In 1984 he graduated from the Faculty of Russian Language and Literature of the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute. In 1988 - candidate philological sciences.
Worked in the Moscow Palace of Pioneers (1980-84), the children's edition of the USSR State Radio and Television (1985), magazines: "Friendship of Peoples" (1986-88, 1989-92), "Questions of Philosophy" (1988-89); trained at the University of Bremen (1991), at the Free University of Berlin (1994); lectured at the University of Geneva (1992-1998), at the Moscow State Conservatory. P. I. Tchaikovsky (1998-2001). Columnist (since 1998), deputy chief editor (2001-2004), columnist (since 2004) of the Izvestia newspaper. Since 2004 - a columnist for the magazine "Profile".
IN different time published as a critic and publicist in the newspapers: Vremya MN, Izvestiya, Literaturnaya Gazeta, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Segodnya; magazines: "Questions of Literature", "Friendship of Peoples", "Banner", "Cinema Art", "Literary Review", "New Time", " New world”, “Profile”, “Country and World” (Munich), L’Oell (Paris).
In 1999, Alexander Nikolaevich participates in " round table» Magazine «Druzhba Narodov», № 11 for 1999 «About real and virtual prose». The event was attended by: N. Alexandrov, A. Arkhangelsky, V. Berezin, M. Butov, A. Gavrilov, A. Gosteva, A. Dmitriev, A. Nemzer, A. Slapovsky. Preparation for publication by N. Igrunova.
Also published under the pseudonyms Arkhip Angelevich, Angelina Arkhipova. Arkhangelsky's articles have been translated into English, Hebrew, German, French, Finnish languages.
From 1992 to 1993 - the author and host of the program "Against the Current" (TV channel "RTR"). From 1993 to 1994 - the author of the program "Writers at the Microphone" (radio station "Freedom"). In 2002 - the host of the program "Chronograph" (TV channel "Russia"). Since 2002 - author, presenter and head of the program "In the meantime" (TV channel "Culture").
Until May 2007, he was a regular guest of the weekly Special Opinion program on the Ekho Moskvy radio station.
He was awarded the Literary Review (1984) and Literaturnaya Gazeta (1990) magazines; magazines: Znamya (1996), Novy Mir (1996), Friendship of Peoples (1997).
Member of the Union Russian writers(September 1991). Member of the Russian Booker jury for 1995. Founding academician (1997) and president (1997-99) of the Academy of Russian Modern Literature (ARSS). Member of the Governing Body of the Booker Prize (1999-2002). Member of the jury of the Apollon Grigoriev Prize (2005), literary prize"Big Book" and "Russian Prize" (2006). Member of the Academy Russian television since 2007.
Finalist of the TEFI-2005 and TEFI-2006 awards in the nomination "Host of the Information and Analytical Program". Nominated for TEFI-2007 in the nomination "Host of the Information and Analytical Program".
Professor at the Faculty of Media Communications at the Higher School of Economics.
Books
Alexander Nikolaevich Arkhangelsky wrote books:
- “The poetic story of A.S. Pushkin "The Bronze Horseman" - M.: graduate School, 1990.
- "At the front door. Literary and cultural situations publicity period. 1987-1990. - M.: Soviet writer, 1991.
- “Conversations about Russian Literature. End of the 18th - first half of the 19th century. - M.: Olimp, 1999.
- Heroes of Pushkin. Essays on literary characterology. - M.: Higher school, 1999.
- "Alexander I". - M.: Vagrius, 2000. (translated into French: Alexandre 1-er. Le feu follet. Paris, Fayard, 2000);
- "Political Correction". M., Modest Kolerov and "Three Squares", 2001;
- "Basic Values". - St. Petersburg: Amphora, 2006.
- "Humanitarian Policy". - M.: OGI, 2006.
- "1962". - St. Petersburg: Amphora, 2007.
- "cut-off price". - M.: AST: Astrel, 2008. - ISBN 978-5-17-053463-0
- "Meanwhile". - M.: AST: Astrel, 2010. - ISBN 978-5-17-062097-5
The books "Political Correction" and "Humanitarian Policy" are collections of selected articles by Arkhangelsky, which were published at different times in the newspaper "Izvestia". "Political correction" - articles published from 1998 to 2001; "Humanitarian Policy" - from 2001 to 2005.
TV films
- "Memory Factory: Libraries of the World"
- "Department"
- "Heat"
“Arkhangelsky listened to those mysterious verbs
which resound in the human soul, overwhelmed by the waves of the sea of life.
