Bishop Theodore(in the world Nikolai Lvovich Kazanov; July 10, Yaroslavl, Russia) - bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, bishop of Pereslavl and Uglich.
Biography
Born on July 10, 1973 in the city of Yaroslavl in a family of employees.
In 1988, he graduated from 8 classes of secondary educational school No. 33 in Yaroslavl and entered the Yaroslavl Technical School of Railway Transport with a degree in Automation - Telemechanics.
In 1992, after graduating from technical school, he entered the Yaroslavl Polytechnic Institute, which in 1996 was transformed into the Yaroslavl State Technical University. In 1997 he graduated from Yaroslavl State Technical University with a degree in Automobiles and Automotive Industry.
On June 30, 2000, in the house church of the diocesan administration in the name of Innocent of Moscow, Archbishop of Yaroslavl and Rostov Mikhei (Kharkharov) was tonsured into a mantle with the name Theodore in honor of the Most Rev. Theodore of Smolensk.
On July 2, 2000, in the Kazan convent of Yaroslavl, Archbishop Mikhei (Kharkharov) of Yaroslavl ordained him to the rank of hierodeacon, on July 16, in the Kazan convent of Yaroslavl, to the rank of hieromonk, after which he served in the parishes and monasteries of the Yaroslavl diocese.
From 2002 - personal secretary and cell attendant of Archbishop Micah of Yaroslavl until his death in 2005.
In 2006-2010 he studied at the correspondence sector of the Moscow Theological Seminary.
In the fall of 2006, he was appointed acting vicar of the Adrianov Assumption Monastery. He served in this position until March 2007.
On March 16, 2007, on the occasion of Holy Easter, he was elevated to the rank of abbot.
On October 23, 2007, he was appointed chairman of the department for interaction with medical institutions of the Yaroslavl diocese.
On October 22, 2010, he was appointed without dismissal from his positions. O. vicar of the newly opened Kirillo-Afanasievsky monastery in Yaroslavl.
On December 14, 2010, the department headed by Abbot Theodore was entrusted with social work and charity, and therefore received the name: “Department for Charity, Social Service and Interaction with Medical Institutions.”
On December 24 of the same year, by decision of the Holy Synod, he was appointed to the position of abbot of the Kirillo-Athanasievsky Monastery in Yaroslavl.
On May 28, 2011, without dismissal from his positions, he was appointed rector of the Iliinsky Church in Yaroslavl, and on July 26 - rector of the bishop's courtyard of the Church of Lazarus the Four-Day in Yaroslavl.
On October 22, 2011, in accordance with the petition, he was released from the post of dean of the parishes of the Nekrasovsky district.
On May 5, 2012, without dismissal from his positions, he was appointed rector of the hospital church of Blessed Matrona of Moscow at Clinical Hospital No. 5 in the city of Yaroslavl.
In 2014, he entered the correspondence education sector of the Moscow Theological Academy and the theological faculty of Yaroslavl State Pedagogical University. K. D. Ushinsky for distance learning.
Bishopric
On December 24, 2015, by decision of the Holy Synod, he was elected for ordination as Bishop of Pereslavl and Uglich.
On December 25 of the same year, in the Church of All Saints, in the Russian Land, the Patriarchal and Synodal Residence in the Danilov Monastery, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Barsanuphius (Sudakov) was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.
On December 26, 2015, in the Throne Hall of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow, Archimandrite Theodore was named Bishop of Pereslavl and Uglich.
On December 27, 2015, the consecration of Archimandrite Theodore as Bishop of Pereslavl and Uglich took place, which was performed by: Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Barsanuphius (Sudakov), Metropolitan of Yaroslavl and Rostov Panteleimon (Dolganov), Metropolitan of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye Kir illus ( Nakonechny), Bishop of Dmitrov Theophylact (Moiseev), Bishop of Rybinsk and Danilovsky Veniamin (Likhomanov), Bishop of Resurrection Savva (Mikheev).
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Notes
Links
- // Patriarchia.Ru
- on the website pravoslavie.ru
Excerpt characterizing Theodore (Casanova)
On August 31, Saturday, in the Rostov house everything seemed to be turned upside down. All the doors were opened, all the furniture was taken out or rearranged, mirrors, paintings were removed. There were chests in the rooms, hay, wrapping paper and ropes lying around. The men and servants carrying out things walked with heavy steps along the parquet floor. Men's carts were crowded in the yard, some already topped and hitched, some still empty.The voices and footsteps of the huge servants and the men who arrived with carts sounded, calling to each other, in the yard and in the house. The Count went somewhere in the morning. The Countess, who had a headache from the bustle and noise, lay in the new sofa with vinegar bandages on her head. Petya was not at home (he went to see a comrade with whom he intended to transfer from the militia to the active army). Sonya was present in the hall during the installation of crystal and porcelain. Natasha was sitting in her ruined room on the floor, between scattered dresses, ribbons, scarves, and, motionless looking at the floor, holding in her hands an old ball gown, the same (already old in fashion) dress that she wore for the first time at the St. Petersburg ball.
Natasha was ashamed to do nothing in the house, while everyone was so busy, and several times in the morning she tried to get down to business; but her soul was not inclined to this matter; but she could not and did not know how to do anything not with all her heart, not with all her strength. She stood over Sonya while laying out the china, wanted to help, but immediately gave up and went to her room to pack her things. At first she was amused by the fact that she was distributing her dresses and ribbons to the maids, but then, when the rest still had to be put to bed, she found it boring.
- Dunyasha, will you put me to bed, my dear? Yes? Yes?
And when Dunyasha willingly promised to do everything for her, Natasha sat down on the floor, took the old ball gown in her hands and thought not at all about what should occupy her now. Natasha was brought out of her reverie by the talk of the girls in the neighboring maid's room and the sounds of their hasty steps from the maid's room to the back porch. Natasha stood up and looked out the window. A huge train of wounded stopped in the street.
Girls, footmen, housekeeper, nanny, cook, coachmen, postilions, kitchen boys stood at the gate, looking at the wounded.
Natasha, throwing a white handkerchief over her hair and holding the ends with both hands, went out into the street.
The former housekeeper, the old woman Mavra Kuzminishna, separated herself from the crowd standing at the gate, and, going up to a cart on which there was a matting wagon, talked to a young pale officer lying in this cart. Natasha moved a few steps and timidly stopped, continuing to hold her handkerchief and listening to what the housekeeper was saying.
- Well, then you don’t have anyone in Moscow? – said Mavra Kuzminishna. - You would be more comfortable somewhere in the apartment... If only you could come to us. The gentlemen are leaving.
“I don’t know if they’ll allow it,” the officer said in a weak voice. “There’s the chief... ask,” and he pointed to the fat major, who was walking back down the street along a row of carts.
Natasha looked into the face of the wounded officer with frightened eyes and immediately went to meet the major.
– Can the wounded stay in our house? – she asked.
The major put his hand to the visor with a smile.
- Whom do you want, mamzel? He said, narrowing his eyes and smiling.
Natasha calmly repeated her question, and her face and whole manner, despite the fact that she continued to hold her handkerchief by the ends, were so serious that the major stopped smiling and, at first thinking, as if asking himself to what extent this was possible, answered her in the affirmative.
“Oh, yes, why, it’s possible,” he said.
Natasha slightly bowed her head and quickly walked back to Mavra Kuzminishna, who was standing over the officer and talking to him with pitiful sympathy.
- It’s possible, he said, it’s possible! – Natasha said in a whisper.
An officer in a wagon turned into the Rostovs' yard, and dozens of carts with the wounded began, at the invitation of city residents, to turn into the courtyards and drive up to the entrances of the houses on Povarskaya Street. Natasha apparently benefited from these relationships with new people, outside the usual conditions of life. She, together with Mavra Kuzminishna, tried to bring as many wounded as possible into her yard.
“We still need to report to dad,” said Mavra Kuzminishna.
- Nothing, nothing, doesn’t it matter! For one day we will move to the living room. We can give them all our half.
- Well, you, young lady, will come up with it! Yes, even to the outbuilding, to the bachelor, to the nanny, and then you need to ask.
- Well, I'll ask.
Natasha ran into the house and tiptoed through the half-open door of the sofa, from which there was a smell of vinegar and Hoffmann's drops.
-Are you sleeping, mom?
- Oh, what a dream! - said the countess, who had just dozed off, waking up.
“Mom, darling,” said Natasha, kneeling in front of her mother and putting her face close to hers. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I never will, I woke you up.” Mavra Kuzminishna sent me, they brought the wounded here, officers, if you please? And they have nowhere to go; I know that you will allow...” she said quickly, without taking a breath.
- Which officers? Who did they bring? “I don’t understand anything,” said the Countess.
Natasha laughed, the Countess also smiled faintly.
– I knew that you would allow... so I’ll say so. - And Natasha, kissing her mother, got up and went to the door.
In the hall she met her father, who had returned home with bad news.
- We've finished it! – the count said with involuntary annoyance. – And the club is closed, and the police come out.
- Dad, is it okay that I invited the wounded into the house? – Natasha told him.
“Of course, nothing,” the count said absently. “That’s not the point, but now I ask you not to worry about trifles, but to help pack and go, go, go tomorrow...” And the count conveyed the same order to the butler and the people. During dinner, Petya returned and told him his news.
He said that today the people were dismantling weapons in the Kremlin, that although Rostopchin’s poster said that he would shout the cry in two days, but that an order had probably been made that tomorrow all the people would go to the Three Mountains with weapons, and what was there there will be a big battle.
The countess looked with timid horror at the cheerful, heated face of her son while he said this. She knew that if she said the word that she was asking Petya not to go to this battle (she knew that he was rejoicing at this upcoming battle), then he would say something about men, about honor, about the fatherland - something like that senseless, masculine, stubborn, which cannot be objected to, and the matter will be ruined, and therefore, hoping to arrange it so that she could leave before that and take Petya with her as a protector and patron, she did not say anything to Petya, and after dinner she called the count and with tears she begged him to take her away as soon as possible, that same night, if possible. With a feminine, involuntary cunning of love, she, who had hitherto shown complete fearlessness, said that she would die of fear if they did not leave that night. She, without pretending, was now afraid of everything.
Date of Birth:
August 3, 1977
Ordination date:
June 3, 2018
Date of tonsure:
March 16, 2010
Name date:
January 5 and February 5, St. Theoktistus, Archbishop of Novgorod.
Biography:
Born on August 3, 1977 in Kharkov.
In 1994 he graduated from secondary school No. 4 in Votkinsk (Udmurt Republic).
