Christmas in a Romanian prison

“In prison I became seriously ill. Tuberculosis affected the entire surface of both lungs, affected four vertebrae and spread to my intestines. I also had diabetes, heart failure, hepatitis and some other illnesses that I can’t even remember now. I was already one step away from death.

To my right lay a priest, Father Gerasim (Isku). He was the abbot of a monastery [1]. This man, who was about forty years old, had been tortured so much that there was hardly any life in him. But his face was calm. He spoke of his trust in salvation, of his love for Christ, of his faith. And he was glowing with joy.

And to my left lay the Communist torturer who had tortured this priest almost to death. [2] This communist was arrested by his own comrades….

Ironically, this communist-torturer, who brutally tortured Fr. Gerasim, was also tortured – by his comrades. He was dying next to me. His soul was tormented in agony.

At night he would wake me up saying, “Pastor, please pray for me! I cannot die, I have committed so many terrible crimes.” [3].

And then I saw a miracle. I saw the dying priest turn to the other two prisoners. Leaning on their shoulders, he walked slowly past my bunk, sank down on the edge of his executioner’s bunk, and began to stroke his head. I shall never forget that moment! The tortured man comforting his tormentor. What kind of love was that! He was able to find comfort for him!

Then the priest said to the man, “You are young. You did not know what you were doing. Know that I forgive you and love you with all my heart.”

He didn’t just say those words. You could say “I love you” and it would just be an empty sound, a shake of the air. And in his words, there was indeed love.

Then he continued:

“And all the Christians you have tortured…know that they forgive you, love you, and you are loved by Christ. He wants your salvation far more than you want it. You doubt whether your sins can be forgiven….. But He wants to forgive your sins far more than you want to be forgiven. He wants you to be in paradise with Him, much more than you want to be in paradise with Him. He is Love itself. But it is necessary to turn to Him, to repent.”

In that prison cell, where there could be no secrets from each other, I too heard the confession of a murderer to his victim. Life is far more marvelous than any adventure novel. No novelist has ever written anything like it. The victim, standing on the threshold of death, took confession from his murderer. The tortured man absolved his executioner of his sins.

They prayed together and embraced each other. The priest returned to his bunk, and that night they both died.

And that night was Christmas night!

And not just any Christmas night, when we remember that two thousand years ago Christ was born in Bethlehem.

That was the night that Christ was born in the heart of a Communist solder.

I saw it with my own eyes.”

Sources:

Journal: “Athos Testimony”
Source: https://www.ekklisiaonline.gr/nea/o-christos-genniete-se-mia-fylaki/

[1] Archimandrite Gerasim (Iscu), abbot of the monastery of Tismana, was canonized by the Romanian Orthodox Church in the rank of Monk-Martyr in 2024; Comm. 26 December.

[2] His surname is known to be Vasilescu (ed. note).

[3] The narrator at the time was a Lutheran pastor