On December 18, in Odessa, a man who was called the conscience of Orthodoxy in Ukraine passed away to the Lord.

On December 18, 2012, at the age of 88, after a severe long illness, the confessor of the Holy Dormition Odessa Monastery, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) reposed in the Lord. Schema-Archimandrite Jonah enjoyed great spiritual authority among believers. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', during his visit to the Holy Assumption Monastery in July 2010, had a lengthy conversation with Father Jonah.

Father Jonah was born in 1925 and was the ninth child. The whole earthly life of Father Jonah was marked by hard work. He could not even finish secondary school: he had to work to help his parents. During the Great Patriotic War, he worked at a defense plant, and after the victory - as a tractor driver, and a miner, and in the oil fields. A wonderful story happened to him in his youth. He plowed at night and accidentally fell asleep at the wheel of a tractor. Suddenly woke up, sees - in the headlights in front of the tractor is a woman. He turned off the engine, jumped out - no one was there. And in the place where the woman stood, a cliff. Father Jonah said that it was the Mother of God who saved him from death.

Closer to the age of 40, he fell ill with tuberculosis. “... And then suddenly the moment came when I realized that it was impossible to live like this and it was time to save my soul ...”, - said Father Jonah. In the hospital, seeing how the sick were dying, he swore to God that if the Lord healed him, he would become a monk.

Hearing that hermit monks, holy ascetics, lived in Abkhazia, Father Jonah went on foot to the Caucasus. For several years he lived there among the monastic brethren.

The Monk Kuksha blessed him to go to Odessa, to the Holy Dormition Monastery. They did not immediately take him to the monastery, and he dug a cave in the clay on the seashore, where he settled. Father Jonah got into the monastery thanks to the skills of a tractor driver. He lived in the monastery as a simple worker. He worked at the cowshed. And, as they say, the first years he suffered a lot there. They humbled him, even poured mud over him. He also slept somewhere, next to the cows.

For more than 40 years Father Jonah labored as a monk. People came to him for advice from all over the former Soviet Union. According to the testimonies of spiritual children, Father Jonah had the gift of healing.

The funeral service and burial of the confessor of the Holy Assumption Monastery of Odessa, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, took place on Saturday, December 22, on the feast of the icon of the Mother of God "Unexpected Joy", after the Divine Liturgy. The funeral service was performed by Metropolitan Agafangel of Odessa and Izmail.

I learned about Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), the old comforter from Odessa, a month before his death. By the grace of God, I came to him for a blessing when he already received only a few of his closest spiritual children. Cleansed by the crucible of illness, he humbly endured pain in his back. I spent an hour and a half near the bed of Father Jonah. He was brought from intensive care a few hours earlier, but the priest was cheerful, and most importantly, he was joyful, like a child. All this time, the priest spoke animatedly about his life, interspersing memories of his own life with stories about the saints of God from the Holy Scriptures, he spoke about them as if about his closest relatives: in detail, urgently and distinctly. With extraordinary speed, the priest put books for us, in which he unmistakably found places to read. And these were passages that spoke of the incompatibility of the Holy Spirit with carnal uncleanness. He also lamented about Western Europe and America, mired in the depths of prodigal sin. Lines were read from the reflections of the righteous John of Kronstadt on the Sacrament of the Eucharist, denouncing the formal attitude to the Sacrament of some believers, as well as chapters from the book of the Athos monk Simeon about love.

Father Jonah never spoke about his sufferings, but was filled with reverence and gratitude to God for the gifts he had received. He mentioned that there are many Angels with us now. He constantly turned to the Mother of God. And next to his bed was a photograph of the Goloseev ascetic Alipia.

His favorite image, before which he prayed in recent months and before which he rested, was the icon of the Syrian Mother of God, He also called her "Search for the Lost." It was a copy of one icon, which streamed myrrh in the temple in the form of a tear of the young Mother of God. The father spoke like this: “And Baby Jesus strokes Her neck and says: don’t cry, Mom, I will have mercy on everyone, I will save everyone for whom You are crying.”

Father's voice, weak from illness, but so gentle and sweet, suddenly began to sound loud, bold and solemn, when he spoke about David and Moses. The priest, as it were, apologized that he received a lot of honors and gratitude from people for the many healings received by people through his prayers and through the anointing with holy oil, which he tirelessly compiled from all the shrines where he visited, picking up oil from lamps in front of miraculous icons and relics. Hopeless patients were specially sent to him, and sometimes they were healed. “It is God who does everything, and not the wretched Jonah,” he proclaimed several times, alien to conceit. He considered his illnesses a retribution for excessive human glory and complained that his illnesses interfered with his mission - to receive Confession from people, and he considered this the main thing in his ministry. “Now I can’t go to church to confess,” he lamented.

Constantly referring to the prophets David and Moses, he allegorically drew a parallel with his own life. The most inconspicuous among his brothers, Father Jonah was chosen for high service, like King David. And like Moses the God-seer, he firmly led his flock across the Red Sea to the promised land. And during our retreat from the norms of Christian life, without judging anyone, he went forward, not paying attention to the wall of water on the right and left. Burning with a thirst for prayer, he taught it to his children.

Amazing peacefulness and meekness allowed the priest, who is alien to any conformism and concessions to “this world”, which already subjugates many believers, somehow affectionately get along with everyone and in all circumstances. It was visited by the President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych and well-known hierarchs of the Church. He loved and pitied everyone, prayed for everyone. His children-benefactors rebuilt the monastery.

Alien to selfishness and self-interest, he became the support and conscience of Orthodoxy in Ukraine, especially in Odessa, leaving behind a good memory in the monastic brotherhood, and in the seminary, and among the townspeople. Everyone knew him, many abbesses built monasteries according to his precepts. Imitating the prophet Jonah, he preached all his life: repent in order to turn away the wrath of God, which hung over the earth, rabid in sins.

The priest reposed on the eve of the celebration of St. Nicholas in winter. Like Nicholas the Wonderworker, his simple-hearted childish heart did not know God's refusal. A year and a half ago, he came down with many ailments, the main of which was heart failure. And in Kyiv, he is implanted with a pacemaker, and he ... runs away in a wheelchair from the hospital to Jerusalem, to the Holy Sepulcher! The priest was brought to the plane in an ambulance: who could forbid him to fly if he received a blessing from the Lord!

He spent three hours in Kuvuklia, not noticing people and remaining unnoticed by the flow of pilgrims. And he got to his feet, and returned to his native Odessa Assumption Monastery to the relics of the Monk Kuksha, which are in this monastery. One parishioner, seeing the priest, going out, as usual, for confession, exclaimed in her hearts: “Father, why is he resurrected?”

He contrasted the spirit of despondency with a prayer shield, as well as a joke, good laughter.

With his inherent childish mischief, he could beat any serious "military" situation, like Vasily Terkin, reducing the pathos of universal sorrow to the level of humility, gentleness and forgiveness.

Batiushka blessed me and gave me a copy of the Syrian Icon of the Mother of God, which he greatly revered and considered miraculous. She accompanied his death. This paper copy of the icon became myrrh-streaming and wonderfully fragrant two weeks before his death. And this is a sign that Father Jonah was a favorite of the Mother of God, who warned us about his imminent death.

Ion's father was a modern hesychast, he spent most of his time in deep heartfelt prayer and silence, concentration and sobriety. He lived in the presence of God and the Mother of God, used every moment to immerse his mind in his heart, to find peace and joy in the Holy Spirit with heartfelt prayer.

Like the great confessors of Athos, he was a dove at Confession, which gathers his chicks under his wings, warms, nourishes and protects from bad weather. Without denouncing strictly, allegorically naming the sins that his pure mind, aspiring to God, revealed to him about the penitent, he moved people to remember and name grave shameful sins, without which Confession does not have the power of purification.

The complete rejection of idleness was laid down by his peasant childhood and life before the monastery. Diligence and various spiritual pursuits have become a strong bulwark against spiritual delusion, which conveniently accompanies even people who have been rewarded with blessed visions.

The last day, when he was conscious, his spiritual child Elena spent next to the priest, constantly reading akathists, and the priest sang along with her. At this time, he did not need painkillers, as the power of prayer overcame the pain. All night Elena read the Psalter - we all need at least one living soul to be near, especially in the hour of death, which is not easy even for ascetics.

He found a little rest from constant prayerful work in the memories of the pilgrimage to Athos and to other shrines of the world. He was sensitive to the beauty of nature, loved all living creatures, especially donkeys. And in the courtyard of his cell lived tame squirrels.

Batiushka was swift and agile, accustomed to performing many and difficult obediences from the hierarchy. He confessed to thousands of people. When the priest went to the temple, he was accompanied by crowds of two or three hundred people, lining up in a corridor on his way. His main distinguishing feature was that he never visibly felt burdened by the fact that he was surrounded by a crowd of suffering, although at times he became exhausted. He recovered quickly because he wanted to give his talents to people.

Thanks to the attention and care of Metropolitan Agafangel of Odessa and Izmail, Father Jonah lived for several more years. Having settled the ascetic near the Bishop's chambers, the Metropolitan in every possible way protected his sacrificial impulse from self-exhaustion, limiting the reception of people who, with endless worldly problems, would not give him a minute to rest.

After the last Communion, Father Jonah underwent stubborn and painful attempts to resuscitate him.

Father Jonah did not hide from the suffering people crowding around him. Thousands of people considered him a spiritual father. And thousands more rushed to the doors of his cell to learn the will of God from a true elder, to receive healing and spiritual advice from him.

It's only Russian elders like that - in the thick of the crowd day and night; and not painfully, but joyfully, they met an endless string of people, literally blocking and overpowering the spirit of despondency and despair of the whole crowd, infecting people with inspiration and joy. Elder Jonah had only one weapon - love, love, love. Seeing a person for the first time, the priest could kiss his whole face, feed him a bun, generously anoint him with holy oil, give icons and books - this was enough to inspire hope for the best in a person.

"Ah, that's how a Christian loves!" - thought everyone who fell under the "shelling" of father's love. Batiushka reprimanded the possessed people not with a breviary, but with his fiery, sacrificial, compassionate prayer, which he could not stop - he breathed it, his heart beat with it, his pure mind was occupied with it. Also, his miraculous oil, collected from all the shrines that he constantly visited, being renewed by grace, undoubtedly healed and healed bodily and mental ailments. Batiushka saw these ailments, but in his meekness and humility he never showed his child, respecting the freedom of every human will. He could reveal to a person the most hidden evil, but in wise covert abstract plots that revealed a purulent ulcer of the soul. After confession with the priest, people returned to the joy of the forgiveness of sins. He was a spiritual surgeon, but very kind, with such an arsenal of painkillers that even great sinners were not afraid of him. But this punishment by love (“the righteous will punish me with mercy”) acted more strongly than penance. Cutting down the root of sin, the priest aroused disgust and pain of conscience towards him. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.

He conveyed the spirit of achievement and love to his children. There was no hypocrisy in him at all.

He saw the essence of the ongoing processes and never blessed people with what they were not yet able to do. Of course, he mourned the apostasy, on the wave of which iniquity intensifies. And he did not bless to take neither the TIN, nor even electronic and biometric documents. But when he was asked about this by people who were trapped by circumstances or weak in faith, he remained silent, as if he did not even hear the repeated question. Delicacy was inherent in him in everything.

Father Jonah went through the most difficult feat of life, the main result of which was unshakable humility, which alone burns all the intrigues of the enemy of the human race. Born the ninth child in the family, he began to work from the age of thirteen, and when he came to his monastery in Odessa at the age of 40, he laboriously laid the path to grace, the path to the pinnacle of spiritual work - unceasing prayer. At first he was not taken to the monastery: thin, emaciated, not of this world. Before joining the monastery, he spent a year in Georgia, laboring next to the well-known prayer book Schema-Archimandrite Vitaly.

Batyushkin’s favorite saint is Alexy, a man of God, who, for his special closeness to God, otherworldliness, unparalleled chastity and non-possession, was beaten by rough-tempered people, among whom lived the son of a wealthy Roman dignitary.

It was impossible to look at the priest, his aged face was more beautiful than his youthful beauty. The voice was also like a crystal bell, gentle and affectionate.

Already at the end of his life, the priest also had to put up with a lot from his cell-attendants. One of them locked him up, didn't feed him. It helped that the priest had to pave the way to monasticism through honest and hard work. When the priest was not taken to the monastery, he spent the night in armfuls of leaves and in a cave, and waited until the circumstances favorably changed in his favor. In the time of theomachy it was difficult to get into the monastery. Haymaking began, the summer harvest, and there were not enough workers in the barnyard of the monastery. And Vladimir Ignatenko (as he was called in the world) knew how to mow, and in diligence he had no equal, in patience and service to God. He made prostrations quickly and a lot.

Batiushka was a novice for 15 years, doing the hardest work (he worked at the monastery power plant), and yet he had tuberculosis - as an echo of a hungry childhood and poor nutrition in the post-war years. The priest had diabetes, and oncology, and a bypass heart, but this could not overshadow his constant joy of spirit, inspiration of life. Consoling people, the father often, in a fatherly way, will give a pretty penny for ice cream. His favorite dish was dumplings with nuts and olives.

He blessed to have houses with land, so that in the last times they would not depend on the mark of the number of the beast, without which it would be impossible to sell or buy. Therefore, he suggested preparing for these times already now: to live chastely and confess and take communion as often as possible.

Ten years ago, Batiushka used to go haymaking. And for the spiritual children it was a whole event. People around him were accustomed to asceticism. From 5 o'clock in the morning there was already a queue near the father's gate. With his bedridden illness and regular emergency ambulance visits, access to him became difficult. But people were on duty for up to 3-5 days, praying. Batiushka was very worried when his beloved spiritual children could not get to him. Overcoming the effects of drugs and pain shocks, the priest tried to be in shape through force - for the sake of the people who were on duty on the street in any weather. Most of all, he lamented that he could not get up and confess.

Here are just a few testimonies of the spiritual power of his prayer.

One woman brought her atheist husband to the monastery. The atheist ran up to the elder, called him by name and bowed to the ground.

The monastery watchman Mikhail had a son who had a tumor in his stomach, and he was taken for an operation. However, the father did nothing without the blessing of Father Jonah. He canceled the operation and ordered the boy to be brought to him. The doctors forbade him even a sip of water, and the priest ordered him to eat a bun, after which the tumor disappeared.

Batiushka was not against operations. He blessed one woman with a mastopathy operation, she also went to be treated by Father George the herbalist, but soon died.

He blessed another woman, a cancer patient, whom the doctors gave three days to live, to congregate and receive communion daily, and she still lived, and her family became church.

His child, Lyudmila, came to him, and the priest so consoled her: soon her mother died, dearly loved by her. And the father then joyfully told her that her mother had gone through the ordeal.

