| F |
EW figures in history have been so misunderstood and maligned as the Tsar-Martyr
Nicholas II, the last emperor of Orthodox Holy Russia. The modern "Western"
mind tends to view history in a strictly political way. But with an Orthodox
world view, history must be seen as the unfolding of the story of man's redemption
through the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, His death on the cross for
our sakes, and His Holy Resurrection. The rising and falling of nations, the
development of culture—in short, all of history—can only be correctly
analyzed in this context. With the murder of Tsar Nicholas, the Byzantine
form of government, which places Christ at its head, ended, ushering in the
present age of lawlessness, apostasy and confusion. His was a government in
the tradition begun sixteen centuries earlier by St. Constantine the Great.
That such an unthinkable tragedy as the Russian Revolution could take place
attests to the truth of the scriptural warning that "because iniquity
shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold" (Matthew 24:12). This
pious Christian emperor was surrounded by people, even among his own relatives,
whose self-centeredness and petty worldliness had obscured the love of God
in their hearts to the point that they failed to unite around their sovereign
in his time of need. They thereby cleared the way for the revolutionary element—the
enemies of God—to despoil the Holy Russian Empire and place in its stead
a satanocracy whose aim was the annihilation of the remembrance of God from
the face of the earth.
Much has been written through the years about the tragedy
of the Royal Martyrs—some well-meaning, some disappointingly critical,
some outright slanderous—but almost none from the viewpoint of the Orthodox
Christian "measuring stick." We are presenting this short Life in
an attempt to provide that viewpoint, and to encourage Orthodox believers
to turn to Tsar-Martyr Nicholas and his family in prayer for their intercession
before the throne of God.
1. BIRTH AND EARLY LIFE
Tsar-Martyr Nicholas was born in 1868 in
St. Petersburg on May 6, the day upon which the Holy Church celebrates the
memory of St. Job the Long-Suffering. And how prophetic this turned out to
be—for Nicholas was destined to follow the example of this great Old
Testament Saint both in circumstance and in faith. Just as the Lord allowed
the Patriarch Job to suffer many things, trying him in the fire of calamity
to test his faith, so was Nicholas tried and tempted, but he too never yielded
and remained above all a man of God. His parents were the then-Tsarevich (heir)
Alexander Alexandrovich and Grand Duchess Marie Feodorovna. They were a good
strong couple whose relationship was without quarreling or dissension.
Alexander was a firm and uncomplicated man who feared God
and become one of Russia's great Tsars, though his reign was short (1881-1894).
Nicholas' mother, formerly Princess Dagmar of Denmark, was a loving and supportive
wife and mother who accepted her adopted faith, Holy Orthodoxy, into her soul
and along with Alexander transmitted it to her children, building their house
upon a rock. "And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently
upon hat house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock"
(Luke 6:48).
On March 13, 1881, when Nicholas was only thirteen years
of age, a tragic event occurred which shook the sensitive soul of the youth.
This was the assassination of his beloved grandfather, Emperor Alexander II,
the "Tsar-Liberator," who was responsible for freeing the serfs
in Russia. On a Petersburg street, in broad daylight, a bomb was thrown which
injured some of the guards but left the Tsar unhurt. With disregard for personal
safety, he left his carriage and was attending to the injured when a second
bomb was thrown, fatally wounding him and many others. He was rushed to the
Winter Palace where he died in the presence of his grief-stricken family.
Later, on the spot of the murder, there was build a magnificent church, Christ
the Saviour "Upon the Blood."
The activity of hateful revolutionaries was to plague Nicholas
and his family throughout their lives. In 1888, while Tsar Alexander III and
his family were traveling towards Kharkov, the imperial train was rocked by
two explosions and derailed. Only the level-headedness and great physical
strength of the Tsar kept the Royal Family from being killed.
Despite such difficult circumstances, Nicholas, now the
Tsarevich, was being formed in all the Christian virtues. During his youth
his kindness to others and selflessness impressed all who met him. While living
frugally himself, he gave freely to those less fortunate. It is known that
he often anonymously gave scholarships and other gifts through the agency
of one of his childhood teachers.
The Tsarevich, at a young age, entered into military service,
which formed him in manhood through discipline and responsibility. It was
during this period, on a visit to Japan, that he was attacked by a Japanese
policeman with a sword and injured. As the heir of the Russian throne, he
could have easily had the policeman punished severely. But he chose instead
to ignore the incident, preferring to turn the other cheek and forgive. This
wound, to his head, was to cause occasional pain throughout the rest of his
life. Concerning his time of formation it can be said, as was said of our
Lord whom the young Nicholas strove to imitate, that he "increased
in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man" (Luke 2:52).
