Varlaam Chikoi's life. Venerable Varlaam Chikoi the Wonderworker

The prayer of the righteous-ved-ni-kov was preserved until time from the wrath of God, the Russian land. The saints of God appeared in different ways: some in the temple, some in the public monastery, some in the world, who walked his course in the world. Va-si-liyu Fe-do-to-vi-chu Na-de-zhi-nu God destined to be the os-no-va-te-lem of another ski-ta in the wilderness -sche forest, in the Chi-koi-mountains, almost at the very border with Mon-go-li.

Despite some strange circumstances in his life, which preceded the movement of deserted people. stavity, he acquired for himself not only the respect of the honorable citizens and high-ranking persons who knew him, but also loyalty to life -lay districts infected with races long before its appearance.

Va-si-liy, in other words Var-la-am, was born in 1774 in the family of Fe-do-ta and Ana-sta-siya (Yako-left-voy) On-de-zhi-nyh, in the village of Ma-re-si-ve, which is on Rud-ka, Lu-kya-nov-skogo district, Nizhe-rod-governor -nii. They came from the same place - from the fasting peasants of Peter Ivan-no-vi-cha Vo-ron-tso-va . In the early childhood years and later, the life of life was not preserved . It is only known that by the time he had married Daria Alek-se-e-voy, also from the serfs of the Vo-ron-tsovs . They didn’t have their own children, and they brought their si-rots to raise them, warming them with the warmth of their family ocha-ha. Gra-mo-te Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich you studied yourself. Subsequently, he wrote the ra-por-you of the church-ny-mi-te-ra-mi, according to the rules, and always wrote his name according to the church. kov-no-mu.

The family life of Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha did not last long. One day he disappeared, disappeared into nowhere, so that all the searches for him led nowhere. However, Mr. Raven, you reacted to this situation without any particular trepidation; soon the house calmed down, leaving Vasily's fate to God's Thought.

In 1811, Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich appeared as a prayer in the Ki-e-vo-Pecherskaya Lavra, but from the day His experience at the port led to the fact that he, like a bro-ga, was condemned to exile in Siberia. Later, when he was abbot, remembering his youth, he often called himself a bro.

Without-ro-pot-but-ko-ry-sya Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich his fate. No matter how much he wanted to stay in Ki-e-ve, he had a long way to go to Siberia. Upon arrival in Ir-kutsk, the first thing he did was go to the Voz-seni-skaya monastery, to the relics of St. In-no -ken-tiya. He didn’t stay in Irkutsk for long and a month later he continued his journey beyond Baikal, to the village of Ma-lo-ku-da-rinskoye Ur-lukskoy w-lo-sti, where was the pi-san in the s-le-nie.

At the place of his dvor-re-niya, the future movement-nik, as in Ir-kut-sk, lived in the same tion to a good life and removal from worldly temptations. And here he tried to take refuge under the canopy of temples so that he could unhindered his prayers and work. -gu. For this purpose, he went to the Ur-luk Bo-go-ro-di-tse-Kazan church, then to Verkh-ne-kud-rin-skaya Po-krovskaya, then to the Tro-its-kiy cathedral of the city of Tro-its-ko-sav-ska, and, on- finally, to the Vos-Kre-sen-skaya church of the Kyakh-tinskaya trading village. Throughout, he fulfilled his duties diligently and kindly, so that he was -chen kah-tin-ski-mi citizen-da-na-mi. In Kyakh-ta, the Lord sent him a spirit-of-the-know-no-go throughout the entire village of the holy father Ae-tiya Raz-so-hi -on, who blessed Va-si-lia to leave the world for the sake of labor for the glory of God in the wilderness-but- residence.

Chi-koi-skie mountains, where Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich decided to hang out, with his own ridges you look like you're from Athos, it's true, at that time this similarity was only external. Since the days of Hell, not a single creature in those places has heard the glory-of-words of Tria-according to God, but after an unknown hermit was pouring here, the deaf thickets were resounding incessantly with my song to Him.

Choosing the place of your bu-du-sche-go to move a remote corner of a dr-mu-whose tai-gi on the Ur-luk ridge of Chi-koi- mountains, seven versts from the village of Ur-luk and three from Gal-da-novki, Vasiliy Fe-do-to-vich first of all -there was a large wooden cross there, and in the middle of nowhere, he cut down a cell from it. Here began his thorny path to the spa, full of prayerful labors, te-forest cliffs, humility -go-go-thought.

Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich endured a lot on this path, he required a lot of mental and physical strength. so that you can live with the media through all your solitary life. Hunger and thirst, heat and cold, thoughts and thoughts were raised by the enemy of the spa-se-niya of the birth of Christ-an-sko-go on his poo-ti. More than once he approached him, trying to frighten him when he saw him, sending robbers to him, or even in the form of knowing-of-my-or-of-the-blah-of-the-same-la-te-lya tried to bla-s-thread him on-by-mi-na-ni -I-am about my former life, about my relatives, but all this was overcome by the hermit with the power of prayers and the blessings of Bo- live.

He lived for about five years in complete obscurity. Only occasionally did he visit the nearby Gal-da-nov-ku and Ur-luk for the communion of the Holy Ta-in of Christ. He usually stayed in the house of a local dia-co or in the houses of two good citizens. given: Ma-ka-ro-va and Luzh-ni-ko-va. He'll come, try to remain unnoticed, talk, come and come back again - into my desert. But soon rumors about him began to spread throughout the surrounding villages, and people flocked to him, hopefully hearing to shat from the pu-styn-ka na-zi-da-tel-noe word.

After several years of life, God granted Vasily Fedo-to-vi-cha the gift of words, and it was so penetrating that none of those who came left it unconsoled, but some remained -sya, so as not to leave him more. So a community arose, to which, in addition to the residents of the surrounding villages, people began to come from Kyakh- Why would people of all walks of life have anything to do with it, including rich citizens. After a short time, namely in 1826, the user-di-eat of the Kyakhta citizens in the desert was erected-well-that cha-sov-nya in the name of the holy Pro-ro and Forerunner John. According to the hundred-hours from the hour, there are nine cells (according to the number of villages) - five from one hundred and what are you doing with the other one. There was no saint in the desert, and that’s why Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich, as the most literate, read for the brethren there is a daily rule, Psalm, aka-fi-sty.

Soon, peaceful life would be empty. Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich Na-de-zhin, in spite of your unsatisfactory punishment for him - exile to Siberia, as before ne-mu was numbered in the ro-zys-ke, and now the po-li-tion was able to live with him without difficulty. The police officer himself came to arrest him. After a thorough search in the ski-tu Va-si-lia, Fe-do-to-vi-cha was taken to prison.

It was as if this news came like a thunderbolt from a clear sky for all his people. The Kyakhtin-skoe ku-pe-che-stvo did not remember his careless service to the meal; it was known that in the Chi-koi mountains he was hiding from the world solely for the purpose of sparing his soul, and citizen Kyah-you decide to go for Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha before the world’s su- dyey. According to them, his case was not re-examined by the diocesan authorities.

Na-de-zhin was invited to the Ir-kut-spiritual con-si-storium, and the Most Holy Mi-kha-il II (Bur-du -kov) himself tested the moral qualities and convictions of the desert. The arch-hi-herey did not find anything pre-su-di-tel-no-go in the form of thoughts of Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha, not in his opinion. Vice versa. The work that was being done on Christ’s land was, as it were, before us from above.

Pre-de-ly of the Chi-koi-mountains and beyond, basically on-se-la-li-bu-rya-you-tongue-not-ki, and the right-to-glorious Ur- Luk-skaya vol-sti lived together with the races of the populist and demonic sects. In such a situation, the need for missions was very acutely felt. This is what the Most Holy Mi-ha-il was concerned about. Having been fascinated by your high spirit and apostolic zeal, he has more than once turned to the Holy -puppy Si-nod with a request for mis-si-o-ner-skaya help, one-to-have-you-can-di-da-you would not Si-no-dom still be-tested in their abilities and blessings. And when the lord found out about the jealousy of Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha in his chosen field, he not only did not recover pro-ti-vi-l-xya his self-mo-chi-niyu, but it turned out to be a bloody-ness.