At first, the Athonites did not recognize the priest, as he came to the monastery late - there virgins become elders who have lived all their lives on Athos, not seeing women. But when an incident occurred that revealed the special reverence of the Queen of Heaven for Elder Jonah, the Greek newspapers wrote about this incident, their opinion about him changed. And Batiushka became a welcome guest on Athos, he lived there for several months.

And it was like that. When he prayed in the altar at the Kikk Icon of the Theotokos, the robe covering her face rose by itself so that the priest could see the icon.

Batiushka pitied the whole world, lamented over America and Western Europe, which were forgetting God, and prayed for the conversion of Muslims.

The priest passed away as a reverend. In recent days, they were not allowed to see him, but one of his children, whom he blessed to work in his cell three months ago, was admitted through the prayers of the elder and brightened up the hours of his dying languor, which outwardly was not expressed in any way by the priest. In the morning they came to Saint Barbara to give communion. He himself crossed himself with difficulty, he himself swallowed the Holy Gifts. The Great Martyr Varvara has the grace to give Communion before her death, to admonish the dying with the Holy Gifts. And it was December 17, the day of her memory. After Communion, the priest did not regain consciousness. And exactly one day later, during which the priest was given injections, his breathing quietly stopped. People who applied to the hand of the deceased during the last 5 days felt its softness and warmth.

And now his body at the festive service to St. Nicholas rested in the middle of the temple. The gospel sounded all the time, interrupted by memorial services, priests succeeded each other, people crowded around the tomb of the righteous day and night. When the body was taken out for burial, the sun shone on the sea of ​​people. Father Jonah was buried in a crypt, from which in 2000 the relics of St. Innocent of Kherson were removed.

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah visited Jerusalem 18 times, Athos 19 times, Sinai and Cyprus 10 times.

Abbess Pelagia of the St. George Monastery said that while still a laywoman she visited the priest, and he came up and covered her with his mantle. Later, she and her sisters became his spiritual children. When she begged the priest to visit the monastery, he said that he knew about everything, but didn’t he walk there with his legs. And yet, somehow, mother managed to quietly take the father to the monastery right from the cell. For a whole week Father Jonah confessed and nursed the sisters. However, a day later, all of Odessa was already in Danilki. They saw mother in the cell of Jonah's father and figured out where he could have disappeared. And crowds of people stood on the sides of the path near the temple in the cell of the priest.

Father Valery rejected the offer of ordination because of his wife's disagreement. But father Jonah blessed him for the priesthood by phone, and then at the meeting told him to serve as a psalmist for two years. Indeed, two years later, the wife agreed to become a mother. When Fr. Valeriy had doubts, when he went to the batiushka for a general blessing, while listening to the lives of the saints, he heard about the ordination of the famous nineteenth-century ascetic Parthenius of Kyiv. Jonah's father turned to him with approval. When Father Valery nevertheless asked the same question, Father Jonah said - you heard the life. By humility, the priest gave all the answers for those who came through reading.

When asked how to be saved, he invariably spoke of monasticism, investing in this concept the acquisition of chastity and the Jesus Prayer. Books about prayer and the rosary he handed out rigorously and several times. He also insisted that believing men wear beards.

In Odessa, where he lived in a monastery for about 5 decades, in this huge city, of course, there were many unfortunate, lost, fallen away from the faith, spiritually ill people with a poisoned consciousness. Batiushka performed that prayer service that averted many from death and led to salvation.

Father Jonah, according to the testimony of one Greek Metropolitan, visited his monastery on the island of Crete, not only in spirit, but also in body, while not leaving his cell. The day before, they exchanged greetings, feeling spiritual kinship in the bosom of Greek-Russian Orthodoxy, as St. John of Kronstadt called it, emphasizing the unity, continuity and integrity of the spiritual tradition of the Greeks and Russians. And at night there was a soft knock at the door of the Metropolitan's cell, followed by the receding steps of a barefoot man. And in the morning, the Metropolitan calls the children of Father Jonah and asks if the priest puts on his shoes when he gets up for the night prayer, and found out: no.

His heartfelt love for his mother organically grew to filial love for the Mother of God and for matushkas - ascetics of monasticism. He always warmly remembered his mother, who from childhood planted in his soul longing for Heaven. When the icon “I am with you and no one is with you” from St. George’s Monastery was brought into his cell, the priest exclaimed: “The Mother of God herself has come to me!”

He, like a child, rejoiced at the arrival of the nuns, his children, admiring the purity of their souls, he did not want to let them go from him, even exhausted from pain. Abbess Pelagia says that she saw the transfigured face of the priest, enlightened, with the skin of a childish, spiritualized beauty.

When asked about the end times, he said soon. One woman asked what to cook for these times and received the answer: everything is already prepared for you. Soon she died suddenly.

He said to others: you will suffer hunger for the sake of salvation. After all, then the choice between the Cross and bread will be relevant.

One priest, who served in the Chernobyl zone in a village of 14 people, father Iona did not bless to change the place of service, saying that he would be saved there. Batiushka, after serving there for 12 years, rested peacefully, avoiding many temptations.

Batiushka loved the service so much that he left an hour and a half before the Liturgy: he had to pay attention to the crowd of those accompanying him, who numbered more than a hundred, and at the proskomidium take out many particles for the children, whose troubles he knew in spirit. He loved singers, and an amateur "Jonin Choir" was created in the monastery. Once a rural old man came to him with a flute and tried without success to perform something church for him. Batiushka, taking pity on him, asked him to play "Cossack". And everyone was happy. Another time someone brought a violin, and the priest sang to its accompaniment. No one saw him angry and irritated, but only complaining about the mistakes of his children.

In the altar, the priest merged with all the servants, considering himself equal among the brethren. He was always with the people. At first there was a cell outside the gates of the monastery, where he came to feed his flock. And the people confessed during the service, invariably returning to the altar after the "Our Father" to take communion. He lived the Holy Mysteries, therefore, while living on Mount Athos, where they even bought him a cell of a child, he became a participant in hesychasm, which includes daily communion and spiritual contemplation.

At confession, he recalled sins, in the case of grave sins there were pauses - he prayed long and hard for the forgiveness of the sins of repentant sinners.

Having a strong body, by the age of 87 he had suffered many diseases. Perhaps the reason was that he bore the sins of many people. After all, his brother at the age of 90 came to his hospital for 30 kilometers on a bicycle.

And in the hospital, through the window, the priest gave the people everything he had: bread, fruit, and money.

When no one was allowed to see him, he managed to throw rosaries, brochures, and icons through the window into the crowd to console him. He somehow found a way out of any situation in order to show paternal affection and love to everyone who rushed to him. All who wanted had access to it if they showed patience and prayerful zeal.

Batiushka said that new, strong, young people are coming to replace the elders. He did not complain about the spirit of the times, but actively opposed it, teaching everyone to stand firm in Orthodoxy.

Nun Euphrosinia (Mukhametzyanova), Kazan.

