A Reflection on Sts. Peter and Paul
The historic Lutheran church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Yekaterinburg, Russia, built in 1874 and destroyed by the communists in 1936
By Vsevolod Lytkin
“With a priest or kulak foe —
Here’s the chat we’re keeping:
Drive a bayonet right into
The bloodsucker's fat belly!”
— Demyan Bedny
I have always wondered how a human could write such a "poem." But this is a classic of communist poetry. We were forced to read these verses when in school. And, you know, I think the biggest distress is that this isn't some distant past. I'm amazed that so many people in this world still love Communism. During the time of their leader, Vladimir Lenin, 360,000 priests, monks, and nuns were killed. Can you even imagine that? And God only knows how many laypeople were killed afterwards. Millions. Tens of millions. And countless beautiful church buildings were destroyed in our country.
“One of you, by brutal cross,
Was joined unto the Master’s side;
The other, through the sword’s red loss,
Was lifted to God’s Kingdom wide.”
These are the words from the hymn for the Feast of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. They were great men! They had much in common, and many differences. They died in different ways and at different times, but they gave their lives for their faith in Christ, the faith they preached to Jews and Gentiles. The faith they carried through poverty and hunger, beatings and mockery. Thousands of kilometers of travels, through a hostile pagan world.
The world has changed greatly since then; the world has become “Christianized.” The Church has reached the ends of the earth. The holy apostles became famous—cities and countless church buildings were named after them. They will not be forgotten, they will be remembered—how many people would dream of such posthumous glory!
But this is not what they dreamed of. They dreamed of the Gospel reaching the ends of the earth, that people in the east and west, north and south, would hear of Jesus Christ and believe and be saved. For this reason, the apostles went throughout the world, establishing local Churches and ordaining ministers for them—so that the salvific Gospel would be proclaimed. For this, the apostles gave their lives.
“Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I say to you, you are Peter, and on this stone I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against her” (Mt 16:16-18).
So, blessed are you, Simon, who became Peter, for you did not follow men, leaving boats and nets, but followed God. God will be with you, and despite all your mistakes, He will lead you and those who hear your preaching to eternal bliss.
Blessed are you, Saul, who became Paul, for it was not men who revealed the truth about Jesus to you, but the Lord Himself appeared to you on the road to Damascus and revealed that Christ is the true Son of the Living God.
Christ builds His Church. And therefore, the gates of hell will not prevail against her. No matter how much the enemies fight, no matter how much blood the martyrs shed for the faith, hundreds rise up instead of dozens of the faithful, thousands instead of hundreds.
Peter and Paul became famous. Someone said that “we could study geography by their names.” And we honor them for their witness, for preaching the Gospel, for the fact that without them, we would not be in the Kingdom of God.
They did not care about glory, they did not boast of their victories, they were not "exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations" (2 Cor. 12:7), but they won the whole world for Christ. One of them was crucified, the other beheaded. They died for Christ, and therefore they live forever.
Because church buildings can be destroyed, even the largest and most sturdy. And the fragile temples of human lives can be easily destroyed too. This has often happened, and—who knows?—perhaps it will happen again. But the Church cannot be destroyed. Neither death, nor the devil, nor the terrifying gates of hell will prevail against her. Because the stones in this Church are Christ's faithful apostles, because the Church's one foundation is Christ, the Son of the living God.
Our current chapel, which was consecrated exactly twenty years ago, on June 29, 2006, and the people of the restored parish of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Yekaterinburg.