Be convinced of the blessings of Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha, ar-hi-bishop Mi-ha-il offered to live for him accept the “equal-angelic vision” - continue to serve Christ in the monastic rank. Established in a row, Va-si-liy Fe-do-to-vich gave the lord his own-hand-but-to-pi-san-noe pro- movement, and he pre-wrote on the Tro-its-ko-go Se-len-gin-sko-mon-on-sta-rya, hiero-mo-on- hu From-ra-i-lyu, to cut my hair in the mo-na-she-stvo, let-the-stink-but-live. October 5, 1828, after the all-night vigil in the monastery, during the reading of the hours, the basis - the tel of the sk-ta was shorn in a mo-na-khi with a name named Var-la-am, and the monastery was given by the will of the lord pi-sa-li to Tro-i-tse-Se-len-gin-sko-mu-na-sty-ryu. So the Lord hastens to arrange a good pro- cess for the salvation of those who live.

Even before the shorn of Va-si-lia Fe-do-to-vi-cha, releasing him from Ir-kut-sk, the lord of Mi-kha-il pre-pri-pri -took measures “to establish a ski-ta on a solid foundation.” They were from the right place in the Holy Si-nod, in which he wrote about the needs of the Trans-Baikal mission, ra -de-yu-shche about the conversion of the Bur-ryat and Mon-go-lovs into the right-glorious faith and about ve-di ras-kol-ni-kov.

The patience of “smi-ren-no-go Mi-ha-i-la” would have been possible in six years. With your greatest re-creation in the Irkutsk diocese there were several new demonic parish missions. about-nervity with you-de-le-no-em on their maintenance of funds from the treasury. In this decree there was a name for the Chi-koi desert.

Life in Chi-koi-skaya emptiness is not for-mi-ra-la in anticipation of the admin-ni-strat-tiv-no-go decision. How long have you worked for the glory of God? In the cha-soul, for which there were already a number of sacrifices to kyah-tin-tsa-mi, as before, chi-ta- there were ka-no-ny, aka-fi-sty, pra-vi-la. There was only one thing missing: there was still no saint here.

This continued until the spring of 1830. In March, the lord of Mi-ha-il called for his dedication in Ir-kutsk for Var-la-a-ma to the priesthood, and on March 22, Var-la-am was ordained in Ipo-di-a-ko-na and in sti-khar. Two days later in the Ir-kut-sky ca-fed-ral so-bo-re he was married to the hiero-di-a-ko-na, and on March 25, in Day of the Blessings of the Most Holy God, in Hiero-mo-na-ha.

But-in-the-position-of-the-hiero-mo-na-hu, according to the usual service, in the Chi-koi-skaya oblast-would- It’s okay to worry about the conversion of other faiths and the return of the lost races .

There was no church in the monastery at that time, and Father Var-la-a-mu still had to start building it, but -how the church was set up in the chapel. Its consecration took place under Rev. Iri-ney in 1831.

Father Var-la-am zealously supported the rite of divine service in the hermitage according to the statutes of the Church. A little later, when Hiero-monk Ar-ka-diy was sent to help him, the opportunity arose to visit the nearest to empty housing to correct the requirements, and the diligence with which he baptized the children helped him die. that ardent faith with which he served God and people, involuntarily opened hearts to him -the same for-kos-nev-shih in the race. This earned him a special position from the diocesan authorities. Ar-hi-bishop-skop Iri-ney ra-do-val-sya succeeded in the labors of father Var-la-a-ma and, expressing to him your ar-hi-pas-tyr- great goodness, wrote: “Blessings of God, for success in the affairs of your hearts.” but I am glad to see the softening of the hearts of the old-time-old-rites, that they are not only -why should we listen to you, but the Baptism of our children has already comforted you, your zealous children, by the fact that -se-yang-noe fell not on the stone and not on the path, but on the good earth. Lord, there is goodness in the world, and in the future, may you be able to solve the problem “There are only one hundred sheep, up to the One Heavenly King.”

Generously distributed the spiritual gifts that Father Var-la-am received from the Lord and addressed to the Lord -re people of different nations, different personal ranks. Were there among the converted and sent to Siberia the educated infidels, were there pagans, and also mu-sul-mane and the Jews. Frequently, a hundred conversions to the right-glorious faith with-the-leaders appeared to us over the baptism -we-mi. Pre-da-nie keeps the memory of one of these episodes.

In one of the closest to the pu-sty-ni ulu-sov lived a she-sti-de-xia-ti-two-year-old bu-ryat-ka Ku-bun She-bo-hi -Na, for several years now I have considered myself su-ma-gone. Having heard about the desert, about the Baptism of many people, she, secretly from her husband and children, ran there, but before ge be-la catch-ma. Despite the failure, in January 1831 she was subjected to another torture. Barefoot and half-dead, in the bitter frost, Ku-bun again ran from Ulu-sa and again was caught. But this time the peasants, having learned about her desire to go to the Chi-koi monastery, themselves brought her to Father Var-la-a-mu. Here she revealed to him the desire to become a Christian. Father Var-la-am did not rush, but tested her and, after a short announcement, baptized her with the name Ana-sta-sia. Immediately after the Baptism, she came to full sanity and completely healthy returned to her ulus.

Not without sorrow, Father Var-la-a-mu had to go through his career in the mis-si-o-ner-stva. From the priest Iri-ney from the Ir-kut department to the con-si-storium there were stings to “intervene” him in the affairs of the parish priests. The matter came to the point of being resolved in a con-si-station, where it was possible to find out where Father Var-la-am came from the holy ointment, which is required at Baptism, and by some right turns into the right vie ras-kol-ni-kov. The matter limited him, it was not clear that he received the world from the good-chin-no-go mo-na-sty-rey, and baptizes and converts foreigners and races to the right-of-glory according to the blessing of the ar-hi-pass-you rey: the holy ones Mi-ha-i-la and Iri-ney. Nevertheless, the spiritual con-si-sto-ry would have made a decision in the future without pre-re-solving -the decision of the diocesan ar-hi-priest to forbid him from performing the Ta-innment of Baptism, but only to fulfill the requirement -at the invitation of the parish priesthood.

The grievances against Father Var-la-a-ma did not end there. In February 1834, abbot Iz-ra arrived at the monastery from Tro-i-tse-Se-len-gin-sko-mon-sta-rya with a check -il. The Lord alone knows, for some reason, but the abbot only grew dark in his mind and thought of something like sec. It even came to the point of blasphemy. This temptation caused a lot of trouble for the epar-hi-al-no-mu-boss. The investigation has begun, and have you taken decisive measures to prevent the harmful consequences of this -ver-ki. Father Var-la-am himself lived through humiliation and insult from Abbot Iz-ra-i-la until a hundred years ago, but with the true smi-re-ni-y, I read everything in the new world beyond the city. Subsequently, these pressures turned out to the benefit of both the environment and him.

After the abbot of Iz-ra-il na-ru-shilted in the monastery in order and church regulations, the new Ir-kutsky the sacred Me-letiy turned into the Sacred Si-nod with a proposal about the change of the sta-tu-sa ski -ta. The scan-gave with the abbot turned out to be by the way, and soon the chief-pro-ku-ro-ra’s report was sent to his im-per-tor-sko-mu -What was the resolution on the resolution: “...to count the monastery established in the Verkh-ne-Udinsky district in Chi-koi-skih mountains, to a number of out-of-state mo-na-sta-rays.” In accordance with this principle, father Var-la-am was recognized with the rank of builder . The title is like no better way to define the de-la-lo-view of de-ya-tel-no-sti, which at that time was especially-ben-but with-environment That's what Father Var-la-am was saying.

As soon as the incident with Abbot Iz-ra-i-lem exhausted itself and in Chi-koi-sky it was now possible to be restored -sta-new-flax over-lying in a row (re-new-le-but-daily service, ra-pe-cha-ta-ty of the Tsars- gates), Father Var-la-am began re-building the only one in the temple. The funds for this were donated by the merchant of the first guild F.M. It's dumb. After the re-montage and renovation, the temple was re-consecrated to the glory of God Ma-te-ri and Her icon “Spo-ru- not a single sinner.” In addition, Father Var-la-a-mu would-have-to-start-drinking the construction of a new co-bor-but -th temple.

The period of drilling the construction of the monastery re-lived during the century at the Ir-kut-skaya federation re sacred Ni-la. The new Ir-Kutsk ruler, with a special favour, went to the Chi-koi ob-vi-li-te, which often -schal. On his first visit, he elevated Father Var-la-a-ma to the rank of abbot.

