On October 25, 2003, the believers of the Ufa diocese received sad news - in the cardiological center of Ufa, after a third heart attack, one of the oldest clergy of the diocese died in Bose at the age of 66 - mitred archpriest Nikolai Gennadievich Sokolov is the rector of the Intercession Church of Ufa, the dean of the 1st district and the confessor of the Ufa diocese.

The Church has lost a man of great talents, an extraordinary priest and confessor, a zealous and conscientious worker in the field of Christ. The sad news of the death of our dear father shocked everyone who knew him. His heart disease especially worsened in the last five years, but he remained calm, intensified his prayers and edified his flock by personal example of a good life, helping them “to ascend to the measure of the stature of Christ,” betraying himself and his spiritual children to the all-powerful Hand of God.

Through his wise pastoral care, he contributed to the peaceful and correct flow of church life in his parish, the deanery and the entire diocese. Impeccable fidelity to church institutions, concern for creating peace in the souls of people, high demands, first of all on oneself, serving others with one’s work and love, prudence and moderation, prayerful entrustment to the Providence of God - these were the main features of the pastoral appearance of the deceased.

His broad outlook, theological education and competence were highly valued by the archpastors, who had him as a faithful assistant, as well as by the clergy and flock who knew him closely.

Nikolai Sokolov was born on March 31, 1938 in Irkutsk, in the hereditary family of a priest. With the beginning of revolutionary unrest in Russia, his grandfather, Archpriest Valentin Sokolov, and his children were forced to leave for service in the Irkutsk diocese. Nikolai’s father, Gennady Valentinovich, in 1942, in the same place, in the Irkutsk region, was drafted into a rifle school for training and sending to the front. In February 1944, Gennady Valentinovich Sokolov died in the first battle. His widow was left with two children, in whom she tried to instill love for God.

The Znamensky Cathedral of Irkutsk, one of the churches of the former Znamensky Convent (Nicholas’ mother studied at the parish school at this monastery), by that time returned to the Church, became for Nicholas a sign of the continuation of the spiritual tradition of the family. The most important events took place in the cathedral important events in his life - wedding and ordination to the priesthood.

After graduating from school in 1956, he was enrolled in the 2nd grade of the Moscow Theological Seminary - this is how the young man ascended “from strength to strength” to the heights of the wisdom of God. Nicholas spent all the holidays, both Christmas and summer, with his classmate at the Theological School, Deacon Evgeny Kuznetsov (now Archbishop Anatoly of Kerch) and Abbot Innocent (Prosvirnin, † 1994) in Irkutsk in the cathedral, carrying out the obedience of the staff bearer of the Archbishop of Irkutsk and Chita Veniamin (Novitsky ,† 1976).

The obedience of the second subdeacon at that time was carried out by a student of the Faculty of Law of Irkutsk State University, Vladimir Moskalenko (now Archbishop Anthony of the Urals and Guryev). In his last year of study at the seminary, Nikolai became friends with a 2nd year student at the Academy, Hierodeacon Theophan (Oros), who was then acting. O. Archdeacon Lavra, who in turn asked Nicholas to intercede with the Bishop for his service in the Irkutsk diocese.

Nikolai’s classmate at the seminary was also Yuri Smirnov (now Archbishop of Vladimir and Suzdal Evlogii), whose friendship with him continued for many years from the time he studied at the Theological School.

Then Nikolai entered the Moscow Theological Academy, but his studies were interrupted in the 1st year, for the period from October 1959 to October 1962, due to conscription into the Armed Forces. The service took place in a military unit construction troops(traditional branch of the military for the clergy) in the city of Artyom, Primorsky Territory.

After demobilization, Nikolai Sokolov was appointed to the position of archivist of the Irkutsk Diocesan Administration. On October 28, 1962, he married Vera Georgievna Stepanchenko. They met in the Cathedral of the Sign, where Vera sang in the choir.

The consecration of Nikolai Sokolov to the priesthood with the appointment of rector of the Archangel Michael Church in Irkutsk took place on June 16, 1963. On September 15, 1965 he was appointed rector of Znamensky cathedral Irkutsk with the simultaneous performance of obedience to the secretary of the archbishop. While fulfilling these duties, Father Nikolai completed his studies at the Moscow Theological Academy in absentia in 1967. On June 10, 1975, Bishop of Irkutsk and Chita Serapion (Fadeev, † 1999) appointed him rector of the St. Nicholas Church in Vladivostok.

Despite his workload, Father Nikolai worked at the Irkutsk State Archive, using its materials to write a candidate’s essay on the topic: “The Irkutsk diocese in the activities of its Primates (from the time of its foundation to 1918).”

In October 1966, on the recommendation of the Archbishop of Irkutsk and Chita Veniamin His Holiness Patriarch Alexy I awarded Father Nicholas with a pectoral cross. In his report to the Patriarch, Vladyka Veniamin noted: “Priest Nicholas has earned the love and respect of the believers.”

In 1967, the course of study at the academy was completed, and the defense of the candidate's thesis took place.

The following awards followed in 1970, when on the day of Holy Easter Father Nikolai Sokolov was awarded the rank of archpriest, and in 1975, when His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Pimen for diligent service for the holiday of Holy Easter on the proposal of the Archbishop of Irkutsk and Chita Vladimir (Kotlyarov, now Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga) awarded him a club.

In 1971, Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, as part of the delegation of the Irkutsk diocese, together with Bishop Veniamin and the secretary of the Diocesan Administration I. S. Rudykh, was a participant in the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.

During his priestly service in the Irkutsk diocese, the works of Father Nikolai were highly appreciated by two archpastors: Archbishop Veniamin and Archbishop Vladimir. IN service records they characterized Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov as an educated and zealous shepherd, a good priest, an active parish administrator, a good colleague, and a careful secretary to the archbishop in the performance of his duties. He loved statutory worship, helped with choral singing, was a good family man and was loved by his parishioners.

In June 1975, Father Nikolai was appointed rector of the St. Nicholas Church in Vladivostok.

In addition to parish affairs, the priest devoted a lot of time to social and church-wide affairs. Thus, in 1976, he participated as a delegate in the conference of peace supporters in the Primorsky Territory, where he was elected as one of the participants in the plenum of the Primorsky Regional Peace Committee. Also, despite the heavy workload at St. Nicholas Church, he, along with other full-time priests, looked after the Archangel Michael prayer house in the city of Arsenyev.

However, complex problems soon began to affect his health. climatic conditions Vladivostok. In this regard, on March 21, 1980, Archpriest Nikolai submitted a petition to Bishop Serapion asking for a transfer to the Ufa diocese. On May 1, 1980, the request was granted, and already on June 1 of the same year, Archpriest Nikolai, according to the petition, was received into the Ufa diocese by Bishop Anatoly of Ufa and Sterlitamak (now Archbishop of Kerch).

Immediately upon his arrival in the Ufa diocese, he was assigned to the post of personal secretary of the bishop with the duties of archivist of the Diocesan Administration, and on June 17 he was appointed to the vacant position of rector of the Church of the Intercession in Ufa. In the same year, he was additionally assigned the duties of deanery supervision over parishes located within the city of Ufa. Father Nikolai took care of the strictly statutory performance of divine services in parishes and the worthy performance by the clergy of their pastoral duties.

In 1982, for the holiday of Holy Easter, Archpriest Nikolai was awarded a cross with decorations by His Holiness Patriarch Pimen. On February 9, 1987, he was appointed dean of the 1st deanery district of the Ufa diocese. A year later, the miter was awarded. In 1988, he was a participant in the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church from the Ufa diocese.

On October 25, 1989, due to the crisis situation that arose in the Sergius Cathedral due to the lack of a full-time rector, Father Nikolai was appointed honorary rector of the Sergius Cathedral without being relieved of his duties as rector of the Intercession Church. On January 25, 1990, he was relieved of his duties as rector of the Intercession Church and appointed rector of the Sergius Cathedral, reserving for him the position of honorary rector of the Intercession Church.

On July 16, 1990, Vladyka Anatoly expressed gratitude to Father Nicholas for the work he had done to expand and put in order the building and facilities of the cathedral and, fulfilling his word, returned him to the Church of the Intercession to serve as abbot. At the same time, he was entrusted with the temporary duties of honorary rector of the Sergius Cathedral until the appointment of a full-time rector there. He also remained secretary of the diocese.

On March 17, 1992, for his diligent service to the Church of God for the feast of Holy Easter, at the recommendation of Bishop Nikon of Ufa and Sterlitamak, Archpriest Nikolai was awarded by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II the right to serve the Divine Liturgy with the royal doors open until the Cherubic Song.

Due to great physical and emotional stress and illness, Father Nikolai in 1992 was forced to ask Bishop Nikon to release him from obedience to the secretary of the Diocesan Administration, which Vladyka greatly regretted.

In 1997, in recognition of his diligent service, Archpriest Nikolai was awarded the Order of St. Sergius of Radonezh, III degree, and in 1998, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II - the Order of the Holy Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow, III degree, in connection with his 60th anniversary. In 1999, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II was awarded the right to serve the Divine Liturgy with the royal doors open until Our Father...

On August 31, 2000, Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov was appointed confessor of the Ufa diocese and carried out this responsible obedience until his death. His last award was the anniversary Patriarchal charter.

Cheerfulness and constant diligence were always inherent in the priest. Despite his serious illness, he did not stop his ministry and gave himself to others without demanding anything in return.

Even at the time when Father Nikolai was obedient to the bishop’s secretary, despite his busy schedule and lack of time, he devoted a lot of energy to public work: he organized and himself gave lectures on religious studies at the Bashkir State University, the Medical Institute and other universities, and conducted classes on sacred history Old Testament in the school-lyceum, spoke on radio and television with conversations on various religious topics, published a series of articles in Ufa newspapers.

As a true shepherd of the Orthodox Church, he did not spare himself for the sake of preaching Christ in the world. The knowledge he acquired in theological schools and the vast experience accumulated over the years of priestly service still serve many believers of the Ufa diocese. Under his leadership, the service and Akathist to St. Moses of Ufa were compiled.

Father Nikolai and his mother spent all their holidays traveling to holy places, most often to monasteries. They especially loved to pray at the Pukhtitsa Monastery.

Church services, which he performed with extraordinary zeal, were for Archpriest Nicholas not only a pastoral duty, but a necessary condition inner life. Overcoming his illness, he often celebrated the Liturgy and fulfilled regular requirements. He put a lot of work into raising his flock in love and peace. The church life of his parish was an example of regularity and order.

The late father archpriest was distinguished by a high consciousness of pastoral duty and selfless fulfillment of it. Exceptional modesty and spiritual love for his neighbors earned him universal love and respect from the archpastors, colleagues and flock. Father Nicholas was a good worker in the field of Christ and for his forty years of service to the Church of God he was awarded all priestly awards, including celebrating the Divine Liturgy with the royal doors open until Our Father...

The funeral service for the late Archpriest Nicholas was performed by Archbishop Nikon of Ufa and Sterlitamak and sixty clergy of the diocese with a large gathering of parishioners and spiritual children of Father Nicholas. Before the funeral service, Archbishop Nikon expressed condolences to his wife, Mother Vera (regent of the Intercession Church in the city of Ufa), his relatives and orphaned spiritual children.

The Bishop described the deceased as a man whose main features of his worldview were churchliness, unshakable faith in God, devotion to the canons and the Mother Church. His obedience to the church authorities was an example for his brothers and flock. The Lord said that “The Lord in the Kingdom of Heaven will give a worthy reward to His faithful and good servant, who stood on his guard until his last breath. And on earth, may he be rewarded with the eternal, bright and grateful memory of all those who knew him, all his spiritual children and admirers, who unanimously and confidently recognize that their shepherd has boldness before God. For everything that a believer seeks in her shepherd Orthodox soul, was given to us in the deceased archpriest. The Lord showed His special mercy to the deceased, visiting him with illness, in order to accept him, already prepared by patience and prayer, purified by repentance, into His eternal abodes.”

