VALAAM CLOISTER ON THE WAY TO SECLUSION
Segodnia 15 July 1996
English translation, with brief omissions

In a meaningful and remarkable church event on Wednesday Patriarch Aleksei II of Moscow and all-Russia, while visiting the Valaam Savior Monastery of the Transfiguration, consecrated there a new bronze shrine which was set in the place where the relics of the founders of the cloister, Sergius and German of Valaam, are buried. Patriarch Aleksei was accompanied in his trip by the archbishop of Washington, Patriarch (sic) of all-America and Canada Feodosy. They celebrated the divine liturgy in the Savior Cathedral of the Transfiguration together, in Russian and English.

The patriarchal journey to Valaam was truly grandiose--a gigantic (for a lake) multi-decked steamship, the "Saint Petersburg," was reserved completely for representatives of the clergy, pilgrims, as well as several specially invited guests (businessmen, etc.). Among the people of high rank who were present was Yuri Luzhkov [mayor of Moscow, tr.] and the head of the government of Karelia Viktor Stepanov. The fast was in progress so the food--at least in the steamship's public diningroom, to which the important people and the patriarch did not go--was appropriate: fish, at most. ...

The consecration of the shrine (already previously ancient sacred objects, including icons, had been returned to the cloister) signifies inter alia that the monastery, which was revived in 1989, at last has been established on its legitimate territories, and that Valaam is ceasing to be a place for tourists and has again become holy soil, a Northern Athos....

In 1940, at the time of the Soviet-Finland war, the Valaam monks left the islands,...and the previous shrine was taken to Finland along with other sacred objects. The new bronze casket weighs one and a half tons....

Of the thirteen churches of the monastery complex, as yet only the church of the Dormition of the Mother of God has been restored. It will take no less that 200 billion rubles to restore absolutely all of the monuments....

Nevertheless in the main Savior Church of the Transfiguration the iconostasis is being assembled and life in the skete has already begun. In the opinion of the head of the monastery, Archimandrite Pankratii, "under present circumstances, when the monastery literally is filled with laity, the Valaam sketes are the only place where it is genuinely possible to conduct a truly monastic life." Wishing to achieve seclusion, the monastery desires to resettle all residents of Valaam on the mainland, and that is about 500 people, almost all of whom are unemployed, living in difficult and destitute conditions on the island. The problem, however, is that along with the natives there are on the island many squatters who have come here because they believe (in accordance with new age ideas) that this land is connected with the cosmos and that there it is possible to have alternative thoughts and feelings and to experience prophetic dreams. Apparently the monastery, which tradition says was founded by hermits in the tenth century who were trying to preserve uncorrupted the Orthodox tradition and was known for its strict regimen, will be developing along its own traditional path and after several years only genuine pilgrims will be able to come to the island.