It would be fair to say that the monastery was the ruler’s favorite child. Having instructed Father Var-la-a-mu in the construction of the new temple, the Most Holy Nil himself helped him in the plan -drov-ke and or-ga-ni-za-tion of construction work, delved into all the little things. He spent three thousand rubles in the Holy Si-no-de for the money. Based on government money, donations could be made from private individuals.

In one of the issues of the Moscow News, there was a publication of a note about the creation of a building in Chi- in some mountains of another monastery with a call for sacrifices to the holy monastery. A lot of people responded to the request for help. City societies and private individuals, simple people and av-gu-stey individuals sacrificed for the day and things - whoever could. From the courtyard of his im-per-tor-greatness there was an ob-li-la under-not-on the icon of the Spa-si-te-lya, ne -re-given through the stats-sec-re-ta-rya from the go-su-da-ry-ni im-pe-ra-tri-tsy Alek-san-dra Fe-do-rov-ny. Without my opinion, there would be no Chi-koi-monastery and kyah-tin-ski-mi citizens. Someone Pa-led Fed-chen-ko sacrificed a gray-evil robe for the icon of God Ma-te-ri. Sta-ra-ni-ya-mi kyah-tin-skogo bo-ha-cha Ni-ko-laya Mat-ve-e-vi-cha Igum-no-va in stone the same with The temple was built in the name of the apo-sto-la and evan-ge-li-sta Matthew. The benefit is that it is possible to sacrifice in his favor not only money and church objects progress, but also land, construction to ensure the provision of brethren. So, the peasant of the Ku-pa-lei volost, Av-ra-amiy Oskol-kov, sacrificed a two-piece flour mill tsu with two am-ba-ra-mi. The generosity and abundance of goodness was created by the merchant of the first guild, Ivan An-dreevich Pa-khol-kov. His effort was to build fences, road staircases, walkways - for life -at-the-point, located on-the-top of a steep mountain, the detail is quite important. He was the one who talked about the construction of barnyards, barns, kitchens, new cells (old ones for the reason vet-ho-sti and “nebla-go-lep-no-sti” according to the race of the rulers. Before his death, he told his wife Anna An-dreevna to invest five-ten thousand in the Moscow treasury. a thousand rubles as-sig-na-tsi-ya-mi so that the price from this amount will be used annually for the benefit of Chi-koi-sko -th mo-na-sta-rya, in which he talked about himself.

In 1841, the cathedral church was already completely ready for consecration. This is how Abbot Var-la-am himself wrote to Vladyka Ni-lu about this: “God has mercy and va-shi-mi ar-hi-pas-tyr- ski-mi mo-lit-va-mi and with-so-bi-em good-ro-ho-y-da-te-lei, inside the holy temple of the holy Pro-ro -ka and the Lord's Lord John-at two pri-de-la, the Sorrowful God Ma-te-ri and the Holy Christ- va In-no-ken-tiya, they have already arrived in perfect use. Iko-no-sta-sys are placed, icons are placed in places, pre-tables, sacrificial-ven-ni-ki and ob-la-che-niya in the preparation -sti...” Everyone was waiting for the arrival of the ar-hi-episco-pa Ni-la for the consecration of the temple, but he could not be and wrote about it later . Var-la-a-mu: “Blessed is the Lord, that He helped you to complete the consecration of the temple. I pray that His name may be hallowed for you in the abode of Chi-koi-skaya.” Another year later, Father Var-la-a-mu again decided to consecrate another aisle in the name of the saint. go evan-ge-li-sta Mat-fey.

For abbot Var-la-am and about the sustenance of bread for the brethren. In the spiritual con-si-storium, he was chlo-po-tal about the ski-bread-bread-hot-noy and hay-but-mow-land, and when he turned to the Ur-Luk peasants with a request for a concession of land, they agreed to give the land -seven-de-six-six-ten. Subsequently, the government of you de-li-lo-sixty-five de-sia-tin of land.

The mover Var-la-am did not follow the de-la-mi economy and in the pro-po-ve-di on the field of Christ. Having been with the three-ba-mi in the houses of the old-ro-ry-ryad-tsev, Father Var-la-am for-e-valed them with a great av-to-ri-tet that served for the opening of single religious temples. From the day of his ascension to the Irkutsk cathedral, the Most Holy Nil was filled with special zeal in evangelization races and knowledge of foreigners.

Father Var-la-a-ma's successful mis-si-o-ner-de-f-a-mation ra-do-va-la him immeasurably. “Your opinion is about the one-faith (Ar-khan-gel-skaya) church,” he wrote to Abbot Var-la-a-mu, - makes me happy. Come on, kind old man, remember that the common sinner saves his soul and covers a lot sins. For the sake of God, there are no races, whether alone or with Father Simeon (the only saint of the faith) schen-nikom Ar-khan-gel-skaya church). I hope that your word will seek the good earth and will not bring the fruit of salvation to the lost.”

One of the unconditional signs of the trust of the old-rites to Father Var-la-a-m was that they were without ko-le-ba-niya from-the-right-of-their-children to the or-ga-ni-zo-van-noe in the Chi-koi-sky mo-na-sty-re school . Father Var-la-am himself taught them to read and read prayers. It would be difficult to imagine a more effective means for educating children of races in the spirit of the sub-line faith.

When you went into the past, you told Father Var-la-a-ma that he, enlightening for the lost, for-n-ma-et-sya “not his business, he set off with a p-lom-nothing trip along the Chi-koy river, along the banks of which in many races there are several races. This trip turned out to be very successful. According to the Ar-Khan-Gel Church, the construction of Nizh-ne-on-Rymskaya, also on condition, soon began. yah edi-no-ve-riya. “From-ta-i-va-nie” of non-mi-ri-my races pro-is-ho-di-lo in a step-pen way, but against the main ones go ar-gu-men-ta - it is impossible to have a spa-session without the Sacraments - it would be difficult for them to resist. They are about to agree with the need to accept a legal sacredness for the administration of the bo- government services based on old printed books.

Inspired by the successful pro-ve-di of Father Var-la-a-ma, the Most Holy Nile was used in The sacred Si-no-de funds for the construction of the unity of the Lower-on-Rim Church. Arch-hi-bishop-skop of Vo-lo-god-sky Iri-narch gave for the temple an ancient an-ti-mins, consecrated back in 1544. For the needs of the church, would you have sent old printed books: the breviary, the service book, the Lenten Trinity, some of which -the information about the shipment was called by the Most Holy Nile under the line's treasure and asked for abbot Var-la-a- Ma-to-ra-do-t-at-kho-zhan and sacred-to this pri-o-re-te-ni-em. The saint himself, the Metropolitan of Moscow, showed his sincere concern for the temple. Deeply feeling the pre-eminence of the race on Chi-koe, in 1842 he sent for the Lower-on-Rim-skaya Po-krov- skoy church ancient sacred so-sud-dy.

Strengthening the success of the promotion of united faith, Father Var-la-am turned his gaze to the neighboring parish. Here he found himself not alone in mis-si-o-not-rum, but with-work-with-no-one ar-hi-mand-ri-tu Da-ni-i-lu. Together they pro-po-ve-do-va-li in the Ku-na-lei-skaya, Tar-ba-ga-tai-skaya and Mu-khor-shi-bir-skaya vo-lo-s. Everywhere, in all the villages, where mis-si-o-ne-rys had time to be, I was happy to live a new movement towards a unified belief. So, for example, in Ku-na-lei and Kui-tun, the persistence of the race caused a lot of commotion. The villagers seemed to be divided into three parties. Some agreed to accept the priest on the condition that he would not be dependent on the diocesan chief. tva, others agreed to accept the same belief, and still others were stubborn.

The work of the mis-si-o-ne-rov was successful - the mission managed to establish two unified religious parishes: in the village Bi-chu-re Ku-na-lei-skoy vol-sti - from the Church of the Assumption of God Ma-te-ri, and in the village of Tar-ba-ga-tai - in honor of Saint Nikolai. Father Vasiliy Zna-mensky was sacred to no one in the Tar-ba-ga-tai church. His service in the Ni-ko-la-ev-skaya unified-faith-church attracted p-prayers from neighboring villages. le-niy. Often they lived with the neighboring Kha-ra-uz-sko-go and Khon-ho-loy-sko-go-s-le-niy asked him to serve with them in local chapels.