2. THE DEATH OF TSAR ALEXANDER III, THE
MARRIAGE OF NICHOLAS AND HIS CORONATION
By 1894 the health of Nicholas' father, Tsar
Alexander, began to fail, and on October 20 he reposed under the loving hand
of his confessor, St. John of Kronstadt. By this time Nicholas was already
engaged to Princess Alix of Hesse (Germany); and they were married one month
after Alexander's repose. The Princess had been born and raised as a Lutheran
and was very devoted to her faith, but she needed to convert to Orthodoxy
in order to become Empress of the Russian nation. Being a highly principled
woman, she did not take this as a light matter and at first resisted. But
God in His loving-kindness did not abandon her; and soon, after a number of
meetings with an Orthodox archpriest who expounded to her the Faith, she gladly
accepted baptism. Her conversion was anything but nominal. The depth of her
embrace of Orthodoxy and the strength which it gave to her family was to be
a spiritual reproach to the modern Russian nobility and to the "intelligentsia"
who, listening to the spirit of antichrist, had gradually become ashamed of
their faith, considering it something "outdated."
The official coronation took place in May of 1896. The
young Tsar and Tsaritsa spent the majority of their time in seclusion and
intense prayer, preparing themselves for the awesome responsibility of governing,
with God's help, the largest nation in the world, which was the protector
of the Orthodox Faith. The coronation of a tsar is no mere secular affair
of state. As Bishop Nektary Kontzevitch has written, "The Tsar was and
is anointed by God. This mystery is performed by the Church during the coronation,
and the Anointed of God enters the Royal Doors into the altar, goes to the
altar table and receives the Holy Mysteries as does the priest, with the Body
and Blood taken separately. Thus the Holy Church emphasizes the great spiritual
significance of the podvig (struggle) of ruling as a monarch, equaling
this to the holy sacrament of the priesthood… He (the Tsar) is the sacramental
image, the carrier of the special power of the Grace of the Holy Spirit."1
As Tsar Nicholas was crowned, he knelt and prayed aloud:
"Lord God of our fathers, and King of Kings, Who created all things by
Thy word, and by Thy wisdom has made man, that he should walk uprightly and
rule righteously over Thy world; Thou hast chosen me as Tsar and judge over
Thy people. I acknowledge Thine unsearchable purpose towards me, and bow in
thankfulness before Thy Majesty. Do Thou, my Lord and Governor, fit me for
the work to which Thou has sent me; teach me and guide me in this great service.
May there be with me the wisdom which belongs to Thy throne; send it from
Thy Holy Heaven, that I may know what is well-pleasing in Thy sight, and what
is right according to Thy commandment. May my heart be in Thine hand, to accomplish
all that is to the profit of the people committed to my charge, and to Thy
glory, that so in the day of Thy Judgment I may give Thee account of my stewardship
without blame; through the grace and mercy of Thy Son, Who was once crucified
for us, to Whom be all honor and glory with Thee and the Holy Spirit, the
Giver of Life, for ever and ever. Amen."
So it was that the new Tsar in all things placed God first,
and therein was his treasure laid, "where neither moth nor rust doth
corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal" (Matthew
6:20).
3. THE REIGN OF TSAR NICHOLAS
The Royal couple settled into their life
of responsibility and took the lead in setting an example of godliness and
true pastoral care for their enormous flock. Nowhere was this more evident
than in their love and care for the Holy Orthodox Church. They gave much money
and support to monasteries and to the building of churches. The Tsar considered
it his sacred duty to restore to Russia her ancient traditional culture, which
had been abandoned by many of the "educated" class in favor of modern
Western styles. He encouraged the building of churches in the ancient architectural
styles, rather than in the styles favored since the disastrous "reforms"
of Tsar Peter I and Empress Catherine II. He commissioned the painting of
large numbers of icons in the Byzantine and Old Russian styles, adorning many
churches with them. In the words of Archpriest Michael Polsky, "In the
person of the Emperor Nicholas II the believers had the best and most worthy
representative of the Church, truly 'The Most Devout' as he was referred to
in church services. He was a true patron of the Church, and a solicitor of
all its blessings.
"During the reign of Nicholas II, the Church reached
its fullest development and power. The number of churches increased by more
than 10,000. There were 57,000 churches by the end of the period. The number
of monasteries increased by 250, bringing their total up to 1025. Ancient
churches were renovated. The Emperor himself took part in the laying of the
first cornerstones and the consecration of many churches. He donated large
sums for their construction from his private income. He visited churches and
monasteries in all parts of the country, (venerating) their saints. The Emperor
stressed the importance of educating the peasant children within the framework
of church and parish and, as a result, the number of parish schools grew to
37,000."2
Christian literature flourished at this time. Excellent
journals were published, such as "Soul-Profiting Read," "Soul-Profiting
Converser," "Wanderer," "The Rudder," "Russian
Monk," and the ever-popular "Russian Pilgrim." The Russian
people were surrounded by spiritual nourishment as never before.
There was no tsar in whose reign more saints were glorified
(canonized) than that of Nicholas. His love of Orthodoxy and the Church's
holy ones knew no bounds; and he himself often pressured the Holy Synod to
speedily accord fitting reverence to many of God's saints. Among those glorified
during his reign were: St. Theodosius of Chernigov (glorified in 1896), St.
