Posts Tagged ‘russian church’

A Russian Communist Culture classic movie Battleship Potemkin / Броненосец «Потёмкин» (фильм)

Wednesday, December 5th, 2012


 

Battleship Potemkin HQ

The movie is highly Communistic and early versions of it included a direct verses from the notable Communist Marxist Revolution leader Leon Trotsky

The movie tells a story of a Russian ship during Tsarist Russia in 1905. Due to the bad conditions on the ship and the striving the sailors are exposed to they start, their dissatisfaction progresses until a point. Where low level sailors revolt against the well established ship order – Captain, Doctor, Priest etc. and Create a little revolution taking over the ship, killing the doctor and captain and disobeying God's blessed shipped order. Also in the movie it is evident the bad attitude towards Christianity and Christian faith. The ship priest is displayed as a hypocrite which uses the "faith shield" and people naivety to control the uneasy situation on the ship.
The movie well illustrates the bad spirit of Communists and their scornful attitude towards the Russian Church and faith.
The movie's ultimate Goal as many of the materials of this strange years accent on the Communist Marxist Revolution propaganda. While watching the movie I've noticed even the small details in the movie put accent on "the wrongship" of the established ship order. Take for example the physical height of the ship doctor, he is very low in height and feeble, while the sailors themselves are high in stature and of muscular nature.

The captain himself is high and skinny illustrated as a cruel and unhuman nature, while the sailors are pictured as a good and humble "natural" people. This whole plot and even the most little detail scream "The order is not right, we need new Order". The movie director is a Jews and the General message of the movie is pro jewish, as it tries to illustrate the WhiteGuards (King's army and soldiers as evil and un-human willing to kill all jews). Another thing is the movie is filled with unhuman cruelty, as the Tsarist marching soldiers kills a multitudes of "innocent" people including babies and mothers. Obviously it was all illustrated to blacken the Russian Monarchy and its previous order and Christian faith. There is a terrible scene, where a sailor reads on a plate written the words of the Lord's Prayer and being enraged by his continuous eating of rotten bad quality boiled meat drops the plate in anger. This scene openly illustrates the whole attitude towards God and the God order on earth as well as the Russian Orthodox Church, talking clearly that the screenplay of the director was a atheist blashemer. Honestly watching the breaking the Lord's prayer's plate made me angry and then sad, because whoever initiated the movie did not know the love of Jesus and tried to spread a message that God is all guilty for human's failure's or suffering ….

It should be noted that the movie's main story line The Battleship Potemkin's revolution is a historical truth (though I don't know details), however the part of the movie displaying the city massacre by Monarchy troops is completely fictional and never happened but is just the director's desire to make the influence over the observer severe. The movie was never of great success and though the Movie Author Eisenstein expected the movie to become a hit it never did. The Odessa city movie closing part was shocking to see by the much more pious people than today and I guess it was even worser than Quentin Tarantino's movies nowadays.

The main "star" artist of the movie is Valunchik, a working class hero who initiates the battleship revolution and is depicted as "the voice of rationality in the darkness a nd of cruel Monarchy who only cares for the high people class".

Battleship Potemkin / Броненосец Потемким Russian communist revolution propaganda movie cover picture

In the western world the movie in Brussels and France the movie was highly praised and was reviewed as one of the most influential propaganda movies ever made. In Brussel's world's fair the movie was named "the greatest file of all time" "Considered one of the most important films in the history of silent pictures, as well as possibly Eisenstein's greatest work, Battleship Potemkin brought Eisenstein's theories of cinema art to the world in a powerful showcase; his emphasis on montage, his stress of intellectual contact, and his treatment of the mass instead of the individual as the protagonist. The film tells the story of the mutiny on the Russian ship Prince Potemkin during the 1905 uprising." This movie is part of the collection: Silent Films Producer: Sergei M. Eisenstein, Grigori Aleksandrov Audio/Visual: sound Keywords: Silent; War; Russian Creative Commons license: Public Domain Mark 1.0

To be honest though the movie is of a great "art" value I don't like it as it is ungodly and against the Church. Now it is rather interesting to see the movie and put it in the face of the atheist "communists" who thought the Communist revolution will take over the whole world. After 68 years of Communism and communist blocks like USSR it is now over confirming the Gospel words that "every initiative that is not from God will eventually collapse".  There is plenty said on the movie and it is one of the most important movies nowadays most of the people aged 40 – 65, who lived through Communism and within the USSR socialist block know the movie quite well (in this number my father too). Since the movie is so popular one can find a lot of information and reviews on it with critical or positive analysis. The movie could probably be classified in the Drama genre and in my view is educational perspective for people who wish to have a glimpse on communist ideology and the attitudes of the '30s – 50s in Russia, China and plenty of other countries 'round the world.

