Alexy (Orlov)

In the world, Alexey Stepanovich Orlov was born on February 8, 1862, in the city of Samara in a poor family of a psalm reader. The family was deeply religious.

He graduated from the St. Petersburg Theological Academy with a degree of Candidate of Theology.

On August 16, 1895, he was ordained a priest and served in various churches in the city of Samara, and then as a protopriest in the Samara Cathedral.

In 1922, he became a widower and took monastic vows the same year.

On June 3, 1923, he was consecrated as Bishop of Bugulma, vicar of the Samara Diocese. Likely, in the second half of September 1923, he became Bishop of Buguruslan, also a vicar of the Samara Diocese. He is known for his letter to Patriarch Tikhon, dated September 26, 1923, in which Bishop Alexy reports the arrest of Samara Bishop Anatoly (Grisyuk) and his assumption of diocesan administration by the blessing of Bishop Anatoly.

At the end of 1923, he deviated into renovationism and was appointed Renovationist Bishop of Buguruslan, with temporary administration of the Samara Diocese. In 1924, he publicly repented for his deviation into renovationism in the Samara Cathedral and was reinstated into the Russian Orthodox Church in his existing rank.

In 1924, he was appointed Bishop of Kurgan, vicar of the Tobolsk Diocese.

On September 16, 1927, he was appointed Bishop of Malmyzh, vicar of the Sarapul (Izhevsk) Diocese.

On February 24, 1931, he was transferred to be Bishop of Yenotaevsk, vicar of the Astrakhan Diocese. According to A.I. Kuznetsov’s memoirs, Bishop Alexy (Orlov) arrived in Astrakhan in September 1930, after the arrest of the temporary Administrator of the Astrakhan Diocese, Bishop Andrew (Komarov). During the time Bishop Andrew was in custody, until February 1931, Bishop Alexy bore the burden of diocesan administration.

Bishop Alexy was a humble, charming person, and for this, he enjoyed universal love from the faithful. He was very simple in demeanor, led an ascetic lifestyle, and served daily in the church, mainly in the Church of Prince Vladimir, near which he lived in a house on Radishcheva Street, 38. There is a description of the bishop's appearance: tall, with a lush, literally waist-length beard, a white ruddy face with kind eyes and an expressive smile.

Once, on the eve of the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord, an incident occurred. Bishop Alexy was invited to serve the all-night vigil at the Tikhvin Church. He arrived, the parishioners met him, and the service began. Soon, Bishop Andrew (Komarov) also arrived at the church, having been released from prison that morning. Unaccompanied, he entered the altar. What happened in the altar is unknown, but only Bishop Andrew came out for the Liturgy. There was an uproar in the church; voices were heard saying, "Where is Bishop Alexy?" The faithful approached Bishop Andrew, demanding his removal, wanting Bishop Alexy to continue the service. Bishop Andrew tried to say something, but in the general clamor, he was not heard. The service was disrupted. Naturally, this incident did not contribute to good relations between the bishops. Bishop Alexy remained in Astrakhan as a vicar bishop but could serve only occasionally and only in the Church of Prince Vladimir.

In April 1931, Bishop Alexy was removed from the city. Only in 1933 did the people of Astrakhan learn what had happened from the bishop's own letter: "Once, I bought a ream of postal paper, each sheet of which was decorated with a bold typographic stamp: 'Religion is the opiate of the working masses.' I skillfully altered this slogan, and it became: 'Religion is the solace of the working masses.' In this altered form, the paper circulated in my business correspondence. Someone considered this a liberty, and I ended up in Syzran."

On June 5, 1931, he was appointed Bishop of Syzran, vicar of the Samara Diocese, but he did not stay there long. Almost immediately, he was exiled to Siberia, to Omsk.

On August 24, 1931, he was appointed Bishop of Omsk.

On August 11, 1933, he was elevated to the rank of Archbishop.

On April 24, 1935, he was arrested based on a report compiled by the SPO of the UNKVD for the Omsk region, which stated: "According to the data at our disposal, the archbishop ORLOV Alexey Mikhailovich, residing in the city of Omsk, aged 73, hostile to the existing regime, gathered like-minded individuals from the Tikhonite clergy and fugitives around him.
 This group, led by Archbishop Orlov, systematically engaged in anti-Soviet agitation against the policies of the party and Soviet power over several years, spreading provocative rumors about the impending war and the inevitable collapse of Soviet power...
In connection with the closure of the Znamensky Church of the Tikhonite orientation in the city of Omsk, Archbishop Orlov, under the guise of his name day, convened an illegal gathering of supporters at his apartment, where he delivered an agitational speech to those present, calling for prayers to save the Church and the country from troubles. Based on the above... to arrest the individuals involved in this case... and bring them to justice under Articles 58-10-11 of the RSFSR Criminal Code..."

