Thursday, April 2, 2009

50th Anniversary: Blessed Nicholas, Missionary-Monk

The Apostolic Visitator
He was consecrated Bishop
beneath the image of Our Mother of Perpetual Succour
in the Church of St Alphonsus, Rome.
Blessed Nicholas
The Missionary-Monk and Bishop
laboured to bring the Separated Orthodox
into 'Holy Unia' with the Catholic Church.
He was a successful, powerful and exemplary Missionary Bishop.
Soon he would be arrested and for 11 years he would suffer a martyrdom of prisons and hard labour in the GULAG system of the Soviet Union.Fearing his death in the GULAG he was released from prison camps less than 3 years before his death. He lived his last years in the room of a house belonging to a Catholic married priest and his family. In the photograph above he stands with the two children who had accepted him as their 'grandfather'. In this house he secretly ordained many priests.
2 April 1959
Blessed Nicholas sleeps in death awaiting his Resurrection.

Blessed Nicholas,
heavenly Patron of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer,
Pray for us!

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