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the holy new martyrs of eastern russia - Coptic Orthodox teaching

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for “counter-revolutionary activity”. In 1928 he was exiled to <strong>the</strong> Bashkirian<br />

Autonomous Republic for three years. From <strong>the</strong> summer <strong>of</strong> 1930 he lived in<br />

Kazan, serving in his house. He was arrested on August 30 and accused <strong>of</strong><br />

“organizing exiled ‘Grigorians’ in <strong>the</strong> region <strong>of</strong> Kozya sloboda in Kazan.<br />

Toge<strong>the</strong>r with a group <strong>of</strong> ‘five’ he joined <strong>the</strong> Kazan branch <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> All-Union<br />

Centre <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> church-monarchist organization, ‘<strong>the</strong> Trues’. He summoned<br />

meetings <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> anti-Soviet element in his flat and discussed with <strong>the</strong>m<br />

methods <strong>of</strong> struggle against Soviet power, and distributed leaflets and<br />

appeals around <strong>the</strong> villages.” In his interrogation on September 2, 1930, Fr.<br />

Arcadius declared: "In my home I arrange prayer services, <strong>the</strong> worshippers<br />

are citizens <strong>of</strong> Kazan. I refuse to say who <strong>the</strong>y are and how many <strong>the</strong>y are, I<br />

do not want to give <strong>the</strong>m away... In general, I have no intention <strong>of</strong> telling <strong>the</strong><br />

authorities about <strong>the</strong> worshippers who visit me. I do not have permission to<br />

perform Divine services and do not consider it necessary to let <strong>the</strong> NKVD<br />

know and seek permission from <strong>the</strong>m." Fr. Arcadius said that since <strong>the</strong> death<br />

<strong>of</strong> Patriarch Tikhon he had submitted to Metropolitan Peter, although he<br />

considered Metropolitan Cyril to be <strong>the</strong> lawful heir <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> patriarchal throne.<br />

On January 5, 1932 Fr. Arcadius was sentenced to three years in <strong>the</strong> camps.<br />

After his release he lived in Bashkiria. He was arrested again in October,<br />

1937, and on October 15 was sentenced to be shot by a troika <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> NKVD <strong>of</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> Bashkirian Autonomous Republic. The sentence was carried out in Ufa.<br />

Protopriest Nicholas Mikhailovich Troitsky. He was born in 1873 (or<br />

1881) in <strong>the</strong> village <strong>of</strong> Usovskoye, Ishim uyezd, Tobolsk province into <strong>the</strong><br />

family <strong>of</strong> a priest. He went to <strong>the</strong> Kazan <strong>the</strong>ological seminary and <strong>the</strong> Kazan<br />

Theological Academy, where he took an active part in <strong>the</strong> Kazan Temperance<br />

Society. On graduating he married <strong>the</strong> daughter <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> head <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Society,<br />

Soloviev, and was ordained to <strong>the</strong> priesthood. First he served in <strong>the</strong><br />

Yagodinskaya Smolensk-St. Demetrius church in Kazan. He was also rector <strong>of</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> Resurrection church, and was raised to <strong>the</strong> rank <strong>of</strong> protopriest. During <strong>the</strong><br />

abortive revolution <strong>of</strong> 1905 he organized a section <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Union <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Russian<br />

People, <strong>of</strong> which he became president, and on his initiative cross processions<br />

were organized in Kazan for various reasons. Later he was transferred to <strong>the</strong><br />

Kazan real school, where he was also teacher <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Law <strong>of</strong> God. He found <strong>the</strong><br />

means to create workhouses to help <strong>the</strong> students. After <strong>the</strong> revolution <strong>of</strong> 1917,<br />

when <strong>the</strong> decree on <strong>the</strong> separation <strong>of</strong> Church and State was published, Fr.<br />

Nicholas organized a whole series <strong>of</strong> parents’ meetings in <strong>the</strong> building <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

university in defence <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>teaching</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Law <strong>of</strong> God in school. From 1917<br />

to 1918 he was president <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Kazan Bro<strong>the</strong>rhood for <strong>the</strong> Defence <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>Orthodox</strong> Faith. During <strong>the</strong> occupation <strong>of</strong> Kazan by <strong>the</strong> Czechs in 1918 he<br />

wrote several appeals against <strong>the</strong> Bolsheviks. In 1918 he fled toge<strong>the</strong>r with <strong>the</strong><br />

retreating White armies to Siberia, and returned to Kazan only at <strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong><br />

1922. Then he served in <strong>the</strong> Zilantyev monastery. In 1923 he was convicted in<br />

accordance with article 119 and sentenced to three years’ exile, but <strong>the</strong><br />

sentence was commuted. In 1928 he was arrested, and in 1929 was imprisoned<br />

on Solovki without right <strong>of</strong> correspondence. He was disenfranchised. On<br />

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