Elder Zenobius

A Life in Spiritual Continuity with Pre-Revolutionary Russia

By Zenoviy Chesnokov

Holy Trinity Publications

Copyright © 2013 Zenoviy Chesnokov
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-88465-331-8

Contents

Introduction,
Part I: The Life of St Zenobius, Metropolitan of Tetritzkaro (in Schema Seraphim),
1. Childhood and Education,
2. The Glinsk Hermitage: In Obedience to the Elders,
3. Priesthood and Confession of Faith,
4. In Georgia: From Hermit to Metropolitan,
5. The Last Years of Earthly Life,
Part II: St Zenobius: Spiritual Father and Teacher,
6. Eldership and Pastoral Ministry,
7. Simplicity and Humanity,
8. Blessing of the Holy Russian-Iverskaya Women’s Monastery,
9. Spiritual Gifts: Miracles and Visions,
10. Pastoral Qualities,
11. Spiritual Counselor,
12. Guidance and Teaching,
13. On Prayer and Church Services,
Epilogue,
Appendix: Reminiscences About Vladyka Zenobius,
Notes,
Bibliography,
Index,
Illustrations,

CHAPTER 1

Childhood and Education

Metropolitan Zenobius (born Zachariah Ioakimovich Mazhuga) was born on September 14/26, 1896, in the town of Glukhov in the Chernigov Province (now the Sumskaya region) in a working class family. His father was a carpenter and his mother was a housewife. From early childhood, Zachariah had to endure many hardships. At age three his father died; at eleven, he lost his pious mother Theodosia, who brought him up in faith and love for God. He was always very attentive to all that surrounded him, so much so that his peers would jokingly call him a monk. According to eyewitnesses, when Vladyka Zenobius recalled his childhood, he mentioned that he did not see a reason for this nickname, even though he often went to the hermitage to carry out small tasks for the monks. He graduated from the parish school, yet because of his poverty he did not have the opportunity to study further.

After his parents’ deaths, Zachariah lived in the home of his cousin Paraskeva. The family was large and poor, so it was hard to feed everyone. So when Zachariah was sixteen, Paraskeva gave the boy to the House of Work for peasant children at the Glinsk Hermitage. At this time, dozens of others of his own age with a similar background, the needy, and orphans studied various trades there. Boys were placed in workshops they chose themselves and for five years were taught their chosen craft: iconography, tailoring, shoemaking, carpentry, lathe operating, and others. This House of Work was established to give orphans an education and occupation so that they could make a living if they decided to live outside of the hermitage. The education was difficult. In addition to the chosen craft, boys were taught the Law of God, reading, church singing, and calligraphy. On Sundays and feast days the boys had to attend church services. With the boys in the House of Work lived a monk who watched their behavior and sought to educate them in the spirit of Orthodoxy. Upon entering the Glinsk Hermitage, Zachariah learned to sew. He was very glad to study there because he had repeatedly visited the hermitage and knew some of its inhabitants. He would run minor errands for the monks, who in turn would warm the orphaned boy’s soul by showing him parental warmth and affection. Later, Vladyka Zenobius wrote that in the Glinsk Hermitage he “could freely grow spiritually, which left him grateful to the hermitage for the rest of his life.” Processions from the Glinsk Hermitage to Glukhov and back with the miraculous icon of the Nativity of the Mother of God left an indelible imprint on the soul of the God-fearing boy.

The Holy Theotokos gave Zachariah Her protection from childhood. The town of Glukhov had several churches and “twenty miles from the city were two monasteries: the Glukhov Peter and Paul Monastery for men and the Glukhov Assumption Monastery for women.” However, the Virgin Mary led Zachariah to the Glinsk Hermitage — an abode dedicated to Her Nativity. It so happened that all major events in the life of this great saint of God were tied with feasts of the Blessed Lady: “on the Nativity of the Holy Virgin he first saw the Glinsk Hermitage, on the day of the Annunciation he took monastic vows, and on the day of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin [he] was released early from prison.”