Three years ago, the Orthodox world suffered an irreparable loss. On December 18, 2013, at the age of 88, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) died of a long and serious illness in the Odessa Monastery of the Holy Dormition. The strength left the spirit-bearing elder gradually - for his close children it was not a revelation that the priest had long been terminally ill, and they tried to spend every free minute next to him in order to be nourished by his humility and get answers to vital questions.
The press service of the Odessa diocese of the UOC-MP has repeatedly reported the deterioration in the health of Father Jonah, who was the spiritual mentor of many parishioners of the monastery. In the spring of 2012, the elder was undergoing treatment in Kiev, but, apparently realizing that earthly doctors would not be able to help him, he returned to his native monastery to die where the Lord had called him to serve many years ago.
People close to the elder watched with sorrow as the priest gradually faded away in the last years of his earthly life, and, feeling the irreversibility of the impending loss, tried to be closer to him as far as possible, not missing precious moments of communication with him. “Father Jonah, what should I do?” - they repeatedly asked him, and almost always received the same answer: “Do according to your heart ...” A person who had a big loving heart always gave it to people without a trace. Even on his deathbed.
Schema-Archimandrite Jonah enjoyed great spiritual authority among believers. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', during his visit to the Holy Assumption Monastery in July 2010, had a lengthy conversation with Father Jonah. And His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir, being with the elder in the same hospital (in Feofaniya) and wishing to meet with him, asked a difficult question about how to overcome the treacherous weakness of the flesh: “You see, father Jonah, how sick and weak we are with you” ... Elder To this he replied: “What will you do, Vladyka? We just have to deal with you. What the Lord has sent must be endured, but one can complain to one another.”
According to the testimony of the spiritual children of the elder, the humility of the priest in the face of the coming death and his daily readiness to appear before the Throne of the Most High were truly incomprehensible. The Lord called him. Temple of the body was steadily destroyed, but the spirit was cheerful. Emaciated, emaciated by illness, father Jonah was increasingly half asleep, and at times it seemed that he was already departing for the Lord. But, waking up, he cheered up and in a weak voice uttered the words of a prayer that constantly lived in his heart. Only the sadness hidden in the corners of his eyes pointed to the constant companion of the dying old man: the incessant pain of his weakening, infirm flesh. Obviously, the processes that took place in him were irreversible, and the painkillers that he took out of obedience did not help. Batiushka did his best to hide his condition from others, and, despite the categorical prohibitions of doctors, continued to receive visitors. He called some of them himself to say goodbye before his death. And already very close, in rare moments of revelation, he quietly whispered: “It’s hard for me, my dear, I’ve been lying in bed for two years.”
The wise confessor was known far beyond the borders of our country. Representatives of the church, deputies and public figures lead Father Jonah on his last journey.
Batiushka provided spiritual support to all those in need - almost until the last day of his life, despite the fact that he was seriously ill. Every morning, dozens or even hundreds of people gathered near the gates of the monastery in the hope that he would come out to them. According to believers, the elder had a great gift of healing. Ministers of the church also turned to him for blessing and advice more than once.
“Father Jonah was the confessor of our church,” says Matushka Seraphim. - In 1992, on the territory of the city tuberculosis hospital, the revival of the Archangel-Mikhailovsky convent began, but the clinic could not be closed, sick prisoners lay there. They constantly swore, there were fights, even with a fatal outcome. After another murder, we called Father Jonah.”
The priest with the icon went through the whole monastery, consecrated it. And after a few days, the hospital was able to move to another location.
Orthodox believe that the confessor will undoubtedly be canonized as a saint. But, according to representatives of the church, this may not happen soon.
A sharp deterioration in his health became known on December 16. The diocese called on all believers to pray for his health. This call was repeated by believers who passed the sad news from mouth to mouth, shared their grief on the pages of the Orthodox blogosphere, and sent SMS messages to each other. But the time of his earthly life was inexorably running out. And yet, even on his deathbed, he continued to pray for those around him and cheer them up. The body grew old, and the spirit was renewed, it was already cramped in a wretched dwelling, he more and more irresistibly strove upward, to God Who is Life. Many of those who had to be near him during these difficult days recalled that his face continued to remain clear and clean, and it was never distorted by the disgusting grimace of death. They all remembered the bright smile of the priest, which never left his face.
“It is good for a man when he takes the yoke of the Lord in his youth” (Jeremiah 3:27), says Holy Scripture. Our wonderful old man experienced this greatest blessing in the last days of his life, when his physical strength noticeably weakened, but, even in extreme exhaustion and exhaustion, at times he suddenly renewed himself, like an eagle’s youth, and the secret of this fortress consisted in great prayerful labors.
In the memory of many spiritual children, the bright image of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, who, it seemed, was completely untouched by death, was preserved, transformed by love and grace.
The elder could no longer speak, he was breathing heavily, but he accepted his fatal illness humbly and meekly, as the holy will of God, and, despite the painful physical suffering, did not allow himself the slightest murmur.
Spiritual children, monastic brethren, gathered near his bed, and although everyone wanted to somehow alleviate the last minutes of the hermit’s earthly life, burdened by illness, everyone understood that by God’s Providence he was cleansed, passing through sorrows, and gave those present the last lesson in earthly life, how and it is precisely in this way that the commandments of God must be kept. Indeed, enduring affliction is the cornerstone of our salvation.
The brethren approached the elder's last blessing in their lives and kissed the barely rising hand, moistening it with tears spontaneously flowing from their eyes. Death was already leaning at his head and waiting in the wings, which was inexorably approaching. Everyone who witnessed this blissful transition into Eternity of one of the most revered elders of the Lavra experienced a mixed feeling of sorrow and joy, jubilation. The courageous and majestic anticipation of death, in tune with the spirit of the ancient apostolic ages, like the high and strict music of Heaven, overwhelmed the hearts of all those in a cramped monastic cell. The mutual expression of love was touching, filling the hearts of the righteous man who left the vale of sorrow and the brethren who remained in it. For everyone, the one who left was an example of simplicity, modesty, patience in carrying the cross, love for neighbors, constant communion with the Lord in prayer, complete hope in Him, for the elder dedicated his whole long life to Him.
The angel of death was already standing at the threshold and waiting for a command from the Lord to peacefully separate from the body the righteous soul of an old man who meets death with courage and the deepest faith in the life of the next century. Finally, the hour came, and the last prayer in his earthly life sounded: “Now you release your servant, Master, according to your word, in peace” ...
A dull, soul-tearing death knell broke the regal silence of the monastery. The much-sorrowful soul of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah parted with mortal flesh, rushing into blissful Eternity. The news of the death of the spirit-bearing elder echoed with deep pain in the hearts of his devoted children. The funeral service and burial of the deceased confessor of the monastery took place on Saturday, December 22, in the Holy Dormition Monastery with a huge gathering of people who came to say goodbye to him. After the end of the liturgy, Metropolitan Agafangel addressed the tens of thousands of believers who had gathered that day with an archpastoral word. He emphasized that Father Jonah will forever remain in the memory of grateful children as a wise, joyful and perspicacious priest, a strict monk, a zealous faster and prayer book, generously sharing his rich life experience and warming the love of everyone who asked for his advice. People wept and prayed for the repose of the soul of their beloved elder. One of his admirers sobbed: “Kingdom of heaven ... Dear, kind, generous, dear and beloved Ionushka ... Thank you, old man, for being you, for remaining in the heart of my family, for that help, moral support to everyone us. God, what a loss!
Who was Jonah's father in his difficult earthly life? Why is the news of his death such a pain in the hearts of each of us?
Due to the fact that real feats are performed in secret, we know very little about the life of the elders before they entered the monastic path. The laborious life of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, who almost never talked about her premonastic period, is no exception. Obviously, this is how it should be, because having received a new name in tonsure, a monk forever separates himself from his former life and buries for the world. And yet, it is important for us, to the extent possible, having collected material bit by bit, to trace this path so that, having come into contact with it, at least in part to understand how ordinary people become ascetics of piety, just like you and me ...
About his life up to forty years, not considering it worthy of attention, the elder remained silent, extremely rarely making exceptions for close children only in those cases when his story could serve to admonish those who listened. Respecting this wish of the beloved father, we will not try to investigate what he himself wished to hide from prying eyes.
It is known that Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) was born on July 28, 1925 in a large peasant family. The large family of the future elder lived in the village of Katranik, Falesti region, not far from the city of Balti. Parents were poor and survived by running a household. The breadwinner in the family was the only cow, which during the years of collectivization was mercilessly taken away, in fact dooming small children to starvation. Vladimir, as the boy was christened, was the ninth child, so there was no question of continuing his studies after graduating from elementary school: the family had to not starve to death, and for this everyone had to work hard and hard. However, for a rural resident of that time, receiving a 2-class education was considered quite sufficient. Most of the most famous Pochaev elders graduated from a 2-class parochial school, were taught the basics of literacy, numeracy, and this turned out to be enough, but the Lord was wiser for the rest. As noted above, the villagers could not afford to study much. Families were large, in order to survive, it was necessary to work not only in their garden, but also in the collective farm field. Older children helped their parents and often fed the younger ones with their labor. Therefore, it is possible, without prevarication, to say that Father Jonah, having finished three or four classes, could hardly be considered lazy and uneducated, as some ill-wishers and envious people tried to present him.
The elder, who was reluctant to share information about his life before coming to the monastery, nevertheless sometimes, as an edification, told some of his children about it, doing this with a special simplicity and childlike immediacy characteristic of him, the origins of which flowed from the beginnings of family education. Gifted by nature, from childhood he led a healthy peasant lifestyle and always kept touching love and gratitude to his father and mother, strictly fulfilling the commandment: “Honor your father and your mother, and may it be good for you, and may your days be long” (Ex. . 20, 13), which was literally fulfilled on him. The Lord, to the joy of numerous children, blessed him with a long life - Schema-Archimandrite Theodosius passed away to the Lord at the age of 88.
From the memoirs it is known that the elder deeply revered his parents and cared about the salvation of their souls, fervently praying for them. Until the end of his days, performing proskomidia, Father Jonah commemorated his mother, father, and closest relatives, retaining gratitude and love for those who raised and educated him, and in conversations with spiritual children he repeatedly reminded them of the duties of children to their parents. Exposing the sins of the people who came to him, thirsting for help from the Lord, he instructed them to steadily walk in the commandments, love God, neighbors, and never forget about filial duty. Batiushka always spoke of his parents with deep respect, saying that “mother to father and father to mother never cheated, because they were with God, we were brought up in labor and prayer.”
In the 1930s, the family was dispossessed. As the father said, “Everyone took away ... the last cow. Why were they dispossessed?! Because my father worked very hard all his life?!” And since the family was doomed to starvation, the future ascetic, while still a teenager, instead of studying at school, was forced to go to work. Throughout his worldly life, he worked hard and hard and, by his own admission, dragged a lot of coal at work. It should be noted that the village guys have always been stronger than the city guys, therefore, obviously, in his youth, Vladimir was not one of the weak. The youth of the elder fell on the years of military hard times. During the Great Patriotic War in the rear, he worked at a defense enterprise. Then he was a tractor driver, miner, worked in the oil fields. During the war years in the rear, he worked for days at a defense enterprise, receiving a tiny bread ration.
According to the man who was the driver of Jonah's father during his stay on Mount Athos, for some time the priest lived in Georgia. Like everyone, he had a family. But God has his own way of salvation for everyone. So the future ascetic began to think about the meaning of life. “…And then suddenly the moment came when he realized that everything… you can’t live like this… it’s time to save your soul,” the elder told his spiritual children.
In the middle of life, the Lord called him to a narrower path. By the age of 40, he became ill with a severe form of tuberculosis. In the hospital, he was placed on death row along with those doomed like him. The wife, unable to withstand the test that fell on her shoulders, refused him, apparently deciding that the disease was incurable. Probably, it was at this time that a colossal reassessment of values ​​\u200b\u200boccurred. The sufferer daily saw how people around him were dying from the same disease, he understood that medicine was powerless. And when he was left in the ward all alone, alone with death, the sealed gates suddenly opened and his heart was filled with life-giving currents of faith in a miracle that could only heal him. And then he mentally appealed to the Lord, previously so distant and incomprehensible, swearing to Him that he would never again leave the path that had been opened to him. If God forgives his sins and grants healing, then he will spend the rest of his life in the monastery to which Divine Providence directs him. The story of his miraculous healing from a terrible disease is still passed from mouth to mouth: “Being in the hospital, and seeing how people around me were dying from this disease, I swore to God that if the Lord healed, I would go to the monastery.”
Prayers were answered. A nurse who came to the dying man, expecting to see a lifeless body, was struck by the picture that opened up to her. Just yesterday, a hopeless goner, not only showed clear signs of life, but was active and cheerful. The recovery was swift and could only be explained in a supernatural way. Along with the miraculous healing, a spiritual renewal also took place: the future ascetic radically changed his life, completely broke with the past and went to wander around the monasteries. During long wanderings, he was able to see many instructive and wonderful things. The Lord Himself and the Most Holy Theotokos kept him under the grace of protection, fed him, clothed him, protected him from danger.
During the period of wandering, sometimes long, he communicated with ascetics of piety, drawing from the inexhaustible source of eldership the richest spiritual experience. The acquisition of the skill of smart doing, the practice of dealing with soul-damaging thoughts became the content of their conversations. It was at this time that he prayed to the Mother of God to be shown the place of his future prayerful labors, and the Queen of Heaven in a thin dream showed him a beautiful monastery with a high bell tower on a high seashore, immersed in greenery. When, during one of his wanderings, the future elder came to the Odessa Assumption Monastery, he was shocked to see the embodiment of his dreams with his own eyes. Seeing this indescribable beauty, he experienced a state of quiet shock, falling in love with her once and for all his life. The fateful event happened in 1964. Subsequently, the elder said that in the sign shown to him he saw the special intercession of the right hand of God, stretched out over him as evidence that the time had not yet come to go to a better world, and that it was necessary to work on earth. In the future, such obvious signs of Divine Providence appeared to him more and more often, became more and more obvious, strengthening faith and convincing him of the correctness of the chosen path.
However, it was practically impossible to get into the monastery: the authorities put up all sorts of obstacles so as not to register the ascetic. In those years, in order to register in the monastery, a special permission of the Commissioner for Religious Affairs was required. Therefore, having arrived in Odessa, he was forced, according to some of his children, to live for some time in a dugout, which he dug for himself. Other ascetics had to suffer in a similar way: Schema-Archimandrite Theodosius (Orlov +2003) and Schema-Archimandrite Hilarion (Dzyubanin+2008) when they were novices of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Alexander (the future Schema-Archimandrite Theodosius) was beaten, thrown into a psychiatric hospital, had his hair cut short, and only thanks to the intervention of Hierodeacon Zacharias, who had services to Khrushchev, was he finally registered. Vladimir (the future Schema-Archideacon Hilarion) had, according to Archpriest. Methodius (Finkevich), then a novice of the Lavra, had long legs and was good at jumping over fences during passport checks. Truly, the courageous confessors of those times were worthy successors of those who, according to the Apostle, endured persecution for their faith: “The whole world is not worthy of them, who wander in the deserts, and in the mountains, and in dens, and in the abysses of the earth” (Heb. 11, 37-38). According to God's providence, the future elder took root relatively easily in the Dormition Monastery. He began his monastic life as a laborer, cultivating the monastic land and performing other difficult obediences. Being on any of them, he showed diligence, endurance and extreme humility, listening not only to the Hierarchy, but also to any other person, monastic or layman, and in every possible way trying to help him. He tried to learn from everything.
Growing up in a peasant environment, he loved animals from childhood and touchingly took care of them. At one time in the monastery, he was engaged in mowing grass for the monastery's cows. He was often helped by believers and their children. According to the pilgrims, it was a very peaceful and kind occupation. The work was interspersed with rest, conversations and prayers. R. B. Alexander recalls: “We loved such days very much, the ringing of a well-ground scythe, the smell of freshly cut grass, good fatigue after all the work. Jonah's father had a good opinion about cows as God's creatures and paid attention to how this animal serves man. All that she has - milk, wool, skin, meat, even bones, horns and hooves is used by a person in his life, manure and that is an excellent fertilizer and fuel. The animal seems to be unreasonable, but there is so much bestowal in serving people at its animal level. With this parable, the elder encouraged us to think about our relationship to God and people, and about how much we dedicate our lives to God. You can’t believe a little, you can’t dedicate your life to serving in part. Everything you do should be done in such a way that it is a manifestation of love for God.”
Soon, his high zeal for the Lord, conscientiousness, lively, childishly inquisitive mind, prudence and other virtues attracted the favorable attention of the governor's father, who began to look closely at him. The brethren also looked closely, and it sometimes even seemed to many of them that Vladimir was always in the monastery ...
By the grace of God, Father Jonah was fortunate enough to come into contact with the great old man, now glorified, the Monk Kuksha of Odessa (+1964), and this undoubtedly had a beneficial effect on the formation of his worldview. Subsequently, he repeatedly recalled his father's instructions, which played an important role in his spiritual development. In the future, he also reverently listened to them. Schema-Archimandrite Jonah preserved the memory of the great elder until the end of his days.
Keeping a grateful memory of his great mentor, he gradually grew spiritually. Many, after the repose of St. Kuksha to the Lord, began to notice in the novice Vladimir the gift of consolation, which, according to the prediction of the confessor of the monastery, arch. Malachi, the reverend gave him. Vladimir, who by this time had succeeded in reading patristic books, happily shared with those around him the teachings of the Holy Fathers that he remembered, led edifying conversations, and this was all the more surprising since he had an elementary education and had not read books before, because in the world constantly had to earn their daily bread by the sweat of their brow. Here, in the monastery, he suddenly manifested in all its fullness the grace-filled gift of the word. Obviously, thanks to his excellent memory and quickness of mind, he retold the Lives of the Saints in an accessible way, finding and emphasizing important soul-saving moments in them.
Subsequently, many years later, in spiritual conversations, Father Jonah constantly used the Gospel and patristic sayings, reproducing the text from memory almost verbatim and making comments that amaze with the depth of penetration into the inspired texts. In any case, as a edification, he uttered the words of the Savior, which are directly related to this topic and convict or admonish the interlocutors. Having kept this grace-filled gift of God unspent even in weakness, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, beloved by his children, revered by the brethren, in order to avoid vain worldly glory, did this with amazing modesty, without flaunting his merits.
Over time, he acquired the great gift of prayer, and no matter what obedience he labored, the state of prayer never left him. It was always warm and joyful next to him, so not only the novice brethren of the monastery, but also spiritually experienced monks reached out to the ascetic. Being childishly trusting and simple, he did not refuse anyone advice and requests to clarify spiritual issues, but this did not develop in him soul-destroying pride, from which numerous monks fell into charm. Loving your neighbor and trying to help him was as natural to him as breathing... That is why the ascetic paid special attention to constant communication with the people, taking care of their spiritual enlightenment.
In 1990, monk Jonah was ordained to the priesthood. Now, out of obedience, he delivers sermons and receives confessions from pilgrims and parishioners of the monastery, and his talents are manifested in their entirety. People who come to him for confession receive consolation and relief by telling their relatives and friends about it, and more and more suffering pilgrims gradually begin to gather at Father Jonah. Prayer and patristic books undoubtedly provided invaluable help, for they contained answers to the questions and perplexities of many people who did not have spiritual guidance. He not only read books, but used them to edify others. With the help of God, he tried to bring the treasures of wisdom gleaned from them to people, and he did it extremely successfully.
For further spiritual improvement, he goes to the Holy Land, then to Athos, where he strengthens the skill of smart doing. According to the testimony of his close children, the Mother of God appeared to him on the Holy Mountain.
The lives of many saints and ascetics of piety testify that the appearances of the Most Holy Theotokos were frequent and in many respects similar to the vision described above. As an example, let us recall, in particular, the Monk Parthenius of Kyiv (+ 1885): “More than once the Monk Parthenius was granted the blessed vision of the blessed Virgin. So, one day, thinking with some doubt about what he read somewhere, that the Blessed Virgin was the first nun on earth, he dozed off, and sees a majestic nun walking from the Holy Doors of the Lavra, accompanied by a large host of monks, in a mantle, with a rod in her hands . Approaching him, She said: “Parthenius, I am a nun!” He woke up, and from that time on, with heartfelt conviction, he called the Most Holy Theotokos of the Cave Lavra Iumenia. Under the outward image of monasticism, the elder, of course, meant inner monasticism, the active, prayerful, humble life of the Immaculate Virgin, of whom She truly was the prototype on earth. Comparing the above-described phenomenon with the one that Father Jonah was able to see, we find in them features of undoubted similarity, undeniably testifying that the Mother of God is truly the Heavenly Abbess of all monastics, guiding those who prayerfully entrusted their lives to Her on the right path to salvation.
During the pilgrimage, according to the testimonies of the children and pilgrims accompanying him, the elder behaved modestly but with dignity, constantly being among people and listening to their numerous petitions, he received confession, edified and gave prayer help to everyone who needed it. Pilgrims often became eyewitnesses of numerous cases of God's obvious help through the prayerful intercession of the elder. Many said that he spiritually foresaw unconfessed sins and helped to get rid of them, healed from incurable diseases, strengthened in prayer work.
The interview given by Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), a resident of the Odessa Patriarchal Holy Assumption Monastery, was widely known during one of his visits to Mount Athos and, in particular, to the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery. The conversation between the elder and Sergei Seryubin is important for all of us Orthodox, because it touches the very foundations of our life, reminds us of what we all seem to have forgotten - about conscience and work. And, of course, about prayer. Father Jonah was undoubtedly an amazing elder who for a long time was the confessor of the Odessa Assumption Monastery. Many people came to Odessa from all over the world to meet him, receive his blessing, ask for advice and ask to pray. Odessa monks remember how every morning people, who could be more than one hundred, gathered near the cell near the gates of the monastery, in the hope that he would come out and talk with them, despite his illnesses and health problems that he experienced. And he tried to pay attention to everyone, to give a piece of his love, to give a hotel.
Possessing an undoubted gift of clairvoyance, the elder, according to the testimony of one of his children, managed to save her from committing a terrible sin: suicide. A woman who experienced a terrible state of despair testifies:
“At 21, I had a moment when I wanted to commit suicide. It was at that moment that they stopped me and told me about Father Jonah. I went to church, asked the priest for blessings on the way to the elder, and went to the monastery. Before the trip, I fasted for several days in order to confess and take communion upon arrival, and read prayers all the way.
It was a holiday and there were a lot of people. Some already in the evening, and I arrived at 6 in the morning. I took a queue (it was about 15th) and went to the temple. After the service, the monks brought the elder to his cell. People immediately entered as much as they could fit, and I was already not the 15th, but about the 30th in line. All I could do was stand outside and pray. There were, of course, thoughts condemning others, but I drove them away and thought even more about prayer.
She did not get into the cell for a conversation that day and was very upset, but reconciled. When Father Jonah was already leaving, I thought: “Probably God thinks that I am not ready…” And at that moment he came up to me himself. He did not say what, but he gave a blessing. And only after many years I understand that he blessed my thoughts, because from that day on I began to reason differently. Some kind of balance and confidence in the future appeared inside me.
And then, for 5 months, every week I came to the monastery and each time I ended up with Father Jonah either in a cell, or for confession, or he simply came up to me after everyone else, silently smeared with oil and moved on.
Of all the meetings and conversations with him, I didn’t just understand, but I felt that you need to be able to come to terms with any life situation inside. But only in soul and spirit, and the matter continues. Humility is the balance of soul and spirit. God rejoices in a humble spirit, as parents rejoice in an obedient child.”
The providence of God calls the fateful meeting with the elder r. B. Tatiana. She testifies: “It was a miracle that I ended up with Elder Jonah. The day before, having told my dear colleague Lyudmila about the upcoming trip to Odessa, I learned about the elder Jonah and that he had gone to Athos, as she said, the spiritual child of the elder.
I arrived at the monastery on Friday, June 12, 2009, when the evening service had already begun.
She asked the resident of the monastery: “How to get to Father Jonah”?
“Here he is confessing,” she heard the answer.
When I rushed to Father Jonah, surrounded by a dense ring of people, leaving for the altar, “bless the father,” I heard “God bless” ... I was confused ... What does this mean? Not worthy of blessing... sinful... not ready to receive the blessing of the holy elder...
She prayed and repented until the end of the monastic rule… and was honored to go up to the elder and ask for blessings for confession… People surrounded the elder again in a dense ring, pushed back… She saw that Fr. “To your good deeds, father,” and walked away under the onslaught of thirsty people ... After a moment, I hear: come, take, father gives you ... you?"
People who took the liberty of knowing the elder testified: Father Jonah is incredibly simple, but his strength is in prayer work. R. B. Alexander testifies: “He is simple, very simple, very simple… sometimes just like a little child! He is not a theologian, and oftentimes his stories about how atomic bombs are made from cigarettes look ridiculous to those people who think that a lot of knowledge is a sign of wisdom. He is primarily a mystic, not a theoretician. Different people go to him and respect him - both educated and uneducated. He is a prayer book, who spent a lot of work on learning how to pray, and he himself - as a constant prayer. From this and next to it, many people who came with an open heart join this experience, and accordingly receive what they came for - who is the answer to the question, who is consolation, who is recovery. As he teaches everyone - "The Lord saves a person, and for this a person needs two wings - prayer and work." He himself is an example of this, he always worked as hard as his health allowed and prayed - I saw a stone with the prints of his feet on which he stood in prayer for 40 days (I can’t remember the exact number) in the cell, sometimes he didn’t have the strength, he was very sick and could only crawl on all fours, then he still worked - sitting on the floor, making candles and incense.
He is a monk who came to the monastery for what it is necessary to come there - to save the soul, and that is exactly what he is doing there.
And he is courageous in his love for people, I saw earlier how a crowd gathered for him at confession, but he feels bad, he almost loses consciousness from the pain he experienced, and still he will squeeze himself into a fist and listen to everyone carefully, pray from the bottom of his heart for everyone, and then he comes to the cell, falls to the floor and can only crawl because of severe pain in the joints and back. I even doubt that most of those who confessed to him on such days knew how he tortured himself for them, few could know, since he hid his problems with all his might.
I don’t want to make a saint out of Jonah’s father, but this is the first person who showed me that in order to be “BE” in this life with a capital letter, to be happy, to have peace of mind - for this you do not need to have perfect health, a career, a bunch of money, success, etc. I, as a teenager, thought that life is valuable when there is health, success, money ... but this is not so. Thanks to Father Jonah, and to people like him, for understanding that life becomes valuable when you live it honestly before people and God, when you follow the path of your heart, your real conscience ... and then it doesn’t matter what you are poor or rich in!
Despite the periodically deteriorating health, the elder provided spiritual support to all those in need - both ordinary laymen and the "powerful of this world" came to him for advice. Over time, the gift of eldership, which the Lord endowed him with, became undeniable. Later, Father Jonah accepted the great schema. Literally, crowds of pilgrims and parishioners of the Holy Dormition Monastery tried to get to confession to Father Jonah, and then patiently waited for him at the porch of St. Nicholas Church at the end of the Divine Liturgy. And the elder talked to people, handing out prosphora, icons, and all kinds of gifts. Many were honored to get into his cell for a spiritual conversation in order to ask for the prayers of Father Jonah, thanks to which, as people believed, the Lord would send His help