Bronenosets-Potemkin-Battleship-potemkin-sailor-raising-alert--film-cover

Movie Length: 1 horo 11 minutoj

Original Title: Броненосец “Потёмкин”
Producer Company: Mosfilm-studio
Screenplay Directory: Н. Агаджанова (N. Agaĝanova): С. Эйзенштейн (S. Eisenstein)
Assitant Directory: Г. Александров (G. Aleksandrov)
Cinematography: Э. Тиссе (E. Tisse)
Music: Д. Шостакович (D. Ŝostakoviĉ)
Actors: Александр Антонов (Aleksandr Antonov), В. Барский (V. Barskij), Григорий Александров (Grigorij Aleksandrov) , М. Гоморов (M. Gomorov), Владимир Уральский (Vladimir Uralskij), Иван Бобров (Ivan Bobrov) k.a.
Country Produced: Soviet Union (USSR)

Movie Cast The film is composed of five episodes:

  •   "Men and Maggots" (Люди и черви), in which the sailors protest at having to eat rotten meat;
  •     "Drama on the Deck" (Драма на тендре), in which the sailors mutiny and their leader, Vakulinchuk, is killed;
  •     "A Dead Man Calls for Justice" (Мёртвый взывает) in which Vakulinchuk's body is mourned over by the people of Odessa;
  •     "The Odessa Staircase" (Одесская лестница), in which Tsarist soldiers massacre the Odessans.
  •     "The Rendez-Vous with a Squadron" (Встреча с эскадрой), in which the squadron tasked with intercepting the Potemkin instead declines to engage, lowering their guns, its sailors cheer on the rebellious battleship and join the mutiny.
     

New Russian Saint canonized in Bulgaria Archibishop Seraphim (Sobolev) a true defender of true Christ given faith, the Holy Eastern Orthodox Church

Thursday, February 4th, 2016

Archibishop_Seraphim_Sobolev-Russian-Church-in-Bulgaria

 

It is my great joy to share with my dear readers, that Archibishop Saint Seraphim Sobolev (1881-1950), Archibishop of Bogochar has been canonized officially by the Russian Orthodox Church on yesterday 3rd of 2016 in their plenary meeting
held at Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow.

Saint Seraphim Sobolev, has long time has been considered a saint by many Bulgarians and Russians in Bulgaria, for his countless spiritual intercessions for those who venerate him
and ask for his prayer and spiritual guidance. St. Seraphim Sobolev crypt in the Russian Orthodox Chruch in Sofia Bulgaria in honor of Saint Nicolas.

Even my joy is greater his Eminence Metropolitan Ioan (John) of Varna and Veliki Preslav, who happens also the Bishop of my birth place Dobrich, Bulgaria was present On the official canonization.
Also it is not a coincidence that our Metropolitan Ioan was present at the canonization, since he happens to be a spiritual child of a direct disciple of st. Seraphim Sobolev.

Some other notable bishop presents at the canonization Church service was, His Grace Bishop Arseny of Znepolsk, Vicar of the Plovdiv Metropoliate, and Archimandrite Feoktist (Dimitrov), representative of the Bulgarian Patriarch to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.  The overall count of Bishops, Archibishops and Metropolitans who took participation in the canonization was approximately 320, almost all the bishops of Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate).

The news that holy Seraphim Sobolev is considered for canonization has been sweeping the Bulgarian Church space for a long time. A nice priest lady has made even a notable movie, about the saint pointing the general turning points of his difficult life, last year and the movie was presented in the Russian Cultural Center in Sofia Bulgaria, below is the movie (unfortunately in Bulgaria and Russian), hopefully soon someone to translate it also to English:

full of a lot of sorrow and uncertainties, because of the harsh Soviet time in which the saint was serving the Church.
In order to caninize a saint, the process is quite long and usually in Russian Church it takes pretty longer sometimes from 20 to 50 years, however with St. Seraphim Soboev, already 66 years already passed since his peaceful passing to Christ on 26th February 1950. The head of the local Russian Church council was his Eminence Patriarch Kiril Bishop of Moscow and all Russia.

 The members of the Council unanimously voted for the glorification of Archbishop Seraphim, who has been venerated for many years in Bulgaria and Russia. Metropolitan Ilarion then read the Act of the Holy Council of Bishops announcing the canonization of Archbishop Seraphim among the host of saints. The Council members then sang the exaltation to the newly-glorified saint. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill then gave Metropolitan Ioann an icon of St Seraphim painted at St Petersburg Theological Academy as a gift to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.