With deep satisfaction, those present at the funeral greeted the Bishop’s decision to bury the beloved shepherd in the fence of the Intercession Church, near the altar, where no one had been buried before. When singing the Irmos of the Great Canon Assistant and Patron... the coffin with the body of the deceased was surrounded around the Intercession Church and buried. During his earthly life, Father Nikolai lived with the concerns of his spiritual children; they came to this temple for advice - and after death he remains with them. Coming to this temple, everyone can receive a blessing at the grave of their shepherd.

The bright image of the deceased will always be alive in the memory of those who knew him. The deceased fought a good fight and ended his earthly life, maintaining the deposit of faith. May the Lord reward his servant, who loved the truth and was faithful until death, with the crown of truth and life and rest him with the saints in the villages of the righteous!

* Vasily Subbotin, priest. Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov // Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate, 2004. N 3. - pp. 22-26.

** Priest Vasily Subbotin - now Bishop of Salavat and Kumertau Nikolai

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov answers questions from children and parents. He is a musician by secular profession and graduated from the Moscow Conservatory. He was a referent for His Holiness Patriarch Pimen. Candidate of Theological Sciences. Now he is the rector of the Moscow Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery. Dean of the Missionary and Catechetical Faculty of St. Tikhon's Theological University.

Father, teenagers are often ashamed to look like a “black sheep” among their peers - to the point that some begin to leave the faith because of this. How to help them at this turning point, how to teach them wisdom?
- Every child must be psychologically prepared to meet the outside world in order to preserve the purity and moral potential of his soul. And this preparation should be carried out both in the family and in Sunday school, and the confessor will tell you how to combine efforts. This is a very painful question for many: seeing the aggressive malice of the world, they begin to see a way out in hiding, leaving the world, withdrawing into their narrow environment, abandoning the worldly profession, and worldly communication. But this is the wrong way.

We are called to live in this world, changing it. Remember that we, Orthodox Christians, are the salt of the earth. Salt by itself has no power unless it is consumed. She is unpleasant and bitter. And if you dissolve it in water and consume it with food, then it fulfills its purpose. Each of us must, in this sense, dissolve in the world - become for it that very gospel salt. We were sent into the world to solve its problems together - difficult teenagers, drug addiction, education, and spiritual formation. And teach this to children. Therefore, it is hardly worth isolating yourself from the world around you, from its problems. In addition, the Lord sends the world that surrounds us for our admonition, for our spiritual formation, for our salvation.

We do not choose the family into which we were born, and the society where the Lord placed us to study, teach, serve, do this or that business. We meet there with those people whom the Lord sends to us. And these people come from different spiritual backgrounds: there are good ones, there are evil ones, there are those who go to Christ, there are, on the contrary, those who come from Him, and there are those who are at war with Christ. And it’s difficult to figure out, especially for a child, who is who. But already in the first years of his life, he inevitably faces this choice - both in the family, in kindergarten, and at school. And one way or another, he must comprehend for himself the words of the apostle: “The whole world lies in evil” (1 John 5:19). And apply to life the words that the Lord said: “In the world you will have tribulation, but take heart: I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And he must put the words of Christ into the treasury of his soul and not be afraid of the fact that he is surrounded by the filth of “this world.”

Yes, such a person may be perceived by others as a “black sheep” - it’s not easy, not everyone likes this path. Being in the world and at the same time “not of this world” is not easy. Because such a person always attracts attention. But this is the color that shines in the darkness. And the “white crow” differs from the black crow in the color of joy! Both father and mother can tell their son or daughter: if you are at least a little white, then this is very good, it means that you are a light for others in society, that you were sent by God to enlighten the path of at least one neighbor. There is no need to seek friendship with everyone, it is impossible to be “good” with everyone, to please everyone. Everyone swears with obscene words - don’t swear - and among those who swear, there will be one - one who will stop swearing, seeing your example...

Let's remember the story. Where did Christianity begin? How difficult it was for the first apostles, how they were not understood, what a rejection of their preaching there was! Let us remember the Apostle Paul when he came to the Areopagus and spoke with many Athenians, who were deeply cultured, enlightened people for that time and loved to talk on various philosophical topics. Of course, they did not have that obscene expression, that verbiage that now pollutes our speech. They perceived the world in their own way and wanted to listen to the apostle. But they could not accept this sermon, they rejected it! When they heard about the resurrection of Christ, they said: “We will hear you about this at another time” (Acts 17-1). And only a few of them (including Dionysius the Areopagite) followed the apostle...

Therefore, when a teenager talks about goodness among evil peers, he doesn’t even speak, but behaves without judging others (realizing that it is not their fault that they were raised in those families where they hear obscene expressions from the cradle - and cannot do otherwise perceive the world) - with his behavior he will shine the inner light of the soul to his peers - thus, of course, he will always be white! And if he feels it - thank God! And you don’t need to paint yourself gray or black to be like everyone else, like others. There is a wonderful expression that I want to tell the children so that they remember it:

Child of Eternity! Don't please the spirit of the times!

We are all created for eternity. Time is fleeting. Everything passes, but eternity remains in a person’s heart... And a person who understands this and lives for eternity, for God, has a treasure that he is called to carry through all the trials, through all the misadventures of his childhood and youthful life. Without rejecting peers, without judging them, but without acting as they do. Yes, perhaps those people whom he would like to have as friends (strong people who can, for example, protect him in something) will not be next to him... But, believe that the Lord sends his chosen ones that path of suffering already in childhood which must be completed in order to become spiritually hardened.

We see many examples of such steadfastness and strength in the lives of saints and ascetics of piety. And even if you take such a secular work from school curriculum which we all studied - “How the Steel Was Tempered” by N. Ostrovsky, then here we see what kind of character is developed in the fight against adversity, against deprivation. And if life is inspired by the love of God!.. So is it worth looking for external well-being in life for the sake of, say, momentary joys with friends who may never become a teenager’s friends? Frankly, simply and directly talk about this with your child: such friends will come to have fun with you for the sake of the fact that you will treat them to a cigarette, sit with a glass of wine, and so on... And then? And without judging them, we should not be like their behavior, their relationships with each other and not be upset because we may not be accepted because of our views on life, because white by which we differ from others. But we won't be alone. In any case, the Lord will send us whoever we need...

I myself also studied in a Soviet school. I had the same comrades, the same teachers. And they fought during recess in the same way, and just like today’s guys, I used to be insulted and humiliated because I stood up for someone. At the same time, someone passed by, someone cowardly averted their eyes... And among this mass of noisy, screaming teenagers there was always a person who spoke a word of support, or the Lord sent a teacher at that moment...

I also know cases when a teenager had to leave school - such was the aggressive rejection of his views! Well! The Lord said: “If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you also; if they have kept My word, they will also keep yours” (John 15:20). And it’s not scary if a teenager moves from school to school at some point. The Lord will give him the option of life that he needs. Therefore, out of fear of not being accepted, there is no need to succumb to the general herd feeling and be like everyone else. Be yourself.

Guys now value strength. I'm not the weakest in my class. I don’t like to fight, and my mother forbids me to fight back, she says it’s not Christian. But if, say, a girl is beaten in front of you, what should you do: turn away in cowardice? Is it possible for an Orthodox to fight at least to protect someone? Or should we always forgive?

I sometimes watch at school how kids fuss and shove each other - this is not anger, but simply an emotional manifestation of the characteristics of age. It’s quite possible to run around and tinker. But if the relationship turns into a fight - with anger, with some unkind moments - this, of course, is unacceptable for an Orthodox person. A fight is a humiliation of the image of God in a person... But when a weak person whom you can protect is insulted in front of you, then you are obliged to do so. If in front of you they offend a girl, beat you, insult your child, and defraud him of money? In this case, this is not a fight, but a defense of human dignity from attacks on it from the outside. There was a case at our school when teenagers from a neighboring vocational school stood in the morning and took our money, demanding from everyone: “Give me 15 kopecks!” Of course, it was necessary to rebuff them. Therefore, if in such a situation a teenager consciously stands up for the weak (and can do this!), then I do not see a sin in this. Protecting another person, especially a weak, poor, wretched person, is your Christian duty.

Of course, you shouldn’t deliberately run into a fight and look for adventure. Another question is, if they offend you personally, move away, do not repay evil for evil, always try to forgive. It's hard to do. It's hard to forgive. But Christian forgiveness is not only forgiveness, it is love for enemies. And through kindness, another person becomes closer to you. There are these words in the Gospel: “Make friends for yourself with unrighteous wealth” (Luke 16:9). How to understand this? We need to learn wisdom. Suppose your friends offended you and humiliated you. And another time (after praying, of course) you came to them and, without waiting for them to call you names or say an unkind word, you showed them some pleasant book, told them about an interesting event, treated them to an apple or something else (even if You were just offended yesterday!). This may not be perceived correctly right away. But if you don’t fawn and ingratiate yourself, but act simply and directly, in the end you will get what you need, a good relationship. After all, it’s not just 10-15 kopecks that solve the problem between the guys!..

I also remember having a similar case. One guy really offended me, there was a serious conflict with him - I don’t remember why. Perhaps he had such a character - quarrelsome. And then he once asked me: “Can I copy off your assignment?” - “Well, if you haven’t done it yourself, look, you won’t figure it out anyway, nothing will work out. But if you want, write it off! Please.” He wrote it off once, wrote it off twice. Then he says: “Listen, can you explain to me why you decide this?” I explained to him - once, twice. Then he says: “Can I sit with you, will I sit with you?” And so he turned from my enemy into a person who even protected me from others and helped me in everything.

I tried not to conflict with him. Once he comes up: “Can I wear your gloves?” I had good fur gloves. “Darn, please...” There are situations when you don’t need to be an owner, you need to calmly look at such things. And he will see that there is no usual indignation: “Oh, he took my gloves!”, which provokes all conflicts. Well, I took it - so what! I also knew that no one would ever give him a sandwich or an apple. When he came, I always shared with him... You can always find the key to another person. But for this you need to show some patience, wisdom and not despair if at first nothing works out. Days, months, sometimes years may pass before a person understands what’s what. And one way or another, in any situation, even in places of detention, a person finds the optimal style of behavior that he needs in order to keep his soul pure and correctly influence other people, which is what a Christian is obliged to do.

Does it happen that humility leads to such dramas when a child can fall away from the faith? I have before my eyes the example of my daughter’s classmate, the son of a priest: he never fought back against anyone and was so downtrodden that they always looked at him as if he were a scarecrow. It all ended in rebellion: in the end he broke free from his father’s power - he fell into the temptations of the world, married a divorced woman, and even became interested in the occult. Isn't this the price to pay for being too humble in childhood?

Was it humility?.. Most likely, timidity. It is sad that the family of this priest, apparently, did not instill in their son immunity from sin, did not analyze critical situations from a Christian point of view, did not teach him the courage to defend his soul among the temptations and cruelties of the world. But we must take into account that often it is in the families of priests that sins are committed that may not occur in other families. To say that the priest’s family, being closer to the Church, is no longer involved in sin is wrong. The point is that the excess of priesthood grace that is poured out on the head of the family causes dark force more violently take up arms against him, his loved ones, and relatives. Therefore, the laity need to pray more diligently for their priest, and he and his loved ones must stand more vigilantly on guard over themselves and those around them. And remember the words of the Holy Scripture: “The devil walks around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8), destroying moral and spiritual foundations.

I had one familiar family, where the father was a deeply religious person, and the children led a very wild life: there was drinking, smoking, and carousing. Taking into account his younger years, one could say that the formation of a person and the search for oneself proceeded so dramatically. And twenty years later, the Lord called all these children in their own way to serve. Through sorrow, through hardship, through inner admonition.

Yes, it is worse when a person comes to God through the temptation of a sinful life. But why one comes this way and the other differently is known to the Lord alone, who said: “Judge not, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned” (Luke 6:37) In this situation, prayer has great power father and mother for their children. It makes possible the spiritual resurrection of a person, joining the life in which he was raised, but from which he moved away at some point. This is often observed in modern families, and was observed in the past. And there is no need to be surprised or horrified by this. This must be.

