Presbyter
Saint Michael was born on September 5, 1883, in the village of Soshki, Lipetsk district of Tambov province. In 1905, he graduated from the Tambov Theological Seminary, and in 1909, from the Saint Petersburg Theological Academy. In 1921, with the arrival of the Bolsheviks, the seminary was closed, and he became a teacher at a women's gymnasium. In the same year, he was ordained a priest at the Ascension Cathedral in Berdyansk.
In the 1920s, he participated in religious debates, where he defeated godless opponents. In 1924, he was arrested but released due to lack of evidence. In the 1930s, all churches in Berdyansk were closed, except for the Pokrovsky Church, where he became an assistant to the protodeacon Viktor Kiranov. On January 8, 1937, the parishioners decided not to surrender the church, but it was closed, and the priests were arrested.
In prison, he was brutally tortured, but he did not confess to any wrongdoing. On October 29, 1939, he was sentenced to five years of imprisonment and sent to a labor camp. In captivity, he fell seriously ill and became a victim of torment, yet he showed meekness and humility. He passed away on March 28, 1940, in captivity and was buried in an unmarked grave.
Priest protodeacon Viktor Kiranov wrote: “The life of the last one was such that if our faith is not in vain, then he, by analogy with all saints, will undoubtedly stand before the Throne of the Almighty.”