Isidore Yurievsky (1897), St. Euphrosyne of Polotsk (1909), St. Anna of Kashin
(1910), St. Germogen (Hermogenes) of Moscow (1913), St. Pitrim of Tambov (1914),
St. John (Maximovitch) of Tobolsk (1916), St. Paul of Tobolsk (1917) and St.
Sophrony of Irkutsk (1918). In addition, one of the most revered of Russia's
saints, Seraphim of Sarov, was glorified by the Church during the reign of
this pious Tsar in 1903, at his insistence. At this time Nicholas was made
aware of the future apostasy and downfall of the Russian nation and church
through a prophetic letter written by St. Seraphim himself. The Saint had,
shortly before his death in 1833, written this letter and addressed it "to
the Tsar in whose reign I shall be glorified." He then gave it to Elena
Motovilov, the young wife of N. I. Motovilov, who is now well-known for recording
his conversation with the Saint about he acquisition of the Holy Spirit. She
kept that letter for seventy years and gave it to the Tsar at the glorification
ceremony. While the exact contents are today unknown, it is nevertheless certain
that St. Seraphim prepared Nicholas for the coming tribulations. Furthermore,
on the return trip from Sarov, the Royal Family visited St. Seraphim's Diveyevo
Convent where Blessed Pasha (Parasceva) the Fool-for-Christ spoke to them
for several hours; it is said that she foretold to them their own martyrdom
as well as that of Holy Russia. They left her cell pale and shaken but resolute—they
would accept with faith whatever God had prepared for them, esteeming the
incorruptible crown of martyrdom higher than corruptible earthly crowns; electing
to accept the cup of suffering offered to them by God Almighty, that by drinking
of it they might offer themselves up as a sacrifice for their people.
The young Tsar, as a fervent lover of the Beatitudes of
Christ, strove to emulate them all. He was truly meek, sought after righteousness,
and was acknowledged by all who knew him as pure-hearted. As desirous of peace,
he made an unprecedented suggestion to the world early in his reign—that
all nations come together and meet in order to cut down on their military
forces and submit to general arbitration on international disputes. The result
of his proposal, the Hague Peace Conference, was convened on May 18, 1899,
and served as the precedent for the later League of Nations and United Nations.
As a giver of mercy he was unparalleled in Russian history—pardoning
criminals, even revolutionaries; giving away vast quantities of his own land
to alleviate the plight of the peasants; and countless other charitable deeds
of which only God knows. And, of course, few mourned as he did, and few were
persecuted unjustly as he was.
There soon began an endless succession of tragedies, even
a small number of which would have broken a lesser man. But for the Tsar they
only served to further refine the nobility of his soul. First there was the
disastrous war with Japan of 1904-1905 during which most of the Russian fleet
was lost. At this time also, sensing public disappointment with the defeat,
the nihilistic enemies of Christ seized the moment and instigated mutinies,
strikes, riots and assassinations. Here was a whole class of society who were,
in the words of St. Paul, "…lovers of their own selves, boasters,
proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural
affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despiser of
those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded…" (II Timothy 3:2-4).
The last great prophet of Holy Russia, St. John of Kronstadt, who clearly
foresaw the approaching catastrophe, repeatedly exhorted his countrymen to
repent and return to their former piety and support their God-anointed ruler
or face untold disaster, both here and in the world to come.
The year 1905 was to be a "rehearsal" for the
bloody events which took place twelve years later. Encouraged by the traitors
Lenin and Trotsky, a campaign of disorders was begun all over the Empire.
Many high government officials were murdered in the streets, among whom, in
1905 was Nicholas' cousin, the Grand Duke Sergei, husband of the Empress'
sister, Elizabeth. This good woman later visited the assassin of her husband
in the spirit of forgiveness and tried to induce him to repentance, for the
salvation of his soul. She went on to enter monastic life, founding a sisterhood
for charitable works, the convent of Sts. Martha and Mary. The nun Elizabeth
was finally to share the same martyric end as the Tsar and his family.
In the midst of these troubles, in the summer of 1904,
an event which should have been the cause of great joy was turned into tragedy
when it was learned that the long-awaited newborn heir, Alexis, was born with
the dread disease hemophilia, which was to afflict him horribly during the
course of his all too short life. What pain of heart this caused the gentle
ruler can scarcely be imagined. Yet this child, brought up in the love of
Christ under the wise guidance of his parents, lived in imitation of the Saviour
and manfully endured his terrible sufferings in such a way that all who knew
him were amazed. His agonies purified his young soul, and he was, at the time
of his martyrdom, a "sacrificial lamb" for his people.
