On November 2, 1995, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg Valdoga John (Snitchev), the spiritual leader of the Orthodox-nationalist movement, All-Russian preacher, thinker and Christian writer, doctor of church history, lay in the Lord. Snichev Ivan Matveyevich was born in a village. Novaya Mayachaka, Kherson region, on October 9, 1927, in a peasant family. He came to God at the age of 16. It happened on August 1, 1943, on the day of the memory of the holy Seraphim of Sarov and on the eve of the feast of Elijah the prophet. That evening, Ivan Snichev came to the dance floor to see how others were relaxing. And suddenly something unusual happened: "It was as if a veil was rolled from my eyes - from left to right," the bishop said later, "and in the pictures of the dancers I did not see people, but demons with grimacing faces, from which came a stench and chilling, hellish cold." When the vision ended, the future pastor fled the dance floor in fear. He ran with faith in God and Vladyka tirelessly reminded that Russianness is not a national concept, but a religious one, that Russia is strong only in the Orthodox faith, and without it, our homeland will face destruction and final destruction. "Do we remember, do we know what it means to be Russian? What is needed for this? Is it enough to make the appropriate entry in your passport or is something else required? If required, what exactly? Answering these questions means finding a foothold in the restoration of religious-national self-awareness, coming to one's senses after decades of suicidal and intolerable behavior. Man's duty, man's goal, first of all, we must restore to people their historical memory only by remembering "where did the Russian land come from", from where, in what land the fertile roots that nourished the people's life for ten centuries were strengthened, we can answer the questions correctly, without answering this path, but we cannot continue this path as a reservoir of living faith and moral purity.

On November 2, 1995, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg Valdoga John (Snitchev), the spiritual leader of the Orthodox-nationalist movement, All-Russian preacher, thinker and Christian writer, doctor of church history, lay in the Lord. Snichev Ivan Matveyevich was born in a village. Novaya Mayachaka, Kherson region, on October 9, 1927, in a peasant family. He came to God at the age of 16. It happened on August 1, 1943, on the day of the memory of the holy Seraphim of Sarov and on the eve of the feast of Elijah the prophet. That evening, Ivan Snichev came to the dance floor to see how others were relaxing. And suddenly something unusual happened: "It was as if a veil was rolled from my eyes - from left to right," the bishop said later, "and in the pictures of the dancers I did not see people, but demons with grimacing faces, from which came a stench and chilling, hellish cold." When the vision ended, the future pastor fled the dance floor in fear. He ran with faith in God and Vladyka tirelessly reminded that Russianness is not a national concept, but a religious one, that Russia is strong only in the Orthodox faith, and without it, our homeland will face destruction and final destruction. "Do we remember, do we know what it means to be Russian? What is needed for this? Is it enough to make the appropriate entry in your passport or is something else required? If required, what exactly? Answering these questions means finding a foothold in the restoration of religious-national self-awareness, coming to one's senses after decades of suicidal and intolerable behavior. Man's duty, man's goal, first of all, we must restore to people their historical memory only by remembering "where did the Russian land come from", from where, in what land the fertile roots that nourished the people's life for ten centuries were strengthened, we can answer the questions correctly, without answering this path, but we cannot continue this path as a reservoir of living faith and moral purity.