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Striving for Christtranslated

September 7, 2026 · 1 min read

By reading this or that book, you can amazingly discover a unique person about whom you knew nothing before. The book “Records” by priest Alexander Elchaninov can be considered just such an acquaintance, although the materials for this publication were collected and compiled by his wife, friends and spiritual children after the death of Father Alexander.

Before talking about the book, I would like to turn to the biography of Father Alexander, at least to outline the scale of the priest’s life path. The future shepherd was born in 1881 into a military family. He studied at the Faculty of History and Philology of St. Petersburg University. Father Alexander’s spiritual mentor was Father Sergius Bulgakov, and one of his closest friends was the future priest Pavel Florensky. Father Alexander took holy orders in 1926, after he and his family emigrated from Russia in 1921.

“I received a letter from Fr. Sergius B., where he persistently advises me to accept the priesthood. I was amazed. At first I felt scared, as scary as you feel when you feel fate, fate. I realized immediately that this was irreversible, that this was my destiny. In another situation I might have tried to get around it, but here I hardly hesitated...

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George Collins

I didn't know much about Fr. Alexander Elchaninov before, but that quote from the letter hit me hard — the part where he says he felt his fate right away and barely hesitated. Makes you wonder how many of us would accept that kind of call so quickly. The book is now on my list to read next.

Максим Лисенко

I didn't know about Father Oleksandr either, but I remembered that passage from the letter about "fear when you feel fate." In 1926, already in exile, taking the rank was not an easy decision. I will put the book in the queue, I wonder what else his wife has collected there.

Сергій Лисенко

I also got hooked on that passage about fear and fate. In 1926, already in Paris, after everything experienced, it was really a step without a return. His wife, Vera, later saved a lot of things from his records, there are also very everyday remarks about children and daily life, which are interesting to read. I also put myself in the queue after repairing the neighbor's washing machine.

Michael Clark

That bit about feeling the fear of destiny when he read Sergius Bulgakov’s letter really stuck with me too. Taking the priesthood in 1926 after everything he’d been through in exile shows real steel. I’ll have to look up the book now; his wife Vera saving those everyday notes about the children sounds like the kind of thing that makes a saint feel close.

Леся Бойко

I also got hooked on that passage from the letter where he writes that he felt "fear when you feel fate, rock." In 1926, already in exile, after everything he had experienced, this was really not an easy decision. Thank you for reminding me about the book, I'll put it in my queue, it's interesting what Vera collected from his daily notes.