In their the best works he leads us into the recesses of the suffering soul
and seeking humility in God."
Alexander Andreevich Arkhangelsky - an outstanding Russian spiritual composer and choral conductor. Although he lived for more than 20 years in the 20th century, he still remains prominent representative Petersburg composer school late XIX V.
In the works of Arkhangelsky, knowledge of the possibilities of combining individual voices and choral groups, often there are polyphonic episodes. Alexander Andreevich was one of the first Russian composers to interpret the chants of the Liturgy and all-night vigil How single cycle having harmonic and intonation connections. The melody of his compositions is close to everyday chants and folk song. Arrangements of ancient chants are made in a strict diatonic style of harmony with limited dissonances.
According to researchers, it will probably never be possible to draw up a complete “picture” of Alexander Andreevich’s life: unfortunately, part of the Arkhangelsky archive was lost during the looting of his St. Petersburg apartment in 1924.
“I rarely had to meet people who so joyfully accepted life until the end of their days. Anyone who, like me, saw the tender light in the eyes of Alexander Andreevich in the sad time of illness, will understand why he never ended a musical thought on the sad verse of the psalm, but always led it to a soothing resolution. Therefore, it does not seem to be an accident that Alexander Andreevich began many of his works with a simple and touching prayer: “Lord, I cry to Thee, hear me” ”(from the memoirs of contemporaries).
Alexander Andreevich Arkhangelsky was born on October 11 (23), 1846 in the village of Staroe Tezikovo, Narovchatsky district, Penza province, in the family of a priest Andrei Ivanovich of Arkhangelsk. Mother, Elizaveta Fedorovna, arranged home concerts at home in moments of rest. Except junior Alexander The family had two more children.
Peasant life and the sudden loss of a father with early childhood accustomed the future regent and composer to constant hard work. In childhood, and began to manifest main interest Alexandra - to music.
At the age of ten, the boy entered the Krasnoslobodsk Theological School. By the end of the first year of study, Bishop Varlaam (Uspensky) of Penza and Saransk arrived at the school. The singing abilities of young Alexander attracted the attention of Vladyka - in the fall of 1859, the talented young man was immediately transferred to the II class of the Penza provincial religious school and enrolled him as a singer-soloist in the bishop's choir. And after the successful completion of the school in 1862, Arkhangelsky was transferred to the Penza Theological Seminary.Arkhangelsky quickly acquired the necessary professional skills and at the age of sixteen successfully replaced the ill regent, but, despite this, he acutely felt a lack of knowledge. In order to fill in the gaps, he actively educated himself and spent his modest earnings on lessons in music theory, composition and harmony; studied violin with an accompanist for seven years opera house Rubinovich. At the same time, he met the famous Penza musical figure and composer of sacred music, Nikolai Mikhailovich Potulov. In the summer of 1870, at the age of 24, the young regent went to St. Petersburg and in the autumn of the same year became a volunteer in the surgical department of the Military Medical Academy. But he did not forget about music, while simultaneously accumulating and deepening his musical and professional knowledge. He took private lessons in piano and solo singing. Arkhangelsky believed that the regent-conductor should sing professionally himself, know the rules for staging the voice, so as not to "spoil" the voices of the singers. Not having studied even a year at the Medical Academy, Alexander Arkhangelsky moved to the Technological Institute. But even here he realized that such a life did not correspond to his spiritual interests and physical capabilities. And then the 26-year-old student filed a petition with the director of the Singing Chapel, Nikolai Ivanovich Bakhmetev, to take an external exam for the title of choir director. After receiving a high-level certificate, Arkhangelsky got a job as regent of the Sapper Battalion, then the Horse Guards Regiment, and finally the Court Stable Church. Due to difficult material conditions, the regency had to be combined with public service accountant at the Control Chamber of the Ministry of Railways.
Since the mid 1870s. Arkhangelsky thought about organizing his own choir. Thanks to the help of his fellow countryman, the Minister of Railways F. Neronov, in 1880 Arkhangelsky created his own choir of 16 people 4, and three years later his first public performance took place, which immediately attracted attention. -mania of the public and musical figures.
In 1885, Alexander Andreevich embodied a long-conceived decision - he made changes in the choir, replacing the boys with a female staff, which was an innovation in the practice of performing choral works. This made it possible to have a permanent composition of the choir and reach the heights of performing skills.
