Hieromonk
Saint John (in the world Flavian Ivanovich Laba) was born on July 3, 1863, in the village of Serebiya, Gaisin district of Kyiv province. He became a monk of the Athonite St. Panteleimon Monastery. In 1913, he was taken out of Athos, and after 1920, he moved to the Solyony farm in the Labinsky district of the Armavir region of the Kuban, where he lived with the Athonite monk Hilarion. On June 29, 1924, the monks were arrested for 'opposing Soviet power' and sentenced to 3 years of exile in the Naryn region. After his release, John settled near Frunze on a bee farm. On February 2, 1929, he faced a second arrest with the same accusation and a new sentence of 3 years of exile. After his release, he met again with Father Hilarion, who had moved to the city of Mirzoyan. During this period, John lived in a separate cell, performing services and receiving elderly nuns. On June 24, 1937, after the arrest of Father Hilarion, John was also arrested, accused of 'participating in a counter-revolutionary organization' and 'leading a secret monastery.' The troika of the U.N.K.V.D. for the South Kazakhstan region sentenced him to the highest measure of punishment. On September 4, 1937, he was executed by firing squad.