The Holy Fathers say that the most characteristic feature by which a spiritual person can be distinguished from a deceived one is humility. The life of Father Jonah perfectly illustrates this patristic wisdom. It is known that the Monk Basilisk of Siberia always answered those who thanked him for spiritual help: “Glory and praise be to the Lord God, if He uses others with me: He, not me; for I truly know that I am many sinners and have nothing good of myself.” He most of all taught sincere prayer, repentance - and humility. Batiushka tearfully asked his children: “The time will come when they will praise me, so be it, be against it.” In general, he did not like praise very much and, in any case, humiliated himself, as if giving people a completely clear lesson: there is no need to chase after seers and miracle workers. First of all, it is necessary to look for a mentor who advises reading the Holy Fathers and who himself teaches in the patristic spirit, that is, in the spirit of sobriety, prudence, and humility. This is exactly what Father Jonah was like. And he was also unusually kind and sympathetic, arguing in his personal life that there is no other person's grief. Everyone who was lucky enough to meet the blessed elder felt for himself the greatness and power of these gifts of his.
Touching memories of R. B. Veronica, whom, according to her, the father replaced her own father. “My first meeting with the elder took place on October 10, 2006. On this day, Father's birthday was celebrated. And although a huge number of people came to congratulate the elder, he somehow singled me out, perhaps he saw how worried I was at the meeting, but at the same time I was embarrassed to approach, I could not get around that living barrier that surrounds him. Then he himself came up and asked in a low voice what was bothering me so much. He did it in a paternally affectionate way: “Why are you, baby, so worried about children? Everything will be fine". But then I was already 27 years old and it seemed that my age was a serious obstacle to the realization of a dream. I told him so, complaining about his age. And he answered me that I would definitely have children, that I would give birth to twins by the age of 40 and my children would be like him. Then my husband and I were often in his cell, and he helped us with money when the enemy of the human race drove us out of the house through my husband's parents, and fed us, gave food. I am very grateful to God that at one time he led me to such a wonderful person. who baptized my husband and me as his spiritual children and really helped us as if by prayer. So is material. But, of course, it's not about money at all ... O. Jonah helped me and my husband a lot in life, a deep bow to him for everything. Eternal memory in the hearts of loving children!
R. B. Maria spoke about a providential meeting with Elder Jonah at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, where she arrived due to the prevailing dramatic circumstances. Here is what she said: “I want to share my story. Strange things began to happen in my family, namely, a four-year-old nephew did not sleep at night and constantly saw someone, got scared and screamed. This went on for several nights: the child simply refused to sleep, and the distressed parents simply did not know. How to be in such a situation. They guessed that the problems that arose in the family were of a spiritual nature and only the Lord through His saints could help resolve them. Seeing their confusion and helplessness, I offered to go to Sergiev Posad to the Lavra to see Father Herman, because. before these events, she met Father Herman and knew in advance that he could help in this situation. On Thursday, my sister and child and I arrived at the Lavra to the church of Peter and Paul, but we did not find Father Herman, because, as it turned out, he now receives on other days. There was nothing to do. We prayed in the temple, begging the Lord to prompt us. What to do. And the Lord did not shame us. At the entrance to the monastery, we saw a handsome old man who was approached by people all the time. I approached him and asked for help (advice) on what to do in this situation. And he offered to take a walk, we fed the pigeons and walked around the territory of the Lavra, he told us about life and everything in the world. It was very easy with him, so we walked, we didn’t even notice how much time had passed. Then he blessed us and left. To our shame, we didn’t even know that it was Elder Jonah, I began to understand that he was very famous only when people approached him (while we were walking) and asked him to bless them. After this meeting, everything went well. Many thanks to Elder Jonah. Maria During the last years of his life, the elder was sick a lot, so he had to be in hospitals, in particular, he spent some time in Kiev Theophany, where, at the request of the Primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir, he met with him. Welcoming, both kissed each other. During a confidential conversation, His Beatitude complained to him of his infirmity: “You see, father Jonah, how sick and weak we are with you” ... The elder, who remained faithful to his calling until the end of his life, strengthened the Archpastor: “What will you do , Lord? We just have to deal with you. What the Lord has sent must be endured, but one can complain to each other.”
The days of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah's earthly life were inexorably drawing to a close. Numerous labors and illnesses affected. He was treated several times in various hospitals, but his health continued to deteriorate. Realizing that life was coming to an end, the elder expressed a desire to return to his native monastery, and, in accordance with his request, on April 21 he was taken by ambulance to the Odessa Holy Dormition Monastery.
And soon he was gone.
The orphaned children still have to rethink in many ways the great influence that the newly-departed elder had on their lives.
Tatiana Lazarenko
To be continued

On December 18, 2012, at the age of 88, after a long and severe illness, the confessor of the Holy Dormition Odessa Monastery, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), passed away to the Lord.

On December 22, 2012, His Eminence Agafangel, Metropolitan of Odessa and Izmail celebrated the Divine Liturgy for the reposed confessor of the Holy Dormition Monastery of Odessa, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), concelebrated by His Eminence Alexy, Archbishop of Balta and Ananyevsky, His Grace Evlogy, Bishop of Sumy sky and Akhtyrsky, rector of the Odessa Spiritual the Seminary of Archimandrite Seraphim, the abbots of St. Constantino-Eleninsky Izmail and St. Iversky Odessa monasteries of Archimandrites Sergius and Diodorus, as well as numerous clergy who arrived from various dioceses of the Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox Churches.

After the end of the liturgy, Metropolitan Agafangel addressed the tens of thousands of believers who had gathered that day to say goodbye to the priest, with an archpastoral word, in which he spoke about the difficult life and righteous service of the deceased elder.

Then Metropolitan Agafangel performed the rite of burial of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, at which the mayor of Odessa A.A. Kostusev, the First Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for Human Rights Nina Karpacheva, people's deputies of Ukraine, heads of state authorities, law enforcement agencies, well-known political figures, representatives of the public prayed.

After the end of the funeral service, the coffin with the body of the elder was surrounded by a procession around the cathedral, and then at the fraternal cemetery of the Holy Dormition Monastery, His Eminence Agafangel performed a litia for the deceased confessor of the monastery. After the last archpastoral prayers, the body of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah was buried.

.

“And then suddenly the moment came when I realized that everything, you can’t live like that, it’s time to save your soul ...”

“... life becomes valuable when you live it honestly before people and God, when your adviser is your conscience!”

"It's good to be a monk! Here you are - nitsya - how many children can you have? And I'm not married, but do you know how many children I have? I am so many children!”

Man himself cannot be saved in any way, only the Lord saves us. And since the Lord saves, what do we need to do the most?

We have become orphaned - the great old man, the righteous man, the ascetic of piety, the keeper of the Word of God, the worker of the field of God, has left. For three days, tens of thousands of admirers of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah poured in an endless stream from all over Ukraine, Russia, and Moldova into the Holy Dormition Patriarchal Monastery in Odessa. Father Jonah will forever remain in the memory of all who knew him as a wise, joyful and insightful priest, a strict monk, a zealous fasting and prayer book, a sincere novice, as a man who generously shared his rich life experience, warming his love to everyone who turned to him for advice.

The name of the confessor of the monastery, a student of St. Kuksha of Odessa was well known to Orthodox Russian people. Elder Jonah usually took confession not far from the holy relics of St. Kuksha in the Dormition Church of the monastery. In recent years, the cell of the elder, which was located at the gates of the monastery, was always crowded with many people. Some were in line from 4-5 o'clock in the morning.

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah not only instructed and comforted many people, strengthened them in faith, but I had to hear a lot from Orthodox Odessans about healings through the prayers of the elder. Father Jonah himself was seriously ill in recent years.

- oncological disease of the spine. Doctors say that only a miracle can be called the fact that Father Jonah lived the last years. It happens

- the elders, who healed many, themselves with humility bear the cross of serious illnesses.

It always seemed to me that Schema-Archimandrite Jonah is somewhat reminiscent of the Athos and Glinsk elders. Unusual humility and the spirit of love have always distinguished monk Jonah.

While still a simple monk, Jonah took care of many people. Muscovite V. tells the spiritual child Fr. Jonah: "Somehow they told me: if you're in Odessa, try to meet the monk Jonah." I remember the first time they took me to the Assumption Monastery to Father Jonah. He went to obedience, walked with a scythe on his shoulder in a worn cassock with patches, and around a simple monk a large group of Orthodox people gathered who wanted answers to their spiritual questions.

At that time, I heard an amazing story that happened in the Dormition Monastery. The late Metropolitan Sergius began to reprimand the brethren that many were walking around in old worn cassocks. Everyone stood, listened to the reproaches of the bishop. But when they came up for a blessing, the monk Jonah suddenly appeared, who performed the obedience of a diesel driver.

Approaching for the blessing, Father Jonah bent down and, in front of everyone, wiped his hands, stained with engine oil and diesel fuel, on Metropolitan Sergius's silk undershirt, and then, humbly taking the bishop's blessing, left. It must be said that Metropolitan Sergius also showed humility and wisdom worthy of an elder. Without saying a word about the act of the monk, Vladyka sent the monks of the monastery, who had the thinnest and patched clothes, new cassocks. Including father Jonah.

In Schema-Archimandrite Jonah's cell, among the icons, there was always a portrait of Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov. The elder called Suvorov the Russian Archangel and considered him a saint. The elder said that the commander was a great prayer book and won with the help of God, the grace of the Holy Spirit strengthened the Russian Archangel.

Even before the glorification of the holy Royal Martyrs, Father Jonah reverently revered them. In terms of worldview, Jonah's father was a monarchist. The elder believed that if there was sincere repentance, then the Merciful Lord, through the prayers of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Queen of Heaven, would restore Holy Rus', headed by the Orthodox Tsar, the Anointed of God.