Since the beginning concert activity the choir are connected with Arkhangelsky's successes as a composer. Spiritual compositions occupied a significant place in his work. Its researchers life path note that he, along with such authors as Dmitry Bortnyansky, Alexei Lvov, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, made a "major step forward" towards creating his own Russian original church music. The spiritual works of Arkhangelsky (and this is the main thing in his work - about a hundred) were distinguished by a high professional level.
The concert activity of the Arkhangelsk Choir has become a bright page in the history of the world musical art. The best samples of chants Orthodox Church were open to the general public. Thanks to his talent and organizational skills, Arkhangelsky led the choir for 43 years - a unique phenomenon in the history of Russian art. Alexander Andreevich paid much attention to the regents church choirs helping them expand and enrich their repertoire.
The Arkhangelsky Choir made trips both in Russia and abroad, its popularity was extraordinary. Alexander Andreevich was called the best choral conductor peace. From the reviews of that time you can read: “Mr. Arkhangelsky not only serious musician, but also a wonderful connoisseur of the cause, which he serves with love and rare energy ... All of Russia loves to pray to the music of A.A. Arkhangelsk".
Revolutionary events Alexander Andreevich accepted as Orthodox Christian- with humility, sharing the sorrowful fate of his people. In 1918, the composer's small estate in the Kostroma village of Kalikino was plundered. The "people's" government announced that the musician was deprived of the rights to his property. The repertoire of the choir was now approved by the People's Commissariat of Education, having expelled all Orthodox music, and the choir itself was renamed the State choir. In spite of everything, Arkhangelsky continued to work in the winter of 1921, during the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Arkhangelsky's choir activity, he - the first of the choir conductors - was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the Republic.
I can't say anything special about my life in Petrograd; my choir (in a reduced composition) is functioning, but everything around me is so burdensome ... But what should I do? The devastation is complete and general ... "
In connection with the renaming of the St. Petersburg Court Singing Chapel into the State Academic Chapel, the existence of two state choirs, Arkhangelsky was offered to organize the State Chapel in Moscow. However, Arkhangelsky refused this offer, citing illness and advanced age.
In 1923, through Alexander Grechaninov, the composer received an invitation to work in Prague. Together with his wife Pelageya Andreevna, he moved to Czechoslovakia. Here Alexander Andreevich successfully worked with the All-Student Russian Choir7. The rehearsals of the newly created team were interrupted due to the illness of the leader. In the summer of 1924, Arkhangelsky was invited to Italy for treatment. Feeling better, he returned to Prague. At the same time, the consequences of the October Revolution in his homeland left a heavy mark on the soul of the composer. On November 16, 1924, he scheduled another rehearsal of the choir, but an hour before it began, the heart of the great composer stopped forever...
In October 1925, the ashes of Alexander Andreevich, in accordance with his expressed will, were transported by his wife to Leningrad, and there, after the conciliarly performed funeral Liturgy in the Kazan Cathedral, while singing the "former" choir of the beloved regent of Russia, he was buried at Tikhvin cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. The words are inscribed on the tombstone: "Give me, O God, my prayer."
Natalia Kuzina, leader of the Tallinn choir "Rainbow", described the work of Alexander Andreevich Arkhangelsky in the following words: " musical language Arkhangelsky is natural, as human speech is natural and expressive. His compositions are distinguished by unusual softness, clarity, warmth in music, and prayerfulness.
According to the observation of one of Alexander Arkhangelsky's contemporaries, “the worshiper is fascinated not only by the beauty of voice leading, but, most importantly, under the influence of Arkhangelsky's music, he lights up with an even stronger religious feeling. The reason for this influence is in the deep religious feeling of the author himself ... "
PhD in Philology, Professor at the Faculty of Communications, Media and Design, National Research University Higher School of Economics. Former Author and Presenter television programs"Against the Current", "Chronograph". Since 2002, he has been the author and host of the Meantime program. Co-founder of the Academy of Russian Modern Literature. Author of scientific and popular science books "Poetic story of A. S. Pushkin" Bronze Horseman“” (1990), “Conversations about Russian literature. The end of the XVIII - the first half of the XIX century "(1998)," Heroes of Pushkin. Essays on Literary Characterology” (1999), collections of literary criticism (“At the Front Door”, 1991), publicistic articles. Author of prose books “1962. Epistle to Timothy "(last edition - 2008), "The Price of Cutoff" (2008), "Museum of the Revolution" (2012), etc. The book "Alexander I" went through several editions in Russia, was translated into French and Chinese. Author of school textbooks teaching aids, Readers in Literature. Author of the films “Memory Factory: Libraries of the World”, “Department”, “Heat”, “Intellectual. Vissarion Belinsky", "Exile. Alexander Herzen" and others.
