reveal you to the pure confessor of unshakable faith and the Christian virtues, a blessed-leaved tree, the scattered children of the church to the sweet haven of the Divine Trinity love gathers. We cry out to you for our gratitude:
Rejoice, reverent servant of God the Father without beginning. Rejoice, unceasing herald of the Hypostasis of God the Word. Rejoice, chosen dwelling place of God the All-Holy Spirit. Rejoice, the Life-Giving Trinity was also praised. Rejoice, you who received bonds and prisons for confessing Christ. Rejoice, thou who art excommunicated from the congregation of the wicked by the confession of the saints. Rejoice, you who have seen through the demonic pride and arbitrariness in renovationism. Rejoice, for you who rejected ungodly blasphemy. Rejoice, ever-preserving filial obedience to the confessor Patriarch Tikhon. Rejoice, God-ordained church unity, as you inviolably observe the sacred. Rejoice, God-wise Elder Patriarch Sergius, interlocutor and companion. Rejoice, zealous co-servant and companion of the God-loving Patriarch Alexy.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 2
Seeing you, blessed one, from your mother’s swaddling clothes laid upon God and from your youth seeking the grace of the Comforter of the Spirit of Truth, we glorify God, all that is needed for salvation and the inheritance of eternal bliss who gives us, singing to Him: Alleluia.
Ikos 2
Constantly raising your mind to the throne of the Most Holy Trinity, you filled your soul with the light of true knowledge of God, and you enlightened the flock of Christ’s verbal sheep entrusted to you. For this, accept this praise from us:
Rejoice, on the radiant day of Easter of Christ, as a son born of joy and consolation. Rejoice, from the pious parents of Theodosius, as given by God, named. Rejoice in the font of baptism, clothed in Christ. Rejoice, mysteriously sealed with the seal of the Holy Spirit in holy unction. Rejoice, confirmed by the piety and prayers of your parents in the creation of the commandments of the Lord. Rejoice, for you have preserved the Divine seed, planted in your heart with parental goodness. Rejoice, by the command of God you have moved into the Glorious Hermitage of Nile, and have acquired a treasure of virtues. Rejoice, the name of Nicholas the Wonderworker, like the myrrh poured out from above, received in monasticism. Rejoice, thou who by the firm will of thy will has been cut off and surrendered everything to the will of God. Rejoice, having quenched the flame of passions through perfect obedience with the dew of the Holy Spirit. Rejoice, having contemplated the Sweetest Lord Jesus with the purity of your heart. Rejoice, having illuminated your soul with the inner beauty of the Cross of Christ.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 3
The power given to you from above, calling you to apostolic service, in the ordination at the reliquary of the celibate relics of the Chernigov saint and wonderworker Theodosius, you accepted with a meek and humble heart, rejoicing. And without fear or false fear you confessed the heroic figure of Christ Jesus, who is pure in this generation, adulterous and sinful, unceasingly singing to Him: Alleluia.
Ikos 3
Having your heart, like good soil, always open to the reception of the good seed of the Word of God, counting all this red world for nothing, you walked steadily in the footsteps of Christ, calling: if anyone wants to follow Me, let him deny himself and take up the cross his own, and follow me. For this reason, we please you with these praises:
Rejoice, dear and red despiser of this world. Rejoice, heavenly and imperishable treasure of desire. Rejoice, beloved of the narrow path of salvation from youth. Rejoice, thou invested with power from above for the feat of bearing the cross. Rejoice, you who were not afraid of torment from the wicked for confessing the true God. Rejoice, you did not lay down your life for your fatherly faith. Rejoice, suffering for the faith and the Church, as you have sought the treasures of the all-rich. Rejoice, having prepared with joy to accept wounds for Christ. Rejoice, thou who joyfully endured imprisonment and cruel deprivation in the devastated monastery of Sarov. Rejoice, thou who hast received the sweetest cell obedience to the Venerable Seraphim. Rejoice, having found Christ in your unshameful hope. Rejoice, you who have acquired the crown of pure confession.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 4
A storm of demonic rage, sins for the sake of and cooling of Christian love in the human race, with the permission of God, rushes with great power against the Russian Church, so that the weak-faith and cowardly, who on the sand of self-indulgence erected the temples of their souls, will crush, and those who build on the immovable stone of faith and patience will destroy their spiritual structure in piety, cooperating with God, they create, and will move loudly in spiritual joy to sing: Alleluia.
