Russian Empire - March 31, 1879, Moscow, Russian Empire) - Orthodox priest, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, Apostle of Siberia and America. In 1977 he was canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church and by the Orthodox Church in America as a saint. In 1994 he was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.
Encyclopedic reference
An outstanding Orthodox missionary who baptized about 10 thousand people. He is also known as a navigator, a major naturalist, and a compiler of the alphabet and grammar of the Aleut and Yakut languages. Researcher of languages and customs of the natives of Alaska and Siberia, compiler of dictionaries, educator, builder of temples. In addition to education, he taught blacksmithing and carpentry to American and Siberian natives and taught them how to inoculate smallpox. The missionary path of Innocent (Veniaminov) ran through Yakutia, the Pacific coast, the Aleutian Islands and Alaska. He took a direct part in the count's historical rafting trips on the Amur and in the preparation.
On October 6, 1977, by decision of the Holy Synod, he was canonized as a saint of the Russian Orthodox Church. The highest volcano on the Alaska Peninsula is named in honor of the saint, and a monument was erected in Blagoveshchensk. The motor ship "Sibirsky" of the Lena United River Shipping Company has been renamed and bears the name "Saint Innocent". In the village of Anga (Anginskoye, the birthplace of the saint) in the Irkutsk region, a log house has been preserved in which St. Innokenty Veniaminov lived in his childhood), now the house houses the Museum of St. Innocent (Veniaminova). On September 8, 2017, in the village of Anga, Kachug district, a memorial was created in his name.
Commemorated: March 31 (April 13); June 10 (23) - Cathedral of Siberian Saints; September 23 (October 5) - glorification; October 5 (18) - Cathedral of Moscow Saints; Third week after Pentecost - Council of St. Petersburg Saints.
Curriculum Vitae
preacher
On August 26, 1797, in the village of Anga, Irkutsk province, a son, Ivan, was born to the sexton of the Church of St. Elijah the Prophet Eusebius Popov. At the age of nine he was brought to Irkutsk and enrolled in a theological seminary. In 1814, Ivan Popov became Veniaminov, in honor of the Bishop of Irkutsk who died there. In 1817, a year before graduating from the seminary, Ivan Veniaminov married and was ordained a deacon.
At the beginning of 1823, the Bishop of Irkutsk received an order from the Holy Synod to send a priest to the Aleutian Islands to preach Christianity among the natives. The volunteer was not there for a long time. Neither Father John nor the other priests wanted to go, fearing the distances and harsh conditions. But, having heard from one native of those places about the zeal of the Aleuts for prayer and listening to the Word of God, 27-year-old Deacon John immediately became eager to go. His wife’s tears and persuasion did not change his decision...
On May 7, 1823, together with his wife, one-year-old son, elderly mother and brother, Father John set off on a difficult journey full of hardships, which lasted more than a year. They sailed down the Lena River on a barge to Yakutsk, then rode horses over a thousand miles to Okhotsk. Sailing from there to Unalaska Island seemed the easiest to the Siberians.
Father John's first concern at the new place of ministry was the construction of a temple, which turned out to be no easy task: none of the natives knew how to work. Being a skilled carpenter, joiner, and mechanic, he taught these crafts to the Aleuts. Much of the built church, such as the throne and the iconostasis, was made by the hands of Father John himself. With the spread of Christianity among the Aleuts, polygamy and extramarital cohabitation, as well as ritual murders, began to cease. Even quarrels and fights began to occur rarely, and civil strife, which had been widespread before, completely ceased.
Having studied the language and life of the Aleuts, Father John invented the alphabet and translated the Catechism and the Gospel of Matthew. The natives began to diligently learn to read and write with great joy. Preaching the Word of God, Father John Veniaminov often visited other islands, covering distances on a fragile boat in cold and bad weather. Based on his observations of natural phenomena, he compiled a “Note on the Islands of the Unalashka Department.” Having studied the fauna of the islands well, he even gave valuable advice to Russian industrialists regarding hunting fur seals, in order to increase the herd of these valuable animals.
For ten years on Unalaska, Father John Veniaminov converted all the inhabitants of the island to Christianity. For his righteous labors, he was awarded a pectoral cross and transferred to the island of Sitkha, to Novoarkhangelsk - the administrative center of Russian possessions in North America, to educate another people - the Koloshes. They were very different from the Aleuts and were treated with great suspicion towards the Russians. This attitude changed when a smallpox epidemic began on the island. The Koloshes refused to take vaccinations and died en masse. The Russians and Aleuts remained unharmed. This forced the Koloshes to ask for help, and after their salvation they stopped looking at the Russians as enemies.
tonsure
After spending five years on Sith, Father John decided to go to St. Petersburg to seek an increase in the number of priests and additional funds. Taking leave and sending his wife and children home to Irkutsk, in November 1838 he sailed to St. Petersburg. However, the troubles at the Synod lasted for several months. Father John began collecting donations and went to Moscow, where he appeared to His Eminence Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow. The saint fell in love with the hardworking preacher at first sight. “There is something apostolic about this man.”, he said.