The full canonization title given to st. Seraphim Sobolev (archibishop Bogocharski) from Sofia (The Wonder worker).

picture-of-saint-Seraphim-Sobolev

So who is Archibishop Seraphim Sobolev?

St. Nicolas Borisovich Sobolev is born on 1st of December 1881 in Russia, province of Rezan in the Russian Empire. After completion of seminary in 1904, he entered Saint Peterburg spiritual academy, which he completed in 1908 y. with the honour of candidate of Theological studies.
At that time he has been ordained for hieromonk. After a short pastoral service in a school in Jitomir, in 1909 fr. Seraphim become a helpng overseer in Kalujsk spiritual school in 1911 and was inspector in the seminary of Kostroma, in 1912 he become a rector of the spiritual seminary in Voronej.

While in Vironej he had experience the terrors of Red (Soviet) Revolution. In autumn of 1919 archimandrite Seraphim went to Ekaterinodar and from then transferred to Crimea. There in 14.10.1920, he was ordained in bishop Lubenski. The ordaining was God's plan for him and also happened perhaps, because of the need of bihops, because of mass inprisonment of bishops and archibishops by the red beasts of the communist party.

With the blessing of his spiritual elder bishop Seraphim has left Russia. From this day on his life is a life of an emigrant. For a while he has taught Theology in the spiritual school of Constantionople's patriarchy on the Island of Chalkidiki.
In 1921 he was assigned as a bishop of the Christian temple in the Russian Church in honour of Saint Nicolas the Wonderworker in Sofia which was made as a monument of The Bulgarian Liberation – the Russian-Turkish Liebaration war.
Same year with a decree of patriarch Tikhon, who now is also canonized – st. Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow and all Russia he was assigned to govern the Russian parishes in Bulgaria with the archibishop title Bogucharski.
Until 1944, bishop Seraphim who in 1934, became archibishop was under the jurisdiction of Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia (ROCOR) from 1934.
In 1945 he has joined back to the Russian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchy. In 1948 archibishop Seraphim took participation in the All-Orthodox gathering in  Moscow.
St. Seraphim Sobolev was a fervent fighter for holy and true orthodoxy and a great enemy of the movement of Ecumenism movement (a movement aiming to unite all Orthodox and then all Churches under the government of a protestant like body called World Council of Churches).
All his life just like Jesus Christ, st. Seraphim Sobolev has lived without possessing on own house. He paid for his one room apartment from his small money priest sallary which at that time was hardly enough to pay his rent and for some food. He lived all his life renting an apartment with his own money, (something which was absolutely unthinkable), for a bishop of all Russian eparchies of Bulgaria at that times.
Even during lifetime, he helped and turned a lot of people from the sinful ways leading to death, had a lot of spiritual children after him, he established a small nun monastery Kniajevo nearby Sofia.
He also was one a fervent fighter against the cult of Dynovism (Danovism), started by anti-christian posing christian, Peter Dynov.
St. Seraphim Sobolev was a fervent defender of Orthodoxy, freely showing up the delusions of Roman-Catholicism, Protestantism, Pentecostals, Baptism, Adventism and was strongly against the popular at that time united prayers between Orthodox and non-orthodox christian teachings. He is also an author of Theological literature who in details makes a comparison between Anglican Protestant Christianity and the Eastern Orthodoxy.

St Seraphim, denounced on a multiple occasions, the movement of ecumenism as being anti-christian and not in the spirit of the one Holy Eastern Orthodox Church, thus all his life and all his spiritual children were strongly trying to hold the Church teachings, was supporters of the celebration of Church feasts under the Julian calender, and was against the untroduction of the Gregorian Calendar – so called new Style calender in the Eastern Orthodox Churches.

It has to be said that it is a bit of paradox that the canonization of st. Seraphim Sobolev was made by the Russian Church, as the Russian Orthodox Church, along with Romanian and Serbian and many other Orthodox Churches continues to be an active member in the Ecumenical Movement. Because of St. Seraphim Sobolev even to these days, there are a lot of Christians who continue to follow the old Julian Calendar feasts style, the so cold Old Calendarists.

The most notable work of st. Seraphim Sobolev in my humble opinion is the creation of Acathist of the Greatest Bulgarian Saint, Saint John of Rila.

Perhaps as a fervent fighter to keep the true teaching of the Holy Orthodox Church and his incessant labor for the true Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, God give him a blessed departure from earthly life to the saviour of mankind the Lord Jesus Christ on the Church feast day of Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy.