Most of the girls at school dress very fashionably, like adults. Almost everyone is on “platforms”, in leather. I think my clothes are good, but my classmates don’t like them because they’re not “branded.” And some people don’t see me because of this. One girl even said: “I won’t even talk to her! Why can I dress fashionably, but she can’t?” Of course, I could ask my parents something. But it’s a shame to somehow measure yourself by clothes. And without a “company” you are nothing at school...

Alas, it happens that peers do not accept girls and boys who, in their opinion, are dressed unfashionably. How can we be here? Let's think about it: fashion changes so often - every few years! And many people became corrupted; their clothes began to fall apart. But there were times when uniforms were the norm for school, and they united everyone! And we simply couldn’t imagine ourselves without uniforms. We wore uniforms to concerts, to the theater, and everywhere. And it was beautiful, it was a badge of honor. Let us remember that before each gymnasium and college had its own special symbols. And the expression “uniform honor” did not have the negative meaning that is given to it now. The concept of honor combined both internal and external dignity, the inability to behave or behave in an inappropriate manner... I think that those schools are doing a great job that introduce their own uniform of clothing - this both disciplines and at the same time makes children’s relationships simpler, more sincere, so how the opportunity to show off clothes to each other disappears, which during my childhood was wild and simply impossible.

Of course, at that time people had limited funds. Wealth, alas, makes a person look at others differently. And if a person sees that another person dresses differently from him, and this seems offensive to him, then this is simply a sign of a lack of spirituality and general culture. We now like to refer to foreign countries - so we need to see how things are with this there... I have been abroad. And there I saw that people were dressed very differently, including children. And no one reproaches anyone. Who cares - go as you please!

Our excessive, painful attention to clothing comes from our bad manners, from the wrong attitude towards clothing as something too significant, almost the main thing in life. But it is sometimes worth remembering the essence of clothing, like “leather garments” that covered our sinful nature after the fall of our forefathers. And it’s worth remembering the proverb: people are greeted by their clothes, but they’re seen off by their minds! Therefore, we must look not at the external, but at the internal. And be calm about your appearance, and look for friends not by “outfit”, but by what they have in their heads.

Father, please advise me what to do with my daughter? She considers herself Orthodox, goes to church, and receives communion from time to time. The girl is kind and generally modest. But as for clothes... I was stubborn: I’ll wear a “mini”, I don’t want to be different from my friends - and that’s all! She cut everything, altered it, now her skirts are more like a belt, and her legs, as they say, grow almost from her head. And my girl is tall and prominent. How far is it from trouble? How can I explain this to her? I can’t force her!

Of course, it should not be prohibited without explanation. As well as going to the other extreme: allowing everything. We need to help our daughter understand the motives behind her passion for such clothing, which hardly meets Christian standards. Faith in Christ does not force anyone to dress in rags, but clothing should not be a temptation for others. Does your daughter want to become a seductress and answer for it before the Lord? Otherwise, why does she need such provocative clothes? After all, as a Christian, she cannot help but know that immodest (for example, tight-fitting, open-legged, open-chested) clothing is created to seduce men. Does she want to preserve her purity for her husband and children or defile herself with unchastity? It’s one thing when her clothes don’t tempt others, but if someone is seduced by her beauty, then it’s not her fault, she won’t answer to God for it. And it’s a completely different matter when your daughter’s dress seduces someone into unclean thoughts - whether young, mature people or even very old people. For this she will bear special responsibility before the face of God. It is appropriate to remember the words of the Savior when He said: “Woe to that man through whom temptation comes—it would have been better for him not to have been born at all” (Matthew 16:23).

How to live in peace and stay clean? Here you need to ask God for wisdom and prudence in order to always be a Christian. In everything. No matter what conditions you are in. By external deeds, by appearance, a Christian will be judged not only about him personally, but about the Orthodox faith. There is no need to forget about this.

My son is in a class where almost everyone, even the girls, swears. It is impossible for him to speak with his peers, since they “express themselves” through the word. He tried to convince the guys that there was no point, he tried to get away from them. My son is very tormented because he cannot convince his peers. After all, he doesn’t want to completely stop communicating with the guys. How can we help here?

I have never yet met among the children with whom I had to communicate those who would take the pose of a preacher and say: “What are you doing, what bad words are you uttering! Oh, how bad!” This is not a childish level of thinking and not a childish attitude to life. Most likely, children who are not used to bad words sometimes listen with their eyes open, often not understanding what is behind it. It's like a different language for them. So it was with me. When I was at school, I was surrounded by children from completely different families. And therefore, often during breaks I heard expressions between the guys that I perceived, of course, as swearing, but I didn’t understand what exactly was behind them. And only with age did I understand the individual intonations and meaning of swear words.

I remember the story of one teacher who came to work at a school on the outskirts. She was amazed that all the third-graders were calling each other “faggots.” But when she began to look into it, it turned out that the children had no idea about the meaning of this nasty word. When the teacher explained (at the level of their understanding) that with this word they insult a man’s calling to be a father, a husband, insult his future wife, his children who have not yet been born, these hooligan boys were so amazed that they promised never to say such things again words And they kept it! And the atmosphere in the class became much kinder...

The child still has that light of the soul that helps him resist uncleanness. And he may not become infected with the disease that often arises in this environment - the disease of permissiveness and a disdainful attitude towards one’s speech, vocabulary, and the environment... But get up preaching goodness, give a lecture on the purity of Russian literary language- In my opinion, this is inaccessible to a child. It will simply cause laughter and misunderstanding.

It's another matter when you need to protect girls from foul language. And here it’s a matter of honor for an Orthodox boy to calmly but firmly tell him to stop swearing in front of girls. But, it must be said that first of all, it is not the Orthodox boy who should rebel against this, but the girls themselves, in front of whom this swearing is heard! Girls should also be able to present themselves. I know girls who behave in such a way that you can’t swear in front of them. If they accept bad language and support it themselves, allowing themselves to be insulted and humiliated, then they will perceive the boy’s words in their defense as ridicule. And the boy must anticipate the reaction.

There are also such desperate people who allow themselves to use bad language at school, both in front of teachers and in front of the director. I remember how in my school years During a physical education lesson, a teacher reprimanded a high school student and received obscene language in response. He told him to “leave the hall” - in response there was another curse. The teacher began to take this student out and... received a blow to the face. He had no choice but to tie him up and take him out by force... A few months later, that young man went to a colony - here the path of a person can be very clearly traced... But it is interesting that, as a priest, being in colonies and prisons, I see that people, although they speak, expressing themselves through a stump, try in certain conditions, in the presence of a priest, for example, to restrain their speech. This means that a person can control himself even in conditions of imprisonment. And that means he is always responsible for his actions, no matter what environment he is in...

Most often, when we hear foul language, we simply see the promiscuity and bravado of adolescence and adolescence: they say, this is how I can say it! There's nothing more to brag about. And if there is a teenager who tells his peers: “Guys, don’t do that,” he should be prepared for the fact that he may become the subject of ridicule and bullying. But if he courageously goes for it and considers it possible for himself to suffer, then let him perceive such a reaction as it should and not complain. Because he consciously stood up against evil and said: “I do not want this!”

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov (rector)

Ordination: Nikolai Vladimirovich Sokolov was ordained to the rank of deacon on April 7, 1982 by Patriarch Pimen. September 8, 1988 bishop. Feofan (Galinsky) Berlinsky performed priestly consecration.

Education: Moscow State Conservatory (1975), Moscow Theological Academy (1980), candidate of theology, associate professor.

Awards: gaiter, kamilavka, pectoral cross, rank of archpriest, club, cross with decorations, miter. Order of the Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow II and III degrees, Order of Prince Vladimir II degree, Order of St. Seraphim III degree, Order of Friendship, Order of St. Nicholas III degree (from the House of Romanov).

He is the rector of the patriarchal metochions in Afineevo - the Church of St. Nicholas and Pleskovo - the Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh, as well as the Churches of the Intercession Holy Mother of God in Pleskovo, All Saints in the village of Razdory, Archangel Michael at the PTK “My Joy”, the Church of St. Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica in the village of Sosenki, Kaluga region, chapel ( former temple) St. Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica at the International Children's Fund (Moscow).

• Dean of St. Tikhon's Humanitarian University.
• Teacher of the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament at the Department of Biblical Studies of St. Tikhon's Humanitarian University since 1991, professor.
• Deputy Chairman of the Special Academic Council for Dissertation Defense
• Co-chairman of the art section of the International Christmas Educational Readings since 2001.
• Member of the Inter-Council Presence commission on issues of parish life and parish practice since December 16, 2010.
• Member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture.

Ordination: Andrei Nikolaevich Rumyantsev was consecrated to the rank of deacon on February 17, 1997 by Patriarch Alexy II, and to the rank of priest on July 3, 1998.

Education: Moscow Art School named after 1905 (1992), Moscow Theological Seminary (1996).

Awards: gaiter, kamilavka, pectoral cross, rank of archpriest.

Member of the art history commission of the Moscow diocese.

Consecrations: Alexey Fedorovich Lymarev was consecrated on October 5, 2003 by bishop. Alexy (Frolov) to the rank of deacon. April 02, 2005 ep. Alexander (Agrikov) performed priestly ordination.

Education: Moscow Theological Seminary (1995), Moscow Theological Academy (1999), Moscow Pedagogical College State University(2002).

Rewards: legguard, kamilavka.

Member of the missionary commission of the Moscow diocese.

Priest Andrey Zuevsky

Ordination: Andrei Evgenievich Zuevsky was ordained on November 21, 2002 to the rank of deacon. On January 15, 2004, he was ordained to the rank of priest.

Education: Moscow Aviation Institute named after. S. Orzhdonikidze, specialty engineer-technologist in aircraft construction (1991), Moscow Theological Seminary (2001), Moscow Theological Academy (2005).

June 13, 2007 awarded academic degree candidate of theology for his dissertation on the topic: “Exegesis of the New Testament in the works of Didymus the Blind.” Currently, in addition to serving, he conducts catechetical conversations on the Orthodox TV channel “My Joy” and is engaged in translations of the works of the Holy Fathers from ancient Greek.

Consecrations: Alexey Vladimirovich Ryakhovsky was consecrated on October 17, 2004 by bishop. Alexander (Agrikov) to the rank of deacon.

Education: Slavic Business Institute (2005), Orthodox St. Tikhon's Humanitarian University (2006).

For the holiday of Holy Easter 2012, he was awarded the right to wear a double orarion.

Our guest was the rector of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, the dean of the missionary faculty of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University, Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov.
This meeting took place on the 15th anniversary of the death of Bishop Sergius (Sokolov). Father Nikolai spoke about his brother, Vladyka Sergius, about how they grew up together and began their church life, how they accepted the persecution of the times of Khrushchev, told how Vladyka Sergius came to monasticism, to the priesthood and bishopric, and how interesting and unusual this path, and also how their grandfather Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov influenced the whole family.

Presenter: Konstantin Matsan

K. Matsan

- “Bright Evening” on Radio “Vera”, good evening, dear friends. In the studio of Konstantin Matsan. Today I have an amazing guest - Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov - rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Tolmchi at the Tretyakov Gallery, dean of the missionary faculty of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University, candidate of theology, professor, confessor of the Russian Olympic team, many regalia, they can last for a long time list. But today we called Father Nikolai, first of all, as a representative of an entire dynasty of priests - the Sokolov family. First of all, good evening, Father Nikolai.

N. Sokolov

Good evening, dear friends!

K. Matsan

Today we remember the death and personality, and life, and figure of Bishop Sergius Sokolov - your brother. 15 years ago he passed away to the Lord, and when such a period passes, it is always very important to remember the person and tell those who know nothing about him what kind of person he was, why this figure is certainly worthy of attention. And to remind those who know, and maybe tell some new things that they didn’t know before. I will explain for our listeners that our guest today, Father Nikolai Sokolov, had another brother, Father Fyodor Sokolov, who, unfortunately, also left us - one of the first prison priests in Russia, for which he is known. And father Nikolai Sokolov’s mother, Mother Natalya Sokolova, is the author of the best-selling book “Under the Shelter of the Almighty” - a manual on how to raise a priest, or how to raise a Christian in general. And, Father Nikolai Sokolov’s father, Father Vladimir Sokolov, is a priest in the fifth generation, if I’m not mistaken. And the grandfather of our today’s guest, Nikolai Pestov, is a simply legendary figure, his path to faith deserves a separate discussion, he is known primarily as the author of the work “Modern Practice of Orthodox Piety,” which, in its time, became, as they would say, a bestseller, and maybe today, the popularity of this book can only be compared, just as “Unholy Saints” came out today, so this book also was in its time. I won’t talk for so long anymore, it was just important for me to introduce our guest as a very versatile person and as a person who can tell a lot. Father Nikolai.

