New-Martyrs and Confessors of Russian Church

10 March, 2015

Собор новомучеников и исповедников Российских

There is the church in Southern Brooklyn (8645 18 AVENUE), dedicated to an honor of New-Martyrs and Confessors of Russian Church; it was the first Orthodox church in this district.

It was quickly decided to dedicate this church to an honor of New Martyrs and Confessors, because people of Soviet Union by birth venerated them very much, so they became first parishioners and laborers in the new church.

New Martyrs and Confessors are the Russian Saints, who died martyrly for Christ or were persecuted after The October Revolution of 1917.

XX century was violent and bloody. It was particularly tragic for Russia because it lost a lot of sons and daughters not only by the hands of foreign enemies, but also from their own godless persecutors. Thousands of Hierarchs, clergy, monks and laypeople glorified God by martyrly death, uncomplaining sufferings and hardships in the camps, prisons, exiles. They died with faith, prayer, repentance in their hearts and minds. Bearing great sorrows, they kept peace of Christ in their hearts and became a light of faith for those people who contacted them. Those martyrs glorified God by their exploits.

The persecutions began soon after the October Revolution of 1917. Archpriest Ioann Kochurov of Tsarskoye Selo became the first martyr; he has been tortured to death on November 13 of 1917. On February 7 of 1918 sailors have shot the Metropolitan Vladimir (Bogoyavlensky) in Kyiv – he was the first martyr among the Hierarchs.

A lot of martyrs were after Sts. Ioann and Vladimir.

In 1918 in Russia was 150 000 clergymen. Up to 1941 130 000 of them were shot.

Just like martyrs of first centuries, new-martyrs went for tortures without hesitations and died in joy for Christ. Often before the moment of execution they prayed for those who tortured them.

People started to venerate new-martyrs soon after their death, and that was persecuted by the authorities.

Russian Orthodox Church Abroad glorified new-martyrs on November 1 of 1981 on the Council headed by Metropolitan Philaret (Voznesensky).

The very beginning of glorification of New-Martyrs and Confessors of Russian Orthodox Church was a moment of canonization of the Most Holy Patriarch Tikhon (Belavin) on October 9 of 1989.

More than 1000 persons were canonized during the next Councils.

To January 1 of 2011, 1774 persons were canonized as Russian New-Martyrs and Confessors of XX century.

Among those who suffered for Faith in XX century are: St. Patriarch of all Russia Tikhon (1925), Romanovs passion bearers, St. Hieromartyr Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych (1918), St. Hieromartyr Metropolitan Peter of Krutitsy (1937), St. Hieromartyr Metropolitan of Petrograd and Gdov Benjamin (1922), St. Hieromartyr Metropolitan Seraphim Chichagov (1937), St. Hieromartyr Protopresbyter Alexander, the ecclesiarch of The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (1937), Sts. Venerable Martyress Great Duchess Elizabeth and nun Barbara (1918), and other known and unknown persons.

The Remembrance Day of all New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia is on the nearest Sunday to February 7 (between 4 and 10 February) – the day of martyr death of St. Metropolitan of Kyiv and Halych Vladimir (Bogoyavlensky).

New-Martyrs and Confessors of Russian Church обновлено: February 12, 2016 автором: maximus