In total, during the mis-si-o-ner's labors, Father Var-la-a-mom raised up to five thousand souls and arranged f-several single-faith churches. In many ways, this is due to his personal life, simply his convictions. In 1845, he was nominated for citizenship by the Holy Cross with a golden cross on his pectoral.

In the same year, 1845, Elder Var-la-am felt an extreme loss of strength, but continued to work. In January of the next year, he still managed to make a trip through the villages of the Ur-luk parish, but this is more likely to say goodbye to the flock that they have gathered together under the control of the Lord. He returned to the monastery from the trip sick. On January 23, in the seventh and first year of his life, he gave up his spirit on the journey of the Saint Ta-i-na-mi yours in the hand of God in front of the Chi-koi brethren. From the point of view, his body was in line, but opposite the altar window on the south side near La Beau -zhi-ey Ma-te-ri. A brick monument with a cast-iron slab was subsequently made over the grave.

After the death of the pre-do-do-no-go Var-la-a-ma, in-chi-ta-te-te-whether his pa-me-ti began to be kru-pi-tsam so-bi-rat svi -details about his earthly life. Much of what was revealed to them had been hidden for some time and only now appeared to the world. So, from the pi-sem ma-tush-ki El-pi-di-for-ry, abbot of the Kazan-sko-go-mon-sta-rya in Ka-si-mo-ve Rya- Zan-gu-ber-nii, it became known that even in the time of wanderings around the saints of Russia, the future deserted monk Chi-koi- skiy met with the pre-reputable . In a letter to Father Var-la-a-mu dated January 15, 1830, she wrote: “... I had the happiness of seeing “Your father Se-ra-fi-ma... sends his blessings to you.”

In the highest degree of na-zi-da-tel-ny from-no-she-niia between the movements of the holy right-glorious church ! Knowing and keeping the blood-vein from the wise and prudent, they, being able to obtain the fruits of the Holy Spirit, in the simple infant faith, you have acquired the crown of unfading glory.

Until the end of his days, the venerable Var-la-am preserved his sincere love and deep understanding of the venerable dob-no-go Se-ra-fi-ma. In his cell for a long time there hung a life-time portrait of the pre-excellent Se-ra-fi-ma, a used oil-scrap on the ground -ste on behalf of ma-tush-ki El-pi-di-for-ry and sent by her to the Chi-koi-desert. The notes made on it above the pi-si. So, in the right corner there was a na-pi-sa-but: “Pu-stin-no-dweller, schema-monah Ser-fim, Heavenly forces under-ra- sorry, Sarov desert.” In the left corner there is a hundred: “and as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, having loved me ( ). And I impute all your mind, so that you may receive Christ ().” After the death of the elder, this portrait was held in the Niko-la-ev-skaya chapel of the Al-tai mission. Later, his traces disappeared.

There was also another holy Var-la-a-ma at the place of the So-Lovets miracle-creators Zo-si -we and Sav-va-tiya - blah-go-slo-ve-nie gu-men-nii El-pi-di-for-ry. With this icon she sent a letter, in which she wrote: “...this image is from that abode with their relics. I express to you my spiritual wish, that with the help of God and the prayers of these blessings, you will a hundred became famous as Lav-ra and the abode of the So-lovets-miracle-creators. Most likely, you remember how these God-pleasers had their initial arrangement of the abode, with difficulty and progress -tay-stvom to the State Duma. So I wish for you that your monastery will be arranged in the same way. Pro-si-those of these pleasers. They will help you. But most of all, may the will of God be with you, and may your heart rejoice in the Lord God, how - to you the blessing of Christ the Savior and with perfect health to succeed in spirituality heh spa-se-niya.”

Until the re-revolution in the country of no-God power, the memory of Elder Var-la-a-ma was opened. That. Blessed pa-lom-ki, having been in the Chi-koi abode and bowing along the move-gu-free-but- live Var-la-a-ma, could you see with your own eyes the iron ring that he put on himself during the time -I pray-we-moved, could-have-visited the old man’s cell, which he set up as his own -ka-mi, let's-drink-water from the source, about-that-you-are-next to her, -let's-drink-from-the-is- exactly the holiness of the pre-excellent Var-la-a-ma. Whoever stood near his cell, like the ancient movers, would be filled with the blessings of God. she left those places, rushing after the one thing on demand.

“The appearance of a shrine is a sign of God’s favor. The Lord favored our diocese and gave us a shrine - the relics of St. Barlaam of Chikoy. But we should not be deluded and think that we deserve it with our pious life, with our labors - the Lord can suddenly deprive us of this gift, so more so if we don’t appreciate it and neglect it.”
Bishop of Chita and Transbaikal Eustathius

In 2002, on the site of the destroyed Chikoy St. John the Baptist Monastery, the relics of the ascetic of the Siberian land, the founder of the Chikoy monastery - the holy righteous Varlaam of Chikoy were discovered.

The future ascetic, Vasily Nadezhin, was born into the world in 1774 into a family of serf serfs. Fulfilling his parents' will, he got married, but, seeing in his childlessness a special providence of God, in 1811 he went as a pilgrim to the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. Without a passport, Nadezhin was recognized as a tramp and exiled to Siberia. In 1814 he reached Irkutsk, and in 1820 he retired to the mountains near the village of Urluk. In the Chikoy Mountains, he built a cell and cut down a wooden cross, thereby laying the foundation of the Chikoy Monastery. The news about the unusual desert dweller began to spread quickly: brethren gathered, wanting to share the ascetic labors with the desert dweller, pilgrims began to arrive, and eminent citizens began to visit the desert. In 1828, with the blessing of Mikhail, Bishop of Irkutsk, Vasily Nadezhin took monastic vows with the name Varlaam (in honor of St. Varlaam of Pechersk), and two years later he was ordained hieromonk. With his dedication in 1839 to the rank of abbot, the flourishing of the St. John the Baptist Monastery began: monastery churches were built, subsidiary farming was organized, educational activities were carried out among the local population and missionary work among schismatics and non-believers.

After the death of Abbot Varlaam in 1846, through his prayers various miracles and healings began to occur. Half a century later he was glorified by the Russian Orthodox Church as a Siberian saint.

Throughout the years of Soviet power, residents of nearby villages flocked to the already dilapidated monastery, asking the Monk Varlaam for healing from illnesses and solutions to life’s problems. At the end of the 90s of the last century, interest in the history of the St. John the Baptist Monastery increased. Several expeditions were undertaken to the ruins of the monastery, but neither secular nor ecclesiastical researchers could clearly indicate the resting place of the Transbaikal miracle worker. Only in 2002, after Orthodox researchers and clergy studied the “Biography of the Hermit Varlaam,” compiled by St.
Chikoi taiga

Meletius, Bishop of Ryazan, determined the location of the grave of the Monk Varlaam - opposite the altar window on the south side of the chapel in the name of the icon "Joy of All Who Sorrow" of the Church of St. John the Baptist.

After receiving the patriarchal blessing, on August 21, 2002, an expedition headed by Bishop Eustathius (Evdokimov) of Chita and Transbaikal set off to the St. John the Baptist Monastery. The clergy of the diocese, the nuns of the Atamanovsky All Saints Convent, pilgrims from Moscow, Chita and Ulan-Ude, and local residents walked in a religious procession from the village of Urluk to the monastery. Already late at night, amid prayerful singing, the relics of St. Varlaam of Chikoi were found. There was no doubt about the authenticity: along with the relics, a wooden abbot's cross was found, which miraculously did not decay.

Nowadays the relics of St. Varlaam of Chikoy are in the cathedral in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in the city of Chita.

