How to make an appointment with Elder Elijah. Elder Eli: weakening the family threatens with dire consequences
The main difference between a true confessor and others who are only trying to be like the elder is wisdom and humility. One of the most famous and mysterious representatives of the Russian clergy, who has become the symbol of the oldest monastic monastery in Russia - Optina Monastery, as well as the personal spiritual mentor of the Russian Patriarch Kirill, is Elder Eli. This man is a rare example of a light, sublime and pure state of mind. That is why hundreds of people from all over the country seek meetings with him every day.
Who are the elders?
Each person goes through life in his own way. In order not to stray from the right path, not to fall into the abyss, he needs someone who will indicate a landmark, will not let him get lost, and at the right moment will support and guide him on the right path. Since time immemorial in Rus', elders have been such helpers. They were respected and feared at the same time, because they are followers of the ancient Russian magi, who absorbed the Great Wisdom with the blood of their ancestors. Many elders possessed the gift of prediction and healing, but the main goal of a real elder is to know the revelation of God and spiritually help those in need.
Elder Eli: biography
Ily (in the world - Alexey Afanasyevich Nozdrin) was born in 1932 into a large peasant family in the village of Stanovoy Kolodez, Oryol region. His father, Afanasy, during Patriotic War in 1942 he was seriously wounded and died in hospital. Mother, Klavdia Vasilievna, raised four children alone. After graduating from school in 1949, Alexey completed military service in the army. In 1955, he entered the Serpukhov Mechanical College, and after graduating in 1958, he was assigned to the Volgograd region to build a cotton mill in the city of Kamyshin. But not finding himself in, he decided to devote his life to God, enrolling in the Theological Seminary of the city of Saratov. In 1961, due to Khrushchev’s persecution and pressure on the church, the seminary was closed, and Alexey was forced to move to Leningrad, where he continued his studies at the Theological Academy and was tonsured as a monk with the name Ilian.
Since 1966, he served as abbot at the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, and in 1976 he was sent to serve as obedient to the monastery of the Russian great martyr Panteleimon on Holy Mount Athos in Greece. There, the future Elder Eli lived in a mountain monastery and became a priest in the Panteleimon Monastery. At the end of the 1980s, he was recalled back to the USSR and sent to the restored Optina Pustyn, which had been deserted for the past 65 years. Here Ilian accepted the great schema, which provided for complete alienation from the world for reunification with God, and also took monastic vows with the name Eli.
Over the next 20 years, he revived the elder ministry in the monastery, which ultimately returned Optina Pustyn to its former greatness. In 2009, Elder Eli was appointed confessor to the Patriarch of All Rus' Kirill and moved to his residence in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra in the village of Peredelkino, Moscow region. In April 2010, on the Easter holiday, the elder was elevated by the Patriarch to the rank of schema-archimandrite.
History of the monastery
Optina Pustyn is an Orthodox monastery for men, located two kilometers from the city of Kozelsk in. According to ancient legend, the monastery was founded at the turn of the 14th-15th centuries by the repentant robber Opta (or Optius), who took monasticism under the name Macarius. The Optina monastery served as a haven for elders and elders, living in separate buildings of the monastery, but under the spiritual guidance of one abbot. The first mentions of this monastery can be found in the scribe books of Kozelsk dating back to the reign of Boris Godunov.
At the beginning of the 18th century, Optina Pustyn experienced difficult times due to constant taxes to the state for the war with the Swedes and the construction of St. Petersburg, and in 1724 it was completely abolished according to the Spiritual Regulations and annexed to the Transfiguration Monastery, located in the neighboring city of Belev. Two years later, the monastery was restored, and construction of new churches began on its territory, which continued until the beginning of the twentieth century.
Optina became one of the largest spiritual Orthodox centers in Russia; pilgrims and sufferers were drawn to it from all sides, some of whom settled in the skete, built in 1821. As donations came in, the monastery acquired land and a mill.
In 1918, Optina Pustyn was closed according to the decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR, and in 1939, on the territory of the monastery, by order of L. Beria, a concentration camp was organized for five thousand Polish soldiers, who were later shot in Katyn. From 1944 to 1945 a filtration camp for Soviet officers returning from captivity was located here.