N. Sokolov

Thank you very much for the attention you are showing today to my late Eminence brother Bishop Sergius and our family. But, in general, you have already talked about it. I just have to add a few facts that I really think will be of interest to our radio listeners.

K. Matsan

It’s not that I didn’t tell, I just lifted the veil, because it seems to me that five “Bright Evening” programs are not enough to even give a general overview about this family. So, this is where I would like to start, the question is still general, but I really want to ask it. Not many, in fact, today we can list dynasties of priests. And the case when all three children in a family choose the path of a clergyman is generally exceptional. Still, how do you think this was predetermined and was it predetermined by something?

N. Sokolov

In our family, as you have already noticed, the succession of the priesthood goes back to the beginning, at least as we know, from the 18th century. And all my ancestors on my father’s side, my father, my grandfather, my great-grandfather, and my great-great-grandfather, everyone I was able to recognize were all clergy. In different degrees of priesthood - these were priests, and deacons, and sextons, and sextons, as was then believed. But they were all church people. Everyone lived mainly in the area of ​​​​old Moscow, the Moscow region, and only perhaps the last of the Sokolov dynasty - Vladyka Sergius became a bishop. Today we will talk about him, because today is the day of his blessed memory, as 15 years ago, the Lord called him to his saints’ monastery. Vladyka was a man of a special destiny, for him there was no indifference to anyone, in everyone he saw those people whom he could help with something. His most basic traits are concentration, forgiveness, peace, amazing love for people, which he exemplified in his life. And the desire to be pleasing to both people and God from childhood. I remember his very first years of life, we were together... growing up, in general, in parallel, only a year separated us, I am a year older than him. And starting from the age of 3-4, we already consciously came to church and served there during the divine service. It was not difficult for us to do this, because dad took us with him to services, and the priests in the place where we lived - it was the village of Grebnevo in the Moscow region, Moscow region, treated our family well. And so he and I, already at the age of 4, put on little surplices and went out with candles to stand there for a while while reading the Gospel, during the entrance, Small, Great entrance and served the censer, although we ourselves often spilled it, we were dirty from this censer, but like all children at that age. But nevertheless, we fulfilled this church obedience with joy and love, and in this way we, as it were, entered the bosom of the mother of the church.

K. Matsan

Was this, let’s say, your initiative, or did dad somehow insist on such participation of children in the life of his parish?

N. Sokolov

No, first of all, it was not my father’s parish.

K. Matsan

Well, the parish where he served.

N. Sokolov

Yes, he served in this parish when he was a deacon and everyone knew him - this is our homeland. But dad took it quite calmly, he says... we always started with... we started playing priests when we were still 3-4 years old.

K. Matsan

N. Sokolov

We played, we dressed ourselves in some kind of diapers at home, put some kind of caps on our heads, took a shoe by the lace, pretending to be a censer, and thus, this game, it led to what the parents said: a game, these are children, let them They will see real church life while still small, but entering it in a serious way. And therefore, with the blessing of the pope, my mother sewed surplices for us and the local priests, the abbots, were very good priests, they allowed us to attend the service. At that time, until 1959, approximately, children were allowed to be present in the temple, then it was prohibited.

K. Matsan

And why?

N. Sokolov

This began the Khrushchev persecution and I remember Bishop Sergius and our first real serious childhood tears with him. Where they came from - we cried in different ways, we also quarreled with him, sometimes like children, sometimes we took something away from each other, argued, but it was all childish. And so he and I had to go through one condition when we, who came to the temple, were not blessed to wear surplices. It was a holiday, in my opinion, the Feast of the Annunciation, we came to the church, our priests stood there, looking somewhat embarrassed, and among them was the dean, his name was Father Raphael. And we approached, as usual, made a bow, as we were taught, and taking the surplices in our hands, we went to bless the surplices from the priest abbot and heard a voice: “Do not bless them.” We didn't understand why. And they said: “Boys, you can go home. The service is beginning, but you will not be present here without surplices.”

K. Matsan

That is, it was not allowed to be present at all, or to serve.

N. Sokolov

Standing at the altar, but we got used to it and couldn’t understand what we had done wrong, what we had done wrong. We approached again, and then he said: “No, go away from the altar and do not stand here with your surplices.” But this was not said at all kindly, and therefore we did not understand, and only after leaving the altar did we suddenly both burst into tears. We go home and cry, bitter tears. Mom says: “What happened?” - along the road, Sergius, in my opinion, fell, he’s walking all dirty. “Did you fall?” - “No, we were kicked out of the church, the surplices were not blessed for us.” Mom didn’t even know that this could be and she went to find out, but it turns out that our priest who served, Father Dmitry, explained to her that a decree had come, and that from this day, from this moment, children are not blessed to serve as subdeacon or attend for services in the altars, and to participate in the services. This was our first childhood conscious grief with Bishop Sergius. And so the bishop showed himself to be a very peaceful person from that time on. I remember, I always egged him on, I was a little like that with him... And he always: “Well, let’s make peace, let’s kiss,” and from him there was always a wave of such amazing love, which, in general, remained with him until the end life.

K. Matsan

Well, for children, yes, it may not be the easiest thing to be the first to ask for forgiveness, or to offer to make peace. And now, from the height of your experience, the first time when you were not allowed into the altar, due, in general, to the political situation in the country.

N. Sokolov

Yes, it was politics, of course.

K. Matsan

Do you perceive this as such persecution?

N. Sokolov

In a certain sense, yes, because besides this there was a certain number of factors that we will not talk about now, it just needs to be transferred, but this was clearly aimed at persecution in the church, in order for the church to limit what was allowed after the war in the early 1950s, closed. Near us, literally over the course of several years, several churches near Moscow were closed and priests who proved themselves to be zealous shepherds were instantly transferred from place to place. And it happens that in a year a priest changes up to two or three places in his ministry. Therefore, how can this be explained if not by persecution?

K. Matsan

But look, looking at this situation that you retold, from today, especially through the eyes of a person who is not immersed in church life, it may even seem somehow strange, but usually a child cries and gets upset if a toy is taken away from him , if he is not allowed to go for a walk, if someone offends him. And then the child gets upset because, in general, he is not allowed to work in the altar, and the question arises - was this also some kind of game for you, that you were deprived of pleasure? Or something different?

N. Sokolov

No, it was different.

K. Matsan

For you and for Bishop Sergius, of course.

N. Sokolov

We were already at the time when this happened, we were no longer three years old, we were already about 9-10 years old.

K. Matsan

But, this is still childhood.

N. Sokolov

Well, we were still children, but we definitely took seriously everything that happened at the altar. If I tell you one more episode, when we were already older, let’s say, I was about 7 years old, Vladyka Sergius was about 6 years old, he and I once stood at a litany with candles, we were standing, the lithium was long, long and Vladyka was tired, then small, smaller than me, and he sighed so much and said: “How long have you been praying here?” he put out the candle and went to the altar, sat down on the High Place, in the place where the bishop usually sits, dangled his legs and sat looking at us. I told him: “Come here,” and he: “No, I’m tired,” it was still childish. But then it all passed, of course.

K. Matsan

Some kind of symbolic picture emerges; the future bishop sat down in the bishop’s seat.

N. Sokolov

You know, I thought about the same thing, by the way, that yes, for some reason I never sat down, I passed by, I knew that I shouldn’t sit down. And he calmly sat down and sat there.

K. Matsan

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery, is a guest today in the “Bright Evening” program. You talk very interestingly, Father Nikolai, about your childhood and I would just like to ask about this. The family has three children.

N. Sokolov

There were five, two more sisters.

K. Matsan

Why did I make a reservation like that, three boys, all three of whom chose the path of the clergy for themselves, and only one of them - Vladyka Sergius, whom we remember today, chose the path of monasticism. And then he became a bishop, because a non-monk cannot become a bishop. Was there something in childhood that predetermined his path to monasticism, and you to the white priesthood, to the family priesthood?

N. Sokolov

Yes, that's a good question, thank you. Already growing up, approximately when we were already 9-10 years old, we behaved differently. I was a more lively, more secular person, so to speak. Vladyka Sergius, his name was Sima, Seraphim before his tonsure, he was such a more collected, more focused person. And when my mother told me something, I said that I did this, I did that, sometimes I lied, I didn’t tell the truth. He said: “Oh, Kolka is lying - I’m only telling the truth.”

K. Matsan

Were you not offended?

N. Sokolov

No, I'm saying... he really said that he was the one who brought me to clean water and I had to repent of my childhood actions.

K. Matsan

What humility from childhood, such a school of humility.

N. Sokolov

And somehow he and I understood each other. And then he said, well, when they became older. “Let’s go” - “No, I’ll be a monk” - he said this more than once.

K. Matsan

From what age?

N. Sokolov

From 12-13 years old. Although he did not restrict himself in food, he was quite well-fed, very quickly overtook me in height and was a head taller than me. And, of course, he’s more powerful than me, so I was already afraid to fight him like before. But he was the one who considered himself: “I am a monk,” and when something happened to him, he never took revenge and walked away calmly. In our children's games, when it happens, we would wind each other up and almost bring ourselves to fights, there were such cases, cousins, everything, Vladyka Sergius always stood for peace between people. And he was the first to make peace, the first to find ways not to go to extremes, and in this regard he was a peacemaker. This all manifested itself.

K. Matsan

Blessed are the peacemakers.

N. Sokolov

Yes, blessed.

K. Matsan

How did the parents react to these words: “I am a monk”?

N. Sokolov

Well, how they react to children's words. Mom, of course, said: “Of course, what will you do when you grow up, the Lord himself will determine for you.” The second question is when he really decided to become a monk and this question arose before him after graduating from the Ippolitov-Ivanov Moscow Music School, which he graduated in double bass. He was a brilliant double bass player, and after his performance at the state program, when he played, he was the only one I know who was immediately offered a place in the State Orchestra. Can you imagine, such a place is only for a young, youthful musician who graduated from a music school rather than a higher education institution. And I heard words from the bishop that came: “No, I will not follow the musical line, but I will go to the monastery.” What a monastery, how, you were only 19 years old. And yet, he kept his word and his desire, apparently, to serve God as a monk, as a monk, he realized after serving in the army. Because he was immediately drafted into the army and served in the air defense forces for more than two years, then he also played in the ensemble. And now, at the end of his army service, his first step was to enter the theological seminary, where he was noticed by His Holiness Patriarch Pimen and, with his blessing, later took monastic vows.

K. Matsan

There is a topic here that, perhaps, is a little away from the figure of Bishop Sergius, but nevertheless concerns this story that you told. Many people have a question: why does a priest, or a future monk, a person who imagines himself as a monk in the future, need any kind of secular education, moreover, something as specific as music, and moreover, something as specifically musical as the double bass? It’s not piano – a broad specialty – it’s a rather narrow musical path. A double bassist, in principle, is in an orchestra, in an ensemble; double basses have almost no solo repertoire and a person consciously goes to a music school to study double bass, although he says that he will be a monk.

N. Sokolov

You know, our parents had very broad views and we were allowed to choose our own profession. Dad never insisted that we follow his path, that we become priests, there was not even a conversation about it. We saw how difficult it was for him, how difficult, how difficult the life of a clergyman was at this time. And although the Lord protected our family and kept our dad, he actually served for 45 years in one Moscow parish in the Church of the Holy Martyrs Adrian and Natalia, then there was the city of Babushkin, now Yaroslavl Highway is there. But it was a miracle at the time. But he didn’t force us, and therefore, when the time came for us to choose a specialty, he calmly: “Wherever you want.” Since he himself was very musical and loved music, he often sang very well and sang with his grandmother, he welcomed the fact that from childhood, around the age of 7-8, we began to study at a music school, in parallel with the general education school. And therefore, when I already entered the music school, I entered, then Vladyka Sergius said, I also want to study music like Kolya. And he also went. But since he was very tall and the violin in his hands was literally like a small toy, there was no school for the viola, he took himself a double bass.

