The Moscow Art Theater named after Gorky returned the relics and icons from the prayer room to the St. Petersburg church, opened on the basis of a private museum. The owner of the museum, Grigory Gershkovich, told on what conditions the shrines got into the theater, and criticized the general director of the Moscow Art Theater Vladimir Kekhman for the "media hype." The General Director of the Gorky Moscow Art Theater Vladimir Kekhman announced the return of the ark with holy relics and two icons to the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in St. Petersburg, which is part of the Temple complex in honor of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos at the non-state St. Petersburg Art Museum.

“These icons belong to the St. Petersburg Art Museum, on the basis of which, with the blessing of the Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Varsonuphius, the Intercession Church complex, consisting of four churches, was opened. The first place where the museum donated these shrines was the Temple in the name of the icon of the Mother of God "Three Joys", - said the church's church keeper and owner of the museum Grigory Gershkovich.

- In approximately the same way, the shrines got to the Moscow Art Theater: the management of the theater approached us, which for several years wanted to create either a prayer room, or a chapel, or a house church. Everything depended on what the Moscow diocese would bless them and the Ministry of Culture would allow, since this is a state institution located in a state-owned building. ”

As Gershkovich added, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, a priest from the Moscow Patriarchate, who was supposed to work with the Moscow Art Theater, died. As a result, the initiators of the creation of the prayer house were left without a representative of the priesthood and were looking for him.

“When the theater was preparing this story, there was a group of people who really wanted to be able to pray somewhere on the territory, to read prayers to St. Dmitry of Rostov. They wanted that by the time the priest comes, they already have some kind of assembled team and a place for meetings and prayers. While all this disorder was going on, the theater asked us to help with some relics and, if possible, give a piece of the relics of Demetrius of Rostov, - said Gershkovich.

- We agreed that the shrines should be in the theater from two weeks to a month. This does not mean that we would not have given others - then other shrines had to arrive, also stay from two weeks to a month, return and exchange for new ones. If I may put it that way, on a rotational basis. ”

However, according to him, the Moscow Art Theater was in no hurry to return the relics - "they either went somewhere, then some premieres, then the leadership is changing." First, under the artistic director Eduard Boyakov, and then under Kekhman, the relics and icons stayed in the theater for about a year.

“We hoped that they would coordinate the opening of the chapel with the Moscow Metropolitanate and the Ministry of Culture. Because it was important for us that the shrines were in the right place - and there was a priest around them, ”said the owner of the museum.

Gershkovich sarcastically called Kekhman's statement about the transfer of relics and icons to the temple "a feat." He also accused the general director of the Moscow Art Theater of delaying the return of the sacred items.

“Many thanks to Mr. Kehman, but I do not see a feat here - he returned what does not belong to him. Perhaps this is a feat, - said Gershkovich. - The fact that Kehman returned the shrines is a fine fellow. But why did he detain them? He personally detained them for more than two months. ”

In addition, the owner of the museum criticized Kekhman for "raising the buzz in the media because of the prayer room."

“What Mr. Kekhman arranged is stupid, I don’t understand it,” Gershkovich admitted. - He made a fuss in the media, saying that he would investigate how the shrines ended up there. Who is he? Is he a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church? What right does he have to conduct any kind of investigation? I don't even want to get involved in this topic. What is guided by creative people, I do not understand. I know only one thing: shrines are for prayers, and it is incorrect to associate other stories with them. "

Kekhman came to the post of general director of the Gorky Moscow Art Theater on October 27, 2021. A month later, he told reporters that he had found a prayer room with icons in the theater, and promised to investigate its origins. Later it turned out that the shrines ended up in the Moscow Art Theater on the initiative of Eduard Boyakov, who left his post on November 1, 2021. Later, the media had at their disposal a letter from the rector of the temple, Alexander Panikhin, in which he asked to return the shrines.

bbabo.Net