In 1994-1999 Studied at Izhevsk State Technical University. In 1999, he defended his diploma in the specialty “Device and methods of medical diagnostics” on the topic “Study of radiation patterns of real piezoelectric transducers in a pulsed operating mode.” In 1999-2002 studied in graduate school at the same university with a specialty in “Thermal, electric rocket engines and power plants of aircraft”, at the same time (since the fall of 2001) he was obedient to the temple attendant and altar boy in the Cathedral of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky in Izhevsk, worked software engineer at the Voskhod scientific and technical center and at the Gorsvet enterprise.
On June 2, 2002, in the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral of Izhevsk, Archbishop Nikolai of Izhevsk and Udmurtia ordained him to the rank of deacon. He bore the obedience of the cleric of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, and also accompanied the ruling bishop on trips around the diocese. He was appointed responsible for preparation for ordination and the liturgical practice of newly ordained clergy. Released from obedience as a cleric of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral on August 22, 2007 in connection with the transition to full-time study at the Moscow Theological Seminary.
On April 6, 2008, the rector of the Moscow Theological Academy, Archbishop Eugene of Vereisky, ordained him to the rank of presbyter. On March 16, 2010, he was tonsured a monk by the same bishop.
He graduated from the seminary in June 2010, having defended his thesis on the topic “Combattimento spiritual” by Lorenzo Scupoli, “Ό Ἀόρατος Πόλεμος” by St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain and its translation of St. Feofan the Recluse: a comparative analysis." In June 2012, he graduated from the master's program at the Moscow Theological Academy, defending his master's thesis on the topic “The doctrine of theology in the books of the prophets Hosea and Ezekiel.”
In 2012-2016 studied at the graduate school of the Moscow Theological Academy.
In 2007-2008 served as the literary editor of the MDA student magazine “Vstrecha”, in 2008-2011. - editor-in-chief of the same magazine.
From September 2009 to December 2010 - freelance priest of the Donskoy Stavropegic Monastery in Moscow.
In 2012-2014 served in the Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky at military unit No. 68010.
In 2012 and 2013 during the Easter and Christmas period, with the blessing of Archbishop Eugene of Vereisk and Archbishop Mark of Yegorievsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate Office for Foreign Institutions, he served in Russian parishes in Denmark. In the summer of 2013, he took care of the Russian children’s camp “Matryoshka” in Leysanne (Switzerland).
From May to December 2014 he served in the church of St. Joseph Volotsky at the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.
From December 29, 2014 to June 14, 2018 - rector of the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Mitino, Moscow.
On October 1, 2013, he was appointed acting. head of the secretariat of research projects and special programs of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, from March 20, 2014 - assistant to the chairman of the Publishing Council, June 9, 2014 appointed to the position of acting Deputy Chairman of the Publishing Council, since April 25, 2016 - Deputy Chairman of the Publishing Council. He was a member of the reviewing and expert assessment board of the Publishing Council, and headed the Publishing Council commission for monitoring the distribution of printed, video and audio products in the territory of the diocese of Moscow.
Since September 2015, he has been the author and presenter of the “Gospel of the Day” and “Readings for Lent” programs on radio “Vera”.
By the decision of the Holy Synod of May 14, 2018 (magazine No. 22), he was elected Bishop of Gorodishchensky, vicar of the Volgograd diocese.
On May 15, 2018, in the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, the manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Barsanuphius, was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.
Archbishop Mikhei (Kharkharov; 1921−2005) - “Vladychenka”, as the people called him - was loved by the entire Yaroslavl land: priests, simple grandmothers, children and adults, loved by fellow bishops, loved by the authorities and the doctors treating him. They loved him for his affection, attention, genuine humility and that passion for God that the late archpastor showed until the very last days of his life. Today, October 22, on the day of his memory, the angel of the Yaroslavl diocese is remembered by his cell attendant, now the abbot of the Yaroslavl Cyril-Afanasyevsky Monastery, Abbot Theodore (Cazanov).
How I became the Vladyka’s cell attendant
I studied at the Yaroslavl Theological School, and while I was studying, I visited the Kazan Convent - it had just opened at that time. And when I was preparing for monasticism, I consulted with Mother Abbess. My confessor, the archpriest, said that I needed to look for a new spiritual father in connection with my choice of the monastic path.
I didn’t know where I could find a confessor. I was very worried, and my father said to me:
You ask Bishop Micah.
Who am I? I’m a completely ordinary person - and to become the Lord’s spiritual child?!
You ask - he will not refuse you.
How can I ask?
Yes, just fall at his feet and ask him.
Such advice. His fulfillment seemed impossible: such a figure - a ruling bishop, an elder, and like me - a completely ordinary student graduating from a theological school - suddenly, out of the blue, I would ask him to be a spiritual father. But I think I'll ask. By that time I had already been presented for consecration and tonsure.
And it so happened that the abbess went with the sisters to the bishop and took me with her. We arrived at the home church of the diocese, the abbess talked with the bishop about something, and it seemed like it was time to leave. “Well,” I think, “it’s now or never!” And my mother and sisters are standing around, awkwardly... Come what may, I throw myself at his feet: “Vladyka, take me under your spiritual guidance!” He smiled, didn’t expect this and said: “Well, well! Let’s go to Father Boris, to Father Boris.” And I grabbed his legs - and I don’t want to leave, and I’m also afraid of being intrusive.
This was repeated three times. I knew Father Boris, of course, I respected him as a priest, but I was not ready to become his spiritual child. And when the bishop refused me for the third time, I thought: “Well, that’s it.” And I was just about to get up with a feeling of devastation, when he suddenly patted me on the head and said: “Okay. He who comes to me will not be cast out.” It was such a spiritual surge for me, it was so joyful! From that moment on, he became my spiritual father.
How the Bishop taught me
So little by little, after my tonsure, I began to go to him. He invited me to the diocese - at first he helped me there after the evening service with papers and some business. And then he began to come throughout the day, in the mornings. For me these were, of course, very joyful moments. However, it took a lot of energy: there was a lot of tension. Everyone was afraid: such a figure - a bishop! And you are afraid of saying something wrong, doing something wrong, how to behave correctly, not making a mistake. Of course, I was very tired internally. And then I moved in with him.
Vladyka always listened to me with patience and love, at the same time making it clear that I should not say too many unnecessary words, and that I should learn to clearly express my thoughts and requests.
He never insisted on anything, there was no such thing that he said: “Here, I bless you, you must do this and that,” no, everything is very soft. He will tell you, and then - as you want: if you want, do it, if you don’t want, don’t do it.
Simplicity and love were typical for him. There were never any morals, instructions - no, he never said them. If the bishop wanted to make something clear, he always spoke allegorically, in the third person: “Well, we had Bishop Gury, and he usually spoke like this..” We immediately: “Yeah, that means he wants something important for us.” say".
I once told him: “Vladyka, you don’t instruct me in anything, you don’t teach me anything - what should I do?” He says: “You see how I live? If you want, imitate. If you don’t want to, what’s the point of telling you anything?”
How we read the evening rule
I'll tell you one typical case. I, a very young hieromonk, was unfamiliar with the regime in which the bishop lived.
We got up early, at five or six o'clock in the morning, on my feet all day: services, services, some kind of diocese work, housekeeping - by the evening I was completely exhausted. Plus there is also internal tension from being unaccustomed to it.
And when we sat down to dinner, I always devoured it with joy. And Vladyka was always very leisurely in his food, eating very little. Moreover, he never showed it. They gave everyone an equal portion, but he eats, then slowly picks at his plate with a fork: everyone thinks he is eating, but at the end of dinner it turns out that he has eaten almost nothing. On the contrary, I swept away everything: the young body required a source of energy.
And he always looks like that, tilts his head to the side, sees that I have already eaten everything, and says, pushing his plate: “Don’t disdain.” I say: “Vladyka, what are you talking about! I won’t!” And he: “God bless!” And so I eat my portion, eat his portion, then he gives me something else - sour cream or cottage cheese - and I get up from the table completely loaded with this food, and, of course, I am drawn to sleep.
And he immediately: “Let’s go pray!” And so, we go to pray: he, his cell attendant mother Fevronia (now schema-nun Agafangela) and me. The Bishop gives me a canon, and we begin to read the rule. While reading, such a dream comes over me - it’s just wild! The eyes close on their own. I am a fist of willpower, I don’t know, my brain just turns off. I failed once, I failed twice - how many times have I been silent while reading these prayers, for seconds or fractions of a second! And they stand there, patiently silent, not saying a word. Then, when this matter drags on, he will turn to me and say: “Go wash yourself.”
I run to the bathroom, stick my head under the cold water, and under the stream of cold water I figure out something else. As soon as you turn off the water, sleep falls again like a heavy blanket. I put my head under the tap again - I wake up. I understand: the bishop is waiting for me - it’s not good, I have to run. I come running, take the book, and say: “Vladyka, forgive me.” And he: “Nothing, nothing! Let's move on." I start reading again, and again the same thing! I don’t know how long it took. But he stood so patiently, waited, forgave. So I ran back and forth several times until I read the rule with grief. This is how Vladyka raised me.
How the bishop's daily routine was structured
 |
He always got up very early and went to bed very late. He always wakes up before me - he comes to me, knocks on the door, wakes me up. I think: while Vladyka is washing himself, I’ll sleep some more, and again I fall asleep - he knocks on the door again. You jump up, wake up, and run. That's how it was.
That is, he always demonstrated monastic science by personal example. In the evening we will pray, he will give a blessing, everyone will go to bed, and he will also add worshipers. Vladyka always did them until recently - he was physically very strong. He will bow, then turn on the radio, as is his old habit, to keep abreast of events.
Went to bed after midnight. And at six - already invigorated, that's all. He got up and went downstairs. On the ground floor there was an office, his personal office, and a house church; on the second floor there was a common refectory and his cell. He went downstairs, took care of the affairs of the diocese, and looked at documents. If he served, he prepared for service and left for the parish. As a rule, he returned from the parish only for a short time: he would drink some tea and then again either go to church services or do diocesan work. He had practically no free time.
How I distributed the lord's books
I remember such a case. Once he led me to a cell - in this cell lived at one time Metropolitan John (Wendland), the bishop’s spiritual brother and friend. Both of them were spiritual children of Metropolitan Guria (Egorov). Bishop John introduced Bishop Micah into the family of the Alexander Nevsky Brotherhood. And when Metropolitan John retired, he had absolutely no housing of his own, so for some time he lived in the building of the diocese, when there was already another ruling bishop in Yaroslavl - Archbishop Platon. Vladyka John lived in a small room, about nine square meters. Then the city allocated him an apartment.
The bishop brings me to this cell, opens the door and says: “Come on, crawl under the bed and get out what’s there.” I crawl under the bed, and there is a whole treasure: ancient menaions, lives of saints, other liturgical books, the altar Gospel. Everything is very dilapidated, pre-revolutionary, but it is a huge treasure for the ruler, because it has been kept since the time when it was dangerous to even think about such books, let alone get them! Nowadays you can buy them in almost every church store, but back then it was all worth its weight in gold.
