Once on the
place of the monastery there was a large garden, where venerable St. Theophilus
of Kiev (†1853) loved to pray to God in solitude. One day, walking there with the
owner of the site Joseph Dikovsky he stopped near a large oak tree and said,
"Pray here Joseph, God’s servant... The place we are standing on - is
sacred." Dikovsky who highly revered the elder was puzzled and said:
"It wasn’t really holy because urban youth usually comes here to organize
orgy". But the ascetic in full confidence posted: "No, no, I say to
you verily that the Grace of God will shine over here and in the place where we
are standing now the Temple of God will be erected. This oak tree will be cut
down, and in its place there will be a church altar, and your whole garden will
be turned into a nunnery, and the royal wife will be the founder and the ruler.
"
The
prediction came true: the founder of the monastery became the Grand Duchess
Alexandra - the wife of the Emperor’s Alexander
II brother. She was born on May 21, 1838 in St. Petersburg, in the family of the
Prince Peter of Oldenburg son (1812-1881) and Princess Therese (1815-1871).
Peter Georgiyevich was a famous statesman and philanthropist - a senator, a
member of the State Council, Chairman of the Department of Religious and civil
cases, the head of the department of Empress Maria (founded by the wife of Paul
I) based on the management of a charitable body in the Russian Empire. In 1856,
Alexandra Petrovna moved from the protestant faith to Orthodoxy and married
Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich (1831-1891).
"Since
my childhood I was close to the sick, loved them and was a witness of my
parents’ example. My unforgettable mother established the first Russian Holy
Trinity Community of the Sisters of Mercy on funds received by mum from my
father for apparels " - a great Princess wrote later. Following the
example of her father and mother, she also devoted herself to works of charity.
With support of her spouse, in 1858-1860 Alexandra Petrovna founded the Intercession
community of Sisters of Mercy with a hospital, outpatient, maternity hospital,
pharmacy, a school of nurse in Gallernaya Harbour on Vasilyevsky Island in St.
Petersburg (the poorest working part of the city), representing an entire town. This community
provided free medical care to the poor, and helped their children and orphans
with education and employment.
Even at the
1st year of the community’s work more than 1,000 patients were served, and more
than 200 surgeries were performed. Until 1881 the Grand Duchess was the chairman
of the Council of orphanages Department of Institutions of Empress Maria;
thanks to Alexandra’s concern a huge sum of money was collected, and 23 large
orphanages were supported.
After the
birth of sons, Nicholas (1856-1929) and Peter (1864-1931), her marriage became
formal. Her husband, the Grand Duke fell in love with the ballerina, and their
relationship lasted almost until the end of his life. In 1879, the Grand
Duchess suffered a new test: the horse overturned her cab, she fell on the pavement
hitting herself gravely, as a result she got a serious spinal injury. After
that Alexandra had been confined to bed for 10 years with a possibility of moving
only with her left hand. Doctors insisted on climate change. In 1880-1881 the
Grand Duchess made the sea voyage from Sevastopol to the south of Europe, but
treatment in Italy did not bring any relief, though. Before returning to the
motherland she visited Mount Athos, and it was a great comfort to the sufferer.
The ship of the Grand Princess, stuck at the St. Panteleimon monastery and
monks came there to perform Liturgy and prayers in the marching church. Being
on the bed of sickness Alexandra experienced the greatest power of Jesus
Christ’s strengthening prayer.
Having returned
home, the Grand Duchess decided to settle in Kiev. At first she lived in
Mariinsky Palace, then moved to the house in Lipky and began to organize the small
secluded monastery. She wanted to repeat the experience of the community in St.
Petersburg. In 1888, Alexandra bought a plot of land in Lukyanovka for the
construction of the monastery. After the transaction, descendants of Dikovsky
remembered about the prediction of Venerable Theophilus and informed the Grand
Duchess. At the request of Alexandra the funeral was made on the grave of the
ascetic (he hadn’t been glorified as a saint yet), and his portrait was
ordered for a new monastery. In January
11, 1889 the monastery was laid. When in July 20, 1889 the first necessary
buildings were ready, Grand Duchess moved to the monastery.
Soon a
miracle of healing happened and she wrote: "A few years ago, His Eminence
Palladium, Archbishop of Volyn and Zhytomyr, blessed me with the holy icon of
the Mother of God of Pochaev and prophesied: "Pray before this holy icon –
and you will be healed." In the morning, in early July, I dared to pray the
Most Holy Theotokos and begged: "If you want, Mother of God, Queen of
heaven and earth, accept my sinful work and diligence, vouchsafe me to serve
you and the monastery, created in your name, stored in Your Powerful Protection
until my last breath! "After praying, I picked up a pair of crutches that
were earlier sanctified on the relics of the venerable saint father Agapitos,
the unmercenary healer of the Holy Kiev-Pechersk
Lavra, but they were not made perfectly for me and proved to be short.
So I couldn't
lean on them and sighed praying to the Immaculate Blessed Mother of our Lord,
and said: "Please, Help me", then I got up and made some steps. A
great miracle occurred! It was done on me, a sinful slave Alexandra and I kept
the secret many days, nobody in our holy monastery knew about it. Gradually,
the Queen of Heaven strengthened me and soon everybody knew about performed
great mercy of God. Professor Vladimir Afanasievich Karavaev, always told that there
was no medical treatment to be able to
raise me up from bed of my disease and
when he learnt about this miracle and came personally to ensure and
significantly said: "Do not think that it was our help - it was God’s
help! '"
In the
autumn of 1889 Alexandra had a secret tonsure with the name of Anastasia. Until
the last minutes of her life, she gave all her strength and her money to the
monastery and the charity funds ("What am I? A bag of money, for which I
should give an answer to God for its right distribution" - Grand Duchess said
about herself). The monastery was a real "town of mercy" (in public
it was called - "Duchess' Nunnery"), that was constantly increasing
during the lifetime of Venerable Anastasia as well as after her death († April
13. 1900).
