The New Martyr of Russia
Alexander Hotovitzky was born on February 11, 1872 in the city of Kremenetz,
into the pious family of Archpriest Alexander, who was Rector of the
Volhynia Theological Seminary and would later be long remembered in the
hearts of the Orthodox inhabitants of Volhynia as a good shepherd. Young
Alexander received a good Christian upbringing from his parents, who
instilled in him love for the Orthodox Church and for the people of God.
The future pastor was educated at the Volhynia
Seminary and the St Petersburg Theological Academy, from which he graduated
with a Master's degree in 1895.
After graduation from the Academy, he was sent for
missionary service to the Diocese of the Aluetians and North America, where
he was assigned to the position of reader at the newly-established Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church in New York City. Following his marriage to Maria
Scherbuhina, a graduate of the Pavlovsk Institute in Saint Petersburg, the
Hieromartyr Alexander was ordained to the diaconate, and soon after, on
February 25, 1896, to the priesthood by Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) of the
Aleutians, whom Father Alexander would always later remember with gratitude
and love.
The ordination took place at the diocesan cathedral
in San Francisco. In his address to the newly-ordained Father Alexander,
Bishop Nicholas explained his selection of the new priest for ordained
ministry in these words:
"Your special sense of decency, your good
upbringing, your noble idealism, and your sincere piety immediately caused
me to look favorably upon you and compelled me to single you out among the
young people, with whom you used to visit me in St Petersburg…I could see
that you had that special spark from God, which makes any service an
action truly done for God's sake, and without which a vocation becomes
soul-less and dead work…Your first experience in preaching has shown you
the power of this kind of inspiration: you saw how the people gathered
around you and how attentively they stood and listened at length to your
discourses…Why did these people listen to you rather than going to hear
other preachers? Clearly the spark which burns within you attracts the
hearts of these people like a magnet."
A week after his ordination, the young priest
returned to New York to assume the pastorate of the parish where he had
previously served as reader. From 1898 to 1907, the New Martyr Alexander
served as a pastor under the omophorion of Bishop Tikhon. Saint Tikhon, who,
in the tragic year of 1917, was to be elevated by Divine Providence to the
primatial see as Patriarch of Moscow, valued highly Father Alexander's
sincere piety, his gift of pastoral love, and his multifaceted theological
erudition. The spectrum of his activity in the United States was quite broad
and very fruitful. He was successful in missionary service, primarily among
Uniates newly-emigrated from Galicia and Carpathian-Rus'. He was also one of
the closest collaborators of the Orthodox Archpastors in America and
represented the Orthodox Church before American religious institutions and
meetings.
Father Alexander's missionary work was not without many temptations and
sorrows. Archbishop, later Metropolitan, Platon (Rozhdestvensky) expressed
gratitude for the Passion-bearer Alexander's labors in America in an address
delivered at the Divine Liturgy on February 26, 1914. Bidding farewell to
Father Alexander, the Archbishop said, "One morning, during the years we
worked together, you came to my room and, without saying much, unbuttoned
your shirt, revealing a very large, bluish, bloody abrasion on your chest.
That wound from a fanatic, who in a fit of rage attacked you wildly with a
stick, followed the meeting of Russian people at which you had encouraged
your own ethnic brother to renounce the pernicious Unia with Rome…My entire
being was shaken to the core and I was profoundly moved, for before me at
that moment was a genuine example of witness for Christ."
Through Father Alexander's efforts, Orthodox parishes were established in
Philadelphia, Yonkers, and Passaic as well as other large and small towns
throughout North America. The parishioners of these churches were cradle
Orthodox whom fate had brought to the New World, as well as
Carpatho-Russians converted from the Unia and former Protestant converts to
the Orthodox Church.
An important contribution to the witness of the truth of Orthodoxy before
heterodox American society was made by the American Orthodox Messenger,
which was published in English and Russian under Father Alexander's
editorship. Articles by the editor regularly appeared in this journal.
The New Martyr Alexander actively participated in the establishment of an
Orthodox diocesan mutual aid society and at various times, he served as
treasurer, first secretary, and president of this organization. The society
provided material aid to Austrian Carpatho-Russians, Macedonian Slavs,
Russian troops in Manchuria, and to Russian prisoners of war in Japanese
camps.
