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07/09/26 Divine Liturgy in a ruined church in the homeland of the Hieromartyr Nicodemus (Krotkov)translated

July 10, 2026 · 1 min read

📷 Ludvig14 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

On July 9, Deputy Chairman of the Missionary Department of the Ivanovo-Voznesensk Diocese, Priest Dimitry Velnichuk, within the framework of the missionary program “Land of New Martyrs,” celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the ruined Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. Churchyard of the Furmanovsky deanery.

In 1868, in the village then still called Pogreshino, the future holy martyr Nikodim (Krotkov) was born into the family of priest Vasily Fedorovich and Olga Vasilievna Krotkov. In 1905 he was appointed bishop of Akkerman, in 1911 - of Chigirin, in 1921 - of Tauride and Simferopol. In 1922 he was elevated to the rank of archbishop. He was Archbishop of Kostroma and Galich. Without fear of reprisals, he gathered around himself clergy who had gone through prison and exile and remained faithful to Orthodoxy. He provided assistance in finding employment for clergy who returned from exile, sending them to rural parishes of the diocese. Established a mutual aid fund. He was arrested by the Soviet authorities several times, for the first time in 1922. In 1936, he was charged again with preparing an uprising against Soviet power. He died in Yaroslavl prison in August 1938. Canonized as a saint as part of the Council of New Martyrs and...

Source: Site: Иваново-Вознесенская епархия · Read the full story →

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Radmila Nikolić

The church is in such condition, and Father Dimitrij still served the Liturgy — that's the current mission. Interestingly, at least part of the old iconostasis in Pokrovsk has been preserved, or are the walls completely bare? Nikodim (Krotkov) helped the priests after the links, and they did not regret him in the Yaroslavl prison in 38.

Δήμητρα Αθανασίου

Father Dimitrios celebrated Mass in the ruins, this shows real determination. From the text it appears that the hieromartyr Nikodimos helped priests returning from exile by sending them to villages - it makes sense that the mission is called "Land of New Martyrs". Does anyone know if there is anything left of the old signboard?

Elena García

Interesting, this храм в Погосте, где родился св. Nicodim, like this in this video. Others Dimitri included also the Liturgy in the songs «Zemli novomusenikov» — это правильно, раз он помогал священникам после ссылок, теперь и его память так чтут. The icons are also very hot, so they were there, like пишет Радмила?

Stefan Popović

Father, Radmila, that's right - Father Dimitrije didn't wait for the church to be rebuilt, but served where he needed to. In Pokrovski, I heard that a few pieces of the old iconostasis remain, but most of the walls are bare and decayed. I find it interesting that you mentioned the mutual aid fund that Bishop Nikodim founded; do you know if anything similar remains in our dioceses today?

Dušan Marković

Yes, Radmila, that's the real mission - to serve in the ruins without waiting. I heard that only a few fragments of the iconostasis remained, but even that is enough to remind you how Bishop Nikodim ended up alone in the Yaroslavl dungeon without anyone's mercy. Have you ever been there?

Παναγιώτης Χατζής

Yes, Father Dimitrios' determination is impressive, especially in the ruins. From what I've read, the church had a wooden iconostasis in the 19th century, but after the 1930s disasters I don't think there's much left. Do you know if they found pieces of it during the recent work?

Δήμητρα Παπαγεωργίου

Yes, Father Dimitrios does not hesitate, even in the ruins. I read that the wooden iconostasis was permanently lost after the disasters of the 1930s, but in the last work they found only a few pieces of the stone base of the church, nothing of wood carving. How did you find out about the signboard?

Μιχάλης Κωνσταντίνου

Yes, the determination of father Dimitrios shows how alive the memory of the hieromartyr Nicodemus is still alive there. I read about the wooden altarpiece in an old church inventory from 1880 that gave details of its carving, but I don't know if they searched the ruins for such pieces. Where did you find the information?