Optina Pustyn today
Only in 1987 did the Soviet government transfer the monastery to the Russian Orthodox Church. From that moment on, active restoration of the monastery began - both material and spiritual. The ideologist and coordinator of the restoration of the Optina Monastery is Elder Eli. It was thanks to this man that the monastery regained its glory largest center Orthodoxy and pilgrimage. Its unique energy and the beauty of its temples attract thousands of pilgrims and tourists from all over the world. There are 7 operating churches on the territory of the monastery:
- Vvedensky Cathedral is the main temple of the monastery;
- Church of John the Baptist and Baptist of the Lord in St. John the Baptist Skete;
- Temple of St. Hilarion the Great;
- icons of the Mother of God;
- Temple of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God;
- Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord;
- Temple of the Icon of the Mother of God “Spreader of the Loaves”.
Peredelkino
The holiday village of Peredelkino is located in the nearest railway stations - "Peredelkino" and "Michurinets". The town is famous not only for the monastery and Elder Elijah, but also for the fact that famous writers and artists lived and worked there at one time. Among them are Alexander Fadeev, Bella Akhmadulina, Valentin Kataev, Bulat Okudzhava, who also held his famous bonfires here, where Rina Zelenaya, Arkady Raikin, Sergei Obraztsov performed. The house-museums of Okudzhava, Pasternak, Chukovsky and Yevtushenko are located here.
How to get to the monastery?
Considering that Optina Pustyn is located near the Peredelkino and Kozelsk railway stations, getting to it by rail will not be difficult. Electric trains run from Kievsky Station in Moscow in the direction of Kaluga or Sukhinichi. You can also get to Kozelsk by bus from the Teply Stan metro station.
Car owners, given the current abundance of various navigation systems and maps, will also not have any particular problems finding the right path. But if getting to the monastery is not a tricky matter, then how to get to Elder Elijah for an appointment is a completely different question. Before setting off for this purpose, you should find out in advance about the daily routine at the monastery, as well as the reception schedule.
If God wills
Many people want Elder Iliy (Peredelkino) to talk to them. “How to get an appointment with the elder and will he accept?” - these are the main questions of visiting pilgrims. Of course, the schema-archimandrite will not be able to satisfy all those who suffer, but, as local monks say, if God wills it, the meeting will definitely take place. Usually Elder Elijah receives people in the refectory before lunch, where those who have arrived are seated at tables, and the line moves around these tables. If people make noise in line or argue, he will personally disperse or reconcile the guests.
Closer to 16 o'clock, the elder retires to rest, and when he returns and whether he will return on this day, only the Lord knows. The monastery has its own Internet resource (www. optina.ru), where you can find out where Elder Elijah is now and when the next reception will take place.
The Power of Prayer
It is believed to have double power because it is the prayer of an enlightened one. They say that if he prays for the repose of the soul, then the soul of a sinner can even be freed from hellish captivity. An amazing incident also occurred in Optina Pustyn. One day, a soldier who was seriously wounded in Chechnya was brought to Elijah’s monastery. The doctors did not know how to save the soldier and did not dare to operate, since he was unconscious and the bullet was a few millimeters from his heart. Elder Elijah’s prayer “May God rise again” made desperate doctors believe in a miracle - the wounded man came to his senses and opened his eyes. After the operation, the soldier began to recover.
We used to go to the famous elder Father Elijah in Optina Pustyn. But since 2009, when the Local Council elected him as the confessor of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', you can get to him in, which includes several churches and the summer residence of His Holiness the Patriarchs.
There is no schedule for Father Elijah's stay. You can find out whether he is in Peredelkino by calling the church phone number +7 495 435-53-67 or priest’s assistant Georgy Bogomolov +7 920 871-71-62.
See the site pages about what it is. Scheme of the Peredelkino reserve.
“THE MAIN THING IS TO LIVE AS A CHRISTIAN”
Elder Elijah about ISIS, the simplicity of the Russian people and the correct understanding of life
Nikita Filatov
How two journalists - a Russian and an American - went to Peredelkino to visit Elder Elijah to ask him questions that concern many people today.
