Abbot Andrey Afanasyev. Serdobsky diocese

Now the late father Andrey Afanasyev was the abbot of the Kazan Alekseevo-Sergievskaya desert in the village of Sazanye, which is located in the Serdobsky district of the Penza region. He was born in Serdobsk on September 6, 1974. In the world he was called Alexander. He studied at the secondary school No. 1 from 1980 to 1988 and, after graduating from eight classes, went on to get an education in Serdobsk Agricultural Technical School, where he studied for a total of four years, until 1992. Then he was called to serve in the army, where he gave His civic duty from 1993 to 1995.

Ascent to the ministry in the church

Returning from the army again to his hometown of Serdobsk, he chose the priest's way and started obeying the reader of the left choir, the chorister in the right choir, the altar-bearer and guardian of the Michael-Archangel Cathedral. These were his first steps to the priestly ministry in the temple. And then he needed to study again, and in 1997, two years after the army, Afanasiev Andrey went to study at the Theological Seminary in Saratov.

In the summer of August 1, 1998, he was ordained deacon, and the next day he received a priest's order. In 2000, on December 12, Afanasyev took a monastic vows in the Tikhvin Monastery with the name Andrei in honor of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called. Afanasyev Andrey was responsible for working with young people. From 2000 to 2005 he became a full-time clergyman of the Michael-Archangel Cathedral, then - a teacher of the Sunday School and the head of the program "Blagovest" on local television.

Serdobsky diocese: hegumen Andrey Afanasyev

In 2005, he received the post of rector of the Kazan Alexeevo-Sergievskaya desert. In 2009 he was appointed dean of the monasteries of the Penza diocese. In 2013, he was appointed Secretary of the Office of the Serdobskoye Diocese. After completing his studies at the Moscow Theological Academy in 2016, he planned to continue his spiritual achievements, but at dawn on August 15, 2016 Afanasiev Andrei reposed before the Lord. He was young and full of energy, because he was only 41 years old, but the ways of the Lord are inscrutable, so we must hope that the hegumen fulfilled his appointment on this earth, so soon he died.

During all the years of his priestly service, the hegumen Andrey Afanasyev became a real spiritual father and mentor for his flock. After all, the most important result of his hegumen work was the revival of the Kazan Alexiev-Sergievsky monastery in the village of Sazanje, where streams of pilgrims now flow.

The funeral of the abbot Andrei Afanasyev

On August 15, early in the morning on Monday in the village of Sazanye, Serdobsky district, on the descent near the holy source of the monastery monastery, the body of Father Andrei's abbot was found. At 6 o'clock in the morning the report about this mournful incident was received by the local police station. Abbot Andrei Afanasyev died a natural death, since there were no signs of violence on his body. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Penza region.

On August 16, in the village of Sazanye in the Kazan Alexeevo-Sergievskaya desert, the people and the whole spiritual brotherhood of the monastery bid farewell to the soon-to-be hegumen Andrew. In the Kazan temple of the desert the funeral Liturgy for the abbot was conducted, which was led and conducted by the bishop Serdobsky and Spassky Mitrofan together with the clergymen of the Serdobsky diocese. After the Liturgy, the commission of the funeral of the newly-departed Andrew was performed. The funeral was attended by high-ranking guests, representatives of local authorities, Cossacks, law enforcement agencies, the education department and many other people.

Afterword

After the burial service of the abbot Andrew was buried behind the altar of the Kazan temple. To say goodbye to their departed pastor, a large number of parishioners gathered, among whom was the famous actor Andrei Sokolov, who, with tears in his eyes, remembered his spiritual father Andrew, who literally lost his whole family in one year, so his heart failed. The actor said that once they shot a film near the monastery, and then after talking with the abbot almost all the crew believed.

Afanasyev Andrew left in the hearts of people a bright image of the hegumen of the monastery, an active and very life-loving person who will forever remain in the memory of the parishioners and in the newly recreated monastery.