Ikos 4
Hearing and seeing your great virtue and unshakable fidelity to the Holy Church, like the purest gold in the fierce persecutions, the long-suffering flock has risen, in the endless expanses of Kazakhstan, as if they have ascended to one from many Golgothas of Holy Rus', with thanksgiving to the all-merciful look of God, who was so pleased with her, in With tenderness and joy, with one heart and one mouth, we greet you with these titles:
Rejoice, for adamant has been tested by the sharpener of ulcers and diseases. Rejoice, as gold was purified in the crucible of fiery temptations. Rejoice, thou who art not afraid of fierce reproaches. Rejoice, and do not be afraid of death itself. Rejoice, O Lord, who has partaken of His wanderings and His immortal table. Rejoice, like a radiant star, shining over the country of Kazakhstan. Rejoice, you have shed the light of God’s grace to all its ends. Rejoice, good gardener, planting a garden of pious faith in this country. Rejoice, stream of sweets, having given your flock the water of piety to drink. Rejoice, the peace of Christ and your God-pleasing prayers fill the fragrant expanses of Kazakhstan with censer. Rejoice, for having followed God’s will, heterodox Muslims serve you with zeal. Rejoice, for you too have always done good with warm love.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 5
With the rich blood poured out on the Cross, and with that He redeemed His fallen creation from sin, damnation and eternal death, by faith in vain the will of our Master and Hero who crucified for us and with zealous love for Him, you proclaimed with all your life: for me, to live, is Christ , and death is the gain of Christ, to Him you unceasingly sang: Alleluia.
Ikos 5
Having seen, in a few churches, standing like oases in the endless godless desert, your flock at the sources of true worship and piety living drinking water, competing with the apostles of Christ, overcoming your weaknesses and illnesses by the power of God, you diligently visited this in time and in time, edifying in the faith, strengthening in hope and confirming in love. For this sake, for the sake of faithfulness, I have learned to chant to you this:
Rejoice, blessed preacher of the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven. Rejoice, tireless worker of Christ’s grapes. Rejoice, with your godly words enlighten many minds. Rejoice, heir of the Apostolic grace, secretly freeing us from the bonds of hell. Rejoice, merciful archpastor, covering everything with your love and meekness. Rejoice, beloved Master, protect those in need. Rejoice, inexhaustible treasure of mercy. Rejoice, ready to hasten those who seek salvation. Rejoice, merciful helper to those who mourn. Rejoice, you have amazed everyone with the abundance of your love and acquired many friends. Rejoice, God-given helper to your flock. Rejoice, for through you the Name of the Holy Trinity is glorified in the country of Kazakhstan.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 6
The God-saved city of Alma-Ata and God-protected Kazakhstan preach you, the spirit-bearer, the shepherd of goodness, who laid down your soul for the inheritance of Christ and the gifts of miraculous grace from the Glorified Heavenly Master, and teaches the faithful to sing all good things to the giver of God: Alleluia.
Ikos 6
Shine the light of your virtues and your Christ-imitating love to all who seek eternal salvation and walk the sorrowful and thorny path with hope and unshakable faith in the power of God, perfected in human weakness. And, giving thanks to God, who has granted them to see the grace in you, even the Apostle of the tongues Paul confessed, crying out: I can do everything in Christ Jesus who strengthens me;
Rejoice, having imitated the namesake martyr Theodosius in your firm confession of faith in all your life. Rejoice, you who competed with Nicholas the Pleasant in simplicity and meekness. Rejoice, revered by God and the Mother of God, the first intercessor of the Christian race. Rejoice, thou who together with Christ-like humility and love appeared as the conqueror of the people. Rejoice, his temple of the same name, which stood firm in the midst of the storm of godless rebellion, and has been splendidly renovated in the city of Alma-Ata. Rejoice, beautiful bride, Great Martyr Barbara, reverently revered. Rejoice, at the race of her celibate relics during prayer, you were delivered from sudden death. Rejoice, for the throne of grace in the city of Alma-Ata has been erected to her praise and honor. Rejoice, you who by God’s will miraculously found her ancient icon and placed it in the cathedral church. Rejoice, having served at the incorruptible relics of St. Innocent in the city of Irkutsk, having learned the firmness of faith and the zeal of God. Rejoice, the virtues of the wondrous miracle worker Theodosius of Chernigov are equally manifested. Rejoice, for you called them on earth in prayers, and now you have them in heaven in the person of your interlocutors.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 7
Although the lover of mankind, the Lord, enriched with the currents of the blood of the new martyrs of Russia, revealed the land of Kazakhstan as a fruitful field of gospel sowing, granting thee, blessed one, to the Christ-named people of this country for help, protection and protection, and imitating your life, edified by your teachings and blessed by your prayers, we sing to God in joy: Hallelujah.