The entire editorial team was preparing for this interview. The day before, in the manager’s office, we discussed for a long time what we would ask the elder. Father Elijah (Nozdrin) is 83 years old - a respectable age, and it is wrong to disturb the priest just like that. But the elder still receives people who come to him from all over our country, and from all over the world.
My colleague, a journalist for the English version of our portal, Jesse Dominic, went with me. He is American, Orthodox, and graduated from seminary.
If you are going to interview an elder, be prepared for difficulties or temptations. They started at the Kievsky railway station. The train to Peredelkino was supposed to leave at 12:22. We arrived seven minutes before the train left. And so it began!.. Running around the platforms, searching for the right train... There were so many passengers that we only got into the carriage at 12:30. We were lucky: the train was delayed.
And here we are in Peredelkino. We were met at the temple by Georgy Bogomolov, Father Elijah’s assistant. He is both strict and kind. He is always friendly, but I don’t advise anyone to abuse his kindness. He gave us a book and invited us to warm up and drink tea. Father Eli had not yet received anyone - he was performing the Sacrament of Baptism.
We waited for Father in the church in the name of the holy noble Grand Duke Igor of Chernigov and Kyiv. It’s a weekday, there aren’t very many people in the temple. The liturgy is over. Just watching the priest pray is a joy.
The elder reads a prayer. Behind Father Elijah's back, a man holds a child in his arms. While the elder is praying, the baby tries to touch his back with his small hand.
But now the Sacrament is completed. From the pulpit, the elder addresses the people with parting words. He is surrounded by people again. Father Eli, it seems, is ready to listen to requests and delve into the problems of absolutely every person. He talks to one woman for about 20 minutes. Georgy Bogomolov asks the people to take care of the priest: he has been on his feet since early morning. People are silent in understanding, but no one is going to leave. In less than three hours the festive evening service will begin. Father Elijah has practically no time left for rest. And the people are still arriving... Jesse and I are somehow not very sure whether the conversation with the elder will take place.
We leave the temple and head to the house where Father Eli usually receives the people. Along the way we manage to receive a blessing.
Father's house is cozy and warm. Everyone is offered tea and food.
Usually, Father Elijah has spiritual literature read aloud. At this time he accepts another person. I am sure that you can get many answers to your questions before talking with the elder. More than once I noticed that a phrase, for example, accidentally dropped by Georgy, turned out to be appropriate.
I gave the priest the prepared and printed questions. Father Eli looked at them carefully. And here are his answers.
– Russia declared war on ISIS. Father, what could you say to those who are hysterical and say that terrorists will begin to take revenge on our country on its territory?
“ISIS doesn’t listen to anyone. They do what they want. It's okay, we have the power. We have protection, we can defend ourselves.
And let those who raise hysterics themselves subdue ISIS. They are equal in social category to ISIS.
– More and more countries, including Orthodox countries, where state power is involved in the de-Christianization of the people: “anti-discrimination laws” are adopted that protect sodomy; Gay pride parades are held under police protection, for example in Serbia. What do you think is happening?
- This is a provocation. This is provoked on purpose. This was not the case in Serbia. Everything was done, supposedly the Serbs were like that. Everything is turned upside down.
– Father, the Pope speaks everywhere today: at the UN, at international meetings... But the voice of the Orthodox Church does not sound so loud.
– It will be, maybe over time. Because we had state atheism. He did not allow Russia to freely express its opinion. The Church could not defend itself. She was limited in her actions. And even now, in fact, we have a lot of communist stuff. Therefore, the Church has not yet truly emerged from the trenches, since we still have many communists who hold this damned Lenin.
– And young people today don’t even know about Orthodoxy...
- Yes, they know! They know! They just don't want to. So they were made atheistic. We had state atheism. The Church has been defamed. They poured dirt on the Church for 80 years. That's why young people believe all this. The worst thing is that the teaching staff, professors - they were all brought up in atheism. They fool the youth in the same way. It's the same in families. Families are growing up where there is no Church. Families do not raise their children in a normal way. No understanding of life.
– What, in your opinion, is Russia’s role in modern world?
– As always, as at all times. God gave every person a place to live. Everything you need, opportunities to live life in the country. Russia wants to live as an Orthodox country, in a legal way. She doesn't go beyond her limits. Like any civilized state. To fulfill moral norms and norms of political life.