Some spiritual children of the priest said that the elder had a vision of the Mother of God, in which it was revealed that he should be saved in the Assumption Monastery in Odessa. There is a testimony of one of the cell attendants of the elder: “The elder did not tell in detail about his youth. But I remember one story. One night he was plowing and accidentally fell asleep at the wheel of a tractor. He suddenly woke up and saw a woman standing in front of the tractor in the headlights. He turned off the engine, jumped out - no one was there. And in the place where the woman stood, there was a break. Father Jonah said that it was the Mother of God who saved him from death.

But it was not easy to get into obedience in the monastery in those Soviet times. Assumption Monastery is a special monastery. Its history is closely connected with the names and activities of such prominent people and saints as St. Parthenius Kiziltashsky, prmch. Vladimir, Rev. Kuksha of Odessa, Bishop Porfiry Uspensky, Metropolitan Gabriel Banulesko-Bodoni, Archbishop Nikon Petin, Metropolitan Sergius, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy I of Moscow and All Rus', His Holiness Patriarch Pimen and many other outstanding personalities...

According to legend, the Metropolitan of Kiev and Galicia Gavriil (Banulesko-Bodoni), Exarch of Moldovlachia, back in 1804, while in Odessa, expressed his admiration for the wonderful view and location of Alexander Teutul's dacha.

Having learned about the desire of Alexander Teutulus to build a church and a lighthouse here, he soon gave his blessing to equip a cenobitic male monastery on this site.

In 1814, a bishop's residence was founded on the donated land, and in 1820, Metropolitan Gavri-il petitioned for the construction of a monastery. In 1824, the petition was finally approved.

Thus, in the first quarter of the 19th century, the Odessa Holy Assumption Monastery appeared in southern Russia, which for two centuries was the center of spirituality and piety. Here they tirelessly pray that God would grant peace and prosperity to the restless world, that the Lord would bring the lost into the bosom of the Orthodox Church, for the acquisition of the Holy Spirit, for teaching everyone the truth of God, for the awakening of those who are dormant in sinfulness to repentance.

Among the brethren of the monastery there are many spirit-bearing elders, to whom hundreds, thousands of people from all over Holy Rus' turn. The Holy Assumption Monastery became a great school of spiritual life.

Today, when good-nature is being revived in Holy Rus', the traditions of monastic life are being revived, our society is increasingly experiencing an acute need to strengthen spiritual and moral principles. Of particular importance is the life experience of the best of the best elders-monks, such as: Archimandrite John Krestyankin, Archimandrite Kirill (Pavlov), Schema-Archimandrite Zosima (Sokur), Archpriest Nikolai (Guryanov) and, of course, our Odessa elder - Schema-Archimandrite Iona (Ignatenko).

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (in the world Ignatenko Vladymir Afanasyevich) was born in the Kirovograd region on October 10, 1925, and was named in baptism in honor of Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir. He was the ninth child in the family. The time was hard, godless. His mother was 45 years old when she gave birth to little Vladimir. Parents were believers - father Athanasius, mother Pelagia. They lived very poorly, but joyfully - with God, under the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos. The family had one horse and two cows. As Father Jonah recalled: “The new government has come to rip us apart. A family of eleven! What kind of fists are we?.. One of the reasons for dispossession was that we did not hide our faith in God, we attended church.”

Father Jonah was instilled with love for God and people from childhood. He often told his spiritual children about hard peasant labor and peasant piety, about his childhood.

In the 30s of the twentieth century, the struggle against the church reached its climax, temples and monasteries were destroyed. Priests and monks were exiled to Siberia. Only 3 churches remained in Odessa at that time. During these years, little Vladimir went to school. Father often said:

“When I come back from school, I’ll go up to my mother and say... At school they say there is no God, and my mother answers me: don’t believe Volodya, there is a God. Without God, it’s not up to the threshold, prayer and work will grind everything. These words of my mother help me now.”

“Prayer and work are two wings,” Father Jonah often said to his spiritual children.

In 1937, Father Jonah graduated from a four-year school and soon moved to Georgia. From 1941, at the age of sixteen, he worked in the oil fields until 1948. After the war, he moved to Moldova, where he lived until 1970.

For the first time, the priest came to the Holy Dormition Patriarchal Monastery in 1964, when he lived in Moldova.

This year is special for the monastery - on December 24, 1964, the Monk Kuksha of Odessa reposed. According to the elder's readers, they see God's providence in this - one elder was replaced by another.

In 1971, Father Jonah was accepted into the brethren of the Holy Dormition Odessa Monastery.

“The struggle against selfishness is hard, but everything is done in this world by the grace of God.”

On March 25, 1973, novice Vladimir was tonsured by His Eminence Sergius (Petrov), Metropolitan of Odessa and Kherson, into monasticism.

Love, meekness, humility, forgiveness, non-malice, unmemorable malice, non-condemnation, insensitivity - all this, with God's help, the elder acquired during the years of his stay in the monastery, and passed it on to his spiritual children.

On April 8, 1979, Father Jonah was tonsured a monk by the abbot of the Holy Dormition Monastery, Archimandrite Polycarp in honor of St. Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus', miracle worker (March 31/April 13).

On February 22, 1990, he was consecrated to the priesthood by Vicar Bishop Ioannikius (soon to become Metropolitan of Lugansk and Alchevsk), in the Holy Dormition Church of the Holy Dormition Odessa Monastery.

In 1993, dear father Jonah became abbot, and on April 22, 1998, he received the rank of archimandrite. While still hegumen, the priest becomes one of the confessors of the Holy Dormition Monastery.

And so, until recently, in this monastery, the priest, having gone from novice to schiarchimandrite and confessor of the monastery, to everyone who turned to him, instructed, accepted, admonished, begged, taught to always live with God, thank God - and for sorrow, and for joy.

“Schiarchimandrite Jonah has three heavenly patrons,” said Vladyka Agafangel, “Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Vladimir, Saint Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow, in whose honor he received his first tonsure, and in schema the prophet Jonah. The graceful qualities of these three great saints of the Orthodox Church, by the grace of God, are inherent in Elder Jonah and his ascetic life.

For the last decades, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah has been the confessor of the Holy Dormition Monastery in the city of Odessa. People came to the elder not only from all over Ukraine, but also from Siberia, the Urals, and Moscow. Among the spiritual children of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, there are many monasteries, abbots of temples, monastics and ordinary laity. The elder received everyone with the same attention - both high-ranking government officials, and ordinary villagers and workers. I think that everyone who, by the grace of God, had a chance to talk with the elder, forever remembered the meeting with Schema-Archimandrite Jonah.

Seriously ill, Elder Jonah continued to receive the people. They say that even a week before his death, being already on his deathbed, lying in bed, he continued to receive. Metropolitan Agafangel himself told him: “Take care of yourself, father. After all, you have just healed, and people tire you a lot. To which Father Jonah replied: “But why did I receive treatment? I was sent here to help people with my prayers!” How can such love for people disappear with the passage of the soul of an old man to Christ the Savior, the Source of Love. We know that in Eternity Father Jonah will not stop praying for us sinners.

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah loved people. His sensitive heart accepted everyone who wanted to serve God, people, and the Fatherland. His mere presence with genuine sincerity inspired Love, Faith and Hope.

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah firmly believed that the Lord and the Mother of God would not leave Holy Rus'. Schema-Archimandrite Jonah mourned that politicians were tearing Ukraine away from Russia. Batiushka said: “There is no separate Ukraine and Russia, but there is a single Holy Rus'. And the enemies decided to divide us in order to destroy Orthodoxy in Little Rus'. But the Lord won't allow it."

Whoever felt the need or need for spiritual nourishment, consolation or help from the priest, always got to him! Often the elder himself approached those in need. Tells the servant of God Lydia: “We live in Tulchin. I have long wanted to see the elder and ask him to pray for my family. Finally, we managed to pack up and we went to Odessa with pilgrims to the Holy Dormition Monastery to venerate the relics of St. Kuksha of Odessa. When we arrived at the monastery, we learned that Father Jonah had returned from Athos. But everyone said that we are unlikely to see him. And I hoped and the incredible happened, I not only saw him, but also received a blessing from him, when I put a candle, he came up to me and ... corrected my candle! ... and anointed with oil!”

Father Jonah taught that one should not chase after worldly things, but first of all one should value life and spiritual things. "We must ask the Lord for the salvation of our souls." The servant of God Vyacheslav says: “We visited Father Jonah several times, due to family circumstances - we have a large family - we didn’t visit him for more than six months, what a joy it was when we were able to visit him and suddenly heard - how Vitalik is there? .. (this is our eldest son). Batiushka called our names and talked to us, although we saw him only once at that time and after that he had many visitors. We clearly felt his prayerful support and help. Soon I was able to get a good job, and my son's behavior (then a very naughty teenager) improved a lot. Another time we came to the monastery with a friend of my son: he really wanted to see the priest (then still an archimandrite) Jonah. They waited a very long time, but then a monk came out and asked for help to move a lot of heavy things and unload the car, we went to help, but he stayed, but he didn’t wait and left upset, and we were lucky when we returned, he left the cell-attendant and it was us who led us to the elder!

In addition to the blessing, we also received a gift, marvelous are Your deeds, Lord!

When the priest was very ill, he was very worried about the people who were waiting for him and specially came to him - very often he sent his cell-attendant to them with some kind of message or gift. It was a great consolation when the cell-attendant came out and handed out fruits or biscuits... different things... all of this from the blessed hand of Father Jonah. The cell attendant could have been given a note with a request.

Father Jonah says: “Complain to God alone, ask him, wait for help from him ... “May the Lord heal you!

Father Jonah is an amazing old man for spiritual advice, both ordinary laity and the “powerful of this world” came to him. Many who saw him said, "God speaks through him!"

The servant of God Andrey, editor of one of the Orthodox newspapers, warmly recalls his meetings with Father Jonah: “He taught me a lot and, above all, to be condescending to the shortcomings and infirmities of people.” Fourteen years ago, I had the good fortune to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land with Father Jonah. “The reliquary cross that he gave me then is always with me.”

The elder once said: “... life becomes valuable when you live it honestly before people and God, when your adviser is your conscience!”

Batiushka was easy to handle, he had no theological education, but the Lord revealed many secrets to him.

One day the priest came out of the altar and said to one woman: “decide for yourself whether you need my help or not...” indirectly catching her in doubt.

Many were surprised by his insight. “Once, when it was possible to approach the priest freely, I had a conflict with the management at work. And they pressed me so hard that I decided to complain about my superiors. On the way to work, I stopped by the monastery. Batiushka met me on the threshold of the temple with the words: “Where do you want the reward?” Here on earth or in the kingdom of heaven? I was in a hurry. And about. Jonah told me to immediately go to work, not to complain to anyone, but as a boss, the higher management would arrange a head-scratcher and he would blame me for everything, without justifying himself, ask for forgiveness. And so she did. It was hard. Got sick. And during the illness, the chief was removed ”(Servant of God Elena).

An unusual case was described by Kutsiv Vladimir Artemievich, who was shocked by the foresight of the old man. Two years ago, he unwittingly witnessed the following. One of his friends, the father of four sons, had constant conflicts with his mother-in-law. When the mother-in-law found out that her daughter was pregnant for the fifth time, she made a scandal and either jokingly or seriously told her son-in-law - if a boy is born again, move out of the apartment. Frightened and confused, he told me this story. I don’t know why I told him – let’s go to Elder Jonah. I want to give him my book Truth, and you turn to him with your request. We took his wife and went to the monastery. We were lucky when we arrived, Father Jonah met us and the first thing he said to me after I handed him the book was “I have been waiting for it for a long time”, although I saw him personally a long time ago, back in 2001. After that I called my friend's wife and prayed for an hour. She soon gave birth to a daughter.

Father Jonah was very attentive to those around him - here is an excerpt from the memoirs of Anton Pavlovich Kopach, a teacher at the Poltava Theological Seminary, who, when he was a novice at the Holy Dormition Monastery, served as a cell-attendant of Father Jonah for several years: “like many , I dreamed of such a spiritual mentor, I prayed for it. But I could not even imagine under what circumstances I would get to Father Jonah. Then he did not need cell phones at all. He was very independent and could well take care of himself. Jon's father suffered from a leg disease. Every evening he soared them. It was necessary to bring a bucket of hot water, and after the procedure, lubricate the legs with a healing ointment. This obedience was carried by a novice named Jacob. With the blessing of Jonah's father, he went to Athos, after Yakov's departure from 1998 to 2001, I was his cell-attendant, if you can call it that. I remember the first time I came to him with a bucket of hot water. He knocked and said why he had come. Come on, he says. While I was doing the procedure, Father Jonah silently prayed. Then he said: “You will be fine. God will give everything." With these words of his in my memory and in my soul, I lived and live all these years. Hieromonk Jonah was once visited by his own brother. I am carrying water and I hear my brother talking about me: “Why do you need him, why is he walking around here?” And Jonah's father replies: "It's not him I need, but I need him."

While Father Jonah was soaring his feet, I read aloud a prayer rule or a book - whatever he asked. His favorite book was the teachings of St. Silouan of Athos.

Athos occupied a special place in the heart of the elder. He repeatedly visited there and always spoke with soul about the Holy Mountain. He really wanted to go there. In the Great

Lavra treated him very respectfully. But Father Jonah always said that the Mother of God showed him a place in the Holy Dormition Monastery, and that it was Her will that he be here.

He was a man of great humility. This absolute humility was manifested literally in everything. How many people the priest wiped away tears, how many he led to faith, only the Lord knows. For me personally, the priest has been a support, joy and comforter, a prayer book for many years. How much love he had for people! He even on his deathbed, two days before his death, received people. And how we do not feel sorry for him! I will never forget how in late autumn, people already in warm jackets and hats, on the way from the temple to the cell, surrounded him and for a long, long time did not let him go dressed in a light cassock. Batiushka was already blue from the cold, but he patiently blessed and handed out something. And it never occurred to anyone that the priest was very cold and it was time to let him go. Father, forgive us. How many times I ran headlong to the monastery to receive a blessing, to give a note with a request for prayer. Or at least to see him from afar and immediately my soul became calm. The priest had an amazing ability, when communicating with him or just seeing how he says something for the benefit of the soul, somehow all the problems and sorrows with which you came went into the background, and at the first immediately became thoughts about the future life, about eternity, about God, some kind of calm appeared, strength to continue to live, endure sorrows, a “second wind” opened up, and you always left comforted (from the memoirs of the servant of God Lydia).

“11 years ago I had a moment where I wanted to commit suicide (at 21). It was at that moment that I was stopped and told about Fr. Jonah. I went to church, asked the priest for blessings on the way to the elder, and went to the monastery. Before the trip, I fasted for several days in order to confess and take communion upon arrival, and read prayers all the way.

