The final Testament of the Confessor of Christ - Father Nicetas Lekhan
1st of March 1985.
Being in prison and spiritual confinement: in prison and physical confinement – always in fear.
Always in fear and trembling for my body, but most of all – for my soul.
The only consolation – God’s Mercy.
In God’s mercy, I, the huge sinner, fallen, the greatest offender, the violator of God’s laws, the lazy servant, the irresolute – the Priest Nicetas hear the voice of our Lord Jesus Christ, speaking in the Holy Gospel: “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Luke 12:40); “Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming – in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning – lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping” (Mark 13:35).
I hear the Lord’s voice – and am frightened.
Apart from this, overcome with weakness from my poor health, from day to day my body is enfeebled, expecting the unexpected hour of death which was announced by the Lord, and preparing according to my strength for the departure from this life.
I have a mass of sins – confessed and not confessed, which are before me every hour, while I don't have my fruits, worthy of repentance and equal to my sins: what will I render for my sins? I am feeble.
I REPENT AND REPENT!
The inclinations within me towards all types of sin are many, many.
How great and deep is our defilement of our nature through sin in its countless forms and directions!
This I acknowledge and feel every day, every hour, every minute.
Like a hurricane, sin is ready to embrace and stir me unexpectedly, to agitate my soul at the slightest inattentiveness and indulgence of its sensuality, to shake me either with:
Anger;
Irritability;
Bitterness;
Lustful thoughts;
Flattering reminiscences and the imaginative sweetness of sin;
Envy;
Hypocrisy and man-pleasing;
Vanity;
Disobedience;
Obduracy and sycophancy;
Sleepiness and yawning;
Faint-heartedness and pride;
Depression and weakening of the soul and body.
And through all types of sin the devil intensifies to push me away from God – the Source of our life, Light, Peace and Blessings.
My heart should attach itself to the Only God, but it stretches out nearly hourly toward the world and what is worldly – what blindness!
It forgets the past and puts aside repentance.
And it forgets the future – the flames of fire.
That’s why I will continue my repentance to the very last hour of my life.
I REPENT!
In leaving this earthly life unto the Eternal Heavenly joy, the Holy Fathers left their testaments on their earthly treasures, spiritual and material.
And I too will outline my wishes, so that it would be likewise after my death.
As everyone knows, our small commune grew both materially and spiritually. Likewise, everyone understands that our times are the final ones: many false Christs and false prophets have appeared on the earth (Mat. 24:24).
That’s why, upon my death, we will all be entreating the Lord for Him to send to our commune, a true-Orthodox pastor so that our commune will grow with abundant fruit. I have in mind that I am separating from you only in body: my soul is with you.
We must place all of our hopes on the Lord: but we ourselves shouldn’t slumber in a spiritual dream.
It’s essential for us to remember and firmly know that right from the beginning the devil raised:
Against the Prophets – false prophets;
Against the Apostles - false apostles;
Against the Holy Teachers – false holy teachers;
And that the devil fights to seduce the negligent with denigration - to slander the true Christians and praise the false ones.
And we should especially know and remember that the way we will be, the same way the teachers will appear to us. That’s why we shouldn’t seek, determine and accept a spiritual leader through our wisdom and mind, but through prayer, fasting, good deeds and charity.
Let God Himself be your Facilitator. By your prayers, God will send you a pastor. Then you can accept and please him as you would God.
Because the Lord said to His Disciples: “He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me” (Luke 10:16).
This means to accept them like Christ Himself.
Because whatever you do to him, you do to Christ.
And on the contrary: whatever you render to the false teacher – is carried up to Antichrist himself, and those who accept them (false teachers) – accept the devil himself.
And let no one say to you that “we don’t know such people”. Who knows what lies in his soul?
The Lord, previously, gave commandments on how to recognize such people by saying: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves” (Mat. 7:15).
It’s only essential for us to know what the fruits are from the Holy Spirit, and what fruits are false. Then we will be able to know who the true teachers are, and who the false teachers are.
And listen to what the Lord says:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit”, and the poverty of the spirit is meekness and humility.
Listen to what the Saints have to say: “There is no truth that is pleasing to God without the poverty of the spirit”. This means that if the teacher has good deeds – is prayerful, merciful, visits the sick, has an ardency toward God ... but will not have the poverty of spirit, then he will have animosity toward his neighbours, arguments and envy, he will be irate with others, and disharmony: such a person is not a true but a false teacher.
As Saint John the Chrysostom says: “What is poverty of spirit?” And he replies: “The poor in spirit are those who recognize their own insignificance, who don’t argue with anyone, don’t offend anyone and don’t judge. There is no poverty of spirit in a person that reproaches and convicts in malice”.
Blessed are those who mourn.
Blessed are the meek.
Love your enemies.
Do good to those who hate you.
Pray for those who create adversities for you (Mat. 5:44).
Let no idle word come from your mouth (Mat. 12:36).
If you don’t change and become like children, you will not enter the Heavenly Kingdom.
“By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35): i.e. you will live in the abundance of love.
And Saint John the Theologian says:” Do not love the world or what’s in it”. “He who loves the world, doesn’t have the Father’s love in him”.
From this strict appraisal, you can find out who are sons of God and who – sons of the devil: who is genuine and who is false.
And the Apostle says: “Where there are envy, strife and divisions among you, are you not carnal?” (1 Cor. 3:3).
Watch the preachers: if they argue with someone, even at home – they are false preachers.
And how do you recognize a true preacher? By his meekness – if he argues heatedly, he is not genuine.
And at this time there is no need to invite into our commune a pastor-teacher.
I leave my wishes.
With my departure into the eternity beyond the grave, I specify my wishes to transfer the spiritual and household management to the monastic servants of God.
By the blessing of Abbess Vera, the responsibility of managing the commune “Ozertso” both materially and spiritually will be taken up by the following servants of God:
The eldest – Nun Margaret:
Nun Nonna;
Nun Asinepha;
Nun Archelais;
And God’s servant Anna – the 65 year old widow, who left her house in her will to the spiritual commune, and named it “Pilgrims’ Retreat” (this is a house next to the commune “Ozertso”). She also bakes the prosphoras and is a psalmist.
May the Lord grant you love and fulfilment of the Gospel’s commandments, as Barsanuphius the Great says: “Everyone is a heretic and false teacher who doesn’t fulfil Christ’s commandments, even though he confesses His Name”.
Priest Nicetas
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| The grave of Fr. Nicetas Lekhan |
[In 1985, Fr. Nicetas passed onto eternity after beholding a vision of Sts. Basil the Great, John Chrysostom and Dimitry of Rostov. This faithful confessor of the Russian Orthodox Catacomb Church has been known to work miracles for those who approach him with faith in prayer!]
(The above text has been kindly translated by Seraphim Larin.)
For more information concerning the Life and Teachings of Fr. Nicetas Lekhan please see:
1) The Revelations and Life of Fr. Nicetas Lekhan (catacombhistory.blogspot.com) and
2) Fr. Nicetas Lekhan: on "Christians" who are the friends of Satan (catacombhistory.blogspot.com)