For the 66 years since his passing to Christ, each day on the grave of st. Seraphim Sobolev has been served a special service for co-memoration of the deceased and for forgiveness of his sins called in orthodox terminology Panihida, and the remembemrance of all the brothers and sisters in Christ who has departed from life.

https://www.pc-freak.net/images/saint_Seraphim_Sobolev-Russian_Orthodox-Church-Bulgaria-new-canonized-saint

There is plenty of things online already online about St. Seraphim Sobolev, one good link with a bit of short biography worthy to check is here. For those who live in Bulgaria and want to get a book on his living

The grave of Saint Seraphim Sobolev is situated in a small chapel (crypt) located in the center of Sofia, Bulgaria, Russian Orthodox Church, St. Nicolas. Even to this day people go daily on a big queues to ask the saint for help in hardships in life.
The accepted way that people turn for prayer intercession is by writting their beseeches, needs, problems on a piece of paper and then dropping the small letter in a box called (Iashtik)  Russian.
I myself have been there and prayed and a lot of the things, I've asked the saint for my personal life and well being already come true. I know also of other people who by the prayers of the saint has been saved from a impossible to escape situations and a lot of people received spiritual confort and peace as well as spiritual healing when turning to the saint.
Saint Seraphim Sobolev, pray the Lord Jesus Christ for us the sinful Bulgarians and all the suffering people around the world, for the refugees, for the sick for the hungry for the homeless and for all nations that we turn to repentance and come back to the way of salvation you Lord Jesus has shown to the nations.

 

Evening service and Holy Liturgy in Russian Church st. Nicolas and marriage preparations

Wednesday, February 5th, 2014

St-nicolas-russian-church-sofia-bulgaria

Last Saturday evening I and my future wife Svetlana went to get train tickets (Sofia Dobrich), cause next week me and Svetlana will be travelling to Dobrich. Afterwards we went to Russian Church in center of Sofia – St. Nicolas for the evening service and confessed. The evening service was led by Archimandrite Philip who is currently Russian Church's prior.

archimandrite-Philip-russian-church-in-Bulgaria-prior

At the end of Church service there was an oilment, as always being on a Russian Holy Liturgy is astonishing experience. On Sunday morning 2nd February we were in Russian Church again for the Russian Liturgy and we took the holy sacraments as it is proper (according to Orthodox Church tradition the marrying couple should confess and receive the sacraments before marrying in Church). After Church service we went to Church crypt to venerate holy relics of Archimandrate Seraphim Sobolev. A big thing is happening in my life nowdays as I will have marriage this week  on Friday 7-th of February:)

We prepared so far almost everything for marriage. My parents helped with finding a marriage resturant and finding musicians for post marriage restaurant celebration. We also travelled to Asenovgrad to look for Svetlana's  wedding dress and we got one  I bough a marriage suit 2 weeks back and we ordered a marriage rings. There is already agreement with a priest father Vasilij – who will merry us in Church St. Trinity this Friday. Father Vasilij serves in Church "Dormition of Virgin Mary" in Kavarna . We choose father Vasilij to make the Marriage vows for the reason he is nativily Russian speaking (like Svetlana) plus the father is a good example of a true Christian priest. Today the parents of Svetlana (mama Vera and papa Alexander) arrived in the airport in Varna for the marriage (thanks God they had safe flight). Sunday night I send Svetlana to Train Station here in Sofia to make latest preparations for marriage. I will be travelling to Dobrich on Wednesday night 1 day before marriage. The rest of things happening around are not so interesting. In y job in HP work is complicated as usual. On my job I'm learning HPSM (HP Service Manager) and how to open new Changes in system and that's mostly my life these days. When I have time I'm playing OpenTyrian and a couple of nice arcade games on my ZTE Android mobile phone and reading some saint livings on mobile.
 

 

tavel to Sofia a pilgrimage in the Russian Church to holy relics of Archibishop Seraphim Sobolev and Oberon health check

Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

Archibishop_Seraphim_Sobolev-Russian-Church-in-Bulgaria

Last week I was in Sofia for a full body diagnosis with a device called Oberon. Of course the device is a Russian development.Anyways the results received showed that my health condition ain’t so bad even though it’s probably necessery to startsome physical exercises. I took a walk in Sofia around the National Assembly the City Library, The National Theater etc.The most exciting part of my journey was that I was able to attend the Russian Church located in blvd. Russia 3, I enteredthe Church crypt where Archibishop Seraphim Sobolev‘s body resides. I was able to venerate his holy body. It’s quite possiblethat the holy father Seraphim would be canonized in the short future for I’ve red many reports about a miraculous healingsand other miracles experienced by people who asked the holy father for intecessory prayer infront the Lord. More about the church itselfcould be red in Bulgarian language here . We traveled backto Dobrich with a friend of mine’s car Nomen. The traveling persons with Mitko’s car (Honda) was I, my father, Nasko and Nomen. On the way back I drived twice traveling like 150 km or a bit more. The Weekend was peaceful in overall. This days I don’t have much work probably because most of the people this wonderful summer days are unto summer holidays. To sum up I do thank to our Holy Lord the Holy Trinity as well as to the Theotokos for her constant intercession in front God. To God be the Glory! Now and unto ages of ages. Amen!END—–

Merry Russian and Serbian Christmas – The Russian Church Service feast in Nijmegen!