After the disturbances of 1905-06, Russia entered into
a period of great prosperity and moral renewal. With the wise and dynamic
assistance of his Prime Minister, Pyotr Stolypin, Nicholas led the nation
through a time of such growth—agricultural, economic, educational and
industrial—that had the first World War not occurred, Russia would have
undoubtedly become the leading nation of the world. But Satan, the enemy of
our salvation, could not countenance such a threat to his plans. In 1911,
during the performance of an opera in Kiev, at which the Tsar was also present,
Stolypin was assassinated. Before he fell to the ground, he turned to his
sovereign in the balcony and blessing him with the sign of the Cross, said,
"May God save him!"
Then, in 1914, Russia was forced to enter World War I.
The peace-loving Tsar had no desire to go to war, but aggression against Orthodox
Serbia by Germany left him no other honorable choice. It was from this war
that neither the Royal Family nor Holy Russia herself would ever return.
As soon as the war broke out, the Empress and the four
Grand Duchesses (Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia) became nurses (Sisters
of Mercy); and hospitals were opened at Tsarskoe Selo, near the family's residence,
where wounded soldiers were brought. They worked long hours, diligently and
tirelessly following the commandment of Christ to visit the sick, since "inasmuch
as ye have done it unto the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto
Me" (Matthew 25:30). The Tsar spent much of his time at army headquarters,
personally overseeing the war effort and visiting the troops to encourage
them.
At first the war went well, and the country was united
heart, soul and body in patriotic fervor behind their Tsar. But soon, due
to poor communications, low-level mismanagement and subversive treachery,
problems arose in supplying the armed forces with ammunition and food; the
Russian army began to suffer reversals and many men were lost. It was at this
crucial time that the Bolsheviks, fueled by German money, went to work spreading
discord among the troops and at home. The enemies of Holy Russia knew well
that the greatest unifying factors in Russia were love of God and love for
the Tsar, the visible symbol of the Orthodox Empire. By cutting off the head,
they hoped to render the body powerless through fragmentation, thereby making
it malleable to their evil intents. Through infiltration of the press, slanderous
stories against the Royal Family were printed. The foreign press, hungry for
scandal, printed unverified stories, many of which are still believed to this
day. Even the Empress was accused of disloyalty and treason—she who was
above reproach in hr heartfelt love for her adopted land. Conspiracies began
to take shape among court officials, the Duma (Parliament), the generals and
the nobility, even including relatives of the Tsar. This, at a time when unity
was more than ever needed. As Nicholas himself sadly wrote in his diary at
that time: "All around me I see treason, cowardice and deceit."
At this point, many people began to accuse the Tsar of
being "cut off" and aloof. But the Tsar and his family, surrounded
by elements foreign to the spiritual atmosphere of their home life, by the
political machinations of selfish people and by whole segments of society
grown cold towards God, could not be blamed for safeguarding their pearl of
great price. As Archimandrite Constantine of Jordanville has written: "Need
one be amazed that the Tsar shut himself off? … This was the chaste guarding
of his spiritual personality from an alienated out world, because not only
the Tsar's co-workers, but even his kinsmen turned out to be alien to him."3
It should also be noted that the Emperor and Empress were very trusting and
believed deeply in the essential goodness of humanity, created in the image
and likeness of God. What grief it must have caused them when they finally
realized into what depths of spiritual depravity many of their subjects had
fallen!
4. ABDICATION AND IMPRISONMENT
Finally, on March 3, 1917, isolated from
his family, bereft of friends, Nicholas II, the Anointed Tsar of the last
Christian Empire, abdicated the throne, pushed to this decision against his
better judgment by his faithless advisors. But, he wanted to know, was this
wanted by all the people? Yes, they assured him. It was not true, however,
since at that time almost all of Russia outside of St. Petersburg was still
behind him. But he did no know this. And so, after an entire night spent in
prayer, he laid aside the crown for what he felt was the good of his country.
Later, seeing the result of this decision, he was to regret it to his dying
day. At the time he wrote: "I am ready to give up both throne and life
if I should become a hindrance to the happiness of the homeland." And;
"There is no sacrifice that I would not make for the real benefit of
Russia and for her salvation." Though he no longer bore the responsibility
of government, his first thoughts were for his nation, as he said to one of
his officers, "Just to think that, now I am Tsar no longer, they won't
even let me fight for my country."
On this very day, a miracle took place that attested to
God's love for Russia. In the village of Kolomskoe, near Moscow, a woman had
a dream in which she was told to locate a particular icon of the Mother of
God. After much searching, it was discovered in the basement of the main church
of this village, almost black with age and soot. When it was carefully cleaned,
there appeared the "Reigning Icon" of the Theotokos, with the Mother
of God depicted seated on a throne, her countenance both stern and sorrowful,
the blessing Christ-Child in her lap. This icon soon thereafter miraculously
renewed itself and the robe of the Theotokos was seen to be blood red, something
which had been foretold also in the dream. Services were written to this icon
and many people made the pilgrimage to venerate it. Healings, both of physical
and mental infirmities began to take place before it. As it is well-known
that the Tsar had a particularly strong reverence for the Mother of God, it
is believed by many that it was his fervent prayer to Her that caused Her
to make Her mercy to the Russian people known through this miracle; that She
would henceforth reign over Holy Russia interceding for the faithful (This
icon was preserved and has been recently returned to the Kolomskoe church).