Upon his return to St. Petersburg, Father John was awaited by the decision of the Holy Synod to increase the staff of clergy and clergy in Russian America. In addition, for his many years of apostolic exploits, he was awarded the title of archpriest. But not only joyful news awaited Father John: news came from the death of his wife. This grief hit him hard. Metropolitan Philaret, consoling him, convinced him to accept monasticism. The tonsure was performed on November 19, 1840 with the name Innocent, in honor of the saint of Irkutsk. The next day, Hieromonk Innocent was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.
Archbishop
Meanwhile, the Holy Synod decided to form a new diocese, which included the Aleutian Islands, and appoint a bishop. Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich was presented with a list of three chosen ones, including Archimandrite Innocent. The sovereign chose him. Innocent's consecration as Bishop of Kamchatka, Kuril and Aleut followed on December 15, 1840 in the Kazan Cathedral.
43-year-old Bishop Innocent returned to Russian America. In addition to preaching and instructions, he ordered the missionaries to teach children and everyone who wanted to read and write in both the local and Russian languages, and soon the literacy of the native population became even higher in indigenous Russia. After living in Novoarkhangelsk for about seven months, the bishop went to survey the diocese. On his first trip, he covered more than five thousand miles, sometimes by sea and sometimes on dogs. For his fruitful missionary work, Bishop Innocent was elevated to the rank of archbishop in 1850.
Siberia
Due to the fact that the Yakut region was expelled from and annexed to the vast Kamchatka region, His Eminence Innokenty transferred the department to Siberia, to the city of Yakutsk. There he again began to open churches and chapels, translating sacred and liturgical books into the Yakut language. On July 19, 1859, the first divine service was performed in the Yakut language in the Yakut Trinity Cathedral. The Right Reverend himself served a prayer service and read the Gospel. The Yakuts, amazed by this, asked Bishop Innocent to make this day a holiday forever.
The ministry of Archbishop Innocent extended to the remote peoples living along the Amur River. He himself undertook the journey and compiled a detailed note, “Something about the Amur,” in which he substantiated the possibility of navigation and settlement of the shores. Archbishop Innocent's assistance in the annexation of Amur was highly appreciated: the city of Blagoveshchensk was named in his honor - in memory of the beginning of his priesthood in the Annunciation Church of Irkutsk. At the end of June 1857, the highest body of church government opened vicariates in Sitkha and Yakutsk. It was decided to transfer the department to Blagoveshchensk, where the Right Reverend Innocent just as tirelessly and just as zealously continued the work of his ministry.
Moscow
Years and poor health forced him to think about rest. But Divine Providence was preparing Archbishop Innocent for a new mission. In 1867, Moscow Metropolitan Filaret died, and Archbishop Innocent was appointed to replace the deceased. The Eminence himself was struck by this news more than anyone else. After reading the dispatch, his face changed and he was lost in thought for several minutes. Then he remained alone all day, and at night he prayed fervently.
He marveled at his own fate: the son of a poor rural sexton becomes the successor of the great archpastor, one of the first hierarchs of the Russian Church - the Metropolitan of Moscow! Subsequently, it will be His Grace Innocent who will serve a prayer service in honor of the laying of the altar of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
Metropolitan Innocent was already over seventy. Seriously ill, he did not forget his calling. To preach the Gospel in the outskirts, a missionary society was established in Moscow in January 1870, which met with great sympathy in all corners of Russia.
From mid-1878, Metropolitan Innokenty was ill almost continuously. During Holy Week, feeling his death approaching, he asked himself to receive unction. On March 31, 1879, at 2 a.m. he passed away...
In 1974, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America turned to Moscow with a request to study the issue of canonization of Metropolitan Innocent. Three years were spent studying the testimonies about his life and Equal-to-the-Apostles' labors, carefully collected in the United States and in the saint's homeland. And on September 23 (October 6, new style), 1977, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, having given glory and praise to the Lord, determined that the ever-memorable Metropolitan Innocent, saint of Moscow and apostle of America and Siberia, should be canonized.
Essays
In Russian:
1. Part I, geographical
2. Part II, ethnographic. Notes on the Aleuts - M.: Librokom, 2011. - 336 p.
3. Part III, Notes on the Ata Aleuts and Koloshes (Kolyuzhas, Tlingits). - M.: URSS, 2011. - 160 p.
Indicating the Path to the Kingdom of Heaven
Notes on the islands of the Unalaska department. - St. Petersburg, 1840. Consists of three parts:
Autobiographical note. - M., 1886.
Speech by Archimandrite Innocent, after being named Bishop of Kamchatka, Kuril and Aleutian, delivered in 1840, December 13th. Christian reading. - St. Petersburg, 1841.
Letters (1823-1878): collected by I. Barsukov, 3 volumes - St. Petersburg, 1897, 1901.
Creations: three books, collected by I. Barsukov. - M., 1886-1888.
Word at the entrance of the Most Reverend Innocent Metropolitan of Moscow into the administration of the Moscow flock, spoken in the great Assumption Cathedral, May 26, 1868 // Orthodox Review. - M., 1868. - T. 26.