Not the hero of our time
How Lermontov, having written a novel in two parts, deceived Nicholas I and other readers
The Return of Philosophy
Who, how and why in Stalin's time began to study philosophy - a quarter of a century after its traditions were destroyed
Palace under the hood
How graduates of the Faculty of Philosophy of Moscow State University created the territory of freedom in the magazine - the mouthpiece of the communist parties in the early 1960s
Incredible Institute
As in the Soviet academic institute read leading bourgeois newspapers, studied theater, the hippie movement and modern Western philosophy
The noose is compressed
How Soviet Tanks Entering Prague in 1968 Ended Previous Opportunities for the Humanities
Before the barrier
What did philosophers do for schoolchildren, deaf-blind people, for literature, cinema and for changing the world
Victory and disappointment
What did Soviet philosophers give the world: the realization of the impossibility of changing reality or the revived language of philosophizing?
Zabolotsky. "Passerby"
How the poet stretched out the moment, overcame death and wrote the most in simple terms cryptic poem
Trifonov. "House on the waterfront"
How Trifonov stepped over his conscience, then mercilessly condemned himself, and at the same time comprehended the mechanisms of political terror
Basya GRINBERG
In the TV show “In the meantime”, he reflects on the high, that is, on culture and education. On the "Echo of Moscow" - descends to the sinful earth, analyzing political events. He is a pundit, as evidenced by the corresponding degree, and the father of four children.
In the TV show “In the meantime”, he reflects on the high, that is, on culture and education. On the "Echo of Moscow" - descends to the sinful earth, analyzing political events. He is a pundit, as evidenced by the corresponding degree, and the father of four children. - Alexander, how old are you? - Forty four. - At forty-four you are doing science, writing textbooks and books, broadcasting radio and television… How do you manage to keep up everywhere? - Strictly speaking, I am no longer engaged in science. You have to either do it all the time or not do it at all. I have certain academic skills that come in handy in life, that's all. But you are right, I defended my dissertation at the philological faculty in Pedagogical Institute named after Lenin and taught for quite a long time, almost twenty years. First, in the same Leninsky, then at the conservatory in the humanities department ... But I never made money by teaching. Except, of course, for the period when he lectured in the West, at the University of Geneva. I taught the history of Russian civilization there. - So you sacrificed science for the sake of journalism? - No no. There are scientists by vocation. I've never been like that though. Even when doing scientific activity, it could rather be called enlightenment. And today I have a column in Izvestia, in the Profil magazine, in RIA-Novosti, a weekly TV show Meantime on the Kultura channel, and once a week broadcast on the Ekho Moskvy radio station. If I didn’t need money at all, I would probably refuse something superfluous, but not from public lectures, I would continue to do this even for free. Although I get quite well for my lectures in the regions. - Do the regions value science so much that they are ready to pay decently for it? - Firstly, there is money in the regions, and secondly, intellectual interest is not satisfied. At least among young businessmen. It is in demand and public topics, and cultural. - Your program on the channel "Culture" ("In the meantime") is designed for what kind of audience? - The spectator changed with us. I think that today our audience is the traditional intelligentsia, moreover, older than forty. In addition, young businessmen. And students began to watch us. That is, we work for educated people. Serious people working in the financial sector are also our audience. - But still, people of respectable age watch the program to a greater extent? - I think two-thirds for sure. But this is the channel. You know, Mikhail Shvydkoy once said: “The Kultura channel is watched by old communists and young rightists.” - Why, then, are practically all the invited guests, as a rule, over sixty? - Firstly, not for everyone; for the most part from forty to fifty - you can count yourself. Second, imagine that a young expert comes into the studio. In two cases out of three, he simply has nothing to say yet. By the way, we live in a country where even a broadcast of such a narrowly focused TV channel as Kultura has an audience of a million viewers. What is a million viewers? It's ten stadiums. And in general, judging the transfer by age is not entirely correct. Chat with Yuri Petrovich Lyubimov, who was born on September 30, 1917. The October Revolution has not yet taken place, but it has already come into being! A clear, bright mind, and what difference does it make how old he is? - On TV you have a program about culture, and on radio - about politics. Do you have such diverse knowledge? - Can you imagine how it is possible to engage in culture and not engage in politics? You can be involved in politics and not be involved in culture, but not vice versa. - Well, what is closer to you? “Life itself is closer to me, that is, everything that surrounds us: both culture and politics. * * * - Alexander, you are a happy father of four children. In our time, this is akin to