The Church reacted to Nicholas' abdication by providing
the country with its missing father-figure. For the first time since the reign
of Peter I (who had abolished the patriarchate) the Synod, owing to this time
of great need, elevated Archbishop Tikhon, a courageous confessor against
the godless tyranny that was soon to descend upon Russia, to the patriarchal
throne.
After the abdication, Nicholas made his way back to his
family in Petersburg, all of whom were under house arrest like common criminals,
and found all of his children ill. Alexis, Olga, and Maria had the measles
and were bedridden with high fevers; Tatiana and Anastasia both had painful
ear abscesses, which left Tatiana temporarily deaf. Again the image of Job
overshadowed him—all had been taken from him except his dear ones and
his indomitable faith. He did not curse his fate, accepting all as the will
of God, and did not even murmur against his captors who treated him with disrespect
and even contempt. What greater example could the Russian people have asked
for, or what nobler man could have led them as their king? Thus Christ's lament
over the chosen people was fulfilled in Holy Russia as well: "How often
would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens
under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate"
(Matthew 23:37-38).
The Royal Family was moved to Tobolsk in Siberia in August
of 1917, as the provisional government began to collapse amidst Bolshevik
ravings. Many Russians everywhere behaved as though in a trance, against their
better
|
FROM A LETTER OF GRAND DUCHESS OLGA "… Father asks to have it passed on to all who have
remained loyal Tobolsk, 1918
(From Letters of the Imperial Family from Confinement, 1974.) |
5. MARTYRDOM
In April of 1918, Tsar Nicholas and his family
and faithful servants were transferred to Ekaterinburg by the now victorious
Bolsheviks. There they spent three hellish months of psychological torture—and
yet they all retained their inward calm and state of prayer, so that not a
small number of their tormentors were softened by these valiant Christian
strugglers. As Pierre Gilliard, the French tutor to the Tsarevich Alexis recalled:
"The courage of the prisoners was sustained in a remarkable way by religion.
They had kept that wonderful faith which at Tobolsk had been the admiration
of their entourage and which had given them such strength, such serenity in
suffering. They were already almost entirely detached from this world The
Tsaritsa and Grand Duchesses could often be heard singing religious airs,
which affected their guards in spite of themselves.
"Gradually these guards were humanized by contact
with their prisoners. They were astonished at their simplicity, attracted
by their gentleness, subdued by their serene dignity, and soon found themselves
dominated by those whom they thought they held in their power. The drunken
Avdiev found himself disarmed by such greatness of soul; he grew conscious
of his own infamy. The early ferocity of these men was succeeded by profound
pity."5 When this would happen, the inhuman Bolsheviks would
replace the guards who had been so touched with crueler and more animalistic
ones.
Seldom being allowed to go to church, they nevertheless
nourished their souls with home prayers and greatly rejoiced at every opportunity
to receive the Divine Sacraments. Three days before their martyrdom, in the
very house in which they were imprisoned, there took place the last church
service of their suffering lives. As the officiating priest, Fr. John Storozhev,
related: "'It appeared to me that the Emperor, and all his daughters
too, were very tired. During such a service it is customary to read a prayer
for the deceased. For some reason, the Deacon began to sing it, and I joined
him… As soon as we started to sing, we heard the Imperial Family behind
us drop to their knees' (as is done during funeral services)… Thus they
prepared themselves without suspecting it, for their own death—in accepting
the funeral viaticum. Contrary to their custom none of the family sang during
the service, and upon leaving the house the clergymen expressed the opinion
that they 'appeared different'—as if something had happened to them."6
Finally, after midnight on July 4, 1918, the entire family,
with their doctor and two faithful servants, was brought to the basement of
the house of their confinement under the pretext of moving them once again.
There they were brutally and mercilessly murdered, the children as well as
the adults, under the cover of darkness—for "men loved darkness
rather than light, because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19). The Tsar
was shot as he stood forward to defend his family. Tsaritsa Alexandra was
able to make the sign of the Cross before shoo, too, fell. Amid screams, the
children were shot, clubbed and bayoneted, in an act of indescribably brutality.
There is evidence that the murders were ritualistic; strange symbols were
found on the walls of the room where the crime took place. Thus ended the
life of the gentle, Christ-like Tsar, as a sacrifice for the Orthodox Faith
and for the Russian people, both of whom he so fervently loved and believed
in.
This crime was the beginning of an inhuman bloodbath which
left tens of millions dead, the Church in the grip of atheists and Holy Russia
entirely unrecognizable. Now it is up to us to pray to the twice-crowned Tsar-Martyr
Nicholas and his family to intercede before the throne of God that the sins
of the Orthodox might be forgiven. And may our Lord Jesus Christ grant us
the strength of faith to follow the example of these true servants of His.