CHAPTER 2

The Glinsk Hermitage: In Obedience to the Elders

PATH TO THE GLINSK HERMITAGE

The Glinsk Hermitage, dedicated to the Nativity of the Mother of God, has long been famous for its elders no less than the Optina Hermitage. After the Optina Hermitage was destroyed in 1942, the Glinsk Hermitage carried the light of Christ’s Truth to the world for nineteen years, as it was allowed to reopen between 1942 and 1961.

“The Glinsk Hermitage stood on the boundary of Russia and Ukraine, and was a part of the Kursk province, but due to the efforts of Nikita Khrushchev, this part of the Russian lands was ceded to the Sumsk province of Ukraine.”1 The hermitage was established in the sixteenth century by the grace of the Mother of God, through the miraculous icon of the Nativity of the Mother of God that appeared on a pine tree in the forest. Around this icon formed the Glinsk Hermitage, which by the end of the nineteenth century contained five churches, two sketes, four house-churches, fifteen buildings for the hermitage monks, eight guesthouses for pilgrims, a refectory, a laundry room, a hospital with a pharmacy, numerous household buildings that included four water mills, and the House of Work for orphan boys. There were more than four hundred monks dwelling in the hermitage. The hermitage was a powerful stronghold of Orthodoxy on Russia’s southern border.

The miraculous icon of the Nativity of the Mother of God, whose appearance gave rise to the Glinsk Hermitage, is also called the “Pustynno-Glinskaya.” The icon is not large, about six inches by eight inches. It shows the righteous Saints Joachim and Anna, and the little Virgin Mary in Her mother’s arms. These three images are separated on the icon by specially designed borders. Over time, the icon was decorated “in gold and adorned with precious stones. In addition, there were silver ‘decorations’ that were presented in gratitude by those who received healing. Such gifts on the miraculous icon were always numerous.”

As the Glinsk Hermitage grew more prosperous, it became more active in charitable work. At the end of the nineteenth century, the hermitage annually hosted up to 45,000 pilgrims. We also know that by the beginning of the twentieth century this number increased to 60,000. It is worth noting that in the late nineteenth to early twentieth centuries the Glinsk Hermitage was in its prime. At that time the hermitage was not only involved in charity, but it also was involved in active missionary and educational work.

Throughout his life, young Zachariah’s heart retained a love for charity and mercy that he was taught at the hermitage. Loving Christ from his youth, he entered the Glinsk Hermitage of the Nativity of the Mother of God in 1914 as a novice, making a firm decision to follow the monastic path.

HIS SPIRITUAL FATHER: OBEDIENCE AND TRIALS

The novice Zachariah was put under the spiritual leadership of a strict elder — Monk Gerasim. Their relationship was interesting and providential. In the Glinsk Hermitage, everyone was under the spiritual patronage of an elder or a spiritually experienced monk. Having come to Father Gerasim, Zachariah knew that the elder chased everyone away, and so he was ready for such a reception. The elder ordered him to leave or else he would beat him with a stick. The novice answered that even if he was beaten with a stick, he would not go away until Father Gerasim agreed to become his spiritual mentor. Then the elder replied, “Now you are my spiritual son. I did so with all and everyone left me, but you did not leave.” From then on, novice Zachariah followed his spiritual teachings and guidance, and learned to be abstinent in words and food but generous in prayer.

Living under obedience to Elder Gerasim became the foundation of Vladyka Zenobius’s future spiritual formation. The young novice had to endure many sorrows and difficulties, “but in order for adamant to turn into a diamond it needs careful polishing and painstaking work. Likewise the young novice, having passed through obedience in a coenobitic hermitage, learns that through patience and love for the brothers one wins over temptation.”

These words of Scripture were manifest in Zachariah: “My son, if you draw near to serve the Lord, prepare your soul for temptation. Set your heart right and be steadfast, and do not strive anxiously in distress. Cleave to Him and do not fall away, that you may be honored at the end of your life” (Sir 2:1–3). He was firmly convinced that he was on the true path, and the Lord, though He tested His faithful servant, did not leave him and helped him to grow in virtue.