Varlaam of Chikoy is commemorated on the day of the celebration of the Council of Siberian Saints, August 21 (anniversary of the discovery of the relics in 2002), October 18 (anniversary of monastic tonsure), February 5 (repose).

http://www.russdom.ru/2006/200608i/20060819.shtml

"Transbaikal Athos"

“Transbaikal Athos” was the name given to the St. John the Baptist Monastery, lost in the Chikoy Mountains. The monastery, founded by the labors of the Monk Varlaam of Chikoy, existed for about a hundred years. The period is not too long. But even during this short time, by the grace of God, much was accomplished: hundreds and hundreds of schismatics and people of other faiths accepted the Orthodox faith, hundreds and hundreds of people received spiritual help through the prayers of the inhabitants of the monastery, hundreds and hundreds of people were miraculously healed at the tomb of St. Varlaam.“He endured everything for the sake of God and the saints”

The venerable Isaiah the hermit said: “The glory of the saints is like the radiance of stars, of which one shines very brightly, another is dimmer, another is barely noticeable; but these stars are all in the same sky.” The Monk Varlaam of Chikoi became a bright star for Transbaikalia. The path of a monk is mysterious and incomprehensible, hidden from human eyes; no one except God knows what temptations one has to endure when one takes this direct path to the Kingdom of Heaven. Difficulties and hardships, life in wild places among people of wild disposition, injustice from the authorities did not break the Monk Varlaam. Through humility, patience, love for people, and preaching the word of God, the hermit Varlaam gained the mercy of God and now intercedes before God for the entire Trans-Baikal region.

The future ascetic (in the world Vasily Fedotovich Nadezhin) was born in 1774 in the village. Maresevo, Lukoyanovsky district, Nizhny Novgorod province.

By origin, he was from the courtyard peasants of Pyotr Ivanovich Vorontsov. Upon reaching adulthood, Vasily married Daria Alekseeva, also a serf of the Vorontsovs. Their marriage was childless. Seeing the Providence of God in childlessness, they took in orphans, raised them, and arranged their lives. A dowry was prepared for the girls and they were married to pious husbands. The fact that this was not a whim or an attempt to satisfy one’s parental instincts and needs, but a spiritual feat is evidenced by a phrase from Daria Alekseevna’s letter to her husband, already the monk Varlaam, in Siberia: “I took in an orphan again, for the sake of saving my soul.” Daria Alekseevna carried on the feat of nurturing and educating orphans all her life: from her letters we learn that she alone raised and married three orphan girls.

The desire for asceticism of a different kind in her husband Vasily was first manifested in the fact that he made pilgrimages to different monasteries. On one of these pilgrimages, he visited St. Seraphim of Sarov, who guided him on a new path. The spiritual leader of Vasily Nadezhin was also the abbess of the Kazan Monastery, Kasimov Elpidifora. Under the influence of their letters and conversations, Vasily Nadezhin firmly decided to take the path of monastic life.

In 1810, Vasily Fedotovich was on a pilgrimage in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and wanted to live here, but the authorities of the monastery, having learned that he did not have a passport, reported this to the secular authorities. Nadezhin was recognized as a “tramp” and was sentenced without punishment to exile to Siberia for a settlement. Seeing the Providence of God in this, Vasily Nadezhin, without turning to either the Vorontsovs or his relatives for help, sets off to unknown Siberia.

The journey to Irkutsk stretched for three years. Here the future ascetic of God received his first spiritual consolation - in the Ascension Monastery at the relics of St. Innocent of Irkutsk.

The first years of his stay in Siberia, Vasily Nadezhin lived at churches, fulfilling the duties of refector, prosphora maker, and watchman. Also, being quite literate, he took children to teach. In the city of Kyakhta, Vasily Nadezhin met with the priest Aetiy Razsokhin, who was distinguished by humility, piety, and deeds of mercy. With the blessing of this spiritually experienced priest, in 1820 Vasily secretly went to the Chikoy Mountains for a solitary life. Seven miles from the village of Urluka and three from Galdanovka, a hermit stopped in the thicket of a forest, erected a wooden cross to consecrate the place and to protect himself from the forces of the enemy, and next to it, with his own hands, he cut down a cell for himself from the trees. Here he devoted himself to the thought of God, prayer and feats of fasting and humility. In his free time, he spent time copying church books and prayers for his friends and benefactors. Many temptations had to be endured in the first years of the hermitage: the harsh climate, meager food, wild animals were not as terrible as the enemy of salvation, who appeared either in the form of robbers or in the form of relatives. As the legend says, for spiritual struggle and humility, the saint of God put on iron chain mail, which replaced his chains.

In 1824, hunters came across the hermit, and soon rumors about the pious old man spread among the local population. Both Old Believers living nearby and eminent citizens from Kyakhta began to visit the hermitage. Through the prayers of Vasily Nadezhin, the labors and funds of the first pilgrims, a chapel was built, bells were purchased, and liturgical books were purchased.

The news about the hermit reached the diocesan authorities. On October 5, 1828, by order of Bishop Mikhail (Burdukov), Bishop of Irkutsk, the rector of the Trinity Selenga Monastery, Hieromonk Israel, tonsured Vasily Nadezhin as a monk with the name Varlaam - in honor of Saint Varlaam of the Pechersk. Shortly before the tonsure of the Abbess of the Kazan Monastery, Elpidifora instructed through a letter: “I know from the beginning of your existence how much patience you had, but you endured everything for the sake of God and the saints. Take courage and be strong!.. God is calling you to the angelic image. We must thank God and rejoice at this feat. But who can boast of being worthy of this yoke? Nobody. The Lord calls us from non-existence into existence. But this is a perfect feat.”

Bishop Michael, seeing the spiritual strength of the monk Varlaam, blessed “the establishment of the Chikoy monastery on a solid foundation”: to build a temple in the monastery, lead the assembled brethren, and carry out missionary work among the Mongolian, Buryat and Old Believer populations.

The torch of Orthodoxy on the land of Transbaikal

Chicoy Mountains

In 1835, the monastery was officially recognized as a monastery and named in honor of the Nativity of John the Baptist. The establishment of the Chikoy monastery was reported by Moskovskie Vedomosti, and donations began pouring in for the construction of the temple. Numerous pilgrims also donated, and the Irkutsk Eminences were also favored. Archbishop Nil (Isakovich), who repeatedly visited the Chikoy Hermitage, especially revered Elder Varlaam and his monastery. He petitioned the Holy Synod for three thousand rubles for the establishment of the Chikoy monastery and he himself supervised the planning and development of the “Transbaikal Athos”. Archbishop Neil Varlaam was elevated to the rank of abbot.

In 1841, Abbot Varlaam consecrated the main church of the monastery - in honor of the Nativity of John the Baptist with side chapels in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" and in the name of St. Innocent, the Irkutsk Wonderworker. At the direction of the Right Reverend Nile, the main temple was built in the middle of the monastery, so that the old temple was located when descending the stairs from the new one to the east; to the left of the latter along the sidewalk is the rector’s building, which burned down in 1872 and was replaced by a new, also two-story building. All outbuildings were moved outside the walls of the monastery; in the monastery itself there was a house for pilgrims, cells for the brethren, which were connected by terraces, numerous stairs, and sidewalks.

The missionary activity of Abbot Varlaam among the Old Believers and foreigners of Transbaikalia had outstanding success. Both of them knew well the ascetic life of Abbot Varlaam, and therefore they baptized their children from him and gave them to him to raise.

With the blessing of Archbishop Nil and with his active assistance, Abbot Varlaam began to persuade the local Old Believers to reunite with the Orthodox Mother Church. First of all, a missionary school was organized at the monastery, where children of Old Believers could study.

Seeing the piety and sincerity of Abbot Varlaam, residents of the surrounding Old Believer villages began to accept priests of the same faith. The number of converted Old Believers, churches and parishes built grew so much that Archbishop Nil formed a co-religious deanery beyond Baikal, headed by Abbot Varlaam himself.

In total, through the efforts of Abbot Varlaam, about 5,000 Old Believers were converted from the schism. The successes of Edinoverie in Chikoy became known far beyond the Urals, including in Moscow. The Old Believers, so distrustful of strangers, began to trust the words and instructions of Abbot Varlaam.

In 1845, Elder Varlaam felt a loss of strength, but continued to work for the benefit of the monastery and the surrounding residents. In January 1846, he made his last missionary journey - saying goodbye to the flock of the Urluk volost. He returned to the monastery sick, it was no longer possible to restore the loss of strength, and on January 23, 1846, Elder Varlaam, having received communion, gave up his spirit into the hands of God. His body was buried near the main temple of the monastery. Later, a brick monument with a gravestone was built over the grave.

A pilgrimage to the elder’s grave immediately began, and therefore a chapel was soon erected over his resting place. Not only residents of the surrounding villages, but also pilgrims from Kyakhta, Irkutsk, and Blagoveshchensk visited the elder’s grave, asking for spiritual advice, physical health, and determination in life. The elder was revered so much that even in the years of godlessness, residents of the surrounding villages went in religious procession to the ruins of the monastery.