6. MIRACLES
God's acceptance of the pure sacrifice of the Tsar-Martyr was not long in manifesting itself through miraculous visions and intercessions. The first of these presented here actually occurred in 1917, the year before the Tsar's martyrdom, and was experienced by Metropolitan Makary of Moscow:
|
The Dream of Metropolitan Makary I saw a field. The
Saviour was walking along a path. I went after Him, affirming, "Lord
I am following you!" And He, turning tome, replied: "Follow
Me!" Finally we approached an immense arch adorned with stars.
At the threshold of the arch the Saviour turned to me and said again:
"Follow Me!" And He went into a wondrous garden, and I remained
at the threshold and awoke. |
The next two miracles took place in Serbia
in the 1920's:
| The Serbian people loved the Russian
Tsar with all their heart. On March 30, 1930, there was published in the
Serbian newspapers a telegram stating that the Orthodox inhabitants of
the city of Leskovats in Serbia had appealed to the Synod of the Serbian
Orthodox Church with a request to raise the question of the canonization
of the late Russian Emperor Nicholas II, who was not only a most humane
and purehearted ruler of the Russian people, but who also died with the
glory of a martyr's death. Already in 1925 there had appeared in the Serbian press an account of what happened to an elderly Serbian lady who had lost two sons in the war and whose third son, who had disappeared without a trace, she considered also to have been killed. Once, after fervently praying for all who had been killed in the war, the poor mother fell asleep and saw in a dream the Emperor Nicholas II, who told her that her son was alive and was in Russia, where he had fought together with his two dead brothers. "You will not die"—said the Russian Tsar—"until you see your son." Soon after this dream, the old woman received news that her son was alive, and within a few months after this she joyously embraced him alive and well when he returned from Russia. On August 11, 1927, in the newspapers of Belgrade, there appeared a notice under the headline, "Face of Emperor Nicholas II in the Monastery of St. Naum on Lake Ochrid." It read as follows: "The Russian painter S. F. Kolesnikov was invited to paint the new church in the ancient Serbian Monastery of St. Naum, being given complete creative freedom in adorning the interior dome and walls. While completing this, the artist thought of painting on the walls of the church the faces of fifteen saints, to be placed in fifteen ovals. Fourteen faces were painted immediately, but the place for the fifteenth long remained empty, since some kind of inexplicable feeling compelled Kolesnikov to wait for a while. Once at dusk he entered the church. Below, it was dark, and only the dome was cut through with the rays of the setting sun. As Kolesnikov himself related later, at this moment there was an enchanting play of light and shadows in the church, and all around seem unearthly and singular. At this moment the artist saw that the empty oval which he left unfinished had become animated and from it, as from a frame, looked down the sorrowful face of Emperor Nicholas II. Struck by the miraculous apparition of the martyred Russian Tsar, the artist stood for a time as if rooted to the spot, seized by a kind of paralysis. Then, as he himself describes, under the influence of a prayerful impulse, he leaned the ladder against the oval, and without making with charcoal the outline of the wondrous face, with brushes alone he made the layout. He could not sleep the whole night, and, hardly had the first daylight appeared than he went to the church and in the first morning rays of the sun was already sitting high on the ladder, working with such a fever as he had never known. As he himself writes: "I painted without a photograph. In the past I several times saw the late Emperor close up, while giving him explanations at exhibitions. His image imprinted itself in my memory."8 |
The following vision was seen in 1971 by
a certain Basil, a spiritual son of Archbishop Leonty of Chile of blessed
memory, who had reposed that same year, at the time when the church was discussing
the glorification of the New Martyrs of Russia:
| At the beginning of this dream I saw
myself in a huge temple not built by human hands. On the right kliros
for quite a distance was a huge crowd of people dressed in white; I could
not make out their faces. Around me there was a quiet, heartrending singing,
although I couldn't see anyone there. Then both sides of the altar swung
open and from them began to come out holy hierarchs and monks, fully vested
in gentle blue vestments: among them I could recognize only St. Nicholas
the Wonderworker of Myra in Lycia. From the door near me, among the passing
bishops, Vladika Leonty passed by and stopped near me, saying: "You,
brother Basil, were called and you did come. You know we have a
great celebration here today!" "What kind of celebration, Vladika?"
I asked. And he continued: "The heavenly glorification of the Tsar-Martyr!"
And having bowed to me slightly, he continued on his way to the kathedra
(in the center of the church). Finally, the holy doors of the altar opened, and out of them came the Tsar-Martyr, looking just as he appears on his official portraits during the first years of his reign—that is, very young. He was dressed in the Tsar's royal mantle, as during his coronation, and he wore the emperor's crown on his head. In his hands he held a large cross and on his pale face I noticed a slight wound, either from a bullet or some blow. He passed by me at an even pace, descended the step of the ambo, and went into the center of the church. As he neared the kathedra, the singing increased in volume, and when his foot touched the step of the kathedra, it became so loud that it seemed that a whole world of people had gathered and were singing with one breath.9 |
Then, there is this recent occurrence in
1988, also giving evidence of the sanctity of the Tsar-Martyr. In Switzerland,
an Orthodox believer, Claude Lopez, wrote concerning a commemorative coin
of the Tsar. He, having great veneration for the New Martyrs, especially the
Tsar, had placed the coin in his icon corner, along with an icon of the Royal
Martyr with a halo. One day he noticed moisture on the coin and discovered
that it was exuding a quantity of fragrant myrrh, which had flowed into the
box in which it was kept. This obvious miracle continued until October of
1988, and resumed briefly during Autumn of 1989.