– Saints Nicholas of Japan and John of Shanghai were able to change the worldview of hundreds of thousands of people in Japan, China, European countries and the USA. Just two people were able to reach many, many. What can ordinary parishioners do to improve the spiritual and moral climate around them?
- Like all. Well, what is possible? Do as Saint Seraphim of Sarov says: create peace in your soul! Sow peace in your soul and many hundreds around you will be saved. The main thing is to live like a Christian. In the West there is a Catholic apostolate to the laity. There is a sermon. If you know good people. We know that there is God, that there is Truth. Live correctly. So that a person can create standards for a correct life. So that he does not suffer and is not tormented by his soul from his internal sins. It is absolutely obvious: there is God, there is the devil. And it is said in the Holy Scripture: many are going into eternal torment! If a person is tortured for, say, ten minutes, or tortured for an hour, that’s scary, right? What if a person falls into eternal torment? This cannot be denied. How can a righteous man who understands be turned away? Don't let this happen. The Gospel teaches us that a person should live correctly. The Church has always said that a person should live a normal, spiritual life. He fought with the devil, who “roars like a lion and wants to devour.”
– What, in your opinion, is the beauty, depth and mystery of the Russian soul, which foreigners love to talk about?
– The simplicity of the Russian person. Gullibility. Why did the revolution win? They said, “Put down your weapons,” and they did. Everything is a lie, a lie. A revolution based on lies, money and the simplicity of the Russian people.
– Father, what could you say to the youth audience of our portal?
– Youth must follow conscience and the law of God. Like this!
After the interview, Jesse and I talked with the priest and asked personal questions. Father Eli paid special attention to the passion for football, the nature of this game, the reasons for the passion for it.
Ten minutes later we returned to the editorial office. We walked to the train satisfied and happy. The street was crowded with people. And the most popular question in Peredelkino was heard: “Does Elder Eli receive?”
Talked with Schema-Archimandrite Iliy (Nozdrin) Nikita Filatov
Video. Elder monk Iliy Nozdrin
about the future of Russia
READERS' COMMENTS
2015-10-14
22:33
Mikhail Bondarenko
:
About football...It's simple...Being interested and practicing for health is one thing, being a fan when passion controls a person is another...Then think and analyze for yourself!
2015-10-14
22:13
Alexei:
What about football? Watch or study?
2015-10-14
20:36
Michael:
Yes!
2015-10-14
19:40
Valera:
Thanks for the article. Thanks to Father Elijah.
2015-10-14
18:47
Olga:
Why are you obsessed with football?! It's like the whole interview is about him? Each person is given individual advice. And the author is also good - said “a”, say “b” too....
2015-10-14
18:41
Elena:
Please, dear Nikita Filatov, since we have touched on the topic of football, write what the elder said. This is important for many people; I have two sons who play football.
2015-10-14
18:26
TAMARA:
LONG AND MANY SUMMERS TO O. ILIJA AND TO YOU, NIKITA. SAVE AND SAVE YOU ALL, LORD.
2015-10-14
18:23
Svetlana:
Anyone who needs to get to the priest will get there. I got there very easily. I didn’t even think about it. My friend simply confronted me with a fact. We're going to see Father. One day we got ready and went. We prayed at the liturgy, then, when the priest was resting, akathists were read. When the priest began to receive me, I was almost one of the first to be called by the cell attendant to the priest. And in the priest’s house, both the tea and the pies are incredibly tasty. Although I am not the chosen one. The Lord arranged it this way. While we were waiting, the cell attendant told us that someone came several times and could not get to the priest. That's how it happens too. I didn’t plan anything in advance. I imagined how difficult it was to get to the priest. I just prayed and believed that God’s will would be done, I would talk to the priest. And when God’s will is there, everything works out easily. Thank God for everything!
2015-10-14
17:34
Svyatoslav Ryazantsev
:
Normal people who love football, and do not perceive the game as an excuse to get drunk and fight, and go to the stadium to enjoy the games of the teams and throw out their emotions. And then they go to the playgrounds and play, leading a healthy lifestyle. I think that if any parent had a choice - where will he go son - in the yard to play football or in the hut to shoot up or drink beer, everyone would choose the first.