Sketches of
many buildings were performed by Petr Nikolaevich, the son of Grand Duchess,
and drawings - by the architect Vladimir Nikolayev. Charities (hospice,
hospital, clinic, pharmacy, asylums, school, workshops) were designed to the
highest standards (Kiev's first X-ray unit was purchased and served not only for
the monastery hospital). Delving into all needs of sick and poor, nuns and
medical staff, Venerable Anastasia took care of the patients; many hours she
worked as an assistant during surgery; she regularly attended Devine Liturgy
(though her health was not ideal: in 1892 and 1894 she underwent surgery for
removing cancerous tumors). "We need to be able to live, having happiness
inside in order to make others happy" - said the ascetic (the word of the
Lord came true in her hard work: "My strength is made perfect in weakness
(2 Corinthians 12)). Being a founder of the monastery (because her tonsure was secret
in 1890 an Abbess was appointed, who became a good
companion for venerable Anastasia), she modestly called herself "lay
sister Alexandra" (in rassophore monastic clothing); sisters called
her "the Great
Mother." In 1893 the monastery was visited by St. venerable John of
Kronstadt. In 1894, to the Intercession Nunnery Kiev-Mezhyhirya Monastery was
joined. It was restored before by st. Jonah Kiev (the founder of the Holy
Trinity-St Jonah men's Monastery). In 1917 there were more than 700 sisters
(nuns) in two monasteries. In 1919 the monastery was registered in the Soviet
government body as a "Kiev-Pokrovsky (Intercession) labor religious and
gardening community". In 1923, however, the nuns were evicted from the
monastery and it was changed in a town of metal workers. During the hard times
of the World War I, the revolution and the subsequent abolition of the
monastery, its Abbes was Venerable Sophia (Grinyova) (1873 - †April 4. 1941).
She was appointed abbess in 1913 and she was a wonderful example of devotion to
God's will, maternal tenderness to sisters and noble respect for the
persecutors in the most difficult circumstances. After the closure of the
monastery mother Sophia settled in Irpen (a suburb of Kiev) with some sisters,
where she continued life according to monastic rules in 1931-1932.
The ascetic
spent 12 months in custody, having been accused of clandestine activities. Finding
no evidence of guilt under investigation, Mother Sophia was released but she
was banned to settle in Kiev and its suburbs. So she had lived in Putivl for
some time but her last refuge was village Pokrov in Kaluzskaya region. In the
autumn of 1941 nun Yepistimia (Samoilenko) from the Intercession monastery
gathered all remaining nuns in Kiev and returned to the monastery with them.
Schema-Archbishop Venerable confessor Antony (Abashidze) assisted them in
obtaining approval from the occupation authorities. They managed to restore the
work of ambulance in the most difficult conditions and doctors constantly
risking their lives gave bogus certificates about their unfitness to be send to
work in Germany. In the autumn of 1943, the monastery was in a strategic zone, which
the Nazis resettled due to the approach of Soviet troops. Despite the threat of
being shoot all the nuns didn't leave the monastery. Together with 300 citizens
they locked themselves in the lower church at St. Nicholas Cathedral and stayed
there for 40 days before the liberation of Kiev. After that they opened a hospital
for wounded soldiers in the convent. There selfless work in the hospital was
awarded by the government: Abbess Archelaya (Savelliev) was presented to the
medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War."
After the
war only 1/3 of its former territory was returned to the monastery. The stone
buildings of the monastery were turned over to government agencies and the
renovation of the remaining ones required great effort. Despite the
difficulties, with God's help Intersection church and St. Nicholas Cathedral
were restored as well as all residential dwellings of the monastery. During a very
complex period of relationship between the Church and the government the Queen
of Heaven retained her monastery from closing.
In 1981, the
St. Nicholas cathedral was damaged by the fire, caused by the lightning strike
in the roof of the cathedral. Due to the brick arch, the selfless action of the
fire brigade and nuns, the fire did not penetrate inside the temple. However, a
huge amount of water damaged the wall plaster. After roofing the internal
renovation of the cathedral began. At the same time, using a set scaffold
master painters carried out the internal mural painting of the upper church,
which was the first since it had been built.
For a
decade, according to the drawings, from the city archives, the Intercession church
was rebuilt from a wooden to the stone one, its domes were restored, interior
walls and vaults were painted. In May 1999 the church was consecrated.
At the
beginning of this century fifteen domes of the St. Nicholas Cathedral, which
were destroyed by the atheistic hard times, have been restored. Repairing works
of the roof structures and restoration of the facade of the cathedral are still
in progress.
Over the
centuries the memory of the works and deeds of the Grand Duchess reverently
passed from generation to generation. Having considered the life, works, deeds,
miracles and taking into account veneration of the founder of the Kiev-
Intercession nunnery nun Anastasia (Romanova), the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church on November 24, 2009 adopted a decision on her canonization,
and in January 24, 2010 her glorification was held.