Finally, there is this testimony of a man from Spain:
|
I am 48 years old.
I am Spanish-born from Barcelona. My name is Mateo Gratacós Vendrell.
When the things I am going to mention happened, I was not a member of
the Orthodox Church. Now, through God's mercy, I've become a member
(August 1989). During four years I had had a pain in the loins and in
the belly on the right side. I consulted various doctors and went through
the usual routine (x-rays, ecography, etc., and analyses).
All the results were negative. It was deduced that my pain was psychosomatic (psychological). To calm me down, I was treated through acupuncture and laser, by in vain; my pain was still there. I was desperate. One night as I was experiencing again acute pain, I started reading. To mark my page I had put a portrait of Tsar Nicholas (his icon, in fact). I looked at the icon and he (the Tsar) looked at me. I started asking him to pray to Christ our Lord; for having suffered during the last days of his life, he would have compassion. I accepted the pain hat I had but I could not accept the fact that I was "mad," because I knew that my pains were real. On the next day, after that very night, as I was on my way to a job, a client who is also a friend of mine asked how I was and upon knowing that I was still suffering, he asked whether I had consulted Dr. P. I answered no. He told me to go and see him on his behalf. I went there on the next day. When he examined me he said that there was nothing psychosomatic; I had an invisible (on the radio) kidney stone. I underwent a "natural treatment" and the stone went out naturally after one month. During this period of time I prayed to the Lord to remember me because of my love for the Tsar. I promised to Tsar Nicholas that I would distribute and make known his icon as a "moleben" for the mercy he showed to the poor man who suffered for four years and saw his problem solved in less than a month through his intercession. THANK YOU SAINT NICHOLAS II, I AM VERY THANKFUL. Mateo Gratacós Vendrell
5 Sept., 1989 Barcelona, Spain |
7. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN RUSSIA
Throughout the long, torturous years of Soviet
persecution of the Church and her believers there has always existed a faithful
group that has quietly preserved the memory of the Royal Martyrs as a "leaven"
of national conscience. This so irked the communist authorities that in 1977,
during the Brezhnev era, the Ipatiev house, where the Royal Family was martyred
and which had become a place of pilgrimage, was blown up and the site razed.
Then, an astounding discovery was made: in 1979, writer and former detective
Geli Ryabov located, after extensive research, the holy relics of Tsar Nicholas
and his co-sufferers. Due to fear of the government, however, Ryabov waited
until 1989 to reveal this sacred find to the public (See Ryabov interview,
The Orthodox Word, Vol. 26, No. 4, p. 226).
Gradually the Russian conscience has begun to awaken. Memorial
services to the Tsar have been held across the country; one of which, at the
Donskoy Monastery, was even televised (There was present an icon of the Tsar-Martyr
as well as a pre-revolutionary imperial flag). Voices in the Russian press
have openly brought up the question of "national gilt" for the death
of their Tsar, which they say must somehow, through acts of repentance, be
expiated.
This year, in Leningrad, there has been an exhibition of
more than 240 photographs of the Romanovs in a state history museum. Organized
by the Radonezh Spiritual Enlightenment Society, it is described as intending
to promote spiritual rebirth. Tens of thousands of people have enthusiastically
attended. At the time, a privately published 30-page pamphlet on the Martyrs
quickly sold out 200,000 copies. Thousands of people attending the exhibition
have also signed a petition calling for the city to be returned to its original
name of St. Petersburg.
Finally, in an amazing development, two cherished sites
have been returned to believers. Patriarch Alexis II of Moscow recently re-consecrated
the Uspensky (Dormition) Cathedral in the Kremlin, which for four centuries
was used for the coronation of tsars and the enthronement of patriarchs. He
stated that this marked the revival of Russia's spiritual and moral ideals.
And, miraculously, the site of the Ipatiev house in Ekaterinburg has been
given to the Church as a memorial shrine, in response to a multitude of letters
demanding this. As Tass, the Soviet news agency has reported, "So far
there is only a wooden cross on the spot, but according to Russian Orthodox
Church tradition it should be replaced with a chapel or a church."