K. Matsan

Well, yes, tall violinists are offered a double bass.

N. Sokolov

As the famous double bass player Koussevitzky said, a double bass is also like a big violin. So, you can do it like on a violin. He played like a violin and was a master of this instrument. And after graduating from music school, he chose this path for himself and his parents were not against this path. But the sisters also studied with us there, in the same classes, except for the younger brother Fedor. Therefore, we deliberately chose this path and I went to the conservatory, and Vladyka Sergius went to the army, and then to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra as a monk.

K. Matsan

I remember I was struck when I read the biography of Saint Ignatius Brenchaninov, how he described his feeling after being tonsured, so I walked and realized that I had reached the limit of my desires. I’m not quoting exactly now, but the feeling was that I walked and walked and came to this. And no one understands this joy around, but I feel that the real thing has finally arrived in my life - I am a monk. Do you remember how your brother talked about this day of tonsure, about the feeling after tonsure, about what opens up inside after tonsure?

N. Sokolov

Yes, I remember this day very well, since my father and I were invited by the father-vicar and His Holiness Patriarch Pimen, knowing us, invited his already subdeacon Seraphim to tonsure. And the pope personally blessed the bishop with the icon, which he took from the wall. And we were present at this touching moment of his tonsure in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. It is such an amazing coincidence that usually a monastic tonsure takes place during some kind of fast, either the Nativity of Christ, or Great Lent; here His Holiness Patriarch Pimen signed his tonsure at the beginning of Lent. And we were all waiting for this moment, that 1-2-3-5-6... well, Passion Day is coming - no, Seraphim still serves as a subdeacon in the first pair and every day with His Holiness, continuous services. And then Easter comes, he also goes, like everyone else... Well, I think that now, how. And the second week after Easter comes and a holiday, I don’t remember, now I’ve forgotten which one, is associated... in the second week after Easter, the myrrh-bearing wife, in my opinion. And suddenly the patriarch said to him: “Well, go, tomorrow you will be tonsured,” and he called the deputy father, Father Jerome. He says: “When I took monastic vows, on Easter.”

K. Matsan

Was it in the laurel?

N. Sokolov

During Easter week. In the laurel. During Easter week - this is generally strange, but it turned out that the bishop took tonsure on Easter and during the Easter period, literally, when they sang Christ is Risen, he stayed there literally 2-3 days, supposed to stay there, 40 days he did not stay there, two day and the patriarch again called him to Chisty Lane and on the 14th of May, again, the Easter period on the day of Unexpected Joy, ordained him as a hierodeacon. And it’s surprising that Vladyka died after the Feast of the Intercession and his last phrase that he wrote to us was: “Christ is risen!” - in his will.

K. Matsan

The circle is closed, so to speak.

N. Sokolov

K. Matsan

Ah, I imagine what a mother must feel when her child is already in front of her eyes, or not in front of her eyes, but is simply now accepting monasticism, and it is clear that she is renouncing the world, it is clear that there will be no family and what can to be the most difficult thing in secular perception - there will be no grandchildren. How did mother react?

N. Sokolov

She, of course, was worried, of course, because Simochka was her favorite, of course, she dreamed of having his children in her arms. It’s impossible to say that Vladyka Sergius was an absolutely reserved person, alienated from girls and women - he was very sociable. And my mother hoped that someday he would choose some girl from our circle, because we gathered as students, when we were at school, we studied, Vladyka was the life of the company, he never closed himself off. But amazingly, you are having fun there, dancing, playing, and I will be in the kitchen. And when we left, the table was set, everything was done - these were his works. He himself always worked. And so the girls looked at him, he was handsome, so stately, interesting, but he took care of himself and himself completely... he put a barrier in his heart. But when he told his mother that he would be a monk, as he said as a child, his mother, of course, took it very seriously and nevertheless, she blessed him on this path, knowing that he had been looking for this path for a long time. How difficult, sorrowful and complex it would be, she apparently predicted, she knew about it, and she was predicted a lot at one time by Father Mitrofan Srebryansky, to whom she went as a spiritual daughter. And I suspect that he told her a lot about Vladyka Sergius, therefore, she reacted calmly to this, blessed him and joyfully accepted him, who had already returned, then from the Lavra, as at first just the monk Sergius, monk Sergius, and then... The name Sergius was given to him by Patriarch Pimen himself, he wrote to Father Jerome and when he was tonsured, he saw this piece of paper, and wrote to His Holiness in his own hand: “His name is Sergius,” and he was Sergius before Pimen, so he gave his name to him. Before her death, mommy had already passed away, God rest with her, but she had, if I’m not mistaken, 23 grandchildren, so without Vladyka Sergius.

K. Matsan

Well, the Lord did not leave. Still, if I may, it’s a completely private question, but I’m really very interested in whether she, your mother, after her tonsure, called him Sergius, Vladyka Sergius, or...

N. Sokolov

No, Simochka.

K. Matsan

By first name?

N. Sokolov

Sometimes Sergius called him, but when they were alone - Simochka.

K. Matsan

But it was important to him, what does his mother call him, what do they call him, after all?

N. Sokolov

No, he was completely calm, our acquaintances and friends also treated him, they called him Sima and he was calm about this, already being an archimandrite... he even came as a bishop, sat with us - Sima came. Somehow calmly, he wasn’t so vain and didn’t think that was the only way... no, he was calm.

K. Matsan

A question arises that, again, may not directly relate to the history of Bishop Sergius, but I think that this question comes to mind for many. The question is some kind of justice, why does such a talented person, maybe the most talented, the brightest, the best, go into a monastery from the world? Why is his Lord not in the world, on the contrary, to people, but somehow from people, as it were, to a monastery? So, in a pastoral way, what are you answering here?

N. Sokolov

This is God’s providence for every human soul, and in this case the Bishop did not leave the world, he came to the monastery for the world and it was there that he was raised as the future archpastor of the church. After all, he became a teacher at a theological seminary and academy, wrote excellent works, created his own notes, including Old Testament, in other subjects, and when he came to the department in Novosibirsk, he was one of the first to establish pastoral courses there, theological courses, a university was planned, and so on. And his education as a musician, as a person, he was valued, he could recognize any work... he was invited to concerts, various events and his talent as a musician, and a theologian, and a wonderful preacher, he did all this for the world even today, maybe You don’t know, I recently looked at the lists of new bishops, many of whom have now been ordained Lately, and those who were around the bishop, almost all of his close priests, monks whom he tonsured during his stay in Novosibirsk, now became bishops.

K. Matsan

We’ll talk about the ministry of Bishop Sergius in Novosibirsk after a short pause. Our guest is Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Tretyakov Gallery, dean of the missionary faculty of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University, candidate of theology, professor. In the studio of Konstantin Matsan, we will be back in a few minutes.

K. Matsan

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov is a guest today in the “Bright Evening” program - the rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Tretyakov Gallery. Today we remember Bishop Sergius of Novosibirsk. He died exactly 15 years ago - this brother our guest today - Father Nikolai Sokolov, and we just finished in the last part with the fact that Vladyka Sergius accepted monasticism and after some time became a bishop. In general, it seems to me that for a monk, accepting the episcopal rank is, in principle, such a cross; to many from the outside it may seem that this is such a promotion, career, power, opportunity and influence, but in fact for a person who strives for monastic solitude, for him this, of course, is a huge burden of responsibility and let’s say, some kind of, maybe not the most desirable, at least difficult hypostasis. How did Bishop Sergius, having already become a bishop, perceive this?

N. Sokolov

He perceived his appointment to the Novosibirsk-Berdsk see, he was the first bishop of Berdsk, as the providence of God and for himself he somehow long ago determined that he was not looking for his own, how humble he was and perceived everything as the Lord showed in his life. Truly, he did not want this rank, he himself was never eager for it, but even when it was offered to him, he had a conversation with the patriarch, had a conversation with other people - it was 1995, the attitude towards the church had already changed, many monasteries and churches had already opened and there was a desire for the bishops in the church to be truly educated, truly highly cultured, and interesting. And so I think that the choice that His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II turned to Bishop Sergius was not accidental. Firstly, this is a man who for many, many years was the closest assistant and cell attendant of Patriarch Pimen, who actually died in his arms. And a teacher at the theological seminary and academy, his last post was, he was an inspector at the theological academy. To be honest, I myself thought that they would leave him at the academy, so that later he might even occupy some other positions, but he was really needed at the academy. The students loved him, he devoted his whole soul to...

K. Matsan

The students loved the inspector—a rare thing.

N. Sokolov

Yes, this is rare. But I don’t know, maybe one of his students can hear me today, I know that people always came to him with joy, the doors of his inspector’s office were always open. And when I came to see him there, when I came to the Lavra, I often sat there in the evening, we talked about our affairs, they simply came: “Father Inspector, excuse me, this is the problem,” - he immediately solved them. And there was no exaltation over the students, but he was always very strict and demanding. But nevertheless, he was very loved. And his appointment was, in general, logical. He came to the Novosibirsk land as a person who perceived this as God’s providence for himself. And his words are amazing, which were conveyed to me by people who wrote his biography... in my opinion, it is written somewhere, when he first set foot on that land, he said: “Yes, now I will die here.” These were one of the first words he said when he stepped off the plane onto Novosibirsk soil. And he was the first bishop of Berdsk, in Berdsk he founded a temple and in his will, apparently somehow spiritually enlightened by the fact that his death was approaching, he wrote that I ask to be buried in the city of Berdsk, not anywhere, but in Berdsk. And when we asked how to understand all this, he said: “After all, the earth is round and wherever they prayed, they always prayed for me, but in Berdsk there was never a bishop and there will always be a memory of me as a bishop.” He prepared himself for difficult path and his path was truly a cross and difficult one. There is a lot that can be said, and I don’t even want to touch on those moments now that I would not like to talk about, and there is no need to talk about it, because not everything today can be told the truth about his life, about his death, about his works. But he was truly a hero, as it were, of his time, of his episcopal feat.

K. Matsan

So I just wanted to address the topic of time, I hope I don’t get into something that you don’t want to talk about. But, 1995, this is a very difficult time, I remember that when Patriarch Alexy II died in publications about him, they wrote about his merits, that paradoxically, if Soviet Union did not disintegrate, and Alexy II became patriarch in 1990, if I’m not mistaken, then, paradoxically, it would have been easier for him, as patriarch, to lead the church, because everything would have been clear and predictable, as it was. It would be consistently difficult, as before, but now it has arisen new Russia, new country, new realities, and what to do in them, what decisions to make, where to lead this ship is unclear. This actually requires new approaches and essentially a new cross, again. And in this sense, the bishops whom he appoints to the departments also have a completely different new responsibility, new tasks. This is how Bishop Sergius dealt with this time, what did he say about it?

N. Sokolov

He happily came to the department and did many, many good things that are remembered today. What I can say is that the most interesting thing in his life is that, firstly, he organized very good missionary trips, which had never happened before. These were trips along the Yenisei River, along the Ob, and he himself participated in them and many representatives of the diocese participated. His Holiness also blessed him to lead missionary pilgrimage excursions around the Mediterranean. I was with him on such excursions, he invited me when the ship was carrying 600 people, the bishop was the spiritual leader of it all, he was making a pilgrimage trip to the shrines of the Mediterranean, and the island of Patmos, and the Holy Land and much, much more. And so he used this as a moment for preaching, a moment for converting many, many people who, having boarded the ship, were actually people far from the church, so to speak. Not atheists, but far from the church, received baptism. I myself was there with him too, and they got married, and confessed, took communion, and transformed people came out of there - this was his work as a missionary.

K. Matsan

From the outside it may even seem somewhat strange that a person comes on board, and he thinks that he is going on an excursion, to relax, and here is a bishop who... Well, what kind of tact is required so that the person is not scared off and frightened, but really attract?