Showing the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. - M., 1871. See also: Izv. Kazan. ep., 1882. - No. 7. - P. 151; 1886. - No. 7. - P. 180; 1893. - P.18.
Instruction from His Eminence Innocent, former Archbishop of Kamchatka, Kuril and Aleutian, to the Nushagak missionary Hieromonk Theophilus // Church Gazette- St. Petersburg, 1900.
The Russian Church and friendship between peoples (J.M.P., 1959. - No. 11. - P. 50).
In Aleutian:
Indicating the Path to the Kingdom of Heaven - M.: Synodal Printing House, 1840, 1899.
The Holy Gospel of Matthew - St. Petersburg: Synodal Printing House, 1840, 1896.
The beginnings of Christian Teaching - St. Petersburg. - Synodal Printing House, 1840, 1893.
Two Parables from Atkin Island - manuscript, Fr. Atha, 1842.
In Tlingit:
Notes on the Koloshensky and Kodiak languages in the Printing House of the Imperial Academies of Sciences. - St. Petersburg, 1846.
Indicating the Path to the Kingdom of Heaven - the first part - Amer. Right Herald. - Sitkha, 1901.
Literature
Veniaminov Innokenty (Ivan Evseevich Popov) // Irkutsk. Historical and local history dictionary. - Irkutsk, 2011.
He glorified the Irkutsk region throughout the world, only in his small homeland, however, as in all of Russia, he was not remembered for many years. But this annoying error has been fixed. At the initiative of the government of the Irkutsk region, the implementation of a grandiose project in honor of St. Innocent began. The first chord was the restoration in the village of Anga of the house in which the future apostle lived as a child.
We have a unique territory and people, thanks to whom even other countries developed in their time. We must not forget our history, we must be proud of it. The Irkutsk region has a great future, because it is rich, first of all, in wonderful people, says the regional governor, Sergei Eroshchenko. - The implementation of the launched project emphasizes the significance of the events in which our fellow countryman Saint Innocent, a missionary and scientist who explored the territory of Siberia, the Arctic, America and Japan, was a participant.
Better late than never
Vanya Popov received the surname Veniaminov at the seminary in honor of the late Irkutsk Archbishop Veniamin. He became Saint Innocent, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, Apostle of Siberia and America, and went from a rural parish priest in the Irkutsk diocese to the department of Moscow saints. He was engaged in educating the peoples of Kamchatka, the Aleutian Islands, North America, Yakutia, and the Khabarovsk Territory. He baptized people, built churches and founded schools with them. Compiled a grammar and the first dictionary of the Aleutian language. His works on geography, ethnography and linguistics gained worldwide fame. The saint was an associate of the Governor-General of Eastern Siberia, Count Nikolai Muravyov-Amursky, in the development of the Far East and the education of its indigenous peoples. He died on March 31, 1879, and was buried in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, in the Church of Philaret the Merciful. Saint Innokenty Veniaminov was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1977 at the request of the Russian Orthodox Church in America, of which he was the founder and first metropolitan.
In 1997, when the 200th anniversary of the birth of Innocent was celebrated, UNESCO declared the year of the saint. This date was celebrated by many countries, and only the Irkutsk region - the birthplace of the saint - did not flinch, says Deputy Governor of the Irkutsk Region Larisa Zabrodskaya. - So now we are catching up.
2017 will mark the 220th anniversary of the saint’s birth and the 40th anniversary of his canonization. The Irkutsk region will definitely not miss these dates. On behalf of Governor Sergei Eroshchenko, the “Path of St. Innocent” project was developed in the region, which was supported by the federal center, and His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' gave his blessing to its initiators.
Humility and selflessness
As part of the project, in the village of Anga, Kachug district, Irkutsk region, where Innokenty was born on August 26, 1797, a wooden house was restored, in which, as researchers found out, Vanya Popov lived from the age of six. This is the house of his uncle, Deacon Dmitry, to whom the future saint moved after the death of his father Yevsey Popov. The parental home of Innokenty Veniaminov - in the world of Ivan Evseevich Popov-Veniaminov - in Anga was not preserved; it was demolished in the early 80s of the 20th century.
For scientists, the house of Deacon Dmitry gave an idea of Innocent’s childhood and allowed them to understand the origins of the saint’s meekness, unpretentiousness, his generosity and boundless self-denial of worldly well-being.
His uncle taught Vanya to read and write and prepared him for the seminary, where the boy entered at the age of eleven. According to the researchers, the deacon interested Vanya in mechanics, for example, in their free time they made watches, patiently, by hand, turning numerous gears. This painstaking work also strengthened the character of the future metropolitan, instilling in him a sense of purpose.
House from the past
The Irkutsk region almost lost the house of Innokenty Veniaminov at one time. In 1986, the Americans decided to buy it and transport it to Alaska. The hut stood empty then; people in Anga no longer remembered who lived in it. And only after foreigners became interested in the house did the local authorities come to their senses. The house was not sold, the Irkutsk diocese bought it from the owners - a certain citizen Nechaeva, who, according to available data, owned it since 1958. Since 1997, it has housed the Museum of St. Innocent. No personal belongings of the saint were preserved in Anga, so the exhibits were provided by the Taltsy architectural and ethnographic museum.