8. EPILOGUE
The significance of the life and martyrdom
of Tsar Nicholas II for our times can hardly be overestimated. As the last
anointed Orthodox monarch in history, his abdication and death signaled the
end of the Byzantine Era of Christianity. For the first time since St. Constantine
the Great followed the sign of the Life-Giving Cross and led his subjects
to the saving grace of Orthodoxy, Christendom is left without an earthly symbol
and protector. The faithful were driven back into the catacombs—in a
sense, entering a second time into the womb which gave them birth, there to
be spiritually purified and "born again." "The Holy Apostle
Paul in the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, writes: 'The mystery of iniquity
is already in action but is not fulfilled up to today, until there be taken
away from the midst he who restraineth' (II Thessalonians 2:7). Our spiritual
writer, Bishop Theophan the Recluse, and others explain that by this' he who
restraineth' one can understand the power of the Tsar."10
The Orthodox Tsar was "the bearer of the consciousness that the Supreme
authority should be obedient go God, should receive sanctification and strength
from Him to follow God's commandments. He was a living incarnation of faith
in the Divine Providence that works in the destinies of nations and peoples
and directs Rulers faithful to God into good and useful actions… The
battle against him was closely bound up with the battle against God and faith."11
Looking back, and at the present, we can clearly see that
since the removal of "he who restraineth" the power of Satan is
no longer held back. We stand as horrified witnesses to the unleashing of
evil which has occurred since 1917 in all aspects of life. The world is rushing
to embrace and enthrone antichrist in a way that was not possible before.
Instead of the visible manifestation of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic
Church on earth, we see warring "jurisdictions" outstripping each
other in worldliness, division over the "calendar question" (since
1923), and the selling out of the soul of the Church through "Sergianism"
and the ecumenical movement.
In the world today examples of godlessness abound—nuclear
weapons, dangerous genetics experiments, pollution, wars, famines and terrible
new diseases In the realm of morality, shameless excesses are committed. Millions
of unborn children are slaughtered each year. Perversity has become an accepted
"choice." Drug use is killing off young people, who are listening
to so-called music with satanic overtones. And one could go on.
This has happened because people have lost Jesus Christ
in their hearts. There is no Christian nation, no right-believing ruler to
set the tone. Divided and scattered, we are easy prey for the fallen spirit
of the world.
However, our merciful Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ will,
in His lovingkindness, grant forgiveness to those with a repentant heart.
The enormous sin of regicide still lies heavily upon the consciences of all
Orthodox Christians and will not be lifted until the crime is both recognized
and deeply repented of by the whole of Christendom, which allowed it. Now
in our own time, this is beginning to happen. In the Soviet Union today, over
three-fourths of all newly born children are being baptized (compared to less
than one-fourth in the U.S.). Belief in communism has completely crumbled
and a spiritual revival of enormous magnitude is occurring Russia at this
moment. It is certainly not insignificant that the name and image of Tsar-Martyr
Nicholas is intimately bound up with this rebirth. Many saints and righteous
ones have predicted that there would be a last flowering of true Christianity
in Russia and over the whole world before the end of time. Holy Russia has
yet a word to say to the world, and the prayers of intercession of Tsar-Martyr
Nicholas will play no small part in this. Although we have no earthly Christian
emperor to lead us, care for us and protect us, we do have the divinely-crowned
Martyr to intercede for us before the throne of the Heavenly King.
HOLY TSAR-MARTYR NICHOLAS,
PRAY TO GOD FOR US!
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
Andreyev, Ivan, Russia's Catacomb Saints,
Platina, California, St. Herman of Alaska Press, 1982.
Buxhoeveden, Baroness Sophie, The Life and Tragedy
of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, London and New York, Longmans, Green
& Co., 1918.
Gilliard, Pierre, Thirteen Years at the Russian Court,
London, Hutchnson & Co.
Graham, Stephen, Russia in Division.
— — — — Undiscovered Russia,
London, John Lane Co.
Letters of the Tsaritsa to the Tsar, 1914-1916,
New York, McBride & Co., 1924.
Lyons, Marvin, Nicholas II, The Last Tsar, New
York, St. Martin's Press, 1974.
Nicholas II: Letters of the Tsar to the Tsaritsa,
ed. by C.E. Vulliamy, tr. by A. L. Hynes, Gordon Press, New York, 1976.
Orthodox Life, periodical, Jordanville, New York,
articles in the following issues: 1951, No. 1; 1955, Nos. 5,6; 1966, No.
4; 1968, No. 4; 1981, Nos. 4, 5; 1982, Nos. 2, 4, 5; 1988, No. 4.
Orthodox Word, The, periodical, Platina, California,
articles in the following issues: 1968, No. 4; 1974, Nos. 3, 4; 1983, No.
6; 1988, Nos. 5, 6.
Polsky, Archpriest Michael, The New Martyrs of Russia,
Montreal, Brotherhood of St. Job of Pochaev Press, 1972.
Trewin, J. C., House of Special Purpose, New York,
Stein & Day, 1975.
Vorres, Ian, The Last Grand Duchess, London, Hutchinson
& Co., 1964.
Vyrubova, Anna, Memories of the Russian Court,
New York, McMillan & Co., 1923.
Wilton, Robert, Last Days of the Romanovs, London,
Thorton Butterworth Ltd., 1920.
| back |
email
designers
|