a feat. - In my opinion, children are very good. They don't just take, they give. In addition, I earn enough, and my problems with money do not go to any comparison with what the average Russian experiences in this regard. I am raising two boys and two girls: Timofey is 19 this year, Lisa is 16, Sophia is 7, and Tikhon is 4 years old. Two in each marriage. - Are you able to spend enough time with them? - Just don't expect parental groans from me: they say, I would like to pay as much attention to children as possible and so on. You know, there was such a wonderful Soviet teacher Simon Soloveichik. So he had the following formula: the light breaking through under the door of his father's office brings up better than all the lectures in the world. Therefore, I believe that my lifestyle brings up my children better than if I lectured them. I have trust a good relationship with all children. - The leading TV channel "Culture" probably also has cultural leisure? - Nothing elitist, just like everyone else. I sometimes go to the cinema with my children. Tomorrow, for example, I will go to the dacha with my middle daughter, and tomorrow my eldest son will pass the exam at the institute and join us. Let's take a walk, eat okroshka, and at night we'll go back. - Are you a strict father? - Rather, yes. I believe that parents should feel authority in the eyes of their children. When he performed graduation party eldest son, thanked the teachers for not interfering with my work. I checked the diary no more than three times in all 11 years of my son's education. I think that children should have a request for information, for education. If children see how parents read books, and family guests in conversations quote from good works, - the same is deposited on the subcortex and forms a vital attitude. My son is studying at the Mekhmat, and there, I tell you, there are no drugs at all. Children study there simple families, what well. After all, where there is extra money, nothing good happens. Yes, and the school in which Timofey studied was the most ordinary. After all, what is the most important thing in school? Good atmosphere, children need to adapt to society. They live here, in Russia, and therefore the habitat should be normal - one in which they will then have to exist, and not an elitist one. Well, of course, in the tenth and eleventh grades, education must be increased by private teachers… - Alexander, you live not far from Stary Arbat. Was your childhood there? - Not really. I bought this apartment not so long ago, but I was born in Sokolniki. He lived in Matveevka, then near the metro station Planernaya, Oktyabrskoye Pole, Barrikadnaya ... It's good to live in the center. I work late, and when I have to go home, I don't have to worry about spending a lot of time on the road. - Who are your parents? - My mother's name is Lyudmila Tikhonovna, she raised me alone. I separated from my father when I was very young. Mom worked as a radio typist in the same building where the Kultura TV channel is now located. By the way, I remember this place also because the editorial office of the Pionerskaya Zorka of the Soviet children's radio where I started my career. It was terrible. - And why is that? - I'm always ready to compromise, but there is a limit to everything. I was simply sick of the very way the program was produced, of some kind of false drum-pioneer enthusiasm, of the fact that people had been working in the editorial office since the 50s, and no one could remove them. Imagine, on the table of the editor-in-chief there was a list of writers, opposite each surname there was an epithet that could only be used in relation to him. For example, Pushkin Alexander Sergeevich is a genius, Tolstoy Lev Nikolayevich is a great one, and so on. I worked there for only nine months, I could not stand it and quit. But, as you can see, he didn’t completely leave the radio ... * * * - Alexander, and in your close-knit family, some traditions have been preserved - for example, New Year meet together or celebrate birthdays. - The New Year is not always successful. After all, my two older children meet him with their mother, that is, with my first wife. As for birthdays… You know, for five years now I’ve been celebrating mine on business trips. - Okay, but what about national Jewish traditions? - I'll disappoint you: I'm not a Jew. My appearance is in Greek relatives from my mother. True, the Greek blood in me is only one-eighth. But my second wife - yes, there is Jewish roots. Her grandfather's surname is Bronstein... True, I managed to suffer for the great Jewish people. I remember when I came to enter the graduate school of the Lenin Pedagogical Institute, the head of the department looked at me carefully and said: “It’s better for you not to do it.” I was surprised: "Why?" She thought for a moment and answered: “Therefore…” - But, judging by the program “In the meantime”, you also have to communicate with representatives of, as you say, the great Jewish people at work. - Of course, this is an intellectual transmission. Jews throughout history have defined their identity through the intellect. Intelligence cannot be lost, it is something that always stays with you. In the intellectual spheres, almost all representatives of this particular nationality. They have one side analytical warehouse mind, and on the other - emotionality. - Have you been to Israel? - Yes. Well, what can I say - a great, fantastic country. By