Ikos 7
Your spiritual children knew you as a new citizen of Heavenly Jerusalem, when with your pure and God-loving soul you ascended into the heavenly shelters, where the All-Blessed Goalkeeper, who opens the doors of Paradise to the faithful, the Most Pure Mother of the Lord of Heaven and earth introduced you into the radiant circle of the friends of Christ, for your fragrant prayers unceasingly lift up for those who revere your holy memory with love and cry out with gratitude:
Rejoice, foreknew the hour of your departure to God. Rejoice, having been spiritually satisfied on earth before this joy of Holy Pascha. Rejoice, you were comforted by the appearance of Saints Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk before your death. Rejoice, during prayer you commended your spirit into the hands of God. Rejoice, thou who through spiritual poverty acquired the kingdom of God. Rejoice, for the sake of meekness you have inherited the blessed land of promise. Rejoice, having received eternal glory through humiliation in a short life. Rejoice, for Christ confessed You before His Heavenly Father. Rejoice, for even before His angels the Lord of hosts glorified you. Rejoice, for you glorify the Most Honest of the Cherubim and the Most Glorious without comparison of the Seraphim, the Virgin Mary from the faces of the heavenly powers. Rejoice, rejoice in heaven forever. Rejoice, gloriously working miracles on earth.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 8
A strange and glorious triumph appeared in the capital city of Alma-Ata, when your body was arduous, to the resting place of the priest’s hand, as if carried through the air, in the middle of the countless sea of people, a farewell procession was carried out, teaching the faithful to unanimously transform the funeral sob into a song of praise to God: Alleluia.
Ikos 8
Having been completely filled with the love of the Divine, you appeared to the Holy Spirit, a temple not made by hands, adorned with gifts of grace: for you believed your soul for the flock entrusted to you, deeming it spiritually pleasing to everyone in everything, not your own, but your neighbor’s benefit, and you saved everyone. Do not forget us now, the poor in virtue and those who seek your instruction, so we call to you:
Rejoice, servant of God, who humbly endured persecution for the sake of righteousness. Rejoice, thou who has grown the grapes of Christ, who has produced much fruit for the benefit of the Orthodox. Rejoice, evangelist of the light of Christ, enlightening the darkened eyes and hearts of the people. Rejoice, herald of Grace, confirming those who doubt their faith with the word of God. Rejoice, God-wise shepherd, instructing Orthodox youth to salvation. Rejoice, you enrich those who pray to you with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Rejoice, through your prayer save those floating in the air from sudden death. Rejoice, deliverer from destructive earthquakes. Rejoice, glory and protection of the city of Alma-Ata. Rejoice, vigilant and warm guardian of all the cities and towns of Kazakhstan. Rejoice, for your name is glorified throughout our country from end to end. Rejoice, for your heterodox miracles are turning to Orthodoxy.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 9
You are all, blessed Father Nicholas, in the heavenly abodes of heaven, in the villages of the righteous, but you do not abandon us, your flock, who warmly honors you, instructing us to the Divine mind and diligently doing the commandments of Christ and fulfilling all our beneficial requests, striving us to sing a song of praise to God: Alleluia.