It was a public holiday and there were a lot of people. Some already in the evening, and I arrived at 6 in the morning. I got in line (it was about 15th) and went to the temple. After the service, the monks brought the elder to his cell. People immediately entered, as many as they could fit, and I was already not the 15th, but about the thirtieth in line. All I could do was stand outside and pray. There were, of course, thoughts condemning others, but I drove them further and thought even more about prayer.

She did not get into the cell for a conversation that day and was very upset, but reconciled. When Father Jonah was already leaving, she thought: “Probably God thinks that I am not ready.” And at that moment he approached me himself. He did not say what, but gave a blessing. And only many years later I understand that he blessed my thoughts, because from that day on I began to reason differently. I have some kind of balance and confidence in tomorrow

And then, for five months, every week I came to the monastery and every time I got to Fr. Jonah either in a cell, or to confession, or he simply came up to me after everyone else, silently smeared with oil and moved on.

Of all the meetings and conversations with him, I not only understood, but felt that I should be able to come to terms with any life situation inside. But only in soul and spirit, and the matter continues. Humility is the balance of soul and spirit. God rejoices in a humble spirit, as parents rejoice in an obedient child.” Unfortunately, I don’t know the author of these words, but I took the liberty of citing them in this short article, because the conclusions that this wise girl made after meeting with the priest are very consonant with the story of another friend of mine who received spiritual balance and confidence in the future through the prayers of the dear elder.

“... This is the first person who showed me that in order to be in this life “BE” with a capital letter, to be happy, to have peace of mind - for this you do not need to have perfect health, a career, a lot of money, success , etc. As a teenager, I thought that life is valuable when there is health, success, money. Now, it's not like that. Thanks to Father Jonah, and to people like him, for understanding that life becomes valuable when you live it honestly before people and God, when you follow the path of your heart, your true conscience. and then it doesn’t matter whether you are poor or rich!” (R. B. Alexander).

He got a difficult fate, he accepted all the pain and tears that pilgrims brought to the monastery. He himself was for many, as it were, the last hope and protector.

Igor Zhdankin, an artist and icon painter, says: “At one time I often managed to confess to Father Jonah. Sometimes, during the Vespers in the Assumption Church, they let me into the ponomarka, where the priest came out of the altar and received confession, as always with great participation, warmth and sincere empathy. What heart will not melt from such love, and who will measure how many tons of cargo we have left under His Epitome-Rachel! Therefore, healthy and sick people, rich and poor, fathers, bishops, monks, believers and atheists aspired to Him from everywhere. He accepted everyone, prayed for everyone, and the love of Christ was enough for everyone.

One summer, a familiar priest and family from near Kyiv came to rest with us, Fr. Vladimir. And, of course, he wished to meet the Elder. We arrived at the monastery, venerated the relics of the Monk Kuksha, lit candles, and after spending a little time in the temple, having learned that Father Jonah was in a ponomark, we hurried to him. It must be said that this was at a time when he broke his hip and could hardly move with the help of crutches. Therefore, he was not in the altar, but sat on a chair at the entrance to the altar and listened to kathismas. Batiushka, bless... God bless... Father Vladimir knelt down and began to confess. I walked away, stood at a distance, two or three meters closer to the doors of the ponomarka, and already completely did not hear them. Some time passed, maybe 10-15 minutes, when suddenly an elderly monk comes out of the altar with anger and screams very rudely and somehow angrily through his teeth - can't you hear, Jonah? “Prayer is going on in the temple, and you are talking here, well, stop it!” This is where everything inside of me flared up. Yes, who are you, they say, to point out such a thing, and even to whom - Father Jonah himself, but confession is not chatter, and all this boils in me with curses and indignation ... And Father Jonah takes a crutch, gets up with difficulty chair, bows to the old man to the ground, rises with pain, looks into his eyes and in a tearful voice - FORGIVE ME, BROTHER ... The monk looked, silently nodded his head and settled down in the depths of the altar. I don’t know about him, but I hid my tears, tears of shame and bitterness from my insignificance and pride, which so clearly manifested itself against the background of holy humility ... ".

And here is an excerpt from another memoir: “Father Jonah was confessing in the aisle of the Dormition Church. The chapel is cramped, people will surround it with a tight wall, there is no air. And he sits there with his sore legs before the service, and throughout the service, and after the service. Everyone confesses. The other priests had already finished and went to the altar, and around Father Jonah the crowd of confessors was still standing. Huge popularity among the people was for Jonah's father a heavy cross, which he resignedly carried. He was constantly surrounded by people, their veneration. And not just reading, but almost adoration. Outwardly weak, sick, he endured everything, did not reproach anyone. This was his martyrdom, his Golgotha. There were a lot of people around him, not quite adequate.

Many people came to the elder for advice. They say, father Jonah, bless me to do this and that. Father Jonah sighs, prays: "God help you!" And he never argued with people, even if he disagreed with something. For him, humility was paramount. The servant of God A. tells: “I was several times in the cell of an old man. His cell in the corner turret on the second floor was cold in winter, terribly hot in summer, as it overlooked the sunny side. In addition, it was constantly smoky - there was a shower with stove heating below. When this broken stove was lit twice a week, the smoke seeped up, where the old monks lived, including Father Jonah. Old and sick, he never complained about it. He slept on the floor. There was a bed in the cell, but, as a rule, it was full of books and other things, gifts that people brought to Father Jonah. He often gave something from this bed to his guests.

On December 18, 2012, at the age of 88, after a severe long illness, the elder quietly departed to the Lord.

On December 22, His Eminence Agafangel, Metropolitan of Odessa and Izmail performed a funeral service for the deceased confessor of the Holy Dormition Odessa Monastery, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), co-served by His Eminence Alexy, Archbishop of Balta and Ananyevsky, His Grace Evlogy, Bishop of Sumy and Akhtyrsky, rivers Torah of the Odessa Du- the convent seminary of Archimandrite Seraphim, the abbots of St. Constantino-Eleninsky Izmail and St. Iversky Odessa monasteries, Archimandrites Sergius and Diodorus, as well as numerous clergy who arrived from various dioceses of the Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox Churches.

After the end of the liturgy, Metropolitan Agafangel addressed the tens of thousands of believers who had gathered that day to say goodbye to the priest with an archpastoral word, in which he spoke about the difficult life and righteous service of the deceased elder. With tears in his eyes and grief in his voice, Vladyka emphasized that the future spiritual father of the monastery was born into a large peasant family with 11 children, and from childhood he worked hard to survive in those difficult and hungry times.

In 1971, already a mature man, he arrived at the monastery and humbly worked in many obediences: he was engaged in household work, mowed grass, and looked after animals.

Father Jonah, not having a higher secular education, here, in the monastery, in fasting and prayer, went through a difficult monastic school, spiritually ascending through all the steps - from novice to confessor of the monastery. Tens of thousands of people came to his cell and will come to his grave to ask for his prayers for the suffering and the burdened, the sick and the grieving. And the elder did not refuse anyone, taking upon himself this pain and spiritual weakness. An example for him was the Monk Kuksha, who also devoted his life to serving God and people, and within the walls of this monastery, he carried his difficult cross of confession. Father Jonah had much in common with the Monk Seraphim of Sarov, who gladly met everyone who came to him for advice and help. Already seriously ill, being on his deathbed, Father Jonah radiated that indescribable light of love that warmed everyone, filling people's hearts with the warmth of faith and hope. Hot faith, a constant prayerful attitude, sacrificial love for the Church and the flock, zeal for the glory of God earned Father Jonah pan-Orthodox fame and deep reverence. Ordinary people, and ministers, and deputies, and well-known politicians, and heads of state went to him in a cell for wise advice. Everything he did was dedicated to the only need - a living sermon about Christ Crucified and Risen. His pastoral words were filled with warmth and concern for salvation, addressed both to those who came to him and to people living far from the monastery.

Today we have come here to honor the memory of this ascetic of piety. During his lifetime, he was content with little, was a strict ascetic and fasting. And now he doesn’t need anything at all, except for our prayers, so that the all-merciful Lord will rest his soul in the villages of the righteous. As it says in the rite of the funeral in a petition on behalf of the deceased: “My spiritual brethren and associates, do not forget me when you pray, but see my coffin, remember my love and pray to Christ, that my spirit will deal with the righteous.”

Then Metropolitan Agafangel performed the rite of burial of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah.

After the end of the funeral service, the coffin with the body of the elder was surrounded by a procession around the cathedral, and then at the fraternal cemetery of the Holy Dormition Monastery, His Eminence Agafangel performed a litia for the deceased confessor of the monastery. After the last archpastoral prayers, the body of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah was buried. Forever now in our memory will remain this luminous memorial service. The seminary and monastic choir sang like an angel, and together with the incense smoke our prayers ascended to the Throne of God. What a blessing that we are Orthodox. The bitterness of the loss of the holy elder among all who were at the memorial service was replaced by a quiet joy for his soul. We all go to the last earth line. But after all, this feature does not mean the end of life, but this is a birthday into eternal life.

Odessans will always remember the old man. His stay was a gift from God for the inhabitants of Odessa.

The Kingdom of Heaven to the newly-departed servant of God, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, the great Russian elder, clairvoyant monk, good father. May the land of Odessa not become impoverished with such spiritual talents. We will pray for you before the Lord God, dear Schema-Archimandrite Jonah! Pray for us, sinners, when you come to the Kingdom of Heaven!

"God give rest to the soul of your newly-departed servant Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, forgive him his sins, voluntary and involuntary, and grant him eternal memory!"

letter from Belgorod-Dnestrovsky, Odessa region:

“Our family is the spiritual children of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), and we would like to convey what we ourselves personally heard from the Elder for the “general strengthening of the brethren,” as Father Jonah himself said. There is no doubt about the words and prophecies of the priest, because everything that he predicted to us regarding our family (down to the smallest detail) has come true and is coming true. Therefore, to doubt all his prophecies concerning the fate of the world is hardly a thankful thing.

So, back in 2007, the priest told us: "And the Catholics will come to our land ... They will not stay long, but how much evil they will do, and how much blood will be shed ..,- and then the father grabbed his head, - oh-oh-oh-oh, but in disgrace they will leave ... " Then we took these words with a certain degree of skepticism. I thought that this might happen someday, but not with us, and not in the foreseeable future. And so....

Regarding the division and war in Ukraine, the priest said that this war is spiritual, and no matter what they say, its main goal is to tear Ukraine away from Holy Rus' and destroy Orthodoxy in it. But then he seemed to peer into the distance and said: "But the Lord won't allow it."

About the dollar. Someone donated a sum in dollars to the priest, and, holding banknotes in his hands, the priest said: “Why are you chasing this dollar ... Look, yes, these dollars are like leaves in autumn, the wind will drive along the road, no one will bend down after them, it will be cheaper than paper ... " God bless!

The elder said that in order for the Lord to give Rus' an Orthodox Tsar, one needs to repent a lot and pray that only through God-given Tsar Russia will gain power and salvation.

That's all in a nutshell. If what the priest said will support the despondent and strengthen the doubters, we will be glad, as they say, we will help in any way we can. God help us all, faith and patience. Holy Mother of God, save us!”

Curriculum vitae:

Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) was born in 1925 into a large family (the ninth child). Forced to work from a young age. During the Great Patriotic War in the rear, he worked at a defense enterprise. Then he was a tractor driver, a miner, and also worked in the oil fields.

Closer to the age of 40, he fell ill with tuberculosis. “And then suddenly the moment came when I realized that that’s it, you can’t live like that, it’s time to save your soul…,” the elder told his spiritual children.

The story of his miraculous healing from a terrible disease is still passed from mouth to mouth among believers: “Being in the hospital, and seeing how people around him were dying from this disease, he swore to God that if the Lord healed, he would go to a monastery. And the future elder had a vision of the Most Holy Theotokos, who pointed him to the Odessa Holy Dormition Monastery. Since then, Father Jonah has been in monastic vows.”

Later, Father Jonah accepted the great schema (became a schema-archimandrite). Despite the periodically deteriorating health, the elder provided spiritual support to all those in need - both ordinary laymen and the "powerful of this world" came to him for advice.

On December 18, 2012, he died of a long and serious illness in the Odessa Monastery of the Holy Dormition.