They treated with reverence both the old man’s chain mail and his cell in the Chikoy Mountains - a witness to his first spiritual experiences. Pilgrims who came to the elder’s cell could see in the red corner under the icons the inscription made by the desert dweller himself, which was the spiritual motto throughout his entire ascetic life: “Gird me, O Lord, with Thy Power from above against all enemies, visible and invisible, and wake me up.” cover and intercession."

The successors of Hegumen Varlaam continued the work begun by the elder: they brought the Old Believers, Buryats, Mohammedans, and Jews to accept Orthodoxy, they were engaged in the arrangement and beautification of the monastery, they taught children from the surrounding villages, they took in crippled elders and orphan boys to support them.

One of these active abbots was Hieromonk Nektary (1865–1872). In his missionary concerns, he paid a lot of attention to the Buryats, he himself went to visit them in the Khorinsky camp, and they often visited the monastery. The success of the missionary activities of Hieromonk Nektary is also evidenced by the certificates of the baptism of Buryat shamans, Mohammedans and Jews into Orthodoxy.

Under him, in 1865, the Kyakhta industrialist M.F. donated it to the St. John the Baptist Monastery. Nemchinov, the icon of the Mother of God “Helper of Sinners.” The icon, famous for its miracles in the Odrinsky monastery of the Oryol diocese, was especially revered in Siberia. Copies from this icon became widespread throughout the Siberian land: in Troitskosavsk, Tarbagatai, Takhoy, Selenga and Chikoi monasteries, copies of the miraculous icon of the Mother of God “Helper of Sinners” were kept, through which the Queen of Heaven showed Her mercy. Here is how the “Siberian Patericon” tells about the special veneration of this icon in Transbaikalia: “Indigenous and pagan Buryats resort to the help of the holy image and take oil from the lamp with it. The face of the Sporuchnitsa in numerous copies spread throughout Transbaikalia: in houses and chapels... When the Amur was recently settled, icons of the Sporuchnitsa accompanied the Transbaikal Cossacks and were placed in the first chapels there.” The popularity of this image can be explained by the fact that in the land of exiled convicts, many considered themselves great sinners. In misfortunes and hardships, there was only hope for the Queen of Heaven - the Sporuchnitsa, that is, the Intercessor, the Surety.

The miraculous image was solemnly transferred from Kyakhta to the monastery in a religious procession. In memory of this event, every year on May 29 (June 11, new style), on the day of celebration in honor of the icon “Support of Sinners,” a religious procession was held at the St. John the Baptist Monastery.

They prayed not only for health and family well-being, but also for relief from drought and the preservation of livestock. And through the prayers of the Mother of God, the Helper - the Helper, those praying received healings from illnesses, the Siberian land bore fruit, epidemics and pestilences avoided livestock. Every year for more than a hundred years, a religious procession of many thousands moved from the village of Urluk, remote from large cities and roads, to the St. John the Baptist Monastery.

On the occasion of a large gathering of pilgrims, Hieromonk Nektary, with the assistance of philanthropist Nemchinov, rebuilt the first monastery church. In 1869, the temple was reconsecrated by Bishop Martinian (Muratovsky) of Selenga in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Helper of Sinners.”

Under Abbot Averky (1890–1897), the icon “The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ with Those Present” appeared in the monastery, transferred to the monastery as a blessing by Righteous John of Kronstadt. In 1895, while in St. Petersburg, Abbot Averky served the Divine Liturgy ten times with Archpriest John of Kronstadt in St. Andrew's Cathedral in Kronstadt. It was then that Father John gave the abbot of the distant Transbaikal monastery an icon made by St. Petersburg icon painters with the words: “Continue your service in Siberia, pray and you will be healthy, be patient and you will be saved.” Under the leadership of Abbot Averky, the monastery solemnly celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the repose of Abbot Varlaam. A year later, Abbot Averky disappeared. For a long time there was no news about him, and only during the revolutionary hard times his petition for the return of the icon, once given by the righteous John of Kronstadt, passed through the Transbaikal Consistory. In his petition, Archimandrite Averky explained the reason for his unauthorized abandonment of the Transbaikal diocese: “I went to Crimea for treatment. Having no money, he got a job in the navy (in all likelihood, as a military or naval chaplain. – Yu.B.). Transferred to Port Arthur. And the established Vladivostok diocese, represented by Bishop Eusebius, took me.” The resolution of Bishop Meletius (Zaborovsky) to the request of Archimandrite Averky was as follows: “Send the icon to Tsarevokokshaisk in the village. Semyonovka." But the icon remained in Transbaikalia: now it is located in the village. Urluk in the school museum.

By 1917, the monastery had grown: three wooden churches in the monastery itself, a school at the monastery, as well as the Panteleimon monastery with a church on the Yamarovskie Vody.

The last abbot of the monastery was Hieromonk Pimen (1926–1927). He ruled the monastery during difficult years. In 1927, Hieromonk Pimen attended the celebrations on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the Irkutsk diocese, where he shared his troubles with the clergy. In the diary of the local chronicler, Archpriest Pyotr Popov, an entry appeared on this occasion: “O<тец>Pimen reported that the monastery had ended its existence: the brethren were forced to disperse, the buildings were dismantled and taken away, and the same fate awaited the temple.”

In the 30s of the last century, the elder monks were still living out their last days in the destructive monastery; what became of them subsequently is unknown. Soon the St. John the Baptist Monastery itself ceased to exist. Soviet researchers of the history of the region wrote that the decline of the monastery was predictable: the monastery was located far from central cities and main roads, did not have arable land; the weak population of Transbaikalia and the entire way of life of the settlers also affected the number of monks in the monastery; poor nutrition and difficult climatic conditions were also not conducive to the prosperity of the monastery. It seems to us that the decline of the monastery was led by the spiritual and moral impoverishment of Russian society at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which became the cause of the events of 1917, and later - the murder of the royal family - the anointed of God, the mass executions of pastors and Orthodox laity.

"This place has become famous..."

With the death of the elder monks, the residents of the surrounding villages, especially the Old Believers who converted to Edinoverie, did not leave the monastery to be completely destroyed by the atheists: until the 50s of the last century, some buildings, graves and cells of the Monk Varlaam were preserved in the monastery. Of the 30 monastery wells dug by the brethren, three remained in good condition.

But the most important thing: the people's memory of the veneration of the holy place and shrines of the monastery was alive. Throughout all the decades of atheism, on May 29/June 11, the day of the celebration of the icon of the Mother of God “Supportress of Sinners”, in memory of the bringing of the miraculous icon to the St. John the Baptist Monastery from Kyakhta, residents made a procession of the cross from the Prophet Elias Church. Urluk to the ruins of the monastery. Despite various prohibitions from those in power, despite the ridicule of fellow villagers, believers went to the abandoned Chikoy monastery to venerate the shrine, draw holy water from the monastery wells, and pray for the health of their relatives, for the harvest, and for protection from troubles. They set out in groups and individually, on foot, on horseback, and sometimes in cars. Over time, the villagers noticed that those who go to Sporuchnitsa every year have a full house, healthy children, and everything growing in their garden.

In our time, religious processions have again become what they should be - a prayer procession. And every year the number of crosswalkers increases. In 2002, pilgrims from Chita took part in the procession for the first time, and a year later parishioners of the Assumption Church in the city of Kyakhta and the Mother of God of Kazan city of Severobaikalsk, led by their abbots, joined the procession. They brought to the religious procession a shrine of the Kyakhta church and the entire Transbaikalia - the icon of the Mother of God “Support of Sinners,” found in the mid-90s of the last century.

The road goes uphill all the time for about 20 km, 2 km of which is a steep climb. A lot has been said and written about the mountain system of the Predtechensky Monastery, but you are still amazed at the miracle that manifests itself here every summer, even in the driest: at the top of the mountain there is a spring, and in the monastery the ancient monastery wells are always full of water.

Upon arrival at the place where one of the prosperous monasteries of Siberia was once located, the priests perform a prayer service and bless the waters of ancient wells. After the solemn service, everyone will have a fraternal meal right in the clearing: local residents consider it obligatory to drink tea using well water on the prayed-up monastery soil.