Ikos 9
You surpassed the many-prophesied Beth in the spiritual power of your meek broadcasts, holy one, tirelessly preaching to your flock the Crucified and Risen Christ, imitating Him, you magnified this with your friends, admonishing every sin to die, but to be alive in fulfilling the commandments of God. We, the benevolent voice of your words with a grateful heart, cry out to you like this:
Rejoice, immaculate servant of the Altar of the Lord. Rejoice, zealous stewards of the splendor of the church. Rejoice, faithful guardian of the apostolic traditions. Rejoice, planter of good morals and love for God and neighbors. Rejoice, the villages of the Lord are holy temples, more beloved than all the villages on earth. Rejoice, thou who seekest Divine service and Christ’s teaching above all deeds. Rejoice, having conquered the enemy of the human race through obedience and humility. Rejoice, kindly lamb, repaying evil for evil to no one. Rejoice, most zealous evangelist of the Orthodox faith. Rejoice, great teacher of the Church of Christ. Rejoice, bright star, guiding everyone to the Sun of Truth, Christ Jesus. Rejoice, unquenchable light, ever burning at the throne of the Lord of glory and igniting us with the fire of God’s love.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 10
Although you may save human souls, you have accepted the good yoke of Christ and His light burden with all your soul, O God-bearer. In the persecution of many, you showed fidelity and firmness in patience, so that you yourself, having been tempted, could help those who were tempted, so that we too could bring to Christ the fruit of faith in virtue, in virtue is reason, in reason is abstinence, in abstinence is patience, in patience But piety, and in godliness is brotherly love, and in brotherly love is love, and let us sing to Him: Alleluia.
Ikos 10
A solid wall and a sweet refuge for all, with warm prayer and undoubted faith, you appeared to those who come to your intercession, flowing currents of God’s grace to those seeking salvation, from them pour out an ever-flowing stream for me, as if I were to sing with everyone:
Rejoice, true servant of God. Rejoice, demon driver. Rejoice, unreliable hope. Rejoice, affirmation of the despairing. Rejoice, thou endowed with the gift of insight. Rejoice, you gloriously work miracles by the power of God. Rejoice, quick-merciful healer of mental and physical infirmities. Rejoice, remove unrepentant sinners from the depths of destruction. Rejoice, accept those left by doctors in your own hands. Rejoice, grant to the doctor the gratuitous tun of healing to all. Rejoice, in the sleepy vision of the priests, in the prison of the suffering, you consoled. Rejoice, call all your good deeds to glorify the Heavenly Father.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 11
Singing thanksgiving to the Most Holy Trinity, all Orthodox Christians, living in the vast expanses of Kazakhstan, cry out, as if you were pleased to grant us, O Holy One, a shepherd of goodness and a powerful prayer book, and flowing to the race of your saints, they fervently ask: pray for us, the All-Good God, yes, as the Judge and The most righteous rewarder will not turn His face away from us, unworthy, who continually sin and grieve His compassion, but, as the loving Father will punish us here, in our temporal life, so that, having rejected the corruptible and the temporary, we will find the imperishable and eternal, singing to Him with all the saints: Hallelujah.
Ikos 11
A luminous luminary, shining with the rays of Christian virtues, you have appeared, decorating the church sky, God-wise, and to all who wander in the darkness of unbelief, doubt, lack of faith and wickedness, give a ray of hope for salvation and guide Christ Jesus to the Sun of Truth, and in the light of His commandments with all Walking with faithful, cheerful feet, they will sing to you more joyfully:
Rejoice, I have determined to be a confessed servant of Christ. Rejoice, by this confession you have given joy to the Church of the Saints. Rejoice, you have labored well in the heliport of the Lord from morning to evening of your life. Rejoice, like a city standing on top of a mountain, unable to hide. Rejoice, you who showed great strength of spirit in a difficult body. Rejoice, you who bore the cross of a life pleasing to God to the end with patience. Rejoice, in your bearing of the cross you received the guarantee of eternal bliss. Rejoice, for this reason you saw the glory of the Triune Godhead face to face in heaven. Rejoice, you who enlightened your body with the grace of the Holy Spirit. Rejoice, having thus preserved him incorruptible by grace even after death. Rejoice, having filled us all with spiritual joy through the glorification of your relics. Rejoice, having shown us the dawn of the general resurrection through the incorruption of your relics.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 12
By the grace of God in the unceasing creation of the commandments of Christ, enriched, after your departure from the earthly, especially to the three-solar throne of the Most Holy Trinity, you drew closer, but also did not retreat from your flock in the spirit of love, and in all ends of the Kazakhstan country you exuded the life-giving currents of God’s grace, breathing a song of praise into the hearts of the faithful : Hallelujah.