So, he looks at me searchingly and says: “Well, where are we going with all this?” And I, young and hot-tempered, having never experienced persecution, nor having known secret divine services, say cheerfully: “Well, this is to such and such a monastery, this is to such and such a monastery”... In general, I distributed all the books at once.
And the bishop was so amazed, even dumbfounded: he looked at me, shaking his head. But he didn’t say a word of reproach, nothing. I could say: “Do you even know what you’re saying?!” or something like that, but didn't say anything. I just sighed very deeply. And this noisy sigh was more eloquent for me than any words: I understood what these books meant to him and what nonsense I was saying.
How the ruler was kind to others and strict to himself
He was always very kind. He never lets me go without some kind of gift: a book or an icon, a portrait, or something for my parents to eat. Such care for a person is now rarely seen even in church circles!
And he had a completely simple attitude towards himself. He was very simple.
When Bishop Kirill arrived at the department, he was, one might say, shocked by the conditions in which Bishop Micah lived. An old communal apartment, everything is dilapidated - everything is extremely simple and sparse. And he treated himself very strictly. Towards people - always with love, towards yourself - always extremely strictly. I don’t remember that he scolded me for anything, although there was, of course, something to do.
I remember such a case. One servant of God, who knew Vladyka as a priest, an archimandrite, worked as a store manager. She helped the parishes: she collected various things for people. One day her driver became very ill and, being sick, saw the bishop in a dream: “He came up to me, crossed me, and I got out of bed completely healthy.” This despite the fact that he did not know the bishop and saw his face only in photographs.
How the Bishop was jealous of the Divine service
I remember another incident. The bishop suffered a leg injury in the late 1980s while serving at the parish. He was in a hurry to catch the train, fell and hurt his knee, and since then he has been limping badly - he damaged the joint. He walked with a cane, but never took crutches. And somehow I was always shy about sticks. And the pain was severe, he took painkillers. Drink it at night and serve it in the morning. The effect of the drug lasted only a few hours, that is, he woke up with pain: it was clear that he could barely walk.
And so, the bishop arrives from the service: it’s summer, it’s hot, he’s all red, tired after the service (where there was also a religious procession) and, barely walking, he climbs to the second floor along the creaky steep stairs. Me: “Vladyka, let me support you!” “He will look at me sternly, with his hand once to the side, as the string will straighten out, and fly up to the second floor with such speed that even if I ran, I would not be able to catch up.”
He had no self-pity. We love to be pitied, to be stroked on the head, and sometimes we will cry out of self-pity, but he imperiously pushes me away with his hand: they say, don’t even dare! This was a good lesson.
He loved to serve - it was the meaning of life for him. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, with whom they had known since the 1960s, used to tell him: “Vladyka, you serve more than the Patriarch!” Not reproaching, but supporting and approving the ruler.
How the Bishop conducted diocesan affairs
One of the qualities of a bishop is the conduct of diocesan work. On rare occasions he spoke his weighty episcopal word, but almost always the manner of his work was advice. He gathered the diocesan council and addressed the priests: “Well, fathers, this is the situation we have: what should we do?” First, he will listen to everyone, everyone’s opinions, and then he will sum it up. Either he will choose some opinion that seems most necessary to him, or he will express some of his own. But I always consulted - not in the way that often happens now, when you hear: “That’s it, that’s all!” So that in five minutes everything will be my way!” No, Vladyka was very considerate and respected other people’s opinions and dignity.
I remember one priest wrote a request for a trip, it seems, to Jerusalem. Vladyka rarely wrote a monosyllabic resolution like: “I bless,” and that’s it. He will always write something else: “Be sure to visit such and such a temple,” “Be sure to pray for such and such,” etc.
If any priest was prohibited from serving, imposed penance, or sent to a monastery for correction, he, too, would definitely write: “To read such and such canons, to make so many worshipers every day,” etc.
He took every person very close to his heart, so everyone treated him like family. And he always accepted all the people who came to him. Not only the clergy, but also grandmothers, and ordinary women, both church and non-church people - he accepted everyone and listened patiently. Grandmothers loved him from the parish, when he was first a full-time priest, then rector of the cathedral, and then at a parish in the village - before the bishopric itself.
Many loved him and remembered him as the father of Micah. The grandmothers did not understand, and it was difficult for them to pronounce “Your Eminence.” So they called him in the old way: “Father Micah,” but he was not offended.
Essentially, he was everyone's father. He will listen to everyone with fatherly love. Not when they came to him to talk about affairs or to clarify material issues, but when they came to him as to his father - to tell him about life, about troubles, sorrows. He was already hearing poorly, he had a hearing aid - so he would sit down next to the person, adjust his hearing aid, turn the wheel, then pray, cross himself, advise, condole: “It’s okay, you read such and such.”
And, indeed, through his prayers, help came. Once a barren woman came with her grief - one of the priests sent her to the bishop to pray. She came, cried, the bishop said:
It's nothing, everything will be all right!
How good is it when I’ve already seen all the doctors, but everything is bad with me?
Everything will be fine, I tell you.
And then she gave birth to a baby about ten months later.
He behaved very simply. During the working day, when he was in the diocese, he liked to go out into the courtyard and go to the diocesan warehouse, where they bought utensils, candles and books from all over the diocese. He liked to go there and see who had arrived. He would go up to the priest and be sure to ask how things were at the parish, how mother was, how the children were - he remembered everything about everyone. How the church is being renovated, etc. He was well versed in all aspects of parish life.
How Vladyka visited parishes
The bishop also came to parishes in an interesting way. There was no bishop's cortege - everyone came in the same car: the subdeacon drove it, the bishop sat next to him, the protodeacon and two more subdeacons sat behind him. This was the kit.
They arrived at the parish and quickly all left. The Bishop blessed the people, the rest went to the temple and arranged a meeting there. And at this time the bishop will talk to either the priest or the elder, walk around the temple, ask everything, and only after about fifteen minutes begins to serve. But only by this time does he already know all the problems of the parish: how the priest serves, how he behaves, how he communicates with parishioners. And after Communion he calls the priest over and has a substantive conversation with him.
Then there was the time of “humanitarian aid”: the bishop was sent beds, mattresses, clothes, or canned food. And the bishop distributed all this help among parishes and opening monasteries. He did this both when he himself was a parish priest and when he became a bishop. It’s the same with money: if they bring him some amount, he will give it to such and such a parish or monastery. He gives it to the rector of the poor parish: “Here, father: this is for the roof.”
How the Bishop prayed
Vladyka served often and willingly, earnestly. I was never distracted during worship. I didn’t pay attention to various interruptions: the clergy, for example, talking or something else. I didn’t want to lose my prayer. As a last resort, if the situation is flagrant, call the deacon and tell him: “Father, why are the priests talking in the altar?!” He walks, he feels uncomfortable, but makes a remark to the archpriests. But the bishop himself never made any comments.
He never called his fathers to worship (except, perhaps, if it was necessary to present an award to someone). So the priests tried to find out for themselves where the bishop would serve, and tried to get there for service.
Firstly, he never cursed: they say that such and such a priest arrived late and mixed up the color of his vestments or something else. The main thing is that you pray and do not interfere with others’ prayers.
Secondly, everyone felt the grace of the congregational prayer led by the bishop - it was so joyful! That is why priests loved to come to serve together with the archpastor. There was no shackling awe here, no horror of the bishop - they say, now it’s like “he’ll bring him to his senses with a rod.”
How the Bishop preached
His word was always very churchly. The sermon, on the one hand, is very simple and accessible, but, on the other hand, it is always imbued with quotes from the Holy Scriptures or the Holy Fathers. Young priests turned to him to ask how they could write a sermon more elegantly, more beautifully, and what rhetorical techniques they could use. Vladyka said: “You know, at one time I tried many different methods of preaching and realized: the simpler the better.”
And this simple word of his penetrated very deeply into the heart - the people loved his sermons very much. After the service, people always surrounded him to take his blessing, because people felt warmth and love from him. I still meet people - how much time has passed since the death of the Bishop! - They may have seen him only once, but the kindest significant event in their lives was their communication with the ruler, how, for example, he touched a person’s head. They say: “I don’t remember what kind of holiday it was. Well, everyone went, and I went (went). Everything was almost indifferent until I saw the bishop (I didn’t see it). He came up to me, blessed me, and my life changed.”
How the Bishop fell ill
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And then, around Dormition 2001, he had a stroke. Vladyka was taken to the hospital, the doctors gathered a council, surrounded him and said: “Four days. Maximum - two weeks. But this is from the realm of fantasy.”
And then Alexey Viktorovich Zabusov, the chief anesthesiologist of the region, arrived. (His grandmother, a wise woman, at one time took a blessing from St. Seraphim of Sarov for her entire family.) Alexey Viktorovich quickly figured out the situation, and the bishop was transferred to a regional hospital. There were drugs found there that were not in the first hospital. Little by little they began to dig. My mother Fevronia and I lived in the intensive care ward, I continued to communicate with the world - something needed to be brought and taken, but mother was only in the ward with no way out.
And I remember that the bishop’s greatest concern in such a state was one thing - worship. He, lying in intensive care, demanded a cassock and - to go to work! He was angry with me because I disobeyed him. Worship was as necessary to him as air. These are the words: “Cassock, hood, car,” he uttered every time he came to his senses. I started babbling something to him, and he angrily: “Aren’t you listening to me?” It was the first time I saw him like this. His soul was yearning for Christ, but his body could not, did not obey.
How we served in a hospital ward
Some time passed, and we served prayer services in the ward, but this was not enough for him, it was not enough. He longed for the liturgy. And we agreed to serve the liturgy in the ward.
They called the Maltsevs. These are the daughters of the famous Archpriest Igor Maltsev, who came from the Great Patriotic War to the Trinity Lavra. Together with Archimandrite Gury, they took part in its opening in 1946. Then they separated for a long time, and met again in Yaroslavl. After the death of Igor's father, the bishop's friendship with his daughters continued. And they sang the liturgy, we served, and Alexey Viktorovich Zabusov was next to the bed all the time - making sure that everything was fine.
We locked the room from the inside and didn’t tell the authorities anything about the liturgy. The Lord was relentless and forced him to dress him in full vestments! And his condition was such that he not only could not stand up, he could not raise his head. “I said: vestments!” He demanded all the vestments! They clothed him - he calmed down. I serve, worrying about how he is doing. I look out of the corner of my eye: Vladyka is slowly starting to get out of bed, trying to get up. Alexey Viktorovich rushes to him: “Lord! You can’t get up!” And forcibly put him back into bed several times. The Bishop was very dissatisfied.
Then some people appeared at the ward: acquaintances and strangers. The nurses have arrived. Everyone wanted to receive a blessing from the bishop - he blessed people until lunch. He should have been exhausted after the service and attempts to get out of bed, but here - how much strength he had! He blessed and sprinkled him with holy water (he could not speak - his speech was incoherent due to his illness).