The restoration of the Metropolitan's house in Ang was carried out last summer. Now it is a memorial house-museum; it has been open to visitors since October. The restored hut, built in the first half of the 18th century, gives guests an idea of the early period of Innocent's life. The exhibition has two sections - in the entryway there is an exhibition about the saint, then a memorial part, recreating the historical appearance of the life of a rural priest of the early 19th century. Visitors will get acquainted with the structure of the hut, or one-house house, see furniture, household items, church utensils, icons, spiritual books and vestments, as well as books from the personal library of the clergyman. The exhibition is compiled from the funds of the Irkutsk Regional Museum of Local Lore.
As Vitaly Baryshnikov, Minister of Culture and Archives of the Irkutsk Region, said, the restoration of the house was carried out within the framework of a public-private partnership. Since the hut belongs to the Irkutsk diocese and budget funds cannot be spent on it, the authorities found a private investor who agreed to carry out the work. Now everything in the house is done so skillfully that ordinary visitors cannot see the changes. For example, only a specialist will understand that a concrete foundation has been laid under the house. “The floors were covered with Austrian mastic, the wood structure was shaded, the walls were cleaned, the stove was completely replaced, and 90% of the roof was replaced,” says entrepreneur Alexander Sokolov, who took over the restoration of the house. - A storm drainage system has been installed, which is also invisible to the average person, but now rain and melt water will not destroy the house. Local residents were involved in the restoration of the hut.”
According to museum curator Olga Sokolnikova, pilgrims from all over the world come to Anga, where there are not even a thousand inhabitants, to venerate the holy place. A frequent guest is the famous Russian writer Valentin Rasputin. And in 2007, the leader of the Indian tribe Black Raven visited Anga and brought an icon as a gift to the museum. The saint’s relatives living abroad also come here. As the caretaker said, in just a month and a half after the restoration of Innocent’s house, more than 400 people visited it.
Although the results of the restoration work are not visible to visitors, guests feel that a special atmosphere has reigned in the house, says Olga Sokolnikova. “You look at old houses, if no one lives in them, they fade away. And this one keeps getting newer and newer. People come and say that he seems to have become taller, more lively,” says the caretaker. - Every crevice here has been cleaned. The roof is new, it used to leak, and every time it rained, I ran to whiten the stove, but now there is no need for it. And the stove itself is now new, and the porch is new.”
Spiritual enlightenment
By decision of the regional government, a spiritual and educational center will be created in Anga, and the restoration of the house of St. Innocent marked the beginning of the implementation of this idea. The plans are to recreate the metropolitan’s parental home from photographs, build houses for priests, and complete the construction of a temple that has been under construction next to the museum for several years using donations. Now the investor who carried out the reconstruction of the museum is beginning to complete the construction of the temple. As Alexander Sokolov said, internal work is beginning at the site, for this the builders first need to insulate the circuit - install temporary frames and doors. “There is no money for more yet,” says the investor. “We need good doors, frames, finishing materials, bells.” In general, about 15 million more rubles are needed to complete the construction of the temple; the authorities and the entrepreneur continue to search for enterprises or individuals who could join this process.
In addition, two more objects of the future spiritual and educational center are currently being designed. This is a home for pilgrims, because now visitors have nowhere to stay overnight, as well as an object codenamed “Museum of the Land of Angina” - a site with the functions of a museum, exhibition hall and conference hall, where ceremonial events in memory of the saint are planned to be held in 2017. After the projects pass the examination, the regional authorities will form an application to the federal budget to raise funds for the construction of these two facilities.
The project, conceived by the Irkutsk region, found support in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Amur, Sakhalin regions, Khabarovsk, Kamchatka and Transbaikal territories, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as well as in the state of Alaska (USA), where the great Russian Orthodox missionary and scientist, researcher are revered nature, ethnography and languages of the peoples of Siberia and Alaska. As part of the project, it is planned to organize an interregional expedition with the participation of the Russian Geographical Society. This will not just be a visit to the territories where Saint Innocent preached, it will be holidays along the route, meetings, prayer services, readings in each subject of the federation. The main - solemn - events will take place in 2017 in Moscow and will be dedicated to the 220th anniversary of the saint.
It is also planned to publish a single collection of works of St. Innocent, and to organize the filming of the film “The Path of the Saint” at the venues of the project events. As Vitaly Baryshnikov said, work on a production about Innocent has also begun at the regional Youth Theater named after Vampilov. Irkutsk actors intend to show the performance in different regions. And the Irkutsk Regional Museum of Local Lore organized a traveling exhibition about the saint, which has already set off across the country.
The long-term national project “The Path of St. Innocent” should become a spiritual and historical force that will unite the peoples of Siberia and the Far East in preserving the moral and spiritual values of Russia and attract the attention of Russians to the heritage of the saint.
Svetlana Latynina
A.K. Nefedeva (Irkutsk)
The first mention of the house in Anga of Metropolitan Innokenty Veniaminov in Soviet times appeared in 1976 in the sixth issue of the journal “Questions of History”. The article belonged to the famous archaeologist of Siberia, academician A.P. Okladnikov, who had previously visited Alaska. Apparently A.P. is there. Okladnikov discovered the missionary, ethnographer, linguist, naturalist, builder and artist, famous before the revolution throughout Russia, and later Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna Innokenty Veniaminov.