Father Alexander also took upon himself the ascetical burden of constructing
the architecturally remarkable and majestic St Nicholas Cathedral in New
York to replace the small parish church. The cathedral was to become an
adornment of the city. He visited Orthodox communities throughout America
soliciting funds for the construction of the Cathedral. In 1901, he also
traveled to his homeland, Russia, for this purpose. In the annals of St
Nicholas Church, which in 1903 became the diocesan Cathedral, it is recorded
that, "This Cathedral was established and constructed in the City of New
York in North America, under the supervision and through the efforts and
labors of the most honorable Archpriest Father Alexander Hotovitzky in the
year of Our Lord 1902."
On February 26, 1906, Orthodox America celebrated the tenth anniversary of
priestly service of Archpriest Alexander, one of its most remarkable
pastors. Bishop Tikhon greeted the jubilarian with these words:
"As you remember your ordination as a priest of God at this anniversary, you
are doubtless unwillingly contemplating how you have used your God-given
talents, and asking yourself if the Grace of God was bestowed on you in vain
and how far you have advanced on the path of moral perfection. As you judge
yourself in this way, you are at the same time the judge and the accused. In
order for a judgment to be fair, the testimony of onlookers, the witnesses,
must be heard. Now they are speaking before you - listen to them. Thanks be
to the Lord! We just heard their eloquent and heartfelt testimony praising
you. For myself as your superior, I can testify that you have proven to be
trustworthy, and have justified the expectations which were hoped for at
your ordination."
The sacrificial and dedicated pastoral service of
the New Martyr Alexander in America was concluded on February 26, 1914,
exactly eighteen years after his ordination to the priesthood. In his
farewell address, Father Alexander said, "Farewell, American Orthodox Rus' -
my dear Mother, the Holy American Church. I, your ever-grateful son, bow
filially to the ground before you. You gave birth to me spiritually, you
nurtured me, from your depths you inspired me by your strength. Through the
shining witness of your founders, through the enlightened apostolic
teachings of your preachers, through the fervor of your faithful flock, you
have given me the greatest possible joy - to be your son."
From 1914 to 1917, Father Alexander served as a
priest in Helsinki, Finland, where the majority of the population was
Protestant. Although Finland was then part of the Russian Empire, the
Orthodox clergy there had to exert great efforts to protect the Orthodox
Karelians from the proselytic expansionism of the Finnish Lutherans. In
Finland, the New Martyr Alexander was a loyal, active, and dedicated
assistant to his archpastor - Sergius (Stragorodsky), the future Patriarch.
In August 1917, Archpriest Alexander was
transferred to Moscow and assigned as assistant pastor of Christ the Savior
Cathedral. Here he was again under the direct guidance of Saint Tikhon, with
whom he had already been closely associated in America.
The Passion-bearer Alexander participated in the deliberations of the Church
Council of 1917-18. When the Council discussed the drafting of a message to
the Orthodox flock concerning elections to the State Council, he stated
that, as the fate of Russia was at stake, the Church and the Council in
particular should not shy away from the struggle to save the nation.
Speaking about the efforts of the Council to upbuild the Church, he outlined
his preliminary plans for order and healing in the internal life of the
Church and stated with some bitterness, "It seems as if there were builders
who were furiously preparing blueprints, plans and so forth for the
construction of an edifice and at the same time were calmly observing the
destruction brick by brick of this edifice by enemies."
During the difficult years of the Civil War, the New Martyr Alexander
collaborated closely with Saint Tikhon in the administration of the Moscow
diocese. In 1918, under the spiritual leadership of the rector, Father
Nicholas Arseniev, and the assistant pastor, Father Alexander, a brotherhood
affiliated with Christ the Savior Cathedral was established. As its first
activity, the brotherhood issued an appeal to the Orthodox flock, which
Father Alexander helped write.
This document stated, "People of Russia! Christ the Savior Cathedral, the
adornment of Moscow, the pride of Russia, the joy of the Orthodox Church has
been condemned to slow destruction. This glorious monument to the great
exploits of Russian warriors, who gave their lives for their native land and
the Holy Orthodox Faith, has been denied state support…People of Russia!
Will you really surrender this wonderful church of the Savior to mockery? Is
it really true, as is claimed by the persecutors of the Holy Church, that
the people of Russia no longer need holy things - Churches, sacraments,
services, because all this is outdated and superstitious? Respond, you, the
faithful! Respond all of you as one! Rise up and protect your holy things!
May the generous and well-intentioned donations of the rich be added to the
precious pennies of the faithful poor. Moscow, you are the heart of Russia!
Preserve your holy shrine - your golden-domed Church of the Savior!…"
In response to this appeal, Orthodox inhabitants of Moscow joined the
brotherhood of Christ the Savior Cathedral, and gave their alms to support
the majestic church.
