The Shepherd, October 2009
8. The Death and Testament of Bishop Nicolas.
Bishop Nicolas remained only three years in his see. In August of 1932, he went to Yugoslavia to take part in a meeting of the Council of Bishops, after the end of which he fell ill with appendicitis. Due to an oversight he was not given an operation in time, and during the night of 27th/28th September (10th/11th October), he died. His last words were, “Give me a candle to hold. I am dying. I want to go away to Heaven.” After taking hold of the candle, Vladyka Nicolas quietly reposed.
His funeral took place on 29th September / 12th October in the Church of the Iveron Mother of God in Belgrade. It was conducted by Metropolitan Antony, Archbishops Germogen and Theophan, and thirteen Russian and Serbian priests with three deacons. The funeral was an occasion of profound compunction and spiritual edification. During the service, Vladyka Antony wept profusely on several occasions. Archbishop Theophan gave a sermon about the deceased bishop, and after the service Vladyka Antony addressed the congregation:
“On behalf of the deceased I thank the Russian & Serbian clergy, who have accompanied him on his journey to the next world. I thank you also, lay people, for having prayed so fervently. Throughout my life I have observed that, to those who love to pray for the deceased, the Lord sends a quiet & undisturbed end, & an edifying funeral. This end awaits all of us - some earlier, some later, but it comes to all without a doubt. People have gathered at this funeral not out of obligation, but following the inclination of their hearts, and this has given it a spiritual beauty.”
Bishop Nicolas was buried by the walls of the Iveron Church beneath an icon of the Holy Hierarch Nicolas of Myra, which is set in the outside wall of the church.
The untimely death of her first bishop was undoubtedly a tragedy of the first magnitude for the Orthodox Church in England. All the parishioners had come to love Bishop Nicolas and were very distressed. “Even the milkman,” recalls abbess Elisabeth, “when they told him that he had died, had tears in his eyes. ‘What a pity,’ he said, ‘what a wonderful person!’ All loved him. Many, many English people who had met him expressed great sorrow that he was so young and had died.”
As he lay dying, Bishop Nicolas wrote the following testament to his flock in London, written in his own hand:-
“In the Name of the Father and of the Son [and of the Holy Spirit!]
“My dearest London flock!
“I am writing to you for the last time before departing into eternity. I have not the strength or the words to express my love for you. As depart, I am taking you with me in my heart. I remember you all, particularly my friends the Mescherskys, the Galitzines and the Ampenoffs and all my young flock. I bequeath to you the church and Podvoria in prayerful memory. Gather there and make intercessions for me. It would be good if you were to fulfill my last request and choose Father Anatoly as your priest. Then the Podvoria would continue to exist. Continue in love for one another.
“I bow to the ground before our hierarch, Kyr Antony. How glad I am that he will close my eyes and conduct my funeral. I also bow to the ground before our hierarch Archbishop Seraphim and all the members of the Church Abroad. I have tried to be useful. On all Orthodox Christians and on my brother monks and priests I invoke God’s blessing.
“I am growing weaker. O, to be able to ‘do all things’ by the power of Jesus who strengthens me.’
Nicolas, Orthodox Bishop of London.”*
Ever-Memorable Hierarch of God Nicolas, pray unto God for us!
* The original testament was given to our Brotherhood in Brookwood, & is now treasured in Saint Edward’s Church. A slightly different translation of it was published as a beautifully calligraphed card by Saint George Orthodox Information Service’s “Orthodox News” after the sale of the Podvoria.
Bishop Nicolas was given the title “of London,” but apparently it was either incorrect or illegal, because there was prior claimant to that title, i.e. the Anglican Bishop of London, and so he always signed as the “Orthodox Bishop of London.” Until 1985, his successors were given the titles “of Preston” & subsequently “of Richmond,” - places which did not have sizeable Orthodox communities, much less permanent churches, but whose names were readily rendered into Church Slavonic and Russian.
