Nicholas Probatov

Holy Hieromartyr Nicholas Probatov was a priest in the village of Aglomazovo, in the Tambov province, and was shot in 1918 by a punitive band, together with twelve other persons of the village.

His life

He was born in 1874 in the village of Ignatyevo, near the town of Kadom, in the Tambov province, the youngest son of the village priest, Alexander Nikolaevich Probatov, and Elikonida. He studied at the school in Kasimov and at the Tambov seminary, in great want, as his letters to his brother, the archpriest Basil, show: at times his clothes were so worn that his schoolmates laughed at him. After the seminary he married Varvara Algebraistova, youngest daughter of the priest of Temirevo, and, by the custom of the time, they made a wedding pilgrimage to the Sarov Monastery. In 1899 he was ordained priest and named second priest at the church in Temirevo, but he wished to serve alone, and in 1906 he received the parish of Aglomazovo, with a wooden church of the Epiphany built in 1779. In 1910 he renewed the decayed iconostasis and, by his labours, a fine choir was formed. Before the Liturgy he prayed long and earnestly, served with inspiration and reverence, and said of the service: "I have a corner of paradise in the altar." The village had a hundred and fifty houses and over a thousand parishioners, and he built a spacious wooden building for a parish school where two hundred children could study. He was a gifted preacher and taught religion at the school. The family lived in poverty, but he took no payment for services and always had only two pairs of shoes, one for winter and one for summer.

At the beginning of the First World War, Bishop Cyril of Tambov asked the clergy to go as priests into the active army. Few answered. Father Nicholas was ashamed at what the others said and, though he had three children, the eldest fourteen and the young ones, a son and a daughter, a year old, he went as regimental priest to the First Bakhmut Regiment, fighting the Austrians. At the front he saw how little faith was left among people.

The killing

In 1918, after Father Nicholas blessed the peasants to rise against Soviet power ("I bless you to go to the struggle against the persecutors of the Church of Christ"), the peasants, armed with axes and pitchforks, set out for the district town, twenty-⁠five versts away. On the way the resolve of many melted and they went home; some ran into town to warn the Bolsheviks. When the others drew near, they were hit by the fire of a machine gun in the belfry and the crowd scattered. Father Nicholas, opening the Apostle at random, read: "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able", and grew calm, entrusting his life to God's will. The peasants told him: "Flee, father, they will kill you." "I have never fled and I will not flee now." The household left, only the eldest son, Alexander, stayed. Seeing the punitive band from afar, he said, shaking his head: "The Roman legions are coming."

The punitive band settled in a large brick house, and all the arrested were taken to the cellar; the lists were drawn up by the village teacher, an unbeliever who disliked the church and the priest. The arrested were interrogated with beatings and mockery. Father Nicholas was beaten on the soles of his feet with rods to make him dance: "I have never danced and I will not dance before death." He had served his last Liturgy before the arrest on the feast of the Kazan Icon. The executioners mocked him: "Zealous protectress. You prayed to her, why does she not protect you?" He answered: "Christ suffered without sin, and we suffer for our sins." Of the women, the commander left only Agafia, alone in the world, for whom no one could plead. In the evening, after all had confessed, eighteen people were taken from the cellar to be shot. Father Nicholas said: "Lord, forgive them, for they know not what they do." A volley rang out. Though it had grown quite dark, he rose with raised hands and went on praying aloud: "It is truly meet to bless thee, O Theotokos..." and was killed by the second volley. Of eighteen, thirteen were killed, the others crawled by night to nearby houses and were hidden, and from them the details are known. Those killed were the church warden Kosma Egorovich, the peasants Victor Krasnov, Naum and Philip (father and son), John, Paul, Andrei, Paul, Basil, Alexei, John and Agafia.

The next morning the peasants came with a cart to take the dead, with the priest's son Alexander. The sand was soaked with blood, and Alexander took the top layer and put it on the cart. The priest's body was stiff, with the hands raised at the last prayer, the fingers held for blessing. As it was carried through the village, the peasants looked from their windows and said: "The father blesses us even dead." The matushka returned home the same day and asked permission to bury him by the church. "What? A dog's death for a dog; he must be taken to the dump. Be thankful that we let you bury him in the cemetery", the punitive men answered. To bury him came priests of the neighbouring parishes, Father Paul Maltsev of Usady and Father Maxim of Staroye Berezovo; Father Paul had been his friend and they had agreed beforehand that if one was killed, the other would come to bury him. The funeral was held in his house, with the windows covered with black cloth so that the punitive men might not see, and the burial in the dead of night.

In August 2000 the Jubilee Council of Bishops numbered him among the holy new martyrs and confessors. The church of the Epiphany in Aglomazovo was destroyed under Soviet rule; in 1953 its demolition was decided, and in May 2012 the foundation of a new church dedicated to Saint Nicholas Probatov was laid; the church was built.

He is remembered on 11 November, on 23 June in the Synaxis of the Saints of Ryazan, and on 7 February (a movable day) in the Synaxis of the New Martyrs and Confessors, in the new style.