Further. Only people who don’t understand it and don’t want to understand football have such a one-sided and negative perception of football. Such people should be banned from everything in the world. And grace will come. Meanwhile, a person who has been interested in and involved in football since childhood broadens his horizons and deepens his knowledge in many areas - geography, languages, medicine, history, finance, tactics, strategy and much more. From personal experience I can note that people who actively show interest in football are much smarter, more competent and reasonable than those who say that football is just 22 idiots running after one ball and fanatics in the subway in the evening.
2015-10-14
17:09
Vlad Kuzmenkov:
Every sport that makes money is a passion
2015-10-14
16:52
Irina:
"Father's house is cozy and warm. Everyone is offered tea and treats." Probably offered to a select few. But certainly not ordinary people...
My daughter (9 years old) and I were in Peredelkino on Sunday, we were a little late for the early service because we came from Nizhny Novgorod, and decided to stand and pray also at the late Liturgy.
Then they left the temple and walked along the path to the priest’s house. A nun abruptly came out onto the porch and sternly asked how we got here and were walking around without asking.
We apologized and said that we had come to ask for Father Elijah’s prayers. We were told to leave the territory, allegedly because the priest had moved away. (although we first learned in the church that the priest was there, he just didn’t receive him the day before).
We left unsatisfied and upset. No one offered us any tea or treats :))
We went to the local pie shop and drank there, and then went home.... It's sad... This is the second time we've come and it's all in vain. And we take communion the day before in our city and take a blessing for the trip and pray intensely ourselves, but...
2015-10-14
15:07
Maria F:
The Venerable Elder Barsanuphius of Optina said this about football: “Do not play this game and do not go to watch it, because this game was also introduced by the devil, and its consequences will be very bad.”
Look at the ultra guys who throw slop at each other and start massive fights!
Living in Moscow, I am sometimes afraid to ride the subway in the evening, and when I see a lot of police at certain stations, I understand that today is a match...
2015-10-14
14:26
Konstantin:
Really interesting about football!
2015-10-14
14:00
Evgenia:
Maria
“It’s not like that” with sports in general, because “higher, faster, stronger.”
Long live physical education!
2015-10-14
12:58
Galina Ganicheva:
Thank God for everything!
2015-10-14
12:56
Veronica:
Dear father!
2015-10-14
12:38
Alexei:
Thank you for your work (article), many thanks to Elder Elijah.
If you have the opportunity, write (maybe here in the comments) what Elder Eli said about football?
I think many will be interested, many have children studying in sections.
2015-10-14
12:07
Maria:
What's "wrong" with football?..
Schema-Archimandrite Iliy (Nozdrin)
“We have the power. We have protection. We can defend ourselves"
“Russia wants to live as an Orthodox country, in a legal way. She doesn’t go beyond her limits.”
“Youth must follow conscience and the law of God. Like this!"
With Schema-Archimandrite Iliy (Nozdrin)
EVERYTHING IS IN THE BOOK
More detailed information about Peredelkino and its attractions is in our book.
Who are the elders? Each person goes through life in his own way. In order not to stray from the right path, not to fall into the abyss, he needs someone who will indicate a landmark, will not let him get lost, and at the right moment will support and guide him on the right path. Since time immemorial in Rus', elders have been such helpers. They were respected and feared at the same time, because they are followers of the ancient Russian magi, who absorbed the Great Wisdom with the blood of their ancestors. Many elders possessed the gift of prediction and healing, but the main goal of a real elder is to know the revelation of God and spiritually help those in need.Elder Ily: biography Ily (in the world - Alexey Afanasyevich Nozdrin) was born in 1932 into a large peasant family in the village of Stanovoy Kolodez, Oryol region. His father, Afanasy, was seriously wounded during the Patriotic War in 1942 and died in hospital. Mother, Klavdia Vasilievna, raised four children alone. After graduating from school in 1949, Alexey completed military service in the army. In 1955, he entered the Serpukhov Mechanical College, and after graduating in 1958, he was assigned to the Volgograd region to build a cotton mill in the city of Kamyshin. But not finding himself in the profession of a builder, he decided to devote his life to God, enrolling in the Theological Seminary of the city of Saratov. In 1961, due to Khrushchev’s persecution and pressure on the church, the seminary was closed, and Alexey was forced to move to Leningrad, where he continued his studies at the Theological Academy and was tonsured as a monk with the name Ilian.