People are walking, some drunken nurses, who came from nowhere. “Vladyka, bless me, I’m worried about the baby,” he says, slurring his tongue. He will hug her, console her, sprinkle her with holy water - she leaves blooming straight, joyful, without grief and sadness.
For about an hour, the Bishop blessed everyone, completely different people. He was so joyful - you could feel the fullness of the completed divine service in him! He did what he had to do: he served, and communicated with the flock, and blessed - this is such a real bishop.
Then they transferred him to a Moscow hospital, he spent forty days there, forty days. And there, too, was his amazing ministry: people became churched before their very eyes. Doctors came, completely ordinary people, far from the Church. He didn’t tell them anything - it was difficult for him to even speak. But his very bright appearance so influenced the hearts of people that they were imbued with the light of Christ. Then they took the blessing - for us it was all very surprising: simple orderlies, doctors, nurses. We were seen off with such love every time - like family! They give us everything with them.
How we made friends with SOBR officers
Then, after the Moscow hospital, we returned to Yaroslavl and went to a sanatorium in Sosnovy Bor. We were received very well there by Igor Evgenievich, the director of the sanatorium, a military doctor and former officer. Let’s start praying, he says: “Vladyka, I’m not a believer, I’m a communist!” We didn’t say anything - we did our job, he did his. And then, I see, he begins to pray with us. Then he begins to assert himself in prayer, approaches the bishop, and takes his blessing. Such jealousy suddenly appeared in him, he began to believe so fervently! And he cared very zealously for the bishop.
Then we developed a friendship with SOBR members. They guarded the ruler so that different people would not penetrate him. And they helped a lot, because it took strength to lower the bishop in a wheelchair to the first floor, then lift him up, and I also needed to wash him - I couldn’t do it alone. Our relationship quickly grew into friendship. They even had competitions to see who was on duty with the Bishop today. Then they came to the bishop, they came to the temple on the eve of business trips to the Caucasus. That's how everything remains now.
How the sick bishop served at Christmas 2002
At Christmas, the bishop says: “To the service.” We begin to persist, disagree, and go to the doctors for advice. They say: “You see, healing is not only about the body, the soul and spirit must also participate in the healing, so let the ruler serve.” We decided to take him to service in Yaroslavl. How, on what, is unknown. They found some kind of Gazelle - they put Vladyka in the back seat, wrapped him in a blanket, and drove him away. The cold was terrible.
We arrived at the cathedral, took the bishop out in a wheelchair, and brought him to the altar.
He fell to the Throne with such sobs - it was clear how he had suffered and suffered without a temple! He fell to the Throne and literally sobbed. He could not serve, he could not speak, but we decided that without service he would be worse off. We took him to the Royal Doors, he then said: “Peace to all!”
The bishop’s left side did not work at all - we decided to consult with Metropolitan Philaret, we told him that the bishop needed service, wanted to serve, but this was the situation - what to do? He replied: “His Holiness Patriarch Pimen, when he was paralyzed, served - they supported him. Let the bishop also serve: do not doubt - support him!”
That’s how the bishop began to serve again. Only at first we still learned how to handle the stroller during worship, so as not to create difficulties for him. He served in full regalia. Then they donated a sound system to us, and his exclamations began to be heard. He then began preaching again after the service. Such burning, such zeal is an example for many shepherds.
How Vladyka served after being discharged from the hospital
He began his first sermon with the words: “The Lord punished me, punished me, but did not put me to death,” and he began to sob. The whole temple began to weep behind him.
Vladyka spoke very simple, but very important words that concern all of us. Everyone was afraid of losing him. He continued to perform services. He continued to do diocesan work as before. I also got up early in the morning. We read morning prayers and the rule for Communion. If he served, he received communion at the liturgy; if he did not serve, he received communion at home. Lately he has been receiving communion every day. Then - a light breakfast, the necessary procedures and work in the office with documents.
When Vladyka was lying in Moscow, Sergei Andreevich Zegzhda, a professor and spiritual child of Metropolitan Guria, came to see him. He presented the Bishop with the dissertation of Abbot Varsanofy (Verevkin) “Teaching on the Jesus Prayer.” The Bishop wrote his blessing on a piece of paper in a firm, clear hand - it was simply amazing how clearly his mind worked even in such a painful state! So the ruler’s hand was firm.
He performed divine services throughout the diocese, not only in Yaroslavl: we went to Uglich, Rybinsk, and Pereslavl. We went overnight - it was in such and such a state! It's amazing how he could withstand such a load. Several times we went out with him in a religious procession, in a wheelchair.
He read both the canon of Andrew of Crete and the service of the Twelve Gospels. He was constantly in prayer and spoke very little. When there was no need, he was always silent. When necessary, he will tell you. He would knock on the table if there was no need to talk - everyone understood that it was time to leave.
How Vladyka went to a children's camp
At the children's camp of the Northern Railway, Lyubov Mikhailovna Nishina, a big-hearted and kind-hearted person, worked as the director. She noticed that when the bishop arrives, the children (and there are four hundred of them) behave well, no incidents occur. There is no ruler - someone will break an arm, fight or something else. Therefore, she always asked Vladyka to come more often and stay with her longer.
At the end of the shift, she invited the bishop to a farewell bonfire. I think: “Lord, why is all this?” And the bishop says: “Let’s go!”
He loved children very much - there was no formality about him. It was cold, but we didn’t take warm clothes. Lyubov Mikhailovna says that she has some kind of jacket. He gives a nightmarish looking Bolognese jacket from the Soviet period - the ruler puts it on. And so, in this jacket, in the skufia, we come to the farewell bonfire.
The children immediately forgot their “hee-hee, ha-ha”, stood up and said: “Vladyka, hello!” They immediately became serious - where does everything come from! The boy runs up: “Vladyka, I picked some raspberries for you - eat to your health!”
The Bishop strokes his head - the boy began to cry: he clung to him like John the Theologian to Christ at the Last Supper. He buried his head in his chest and cried. Lyubov Mikhailovna asks him:
Why are you crying?
I feel sorry for the Lord!
Amazing revelations! How much the ruler’s love penetrated into the hearts of people! We sat for some time at this farewell celebration, it began to get colder, and we went to the building.
A familiar family came across. Later they told us that their four-year-old son asked:
Mom, is this God?
No, this is not God.
And there is such sun around him and with him it’s warm and warm!
We don’t notice, but the pure-hearted children saw it.
A beautiful flower bloomed in Lyubov Mikhailovna’s office - I think it was a stone rose. Well, it blossomed - beautifully, of course. But she said that it blossomed for the first time in all time - it stood there for years, nothing happened. And when the bishop left, it stopped blooming...
How the Bishop treated people and watched cartoons
He loved children very much. Easy to use, as simple as a child. When they sat down at a table somewhere, he did not like to be looked after. Even when I was sick. And he himself loved to look after others. Ever since the time of Metropolitan Gury, he had the habit of serving everything beautifully. He ate very beautifully.
There was such a case with SOBR officers. The Vladyka treated everyone, but one refused to eat. I told my friend everything: “It’s my girlfriend’s birthday today - we’re still eating. Let’s go to a restaurant with the girl.” His comrade hints to him: they say, the Bishop blessed, so you eat. He still refuses. OK. The friend had eaten well, and after lunch his passion called him and canceled the meeting... Then everyone laughed, but the guy was offended: he was left hungry without a holiday. But it’s my own fault, I should have listened to the bishop.
One SOBR officer once said:
Vladyka, let’s watch a cartoon with you!
Let's! What cartoon?
- “Alyosha Popovich and Tugarin the Serpent.”
We started watching: the officer was lying on the floor laughing - he liked the cartoon so much. I say: “Maybe we can turn it off, huh?” “No, no,” says the bishop. And I’m already completely embarrassed - we practically didn’t watch TV. I say: “Vladyka, do you really like it?” He points his finger at the major: “He likes it.”
And for the sake of this man, he watched the entire cartoon to the end. Of course, he was not interested in the cartoon. He did this only for the sake of love for a person. For the sake of man, he was ready to endure a lot. When you compare it with yourself, with the modern world, there is an abyss between us.
I once suggested to Vladyka that he turn off his work phone after work. The way he looks at me:
But, Vladyka, they can call at eleven in the evening.
Do not dare! Suddenly someone calls who needs help!
Sometimes the priests called late: they were passing by and wanted to visit the bishop - he would give them tea and give them a gift. So many years have passed, and the priests carry this hospitality in their hearts like a precious pearl.
How the ruler died
The bishop's condition began to deteriorate. He had an attack, they called an ambulance - his blood pressure dropped and it looked like his kidneys were failing. The pressure has increased, but nothing can be done about the kidneys. We called Alexey Viktorovich: what should we do? He is a very good doctor, his gift as a diagnostician is excellent, his predictions almost always came true. And now he said: “Let the man die in peace. After all, death is a mystery. And it won’t be good if the bishop dies in the hospital.” We thought about it and said that Vladyka would stay at home and not go to the hospital.
The emergency doctors, by the way, also changed: they arrived so fussy, but here, at Vladyka’s, they calmed down, began to speak in a half-whisper, with reverence. And they left us as completely different people: it was as if their whole life had been turned upside down.
We called the ruling bishop (since 2002, Bishop Micah has been on staff). Archbishop Kirill was away, but took care of everything and gave the necessary instructions over the phone. We served prayer services and read the akathist without stopping.
It was evening, and suddenly all the close people began to come. Everyone who knew the bishop began to come: friends, acquaintances, SOBR members, etc. You begin to better understand how the apostles could gather for the Dormition of the Mother of God...
Who told you about the ruler?
Nobody, we came to visit ourselves.
On the eve of his death, the bishop’s health worsened and he became sad. I thought about how to cheer him up. And they just donated new white vestments to us. I come, joyful, and show the bishop: “Look, Vladyka: new vestments!” He sighed: “Well, it’s for the funeral.” Leaving this world, his thoughts were with God.
Vladyka was lying down, we read an akathist to the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. The troparion and kontakion had just been sung when the doctor called me over and showed me that the bishop was already breathing his last breath. One woman who was there said that at that time she saw how the emaciated face of the bishop suddenly lit up.
How they looked for the coffin of the deceased ruler
After the Vladyka’s posthumous vestments, the question of the coffin arose. I didn’t want the coffin to be somehow pretentious, pretentious, like for the “new Russians” (that’s what the funeral agency wanted to give us). The next morning they brought a coffin from Tolga - modest, beautiful, dignified. It turns out that it was ordered by Abbess Varvara, a wise and practical person. For some time, the relics of St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov) were in this coffin, while the shrine containing them was under repair. This is how spiritual continuity turned out.