Six years ago, the Orthodox world suffered an irreparable loss. On December 18, 2012, at the age of 88, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) died of a long and serious illness in the Odessa Monastery of the Holy Dormition. The strength left the spirit-bearing elder gradually - for his close children it was not a revelation that the priest had long been terminally ill, and they tried to spend every free minute next to him in order to be nourished by his humility and get answers to vital questions.
The press service of the Odessa diocese of the UOC-MP has repeatedly reported the deterioration in the health of Father Jonah, who was the spiritual mentor of many parishioners of the monastery. In the spring of 2012, the elder was undergoing treatment in Kiev, but, apparently realizing that earthly doctors would not be able to help him, he returned to his native monastery to die where the Lord had called him to serve many years ago.
People close to the elder watched with sorrow as the priest gradually faded away in the last years of his earthly life, and, feeling the irreversibility of the impending loss, tried to be closer to him as far as possible, not missing precious moments of communication with him. “Father Jonah, what should I do?” - they repeatedly asked him, and almost always received the same answer: “Do according to your heart ...” A person who had a big loving heart always gave it to people without a trace. Even on his deathbed.
Schema-Archimandrite Jonah enjoyed great spiritual authority among believers. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', during his visit to the Holy Assumption Monastery in July 2010, had a lengthy conversation with Father Jonah. And His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir, being with the elder in the same hospital (in Feofaniya) and wishing to meet with him, asked a difficult question about how to overcome the treacherous weakness of the flesh: “You see, father Jonah, how sick and weak we are with you” ... Elder To this he replied: “What will you do, Vladyka? We just have to deal with you. What the Lord has sent must be endured, but one can complain to one another.”
According to the testimony of the spiritual children of the elder, the humility of the priest in the face of the coming death and his daily readiness to appear before the Throne of the Most High were truly incomprehensible. The Lord called him. Temple of the body was steadily destroyed, but the spirit was cheerful. Emaciated, emaciated by illness, father Jonah was increasingly half asleep, and at times it seemed that he was already departing for the Lord. But, waking up, he cheered up and in a weak voice uttered the words of a prayer that constantly lived in his heart. Only the sadness hidden in the corners of his eyes pointed to the constant companion of the dying old man: the incessant pain of his weakening, infirm flesh. Obviously, the processes that took place in him were irreversible, and the painkillers that he took out of obedience did not help. Batiushka did his best to hide his condition from others, and, despite the categorical prohibitions of doctors, continued to receive visitors. He called some of them himself to say goodbye before his death. And already very close, in rare moments of revelation, he quietly whispered: “It’s hard for me, my dear, I’ve been lying in bed for two years.”
The wise confessor was known far beyond the borders of our country. Representatives of the church, deputies and public figures lead Father Jonah on his last journey.
Batiushka provided spiritual support to all those in need - almost until the last day of his life, despite the fact that he was seriously ill. Every morning, dozens or even hundreds of people gathered near the gates of the monastery in the hope that he would come out to them. According to believers, the elder had a great gift of healing. Ministers of the church also turned to him for blessing and advice more than once.
“Father Jonah was the confessor of our church,” says Matushka Seraphim. - In 1992, on the territory of the city tuberculosis hospital, the revival of the Archangel-Mikhailovsky convent began, but the clinic could not be closed, sick prisoners lay there. They constantly swore, there were fights, even with a fatal outcome. After another murder, we called Father Jonah.”
The priest with the icon went through the whole monastery, consecrated it. And after a few days, the hospital was able to move to another location.
Orthodox believe that the confessor will undoubtedly be canonized as a saint. But, according to representatives of the church, this may not happen soon.
A sharp deterioration in his health became known on December 16. The diocese called on all believers to pray for his health. This call was repeated by believers who passed the sad news from mouth to mouth, shared their grief on the pages of the Orthodox blogosphere, and sent SMS messages to each other. But the time of his earthly life was inexorably running out. And yet, even on his deathbed, he continued to pray for those around him and cheer them up. The body grew old, and the spirit was renewed, it was already cramped in a wretched dwelling, he more and more irresistibly strove upward, to God Who is Life. Many of those who had to be near him during these difficult days recalled that his face continued to remain clear and clean, and it was never distorted by the disgusting grimace of death. They all remembered the bright smile of the priest, which never left his face.
“It is good for a man when he takes the yoke of the Lord in his youth” (Jeremiah 3:27), says Holy Scripture. Our wonderful old man experienced this greatest blessing in the last days of his life, when his physical strength noticeably weakened, but, even in extreme exhaustion and exhaustion, at times he suddenly renewed himself, like an eagle’s youth, and the secret of this fortress consisted in great prayerful labors.
In the memory of many spiritual children, the bright image of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, who, it seemed, was completely untouched by death, was preserved, transformed by love and grace.
The elder could no longer speak, he was breathing heavily, but he accepted his fatal illness humbly and meekly, as the holy will of God, and, despite the painful physical suffering, did not allow himself the slightest murmur.
Spiritual children, monastic brethren, gathered near his bed, and although everyone wanted to somehow alleviate the last minutes of the hermit’s earthly life, burdened by illness, everyone understood that by God’s Providence he was cleansed, passing through sorrows, and gave those present the last lesson in earthly life, how and it is precisely in this way that the commandments of God must be kept. Indeed, enduring affliction is the cornerstone of our salvation.
The brethren approached the elder's last blessing in their lives and kissed the barely rising hand, moistening it with tears spontaneously flowing from their eyes. Death was already leaning at his head and waiting in the wings, which was inexorably approaching. Everyone who witnessed this blissful transition into Eternity of one of the most revered elders of the Lavra experienced a mixed feeling of sorrow and joy, jubilation. The courageous and majestic anticipation of death, in tune with the spirit of the ancient apostolic ages, like the high and strict music of Heaven, overwhelmed the hearts of all those in a cramped monastic cell. The mutual expression of love was touching, filling the hearts of the righteous man who left the vale of sorrow and the brethren who remained in it. For everyone, the one who left was an example of simplicity, modesty, patience in carrying the cross, love for neighbors, constant communion with the Lord in prayer, complete hope in Him, for the elder dedicated his whole long life to Him.
The angel of death was already standing at the threshold and waiting for a command from the Lord to peacefully separate from the body the righteous soul of an old man who meets death with courage and the deepest faith in the life of the next century. Finally, the hour came, and the last prayer in his earthly life sounded: “Now you release your servant, Master, according to your word, in peace” ...
A dull, soul-tearing death knell broke the regal silence of the monastery. The much-sorrowful soul of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah parted with mortal flesh, rushing into blissful Eternity. The news of the death of the spirit-bearing elder echoed with deep pain in the hearts of his devoted children. The funeral service and burial of the deceased confessor of the monastery took place on Saturday, December 22, in the Holy Dormition Monastery with a huge gathering of people who came to say goodbye to him. After the end of the liturgy, Metropolitan Agafangel addressed the tens of thousands of believers who had gathered that day with an archpastoral word. He emphasized that Father Jonah will forever remain in the memory of grateful children as a wise, joyful and perspicacious priest, a strict monk, a zealous faster and prayer book, generously sharing his rich life experience and warming the love of everyone who asked for his advice. People wept and prayed for the repose of the soul of their beloved elder. One of his admirers sobbed: “Kingdom of heaven ... Dear, kind, generous, dear and beloved Ionushka ... Thank you, old man, for being you, for remaining in the heart of my family, for that help, moral support to everyone us. God, what a loss!
Who was Jonah's father in his difficult earthly life? Why is the news of his death such a pain in the hearts of each of us?
Due to the fact that real feats are performed in secret, we know very little about the life of the elders before they entered the monastic path. The laborious life of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, who almost never talked about her premonastic period, is no exception. Obviously, this is how it should be, because having received a new name in tonsure, a monk forever separates himself from his former life and buries for the world. And yet, it is important for us, to the extent possible, having collected material bit by bit, to trace this path so that, having come into contact with it, at least in part to understand how ordinary people become ascetics of piety, just like you and me ...
About his life up to forty years, not considering it worthy of attention, the elder remained silent, extremely rarely making exceptions for close children only in those cases when his story could serve to admonish those who listened. Respecting this wish of the beloved father, we will not try to investigate what he himself wished to hide from prying eyes.
It is known that Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) was born on July 28, 1925 in a large peasant family. The large family of the future elder lived in the village of Katranik, Falesti region, not far from the city of Balti. Parents were poor and survived by running a household. The breadwinner in the family was the only cow, which during the years of collectivization was mercilessly taken away, in fact dooming small children to starvation. Vladimir, as the boy was christened, was the ninth child, so there was no question of continuing his studies after graduating from elementary school: the family had to not starve to death, and for this everyone had to work hard and hard. However, for a rural resident of that time, receiving a 2-class education was considered quite sufficient. Most of the most famous Pochaev elders graduated from a 2-class parochial school, were taught the basics of literacy, numeracy, and this turned out to be enough, but the Lord was wiser for the rest. As noted above, the villagers could not afford to study much. Families were large, in order to survive, it was necessary to work not only in their garden, but also in the collective farm field. Older children helped their parents and often fed the younger ones with their labor. Therefore, it is possible, without prevarication, to say that Father Jonah, having finished three or four classes, could hardly be considered lazy and uneducated, as some ill-wishers and envious people tried to present him.
The elder, who was reluctant to share information about his life before coming to the monastery, nevertheless sometimes, as an edification, told some of his children about it, doing this with a special simplicity and childlike immediacy characteristic of him, the origins of which flowed from the beginnings of family education. Gifted by nature, from childhood he led a healthy peasant lifestyle and always kept touching love and gratitude to his father and mother, strictly fulfilling the commandment: “Honor your father and your mother, and may it be good for you, and may your days be long” (Ex. . 20, 13), which was literally fulfilled on him. The Lord, to the joy of numerous children, blessed him with a long life - Schema-Archimandrite Jonah passed away to the Lord at the age of 88.
From the memoirs it is known that the elder deeply revered his parents and cared about the salvation of their souls, fervently praying for them. Until the end of his days, performing proskomidia, Father Jonah commemorated his mother, father, and closest relatives, retaining gratitude and love for those who raised and educated him, and in conversations with spiritual children he repeatedly reminded them of the duties of children to their parents. Exposing the sins of the people who came to him, thirsting for help from the Lord, he instructed them to steadily walk in the commandments, love God, neighbors, and never forget about filial duty. Batiushka always spoke of his parents with deep respect, saying that “mother to father and father to mother never cheated, because they were with God, we were brought up in labor and prayer.”
In the 1930s, the family was dispossessed. As the father said, “Everyone took away ... the last cow. Why were they dispossessed?! Because my father worked very hard all his life?!” And since the family was doomed to starvation, the future ascetic, while still a teenager, instead of studying at school, was forced to go to work. Throughout his worldly life, he worked hard and hard and, by his own admission, dragged a lot of coal at work. It should be noted that the village guys have always been stronger than the city guys, therefore, obviously, in his youth, Vladimir was not one of the weak. The youth of the elder fell on the years of military hard times. During the Great Patriotic War in the rear, he worked at a defense enterprise. Then he was a tractor driver, miner, worked in the oil fields. During the war years in the rear, he worked for days at a defense enterprise, receiving a tiny bread ration.
According to the man who was the driver of Jonah's father during his stay on Mount Athos, for some time the priest lived in Georgia. Like everyone, he had a family. But God has his own way of salvation for everyone. So the future ascetic began to think about the meaning of life. “…And then suddenly the moment came when he realized that everything… you can’t live like this… it’s time to save your soul,” the elder told his spiritual children.
In the middle of life, the Lord called him to a narrower path. By the age of 40, he became ill with a severe form of tuberculosis. In the hospital, he was placed on death row along with those doomed like him. The wife, unable to withstand the test that fell on her shoulders, refused him, apparently deciding that the disease was incurable. Probably, it was at this time that a colossal reassessment of values ​​\u200b\u200boccurred. The sufferer daily saw how people around him were dying from the same disease, he understood that medicine was powerless. And when he was left in the ward all alone, alone with death, the sealed gates suddenly opened and his heart was filled with life-giving currents of faith in a miracle that could only heal him. And then he mentally appealed to the Lord, previously so distant and incomprehensible, swearing to Him that he would never again leave the path that had been opened to him. If God forgives his sins and grants healing, then he will spend the rest of his life in the monastery to which Divine Providence directs him. The story of his miraculous healing from a terrible disease is still passed from mouth to mouth: “Being in the hospital, and seeing how people around me were dying from this disease, I swore to God that if the Lord healed, I would go to the monastery.”
Prayers were answered. A nurse who came to the dying man, expecting to see a lifeless body, was struck by the picture that opened up to her. Just yesterday, a hopeless goner, not only showed clear signs of life, but was active and cheerful. The recovery was swift and could only be explained in a supernatural way. Along with the miraculous healing, a spiritual renewal also took place: the future ascetic radically changed his life, completely broke with the past and went to wander around the monasteries. During long wanderings, he was able to see many instructive and wonderful things. The Lord Himself and the Most Holy Theotokos kept him under the grace of protection, fed him, clothed him, protected him from danger.
During the period of wandering, sometimes long, he communicated with ascetics of piety, drawing from the inexhaustible source of eldership the richest spiritual experience. The acquisition of the skill of smart doing, the practice of dealing with soul-damaging thoughts became the content of their conversations. It was at this time that he prayed to the Mother of God to be shown the place of his future prayerful labors, and the Queen of Heaven in a thin dream showed him a beautiful monastery with a high bell tower on a high seashore, immersed in greenery. When, during one of his wanderings, the future elder came to the Odessa Assumption Monastery, he was shocked to see the embodiment of his dreams with his own eyes. Seeing this indescribable beauty, he experienced a state of quiet shock, falling in love with her once and for all his life. The fateful event happened in 1964. Subsequently, the elder said that in the sign shown to him he saw the special intercession of the right hand of God, stretched out over him as evidence that the time had not yet come to go to a better world, and that it was necessary to work on earth. In the future, such obvious signs of Divine Providence appeared to him more and more often, became more and more obvious, strengthening faith and convincing him of the correctness of the chosen path.
However, it was practically impossible to get into the monastery: the authorities put up all sorts of obstacles so as not to register the ascetic. In those years, in order to register in the monastery, a special permission of the Commissioner for Religious Affairs was required. Therefore, having arrived in Odessa, he was forced, according to some of his children, to live for some time in a dugout, which he dug for himself. Other ascetics had to suffer in a similar way: Schema-Archimandrite Theodosius (Orlov +2003) and Schema-Archimandrite Hilarion (Dzyubanin+2008) when they were novices of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Alexander (the future Schema-Archimandrite Theodosius) was beaten, thrown into a psychiatric hospital, had his hair cut short, and only thanks to the intervention of Hierodeacon Zacharias, who had services to Khrushchev, was he finally registered. Vladimir (the future Schema-Archideacon Hilarion) had, according to Archpriest. Methodius (Finkevich), then a novice of the Lavra, had long legs and was good at jumping over fences during passport checks. Truly, the courageous confessors of those times were worthy successors of those who, according to the Apostle, endured persecution for their faith: “The whole world is not worthy of them, who wander in the deserts, and in the mountains, and in dens, and in the abysses of the earth” (Heb. 11, 37-38). According to God's providence, the future elder took root relatively easily in the Dormition Monastery. He began his monastic life as a laborer, cultivating the monastic land and performing other difficult obediences. Being on any of them, he showed diligence, endurance and extreme humility, listening not only to the Hierarchy, but also to any other person, monastic or layman, and in every possible way trying to help him. He tried to learn from everything.
Growing up in a peasant environment, he loved animals from childhood and touchingly took care of them. At one time in the monastery, he was engaged in mowing grass for the monastery's cows. He was often helped by believers and their children. According to the pilgrims, it was a very peaceful and kind occupation. The work was interspersed with rest, conversations and prayers. R. B. Alexander recalls: “We loved such days very much, the ringing of a well-ground scythe, the smell of freshly cut grass, good fatigue after all the work. Jonah's father had a good opinion about cows as God's creatures and paid attention to how this animal serves man. All that she has - milk, wool, skin, meat, even bones, horns and hooves is used by a person in his life, manure and that is an excellent fertilizer and fuel. The animal seems to be unreasonable, but there is so much bestowal in serving people at its animal level. With this parable, the elder encouraged us to think about our relationship to God and people, and about how much we dedicate our lives to God. You can’t believe a little, you can’t dedicate your life to serving in part. Everything you do should be done in such a way that it is a manifestation of love for God.”
Soon, his high zeal for the Lord, conscientiousness, lively, childishly inquisitive mind, prudence and other virtues attracted the favorable attention of the governor's father, who began to look closely at him. The brethren also looked closely, and it sometimes even seemed to many of them that Vladimir was always in the monastery ...
By the grace of God, Father Jonah was fortunate enough to come into contact with the great old man, now glorified, the Monk Kuksha of Odessa (+1964), and this undoubtedly had a beneficial effect on the formation of his worldview. Subsequently, he repeatedly recalled his father's instructions, which played an important role in his spiritual development. In the future, he also reverently listened to them. Schema-Archimandrite Jonah preserved the memory of the great elder until the end of his days.
Keeping a grateful memory of his great mentor, he gradually grew spiritually. Many, after the repose of St. Kuksha to the Lord, began to notice in the novice Vladimir the gift of consolation, which, according to the prediction of the confessor of the monastery, arch. Malachi, the reverend gave him. Vladimir, who by this time had succeeded in reading patristic books, happily shared with those around him the teachings of the Holy Fathers that he remembered, led edifying conversations, and this was all the more surprising since he had an elementary education and had not read books before, because in the world constantly had to earn their daily bread by the sweat of their brow. Here, in the monastery, he suddenly manifested in all its fullness the grace-filled gift of the word. Obviously, thanks to his excellent memory and quickness of mind, he retold the Lives of the Saints in an accessible way, finding and emphasizing important soul-saving moments in them.
Subsequently, many years later, in spiritual conversations, Father Jonah constantly used the Gospel and patristic sayings, reproducing the text from memory almost verbatim and making comments that amaze with the depth of penetration into the inspired texts. In any case, as a edification, he uttered the words of the Savior, which are directly related to this topic and convict or admonish the interlocutors. Having kept this grace-filled gift of God unspent even in weakness, Schema-Archimandrite Jonah, beloved by his children, revered by the brethren, in order to avoid vain worldly glory, did this with amazing modesty, without flaunting his merits.
Over time, he acquired the great gift of prayer, and no matter what obedience he labored, the state of prayer never left him. It was always warm and joyful next to him, so not only the novice brethren of the monastery, but also spiritually experienced monks reached out to the ascetic. Being childishly trusting and simple, he did not refuse anyone advice and requests to clarify spiritual issues, but this did not develop in him soul-destroying pride, from which numerous monks fell into charm. Loving your neighbor and trying to help him was as natural to him as breathing... That is why the ascetic paid special attention to constant communication with the people, taking care of their spiritual enlightenment.
In 1990, monk Jonah was ordained to the priesthood. Now, out of obedience, he delivers sermons and receives confessions from pilgrims and parishioners of the monastery, and his talents are manifested in their entirety. People who come to him for confession receive consolation and relief by telling their relatives and friends about it, and more and more suffering pilgrims gradually begin to gather at Father Jonah. Prayer and patristic books undoubtedly provided invaluable help, for they contained answers to the questions and perplexities of many people who did not have spiritual guidance. He not only read books, but used them to edify others. With the help of God, he tried to bring the treasures of wisdom gleaned from them to people, and he did it extremely successfully.
For further spiritual improvement, he goes to the Holy Land, then to Athos, where he strengthens the skill of smart doing. According to the testimony of his close children, the Mother of God appeared to him on the Holy Mountain.
The lives of many saints and ascetics of piety testify that the appearances of the Most Holy Theotokos were frequent and in many respects similar to the vision described above. As an example, let us recall, in particular, the Monk Parthenius of Kyiv (+ 1885): “More than once the Monk Parthenius was granted the blessed vision of the blessed Virgin. So, one day, thinking with some doubt about what he read somewhere, that the Blessed Virgin was the first nun on earth, he dozed off, and sees a majestic nun walking from the Holy Doors of the Lavra, accompanied by a large host of monks, in a mantle, with a rod in her hands . Approaching him, She said: “Parthenius, I am a nun!” He woke up, and from that time on, with heartfelt conviction, he called the Most Holy Theotokos of the Cave Lavra Iumenia. Under the outward image of monasticism, the elder, of course, meant inner monasticism, the active, prayerful, humble life of the Immaculate Virgin, of whom She truly was the prototype on earth. Comparing the above-described phenomenon with the one that Father Jonah was able to see, we find in them features of undoubted similarity, undeniably testifying that the Mother of God is truly the Heavenly Abbess of all monastics, guiding those who prayerfully entrusted their lives to Her on the right path to salvation.
During the pilgrimage, according to the testimonies of the children and pilgrims accompanying him, the elder behaved modestly but with dignity, constantly being among people and listening to their numerous petitions, he received confession, edified and gave prayer help to everyone who needed it. Pilgrims often became eyewitnesses of numerous cases of God's obvious help through the prayerful intercession of the elder. Many said that he spiritually foresaw unconfessed sins and helped to get rid of them, healed from incurable diseases, strengthened in prayer work.
The interview given by Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko), a resident of the Odessa Patriarchal Holy Assumption Monastery, was widely known during one of his visits to Mount Athos and, in particular, to the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery. The conversation between the elder and Sergei Seryubin is important for all of us Orthodox, because it touches the very foundations of our life, reminds us of what we all seem to have forgotten - about conscience and work. And, of course, about prayer. Father Jonah was undoubtedly an amazing elder who for a long time was the confessor of the Odessa Assumption Monastery. Many people came to Odessa from all over the world to meet him, receive his blessing, ask for advice and ask to pray. Odessa monks remember how every morning people, who could be more than one hundred, gathered near the cell near the gates of the monastery, in the hope that he would come out and talk with them, despite his illnesses and health problems that he experienced. And he tried to pay attention to everyone, to give a piece of his love, to give a hotel.
Possessing an undoubted gift of clairvoyance, the elder, according to the testimony of one of his children, managed to save her from committing a terrible sin: suicide. A woman who experienced a terrible state of despair testifies:
“At 21, I had a moment when I wanted to commit suicide. It was at that moment that they stopped me and told me about Father Jonah. I went to church, asked the priest for blessings on the way to the elder, and went to the monastery. Before the trip, I fasted for several days in order to confess and take communion upon arrival, and read prayers all the way.
It was a holiday and there were a lot of people. Some already in the evening, and I arrived at 6 in the morning. I took a queue (it was about 15th) and went to the temple. After the service, the monks brought the elder to his cell. People immediately entered as much as they could fit, and I was already not the 15th, but about the 30th in line. All I could do was stand outside and pray. There were, of course, thoughts condemning others, but I drove them away and thought even more about prayer.
She did not get into the cell for a conversation that day and was very upset, but reconciled. When Father Jonah was already leaving, I thought: “Probably God thinks that I am not ready…” And at that moment he came up to me himself. He did not say what, but he gave a blessing. And only after many years I understand that he blessed my thoughts, because from that day on I began to reason differently. Some kind of balance and confidence in the future appeared inside me.
And then, for 5 months, every week I came to the monastery and each time I ended up with Father Jonah either in a cell, or for confession, or he simply came up to me after everyone else, silently smeared with oil and moved on.
Of all the meetings and conversations with him, I didn’t just understand, but I felt that you need to be able to come to terms with any life situation inside. But only in soul and spirit, and the matter continues. Humility is the balance of soul and spirit. God rejoices in a humble spirit, as parents rejoice in an obedient child.”
The providence of God calls the fateful meeting with the elder r. B. Tatiana. She testifies: “It was a miracle that I ended up with Elder Jonah. The day before, having told my dear colleague Lyudmila about the upcoming trip to Odessa, I learned about the elder Jonah and that he had gone to Athos, as she said, the spiritual child of the elder.
I arrived at the monastery on Friday, June 12, 2009, when the evening service had already begun.
She asked the resident of the monastery: “How to get to Father Jonah”?
“Here he is confessing,” she heard the answer.
When I rushed to Father Jonah, surrounded by a dense ring of people, leaving for the altar, “bless the father,” I heard “God bless” ... I was confused ... What does this mean? Not worthy of blessing... sinful... not ready to receive the blessing of the holy elder...
She prayed and repented until the end of the monastic rule… and was honored to go up to the elder and ask for blessings for confession… People surrounded the elder again in a dense ring, pushed back… She saw that Fr. “To your good deeds, father,” and walked away under the onslaught of thirsty people ... After a moment, I hear: come, take, father gives you ... you?"
People who took the liberty of knowing the elder testified: Father Jonah is incredibly simple, but his strength is in prayer work. R. B. Alexander testifies: “He is simple, very simple, very simple… sometimes just like a little child! He is not a theologian, and oftentimes his stories about how atomic bombs are made from cigarettes look ridiculous to those people who think that a lot of knowledge is a sign of wisdom. He is primarily a mystic, not a theoretician. Different people go to him and respect him - both educated and uneducated. He is a prayer book, who spent a lot of work on learning how to pray, and he himself - as a constant prayer. From this and next to it, many people who came with an open heart join this experience, and accordingly receive what they came for - who is the answer to the question, who is consolation, who is recovery. As he teaches everyone - "The Lord saves a person, and for this a person needs two wings - prayer and work." He himself is an example of this, he always worked as hard as his health allowed and prayed - I saw a stone with the prints of his feet on which he stood in prayer for 40 days (I can’t remember the exact number) in the cell, sometimes he didn’t have the strength, he was very sick and could only crawl on all fours, then he still worked - sitting on the floor, making candles and incense.
He is a monk who came to the monastery for what it is necessary to come there - to save the soul, and that is exactly what he is doing there.
And he is courageous in his love for people, I saw earlier how a crowd gathered for him at confession, but he feels bad, he almost loses consciousness from the pain he experienced, and still he will squeeze himself into a fist and listen to everyone carefully, pray from the bottom of his heart for everyone, and then he comes to the cell, falls to the floor and can only crawl because of severe pain in the joints and back. I even doubt that most of those who confessed to him on such days knew how he tortured himself for them, few could know, since he hid his problems with all his might.
I don’t want to make a saint out of Jonah’s father, but this is the first person who showed me that in order to be “BE” in this life with a capital letter, to be happy, to have peace of mind - for this you do not need to have perfect health, a career, a bunch of money, success, etc. I, as a teenager, thought that life is valuable when there is health, success, money ... but this is not so. Thanks to Father Jonah, and to people like him, for understanding that life becomes valuable when you live it honestly before people and God, when you follow the path of your heart, your real conscience ... and then it doesn’t matter what you are poor or rich in!
Despite the periodically deteriorating health, the elder provided spiritual support to all those in need - both ordinary laymen and the "powerful of this world" came to him for advice. Over time, the gift of eldership, which the Lord endowed him with, became undeniable. Later, Father Jonah accepted the great schema. Literally, crowds of pilgrims and parishioners of the Holy Dormition Monastery tried to get to confession to Father Jonah, and then patiently waited for him at the porch of St. Nicholas Church at the end of the Divine Liturgy. And the elder talked to people, handing out prosphora, icons, and all kinds of gifts. Many were honored to get into his cell for a spiritual conversation in order to ask for the prayers of Father Jonah, thanks to which, as people believed, the Lord would send His help

The Holy Fathers say that the most characteristic feature by which a spiritual person can be distinguished from a deceived one is humility. The life of Father Jonah perfectly illustrates this patristic wisdom. It is known that the Monk Basilisk of Siberia always answered those who thanked him for spiritual help: “Glory and praise be to the Lord God, if He uses others with me: He, not me; for I truly know that I am many sinners and have nothing good of myself.” He most of all taught sincere prayer, repentance - and humility. Batiushka tearfully asked his children: “The time will come when they will praise me, so be it, be against it.” In general, he did not like praise very much and, in any case, humiliated himself, as if giving people a completely clear lesson: there is no need to chase after seers and miracle workers. First of all, it is necessary to look for a mentor who advises reading the Holy Fathers and who himself teaches in the patristic spirit, that is, in the spirit of sobriety, prudence, and humility. This is exactly what Father Jonah was like. And he was also unusually kind and sympathetic, arguing in his personal life that there is no other person's grief. Everyone who was lucky enough to meet the blessed elder felt for himself the greatness and power of these gifts of his.
Touching memories of R. B. Veronica, whom, according to her, the father replaced her own father. “My first meeting with the elder took place on October 10, 2006. On this day, Father's birthday was celebrated. And although a huge number of people came to congratulate the elder, he somehow singled me out, perhaps he saw how worried I was at the meeting, but at the same time I was embarrassed to approach, I could not get around that living barrier that surrounds him. Then he himself came up and asked in a low voice what was bothering me so much. He did it in a paternally affectionate way: “Why are you, baby, so worried about children? Everything will be fine". But then I was already 27 years old and it seemed that my age was a serious obstacle to the realization of a dream. I told him so, complaining about his age. And he answered me that I would definitely have children, that I would give birth to twins by the age of 40 and my children would be like him. Then my husband and I were often in his cell, and he helped us with money when the enemy of the human race drove us out of the house through my husband's parents, and fed us, gave food. I am very grateful to God that at one time he led me to such a wonderful person. who baptized my husband and me as his spiritual children and really helped us as if by prayer. So is material. But, of course, it's not about money at all ... O. Jonah helped me and my husband a lot in life, a deep bow to him for everything. Eternal memory in the hearts of loving children!
R. B. Maria spoke about a providential meeting with Elder Jonah at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, where she arrived due to the prevailing dramatic circumstances. Here is what she said: “I want to share my story. Strange things began to happen in my family, namely, a four-year-old nephew did not sleep at night and constantly saw someone, got scared and screamed. This went on for several nights: the child simply refused to sleep, and the distressed parents simply did not know. How to be in such a situation. They guessed that the problems that arose in the family were of a spiritual nature and only the Lord through His saints could help resolve them. Seeing their confusion and helplessness, I offered to go to Sergiev Posad to the Lavra to see Father Herman, because. before these events, she met Father Herman and knew in advance that he could help in this situation. On Thursday, my sister and child and I arrived at the Lavra to the church of Peter and Paul, but we did not find Father Herman, because, as it turned out, he now receives on other days. There was nothing to do. We prayed in the temple, begging the Lord to prompt us. What to do. And the Lord did not shame us. At the entrance to the monastery, we saw a handsome old man who was approached by people all the time. I approached him and asked for help (advice) on what to do in this situation. And he offered to take a walk, we fed the pigeons and walked around the territory of the Lavra, he told us about life and everything in the world. It was very easy with him, so we walked, we didn’t even notice how much time had passed. Then he blessed us and left. To our shame, we didn’t even know that it was Elder Jonah, I began to understand that he was very famous only when people approached him (while we were walking) and asked him to bless them. After this meeting, everything went well. Many thanks to Elder Jonah. Maria During the last years of his life, the elder was sick a lot, so he had to be in hospitals, in particular, he spent some time in Kiev Theophany, where, at the request of the Primate of the UOC, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir, he met with him. Welcoming, both kissed each other. During a confidential conversation, His Beatitude complained to him of his infirmity: “You see, father Jonah, how sick and weak we are with you” ... The elder, who remained faithful to his calling until the end of his life, strengthened the Archpastor: “What will you do , Lord? We just have to deal with you. What the Lord has sent must be endured, but one can complain to each other.”
The days of Schema-Archimandrite Jonah's earthly life were inexorably drawing to a close. Numerous labors and illnesses affected. He was treated several times in various hospitals, but his health continued to deteriorate. Realizing that life was coming to an end, the elder expressed a desire to return to his native monastery, and, in accordance with his request, on April 21 he was taken by ambulance to the Odessa Holy Dormition Monastery.
And soon he was gone.
The orphaned children still have to rethink in many ways the great influence that this extraordinary old man had on their lives.
Tatiana Lazarenko

Photo by S. Fritsch
To be continued