Over the next 20 years, he revived the elder ministry in the monastery, which ultimately returned Optina Pustyn to its former greatness. In 2009, Elder Eli was appointed confessor to the Patriarch of All Rus' Kirill and moved to his residence in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra in the village of Peredelkino, Moscow region. In April 2010, on the Easter holiday, the elder was elevated by the Patriarch to the rank of schema-archimandrite.
If God wills, Many people want Elder Elijah (Peredelkino) to communicate with them. “How to get an appointment with the elder and will he accept?” - these are the main questions of visiting pilgrims. Of course, the schema-archimandrite will not be able to satisfy all those who suffer, but, as local monks say, if God wills it, the meeting will definitely take place. Usually Elder Elijah receives people in the refectory before lunch, where those who have arrived are seated at tables, and the line moves around these tables. If people make noise in line or argue, he will personally disperse or reconcile the guests. Closer to 16 o'clock, the elder retires to rest, and when he returns and whether he will return on this day, only the Lord knows. -
The power of prayer It is believed that the prayer of an elder has double power, because it is the prayer of an enlightened one. They say that if he prays for the repose of the soul, then the soul of a sinner can even be freed from hellish captivity. An amazing incident also occurred in Optina Pustyn. One day, a soldier who was seriously wounded in Chechnya was brought to Elijah’s monastery. The doctors did not know how to save the soldier and did not dare to operate, since he was unconscious and the bullet was a few millimeters from his heart. Elder Elijah’s prayer “May God rise again” made desperate doctors believe in a miracle - the wounded man came to his senses and opened his eyes. After the operation, the soldier began to recover.
https://www.site/2014-07-07/eto_odnokursnik_glavy_rpc_on_iscelyaet_ot_raka_i_mnogo_eche_chudes_pokazyvaet_foto
The personal confessor of the Russian patriarch arrived in Yekaterinburg
“This is a classmate of the head of the Russian Orthodox Church... he heals cancer and shows many other miracles...” PHOTO
Father Eli (left) is probably the only person who knows all the secrets of Patriarch Kirill (right)
A great event took place in the Orthodox community of Yekaterinburg and the Sverdlovsk region. Elder Elijah arrived in the Ural capital. The biography of this man, who, in fact, is the second most influential person in the Russian Orthodox Church, is similar to a legend. His grandfather threatened to tear off Stalin’s head, and the future elder himself, who later became the confessor of the Russian patriarch, influenced the outcome of the Battle of Kursk. But that's not all...
Schema-Archimandrite Iliy (Alexey Nozdrin), who is called one of the most famous modern clergy, came to Yekaterinburg on a pilgrimage. As the secretary of the Metropolitan of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye, Abbot Veniamin (Rainikov), told the website, the 84-year-old elder held a service in the temple complex on Ganina Yama, the site of the destruction of the remains of the family of Emperor Nicholas II. Today, accompanied by Metropolitan Kirill of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye, Elder Elijah visits Verkhoturye, where he venerates the relics of St. Simeon of Verkhoturye, and Alapaevsk, where the Monastery of the New Martyrs of Russia is located, also built on the site of the execution of members of the Romanov family and their associates.
For the Orthodox community, the visit of Father Elijah is a great event, since this man enjoys great authority. The announcement of the meeting, published on the official website of the diocese, said that “such an event does not happen often” and that for many this meeting could be “fateful.” According to Abbot Veniamin, the meeting of the flock with the guest took place in the spiritual and educational center of the Yekaterinburg diocese. “We didn’t have time to properly announce the meeting, since we were finally convinced of Father Elijah’s arrival only when he boarded the plane to Yekaterinburg, but at the same time a full hall gathered to listen to him, people even stood in the aisle,” he said.