Struck by the greatness of this figure, the versatility of his interests, the magnitude of his deeds and the memory of himself that the missionary left in Alaska, A.P. Upon returning home, Okladnikov published his biography twice: the first time in a magazine, the second in the book “Pioneers” from the series “Life of Remarkable People.” In both articles, Okladnikov points out that “in Metropolitan Ange’s native village, two houses have miraculously survived. One is a priest’s, the second is a chanter’s, apparently built in the first half of the 18th century, chopped with an ax, with a ceiling made of round logs (they didn’t know how to saw boards at that time). Veniaminov-Popov must have been born in it.”
I would like to note that already at that time, in the mid-1970s, in Anga they could not accurately indicate A.P. Okladnikov, which of these houses was Veniaminov’s house, although before the revolution all the village residents knew about it. Before their eyes, the house was restored from 1913 to 1915, by decision of the missionary committee, for which money in the amount of 1,500 rubles was allocated. .
After the restoration, religious Sunday readings were organized for the village residents in Veniaminov’s house, where teachers conducted lessons for children on the biography of the famous countryman, and annual lithiums for the deceased were held here.
However, the articles of A.P. Okladnikov about Saint Innocent and the houses of the 18th century. in Ang, associated with his name, was not given due attention either by government agencies or by the public. Real interest in the house of the great Anginsky appeared in 1987.
This year, Father Kallinik, the dean of the villages of the Upper Lena, invited the writer and editor of the newspaper “Literary Irkutsk” Valentina Vasilievna Sidorenko on his next trip to the Lena. There were almost no churches in the Kachugsky district, and the priest, after inspecting them, went to Anga to talk with the chairman of the village council about the possibility of building a church in Anga.
A man in a cassock, a rather rare phenomenon in those years, attracted the attention of the village residents, and when he and V.V. Sidorenko stopped at the site of a church destroyed in 1929, an old woman approached them and in a conversation told them about the house in which, according to her, Innokenty Veniaminov once lived. The old woman’s testimony was confirmed by the chairman of the village council, Olga Georgievna Sokolnikova. According to her, “half of the village residents believe that the house preserved in Anga was related to the Popovs (Veniaminov).”
The message that the house of St. Innocent has been preserved in Anga excited V.V. Sidorenko, and she turned to the diocese with a proposal to buy a house and make a memorial museum of the Saint in it.
V.V.’s proposal Sidorenko interested the diocese. Since 1989, the study of the history of the house began. The Center for the Preservation of Historical and Cultural Heritage (CSN) was involved in this. This work was supervised by V.V. from the diocese. Sidorenko. Two well-known city specialists were also involved in studying the history of the house - ethnographer O.V. Bychkov and architect V.T. Shcherbina.
As a result of the research, the house in Anga was recognized as the parental home of Innokenty Veniaminov, in which he was born and lived for the first five years before moving after the death of his father, Yevsey Popov, to the house of his uncle, Dmitry Popov, who also lived in Anga. These conclusions were based on photographs of Veniaminov’s house taken by priest N. Ponomarev in 1913 before the restoration of the house and discovered by O. Remezova, an employee of the Center for Social Sciences, in the Irkutsk archive, as well as on the publication of M.K. Azadovsky, who visited Anga in 1916. “The restoration,” wrote Azadovsky, “has changed the previous appearance and gives a quicker idea of the type of ancient house.” This message from Azadovsky allowed researchers (O.V. Bychkov) to explain the inconsistencies observed in the preserved house in Anga and in photographs by restoration.
The conclusion issued by the TsSN on the house in Anga served as the basis for the decision of the Irkutsk Regional Executive Committee to classify the house in Anga as a monument of local significance, and the diocese acquired the house as its own. In 1991, the house was purchased from citizen Nechaeva, who had owned it since 1958.
So, the study of the house was completed, but the curator of the diocese V.V. Sidorenko had doubts: there was too much difference between the photographs of the house of Yevsey, Veniaminov’s father, and the existing house. In 1996, employees of the Taltsy AEM were involved in research work at the house.
The first inspection of the house revealed subtle marks in the corners of the house, made with an axe, which had not been noticed by previous researchers. The marks indicated that the house had been moved. Further study of already reviewed and newly discovered archival materials and eyewitness accounts of the Angina house led us to unexpected conclusions. But everything is in order.
Link of predecessors to the publication of M.K. Azadovsky about the changes in Yevsey Popov’s house caused by restoration seemed unconvincing to us. M.K. Azadovsky did not say what exactly the changes were, his phrase “The appearance of the house gives a quick idea of the type of old house” suggests that the main changes were related to the internal layout of the house, in particular, the main wall separating the entryway from the hut was removed. Only with internal changes could the house have the “look of an old house” externally. Our assumption is confirmed by the purpose of the house after its restoration. It became a public building, but not a museum, but a “hut-reading room”, a “club”. Let us remember that lectures, classes with students, and public memorial services were held there. In a small hut, such as Veniaminov’s house was (this is evidenced by all the memories of eyewitnesses; the Metropolitan himself called his house nothing more than a “hut”) and in which, moreover, almost half was occupied by a Russian stove, it was impossible to accommodate people for listening to lectures without alterations . Connecting the entryway into one whole with the hut significantly increased the internal area of the dwelling.
