the holy new martyrs of eastern russia - Coptic Orthodox teaching

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opportunity to be registered in a Russian monastery if he recognized the
authority of the Synod. But 26 people were detained in the St. Andrew
podvorye until they were taken for trial in Moscow, where Fr. Pitirim was
called to give evidence.
Bulatovich was not condemned at this trial because his godfather was close
to the Tsar. And the Tsar and Tsaritsa were inclined to take pity on the exiled
monks. So an appointment was made for Fr. Pitirim to see the Tsar and
explain the matter to him. He explained the matter so well to the Tsar and
Tsaritsa that the Tsar was persuaded of the rightness of the decision.
But Bulatovich then petitioned that his case be brought up in the State
Duma. Since he was himself a left socialist revolutionary, the revolutionaries
took his side. So Fr. Pitirim was again summoned to Petersburg to explain the
matter before the Duma. Finally, the revolutionaries were persuaded to drop
the matter. That was the end of the Bulatovich affair.
War and Revolution
In 1914 the war with Germany began, and all communications between
Russia and Athos were cut off.
In Odessa Fr. Pitirim was the first to open a hospital for the war wounded,
and was given awards for his work by the Red Cross, the Holy Synod and the
War Ministry.
In February, 1917 he was summoned to Petersburg and asked to take over
the administration of two monasteries in Bessarabia which belonged to the
Athonite Bulgarian monastery of Zographou. The Bulgarian monks who
administered these monasteries had been forced to move to Ryazan province
because of the war. So Fr. Pitirim was asked to take responsibility for the
Moldavian monks who remained - which he did until the occupation of
Bessarabia by the Romanians.
While in Petersburg, Fr. Pitirim was invited to attend the critical session of
the Duma on February 23, at which Kerensky said: "Down with the Tsar and
the ministers, they've been tormenting the people enough. The workers are
starving and they cannot give them bread. We, the workers, shall do
everything, we'll take the bread from the peasants who produce corn, give
them a firm price of one rouble per pound and force them to take the corn to
the railway stations. And if they don't bring it, then we'll go with arms. The
workers will do everything."
On February 27, the first full day of the revolution, Fr. Pitirim left
Petersburg for Odessa. In November, he was again in Petersburg and on 30
November he went to congratulate the newly-enthroned Patriarch Tikhon on
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