Our general confessor

Kobrin → Outstanding persons

Our general confessor, our remarkable spiritual general head and the aged man — the archpriest of the lake Nikolay Piskanovsky.

From 1928 to 1930 inclusive, the bishop Victor was in the 4th office SSFC (Solovki Of Special Function Camp), at the island of Solovki and worked as the accountant of Rope factory. The lodge in which there was an accounts department and in which there lived a lord Victor was out of the Kremlin, in a poluversta from it, on the fringe of the forest.

The lord had the admission for circulation across the territory from the lodge to the Kremlin, and therefore could freely (allegedly "on affairs") to come to the Kremlin where, in a chamber of doctors, were in a company of sanitary part: the lord bishop Maxim (Zhizhilenko), the first catacomb bishop and the doctor of medicine, together with doctors of camp doctor K.A. Kosinsky, doctor Petrov and me. All of us four were the church and orthodox people who were not recognizing the metropolitan Sergiya after his "Declaration" and consisting in a bosom of so-called "Catacomb Church" for as served sentence.

The lord Victor came to us quite often in the evenings and we long talked heart-to-heart. For "withdrawal of eyes" of the administration of a company, usually we dramatized a domino, behind a cup of tea. In turn all of us are four who had the admission for circulation on all island, often came, too allegedly "on affairs", to a lodge on the fringe of the forest, to the lord Victor.

In the depth of the wood, at distance of one verst, there was a clearing surrounded with birches. We called this clearing "Cathedral" of our Solovki Catacomb Church, in honor of the Blessed Trinity. The sky, and walls — the birch wood was a dome of this cathedral. Here occasionally there were our secret Church services. More often such church services happened in other place, in the wood, in "church" of a name of St. Nicholas The Wonderworker too. On church services, except us five, also other persons came: priests of the lake Matfey, lake Mitrofan, lake Alexander; bishops Nektary (Trezvinsky), Illarion (the vicar Smolensk), and our general confessor, our remarkable spiritual general head and the aged man — the archpriest of the lake Nikolay Piskunovsky. Occasionally there were also other prisoners, our loyal friends.

The Lord stored our "catacombs" and during all the time from 1928 to 1930 inclusive we were not noticed. The lord Victor was small growth, full, the piknichesky constitution, always with all is tender and friendly, with an invariable light vseradostny thin smile and radiant light eyes. "Each person should be consoled in something" — he said and was able to console all and everyone. For each passer at it was what - nibud the friendly word, and it is frequent even what - nibud a present.

When, after a semi-annual break, navigation opened, and the first steamship, then, usually came to the Solovki, the lord Victor received at once many ware and food parcels from the continent. Distributed all these parcels in several days of the lord, without keeping almost anything. It "consoled" very many, it is often perfect to it unknown prisoners, especially favoring so-called "lesson" (from the word "criminal investigation department"), i.e. the small pilferers sent as "socially harmful", "on isolation", under the 48th article.

Conversations between lords Maxim and Victor whose witnesses often there were we the doctors of sanitary part living in one chamber with the lord Maxim were of exclusive interest and gave deep spiritual edification. Both lords loved each other, slowly, being never irritated and not arguing, and as if attentively considering one difficult phenomenon from the different parties.

The lord Maxim was a pessimist and prepared for heartrending experiences of the last times, without trusting in a possibility of revival of Russia. And the lord Victor was an optimist and trusted in a possibility of the short, but light period as last gift from the sky for the exhausted Russian people.

At the end of 1930 the lord Victor terminated the three-year term of a concentration camp, but instead of release was sent in Mai Lip. More I did not meet it and heard nothing it about destiny.

Author of material professor I.M. Andreyev

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