As for the photographs of Veniaminov’s house, it must be admitted that they are so far the only reliable evidence of what Veniaminov’s house looked like before restoration. Let us dwell in detail on their description. There are three photographs of Veniaminov’s house. In the first photo the house is visible from the main facade. The powerful frame goes into the males that hold the roof. In the second male, two small windows were cut for ventilation and lighting of the attic. The main facade has two small windows and one more, very small one. Houses with a similar window layout on the Lena were called “houses with two and a half windows.” It was chopped “in the oblo”, with a large remainder, the ends are uneven. Two other photographs give an idea of the side facades of the house. On one facade two paired windows are visible, equal in size to the windows of the main facade. On the same side there is a door to the vestibule leading into the house and a small window. On the other side, the blank wall is interrupted by a small window and projections of the main wall separating the entryway from the house, which suggests that it was a five-walled house.
Comparing the preserved house in Anga with photographs, we notice that they differ greatly. The main façade of the existing house has two windows, but the small one does not. On the side facade there are two separate windows, a door to the entrance and a small window. On the other side there is a small window and in the entrance a large window of late origin. If we do not pay attention to the already obvious dissimilarity of the house in the photographs with the existing house in Anga, attributing this to the costs of restoration, and further, for a more convenient comparison of houses, we will conditionally turn them with the main facade in the western direction, then at the same time the side facade with two paired The windows of the house in the photograph will face north. The existing house has two separate windows with this orientation facing south. Accordingly, the blank wall in the photograph will face south, and the existing house will face north. Such a discrepancy cannot be explained by restoration, and therefore it must be recognized that these are two different houses.
This conclusion is confirmed by the window sills of the currently existing Angina house. The photograph of Veniaminova’s house shows that two paired windows are placed on one continuous window sill and are separated by a crossbar resting on the upper window jamb and the lower window sill. This means that during the restoration, if they decided to separate the windows with a wall, new window sills had to be installed. In the existing house, all the window sills, with the exception of the porch, are old and very worn. We encountered such wear and tear on window sills only in the houses of AEM “Taltsy”, dated by architects G.G. Oranskaya and A.A. Subbotin like houses of the 18th century. In other houses, even in the first half of the 19th century, this phenomenon is not observed. This fact, apparently, can only be explained by the fact that the windows in the 18th century. covered with bull's bladder or mica, they gave little light and therefore many works in the house, especially in winter, were carried out on the windowsill. Taking into account all of the above, we thus finally come to the conclusion that Veniaminov’s house in the photograph and the current house in Anga are different houses.
The version that these photographs are not photographs of Veniaminov’s house should apparently be immediately discarded. Beginning in 1896, the church’s attention to Veniaminov’s house in Anga increased. On the centennial anniversary of the Saint’s birth, publications systematically appear in the church press about the missionary’s deeds and about his preserved house. There are various proposals for its use; it is also proposed to demolish the house and build a chapel or school for Angina children in this place, giving it the name Innokentyevskaya. These debates ended in 1913 with the beginning of the restoration of Veniaminov’s house. The order on how to restore the metropolitan's house was given to priest Kokoulin, who served in the Angina church, by Bishop Eugene of Kirensky. When Bishop Eugene arrived in Anga in 1913, photographs of Innokenty’s house were taken by priest Ponomarev, who accompanied the bishop on a trip to Lena villages. Together with other photographs, these photographs were kept in his album. All signatures under the photographs were made by one hand, which suggests that they were signed by the author himself. And since all the signatures coincide with known objects, we apparently simply have no right to doubt the signatures under the photographs of Veniaminov’s house.
Let us now turn to the existing Angina house. According to the historical information about it, compiled by O. Remezova from the words of the owner of this house until 1958, Georgy Danilovich Skornyakov, now deceased, this house belonged to the Skornyakov family from the beginning of the 19th century. . The site of the original location of the house was considered the “priest’s estate”, “priest’s irons” (watered, fertilized hayfields at the estate). Georgy Danilovich’s grandfather, Artemy Ivanovich, having returned to Anga after serving in the army, in 1876 moved the house from the “priest’s estate” to the place where it now stands (Shkolnaya St.). Traces of the marks needed to dismantle the house, as already noted, are still visible. They were made with an axe, on the hut - on the corners, on the log - in the center of the log, the markings on the log are clearly modern. In 1929-1930, this was already preserved in the memory of Georgy Danilovich, the roof was rebuilt. At the same time, the elements of the roof - hens (structures holding the ceilings) with streams (hollowed out half-logs into which the ends of the roofing boards were inserted and along which water ran down when it rained) - were destroyed. In 1950-1952 the cold canopy was insulated and the roof on the entrance was changed, it became separate. To increase the space in the house, the stove was redone; previously it had a classic location - facing the facade.