Monday, January 10th, 2011

Orthodox Church Nijmegen Holy relics of Patriarch Tikhon of Russian and Moscow and relics from St. Seraphim Sarovski and 3 more other russian saints
It’s 9th and it’s the 3rd day of the Russian and Serbian Christmas as well as Christmas for all those Orthodox Churches and monasteries, who still observe the old orthodox calendar / (star stil)

I’m just coming back from the Orthodox Church service in Nijmegen .
The Church service was great, the Father there Father Sergius is a priest for almost 30 years and is a really gracious and gentle priest!

After the Church service it is common that the Church community gathers together in the kitchen room (a small room in the church), where we had a dinner, tea and coffee together.
I should say the Church community is really tight, mainly constituted of Russians and Ukrainians but there are also quite of Dutch people who by God’s grace found the true church of Christ and thus converted to Orthodox Christians.
It’s really amazing to see a western people with a profound interest and dedication in Orthodoxy and in Eastern Church life! This is definitely a miracle of God!

After the Church service, one of the choire members lady had organized a Russian like Children festival to celebrate Christmas and the Russian New Year.

There was some children games organized for the children. After some of the games in which children had to do some kid games. Snegurochka and Det Moroz had entered the Church as a great delight for the children.

It’s interesting to say that in Bulgaria we also have Snegurochka that we call Snezhanka and Det Moroz which in Bulgarian is Dqdo Mraz

This kind of children feast and a way to complete the 3 days Christmas festival in which we celebrate the unexplainable mystery of our Saviour Jesus’s Christ incarnation had added up to the great joy of the Church service as well as bring back some old memories of my youth where in the Kinder Garden when I was a kid we used to also await and receive the two dear guests, the old man Dqdo Mraz and his assistans Snehznka 🙂

After the children performed some singing dancing and children exercises as well as had some songs and dances together with Det Moroz and Snezhanka it was time for the end part of the feast which is the recital of children rhymes and christmas songs.
Since there were mostly Russian kids there, most of the children performances was in Russian, however there were few Dutch kids so there was some recitals and singing in Dutch and even in English! 🙂

As Det Moroz was very pleased with the great acting of the youngsters he brought in the two sacks packed up with kid presents and after each children performance, he gave a present to the kid.
The kids were completely shining as a result since they were rewarded for their parcipation in the feast and had some photos with Det Moroz and Snezhanka 🙂

After the whole celebrations were over, we the people who left in the Church went in the church kitchen and had a wonderful table full of delicious foods and drinks, some of which were traditional Christmas Russian meals including my favourite’s Russian Salad / Ruska Salata

I had some very nice chats with some of the church members in the mean time and after the great meal together we cleaned up the Church, asked Father Sergii for a blessing and each one of the church brothers and sisters headed back home.

As a matter of fact since I’ve started talking about the Russian Orthodox Church in Nijmegen, maybe it will be nice to mention that the Church Bulding is actually an Byzantine Chapel taken from Roman Catholics, so the Church didn’t really have a classical Orthodox Church architecture, however this is not a problem at all since everything within the Church icons, iconostasis, alter wall , icons etc. are Russian and serbian Orthodox icons.
The alter was also reconstructed in order to be suitable with the Church requirements for an Orthodox Church alter, it’s interesting fact that the man who sells candles and does a lot of the Russian Church minor maintenance is a Bulgarian just like me 🙂

Currently the Orthodox Russian Church in Nijmegen had church services every two weeks (9th January, 23 January, 6th February etc.)

Although I should say that in the Church building the Serbians had their Orthodox Church service every two weeks also, which means that the Serbs has their Orthodox Church services in the same Church in Nijmegen on (16,30 ,13 of January etc.)

Therefore there is an Orthodox Church service every week in Nijmegen by God’s mercy where services alternate with each other, one week is Russian Orthodox Church and one week is the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Hope this info is helpful to somebody!
Again Merry Russian and Serbian Christmas! Cheers!