N. Sokolov

Every evening in the large wardroom, where there was a restaurant, Vladyka gathered everyone who wanted to come and spoke to all the questions of interest; he could answer everything, if he knew everything, of course... But he was never embarrassed to say that I don’t know it , I'll look another time. And most importantly, he was very sincere in his attitude towards people, and his kindness, love, open-mindedness, attitude towards every person as an image of God - this forced people to come to him again and again, and people who met him once, say, on an excursion , on a ship, whether in Siberia or in the Mediterranean, remained forever attached to it. And many already came, after his death they said, oh, what a pity that the bishop is not there. Here we were again on a trip, there was no one who could organize everything, gather everything as one flock of Christ. We were like one family, truly we were. This is what he knew how to do, and the second thing is that, of course, he began to open a lot of churches and monasteries, then it was possible and he took advantage of every moment. He is very kind a good relationship with the Novosibirsk authorities, and in my opinion, in this regard, everything turned out as well as possible. But, unfortunately, his health, of course, was undermined by the death of his brother, Fyodor’s father, which he took very seriously. And he died that same year.

K. Matsan

Since you started talking about Father Fyodor, I can’t help but ask what it’s like to have your health undermined by the death of your brother. From the outside it may seem somehow strange, well, yes, the closest person, the closest person, died, but why should health deteriorate after that? Emotional experience.

N. Sokolov

He was really, really, that maybe I could be very harsh somewhere, or cry, the bishop didn’t have that, he kept everything to himself. You see, all the experiences that you and I can, say, endure on others, he kept to himself. In my opinion, the grief that he tried to console in everyone, especially in the widow, who is Mother Galina, his children, he was the godfather of many children - all this, of course, made him especially worry about this family and, apparently this was his heart, which burned with love for Father Fyodor and for him, like for me, it was also his younger brother - Fyodor was the youngest, it was an indication that the Lord was calling at any second and for some reason he began to prepare himself to death. I don't know why, but he kept saying that yes, we must be ready, always ready to be, no matter what happens. There were many situations in his life, but he was not afraid of death, he did not think about death at all, that... he did not want to die, this was absolutely alien to him. But spiritually, he perceived the death of Father Fyodor as a reminder to all of us that we are children of eternity.

K. Matsan

I will remind listeners that Father Fyodor Sokolov died in a car accident. If possible, a few words about Father Fyodor, now that we’re talking. One of the first prison priests in Russia.

N. Sokolov

He was a chaplain, a military chaplain, a prison chaplain and a military chaplain at the same time.

K. Matsan

Now, if the tradition of chaplains, military priests, is more or less understandable, it is somehow more historical, and in general, there are many chaplains in the West, the word chaplain itself is so common, then a prison chaplain sounds a little more, let’s say , exotic. Why did Father Fyodor turn to this particular side of the ministry, why prison?

N. Sokolov

You know, I somehow didn’t ask myself this question, we just communicated with him a lot and he was the younger brother, our beloved brother later, we all spoiled him, he was 10 years younger than all of us and of course, when he was in his the time had already come among the patriarchal subdeacons, we were already, in general, adults, we were already 30 years old, and he was then 20 years old, 21 years old and we perceived him as a brother, and a brother, of course, and his life, connected with the life of our family and with the church, was organically connected with all of us. And his nature was so joyful, he was, in my opinion, the embodiment of love, an amazing optimistic perception of the world. And he knew how to embody this in himself, in his children, in his mother and in everyone around him. Therefore, apparently, the suffering people of the prison, to whom the Lord brought him there, were very close to him spiritually. And he was one of the first priests to go to prisons and founded it, so I served with him in the Krasnopresnenskaya transit prison, where he founded the temple, the Sign of the Mother of God, in my opinion, this was his calling, and he went towards this. And then obedience as church obedience was given to him, he did not refuse this obedience.

K. Matsan

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery, is a guest today in the “Bright Evening” program. I would still like for us to talk about your grandfather in the last part of the program. It seems to me that this figure, the personality of this man, directly relates to our conversation today about Bishop Sergius. Now, I know that Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov has almost legendary story his coming to faith and conversion to faith, could you tell us about it? And how did the legacy of such a person influence the formation of both you and Bishop Sergius?

N. Sokolov

Let's start with a small episode of our life, when at one time we lived with Bishop Sergius in his apartment in Moscow on Karl Marx Street.

K. Matsan

Already symbolic.

N. Sokolov

Good, yes. On this street, in a small apartment, where grandfather made such a holy corner, like he made an altar for himself, and it was really an altar, then we later found out that indeed, in this room, on this table, the liturgy was secretly served in the 1930s , those priests who were not arrested could come there and perform the liturgy there early in the morning, but we found out this later. So, when we lived, it was the evening of some holiday, Vladyka Sergius and I came from school, or from college, and grandfather said: “Guys, tomorrow is big celebration, - reminds us, “let’s pray” - “Grandfather, we are tired” - “Well, let’s quickly do your homework, study, I’ll wait another hour, and then at seven o’clock we start praying.” And we already knew that at seven o’clock in the evening the lamps were lit, grandfather took out all the liturgical books, the Octoechos, the Menaion, the festive Triodion, or the Lenten Triodion, and the usual all-night vigil began in full, only without the participation of the clergy, he completely read everything that was required.

K. Matsan

So it's about two hours?

N. Sokolov

It was about two hours, no less. From about seven to nine. And we, in turn, stood side by side and read in turn, the Six Psalms, the Trisagion, the canon that we were supposed to read, and sang along with grandfather as best we could. And this man had an amazing life, who knew how to pray himself, and taught both me and the bishop to pray informally, because we do not pray by reading something, but we pray with our hearts, to God and those words that truly pass through the soul, heart and creation . It is said in the Holy Scriptures: “He will not be heard through many words.” And sometimes I see a picture of my grandfather kneeling in front of icons at night. I slept in the same room with him, so I saw him, I didn’t understand what was going on, he was praying silently, whispering something with his lips, walking and crying. What's happened? Who offended him? Grandfather supposedly went to bed with me at eleven in the evening, and at four in the morning he was already on his knees praying. Then I hear a knock on the door, my grandmother knocks and says: “Nikolai Evgrafovich, get up from your knees, stop praying, God has forgiven you everything, everything has been forgiven you,” he sobbed and cried even more, then she came in, kissed him and put him to bed. What he had, I didn’t understand, what, why. an old man, who is over 70 years old, gets up at night, bows, asks God for something, prays for something, and then... after all, we didn’t know his life, only later, when he died, we opened his diaries and found out who he was was in his youth, how difficult it was for him to approach God, how much there was in his life of what he considered a sinful, hard life - these were the years of the revolution, civil war, the formation of secular power, he was a commissar of the Red Army, from here draw conclusions about how difficult everything was in his life. And so he taught us to pray, and he never forced us somewhere to do anything on purpose if we couldn’t: “Yes, you have lessons today, a concert tomorrow - that’s it, go calmly study, I’ll pray for you,” he said . But it was always a joy to pray with him when you felt that his prayer came from the depths of his heart.

K. Matsan

Commissioner of the Red Army, how did he come to faith?

N. Sokolov

Having gone through the path of a man who went through the years of the First World War as a tsarist officer in the tsarist army, receiving two orders there, rising to the rank of lieutenant, he at that time was a man, as he said, an unbeliever, at one time he left the church, since it there was... spiritual life was formal at that time. And wanting to serve his homeland more, as he believed, he joined the Communist Party of the All-Union Communist Party of Belarus and became an active ally of those leaders communist party who were at that time, I’ll just tell you a phrase that one of his friends, in quotes “best” friends, was Leon Trotsky, if this word speaks to anyone...

K. Matsan

Yes, good friend.

N. Sokolov

Therefore, this is what he prayed for when in his old age, he was already 90 years old, he remembered this terrible, terrible thing, he said, this dirt, this terrible bloody time. And so he fought on the fronts of the Red Army against... he fought in Yekaterinburg, he was the commissar of the Yekaterinburg Military District, and it’s surprising that his brother Vladimir fought in the White Army, just like that.

K. Matsan

Well, yes, that’s how the revolution divided families, brother against brother.

N. Sokolov

And being a commissar, he did not know what would happen next, that is, his path was determined in a certain plan and suddenly everything turned upside down. In his posthumous notes, we discovered that on March 3, 1920, he had a dream in which he saw Christ walking from some dungeon and followed by his deceased uncle and sisters. And grandfather says, I saw him and for some reason bowed to him, Christ Him, Christ looked at me very carefully. My uncle walked so thoughtfully, but the sisters didn’t seem to see him, I tell them: “Christ is coming,” but they don’t see him - it’s a dream. But then I immediately wake up completely amazed, transformed and don’t understand what’s happening. I am a communist, a commissar, there is blood and dirt all around, there is a civil war and Christ is in front of me, I cannot understand what happened. And that day changed everything, he literally left the ranks of the Red Army, there were many other reasons, they came together one to one, he returned to Moscow, entered the Bauman Moscow Higher Technical School, from where he left and a year later left the All-Russian Communist Party of Belarus. And then there was a meeting with amazing person his life - Vladimir Filimonovich Martsinkovsky - is a Christian student circle founded in Moscow by Martsinkovsky. And there he first felt that he had become a Christian. This is the way of life. There’s a lot that can be said there, but it’s a whole big show.

K. Matsan

Of course, but still two more words, he is the author of a bestseller for his time - “The Modern Practice of Orthodox Piety.” It is usual that such a book could be written by a priest, bishop, or shepherd, but it is written by a layman. What is the phenomenon of this book?

N. Sokolov

It was also a mystery to me why my grandfather began to write this book, without being a theologian, as if with a theologian’s credentials. But, truly, all my life, as long as I remember him, starting in the 1950s, for about 40 years while he was alive. I remember him reading theological literature all the time. Because he himself was a Doctor of Science in Chemistry, he had more than 250 works in chemistry, he had the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner, state awards, there was a lot of things, the deputy director of the Mendeleev Institute - a lot... but nevertheless, it was always on the table there was, first of all, the Gospel and the Bible, which he read constantly and the holy fathers of the church, whom he not only read, but copied from there some phrases, expressions, from which this book “Modern Practice of Christian Piety” was later created, he called it to another, “The Path to Perfect Joy” or, the second title, “The Path to Building a Christian World of Contemplation.” He began writing his work in the late 1930s, he was given a blessing for this by the holy martyr Archpriest Sergius Mechev, whose spiritual child he was, he served on Maroseyka. Since then, he has been collecting this spiritual literature and has a rich library, which helped him write this work. After all, at that time it was very difficult to get any book on theology, on morality, on Christian life, and he had it, and he collected it all, and sometimes the chapters that were dedicated to children, raising children, spiritual life, he honed in on us - children. He sat us in a circle around him, and unobtrusively said: “So, after tea we don’t leave, we stay here,” everyone knew that for this moment grandfather had a magic box in his pocket containing monpensiers that were not for sale , but somewhere he got them, he sat us down and asked each child some kind of spiritual question related to or with gospel history, or with the history of an ascetic of piety, the history of Christian life, martyrs. And if we couldn’t, he himself told us, answered us, forced us to ask him questions. And when the question was successful, the box opened and the monpensier followed, of course, into the mouth of this or that child

K. Matsan

And if you didn’t know and the question was unsuccessful, it was still probably candy?

N. Sokolov

At the end, of course, there were sweets and that’s it, we all came...

K. Matsan

A talented teacher. One song says: “We are all alive as long as those who love us and who remember you and me are alive.” Today we remember Bishop Sergius of Novosibirsk, he died 15 years ago, but here you are talking and I have the feeling that he is alive, that he is here, that he never left. What is the most important thing, maybe one thing you learned and maybe are still learning from your younger brother?