The elder’s biography is extremely fascinating and in some places resembles apocrypha. Thus, it is reported that the future spiritual leader was born on March 8, 1932 in the prosperous village of Stanovoy Kolodez, Oryol district, Oryol region, into a peasant family. In the world, the future spiritual leader was named Alexei, and, by his own admission, he began to pray at the age of three. Alexei’s grandfather, headman of the Church of the Intercession Ivan Nozdrin, categorically did not want to join the collective farm. Then he was asked to move with his family from the village to a farm, which they did. However, then the innovations of the revolution reached there too: the family returned to the village, and grandfather Ivan, as a sign of protest, welded iron boots for himself and walked around the village in them. “I could say directly: “I’ll tear off Stalin’s own head for the truth!” That was the kind of man he was."
The future father Iliy studied at school in his native village. In the Orthodox community, a legend is passed down from mouth to mouth that, as an 11-year-old boy, he influenced the outcome of the Battle of Kursk in 1943. Allegedly, the boy was praying outside the house, and drunken Germans drove past him on a motorcycle on a village road and dropped a tablet with a map of the fortified area on the Kursk Bulge, the boy picked up the map and handed it to the adults, and they handed it to ours. In the morning, the Nazis began to comb the surrounding area in search of documents, but found nothing. It is not known for certain whether the secret information reached the target, but the commander of the Central Front, Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky, using information from four independent sources, launched a powerful pre-emptive strike on the Wehrmacht positions.
After graduating from school, Nozdrin served in the army, where a sergeant major persuaded him to join the Komsomol. As the elder’s biography says, upon returning home he deeply repented of this, seeing it as a sin, and immediately burned his Komsomol card.
Then Nozdrin studied at the mechanical engineering college in Serpukhov, and after graduation he was assigned to work in the city of Kamyshin, Volgograd region. He visited the only functioning church in the city in honor of St. Nicholas, where his first confessor was the priest John Bukotkin, who recommended young man enter the Saratov Theological Seminary. After the closure of the Saratov Seminary, Alexei Nozdrin was transferred to the Leningrad Theological Seminary, and later he graduated from the Leningrad Theological Academy, where Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) was tonsured a monk with the name Ilian (in honor of one of the forty martyrs of Sebaste). It is known that Vladimir Gundyaev, who was tonsured a monk by the same Metropolitan Nikodim, received the name Kirill, and now heads the Russian Orthodox Church, also graduated from the Leningrad Theological Seminary, and then the Academy.
For ten years, Hieromonk Ilian carried out obedience in the monastery on the holy Greek Mount Athos, and in the early 90s he was sent to the Optina Hermitage, which was being restored. There he was tonsured into the great schema, that is, he made a vow to observe especially strict ascetic rules of behavior, and received the name Eli. For 20 years, Eli revived the senile service for which the monastery had always been famous. Rumors quickly spread among the parishioners that Father Eli had the gift of healing and foresight. Thus, they write that he foresaw the tragedy that occurred in Optina Monastery on Easter on April 18, 1993, when three monks were killed by cultural and educational worker Nikolai Averin, who turned out to be a Satanist. They say that Father Eli was forced to leave Optina Monastery after he did not agree with other monks on the point of view of the end of the world.
Now Father Eli, as the confessor of Patriarch Kirill, mainly lives in Peredelkino on the territory of the metochion of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.
Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev, who criticizes the Russian Orthodox Church in many aspects, calls Father Elijah “ wonderful person" However, in a conversation with a correspondent for the site, Kuraev noted that in last years There are a lot of politicized people around the elder, which is “very sad.” Thus, on the VKontakte page, which is probably run by Elijah’s followers, the elder’s statements about the crisis in Ukraine were posted, in which he asks God to “save Little Russia from the “Westerners” and the American-Bandera turmoil.”
“During a meeting with Yekaterinburg residents, which was broadcast on the Soyuz channel, a crying woman asked Father Elijah: “Father, my son is going to go to Ukraine to join the militia. What should I do? To this the priest replied: “Well, the matter and the mood are, of course, good, but who knows...” It is not clear why the patriarch’s confessor needs publicity. After all, people who believe in the closeness of their spiritual relationship will believe that now they have learned the true position of the patriarch,” Kuraev noted.
However, Abbot Veniamin from the Yekaterinburg diocese notes that political issues were almost not discussed during the meeting. “He is not a political, but a spiritual figure, and when people are killed in Ukraine, this is no longer a political, but a spiritual problem,” the abbot said.