Ikos 12
We sing of your firm faith and unshakable patience, we magnify the equal-to-the-apostles labors of your gospel, we bless your blessed death, we glorify your compassion and speedy intercession and help, we honor your holy memory and sing this praiseworthy song:
Rejoice, graceful imitator of patristic piety. Rejoice, marvelous adornment of the Orthodox faith. Rejoice, for Job, the long-suffering one, surrendered everything to the will of God. Rejoice, as forefather Abraham, who showed unquestionable faith in all trials. Rejoice, for Daniel, the man of desires, understood the wisdom of God after desires. Rejoice, for Elijah the Tishbite, through warm prayer you brought rain from the heat to the suffering. Rejoice, like Elisha, who received deep grace from God. Rejoice, as Moses, the seer of God, matured in God's pure heart. Rejoice, as the God-speaking Isaiah, who proclaimed the mysteries of God to the faithful. Rejoice, you who manifested and preached David’s repentance. Rejoice, in whom Christ the lover of mankind was glorified. Rejoice, put the evil Belial to shame.
Rejoice, Saint Nicholas, confessor of Christ and miracle worker of Kazakhstan.
Kontakion 13
Oh, our good shepherd, with meekness and humility in the net of God’s love, catch the souls of people, accept this small thanksgiving offered to you in praise, and never cease to intercede for us before our Heavenly Father, yes, having escaped in this life the cunningly woven nets of the enemy and the deceits of demons Let us get rid of the airy ordeals of the prince of evil and the eternal fiery hell and be honored in the heavenly villages with you and all the saints to sing to God: Alleluia.
Temple of St. Blessed Xenia of Petersburg
The confessional feat of St. Nicholas of Alma-Ata is a continuation of the feat of his parents, a feat that may be less noticeable, but no less significant. Education, the proper upbringing of your child, is a great feat. This feat was accomplished by the father of St. Nicholas, who, being a priest, with his reasonable severity and exactingness, gave his son the necessary knowledge about God, about the Church, and about the world, necessary for every Orthodox person. This feat was accomplished by the mother of the future saint, who, with her great, correct love, put love, a kind, merciful attitude towards people into the heart of her child. This feat was accomplished by the grandmother of the future saint, who on long winter evenings told her grandson about the holy saints of God, introducing him to church tradition and piety.
Thanks to this feat of his ancestors, Saint Nicholas became an educated theologian and a deeply pious Christian; he became a man of deep church culture. Thus, knowledge coupled with piety makes a person a true Christian. This feat of his parents gave St. Nicholas the strength to accomplish his confessional feat in the twentieth century: in the conditions of the devilish hatred that rose up against God and His Church, he bore people a witness to the Truth of God, brought love and kindness to people, showed the greatness and beauty of man, which are only possible while serving the Lord.
What happened to the Russian Church in the twentieth century is a great edification for us. The feat of those fathers and mothers, grandmothers and grandfathers, thanks to whom we have a whole host of martyrs and confessors of the twentieth century, including St. Nicholas of Alma-Ata, confessor, is a great edification for all of us. Devotees do not suddenly appear out of nowhere.
We clearly see that the feat of confession is not only the past of our Church, it is the present of every Christian. The enemy of the human race at all times tries to lead man astray from the path leading to God; only his methods of influencing man change. And at any moment we must be ready to repel any attack from the devil and teach this to our children and grandchildren.
The new academic year has begun in state universities and schools, in Sunday schools at our churches, and we have reason to think about what we can and should teach and how to raise our children, whom God has given us and for whom we bear our full responsibility before Him. responsibility.