In 1932 or 1933, Veniaminov’s son or grandson came to the Skornyakovs’ house. The Skornyakovs said: “the priest’s son,” “the archimandrite’s son.” He was also a clergyman. The family legend about the house, reported by Georgy Danilovich Skornyakov, is very important for us, since it confirms that this house was previously related to the Veniaminov family and directly to the metropolitan himself. This will be clear if we take a closer look at the biographical data associated with the Popov family (original surname Veniaminov). These data became known recently, thanks to the work of Archpriest Lev Lebedev, who published the book “Russian Columbus” in Montreal in 1991. In it, touching on Veniaminov’s biography, he points out that “Metropolitan Innokenty Veniaminov came from a hereditary clergy. His grandfather, Ioann Popov, was appointed priest of the village in 1738. Anginskoe". Later, two of his sons became: Dmitry - a deacon, Yevsey, Innokenty's father, - a sexton of the same church. John's third son, Alexei Popov, at the end of the 18th century. replaced my father. Record of the birth of Ivan Popov, his nephew and future metropolitan,
in the metric book p. Anginsky for 1797 made by the hand of Alexei Popov. By that time he was already a priest of the Anginsky Ilyinsky Church.
John's eldest son was Dmitry, according to existing custom he was supposed to live in his father's house. For Yevsey, the middle son of John, who also had a large family - two daughters and two sons, Ivan and Stefan, a new house was built - next to his father's - near the church, which went down in history as the “priestly house”. Both of these houses once stood on the so-called Popovsky utugs, in the “Popovsky estate,” and when Yevsey, the father of the boy Vanya Popov, died of illness in 1803, Uncle Dmitry took him to his place. The boy lived in his house until 1808, before leaving to study at the Irkutsk Seminary. Soon after Ivan left for Irkutsk, Dmitry’s wife died. Left alone, in 1811 he submitted a petition to the diocese to transfer him to monasticism. The request was granted. In the same year he moved to Irkutsk to live as a monk at the bishop's house. Therefore, the fact reported by G.D. Skornyakov that his ancestors settled in this house at the beginning of the 19th century is quite real. After his death, in our opinion, John’s youngest son Alexei, who was a priest of the Angina Church for a short time, settled in Yevsey’s house after his death, he was replaced by his son George, and George in 1827 by his son Alexei, the metropolitan’s cousin, who served in it until the 1860s gg. A tombstone discovered in the summer of 1997 on the ruins of a blown-up church indicates that he died in 1864. A survey of village residents in April 1997 did not clarify the situation with the houses. None of them knows Veniaminov or the historical places associated with him. The old-timers of the village only remember how in 1929 the stone Anginskaya Church was blown up, in which as a boy Vanya Popov (Veniaminov) helped his relatives lead the service, acting as a cleric. Somewhat earlier, in the 1970s, during surveys conducted by A.P. Okladnikov, the old-timers called this house a priest’s house.
In popular memory, the second house of the Popovs (Veniaminov) was preserved as the scribe’s house, which is also easy to explain. George's father, Daniil Skornyakov, often read psalms in church and was a famous bell-ringer.
To summarize what has been said, we should note that the house preserved in Anga was actually built in the first half of the 18th century, as A.P. also wrote. Okladnikov. This is confirmed not only by the legend of the house, but also by the presence of archaic forms in it. The ceiling made of rolled logs is leaky, which was discovered during special studies of the house, in particular when clearing the ceiling of soil. To conduct a visual inspection of the home, the logs inside the house were cleared of many years of whitewash, which made it possible to reveal the classic internal structure of the house, characteristic of the first half of the 18th century: the location of the stove facing the facade in the right corner immediately at the entrance; the presence of a gob, notches for it were identified, the remains of an old hole for the outlet of the stove pipe, while the ceiling logs were also cut through with an ax; the presence of two vorontsov shelves; male roof. All this, and also the severe deterioration of the window sills, allows us to attribute the house to the middle of the 18th century. The house was moved to a new location in 1876, so the replacement of some logs in it was natural, which led to the appearance of sawn logs in the log house. The house stood in the “priest’s estate” - indisputable evidence that it belonged to one of the priest’s children, in our opinion, Dmitry, and Ivan Popov (Veniaminov) lived in it from 1801 to 1808. This conclusion is indirectly confirmed by the residence of the son or grandson of Innokenty Veniaminov in this house in 1932 or 1933.
Thus, the current house in Anga is directly related to Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna Innokenty Veniaminov, canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1977.
He spent his early childhood in this house, leaving it at the age of eleven to study at the Irkutsk Seminary. His uncle, Dmitry, replacing Vanya’s father, taught him to read and write, prepared him for the seminary, and later, in Irkutsk, being already a monk, he introduced the boy to mechanics. In their free time, they made watches together, patiently, by hand, turning numerous gears. Recalling his childhood, the Metropolitan noted that it was this activity that contributed to the development in him of such character traits as perseverance, hard work and determination. All these qualities, acquired with the help of his uncle, allowed Ivan Popov in the future to become what he became: an apostle of Alaska, a famous scientist in the field of ethnography and linguistics. And the now existing house in Anga, without a doubt, can be the memorial house of Metropolitan Innokenty Veniaminov.