By the way, the same thing happened with Father John (Krestyankin). He kept the coffin in his cell, and then they found the relics of St. Simeon, and there was nothing to put them in, so Father John donated his coffin. For some time, the relics of Elder Simeon lay in the tomb of Father John. Then they ordered a shrine, the relics were placed in it, and the coffin was given to Father John. And when he died, by succession he lay down in that very coffin.
How the bishop was buried
On the morning of the 23rd, Archbishop Kirill gave his blessing to take the body of Bishop Micah to the Feodorovsky Cathedral so that everyone could say goodbye to him. It was still early, no one was on the street. Some unfamiliar woman walks by and asks: “Who is this: Micah?” We say: “Yes.” And she burst into tears right away. This was the first mourning of the Bishop.
For two days people came around the clock to say goodbye to the bishop, priests came from all over the diocese, they came from Moscow, the entire coffin was covered in flowers. They served all the time. Vladyka Simon, who was at that time retired in the Babayevsky Monastery, said then: “When I die, do it just as beautifully for me!”
Metropolitan German (also from the galaxy of spiritual children of Metropolitan Guria), Metropolitan Simon, Archbishop Evlogy, Archbishop Alexander of Kostroma, our ruling Archbishop Kirill, Metropolitan Valentin of Orenburg came to the funeral service. There were a lot of people!
The coffin was carried in a religious procession around the cathedral, around the church to which the bishop dedicated his entire life.
When they began to read the Gospel at the funeral service, the autumn rain stopped, and a ray of sun fell on the Gospel. When they buried the coffin, the sun was shining and there was no wind. And two trees swayed over the grave - Bishop Micah and Metropolitan John (Wendland). There was no feeling of terrible sadness - there was some kind of light sadness, full of hope and joy.
Usually the body becomes ossified. But when children and grandmothers approached the coffin to say goodbye and could not reach it, the priest took the bishop’s hand and let him kiss it - the hand was soft.
To conclude, I’ll tell you one more story.
How to make Patriarchal incense
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One day, when Vladyka was already ill and moving in a wheelchair, several people came to see him - one from Thailand, the other a professor from Japan, an oceanologist. Father Oleg (Cherepanin) was a translator. After the meeting, the Thais told the bishop: “If you were in Thailand, then in a year everyone there would be baptized.” Thais generally attach little importance to words - they have a very strong internal perception. And although the bishop, as usual, did not say anything, they felt his inner disposition so much that they said exactly these words: “Even if you sat there, with us, in silence, people would still become Orthodox.”
Well, the Japanese professor decided to create, based on biblical texts, the ointment that was anointed by the prophets of the Old Testament, and the incense that is described in the book of Leviticus. In his laboratory, he tried to recreate them, but nothing worked: either the proportions were wrong, or something else was wrong. And he was already exhausted - he didn’t eat or drink. And then he dreamed of Bishop Micah: he approached him and said in pure Japanese: “Put this much, this much, and mix this. Understood?" And left. The professor jumped up in the morning, went to the laboratory, did as he was told in his dream, and everything worked out for him. Now, by the way, we use this incense: “Patriarchal” incense is called.
Material prepared by Anton Pospelov
Archbishop Mikhei (Kharkharov; 1921-2005) - “Vladychenka”, as the people called him - was loved by the entire Yaroslavl land: priests, simple grandmothers, children and adults, loved by fellow bishops, loved by the authorities and the doctors treating him. They loved him for his affection, attention, genuine humility and that passion for God that the late archpastor showed until the very last days of his life. Today, October 22, on the day of his memory, the angel of the Yaroslavl diocese is remembered by his cell attendant, now the abbot of the Yaroslavl Cyril-Afanasyevsky Monastery, Abbot Theodore (Cazanov).
How I became the Vladyka’s cell attendant
I studied at the Yaroslavl Theological School, and while I was studying, I visited the Kazan Convent - it had just opened at that time. And when I was preparing for monasticism, I consulted with Mother Abbess. My confessor, the archpriest, said that I needed to look for a new spiritual father in connection with my choice of the monastic path.
I didn’t know where I could find a confessor. I was very worried, and my father said to me:
You ask Bishop Micah.
Who am I? I’m a completely ordinary person - and to become the Lord’s spiritual child?!
You ask - he will not refuse you.
How can I ask?
Yes, just fall at his feet and ask him.
Such advice. His fulfillment seemed impossible: such a figure - a ruling bishop, an elder, and like me - a completely ordinary student graduating from a theological school - suddenly, out of the blue, I would ask him to be a spiritual father. But I think I'll ask. By that time I had already been presented for consecration and tonsure.
And it so happened that the abbess went with the sisters to the bishop and took me with her. We arrived at the home church of the diocese, the abbess talked with the bishop about something, and it seemed like it was time to leave. “Well,” I think, “it’s now or never!” And my mother and sisters are standing around, awkwardly... Come what may, I throw myself at his feet: “Vladyka, take me under your spiritual guidance!” He smiled, didn’t expect this and said: “Well, well! Let’s go to Father Boris, to Father Boris.” And I grabbed his legs - and I don’t want to leave, and I’m also afraid of being intrusive.
This was repeated three times. I knew Father Boris, of course, I respected him as a priest, but I was not ready to become his spiritual child. And when the bishop refused me for the third time, I thought: “Well, that’s it.” And I was just about to get up with a feeling of devastation, when he suddenly patted me on the head and said: “Okay. He who comes to me will not be cast out.” It was such a spiritual surge for me, it was so joyful! From that moment on, he became my spiritual father.
How the Bishop taught me
So little by little, after my tonsure, I began to go to him. He invited me to the diocese - at first he helped me there after the evening service with papers and some business. And then he began to come throughout the day, in the mornings. For me these were, of course, very joyful moments. However, it took a lot of energy: there was a lot of tension. Everyone was afraid: such a figure - a bishop! And you are afraid of saying something wrong, doing something wrong, how to behave correctly, not making a mistake. Of course, I was very tired internally. And then I moved in with him.
Vladyka always listened to me with patience and love, at the same time making it clear that I should not say too many unnecessary words, and that I should learn to clearly express my thoughts and requests.
He never insisted on anything, there was no such thing that he said: “Here, I bless you, you must do this and that,” no, everything is very soft. He will tell you, and then - as you want: if you want, do it, if you don’t want, don’t do it.
Simplicity and love were typical for him. There were never any morals, instructions - no, he never said them. If the bishop wanted to make something clear, he always spoke allegorically, in the third person: “Well, we had Bishop Gury, and he usually spoke like this...” We immediately: “Yeah, that means he wants to say something important for us.” "
I once told him: “Vladyka, you don’t instruct me in anything, you don’t teach me anything - what should I do?” He says: “You see how I live? If you want, imitate. If you don’t want to, what’s the point of telling you anything?”
How we read the evening rule
I'll tell you one typical case. I, a very young hieromonk, was unfamiliar with the regime in which the bishop lived.
We got up early, at five or six o'clock in the morning, on my feet all day: services, services, some kind of diocese work, housekeeping - by the evening I was completely exhausted. Plus there is also internal tension from being unaccustomed to it.
And when we sat down to dinner, I always devoured it with joy. And Vladyka was always very leisurely in his food, eating very little. Moreover, he never showed it. They gave everyone an equal portion, but he eats, then slowly picks at his plate with a fork: everyone thinks he is eating, but at the end of dinner it turns out that he has eaten almost nothing. On the contrary, I swept away everything: the young body required a source of energy.
And he always looks like that, tilts his head to the side, sees that I have already eaten everything, and says, pushing his plate: “Don’t disdain.” I say: “Vladyka, what are you talking about! I won’t!” And he: “God bless!” And so I eat my portion, eat his portion, then he gives me something else - sour cream or cottage cheese - and I get up from the table completely loaded with this food, and, of course, I am drawn to sleep.
And he immediately: “Let’s go pray!” And so, we go to pray: he, his cell attendant mother Fevronia (now schema-nun Agafangela) and me. The Bishop gives me a canon, and we begin to read the rule. While reading, such a dream comes over me - it’s just wild! The eyes close on their own. I am a fist of willpower, I don’t know, my brain just turns off. I failed once, I failed twice - how many times have I been silent while reading these prayers, for seconds or fractions of a second! And they stand there, patiently silent, not saying a word. Then, when this matter drags on, he will turn to me and say: “Go wash yourself.”
I run to the bathroom, stick my head under the cold water, and under the stream of cold water I figure out something else. As soon as you turn off the water, sleep falls again like a heavy blanket. I put my head under the tap again - I wake up. I understand: the bishop is waiting for me - it’s not good, I have to run. I come running, take the book, and say: “Vladyka, forgive me.” And he: “Nothing, nothing! Let's move on." I start reading again, and again the same thing! I don’t know how long it took. But he stood so patiently, waited, forgave. So I ran back and forth several times until I read the rule with grief. This is how Vladyka raised me.
How the bishop's daily routine was structured
He always got up very early and went to bed very late. He always wakes up before me - he comes to me, knocks on the door, wakes me up. I think: while Vladyka is washing himself, I’ll sleep some more, and again I fall asleep - he knocks on the door again. You jump up, wake up, and run. That's how it was.
That is, he always demonstrated monastic science by personal example. In the evening we will pray, he will give a blessing, everyone will go to bed, and he will also add worshipers. Vladyka always did them until recently - he was physically very strong. He will bow, then turn on the radio, as is his old habit, to keep abreast of events.
Went to bed after midnight. And at six - already invigorated, that's all. He got up and went downstairs. On the ground floor there was an office, his personal office, and a house church; on the second floor there was a common refectory and his cell. He went downstairs, took care of the affairs of the diocese, and looked at documents. If he served, he prepared for service and left for the parish. As a rule, he returned from the parish only for a short time: he would drink some tea and then again either go to church services or do diocesan work. He had practically no free time.
How I distributed the lord's books
I remember such a case. Once he led me to a cell - in this cell lived at one time Metropolitan John (Wendland), the bishop’s spiritual brother and friend. Both of them were spiritual children of Metropolitan Guria (Egorov). Bishop John introduced Bishop Micah into the family of the Alexander Nevsky Brotherhood. And when Metropolitan John retired, he had absolutely no housing of his own, so for some time he lived in the building of the diocese, when there was already another ruling bishop in Yaroslavl - Archbishop Platon. Vladyka John lived in a small room, about nine square meters. Then the city allocated him an apartment.
The bishop brings me to this cell, opens the door and says: “Come on, crawl under the bed and get out what’s there.” I crawl under the bed, and there is a whole treasure: ancient menaions, lives of saints, other liturgical books, the altar Gospel. Everything is very dilapidated, pre-revolutionary, but it is a huge treasure for the ruler, because it has been kept since the time when it was dangerous to even think about such books, let alone get them! Nowadays you can buy them in almost every church store, but back then it was all worth its weight in gold.