And the example of St. Nicholas of Alma-Ata, the experience of the entire life of the Church testify that our children must not only gain knowledge, not only possess information, but they must be instilled in the church tradition, in church piety. Only then will we be able to educate and educate worthy citizens of our earthly fatherland and good Christians who will inherit the Heavenly Fatherland. Only then will our children be able to be creators in this world, transforming and salting it, will they be able to courageously overcome all the difficulties of life, all the attacks of dark forces, when they live with God and have sound ideas about God. Only then will our life be right and good, as it is written: “Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people, and walk in every way that I command you, that it may go well with you” (Jer. 7: 23).
Surrounding with love today the holy relics of the Alma-Ata confessor, Metropolitan Nicholas, let us pray earnestly for our children and for ourselves, so that the Lord will give us the understanding and strength to be real parents and accomplish our Christian parental feat of raising and educating our children, so that “they will not deviate from the law of God; they knew His statutes, walked in the ways of God’s commandments and entered into the paths of teaching in His righteousness” (see: Var.4: 12-13). “Hold your children until I come and show mercy to them; For My springs are abundant, and My grace shall not fail” (3 Esdras 2:32). Amen.
Archimandrite Joseph (Eremenko)
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“His entire life - from birth in a modest rural house of a psalm-reader, through teaching and rectorship in seminaries, through many years of Soviet camps and exile, to the metropolitan see - St. Nicholas devoted himself completely to God and people. He firmly knew that “if the Lord sends the cross, He also gives strength to carry it, and He also makes it easier.” This devotion to the will of God gave strength to Vladyka Nicholas always and everywhere not to lose his Christian dignity and to help other people live. The archpastor's spiritual and organizational talents manifested themselves with particular force here in Kazakhstan, where he was appointed administrator of the Alma-Ata diocese in 1945, after several years of exile in Aktobe. In those years in Kazakhstan, after decades of godless terror, church life practically came to a standstill.
Arriving in Alma-Ata on October 26, 1945, on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, Saint Nicholas began his ministry in the Kazan Church, which was opened several months before his arrival. There he gathered a strong community, which became his reliable support in serving the Church.
Through the labors of the archpastor-confessor, in 1946, the pearl of the Orthodox Semirechye - the St. Nicholas Church on Kuchugury, which became a cathedral - was transferred to the Orthodox residents of Alma-Ata. Bishop Nicholas returned to this cathedral church with his holy relics 45 years after his blessed death. In the memory of Orthodox Kazakhstanis, Saint Nicholas remained a kind archpastor and a child-loving father - always friendly and even, caring and simple, accessible in communication, he sincerely won over the hearts of people. Bishop Nicholas saw one of the most important tasks of his archpastoral service in the opening of new parishes. He made a lot of efforts to return desecrated churches to believers and consecrated new houses of worship. Having lived a long life, filled not only with many sorrows, but also with great spiritual joys, Saint Nicholas, having accomplished the feat of reviving church life in Kazakhstan, peacefully reposed in the Lord on October 25, 1955, on the eve of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
The life example of Hiero-Confessor Nicholas, Metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazakhstan, his prayers at the Throne of God will give us all the strength and courage to be worthy of our Christian calling, to fight sin within ourselves, to be peacemakers, “so that people see our good deeds and glorify our Heavenly Father "(Matthew 5:16)."
From the sermon of Metropolitan Alexander
About the resurrection of the son of the Nain widow
Let us transport our thoughts to distant ancient Palestine, approach the city of Nain and see there an indescribable, indescribable sight: we will see a huge crowd of people, together with the apostles, accompanying the Lord Jesus Christ, for crowds of people always followed Him, attracted by His Divine teaching, His glorious miracles.
A sad procession emerges from the gates of the city: they are carrying the only son of an unfortunate widow to burial, and her heart breaks, and she cries and sobs inconsolably. Her Jewish acquaintances follow the coffin and cry with her.
The Lord suddenly stops the procession. He approaches the bed of the deceased, touches the stretcher with his hand and says:
- Young man, I’m telling you, get up!
And the deceased sat down on the stretcher, looking around in amazement.
The people recoiled in amazement, everyone’s heart trembled, and they exclaimed:
– A great prophet rose among us, and God visited His people.
This was one of the greatest miracles of the Lord Jesus.