Saint Varlaam is the only one of the holy ascetics who acquired holiness while living directly in Transbaikalia. It can also be considered a great favor of God that the Lord not only revealed the name of this hermit, who labored in the desert mountains in the middle of the 19th century, but also vouchsafed all of us to witness the discovery of the relics of St. Barlaam.

Since 1998, interest in the history of the St. John the Baptist Monastery and its founder, the desert dweller Varlaam, has been constantly growing. Not only Orthodox researchers became interested in the fate of the monastery: archaeological excavations were repeatedly carried out in the Chikoy Mountains by teachers and students of the Trans-Baikal State Pedagogical University, and archaeologists from other regions of Russia. In July 1999, visiting Innokentyevsky readings took place, the Krasnochikoysky district was chosen as the venue. Led by Bishop of Chita and Transbaikal Innocent (Vasiliev; now Archbishop of Korsun), the participants and organizers of the conference visited the ruins of the St. John the Baptist Monastery. Professors of the Trans-Siberian State Pedagogical University, local historians, and Orthodox researchers expressed their assumptions about where to look for the hidden relics of the saint.

By God's providence, the acquisition of the relics was carried out by the successor of Bishop Innocent - Bishop of Chita and Transbaikal Evstafiy (Evdokimov). That's how it was.

In 2002, an expedition consisting of the rector of the Holy Trinity Church in Ulan-Ude, priest Evgeniy Startsev, and local historians from the Republic of Buryatia A.D. went to the Chikoy forests. Zhalsaraev and A.D. Tivanenko. The researchers' confidence that the resting place of the Monk Varlaam would be found was based on the biography of the hermit Varlaam, compiled by Bishop Meletius (Zaborovsky). After a short search, the place indicated by Saint Meletius (opposite the altar window on the south side of the chapel in the name of the icon “Joy of All Who Sorrow” of the Church of St. John the Baptist) was found.

After receiving the patriarchal blessing, on August 21, 2002, a religious procession led by Bishop Eustathius of Chita and Transbaikal went to the St. John the Baptist Monastery. Clergymen, nuns of the All Saints Monastery, pilgrims from Moscow, Chita and Ulan-Ude, and local residents walked from the village of Urluk to the monastery. No one expected that the excavations would last so long. Three times the ground collapsed. Finally, late at night, amid prayerful singing, the relics of the saint were found. There was no doubt about their authenticity: along with the relics, a wooden rector's cross was found, which miraculously did not decay.

It is worthy of attention that in the life of the Monk Varlaam it is noted: the Chikoy ascetic had a shrine - an icon of the Solovetsky wonderworkers Zosima and Savvaty - the blessing of Abbess Elpidifora. She sent a letter with this icon in which she wrote: “This image is from that monastery with their relics. I pour out to you my sincere desire that, with the help of God and the prayers of these saints, your this place will become famous as a monastery and the monastery of the Solovetsky miracle workers... Ask these saints. They will help you." On August 8/21, when the relics of St. Barlaam of Chikoy were found, the memory of St. Zosima and Savvaty is celebrated.

Bishop Eustathius and the clergy transferred the relics into a prepared tomb and brought them to Chita.

But although the relics were transferred from their first resting place, the grace of God remains in that place, and the Monk Barlaam equally intercedes for everyone who flows with faith both to his relics and to the place of their former rest.

And on the eve of the day of the discovery of the relics of St. Varlaam, on August 19, tonsure was performed in the Chita Transfiguration Church. The newly tonsured monk was named in honor of Saint Varlaam of Chikoy. By an unusual coincidence, Hieromonk Varlaam (in the world Vasily Popov) was once a novice in the church “on Semenovka” in Yoshkar-Ola, where one of the abbots of the St. John the Baptist Monastery, Archimandrite Averky, was buried.

The relics of St. Varlaam are now in the cathedral in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Chita. Centuries of experience testify: the monasteries and churches of Russia, in which the relics of saints were located, have been preserved, despite wars, unrest, persecution, and are still in operation to this day. We believe that through the prayers and intercession of St. Barlaam of Chikoy, the Lord will protect the city of Chita and all of Transbaikalia from enemies visible and invisible.

The Monk Varlaam of Chikoy was glorified at the Cathedral of Siberian Saints in 1984 (June 10/23). It is known that for the Local Council of 1918 in the Transbaikal diocese they were collecting material for the general church glorification of the ascetic Chikoisky: Bishop Meletius (Zaborovsky), Bishop of Transbaikal and Nerchinsk, compiled a biography of the saint, which formed the basis for an essay about the saint by the famous Orthodox writer Evgeniy Poselyanin. The documents necessary for glorification could be delivered to Moscow by a delegate from the Transbaikal diocese - Bishop Ephraim (Kuznetsov) of Selenga, who was killed along with Archpriest John Vostorgov by the Bolsheviks in 1918.

The monastery, once founded by the labors of the Monk Varlaam, is gradually being put in order. A cross and a fence were erected at the site of the discovery of the relics of St. Varlaam - above the altar part of the destroyed church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Helper of Sinners”; a chapel was erected in the name of St. Barlaam of Chikoy, the remains of an unknown monk were covered with stone slabs by a caring hand, the gravestone of Hieromonk Theophan was restored. Mountain wells are carefully guarded by local residents. The surviving shrines are preserved: the chain mail of Varlaam of Chikoy and the icon donated by St. John of Kronstadt. The seeds of the Orthodox faith, planted by the Monk Varlaam, are bearing fruit a hundredfold today: churches are being built everywhere in the Chita and Transbaikal diocese, religious processions are being held, and monastic life is being revived. St. Varlaam of Chikoy, following St. Seraphim of Sarov, his contemporary and spiritual leader, preaches: “Acquire a peaceful spirit, and thousands around you will be saved.”

According to the site Pravoslavie.Ru

The video studio “Slovo” of the Chita diocese has begun filming a film about the Transbaikal wonderworker Venerable Varlaam Chikoysky with actor Andrei Merzlikin as the narrator.

This is reported by the website Chita.ru.

“The task of a creative group of enthusiastic professionals is to create a deep and vivid documentary film about the holy Transbaikal miracle worker, about a man who came to a spiritual desert and, with God’s help, made it a spiritual oasis, a fertile place, to which hundreds of pilgrims still flock 200 years later,” - it is said in the project description.

In addition, the creators suggest that the film will help in the restoration of the founded St. Varlaam of the St. John the Baptist Monastery, which received the second name among the people - Transbaikal Athos.

In a video dedicated to the filming of the film, Andrei Merzlikin said that several factors prompted him to take part in the creation of the film, including the personality of the main character and the beauty of the Trans-Baikal region.

“I found out about the filming of this film and got excited. I became interested in talking about this hermit. And what to hide - it’s unlikely that I would have the opportunity to travel so far, to the Trans-Baikal Territory. To do this, you need some kind of opportunity, and it’s great that this opportunity is work by profession, and in this case, also by your liking. Tell about a person who was canonized. He did a lot for the flourishing of Orthodoxy in such a distant land. This is always interesting for people who have never heard anything about it,” said A. Merzlikin.

The main filming location was Transbaikal Athos - a monastery in honor of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, founded by the Monk Varlaam almost 200 years ago in the Chikoy Mountains. The monastery preserves the remains of temple foundations, monastery wells, an ancient crypt, gravestones, a millstone, a worship cross, and the remains of the saint’s cell.

In addition, filming is planned in the Kazan Cathedral in Chita, in Kyakhta, in the village of Maresevo, Nizhny Novgorod region, in the homeland of St. Varlaam, in Irkutsk, where a boy was healed in intensive care through the prayer of his mother, in the Ulan-Ude monastery, in the village of Malaya Kudara (Buryatia), where a resident single-handedly built the only church in Russia in honor of St. Varlaam Chikoisky.

By the end of April, the filmmakers plan to collect 332 thousand rubles. To date, 91 thousand have been collected.

Venerable Varlaam of Chikoy and Transbaikal Athos

Varlaam Chikoisky (in the world Vasily Fedotovich Nadezhin) was born in 1774 in the village of Maresevo, Nizhny Novgorod province, into a peasant family. At the insistence of his parents, he got married. The marriage was childless, and Vasily in 1811 went on a pilgrimage to the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.