Pastoral service at that time was accompanied by much grief and danger. In
May 1920 and November 1921 Father Alexander was arrested for brief periods.
He was accused of violating the decrees concerning the separation of the
Church from the state, and the school from the Church, by holding church
school for the children.
In 1922, the Church was subjected to harsh tribulations when, under the
pretext of helping the starving, ecclesiastical treasures including sacred
vessels, icons, and other holy things were violently confiscated by the
state. Heeding the appeal of Her holy primate, the Orthodox Church made
generous donations to assist the starving. However, when Saint Tikhon issued
a statement to his flock throughout Russia forbidding the cooperation of the
clergy in surrendering sacred vessels for non-ecclesiastical use based on
canon law, a slanderous campaign against the Church was begun in the press,
Her primate was arrested, and a wave of court cases took place throughout
Russia, in which servants of the Lord's altar were accused of
counterrevolutionary activity. During these trials many faithful servants of
the Church of Christ were sentenced to death and shed their blood as
hieromartyrs and martyrs.
During this difficult time for the Church, Father Alexander was unwaveringly
guided by the statements of the Holy Patriarch to his flock and also
followed his directives. Funds to assist the starving were collected at
Christ the Savior Cathedral. At the same time, measures were undertaken to
protect the sacred objects of this church. Meetings of the clergy and
parishioners of Christ the Savior Cathedral were held at Father Alexander's
apartment in order to draft a resolution of the general parish meeting
concerning the state decree.
A draft of the resolution, prepared by Father Alexander, protested against
the violent confiscation of church valuables. A general meeting of
parishioners was convened on March 23, 1922 at Christ the Savior Cathedral,
presided by Archpriest Nicholas Arseniev. Father Alexander had already been
arrested. This meeting adopted the final text of the resolution, which
demanded guarantees from the state that all donations be used to save the
lives of the starving. The participants in the meeting protest the poisonous
publications against the Church as well as insults against the hierarchy.
The drafting of this document was deemed by the authorities to be criminal
counterrevolutionary activity.
After two court cases against the Church, in Petrograd and Moscow, which
resulted in the executions of hieromartyrs and martyrs, a new highly visible
trial of clergy and laity began in Moscow on November 27, 1922, during which
they were accused of supposedly "attempting to retain in their hands
possession of church valuables and, through the resulting starvation, to
topple the Soviet regime."
On trial in this case were 105 clergy and laity. Among the main defendants
were Archpriest Sergius Uspensky, dean of the second district of forty
church in Prechistenka, Archpriest Nicholas Arseniev, dean of Christ the
Savior Cathedral, Archpriest Alexander Hotovitzky, assistant pastor of this
Cathedral, Ilya Gromoglasov, priest of Christ the Savior Cathedral, Lev
Evgenievich Anohin, warden of this Cathedral, and Archpriest Simeon Golubev,
rector of St John the Warrior Church.
The most significant part of the indictment submitted to the Court concerned
the activity of the clergy and laity of Christ the Savior Cathedral. The
indictment stated, "The main organizers and leaders of this criminal
activity were Priest Hotovitzky, chairman of the council of parishes in this
area, Priest Arseniev, rector of the Cathedral, Priest Zotikov, Priest
Gromoglasov, former lawyer Kayutov, former deputy minister Shchepkin, the
merchant Golovkin, and engineer Anohin. When the decree of the Supreme
Central Executive Committee concerning the confiscation of church valuables
was issued, they began their preliminary activities under the leadership of
the priest Hotovitzky, who repeated secretly gathered the above named people
at his apartment in order to plan with them the measures which they proposed
to enact to achieve their criminal intentions."
The case was in court for two weeks. After the detailed indictment was read,
questioning of the defendants began. Father Alexander remained cool and calm
during the questioning as he tried to protect the other defendants. He did
not admit any guilt, stating, "I consider that it is not
counterrevolutionary to ask for a corresponding amount of metal in return
for church valuables."
Following the interrogation of all the defendants and witnesses, at the
Court session on December 6, the later infamous, sinister prosecutor
Vishinsky delivered the concluding statement for the prosecution. He asked
the court for a sentence of capital punishment for thirteen defendants
including Archpriests Alexander Hotovitzky, Nicholas Arseniev, Sergius
Uspensky, Priest Ilya Gromoglasov, Abbess Vera (Pobedinskaya) of the
Novodevichy Women's Monastery and L.E. Anohin. Vishinsky requested that the
other defendants be sentenced to prison terms of varying length.