N. Sokolov

I can say this is deep faith and love for people. This is the most important thing that he had and every person should have, because if we don’t love people, then how can we love God? Therefore, the ruler showed with his life that he was ready to lay down his life for his friends and truly, his life was a feat, a feat of a man who until the end of his life thought not about himself, but about others. Literally on the day of his death, in a few hours he wanted to baptize one person who owed him... he was preparing for this, everything was ready at home, but God judged otherwise. Therefore, today I thank everyone who remembers the prayerfully unforgettable dear archpastor Bishop Sergius of Novosibirsk and Berdsk and thank you for your prayers, for your memory. And I believe, like you, that Vladyka is listening to our program with us. He may be correcting me in some ways, but I can’t say what. I was sincere and I want to say thank you to all of you, thank you!

K. Matsan

And we say thank you, dear Father Nikolai, for taking the time to come to us today and it’s very interesting, very, I would even say textured, with stories and personal experience, which is always very valuable, they told us about your childhood and about your brother Bishop Sergius of Novosibirsk and Berdsk. Let us remind you that our guest today at “Bright Evening” was Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery, dean of the missionary faculty of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University, candidate of theology, professor, confessor of the Russian Olympic team. Thank you very much again for the conversation.

N. Sokolov

Once again, thanks for everything! The bishop died on the day of Saints Sergius and Bacchus - this is the day when Venerable Sergius birthday boy.

K. Matsan

Well, such a story could not help but end symbolically.

N. Sokolov

Yes thank you!

K. Matsan

Thank you for the conversation, Konstantin Matsan was in the studio - “Bright Evening” on Radio Vera. Thank you for your attention, see you again!

Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov is a man of difficult fate. Born and raised in the circle of followers of the tradition of his father Alexy Mechev, from childhood he met many remarkable figures of the Soviet Christian underground who visited his grandfather Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov. Today Father Nikolai— rector of the church in the name of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi under the State Tretyakov Gallery and confessor of the Russian Olympic team.

— Father Nikolai, your family has a very rich history. Your grandfather, Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov, is the author of wonderful spiritual works. Your family history described inbook by mother Natalia Sokolova"Under the shelter of the Almighty."..

— My mother Natalia Nikolaevna wrote a book after the death of my father, Archpriest Vladimir Sokolov, who served in one parish in Moscow for almost 45 years.

— Do you remember your grandfather? Did he influence the formation of your worldview and life guidelines?

— On my father’s side, all my ancestors, including my father, grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, are persons of clergy. This is a tradition that dates back to the beginning of the 18th century. Of these, I only remember my father and my grandfather from photographs. Grandfather was repressed and executed in the 30s, so I only know him a little.

As for my grandfather Nikolai Evgrafovich Pestov, my maternal grandfather, this is the man who actually raised me. This Christian, and I called him exactly that, because for many today he is an example of a Christian in our difficult, vain, worldly existence, showed in his life an amazing combination and successful embodiment of the path of a Christian in the world. After all, he observed those moral and ethical rules of a godly life that are observed by both monastics and ordinary people living a pious Christian life.

His path led through a very turbulent era. He was born in the 19th century, and died when he was 90 years old, having lived for almost a century, survived two revolutions, two world wars, and experienced imprisonment, repression, and dismissal from work. At the same time, he achieved, in a certain sense, amazing results in the scientific field. Nikolai Evgrafovich was a professor, Doctor of Chemical Sciences, and headed the department at many chemical universities, including Mendeleev University. He devoted his entire life, and especially the last 25 years, to writing theological works. This is already the last period of his life.

The entire biography of Nikolai Evgrafovich is presented in a book published today. Grandfather was born in Nizhny Novgorod. Having walked the path young man from real school to admission to MSTU named after N. Bauman (then it was educational institution was called the Imperial Technical School), he became an atheist. After all, at that time many books were distributed that were directed against Christ and Christianity, and my grandfather did not have a clear religious education, laid down in childhood by his parents. The family observed holidays: Easter, Christmas, but no one ever read the Bible, Holy Bible haven't studied it. Therefore, it was all external. And when some atheistic works fell into his hands, he lost faith, although he was a man of good, pure roots.

Grandfather did not become a traveler who, while traveling, easily moves through life, but, on the contrary, acted according to the convictions that were in his heart. Therefore, when the First began World War, he left the Imperial higher school and went to the front as a volunteer cadet, where he rose to the rank of lieutenant. And already in the rank of lieutenant, the revolution found him. After this, Nikolai Evgrafovich, like many, left the army and went to Nizhny Novgorod, where he joined the ranks of the Communist Party and worked in various systems, in particular, in the Cheka, in various positions.

— How did the turn in Nikolai Evgrafovich’s worldview occur?

— This happened when he held the post of military commissar of the Priural Military District. This was already at the end of the civil war. And one night, March 3, he saw a vision in a dream - Christ appeared to him. He completely did not understand where he, a commissar who was fighting against the White Army and Kolchak (and at that time everything around was covered in blood and dirt), suddenly got such a pure, clear vision. Why Christ? Why does He come towards him and look at him? And my grandfather said: “This look of Christ turned my whole soul upside down.” He didn’t remember what happened to him then. “I woke up,” recalls Nikolai Evgrafovich, “and I felt that something had happened in my life. I don’t know what.”

Life went on. Grandfather continued to serve in the army, but then there was some kind of personal breakdown, a crack in his personal life - his first wife, who fought with him on the fronts of the First World War, left. And he leaves for Moscow, leaves the army and, apparently, under the influence of this dream and the events associated with it, leaves the party. He understands that he can no longer remain in the party. And then, after spending some time in the capital, he meets an amazing person - Vladimir Martsinkovsky, who organized a Christian student circle in Moscow. And then one autumn, grandfather went to the Polytechnic Museum and heard a lecture about Christ. And from that moment on, grandfather recalls, he never parted with the Gospel. His life took a complete turn towards Christianity.

And then the Lord Himself led him through this life. He met my grandmother, Zoya Veniaminovna, a vocational school student. They got married, children were born, among them my mother, Natalya Nikolaevna. Together they went through a very difficult, difficult life. In the 20-30s they were repressed, but miraculously survived. My grandmother was in prison, my grandfather was also arrested, and then released. But still scientific works they were brilliant in chemistry. And, occupying leading positions, he was drawn, willy-nilly, into the political struggle of that time. But my grandfather showed strength of character, courage and did not speak out against those who were then innocently sentenced to repression. For this, he was fired from everywhere, and just before the Second World War, in 1940, he was left virtually without work. And then the war began. And since there were few personnel left, he was miraculously not arrested or shot - apparently, only the war prevented this. He expected arrest every day! Today, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow... Because everyone was under threat. And, even more so, he did not sign any denunciations and did not speak out against those who were considered “enemies of the people.”

This is how the war disrupted all plans, Nikolai Evgrafovich was again called to scientific work, headed a number of areas, including military direction at the Department of Chemistry. And I, born after the war, found him a professor, Doctor of Science, awarded the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner of Labor, many other government awards and holding very high positions in scientific academies and laboratories related to chemical production.

— Did your grandfather tell you about the repressions? Was this kept silent in the family?

“You know, you can’t tell a child much.” When it was already possible, they told it. I remember those times, around the 50s, when Khrushchev’s “thaw” began and people who had served time in the 30s were returning from the camps, then were arrested a second time after the war, received another sentence, and now they are just in the 55s. In 1957 they were released. Many of them came to our family, since it was famous in Moscow religious circles. Grandfather at one time was a parishioner of the temple where Father Sergius Mechev served, who was the son of Father Alexy Mechev, a Moscow elder, now canonized, and even at one time was the headman of this temple. The temple was closed, all the Mechevites were exiled, scattered and exterminated, but my grandfather’s family survived. People knew our pious family, where liturgies were even celebrated in secret, and came to us. A lot of people came - ragged, dirty, hungry, without a single tooth (all were knocked out during torture and interrogation) ... Then these people became major figures Soviet science- doctors, honored workers of science, professors of various fields, from art to mathematics. They talked about repressions, about Stalin's camps, long before Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipelago came out. All this was not hidden from us. It was, of course, difficult to fully understand the whole tragedy of our people, because literally all peoples suffered, from the western regions to the eastern, from Crimea to the North. Almost no family was left untouched by repression.

And so, already in those years, grandfather began activities to distribute literature. Using his own funds, without taking anything from anyone, he spent all of his income - salary, bonuses - on distributing spiritual literature. He reprinted the holy fathers, he himself published true stories about the wanderings of people in camps and villages, and he tried to present all this without political overtones. And the Lord helped him. His activities in distributing spiritual literature extended from Moscow to the very outskirts. They transported literature to the Far East, the Caucasus, and Grozny. There was a woman who sent books to all the republics: Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. There were “points” in the north - in Estonia, St. Petersburg - and in other regions. But grandfather was the center, so everything came to us. People who have now become famous archpastors also came.

—What a rare opportunity: to have known many wonderful Christian figures since childhood!

- By the grace of God! Since childhood, from the age of 10-12, I already remembered well those who came to us. Firstly, these were people associated with church life: the late Metropolitan Pitirim (Nechaev), many professors of the Moscow Theological Academy, people associated with the Mechevo community circle, the late professor Father Gleb Kaleda, who founded our Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University (PSTGU) and many, many others. Now it’s impossible to remember everyone: there are dozens of names. But it was they who, coming to our house at that time, brought the light of Christian truth, love and peace. And at that time I did not hear from any of the repressed people any complaints about their fate, blasphemy against the Soviet regime, or anything like that! Disfigured, with their lives crippled, they thanked God for everything He sent them!

On the veneration of the new martyrs

— Father Nikolai, why do you think the experience of the new martyrs and, in general, the appeal to the heritage of the new martyrs is so little in demand today in our Church? Thus, the veneration of the blessed and holy fools, for example, Blessed Matrona, is much more popular. Crowds of people queue for hours to venerate her relics. And at the same time, in the Sretensky Monastery near the relics of the Hieromartyr Hilarion (Troitsky) it is completely empty.

“It seems to me that the question here is that Blessed Matrona lived in the core of the human mass. And during her lifetime people went to see her and knew her. Indeed, this is a saint who responds to human demands, living with their concerns both in this life and in the future.

—But why are the new martyrs not in demand?

“The fact is that many people don’t even know about them. Imagine that even students entering PSTGU are not aware of this. I ask the applicant: “Where is the tomb of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon?” They don't even know this! What can we say about Bishop Hilarion (Trinity) or other new martyrs. Recently there was a case - I asked applicants from Simferopol: “Do you know Vladika Luka?” “We know,” they answer. Well, thank God! This one is theirs, they know theirs. This is a beloved saint. And those coming from other regions do not even suspect the existence of such a saint. But how can you pray to those you don’t know? In addition, the feat of the new martyrs was mostly invisible: they were secretly shot and buried unknown. Therefore, they are most often honored locally.

— In that case, do you think the Church needs to do something to draw people’s attention to the life and deeds of modern saints?

— Our Church does this. Firstly, there are days of honor Russian new martyrs. Especially the day when Moscow and Moscow region priests, as well as visitors from other regions, gather at the Butovo training ground together with His Holiness the Patriarch. These are also separate holidays dedicated to the new martyrs and confessors of Russia. By the way, I recently returned from China. There are martyrs there too. But the people themselves in China are very strict about religious beliefs, especially the Orthodox, and do not tolerate any Chinese being called a saint. When we presented the icon of the Chinese New Martyrs, they removed it several times, they did not want to see it. I asked: “These are your saints, relatives, why such an attitude?” And I received the answer: “There are no and cannot be saints in China.” And we have saints, but people simply don’t know them. This is apparently a task for the next generations.

About today's trials

— Father Nikolai, after your story about the 50s, about the activities of Nikolai Evgrafovich, I would like to ask a question: when was there greater inner burning of the spirit - in those days or now?

- It’s difficult to answer for everyone, I can only say from the point of view of the shepherd of today. As a priest, people come to me for confession and open their hearts, and I see that the Lord always - both then and today - leads those who turn to Him. But there was more burning, I think, then. Because in those days it was associated with a moment of some kind of overcoming oneself and trials through repression and persecution. If it was discovered that you were a Christian, that you went to church or performed some religious rituals, then you were simply kicked out of work, as happened with Nikolai Evgrafovich. When he turned 70, he was called to the institute, where he conducted his main scientific activity, and said: “Nikolai Evgrafovich, the students saw you in the church. How will you react to this? To which he answered them: “I don’t hide it, I’ve been going to church all my life. I am a believer." “In that case,” they answered him, “your lifestyle is not compatible with the image of a Soviet teacher.” And before that, he was compatible for 50 years! “Well,” said the grandfather, “it’s up to you.” And with just an order, a single stroke of the pen, without any thanks, he was fired from his job “for retirement.” And he said: “I always thank God for this day, because the Lord extended my life several decades so that I could engage in theological works.” After retiring from scientific work, he devoted himself entirely to writing his dissertation “Paths to Perfect Joy or the Experience of Building a Christian Worldview,” which today is published under a slightly different title.