The young man had different obediences: making prosphora, sewing in the tailor shop, and many others, but did not succeed anywhere, and so was transferred from place to place. Young Zachariah wanted to serve God, but he could not stay in one obedience for long. “He had cousins. His cousin, who lived in Kiev, often came with her husband to the hermitage and would try to persuade him to go and live with them.” Yet Zachariah, remembering that we must undergo many tribulations in order to enter God’s kingdom (Acts 14:22), did not want to change his intentions and leave the hermitage.

The hermitage’s abbot, Archimandrite Nectarios, foreseeing the young monk’s great future, patiently moved him from one obedience to another. Everything normalized after Zachariah was given an obedience in the stables. He was afraid of horses and at first complained that he was removed from obediences where he could do at least something. Yet with God’s help Zachariah began to carry out this obedience, eventually succeeding in it and beginning to lead a virtuous life.

In 1914, World War I began. Russian monasteries assisted the Russian Empire both materially and in manpower. The Glinsk Hermitage also assisted the army and people during this difficult time. Father Nectarios sent hieromonks to serve as chaplains in the army, providing them with everything necessary for the soldiers’ spiritual health. From 1915 to 1916, the Glinsk Hermitage sent seventy-five novices to protect the motherland. In 1916, novice Zachariah was drafted and sent to the army. He was seen off by Elder Gerasim who, when blessing him, said that they were seeing each other for the last time in this life. Along with his division, Zachariah was transferred to Belarus. Pressed by the Germans, the soldiers settled in the Pinsk marshes, holding this position for six months in extreme circumstances. Due to the constant dampness, Zachariah’s legs became diseased. He developed chronic eczema that would plague him for the rest of his life. Later, thrombophlebitis appeared — gaping sores that would take a long time to heal, causing severe pain. It is almost impossible to cure this disease; the wound closes only for a while, but soon opens up again. Through his elder’s prayers, Zachariah was placed in a detail that protected supply lines and did not participate in military action. God kept His faithful son safe.

After demobilization in 1919, Zachariah returned once again to the hermitage. Elder Gerasim had already departed to the Lord by this time and Zachariah’s further growth in the spiritual life was led by Elder Nectarios, the abbot of the hermitage.

THE TAKING OF MONASTIC VOWS

In June 1920, Zachariah was tonsured into the rassaphore, and in March 1921 he was tonsured a monk in honor of Martyr Zenobius, Bishop of Aegea (commemorated on October 17/30). Before the giving of the vows, Abbot Nectarios wished all the future monks to lead an angelic life but warned that the hermitage might soon be closed. He declared that those who wish to be tonsured would be allowed to, yet those who were unprepared to suffer trials could still refuse. As Vladyka recalled many years later, all those gathered remained steadfast in their decision. Zachariah took his vows at a difficult time, understanding all the future trials of his chosen path.

Twenty-five miles from the hermitage in the village of Putivl on the Seyma River stood the hermitage’s mills. With the blessing of Archimandrite Nectarios, Monk Zenobius drove grain to the mill and then flour back to the hermitage. In the turbulent times of the Civil War it was quite dangerous to transport carts with bread. Usually, the caravan consisted of five or six carts. When these transports were led by Monk Zenobius, the carts would arrive unharmed. As Vladyka Zenobius later recalled, the hermitage had to surrender a bag of sugar only once, but the rest of the consignment was delivered unharmed. Monk Zenobius meekly complied with everything that the abbot blessed. Subsequently, Vladyka Zenobius repeatedly emphasized the great power of a blessing in all obediences.

Once, he was summoned to the abbot’s cell. Shortly afterward, a cell attendant walked in with scissors, a comb, and razors. Monk Zenobius sat in a chair while the cell attendant shaved off his hair and beard. As Vladyka Zenobius remembered, he said nothing and did not ask anything, just meekly sat on the chair and waited to see what would happen next. After that, he was told to remain in his cell. Brother Zenobius was very upset, could not calm down or figure out why this had happened. Time passed slowly. Relying only on God’s will, he came to the abbot in the evening at the appointed time. The abbot was silent, took off Brother Zenobius’s robe and gave him a suit to try on. Zenobius began to put on the trousers and jacket, yet his hands would not obey. He thought the time had come for him to leave the hermitage.