On December 11, defendants were given an opportunity to say a final word to
the court. In his comments, Father Alexander attempted, first of all, to
obtain the court's leniency and mercy for his brother clergy, "I direct your
attention to those who were at the meeting in my apartment: some of them are
old and the others are very young and guilty of nothing. This was a
completely ordinary meeting, it was not counterrevolutionary and it cannot
by any means be characterized as a shady plot."
The lengthiest final comments were delivered by the professor and priest
Ilya Gromoglasov. This defendant attempted to gain the favor of the court by
expounding on his former opposition to the Holy Synod. Concerning the
conclusions of the prosecution, he said that he "knew nothing of the
criminal organization headed by Hotovitzky."
On December 13, the verdict of the revolutionary tribunal was announced. It
was milder than the bloodthirsty verdicts delivered at previous trials held
in Petrograd and Moscow in conjunction with the confiscation of church
valuables. Each of the main defendants - Abbess Vera (Pobedinskaya),
Archpriest Sergius Uspensky, and Archpriest Alexander Hotovitzky were
sentenced to ten years in prison, the confiscation of their personal
property and the deprivation of their civil rights for five years. The
others were sentenced to lesser terms of imprisonment. Appeals for pardon,
made by those who were sentenced to the longest terms of imprisonment,
including that of Archpriest Alexander, were rejected by the presidium of
the Supreme Central Executive Committee on February 16, 1923.
After the holy Patriarch Tikhon resumed his administration of the Church and
made several statements regarding loyalty to the governmental authorities,
many hierarchs, clergy, church leaders and laity, who had previously
received sentences from the judiciary in conjunction with the confiscation
of church valuables, were granted amnesty. Father Alexander was among those
freed in October 1923. Following his liberation, he was not assigned to a
parish but served by invitation at various churches in Moscow.
He remained free for only a short time. Already on September 4, 1924, E.
Tuchkov, head of the 6th section of the Department of State Political
Management, compiled a list of thirteen clergy and church leaders of Moscow
and recommended that they be subjected to administrative exile. The New
Martyr Alexander, who was included in the list, was characterized as follows
in this document, "A priest and preacher with a post-graduate education,
very active, zealous and influential among the Tikhonites. His outlook is
anti-Soviet."
On September 9, 1924, the New Martyr Alexander was subjected to an
interrogation. "In my religious convictions," he said at that time, "I
consider myself to be a Tikhonite. My relations with the Patriarch are
intimate rather than just strictly administrative, but lately, I have
avoided meeting with Patriarch Tikhon, as I felt that this might
inconvenience him due to my conviction in conjunction with the confiscation
of church valuables. I have never expressed an opinion concerning the
restoration of the former government and such a thought has not even crossed
my mind."
By a decision of a special meeting of the administration of the Department
of State Political Management, the New Martyr Alexander was exiled to the
Turuhan region for a period of three years. His already failing health was
further weakened by his sojourn in the far north.
Following his return from exile, Father Alexander was raised to the rank of
protopresbyter and became one of the closest assistants of the Deputy Locum-Tenens
of the Patriarchal Throne, Metropolitan (later Patriarch) Sergius, who knew
him well since the time of his service in Finland.
In the 1930's, Protopresbyter Alexander served as rector of the Church of
the Deposition of the Robe on Donskoy Street. One of the parishioners of
this church recalls, "In 1936, Father Alexander did not preach, as he was
apparently forbidden to. In 1936-7, I was present many times when Father
Alexander served. He was a tall, gray-haired priest with gentle facial
features, who looked extremely intelligent. Gray, trimmed hair, a small
beard, very kind gray eyes, a high-pitched, loud tenor…pronounced
exclamations distinctly and with inspiration…His appearance reminded me of
many priests who were exiles from the western regions…Father Alexander had
many parishioners who greatly revered him…Even today, I remember Father
Alexander's eyes. It seemed as if his glance penetrated your heart and
embraced it with affection. I had the same feeling when I saw the holy
Patriarch Tikhon…The same light also shining in Father Alexander's eyes was
testimony of his sanctity."
In the fall of 1937, the New Martyr Alexander was arrested again. The
documentary evidence about him at our disposal ends with this; however, a
majority of oral reports testify to his death as a martyr. The Orthodox
Church in America, on whose territory Protopresbyter Alexander served as a
priest until 1914, venerates him as a passion-bearer, whose life as a
confessor ended with sufferings for Christ. The place of his burial is
unknown.
