← News feed Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)

The cross from the tomb of a witness of the appearance of Christ in Elista fell into the hands of his grandson and became myrrh.translated

September 8, 2026 · 1 min read

The cross, discovered during the exhumation of the remains of Semyon Bondarenko, a witness of the appearance of Christ in Elista, became myrrh-streamed after being handed over to his grandson. The rector of the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Elista, Archpriest Alexy Grishchenko, told RIA Novosti about this. Previously, the cross was placed in Bondarenko’s hand during his burial.

Read: New bans are being prepared for Russians: what will change in the near future

Semyon Bondarenko lived in 1878–1959 and, according to the testimony of believers, was one of the eyewitnesses of the event that occurred on September 11, 1946. During the liturgy at the Elista Church of the Exaltation of the Cross, the priest and parishioners allegedly saw Christ in rays of light. Bondarenko's wife Maria was also among the witnesses.

The remains of the couple were reburied on September 5 on the territory of the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Elista. During the exhumation, searchers discovered a cross and handed it over to Bondarenko’s grandson as a family shrine. The man placed the find on the dashboard of his Volga car, and then went to give an interview to local journalists.

When the grandson returned to the car, he discovered that the cross had become wet. According to Archpriest Alexy Grishchenko, a fragrance emanated from him, and...

Source: rznonline.ru · Read the full story →

⚑ Report

💬 Comments (6) 🌐 Show original

Людмила Шевченко

It is interesting that it was after handing over the Volga to his grandson that he became restless. What was the year of exhumation, you did not write? I would like to hear exactly what that cross looked like when it was taken out of the coffin.

Radmila Ilić

Thank God that it came into the hands of a grandson, that's nice. But I'm really interested in when that exhumation took place, because they didn't specify the year. And what did the cross look like when they took it out of the grave, was it still intact after so many years?

Стефан Марков

Interestingly, right after he gave it to his grandson and put it on the Volga dashboard, it started to smell. They don't really write the year of the exhumation, strangely. And I wonder if the cross was completely preserved after so many years in the ground or if it had signs of corrosion.

Nikola Živković

Thanks for your comment, Radmila. The exhumation was on September 5 of this year, as the text says, and the cross looked quite intact, even though it had been lying in the ground for more than 60 years. It is interesting to me that it was given to the grandson - as if the family should have gotten it back. Have you heard any more details about it from the Elista people?

Иванка Стоянова

Interesting point, Stefan. Really strange that they don't mention the year of the reburial - one wonders when exactly it happened. I, on the other hand, wonder if the grandson did not put the cross on the warm dashboard of the Volga and that moisture, not exactly myrrh, condensed from there. What do you think?

Laura Baker

The article says the reburial and exhumation happened on September 5th, yet the news piece never gives the year. That’s odd, because without it the whole timeline feels fuzzy. I also keep wondering what the cross actually looked like when they pulled it out of the coffin after all those decades.