Then Father Nectarios told him to harness the horses and drive the wagon to the main residence. When Monk Zenobius again entered the abbot’s cell, Father Nectarios, who had just finished praying, said that having tested Zenobius, he decided to give him an important job that only he could complete. This disguise and change of appearance was intended to ensure that no one paid any attention to him. Then the abbot blessed Zenobius and asked him to drive a man who had emerged from an adjacent room. Being a skilled driver, showing ingenuity and skill, Zenobius fulfilled this request even though it was dangerous, because all of Ukraine was ruled by outlaws at that time. It turned out that he was driving a hierarch. Before parting, the bishop said “You saved a hierarch; therefore you will be a hierarch.” These prophetic words came true thirty-five years later. Even so, before this would happen he had to endure many trials and hardships, privations, libel, and slander, all of which made him courageous and wise. Strength of will, faith, and prayer helped him follow his path without complaint. These events show that at the very beginning of his monastic vocation Zenobius learned to cut off his self-will and live in humility.

CLOSURE AND DEVASTATION OF THE GLINSK HERMITAGE

In 1922 the hermitage was closed. Young Communists (komsomols) destroyed everything, even the stone walls of the hermitage. The monks dispersed, and some of them were shot and killed. The Glinsk Hermitage was literally wiped off the face of the earth. The monastic cemetery was destroyed, and crosses from the graves were pulled out. Twenty years later, in 1942, the hermitage was reopened. “The elders gathered once again around Abbot Nectarios, who was living nearby hoping to see the future reopening of the hermitage and collecting icons, books, and vestments.” The hermitage was open only until 1961. When a new wave of persecution began, the Glinsk Hermitage was closed for the second time.

However, in 1922, with the blessing of the elders, Monk Zenobius took a consecrated antimins and traveled to Abkhazia.

CHAPTER 3

Priesthood and Confession of Faith

ORDINATION TO PRIESTHOOD

Having arrived in Sukhumi, Father Zenobius learned that the Dranda Assumption Monastery was still open and entered it. This monastery was the second largest in Abkhazia in terms of its number of inhabitants and significance after New Athos. The Assumption Cathedral of the Dranda monastery was built in the eleventh century. After the closing of New Athos, its monks moved to Dranda. An agricultural community was established there that was joined by the monastery’s monks, thus delaying its closure. Inhabitants of the monastery met Father Zenobius with joy. He was ordained a deacon there in November 1924 and on January 18, 1925, was ordained into the priesthood by Bishop Nikon of Sukhumi. All-strengthening Grace was given to him at his consecration, greatly contributing to his spiritual growth in a life of virtue. From 1925 to 1930, Father Zenobius served in the St Nicholas Church in Sukhumi.

ARREST

In 1930 Father Zenobius was arrested and held for seven months in the Rostov prison, where Father Andronicus, Father Seraphim, and other fathers from the Glinsk Hermitage were also imprisoned. Father Seraphim was later sent to Tashkent, and Father Zenobius was supposed to be exiled there also. While in prison, he contracted malaria and was hospitalized. One young doctor convened a special council of physicians to prove that because of his disease, Father Zenobius could not be sent to Central Asia, where some prisoners were about to be conveyed. He told his colleagues, “Whom do you need to work in Tashkent, the living or the dead? If Zenobius Mazhuga goes there he’s a dead man.” Fourteen priests were sent to Tashkent, while Father Zenobius was sent to the Urals. Thus the All-Good God delivered his faithful servant from certain death. Once, during interrogation, Father Zenobius asked the investigator on what charges he was being held. The investigator silently pointed to his cassock. Vladyka Zenobius wrote in his autobiography, “In 1930 I was exiled for five years to the Urals to work in the Berezniki chemical plant and then to the White Sea–Baltic Canal, from where I received an early release in 1934.”

(Continues…)Excerpted from Elder Zenobius by Zenoviy Chesnokov. Copyright © 2013 Zenoviy Chesnokov. Excerpted by permission of Holy Trinity Publications.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.