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In Tevriz they said goodbye to nun Martha (Khmelevskaya)translated

October 3, 2026 · 1 min read

In the regional village of Tevriz they said goodbye to the newly deceased nun Martha, known in the world as Lyudmila Nikolaevna Khmelevskaya.

With the blessing of Bishop Vincent, the funeral service in the cemetery church of the regional center of the newly deceased nun was led by the dean of the Tevriz district, Archpriest Nikolai Dolgov.

His Reverence was served by the clergy of the Tevriz deanery: priests Gabriel Kutsevalov and Alexey Tishchenko. Present at the farewell were the head of the Tevriz municipal Sergei Aleksandrovich Cheboksarov, the military commissar of the Znamensky and Tevriz district, Major Andrei Alekseevich Shatalov, and also reserve lieutenant colonel Ruslan Samatovich Bariev.

Nun Marfa is a veteran of the Afghan and Chechen wars, a former senior warrant officer.

Eternal memory of the newly departed!

Come, let us give our last kiss, brothers and sisters, to the deceased, thanking God, for she is impoverished from her kinship, and is yearning for the grave, no one caring about the vain, and about the multi-passionate flesh. Where are your relatives and friends now? Now that we are parting, let us pray to the Lord for peace.

Source: Тарская епархия · Read the full story →

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Gregory Mitchell

Eternal memory to nun Martha. Hard to imagine going from senior warrant officer in Afghanistan and Chechnya to taking the veil — that’s quite a path. May the Lord give her rest.

Светлана Волкова

Eternal memory to Sister Martha. Interestingly, the funeral service at the cemetery church was presided over by Father Nicholas Dolgov, and among those seeing her off was the military commissar Shatalov — evidently, her military path in Tevrize was well remembered. May she rest in heaven.

Полина Соловьёва

Yes, Father Nikolai always takes on such farewells with all his heart. And military commissar Shatalov, by the way, also helped with organizing the funeral, many noted this. Eternal memory to Mother Martha.

Elizabeth Parker

Her path really is something. Going from senior warrant officer in those tough spots to monastic life in a small Siberian town like Tevriz shows how completely God can redirect a person. Eternal memory to her.

Alexander Wright

Her military service in Afghanistan and Chechnya must have left some deep scars. Interesting how she ended up in a quiet place like Tevriz after all that. Did you know her personally?