The second house, the so-called priestly house, was, in our opinion, the parental home of Metropolitan Innocent, and only the absence of A.P. Okladnikov's photographs of Veniaminov's house (he did not know about them) did not allow the scientist to identify him. The house was broken down in the early 80s. XX century And in this, to some extent, we see God’s Providence. Metropolitan Innokenty, having visited Anga and “his hut” for the last time in 1868, found it in the wrong hands. He offered to sell him the house, but the owner refused. Then Innocent asked him “as far as possible to preserve the house in its original form.” This wish of the Metropolitan was not fulfilled, since the restoration of the house was carried out taking into account the future use of the building as an auditorium for Sunday readings and religious interviews, and the house was greatly changed for this reason.
The Lord, loving his children with all his soul, who sincerely and selflessly love him and serve him, fulfilled the desire of Metropolitan Innocent, preserving for posterity the Angina house in which he lived and in which minor changes took place.
The house gives a true idea of the initial period of Innocent’s life, of the origins of unpretentiousness and boundless self-denial of worldly well-being, selfless love for one’s neighbor, which were so characteristic of the Saint.
Sources and literature
1. GAIO. F. 50. Op. 1. D. 1133, 8560; F. 2732. Op. 1. D. 2.
2. Azadovsky M.K. Siberian pages. Irkutsk, 1988.
3. Alexandrov M.K. Russian housing in Eastern Siberia in the 17th-18th centuries. // Soviet ethnography. 1960. No. 2.
4. Ashchepkov E.I. Russian folk architecture in Eastern Siberia. M., 1953.
5. Bychkov O.V. Reference based on the results of a visual study of Veniaminov’s house, carried out on August 2, 1989 // TsSN Archive, 1989.
6. Golubev L.I. Holy Trinity Monastery of Kirensky. Irkutsk, 1894.
7. Gromov. Reminiscences of a contemporary about the Most Reverend Innocent. Irkutsk, 1879.
8. Diaries of priest Innokenty Veniaminov // Polar Star. 1996. No. 2.
9. Irkutsk Diocesan Gazette. 1868. No. 29; 50; 1896. No. 13; 1897. No. 16; 24; 1914. No. 23.
10. Lebedev L. Russian Columbuses. Montreal, 1991.
11. Materials on the study of land use and economic life of the rural population of the Irkutsk and Yenisei provinces. Irkutsk, 1892. T. 2, issue. 6.
12. Naumova O.E. Irkutsk diocese. XVII - first half of the XIX century. Irkutsk, 1996. P. 131.
13. Nefedeva A.K. Angina roots of St. Innokentiya Veniaminova // Taltsy. 1999. No. 1.
14. Nefedeva A.K. Restoration of the Angina house of St. Innocent and the creation of a memorial exhibition // Taltsy. 1999. No. 1.
15. Okladnikov A.P. Pioneers. M., 1983.
16. Okladnikov A.P. The amazing fate of Ivan Popov // Questions of history. 1976. No. 6.
17. Orthodox saints. M., 1996.
18. Remezova O. Historical information recorded from the words of G.D. Skornyakov, who lived in the house until 1958 // TsSN Archive, 1989.
19. Siberian archive. 1916. No. 1.
20. Sherstoboev V.N. Ilimskaya arable land. Irkutsk, 2001. T. 1.
21. Shcherbin V.T. Conclusions on the house of Metropolitan Innocent Veniaminov in the village. Anga, Kachuga district, Irkutsk region // TsSN Archives, 1989.
RUSSIAN AMERICA
Materials of the III International Scientific Conference
“Russian America” (Irkutsk, August 8–12, 2007)
Courtesy of the Taltsy Architectural and Ethnographic Museum
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Today, a cultural and educational center named after Innokenty Veniaminov was opened in the village of Anga. From the very morning they celebrate the 220th anniversary of the saint’s birth. More than 5,000 guests came to the event.
The village woke up with the first bells. Morning ringing - in honor of the 220th anniversary of the birth of the missionary, ethnographer, linguist St. Innocent Veniaminov. The main gift is the consecration of the church here in his homeland.
The heart of St. Innocent's Church beats in this small house. The future saint was born into the family of a sexton. There is no less a biography in the memorial area behind the temple. Each house is a stage in the life of a spiritual figure.
- On this day, the cultural and educational center opened its doors in Anga. Here everyone will feel like a missionary. Painted seas spread across the large hall. And each glass stand imitates a font. Each exhibit here is dedicated to enlightenment,- says pilgrim Fatinia Belousova.
- The first gift in honor of the grand opening to the cultural and educational center was made by the Chairman of the Legislative Assembly Sergei Brilka,- says the governor of the Irkutsk region Sergei Levchenko.
- On Angina land, five thousand holiday guests united all of Russia. Most, of course, came from the Irkutsk region. But there are also those who came here from Yakutia, Khabarovsk and Primorsky territories - says Chairman of the Legislative Assembly of the Irkutsk Region Sergei Brilka.