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New Martyr20th century

New Hieromartyr Alexis (Benemanskii) of Tver

1881–1937

Also known as Alexis Benemanskii

A Russian priest who resisted the Soviet-backed Living Church movement and was martyred in the twentieth century.

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Commemorated as

The Holy New Hieromartyr Alexis (Benemanskii) of Tver

Life

Alexis Konstantinovich Benemanskii (also transliterated Alexey Konstantinovich Benemansky) was a Russian Orthodox priest of the Diocese of Tver who was executed during the Soviet persecutions of the 1930s. Born into a clerical family, he served in Tver from his ordination in 1904 and became a firm opponent of the renovationist "Living Church," the Soviet-backed movement of the 1920s aimed at undermining the Moscow Patriarchate.

Across nearly two decades he was arrested four times and repeatedly imprisoned or exiled before his final arrest in 1937. Charged with fabricated counter-revolutionary offenses, he was shot by an NKVD tribunal on December 5, 1937 (November 22 by the old calendar). He was recognized as a local saint by the Diocese of Tver in 1999 and formally glorified among the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia by the Russian Orthodox Church in 2000. His feast day is November 22.

Troparion1 hymnReadHide
TroparionTone 4

By sharing in the ways of the Apostles,
you became a successor to their throne.
Through the practice of virtue, you found the way to divine contemplation, O inspired one of God;
by teaching the word of truth without error, you defended the Faith,
even to the shedding of your blood.
Hieromartyr Alexis, entreat Christ God to save our souls.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline10 momentsReadHide
  1. January 6, 1881BirthBorn in the village of Baranya Gora, Novotorzhsk District, Tver Province, the son of the priest Konstantin Benemansky.
  2. 1902Seminary graduationGraduated from the Tver Theological Seminary.
  3. 1904OrdinationOrdained a priest and began serving in the Diocese of Tver.
  4. 1919Diocesan councilElected to the diocesan council in the summer; later became rector of the Church of the Sorrowful Mother of God.
  5. 1922Exile to TurkestanSentenced in the autumn to two years of exile in Turkestan; released in 1924.
  6. 1926Return to TverReturned to Tver in late 1926 and actively opposed the renovationist Living Church.
  7. March 15, 1932Deportation to KazakhstanDeported to Kazakhstan for three years.
  8. December 4-5, 1937Arrest and martyrdomArrested on December 4 alongside Archpriest Elias Gromoglasov and shot by an NKVD troika the following day at the age of 56.
  9. September 19, 1999Local canonizationRecognized as a locally venerated saint by the Diocese of Tver.
  10. August 2000GlorificationFormally glorified among the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia by the Jubilee Council of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Contributions & Legacy

4 contributionsReadHide

Early Life and Ministry

Alexis was born on January 6, 1881, in the village of Baranya Gora, Novotorzhsk District, Tver Province, the son of a priest, Konstantin Benemansky. He graduated from the Tver Theological Seminary in 1902 and was ordained a priest in 1904.

He served at the Nativity of Christ women's monastery in Tver, taught Orthodox catechism, and later served at the Church of the Sorrowful Mother of God (the "Sorrowful Church"). In the summer of 1919 he was elected to the diocesan council and in time became rector of the Sorrowful Church.

Resistance to the Living Church

During the 1920s the Soviet authorities promoted the renovationist "Living Church" as a means of undermining the canonical Moscow Patriarchate. After returning to Tver in late 1926, Alexis actively opposed the renovationists and defended the canonical Church, refusing to compromise his principles despite repeated pressure.

His steadfastness made him a target of the state. Over the course of his ministry he was arrested four times and subjected to imprisonment and exile before his final capture.

Arrest and Martyrdom

Alexis was arrested on four occasions: in 1920, during the civil war, when he was assigned to rear labor; in the autumn of 1922, when he was sentenced to two years of exile in Turkestan (released in 1924); on March 15, 1932, when he was deported to Kazakhstan for three years; and in 1937.

In his final case he was accused of participation in a counter-revolutionary, allegedly fascist-monarchist organization, charges that were fabricated and connected by the authorities to Archbishop Thaddeus of Tver. He was arrested on December 4, 1937 (November 21 old style), together with Archpriest Elias Gromoglasov, and was shot by an NKVD troika the next day, December 5 (November 22 old style), at the age of 56. His burial place is unknown.

Glorification and Veneration

The Diocese of Tver recognized Alexis as a locally venerated saint on September 19, 1999. In August 2000, during the Jubilee Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, he was formally glorified among the New Martyrs and Confessors of the Soviet yoke.

His feast day is celebrated on November 22 (corresponding to December 5 on the Gregorian calendar).

Member ofReadHide
Synaxis of the New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia
Synaxis
Companions1 figureShowHide
Fellow Tver clergyman arrested with him in 1937; commemorated the same day.
New Hieromartyr Elias (Gromoglasov)of Tver
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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints