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 Copyright, 1921 , by 
 The International Committee of 
 Young Men's Christian Associations 
 
To the Senior National Secretary of 
 
 The Young Men’s Christian Association for Russia 
 
 Dear Mr. Phelps: 
 
 In submitting - this somewhat delayed report of my experi¬ 
 ences in Siberia last year with the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association, I would call your attention to the fact that it was 
 written during my summer vacation at Takayama, Japan. 
 Owing to the absence of reference books of all kinds, even 
 English dictionaries, I have depended entirely upon my diary 
 and field notes made during my stay in Siberia. I cannot hope 
 that the report will be free from errors. I have, however, tried 
 to describe conditions as I saw them and to record conversa¬ 
 tions as I understood them. I am indebted to many writers 
 on Russia and her Church for much information embodied in 
 the report, and have tried to make due acknowledgment of my 
 indebtedness. I wish to assume entire responsibility for all 
 conclusions I have drawn. 
 
 Deaconess Newbold, of the American Episcopal Church of 
 Aomori, Japan, a former co-worker, assisted me greatly in the 
 work of preparation. Not only did she contribute the me¬ 
 chanical work of typing, but also gave me many valuable 
 suggestions. This assistance she has voluntarily rendered as 
 her contribution to the cause of the reunion of the churches, 
 which lies so close to her heart. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 FREDERIC CHARLES MEREDITH. 
 
 Takayama, Japan, 
 
 September 6, 1920. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2019 with funding from 
 Columbia University Libraries 
 
 https://archive.org/details/youngmenschristiOOmere 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 The year nineteen hundred and eighteen found the Young 
 Men's Christian Association, under the leadership of a senior 
 national secretary, Mr. G. S. Phelps, established for work in 
 Siberia. The problems confronting the Association were many 
 and varied, such as army work, with the United States and 
 Allied troops, and regular city Association work, with its 
 religious, educational, social, and physical phases, which 
 naturally had to do with the Russian people. 
 
 The senior national secretary recognized the fact that the 
 work of the Young Men’s Christian Association among the 
 Russian people could be best served by cooperation with the 
 Russian National Church. The steps which he took to accom¬ 
 plish this form the subject matter of this report. 
 
 From the inception of the Association work, he never lost 
 sight of the fact that the Russian Orthodox Church is the 
 determining religious influence of the country. This view, 
 however, was not held by all the secretaries of the Young 
 Men’s Christian Association at the beginning; nevertheless, as 
 time went on, many became convinced of the truth of this. 
 
 The growing cordiality and mutual understanding existing 
 between the Anglican communion—particularly the American 
 and English Churches—and the Russian Orthodox Church, 
 was a factor in determining the method of approach. Among 
 the personnel of the Young Men’s Christian Association in 
 Siberia, I was the only priest of the Anglican communion, 
 and, naturally, the senior national secretary detailed me for 
 this mission. This made it necessary for me to leave my work 
 among the American troops stationed at Spasskoe. The com¬ 
 mission was most acceptable to me, as for many years I had 
 been deeply interested in the Russian Orthodox Church and 
 had made some progress as a student of its problems. 
 
 The Russian Orthodox Church at large was not familiar 
 with the work of the Young Men’s Christian Association and, 
 therefore, preliminary studies were necessary before anything 
 definite in the way of cooperation could even be considered. 
 
 On the other hand, the Association, generally speaking, was 
 as ignorant of the Orthodox Church, as the Church was of 
 the Association. To be sure, Dr. Mott had been most cordially 
 received by the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia proper, 
 but the results of his reception and subsequent experiences 
 with church officials were not available for our use at this time. 
 
 3 
 
The necessary preliminary steps, therefore, were as follows: 
 
 1. A study of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic 
 (Greco-Russian) Church, through its officials, and by attend¬ 
 ance at its worship. 
 
 2. An explanation of the principles and methods of work of 
 the Young Men’s Christian Association to the bishops, clergy, 
 and laity of the Church. 
 
 3. An exposition of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic 
 (Greco-Russian) Church, its doctrines and worship, to the 
 Young Men’s Christian Association secretaries in the field, 
 together with a general consideration of their local interests 
 and problems with reference to the Church. 
 
 4. A survey of religious conditions in the cities, in order to 
 estimate the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church and 
 other religious bodies upon the life of the people. 
 
 5. An investigation of student life and activities, especially 
 with reference to the Russian Orthodox Church, in order to 
 furnish the data for educational and religious programs. 
 
 TOMSK 
 
 With the unsettled conditions, and the difficulties of com¬ 
 munication, it was at first thought impossible to make a gen¬ 
 eral study of the Russian Orthodox Church. The question, 
 therefore, was where actually to begin. The fact that the 
 Bishop of Tomsk and Altai, the Right Reverend Anatoli, was 
 known to be kindly disposed toward the Young Men’s Chris¬ 
 tian Association, having become acquainted with its activities 
 in America, and also the fact that he spoke English perfectly, 
 suggested to the senior national secretary, that a definite be¬ 
 ginning be made at Tomsk. 
 
 On February 23, 1919, I left my work at Spasskoe and 
 arrived at Vladivostok. There I had several conferences with 
 Mr. Phelps, with reference to the details of my mission, and 
 he commissioned me as his personal representative. Accord¬ 
 ingly, acting under his verbal instructions, I left Vladivostok 
 on March 6, 1919, by the Trans-Siberian Express for the city 
 of Tomsk. 
 
 Tomsk is undoubtedly the educational and cultural center 
 for Siberia. A more beautifully situated city would be hard 
 to imagine. Skirted by the River Tom, it lies in a depression 
 among the hills through which the train winds, and as the 
 snow-covered town bursts on the view, the dome of the stately 
 cathedral shining in the sun dominates the foreground, while 
 
 4 
 
beyond, crowning the hills, the white buildings of the Uni¬ 
 versity of Tomsk and the Technological Institute supply the 
 background of a beautiful picture. Moreover, every hill is 
 topped by a church, each with its own distinctive architecture, 
 yet possessing the characteristic dome. Frozen for months in 
 the winter time, the River Tom is navigable for three or four 
 months in the summer, during which time it forms a beautiful 
 approach to the city. 
 
 Due to war conditions, Tomsk showed but few signs of its 
 former prosperity. The principal buildings were requisitioned 
 by the military authorities, and Czech, Jugo-Slav, and Russian 
 troops w r ere quartered at various points. The University and 
 Technological Institute were conducting classes as usual, but 
 the student bodies were greatly reduced, and most of the 
 resources of the institutions had been placed at the disposal 
 of the Government. The city was crowded with refugees, and 
 accommodations, when they could be obtained, were very ex¬ 
 pensive. The hotel service was extremely poor and the shops 
 and stores in the principal streets, while they kept their doors 
 open, displayed little for sale. There was plenty of social 
 activity in the city. Missions of various nations were quar¬ 
 tered there, and the American Red Cross was actively at work. 
 Much unrest was felt in the country districts about Tomsk, 
 but the city itself was so carefully patrolled by the military 
 forces, particularly the Czechs, that conditions were fairly 
 normal. The United States was represented by a Vice-Consul, 
 Mr. D’llle, and the consulate was the meeting ground for 
 Americans. For some months, plans had been on foot for 
 Young Men’s Christian Association work in the city, and a 
 general secretary was in residence. 
 
 On Tuesday, March 18th, Mr. Alexander paid a visit to the 
 Right Reverend, the Bishop of Tomsk and Altai, Anatoli, and 
 arranged for my first interview on the following day. 
 
 I found Bishop Anatoli to be a man of the highest culture, 
 genial, frank, friendly, and of deep spirituality. On the wall 
 of the reception room was a large picture of Archbishop 
 Nicolai of Japan, which was of great interest to a missionary 
 from Japan, and really opened the conversation and put it on 
 a friendly basis. Due to his knowledge of English, we were 
 able to discuss many problems with ease and facility; there¬ 
 fore, the formal interview resolved itself into a friendly con¬ 
 versation upon a variety of topics, and before long, we were 
 engaged in unpacking a box of church vestments and orna¬ 
 ments. 
 
 5 
 
Finding two-year old copies of Association Men on the re¬ 
 ception room table assured me of his interest in our organiza¬ 
 tion. He then spoke of the Association as he had known it in 
 America, and called my attention to several books on the 
 subject which he had in his library. He seemed to be pleased 
 that our Association wished to learn more about the Russian 
 Orthodox Church, and at this, and all other visits, he showed 
 a keen delight in explaining the intricacies of church cere¬ 
 monial, and showered me with suggestions and plans for ex¬ 
 tending my mission into a general study of the Church. He 
 called my attention to various pamphlets of the Faith and 
 Order Commission of the American Episcopal Church, to¬ 
 gether with many books in his library dealing with the ques¬ 
 tion of reunion. He expressed a desire for a deeper acquaint¬ 
 ance and a more intimate association in church affairs, and 
 extended to me, as a clergyman of the American Episcopal 
 Church, many privileges in the Russian Orthodox Church. 
 The senior priest of the New Cathedral was present during 
 the latter part of our interview, and we discussed the Asso¬ 
 ciation and also church matters in general, with the Bishop 
 acting as interpreter. 
 
 This friendly visit lasted some three hours or more. For a 
 bishop of a diocese of some fifteen hundred churches and, 
 therefore, a very busy man, to give three hours out of a full 
 day to a stranger, on his first visit, was unexpected. The fact 
 that I met with this pleasant reception on my first interview 
 with a Russian Orthodox bishop led me to anticipate the 
 hearty courtesy, brotherly love, and affection which afterward 
 greeted me from Omsk, in the west, to Blagovestchensk, at the 
 extreme east of broad Siberia. 
 
 On Saturday, March 22nd, I dined with Professor Wineberg, 
 of the chair of physics, in the institution known before the 
 Revolution as the Nicholas II. Tomsk Technological Institute. 
 Naturally, we spoke on educational topics, and, in addition, he 
 gave me many bits of information concerning the Russian 
 Orthodox Church. I questioned him about the relation of 
 the Intelligence to the Church and her teachings. 
 
 The attitude of the Intelligence towards the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church is an interesting problem. Before these unsettled 
 times, they paid little attention to the Church, maintaining 
 nothing more than a formal relation, but during these days of 
 uncertainty, the Intelligence as a class seem to have returned, 
 to some extent, to the Church, as the fount of religious truth 
 and reality. When I questioned one of them as to the reason 
 
 6 
 
for this, he said, “Where else can we turn than to our Holy 
 Mother, the Church? There is no help for us other than in 
 her teaching.” 
 
 A few days later, I met Professor Penn, who occupies the 
 chair of mining engineering in the same institution, and later 
 came to know him quite well visiting, at his suggestion, his 
 parish church, and conferring with the clergy.* Of this, I shall 
 speak later in this report. 
 
 The New Cathedral of Tomsk occupies the principal square, 
 and is an impressive building. The interior is one of rare 
 beauty and lends itself readily to the beautiful ceremonial of 
 an Orthodox service. The first service I attended here was 
 the service of Vespers and Matins, with the Bishop of Tomsk 
 and Altai officiating. 
 
 On Sunday, March 23rd, I was present at the Liturgy of 
 St. Chrysostom in the New Cathedral. This wonderful liturgy 
 never fails to make a profound impression, and I was deeply 
 moved. 
 
 On Thursday, March 27th, I called for a second time on 
 the Bishop, Anatoli, and for three hours or more, we discussed 
 church matters, general and local, and also the work of the 
 American Red Cross and the Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion in Siberia. Upon this occasion, the Bishop gave me a 
 cordial invitation to be present behind the screen at the cathe¬ 
 drals during worship. He also gave me a card of introduction 
 to all the clergy of the diocese, carrying with it permission 
 to worship behind the screen in some fifteen hundred or more 
 churches. 
 
 In the diocese of Tomsk, previous to the Revolution, a 
 thriving missionary society for work in the Altai region had 
 been in operation for years. In the old days, this Altai Mis¬ 
 sionary Society received a grant of more than 40,000 roubles 
 a year from Moscow. This sum had been cut of! at the 
 Revolution, but the work was still being carried on, and the 
 Bishop told me that a meeting of the Society would be held 
 that evening in the episcopal palace. It is not generally known 
 that the Russian Orthodox Church is a great missionary 
 church, yet the sight of the Cross surmounting the Crescent 
 on most Russian Orthodox churches is .a reminder of the 
 struggle of the Church with Mohammedanism. 
 
 On Saturday, March 29th, I attended a service in the New 
 Cathedral, and, for the first time, occupied a special place 
 behind the screen. A prayer desk was provided for my service 
 books, a carpet to kneel on, a taper to see by, and an acolyte 
 
 7 
 
to attend to every want. I was much impressed with the 
 dignity of the clergy and the reverence shown by them in 
 their performance of the service. With all the elaborate cere¬ 
 monial, there seemed to be a simplicity which was most re¬ 
 freshing. Nothing appeared to be done for effect, but, on the 
 other hand, everything done seemed to be effective. 
 
 At this, and all other church functions during my whole 
 connection with the Russian Orthodox Church, I wore the 
 regular uniform of a secretary of the American Expeditionary 
 Force. This I considered very necessary in view of the many 
 criticisms of the “Red Triangle,” both inside and outside the 
 Church. The apex of the triangle in many Russian Orthodox 
 church decorations, and especially in representations and pic¬ 
 tures of God the Father, points upward; therefore to many 
 the red triangle, pointing downward instead of upward, 
 seemed to be a popular “devil sign” or a Jewish emblem. 
 
 Sunday, March 30th, proved to be one of the pleasantest 
 days of my stay in Tomsk. On the invitation of the Bishop, I 
 was present at the Epiarchal School chapel for the Liturgy. 
 A special place was provided for me behind the screen, and 
 every possible courtesy was shown me. After the Consecra¬ 
 tion in the Liturgy, the Bishop presented me with his own 
 “altar bread,” from which a particle had been taken for the 
 Holy Communion; at the same time, I received “the blessed 
 warm water and wine.” In the Russian Orthodox Church, I 
 believe this to be a singular mark of courtesy to outsiders; 
 however, receiving the “altar bread” and “the blessed warm 
 water and wine” must not be confounded with receiving the 
 Holy Communion. 
 
 The Epiarchal School is the diocesan school for the daugh¬ 
 ters of the clergy. In former times, the reputation of the 
 school drew students from many parts of Russia and Siberia, 
 but now the attendance was reduced to a couple of hundred 
 students. The sight of a chapel full of young girls, dressed 
 in red, with white aprons and white caps and white stockings, 
 was one to be remembered. They stood for several hours, 
 without apparent fatigue or listlessness, and their singing 
 was truly remarkable. 
 
 At the close of the long service, the Bishop, the chaplain, 
 and the principal invited me to the lunch provided for the 
 guests attending the graduation exercises. Seated with the 
 Bishop at the high table, I saw Russian hospitality at its 
 best. At the graduation exercises, I had the honor of dis¬ 
 tributing the diplomas and of awarding the prizes. The 
 
 8 
 
Bishop appeared a real father among these, his spiritual chil¬ 
 dren, who deeply appreciated his words of commendation. At 
 our request, the students sang parts of the church service, 
 and responded to many an encore. Before the close of the 
 exercises, upon request, with the Bishop acting as interpreter, 
 I spoke to the students and guests on the subject of education, 
 laying particular stress upon Christianity as the foundation 
 of all true education. 
 
 This school interested me in that it showed that the Church, 
 in thus educating the daughters of the clergy, does provide 
 some suitable educational facilities for the coming generation. 
 Since many of these school girls marry clergy, it would seem 
 to indicate that the household of the parish priest would be 
 a well-instructed one. The charming simplicity of these pupils 
 in the presence of their bishop and instructors, lingers as a 
 pleasant memory. 
 
 After the exercises, I accompanied the Bishop on his in¬ 
 spection of the Siberian Army’s new automobile school, 
 installed in some of the buildings of the Epiarchal School, 
 and also visited seventy or more orphans quartered in yet 
 another of the school buildings. 
 
 On April 4th I was present at the Old Cathedral for Vespers 
 and Matins, but did not go behind the screen. The Old Cathe¬ 
 dral at Tomsk is a building about one hundred and fifty years 
 old and contains many beautiful ikons. 
 
 At night, I was invited to dinner at the home of the Ameri¬ 
 can Vice-Consul, Mr. DTlle. Mrs. DTlle is a Russian well 
 acquainted with her Church, and helped me in many ways, 
 such as giving me information on points in the worship, trans¬ 
 lating and interpreting. Mr. DTlle has spent several years in 
 Russia and Siberia, and knows it well. He proved at all times 
 to be a genuine American, and from time to time gave me 
 valuable aid. 
 
 On April 6th, the Metropolitan of Kazan, the Archbishop 
 Joseph, pontificated at the Liturgy in the chapel of the epis¬ 
 copal palace. I was present behind the screen and was ac¬ 
 corded the usual courtesies,' and also received the “altar 
 bread” and “the blessed warm water and wine” from the 
 Archbishop. During the Liturgy, there was an ordination to 
 the diaconate, which was the first I had witnessed during my 
 stay in Siberia. The deacon after his ordination was able to 
 take his place immediately as one of the ministers without 
 any hesitancy whatsoever. This shows excellent preliminary 
 training. 
 
 9 
 
At this, and other services I attended in Russian churches, 
 
 I found large congregations of all classes. I did note from 
 time to time the absence of young men generally, due to the 
 war; but the attendance of boys was excellent. 
 
 On April 7th (March 25th, old calendar), being the Feast 
 of the Annunciation, Bishop Anatoli pontificated at the New 
 Cathedral. The Liturgy was preceded by the Hours. Rus¬ 
 sian church music is of such a high standard that it is hardly 
 necessary to call attention to the music of particular services, 
 yet at this feast it was certainly unusually fine. At this ser¬ 
 vice, I particularly noted that, with growing familiarity with 
 the Liturgy, comes deeper appreciation of its spiritual content. 
 On this day, following the Liturgy, there was a most moving 
 ceremony. Troops about to be dispatched to the Front were 
 drawn up in the Cathedral Square in church parade formation, 
 and the Bishop and clergy, leaving the church in procession, 
 gave them the formal blessing. 
 
 When I next visited Bishop Anatoli, he asked about my 
 progress in the Russian language, expressing a wish that I 
 should take part in the church services as soon as I had 
 acquired sufficient proficiency. As a priest of the American 
 Episcopal Church, I had with me the proper vestments of my 
 office, but on this mission, I considered it best always to be 
 present in the regulation uniform of the Association. 
 
 The Bishop was much interested in the progress of the 
 Association work in the city of Tomsk among the soldiers and 
 university students and he seemed to realize its difficulties. 
 The well conducted clubs for the Czechs and Jugo-Slavs 
 demonstrated the manner in which the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association work is done on a large scale, and proved helps 
 in the general propaganda, as many of the people saw such 
 
 clubs for the first time. .... ,. 1t 
 
 At the suggestion of the Bishop, I visited the artillery 
 
 barracks in Tomsk, and made the acquaintance of a zealous 
 young priest, who had in the course of a few weeks collected 
 a large sum of money and furnished a chapel complete. This, 
 in times so troubled, shows the zeal of a priest and the ready 
 response of the people to a church need. Later in the morn¬ 
 ing, the priest took me to his rooms and showed me all the 
 ornaments and vestments for the new church. Relationships 
 with the clergy established so naturally as this, for instance, 
 would seem to indicate that it is along the route of friendli¬ 
 ness and understanding that one may enter into the spirit 
 and gain a real appreciation of this great historic church. 
 
 10 
 
The Palm Sunday services began at the New Cathedral on 
 the evening of April 12th, and lasted from six to ten. I have 
 never seen a larger crowd at a religious service or a more 
 orderly and devout congregation. For nearly four hours 
 scarcely anyone left the building, and among the congregation 
 were to be noted a great many children. The pussy willow 
 was substituted for the palms generally used in America, and 
 the distribution of these flowers was reverent and devotional. 
 Holy Week was thus auspiciously begun. 
 
 On Sunday, April 13th, Bishop Anatoli dedicated this church 
 in the artillery barracks. As this was the first service of dedi¬ 
 cation of a Russian church I had ever attended, it proved 
 deeply interesting. A choir of twenty nuns from the neighbor¬ 
 ing convent furnished the music, supported by a well-drilled 
 choir of soldiers in the nave of the church. From my place 
 behind the screen every detail of the service could be readily 
 observed. 
 
 The Office of Consecration is so filled with minute rubrical 
 directions that at first the service appears a hopeless tangle, 
 but, when thoroughly studied, it proves to be a wonderful 
 exposition of symbolism in worship. A few examples of this 
 symbolism may be of interest. 
 
 The altar represents the sepulchre of Christ, and at the top 
 of the altar columns places are hollowed out and filled with 
 wax, mingled with fragrant spices. These represent the sweet 
 smelling spices with which Joseph of Arimathea and Nico- 
 demus anointed the body of our Lord when they laid Him in 
 the tomb. 
 
 When the top of the altar is fixed to the columns, it is nailed 
 at the four corners. This nailing represents the nailing of our 
 Lord to the cross. These nails are driven in with stones and 
 the stones are afterward placed beneath the altar. When the 
 altar is bound with a cord, it is to typify the cord with which 
 our Lord was bound when He was led before Annas and 
 Caiaphas. 
 
 The double vesting of the altar signifies its double mean¬ 
 ing—the tomb of Christ and the throne of God. The beautiful 
 altar coverings, made of the finest materials and wrought with 
 the greatest care, are to call attention not to themselves but 
 to the glory of God’s throne. 
 
 The circle, without beginning and without end, is the sym¬ 
 bol of the eternal God, and to signify that the building is 
 consecrated forever to Him, the bishop in procession circles 
 about the church being dedicated. That is to say, the sym- 
 
 11 
 
bolic actions of the Office of Consecration enrich the beauty 
 and devotion of the prayers enshrined in it, and are a won¬ 
 derful means for making truth live. 
 
 General Janin, the Senior Allied Commander, and officers 
 of the Russian Army, as well as members of the French 
 Military Mission, were present at this dedication. The service 
 was followed by a military review and banquet. The Mother 
 Superior and Guest Mother of the neighboring convent were 
 among the guests, and I was delighted to receive from them 
 a cordial invitation to visit their convent at my earliest con¬ 
 venience. 
 
 Wednesday of Holy Week, J attended the Liturgy of the 
 Pre-Sanctified at the Old Cathedral. 
 
 In the afternoon, after a conference with one of the pro¬ 
 fessors of the Technological Institute, I went to the chapel 
 of the University of Tomsk for Vespers and Matins, and was 
 treated with the usual courtesy of being shown behind the 
 screen, and having my needs well provided for. The uni¬ 
 versity chapel is now used as a parish church, and at this ser¬ 
 vice was completely filled with students and parishioners. 
 This chapel is one of the finest to be found in Siberia. 
 
 Later on I had the opportunity, at the home of one of the 
 professors, of talking over with him religious conditions 
 among students, and obtained some insight into this great 
 problem. Moreover, speaking of the renewed interest of the 
 people in their Church, he characterized it as “a religious 
 mania.” To be sure, the observance of fast days and days 
 of abstinence has among a certain class undoubtedly been neg¬ 
 lected ; nevertheless, it is true that millions of people do ob¬ 
 serve the Church’s fasts and festivals and draw from them 
 their inspiration to better things. 
 
 On Great Thursday, I attended the Liturgy of St. Basil 
 the Great, at the New Cathedral, and was shown the usual 
 courtesies which have been accorded me with unfailing regu¬ 
 larity, since I came into this Diocese of Tomsk. 
 
 At seven o’clock on the evening of the same day, I attended 
 the Great Friday Passion Service—“The Office of the Holy 
 and Redeeming Sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The 
 feature of this service is the reading of twelve portions of 
 the Holy Gospels, dealing with our Lord’s Passion. The 
 Bishop was present and read the First Gospel, and eight 
 clergy each read a portion in turn. At the conclusion of each 
 gospel, candles were lighted and the cathedral bells rung to 
 indicate the number of the gospel portion read. The great 
 
 12 
 
church was crowded to suffocation. During the service, the 
 enormous congregation held lighted candles, and when this 
 long service was concluded at half past ten, they carried these 
 lighted candles to their homes. As the night was cold and 
 windy, the people had brought to the church all sorts of 
 lanterns, bottles, lamp chimneys, and paper bags to guard 
 the light, but, even with these precautions, it was no easy task 
 to keep the candles lighted, and there was a constant bor¬ 
 rowing of lights as the various groups made their way home¬ 
 ward. It reminded me of illuminations, torch light proces¬ 
 sions, and transparencies, with which we celebrate political, 
 athletic, and social affairs in America, often measuring the 
 success of the occasion by the amount of light and noise 
 produced; but as I watched the congregation making their 
 way to their homes so quietly, bearing so carefully in the 
 windy night this symbol of the Christ, the Light of the 
 World, the contrast and the lesson learned thereby were a 
 great help in one’s Easter preparation, and to me it seemed 
 that the whole-hearted participation of every worshipper 
 showed that the inner significance of this solemn service was 
 fully grasped. Speaking of Great Friday Vespers, at which 
 time the ceremony of the Winding Sheet, symbolical of the 
 burial of Christ, is celebrated, the Bishop characterized it as 
 “very solemn,” and the rubric says: “Especially affecting 
 is Vespers which is celebrated on Great Friday at four o’clock 
 when the Winding Sheet is brought into the center of the 
 temple.” I have been present at many Good Friday services 
 in various churches, but never has the drama of our Lord’s 
 burial been so vividly and reverently portrayed to me. The 
 Winding Sheet is a figure of the Saviour painted on a beauti¬ 
 fully embroidered cloth and this cloth is spread over a box, 
 which gives the impression of a real coffin. At the beginning 
 of the service, this cloth rests upon the altar, and later is 
 lifted from the altar and carried on the shoulders of the clergy 
 to the center of the temple; there it is laid upon the box, and 
 the resemblance to a tomb is striking. 
 
 Again and again, as one attempts to describe the splendor 
 of Russian worship—as, for instance, such a service as this— 
 one feels that mere words obscure the impressions rather than 
 describe them. To a Westerner, unaccustomed to liturgical 
 services, the detailed impressions of this service would be lost, 
 but undoubtedly, it would convey to anyone, as it did to me, 
 one solemn and impressive idea—the first Great Friday and 
 its eternal, unchanging significance for the human race. 
 
 13 
 
It is not generally known that the Russian Orthodox Church 
 is a Bible reading church. A study of the Offices of the Rus¬ 
 sian Orthodox Church shows the great amount and endless 
 variety of biblical allusion and quotation in their. makeup. 
 Moreover, I doubt if there is another church in Christendom, 
 in which as lengthy a book as the Acts of the Apostles is 
 read through at one service. This is done at the Great 
 Saturday vesper service, the people standing throughout. 
 The Great Saturday vesper service I attended lasted from 
 eight to half past eleven in the evening, and was immediately 
 followed by the first service of Easter. 
 
 The celebration of the Queen of Feasts—Easter—at the 
 New Cathedral, was the most glorious I have ever attended. 
 The crowds, the lights, the music, the incense, the gorgeous 
 vestments, the numerous priests, all expressed the great theme, 
 the joy of the Resurrection—“Christ is Risen!” In the pro¬ 
 cessions and the singing the congregation seemed to be taking 
 part without reserve. Descending from his throne behind the 
 altar, the Bishop gave the Easter salutation and kissed all 
 the priests in turn three times; then, turning to me, exclaimed 
 in English, “Christ is Risen,” and on my responding “Christ 
 is Risen indeed,” he kissed me three times before passing into 
 the nave—as did also all the other priests and deacons who 
 officiated in this great service. The bestowal of the three 
 kisses of the Easter season was, to the initiated, a solemn act. 
 
 Like all Russian cathedrals, the one in Tomsk possesses a 
 stately dome. This dome is beautifully ornamented with a 
 painting of God the Father surrounded by an host of angels. 
 While the priests about the altar were praying, “Do Thou 
 the same Lord look down from Heaven upon those who have 
 bowed their heads before Thee,” almost with one accord, we 
 looked up at the dome, now lighted with the first rays of 
 dawn, and it seemed peopled with the Father and the Holy 
 Angels looking down upon the vast congregation as though 
 in answer to this prayer. 
 
 The service itself lasted until four in the morning, and 
 most of the great congregation remained to the end. 
 
 The church was carefully guarded at all times during the 
 night by hundreds of soldiers, who had shared to a certain 
 degree in the services held within the cathedral. As they 
 marched away in the early morning light, it was a forceful 
 reminder that the country was in a state of war, and that 
 perils beset us on all sides. The Cathedral Square had been 
 
 14 
 
often swept by snipers’ bullets in times past, and what may 
 be the condition of Tomsk today, who can say? 
 
 At the close of the service, the Easter bells were rung and 
 the ringing continued almost uninterruptedly for three days. 
 Russia is justly famous for its beautiful bells, and the art 
 of bell-ringing is a subject in itself. 
 
 Mr. Heald, senior secretary for Western Siberia, with head¬ 
 quarters at Omsk, arrived in Tomsk on Easter Sunday, April 
 20th, too late for the Great Easter services. However, we 
 visited the cathedral that day and joined a bell-ringing party. 
 At this time, I gave him a verbal account of my mission. He 
 said that at Omsk there was a lack of cordiality between the 
 Russian Orthodox Church and the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association, which he thought was due to misunderstandings, 
 and urged me to visit that city. Although my original mission 
 was to the city and diocese of Tomsk, yet at his earnest solici¬ 
 tation, I agreed to go to Omsk for a month or more, for the 
 purpose of visiting the Archbishop of Omsk, Sylvestre, who 
 as head of the High Temporal Authority of the Church, was 
 the ranking church official in Siberia. Secretary Heald con¬ 
 ferred with the senior national secretary in reference to this 
 matter, by telegram. Owing* to the lack of transportation, I 
 could not start for several days. 
 
 Meanwhile, Professor Penn paid me a visit on Wednesday, 
 April 23rd, and invited me to visit the Church of the Trans¬ 
 figuration, his parish church, the following day. This church 
 is one of the most interesting parish churches with which I 
 am acquainted, and on my visit it was well filled and the 
 congregational singing was noteworthy. 
 
 I attended a wedding in this church. The sacrament of holy 
 matrimony, in the Russian Orthodox Church, like all services, 
 is rich in symbol. The betrothal at the entrance of the 
 church, with its solemn promise and the giving of the ring, 
 is not unlike the service with which we are familiar. The 
 nuptial benediction, however, with the placing of the crowns 
 on the heads of the bride and groom, together with the 
 triple blessing and the prayer used by the priest, “that the 
 Lord may crown them with glory and honor,” is unfamiliar. 
 The crowns represent a reward for the purity and chastity of 
 their lives, and are held over the heads of the bride and 
 groom by their attendants. Wine is used in the marriage 
 sacrament, recalling the first miracle of our Lord at the mar¬ 
 riage of Cana in Galilee. When the bridal pair drink from 
 the same cup, it is a symbol of their sharing the joys and sor- 
 
 15 
 
rows of life equally. At the conclusion of the ceremony the 
 couple are led three times around the lectern, on which rest 
 the Cross and the Book of the Gospels. As the circle is the 
 symbol of eternity, the happy pair thus signify their oath to 
 preserve forever the sacredness of the marriage bond by cir¬ 
 cling the lectern three times in honor of the Holy Trinity, 
 who is thus invoked to bear witness to their solemn contract. 
 
 On the afternoon of April 24th, I spent three hours with 
 the Bishop at the episcopal palace, when, among other things, 
 I told him of my proposed visit to Omsk, and, on his own 
 initiative, he very kindly gave me a letter of introduction to 
 the Most Reverend the Archbishop of Omsk, Sylvestre. 
 
 OMSK 
 
 Omsk, some 5,350 versts from Vladivostok, was the seat 
 of the Government, and is a most interesting place. It has 
 been described as ‘‘the Chicago of Siberia.” In normal times, 
 the population did not exceed 100,000, but at the time of my 
 visit, it was estimated that the city contained more than 
 600,000 people. I have never seen these figures verified, but 
 judging from my observation, they do not appear to be an 
 over-estimate. While Omsk is somewhat isolated, it is famous 
 as the place where Feodor Dostoievsky wrote “Recollections 
 of a Dead House.” It is a great Cossack center, and, there¬ 
 fore, the character of the churches differs somewhat from those 
 of Tomsk. The most famous is the Church of St. Nicholas, 
 containing many Cossack banners, the most noted of which is 
 the banner of Yermak, the Cossack bandit, enshrined as 
 Siberia’s sacred relic. Many pilgrimages are made to this 
 shrine. Beside these blood-soaked banners of war, hang the 
 banners of the local Boy Scouts—spotless emblems of peace. 
 
 On the day after my arrival, I gave a talk to the Association 
 secretaries and their friends, at the rooms of the general 
 secretary for Omsk, Mr. Bertram Mitchell, on the subject 
 of the Russian Orthodox Church, relating my experiences and 
 summarizing the results of my investigations regarding the 
 relation of the Young Men’s Christian Association and the 
 individual secretaries to the Church. I emphasized the neces¬ 
 sity of patience and knowledge. 
 
 A few days later, in company with the senior chaplain of 
 the British Expeditionary Force in Siberia, Major H. McCaus- 
 land, M.C., I paid my first visit to the Most Reverend the 
 Archbishop of Omsk, Sylvestre. Expecting to find someone at 
 the palace who could speak English, we did not take an inter- 
 
 16 
 
preter with us. When I presented my letter of introduction 
 from the Bishop of Tomsk and Altai to the Most Reverend 
 the Archbishop, he received us cordially, but since he spoke 
 no English, and none of the clergy about the palace were 
 proficient, we were not able to carry on a very lively con¬ 
 versation. When the Archbishop saw the hat badge and the 
 “red triangle” of my uniform, he was greatly disturbed and 
 gave us to understand that he considered those emblems 
 Masonic and Jewish. In our combined efforts to correct his 
 impression, our lack of sufficient knowledge of Russian made 
 matters much worse, and there was nothing to do but leave 
 him with this wrong impression concerning the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association, which, however, was fortunately dis¬ 
 pelled at our next meeting. 
 
 On Sunday, accompanied by General Secretary Mitchell, I 
 was present at the cathedral for the Liturgy. The Most 
 Reverend the Archbishop pontificated, and from our place in 
 the nave I had the opportunity of acquainting Secretary 
 Mitchell from time to time with parts of the Liturgy, and, at 
 the reading of the Epistle and Gospel, I found the places for 
 him in his English Bible. With this as a start, he began his 
 study and appreciation of the Russian Orthodox Church. 
 
 This cathedral at Omsk had been used for several Sundays 
 by the British military forces for the purpose of worship. 
 This evidence of friendliness on the part of the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church in the capital toward a branch of the Anglican 
 communion marked an interesting step in the progress of 
 unity. 
 
 On Thursday, May 13th, after a deliberate delay of several 
 days, I paid my second visit to the Archbishop of Omsk. In 
 front of his palace Cossack troops were engaged in lance drill; 
 horses were tethered to the fence before the palace; and but 
 a few hundred yards away could be seen the trenches de¬ 
 fending Omsk from the west. I am sure that those soldiers 
 who examined us so closely had no idea that we in uniform 
 were on a religious rather than a warlike mission. 
 
 As I was accompanied by a good interpreter, a delightful 
 hour or more was spent with the Archbishop. During the 
 conversation, he explained the working of the provisional 
 government of the Church in these days of necessity and 
 presented me with a copy of the Acts of the Second Synod 
 of the High Temporal Authority of the Church. He asked 
 many questions about the Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion, and entered into long explanations of the condition of 
 
 17 
 
the Church in Siberia. He was most cordial and, later, showed 
 me all the ornaments and fittings of his private chapel, and 
 conducted me behind the screen at the time of service, and 
 also invited me to worship behind the screen in the cathedral. 
 This courtesy from perhaps the busiest churchman in Siberia 
 showed a growing interest in the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association which was most encouraging in the face of much 
 adverse newspaper comment on its aims and objects. The 
 bad impressions of the first visit seemed to be entirely effaced. 
 
 That evening, in company with the local secretaries, I spent 
 at the home of a Russian priest connected with the Cossack 
 Church of St. Nicholas. During the course of the evening, 
 church and Association questions were asked and answered. 
 The wife of this priest was one of the members of an English 
 class in the Omsk Association. The home life of the clergy 
 was most charming and instructive to a student of Russia and 
 her Church. No matter how poor their material equipment 
 might be—and it was poor enough in those days of stress 
 and strain!—there was a simple dignity and nobility and a 
 genuineness about it that was most affecting. For example, 
 this priest received a salary of five hundred roubles per month. 
 To keep house on a salary of five hundred roubles, when the 
 rouble was worth one-sixtieth of a dollar gold, required no 
 little ingenuity. They put before us the very best they had 
 and made no apology. This priest was a graduate of the 
 ecclesiastical seminary of Petrograd and yet there were scarce 
 half a dozen books in the house. On looking back, the mem¬ 
 ory of my visit to this household is a happy one, and I recall 
 it as the most hospitable in Siberia. “A man’s life consisteth 
 not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” 
 
 The following Sunday, the Archbishop Sylvestre pontifi¬ 
 cated at the Liturgy in the Omsk Cathedral, and I was given 
 a place of worship behind the screen. The Archbishop and 
 clergy were most cordial on this occasion, and I was made 
 to feel at home. 
 
 The 22nd of May is the Feast of the Translation of the 
 Relics of St. Nicholas, the Wonder Worker, and the Arch¬ 
 bishop was present and pontificated at the Cossack Church. 
 During a part of the service I wandered out into the church¬ 
 yard, and sat down in a shady spot. The white walls of the 
 church, with the green trimmings, reminded me very much 
 of a New England meeting house. This impression was 
 strengthened by the fact that from where I sat the typical 
 Russian dome could not be seen—just the straight outlines 
 
 18 
 
of the church. Men in their holiday clothes, little girls in 
 their short starched dresses and squeaky Sunday shoes, walked 
 and lounged about the churchyard, and it took a violent stretch 
 of the imagination to believe oneself in Siberia. Less than 
 a year before the time of my visit, the church had been de¬ 
 fended by the very bodies of the faithful; during my time, 
 uncertainty had settled upon the city; and now who knows 
 whether the little girls walk as freely in the churchyard as 
 they did a year ago! 
 
 On Sunday, May 25th, a pleasant surprise awaited me at 
 the Cathedral. The bishop pontificating was the Bishop of 
 Ufa, Andre. An English-speaking priest came to my aid, 
 and with him as interpreter I had the opportunity of a fine 
 talk with this most interesting bishop, whose reputation is 
 wide. The Bishop of Ufa is noted for the number of church 
 reforms attempted in pre-revolutionary days. He introduced 
 parochial assemblies and had various schemes for parish bet¬ 
 terment. Some of them were carried out. In many articles 
 and books on the Russian Orthodox Church, his name appears 
 with frequency. He brought up many interesting subjects 
 for discussion such as the significance of the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association triangle, and I pointed to the Chiro 
 that ornamented the walls of the Cathedral, telling him that 
 this symbol is the basis of the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation emblem. His attitude toward the Association was one 
 of hopefulness and expectancy. An article of his printed in an 
 Omsk newspaper on the Young Men’s Christian Association 
 was the basis of part of our talk. Our conversation ranged 
 from the Filioque clause in the Creed to Bolshevism. He in¬ 
 vited me to call at the episcopal palace, where he was staying 
 with the Archbishop. His cordiality was very marked and 
 a more interesting and energetic man would be hard to find. 
 
 Owing to my departure for Tomsk, I was unable to see the 
 Archbishop of Omsk and the Bishop of Ufa again. This sud¬ 
 den departure was due to the difficulties of travel, which made 
 it necessary to take whatever transportation was available. 
 About this time, Secretary Safford was on his way with sup¬ 
 plies from Omsk to Irkutsk, and he very kindly gave me a 
 lift to Taiga. Traveling in Siberia by freight is not as un¬ 
 interesting as it may sound. On this trip we were able to 
 stop at all sorts of villages, and many a Russian boy played 
 his first game of baseball and kicked a football for the first 
 time. Interesting small town gossip concerning the local 
 church and parish priest was eagerly sought on my part. 
 
 19 
 
When one has to do with the cathedrals and churches in the 
 large cities, he needs the corrective of village church life in 
 appraising the attitude of the Russian people toward their 
 Church. I deeply regret that I had so little time to give to 
 this interesting phase of the problem. However, such work 
 had better be undertaken in times of peace than in these 
 uncertain days of war. Russian village life centering about 
 the parish church would furnish a good field for practical 
 experiments in which a sympathetic Association secretary 
 could play no small part. 
 
 NOVO-NIKOLAEVSK AND TAIGA 
 
 Saturday, May 31st, found me in Novo-Nikolaevsk as the 
 guest of the Young Men’s Christian Association secretaries. 
 Accompanied by senior secretary Cattron and a good inter¬ 
 preter, I called on the senior priest of the city. He knew but 
 little of the Young Men’s Christian Association. Later in 
 the interview, he conducted us to the cathedral, and ex¬ 
 plained the various parts of the Building and displayed the 
 church ornaments and vestments. 
 
 From Novo-Nikolaevsk, I went on to Taiga, where 1 spent 
 June 2nd and 3rd with Secretary Woodbury, stationed there 
 with a Czech artillery regiment. I visited the church in town. 
 An interesting feature I noted was that this church showed 
 signs of a very recent enlargement, the lumber used being 
 as yet unseasoned. When we so often hear that the Church 
 has no hold on the people in these days, slight evidences of 
 the contrary, such as this, are interesting. 
 
 TOMSK 
 
 Arriving at Tomsk on June 4, 1919, I expected to carry 
 out a plan which had been made tentatively for me to visit 
 the southern part of the Diocese of Tomsk and Altai with 
 Bishop Anatoli, on his visitation. The trip had to be aband¬ 
 oned, owing to the unsettled condition of the country. Bishop 
 Anatoli, having two bishops under him, assigned that par¬ 
 ticular visitation to one of his assistants who was resident 
 in that part of the huge diocese. A diocese extending over 
 1,500 versts north and south, and a little less east and west, 
 or, in other words, from Mongolia to the Arctic Ocean, is a 
 tremendous territory to be administered even in times of 
 peace, but in times such as those of my visit the work of 
 visitation is practically impossible. 
 
 20 
 
Our senior national secretary, Mr. Phelps, being in Tomsk. 
 I had an opportunity for a verbal report on my experiences 
 since I had last seen him. After consultation, he requested 
 me to visit as many places and as many secretaries as possible 
 on my way east to Vladivostok, and also to undertake a trip 
 to Harbarovsk and any other parts of the country where the 
 Young Men’s Christian Association was likely to be carrying 
 on work in the future, or where contacts had been made or 
 were likely to be made with the Russian Orthodox Church. 
 The difficulties of travel and the uncertainty of supplies in¬ 
 vested this commission with more than ordinary interest. 
 
 On June 7th I accompanied Mr. Phelps on a visit to Bishop 
 Anatoli, who had wished to meet the general secretary, and 
 was delighted with this opportunity. He received us warmly 
 and for over an hour we talked of many things. On this, my 
 first visit to the Bishop since my return from Omsk, I brought 
 greetings from the church authorities whom I had met and 
 thanked him for his prayers on my behalf, during my absence 
 from his diocese. Mr. Phelps spoke of the trials and persecu¬ 
 tions which the Church was suffering and told the Bishop 
 that the Christians of America were praying mightily on their 
 behalf. The sufferings of the Church in the diocese of Tomsk 
 were considerable. The Bishop spoke of five priests who had 
 been put to death but a short time before, and described the 
 outrages and persecutions which the Church had suffered 
 in the Samara and Ufa districts. As on the occasion of my 
 first visit to the Bishop, the portrait of that great man, Arch¬ 
 bishop Nicolai, the pioneer Russian Orthodox Bishop of Japan, 
 furnished a topic of mutual interest. Mr. Phelps, having 
 known Archbishop Nicolai some seventeen years before, spoke 
 of the value of his personality and work in Japan. He spoke 
 also of the question of cooperation between the Association 
 and the Russian Orthodox Church, promising all the assist¬ 
 ance of the Association, compatible with its aims and methods, 
 and the Bishop later told me that he was much pleased with 
 this interview. 
 
 After the interview, I went to the all-night Vigil of Pente¬ 
 cost, having been absent from the cathedral since the Easter 
 services. I was welcomed warmly and felt perfectly at home 
 behind the screen. There were an unusual number of clergy 
 present, due to the fact that 140 clerical delegates had assem¬ 
 bled for the Diocesan Convention, which was in session over 
 a period of ten days. The holding of lighted candles in this 
 
 21 
 
service, symbolic of the descent of the Holy Ghost, appeared 
 from the sanctuary like a shower of lights. 
 
 At this time, prayer for the fruitfulness of the earth is 
 offered. At the “Blessing of Bread, Wine, and Oil” the con¬ 
 gregation is signed with the oil and partakes of the loaves. 
 In the early Church, when this service lasted the whole night, 
 it was the usual thing to distribute the bread, wine, and oil 
 to the worshippers, in order that those who proposed to stay 
 through the service would be refreshed and strengthened. 
 With the shortening of the all-night vigil, this has become 
 more of a symbolic act. After the Bishop had partaken of 
 the bread, a portion of it was sent by him to me, in my place 
 in the sanctuary, by the senior priest. 
 
 Pentecost on June 8th was, next to the Easter services, 
 the greatest service I attended in the Russian Orthodox 
 Church. Mr. Phelps, who was still in Tomsk, was also present 
 at this service. The New Cathedral was crowded. Bishop 
 Anatoli pontificated at the Liturgy, and more than twenty 
 clergy took part. The sermon was on the subject of diocesan 
 missions and a collection was taken for that object. The 
 custom of carrying bouquets of flowers added to the beauty 
 of the service, and the Bishop, with friendly courtesy, sent 
 half of his bouquet to me. After the Liturgy, a procession 
 of clergy and people was formed and we proceeded to the 
 square in front of the cathedral, in which was drawn up a 
 regiment, or more, of Siberian troops about to depart for the 
 front. Three ikons had been blessed at the Liturgy and 
 were presented to the troops by their officers. A stirring 
 sermon was preached and the Bishop bestowed the benedic¬ 
 tion upon the troops standing reverently at attention. As 
 the Bishop, accompanied by the priests, made his way up and 
 down the long lines, the glitter of his jeweled mitre in the 
 morning sun, the splendor of his vestments, as well as those 
 worn by the attendant priests, the gleaming of numerous 
 church banners, the singing of the attendant choir, together 
 with the serious import of the occasion, made the occasion 
 most memorable. 
 
 For Vespers and Matins, on Saturday night, June 14th, I 
 was accompanied by Secretary Riley and Secretary Bixby to 
 the Old Cathedral. The Old Cathedral possesses one of the 
 finest choirs in all Siberia. Having with me my service books, 
 I was able to explain many portions of the service to the secre¬ 
 taries, for, without explanation, a Russian service is bound 
 to be tedious to the uninitiated. There is so much that is 
 
 22 
 
unusual it is extremely difficult to keep one’s attention cen¬ 
 tered upon the worship, yet the returns are commensurate 
 with the effort put forth. Moreover, the language barrier 
 always confronts the foreigner. Church Slavonic cannot be 
 learned in a day. The Russian peasant, having heard the 
 church language for generations, finds no difficulty whatsoever 
 in following the fixed portions of the service. 
 
 June 15th proved to be a very busy day. I was present 
 behind the screen at the Liturgy at the New Cathedral, at 
 which time the Bishop of Tomsk and Altai ordained a deacon. 
 A thorough study of the ordinations must be made by all 
 who propose to acquire a knowledge of the Church. The 
 historic significance of every act in an ordination service opens 
 a long vista of the past of the Church; as, for example, the 
 use of the Greek word axios, worthy, which is said by 
 all present, shows that in leaving this word untranslated 
 from the original Greek, the Church points directly to the 
 source from which is derived her Holy Orders. The real sig¬ 
 nificance of the term axios, as explained by a well-known 
 authority, is that through the laying on of hands the candi¬ 
 date has received the grace of the Holy Spirit and is become 
 worthy to perform the sacred office intrusted to him. At this 
 particular ordination, I could not help noticing the significant 
 way the word was pronounced by all, both in and out of the 
 sanctuary. 
 
 On June 15th was held the regular Sunday night assembly 
 in the hall of the episcopal palace. I was present by special 
 invitation, and entered the hall with the Metropolitan of 
 Kazan, the Archbishop Joseph, and the Bishop Anatoli. The 
 large hall was crowded with lay and clerical delegates to the 
 diocesan convention, which was about to close, and with other 
 friends, who rose as we entered the hall, and sang the usual 
 greetings. Two addresses were given on topics of the day, 
 one by a professor of the University of Tomsk and the other 
 by one of the junior priests of the Church of the Transfigura¬ 
 tion, at Tomsk. These papers were followed by songs and 
 discussions. 
 
 The representative of the Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion was seated between the two bishops at the right of the 
 platform and was introduced to the assembly by the bishop 
 of the diocese. On being requested to address them, I 
 brought them informal greetings from the American Episcopal 
 Church, a representative of Anglo-Catholic Christianity. 
 This was my best method of approach, in that they knew so 
 
 23 
 
little about the Young Men’s Christian Association, and to 
 them the uniform I wore did not convey any distinct impres¬ 
 sion of the vast work and wide purposes of our Association. 
 It was only as the Bishop explained, in part, our Association 
 program and our hopes of cooperation with the Russian Or¬ 
 thodox Church that their interest in me shifted from that 
 in a clergyman of the American Episcopal Church to that 
 in a secretary of the Young Men’s Christian Association. 
 Everywhere I went in Siberia I found among the clergy a 
 knowledge of the Anglican communion. When they found 
 that I was a priest of that communion, they immediately 
 seemed to trust me, in the face of adverse reports concerning 
 the methods and purposes of the Association in Siberia. In 
 many parts of the country, the Association was so thoroughly 
 misunderstood, its motives doubted, its plans criticized, that 
 it was extremely difficult at times to allay suspicion. How¬ 
 ever, when given a fair hearing, it was not difficult to con¬ 
 vince this enlightened people of the true principles actuating 
 the Association in its earnest desire to serve the Russian 
 people in every sphere of life and activity. 
 
 After the friends had withdrawn, the meeting resolved 
 itself into an executive session of the Diocesan Council, and 
 in reply to questions concerning the objects and methods of 
 the Young Men’s Christian Association, I addressed the dele¬ 
 gates ; in turn, I questioned them as to the way in which the 
 Young Men’s Christian Association could best assist them, 
 and they said that the greatest need of the day was for a 
 plentiful supply of the Holy Scriptures. This appeal for 
 copies of the Holy Bible is one that will find a ready echo 
 in the hearts of all Christians in America. 
 
 At the close of the conference, I met the clergy and dele¬ 
 gates informally, and was impressed with the fact that “folks 
 are folks” wherever met. 
 
 On June 16th, in company with Mrs. D’llle, the wife of 
 the American Vice-Consul, I visited the home of the junior 
 priest of the Church of the Transfiguration in Tomsk. He 
 was not at home, but later came to the Consul’s residence and, 
 with Mrs. D’llle as interpreter, we talked of church matters 
 for four hours or more. During the conversation, we dis¬ 
 cussed practical matters of church administration. Methods 
 of work familiar to the clergy of America, namely, the whole 
 system of parish administration, the emphasis upon records 
 as indices of progress, societies and guilds with particular and 
 definite objects, boys’ clubs other than Boy Scouts, duplex 
 
 24 
 
envelope systems, financial budgets, all appear to be sealed 
 books to the average parish priest in Siberia. Even parochial 
 visiting is not widely practiced. In discussing such practical 
 matters with the clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church, 
 however, they raise what appear to them to be insuperable 
 difficulties. Almost every new idea which confronts them 
 seems to be freighted with difficulties rather than teeming 
 with possibilities. It is hard to keep the discussions practical. 
 
 The next evening, June 17th, at their request, I met with 
 the committee of the Church of the Transfiguration assembled 
 in the church itself, and spoke on a number of subjects rang¬ 
 ing from the moral instruction of children to the question of 
 self-support. Mrs. DTlle, the wife of the Vice-Consul, inter¬ 
 preted splendidly, and, for hours, we discussed matters thor¬ 
 oughly. I consider that this sort of conference is one of the 
 best ways in which the Young Men’s Christian Association 
 can lend a hand sympathetically in assisting the priests and 
 laity to find themselves in these days when the Church is 
 facing so many new problems and needs so much help in 
 solving them. To us in America many of these problems 
 seem from our experience to be of the simplest, and it is hard 
 to put ourselves in the place of a Russian parish priest; yet 
 his problems have in the past been our problems, and as such 
 are patent of solution. The parochial system has been much 
 discussed but little developed. The laity must learn to think 
 parochially and develop a parish consciousness. When this 
 is done, the administration of church affairs is bound to im¬ 
 prove greatly, for now none save the priests of the parish 
 seem to carry the burden. In a parish such as this of 30,000 
 individuals, the burden is very great, and is an ideal field for 
 the Association to help the Church to solve the problem of 
 its own young men and boys in its own organization and work. 
 
 On June 20th, I attended the services in one of the monas¬ 
 teries of the city. There is no place in a report of this kind 
 for a discussion of monasticism as found in the Russian Or¬ 
 thodox Church, for it is too big a subject by far. The impres¬ 
 sion I gained was the expected one, namely, that monasticism 
 has lost some of its hold on the Russian Orthodox Church, 
 even though all the bishops of the Church are taken from the 
 monastic order. Monasticism as developed in the Roman 
 and Anglican communions is in a way far in advance of 
 that found in the Russian Orthodox and Eastern Churches. 
 
 On Saturday, June 21st, I again visited the Bishop of Tomsk 
 and Altai and spent another delightful three hours or more. 
 
 25 
 
Walking about in his garden, our conversation covered a wide 
 range. At this time, I told him of my proposed return to 
 Japan and he expressed sincere regret that our ways must 
 part. The presence of a student of church affairs in his 
 diocese had evidently not been unwelcome, for he said, “We 
 shall be very lonely when you have gone.” We discussed, 
 among other things, the recent synod of the diocese. The 
 main business was the question of raising money, for the state 
 contributions had fallen off since the Revolution. A great 
 deal of the revenue comes from the sale of candles and com¬ 
 munion wine. At the services, collections are made but they 
 are often “chicken feed,” as one of the church officials said 
 to me. I have seen a high army official at a service contribute 
 ten kopecks—one-tenth of a cent as measured in United States 
 gold—and gaze about as if in search of a friendly smile of 
 approbation from someone who had noticed his utterly reck¬ 
 less expenditure of money! Personal responsibility for church 
 support needs to be awakened in the heart of many an other¬ 
 wise earnest believer. 
 
 The subject of reunion was again broached. The Russian 
 Orthodox Church has a sincere desire for reunion. She daily 
 prays: “For the peace of the whole world; for the welfare 
 of God’s Holy Churches, and for the union of them all”; and 
 again in the Liturgy: “For the peace of the whole world, the 
 good estate of the Holy Churches of God, and the union of 
 them all, let us beseech the Lord.” These daily prayers 
 which the Mother Church of Christendom has prayed down 
 through the ages should certainly find an echo in the hearts 
 of believers who worship the Heavenly Father in sincerity 
 and truth. In our attempts to help along the problem of 
 reunion, to fail in giving full value to the contribution of 
 this church is to fail utterly. 
 
 Returning to the palace, I met the Metropolitan of Kazan, 
 who was staying with the Bishop of Tomsk and Altai. The 
 Metropolitan of Kazan spoke no English and so Bishop 
 Anatoli acted as interpreter. Our conversation had to do 
 with the Young Men’s Christian Association. An interesting 
 point he hit upon was the word Christian in the name. We 
 all know that this word is the crucial one in our title. To 
 many a Russian the use of the word Christian as a title for an 
 association of baptized persons seems an anomaly, for in 
 Siberia, if a man is not a Christian, he is a Jew or Moham¬ 
 medan. I went on to explain to him in answer to his questions 
 
 26 
 
that the Young Men’s Christian Association is an association 
 of laymen who are banded together for definite purposes and 
 that in the attempts to carry out these purposes, they are 
 able to find common ground. He seemed greatly interested 
 in the fact that men of so many varieties of belief could be 
 associated in such an organization. We then spoke of the 
 relation of the Russian Orthodox Church to the various bodies 
 outside her fold, and his observations were interesting and 
 pertinent. Furthermore, in speaking of the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association, he was not content with vague notions 
 concerning it, but wanted to know definitely and concretely 
 how the Association proposed to help the Russian people. 
 My interpreter, the Bishop, from his knowledge of the Asso¬ 
 ciation in America, was not merely a mouthpiece on this 
 occasion, but was a real interpreter of the spirit and aims of 
 the Association. To be sure, he outlined no programs for 
 Russia, but recalled the useful work which the Association 
 does in America. It is not out of place here again to record 
 the fact that in the Bishop Anatoli, our organization has a 
 firm and enthusiastic friend. 
 
 Concluding the day with Vespers and Matins at the New 
 Cathedral, one thing which particularly impressed me was 
 the presence of numerous children being instructed in parts of 
 the service by their mothers. Children who are familiar with 
 God’s House at an early age never lose the impressions gained 
 thereby. 
 
 On Sunday, June 22nd, the usual Sunday morning service, 
 the Liturgy, was held at the chapel of the Episcopal Palace. 
 A candidate was ordained deacon. As usual being behind the 
 screen, I could observe every detail. One of the things which 
 comes to my mind in recalling this service is that the music 
 was not as good as usual; this, however, must always be a 
 relative term in speaking of Russian church music. On the 
 three following days, I visited many of the Tomsk churches 
 for services and for study. During this time, I attended a 
 funeral. No matter how familiar one may be with the service 
 books of the Russian Orthodox Church and no matter how 
 much one may know of its theology, this knowledge does not 
 become a working knowledge until one familiarizes himself 
 with the daily round of ordinary services and the services for 
 special occasions, such as weddings and funerals. The Rus¬ 
 sian Orthodox Church is particularly rich in special services 
 for every occasion, such as the following: 
 
 27 
 
1. The Rite of Blessing for a Journey. 
 
 2. The Office of Thanksgiving at the New Year. 
 
 3. A Rite of Blessing those who are about to travel by 
 
 Water. 
 
 4. The Lesser Blessing of Water. 
 
 5. The Office of the Parting of the Soul from the Body. 
 
 6. A General Service of Prayer. 
 
 IV. NOVO-NIKOLAEVSK 
 
 The 28th of June found me at Novo-Nikolaevsk, as the guest 
 of Senior Secretary Cattron. I made the trip from Tomsk 
 and return by boat, the journey, including my stay in Novo- 
 Nikolaevsk, comprising five days. On the way, we passed 
 many attractive looking villages and towns with itheir gaily 
 painted churches. River travel in Siberia during the summer 
 season is delightful. Long trips may be made in comfortable 
 boats and the stops at places along the banks for wood and 
 supplies give opportunity for rambles ashore. There are 
 always plenty of people meeting the boats, and on one occa¬ 
 sion I learned more in five minutes about a parish church 
 than I would ordinarily have discovered in a week’s stay. 
 A little girl came on board with milk and butter for sale, and 
 before she was driven off by a watchful deckhand for having 
 muddy feet and spoiling the decks, she gave me a parish 
 history in epitome: “One priest didn’t like the place, another 
 didn’t like the rectory, and the third, the present one, is not 
 liked by the people.” 
 
 With Secretary Cattron, I attended his parish church. This 
 particular service was well attended, and the majority of the 
 congregation was working men. The Russian people appar¬ 
 ently carry no prayer or service books with them to their 
 services and the sight of two men in American Young Men’s 
 Christian Association uniform following the services from a 
 book interested them. It must not be inferred from this that 
 the people are unable to follow the services intelligently, for 
 they have been accustomed to them from babyhood. After 
 the service, I met the priests and found them cordial. This 
 city is in the diocese of Tomsk and, with the Bishop’s card 
 of introduction, I felt quite at home. 
 
 With the constant criticism of our emblem as Jewish, Ma¬ 
 sonic, or a “devil sign,” because the triangle points down¬ 
 wards, I was struck, on entering this Novo-Nikolaevsk church, 
 with the fact that the frames of the four great paintings in 
 
 28 
 
the dome were triangular in shape and in the same position 
 as our triangle. If we should take the Chiro from the walls 
 of the Omsk Cathedral and superimpose the downward¬ 
 pointing triangle of this church, and upon this place the repre¬ 
 sentation of the gospels found in any church in the land, we 
 could construct our emblem from decorations supplied by the 
 Church whose officials frequently characterize our emblem as 
 un-Christian. 
 
 On Sunday morning, June 29th, we again attended service 
 at the same church which was crowded to the doors. After 
 the Liturgy, we remained in the church an hour or more wit¬ 
 nessing the services of Baptism, the Naming of a Child, and 
 Requiems. A description of the sacrament of baptism as ad¬ 
 ministered in the Russian Orthodox Church would take far 
 more space in this report than we have a right to give, al¬ 
 though the subject would seem to warrant it. 
 
 One may wander about a Russian church without attracting 
 any particular attention, for each one seems to be intent upon 
 his own devotions. Secretary Cattron and I joined one group 
 and then another engaged in these special services and our 
 presence as interested observers caused no comment. When 
 everything was over, we met the clergy of the church and 
 talked of some of the things we had seen. The friendly atti¬ 
 tude of these clergymen added one more instance to the 
 almost universal kindness I received in Siberia. 
 
 TOMSK 
 
 Returning to Tomsk on July 1st, I began actual prepara¬ 
 tions for my journey eastward. 
 
 On July 5th, I paid my last visit to the Bishop Anatoli. 
 He gave me a letter of greeting to the Russian Orthodox 
 Bishop of Tokyo, in which he stated that I was in a position 
 to give a detailed report of political and religious conditions 
 in this section of Siberia. Many evidences of cordiality have 
 I received from the Bishop—copies of his own writings, photo¬ 
 graphs, and books, but more than these do I value the gift 
 of his friendship. 
 
 The next day, Sunday, I attended my last service in the 
 diocese. The place was the chapel of the episcopal palace; 
 the celebrant was the Bishop; for the last time, he greeted me 
 in the sanctuary; for the last time, he gave me the altar 
 bread; for the last time, he gave me his blessing. Had it not 
 been for his unfailing kindness, his continuous cooperation, 
 
 29 
 
and his fatherly interest in my mission, it would have been 
 an utter failure. And now what his fate may be I have no 
 way of knowing! 
 
 KRASNOIARSK 
 
 The time from the 8th to the 12th of July was spent in 
 Krasnoiarsk, in the diocese of Tomsk. This city before the 
 war had about 20,000 inhabitants, but like all Siberian towns 
 was overcrowded with refugees. The churches are very satis¬ 
 factory and the modern Cathedral of the Nativity is one of the 
 best in Siberia. 
 
 The unsettled political conditions there, and the change of 
 the Association secretaries at the time of my visit, and the 
 absence of the senior priest of the Russian Orthodox Church 
 made it difficult to accomplish much. An appointment was 
 made for me with the senior priest for Sunday, the 13th, but 
 owing to the difficulties and uncertainties of transportation I 
 was unable to stay longer than the 12th, and so Secretary 
 Heinz, who was acting as senior secretary, volunteered to keep 
 the appointment for me. During my stay, however, I was 
 able to be present at services in the cathedral and in two 
 other churches. In this cathedral, as well as that in Irkutsk, 
 I noticed pulpits such as we see in English cathedrals. The 
 Russian Orthodox Church, I think, has been rather slow in 
 giving full value to the sermon. One of the complaints I 
 have heard since the Revolution is that the pulpit is frequently 
 used to air the grievances of the clergy. Not being skilled 
 in the Russian language, I set no great store upon my own 
 judgment on this point, but, nevertheless, I did hear some 
 very stirring sermons on the duty of the hour and some ex¬ 
 cellent expositions of the Gospel for the day. 
 
 A pleasant call from the Roman Catholic chaplain with 
 the Italian troops stationed in town was one of the events 
 of the 11th of July. Secretary Heinz did noteworthy work 
 with these troops. 
 
 On the 12th of July, with the retiring secretary, Mr. Alpin, 
 we secured transportation for Irkutsk in a special train in 
 charge of Captain Haines of the American railway service, 
 who was installing a new telephone system for the railway. 
 He showed us every courtesy, and for the five days we traveled 
 with him we were as comfortable as any time in Siberia. 
 
 Right here, I must say a word in praise of the American 
 railway engineers. The Young Men’s Christian Association 
 
 30 
 
had no firmer friends, and I know of no instance in which 
 the engineers did not respond to every request within their 
 power. Delivering messages up and down the line, and hauling 
 “Y” secretaries ofif at every station to give them an Afnerican 
 square meal, are but two instances in a dozen that I might 
 mention. Seated one day at a railway engineers’ mess, our 
 train pulling out unexpectedly dragged us from a table on 
 which had just been served the only chicken I had seen in 
 Siberia. As we ran after the departing train and barely pulled 
 ourselves aboard, our hosts, racing beside the train, handed 
 us, wrapped in a newspaper, the chicken whose loss we were 
 prepared to mourn. 
 
 IRKUTSK 
 
 Irkutsk is a city with a magnificent cathedral and many old 
 and fine churches. Not far from the city is the famous 
 monastery of St. Innocent founded in 1672, and in the city 
 itself are to be found, in the Old Cathedral, the “uncorrupted 
 remainders” of Sophrony, the third bishop of Irkutsk—as a 
 translation of a small handbook made for me puts the matter. 
 
 Like all the cities I visited, the conditions in Irkutsk were 
 abnormal, due to the Revolution and subsequent disturbances. 
 Prices were very high and there was more or less unrest on 
 all sides. I have no estimate of the population, but the city 
 was greatly overcrowded. 
 
 Since Irkutsk is the headquarters of the Young Men’s Chris¬ 
 tian Association for Western Siberia, the activities of the 
 secretaries, local and general, have no doubt appeared in vari¬ 
 ous reports, and, save as they concern the Russian Orthodox 
 Church, they will not be noted here. In Secretary Glenn 
 Adams of Irkutsk, I found a man whose interest in the Rus¬ 
 sian Orthodox Church was gratifying. His determination 
 to know the Russian Orthodox Church and to grasp the 
 spirit of the worship was cheering to one engaged in such 
 a mission as mine. We studied church services together, and 
 visited many churches at service time to apply our knowledge. 
 
 On Sunday, July 20th, I was present at services in both 
 the New and the Old Cathedrals. An interview was ar¬ 
 ranged for me soon afterwards with the Bishop of Irkutsk, 
 the Right Reverend Bishop Zosima. The service of a good 
 interpreter added much to the value of the interview. He is 
 one of the youngest of the bishops, and seemed to be in touch 
 with the happenings of the day—political, social, and religious. 
 He appeared to be interested in my mission, and I gave him 
 
 31 
 
some account of my experiences in Western Siberia. He 
 was not particularly well acquainted with the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association, but was interested in its aims and 
 methods, and promised his hearty support and cooperation to 
 the Association in the work for the city planned by our 
 secretaries. The subject of the reunion of the churches was 
 broached, as usual, and his views were in accord with those 
 of his brother bishops whom I had met. On leaving, he gave 
 me a cordial invitation to visit the Monastery of St. Innocent 
 for the Liturgy on the following Sunday. From the city of 
 Irkutsk, the sight of this distant white monastery is one of 
 the most attractive I know. 
 
 The next Sunday I went to the monastery as the guest 
 of Bishop Zosima. A part of the time I spent in the nave, a 
 part in the choir, and the remainder behind the screen. The 
 church was well filled. After the Liturgy, there was a special 
 service at the ornate shrine of St. Innocent, located in the 
 body of the church. With such shrines as those of St. Sophrony 
 and St. Innocent, Irkutsk would be an interesting place for a 
 study of Russian Orthodox Church shrines and pilgrimages 
 to them. 
 
 After the service, I had lunch with the Bishop in the mon¬ 
 astery. A Russian Red Cross sister, who had seen service 
 on the Western Front, was present and sat in the place of 
 an interpreter. She knew but a few words of English; the 
 Bishop knew none; I knew English and some Russian; so 
 we talked in French; her French was excellent; mine occa¬ 
 sionally missed fire; and the Bishop assumed a judicial atti¬ 
 tude and turned his replies into Russian. Nevertheless, we 
 did not hesitate to discuss fearlessly all sorts of questions 
 before our Tower of Babel crashed to the ground. Under 
 these circumstances, I do not feel at liberty to put on record 
 any of the conclusions we reached on this occasion. 
 
 On August 2nd, Secretary Adams and I visited four of 
 the city churches, including the Old and New Cathedrals, 
 and remained for Vespers at the latter. The next day, being 
 Sunday, I visited more churches, and on Monday visited one 
 of the city monasteries. I was very sorry not to have visited 
 the Old Believers’ Church in the vicinity of Irkutsk, as I had 
 planned, but there was no time. 
 
 At a meeting of the city staff of the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association held on August 5th I gave a talk on the Russian 
 Church, and suggested possible ways of cooperation. The 
 
 32 
 
prospects in Irkutsk for such cooperation seemed particularly 
 bright about this time, but changes in the personnel of the 
 Association staff and political upheavals in the city probably 
 nullified the plans. 
 
 VLADIVOSTOK 
 
 Vladivostok needs no description here. It is not a place 
 to study Russian Orthodox Church conditions, because of the 
 comparative newness of the city, and the presence of so many 
 different nationalities. Moreover, being a port of entry, its 
 character differs from that of the inland cities. In proportion 
 to the population, one would expect to count the churches 
 by the tens, whereas there are but two or three large ones; 
 however, in the old days, numerous chapels could be found 
 in the military barracks which girdled the city. 
 
 While I was in the West, Michael, the Bishop of Samara, 
 had been made acquainted with some of the programs and 
 plans of the Association, and had cooperated by counsel and 
 advice. When I returned, I found that personal contact had 
 been pleasantly established between him and our organiza¬ 
 tion. Samara being in the hands of the Bolsheviki, the Bishop 
 had been forced to leave, and was now in charge of the 
 churches in the region of Vladivostok, residing at the mon¬ 
 astery in Sadanga. Therefore, on the 21st of August, accom¬ 
 panied by Executive Secretary Hollinger and his wife, to¬ 
 gether with an extra good interpreter, I motored to Sadanga 
 for an interview with the Bishop. Over an hour’s conversa¬ 
 tion revealed a frank, friendly man, with whom it was a 
 pleasure to talk of Church and Association matters. As usual 
 the question of church reunion received attention. Had we 
 had more time, we could have prolonged the interview, for 
 the Bishop brought up many questions which had to remain 
 unanswered. I had proposed to visit him again at a later 
 date, but was hindered. 
 
 NIKOLSK-USSURISK 
 
 I started north by train, August 23, 1919, reaching Nikolsk- 
 Ussurisk, a distance of 103 versts, that evening. I was met 
 by Secretary Ritter and went with him to the Chinese bar¬ 
 racks where he had opened a club. Although his work was 
 entirely among the Chinese troops, he had been constant in 
 his attendance at the services of the Russian Orthodox Church, 
 and had made friends with several of the priests. 
 
 33 
 
The next day we visited the Cathedral with a good inter¬ 
 preter, and after the Liturgy were cordially received by three 
 of the clergy. One of the priests, a teacher in the local schools, 
 showed a really keen interest and some knowledge of the 
 Young Men’s Christian Association, and asked intelligent 
 questions. There was no time to call extensively on the 
 clergy, as Secretary Ritter was leaving for Vladivostok 
 that day. 
 
 HABAROVSK 
 
 Habarovsk is a really beautiful city, situated on the Amur 
 River, and contains many fine buildings and extensive military 
 barracks, but the churches are comparatively few in number. 
 American troops had previously been stationed there, but at 
 the time of my visit only a handful of signal corps men were 
 on duty. Conditions in the city were very uncertain and 
 Americans were looked upon with suspicion. The motives 
 governing the city work of the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation were called in question and propaganda against us 
 was active. The Association was trying to “carry on,” as 
 though the times were normal. But obstacle after obstacle 
 had to be met and overcome, and in the end, the Association 
 had to give way. 
 
 My first service in Habarovsk was the Liturgy at the 
 Cathedral on the 28th of August (New Style), it being “The 
 Falling-Asleep (the Assumption), of the Most Holy Birth- 
 Giver of God.” 
 
 We were very fortunate in having on the local Young 
 Men’s Christian Association committee, an Orthodox priest. 
 Father Yevsevyer, who was held in great respect in the city 
 and was anything but a figurehead in the work of the com¬ 
 mittee. Naturally, he was the first priest I visited. He 
 invited me to his house on August 29th for lunch and an 
 interview, and this visit I prize as one of my pleasantest 
 recollections. He was a particularly intelligent man and had 
 given many evidences of his sincere faith. The following 
 “fourteen points” were discussed: 
 
 The Orthodox Church in relation to Protestantism; 
 
 The “Filioque” clause in the Nicene Creed; 
 
 The Liturgy and the doctrine of the Real Presence; 
 
 Church vestments; 
 
 The Old Believers and their theology; 
 
 The Old Believers in relation to the Russian Orthodox 
 Church; 
 
 34 
 
Reunion of the churches; 
 
 Plans for parish administration; 
 
 Clerical marriage; 
 
 Irreligion and its cure; 
 
 Books on Russia and the Church ; 
 
 The religious program of the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation ; 
 
 Religious tests of membership in the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association; 
 
 The finances of the Young Men’s Christian Association. 
 
 He emphasized the truth so clearly grasped by Orthodox 
 theologians that unity of doctrine is the first step toward 
 reunion. His interest in the Old Believers and their relation 
 to the Russian Orthodox Church was a practical one. 
 
 The reason this interview stands out in my mind so clearly 
 is largely due to the work of the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation interpreter, Mr. Valisuk, who, being an Orthodox be¬ 
 liever, and a prominent school man, was thoroughly interested 
 in all the topics brought up and was able to interpret thoughts 
 as well as words. 
 
 The same afternoon, I had a talk with the Russian Orthodox 
 priest who was chaplain of the Red Cross Hospital where our 
 secretary, Mr. Towne, was a patient. Secretary Towne and 
 he had become fast friends and had talked over many church 
 problems. It was interesting for me to get this priest’s angle 
 on some of the local questions. 
 
 A couple of days later, I had a formal interview with the 
 Senior Priest in Habarovsk. He had but recently come from 
 Blagovestchensk, where for thirty years he had been dean of 
 the Theological Seminary. He spoke very shrewdly of a num¬ 
 ber of church officials I mentioned, and seemed to be well 
 acquainted with conditions in the Siberian Church. 
 
 When he began to talk of the Russian Orthodox Church, he 
 spoke in terms of the deepest humility, and begged us not to 
 look down upon the Church or despise her as a leprous body, 
 but always to keep in mind that she still holds to the creeds 
 and that her witness to the faith is still unshaken. 
 
 Questioned on the subject of church support, he said that 
 the Omsk Government contributed 100 roubles a month to 
 the cathedral, and he received from the Government 190 
 roubles. At the time of this interview, these sums represented 
 respectively sixty cents and $1.14 in United States gold. He 
 said the people knew nothing of self-support and when the 
 subject was mentioned in sermons, they were more or less 
 
 35 
 
restive. At a recent festival, the collections amounted to 
 about 300 roubles. 
 
 He spoke very interestingly on reunion, and as an ex¬ 
 professor of ecclesiastical history, he was well equipped to 
 deal with the problem historically. He informed me of the com- 
 ing Diocesan Convention to be held at Blagovestchensk, and 
 hoped that I would try to attend it and address them. It 
 was to extend over a period of eight days and many interest¬ 
 ing problems were to come up for discussion and the laity 
 were to participate largely, a comparatively new venture in 
 the government of the Russian Orthodox Church. 
 
 In discussing the Young Men’s Christian Association, he 
 remarked that both he and the Association were just begin- 
 ning their work in Habarovsk, and so they might grow up 
 side by side, and if he could render any assistance to the 
 Association by lecturing on religious topics or conducting 
 services, he would be very glad to do so. I have every reason 
 to suppose that the senior priest of Habarovsk will prove 
 a true friend of the Young Men’s Christian Association. 
 
 There was a priest of the Old Believers’ Church attending 
 one of our English classes in Habarovsk, who suggested my 
 visiting their bishop, who was in the city at that time. As 
 I came in contact with the Old Believers’ Church and other 
 sects in connection with our Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion work, and thus confronted the question practically rather 
 than academically, I think it necessary to insert in this report 
 some slight explanation of their history and practices. 
 
 THE OLD BELIEVERS’ CHURCH 
 
 To recount properly the history of the rise of the Old 
 Believers from the time of the attempted reforms of the 
 Patriarch Nikon, in the seventeenth century, to the present 
 day, would be a task of which I am not capable; but in call¬ 
 ing attention to certain features of their history and customs, 
 I shall perhaps be serving a practical end. 
 
 From the very earliest days, the Russian Orthodox Church 
 has been intolerant of dissent. With the authority of the 
 State behind her, she attempted to stamp out, rather than to 
 convert, those who differed from her. When religious tolera¬ 
 tion became a fact, the old methods could not be used and a 
 more conciliatory program had to be outlined. In dealing 
 with those who differed from her, the very extent of the 
 country, the climate, the lack of proper transportation facil- 
 
 36 
 
ities, and the ignorance of the people, tended to make the 
 task extremely difficult. Again, since many who differed 
 from her did not actually separate, but attended her services, 
 in addition to their own, many extravagances were attributed 
 to the Russian Orthodox Church, for which she was not to 
 be held accountable. 
 
 The rise of the Old Believers has been attributed to an 
 attempt to preserve the letter at the expense of the spirit of 
 the ancient church service books. One writer says of the Old 
 Believers that they took their rise “from the adherence to 
 the letter of the church service books and from faith in the 
 .saving power of the rite itself without any understanding of 
 its sense and meaning. The schism, is, in its essence, faith in 
 ritual, jealously guarding from changes and corrections all 
 that is ancient in the church books and rites.” 
 
 The following points illustrate the differences which have 
 arisen between the Old Believers and the Orthodox Church: 
 
 In making the sign of the cross, the Old Believers insist 
 that it must be made with two fingers and not with three as 
 the Russian Orthodox Church teaches. The eighth article of 
 the Creed, the Old Believers insist should be said with the 
 word “true” inserted between “the” and “Lord” in “the Holy 
 Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life.” They further insist 
 that in some places the “Alleluia” must be said twice instead of 
 once. Church processions must travel with the sun. Seven 
 altar breads they insist are necessary for a genuine celebration 
 of the Liturgy, whereas the Russian Orthodox Church is con¬ 
 tent with five. Even in the pronunciation of the Sacred Name, 
 they insist on a particular way. The eight-pointed cross must 
 mark all churches. Naturally, the only legitimate service 
 books are those in use before the time of the Patriarch Nikon. 
 
 In weighing these points of difference, it seems to me that 
 the real question is one of authority. Who had the right to 
 introduce changes? We usually look for radicalism in reform; 
 in fact to us, the terms are almost synonymous. Therefore, 
 judging by our standard, can we look upon the Old Believers’ 
 movement as a reform movement? Manning, in an article 
 in the American Church Monthly on “The Russian Sects,” 
 comments: “It is to be noted that whereas in the Western 
 Church the schisms took place because the authorities were 
 not sufficiently radical to please the reformers, in the East the 
 reverse happened and the sects claim to represent the true 
 old tradition.” 
 
 37 
 
At this point, it would be interesting to digress long enough 
 to give some account of the apparently endless variety and 
 the extravagances which characterize various sects in Russia, 
 but we in America are not unfamiliar with the lengths to 
 which religious variations can be carried, possessing as we do 
 some two- hundred and two sects and churches. If it be true, 
 as has been said, that there are only a limited number of 
 heresies possible and that all types occur at various times and 
 in various places, it will not be necessary to go to Russia to 
 study the lengths to which religious extravagances can be 
 carried. Perhaps the “Sanctified Congregation of Adam and 
 Eve” could supply some “missing link” in the chain of thought 
 of a Russian sect, and should they fail, we still have the “Holy 
 Rollers,” and the “Holy Ghost and Us”—-to mention but two 
 sects that could be called upon in an emergency. 
 
 From my personal experience with the Old Believers who 
 possessed the episcopate, I cannot look upon them as mere 
 sticklers for ritual, but regard them as earnest men who wit¬ 
 ness with their lives to the truth as they see it. A prominent 
 Russian once said to me: “Be sure to get acquainted with the 
 Old Believers, because their lives are oftentimes models for 
 the Orthodox.” 
 
 On September 1, 1919, Mr. Valisuk arranged for me an inter¬ 
 view with the Old Believers’ Bishop. 
 
 On our arrival, we were shown to the bedroom-study of the 
 Bishop. At the sight of the Bishop, in his cassock and cap, 
 seated before an enormous black-letter Slavonic service book, 
 in a room piled high with old books, old ikons, old pictures, 
 old furniture, Time rolled back several centuries; however, 
 the sight of an American-built typewriter on a nearby chair 
 brought us up to date. 
 
 The Bishop met me with a very cordial and reassuring 
 smile and after the usual greetings we began our talk, the 
 priest in whose house the Bishop was staying being present 
 and entering heartily into our conversation. At the very out¬ 
 set, the Bishop maintained that the Old Believers had been 
 the keepers of the true faith and, in spite of direct persecutions, 
 had never wavered from the truth. These persecutions were 
 at the hands of the Russian Orthodox Church and not at the 
 hands of unbelievers. The priest then produced a sort of 
 “Fox’s Book of Martyrs,” picturing on every page the perse¬ 
 cutions endured at the hands of the Orthodox. The book was 
 at least 150 years old and the pictures were dim and inartistic. 
 
 38 
 
I do not know the name of this book, but it stands out in my 
 mind as a sort of chamber of horrors. The earnestness of the 
 speakers, their blazing eyes as they turned over and over the 
 pages, and their suppressed tones as they described each de¬ 
 tail of the various persecutions had a depressing influence on 
 us. However, it was a fitting introduction to the history of 
 the Old Believers which the Bishop and the priest at once 
 began to give. 
 
 Again and again, stress was laid on the fact that they had 
 the true faith, that they had the true books, that they had the 
 true ceremonial, and that they had resisted all the attempts 
 to change or to overcome them. When the controversy with 
 the Orthodox on the making of the sign of the cross was 
 brought up, the Bishop, reading from the texts, illustrated 
 their method, citing chapter and verse, the contention being 
 that there was a right way prescribed by authority and there 
 was no alternative. Questioned about the mode of baptism, 
 I cited our Western practice, and he, in turn, gave the Old 
 Believers’ position. It was interesting to see their attitude 
 toward the Orthodox Church. I had often discussed the Old 
 Believers with the Orthodox, but had never viewed the 
 Orthodox from the Old Believers’ point of view. There seems 
 to be “much to be said on both sides of the question,” as Sir 
 Roger de Coverley remarked. The Old Believers said that 
 they did not attend the Orthodox services, and yet they 
 admitted going from time to time out of curiosity. They 
 further said: “The Orthodox have churches for the rich and 
 churches for the poor and different services for the rich and 
 for the poor, but the Old Believers have the same services for 
 rich and poor alike.” 
 
 We next considered the subject of discipline in the Church. 
 The lives of the Old Believers appear so consistent that this 
 topic interested me very much. Their method of preserving 
 discipline is to hold a yearly examination before the whole 
 congregation, with every member having the right to accuse, 
 and if any is a doer of wrong, he must be put out. 
 
 They do not consider education as a substitute for piety in 
 the priesthood. Their emphasis on this point is evidently in 
 the nature of an historic protest. 
 
 We touched upon the question of reunion with the Russian 
 Orthodox Church, but nothing constructive was suggested. 
 Serious efforts have been and are being made by the Orthodox 
 to win back the Old Believers, and I have met many priests 
 
 39 
 
who are working and praying toward that end. Real steps 
 have been taken and now that the Orthodox Church is no 
 longer under state control, much may be hoped for. Religious 
 projudice dies hard and no one can accuse Russia of not pos¬ 
 sessing her full share. 
 
 A rather long discussion arose over the question of the 
 ministry among the various bodies of Old Believers who do 
 not possess the episcopate, but I learned that there are many 
 who are coming over to the Episcopal Old Believers' position. 
 
 Next, we began to speak of the extent of the work and the 
 number of Old Believers. The Bishop’s diocese reaches from 
 Yakutsk and Saghalien to Lake Baikal and beyond—in other 
 words, a half or more of Siberia. He has some fourteen priests 
 and not over five hundred communicants. Before the war he 
 traveled extensively over his vast diocese in the summer time, 
 but now travel is difficult, if not impossible. 
 
 In Habarovsk, a new church was about to be opened, and 
 I received a most cordial invitation to be present at the dedi¬ 
 cation, but was not able to attend. On hearing that I intended 
 to go to Blagovestchensk, they told me they had a church there 
 and begged me to call on their priest. 
 
 The Bishop was not very familiar with the Anglican Church 
 and at first did not recognize my position as a priest, but when 
 I told him of my experiences with the Orthodox Church, and 
 the treatment that had been accorded me, he hastened to offer 
 me the same privileges. 
 
 When we spoke of church ornaments and vestments, he 
 produced a beautiful miter and some very fine vestments. I 
 could see no difference between these and those used by the 
 Orthodox. 
 
 We had no difficulty in turning the conversation into Asso¬ 
 ciation channels. The priest, as I have said, was a member of 
 one of our English classes, and so was frequently in the Asso¬ 
 ciation building. He was perfectly willing to cooperate in any 
 way possible and assured me that the Old Believers were in¬ 
 terested in the aims and objects of the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association. As a practical suggestion, both he and the 
 Bishop wanted the Association to engage a famous orator of 
 their number for religious addresses. On being questioned 
 whether the object of getting this orator was to make it lively 
 for the Orthodox, they smilingly assured me that they pro¬ 
 posed that his efforts be directed against atheism. 
 
 The interview was closed with a promise of another visit, 
 
 40 
 
and the next day, the priest invited me to a special prayer 
 service which I was unable to attend. In establishing this 
 contact with the Old Believers’ bishop, interesting possibilities 
 are opened. When the Association enters upon the real work 
 of establishing itself on firm ground in Russia and Siberia, 
 there will be great difficulties to be met and overcome, yet in 
 contributing to the fuller life of the Old Believers the Young 
 Men’s Christian Association may profit by the lesson of their 
 steadfastness and earnestness in preserving their very exist¬ 
 ence amid almost inconceivable difficulties. 
 
 BLAGOVESTCHENSK 
 
 Blagovestchensk, from its position on the Amur River, and 
 as a center for a vast agricultural region, presents many possi¬ 
 bilities of growth and prosperity. The churches were good, 
 but the uncompleted cathedral was not particularly attractive. 
 The Old Cathedral near the river bank is an ancient landmark. 
 Next to Tomsk, this is the best city in Siberia in my opinion. 
 
 Delays prevented my arrival in time for the Diocesan Con¬ 
 vention, which was a great disappointment to me. The day 
 after I arrived, being the “Feast of the Beheading of St. John 
 the Baptist,” September 11th (August 29th, Old Style), I 
 attended the Liturgy in the cathedral, and the bishop of the 
 diocese, the Right Reverend Eugene, was present and pontifi¬ 
 cated. The church was crowded to the doors. 
 
 Later in the morning I visited the convent with Mr. 
 Kochurga, and we paid our respects to the Mother Superior, 
 and were shown about the convent church and grounds. The 
 buildings of red brick were substantial. The convent, although 
 fairly new, was in former times quite prosperous, but since the 
 Revolution the support had fallen off so materially that it was 
 difficult to carry on the work. The sisters, however, were far 
 from being discouraged. The Mother Superior spoke of plans 
 for the future with confidence. 
 
 Her work did not lie in the direction of the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association; nevertheless she showed real interest 
 and asked many intelligent questions. She felt the convent 
 to be in comparative safety; so much so, that she authorized 
 me to extend to any sisters whom I might meet in my travels 
 who were in need of a refuge, a cordial invitation to come to 
 them without delay. I consider this a proof of confidence in 
 the Young Men’s Christian Association. 
 
 The conversation then turned to the work carried on among 
 women by the churches in America, and so much of it was 
 
 41 
 
new to her, that the remainder of her conversation can best 
 be represented by exclamation points. The internal economy 
 of a convent of the Russian Orthodox Church in revolutionary 
 times would be an interesting study in itself. 
 
 The next day I spent some time in the diocesan book store, 
 where the clergy congregate. The world over, where are you 
 more likely to find the clergy? The pathetically small supply 
 of books, church ornaments, and fittings in this store was a 
 good indication that economic conditions were materially 
 affecting the Russian Orthodox Church. Today, one of the 
 hardest places in which to buy an ikon is Siberia. 
 
 An appointment having been made on my behalf, I went 
 to call on the Right Reverend Eugene at his office in the city, 
 with Mr. Kochurga as my interpreter. While waiting in the 
 anteroom for the Bishop to be free, I listened to the conversa¬ 
 tion of several priests who had suffered much at the hands 
 of the Bolsheviki, and as I heard them recounting their direful 
 experiences, it sounded like a page of early church history. 
 
 I would characterize my reception by Bishop Eugene as 
 enthusiastic. He knew of the Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion and wondered when we would undertake some definite 
 work in Blagovestchensk, and stood ready, he said, to render 
 us every assistance in his power. He begged for books on the 
 Association. 
 
 Our conversation was along the usual lines after this, 
 namely, the Anglican Church, reunion, the Old Believers, and 
 church economics. His time was so limited that we left many 
 topics untouched, but he graciously invited me to visit his 
 monastery outside the city and to be present at the Liturgy 
 on the following Sunday. This, however, I was unable to do. 
 In recalling the personality of the Bishop of Blagovestchensk, 
 my recollection is of a man still young, very kindly, enthusi¬ 
 astic, and modern. 
 
 September 13th proved a very busy day—a trip to China 
 and a call on the collector of customs; a call on a sick Old 
 Believers’ priest; a visit to his church; a visit to the Russian 
 Orthodox Seminary; an inspection of the incomplete cathe¬ 
 dral ; a trip to the Molokan Church; and lastly, a long conver¬ 
 sation with the pastor of the local Baptist congregation. 
 
 In Habarovsk, the Old Believers’ bishop had asked me to 
 call upon their priest and inspect their church. I was very 
 sorry to find him ill when I did so, and so I bothered him but 
 little with questions. Two of the members of the church, 
 
 42 
 
however, opened the church for me and showed me everything, 
 explaining many features in detail, and giving interesting side 
 lights on local church history. I was sorry not to be present 
 at a service in this church, but was fortunate in being able 
 to examine everything about the church and grounds. 
 
 Recalling the connection the senior priest of the Russian 
 Orthodox Church in Habarovsk had with the Blagovestchensk 
 Seminary, I was interested in making a visit to this seminary 
 and inspecting the buildings and grounds. The seminary was 
 not in session and the buildings were guarded by Japanese 
 soldiers. The chapel, located at the top of the building, con¬ 
 tained one or two old ikons of evident value. As one would 
 naturally expect in a theological school, this well-used chapel 
 seemed to be the center of its life. 
 
 The unfinished cathedral, just opposite the seminary, occu¬ 
 pies the commanding site in the city, and it is a shame that it 
 is incomplete, but the faulty construction which has not yet 
 been remedied may be the cause of the delay. From the 
 seminary a good view of the Molokan Church may be obtained. 
 The sect of the Molokans, Milk-drinkers as they are some¬ 
 times called, is exceedingly prosperous in the Blagovestchensk 
 area. Members of this sect own many of the largest buildings 
 in town, control the steamboat lines, and engage in many im¬ 
 portant lines of business. Of course, I could not neglect this 
 opportunity of visiting their church, which is a substantial 
 structure without excessive ornamentation, capable of holding 
 several hundred, and resembled somewhat a Carnegie library 
 building. Inside, it was perfectly plain, with a pulpit or read¬ 
 ing desk at one end and chairs and pews for the worshippers. 
 I had no opportunity of attending any of the services. On this 
 day, Saturday, several of the members were about the church 
 engaged in preparations for Sunday, and from them I was 
 able to gather information that perhaps I would not have 
 gained from a formal interview with the church officials. 
 When I asked if they had any ikons, they vehemently asserted 
 that they never allowed such things in their church buildings. 
 They evidently are whole-hearted pro-testants from the posi¬ 
 tion of the Russian Orthodox Church. Before the Association 
 undertakes a work in Blagovestchensk, it will be necessary to 
 study this interesting sect and to plan an approach accordingly. 
 
 At the Molokan church, I was told of a minister who would 
 be very glad to talk with me on religious questions. I, there¬ 
 fore, called upon him with the idea that he was one of their 
 ministers, and at once began to question him as to the par- 
 
 43 
 
ticular tenets of the sect. He answered my questions carefully 
 and stated the Molokan position with a frankness that at times 
 actually embodied stern criticism, incompatible with the be¬ 
 liefs of a Molokan. For the first time my suspicions were 
 aroused, and I said to him, “How can you hold such beliefs 
 and criticize them so calmly?” He replied with a smile of 
 understanding, “I am the Baptist minister here, not a 
 Molokan.” 
 
 This Baptist minister spoke English accurately, and it was 
 a real pleasure to get his estimate of local religious conditions. 
 He was deeply versed in theology and could express himself 
 with a clearness that was refreshing. It seemed to me a good 
 opportunity to get his valuation of the Russian Orthodox 
 Church and also the local sects. Out of curiosity, I asked 
 him to state the Anglican position as he understood it, and, 
 judging from the keen analysis and just balance which he 
 preserved in presenting my own church position, I have every 
 reason to suppose that he stated the Orthodox and other be¬ 
 liefs with a like accuracy. 
 
 He spoke of his own denomination, the Baptists, and gave 
 me some insight into their problems. I spoke of the Associa¬ 
 tion, but explanations in the face of his wide knowledge of 
 us, were not necessary. It would be interesting to speak of 
 the Baptists and other sects which have been created under 
 the influence of Protestantism in the West, but we must hark 
 back to this report. In passing, however, I might say that 
 imported religious bodies have heretofore been unable to 
 compete with Russian sects, to say nothing of the Russian 
 Orthodox Church. 
 
 HABAROVSK 
 
 My absence from Habarovsk, though brief, was sufficient to 
 make me almost a total stranger to conditions on my return. 
 Things move rapidly in Habarovsk. The Association had been 
 forced by the authorities into a single room and it was inti¬ 
 mated that our presence was no longer desirable. The military 
 masters of the city could not be accused of pro-Americanism. 
 However, these matters have undoubtedly been dealt with in 
 the regular Habarovsk report to the senior national secretary. 
 
 On September 17th, with Secretaries Smith and Donnan 
 and Mr. Valisuk, I made a call on the Old Believers’ Bishop. 
 Secretary Smith had his camera with him and the Bishop put 
 on his vestments and was photographed in various poses, 
 alone, and with a group of us. We did not indulge in any 
 
 44 
 
theological discussion, but enjoyed a friendly visit. The 
 Bishop’s household and several members of the church were 
 introduced and an “entente cordiale” was established. The 
 Old Believers admitted us, apparently, into their inner circle. 
 Such friendliness made the parting difficult. I firmly believe 
 that among these people the Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
 tion numbers true friends and well-wishers. 
 
 VLADIVOSTOK 
 
 The week following my arrival in Vladivostok was spent 
 in and about that city, making preparations for my departure 
 for Japan. At the suggestion of Mr. Phelps, I addressed the 
 secretaries of the Association and their friends on the subject 
 of the Russian Orthodox Church. The talk was about the 
 history and doctrines of the Church, rather than my personal 
 experiences with church officials. I did emphasize the point 
 that to know the Russian Orthodox Church, we must attend 
 her services constantly, and insisted that the duty of every 
 secretary working in Russia is to do so. Whereupon, Execu¬ 
 tive Secretary Hollinger urged those present to accompany 
 me to services, so that difficult points might be explained as 
 they arose. 
 
 HARBIN 
 
 The relation of the local Young Men’s Christian Association 
 to the local Russian Orthodox Church was different in every 
 place I visited and presented its own problem. In Harbin, for 
 instance, the relation between the Association and the Church 
 was friendly at first, but later, misunderstandings had arisen. 
 An experienced secretary, such as Mr. Hoffman, was able to 
 make a number of friendly contacts, but admitted his failure 
 to correct certain misunderstandings. Accordingly, some 
 months before this he had requested help and, at the sugges¬ 
 tion of the senior national secretary, I had planned to stop 
 off on my way home. 
 
 I, therefore, consulted with Secretary Hoffman in detail as 
 to his problems in the city work and how I could best help 
 him. As my interest lay in the direction of the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church and the appeal of the Association to the Russian 
 people, I did not devote any time to the army work the Asso¬ 
 ciation was carrying on under wise leadership. 
 
 October 1st I spent the day with Secretary Hoffman, and 
 in the evening addressed one of his English classes. This 
 
 45 
 
class of Russians was composed of representative business 
 men. After the talk, we had tea and a social time together. 
 The next day the American editor of the Russian News, a man 
 long familiar with Russian life, came to see me, and talked of 
 conditions in the Russian Orthodox Church as he had known 
 them in years past. That same afternoon, he brought the 
 editor of the leading Russian paper for an interview, and 
 assisted the regular Association interpreter. This editor 
 proved to be an exceedingly interesting man. He had been 
 educated for the priesthood in the Russian Orthodox Church, 
 and was a graduate of an important seminary. As a thinking 
 man, whose opinion was of value; as a man trained in 
 theology; as a Russian patriot—we pressed him for definite 
 answers in the light of his training and experience, and he 
 replied candidly. He took a very gloomy view of the church 
 situation, and spoke of the Church as sick and in need of 
 recovery, but offered no constructive criticism. He had but 
 little praise to bestow upon the Church, and seemed to despair 
 of her future, yet when we suggested that she might give 
 place to other Christian bodies, the thought was abhorrent to 
 him. With extreme vehemence he showed his disapproval of 
 such a possibility, and thereby displayed the working of the 
 typical Russian mind. 
 
 I spent the morning of October 3rd making calls with 
 Secretary Hoffman upon several people interested in the work 
 of the Association, and discussed its religious aims with them. 
 The importance of such calls cannot be overestimated. 
 There is no better way to sound opposition than to have the 
 chance to meet the objections and the objector. 
 
 In the afternoon Secretary Hoffman and I, with a good 
 interpreter, called upon Father Patavian, the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox priest connected with the chapel of the commercial school. 
 He received us cordially and we talked definitely about the 
 Young Men’s Christian Association and the problems of local 
 adjustment. It seems that the Association had been mis¬ 
 represented sometime before to the Bishop of Samara, Michael, 
 in whose jurisdiction Harbin is located. In a letter to this 
 priest, which he himself showed me, the Bishop had in effect 
 advised, or rather, ordered him to withdraw his personal sup¬ 
 port from the work of the Young Men’s Christian Association. 
 The existence of such a command had been long suspected by 
 the Association, but this was the first time any tangible evi¬ 
 dence of it had come to light. At the time of my visit to 
 Bishop Michael on August 21st, not then knowing of the 
 
 46 
 
existence of this letter, I did not take this matter up with 
 him; therefore, there was nothing I could say definitely to 
 Father Patavian about the attitude of Bishop Michael toward 
 the Association at the time of the writing of this letter, which 
 was, I believe, about the first of March of this year. However, 
 
 I did tell him that since then many officers of the Association 
 had called on Bishop Michael, and that I myself had had a 
 pleasant interview with him, and I assured him on my per¬ 
 sonal responsibility that undoubtedly the Bishop had changed 
 his attitude. I suggested that he write asking for confirma¬ 
 tion of my statement. 
 
 In further conversation, Secretary Hoffman was able to 
 outline in detail some of his plans for the work of the Young 
 Men’s Christian Association, and Father Patavian from time 
 to time made useful suggestions. After this, Father Patavian 
 and I talked of Russian Orthodox church matters, and I gave 
 him an account of my travels and experiences with church 
 officials. He invited me to be present behind the screen at 
 the chapel of the commercial school the next day. 
 
 Accordingly, on Saturday, accompanied by Secretary Hoff¬ 
 man, I went to the school chapel for Vespers and Matins. I 
 was met at the entrance by Father Patavian and escorted to 
 my place behind the screen. The chapel of the commercial 
 school is one of the brightest, cleanest, newest, and best- 
 lighted of any I visited. The services were well conducted and 
 the large congregation was attentive and devout. At the close 
 of the service as we came down into the nave I bowed to the 
 students, and was presented by Father Patavian to the prin¬ 
 cipal and some of the teachers, but unfortunately there was 
 little time for conversation, as I was obliged to hurry away 
 for the train. This was the last service I attended in Siberia. 
 
 I hope to hear that the relations of the Association to the 
 Russian Orthodox Church in Harbin are sympathetic and 
 cordial, as the prospect seemed so bright when I left. 
 
 PEKIN 
 
 On October 4, 1919, I left Harbin for Pekin, stopping over 
 night at Mukden. After a few days in Pekin, accompanied 
 by Professor Alfred Heinz, of Tsing Hua College, whom I had 
 met in July while he was acting senior secretary of the Asso¬ 
 ciation in Krasnoiarsk, I called on the Russian Orthodox 
 Bishop of Pekin, the Right Reverend Bishop Innocent. As 
 I had no appointment with him, and he happened to be very 
 busy, our talk was necessarily brief. He did tell us something 
 
 47 
 
of his work and we, in turn, acquainted him with Siberian 
 conditions of Church and State. We spoke of the work of the 
 Association on behalf of Russia, and questioned him as to the 
 nature of his work in China. He then introduced us to a 
 Russian priest, Father Demitrius, who took us about the com¬ 
 pound and seemed delighted to be speaking Russian again 
 and hearing news of the homeland. 
 
 We visited all the buildings—the old church, the bishop’s 
 chapel, the flour mill, and the printing presses, and spent a 
 very interesting hour or more in the library, inspecting books, 
 pictures, and vestments. The Russian mission suffered 
 severely at the hands of the Boxers in that rebellion, and there 
 are many interesting relics of those stirring times. The mis¬ 
 sion was not getting any support from Russia and, therefore, 
 was more or less straitened. The printing presses and flour 
 mill apparently supply most of the income. In fact, the prob¬ 
 lems are the typical problems of any mission work. 
 
 SEOUL 
 
 On October 26th, I visited the Russian Orthodox Mission 
 in Seoul, and met the Russian priest, evidently the only one 
 in Korea. The interview was conducted in Russian, Korean, 
 and English. We visited the Russian Church, which the mis¬ 
 sionaries of the English Church frequently attend. 
 
 This mission is in dire straits. Very little active missionary 
 work is carried on. No aid had been received from Russia for 
 years, no means of self-support appeared to have been in¬ 
 augurated, and the actual money needed for the work had 
 come for a year or more from the Anglican Church Mission 
 under the Right Reverend Bishop Trollope. This is a con¬ 
 crete example of the friendly relationship which exists between 
 the Russian Orthodox Church and the communion of which I 
 am a member. 
 
 CONCLUSIONS 
 
 Up to this point, the report has dealt with the details of my 
 mission, and I have made few attempts to view the Russian 
 Orthodox Church as a whole, which is necessary in such a 
 study as this. Before passing on to recommendations of ways 
 and means by which the Young Men’s Christian Association 
 can be of assistance to the Russian Orthodox Church, it is 
 absolutely necessary to take a general view of it. 
 
 The roots of the Russian Orthodox Church lie buried deep 
 in the past. To understand properly the movements in the 
 
 48 
 
Church today and to grasp the principles actuating the leaders 
 of the Church, it is imperative that we know the history of 
 this great and venerable institution. So important is this and 
 so pertinent to any report on the condition of the Russian 
 Orthodox Church today, that one is tempted to sketch in out¬ 
 line the history from its very beginning. This, however, can¬ 
 not be done. It is well to remember that the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church is a lineal descendent of the Church of Constanti¬ 
 nople, and in her presentation of religious truth follows East¬ 
 ern modes of thought which are extremely difficult for West¬ 
 ern minds to grasp. 
 
 Doctrinally, “the Orthodox faith rests on the Seven Great 
 Councils. Every addition or subtraction or alteration in the 
 creeds and the Orthodox confessions of faith is a change in the 
 essence of Christianity and an innovation dangerous and to be 
 rejected.” To quote Birkbeck, one of the greatest of modern 
 students of the Russian Orthodox Church, “in the splendor 
 of her sanctuaries, the solemnity of her ceremonial, and the 
 beauty of her liturgy and divine offices, she stands without 
 a rival in Christendom; while as regards the faith which she 
 holds, it is the same which was delivered to her more than 
 nine centuries ago from an undivided Catholic Church, without 
 alteration, mutilation, or addition of any kind whatever.” 
 
 Doctrinal stability is the proud boast of this historic church. 
 She never has said, “It makes no difference what you believe,” 
 but has insisted upon right belief as the basis of right conduct. 
 A church which has come down from the time of the Apostles 
 in unbroken succession is a shadow of a great rock in a weary 
 land in this our age of apparently unending religious con¬ 
 troversy. 
 
 Orthodoxy is synonymous, in many minds, with stagnation. 
 It is easy to say that the Russian Orthodox Church has not 
 made any progress for generations, but extremely difficult to 
 prove. The greatest living Anglican theologian, Bishop Gore, 
 says, “Progress in Christianity is always reversion to an 
 original and perfect type, not addition to it; it is progress only 
 in the understanding of the Christ.” The Russian Orthodox 
 Church has never given one uncertain sound with reference 
 to the center and core of all Christianity, the divine Son of 
 God, Jesus Christ, and when the treasures of the Church are 
 really unlocked to Western minds, her progress in the under¬ 
 standing of the Christ will be made manifest. 
 
 The Russian Church is a church in which God Almighty is 
 
 49 
 
worshipped. From the beginning of a service to its very end, 
 the keynote is worship. “The Lord is in his holy temple, let 
 all the earth keep silence before him.” This is a lesson that 
 we have been slow to learn in the West. With all the splendor 
 of the Russian services and the intricate movement of the 
 ceremonial, we must never be blinded to the fact that it is all 
 centered in this great teaching, “All things come of Thee, O 
 Lord, and of thine own—of music, of light, of splendor, of 
 devotion—have we given Thee.” 
 
 Those of us who are familiar with liturgical worship recog¬ 
 nize frankly the danger which lurks in the repetition of fa¬ 
 miliar prayers and ceremonial acts. One must be constantly 
 on guard lest the letter kill the spirit. As a writer has said 
 of the Russian Church: “The liturgy and ritual themselves, if 
 regularly used and followed, unconsciously perhaps, and with 
 subtlety, magnified form instead of substance, and made easy 
 the exaltation of ikon worship and the miraculous in religion.” 
 
 On the other hand, neglect of symbolism and ceremony in 
 worship leads to poverty of spirit, entailing great loss to the 
 worshippers. “Symbolism finds the shortest way to the heart.” 
 “Occasion for symbol arises in proportion to the richness of 
 faith, the complexity of religious experience, and the apprehen¬ 
 sion of the mystery of God. . . . The symbol creates its 
 
 own atmosphere. It is able to suggest—it appeals to imagi¬ 
 nation and association.” . . . There is “a power of the 
 
 symbol to unite, to embrace in one atmosphere the whole 
 group with which you desire to deal. . . . That which has 
 to be done in some way, let it be done in a way which is sig¬ 
 nificant of truth. That which has to exist in some form, let 
 its form be expressive rather than meaningless.” These sig¬ 
 nificant words, which appear in a recent article in The Ex¬ 
 pository Times for July, 1920, entitled “The Use of Sign and 
 Symbol in Worship,” by Dr. Wotherspoon, are indicative of a 
 need felt today of a proper valuation of symbolism in worship. 
 
 However, not only does neglect of symbolism and ceremony 
 in worship lead to poverty of spirit, it also leads to individ¬ 
 ualism. The individualistic note has been characteristic of 
 Protestant worship from the beginning. This point is brought 
 out by Dr. Henry Sloane Coffin in “A Day of Social Re¬ 
 building” : 
 
 “Public prayer and praise has been too individualistic, but 
 the day of social litanies, national penitence, and intercessory 
 prayers and praise that seek to connect with God in his pur¬ 
 pose for every aspect of the community’s life has arrived. . . . 
 
 50 
 
I would like to see a church edifice opened for several different 
 kinds of worship on Sunday and throughout the week to meet 
 the various temperaments and tastes of its community. There 
 should be the service of propaganda and of teaching, where the 
 element of devotion is at a minimum; and there should be the 
 devotional service where preaching is omitted or occupies but 
 a brief part of the time. There should be a service with con¬ 
 siderable ritual and symbol and a service of the utmost in¬ 
 formality. The more catholic the individual church, the less 
 need for denominational subdivisions to answer the desires or 
 to fit in with the traditions of particular groups/’ 
 
 The glory of the Russian Orthodox Church is that its wor¬ 
 ship is both symbolic and social, and this is one of its great 
 contributions to Christianity. 
 
 The Russian Orthodox Church is tremendously interested 
 in the problem of the reunion of the churches. In fact, she 
 prays daily for it. The barriers of distance and language which 
 for generations have separated East and West have in a way 
 delayed her contribution to this great issue, but with the 
 changed conditions she has been taking definite steps toward 
 reunion, particularly in the direction of the churches of the 
 Anglican communion. Her long dispute with Rome is not at 
 an end. As a church, she knows very little of the great 
 Protestant churches. “To the Russian Church, Rome and 
 Protestants are regarded as partaking of the same error, viz., 
 the exalting of the individual at the expense of the whole body 
 of Christ, whether that individual be Pope or college pro¬ 
 fessor.” She will always be cautious in her approach to other 
 churches, but I believe she will always be sincere. 
 
 “The Russian Church is sick in body and soul,” as Arch¬ 
 bishop Platon says. She stands in need of drastic reforms. 
 The church officials and the laity recognize this, and are work¬ 
 ing toward this end. I have heard advocated in many an un¬ 
 official conversation, startling measures for church reform. 
 
 Reforms are being brought about. To quote from an article 
 by Alfons Paquet in the Frankfurter Zeitung , on the Russian 
 Church: 
 
 “It may seem parodoxical, in view of the storm of suffering 
 which is at present (1918) shaking the Russian people, to 
 declare from the standpoint of an unaffected bystander, so to 
 speak, that this time of test, too, will pass over and the re¬ 
 ligious life of Russia will only lead to a new, richer develop¬ 
 ment. . . . For ages, the best men of Russia have fought 
 
 for the liberation of the Church from the ban of Czarism and 
 from the prison of its formalistic Byzantine tradition. . . . 
 
 51 
 
The inner reforms of the Church are coming to pass in a tem¬ 
 perate manner which calls to mind Western church forms. 
 They are directed toward the abolition of extremely long 
 masses . . . toward the introduction of congregational 
 
 singing, toward an active cooperation of the laymen in the 
 administration of the congregation, and among other things, 
 by the growing participation of the women in problems of 
 social welfare.” 
 
 The social message of Christianity has not received its 
 modern emphasis in the Russian Orthodox Church. A state 
 church apparently never leads in social reform. However, the 
 social message is not the entire content of Christianity, though 
 practical Christianity is the watchword of today. The ten¬ 
 dency of our time to do rather than to be calls for rebuke. 
 Activity in itself is not Christian character. 
 
 When the Russian Orthodox Church actively engages in 
 efforts of social amelioration, keeping clearly in mind the 
 above distinction, great good is bound to result. What possi¬ 
 bilities for cooperation with the Russian Church along social 
 lines are open for the Young Men’s Christian Association! 
 
 The Church has alienated thousands and her sins of omission 
 and commission hang about her neck as did the albatross 
 about the neck of the Ancient Mariner. However, as has been 
 said, “the Church is indestructible and its influence inex¬ 
 tinguishable in Russia. It can be made an agency to reach 
 millions for good, who can in no other way be reached. It 
 needs sympathy and it needs aid.” 
 
 The Right Reverend Henry St. George Tucker, Bishop of 
 Kyoto, in 1918 was one of the first three commissioners of the 
 American Red Cross to enter Siberia from the east by way 
 of Vladivostok. Although he had no official connection what¬ 
 soever with either the Russian Orthodox Church or the Young 
 Men’s Christian Association, he evidently availed himself of 
 opportunities to attend the church services, and to estimate 
 the Church’s hold upon the people and to consider ways in 
 which she could be helped. 
 