So, he looks at me searchingly and says: “Well, where are we going with all this?” And I, young and hot-tempered, having never experienced persecution, nor having known secret services, say cheerfully: “Well, this is to such and such a monastery, this is to such and such a monastery”... In general, I distributed all the books at once .
And the bishop was so amazed, even dumbfounded: he looked at me, shaking his head. But he didn’t say a word of reproach, nothing. I could say: “Do you even know what you’re saying?!” or something like that, but didn't say anything. I just sighed very deeply. And this noisy sigh was more eloquent for me than any words: I understood What What do these books mean to him and what nonsense I’m saying.
How the ruler was kind to others and strict to himself
He was always very kind. He never lets me go without some kind of gift: a book or an icon, a portrait, or something for my parents to eat. Such care for a person is now rarely seen even in church circles!
And he had a completely simple attitude towards himself. He was very simple.
When Bishop Kirill arrived at the department, he was, one might say, shocked by the conditions in which Bishop Micah lived. An old communal apartment, everything is dilapidated - everything is extremely simple and sparse. And he treated himself very strictly. Towards people - always with love, towards yourself - always extremely strictly. I don’t remember that he scolded me for anything, although there was, of course, something to do.
How the Bishop was jealous of the Divine service
I remember another incident. The bishop suffered a leg injury in the late 1980s while serving at the parish. He was in a hurry to catch the train, fell and hurt his knee, and since then he has been limping badly - he damaged the joint. He walked with a cane, but never took crutches. And somehow I was always shy about sticks. And the pain was severe, he took painkillers. Drink it at night and serve it in the morning. The effect of the drug lasted only a few hours, that is, he woke up with pain: it was clear that he could barely walk.
And so, the bishop arrives from the service: it’s summer, it’s hot, he’s all red, tired after the service (where there was also a religious procession) and, barely walking, he climbs to the second floor along the creaky steep stairs. Me: “Vladyka, let me support you!” “He will look at me sternly, with his hand once to the side, as the string will straighten out, and fly up to the second floor with such speed that even if I ran, I would not be able to catch up.”
He had no self-pity. We love to be pitied, to be stroked on the head, and sometimes we will cry out of self-pity, but he imperiously pushes me away with his hand: they say, don’t even dare! This was a good lesson.
He loved to serve - it was the meaning of life for him. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, with whom they had known since the 1960s, used to tell him: “Vladyka, you serve more than the Patriarch!” Not reproaching, but supporting and approving the ruler.
How the Bishop conducted diocesan affairs
One of the qualities of a bishop is the conduct of diocesan work. On rare occasions he spoke his weighty episcopal word, but almost always the manner of his work was advice. He gathered the diocesan council and addressed the priests: “Well, fathers, this is the situation we have: what should we do?” First, he will listen to everyone, everyone’s opinions, and then he will sum it up. Either he will choose some opinion that seems most necessary to him, or he will express some of his own. But I always consulted - not in the way that often happens now, when you hear: “That’s it, that’s all!” So that in five minutes everything will be my way!” No, Vladyka was very considerate and respected other people’s opinions and dignity.
I remember one priest wrote a request for a trip, it seems, to Jerusalem. Vladyka rarely wrote a monosyllabic resolution like: “I bless,” and that’s it. He will always write something else: “Be sure to visit such and such a temple,” “Be sure to pray for such and such,” etc.
If any priest was prohibited from serving, imposed penance, or sent to a monastery for correction, he, too, would definitely write: “To read such and such canons, to make so many worshipers every day,” etc.
He took every person very close to his heart, so everyone treated him like family. And he always accepted all the people who came to him. Not only the clergy, but also grandmothers, and ordinary women, both church and non-church people - he accepted everyone and listened patiently. Grandmothers loved him from the parish, when he was first a full-time priest, then rector of the cathedral, and then at a parish in the village - before the bishopric itself.
Many loved him and remembered him as the father of Micah. The grandmothers did not understand, and it was difficult for them to pronounce “Your Eminence.” So they called him in the old way: “Father Micah,” but he was not offended.
Essentially, he was everyone's father. He will listen to everyone with fatherly love. Not when they came to him to talk about affairs or to clarify material issues, but when they came to him as to his father - to tell him about life, about troubles, sorrows. He was already hearing poorly, he had a hearing aid - so he would sit down next to the person, adjust his hearing aid, turn the wheel, then pray, cross himself, advise, condole: “It’s okay, you read such and such.”
And, indeed, through his prayers, help came. Once a barren woman came with her grief - one of the priests sent her to the bishop to pray. She came, cried, the bishop said:
It's nothing, everything will be all right!
How good is it when I’ve already seen all the doctors, but everything is bad with me?
Everything will be fine, I tell you.
And then she gave birth to a baby about ten months later.
I remember such a case. One servant of God, who knew Vladyka as a priest, an archimandrite, worked as a store manager. She helped the parishes: she collected various things for people. One day her driver became very ill and, being sick, saw the bishop in a dream: “He came up to me, crossed me, and I got out of bed completely healthy.” This despite the fact that he did not know the bishop and saw his face only in photographs.
He behaved very simply. During the working day, when he was in the diocese, he liked to go out into the courtyard and go to the diocesan warehouse, where they bought utensils, candles and books from all over the diocese. He liked to go there and see who had arrived. He would go up to the priest and be sure to ask how things were at the parish, how mother was, how the children were - he remembered everything about everyone. How the church is being renovated, etc. He was well versed in all aspects of parish life.
How Vladyka visited parishes
The bishop also came to parishes in an interesting way. There was no bishop's cortege - everyone came in the same car: the subdeacon drove it, the bishop sat next to him, the protodeacon and two more subdeacons sat behind him. This was the kit.
They arrived at the parish and quickly all left. The Bishop blessed the people, the rest went to the temple and arranged a meeting there. And at this time the bishop will talk to either the priest or the elder, walk around the temple, ask everything, and only after about fifteen minutes begins to serve. But only by this time does he already know all the problems of the parish: how the priest serves, how he behaves, how he communicates with parishioners. And after Communion he calls the priest over and has a substantive conversation with him.
Then there was the time of “humanitarian aid”: the bishop was sent beds, mattresses, clothes, or canned food. And the bishop distributed all this help among parishes and opening monasteries. He did this both when he himself was a parish priest and when he became a bishop. It’s the same with money: if they bring him some amount, he will give it to such and such a parish or monastery. He gives it to the rector of the poor parish: “Here, father: this is for the roof.”
How the Bishop prayed
Vladyka served often and willingly, earnestly. I was never distracted during worship. I didn’t pay attention to various interruptions: the clergy, for example, talking or something else. I didn’t want to lose my prayer. As a last resort, if the situation is flagrant, call the deacon and tell him: “Father, why are the priests talking in the altar?!” He walks, he feels uncomfortable, but makes a remark to the archpriests. But the bishop himself never made any comments.
He never called his fathers to worship (except, perhaps, if it was necessary to present an award to someone). So the priests tried to find out for themselves where the bishop would serve, and tried to get there for service.
Firstly, he never cursed: they say that such and such a priest arrived late and mixed up the color of his vestments or something else. The main thing is that you pray and do not interfere with others’ prayers.
Secondly, everyone felt the grace of the congregational prayer led by the bishop - it was so joyful! That is why priests loved to come to serve together with the archpastor. There was no shackling awe here, no horror of the bishop - they say, now it’s like “he’ll bring him to his senses with a rod.”
How the Bishop preached
His word was always very churchly. The sermon, on the one hand, is very simple and accessible, but, on the other hand, it is always imbued with quotes from the Holy Scriptures or the Holy Fathers. Young priests turned to him to ask how they could write a sermon more elegantly, more beautifully, and what rhetorical techniques they could use. Vladyka said: “You know, at one time I tried many different methods of preaching and realized: the simpler the better.”
And this simple word of his penetrated very deeply into the heart - the people loved his sermons very much. After the service, people always surrounded him to take his blessing, because people felt warmth and love from him. I still meet people - how much time has passed since the death of the Bishop! - They may have seen him only once, but the kindest significant event in their lives was their communication with the ruler, how, for example, he touched a person’s head. They say: “I don’t remember what kind of holiday it was. Well, everyone went, and I went (went). Everything was almost indifferent until I saw the bishop (I didn’t see it). He came up to me, blessed me, and my life changed.”
How the Bishop fell ill
And then, around Dormition 2001, he had a stroke. Vladyka was taken to the hospital, the doctors gathered a council, surrounded him and said: “Four days. Maximum - two weeks. But this is from the realm of fantasy.”
And then Alexey Viktorovich Zabusov, the chief anesthesiologist of the region, arrived. (His grandmother, a wise woman, at one time took a blessing from St. Seraphim of Sarov for her entire family.) Alexey Viktorovich quickly figured out the situation, and the bishop was transferred to a regional hospital. There were drugs found there that were not in the first hospital. Little by little they began to dig. My mother Fevronia and I lived in the intensive care ward, I continued to communicate with the world - something needed to be brought and taken, but mother was only in the ward with no way out.
And I remember that the bishop’s greatest concern in such a state was one thing - worship. He, lying in intensive care, demanded a cassock and - to go to work! He was angry with me because I disobeyed him. Worship was as necessary to him as air. These are the words: “Cassock, hood, car,” he uttered every time he came to his senses. I started babbling something to him, and he angrily: “Aren’t you listening to me?” It was the first time I saw him like this. His soul was yearning for Christ, but his body could not, did not obey.
How we served in a hospital ward
Some time passed, and we served prayer services in the ward, but this was not enough for him, it was not enough. He longed for the liturgy. And we agreed to serve the liturgy in the ward.
They called the Maltsevs. These are the daughters of the famous Archpriest Igor Maltsev, who came from the Great Patriotic War to the Trinity Lavra. Together with Archimandrite Gury, they took part in its opening in 1946. Then they separated for a long time, and met again in Yaroslavl. After the death of Igor's father, the bishop's friendship with his daughters continued. And they sang the liturgy, we served, and Alexey Viktorovich Zabusov was next to the bed all the time - making sure that everything was fine.
We locked the room from the inside and didn’t tell the authorities anything about the liturgy. The Lord was relentless and forced him to dress him in full vestments! And his condition was such that he not only could not stand up, he could not raise his head. “I said: vestments!” He demanded all the vestments! They clothed him - he calmed down. I serve, worrying about how he is doing. I look out of the corner of my eye: Vladyka is slowly starting to get out of bed, trying to get up. Alexey Viktorovich rushes to him: “Lord! You can’t get up!” And forcibly put him back into bed several times. The Bishop was very dissatisfied.
Then some people appeared at the ward: acquaintances and strangers. The nurses have arrived. Everyone wanted to receive a blessing from the bishop - he blessed people until lunch. He should have been exhausted after the service and attempts to get out of bed, but here - how much strength he had! He blessed and sprinkled him with holy water (he could not speak - his speech was incoherent due to his illness).