During interrogations, which continued until July 10, 1935, the bishop maintained his dignity, showing himself to be an honest, fearless person, fully trusting his close associates. Interrogation materials revealed that the bishop explained to his flock the harmfulness of the schism and renovationism, provided material assistance to exiled and repressed clergy, assisted priests who had escaped from exile, and was concerned about the material needs of his entrusted flock, reacting sharply to the explosion of the Ilyinsky Church in Omsk.

On July 10, 1935, an indictment was drawn up, stating: "...Orlov Alexey Stepanovich, born in 1862, is accused of leading a counter-revolutionary defeatist group of Tikhonite clergy. He personally spread provocative rumors about an imminent war between Japan and the USSR and the inevitable collapse of Soviet power, influenced believers in favor of Japan, asserting that it was the defender of Christianity; spread provocative rumors that in the event of war, the Red Army would rebel; in connection with Kirov's murder, said that 'many innocent people suffered.'"

On July 22, 1935, the case was referred to the Special Conference at the NKVD of the USSR.

On October 25, 1935, Archbishop Alexey was sentenced under Articles 58-10, 58-11 of the RSFSR Criminal Code for "participation in a counter-revolutionary group" and sentenced to 5 years of exile in Kazakhstan.

On December 23, 1936, he arrived in the city of Mirzoyan (modern-day Taraz). Here, Archbishop Alexey helped organize an "old-church" (Patriarchal Church) community, compiled lists of its members, wrote applications to the district executive committee, and provided advice on registration. Despite the authorities' prohibitions, at the request of believers, he performed religious services.

On May 15, 1937, he was arrested by the Mirzoyan NKVD District Department, accused of participating in a "counter-revolutionary organization of churchmen," and imprisoned in Mirzoyan.

He was tried in the same case as the executed metropolitans Kirill (Smirnov), Joseph (Petrovykh), and other clergy and laity in the city of Chimkent. In the indictment issued on August 23, 1937, Bishop Alexey was accused of the following: "On the territory of the South Kazakhstan region of the Kazakh SSR, a counter-revolutionary center was organized by former prominent church leaders Smirnov K.I., Petrovykh I., and Kobranov E., who were serving administrative exile. This center included a significant number of clergy, monks, priests, kulaks, and officers. The center's primary objective was to organize all counter-revolutionary church forces into a well-concealed underground network for an active uprising against Soviet power at the time of an anticipated intervention against the USSR, with the establishment of the Patriarchate and the head of the Church over state power. To this end, among the leadership, it was decided to consider Smirnov Konstantin as the head of the Russian Church, and some counter-revolutionary formations were informed of this decision. In various localities across the USSR, including industrial centers and factories, workers' communities and secret monasteries were organized, where under the guidance of bishops, priests, and monks, new members were recruited into the counter-revolutionary organization, and tonsures were conducted... The leaders of the center regularly received financial aid from various parts of the USSR through their branches, which, under the center's direction, conducted secret collections of funds among the faithful."

In addition to the general charges, the following specific accusations were made:

"Orlov Alexey was the organizer of new illegal communities in Mankent and Mirzoyan. He was the organizer of counter-revolutionary cells, a liaison between Archbishop Boris Shipulin of Tashkent and Joseph Petrovykh. He conducted counter-revolutionary agitation about the imminent fall of Madrid and expressed defeatist sentiments."
During interrogations, Bishop Alexey did not deny that "as a cleric, he helped form a religious 'old church' community, technically compiled lists of its members, wrote applications to the district executive committee, and gave advice to illiterate people on how to go to the district executive committee to register the community"; he did not deny having "contact with Archbishop Boris Shipulin, who manages the Tashkent Diocese, and was registered with him as a cleric since every cleric must be registered according to old church rules, no matter where he is...". But to questions about his anti-Soviet and counter-revolutionary activities, he replied: "I engaged in no anti-Soviet activities." When charged, he stated: "I do not plead guilty to anything."

The protocol of the last interrogation took two lines:

Question: You are a member of the counter-revolutionary organization of churchmen and must confess and tell honestly and in detail about your counter-revolutionary activities.

Answer: He refuses to give a frank testimony, stating that he does not know.

On August 26, 1937, he was sentenced by the NKVD Troika of the South Kazakhstan Region under Articles 58-10, 58-11 of the RSFSR Criminal Code for "anti-Soviet activities" and sentenced to death.

On September 4, 1937, he was executed near the city of Chimkent, at Fox Ravine. The burial place is currently unknown.

On July 5, 1958, the Presidium of the South Kazakhstan Regional Court rehabilitated him for the 1937 charges. On June 22, 1989, he was rehabilitated by the Prosecutor's Office of the Omsk Region for the 1937 charges.

Сanonized by the Bishops' Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in August 2000.