The article is dedicated to the study of the biography of the spiritual leader of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Archimandrite Kirill (Pavlov; 1919–2017), one of the key spiritual figures at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries, and the mentor of three patriarchs (Alexy I, Pimen, Alexy II), who was at the origins of many large-scale church-state projects. The subject of the study is the spiritual transformation of the religiously indifferent personality of Ivan Pavlov (Kirill's name before his monastic tonsure) during the Great Patriotic War, influenced by traumatic war experiences. Special attention is given to his act of witnessing Christian faith during the war, when due to his combat merits, it was decided to accept Ivan Pavlov into the ranks of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks). Experiencing a worldview revolution and turning to faith shortly after the Battle of Stalingrad, the Red Army soldier Ivan Pavlov refused to be a communist, calling himself a Christian. The research is based on a combination of general scientific and historical methods, including historical-biographical, reconstructive, historical-genetic, hermeneutical, and interviews. Archival documents from 1941–1945 have been found and studied: distribution statements for the issuance of monetary allowances, award documents, the personal file of the candidate for membership in the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) Ivan Pavlov, and his medical history in evacuation hospital No. 2904. Thus, for the first time, an attempt has been made to conduct a comprehensive study of the frontline biography of the elder, relying on scientific and historical methods and archival documents. This has allowed for a more complete and accurate representation of the life of Father Kirill. The authors conclude that it was during the years of military trials that a spiritual transformation of his personality occurred, confirmed by the act of witnessing faith. It was on the front that the decision to serve God and people matured. The events of wartime, according to the authors, predetermined the entire subsequent fate of the Russian elder. The relevance of the study is connected to the necessity of preserving the historical memory of the outstanding figure of Father Kirill, as well as reflecting on the essence of military trials, when in conditions of a crisis choice, the best sides of human personality are revealed.
Kamardina et al. (Fri,) studied this question.