the way, I studied a little the history of Palestine, read the descriptions of travelers of the 19th century. Of course, what can be seen in Israel today is not at all like pictures from the life of the past. Today it is a green, inhabited country... Jewish quarters are easy to distinguish from Arab ones by the presence of greenery and the absence of dirt. Strange, they seem to be the same historical roots and natural and geographical conditions, but life is completely different. As far as politics, I think Jews are ruined by stubbornness. The last twenty years on the political scene are just a continuous series of mistakes. It was necessary to negotiate with the Arabs earlier: to give even more autonomy than they wanted in the 70s, or not to give anything later. History cannot show weakness. And what is happening now is very big mistake. I'm afraid the case may end with the loss of East Jerusalem. But this may be followed by the destruction of Israel. I hope it doesn't come to that... * * * - Are there taboo topics in your TV show? - Certainly. I will never discuss the corporation where I work, I will not talk about the television activities of my colleagues. That's when I finish doing television, then please. You cannot be a judge of those with whom you work on the same field. - What about taboo topics in politics? - I think I will not discuss the personality of Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. I still work for state channel and I have certain limitations. And in general, his personality is not very interesting to me - the difference from the activity. As for politics in general, everything that happens after October 25, 2003, I consider a mistake. Khodorkovsky was detained that day, and no matter how anyone treats this businessman, it was his arrest that led to a chain of consequences that, from my point of view, lead us to a dead end. You see, when Putin speaks about adoption in his message to the Federal Assembly, I support him, but when he uses the word “democracy” only twice, and then with a negative connotation, I strongly oppose it. And I am sure that this is not the future for the country where my children live.
In the Cathedrals of the Voronezh and Lipetsk saints, as well as the New Martyrs and Confessors of the Russian Church
For a year he has been a priest in the village of Lipovka (near the town of Liski) in the Voronezh province, where he served for two and a half years.
Since the year he has been a priest of the village of Mechetka, Voronezh province. In the village of Mechetka, Father Alexander served as the second priest. The rector of the temple was Fr. Peter Sokolov, with whom Fr. Alexander was friends with families.
In the year he was elevated to the rank of archpriest, was appointed rector of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Buturlinovka, Voronezh province and dean of Buturlinovsky district.
On April 8, a representative of the secret department of the OGPU summoned Father Alexander for interrogation and asked how the priest felt about Soviet power. "I recognize the Soviet workers' and peasants' power as a people's power and I obey it unquestioningly," Father Alexander answered. The investigator began to ask about other people who had already been arrested on Voronezh case, and about church literature. Father Alexander replied: “I don’t know Dulov and for the first time I hear his last name, I saw the priest Butuzov at the liturgy in Sergius temple, but he did not have and did not talk to him. I did not receive the pamphlet "What an Orthodox Christian Should Know", but I heard that it supposedly exists."
Soon Father Alexander was arrested on charges of "belonging to a church-monarchist organization, which set itself the goal of raising an uprising against Soviet power and restoring the monarchy." Passed through the group case "The Case of Bishop Alexy (Buy). Voronezh, 1930."
The investigator began to ask him about the service of the prayer service for the Pope and about pamphlets. Father Alexander answered:
“As for the question proposed by me about serving a prayer service for the Pope of Rome and about reading some pamphlet about Orthodoxy in the presence of priest Ivan Markin and other persons, I have a duty in purely priestly conscience to declare: I did not serve any prayer service for the Pope of Rome and could not serve , since it has nothing to do with our Orthodox Church ... Also, regarding the reading of some pamphlet, I must say: I did not have any pamphlet and have not read it. This rumor is completely absurd and started, probably to damage me in the eyes of the authorities, before which I am clear in my conscience.
“I didn’t know any nuns-preachers, and they never visited me in Buturlinovka, I heard their names only here, in the OGPU. which I myself first of all recognize in principle as a power given by God. I can’t believe in one thing and say another... Collective-farm construction in Buturlinovka was carried out and passed very successfully, painlessly, and I could not and cannot do that to anyone -or say against him ... no one asked me about it in Buturlinovka ... The notice of the pope's speech became known after the first week of Great Lent, I did not serve any prayer for the pope and could not serve, because it is contrary to the canons Orthodox Church ... The prayer service was ordinary, and it had no political topics, and I only greeted with the communion of the Holy Mysteries and intimacy with the Savior."