People are walking, some drunken nurses, who came from nowhere. “Vladyka, bless me, I’m worried about the baby,” he says, slurring his tongue. He will hug her, console her, sprinkle her with holy water - she leaves blooming straight, joyful, without grief and sadness.
For about an hour, the Bishop blessed everyone, completely different people. He was so joyful - you could feel the fullness of the completed divine service in him! He did what he had to do: he served, and communicated with the flock, and blessed - this is such a real bishop.
Then they transferred him to a Moscow hospital, he spent forty days there, forty days. And there, too, was his amazing ministry: people became churched before their very eyes. Doctors came, completely ordinary people, far from the Church. He didn’t tell them anything - it was difficult for him to even speak. But his very bright appearance so influenced the hearts of people that they were imbued with the light of Christ. Then they took the blessing - for us it was all very surprising: simple orderlies, doctors, nurses... With such love we were seen off every time - like family! They give us everything with them...
How we made friends with SOBR officers
Then, after the Moscow hospital, we returned to Yaroslavl and went to a sanatorium in Sosnovy Bor. We were received very well there by Igor Evgenievich, the director of the sanatorium, a military doctor and former officer. Let’s start praying, he says: “Vladyka, I’m not a believer, I’m a communist!” We didn’t say anything - we did our job, he did his. And then, I see, he begins to pray with us. Then he begins to assert himself in prayer, approaches the bishop, and takes his blessing. Such jealousy suddenly appeared in him, he began to believe so fervently! And he cared very zealously for the bishop.
Then we developed a friendship with SOBR members. They guarded the ruler so that different people would not penetrate him. And they helped a lot, because it took strength to lower the bishop in a wheelchair to the first floor, then lift him up, and I also needed to wash him - I couldn’t do it alone. Our relationship quickly grew into friendship. They even had competitions to see who was on duty with the Bishop today. Then they came to the bishop, they came to the temple on the eve of business trips to the Caucasus. That's how everything remains now.
How the sick bishop served at Christmas 2002
At Christmas, the bishop says: “To the service.” We begin to persist, disagree, and go to the doctors for advice. They say: “You see, healing is not only about the body, the soul and spirit must also participate in the healing, so let the ruler serve.” We decided to take him to service in Yaroslavl. How, on what, is unknown. They found some kind of Gazelle - they put Vladyka in the back seat, wrapped him in a blanket, and drove him away. The cold was terrible.
We arrived at the cathedral, took the bishop out in a wheelchair, and brought him to the altar.
He fell to the Throne with such sobs - it was clear how he had suffered and suffered without a temple! He fell to the Throne and literally sobbed. He could not serve, he could not speak, but we decided that without service he would be worse off. We took him to the Royal Doors, he then said: “Peace to all!”
The bishop’s left side did not work at all - we decided to consult with Metropolitan Philaret, we told him that the bishop needed service, wanted to serve, but this was the situation - what to do? He replied: “His Holiness Patriarch Pimen, when he was paralyzed, served - they supported him. Let the bishop also serve: do not doubt - support him!”
That’s how the bishop began to serve again. Only at first we still learned how to handle the stroller during worship, so as not to create difficulties for him. He served in full regalia. Then they donated a sound system to us, and his exclamations began to be heard. He then began preaching again after the service. Such burning, such zeal is an example for many shepherds.
How Vladyka served after being discharged from the hospital
He began his first sermon with the words: “The Lord punished me, punished me, but did not put me to death,” and he began to sob. The whole temple began to weep behind him.
Vladyka spoke very simple, but very important words that concern all of us. Everyone was afraid of losing him. He continued to perform services. He continued to do diocesan work as before. I also got up early in the morning. We read morning prayers and the rule for Communion. If he served, he received communion at the liturgy; if he did not serve, he received communion at home. Lately he has been receiving communion every day. Then - a light breakfast, the necessary procedures and work in the office with documents.
When Vladyka was lying in Moscow, Sergei Andreevich Zegzhda, a professor and spiritual child of Metropolitan Guria, came to see him. He presented the Bishop with the dissertation of Abbot Varsanofy (Verevkin) “Teaching on the Jesus Prayer.” The Bishop wrote his blessing on a piece of paper in a firm, clear hand - it was simply amazing how clearly his mind worked even in such a painful state! So the ruler’s hand was firm.
He performed divine services throughout the diocese, not only in Yaroslavl: we went to Uglich, Rybinsk, and Pereslavl. We went overnight - it was in such and such a state! It's amazing how he could withstand such a load. Several times we went out with him in a religious procession, in a wheelchair.
He read both the canon of Andrew of Crete and the service of the Twelve Gospels. He was constantly in prayer and spoke very little. When there was no need, he was always silent. When necessary, he will tell you. He would knock on the table if there was no need to talk - everyone understood that it was time to leave.
How Vladyka went to a children's camp
At the children's camp of the Northern Railway, Lyubov Mikhailovna Nishina, a big-hearted and kind-hearted person, worked as the director. She noticed that when the bishop arrives, the children (and there are four hundred of them) behave well, no incidents occur. There is no ruler - someone will break an arm, fight or something else. Therefore, she always asked Vladyka to come more often and stay with her longer.
At the end of the shift, she invited the bishop to a farewell bonfire. I think: “Lord, why is all this?” And the bishop says: “Let’s go!”
He loved children very much - there was no formality about him. It was cold, but we didn’t take warm clothes. Lyubov Mikhailovna says that she has some kind of jacket. He gives a nightmarish looking Bolognese jacket from the Soviet period - the ruler puts it on. And so, in this jacket, in the skufia, we come to the farewell bonfire.
The children immediately forgot their “hee-hee, ha-ha”, stood up and said: “Vladyka, hello!” They immediately became serious - where does everything come from! The boy runs up: “Vladyka, I picked some raspberries for you - eat to your health!”
The Bishop strokes his head - the boy began to cry: he clung to him like John the Theologian to Christ at the Last Supper. He buried his head in his chest and cried. Lyubov Mikhailovna asks him:
Why are you crying?
I feel sorry for the Lord!
Amazing revelations! How much the ruler’s love penetrated into the hearts of people! We sat for some time at this farewell celebration, it began to get colder, and we went to the building.
A familiar family came across. Later they told us that their four-year-old son asked:
Mom, is this God?
No, this is not God.
And there is such sun around him and with him it’s warm and warm!
We don’t notice, but the pure-hearted children saw...
A beautiful flower bloomed in Lyubov Mikhailovna’s office - I think it was a stone rose. Well, it blossomed - beautifully, of course. But she said that it blossomed for the first time in all time - it stood there for years, nothing happened. And when the bishop left, it stopped blooming...
How the Bishop treated people and watched cartoons
He loved children very much. Easy to use, as simple as a child. When they sat down at a table somewhere, he did not like to be looked after. Even when I was sick. And he himself loved to look after others. Ever since the time of Metropolitan Gury, he had the habit of serving everything beautifully. He ate very beautifully.
There was such a case with SOBR officers. The Vladyka treated everyone, but one refused to eat. I told my friend everything: “It’s my girlfriend’s birthday today - we’re still eating. Let’s go to a restaurant with the girl.” His comrade hints to him: they say, the Bishop blessed, so you eat. He still refuses. OK. The friend had eaten well, and after lunch his passion called him and canceled the meeting... Then everyone laughed, but the guy was offended: he was left hungry without a holiday. But it’s my own fault, I should have listened to the bishop.
One SOBR officer once said:
Vladyka, let’s watch a cartoon with you!
Let's! What cartoon?
- “Alyosha Popovich and Tugarin the Serpent.”
We started watching: the officer was lying on the floor laughing - he liked the cartoon so much. I say: “Maybe we can turn it off, huh?” “No, no,” says the bishop. And I’m already completely embarrassed - we practically didn’t watch TV. I say: “Vladyka, do you really like it?” He points his finger at the major: “He likes it.”
And for the sake of this man, he watched the entire cartoon to the end. Of course, he was not interested in the cartoon. He did this only for the sake of love for a person. For the sake of man, he was ready to endure a lot. You compare with yourself, with the modern world - there is an abyss between us...
I once suggested to Vladyka that he turn off his work phone after work. The way he looks at me:
But, Vladyka, they can call at eleven in the evening...
Do not dare! Suddenly someone calls who needs help!
Sometimes the priests called late: they were passing by and wanted to visit the bishop - he would give them tea and give them a gift. So many years have passed, and the priests carry this hospitality in their hearts like a precious pearl.
How the ruler died
The bishop's condition began to deteriorate. He had an attack, they called an ambulance - his blood pressure dropped and it looked like his kidneys were failing. The pressure has increased, but nothing can be done about the kidneys. We called Alexey Viktorovich: what should we do? He is a very good doctor, his gift as a diagnostician is excellent, his predictions almost always came true. And now he said: “Let the man die in peace. After all, death is a sacrament... And it will not be good if the bishop dies in the hospital.” We thought about it and said that Vladyka would stay at home and not go to the hospital.
The emergency doctors, by the way, also changed: they arrived so fussy, but here, at Vladyka’s, they calmed down, began to speak in a half-whisper, with reverence. And they left us as completely different people: it was as if their whole life had been turned upside down.
We called the ruling bishop (since 2002, Bishop Micah has been on staff). Archbishop Kirill was away, but took care of everything and gave the necessary instructions over the phone. We served prayer services and read the akathist without stopping.
It was evening, and suddenly all the close people began to come. Everyone who knew the bishop began to come: friends, acquaintances, SOBR members, etc. You begin to better understand how the apostles could gather for the Dormition of the Mother of God...
Who told you about the ruler?
Nobody, we came to visit ourselves.
On the eve of his death, the bishop’s health worsened and he became sad. I thought about how to cheer him up. And they just donated new white vestments to us. I come, joyful, and show the bishop: “Look, Vladyka: new vestments!” He sighed: “Well, it’s for the funeral.” Leaving this world, his thoughts were with God.
Vladyka was lying down, we read an akathist to the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. The troparion and kontakion had just been sung when the doctor called me over and showed me that the bishop was already breathing his last breath. One woman who was there said that at that time she saw how the emaciated face of the bishop suddenly lit up.
How they looked for the coffin of the deceased ruler
After the Vladyka’s posthumous vestments, the question of the coffin arose. I didn’t want the coffin to be somehow pretentious, pretentious, like for the “new Russians” (that’s what the funeral agency wanted to give us). The next morning they brought a coffin from Tolga - modest, beautiful, dignified. It turns out that it was ordered by Abbess Varvara, a wise and practical person. For some time, the relics of St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov) were in this coffin, while the shrine containing them was under repair. This is how spiritual continuity turned out.