But you know that not only did the Lord resurrect the son of the widow of Nain, you know that he also resurrected the dead daughter of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue; You also know the even more amazing resurrection of Lazarus, who had already been lying in the tomb for four days, already stinking, as his sister Martha said. Lazarus came out of the tomb, wrapped in burial shrouds, and the people trembled, the people were amazed.
Why, why did the Lord perform these amazing miracles of resurrecting the dead?
In this Gospel reading you heard that He had mercy on the unfortunate widow, and in the description of the great miracle of the resurrection of Lazarus we read. that the Lord was in great sadness and shed tears when he saw the crying and sobbing of Lazarus’s sisters and the Jews who came to console them.
So, God’s mercy, God’s love, God’s compassion prompted the Lord Jesus to create the resurrection of the dead.
But is that all there is to it? No, not only that: the greatest miracles in the world were also needed in order to confirm the faith of the people of Israel in Him, in order to shake the hearts of people and turn them to God.
But this is not enough: there is a third, most important reason for the resurrection of the dead by the Lord Jesus Christ.
In the troparion of the Feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem we hear: “Assuring the General Resurrection before Your Passion, You raised Lazarus from the dead, O Christ God...”
General resurrection... assuring... What does this mean?
This means that Christ raised Lazarus in order to assure us of the possibility of a general resurrection of all people on the day of the Last Judgment, in order to refute the wicked opinion of people who claim that there cannot be a resurrection of the dead, that with the death of a person everything ends, and he is plunged into eternal deepest darkness.
St. Apostle Paul spoke very important words about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ: “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen; and if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is in vain. Moreover, we would also turn out to be false witnesses about God, because we would testify about God that He raised Christ, Whom He did not raise, if, that is, the dead do not rise; for if the dead are not raised, then Christ is not raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is also in vain” (1 Cor. 15:13-14).
Our faith is vain - faith in Christ, faith in God is vain, if we do not believe in the resurrection, the general resurrection, and above all the resurrection of Christ.
Tell me, isn’t the hearts of millions of people tormented by a serious question: how, why, why does God allow sinners, wicked people, those who oppress others, those who take away the property of widows and orphans, liars, false witnesses, informers, to prosper, as we often see.
How he allows pious people, quiet people, kind people, poor people to experience dire need, to be persecuted by the powerful. Where, they say, is God's truth?
Where?!! In resurrection - in the resurrection of the dead!
Tell me, in our terrible days, when monstrous crimes, monstrous atrocities are being committed in the unfortunate country of Korea, from which the hearts of merciful people shudder, how can it be that the Lord allowed the destruction of this heroic people?
Oh, it can't be, it can never be!
Even if the robber-aggressors remain unpunished now, in this life, then their resurrection awaits - a terrible resurrection for judgment.
And they will appear, drenched from head to toe in the blood of children and women, old men and women of Korea, these robbers who burned the homes of the civilian population with napalm will appear; these damned ones, throwing bombs with plague and other terrible bacteria.
They will appear, they will appear, for there will be a resurrection, for Christ has risen and thereby confirmed faith in the resurrection, for by Christ’s resurrection death, eternal spiritual death, has been defeated.
And just as He rose on the third day after His grave death on the cross, so will everyone, all people, rise again.
The righteous will be resurrected in the resurrection of the belly, and the sinners in the resurrection of judgment. And there will be a Last Judgment - there will be judgment!
All the unfortunate will receive reward, all those who have suffered, all those persecuted, all those persecuted for Christ will receive reward in the joy of heaven.
Those damned ones who trampled on the law of Christ, who sowed satanic hatred everywhere, will also receive retribution. They too will arise and hear from the lips of our Savior: “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41).
Saint Luke (Voino-Yasenetsky)
The carpenter and his house (parable)
The owner was sorry to part with a good worker, and he asked him for a favor - to build another house. The carpenter agreed, but it was clear that while working he was thinking about something else, did not try at all, and took materials at random.
When the carpenter finished the work and the house was ready, the owner handed the carpenter the keys to the front door. “This house,” he said, “is my gift to you.” The carpenter was so upset. If he had known what he was building for himself, he would have done everything completely differently.
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Do everything as if it were for yourself. As you help arrange the lives of others, so will your own.