 His statement, which follows, corroborates my own im¬ 
 pressions : 
 
 “We had many opportunities of attending the services of 
 the Russian Church. We found that the people in Siberia 
 whom we met seemed to have very little regard for the Church 
 as a state institution and for its officials, or even the clergy 
 in their official status; nevertheless the services were com¬ 
 paratively well attended. What surprised us most was that 
 
 52 
 
we often found more men than women in the congregation. 
 While there seems to be great dissatisfaction in Russia with 
 the way in which the church affairs have been managed and 
 while the revolutionary movement of the past few years has 
 been accompanied by quite a widespread revolt against Chris¬ 
 tianity, yet among the mass of people there is still a great 
 deal of deep religious feeling which finds satisfaction in the 
 services of the Church; and while it is greatly in need of re¬ 
 form, in some directions the Russian Church has a splendid 
 opportunity for service in the work of reconstruction in 
 Russia. One gathers that for success in this work it is indis¬ 
 pensable that the Russian Church should have the help and 
 sympathy of the other great churches of Christendom, but 
 that this help to be effective should be given through the 
 Russian Church and not in the form of independent religious 
 propaganda.” 
 
 Contact with the Old Believers and various sects in Russia 
 leads us to believe that the hope for the unification of Russia 
 lies not with them but with her national Church, however 
 much we admit the necessity for reform in the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church. Naturally, our Western modes of thought cause 
 us to feel a deeper sympathy for some of these sects than for 
 the national Church, because we are so familiar with the terms 
 which they employ. A deeper examination of their tenets, 
 however, shows but a superficial resemblance. 
 
 The forces at work in Russia today are diabolical. When 
 the Russian loses his religion, he loses his all. Every social 
 safeguard falls, and to rend and tear, to kill and devour, be¬ 
 comes his sole object. 
 
 To say that the Church has no hold on Russia and Siberia 
 today is not true. To prevent desecration and defilement the 
 Church has resisted to death in many localities, and the deeds 
 of these heroic priests and lay people will in time be known 
 to the world. At present, they are hid from sight. Although 
 times are evil in Siberia and Russia, we must not overlook the 
 fact that, amid all the turmoil and distress that has come upon 
 this distracted people, the Russian Orthodox Church has con¬ 
 sciously and unconsciously a hold upon the hearts and imagi¬ 
 nation of the people. It is true that “the Russian Church is 
 the one element that can be safely inherited from the Russian 
 past and remodeled and made available for the Russian 
 future.” “The Orthodox Church has the power to give co¬ 
 hesion to Russia. It is the one hope of Russia.” 
 
 Paradoxical as it may seem, the best way at present to 
 help Russia as a nation is to leave her alone. There was a 
 
 53 
 
time when assistance could have been rendered and perhaps 
 some of the recent horrors prevented, but it seems to be the 
 consensus of opinion of those who have had experience in 
 Russia and Siberia that now the Russian people must work 
 out their own salvation. It is hard to conceive that a nation 
 such as Russia could be brought so low. It has always been 
 a land of mystery; shut off by language barriers from the rest 
 of Europe, Russia has “dwelt apart.” “Poor Russia! Poor 
 Russia!” is a cry I have heard from one end of Siberia to the 
 other—a cry that is wrung from men’s hearts, not only as they 
 look back over the past, but also as they look into the future. 
 What a slogan! 
 
 Again I reiterate my profound conviction that the only hope 
 of Russia lies in her Church. The practical issue we must con¬ 
 sider is this: When the time is ripe, how can the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association render the greatest possible assistance 
 to the Church? 
 
 In this connection, we need to remind ourselves of the rela¬ 
 tion the Association should hold to the Church. 
 
 In “The Association Secretaryship” (by Mr. C. K. Ober), 
 the relation of the Young Men’s Christian Association to the 
 Church is expressed in these words: 
 
 “The Association is constitutionally and fundamentally loyal 
 to the Church. Evidently this loyalty should express itself not 
 merely in definition, but in service. The relationship, there¬ 
 fore, of the Association Secretary to the churches of his com¬ 
 munity should be that of a servant. . This, as a rule, is true to 
 Association practice, and the principle is being increasingly 
 worked out in programs of cooperative work in which the 
 Association Secretaries help Church, Sunday school and 
 Young People’s Society to solve the problems of their own 
 young men and boys in their own organization and work. 
 The Association, in the working out of such a program, be¬ 
 comes the laboratory of the Church and the results of. experi¬ 
 mentation and achievement by Association specialists in work 
 with young men and boys becomes the property of the Church 
 so far as it can appropriate them.” 
 
 General Order No. 10, Sec. 7, issued in March, 1919, by the 
 senior national secretary for Russia, outlined the relation of 
 the Young Men’s Christian Association to ecclesiastical or¬ 
 ganizations in these words: 
 
 “We are in Russia to promote the spiritual life among 
 young men and boys in cordial cooperation with the spiritual 
 forces in the Russian Orthodox Church and other churches. 
 
 54 
 
We cannot make alliances with the ecclesiastical organiza¬ 
 tion, but are in accord with all spiritual minded Christians.” 
 
 General Order No. 11, Sec. 2, Paragraph B reads as follows: 
 
 “To promote the development of the permanent Russian 
 Young Men’s Christian Association movement by wise dem¬ 
 onstration of the Association principles and methods, by mak¬ 
 ing all possible points of contact with public-spirited leaders, 
 by cultivating sympathetically the leaders of the Orthodox 
 Church, and by enlisting Russian leaders for the work of the 
 Association itself.” 
 
 In this report I have dealt, in at least two particulars, with 
 my attempts, as the representative of the senior national sec¬ 
 retary for Russia, to carry out the spirit and purport of his 
 General Orders, i. e., “the making of all possible points of 
 contact with spiritual leaders” and “by cultivating sympatheti¬ 
 cally the leaders of the Orthodox Church.” 
 
 Not only has the Russian Orthodox Church been thus 
 officially approached, but also individual secretaries in their 
 particular fields have in many cases traveled far along the 
 royal road of sympathy. A specific instance of this is well 
 worth recording. The senior secretary of the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association at Novo-Nikolaevth one cold winter 
 day joined himself to a funeral procession, making its way 
 over the deep snow to a distant cemetery. Aside from the 
 priest and the immediate family, he was the only mourner. 
 The people were absolutely unknown to him. On his way 
 back, he had some conversation with the priest, who wondered 
 why this American in a foreign uniform would take part in 
 the funeral of an unknown. A point of contact was thus estab¬ 
 lished with a local priest. 
 
 Later on, the daughter of this priest became very ill. The 
 secretary visited the home daily, taking with him medicine, 
 tinned supplies, and honey, and continued to assist this house¬ 
 hold until the death of the girl. He then aided the family in 
 their need, photographed the remains—thus complying with a 
 Russian burial custom—was present at the funeral, and accom¬ 
 panied the body to the cemetery. At the funeral feast he 
 was given the place of honor at the able, and when I met this 
 priest, his attitude toward the personnel of the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association was one of real gratitude and deep 
 friendliness. 
 
 This illustration seems as though it were taken from a 
 Sunday school book of the last generation but, as a matter 
 of fact, it is the contribution of one Young Men’s Christian 
 
 55 
 
Association secretary to the right understanding of all church 
 approach. We shall forfeit the confidence of the Russian 
 Orthodox Church unless our official attitude of sympathy is 
 so interpreted by each individual who shall work in Russia 
 and Siberia. 
 
 As a result of the opportunity given me for “cultivating 
 sympathetically the leaders of the Orthodox Church,” I re¬ 
 spectfully submit a few recommendations of ways and means 
 by which, in my judgment, the Association can carry out this 
 official program of “cordial cooperation with the spiritual 
 forces in the Russian Orthodox Church.” 
 
 I. STUDY OF THE SERVICES OF THE RUSSIAN 
 
 ORTHODOX CHURCH 
 
 The average Association secretary knows practically noth¬ 
 ing about the great liturgical churches of Christendom, par¬ 
 ticularly the Russian Orthodox Church. 
 
 During my mission in Siberia, I found that with few ex¬ 
 ceptions the secretaries were not regular in their attendance 
 at worship, and this is a fact to be deplored. Because the 
 services cannot be followed and thoroughly understood at 
 the second or third trial is not sufficient excuse for secretaries 
 officially committed to approach the Russian Church and to 
 try to help her “in the solution of her problem,” to neglect 
 attendance at the church services. 
 
 Language barriers are no excuse. Not everyone can get 
 a thorough knowledge of church Slavonic over night, but it 
 is surprising how quickly one becomes familiar with it in 
 church services. It is not the language of Russian daily life, 
 but the lives of the people are so colored and influenced by 
 the Church—household customs in many cases being prac¬ 
 tically church ceremonies transferred to the home—that the 
 language is interpenetrated with church phraseology. One 
 must even go to church to learn how to swear. 
 
 However, the church services have been translated into 
 English. The best book of which I have any knowledge is 
 the “Service Book of The Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic 
 (Greco-Russian) Church,” compiled, translated, and arranged 
 by Isabel Florence Hapgood. Every Young Men’s Christian 
 Association secretary in Russia should possess this book, and 
 be familiar with it from cover to cover. A second edition is 
 now being issued by Association Press. 
 
 To those who are unacquainted with the principles of litur¬ 
 gical worship, the Russian ceremonial is decidedly compli- 
 
 56 
 
cated, but there are certain fundamental principles upon which 
 all liturgical worship rests. When these are analyzed, and 
 their component elements grasped, it is seen that they form 
 parts of a perfect whole which is the aim of every liturgical 
 service. Without making such analysis and study, few are 
 capable of appreciating the spiritual value of a service in the 
 Orthodox Church, but after such a study of underlying prin¬ 
 ciples and repeated attendance at the services a new light on 
 doctrine and practice is gained. 
 
 Books on liturgies should be collected by the Young Men’s 
 Christian Association, and made available for the use of sec¬ 
 retaries. The Association is bound to have men who will be 
 interested in this branch of study. They should be given 
 every encouragement. If the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation can interpret the Russian Orthodox Church to the 
 average American at home, the indirect effect will be a more 
 sympathetic attitude and a better approach to other liturgical 
 churches. There are great possibilities in this. 
 
 Before secretaries are despatched to Russia, it might be 
 well for them to attend Russian Orthodox services in some 
 church, for instance in the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in New 
 York City. If they show any ability whatsoever to adjust 
 themselves to such services, and to profit by them, they will 
 certainly be of more use in their work in Russia, and any 
 preconceived notions concerning the Russian Orthodox 
 Church can thus be dealt with before the secretary is sent 
 to the field. 
 
 The duty, therefore, of every Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation secretary for Russia and Siberia should be to make a 
 study of the services of the Russian Orthodox Church, and 
 to apply and appropriate their spiritual values by constant 
 attendance upon divine worship. 
 
 II. COMPILATION OF A HANDBOOK 
 
 A working knowledge of the Russian Orthodox Church 
 would presuppose acquaintance with Russian church history 
 and customs. The proper books for such a study are hard 
 to obtain and one would need to dig through a mass of ex¬ 
 traneous matter to come upon points pertaining directly to 
 the subject. Therefore, I recommend that the Association 
 compile a small handbook containing an epitome of Russian 
 church history, with specific directions for conduct at serv¬ 
 ices, as well as notes on the Old Believers’ Church and the 
 
 57 
 
various Russian sects with which the Association will sooner 
 or later come into contact. 
 
 III. RELIGIOUS PROGRAMS 
 
 1. In planning the Association’s religious programs, a 
 friendly approach to the general and local clergy should al¬ 
 ways be made and their services enlisted. They are usually 
 very anxious to cooperate when they really know what the 
 Association proposes doing, although the lack of knowledge 
 often makes them hesitate to offer their services. 
 
 2. In planning religious services, the ecclesiastical year 
 must always be kept in mind. 
 
 3. Christian education is one of the fundamental needs of 
 Russia today. The customary Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation Bible class is a most useful and helpful way of meeting 
 this need, but it must be remembered that it is not the only 
 way in which religion may be taught. Catechetical instruc¬ 
 tion, talks on church symbolism, explanations of church doc¬ 
 trine, definite moral instruction, for instance, are good ways 
 to reach the Russian mind and should be used. 
 
 4. The whole world of modern homiletical aids, Sunday 
 school lesson systems, and guild and society handbooks, with 
 which we are so familiar, could be readily adapted for the new 
 conditions which are coming in Russia. In these particular 
 fields, no organization could better create or more readily 
 supply the demand than the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation. 
 
 5. The establishment of diocesan, and later on parochial, 
 libraries has been one means by which the Church in various 
 countries has met this need for Christian education. Every 
 encouragement, therefore, should be given the Russian Ortho¬ 
 dox Church through its organization to establish such 
 libraries. The Association should cooperate definitely by issu¬ 
 ing bulletins of educational and religious books, by direct gifts 
 of books and papers, and by translating into Russian standard 
 and current theological works. 
 
 6. The Russian Orthodox Church is a great Bible-reading 
 church. The Church in times past has issued Bibles, por¬ 
 tions of Scripture, books of devotion, and instructive litera¬ 
 ture, but, owing to the high cost of paper and the difficulty 
 of printing, the supply of such books has ceased. The price 
 of a New Testament has risen beyond the means of even the 
 well-to-do, and even those who can pay the price cannot se- 
 
 58 
 
cure the books. Naturally, as a result, Bible reading has 
 fallen off. It is true that the Young Men’s Christian Asso¬ 
 ciation issued the four gospels, with the approbation of the 
 Russian Orthodox Church, but that edition is long since ex¬ 
 hausted. To meet definite appeals for Bibles is one of the 
 great doors of opportunity open to the Association. 
 
 In order to distribute Bibles most effectively in Russia, I 
 heartily urge the Association to act through the church or¬ 
 ganization. If each bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church 
 were requested to make an estimate of the number of Bibles 
 he could distribute in his diocese, and his need were supplied, 
 the Association could be sure of reaching a vast number of 
 those who earnestly desire the Word of God. An extra 
 supply should be placed at the disposal of the Church for her 
 missionary work. The needs of the Old Believers and the 
 various sects could also be supplied through their organiza¬ 
 tions. All these schemes, however, do not preclude the neces¬ 
 sity of the distribution of the Bible with a personal message 
 by individual secretaries to those out of touch with all forms 
 of organized Christianity. 
 
 IV. USE OF THE BUILDING 
 
 1. Ikons properly placed in the Young Men’s Christian 
 Association buildings are essential. 
 
 2. The opening of the Association buildings for prayer 
 services conducted by the Russian Orthodox Church is neces¬ 
 sary to our work. 
 
 3. To meet the needs of the more enlightened, meetings for 
 discussion on various religious topics should be held. How¬ 
 ever, if ill-considered attacks on the Russian Orthodox posi¬ 
 tion be countenanced in these discussions, instead of “ap¬ 
 proaching the Russian Church sympathetically,” the Associa¬ 
 tion will directly antagonize it. 
 
 4. The use of the stereopticon, moving pictures, and 
 pageants for the presentation of religious truth is most im¬ 
 portant. 
 
 V. INFORMATION 
 
 The Russian church officials and clergy whom I met in 
 Siberia, with rare exceptions, know very little about the Young 
 Men’s Christian Association and its threefold appeal to man— 
 body, soul, and spirit. Time and time again I was asked for 
 literature on the subject—for books, papers, and magazines. 
 
 59 
 
There should be wide distribution of Association material, 
 with the aim of placing literature in the hands of every 
 bishop, priest, deacon, and intelligent layman in the Russian 
 communion. 
 
 Nothing will come of the best laid religious plans unless 
 they are backed by the earnest, wholehearted interest, energy, 
 and prayers of the secretaries in charge of the local Associa¬ 
 tions. As has been said, “the misfortune of us all is that we 
 know so little, even nothing about one another, about the soul, 
 the life, the sufferings, the habits, the aspirations of one an¬ 
 other.” To establish the right relation between the Russian 
 Orthodox Church and the Young Men’s Christian Association, 
 patience and knowledge are the foundations on which we must 
 build. 
 
 A beginning has been made in the general direction of all 
 these recommendations. To be sure, but little has been ac¬ 
 complished so far, and there is no likelihood that active work 
 on a large scale can be begun for some time. However, far- 
 reaching plans may be laid, and when the Association is free 
 to enter Russia and begin actual work, much can be expected. 
 There certainly is a place for the organization in Russia. We 
 are needed. We can be of great help to the Russian Orthodox 
 Church. The Russian Orthodox Church can be of great help 
 to us. With mutual respect and hearty cooperation, each in 
 its own sphere can do much for “Poor Russia.” 
 
 60