By the way, the same thing happened with Father John (Krestyankin). He kept the coffin in his cell, and then they found the relics of St. Simeon, and there was nothing to put them in, so Father John donated his coffin. For some time, the relics of Elder Simeon lay in the tomb of Father John. Then they ordered a shrine, the relics were placed in it, and the coffin was given to Father John. And when he died, by succession he lay down in that very coffin.
How the bishop was buried
On the morning of the 23rd, Archbishop Kirill gave his blessing to take the body of Bishop Micah to the Feodorovsky Cathedral so that everyone could say goodbye to him. It was still early, no one was on the street. Some unfamiliar woman walks by and asks: “Who is this: Micah?” We say: “Yes.” And she burst into tears right away. This was the first mourning of the Bishop.
For two days people came around the clock to say goodbye to the bishop, priests came from all over the diocese, they came from Moscow, the entire coffin was covered in flowers. They served all the time. Vladyka Simon, who was at that time retired in the Babayevsky Monastery, said then: “When I die, do it just as beautifully for me!”
Metropolitan German (also from the galaxy of spiritual children of Metropolitan Guria), Metropolitan Simon, Archbishop Evlogy, Archbishop Alexander of Kostroma, our ruling Archbishop Kirill, Metropolitan Valentin of Orenburg came to the funeral service. There were a lot of people!
The coffin was carried in a religious procession around the cathedral, around the church to which the bishop dedicated his entire life.
When they began to read the Gospel at the funeral service, the autumn rain stopped, and a ray of sun fell on the Gospel. When they buried the coffin, the sun was shining and there was no wind. And two trees swayed over the grave - Bishop Micah and Metropolitan John (Wendland). There was no feeling of terrible sadness - there was some kind of light sadness, full of hope and joy.
Usually the body becomes ossified. But when children and grandmothers approached the coffin to say goodbye and could not reach it, the priest took the bishop’s hand and let him kiss it - the hand was soft.
To conclude, I’ll tell you one more story.
How to make Patriarchal incense
One day, when Vladyka was already ill and moving in a wheelchair, several people came to see him - one from Thailand, the other a professor from Japan, an oceanologist. Father Oleg (Cherepanin) was a translator. After the meeting, the Thais told the bishop: “If you were in Thailand, then in a year everyone there would be baptized.” Thais generally attach little importance to words - they have a very strong internal perception. And although the bishop, as usual, did not say anything, they felt his inner disposition so much that they said exactly these words: “Even if you sat there, with us, in silence, people would still become Orthodox.”
Well, the Japanese professor decided to create, based on biblical texts, the ointment that was anointed by the prophets of the Old Testament, and the incense that is described in the book of Leviticus. In his laboratory, he tried to recreate them, but nothing worked: either the proportions were wrong, or something else was wrong. And he was already exhausted - he didn’t eat or drink. And then he dreamed of Bishop Micah: he approached him and said in pure Japanese: “Put this much, this much, and mix this. Understood?" And left. The professor jumped up in the morning, went to the laboratory, did as he was told in his dream, and everything worked out for him. Now, by the way, we use this incense: “Patriarchal” incense is called.
December 25th marked one year since the founding of the Pereslavl diocese. What difficulties and joys there were in the past year, what prevents modern people from coming to Church, and also about the danger of substitution in spiritual life, the ruling bishop, Bishop Theodore of Pereslavl and Uglich, spoke.
Your Eminence, the first anniversary of your episcopal consecration is approaching. Looking back, you are probably already analyzing your ministry. Tell me, please, what did you consider the most difficult thing in the episcopal service before your consecration and what turned out to be so in reality?
The most difficult thing is to understand the will of God for yourself and for your flock and fulfill it at the moment and throughout your life. I thought so before, and now my opinion has not changed. Sometimes it is better to do nothing than to act. Just be patient, pray, be silent, although this can be much more difficult. Or, on the contrary, as Kipling wrote, “force your heart, your nerves, your body to serve you” in order to move forward. It is very difficult to live up to your high purpose and not turn from an Angel of the church into a prince, to be everyone’s father, sometimes even a mother, and not an official in a cassock.
- You have visited almost all the parishes of the diocese in a year, what is your impression of the parishioners and the priests?
The impression is different, mostly good. The overwhelming majority are kind, sensitive people, and most importantly, they sincerely believe in God. I’m talking not only about pastors, but also about parishioners and those in power with whom I had to work and pray together. We clergy have a lot to learn from the common people. Sometimes you see devastation, but a strong church family is very important. When the priest has a spirit of despondency or idleness, there will be neither income nor income.
- Could you draw a portrait of a modern priest of the Pereslavl diocese?
Remember how they invented the universal computer and decided to test it. They ask: “Can all mushrooms be eaten?” Answer: “Everything, but some only once.” What can I say? Let's not put cliches and put everyone on the same page. They are all unique and surprisingly different. The most important thing is that they serve God and pray for world peace. And they are also very kind.
Anyway, they are all my family. And in a family, like in a family... I always pray for them and thank God.
Have you ever encountered hostility or claims against the Church and its ministers from low-church and non-church residents?
Unfortunately, this is not uncommon. Somewhere, of course, the priest can turn up the heat, but basically hostility is a consequence of the wrong life position of the person himself - the Church owes him everything, and he owes it nothing. It would seem that there is a desire to communicate, but there is no desire to do it correctly and with respect. This is where claims arise as a derivative of the consumer’s worldview.
Is enough missionary work being done? How are things going with catechesis in parishes and what are your plans for its development?
Mission is one of the main forms of service to the Church. “Go and teach all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching everything that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:16-20). It needs to be built not only among indigenous non-Christian peoples, but also here, in the Russian hinterland, among the local population. Baptized from childhood, but not enlightened, or not baptized at all, but historically and ontologically belonging to the Orthodox faith, although they have not yet clothed their lives in Christ the Savior, somewhere in the depths of their souls they are looking for a meeting with Him. Missionary work must be built systematically and systematically. Today, a diocesan Council has been created to coordinate the church mission with all areas of church ministry. Therefore, it includes all diocesan departments, including youth, educational, social, cultural departments, etc. In parishes, all priests know that before baptizing or marrying, it is necessary to have a spiritual conversation with people on the subject of faith and the sacrament performed, prepare for a great event in their life - a meeting with God and the acceptance of the grace of the Holy Spirit. And another very important area of missionary service is enlightenment from the darkness of pagan malice and idolatry, which is now gaining popularity among those people who do not strive for perfection, but want to justify and realize their most violent, animal passions.
- Tell us about your vision of the spiritual education of priests and laity and your plans in this direction.
Today in our diocese, approximately two-thirds of the clergy need additional education. For this purpose, we are preparing a special program following the example of the Moscow diocese. Anyone who has not received a theological education, or who has completed more than five years since graduating from theological school, must undergo training. This applies to clerics under 60 years of age. Some disciplines will be taught by our specialists, but the teaching basis will be professors from the Moscow Theological Academy and Seminary, fortunately not far from us.
In Uglich, theological courses are open for the laity; in Pereslavl, the spiritual and educational center “Axios” is based on the Orthodox gymnasium named after. Alexander Nevsky. The task is to help a person at all stages of development and formation of personality not only acquire a certain amount of knowledge and skills necessary in society, but clearly and correctly build a system of life values. In this system, we work at the level of preschool and additional education; it is planned to conduct advanced training courses for teachers and, of course, special attention is paid to parents. It is necessary that the family, school and leisure environment create a unified system for raising a full-fledged individual and a worthy citizen of his Fatherland.
Sunday schools are certified in parishes. Although we have four full-fledged comprehensive Orthodox schools-gymnasiums in the diocese, the situation at the general parish level leaves much to be desired.
- How to deal with formality in faith, ritualistic attitude to worship, ritualism?
This is probably one of the most difficult and most important moments in religious life - the substitution of values. You can eat to live, or you can live to eat. Food is a form, a means that serves to achieve the goal - the continuation of life. If there is a shift in values, then the means can become the goal. The Holy Fathers always teach to check yourself, compare where you are on the spiritual path, and whether your goal in life has changed. That is why the Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians: “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). All means to achieve one goal - God. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God. Love is above the law, and the Spirit breathes where it wants. Rite and ritual as a certain form help us communicate with God, but will never replace Him.
- In your opinion, why, although churches are filled year after year, do some people leave the Church?
One day a hetaera approached Socrates and said: “Philosopher, you keep teaching these young men something, but I just have to blink my eye, and they will immediately leave you and follow me!” “No wonder,” answered the teacher, “the way down is always easier.” The Church calls through thorns to the stars. But modern man does not want to go through thorns, and, in general, the light of the Star of Bethlehem becomes distant and illusory in the prism of a well-fed life, false freedom and many temptations.
People lose the meaning of going to church; they don’t understand why it’s necessary if everything is fine anyway. When it presses, it’s a different matter. There is no understanding of cause and effect. I lit a candle, but there was no more money. It's a shame! Modern man is a consumer who is used to taking and is not used to giving. God and the Church for him are only a means of realizing his desires. Something between the occult and a fairy tale. And if life is good, it’s generally not clear what to do in the temple, unless you are a fanatic.
There is a Christocentric value system and there is an egocentric one. In the first case - everything is for God and for the sake of Christ, in the second - for your loved one. The world lives according to the second system, and it, as the antipode of the first, not only does not accommodate it, but strives to destroy it. Christianity is foolishness for them. We remember that the disciples also retreated from Christ because His teaching ran counter to their lives and was incomprehensible. Today among us there are both Peters and Judas. And if we want to know who we are, then we need to ask ourselves why we live and how we live.
- What could you highlight among the most notable projects started in the diocese?
We glorified the anniversary memory of our diocesan saints: Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky, Tsarevich Demetrius of Uglich, Venerable Irinarch the Recluse. All of them took place in the light of solemn services, religious processions and festive events. It was possible to resume the religious procession on the water on Lake Pleshcheyevo in memory of St. Euphrosyne and in Uglich in honor of St. Paisia. The First International Orthodox Children and Youth Festival-Competition “Alexander Nevsky” was held, in which about four hundred children took part, and the diocesan festival “Easter Pereslavl” was held. In addition, the diocese became a co-organizer of the 1st Interregional Youth Forum “Alexandrova Mountain” in Pereslavl. A club of young diplomats and a foreign language school began their work, and the military-patriotic club “Phanagorians” resumed its activities. The First Festival of Orthodox Patriotic Songs took place in honor of St. Irinarcha. By the way, a scientific conference at the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Russian Academy of Sciences was dedicated to this same saint. Today, two humanitarian aid centers have been opened under the social department of the diocese in Pereslavl and Uglich.
In addition, it was possible to celebrate Liturgies in the most remote corners of the diocese, where there had never been a bishop or where no bishop’s services had been held for more than a hundred years.
Many other events took place over the past year, but it is probably impossible to remember and list them all. The main thing is that they all bear fruit and leave a good mark in the hearts of people.