- That is, in this way, providentially evil turns to good consequences. How do you feel about the fact that communists now declare themselves such ardent supporters and defenders of Orthodoxy?

- It's just a caricature. Because if you profess communist ideals, you should know that they are based on non-recognition of God. Therefore, how can you support the Church without recognizing the One Who is served in the Church?

— In Ukraine, for example, even some clergy tried to run for parliament or local government elections on the lists of the Communist Party.

- In response, I will give an incident from my life. During the Brezhnev period, when Khrushchev was removed, I was about 17 years old, and one close person, a woman, said the following phrase to me: “You know, Kolenka, if the communists had not persecuted the Church, I would probably have been the first communist.” Because the ideals are correct - freedom, equality, brotherhood and happiness of peoples. But behind this lies the acquisition of material wealth. If behind these ideals there is also faith in God’s providence, in the future life, recognition of Christ as Savior and Lord, faith in the Gospel, that’s one thing. If this is rejected, persecuted, then everything turns out the other way around.

- But if this exists, then this is no longer communism, but Christian democracy.

- Absolutely right.

Contemporary church singing

— Father Nikolai, you serve in the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, which is next to the Tretyakov Gallery, and you pray before Vladimir icon Mother of God. Surely the creative intelligentsia comes to your temple. In addition, you have a conservatory education, and in your church, as far as I know, a wonderful choir sings. How would you rate the state of church art and singing? What should you pay attention to in churches?

— I will only talk about Moscow, where I serve. Today there is a lot of diversity in our churches. In some of them, by the will of the rector or headman, for example, they adhere to very strict limits: they do not provide funds for the choir, they are limited to two or three singers, in some places they only like znamenny singing, in others they completely turn off the lights and serve in complete darkness. This is, strictly speaking, a personal attitude. And there are a number of churches that observe the traditions of the Synodal period. After all, the synodal period of the Russian Orthodox Church absorbs many amazing creative upsurges and discoveries that occurred, say, in the field of liturgics. This is, for example, the writing of the liturgy of P. Tchaikovsky, the all-night vigil of S. Rachmaninov. During this period, the treasury of church singing was replenished by the work of such composers as P. Turchaninov, A. Lvov. The choir of our church adheres to the same tradition.

I would like to wish that today’s church singing is, first of all, prayerful and understandable to people, regardless of what tradition the choir adheres to. Here’s what’s sad: it happens that when a large, good choir is singing, you simply can’t understand the words. It’s not clear what they’re singing about! A beautiful melody, beautiful harmony, but a non-church person will have to listen to the singing for a very long time in order to understand anything. They also go to the other extreme, when in churches everything is read out, everything is chanted, but in a patter: the main thing is that everything is done. This is also not good, nothing is clear: who reads, what is read? In a number of churches, only znamenny singing is practiced, and it happens that in the chant “Like the Cherubim” only the initial “i” is sung for about five minutes.

I once went into one of the Moscow churches and felt as if I was on Mount Athos. Everyone there sang in Greek. I understood what part of the service was being performed, but I did not understand the words. And then I realized that a person who comes to our churches for the first time, where they read and sing in Church Slavonic, but in such a way that you can’t understand the words, feels about the same. Only he doesn’t know the structure of the service yet! Therefore, today, first of all, we need catechesis of the population, catechesis in the broadest sense, including the publication of liturgical texts for the people. A good example in this regard is the experience of Catholic and Protestant communities. Upon entering the church, you can receive the text of the service and a note with information about which psalms will be sung at which services today. During the service, you open the text and know what is being sung now and what will happen next. This is a very good tradition. This has not yet taken root in our churches. In some churches, in particular, texts of prayer chants are distributed. It is very nice! People can, seeing the text of the prayer service, pray along with the choir. I would also like to wish you the right approach and prayerful mood. Because all the music performed by the choir in the church is prayer.

Confessor of the Olympic team

— You also have an unusual ministry: you are the confessor of the Olympic team of the Russian Federation, you accompanied the team at the last Olympics in China. You have already touched upon the issue of the situation with religion in China. Were you the only priest among the Olympians, or did clergy also come with teams from other countries?

- Thanks for the question. If we are talking about Orthodox priests, then there were none. At least I didn't see them.

- And Christians in general?

— There were Catholic priests. According to the status of the Olympic village, the games are supposed to be accompanied by spiritual nourishment. For this purpose, a chapel is being installed in the Olympic village, where the main Christian and general religious denominations should be represented. In particular, several Christian denominations were represented in Beijing. Unfortunately, I was the only one representing the Orthodox. Neither the Greeks, nor the Serbs, nor the Bulgarians, nor the Romanians, nor the Georgians included a single priest in their delegations, although at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens there were 15 priests, 2 archimandrites, a bishop and a metropolitan. Unfortunately, I was alone in China. Then Father Dionysius, our Orthodox priest from Hong Kong, joined me.

— Father Dionisy Pozdnyaev?

- Yes, Pozdnyaev, absolutely right. We performed divine services together and prayed. There was also a Catholic priest, who was Chinese, and a Protestant priest, it seems, from Germany. Then, Jews and Muslims were presented - I saw a rabbi and a mullah. And, of course, Buddhists - several monks.

— What was the spiritual nourishment of the Orthodox participants in the Olympics?

— First of all, in prayer for the team. We started praying for her back in Moscow. Every morning in the Olympic village we held a prayer service for those athletes who could come. Although more often it was not athletes who came, but coaches.

— Were these prayer services popular?

— They were known, but few people came, since during the Olympics everyone has a very strict daily routine. The Olympic Village opened at eight in the morning, and we began prayer services at half past eight. Only those who were not involved in training or competitions could come. Most often, someone came alone and carried a pile of notes from his teammates on the national team. In addition to the daily prayer services, once, by the grace of God, Father Dionysius and I served a liturgy, at which representatives of the Olympic Committee received communion. But mostly people came to the chapel throughout the day: light candles, submit notes.

Once, at the request and blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, we served a memorial service for all those who died during the Russian-Georgian war. And after the funeral service, even Georgian athletes came to me for a blessing.

- Father Nikolai, how, in your opinion, do the Olympic Games - rivalry, competition - relate to the Christian worldview? Indeed, in the Orthodox community there is different opinions. It is known that Father Alexander Schmemann was very fond of the Olympic Games. The Apostle Paul set an example for Christians of ancient athletes running on a list, among whom one received a reward. Others take a more strict approach to this. What would you say as a direct witness?

— I personally talked with athletes, in particular with several people who received gold medals. As a rule, people do not see their merit in sports achievements and their medals. This is very correct! They see the merit of those who raised them, the merit of many thousands of people who root for them and pray for them, and simply the providence of God in their lives. Everyone understands perfectly well that it is impossible to be an athlete all your life. This is a small period of life during which you completely devote yourself to this service. Behind latest games I have not met a single athlete who approached me who was indifferent to religion and God. They all have faith. And therefore, the attitude towards games as such, I believe, should be the kindest and most positive from the point of view of Christian ethics and spiritual life. After all, games call for peace. And so, at the moment when the war began ( in Georgia - ed.), the question arose: should I interrupt the games? Because if the Georgians leave the games, then the competition will no longer be full-fledged.

— Did the question arise about the exclusion of the Russian team from the list of teams participating in the Olympics?

- I got up. If the Georgians had left, the entire Olympic structure could have collapsed. But, by the grace of God, this did not happen. The athletes are sensible people, they found strength in themselves and remained a united Olympic family until the end of the games. And the Georgian team got good results - they won two gold medals. And we, by the grace of God, came in third place. The Olympic Games show what a person is capable of in his life. After all, with the Fall we lost much of what was given to the first people. A sport life sometimes it opens those horizons that, perhaps, were accessible to the first sinless person, shows that everything was under his control, as Saint Seraphim of Sarov said. Today we see in games a manifestation of the good will of peoples, good feelings and the sincere faith of a Christian. I asked some athletes: “How did you come to Olympic Games? And here is one, I can’t name him now, let him say his name himself, but I will say that his sport is high jumping ( track and field athlete Andrey Silnov - ed.), answered me: “Before going to the competition, my mother crossed me and said: “Go and take communion.” And he came to his church and partook of the holy mysteries of Christ. And now, you see an amazing result - victory, gold. Other guys have similar stories. Here are the results of the games.

However, there is also something here that contradicts spiritual life. Yes, if we spend our entire lives just jumping and running without thinking about the consequences, then there is nothing good about it. But if we do not take credit for what we have done, we do not become proud, but, on the contrary, we use all the funds we receive for good deeds, then this is the act of a Christian. One athlete asked: “Can I donate the proceeds to the church?” Certainly! Is it bad? God bless!

— Did you manage to look a little beyond the Olympic events, to see China itself as such? And if so, how would you rate its missionary potential? Doesn’t Father Andrei Kuraev talk too often about the need to urgently learn Chinese?

- Yes, by the grace of God, I managed to watch it. And there is potential in this country. Despite all the harshness in their attitude towards religion, the Chinese have a very great interest in religious life. These are people who today are deprived of a full spiritual life. It is forbidden to go to the temple! One of the achievements of this Olympics was the great event that for the first time in fifty years it was allowed to serve an Orthodox church. Divine Liturgy in the center of Beijing. For this we were allocated Catholic cathedral, His Holiness the Patriarch gave the antimension, and we served the liturgy in the center of Beijing. And everyone who came here was very happy. But there was one problem: not a single Chinese was allowed to attend the liturgy. All the Chinese remained behind the cordons of a kind of vigilantes. If one of them wanted to enter the temple, he was stopped: “This is not the place for you today.” Like this! Therefore, it is necessary to support the religious impulse in the hearts of people who strive for truth and goodness. Many these days saw a priest and a divine service for the first time. We served prayer services openly, but people were afraid to come in. And of course, if you have the opportunity to learn Chinese, you should do it. China has a very difficult political and religious situation; there have been no Orthodox life. There is an official Catholic Church there, which is sort of recognized by the Chinese authorities. There are a few Protestants. Buddhists feel completely free.

— Can you clarify: were they forbidden to go only to the Orthodox Church or to the Catholic Church too?

- Only to the Orthodox. They weren't banned from going to Catholic. They were afraid of Orthodox influence. And the Catholic Church has two active cathedrals in the center of Beijing.

—What is the basis for this fear of Orthodox influence?

— It is officially believed that Russian Orthodoxy is finished in China. A point has been made. And the authorities are afraid of its revival. Now it is very difficult to obtain permission to open Orthodox church at the embassy: ours is there former church, which is currently being restored. China needs missionaries. But missionary work in this country comes with the possibility of suffering for the faith, in the full sense of the word. If it is discovered that you are a missionary, then at best you will be expelled from China. If you are a Chinese citizen, then you face re-education in the camps. I was told about such cases that happened in our days.

- Thus, our conversation, starting with the Soviet camps, came full circle, and we approached the Chinese camps. Father Nikolai, what would you advise today's readers of this interview, who live in countries where they are not currently imprisoned for faith in Christ or missionary work, in order to gain real, genuine freedom of spirit, which, no matter how amazing it may be, many found in Soviet years specifically in the camps?

- First of all, always remember that the Lord is with us. As it is written: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” And see God’s providence in everything. It is no coincidence that we are here, but our ancestors, with their blood, won us the opportunity today to live freely, to confess Christ the Savior, to honor the holy saints, Mother of God. And we often forget what great happiness we have! And of course, strengthen your prayers.

Interviewed by priest Andrei Dudchenko

Orthodoxy in Ukraine

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