Vasily, who did not have a passport, was arrested for vagrancy and exiled to Siberia. He began to wander, and in 1814 he reached Irkutsk. The first years of his stay in Siberia, Vasily Nadezhin lived at churches, fulfilling the duties of a refector, prosphora maker, and watchman. Being quite literate, he took children to teach. In the city of Kyakhta, Vasily met with the priest Aetiy Razsokhin. With the blessing of this spiritually experienced priest, in 1820 Vasily secretly went to the Chikoy Mountains for a solitary life. Near the village of Urluk, he built a cell and began to lead a hermit’s life.

In 1824, hunters came across the hermit, and soon rumors about the pious old man spread among the local population. Both Old Believers living nearby and eminent citizens from Kyakhta began to visit the hermitage.

The news about the hermit reached the diocesan authorities. On October 5, 1828, by order of Bishop Mikhail (Burdukov), Bishop of Irkutsk, the rector of the Trinity Selenga Monastery, Hieromonk Israel, tonsured Vasily Nadezhin as a monk with the name Varlaam - in honor of Saint Varlaam of the Pechersk. In 1830 he was ordained to the rank of hieromonk.

With the blessing of Bishop. Michael, the Chikoi monastery was founded.

In 1835, the monastery was officially recognized as a monastery and named in honor of the Nativity of John the Baptist. The establishment of the Chikoy monastery was reported by Moskovskie Vedomosti, and donations began pouring in for the construction of the temple. Numerous pilgrims also donated, and the Irkutsk Eminences were also favored. Archbishop Nil (Isakovich), who repeatedly visited the Chikoy Hermitage, especially revered Elder Varlaam and his monastery. He petitioned the Holy Synod for three thousand rubles for the establishment of the Chikoy monastery and he himself supervised the planning and development of the “Transbaikal Athos”.

In 1830, Archbishop Neil elevated Varlaam to the rank of abbot.

The missionary activity among the Old Believers and foreigners of Transbaikalia by Abbot Varlaam, who was known for his ascetic life, was a huge success. In total, through the efforts of Abbot Varlaam, about 5,000 Old Believers were converted from the schism.

In 1845, Abbot Varlaam was awarded the golden pectoral cross by the Holy Synod.

Hegumen Varlaam died in 1846. He was buried near the Church of St. John the Baptist, the monastery he founded. Soon after his death, miracles began to be attributed to him, and at the end of the 19th century he was glorified as a locally revered saint. The life of Saint Varlaam was written by Saint Meletius (Yakimov).

In 1869, the main cathedral church of the monastery was reconsecrated by Bishop Martinian (Muratovsky) of Selenga in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Helper of Sinners.”

With the death of the elder monks, the residents of the surrounding villages, especially the Old Believers who converted to Edinoverie, did not leave the monastery to complete destruction: until the 1950s, some buildings, graves and cells of St. Varlaam were preserved in the monastery. Of the 30 monastery wells dug by the brethren, three remained in good condition.

Throughout all the decades of Soviet power, on May 29/June 11, the day of the celebration of the icon of the Mother of God “Supportress of Sinners”, in memory of the bringing of the miraculous icon to the St. John the Baptist Monastery from Kyakhta, residents made a religious procession from the Iliinsky Church in the village. Urluk to the ruins of the monastery.

In 1984, Varlaam Chikoisky was glorified for church-wide veneration in the Cathedral of Siberian Saints. In 2002, among the ruins of the Chikoy Monastery, the place of his burial was determined, and on August 21, 2002, with the blessing of Patriarch Alexy II, his relics were found, which were placed in the chapel of Alexander Nevsky of the Kazan Cathedral in the city of Chita.

Death Canonized In the face

reverends

Main shrine

Varlaam Chikoisky(in the world Vasily Fedotovich Nadezhin; - January 23) - abbot of the Chikoy St. John the Baptist Monastery. Holy Russian Church, venerated in the ranks of the saints, commemorated (according to the Julian calendar): January 23 (day of death), June 10 (Cathedral of Siberian Saints), August 8 (anniversary of the discovery of the relics in 2002), October 5 (anniversary of monastic tonsure) .

Vasily was born in the village of Mareev, Nizhny Novgorod province, into a peasant family; at the insistence of his parents, he got married. The marriage was childless and Vasily in 1811 went on a pilgrimage to the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. As a passportless person, he was arrested for vagrancy and exiled to Siberia. He began to wander, in 1814 he reached Irkutsk, and in 1820 he came to the slopes of the Chikokonsky ridge and built himself a cell near Urluk, becoming a hermit. Soon other people joined him and the brethren of the future Chikoy Monastery were formed.

Varlaam died in 1846 and was buried on the south side of the altar of the chapel in honor of the icon “Joy of All Who Sorrow” in the Church of St. John the Baptist of the monastery he founded. Soon after his death, miracles began to be attributed to him, and at the end of the 19th century, Varlaam was glorified as a locally revered saint. The life of St. Varlaam was written by Saint Meletius (Yakimov).

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• (on the website of the Chita and Krasnokamensk diocese)

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Excerpt characterizing Varlaam Chikoisky

M lle Bourienne jumped up joyfully.
“Oh no,” he shouted, frowning. - Come on, Mikhail Ivanovich.
Mikhail Ivanovich got up and went into the office. But as soon as he left, the old prince, looking around uneasily, threw down his napkin and went off on his own.
“They don’t know how to do anything, they’ll confuse everything.”
While he walked, Princess Marya, Desalles, m lle Bourienne and even Nikolushka silently looked at each other. The old prince returned with a hasty step, accompanied by Mikhail Ivanovich, with a letter and a plan, which he, not allowing anyone to read during dinner, placed next to him.
Going into the living room, he handed the letter to Princess Marya and, laying out the plan of the new building in front of him, which he fixed his eyes on, ordered her to read it aloud. After reading the letter, Princess Marya looked questioningly at her father.
He looked at the plan, obviously lost in thought.
- What do you think about this, prince? – Desalles allowed himself to ask a question.
- I! I!.. - the prince said, as if awakening unpleasantly, without taking his eyes off the construction plan.
- It is quite possible that the theater of war will come so close to us...
- Ha ha ha! Theater of War! - said the prince. “I said and say that the theater of war is Poland, and the enemy will never penetrate further than the Neman.
Desalles looked with surprise at the prince, who was talking about the Neman, when the enemy was already at the Dnieper; but Princess Marya, who had forgotten the geographical position of the Neman, thought that what her father said was true.
- When the snow melts, they will drown in the swamps of Poland. “They just can’t see,” said the prince, apparently thinking about the campaign of 1807, which seemed so recent. - Bennigsen should have entered Prussia earlier, things would have taken a different turn...
“But, prince,” Desalles said timidly, “the letter talks about Vitebsk...
“Ah, in the letter, yes...” the prince said dissatisfied, “yes... yes...” His face suddenly took on a gloomy expression. He paused. - Yes, he writes, the French are defeated, which river is this?
Desalles lowered his eyes.
“The prince doesn’t write anything about this,” he said quietly.
- Doesn’t he write? Well, I didn’t make it up myself. - Everyone was silent for a long time.
“Yes... yes... Well, Mikhaila Ivanovich,” he suddenly said, raising his head and pointing to the construction plan, “tell me how you want to remake it...”
Mikhail Ivanovich approached the plan, and the prince, after talking with him about the plan for the new building, looked angrily at Princess Marya and Desalles, and went home.
Princess Marya saw Desalles' embarrassed and surprised gaze fixed on her father, noticed his silence and was amazed that the father had forgotten his son's letter on the table in the living room; but she was afraid not only to speak and ask Desalles about the reason for his embarrassment and silence, but she was afraid to even think about it.
In the evening, Mikhail Ivanovich, sent from the prince, came to Princess Marya for a letter from Prince Andrei, which was forgotten in the living room. Princess Marya submitted the letter. Although it was unpleasant for her, she allowed herself to ask Mikhail Ivanovich what her father was doing.
“They’re all busy,” said Mikhail Ivanovich with a respectfully mocking smile that made Princess Marya turn pale. – They are very worried about the new building. “We read a little, and now,” Mikhail Ivanovich said, lowering his voice, “the bureau must have started working on the will.” (Recently, one of the prince’s favorite pastimes was working on the papers that were supposed to remain after his death and which he called his will.)
- Is Alpatych being sent to Smolensk? - asked Princess Marya.